• Proceedings of the Korean Geotechical Society Conference
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• 2010.03a
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• pp.862-870
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• 2010

This thesis has been researched on optimized design method for the total cross section of embankment considering the fact that the size of embankment cross section is directly related with economic efficiency when dam designing. In general, embankment cross section of fill dam is either determined by cohesion and angle of internal friction, a strength parameter of embankment materials or by permeability of embankment. Therefore the size of embankment cross section depending on strength parameter of embankment materials was determined by using MIDAS-GTS program through stress-seepage coupled analysis at the time of fill dam design. As a result, determination of embankment cross section was more affected by the size of central core and permeability rather than by slope stability by shear strength and it was revealed that in case of embankment height being over 20m, stability against infiltration and slope action could be secured only when embankment slope is at least over 1:2.5. In addition, it was also revealed that in case of making the size of central core exceeding specification standard, total cross section of embankment could be reduced considerably and at the time of embankment design, adequate size and appropriateness of embankment cross section could be determined with referring the table suggested by this study.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.20 no.6
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• pp.497-503
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• 2020

In the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the shallower depth of the earth's crust is composed of loose dune or beach sand with soluble salts. The expansive behavior of salt bearing soil, fluctuation of ground water table and extreme environmental conditions offer a variety of geotechnical problems affecting safety and serviceability of the infrastructure built on it. Despite spending money, time and other resources on repair and rehabilitation, no significant attention is paid to explore the root causes of excessive differential settlement and cracking to these facilities. The scientific solution required to ensure safety and serviceability of the constructed infrastructure is to improve the strength and durability properties of the supporting ground. In this study, shredded plastic is employed as a low cost and locally available additive to improve strength characteristics of the desert sand. The study shows a remarkable increase in the shear strength and normal settlement of the soil. A seven (07) degree increase in angle of internal friction is achieved by adding 0.4 percent of the shredded plastic additive. The effect of different proportions and sizes of the plastic strips is also investigated to obtain optimum values. Such a long-lived solution will seek to reduce maintenance and repair costs of the infrastructure facilities laid on problematic soil along with reduction of environmental pollutants.

• Proceedings of the Korean Geotechical Society Conference
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• 2003.03a
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• pp.499-502
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• 2003

The purpose of this study is to understand the sliding characteristics of the infilling-joint surface using the new devised shear test apparatus with changeable slope for the original infilling materials and the infilling materials experienced cyclic freezing-thawing processes. Three types of the mother rock classified as the igneous rock, the metamorphic rock and the sedimentary rock and the infilling materials were collected for laboratory test. The cohesion according to the slope change of the rock joint shows large variation within ${\pm}$5 degrees but the internal friction angle shows appears the linear decreasing tendency. It is confirmed that the affecting factor of slope change of rock joint at the behavior of rock mass is larger than that of the infilling thickness. Test results show that the cohesion and the internal friction angle in 100 times of cyclic freezing-thawing processes are decreased about 50 percent compared with original one. A further study using various infillings materials would lead to a better understanding of the failure mechanism of rock mass by slope change of rock joint.

• Proceedings of the Korean Geotechical Society Conference
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• 2000.03b
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• pp.239-246
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• 2000

It has been generally much fine contents in West Coast of Korea. When cyclic shear stress causing liquefaction was estimated as using cyclic triaxial tests in these grounds, it didn't appear linear relations between deviator stress and confining stress where σ'₃ was more than 150 kpa. Namely, due to no normalization of cyclic shear stress ratio, the errors of this is increased. Therefore, more confining stress is increased, more increment of deviator stress is decreased. So, using linear relations between tanø'/sub d/ of dynamic internal friction angle and CSR where σ'₃ was less than 150 kpa, liquefaction of these grounds was evaluated. Also, as doing detail evaluation which had carried response analysis of earthquake, this appeared good results which was well compatible with empirical methods using N-value of SPT. It was thought that these result evaluated vulnerable liquefaction area more correct than existing methods. Also, characteristics of liquefaction in West Coast grounds was compared with clean sands, with analysis of behavior of pore pressure ratio and axial strain affected by fine contents, as cyclic loading was applied.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.14 no.2
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• pp.175-185
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• 2018

Sand Compaction Piles (SCPs) are constructed by feeding and compacting sand into soft clay ground. Sand piles have been installed with irregular cross-sectional shapes, and mixtures of both sand and clay, which violate the design requirement of circular shape according to the replacement area ratio due to various factors, including side flow pressure. Therefore, design assumptions cannot be satisfied according to the conditions of the ground and construction and the replacement area ratio. Two case histories were collected, examined, and interpreted in order to study the effect of the shape of SCPs. The effects of the distortion of SCP shape and the mixture of sand and clay were studied with the results of large direct shear tests. The design internal friction angle was secured with the irregular cross-sectional sand piles regardless of the replacement area ratio. The design internal friction angle was secured regardless of mixed condition when the mixture of sand and clay was higher than the replacement area ratio of 65%. Therefore, systematic construction management is recommended with a replacement area ratio below 65%.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.35 no.2
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• pp.135-147
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• 2023

Sand columns in clayey soil are considered one of the most economical and environmentally-friendly soil-improving techniques. It improves the shear strength parameters, reduces the settlement, and increases the bearing capacity of clayey soils. The aim of this paper is to study the effect of grain shape in sand columns on their performance in improving the mechanical properties of clayey soils. An intensive series of consolidated-drained triaxial tests were performed on clay specimens only and clay specimens with sand columns. The parameters examined during the experimental work were grain shape in sand columns (angular, rounded, sub-rounded) and effective confining pressure (50 kPa, 100 kPa, 200 kPa). The results indicated that there is a significant improvement in the deviatoric stress and stiffness values of specimens with sand columns. Improving deviatoric stress values in the use of angular sand grains was found to be higher than those in the use of sub-rounded and rounded sand grains. A 187%, 159%, and 153% increment in deviatoric stress values were observed for the sand columns with angular, sub-rounded, and rounded grain shapes, respectively. The specimens were observed to be more contractive as the sand column was installed, and as the angularity of grains in the sand column was increased. Sand column installation improves significantly the angle of internal friction, and the effective angle of internal friction increases as the angularity of the sand grains increases.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.35 no.1
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• pp.41-54
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• 2023

The use of a skirt, a vertical projection attached to the footing, is a recently developed method to increase the bearing capacity of soils and reduce foundation settlements. Most of the studies were focused on vertical skirted circular footings resting on clay while neglecting the rigidity and inclination of skirts. This study employs finite element limit analysis to investigate the bearing capacity enhancement of flexible and rigid inclined skirts in cohesionless soils. The results indicate that the bearing capacity initially improves with an increase in the skirt inclination but subsequently decreases for both flexible and rigid skirts. However, the rigid skirt exhibits more apparent optimum skirt inclination and bearing capacity enhancement than the flexible one, owing to differences in their failure mechanisms. Furthermore, the bearing capacity of the inclined skirted foundation increases with the skirt length, footing depth, and internal friction angle of the soil. In the case of rigid skirts, the bearing capacity increases linearly with skirt length, while for flexible skirts, it reaches a stable value at a certain skirt length. The efficiency of the flexible footing reduces as the footing depth and soil internal friction angle increase. Conversely, the efficiency of the rigid skirt decreases only with an increase in the depth of the footing. The paper also presents a detailed analysis of various failure patterns, highlighting the behaviour of inclined skirted footings. Additionally, nonlinear regression equations are provided to quantify and predict the bearing capacity enhancement with the inclined skirts.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.23 no.4
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• pp.301-311
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• 2020

In this study, shear strength behavior of fine-grained soils was investigated under unsaturated conditions. The samples in the unsaturated state were subjected to a net normal stress (σ-u_a) of 40 kPa and different matric suctions (u_a-u_w) of 50, 100 and 150 kPa. The matric suction values applied in the triaxial tests were selected according to the bubbling pressures determined from the SWC curves. The study was carried out on prepared re-constituted cylindrical samples by uniaxial consolidation of soil slurries. First, consolidated drained (CD) triaxial compression tests were performed on the saturated samples and the cohesion and angle of internal friction were determined. After that, drained triaxial compression tests under matric suctions were performed on the unsaturated samples. In order to obtain unsaturated test results, cohesion and internal friction angle values of saturated samples were used. The nonlinear surface representing the shear strength surface was approximated consisting of two planes (double planar surface). The reason for the nonlinear behavior of some soils is that the amount of sand content contained in it is relatively high and the bubbling pressure/permanent water content value is relatively low.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.13 no.4
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• pp.701-714
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• 2017

The effect of nearby cohesionless sloping ground on the uplift capacity of horizontal strip plate anchor embedded in sand deposit with horizontal ground surface has been studied numerically. The numerical analysis has been carried out by using the lower bound theorem of limit analysis with finite elements and linear optimization. The results have been presented in the form of non-dimensional uplift capacity factor of anchor plate by changing its distance from the slope crest for different slope angles, embedment ratios and angles of soil internal friction. It has been found that the decrease in horizontal distance between the edge of the anchor plate and the slope crest causes a continuous decrease in uplift capacity of anchor plate. The optimum distance is that distance between slope crest and anchor plate below which uplift capacity of an anchor plate has been found to decrease with a decrease in normalized crest distance from the anchor plate in presence of nearby sloping ground. The normalized optimum distance between the slope crest and the anchor plate has been found to increase with an increase in slope angle, embedment ratio and soil internal friction angle.

• Magazine of the Korean Society of Agricultural Engineers
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• v.36 no.3
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• pp.90-99
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• 1994

To investigate the undrained shear strength characteristics of marine soils with high water content, high compressibility and weak bearing capacity, a series of undrained triaxial tests with pore pressure measurements on undisturbed and disturbed Banwol marine clay in normally consolidated and overconsolidated states is carried out. The results and main conclusions of this study are summarized as follows : 1 . When the consolidation pressure is increased, the maximum deviator stress of disturbed and undistubed clay in normally consolidated state is increased. Pore pressure parameters and internal friction angle of undisturbed clay are greater than those of disturbed clay. 2. The relationship between pore pressure and axial strain of undisturbed clay in normally consolidated state can be expressed as a hyperbolic function like stress-strain relation proposed by Kondner. 3. In the pore pressure-axial strain relation of disturbed clay in normally consolidated state, failure ratio R'f is greatly deviated in the range of 0.7~0.9 proposed by Christian and Desai. 4. For overconsolided clay, when overconsolidation ratio (OCR) is increased, normalized maximum deviator stress is increased and maximum pore pressure is decreased gradually. 5. Cohesion of overconsolidated clay is greater than that of nomally consolidated clay and internal friction angle slightly is decreased. 6. Pore pressure parameter at failure (Af) of overconsolidated clay is varied with OCR, Af becomes negative values with increment in OCR