• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.25 no.2
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• pp.75-87
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• 2021

Because the hydraulic/mechanical behaviour of unsaturated soil is more complicated than that of saturated soil, one of the most important issues in modelling unsaturated soil is to properly couple its stress-strain relationship with its water retention characteristics. Based on the results of a series of tests, the stress-strain relationship and the changes in suction and saturation of unsaturated completely decomposed granite (CDG, also called Masado) vary substantially under different loading/hydraulic conditions. To precisely model the hydraulic/mechanical behaviour of unsaturated Masado, in this study, the superloading concept was firstly introduced into an existing saturated/unsaturated constitutive model to consider the structural influences. Then a water retention curve (WRC) model considering the volumetric change in the soil, in which the skeleton and scanning curves of the water retention characteristics were assumed to shift in parallel in accordance with the change in the void ratio, was proposed. The proposed WRC model was incorporated into the constitutive model, and the validity of the newly proposed model was verified using the results of tests conducted on unsaturated Masado, including water retention, oedometer and triaxial tests. The accuracy of the proposed model in describing the stress-strain relationship and the variations in suction and saturation of unsaturated Masado is satisfactory.

• Journal of the Korean Geotechnical Society
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• v.26 no.6
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• pp.21-28
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• 2010

Decomposed granite soil is the most common type of soils. The measurement of the stress-strain-strength behavior of anisotropic decomposed granite soils is very important for the deformation and stability analysis of slopes, retaining walls, excavations. A series of unsaturated-drained triaxial compression tests were performed to know unsaturated strength properties. The sample had three different angles of the axial (major principal) direction to the sedimentation plane (compaction plane): 0, 45 and 90 degrees. The compression strain of specimens subjected to an isotropic compression was strongly influenced by the sedimentation angle. In addition, the time dependence was independent of the sedimentation angle in relation to the deformation behavior during the secondary compression process. The effect of the sedimentation angle on the triaxial compression strength and deformation was clearly shown with low confining stress. The effect of the sedimentation angle on the compressive strength and deformation was more evident in saturated specimens. A new method of predicting the shear strength of unsaturated decomposed granite soils, considering compaction angles, was proposed.

• Journal of the Korean Geotechnical Society
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• v.15 no.2
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• pp.181-194
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• 1999

Both the chemical components and the physical and mechanical properties of the compacted and undisturbed weathered granite soils were estimated to investigate the influences of the degree of weathering and saturation on the shear strength. The weathered granite soils used in this study were taken from six different sites in Korea. The results showed that the shear strength of weathered granite soil decreased with increasing the degree of weathering and saturation. Under the normal stresses less that 40kPa, the shape of Mohr-Coulomb failure envelope followed curved or hyperbolic relationship and a half of cohesion value obtained by the common shear test was observed. Using the Sueoka's method, the values of CWI were ranged from 21.5 to 31.26 which can be characterized as a completely weathered granite soil. Large decrease in shear strength and remarkable variation in dilatancy were observed in saturated granite soil compared to unsaturated soil. It was also found that the shear strength of undisturbed weathered granite soil of Pungam site can be expressed approximately by the equation of ${(\tau)_{sat}= 1.0(\tau)_{unsat}-12.48}$ and this equation can be extended to the other sites considered in this study.

• Journal of the Korea institute for structural maintenance and inspection
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• v.5 no.1
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• pp.206-217
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• 2001

The purpose of this study was to estimate that the relations of weathering speed and shear strength of granite soil by tracing the weathering depth of granite soil from the very moment of its cutting. The results obtained this follows ; 1) The relationships among Nc, Li and CEC, Li>6%, CEC>14 corresponds to Nc=2~30, and 4%${\phi}$)increases at a standard pressure. 3) And Nc=0~50 corresponds to $27{\sim}50^{\circ}$ of internal fiction angle and to 12~49kPa of cohesion. That is to say, internal friction angle(${\phi}$)corresponds better than cohesion(c). In conclusion, this study suggests that in simplified dynamic cone penetration test a penetration boundary line of 5 centimeters is decided at around Li=4%, CEC=3(meq/100g) which is classified as a completely weathering soil. It also appears that CEC increases as Li increases while Nc decreases.

• Journal of Korean Society of Forest Science
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• v.86 no.2
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• pp.186-199
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• 1997

The soils derived from granite gneiss occupy almost one third of the land area in Korea. The soils under forest vegetation, formed on granite gneiss, in Sun chon-shi, Chollanam-do in southern part of Korea, were studied to evaluate the weathering and the transformation of primary minerals into secondary minerals, clay minerals. The studied soils contained large amounts of ferromagnesian minerals, weathered biotites and were well weathered, strongly acid and low in organic matters and in ration exchange capacity. The clay contents in the Bt horizon were almost two times higher than those in the C horizon. The O horizon had a thin layer which consisted of a little decomposed plant components with a granic fabric and high porosity, and showed the micromorphological characteristics of moder humus. The related distribution pattern of the E horizon were enaulic and large amounts of silts and small amounts of sand grains were another characteristics of the E horizon. The most striking micromorphological features were multilaminated clay coating and infillings in the voids in the Bt and C horizons, and generally limpid ferriargillans ejected from the biotites and imparted red color to the soils in the Bt horizon. High clay contents in the Bt horizon was not only due to clay translocation, but also due to intensive in situ mineral weathering in this horizon. The most significant pedogenic process, revealed by the petrographic microscope and SEM, was the formation of iron oxides from biotites, the formation of tubular halloysites and the weathering models of biotites; wedge weathering and layer weathering. The thick coating on the weathering biotites showed the characteristics of the weathering process and the synthetic hematites were revealed in clays by TEM. Total chemical analysis of clays revealed extensive loss of Ca, and Na and the concentration of Fe and Al. Mineralogical studies of clays by XRD showed that micas were almost completely weathered to kaolinite, vermiculite-kaolinite intergrade, hematite, gibbsite, while halloysites from other primary minerals. Some dioctahedral mica appeared to be resistant in the soils. Parent rock of the soils contained a considerable amounts of biotites and this forest soils showed especially a dominant characteristics of biotite weathering.

• Journal of Korean Society of Forest Science
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• v.87 no.3
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• pp.383-390
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• 1998

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of new materials with forest topsoil for hydroseeding measures that is environmentally and ecologically stable revegetation measures on rock cut-slopes. Field hydroseeding experiment was used with a completely randomized design at highway rock cut-slopes in April, 1997. Results obtained in this study were summarized as follows: Particle size distribution of 3 mixed-soil materials that consisted of forest topsoil, decomposed granite soil, compost, sludge, and bottom ash did not show a significant difference. As appending the amount of forest topsoil, soil bulk density was increased. Soil hardness was slightly increased in early period, and then decreased with the flourishing of plants. The number of individuals increased, more than $3,000seedlings/m^2$, after 1 month, and it was decreased as time passes because of competition between the seeded species and the naturally emerged species. In addition to the seeded species, seeding plot has more than 6 species (Rubus crataegifolius, Eleusine indica, Erigeron canadensis, Lycopersicon esculentum var. cerasiforme, etc.) per $m^2$ were naturally appeared in the first year. From the viewpoint of species diversity promotion, the capability of using forest topsoil as seed bank sources was high. In order to apply in the field, the investigation and analysis of topsoil availability (quantity and quality of seed source, soil texture and organic composition) should be carried out before-hand.