CE 3121: Geotechnical Engineering Laboratory

Class 7

Consolidation Test on Cohesive Soil

Sources:

Soil Mechanics Laboratory Manual, B.M. DAS (Chapter 17)

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Class Outlines
Consolidation
Definitions & Introduction
Significance
Consolidation vs Compaction
Type of Consolidations
One-Dimensional Consolidation Test
Definition
Procedure
Graphs and results
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Consolidation - Definition
Consolidation refers to the compression or

settlement that soils undergo as a response of

placing loads onto the ground
These loads produce corresponding increases
in the vertical effective stress, sv
Consolidation is a time-dependent process, in
some soils it may take long time (100 years ?)
to achieve complete settlement

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Significance
The amount of soil volume change that will occur is

often one of the governing design criteria of a

project
If the settlement is not kept to tolerable limit, the
desire use of the structure may be impaired and
the design life of the structure may be reduced
It is therefore important to have a mean of
predicting the amount of soil compression or
consolidation
It is also important to know the rate of consolidation
as well as the total consolidation to be expected
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Consolidation - Case Study

Palacio de las Bellas, Artes, Mexico City

The Leaning Tower of Pisa

Total settlement = 9ft

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Consolidation - Introduction
The compression is caused by:

Deformation of soil particles

Relocations of soil particles
Expulsion of water or air from void spaces

Most of the settlement of a structure on clay is

mainly due to volumetric changes and rarely

due to shear strain.

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Consolidation vs. Compaction

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Consolidation (cont.)
During consolidation, pore water or the water in the

voids of saturated clay gets squeezed out reducing

the volume of the clay hence causing settlement
called as consolidation settlement

The spring
analogy to
consolidation.

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Consolidation (cont.)
sz0
c

sz
s

}s

sz0
sz

}s

z0

zf

sz0
Vv = eVs
V

Voids

Vv = (e - e)Vs
Solids

Voids
Solids

Before

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After

zf

Types of Consolidation
There are three types of consolidation:

Immediate consolidation; caused by elastic

deformation of dry soil or moist and saturated
soil without change in moisture content
Primary consolidation; caused as a result of
volume change in saturated cohesive soils
due to exclusion of water occupied the void
spaces
Secondary consolidation; occurs in saturated
cohesive soils as a result of the plastic
adjustment of soil fabrics
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Types of Consolidation (cont.)

Clayey soils undergo consolidation settlement not

only under the action of external loads (surcharge

loads) but also under its own weight or weight of soils
that exist above the clay (geostatic loads).
Clayey soils also undergo settlement when
dewatered (e.g., ground water pumping) because
the effective stress on the clay increases
Coarse-grained soils DO NOT undergo consolidation
settlement due to relatively high hydraulic
conductivity compared to clayey soils. Instead,
coarse-grained soils undergo IMMEDIATE
settlement.
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1- D Consolidation Test
The main purpose of consolidation tests is to obtain

soil data which is used in predicting the rate and

amount of settlement of structures founded on clay.
The four most important soil properties determined by
a consolidation test are:

The pre-consolidation stress, sp, This is the maximum

stress that the soil has felt in the past.
The compression index, Cc , which indicates the
compressibility of a normally-consolidated soil.
The recompression index, Cr , which indicates the
compressibility of an over-consolidated soil.
The coefficient of consolidation, cv , which indicates the
rate of compression under a load increment.
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Test Results
Cr

Recompression
Index

B
Compression
Index

Cc

Pre-Consolidation
Stress

sp
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Consolidation Test
Two types of consolidometers (oedometers)

commonly used:

Floating-ring
Fixed ring

This lab uses the fixed-ring consolidometer

ASTM D 2435

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Laboratory Consolidation Test

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Consolidation Test

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Laboratory Consolidation Test

sv

1 Place sample in ring

2 Apply load
3 Measure height change
4 Repeat for new load

Confining
stress

sv

Vv

Voids

Vs

Solids
Before

Vv

V
Voids

Vs

Solids

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After

Procedure
Measure the inner diameter and height of the

consolidation cutter/ring and record its mass

Prepare a soil specimen for the test by trimming and
placing the soil in the ring
Determine the mass of ring + soil
Collect some excess soil for moisture content
Assume Gs = 2.7
Saturate the lower (larger) porous stone on the base of
the consolidometer
Place the specimen and ring and place the upper
stone/disk
Follow the rest in your lab manual
Place 1.5 kg (1st day), 3kg (2nd day), 6kg (3rd day), 12kg
(4th day)
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http://www.uic.edu/classes/cemm/cemmlab/Experiment%2011-Consolidation.pdf#search='consolidation%20test'

Calculations and Graphs - v vs w(time)

Plot of Ve rtical Displace me nt v s. Time
(P = 1000 psf)
0.4235

0.423

Displacement (in)

0.4225

0.422

0.4215

0.421

0.4205

0.42
0.00

5.00

10.00

15.00

Tim e (m in 0.5)

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20.00

25.00

v vs wtime Graph Find t90

Plot of Ve rtical Displace me nt v s. Time
(P = 1000 psf)
0.4235
d0
A
0.423

0.4225

Displacement (in)

t 90 = 2.5 m in 0.5
0.422

5
0.4215
1

0.421

2
0.4205

3
B

t 90
CD = 1.15 BC
0.42
0.00

5.00

10.00

15.00

Time (min 0.5)

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20.00

25.00

Calculation and Graph v vs log(time)

Logarithm of time curv e fitting
0.4235

0.423

Vertical Displacement (in)

0.4225

0.422

0.4215

0.421

0.4205

0.42
0.1

10

100

Time (min) - log Scale

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1000

10000

v vs log(time) Graph Find t50

Logarithm of time curv e fitting
0.4235
8
d 0 = 0.42305

d0
0.423

7
X

t 2 = 4t

Vertical Displacement (in)

0.4225

0.422
d 50

9
d 50=0.5(d 0+d 100)=0.42185

0.4215
1

10
0.421
d 100 = 0.42065

d 100

0.4205

t 50 = 10.2 m in
0.42
0.1

10

100

Tim e (m in) - log Scale

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1000

10000

Calculation
Determine the height of

solids (Hs) of the

specimen in the mold
Determine the change
in height (H)
Determine the final
specimen height, Ht(f)
Determine the height of
voids (Hv)
Determine the final void
ratio

Ws
Hs
2
D Gs w
4

Hv Ht ( f ) H s
Hv
e
Hs

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Calculation (cont.)
Calculate the coefficient

of consolidation (cv)
from t90
Calculate the coefficient
of consolidation (cv)
from t50
Plot e-log p curve and
find:

cv t90
Tv
H2

sc, Cc, Cr

Plot cv log p curves

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Tv

cv t50
H2

Calculation Sample (Ex. pp.121)

Eq 17.2
1(in) - Hs

Hi

Hv = Hi - Hs

t90

e = H v / Hs

(1.0 + 0.9917) / 2

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(0.848 x 0.99592)/(4 x 302)

Plot e vs log p
Cr

R min

Cc

sc
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In Your Report
Plot all curves find t90 and t50 (10 plots)
Show your calculations in a table and find

e, cv (t90), cv (t50)

Plot e vs. log (p) and determine:

Pc
Cc
Cr

Plot cv vs. log (p) (2 plots)

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