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CONTROL OF SECONDARY CREEP IN SOFT

ALLUVIUM SOIL USING SURCHARGE LOADING

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 CONTROL OF SECONDARY CREEP IN SOFT ALLUVIUM SOIL USING
SURCHARGE LOADING

T. CONROY1, D. FAHEY1, F.BUGGY2 and M.LONG1

1
School of Architecture, Landscape & Civil Engineering, University College Dublin,
Belfield, Dublin 4 (Contact: mike.long@ucd.ie)Ireland.
2
Roughan & O’Donovan Consulting Engineers, Sandyford, Dublin 18

Abstract
The construction of embankments over soft alluvium deposits of varying depths
presents designers with many significant problems, most notably short term stability
and long term settlement. High levels of consolidation settlement but also high rates of
secondary compression often lead to significant long term settlements of the
embankments. In order to overcome the problem of secondary compression a
surcharge loading regime for the embankments, combined with perforated vertical
drains to reduce the time for primary consolidation to take place could be
implemented. This paper presents an investigation into the amount of surcharge that is
required to achieve a specified improvement in the rate of secondary compression.
The surcharge level required can be calculated on the basis of the procedure presented
by Charles C. Ladd (1971) which involves the analysis of the results of several long
duration oedometer tests at different levels of surcharge loading. Special long term
oedometer tests which mimic the typical site loading regime for the construction of an
embankment were carried out at University College Dublin. The laboratory test results
are used to calculate the rate of secondary compression for normally consolidated soils
(Cα), and the improved rate of secondary compression (C'α) following removal of the
surcharge load. The UCD results have been correlated with Ladd’s method and
historical data to assess the applicability of the method to an Irish alluvium soil. The
results and their implications for design will be presented in this paper.

Keywords: Creep, Surcharge loading.

1. Introduction

The principle of surcharge loading is that the soil is temporarily loaded to an effective
stress (σ'vs) which is higher than the final effective stress (σ'vf) which it will
experience under the permanent embankment load. This means that the soil will
become ‘artificially’ over consolidated (OC) when under the final embankment load.
This is illustrated in Figure 1 (part A). The advantage here lies in the fact that OC soils
exhibit lower creep rates than normally consolidated (NC) soils. Figure 1 (part B)
shows the typical loading sequence which is carried out when surcharge loading is
used. The soil is loaded to stress level σ'vs and allowed to consolidate. The value of Cα
is calculated as the slope of the curve between times tp and tr. The load is then
removed and the soil is now at stress level σ'vf. Swelling occurs following unloading
until creep reappears at some time ts, a new lower creep rate C'α is now observed and
can be calculated from the linear portion of the graph after ts. Since C'α is smaller than
Cα the rate and amount of secondary compression is reduced. The magnitude of this
reduction depends on the amount of surcharge loading used.

T. Conroy, D. Fahey, F. Buggy and M. Long 1

 Figure 1 – Effects of surcharging on secondary compression, Ladd (1971)

This paper looks at the method of predicting the effect of surcharge loading in
reducing the rate of secondary compression as proposed by Ladd (1971) and whether
this method is applicable to soft alluvium soils from the Shannon Estuary in Ireland.
Using data collected on several cohesive soil deposits, Ladd (1971) found that the
ratio of C'α to Cα is directly related to the level of surcharge loading applied to the soil.
Figure 2 shows Ladd’s relationship between C'α/ Cα and adjusted amount of surcharge
(AAOS) where:
 ' vs   ' vf
AAOS = where: (1)
 '
vf

σ'vs is the effective stress under surcharge and,

σ'vf is the final effective stress following removal of surcharge and completion of all
loading.
Ladd’s results show maximum and minimum limits of expected improvement for
any level of surcharge loading. From this data a mean line is also constructed which
fits the data very well. If Cα for a soil is known then this graph can be used to
calculate the amount of surcharge needed to achieve a required C'α or to predict the
reduced C'α that will be achieved based on a known amount of surcharge

2 T. Conroy, D. Fahey, F. Buggy and M. Long

 Figure 2 - C'α/ Cα vs. AAOS % Saye et al (2001)

Other authors who have investigated the effects of surcharge loading on creep
behaviour include Mesri and Nash. Mesri’s analysis of the improvement of Cα is
based on his Cα /Cc concept as presented by Mesri and Castro (1987). This constant
value of Cα /Cc for a soil is applicable to both compression and recompression and
could be used in conjunction with Cc values along recompression curve to calculate
the corresponding values of C'α.
Nash and Ryde (1999, 2000) developed models based on the work of Yin and
Graham (1989, 1996) and Bjerrum (1972) which models creep as a set of isotaches on
a strain versus stress plot. Each isotache represents a different constant creep rate. The
Yin and Graham model makes use of the λ-κ model used in critical state soil
mechanics to define the instant elastic-plastic behaviour. This results in the normally
consolidated line being replaced by a reference time line (RTL). Creep rate at a
particular time can be determined from a set of isotaches through the introduction of
the concept of “equivalent time” te which is the time taken to creep under constant
effective stress from the RTL to the present state. A feature of both the Mesri and
Nash approaches is that the post surcharge creep rate C'α is not constant but slowly
increases to approach the original creep rate of NC soil after sufficient time has
passed. The time required to fully recover Cα is variable and is dependant on the strain
which occurs during surcharge, itself a function of the surcharge load.

2. Laboratory Test Methodology

A series of oedometer tests (using 76mm diameter 19mm depth ring) were carried out

T. Conroy, D. Fahey, F. Buggy and M. Long 3

at University College Dublin on samples of soft alluvium soil obtained from piston
tube sampling at 1.5 - 2m depth in the Shannon Esturary. The samples collected had a
water content of 60%, a plastic limit of 41%, a liquid limit of 86%, a plasticity index
of 45% and a liquidity index of 0.422. The organics content was approximately 5%.
Soil underneath the crest of a wide embankment essentially experiences 1D
compression and so oedometer testing apparatus is particularly suitable for modelling
the behaviour of the soil. Three tests were carried out in 2009 and six tests in 2010.
These tests were carried out in order to simulate the surcharging of the soil which
could be carried out in the field during the construction of an embankment. Firstly the
samples were consolidated to 160kPa to ensure the soil is behaving in the NC state.
The soil is then loaded up to the surcharge stress σ'vs which depends on the AAOS
required. The surcharge load is left in place for two days to ensure that Cα can be
accurately calculated. The sample is first unloaded to reflect the removal of temporary
surcharge fill and then a small reload is applied representing the road pavement
foundation and construction. The reload increment is then left in place to monitor the
behaviour of the now OC soil under its final load. This final loading increment
requires a long duration in order to calculate C'α. The tests carried out by the authors
along with the AAOS and duration of the tests are shown in Table 1. Care was taken
to ensure that all surcharge loads applied were well in excess of the preconsolidation
pressure of the natural deposit so that Cα is calculated for NC conditions. A typical test
loading sequence is shown in Table 2.

Table 1 - Summary of tests carried out

Test AAOS Duration Cα C'α C'α/ Cα

(%) (days)
1 15 54 0.0081 0.0055 0.6784
2 15 54 0.0116 0.0056 0.4844
3 20 46 0.0107 0.0055 0.5154
4 25 54 0.0099 0.0028 0.2855
5 39 0.0780
6 39 0.0447
7 40 55 0.0117 0.0010 0.0814
8 50 48 0.0097 0.0001 0.0098
9 56 0.0771

Table 2 – Typical loading schedule of test 3 (AAOS = 20%)

Increment Load (kPa) Duration (days) Comment

1 10 1
2 20 1
3 40 1
4 160 1
5 240* 2 Surcharge
6 190 1 Unload
7 200 46+ Reload

* load represents 20% AAOS, and this value changes for the different AAOS level

4 T. Conroy, D. Fahey, F. Buggy and M. Long

3. R esults

The results of two of the oedometer tests, 20% and 50% AAOS, are shown in Figure 3
and Figure 4 respectively.

Time (s)
1 10 100 1000 10000 100000 1000000 10000000
0

0.05
10kPa
20kPa
40kPa
0.1
80kPa
240kPa
Strain

Cα
190kPa
0.15
200kPa
C'α

0.2

0.25

Figure 3 – strain vs. time for 20% AAOS

Time (s)
1 10 100 1000 10000 100000 1E+06 1E+07
0
10kPa
20kPa
0.05
40kPa
80kPa
0.1
Strain

300kPa

0.15 190kPa
Cα C'α
200kPa
0.2

0.25

Figure 4 – strain vs. time for 50% AAOS

From these graphs it is clear that the value of C'α is less than Cα, therefore less
secondary compression would be expected after the surcharge load has been applied
and removed. These graphs also confirm that there is a delay between the removal of
the surcharge load and the reappearance of creep. Comparing these graphs it can be

T. Conroy, D. Fahey, F. Buggy and M. Long 5

seen that creep reappears sooner for the 20% AAOS test than the 50% AAOS test,
also the effect of surcharge level can be clearly observed. The 50% test show almost
no creep and the strain vs time curve for the final load increment (200kPa) is almost
horizontal, compared to the 20% test which still shows a significant rate of creep
although less than the creep rate observed for NC soil at the maximum load.

0.9

0.8

0.7
Ladd
0.6 m axim um
C'α/Cα

0.5 Ladd mean

0.4 Ladd
m inimum
0.3
UCD 2010
0.2
UCD 2009
0.1

0
10 100
AAOS (%)

Figure 5 - C'α/Cα vs. AAOS % for Shannon Estuary Alluvium (UCD 2009, 2010)

Further to the results recently obtained at UCD, the authors researched a number of
the original papers from which Ladd used data to correlate a relationship for C'α / Cα
and AAOS. The data from four of these papers along with the results for the soft
alluvium obtained from the Shannon Estuary and Ladd’s mean plus upper / lower
limit lines are plotted on a graph of C'α / Cα vs. AAOS as shown in Figure 6. To this
entire data set of 31 points a mean trend line is added which is almost parallel to
Ladd’s mean line and gives a slightly greater improvement in Cα for a given AAOS
level. The fact that the trend obtained is so similar to Ladd’s, and that Ladd’s mean
line is slightly more conservative than this new relationship using all of the data from
the soft alluvium, suggests that Ladd’s mean line trend is suitable and readily
applicable to use in design of surcharge loading regimes for the Shannon Estuary soft
alluvium and similar Irish soils.
It should be noted that the authors used all the original data available from the four
papers Salt Lake City - Saye et al. (2000), Barcelona - Alonso, Gens and Lloret
(2000), New York - Stewart, Lacey and Ladd (1994) and Hong Kong - Koutsoftas et
al. (1987). The only exception to this was the Barcelona paper which included AAOS
tests of 4.4, 7.6 and 100%. These values were omitted because it was felt that the
results for C'α / Cα were potentially erroneous especially at the lower AAOS values
and because the test durations were only of the order of 10 to 12 days which may not
have been sufficiently long enough to ensure that the post surcharge creep rate had
fully reappeared. There was also no other data from other sites close to these values to
compare the results to.

6 T. Conroy, D. Fahey, F. Buggy and M. Long

 Creep Improvement ratio due to surcharge
1.2

C'α/Cα = 1.847 - 1.083Log(AAOS %)

1.0 R2 = 0.823

0.8 C'α/Cα = 1.823 - 1.094Log(AAOS %)

R2 = 0.835
C'α/Cα

0.6

0.4

0.2

0.0
10 Ladd maximum AAOS (% ) 100
Ladd mean
Ladd minimum
Conroy & Fahey "Shannon Esturary"
Ng "Lake Bonneville, Salt Lake City"
Alonso "Barcelona"
Stewart "Syracuse, New York"
Koutsoftas "Hong Kong Airport "
new mean line

Figure 6 - C'α/Cα vs. AAOS % for various sites

4. Conclusions

The results obtained and the trends observed in Figures 3-6 provide good evidence
that Ladd’s method of analysing the improvement in Cα for a given level of surcharge
is applicable to the soft alluvium soils with modest organic contents such as those
found in the Shannon Esturary in Ireland. Ladd’s method may be used as a good rule
of thumb when designing surcharge loading regimes for the design of embankments
over clay soils.
It is advisable however where possible to carry out site specific tests to validate the
values of surcharge to be used. This will not only flag any potential problems i.e. if
improvement is not as good as expected, but also in the case where the improvement
is better than expected and data obtained lies close to the maximum improvement line
then potential economical savings may be made due to the need for a lower level of
surcharge.
It is emphasised that the data and trends presented in this paper relate primarily to
inorganic silts and clays or soils with relatively low organic content (5%) such as the
Shannon Estuary site in Ireland. Surcharge has been attempted in highly organic soils
such as mucks and peats. Some authors such as Yu & Frizzi (1994) have reported
good performance of surcharged organic soils, albeit that the range of improvement is
generally less and a greater variablility of results is observed compared to Ladd’s data.

T. Conroy, D. Fahey, F. Buggy and M. Long 7

 There have also been cases of poorer than expected post surcharge performance in
muskeg as published by Samson & La Rochelle (1985), so it would appear that there
is greater uncertainty in organic soils and Ladd’s mean or limit lines are not
considered appropriate for such soils..

5 Referen ces

Alonso, E. E., Gens, A. & Lloret, A. 2000. “Precompression design for secondary
settlement reduction.” Géotechnique, Vol 50, No. 6, 645-656.
Bjerrum, L. 1972. “Embankments on soft ground.” State of the Art report. Proc. Spec.
Conf. on Performance o f Earth and Earth- supported stru ctures, Purdu e University,
1:1-54, ASCE.
Conroy, T & Fahey D. 2010 “The use of surcharge loading to reduce creep settlement
underneath embankments” unpublished final year project
Koutsoftas, C., Foott, R. & Handfelt, L.D. 1987. “Geotechnical Investigations
Offshore Hong Kong.” Journal of Geotechnical Engineering, ASCE, Vol. 113, No.2.
Ladd, C. C. 1971. “Settlement Analyses of Cohesive Soils.” Research Report R71-2,
Department of Civil Engineering, M.I.T., Cambridge, Massachusetts.
Mesri, G., & Castro, A. 1987. “Cα/Cc concept and Ko during secondary compression .”
Journal Geotechnical Engineering, ASCE, Vol. 113(3), 230-247.
Nash, D. F. T. & Ryde, S. J. 1999. “Modelling the effects of surcharge to reduce long
term settlement of an embankment on soft alluvium”. 13th European Conferen ce o n
Soil Mechanics and Foundation Engineering, 3, pp. 1555-1561.
Nash, D. F. T. & Ryde, S. J. 2000. “Modelling the effects of surcharge to reduce long
term settlement of reclamations over soft clays”. Coastal Geotechnical Engineering in
Practice, pp. 483-488.
Samson L. 1985. “Post construction settlement of an expressway built on peat by
precompression.” Canadian Geotechnical Journal, 22 (2) pp 308 – 312.
Samson L. & La Rochelle P. 1972. “Design and Performance of an expressway
constructed over peat by preloading.” Canadian Geotechnical Journal, 9(4). Pp 447 –
466.
Saye, S. R., Ladd, C. C., Gerhart, P. C., Pilz, J. & Volk, J.C. (2001) “Embankment
Construction in an Urban Environment: the Interstate 15 Experience.” Foundations
and Ground Improvement, ASCE, 842-857.
Stewart, J. P., Lacy, H. S. & Ladd, C. C. (1994) “Settlement of Large Mat on Deep
Compressible Soil” Geotechnical Special Publication no. 40, ASCE, 842-859
Yin, J-H. & Graham, J. 1989. “Viscous-elastic-plastic modelling of one-dimensional
time-dependant behaviour.” Canadian Geotechnical Journal, 26(2):199-209.
Yin, J-H. & Graham, J. 1996. “Elastic visco-plastic modelling of one-dimensional
consolidation.” Géotechnique, 46(3):515-527.
Yu, K.P. & Frizzi R.P. 1994. “Preloading organic soils to limit future settlements.”
Vertical and Horizontal Deformation of Founda tions and Embankments, ASCE, 476-
489.

8 T. Conroy, D. Fahey, F. Buggy and M. Long

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