A new method for interpreting pressuremeter data to estimate in situ horizontal stress

Abstract

The widely used horizontal at rest pressure in designing the common foundations for different structures and to determine the friction on the sides of deep foundations is extensively investigated in present paper. It is demonstrated that this coefficient can be derived successfully from the pressuremeter tests. The results of Menard pressuremeter tests that have been conducted in Abu Dhabi have been evaluated using different methods for interpretation the horizontal at rest pressure. The soil can be described as sandy silt soil. The results showed distinctive discrepancies in the values of the horizontal at rest pressure that deduced from different methods of interpretation. This paper provides a new method for interpretation of the values of the horizontal at rest pressure. The method named as stress relief method, in which the effect of disturbance taken into account when stress relief occurred at the borehole wall. Five methods were used to evaluate the horizontal at rest pressure that deduced from the pressuremeter tests, some of these method has no theoretical basis while the other tried to compensate for the effects of disturbance. In the present study, the values of the horizontal at rest pressuremeter obtained from different methods of evaluations showed good agreements while the others showed vital differences.