Abstract
Piping is a complicated natural phenomenon of internal erosion, which threatens the safety of hydraulic earth structures. Despite of the comprehensive research aiming to figure out the onset condition and development of piping, there is little element experiment in laboratory regarding the mechanical properties of disturbed soil. In this paper, as an attempt to create piping erosion under controlled conditions, glucose with certain shape and volume was placed in sand samples. With the dissolution of glucose pipes, artificial piping erosion was reproduced. Based on this approach, a series of experiments were performed in a hollow cylindrical torsional shear apparatus under different confining pressures for both intact specimens and eroded ones. Strains during piping propagation were measured by local sensors. Shear modulus was obtained by conducting torsional cyclic loadings with peak to peak stress magnitude of 4 kPa under various directions of principal stress axes. Furthermore, shear strength and the development of shear band were studied. The results clearly indicate the weakened mechanical behavior of sand subjected to piping erosion. Influence of piping-induced anisotropic fabric on shear strength and shear band was also confirmed.
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