Deformation of unsaturated collapsible soils under suction control

Abstract

Abstract Collapsible soils present significant geotechnical and structural engineering challenges worldwide. They can be found in arid or semi-arid regions and are directly affected by the multi-step wetting procedure due to the reduction of soil suction. The main objectives of this paper are to investigate the volume change behaviour, collapse mechanism and deformation characteristics under the control of suction and net vertical stress. In this study, three types of collapsible soils were investigated such as natural soils of sandy gypseous, silty loess, and artificial soil of gypsum–sand mixture. A series of constant net stress-suction control (wetting and drying) tests using a combination of axis-translation and vapor equilibrium techniques were deployed to cover a wide range of applied suction. The test results show that large volume change and collapse deformation occur upon a stepwise suction decrease. On the other hand, shrinkage behaviour resulting from increases in imposed suction is observed during the drying path. The collapse deformation depends on the stress path and is a function of net normal stress, suction, dry density, and degree of saturation. The water content and the degree of saturation dramatically increase as the applied suction decreases from the initial high to zero values at the drying path.