Discrete-element method analysis of initial fabric effects on pre- and post-liquefaction behavior of sands

Abstract

The initial fabric has great influence on the cyclic behaviours of sands. In this study, numerical simulations by the discrete-element method (DEM) were conducted to study the effects of the initial fabric of sands on their cyclic liquefaction resistance and post-liquefaction behaviour. Nine samples with different initial fabric but the same void ratio were prepared by the pre-shearing method, and then subjected to 47 cyclic simple shear tests. The DEM simulation demonstrated that samples with higher degrees of fabric anisotropy have much lower liquefaction resistance compared with an isotropic sample. By incorporating the initial fabric, a single equation can be used to characterise the liquefaction resistance of all the prepared samples. On the other hand, post-liquefaction deformation is not significantly influenced by the initial fabric such that all samples demonstrate similar cyclic behaviour after liquefaction.