Experimental investigation of the influence of bedding planes on the mechanical characteristics of saturated sand

Abstract

This paper presents an experimental study concerning the relevance of mechanical characteristics and bedding planes of sand. The study was carried out using a new method of specimen fabrication based on the capillary effect. A series of triaxial tests were performed to study the stress-strain behavior of sand under different bedding plane tilting angles. The results show that the peak deviatoric stress and the volumetric strain are significantly different under different bedding plane tilting angles due to the inherent anisotropy of sand, and the difference between their peak strengths can reach 30%. The specimen reached the failure stage more easily and the peak strength was lower, reaching the residual state earlier when the bedding plane tilting angle was close to 45°-ϕ/2. The equation proposed in this study can thus reasonably reflect the relationship between the bedding plane tilting angle and the peak strength. The inherent anisotropy due to the bedding plane of sand may have a significant influence on the deformation of building foundations; therefore, neglecting this factor may lead to unsafe designs.