Experimental investigation on the effect of the mode of deposition on the pore-access size distribution of sand

Abstract

ABSTRACTIt is well known that the specimen preparation method and the resulting sand fabric significantly affect sand behaviour and sand liquefaction resistance. In this study, a simple experimental method namely tensiometric method is presented for evaluation of the effect of the samples reconstituting methods on microstructure and the pore-access size distribution of sands. Specimens were prepared using dry funnel pluviation (DFP) and wet deposition (WD) at two densities Dr = 40% (loose state) and Dr = 80% (dense state). The water-retention curve of a sand specimen is evaluated using a technique similar to the hanging column method by application of a step-by-step variation of suction and measure of the corresponding changes in water content. The pore-access size distribution is then evaluated from the water-retention curve. In this experimental study the effects of the mode of deposition and the uniformity coefficient on the pore-access size distribution are investigated. It was found that the specimen generated by the WD method contained a higher percentage of pore size, contrary to the specimen prepared by the DFP which contained a limited percentage of pore size, causing a great influence on the mechanical behaviour of the specimens.