Rheological equation of a silt, determined with the aid of a newly developed test apparatus

Abstract

Flat prismatic soil samples were subjected to creep and recovery experiments in newly developed shear cells. The deformation took place below failure in simple shear, that is, in plane strain. The pore-water pressure in the sample was measured at the same time. All observed phenomena could be expressed in a rheological equation, in which the shear stress could be related to the shear strain, to the time and to the soil parameters. The equation can be interpreted by a rheological model. The model parameters (elasticity, viscosity, plasticity) depend on the consistency of the tested materials.