Role of particle breakage in primary and secondary compression of wet and dry sand

Abstract

The results of one-dimensional compression tests on dry and saturated crushable sand are analysed in order to identify the role of wetting and particle breakage on primary and secondary compression. Test results indicate that flooding dry samples at constant stress promotes particle breakage and triggers collapse from the characteristic compression curve of the dry material to the compression curve of the initially saturated material. The analysis shows that the link between the one-dimensional compressibility index and the amount of particle breakage does not depend on the stress level or the wetting condition. Furthermore, creep is promoted after flooding and the secondary consolidation index increases essentially up to the same value obtained in initially saturated samples. These findings suggest that the effect of flooding on both primary and secondary compression can be predicted only from dry and saturated tests.