Stress–Strain Behavior of Municipal Solid Waste in Undrained Loading Condition

Abstract

Shear strength property of municipal solid waste (MSW) reveals important information with reference to the various stability issues in landfill engineering. In this context, the undrained behavior of MSW plays significant role for the short-term stability issues of landfill. The shear strength parameters derived from stresses–strain response of MSW during loading at failure state is important to assess the stability of landfill in undrained condition. The stress–strain analysis of MSW depends upon composition of MSW, water content, unit weight, size and shape of particles, loading history, etc., as the results of all above parameters are clearly visible in nature of stress–strain response of MSW. Due to these issues, analysis of MSW becomes complex, and improper investigation of strength, compressibility parameters, and design may lead to catastrophic failure. Therefore, the stress–strain behavior plays significant role for better understanding of assessment of landfill slope stability in undrained loading condition. In this paper, experimental observation of stress–strain behavior of MSW under undrained loading condition is presented for the waste collected from Bangalore landfill site. The results obtained from experiments are interpreted in the form of stress–strain response and pore water pressure.