Study and simulation of the effective factors on soil compaction by tractors wheels using the finite element method

Abstract

Soil is a nonrenewable source that needs considerable management to prevent physical deteriorationby erosion and compaction. Compacted soil causes low fertility and yield. The purpose of this study isto investigate the effect of viscoelastic properties of soil and to determine important factors oncompaction. Furthermore, stress distribution, prediction of soil compaction and simulation of its effectunder tractor wheels using ANSYS software were also studied. Predicted results using ANSYSsoftware are compared with laboratory and field results. Simulations were carried out by changing andmeasuring effective factors on soil compaction. These factors consist of wheel parameters whichinclude: number of wheel passes, speed and load; and the soil parameters such as soil bulk density andYoung’s modulus. The predicted results indicated that maximum soil compaction in the first trafficwith 512 mm was induced by viscoelastic properties of soil and the minimum soil compaction in thesixth traffic was 8 mm caused by soil elasticity properties. Variation in soil bulk density wasnegligible. Also at each wheel pass, e maximum stress was in the soil surface and this decreased withincrease in depth. The maximum vertical stress on the soil in the sixth traffic was 120.477 kPa at 2.52km/h and the minimum was 117.46 kPa at 5 km/h.