The 2012 Hans Cloos lecture: physicochemical theory of effective stress in soils

Abstract

The paper presents a new theory of effective stresses in soils. Unlike the well-known theory of Karl Terzaghi, it considers soil as a structured system with operating external and internal stresses of gravitational and physicochemical origin. Stresses calculated with consideration of both external and internal forces correspond to the actual effective stresses existing in a structured porous body. The paper characterizes both groups of stresses and provides the equations for calculating total actual effective stresses in soils.