Undrained pore pressure behavior of soft marine clay under long-term low cyclic loads

Abstract

Long-term low cyclic loads are often encountered in marine environment, but the cyclic behavior of soil under this loading condition is rarely studied. Undrained pore pressure behavior of soft marine clay subjected to long-term low cyclic loading is of considerable importance for the proper design and maintenance planning of foundations of near- and off-shore structures. In this paper, a new hyperbolic model is proposed to predict the development of undrained pore pressure. This model is verified by experimental data from literature. Compared with the existing models, the proposed model has better capability and performance. With use of the proposed model, a hyperbolic relationship between cumulative plastic strain and pore pressure was derived and verified by experimental data. Finally, the effects of cyclic stress ratio, confining pressure and loading frequency on pore pressure are investigated. In summary, this work provides a novel model and some innovative observations to better understanding undrained pore pressure behavior of soft marine clay under long-term low cyclic loads.