Visualization and quantification of soil laboratory impact compaction

Abstract

As important methods to guide the field soil compaction, the standard and modified Proctor tests for laboratory compaction have remained unchanged for decades, which should be improved to better understand the compaction process and the properties of soils. In this study, an accelerometer was installed on a Marshall impact compactor to capture the dynamic response of three types of soils during compaction. The experimental test results indicated that the acceleration curve for each blow gradually evolved to a stable pattern following the progress of compaction, and the impact and gyratory locking points were linearly related with coefficient of determination R 2 equal to 0.59. The impact compaction curve could be further constructed by filtering the structural resonance, which can be used to quantify the compactability of soil materials. Although each type of soil had a unique set of compaction curves, the slope and value of compaction curve altered accordingly as the moisture content changed for the same soil. In addition, the average acceleration value at the final compaction stage could serve as the target value of soil stiffness. • A high-g accelerometer was utilized to capture the dynamic response of soil impact compaction. • The impact and gyratory locking points were related for soil compaction. • The soil impact compaction curve could be constructed by filtering the structural ringing.