Pre consolidation stress evaluated with Vs in lacustrine soils

Abstract

To perform a stress-strain analysis in saturated soil, it is essential to evaluate the pre-consolidation stress. For this reason, in the last 80 years, a series of criteria have been proposed that allow the evaluation of this variable in one-dimensional oedometer tests. In addition, many researchers have equipped their oedometers with piezoelectric transducers to relate the soil mechanical properties concerning an elastic stiffness modification produced by an effective stress variation. Within the information acquired with the measurement of seismic waves, it is possible to indirectly observe the change in the soil structure throughout an oedometer test and even to be able to evaluate the pre-consolidation stress. This research analyzes data from several oedometer tests carried out on undisturbed samples of soft lacustrine soil in which shear wave velocity has been measured to estimate the pre-consolidation stress. The results obtained were compared with some methods presented in the specialized bibliography, observing a very good relationship, especially with the visual methods of Casagrande and Pacheco-Silva. Furthermore, the interpretation of the shear wave arrival time is evaluated using an approach based on the identification of the first peak within a time-scale-coefficient analysis based on the wavelet transform framework.

Artículo recibido: 20 de agosto de 2021

Artículo aceptado: 11 de noviembre de 2021