Compaction effect vs. shear strength
Compaction effect vs. shear strength
(OP)
I always wonder what's the basis when engineers specify 90% or 95% compaction for trench or embankment, etc. Are we using the compaction as and index property for shear strength? What if we don't have the correlation between compaction and shear strength for that material? How do we know if the specified compaction can provide sufficient stability? Any insight is welcome.





RE: Compaction effect vs. shear strength
To answer your question directly, relative compaction is used as a very indirect proxy or index for strength and the profession generally considers based on experience if a certain relative compaction is achieved that the fills will acceptably support typical applied loads.
RE: Compaction effect vs. shear strength
RE: Compaction effect vs. shear strength
RE: Compaction effect vs. shear strength
RE: Compaction effect vs. shear strength
RE: Compaction effect vs. shear strength
RE: Compaction effect vs. shear strength
Note that if the fill is compacted dry of optimum the strength thus obtained will be higher than the long term strength that will be experienced once the moisture content of the fill increases during the life of the fill.
I don't know the source of the tables in NAVFAC unfortunately
RE: Compaction effect vs. shear strength
Also, look at page 48 in the attached. It was not a NAVFAC document, but it is a document that we use in our DoD projects.
Thanks.
RE: Compaction effect vs. shear strength
RE: Compaction effect vs. shear strength