Laboratory tests were performed to investigate the liquefaction susceptibility of uncemented calcareous sands. A series of isotropically consolidated undrained monotonic and cyclic triaxial tests were performed using the Playa Santa sand from Porto Rico. Playa Santa sand is a poorly graded calcareous clean beach sand composed of angular particles with large intra-granular voids. A series of consolidated undrained triaxial tests were performed with the Playa Santa sand remolded to a variety of relative densities and consolidated under a range of confining pressures. In addition, cyclic triaxial tests were performed at a confining pressure of 100 kPa and three sets of relative densities (20%, 40% and 60%). Generation of excess pore pressure under different levels of cyclic loading was established. As a result, relationships were developed to relate the number of cycles required for triggering of liquefaction to cyclic stress ratio. It was seen that the Playa Santa sand was less susceptible liquefaction than quartzitic sands of the same relative density remolded and tested under similar conditions. / Master of Science

The Tamakoshi Dam in Nepal experienced 19 cm of settlement due to three earthquakes that took place from December 14, 2014 to May 12, 2015. This settlement caused massive damage and halted construction and was believed to have been caused by seismic compression. Seismic compression is the accrual of contractive volumetric strain in sandy soils during earthquake shaking for cases where the generated excess pore water pressures are low. The purpose of this case study is to investigate the settlements of the dam intake block relative to the right abutment block of the dam during the three earthquakes. Towards this end, soil profiles for the dam were developed from the boring logs and suites of ground motions were selected and scaled to be representative of the shaking at the base of the dam for the two of the three earthquakes which were well documented. Equivalent linear analysis was completed for the suites of ground motions to produce shear strain time histories which were then utilized in the Jiang et al. (2020) proposed procedure for seismic compression prediction. The results were found to not align with the settlement that was observed in the field, so post-liquefaction consolidation was also considered to be a possible cause of the settlement. The results from that analysis also showed that consideration of post-liquefaction consolidation did not yield settlements representative of those observed in the field. More detailed studies are recommended to assess the settlements that were observed at the dam site, particularly analyses that take into account below and above grade topographic effects on the ground motions and settlements at the ground surface. / Master of Science / The Tamakoshi Dam in Nepal experienced 19 cm of settlement due to three earthquakes that took place from December 14, 2014 to May 12, 2015. This settlement caused massive damage and halted construction and was believed to have been caused by seismic compression. Seismic compression is the accrual of contractive volumetric strain in sandy soils during earthquake shaking for cases where the generated excess pore water pressures are low. The purpose of this case study is to investigate the settlements of the dam intake block relative to the right abutment block of the dam during the three earthquakes. Representative soil profiles were developed based on data collected from the site for analysis of the settlement. Two approaches were used to compute predicted settlement, one which considered only seismic compression as the cause of settlement and a hybrid method that considered both seismic compression and post-liquefaction consolidation. Both approaches predicted settlement values that were less than what was observed in the field. It was found that the ground motion prediction equations used in the analysis were not representative of the tectonic setting in Nepal and thus was the main reason for the under-prediction. The relevance of this research lies in using methodology developed in academia to analyze a real world event and draw conclusions about the methodology's applicability.

On the basis of the results obtained in this investigation, the following conclusions were drawn: 1. Midlothian coal was 31.3 percent liquefied by hydrogenation at atmospheric pressure and 185°C after 72 hours of reaction in a tetralin vehicle and using stannous sulfide as a catalyst. 2. The liquid product of the hydrogenation of Midlothian coal consisted of approximately 50 percent light oil boiling below 200°C., 20 percent middle oil, boiling from 205°C. to 235°C., and 30 percent heavy oil or tar residue. 3. The light oil fraction of the hydrogenated product of Midlothian coal consisted of 5 to 10 percent each of olefins and saturated hydrocarbons, with the remainder being aromatic compounds. 4. The rate of liquefaction of Midlothian coal by hydrogenation researched a nearly constant value of 0.41 grams of liquid product produced per 100 grams of coal per hour after 24 hours of reaction. 5. During the first 24 hours period of hydrogenation, the volatile matter content of the carbonaceous residue increased by 5.0 percent after which the volatile matter decreased by 6.2 percent during the following 48 hour period. 6. During the hydrogenation reaction of 72 hours the fixed carbon content of the coal was reduced by 18 percent. 7. During the latter 48 hours period of reaction, 65 percent of the liquefaction was from the volatile matter constituents and 35 percent of the liquidation was from the fixed carbon components. / M.S.

The understanding of liquefaction behaviors, related to a coal's properties and a recycle solvent's composition, is essential for the development of an efficient direct liquefaction process. In this dissertation, a study of the liquefaction behaviors of an Eastern us bituminous and four Western US subbituminous coals is presented. The experimental approach has been to examine their behaviors under various reaction conditions with in-house microautoclave reactor and Kerr McGee pilot plant liquefaction runs. In-house runs involved surveys of coal types and process solvent compositions with variations in reaction times, temperatures and atmospheres. Runs performed at Kerr McGee examined the use of tetrahydroquinoline (TBQ) as a process solvent with a Wyoming coal. Liquefaction activities were assessed through determinations of coal conversion to both solvent-soluble products and distillate yields. Per the in-house liquefaction studies, a novel microautoclave reactor design and product recovery methods were developed, evaluated and employed. The reaction chemistries of !n !!S!! metal species and basic nitrogen heterocycles were investigated specifically. Changes in trace element concentrations were ascertained by Inductively Coupled Plasma Atomic Emission Spectrometry (ICP-AES) and Size Exclusion Chromatography/ICP-AES (SEC/ICP-AES). Pates of basic nitrogen components in distillate and solvent-soluble residuum products were examined by nitrogen mass balance determinations, Gas Chromatography/Pourier Transform Infrared Spectrometry (GC/PTIR) and Gas Chromatography/Mass Spectrometry (GC/MS). Conversions to soluble products demonstrated the expected dependencies of liquefaction on coal rank, elemental composition and petrography. The western subbituminous coals showed extreme sensitivity to drying and solvent-soaking pretreatments. Metal content analyses revealed that metals exist as complexed species in the liquefaction process. Higher conversions to toluene-soluble materials were obtained with THQ in contrast to other H-donor solvents. Adduction of THQ was significant in the non-distillate product stream, however. The direct coupling of Reversed Phase HPLC separations with PTIR (RP-HPLC/PTIR) detection through on-line, post-column extraction was developed. Though intended for application to coal-liquefied product (CLP) analysis, this system was evaluated rigorously for both chromatographic and spectral performance. Throughout this investigation, the overall utility of these hyphenated methods for CLP analysis was explored. These methods demonstrated exceptional performance in providing a wealth of qualitative and quantitative information in a rapid manner. / Ph. D. / incomplete_metadata

This study was designed to evaluate the ability of vertical drains to prevent liquefaction and limit associated settlement. Drain performance was investigated using full-scale tests with vertical drains in liquefiable sand using a laminar shear box with acceleration time histories applied at the base. Performance of the sand box with drains in these tests was compared with performance of the sane box without drains in previous tests. The test data was also used to create case histories which can be used for further research and calibration of computer models. Although some investigations regarding vertical drains have been performed with centrifuge tests, no full-scale drain installation had been tested previously. Two drain geometries were investigated, first with drains spaced at 4 feet and second with drains spaced at 3 feet, to determine the effect of spacing on drain effectiveness.Sand was hydraulically placed at a relative density of about 40%. Sensors to monitor pore water pressure, settlement, lateral displacement, and acceleration were placed in the laminar shear box. Three rounds of testing were performed with each drain configuration. Each round consisted of three tests, with peak sinusoidal acceleration levels of 0.05g, 0.1g, and 0.2g respectively, with 15 sinusoidal cycles in each case. A cone penetration test sounding was performed between each round as well as before and after testing to characterize the soil properties for each round.Prefabricated drains were effective at reducing excess pore pressure generation during shaking and increasing the rate of dissipation immediately following the shaking. Liquefaction induced settlement was typically reduced by about 50% relative to tests without drains. These results are in good agreement with results from previous centrifuge testing. Drains spaced closer together reduced the excess pore pressure that generated during shaking and increased the rate of pore pressure dissipation relative to tests with drains spaced further apart, but post-liquefaction settlements were similar. As the soil became denser, settlement decreased significantly, as did the time for pore pressures to dissipate.

Caribbean nations lie within a zone of distinct seismic hazard. While ground motion in the region has been analyzed, the potential for liquefaction has not been evaluated in most cases. In order to evaluate liquefaction, data describing soil composition, surficial geology, and seismic hazard analyses were collected and applied. This allowed for expansion of previously localized liquefaction analysis to be expanded to the extents of two island nations in the Caribbean. This thesis utilizes the Youd and Perkins (1978) qualitative liquefaction susceptibility and Holzer et al. (2011) liquefaction probability methodologies to evaluate the possibility of liquefaction in Trinidad and Jamaica during major seismic events. Maps were developed using geographic information system (GIS) data to compare susceptibility and hazard across the islands at varying levels of magnitude. In this way, the distribution of liquefiable deposits is displayed in a manner that can be used quickly and easily to motivate further study of susceptible regions and mitigation activities to reduce the risk posed by liquefaction in the countries.

京都大学 / 0048 / 新制・課程博士 / 博士(工学) / 甲第22759号 / 工博第4758号 / 新制||工||1744(附属図書館) / 京都大学大学院工学研究科都市社会工学専攻 / (主査)教授 三村 衛, 教授 渦岡 良介, 准教授 肥後 陽介 / 学位規則第4条第1項該当 / Doctor of Philosophy (Engineering) / Kyoto University / DFAM

Soil liquefaction can cause devastating damage and loss and is a serious concern in civil engineering practice. One method for evaluating liquefaction triggering potential is a risk-targeted probabilistic approach that has been shown to provide more consistent and accurate estimates of liquefaction risk than traditional methods. This approach is a “performance-based” procedure which is based off of the performance-based earthquake engineering (PBEE) framework developed by the Pacific Earthquake Engineering Research (PEER) Center. Unfortunately, due to its complexity, performance-based liquefaction assessment is not often used in engineering practice. However, previous researchers have developed a simplified performance-based procedure which incorporates the accuracy and benefits of a full performance-based procedure while maintaining a more simplistic and user-friendly approach. Until now, these simplified performance-based procedures have only been available for the SPT (Standard Penetration Test). With the increasing popularity of the CPT (Cone Penetration Test), a simplified procedure is needed for CPT-based liquefaction assessment. This thesis presents the derivation of a simplified performance-based procedure for evaluating liquefaction triggering using the Ku et al. (2012) and Boulanger and Idriss (2014) models. The validation study compares the results of the simplified and full performance-based procedures. The comparison study compares the accuracy of the simplified performance-based and traditional pseudo-probabilistic procedures. These studies show that the simplified performance-based procedure provides a better and more consistent approximation of the full performance-based procedure than traditional methods. This thesis also details the development of the liquefaction loading maps which are an integral part of the simplified method.

The presence of silt and clay particles has long been thought to affect the behavior of a sand under cyclic loading. Unfortunately, a review of studies published in the literature reveals that no clear conclusions can be drawn as to how altering fines content and plasticity actually affects the liquefaction resistance of a sand. In fact, the literature contains what appears to be contradictory evidence. There is a need to clarify the effects of fines content and plasticity on the liquefaction resistance of sandy soils, and to determine methods for accounting for these effects in engineering practice. In order to help answer these questions, a program of research in the form of a laboratory parametric study intended to clarify the effects which varying fines content and plasticity have upon the liquefaction resistance of sandy sands was undertaken. The program of research consisted of a large number of cyclic triaxial tests performed on two sands with varying quantities of plastic and non-plastic fines. The program of research also examined the applicability of plasticity based liquefaction criteria and the effects of fines content and plasticity on pore pressure generation. Lastly, a review of how the findings of this study may affect the manner in which simplified analyses are performed in engineering practice was made. The results of the study performed are used to clarify the effects of non-plastic fines content and resolve the majority of the inconsistencies in the literature. The effects of plastic fines content and fines plasticity are shown to be different than has been previously reported. The validity of plasticity based liquefaction criteria is established, the mechanism responsible for their validity is explained, and a new simplified criteria proposed. The effects of fines content and plasticity on pore pressure generation are discussed, and several recommendations are made for implementing the findings of this study into engineering practice. / Ph. D.

Frequently, deep foundations extend through potentially liquefiable soils. When liquefaction occurs in cohesionless soils surrounding a deep foundation, the skin-friction in the liquefied layer is compromised. After cyclical forces suspend and pore pressures dissipate, effective stress rebuilds and the liquefied soil consolidates. When the settlement of the soil exceeds the downward movement of the foundation, downdrag develops. To investigate the loss and redevelopment of skin-friction, strain was measured on an instrumented micropile during a blast-induced liquefaction test in Mirabello, Italy. The soil profile where the micropile was installed consisted of clay to a depth of 6m underlain by a medium to dense sand. The 25cm diameter steel reinforced concrete micropile was bored to a depth of 17m. Pore pressure transducers were placed around the pile at various depths to observe excess pore pressure generation and dissipation. Soil strain was monitored with profilometers in a linear arrangement from the center of the 10m diameter ring of buried explosives out to a 12m radius. Immediately following the blast, liquefaction developed between 6m and 12m below ground. The liquefied layer settled 14cm (~2.4% volumetric strain) while the pile toe settled 1.24cm under elastic displacement. The static neutral plane in the pile occurred at a depth of 12m. From 6m to 12m below ground, the incremental skin-friction was 50% compared to pre-liquefaction measurements. The decrease in residual skin-friction is consistent with measurements observed by Dr. Kyle Rollins from previous full-scale tests in Vancouver, BC, Canada, Christchurch, New Zealand, and Turrel, Arkansas.