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The drained residual shear strength at the interface between soils and solid materials can be of importance in evaluating the stability of geotechnical structures. Drained residual shear tests have been performed at relatively high effective normal stress levels, over 50 kPa. These effective normal stresses are relevant for many field applications and manageable in typical laboratory shear testing. However, there are field applications, such as offshore pipelines where the effective normal stresses can be below 50 kPa. There are two significant challenges in measuring the drained shear strength at low effective normal stresses: (1) a small amount of friction in a test device can affect the results; (2) small shear rates may be required to achieve drained conditions at the soils. A tilt table test method has been developed to overcome these challenges. The objective of this work is to measure the drained residual shear and interface strength of soils at low effective normal stresses so as to provide logical explanations of the effect of various parameters. These parameters include soil index properties, clay content, clay mineralogy, stress history, and loading rate together with the effective normal stress levels. The total 74 tilt table tests are performed to measure the drained residual shear and interface strength of marine clays and sand-kaolinite mixtures. The following conclusions can be drawn based on the test results. 1. The drained residual shear strength both for the interface and for the soils is not affected by the over-consolidation ratio. 2. The drained residual shear strengths for the interfaces are all less than the drained residual shear strengths of soils. The drained residual strength of interface depends on the roughness of interface, clay mineralogy. 3. The empirical correlations and shear test results at higher effective normal stresses cannot be extrapolated to lower effective normal stresses. 4. Clay mineralogy and clay contents together with the magnitude of effective normal stress are the most important factors to estimate the drained residual shear strength of cohesive soils. 5. Cohesionless soils exhibit a constant residual secant friction angle regardless of effective normal stress levels. / text

Unlike other thermo-mechanical soil responses, the effects of temperature on residual shear strength of soils are not well understood. Previous studies on temperature effects on residual shear strength show some contradictory findings that might be attributed to the sample's mineralogical composition and the testing procedure. This thesis aims to contribute to the understanding of (1) the temperature effects on the liquid limit of cohesive soils, (2) the impact of testing procedure on temperature-dependent residual friction angle, and (3) temperature effects on residual friction angle of soils. The fall cone tests are used to determine temperature effects on the liquid limit, while a temperature-modified ring shear apparatus is used to evaluate the residual friction angle in this study. To assess the impact of the testing procedure, the temperature is changed to 50°C at three different instants: before consolidation, before preshearing, and after preshearing; the resulting residual friction angles are assessed and compared. The effects of temperature on residual friction angle of soils are also investigated by changing the temperature in the ring shear apparatus to 10°C, 20°C, 40°C, and 50°C before consolidation. The study found that the impacts of temperature on liquid limit is mineralogy dependent. Also, the instant at which temperature change occurs in ring shear tests was found to be insignificant in terms of the residual friction angle. Moreover, the findings of the ring shear experiments suggest that clay mineralogy is important in the study of temperature-dependent residual friction angle of cohesive soils. Antigorite-rich soils may experience up to 50% changes in their residual friction angle, while soils with other clay minerals may experience less than 20% variations over a temperature range from 10 to 50 °C. / Master of Science / The increase in the frequency of landslides was found to be attributed to seasonal variation in temperature and an increase in global temperature due to climate change. To anticipate, mitigate and adapt to this costly natural disaster, understanding soil response to temperature change is an essential step. The residual shear strength of a soil is a parameter used to analyze stability of landslides. The relationship between this residual shear strength and temperature is not well understood. Previous studies on temperature effects on residual shear strength show some contradictory findings that need to be better understood for a more robust assessment of the climate change impacts on the stability of natural and man-made slopes. This thesis represents a first step to fill the knowledge gap in identifying the temperature effects on the residual shear strength of soils so that the impact of climate change and seasonal variation in temperature on slopes can be assessed more rigorously. This study consists of three tasks. The first task is to assess the effects of temperature on liquid limit, a parameter widely used to estimate the residual shear strength. The second task is to investigate the impacts of the testing procedures on residual shear strength, representing three field conditions where temperature change takes place at three different instants: when the soils is consolidating under applied load, after the soil consolidated and before development of a failure plan, and after failure initiated. The last task is to assess the effects of temperature on residual shear strength of soils. From the study, it was found that the effects of temperature on liquid limits and residual shear strength are dependent on the soil's mineralogical composition. It was also found that the instant in which the temperature changes in the testing procedure does not substantially impact the residual friction angle of the soil.

The shear stress in an unsaturated soil increases rapidly with limited shear strain to a peak value and then drops gradually with a further increase in the shear strain until a residual value is reached. In other words, there is a significant strain-softening behavior under large shear deformation. A variety of geotechnical structures (e.g., slopes, foundations, retaining walls and piles) associated with unsaturated soils typically undergo a large progressive deformation prior to reaching failure conditions due to the influence of environmental factors (e.g., rainfall infiltration and wetting-drying cycles). As a result, the shear strength of soils in sliding zones typically reduces from a peak to a residual value with the progressive development of large shear deformation, while the shear strength of soils in other zones are still at the peak level. In other words, in many scenarios the strain-softening behavior of unsaturated soils can significantly influence the mechanical behavior of geo-structures. Therefore, a thorough understanding of the shear strength behavior of unsaturated soils during strain-softening is required to reliably interpret the mechanical behavior of geo-structures that undergo large shear deformation. Significant advances have been made during the last thirty years to understand and model the strain-softening behavior of unsaturated soils. Most of these studies however focus on the strain-softening behavior within a relatively small shear deformation due to the limitations of the experimental apparatuses. Only limited experimental studies under large shear deformation were reported based on the modified suction-controlled ring shear apparatus. Therefore, more investigations are still required to provide a comprehensive understanding of the shear strength behavior of unsaturated soils during strain-softening under large shear deformation. Studies presented in this thesis are directed towards investigating the shear strength behavior of unsaturated soils during strain-softening and its application in geotechnical engineering practice. The following studies have been conducted: (i) A state-of-the-art review of the strain-softening behavior of unsaturated soils published in the literature during the past three decades is summarized. The physical mechanisms and modelling methods of the strain-softening behavior and the peak, critical and residual shear strength of unsaturated soils are investigated. (ii) A disturbed state concept model is proposed to predict the variation of shear stress in unsaturated soils during strain-softening process under drained condition. Five sets of experimental data gathered from the literature on unsaturated soils varying from coarse- to fine-grained soils are used to verify the proposed model. The proposed model can provide reasonable predictions for the strain-softening stress-strain relationships of various types of unsaturated soils. The model is simple in concept and all the required parameters can be obtained from conventional saturated and unsaturated shearing tests and pressure plate tests. (iii) Two sets of suction-controlled multistage ring shear tests are conducted on unsaturated SP-SM soil and Indian Head till (IHT), respectively. The variation of the shear stress, void ratio, and water content of specimens during shearing (the shear displacement reaches 100 mm) under multi levels of net normal stress and matric suction are described and discussed. The influence of matric suction and net normal stress on the residual shear strength envelops of unsaturated soils are critically discussed. (iv) A model for predicting the residual shear strength for a wide range of unsaturated soils comprising coarse- to fine-grained soils is developed in terms of two stress state variables (i.e., the net normal stress and matric suction) by using the soil water characteristic curve as a tool. The model is formulated and validated based on experimental data in a series of suction-controlled ring shear tests using the axis-translation technique, including the two sets of tests (SP-SM and IHT) conducted in this research and another three sets of tests (SM, SC-SM and CH) gathered from the literature. The fitting parameters are related to the plasticity index (Iₚ); thus, only four basic parameters (i.e., cᵣ', φᵣ', Sᵣ and Iₚ) are included in this approach. (v) A series of slope stability analyses of a landslide in unsaturated condition are conducted using Geoslope software based on the peak and residual shear strength parameters. The analyses results highlight the role of residual shear strength in the slope stability of unsaturated soils. In summary, the mechanical behavior of unsaturated soils under large shear deformation is comprehensively investigated in this thesis. The experimental results of the suction-controlled ring shear tests reported in this research contribute towards understanding the fundamental shear strength behavior of unsaturated soils during strain-softening under large shear deformation. The models proposed in this research provide simple tools to predict the shear strength of unsaturated soils under different levels of shear deformation.

Corrosion is a concern in old prestressed concrete bridges, especially bridges built in marine environments. Corrosion induces cracks in the concrete superstructure which accelerates the deterioration rate and can result in a complete loss of the concrete cover and exposure of the reinforcing and prestressing steel. This causes degradation in the load-carrying capacity of the bridge girders. Consequently, decisions need to be made on whether to replace, retrofit, or load post these bridges. Extensive research has focused on the flexural strength of corroded prestressed concrete girders. This research studies the shear strength of corroded prestressed concrete girders which can, then, be expanded further to evaluate the possible retrofitting techniques for restoring, or enhancing, their shear strengths. Two old prestressed concrete girders built in the 1960's and 1970's were delivered to the Murray Structural Engineering Laboratory at Virginia Tech from two decommissioned bridges in Virginia. The two girders showed signs of deterioration due to corrosion. Non-destructive testing was performed to evaluate their in-situ conditions. For both girders, each end was tested in the lab in three-point loading condition to make full use of the girders. Shear capacities of the girders were predicted using four methods in the current AASHTO LRFD and the ACI codes. In addition, analysis using Response2000 and strut-and-tie modelling were also carried out. Evaluation of these methods and comparisons with the experimental results were performed to reach to conclusions and recommendations for future work. Corrosion in strands seemed to not have as much influence on the shear capacity as on the flexural capacity. Destructive shear tests indicated that the actual shear capacities of the girders investigated in this research exceeded nominal capacities predicted by the current codes. However, the flexural capacities were reduced. Possible reasons for the girders' behaviors are discussed. / Master of Science / Many bridges in the United States were built using longitudinal members, called girders, made of prestressed concrete. In prestressed concrete, because concrete cannot resist high tensile forces, tensioned steel cables, called strands, are used to produce compression on the concrete member to improve its behavior when it is in service. Corrosion is a concern in old prestressed concrete bridges, especially bridges built in marine environments. Corrosion induces cracks in the concrete superstructure which accelerates the deterioration rate and can result in a partial loss of the concrete body and exposure of the embedded steel. This causes degradation in the load-carrying capacity of the bridge girders which raises a danger to vehicles, passengers, and pedestrians. Consequently, decisions need to be made by authorities on whether to replace, repair, or load post these bridges. Two main types of loads exist in bridge girders, namely shear forces and bending moments. Extensive research has focused on the ability of corroded prestressed concrete girders to resist stresses produced by moment, or flexure. However, bridge girders must also resist shear forces. This research studies the shear strength of corroded prestressed concrete girders which can, then, be expanded further to evaluate the possible retrofitting techniques for restoring, or enhancing, their shear strengths. Two old prestressed concrete girders built in the 1960's and 1970's were delivered to the Murray Structural Engineering Laboratory at Virginia Tech from two decommissioned bridges in Virginia. The two girders showed signs of deterioration due to corrosion. These signs include concrete losses, cracks, areas of unsound concrete, and exposed strands. Non-destructive testing was performed on the girders to evaluate the severity of their in-situ conditions. Then, two destructive full-scale tests were performed on each girder in the lab to estimate their actual shear strengths. Shear strengths of the girders were also predicted using four methods present in the current American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials, AASHTO, and the American Concrete Institute, ACI, codes. In addition, analyses using other advanced tools were also carried out. Evaluation of these methods and comparisons with the experimental results were performed to reach to conclusions and recommendations for future work. Corrosion in strands seemed to not have as much influence on the shear strength as on the flexural strength. Destructive shear tests indicated that the actual shear strengths of the girders investigated in this research exceeded nominal strengths predicted by the current codes, the AASHTO and the ACI. However, the flexural strengths were reduced. Possible reasons for the girders' behaviors are discussed.

During shearing of stiff clays, plate-shaped clay particles are parallel-oriented in the direction of shear reaching the minimum resistance of &ldquo / residual shear strength&rdquo / . The residual shear strength envelopes of stiff clays are curved, but for practical purposes represented by linear envelopes. This study investigates the nonlinearity of the residual shear strength envelope using experimental evidence (i) from laboratory reversal direct shear tests on two stiff clays (Ankara clay and kaolinite) at 25 to 900 kPa effective normal stresses and (ii) from laboratory data collected from literature. To evaluate the importance of nonlinearity of the envelope for geotechnical engineering practice, by limit equilibrium method, (a) case histories of reactivated landslides are analyzed and (b) a parametric study is carried out. Conclusions of this study are: (1) The residual shear strength envelopes of both Ankara clay and kaolinite are nonlinear, and can be represented by a power function (cohesion is zero). (2) At least 3 reversals or cumulative 20 mm shear displacement of direct shear box is recommended to reach residual condition. (3) Empirical relations between plasticity index and residual friction angle can accurately estimate the residual strength of stiff clays. (4) Nonlinearity is especially important for landslides where average effective normal stress on the shear plane is less than 50 kPa, both for translational and rotational failures. For such slopes using a linear strength envelope overestimates the factor of safety (more significantly for the case of high pore pressures). (5) As the plasticity index increases, the power &ldquo / b&rdquo / of the nonlinear shear strength envelope decreases, indicating more significant nonlinearity. For less plastic materials, using linear and nonlinear shear strength envelopes does not affect the factor of safety.

This thesis presents the results of research undertaken in the south Cotswolds. Emphasis is placed on the engineering geological aspects of planning and construction on hillslopes, many of which have been superficially disturbed by cambering and landslipping. Special attention is paid to the geotechnical properties of the mudstone/clay horizons of the Fuller’s Earth and the Rhaetic, with emphasis on a study of the residual shear strength parameters. During the examination of numerous gulls in the Blue Lias at Radstock, a simple classification scheme was devised for the various extension styles produced in the interbedded limestone and clay sequence. The engineering significance of these phenomena is discussed. At Radstock cambering has taken place over the Rhaetic, especially the highly plastic Cotham Beds; these horizons have been investigated at this and other localities. Superficial structures are not well depicted on conventional geological maps. An attempt is made to determine to what extent they may be identified by engineering geomorphological mapping. Only disturbances which rupture the ground surface are clearly discernible and hence reliably depicted by this type of mapping; moreover it is shown that land use can obscure evidence of past instability. Engineering geomorphological mapping has been used as a preliminary study in the realignment of the A46 north of Bath. The proposed routes are discussed and some of the potential problems highlighted. It is demonstrated that false colour infra-red photography can be of considerable use in helping to identify areas of ground disturbance. A study of the geotechnical properties of the Fuller’s Earth shows an increase in “clay fraction”, expanding lattice clay minerals, plasticity and oxidation as weathering proceeds, with a corresponding drop in shear strength, bulk unit weight and calcite percentage. The presence of thin limestone bands modifies this profile. Calcite is found to have a significant effect on the plasticity of the Fuller’s Earth. The use of the Bromhead ring shear apparatus to determine residual strength has enabled many samples to be tested at normal loads up to 600 kPa; a number of advantages over the conventional shear box are discussed. The parameter φ’r is found to be stress dependent and as a result previously published correlations with other data are critically assessed and the choice of φ’r in engineering practice is considered.

Os movimentos de massa de solo, geralmente, estão relacionados com a mobilização da resistência de uma ou várias superfícies de ruptura pré-existentes. Dessa maneira, o conhecimento da propriedade que rege esse comportamento (resistência ao cisalhamento residual) é de extrema importância no estudo da estabilidade de solos. Segundo Skempton (1985), resistência ao cisalhamento residual é a resistência mínima constante que o solo pode atingir, a baixas taxas de cisalhamento, após sofrer grandes deslocamentos. A determinação dos parâmetros de resistência ao cisalhamento residual pode ser realizada através de ensaios de cisalhamento por torção do tipo ring shear, adequado para estudar os mecanismos atuantes na ruptura, uma vez que permite a continuidade dos deslocamentos no solo. Nesse contexto, a pesquisa teve por objetivo desenvolver um equipamento de cisalhamento torsional baseado no ring shear descrito por Bishop et al. (1971) para avaliar o comportamento do solo a grandes deformações. O equipamento projetado foi validado, preliminarmente, segundo os resultados já publicados na literatura. / Landslides, generally, are related with the mobilization of shear strength of one or more preexisting rupture surfaces. Thus, knowledge of the property that governs this behavior (residual shear strength) has extreme importance in the stability soils study. According to Skempton (1985), residual shear strength is the minimum constant strength attained at low shear rates, at large displacements. The residual shear strength parameters can be accomplished through ring shear tests, suitable for studying the mechanisms in the rupture, since it provides continuity of displacements in the soil. In this context, the research aimed to develop a device based on ring shear described by Bishop et al. (1971) to evaluate the soil behavior in large deformations. The equipment designed was validated, preliminarily, according to the results already published in the literature.

Os movimentos de massa de solo, geralmente, estão relacionados com a mobilização da resistência de uma ou várias superfícies de ruptura pré-existentes. Dessa maneira, o conhecimento da propriedade que rege esse comportamento (resistência ao cisalhamento residual) é de extrema importância no estudo da estabilidade de solos. Segundo Skempton (1985), resistência ao cisalhamento residual é a resistência mínima constante que o solo pode atingir, a baixas taxas de cisalhamento, após sofrer grandes deslocamentos. A determinação dos parâmetros de resistência ao cisalhamento residual pode ser realizada através de ensaios de cisalhamento por torção do tipo ring shear, adequado para estudar os mecanismos atuantes na ruptura, uma vez que permite a continuidade dos deslocamentos no solo. Nesse contexto, a pesquisa teve por objetivo desenvolver um equipamento de cisalhamento torsional baseado no ring shear descrito por Bishop et al. (1971) para avaliar o comportamento do solo a grandes deformações. O equipamento projetado foi validado, preliminarmente, segundo os resultados já publicados na literatura. / Landslides, generally, are related with the mobilization of shear strength of one or more preexisting rupture surfaces. Thus, knowledge of the property that governs this behavior (residual shear strength) has extreme importance in the stability soils study. According to Skempton (1985), residual shear strength is the minimum constant strength attained at low shear rates, at large displacements. The residual shear strength parameters can be accomplished through ring shear tests, suitable for studying the mechanisms in the rupture, since it provides continuity of displacements in the soil. In this context, the research aimed to develop a device based on ring shear described by Bishop et al. (1971) to evaluate the soil behavior in large deformations. The equipment designed was validated, preliminarily, according to the results already published in the literature.

Os movimentos de massa de solo, geralmente, estão relacionados com a mobilização da resistência de uma ou várias superfícies de ruptura pré-existentes. Dessa maneira, o conhecimento da propriedade que rege esse comportamento (resistência ao cisalhamento residual) é de extrema importância no estudo da estabilidade de solos. Segundo Skempton (1985), resistência ao cisalhamento residual é a resistência mínima constante que o solo pode atingir, a baixas taxas de cisalhamento, após sofrer grandes deslocamentos. A determinação dos parâmetros de resistência ao cisalhamento residual pode ser realizada através de ensaios de cisalhamento por torção do tipo ring shear, adequado para estudar os mecanismos atuantes na ruptura, uma vez que permite a continuidade dos deslocamentos no solo. Nesse contexto, a pesquisa teve por objetivo desenvolver um equipamento de cisalhamento torsional baseado no ring shear descrito por Bishop et al. (1971) para avaliar o comportamento do solo a grandes deformações. O equipamento projetado foi validado, preliminarmente, segundo os resultados já publicados na literatura. / Landslides, generally, are related with the mobilization of shear strength of one or more preexisting rupture surfaces. Thus, knowledge of the property that governs this behavior (residual shear strength) has extreme importance in the stability soils study. According to Skempton (1985), residual shear strength is the minimum constant strength attained at low shear rates, at large displacements. The residual shear strength parameters can be accomplished through ring shear tests, suitable for studying the mechanisms in the rupture, since it provides continuity of displacements in the soil. In this context, the research aimed to develop a device based on ring shear described by Bishop et al. (1971) to evaluate the soil behavior in large deformations. The equipment designed was validated, preliminarily, according to the results already published in the literature.