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Wave-Based Techniques for Evaluating Elastic Modulus and Poisson’s Ratio of Laboratory Compacted Lateritic Soils

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Abstract

A rapid, low-cost evaluation methodology using the wave-based techniques is proposed in this study in order to determine the design parameters e.g., elastic modulus and Poisson’s ratio of the laboratory compacted lateritic soils. Knowing the elastic wave velocities as measured with the wave propagation technique (i.e., a small-strain non-destructive test) and total mass density of the specimens, the elastic moduli and Poisson’s ratio of the soil specimens can be determined. In addition, the unconfined compression test (i.e., a large-strain destructive test) is also performed on the same specimens under the same unconfined testing condition in order to compare the moduli corresponding to different strain levels. The experimental results showed the potentials and limitations of using impulse signal for the determination of the elastic moduli and Poisson’s ratio for laboratory compacted soil specimens from elastic wave propagation techniques.

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Acknowledgements

Dr. Auckpath Sawangsuriya was supported on a scholarship from the Royal Thai Government. Dr. Meissa Fall received a grant from the US Department of States. The support of the University of Wisconsin–Madison is also acknowledged. Mr. V. Damasceno developed the rendering presented in Fig. 4.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Highways, Bureau of Materials, Analysis, and Inspection, Bangkok, Thailand

    Auckpath Sawangsuriya

  2. Faculty of Sciences and Techniques, Earth Sciences Institute, Cheikh Anta Diop University, Dakar, Senegal

    Meissa Fall

  3. Civil and Environmental Engineering and Geological Engineering, University of Wisconsin–Madison, Madison, WI, 53706, USA

    Dante Fratta

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  1. Auckpath Sawangsuriya
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  2. Meissa Fall
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  3. Dante Fratta
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Correspondence to Auckpath Sawangsuriya.

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Sawangsuriya, A., Fall, M. & Fratta, D. Wave-Based Techniques for Evaluating Elastic Modulus and Poisson’s Ratio of Laboratory Compacted Lateritic Soils. Geotech Geol Eng 26, 567–578 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10706-008-9190-7

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