Determination of Soil Stiffness

Parameters

Short Course on Computational Geotechnics + Dynamics

Boulder, Colorado
January 5-8, 2004

Stein Sture
Professor of Civil Engineering
University of Colorado at Boulder
 Contents
General concepts and stiffness of sand
Hooke’s law
E-moduli from triaxial testing
E-moduli from oedometer testing
Examples on the estimation of E

Stiffness of clays
Undrained clay behavior
Drained clay behavior
Examples on the estimation of E
Computational Geotechnics Determination of Soil Stiffness Parameters
 Idealized and real stress-
strain behavior of soils

Idealized types of stress-strain behaviors: (a) nonlinear elastic

Model, (b) linear elastic model, and (c) elastoplastic model

Computational Geotechnics Determination of Soil Stiffness Parameters

 Idealized and real stress-
strain behavior of soils

Various types of elastoplastic behaviors: (a) strain hardening, (b)

perfectly plastic, (c) strain softening, and (d) combination of a to c.
Computational Geotechnics Determination of Soil Stiffness Parameters
 Hooke’s Law of Isotropic
Elasticity

Computational Geotechnics Determination of Soil Stiffness Parameters

 Hooke’s Law of Isotropic
Elasticity

Computational Geotechnics Determination of Soil Stiffness Parameters

 Standard Drained Triaxial Test on
Sand

Computational Geotechnics Determination of Soil Stiffness Parameters

 Standard Drained Triaxial Test on
Sand

Computational Geotechnics Determination of Soil Stiffness Parameters

 Oedometer Test on Sand

Computational Geotechnics Determination of Soil Stiffness Parameters

 Oedometer Test on Sand

Computational Geotechnics Determination of Soil Stiffness Parameters

 Oedometer Test on Sand

Hooke: 1  2
E (1  2 ) Eoed  Eoed (  13 )
1  3

Loose: E 2 y
ref
 150  ref 
p 3 p

Dense: E 2 y
ref
 500  ref
p 3 p
Computational Geotechnics Determination of Soil Stiffness Parameters
 Oedometer Test on Sand
 'x
 'y   2 'x
K0

E 2 x x
Loose:  150  2  150
p ref 3 p ref p ref

Dense: E 2 x x
ref
 500  2 ref
 500 ref
p 3 p p

This implies: E  E 50
Computational Geotechnics Determination of Soil Stiffness Parameters
 Summary on Stiffness Parameters:
Sand
(Laboratory based experience)
2
E  E 50  E oed   13
3

E  '  'x
Loose:  150 x
 'x Loose: E  15MPa
p ref p ref
EE ref p ref
p ref

Dense: E
 500
 '
x
 Dense: E  50MPa  'x
p ref
p ref p ref

pref 100kPa times stiffer.  small

Unloading: About 4 
 Computational Geotechnics Determination of Soil Stiffness Parameters
 Selection of Moduli for FEM-Computation
Example 1 (loading):

Layer 1 (extremely loose sand ref

E 50 15MPa
Mohr-Coulomb model:

Layer 1:  y0  70kPa   'y  50kPa

/

Average  'y  95kPa  'x  50kPa

 
E 50 15000 0.5 10000kPa
Computational Geotechnics Determination of Soil Stiffness Parameters
 Selection of Moduli for FEM-Computation
Example 2 (unloading):

Layer 1 (dense):
ref
E 50  45MPa Layer 3 (medium):
ref
E 50  30MPa
Unloading: Eurref  4E50
ref
,  0.15 for both layers


Mohr-Coulomb model:

Layer 1:   2 1.5  55kPa
'
y
'
 'x  27.5kPa
E  4  45000 27.5
100
 95000kPa
Layer 3:  'x 10kPa E  4  30000 0.10  38000kPa

Computational Geotechnics  Determination of Soil Stiffness Parameters
 Eoed from Cone Penetration Test in
Sands
Cone Resistance: qc

Correlation: E oed  qc

 NC-Sand:  = 1 to 3
Literature


Vermeer’s Experience:  = 3

Alternatively: Eoed  (30  10) qc p ref

Computational Geotechnics Determination of Soil Stiffness Parameters

 Undrained Triaxial Test on
Clay

15000Cu
Normally consolidated clay: E u50 
Ip%

Cu = undrained shear strength (or Su) E u50  3G50

Computational Geotechnics
 Determination of Soil Stiffness Parameters
 Idealized and real stress-strain
behavior of soils

Computational Geotechnics Determination of Soil Stiffness Parameters

 Idealized and real stress-strain
behavior of soils

Computational Geotechnics Determination of Soil Stiffness Parameters

 Plate Loading Tests

Duncan & Buchignani (1976)

Computational Geotechnics Determination of Soil Stiffness Parameters
 Plate Loading Tests

Computational Geotechnics Determination of Soil Stiffness Parameters

 Summary on Stiffness Parameters:
Undrained Conditions Clay

Do not use empirical relationships only. Get good quality experimental data from lab tests, cone
penetration tests and vane tests

Computational Geotechnics Determination of Soil Stiffness Parameters

 Drained Behavior for Clays

Computational Geotechnics Determination of Soil Stiffness Parameters

 Drained Behavior for Clays

Computational Geotechnics Determination of Soil Stiffness Parameters