Wang, JP, Li, X and Yu, HS (2018) A micro–macro investigation of the capillary strengthening effect in wet granular materials. Acta Geotechnica, 13 (3). pp. 513-533. ISSN 1861-1125
Abstract
Wet granular materials are three-dimensionally simulated by the discrete element method with water bridges incorporated between particles. The water bridges are simplified as toroidal shapes, and the matric suction is constantly maintained in the material. A comparison with experimental tests in the literature indicates that the toroidal shape approximation may be one of the best choices with high practicability and decent accuracy. Mechanical behaviours of wet granular materials are studied by triaxial tests. Effects of particle size distributions and void ratios are investigated systematically in this study. The hydraulic limit of the pendular state is also discussed. It gives the capillary cohesion function which is not only determined by the degree of saturation but also positively correlated to relative density and particle size polydispersity and inversely proportional to mean particle size. Furthermore, the capillary strengthening effect is also analysed microscopically in aid of the Stress–Force–Fabric relationship, mainly in fabric anisotropy, coordination number and stress transmission pattern, which revealed the micro-mechanisms of the additional effective stress induced by capillary effect.
Metadata
Item Type: | Article |
---|---|
Authors/Creators: |
|
Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | © 2017, Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature. This is an author produced version of a paper published in Acta Geotechnica. The final publication is available at Springer via https://doi.org/10.1007/s11440-017-0619-0. Uploaded in accordance with the publisher's self-archiving policy. |
Keywords: | Capillary cohesion; DEM; Micro-mechanics; Particle size distribution; Unsaturated granular materials; Water bridge |
Dates: |
|
Institution: | The University of Leeds |
Academic Units: | The University of Leeds > Faculty of Engineering & Physical Sciences (Leeds) > School of Civil Engineering (Leeds) |
Depositing User: | Symplectic Publications |
Date Deposited: | 08 Jan 2018 15:15 |
Last Modified: | 20 Dec 2018 01:39 |
Status: | Published |
Publisher: | Springer Verlag |
Identification Number: | 10.1007/s11440-017-0619-0 |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:125884 |