Calcareous

Geotechnical engineering

Materials science

Structural engineering

Dilatant

Serviceability (structure)

Geology

Cyclic stress

Paleontology

Stress path

Engineering

Composite material

Plasticity

Engineering Geology

Calcareous sand has been used as the main filling material in numerous reef constructions. Therefore, understanding its long-term dynamic engineering geological characteristics under cyclic applications of traffic or wave loading is crucial to the design and prediction of the serviceability of reef infrastructures. Considering this, seven monotonic triaxial tests and 33 high-cycle (25,000 cycles) drained triaxial tests were conducted on calcareous sand with various mean effective stresses (p’) and cyclic stress ratios (ζ). The results show that the development of the accumulated axial strain (ε1acc) has a strong correlation with the positional relationship between the cyclic stress path and critical strength line (CSL) or static strength envelope (SSE) in the p’-q plane. The critical cyclic stress ratio ζc, that represents the cyclic stress path reaching the CSL, is proposed. When ζ>ζc, the growth rate of ε1acc with ζ increases drastically. Moreover, when the cyclic stress path approaches the SSE, ε1acc enter...

Long-term behaviour and degradation of calcareous sand under cyclic loading