Behavior of collapsible loess saturated with NAPL in confined compresion tests

FRANCISCA, FRANCO M.; MONTORO, MARCOS ALEXIS; EMILIO REDOLFI; GUSTAVO PESCA PINTO; CAPDEVILA, LISANDRO

Buenos Aires

Congreso; XV Panamerican Conference on Soil Mechanics and Geotechnical Engineering; 2015

International Society of Soil Mechanics and Geotechnical Engineering

Loess from the central area of Argentina are unstable soils with mechanical properties highly dependent on moisture content. These loessical soils have a macro skeleton that collapses when either loads and/or water enter into the soil pores. This collapse mechanism affects deformation modulus and strain-stress behavior of this soil. This research analyzes experimental results obtained in triple-oedometer tests performed in silty loess. Three identical samples of different silty loess families were tested in confined compression tests at natural moisture content, fully water saturated and fully saturated with oil. Obtained results allow determining the relative importance of suction, salt dissolution, and particle-fluid interaction mechanisms on the mechanical behavior of the collapsible loessical silts from the center of Argentina.