STABILITY OF EMBANKMENT ON CLAY

The paper describes the failure of an embankment on clay and the investigation sponsored by the Ohio DOT and the Federal Highway Administration, carried out to determine the mechanism of the failure. The slip surface passed through a thin layer of soft silty clay. Measured deformations and pore-water pressures are summarized. The shear strength of the silty clay was measured by unconfined compression tests, triaxial tests, and simple shear tests. Stability analyses using the undrained shear strength measured by the unconfined compression test and the simple shear test give safety factors between 1.1 and 1.4. The consolidated-undrained triaxial test was found to overestimate the undrained shear strength by a considerable amount. Stability analyses using effective stress and measured by triaxial and simple shear tests also overestimate the safety factor. Probability analysis was used to evaluate the effect of the various uncertainties on the computer safety factors. /HRIS/

• Availability:
  • Find a library where document is available. Order URL: http://worldcat.org/oclc/3519342
• Corporate Authors:

  American Society of Civil Engineers

  345 East 47th Street
  New York, NY  United States  10017-2398
• Authors:
  • Wu, T H
  • Thayer, W B
  • Lin, S S
• Publication Date: 1975-9

Media Info

• Pagination: p. 913-932
• Serial:
  • Journal of Geotechnical and Geoenvironmental Engineering
  • Volume: 101
  • Issue Number: GT9
  • Publisher: American Society of Civil Engineers
  • ISSN: 1090-0241
  • Serial URL: http://ojps.aip.org/gto

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Clay; Deformation; Embankments; Failure; Mechanical stability; Pore water pressures; Probability theory; Safety factors; Shear strength; Shear tests; Silts; Slip surfaces; Soil mechanics; Soil stabilization; Tests; Triaxial shear tests
• Old TRIS Terms: Embankment stability; Unconfined compression tests
• Subject Areas: Data and Information Technology; Geotechnology; Highways; Safety and Human Factors;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00125508
• Record Type: Publication
• Report/Paper Numbers: ASCE #11584 Proceeding
• Files: TRIS
• Created Date: Dec 16 1976 12:00AM