Acta Geotechnica最新文献

{"title":"Mechanical behaviors and reinforcement mechanisms of engineering waste mud reinforced with industrial by-product lignocellulosic fiber and hydrophobic polymer","authors":"Menghuan Chen,&nbsp;Pan Ding,&nbsp;Minjie Wen,&nbsp;Riqing Xu,&nbsp;Yuan Tu,&nbsp;Chengjun Guan","doi":"10.1007/s11440-025-02667-y","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s11440-025-02667-y","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>Engineering waste mud, primarily produced during the construction of bored piles and slurry shield tunneling, represents a challenging type of construction waste to treat. Additionally, the disposal of industrial by-products also presents significant challenges. In this study, a sustainable solution is proposed by utilizing industrial by-product lignocellulosic fibers as reinforcement materials in geotechnical engineering, complemented by an eco-friendly hydrophobic polymer to treat the waste mud. The impact of additive content on mechanical properties was assessed through unconfined compressive strength (UCS) tests. The reinforcement mechanism was elucidated through microstructural observation tests, including scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and mercury intrusion porosimetry (MIP). The results show that composite soil additive effectively improves the UCS of the engineering waste mud. The strength of the reinforced mud samples increases with the additive content and curing age, and the optimum dosages were found to be 4% lignocellulosic fiber and 4% hydrophobic polymer, enhancing the 28-day UCS of the treated mud by 347.9% relative to untreated mud. MIP and SEM results suggest that the strength improvement can be attributed to a reduction in total volume of pores and the reinforcing and toughening effects of lignocellulosic fiber. The strength gains over time are primarily attributed to the hydrophobic polymer rather than lignocellulosic fiber. In conclusion, the waste mud reinforced with by-product lignocellulosic fiber and hydrophobic polymer represents a win–win solution that simultaneously improves soil strength and recycles industrial waste.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":49308,"journal":{"name":"Acta Geotechnica","volume":"20 10","pages":"5095 - 5111"},"PeriodicalIF":5.7,"publicationDate":"2025-07-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145184191","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Visualization and flow characteristics of liquefied transparent sand in shaking table tests","authors":"Yi Han,&nbsp;Yumin Chen,&nbsp;Saeed Sarajpoor,&nbsp;Danqi Li","doi":"10.1007/s11440-025-02688-7","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s11440-025-02688-7","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>The effectiveness of using transparent sand materials for simulating the soil behavior under the dynamic loading condition is not clear. In this study, the horizontal pulling tests with iron pipes embedded in were performed on the saturated transparent sand and natural quartz sand to compare the apparent viscosity and pore water pressure of both materials during dynamic tests. The test results show that saturated transparent sand exhibits a similar dynamic characteristics to the natural sand in the liquefied state, evidenced by both showing the non-Newtonian fluid properties of “shear thinning”. The apparent viscosity of transparent sand decreases by 70.2 and 58.9% during and after shaking, respectively, while that of quartz sand decreases by 71.9 and 61.8%, respectively, as the pulling speed increases from 2.2 to 10.6 mm/s. During shaking with the pipe pulling rate of 7.2 mm/s and at the lateral displacement to pipe diameter ratio of <i>δ/D</i> = 4, the apparent viscosity of transparent sand is only 8.8% higher than that of quartz sand. Through visual analysis, transparent sand could effectively exhibit the sand particles’ movement and shear zone evolution during the liquefaction process confirming its capability of simulating the natural sand’s flow behavior under the liquefaction phase. This would eventually provide a powerful visualization methodology to better understand the dynamic behavior of liquefied sand.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":49308,"journal":{"name":"Acta Geotechnica","volume":"20 10","pages":"5333 - 5347"},"PeriodicalIF":5.7,"publicationDate":"2025-06-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145184149","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Experimental investigations of stress or void ratio responses of loess upon confined and vertical unconfined wetting","authors":"Tian-Gang Lan,&nbsp;Ling Xu,&nbsp;Shi-Feng Lu,&nbsp;Huan Dong","doi":"10.1007/s11440-025-02681-0","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s11440-025-02681-0","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>Many geological disasters in loess areas are related to soil wetting. Previous studies of loess wetting behavior focused mainly on zero vertical net stress or constant vertical net stress, while few studies have been conducted under confined conditions (constant volume). The stress regime and microstructure evolution characteristic of loess subjecting confined wetting remain unclear. This study investigates the intact loess of two burial depths (denoted as HFT10 m and HFT30 m) subjected to controlled-suction wetting under both confined and vertical unconfined conditions. The loess microstructure evolution characteristics before and after loading-confined and loading–unloading-unconfined wetting were evaluated by mercury intrusion porosimetry (MIP) tests. Under vertical unconfined wetting, the results indicated that all specimens exhibited wetting-induced expansion, with denser specimens showing higher swelling strain. Under confined wetting, the vertical stress decreased gradually, and the extent of stress reduction intensified as specimen strain increased. The HFT10 m sample showed a larger wetting-induced stress reduction than the HFT30 m samples. The soil water retention curves (SWRCs) at the degree of saturation (<i>S</i>_<i>r</i>)-void ratio (<i>e</i>)-suction (<i>s</i>) space between confined and unconfined was different, this may be due to the different microstructure evolution characteristic of unconfined wetting and confined wetting. The paths (suction against vertical net stress) were within the newly defined loading-collapse (LC) curve. The experimental results of this study highlight that the vertical stress in the soil beneath the bearing platform decreases upon wetting, which may result in an increase in the axial stress of the pile, even if the loess does not undergo collapse.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":49308,"journal":{"name":"Acta Geotechnica","volume":"20 10","pages":"5297 - 5314"},"PeriodicalIF":5.7,"publicationDate":"2025-06-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145184147","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Experimental investigation of mechanical and microstructural properties of re-cemented clay","authors":"Wei-Feng Huang,&nbsp;Zhi-Jian Ruan,&nbsp;Ding-Bao Song,&nbsp;Dian-Long Wang,&nbsp;Ma-Yao Cheng","doi":"10.1007/s11440-025-02669-w","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s11440-025-02669-w","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>Considerable amounts of cemented mixtures are generated during the construction of deep cement mixing piles. Recycling these generated cemented soils as fill material using re-cemented method can reduce waste transfer to landfills and reduce the use of natural gravel fill resources. However, the properties of these re-cemented materials remain unclear. To fill this research gap, in this study, cement-treated Hong Kong marine deposit (CT-HKMD) was ground into powders and used as a reused material for the second-round cement treatment, named recycled cement-treated Hong Kong marine deposit (RCT-HKMD). The influences of cement content and curing period on the unconfined compressive and tensile strengths, modulus, point load strength index and phase assemblage of CT-HKMD and RCT-HKMD were investigated through unconfined compression (UC) tests, Brazilian tests, point load tests and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). The results reveal that the unconfined compressive strength (UCS), splitting tensile strength and point load strength index of RCT-HKMD are 1.3–2.6 times greater than those of CT-HKMD within the same cement content and curing period. This is due to denser microstructure and the formation of calcium (alumino) silicate hydrate (C–(A–)S–H) and ettringite to fill into the small pores and improve interparticle bonding, observed from the results of TGA and scanning electron microscopy-energy-dispersive spectrometer (SEM–EDS). Furthermore, different initial cement contents of CT-HKMD powders were used to prepare RCT-HKMD specimens with 10% newly cement content. All test results show that the initial cement content of CT-HKMD has no effect on the UCS, splitting tensile strength and point load strength index of RCT-HKMD specimens as the original bonding structures of the CT-HKMD have been destroyed after crushing and sieving process. All the findings have practical implications for the reuse of waste cemented soil locally and even globally.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":49308,"journal":{"name":"Acta Geotechnica","volume":"20 10","pages":"5113 - 5137"},"PeriodicalIF":5.7,"publicationDate":"2025-06-26","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1007/s11440-025-02669-w.pdf","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145184206","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Strength and dilatancy for interface between sand-diatomite mixtures and biomimetic plates","authors":"Yang Xiao,&nbsp;Wenhao Qiao,&nbsp;Hao Cui,&nbsp;Ting Bao,&nbsp;Liuyang Xie,&nbsp;Qingyun Fang","doi":"10.1007/s11440-025-02665-0","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s11440-025-02665-0","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>The symbiotic relationship between coral and diatoms leads to the calcareous sand-diatomite mixtures (CSDMs) is prevalent in the marine sediments. The interaction between CSDM and structures, such as piles and suction caissons, is crucial for the safe operation of offshore engineering. In the current investigation, we performed a sequence of interface shear tests between CSDM with different diatomite contents (DCs) and biomimetic plates with unsymmetrical morphological shapes inspired by the abdominal scales of snakes. From the test results, we find that the DC has different effects on the interface shear strength of the caudal and cranial shear directions, which shows that the interface peak shear strength (IPSS) of caudal shear direction initially hoists and then declines with enhancing DC, and there exists a critical DC that is essentially consistent with the threshold value of the DC in the mixtures, whereas the IPSS declines with increasing DC for cranial shear direction. In addition, the increase in DC results in higher initial contraction, lower dilatation, and less softening behavior. DC has the same effect on the particle breakage for both caudal and cranial shear directions, i.e., the relative particle breakage index declines with increasing DC for both shear directions. It is anticipated that the current study will provide an insight into the using of the new bioinspired structure in the offshore engineering field.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":49308,"journal":{"name":"Acta Geotechnica","volume":"20 10","pages":"5243 - 5255"},"PeriodicalIF":5.7,"publicationDate":"2025-06-26","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145184146","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"X-ray CT-based 3D characterization of desiccation cracking in compacted expansive soil under varying vertical stress states","authors":"Brijesh Kumar Agarwal,&nbsp;Ajanta Sachan","doi":"10.1007/s11440-025-02659-y","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s11440-025-02659-y","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>Compacted expansive soils are used as hydraulic barriers in landfill liners, deep nuclear waste disposal facilities, the core of earthen dams, seal layers of CO₂ storage, etc. In the absence of high-quality fill material, they also serve as embankments for highways/railways, foundation soil for buildings, and man-made slopes. The compacted soil in these applications may experience wetting–drying (W–D) under different vertical stress levels within their service life. The present knowledge available regarding the desiccation cracking behavior of compacted soils ignores the influence of applied vertical stress. This study characterizes the 3D desiccation cracking behavior of a compacted expansive soil subjected to alternate W–D cycles under different vertical stress levels using the X-ray computed tomography (XCT) technique. Modified temperature-controlled oedometers were developed to apply W–D cycles on specimens subjected to different vertical stress levels. Quantification of various geometrical and morphological parameters of 3D crack networks was done using digital image analysis techniques. The results from this study highlight the beneficial effects of high vertical stress in controlling the growth of crack networks during alternate W–D cycles. Moreover, the digital models of 3D soil-crack systems were developed, and their characteristics, like porosity, aperture size distribution, fractal dimension, fracture surface, fracture density, connectivity, etc., were determined, which can be helpful in permeability and seepage modeling in cracked soil media using various stochastic methods and numerical tools.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":49308,"journal":{"name":"Acta Geotechnica","volume":"20 10","pages":"5221 - 5242"},"PeriodicalIF":5.7,"publicationDate":"2025-06-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145184208","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Tunnel boring machine performance prediction using knowledge-driven transfer learning","authors":"Haibo Li,&nbsp;Xu Li,&nbsp;Haojie Wang,&nbsp;Limin Zhang,&nbsp;Zuyu Chen","doi":"10.1007/s11440-025-02656-1","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s11440-025-02656-1","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>Machine learning (ML) emerges as a powerful tool in tunnel boring machine (TBM) performance prediction. A reliable ML model requires sufficient training data which, however, is usually absent for a new tunnelling project. Data-driven transfer learning offers a potential solution to this issue but usually experiences reduced performance due to the inconsistent data distributions among TBM projects. In this paper, we propose a knowledge-driven deep transfer learning-based approach for TBM performance prediction, aiming at improving TBM performance for new and ongoing tunnelling projects with no or limited boring data. The proposed method first trains source models using the knowledge-driven transformed data. The data are transformed by a proposed TBM invariant transformation method, which is developed based on TBM mechanical and empirical relationships. Subsequently, deep transfer learning is applied to fine-tune the source models for the target project using available small data. Three TBM tunnelling projects in China (i.e. the Yinsong project, the Yinchao project and the YE project) are taken as case studies to investigate the feasibility of the proposed method. The proposed knowledge-driven transfer learning method outperforms data-driven transfer learning in all tested scenarios and achieves satisfactory prediction performance in both data-limited and data-rich cases. Significant improvements over the conventional deep learning method can also be observed in the most data-limited condition (i.e. 100 training boring cycles): R squares are increased by 0.17 and 0.31 for torque and total thrust prediction, respectively, corresponding to mean absolute percentage error (MAPE) decreases of 3.65% and 5.82%. The optimal frozen strategy for TBM transfer learning is also investigated. By empowering knowledge sharing among different TBM tunnelling projects, the proposed method reveals a smart and promising way to address the TBM data scarcity problem and improve TBM performance prediction for new and ongoing projects.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":49308,"journal":{"name":"Acta Geotechnica","volume":"20 10","pages":"4921 - 4939"},"PeriodicalIF":5.7,"publicationDate":"2025-06-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145184150","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Using a smartphone device to quantify particle size and shape descriptors","authors":"Daniella Escribano Leiva,&nbsp;Carlos Kuncar Medina,&nbsp;Gonzalo Montalva","doi":"10.1007/s11440-025-02676-x","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s11440-025-02676-x","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>This paper describes a procedure to obtain particle size and shape descriptors through a 2D image processing algorithm using a smartphone device. This open-source tool is automatic and only requires a simple initial calibration of the camera lens, which is described herein. The output of the tool consists of a spreadsheet with particle size and shape descriptors for each grain, as well as their average values for the entire sample. Optical ready-to-use tools such as this one would benefit the geotechnical community due to the strong link between particle morphology and its mechanical properties. As an application, the script was used to obtain particle shape descriptors of a sand with known critical state parameters in order to evaluate them through particle shape predictive models. The results indicate that a minimum of 30 particles per image is enough to obtain a good match with the experimental data. These results highlight the advantages of the tool as a first estimate and as a complement to a full experimental program.\u0000</p></div>","PeriodicalId":49308,"journal":{"name":"Acta Geotechnica","volume":"20 10","pages":"5277 - 5295"},"PeriodicalIF":5.7,"publicationDate":"2025-06-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145184151","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Pore fractal and damage characteristics of granite following high-temperature heating and water cooling","authors":"Hongmei Gao,&nbsp;Yongwei Lan,&nbsp;Yanlin Zhao,&nbsp;Zhiming Li","doi":"10.1007/s11440-025-02664-1","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s11440-025-02664-1","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>Investigating the pore structure and damage mechanisms of granite under the synergistic effects of temperature and water is crucial for the development of geothermal resource exploitation strategies. This research conducted mercury intrusion porosimetry, uniaxial compression tests, and acoustic emission analyses on granite samples subjected to high-temperature heating and subsequent water cooling to assess the fractal and damage characteristics of their pore networks. The findings indicate that the pore volume and porosity of granite samples increase progressively after being subjected to high-temperature heating and water cooling, particularly in the development of macropores, whereas the integral dimension of the pore bodies continues to diminish. Furthermore, the failure mode of granite shifts from brittle to ductile, and its uniaxial compressive strength and elastic modulus generally exhibit a declining trend. It was also observed that there exists a strong correlation between the pore volume, porosity, and pore fractal dimension of granite and its mechanical parameters, with the pore fractal dimension showing a positive correlation with the mechanical parameters, and the correlation being most pronounced. Consequently, the pore fractal dimension was established as the characterization variable for microscopic thermal damage, and a granite fractal damage model incorporating pore characteristic parameters and acoustic emission parameters was developed, capable of predicting the extent of rock damage under compression following high-temperature treatment.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":49308,"journal":{"name":"Acta Geotechnica","volume":"20 10","pages":"5257 - 5276"},"PeriodicalIF":5.7,"publicationDate":"2025-06-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145184105","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Thermo-hydro-mechanics of thawing permafrost: a phase-field framework with enriched modified Cam-Clay plasticity","authors":"Mahyar Malekzade Kebria,&nbsp;SeonHong Na,&nbsp;Susan Tighe","doi":"10.1007/s11440-025-02684-x","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s11440-025-02684-x","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>This paper introduces a thermo-hydro-mechanical (THM) framework to model thaw consolidation in permafrost regions. By integrating internal energy degradation functions and a modified Cam-Clay model within a phase-field damage framework, the model focuses on simulating the simultaneous effects of phase change and particle rearrangement. The model integrates two distinct phase-field variables with the modified Cam-Clay plasticity framework. One phase-field variable monitors pore phase composition, while the other captures particle rearrangement. These variables are directly coupled to the constitutive model, providing critical data for updating the stress–strain relationship by accounting for particle rearrangement-induced softening and hardening effects due to volumetric deformation. The model converges to the modified Cam-Clay model when there is no phase change. This approach addresses a significant gap in existing models by capturing the associated microstructural evolution and plastic softening in thaw-sensitive soils. Validation efforts focus on experimental scenarios assessing both the mechanical impacts of thaw consolidation and the dynamics of phase transitions, particularly emphasizing latent heat effects. The results demonstrate the proposing model’s capability of handling complex behaviors of permafrost under thaw conditions, confirming its potential for enhancing infrastructure resilience in cold regions.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":49308,"journal":{"name":"Acta Geotechnica","volume":"20 8","pages":"4329 - 4354"},"PeriodicalIF":5.7,"publicationDate":"2025-06-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145166736","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}