Consolidation

When saturated clay is loaded externally,

The water is squeezed out of the clay over a long time. This leads to settlements occurring over a long time, Which could be several years.

Granular soils are freely drained, and thus the settlement is instantaneous.

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Types of Consolidated Soils

Based on the pre-consolidation pressure soils are classified as: 1. Pre-Consolidated Soils 2. Normally Consolidated Soils 3. Under-Consolidated Soils

Pre-consolidation Pressure Wpc

It is the maximum effective stress experienced by a soil in its stress history (past existence).

Void ratio versus effective stress (log scale)

y For the soil loaded along the recompression curve AB the effective stress close to point B will be the pre-consolidation pressure. y If the soil is compressed along BC and unloaded along CD and then reloaded along DC the effective stress close to point C will be the new pre-consolidation pressure.

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Pre-Consolidated Soil
If the soil being consolidated has already experienced an equivalent outside stress to the one being used for consolidation, It is considered "Pre-Consolidated". For Example: This pre-stressing can come from a glacier which may have been 100 meters thick 10,000 years ago and has now totally melted. It can also occur from the drying and wetting cycles of the seasons in arid parts of the world.

Normally Consolidated Soils

It is a soil deposit that has never subjected to a vertical effective stress greater than the present vertical stress. That is if the soil has not been pre-stressed in the past, in other words if todays stress is the highest stress experienced by the soil and if the soil is at equilibrium under this stress, the soil is normally consolidated.

The stress state W2 represent normally consolidated soil.

Under-Consolidated Soils
A soil deposit that has not consolidated under the present overburden pressure (effective stress) is called Under Consolidated Soil. These soils are susceptible to larger deformation and cause distress in buildings built on these deposits.
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