INTRODUCTION

Water earthworks can cause huge damage because of three mechanisms: sliding,
submersion and internal erosion. With taking in account there is about 11,192 earth dams,
136 of them including 5.5% suffered accidents by sliding, and 46% suffered accidents by
internal erosion and 48% by overflow. Internal erosion is therefore a major mechanism
responsible for the instabilities observed in situ. Internal erosion comes from the migration,
under the action of a flow, of certain grains of the work. This migration is poorly understood
because of its complexity and its difficulty in be detected. Generates a modification of the
hydraulic and mechanical properties of the material that makes up the work. The
permeability of the material can be greatly modified which may lead to loss of intensity or
interstitial excess pressure. Uprooting some pills hurts the structural stability of the material
and can even cause the book to rupture. The mechanisms for internal erosion are complex
and depend on several parameters. Even in the laboratory, the identification of the
mechanism can be problematic, this is how the interpretations of MONNET, 1998 and
SKEMPTON and BROGAN199Generally the appearance of the fox phenomenon in cohesive
soils is favored by defects Permeability Suffusion: this phenomenon results in an internal
redistribution of fine particles in the ground. The overall particle size of the soil does not
change, however the permeability decreases. This redistribution of the particles causes a
localized overpressure downstream of the flow and can cause a landslide. Generally the
evolution of the phenomenon of suffusion is very slow, this which can detect it and act on it.
In the literature, several criteria have been proposed to estimate initiation and development
of internal erosion. There are many approaches and are essentially based on study particle
size distribution or on the evaluation of the critical hydraulic erosion gradient. Grain size
criterion. Considering the ability of large grains to resist erosion of smaller grains, KENNEY
and LAU. 1985 developed a method based on the shape of the curve particle size of granular
materials or with a low proportion of fines. This method also was validated for ascending
flows by SKEMPTON and BROGAN. 1994, then completed by MONNET, 1998. To reduce the
risk of foxes, hydraulic structures in the ground frequently include a filter generally placed
under the downstream facing. This filter can be in geotextile or made up of a layer of
another soil. This filter must be well adapted, otherwise its presence may increase the risk of
slip by the appearance of interstitial overpressures when the filter is clogged. This
observation has leads several authors to search for the ideal filter, LAFLEUR, 1999, clearly
show the different phenomena observed depending on the thickness and size of the filter
pore opening. The author compares the opening of the pores of the filter with a grain
diameter determined according to the shape of the curve particle size and uniformity
coefficient. If the filter opening is small enough, the suffusion phenomenon will occur with
clogging of the filter. A large opening will cause a fox, on the other hand an intermediate
opening may be accompanied by a stabilization of erosion in the form of a vault called the
auto filtration zone. Several empirical methods are used to determine opening the filter. We
can in particular quote the method of LAFLEUR, 1999, for the grounds and that of
MLYNAREK and VERMEERSCH, 1999 for cohesive soils, the latter being based on particle size,
plasticity index and percentage of dispersion (ASTM standard D4221). Hydraulic criterion. To
characterize the initiation of internal erosion, several researchers have given expressions of
the critical hydraulic gradient. Some formulations depend closely of the configuration
studied and are therefore difficult to generalize. For cohesive soils, KHILAR et al., 1985,
expressed the threshold of the critical erosion gradient as a function of the stress of
hydraulic shear (τc), intrinsic permeability and porosity. The constraint of hydraulic shear (τc)
defined by ARULANANDAN and PERRY, 1983 is a coefficient which depends on the
mineralogy of the clay and the nature of the interstitial fluid. For floors pulverulent DEN
ADEL et al., 1988 (cited by BLAIS, 2003), have proposed a simplified expression of the critical
hydraulic gradient as a function of the shape of the grain size curve. The strong uncertainties
of these expressions lead engineers to take high values of the coefficient of safety on the
hydraulic gradient which can in some cases reach 15 from the principle of the Pinhole test,
VARDOULAKIS and PAPAMICHOS., 2001, model the development of a fox using the following
parameters: initial porosity, permeability, viscosity, confining pressure, hydraulic gradient
and two coefficients empirical. Current internal erosion criteria do not take into account the
coupling of effects hydraulic and mechanical as well as the interactions of the paramount
parameters. The number important parameters which influence the different phenomena
and their evolutionary character underline the need to take appropriate experimental
precautions.

DESCRIPTION OF THE EXPERIMENTAL ASSEMBLY

PRINCIPLE
Most of the authors (notably LAFLEUR, 1989 and 1999, REDDI and BONALA, 1997 AYADAT et
al., 1998, TOMLINSON and VAID, 2000, TAROG, 2000, REDDI et al., 2000), have conducted
their tests using a rigid-wall parameter. The advantages of this type of material are:
simplicity of implementation and use as well as the low cost of the material. The
inconvenient come from the nature of the confinement which is uni-axial and from the
presence of parasitic flows between the sample and the wall. To reduce parasitic flows
KENNEY and LAU, 1985, have introduces a rubber membrane between the rigid wall and the
sample which has been compacted in this cell. The test cell must therefore preferably have a
flexible wall on the one hand to overcome parasitic flows between the sample and a rigid
wall, and on the other hand to ability to control sample confinement LAFLEUR, 1989,
TOMLINSON and VAID., 2000, HAMEIRI and FANNIN., 2002 tested samples consisting of glass
beads. This type of material makes it possible to obtain a very good repeatability of the
tests, but it cannot represent a coherent soil and does not allow to take into account the
angularity of the grains. The ease of use of the glass beads, however, suggests the possibility
to carry out phenomenological understanding tests. The use of natural samples poses the
problem of the generalization of the results and the repetitivity of tests carried out on
samples inherently heterogeneous and specific. The reconstitution of the sample used in
particular by REDDI et BONALA., 1997, TAROG, 2000 seems to be a good way to represent a
coherent soil natural while ensuring satisfactory repeatability when preparing samples which
must be homogenized beforehand by mechanical mixing then consolidated (BENDAHMANE,
2002 Note, however, that the use of clay particles requires a suitable system of effluent
collection to avoid the deposition of particles in the circuit.

ARULANANDAN and PERRY. 1983, REDDI et al., 2000 stressed the importance of nature
interstitial fluid and the mineralogy of the materials tested. It is therefore advisable to
control these two parameters and regulate the temperature of the injected fluid in order to
control its viscosity.

To avoid bulging and thus more surely identify the action of suffusion and the fox, samples
must be subjected to down flow. The tests carried out by BENDAHMANE, 2002 indicate that
the increase in the hydraulic gradient is accompanied by a accelerated evolution of
permeability. Conversely, the increase in pressure confinement of the samples results in a
slowing down of this same evolution permeametric. TOMLINSON and VAID. 2000 also
highlighted the incidence of rate of increase of the pressure gradient

The size of the filter pore opening and the thickness of the filter are clearly determinants for
the variability of phenomena (LAFLEUR, 1989, 1999). This therefore requires possibility of
testing different filter openings and thicknesses.

According to KENNEY and LAU. , 1985, LAFLEUR, 1989, BARAKAT, 1991, TOMLINSON and
VAID. , 2000 powdery soil consists of a primary structure and a secondary structure. The
primary structure consists of grains which ensure the resistance of the soil. The uprooting of
these grains changes the resistance of the soil and can cause collapse. However, the
secondary structure is made up of free grains which do not participate in resistance and
which can move easily in the ground, under the action of a mechanical stress (vibration) or a
hydraulic stress (fluid flow). BARAKAT, 1991 specifies that the departure of grains by the
phenomenon of suffusion does not influence soil resistance. However AYADAT et al., 1998,
noted that the suffusion phenomenon modifies the collapse potential for cohesive soils and
that the increase in the hydraulic gradient increases the suffusion. This evolution of behavior
mechanics induced by migration must be quantified. Hence the need to develop a hal-
00354855, version 1 - Jan 21, 2009 XXIIth University Meetings of Civil Engineering 2004 -
CITY & ENGINEERING CI experiment which allows the characterization of the mechanical
behavior after or during flow, without deconfining the sample.

As the duration of the tests can be significant, it is desirable to automate all the operations
experimental.

MAIN CHARACTERISTICS
Our assembly allows the study of the initiation and development of internal erosion for
sandy-clay samples. This assembly, which is placed in a room with temperature and
hygrometry controlled, consists of three modified triaxial cells. These cells are changed to
optimize the injection of interstitial fluid and the collection of effluent. The injection is
carried out using a pressure and volume controller (GDS) and the injection head has a bed of
glass beads to improve the diffusion while reducing the pressure losses. The cell base is
shaped funnel to prevent clogging or deposit of particles in the system. This base allows the
use of different filters which can be rigid or geotextile. To avoid disruption uncontrolled
samples, saturation, consolidation and hydraulic and mechanical testing samples are taken
within the same cell and without deconfinement. Effluent monitoring is carried out optically,
on the principle of transparency of the fluid, and by weighing the mass of the effluent. Tests
on coherent soils are generally long.

The entire assembly is therefore connected to a computer via a multiplexer in order to

automate data acquisition and piloting of tests.

TESTS AND ANALYSIS

CONFRONTATION AND VALIDATION TESTS
In order to verify the quality of the measurements made with our assembly and to validate
it, we have reproduces a test by KENNEY et al., 1992. This test consists in testing samples
composed of sand and bentonite following a bentonite / sand mass ratio of 8%.
The apparatus used by KENNEY et al., 1992 is a rigid wall permeameter, the consolidation
axial rises to 70 kPa, the hydraulic gradient is 15 m / m and the fluid used is distilled water.
The dimensions of the sample are: section 50 mm², height between 25 and 30 mm. The
hydraulic permeability thus measured is between 2.1 .10-10 and 2.2 .10-10 m / s . We made
three samples using the same percentage of bentonite and taking care to reproduce the
grain size of the sand. The permeability measured with our equipment on these samples 50
mm high and 50 mm in diameter is between 2.3 .10-10 m / s and 3.0 .10-10 m / s. The good
repeatability of the tests and the measured value extremely close to that of KENNEY et al
(1992) allow us to validate our experimental procedure.

FIRST STUDY OF THE DYNAMICS OF EROSION

In order to verify the capacity of the experimental bench to characterize the initiation and
the development of internal erosion, we perform a flow test on a sample composed of
kaolinite and sand with a kaolinite / sand mass ratio of 11% and a dry density of 17 kN / m3
(height 100 mm and diameter 50 mm). The containment pressure is fixed at 100kPa, the
injection

The evolution of erosion can be broken down into three phases.

During the first phase (up to t = 100 s) erosion has not started, the mass value harvested
reaches 1.5 g (Figure 5) and is equivalent to the volume of water injected which is 1527
mm3 is 1.527 g.

The second phase begins during the sudden variation of the optical signal (Figure 6) at t =
100 s. This variation indicates the presence of a grubbing-up and a migration of particles.
However the gap between the harvested mass and the injected mass (Figure 7) is not
significant. So there is a grubbing up and a migration of small suspended particles (kaolinite).

The third phase (t> 210 s) is characterized by significant variations in the optical signal which
emphasize the discontinuity in the flow of eroded grains (figure 6) and by a stabilization of
the mass flow harvested (4.72 10-2g / s) much higher than the mass flow injected (1.53 10-
2g / s). After 400 seconds test, the mass of eroded material reaches 6.5 g (injected mass 6.1
g; harvested mass 12.6 g). The grains torn off are therefore certainly of larger size than
during the previous stage.

Figure 7 confirms the uprooting of large grains from 210 s, by a sudden variation in the
evolution of the difference in masses injected and harvested. So internal erosion within the
tested sample was initiated by the uprooting and migration of part of the kaolinite. Evolution
structural induced then allowed the uprooting and the migration of grains of sand. The test
is interrupted by the collapse of the sample.

CONCLUSION AND OUTLOOK

The mechanisms responsible for internal erosion are multiple, evolving and depend on
several parameters. Faced with this complexity, the criteria for initiation and development
of erosion internally present in the literature are diverse and often closely dependent on the
work studied.

The rupture of recent works underlines the insufficiencies of the current criteria to estimate
the triggering, development of internal erosion and mechanical behavior. Therefore, the
design and production of an assembly for carrying out a parametric test campaign on these
themes appears necessary.

This experimental bench allows first of all to saturate and consolidate samples composed of
sand and clay. The triaxial cells used have been modified in order to achieve flow (static or
dynamic) at the heart of the samples. The ability to change the thickness and size opening
the filter pores allows the generation of fox and suffusion phenomena. The carrying out
trials of significant duration is made possible, thanks to the automation of piloting and data
acquisition and moreover, the simultaneous use of three cells allows us to reduce the
duration of the test campaign. Thanks to the instantaneous optical analysis of the effluent,
we can estimate the critical gradient of internal erosion. The study of the development of
internal erosion is performed by comparing the measurements of the injection volume flow
and the mass flow of effluent.

The first tests carried out made it possible on the one hand to validate the experimental
procedure and on the other part of decomposing the dynamics of internal erosion: the
migration of certain clay particles precedes the uprooting of the grains of sand. Using this
montage we will be able to carry out a campaign parametric tests likely to characterize the
initiation and development of suffusion and fox taking into account the hydraulic-mechanical
coupling. The importance of the number of parameters will require the development of an
experiment plan to optimize the number of trials, quantify the impact of the various
parameters and build a database necessary for modeling of internal erosion.

REFERENCES.
AFNOR (NF P 94-074) (1994) "Triaxial device tests" Association française de standardization
p.339-374.

ARULANANDAN K., PERRY E.B. (1983) "Erosion in relation to filter design criteria in earth
dams " Journal of Geotechnical Engineering, Vol 109, N ° 5, p. 682-696
AYADAT T., BELOUAHRI B., AIT AMMAR R. (1998) “The migration of fine particles as
approach to explaining the mechanism of collapse "Revue Française de géotechnique, n ° 83
p.73-81.

BARAKAT B. (1991) “Instability in the flow of granular media, morphological aspects and
probabilists” Thesis Ecole Centrale de Paris, p 135.

BENDAHMANE F. (2002) "Influence of runoff on soil resistance: experimental study

preliminary” DEA University of Nantes, p.62. BLAIS J.P., (2003) "Bibliographical review on
internal erosion" Irex report 179 p.

FOSTER M., FELL R., SPANNAGLE M. (2000) "A method for assessing the relative likelihood of
failure of embankment dams by piping ”Canadian Geotechnical Journal, Vol. 37, p. 1025-
1061.

Generates a modification of the hydraulic and mechanical properties of the material that
makes up the work. The permeability of the material can be greatly modified which may lead
to loss of intensity or interstitial excess pressure. Uprooting some pills hurts the structural
stability of the material and can even cause the book to rupture

It generates a modification of the hydraulic and mechanical characteristics of the material

constituting the work. The permeability of the material can be considerably modified this
which can cause loss of tightness or interstitial overpressures. The uprooting of some grain
damages the structural stability of the material and can even lead to the rupture of the book