Laboratory characterization and model calibration of a cemented aggregate for application in transportation infrastructures

Abstract

Research on increasingly stiffer and more resistant artificially stabilized geomaterials, such as soil-cement mixtures has frequently revealed interesting properties. The knowledge of such materials behaviour is as important as they are increasingly used in several layers of transportation infrastructures, as well as in transition zones between embankments and rigid structures. Most of these last situations involve zones close to sensitive prefabricated structures, where compaction of soils or aggregates demand for moderate energies, being necessary to increase the content of the hydraulic binders to increase their stiffness and strength. The present work reports some of the most notorious results obtained in some laboratory studies aiming to characterize different mixtures of cement and limestone aggregate. Seismic wave measurements, indirect tensile strength tests and triaxial compression tests were performed. The results indicated some relevant differences on dynamic and static stiffness properties and shear strength Mohr-Coulomb parameters, directly associated to the variation of porosity/cement ratio. Based on the triaxial test results, a calibration of the geo-mechanical parameters of the Hardening Soil Model available on commercial software was made.