INTRODUCTION TO THE

MECHANICAL BEHAVIOUR OF
PARTLY SATURATED SOILS
Julio Esteban Colmenares Montañez, PhD
Titular Professor

X Cátedra Internacional de Ingeniería

Ciudad Universitaria, Bogotá D.C., July 2016
 Contents
• Introduction
• Basic Concepts
• Pore pressure profiles
• Measurement of pore water pressure
• Soil-Water Relationships and flow
• Influence of Suction on compressibility
• Influence of Suction on shear strength
 INTRODUCTION

Clasical Soil Mechanics developed around

saturated soil sediments common in
temperate regions (Burland and Ridley,
1996).
SATURATED SOILS
• “Unsaturated condition is the general
pattern of soils… saturated condition is a
special case” (Fredlund, 2006).

• The study of the general condition may

give important lights to understand the
particular cases.
Saturated soils vs. Unsaturated soils
• There are numerous
materials encountered
in engineering
practice whose
behaviour is not
consistent with the
principles and
concepts of classical,
saturated soil
mechanics.
Saturated soils vs. Unsaturated soils
• Soil is a particulate, discontinuous media,
an engineering material made by nature

• Soil could either be saturated with water or

have other fluids in the voids (e.g., air)

• Classical soil mechanics was established

for saturated soils (Terzaghi, 1925-1945)
Mechanistic representation of soils

• Proposition 1.
– “Soils are particulate and essentially frictional”
• Proposition 2.
– “Resistance to compression, swell and
shearing is enhanced by interparticle
bonding”.
– Corollary: “removal of those bonds gives rise
to compression, swell and a reduction in
shearing resistance”.
 
T
P
T

P




 (a) (c)
w ater
so il p articles

u
w<0


(b) (d)
(a) loosely packed granular material; (b) displacement of grains
resulting from an increase in applied load; (c) small displacement
of grains due to compressive forces resulting from menisci at the
boundaries of the saturated soil; (d) particles "bonded" together by
the action of high curvature menisci at the grain contact points.
• Saturated soil of whatever type may be considered as a
skeleton of solid particles in contact with each other and
with the surrounding voids filled with water.
 Principle of effective stress: Terzaghi (1936) 1st
International Conference on SM and FE. Vol 1: 54-56.

• The stresses at any point of a section through a mass of

soil can be computed from the total principal stresses σ1,
σ2 , σ3 which act at this point. If the voids of the soil are
filled with water under the stress u, the total principal
stress consist of two parts. One part u acts in the water
and in the solid in every direction with equal intensity. It
is called the pore water pressure (Terzaghi called it the
neutral stress). The balance: σ1´= σ1 – u, σ2´= σ2 – u,
σ3´= σ3 – u represents an excess over the pore pressure
u and has it seat exclusively in the solid phase of the
soil. This fraction of the total principal stress is called the
effective principal stress.
• Effective stress: see figure
Any plane through an element of soil has acting
on it a resultant normal stress σn and a shear
stress τ. The water in the pores will be under a
pressure u known as the pore water pressure.

The effective normal stress σn´ acting across the

plane is the difference between the total normal
pressure and the pore water pressure:

σn´= σ – u

Since water cannot carry shear, a shear stress

will always be an effective stress.

i.e. τ = τ´

An effective stress may be thought of as that part

of the total stress that is transmitted through the
soil skeleton
• Application: all measurable effects of a change of stress such as
compression, distortion or a change in shearing resistance are due
exclusively to changes in effective stress (taking due regard to time
effects: creep, ageing, etc).

• The validity of this principle for saturated soils has been

demonstrated experimentally many times.

• It follows that to define the effective stress on any element of soil it is

necessary to know not only the total stress, but also the pore water
pressure.

• That is why ground water conditions play such vital role in ground
engineering problems – particularly for retaining walls and slopes.
Changes in ground water pressure without changes in total pressure
can take place because of seepage, water table fluctuations,
consolidation or swelling. All these effects will give rise to changes
in effective stress and result in important, sometimes catastrophic
soil behaviour.
• Neglecting creep, if there is no distortion or volume
change during a change in total stress there is no
change of effective stress.
• A decrease in σ´ causes swelling and weakening – could
result from a decrease in σ with u constant or increase in
u with σ constant.
• An increase in σ´ causes compression and strength
increase –could result from increase in σ with u constant
or decrease in u with σ constant

• The application of the effective stress principle is an

empirically established concept –a working hypothesis.
• The key feature of the principle is that in predicting
strength and deformation, we only need to know the
appropriate effective stresses and their changes and not
the independent values of σ and u. This is a tremendous
advantage.
• However, in the field, we will always have to measure u
in order to obtain σ´.
• In the laboratory we need only to apply the appropriate
values of (σ – u) and need not concern ourselves with
their separate absolute values.
• Soils above the ground water table and samples taken
from the ground must at some point make contact with
the air.

• The measurable stresses will be:

– The pore air pressure (ua)
– The pore water pressure (uw)
– The total stress (σ)

• Combinations
– Net total stress (σ- ua)
– Soil suction (ua-uw)
– Stress variable (σ- uw) = f(Sr)
 Interparticle forces due to capillarity (Haines, 1927)

Uw<0

a
2θ F

Ua = 0
Ts
2𝜋𝑎𝑇𝑠
𝐹=
1 + tan 𝜃 2
Soil suction acts as a temporary bond between soil particles
• Croney, Coleman and Black (1958) were
the first to suggest an “effective stress”
variable incorporating the net total stress
and the soil suction.

𝜎 ´ = 𝑝 − 𝛽 ´ 𝑢𝑤
• They suggested 𝛽 ´ =1 for saturated soils
and 𝛽 ´ =0 for dry soils.
• Bishop (1959) suggested a modified form of Croney et al
equation in which the net total stress and the pore water
pressure were referenced to the ambient pore air
pressure.

𝜎 ´ = 𝜎 − 𝑢𝑎 + 𝜒 𝑢𝑎 − 𝑢𝑤

• When the pore air pressure is equal to the ambient

atmospheric value, the two equations are the same with
𝛽´ = 𝜒
• Usefulness of an effective stress variable: “all
measurable effects of a change of stress such as
compression, distortion or a change in shearing
resistance are due exclusively to changes in effective
stress” (Terzaghi).

• For this to be the case, 𝛽´ and 𝜒, must be soil properties

that can be independently established.

• Additionally, to be of general use 𝛽´ and 𝜒 should be the

same for both shear strength and volume changes.
• Compression curves for the partly saturated
material, all cross the VCL
• As the applied stress increases, the partly
saturated samples begin to “yield”
• The yield stress increases as the degree of
saturation decreases
• When soaked, under constant applied stress,
the partly saturated samples “collapse” on to the
saturated ICL
• Sample soaked at zero applied stress converges
on the saturated ICL
• Although 𝜎 − 𝑢𝑎 and 𝑢𝑎 − 𝑢𝑤 are the appropriate
stress variables for assessing the behavior of
unsaturated soils, they cannot be combined to form a
“single effective stress” that uniquely defines the
behaviour of such soils.

• The behaviour presented can be explained

mecanistically by treating separately the effects of
suction and applied stress.

• The behaviour can not be accounted for by mean of a

single effective stress variable.
ELASTIC – PLASTIC VOLUME CHANGE IN
SOILS
• The measured volumetric behaviour of clays suggests
that we can idealise them as elastic-plastic materials.

• The following figure shows the isotropic compression

and swelling of reconstituted kaolin:

– The virgin compression line represents plastic behaviour since

irrecoverable volumetric strains occur.
– For small reductions of stress BC the behaviour is approximately
reversible with a yield point at D.
– For much larger reductions of stress B´C´ the behaviour is less
ideal and the yield point D´ is less well defined.
State boundary surface in q´: p´: v space

Ko line

Isotropic
Natural material: For natural bonded clays elastic-plastic
behaviour is often a better idealisation than for
reconstituted clays as sharp yield points are often
displayed quite stiff behaviour prior to yield.
In situ
state
Saturated and Unsaturated Soils: An ideal condition
SATURATED SOIL
Soil Particles
(solid phase)

Water (fluid phase)

Air (fluid phase)

UNSATURATED SOIL
 UNSATURATED SOILS:
BASIC CONCEPTS

“An unsaturated has commonly referred to as

a three phase system. However, there are
very complex relationships between the
phases…”
 Capillary Forces
CL
Molecula
Molecule enat
la the
interfase
aire-agua Ua Ua
inter-phase air-
Ts rs Ts
liquid R
B Ts rs Ts

Molecule at the H R
Molécula en el interior
interior
de of the
un líquido Ua
 Uw (B)
liquid
A

Surface Tension

2Ts cos  Capillarity Phenomenon

ua  uw 
rs
SURFACE TENSION
En un tubo capilar, por equilibrio:
π rt2 h γ w =2π rt σs cos θ

2s cos 
 h
 w rt
2s pg  pl ua  uw
Si   0º  h   
w r w w
 SURFACE TENSION

If ϴ<90°
Liquid wets the Water: ϴ  0°
solid
P. Koorevaar, G. Menelik and C. Dirksen - Elements of soil
physics -Elsevier (1983)
 SOIL SUCTION
• Matric Suction: The energy required to remove a
water molecule from the soil matrix without the
water changing state (Ridley, 1993)

• Total Suction: The energy required to remove a

water molecule from the soil matrix throughout
evaporation (Ridley, 1993). Total water potential.

• Osmotic potential: The difference between total

suction and matric suction. Is a measure of the
additional stress to remove a water molecule
from the water phase due to the presence of
dissolved salts (Colmenares, 2002)
SOIL SUCTION
DIFFERENCE BETWEEN MATRIC AND
TOTAL SUCTION
 UNSATURATED SOIL:
A MULTHIPHASE SYSTEM
 UNSATURATED SOIL:
A MULTHIPHASE SYSTEM
Air Wate r
V OLUME WEIG

Soil V
a Air
particle
V
v

V
T V
w W
Wate r w

W
T

V
s W
Solidss

(a) (b)
 Volume Relationships

Vv Vv Vw
e n Sr 
Vs V Vv

Vw
   Sr n
V
 Weight Relationships

Ww W Ws
w   d 
Ws V V
Relationships between volumetric water
content and other phase relations

 = wd/ρw 

s
Sr e wGs
 
(1  e ) (1  e )
 FEATURES OF THE BEHAVIOUR OF UNSATURATED
SOILS

• Suction contributes to stiffening the soil against external

loading.
(a) (c)
w ater
so il p articles

u
w<0


(b) (d)
 GEOTECHNICAL PROBLEMS RELATED TO
UNSATURATED SOILS

Effect of excavations on a natural slope

subjected to environmental changes.

Lateral earth pressures generated

subsequent to backfilling with dry
soils.
Typical pore-water and pore air
pressures after some dissipation of
pore pressures and partial filling of the
reservoir
GEOTECHNICAL PROBLEMS RELATED TO UNSATURATED SOILS

Ground movements
associated with the
construction of shallow
footings on an expansive
soil (Hamilton, 1977).

Ground movements associated

with the construction of a house
founded on piles in expansive
soils (Canadian Geotechnical
Society, 1985)
Unsaturated Soils: Residual Soils
 Unsaturated Soils

Loess

Pavement Cracks Pavement Cracks

 NEED FOR UNSATURATED SOIL
MECHANICS IN ENGINEERING PRACTICE

1. THE NEED TO UNDERSTAND THE

MECHANICAL BEHAVIOR OF UNSATURATED
SOILS

2. THE DEVELOPMENT OF CONSTITUTIVE

MODELS

3. IMPROVE THE DESIGN PROCCESS FOR

GEOTECHNICAL STRUCTURES
 Summary
• Partly saturated soils are the general case.
Fully saturated soils are one particular
case.
• There is a need to understand the
behaviour of partly saturated soils.
• For a partly saturated soil, changes in u
result in a completely different behaviour
from changes in σ. Therefore, it is
necessary to measure soil suction.
 References
• Burland J.B. and Ridley A.M. (1996) The importance of
suction in soil mechanics. Proceedings of the 12th
South-East Asian Conference on Soil Mechanics and
Foundation Engineering. Kuala Lumpur. Malaysia.

• Fredlund D.G and Rahardjo H. (1993) Soil Mechanics for

Unsaturated Soils. John Wiley and Sons. New York.

• Fredlund D.G. (1996) The emergence of unsaturated soil

mechanics. The fourth Spencer J. Buchanan Lecture.
Texas A&M University.