A Simple Fractal-Based Model for Soil-Water Characteristic Curves Incorporating Effects of Initial Void Ratios

Gaoliang Tao, Yin Chen, Lingwei Kong, Henglin Xiao, Qingsheng Chen and Yuxuan Xia
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Gaoliang Tao: Hubei Provincial Ecological Road Engineering Technology Research Center, Hubei University of Technology, Wuhan 430068, China
Yin Chen: Hubei Provincial Ecological Road Engineering Technology Research Center, Hubei University of Technology, Wuhan 430068, China
Lingwei Kong: State Key Laboratory of Geomechanics and Geotechnical Engineering, Institute of Rock and Soil Mechanics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan 430071, China
Henglin Xiao: Hubei Provincial Ecological Road Engineering Technology Research Center, Hubei University of Technology, Wuhan 430068, China
Qingsheng Chen: Hubei Provincial Ecological Road Engineering Technology Research Center, Hubei University of Technology, Wuhan 430068, China
Yuxuan Xia: Hubei Subsurface Multi-Scale Imaging Key Laboratory, Institute of Geophysics and Geomatics, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan 430074, China

Energies, 2018, vol. 11, issue 6, 1-20

Abstract: In this paper, a simple and efficient fractal-based approach is presented for capturing the effects of initial void ratio on the soil-water characteristic curve (SWCC) in a deformable unsaturated soil. In terms of testing results, the SWCCs (expressed by gravimetric water content) of the unsaturated soils at different initial void ratios were found to be mainly controlled by the air-entry value ( Ψ a ), while the fractal dimension ( D ) could be assumed to be constant. As a result, in contrast to the complexity of existing models, a simple and efficient model with only two parameters (i.e., D and Ψ a ) was established for predicting the SWCC considering the effects of initial void ratio. The procedure for determining the model parameters with clear physical meaning were then elaborated. The applicability and accuracy of the proposed model were well demonstrated by comparing its predictions with four sets of independent experimental data from the tests conducted in current work, as well as the literature on a wide range of soils, including Wuhan Clay, Hefei and Guangxi expansive soil, Saskatchewan silt, and loess. Good agreements were obtained between the experimental data and the model predictions in all of the cases considered.

Keywords: soil-water characteristic curve; initial void ratio; air-entry value; fractal dimension; fractal model (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q Q0 Q4 Q40 Q41 Q42 Q43 Q47 Q48 Q49 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2018
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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