Closure to “Revised Soil Classification System for Coarse-Fine Mixtures” by Junghee Park and J. Carlos Santamarina

Abstract

We are grateful for the insightful contributions by the discussers. This closure addresses their observations, with emphasis on the transition from coarse-controlled to fines-controlled behavior, the critical fines fraction in view of seepage-induced internal instability , and related observations relevant to the revised soil classification system (RSCS). Transition from Coarse-Controlled to Fines-Controlled Behavior We carefully reviewed the work by Gutierrez (2005); however, we failed to confirm results in Dallo's discussion. Nevertheless, we take this opportunity to provide further evidence in support of the transition boundaries adopted in the RSCS. The volumetric-gravimetric analysis for coarse-fine mixtures leads to the low-threshold fines fraction F F j L and the high-threshold fines fraction F F j H in terms of densely and loosely packed grains [from Eq. (1) in the original paper] F F L ¼ e min C