An Experimental Micromechanical Study on the Shearing Behavior of Soil

Abstract

The micromechanical study of granular materials, including grain-to-grain frictional behavior and normal contact mechanics, has received great attention in the geotechnical and petroleum engineering disciplines in recent years. In this study, the results of an experimental work are presented using an advanced custom-built apparatus to explore the frictional behavior of quartz sand grains subjected to complex shearing paths. The results show that the application of pre-loading and pre-shearing affects markedly the inter-particle coefficient of friction as well as the tangential stiffness. Image analysis indicates that ploughing occurs when the shearing takes place at relatively greater normal loads, which, in turn, contributes to the observed changes in the frictional behavior of the grains in unloading. These results are promising in understanding the tribological behavior of geological materials and contribute to the more accurate modeling of the micromechanical response of soil particles.