The dynamic characteristics of saturated remolded loess under cyclic load

Abstract

Due to the joint development characteristic and macropore structure of loess, it is easy to cause structure collapse under earthquake or artificial vibration. The study on the loess disaster effect and its mechanism under earthquake action is insufficient due to its complexity. Hence, to study the deformation and mechanical properties more accurately, the dynamic characteristics of saturated remolded loess under cyclic dynamic load were tested using a GDS dynamic triaxial instrument in this paper. The test results show that strain and pore water pressure increase gradually at different rates with the development of vibration, and there is an obvious inflection point in the time-history curve of both. When the number of vibrations (N) exceeds this point, the strain increases rapidly, and pore water pressure tends to be stable. Under the action of large amplitude and low-frequency dynamic load, the strain and pore water pressure increase rapidly with fewer vibrations and the deviator stress (q) decreases rapidly, while the sample achieves damage faster with the increase of amplitude. During the application of a dynamic load, the effective stress (p) gradually decreases and its rate of change slows down. Finally, when the saturated remolded loess is subjected to a constant-amplitude dynamic load, the combination of large amplitude and low frequency leads to the failure of the sample in the shortest time.