Particle breakage during cyclic triaxial loading of a carbonate sand

Dynamic loading of embankment, foundation and pavement structures results in particle breakage of the constituent granular materials, when the stresses imposed on their particles exceed their strength. This paper presents the results of a number of drained cyclic triaxial tests on loose, uniformly graded samples of Dogs bay carbonate sand. It is observed that particle breakage is dependent on stress level, cyclic stress ratio, and creep and is directly related to volumetric strain. Drained cycling increases volumetric strain and therefore more breakage occurs when larger numbers of cycles are imposed. The increase in particle breakage from one cycle to the next indicates that while particles may not be loaded to their full capacity in a given cycle, they can be crushed in subsequent cycles without any variation in the amplitude of cyclic loading.