Use of a downhole block sampler for very soft organic soils

Techniques required to successfully obtain downhole block samples of typical
very soft high plasticity organic clay from Ireland are described. The vane shear strength of
the material is as low as 4 kPa. These included using a sampler penetration rate three times
faster than normally adopted. Comparisons are made between the results of laboratory tests
on Sherbrooke block samples, on two fixed piston tube samplers and on a continuous
sampler. In addition idealised tube sampling strains were imposed on block sample
specimens prior to shearing (ISA approach). Both approaches confirmed that the material
studied could not survive tube sampling undamaged, unlike the findings of a recent study in
the Netherlands on Dutch organic soil. Tube sampling was found to have a more significant
effect on triaxial test parameters that on those from the 1D compression testing, where the
behaviour of the block sample specimens and those from one of the two tube samplers were
similar to in situ response. Increasing levels of disturbance were associated with
progressively more dilatant behaviour.