ISSN: 1945-7545
CODEN: GTJODJ
Published Online: 12 February 2008
Page Count: 9

New Slurry Displacement Method for Reconstitution of Highly Gap-Graded Specimens for Laboratory Element Testing

Khalili, Ali
Ph.D. Candidate, Civil Engineering Department, University of British Columbia, Vancouver,

Wijewickreme, Dharma
Associate Professor, Civil Engineering Department, University of British Columbia, Vancouver,

(Received 27 July 2007; accepted 11 January 2008)

Abstract

A new “slurry displacement” method was developed for reconstitution of cylindrical specimens of highly gap-graded soils for laboratory element testing. The method stems from a need to conduct laboratory element tests on mixtures of waste rock and tailings with specific relevance to the development of new technology and material science for mining industry. The slurry displacement method allows preparing uniform/homogeneous specimens of highly gap-graded materials in a saturated condition, thus overcoming the difficulties in the use of currently available specimen preparation techniques. The suitability of the technique to replicate specimens is demonstrated by the repeatable test results obtained from shear testing of identical specimens prepared using the method.

Keywords:
slurry displacement, specimen preparation, gap-graded soils, waste rock, tailings

Paper ID: GTJ101373
DOI: 10.1520/GTJ101373
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