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Dilatancy (granular material)

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Not to be confused with Dilatant.

Dilatancy is the volume change observed in

granular materials when they are subjected to

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shear deformations.[1][2] This effect was first

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described scientifically by Osborne Reynolds in

1885/1886 [3][4] and is also known as Reynolds

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dilatancy.

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Unlike most other solid materials, the tendency of

a compacted granular material is to dilate
(expand in volume) as it is sheared. This occurs
because the grains in a compacted state are
interlocking and therefore do not have the

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freedom to move around one another. When

stressed, a lever motion occurs between

Typical curves of stress-difference as a

function of strain in dense sands.

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neighboring grains, which produces a bulk

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expansion of the material. On the other hand,

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when a granular material starts in a very loose state it may initially compact instead of dilating

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under shear. A sample of a material is called dilative if its volume increases with increasing

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shear and contractive if the volume decreases with increasing shear.[5][6]

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Dilatancy is a common feature of the soils and sands. Its effect can be seen when the wet sand

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around the foot of a person walking on beach appears to dry up. The deformation caused by
the foot expands the sand under it and the water in the sand moves to fill the new space
between the grains.

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Dilatancy is also studied by geotechnical engineers, and is a part of the broader topic of soil

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mechanics.

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Contents
1 Phenomenology
2 Why is dilatancy important?
3 References
4 See also

Phenomenology

[edit]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dilatancy_(granular_material)[09-Aug-16 08:36:32]

Dilatancy (granular material) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The phenomenon of dilatancy can be observed in

a simple shear test on a sample of dense sand. In
the initial stage of deformation, the volumetric
strain decreases as the shear strain increases.
But as the stress approaches its peak value, the
volumetric strain starts to increase. After some
more shear, the soil sample has a larger volume
than when the test was started.
The amount of dilation depends strongly on the
density of the soil. In general, the denser the soil
the greater the amount of volume expansion
under shear. It has also been observed that the
angle of internal friction decreases as the effective
normal stress is decreased.[7]

Dilatancy of a sample of dense sand in

simple shear.

The relationship between dilation and internal

friction is typically illustrated by the sawtooth
model of dilatancy where the angle of dilation is

analogous to the angle made by the teeth to the horizontal. Such a model can be used to infer
that the observed friction angle is equal to the dilation angle plus the friction angle for zero
dilation.

Why is dilatancy important?

[edit]

Because of dilatancy, the angle of friction increases as the confinement increases until it
reaches a peak value. After the peak strength of the soil is mobilized the angle of friction
abruptly decreases. As a result, geotechnical engineering of slopes, footings, tunnels, and piles
in such soils have to consider the potential decrease in strength after the soil strength reaches
this peak value.

References

[edit]

1. ^ Nedderman, R.M. (2005). Statics and kinematics of granular materials (Digitally printed 1st
pbk. version. ed.). Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. ISBN0-521-01907-9.
2. ^ Pouliquen, Bruno Andreotti, Yol Forterre, Olivier (2013). Granular media: between fluid and
solid. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. ISBN9781107034792.
3. ^ Reynolds, Osborne (December 1885). "LVII. On the dilatancy of media composed of rigid
particles in contact, with experimental illustrations". Philosophical Magazine Series 5. 20 (127):
469481. doi:10.1080/14786448508627791

4. ^ Reynolds, O., "Experiments showing dilatancy, a property of granular material, possibly

connected with gravitation," Proc. Royal Institution of Great Britain, Read, February 12, 1886.
5. ^ Casagrande, A., Hirschfeld, R. C., & Poulos, S. J. (1964). Fourth Report: Investigation of
Stress-Deformation and Strength Characteristics of Compacted Clays. HARVARD UNIV
CAMBRIDGE MA SOIL MECHANICS LAB.
6. ^ Poulos, S. J. (1971). The stress-strain curves of soils. Geotechnical Engineers Incorporated.
Chicago.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dilatancy_(granular_material)[09-Aug-16 08:36:32]

Dilatancy (granular material) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

7. ^ Houlsby, G. T. How the dilatancy of soils affects their behaviour. University of Oxford,
Department of Engineering Science, 1991.http://www.eng.ox.ac.uk/civil/publications/reports1/ouel_1888_91.pdf

See also

[edit]

Soil mechanics
Geotechnical engineering
Granular material
Triaxial shear tests
This article about a civil engineering topic is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by
expanding it.
Geotechnical engineering

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Cone penetration test Standard penetration test Monitoring well

(piezometer)
Borehole Crosshole sonic logging

Nuclear densometer test

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Atterberg limits California bearing ratio Direct shear test

Hydrometer Proctor compaction test R-value Sieve analysis

Triaxial shear test Hydraulic conductivity tests

Water content tests

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Clay Silt Sand Gravel Peat Loam Loess

properties
Soil

mechanics

Foundations
Retaining walls
Stability
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Geosynthetics
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Soil classification Hydraulic conductivity Water content

Void ratio Bulk density Thixotropy Reynolds' dilatancy

Angle of repose Cohesion Porosity Permeability

Specific storage
Effective stress Pore water pressure Shear strength

Overburden pressure Consolidation Compaction Shear wave

Lateral earth pressure

Shallow Deep Bearing capacity Dynamic load testing Pile integrity test

Wave equation analysis Statnamic load test

Mechanically stabilized earth Soil nailing Tieback Gabion Slurry wall
Slope
(analysis mass wasting landslide)
Deformation monitoring
(automated)
Soil liquefaction Response spectrum Seismic hazard

Groundstructure interaction
Geotextile Geomembrane Geosynthetic clay liner Cellular confinement
Plaxis GEO5 SEEP2D STABL SVFlux SVSlope UTEXAS

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Dilatancy (granular material) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dilatancy_(granular_material)[09-Aug-16 08:36:32]