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• The area of the specimen resisting the shear force gradually decreases due to shear
deformation. To calculate the shear stress at any deformation, the corrected area (Ac),
computed from is to be used.
• Ac = l × lc = l × (l – δl) …(13.8)
• where Ac is the corrected cross-sectional area in cm2 and δI the shear deformation in cm.
• Merits of Direct Shear Test:
i. The test is simple and convenient. The preparation of soil specimen for the test is easy.
ii. Undrained tests can be conducted with shear box very rapidly. Drained tests on
cohesionless soils can also be completed in a very short time compared to that in other type
of shear tests. Thus, shear box test is very advantageous where time is at premium.
iii. The test does not need skilled person and even a novice can quickly learn to conduct the
test with little training.
iv. The equipment used for the test is simple and less costly.
• Demerits of Direct Shear Test:
i. The stress distribution is not uniform over the failure plane. The stresses are more at the
edges and less at the center. This leads to errors in the estimation of shear parameters.
ii. Failure is progressive and shear strength of the soil is mobilized gradually.
iii. The metallic side walls of the shear box provide a lateral restraint that causes an
apparent increase in the shear strength of the soil. As the side walls do not exist in the
field, the test does not replicate the in situ conditions properly and it leads to inaccurate
and over-estimation of the shear strength of the soil.
iv. There is no provision for monitoring or control of drainage in the soil sample at any
stage of the test. Drained tests can be, therefore, conducted only on highly permeable
soils.
v. Measurement of pore water pressure cannot be done in the test and hence only total
stress shear parameters can be obtained in undrained tests in the shear box test.
vi. The stress conditions are known only at the time of failure. Prior to failure, the stresses
are indeterminate and Mohr’s circles cannot be drawn.
vii. In spite of the above serious limitations, the direct shear test is more popular than other
types of shear tests and is more frequently used than the others on all types of soils. This
is only because of the very simple test procedure and very short time needed for the test.