A fundamental characterization of engineering properties for gravelly soils is presented through an experimental and analytical study. The experimental study involves testing gravels in a recently developed 9.5 inch cubic multiaxial device. This cubic multi-axial device can accommodate geologic materials up through gravel size, and can test such materials under three independently controlled principal stresses, along with controlled backpressure. Drained and undrained, and static and cyclic loading conditions are possible. As part of this study, capabilities and limitations of the multiaxial device are assessed, and a preliminary database on gravels under general loading conditions is developed. The analytical study involves the evaluation of a recently developed constitutive model for granular soils as a suitable model for the simulation of gravelly soil behavior, the implementation of the model using robust implicit integration techniques, the development of efficient computational tools applicable to constitutive models based on object oriented programming paradigms, and the calibration of the constitutive model parameters based on the results obtained in the experimental study. Attributes of the research are to better characterize the stress-strain behavior of gravels under general loading conditions, and to implement, verify, and calibrate an advanced constitutive model capable of reproducing the behavior of gravels under general loading conditions.
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