This paper presents a simple micro mechani- cal model for thebehaviour of overconsolidated soils. The simplest case of isotropicunloading and relaading is con- sidered for a soil which has becnsubjected to isotropic plastic (clastic) or ``normal'' compression.Such a material has a wide disparity in particle sizes, such thatsmall par- ticles are kinematically unstab, and large particles arestable. A simple unit cell is defined with one of the largest grainsat the centre, surrounde by a fractal matrix of finer particles.
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