Obtaining Moduli from Cyclic Pressuremeter Tests

Abstract

Conventionally, a first loading modulus and a limit pressure are obtained from a pressuremeter test curve. This article shows how much information on the soil modulus can be obtained from a pressuremeter test. Soil moduli vary with the strain level. The pressuremeter modulus is measured at a large strain level; it is shown how an unload reload cycle can be used together with the hyperbolic stress strain model to find a soil modulus at any strain level. Soil moduli vary With the level of stress confinement. It is shown how an unload‐reload cycle can be used together with a power law to find the stress dependency of the soil modulus. Soil moduli vary with the number of unload reload cycles. One pressuremeter test with 100 unload‐reload cycles is presented; it is shown how the modulus and the plastic strain vary with the number of cycles.