Abstract:

The rapid development of infrastructure in the western area of China leads to the construction of more and more high fills. Accurate information on the shear behavior of the fill materials becomes a key issue for a safe design and construction. A series of large scale triaxial tests have been conducted on Douposi moderately-to-slightly weathered fill materials, which is a weak rockfill mainly found in Yunnan province. The test results show that the shear behavior of Douposi moderately-to-slightly weathered fill materials is very different from other typical rockfills, with a low shearing strength, while the stress-strain relationship, stiffness and strength characteristics are more similar to those of fine grain soils. Furthermore, water can reduce the strength of Douposi moderately-to-slightly weathered fill materials significantly, which must be taken into account during design and construction. Finally, it is demonstrated that the Duncan-Chang model is capable of simulating the shear behavior of Douposi moderately-to-slightly weathered fill materials.

Key words: high fills, Douposi moderately-to-slightly weathered fill, large scale triaxial test, shear behavior