The Influence of Dehumidifying Condition on Expansive Soil Engineering Properties
The expansive soil behaviour of expansive deformation and shear strength is deeply influenced by humidity condition. Different soil drying rate was set with constant temperature and different relative humidity. When saturated soil samples was dried to the different predetermined water content, the expansion ratio test with the upper load was made. It is shown that in the condition of high relative humidity, the expansion ratio is high. The smaller initial water content and upper load may lead to a larger swelling deformation. When soil samples with different initial water content was fully expanded, the consolidated direct shear tests were made. It is shown that the smaller drying rate leads to the greater shear strength after full expansion. What’s more, the upper load may improve the soil shear strength.