Applicability of settlement prediction method to peaty ground

This paper describes the applicability of a method, proposed by Noto (1991a), to the prediction of the settlement of a peaty ground from an engineering viewpoint. The settlement of peaty grounds cannot be fully explained by Terzaghi׳s theory. Noto proposed a method for predicting the settlement behavior in peaty grounds on the basis of the statistical analyses of numerous oedometer test results. For the purpose of verifying the applicability of the Noto method, data on the settlement of full-scale test embankments, built in Hokkaido, Japan, were compared with predictions obtained by this method. The comparison quantitatively revealed the primary consolidation rate and the coefficient of secondary consolidation of the peaty ground as well as the prediction accuracy of the Noto method.