Coefficients of earth pressure at rest in thick and deep soils

The effect of test methods and stress paths on the experimental value of the coefficient of earth pressure at rest, K0, was investigated under high pressures. The results indicate that the rigid pressure chamber and flexible lateral confining pressure medium method gives a stress ratio at the initial stage that is not the real K0. Moreover, K0 increases during the loading process becoming greater at high pressures. In the unloading process, however, K0 increases only at the initial stage but decreases thereafter. In addition, the incremental magnitude definition, K0=dσ3/dσ1, gives higher values than the total magnitude definition, K0=σ3/σ1, under loading. This is also true during initial stages of unloading. The experiment results also indicate that earth pressure at rest in deep and thick soils can be estimated by a power function of axial and confining pressures. It is necessary to choose the appropriate K0 to avoid some accidents.