Abstract:
One of the most important and the most controversial engineering properties of soil is its shear
strength or ability to resist sliding along internal surfaces within a mass. The stability of a cut,
the slope of an earth dam, the foundations of structures, the natural slopes of hillsides and other
structures Built on soil depend upon the shearing resistance offered by the soil along the
probable surfaces of slippage. There is hardly a problem in the field of engineering which does
not involve the shear properties of the soil in some manner or the other.
The laboratory studies have shown that most expansive soils are highly expansive, possesses
lower shear strength at peak values and most of all their consolidation behavior is hard to predict
with the common triaxial apparatus. It has been established that these characteristics are mainly
in friction angle in the CU tests.
Influenced by the volume change during saturation stage (type and amount of clay minerals
present) and physical state of the soil.
One of the most important and the most controversial engineering properties of soil is its shear
strength or ability to resist sliding along internal surfaces within a mass. The stability of a cut,
the slope of an earth dam, the foundations of structures, the natural slopes of hillsides and other
structures Built on soil depend upon the shearing resistance offered by the soil along the
probable surfaces of slippage. There is hardly a problem in the field of engineering which does
not involve the shear properties of the soil in some manner or the other.
