Controlling role of suction stress in the Atterberg limits
type: CreativeWork
description: Soil plasticity and consistency are indicators of a soil’s strength and deformation as a function of water content. They are often treated as secondary concepts in geotechnical analysis, likely due to the arbitrary and empirical nature of their definitions—such as those associated with plastic and liquid limit determinations. However, disregarding these concepts is tantamount to overlooking the fundamental role of water in soil behavior. Suction stress governs the Atterberg limits, and variations in suction stress behavior dictate transitions in soil consistency. Specifically, internal soil stress interactions that generate suction stress control the liquid and plastic limits, and ultimately govern soil plasticity. Consequently, the liquid limit should indicate the onset of these internal mechanisms effect in the soil. Additionally, internal stresses controlling soil behavior above the plastic limit must differ mechanically from those controlling soil behavior below this limit. Much research has been conducted on the Atterberg limits, yet few studies have investigated the internal stresses influencing the liquid and plastic limits. Therefore, this thesis leverages the concept of suction stress to establish a more rational, theoretical, and nuanced understanding of soil plasticity and consistency. An extensive testing protocol was performed on 34 soil samples exhibiting varied plasticity characteristics. A novel testing technique—the suction stress test—is introduced in this dissertation to measure the Modulus Characteristic Curve (MCC), the Soil Shrinkage Curve (SSC), and the Suction Stress Characteristic Curve (SSCC). Hypotheses and results presented herein were validated by comparisons with ASTM D4318 liquid and plastic limit tests conducted under rigorous quality control. The analysis is structured into two main parts: (1) assessing soil consistency at very high-water contents and (2) analyzing soil plasticity with respect to strength, deformation, and stiffness.…
abstract: Soil plasticity and consistency are indicators of a soil’s strength and deformation as a function of water content. They are often treated as secondary concepts in geotechnical analysis, likely due to the arbitrary and empirical nature of their definitions—such as those associated with plastic and liquid limit determinations. However, disregarding these concepts is tantamount to overlooking the fundamental role of water in soil behavior. Suction stress governs the Atterberg limits, and variations in suction stress behavior dictate transitions in soil consistency. Specifically, internal soil stress interactions that generate suction stress control the liquid and plastic limits, and ultimately govern soil plasticity. Consequently, the liquid limit should indicate the onset of these internal mechanisms effect in the soil. Additionally, internal stresses controlling soil behavior above the plastic limit must differ mechanically from those controlling soil behavior below this limit. Much research has been conducted on the Atterberg limits, yet few studies have investigated the internal stresses influencing the liquid and plastic limits. Therefore, this thesis leverages the concept of suction stress to establish a more rational, theoretical, and nuanced understanding of soil plasticity and consistency. An extensive testing protocol was performed on 34 soil samples exhibiting varied plasticity characteristics. A novel testing technique—the suction stress test—is introduced in this dissertation to measure the Modulus Characteristic Curve (MCC), the Soil Shrinkage Curve (SSC), and the Suction Stress Characteristic Curve (SSCC). Hypotheses and results presented herein were validated by comparisons with ASTM D4318 liquid and plastic limit tests conducted under rigorous quality control. The analysis is structured into two main parts: (1) assessing soil consistency at very high-water contents and (2) analyzing soil plasticity with respect to strength, deformation, and stiffness.…
author: Angulo Calderon, Angel Rodrigo
language: eng
language: English
keywords: effective stress, liquid limit, plastic limit, soil shrinkage curve, suction stress, suction stress characteristic curve
identifier: T 9985
date published: 2025
date modified: 2026-07-24T01:42:34Z
provider: Colorado School of Mines
publisher: Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations
type: WebPage
source organization: Colorado School of Mines. Arthur Lakes Library

PropertyValue
property ID: Handle
value: https://hdl.handle.net/11124/181170