A parametric study on behavior of plastic concrete material in earth dams

Abstract

In the current research, the mechanical behavior of plastic concrete in cut-off walls of embankment dams has been investigated. To do so, several triaxial compression tests have been carried out on the specimens with various mix designs under different confining pressures. It has been observed that the compressive strength of such a material increases dramatically with the confining pressures applied on the samples. Moreover, the material behavior is substantially dependent on the confining pressure values; so that, as the confining pressure increases, the material behavior intends to be more ductile. Furthermore, a parametric study has been done to investigate the influence of mix design on these materials. The results showed that the strength and elasticity modulus of plastic concrete increase with the increase of cement factor and decrease of bentonite content. However, the rate of increase is apparently dependent on the mix design changes.