Numerical Study of Low Gravity Effect on the Pressure-Sinkage Characteristics of Soft Soil

Abstract

The adhesion and the compressibility of the soft soil will vary as the earth gravity changes. In this study, the pressure-sinkage characteristics in low gravity conditions were investigated by three-dimensional Discrete Element Method (DEM). The data of the DEM parameters were obtained by analyzing the pressure-sinkage relationship embedded in laboratory testing data. The pressure-sinkage experiments of the sample soil in different gravities were simulated by using the software PFC3D. Using the Bekker formula, the values of pressure-sinkage parameters were obtained. The results show that, when the earth gravity changes from one sixth of the standard earth gravity to the standard earth gravity, the sinkage exponent increases lineally. The cohesive module of deformation increases along the conic trend. The low gravities have a sensitive affect on the data of the frictional module of deformation, and the data distribute beside a line. The change laws of the pressure-sinkage parameters provide instructions for the optimization design of vehicles working in low gravity field planet.