ABSTRACT
The differences in undrained stress-strain-strength behaviour between undisturbed and reconstituted silt and silty sand specimens tested at the same void ratio, may be dramatic. Results from triaxial and DSS tests on a natural silt and a discussion of test results from a hydraulically placed silty sand are presented. All tests on undisturbed specimens showed dilative and ductile behaviour, while most of the accompanying reconstituted specimens compacted to in-situ density, showed contractive and brittle behaviour. Therefore, when reconstituting specimens of silt and silty sand in the laboratory, it is not sufficient to simply satisfy the criteria of correct density and grain size distribution - the in-situ fabric is also very important. Otherwise, analyses based on reconstituted specimens may be totally misleading. Measurements of initial shear modulus (from shear wave velocity measurements) may prove useful.
