ABSTRACT
Construction in unsaturated soils is dominant due to relative ease of construction above the groundwater table. Construction with compacted soils, which are unsaturated, is also quite prevalent. Additionally, geoenvironmental applications such as contaminant transport and waste containment are strongly dependent on unsaturated soil properties and behavior. Unsaturated soils have a tendency to be sensitive to the moisture content increases that accompany urbanization, which accentuates the importance of unsaturated soil mechanics for design and construction. Simplified assumptions with respect to the extent and degree of soil wetting that occurs over the life of the structure can lead to either conservative or unconservative foundation design. There is evidence that the design changes between doing typical and doing extensive geotechnical testing and analysis on unsaturated soils can be extremely significant. Therefore, the motivation for implementation of unsaturated soil mechanics into geotechnical practice is great. The adoption of a hierarchical approach to encourage routine use of unsaturated soil mechanics theory is recommended.
