ABSTRACT
Long term deformations of clays are attributed to local water transfer taking place at a microscale. Two types of water are distinguished: immobile or microstructural water and free water, which may flow through the soil macropores. Expressions for the chemical potential of both types of water have been derived. It was found that the microwater potential is given by any unbalance between the current effective stress and the equilibrium stress of the microstructure, also known as swelling presssure. Then, the nature of the local transfer of water has been investigated by interpreting long term consolidation records. Balance equations at the local and macro level lead to a complete model for the analysis of soil consolidation. The model is capable of predicting the long term clay response under arbitrary loading-time histories. Model predictions have been compared with the results of a series of oedometer tests in which the effect of OCR and preloading time was investigated.
