Low strain dynamic soil properties and maximum shear modulus equation of rubber sand mixtures
Low strain dynamic soil properties and maximum shear modulus equation of rubber sand mixtures
The increasing number of waste tires pose serious environmental concerns due to their non-biodegradable nature. The reuse of these waste tires in geotechnical engineering applications has emerged as a sustainable solution. In soft soil, vibrations induced by train passage or machine operation can affect the ground stability and nearby structures. The Rubber Sand Mixtures (RSM) show significant potential as a vibration mitigation material due to their enhanced energy dissipation capacity. This study investigates the dynamic behaviour of RSM to identify the influence of rubber content on stiffness and damping characteristics. A series of resonant column tests were conducted on specimens with varying rubber contents. The results indicate that the inclusion of rubber reduces the shear modulus of the mixture, and the reduction becomes more pronounced with increasing rubber content. However, the damping ratio increases with rubber inclusion, although the rate of increase becomes marginal at higher rubber contents. The increase in damping is mainly attributed to interparticle friction and deformation of rubber particles. The normalized shear modulus (G/Gmax) and elastic threshold strain also increase with rubber content, indicating an extended linear elastic range and reduced stiffness degradation compared to clean sand. A modified analytical relationship is also proposed to estimate the maximum shear modulus for different rubber contents. Although the addition of rubber slightly reduces strength, the improved damping characteristics make RSM a sustainable material for vibration mitigation and ground improvement in soft soil applications.
Tapan Suyal; B. K. Maheshwari
International Conference on Advances and Innovations in Soft Soil Engineering (ICAISSE2026)
Multiphysics Behaviour
https://doi.org/10.53243/ICAISSE2026-218