Influence of moisture content on main mechanical properties of expansive soil and deformation of non-equal-length double-row piles: A case study

The mechanical properties of expansive soil are very unstable, highly sensitive to water, and thus easy to cause major engineering accidents. In this paper, the expansive soil foundation pit project of the East Huada Square in the eastern suburb of Chengdu was studied, the moisture content of the expansive soil was considered as an important factor that affecting the mechanics properties of expansive soil and the stability of the non-equal-length double-row piles in the foundation pit support. Three groups of direct shear tests were carried out and the quantitative relationships between the moisture content and shear strength T, cohesion c, internal friction angle o were obtained. The effect of cohesion and internal friction angle on the maximum displacement and the maximum bending moment of piles were analyzed by the finite element software MIDAS/GTS (Geotechnical and Tunnel Analysis System). Results show that the higher the moisture content, the smaller the matrix suction, and the smaller the shear strength; the cohesion and the internal friction angle are exponentially related to the moisture content, and both are negatively correlated. The maximum displacement and the maximum bending moment of the non-equal length double-row piles decrease with the increase of the cohesion and the internal friction angle. When the cohesion is greater than 33 kPa or the internal friction angle is greater than 25.5, the maximum displacement and maximum bending moment of the piles are relatively small, however, once crossing the points (the corresponding moisture content value is 24.4%), the maximum displacement and the maximum bending moment will increase significantly. Therefore, in order to ensure the stability and safety of the foundation pit support structure of the East Huada Square, the moisture content of the expansive soil should not exceed 24.4%.