New Test Device Provides Highly Accurate
Measurements of Swelling Soil Characteristics
RFT-280
There are primarily two types of test devices used for measuring hydraulic flow characteristics in soils in the lab setting: rigid-wall permeameters and flexible-wall permeameters. Unfortunately,neither type of device performs well with swelling soils such as clays. A swelling soil sample in a rigid-wall device can shrink and allow fluid to seep around the sample instead of through it. A swelling soil sample in a flexible-wall device can bulge, changing the volume, surface area, and even the microstructure of the sample. The present invention addresses these problems and disadvantages by combining the best features of both types of permeameters, producing soil sample measurements with increased accuracy.
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File: rft-280.pdf
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Jonathan L. Tolstedt
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NDSU Research Foundation
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