A Laboratory Study for the Dynamic Characterization of Sandy Soil

Recent earthquakes frequently showed liquefaction of sandy soil. In these case one of the major challenges is the selection of the appropriate residual strength of liquefied materials to assess the post-liquefaction stability of embankments and soil structures. Cyclic triaxial tests have been widely used to asses soil liquefaction potential especially for coarse-grained soils, as in this work. In the framework of the design for the seismic retrofitting of the "Viadotto Ritiro" foundations along the A20 motorway connecting Messina with Palermo, a soil liquefaction study has been carried out. With this aim, a detailed geotechnical characterization has been performed by in situ and laboratory tests including the combined resonant column and torsional shear test (RCTS) and undrained cyclic triaxial tests (CTX). In particular, the paper presents the results of laboratory tests carried out on specimens of a sandy soil to asses liquefaction potential.