Thesis

The thesis presents details of tests carried out to determine the strength and elastic properties of cement stabilised materials, emphasis being placed on their behaviour in uni-axial tension under quasi-static loading. The materials tested are lean concrete, a typical cement bound granular material, a fine grained soil-cement and two synthetic cement bound granular materials produced by combining gravel and sand with the fine grained soil. A limited investigation of behaviour under repeated loading in uni-axial tension was also undertaken. The principal conclusions, relating to specimens compacted to refusal, are that the strength in uni-axial tension is broadly related to the strength in uni-axial compression, the moduli of elasticity in tension and in compression are essentially equal, the stress-strain relationship in tension is effectively linear, and that whilst strength may be related to modulus for each material, there is no unique relationship between these critical parameters.