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This paper describes the use of the Material Point Method (MPM) to simulate cone penetrometer testing (CPT) in complex soil profiles. CPT-based liquefaction evaluation procedures have been shown to be inaccurate in highly interlayered soil stratigraphies. One contributing factor to this inaccuracy is that CPT measurements at discrete depths reflect the properties of all soils that fall within a zone of influence around the cone tip, not just the properties of the soil at a particular depth. Consequently, the CPT loses resolution in soil profiles with many thin, interbedded soil layers (multiple thin-layer effects) and provides inaccurate input data to liquefaction analyses. While several procedures have been proposed to correct for multiple thin-layer effects, they tend to decrease in efficacy as the thickness of soil layers decreases. Results from the MPM analyses detailed in this paper highlight limitations of (1) the CPT in characterizing complex soil stratigraphies and (2) procedures proposed to correct for multiple thin-layer effects in CPT data.
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A Database of Cone Penetration Tests from the Cascadia Subduction Zone
This dataset contains 400 cone penetration test (CPT) results from the Cascadia Subduction Zone (CSZ) region of the United States and Canada. The data are provided in both Python and Matlab file formats and a README describes the data processing, formatting, and structure in detail. This regional collection of CPT data has multiple potential uses, including liquefaction hazard assessments and studies of subsurface variability, among others.
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- Award ID(s):
- 1751216
- PAR ID:
- 10561395
- Publisher / Repository:
- Designsafe-CI
- Date Published:
- Subject(s) / Keyword(s):
- cone penetration test subsurface characterization geotechnical data soil liquefaction
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Institution:
- University of Washington washingtonedu
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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