Cavity expansion tests in a hollow cylinder cell

This paper presents the use of the hollow cylinder cell in investigating, under laboratory controlled conditions, the response of saturated, consolidated fine grained soils to a cavity expansion. The hollow cylinder cell concept developed originally by Kirkpatrick was adapted to perform cylindrical cavity tests in annular soil specimens with measurement of the excess pore-water pressure generated in the surrounding soil. This modified hollow cylinder cell was also used to study the consolidation of the soil around an expanding cylindrical cavity under a constant cavity pressure and to evaluate available procedures, which can be used to obtain the soil hydraulic conductivity. The equipment, testing procedures, and analysis of both expansion and consolidation test results are discussed.