CPT-induced change of lateral earth pressure in modeling test

The main objective of this study is to investigate systematically the lateral earth pressure induced by the cone penetration test (CPT) conducted at various distances from the rigid container wall. A series of centrifuge CPTs were performed in dry Ottawa sand using two miniature penetrometers with diameters of 4 and 12 mm. The CPT locations varied from 2 to 42 times the cone diameter. The change of lateral earth pressure was measured using tactile pressure sensors. Results from this study have shown that the lateral earth pressure change was mainly associated with the initial relative density of soil, the distance away from the testing location and the diameter of the cone penetrometer. The change of lateral pressure can be as large as 150–200 kPa at a distance of 2–4 times the diameter of the CPT. The effect of initial soil relative density on the change of lateral earth pressure was greater when using the 4mm CPT than the 12mm CPT. Some residual lateral pressure was observed after completion of the CPT in dense sand tests.