The behavior of expanded poly styrene (EPS) under repeated loading

EPS geofoam is an ultra-lightweight filling material frequently used in building road embankments and as a load-bearing subgrade layer on very soft soils. In these and other geotechnical applications, the EPS geofoam is subjected to repeated loading arising from the motion of vehicles. The response of EPS geofoam to cyclic loading has been studied in a series of unconfined cyclic loading tests at various stress levels. Useful relationships describing the number of loading cycles to cause failure for a given peak stress, and the permanent strain accumulation with number of load repetitions, have been established.