Effect of inherent anisotropy on the strength of natural granite residual soil under generalized stress paths

It is universally known that residual soils behave very differently from sedimentary soils. While the latter is widely known as cross-anisotropic, little is known regarding the strength anisotropy of residual soils. This study presents how the inherent anisotropy affects the strength of natural granite residual soils under generalized conditions, where intact specimens were carefully prepared and sheared under triaxial compression, extension, simple shear, and hollow cylinder torsional shear tests. The strength of natural residual soil, in terms of ultimate stress ratio M and undrained shear strength Su, is found to be significantly anisotropic in a different way from normally consolidated clays with the maximum strength obtained under triaxial compression and the minimum under simple shear or at intermediate principal stress direction. As a result, the existing method failed to measure the anisotropy degree of the studied soil. Two parameters were proposed accordingly to quantify the anisotropic strength under general conditions, taking the special strength anisotropy pattern and cohesive-frictional nature of GRS into account. The proposed parameters enable the direct comparison of strength anisotropy among soils. This study serves as a data set to better understand residual soils regarding their anisotropic behaviors under generalized conditions. Although specific to granite residual soils in China, this study is expected to be more widely applicable to other weathered geomaterials.