DefinePK

Abstract

Marlis a general term that refers to any material, whether soil or rock-like, that contains 35-65 percent calcium carbonate and the rest of clay fraction (Al-Amoudi et al., 2010; Yong & Ouhadi, 2007) this formation is a rock-like when dry, never the less, it is a soft soil-like when moist. In general, high deformation and settlement are the main problems of Marl. In Amman-Jordan, the seasonal variations of water contents is the primary cause of deformability and failure problems of Marls. Mainly because most of the geotechnical studies are performed during the dry seasons, during which Marls show enhanced engineering properties. During the wet seasons, water percolates and all mechanical properties drastically deteriorate. Accordingly, several failures and excessive deformation incidents take place due to these seasonal cycles of wetting and drying. This research work is intended to investigate the mechanical properties of Amman Marls in a manner that enables overcoming the problems originated from the wetting seasonal variations, and the difficulty of obtaining intact samples that may reasonably represents the realistic conditions and properties of this formation Most of the formation in Amman consist of limestone and Marl. Marl a top soil strata in several parts in Amman is exposed to changing weather conditions of wetting and drying in the Greater Amman area. The bearing capacity of Marl is not consistent, and cannot be simply estimated when it is essentially changing in relation to its water content. In this study, deformability and strength characteristics of Marl are investigated by performing a series of field and laboratory tests including drilling and sampling, plate load test (PLT), unconfined compressive strength (UCS) test, seismic refraction and tomography (SRT), and multi-channel analysis of surface waves (MASW).