One dimensional consolidation of multi-layered unsaturated soil under partially permeable boundary conditions and time-dependent loading

In the present study the numerical Incremental Differential Quadrature Method (IDQM) was utilized in order to produce a general solution for one-dimensional consolidation of layered unsaturated soil under two different states: (i) constant loading and exponentially time growing drainage, and (ii) time-dependent loading and semipermeable boundary conditions. A comparison between the results of this study and those of an available analytical solution for a single-layered unsaturated soil indicated high precision of the applied numerical method. A variety of instances were solved to study the impact of boundary conditions on the consolidation phenomenon.