Testing and modeling two rockfill materials

Modeled rockfill materials consisting of rounded and angular particles obtained from two dam sites are subjected to drained triaxial tests using large size specimens. An elastoplastic constitutive model based on the disturbed state concept is adopted to characterize the behavior of the modeled rockfill materials. The material parameters for the two rockfill materials are determined from the experimental results. The variation of the material parameters with respect to the size of the particles for the rockfill material with the rounded particle is, in general, opposite to that for the rockfill material with the angular particles. The model is shown to provide satisfactory prediction of the behavior of the rockfill materials tested. Material parameters are predicted for prototype size of rockfill materials.