Undrained response of geocell-confined pond ash samples under static and cyclic loading

In this study, the effect of geocell confinement on strength, deformation, dynamic properties, and liquefaction characteristics of pond ash samples were investigated. Pond ash was collected from the Panki thermal power station, India. The geocells were handmade with high-density polyethylene sheets. Each geocell has three equal diameter circular cells. Consolidated undrained triaxial tests were conducted on both remolded and geocell-confined ash samples of size 100 × 200 mm under static and cyclic loading conditions. The confining pressures were chosen as 50, 75, and 100 kPa, cyclic strain rates were chosen as 0.2, 0.3, and 0.4% and the frequency of cyclic loading was 1 Hz. From this experimental study, it is observed that the increase in peak deviatoric stress of geocell-confined pond ash samples is about 21% to 32% higher than the unconfined samples. The liquefaction resistance of ash samples increases 51% to 87% due to geocell confinement. Result shows that ash samples exhibit better response in terms of cohesive strength, dynamic properties, and liquefaction resistance with geocell confinement, which proves the applicability of geocell-confined pond ash as a suitable material for construction of road embankments and slopes.