Static Properties of Lightly Cemented Sand

The behavior of a light cemented sand is presented. The sand under investigation was from Vincentown Formation in New Jersey, and the cementing agent was calcite. The stress-strain behavior, the pore pressure response, and the stress path with strain plots indicate that the strength behavior of cemented sands is strain dependent. At low axial strains, below 1%, the cohesion caused by the calcite bonding between particles is the major component of strength. The cohesive shear strength is destroyed around 1% strain, and then the frictional strength becomes predominant. It was also observed that a very high confining stress can also destroy the cementation.