Structure evaluation of a tropical residual soil under wide range of compaction conditions

Soil compaction is one of the most common techniques used to engineer soil. It especially appealing developing countries for its cost-effective and sustainable attributes improving soil's geotechnical characteristics. The process along with complexity residual soils, abundant in tropics zone, can have an impact on performance structures built these soils. Therefore, it important understand influence that certain conditions structure materials. To investigate that, mercury intrusion porosimetry tests were performed compacted samples a tropical soil from Brazil under different water content compactive effort. Results show all studied presents bimodal pore-size distribution (PSD). appears low availability within macro-pores, hence suction, could played decisive role maintaining framework PSD. In this respect, study contributes better understanding soils’ when subjected conditions, thus providing means improve field applications.