Elastic systems with frictional interfaces subjected to periodic loading are often found to ‘shake down’ in the sense that frictional slip ceases after the first few loading cycles. The similarities in behaviour between such systems and monolithic bodies with elastic– plastic constitutive behaviour have prompted various authors to speculate that Melan’s theorem might apply to them—i.e. that the...

Calcareous sand is a special marine soil rich in calcium carbonate minerals, characterized by brittle particles. It is, therefore, widely used as filling material the construction of islands and reefs. In this study, series cyclic tri-axial tests were conducted on calcareous taken from reef South China Sea under different confining pressures stress ratio (CSR). Then, applying shakedown theory, ...