Influencia de la humedad natural del suelo en su potencial expansivo, estudiada en suelos del austro ecuatoriano

Abstract

In the field of geotechnical engineering, the expansive soils behavior has been a topic that has generated uncertainty throughout history, becoming over time, a key problem to be addressed in civil constructions, either for safety or economic factors. In this way, multiple investigations with different results have demonstrated the importance of addressing expansivity; despite this, a limitation of information prevails, especially when it is necessary to know the relationship between the expansive potential and the natural moisture soils may have. This knowledge could contribute to a better understanding of the soils behavior when they are exposed to sudden changes in moisture. With this background, the present study aims to determine how moisture affects expansive potential of soils from the southern zone of Ecuador, which we have worked with a quantitative methodology, and a correlational scope, starting with a bibliographic compilation of swelling pressure and expansion percentage together with the soil qualities under study and its location in the southern zone of Ecuador. Then, tests based on regulations have been elaborated, obtaining the soil characterization and own values of swelling pressure for sites located in Cuenca and its surroundings: Miraflores, Challuabamba and Cojitambo. The results obtained correspond to initial moisture vs. swelling pressure curves obtained by means of second-degree multiple regression, which can be used to determine the expansion as a function of water content and dry density (𝛾ௗ) for these particular sites. The conclusions indicate low expansive potential values for the Cojitambo sample, which is characterized as a low expansive soil, inferring that it is not a bentonite material, as stated in the literature. A different case is analyzed for the soils of Miraflores and Challuabamba, with relatively high values of swelling pressure and expansive deformation, which are in agreement with the correlations according to their degree of expansivity and a modified equation proposed by Nayak & Christensen (1979).