Zero cohesion

Editor’s Note: The question below was submitted regarding the Richard Thiel article “Cohesion (or adhesion) and friction angle in direct shear tests,” from the April 2009 Geosynthetics.

Comment

From: Leo
Posted: Oct. 3, 2010 | 11:12 p.m.

What happens if you force the line of best fit through zero, to force a zero cohesion?

Reply

From: Richard Thiel, President, Thiel Engineering

Forcing the best fit  envelope through the origin is usually a conservative and accepted interpretation of the test results.  If this interpretation results in an inadequate definition of shear strength to demonstrate slope stability, then a more rigorous interpretation of the results may be in order. In general, a more rigorous interpretation that does not require a forced envelope through the origin should be allowed when requested.

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