SBIR-STTR Award

The objective of the proposed project is the conceptual development, design and fabrication of a large-scale stress cell system for laboratory simulation of in situ soil stress conditions. The purpose of the stress cell is to provide a cost-effective means to developing interpretative guidelines for and validating in situ devices and studying in situ testing and sampling techniques. The phase i proposal presents a technical approach to evaluating the overall feasibility of the proposed system. Consideration is given to evaluation of a cubical cell utilizing a modular design concept. Capabilities will include application of three principal stresses, control of saturation and pore water pressure and variation of lateral stress with depth or at specific locations to simulate different k(o) conditions. Instrumentation and data acquisition concepts will be addressed with respect to monitoring of soil response and control/ verification of soil conditions before, during and after testing. The proposed phase i effort will include a literature search and review, an evaluation of preliminary design criteria and instrumentation requirements, and assessment of available technology, preparation of conceptual design alternatives, development of an analytical model to assess design alternatives, and a summary evaluation of the overall feasibility of the proposed projects