On preconsolidation pressure of clays from piezocone tests

The preconsolidation pressure is an important parameter for soil deformation calculation and strength analysis.The previous methods to obtain the preconsolidation pressure were generally based on the laboratory oedometer test,which was of time consuming and low accuracy due to disturbance.Based on the review of available methods for interpreting stress history from piezocone tests,the effectiveness of different empirical methods was compared according to the piezocone tests at three typical sites in China with the Vertek-Hogentogler CPTU system.It was shown that the method based on the net tip resistance was sufficiently accurate for determining the preconsolidation pressure.