Effect of High Confining Pressure on Ultrasonic Wave Velocities and Elastic Moduli of Cemented Sand

On account of an increase in the isotropic confining pressure ( \({\sigma }_{3})\) ${\sigma }_3)$ up to 30 MPa, this study examines the variation of P and S wave velocities ( \({V}_{P}, {V}_{S}\) $V_P,V_S$ ), Young's and shear moduli (E, G) and Poisson's ratio ( \(\nu )\) $\nu )$ for cemented sand with varying percentages (10–28%) of cement after 28 days of curing. A series of ultrasonic (primary and shear waves) non-destructive tests were conducted on cylindrical specimens subjected to different magnitudes of \({\sigma }_{3}\) ${\sigma }_3$ . An increase in \({\sigma }_{3}\) ${\sigma }_3$ leads to an increase in the values of \({V}_{P}\) $V_P$ , \({V}_{S} ,E,G\) $V_S,E,G$ and \(\nu\) $\nu$ . Due to an increase in confining pressure upto \({\sigma }_{3}=\) ${\sigma }_3=$ 30 MPa, a maximum increase in different parameters up to about 46% has been noted. The percentage increases in \({V}_{P}, {V}_{S}\) $V_P,V_S$ , \(E,G\) $E,G$ and \(\nu\) $\nu$ , on account of an increase in the confining pressure, decrease continuously with an increase in the cement content. The present experimental exercise reveals that the effect of confining pressures on the dynamic properties reduces continuously with an increase in the moduli/stiffness of the material.