Hydrocompaction, the peculiar property of some unconsolidated arid sediments to collapse, slump, and crack when wetted, is particularly destructive to canals, pipelines, dams, and other water conveyance structures. An apparently logical and simple method for the detection of deposits susceptible to hydrocompaction, described in the literature, is based on dry density and liquid limit values of “undisturbed” core samples.

The reliability of this method was evaluated using about 10,700 samples of alluvium obtained mostly with 3-in.-diameter push samplers from more than 1,100 test holes in the west-central portion of the San Joaquin Valley, California. The samples originated from deposits known to be either susceptible or nonsusceptible to hydrocompaction. About 15 percent of the samples obtained in areas known to be not susceptible to hydrocompaction were, according to the method, “theoretically susceptible” to hydrocompaction. In areas known to be affected by hydrocompaction, the percentage of “theoretically susceptible” samples was 18 percent.

These comparisons indicate that the method is not reliable in the area studied, and its validity in other areas should be tested prior to its application in engineering projects.

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