Mechanisms Controlling Compressibility of Clays

Abstract

Karl Terzaghi seems to have been one of the first engineers to make a serious attempt to understand the mechanisms controlling the compressibility of clays. Based largely on the studies of Atterberg (1) and Gilboy (8), Terzaghi (22, p. 343) concluded that the large void ratios and high compressibilities of clays were caused by the presence of “scale shaped” mineral particles. He described swelling as “nothing but the purely elastic extension of the deformable fabric...”