Change of Soil Properties in the Bengawan Solo River Embankment due to Drying–Wetting Cycles

Abstract

This paper studies the behavior of Bengawan Solo River embankment soil properties for both in-situ and laboratory conditions.  In the laboratory, series of cyclic drying and wetting tests were carried out to clarify the changes of in-situ soil properties over time since the soil had been initially compacted. Maximum dry density from Standard Proctor test was applied as initial compacted condition. Three cycles of drying and wetting were used to represent three cycles of dry and rainy seasons. The in-situ soil investigation was carried out during seasons. The results show that the investigated in-situ soil properties were in good agreement with the laboratory test results at the 2nd and 3rd cycles.  It denotes that these number of cycles are required to achieve the similar condition as in-situ soil.  In addition, by observing the rate of change in soil properties, it was possible to trace back the construction time of the river embankment.