Mechanical Properties of Soft Tailings from different Depths of a Swedish Tailings Dam : Results from Triaxial tests

• Construction of tailings dams is done in stages by raising it layer by layer depending on production rate of a mine. These layered dams may possess different strengths and materials properties in each layer i.e. strength parameters, behavior with loading. Tailings dams may have loose layers in subsequent layers, which upon further loading may be susceptible to stability issues. Identification of material properties and behavior is important to know for safety of dam with further raising and long term perspective modeling. This paper presents the results from drained Triaxial compression tests conducted on samples collected from loose layers, from different vertical depths of a tailings dam. The results indicated that depth did not show much influence on strength parameters determined by drained triaxial tests. The different confining pressures influenced the strain-stress behavior, high confining pressures stress-strain curve showed tendency to formulate straighten line of stress-strain curve, with contractant volume behavior along axial strains. The influence of void ratio on effective stress ratio was observed.

Subject headings

TEKNIK OCH TEKNOLOGIER  -- Samhällsbyggnadsteknik -- Geoteknik (hsv//swe)

ENGINEERING AND TECHNOLOGY  -- Civil Engineering -- Geotechnical Engineering (hsv//eng)

Keyword

Soft tailings

Stress-strain behavior

Triaxial tests

Hardening Soil Model

strength and stiffness

Geoteknik

Soil Mechanics

Publication and Content Type

ref (subject category)

art (subject category)