Full-flow penetration (ball and t-bar) testing is used to assess the undrained shear strength (Su) of low strength cohesive soils or mine tailings. The test incorporates a standard cone penetrometer body and a large spherical or bar attachment that replaces the standard conical tip. These penetrometers are referred to as the Ball penetration test or the T-bar penetration test. The ball penetration test is most commonly used in practice. During penetration soil flows around the penetrometer
Features
Compatible with all ConeTec cones and modules
Various sizes available depending on the application
Ball and T-bar shapes available, custom shape is possible
Specifications
40 - 150 cm2 cross sectional areas available
5, 10, or 15 cm2 cone compatibility
Cycling and variable rate testing procedures
Compatible with ConeTec data acquisition software
Advantages
Highly accurate and continuous profiling of undrained strength in soft to very soft cohesive soils / tailings
Rapid and cost effective compared to other in-situ strength measurements (ie: EVST, PMT)
Overburden stress and pore pressure corrections to tip resistance reduced by 90% (qc->qt and qnet calculations)
Higher load cell forces in very soft soils, which improve data quality
Excellent agreement with high quality vane shear test data
Ability to cycle up and down at a given elevation to determine strength degradation and remolded soil strength
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