SHEAR STRENGTH

John A. Matthews

doi:10.4135/9781446247501

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SHEAR STRENGTH

Edited by:
John A. Matthews
In:Encyclopedia of Environmental Change
Chapter DOI:https://doi.org/10.4135/9781446247501.n3521
Subject:Environmental Sciences (general), Environmental Technology, Policy & Management

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A measure of the force required to overcome the friction provided by the cohesive forces between particles in a material, such as rock, sediment or soil. Shear strength is usually measured using the triaxial compression method, in a shearbox, or in the field by a penetrometer (pushed into soil) or a shear vane (inserted into the soil and rotated). Measurement is recorded in kilopascals (KPa) and ranges up to 30 KPa in clays, but it can be nil in cohesionless sands and saturated clays.

E. MichaelBridgesSwansea University

http://dx.doi.org/10.4135/9781446247501.n3521

10.4135/9781446247501.n3521

HeadKH and KeetonGP (2011) Manual of soil laboratory testing, 3rd edition, volume 2. Dunbeath: Whittles Publishing.

WhalleyWB (1976) Properties of materials in geomorphological explanation.Oxford: Oxford University Press.

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