Soil compaction by kneading: comparison of existing methods and proposal of a new laboratory test

In the majority of cases, fine soils used for the construction of earthworks are compacted by tamping rollers. It has been evidenced that the two methods usually employed in France for laboratory compaction, the normal Proctor and the static compaction test, do not always make it possible to obtain sufficiently representative specimens of this type of compaction in situ. Following an examination of the existing methods of kneading compaction, a new test is proposed. The physical and mechanical characteristics of specimens obtained in this test, called “ 3-feet kneading”, are compared to those of specimens taken from the site after compaction with a tamping roller. These comparisons evidence that the specimens obtained with the method as proposed are more representative of the soils compacted on site, even if this test can still be further improved.