Study on Microstructural Evolution of Soft Clay under One- Dimensional Consolidation

Study on Microstructural Evolution of Soft Clay under One- Dimensional Consolidation | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Article Study on Microstructural Evolution of Soft Clay under One- Dimensional Consolidation Dengheng Zheng, Jijie Du, Xiaoyu Deng, Yipeng Zhang This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-9005927/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Under Review Version 1 posted 15 You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract Undisturbed marine soft clay from Daya Bay in Shenzhen poses severe geotechnical challenges owing to its high sensitivity and low shear strength. In this study, the microstructural evolution and underlying mechanical mechanisms of this soft clay under one-dimensional consolidation were systematically investigated. A multi-scale analytical approach was adopted, integrating Mercury Intrusion Porosimetry (MIP), dual-energy synchrotron X-ray Micro-Computed Tomography (Micro-CT) with phase recovery technology, and Discrete Element Method (DEM) simulations implemented in PFC3D 6.0. The results show that one-dimensional consolidation induces a distinct structural transition of the clay's pore size distribution from bimodal to unimodal, with the connectivity of macropores being completely destroyed under high consolidation pressure. Two structural yield stresses were identified at 62 kPa and 676 kPa, corresponding to the structural failure of inter-cluster aggregates and intra-cluster particles, respectively, which characterizes the mechanical transformation of the clay from aggregate rearrangement to intra-aggregate compression. Numerical simulation results further demonstrate that the increase in consolidation pressure leads to a gradual rise in the particle coordination number and a significant decrease in the contact-sliding ratio, thereby enhancing the structural stability of the clay skeleton. These findings establish a quantitative correlation between the microscopic pore structure reorganization and macroscopic mechanical response of soft clay, and provide a robust mechanistic basis for accurate settlement prediction and ground improvement design in coastal geotechnical engineering. Physical sciences/Engineering Physical sciences/Materials science Earth and environmental sciences/Solid earth sciences soft clay microstructural evolution X-ray Micro-Computed Tomography Discrete Element Method one-dimensional consolidation Full Text Additional Declarations No competing interests reported. Cite Share Download PDF Status: Under Review Version 1 posted Editorial decision: Revision requested 13 Apr, 2026 Reviews received at journal 12 Apr, 2026 Reviews received at journal 02 Apr, 2026 Reviewers agreed at journal 27 Mar, 2026 Reviews received at journal 26 Mar, 2026 Reviewers agreed at journal 26 Mar, 2026 Reviews received at journal 17 Mar, 2026 Reviewers agreed at journal 16 Mar, 2026 Reviewers agreed at journal 13 Mar, 2026 Reviewers agreed at journal 06 Mar, 2026 Reviewers invited by journal 05 Mar, 2026 Editor invited by journal 05 Mar, 2026 Editor assigned by journal 03 Mar, 2026 Submission checks completed at journal 03 Mar, 2026 First submitted to journal 02 Mar, 2026 You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. 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Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-9005927","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":603577829,"identity":"031b2f20-cb8e-4a60-bf09-7f82f76d1fa0","order_by":0,"name":"Dengheng Zheng","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Guangzhou Railway Polytechnic","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Dengheng","middleName":"","lastName":"Zheng","suffix":""},{"id":603577830,"identity":"c7d4dce0-d65e-4e91-b6de-f5efae48178b","order_by":1,"name":"Jijie Du","email":"data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAZAAAAAyAQMAAABI0h/eAAAABlBMVEX///8AAABVwtN+AAAACXBIWXMAAA7EAAAOxAGVKw4bAAABEElEQVRIie3RMUvDQBTA8XcEzuWarg1+iSsFQVrSD+JyIRAXT4QuneRKIH4FC6V+hbg5XnlDlmDXQJa4O+giDhk8KxaXSx0F7z/dHe8HBw/A5fqLaRD8tZ0AeN6i+X4cHCLDpUoMISn/LQGvp9CcSLaf7CR+JZqr3sP2rH9D1ABanHLtbWoG4aWNBJUQPChreYtEcZJhlGsajxnEMxvhn4TTWipDBFEouGYnxwx0pLqIoI/yzhD99bH+22GyybTMkSwUUCS5ZrSTBGUjhqqM5T2SFKLsPFoiHZ2ueGwlfnGRjNp5KNdbLN5f2vHUL9Kn6nkeWgkAS/YbBAGpWdPuw9Z50xE2P27XXaMul8v1T/sAbFxh8+n5SrUAAAAASUVORK5CYII=","orcid":"","institution":"Sun Yat-sen University","correspondingAuthor":true,"prefix":"","firstName":"Jijie","middleName":"","lastName":"Du","suffix":""},{"id":603577831,"identity":"13bf8486-1b80-4864-b34a-368939f26ae3","order_by":2,"name":"Xiaoyu Deng","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Guangzhou Railway Polytechnic","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Xiaoyu","middleName":"","lastName":"Deng","suffix":""},{"id":603577832,"identity":"c830d84e-1ba0-42b2-8e09-b9b060589f78","order_by":3,"name":"Yipeng Zhang","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Sun Yat-sen University","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Yipeng","middleName":"","lastName":"Zhang","suffix":""}],"badges":[],"createdAt":"2026-03-02 05:38:17","currentVersionCode":1,"declarations":"","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-9005927/v1","doiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-9005927/v1","draftVersion":[],"editorialEvents":[],"editorialNote":"","failedWorkflow":false,"files":[{"id":104372816,"identity":"71adcb4a-edc6-42a8-92f4-a8e9af63bad9","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2026-03-11 05:40:58","extension":"pdf","order_by":1,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"manuscript-pdf","size":1421903,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"Manuscript.pdf","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-9005927/v1_covered_479eabf4-5884-43c2-a977-031fd97f5789.pdf"}],"financialInterests":"No competing interests reported.","formattedTitle":"Study on Microstructural Evolution of Soft Clay under One- Dimensional Consolidation","fulltext":[],"fulltextSource":"","fullText":"","funders":[],"hasAdminPriorityOnWorkflow":false,"hasManuscriptDocX":false,"hasOptedInToPreprint":true,"hasPassedJournalQc":"","hasAnyPriority":false,"hideJournal":false,"highlight":"","institution":"","isAcceptedByJournal":false,"isAuthorSuppliedPdf":true,"isDeskRejected":"","isHiddenFromSearch":false,"isInQc":false,"isInWorkflow":false,"isPdf":true,"isPdfUpToDate":true,"isWithdrawnOrRetracted":false,"journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"scientific-reports","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"externalIdentity":"scirep","sideBox":"Learn more about [Scientific Reports](http://www.nature.com/srep/)","snPcode":"","submissionUrl":"","title":"Scientific Reports","twitterHandle":"","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":true,"editorialSystem":"stoa","reportingPortfolio":"Scientific Reports","inReviewEnabled":true,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":true},"keywords":"soft clay, microstructural evolution, X-ray Micro-Computed Tomography, Discrete Element Method, one-dimensional consolidation","lastPublishedDoi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-9005927/v1","lastPublishedDoiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-9005927/v1","license":{"name":"CC BY 4.0","url":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/"},"manuscriptAbstract":"\u003cp\u003eUndisturbed marine soft clay from Daya Bay in Shenzhen poses severe geotechnical challenges owing to its high sensitivity and low shear strength. In this study, the microstructural evolution and underlying mechanical mechanisms of this soft clay under one-dimensional consolidation were systematically investigated. A multi-scale analytical approach was adopted, integrating Mercury Intrusion Porosimetry (MIP), dual-energy synchrotron X-ray Micro-Computed Tomography (Micro-CT) with phase recovery technology, and Discrete Element Method (DEM) simulations implemented in PFC3D 6.0. The results show that one-dimensional consolidation induces a distinct structural transition of the clay's pore size distribution from bimodal to unimodal, with the connectivity of macropores being completely destroyed under high consolidation pressure. Two structural yield stresses were identified at 62 kPa and 676 kPa, corresponding to the structural failure of inter-cluster aggregates and intra-cluster particles, respectively, which characterizes the mechanical transformation of the clay from aggregate rearrangement to intra-aggregate compression. Numerical simulation results further demonstrate that the increase in consolidation pressure leads to a gradual rise in the particle coordination number and a significant decrease in the contact-sliding ratio, thereby enhancing the structural stability of the clay skeleton. These findings establish a quantitative correlation between the microscopic pore structure reorganization and macroscopic mechanical response of soft clay, and provide a robust mechanistic basis for accurate settlement prediction and ground improvement design in coastal geotechnical engineering.\u003c/p\u003e","manuscriptTitle":"Study on Microstructural Evolution of Soft Clay under One- Dimensional Consolidation","msid":"","msnumber":"","nonDraftVersions":[{"code":1,"date":"2026-03-11 05:39:55","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-9005927/v1","editorialEvents":[{"type":"communityComments","content":0},{"type":"decision","content":"Revision requested","date":"2026-04-13T08:07:23+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""},{"type":"editorInvitedReview","content":"","date":"2026-04-12T15:48:38+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"editorInvitedReview","content":"","date":"2026-04-02T05:30:37+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"reviewerAgreed","content":"31228437532709991712208383493019704911","date":"2026-03-27T05:10:37+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"editorInvitedReview","content":"","date":"2026-03-27T01:12:10+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"reviewerAgreed","content":"250627238120074520093365903860055024493","date":"2026-03-26T06:06:25+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"editorInvitedReview","content":"","date":"2026-03-17T14:44:14+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"reviewerAgreed","content":"51513148416539568466157227027960547125","date":"2026-03-17T01:44:53+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"reviewerAgreed","content":"265614202893962496765058785631415406985","date":"2026-03-13T07:31:48+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"reviewerAgreed","content":"301571292962547240521764773871796091808","date":"2026-03-06T10:19:46+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"reviewersInvited","content":"","date":"2026-03-06T02:46:58+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""},{"type":"editorInvited","content":"","date":"2026-03-05T12:48:37+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""},{"type":"editorAssigned","content":"","date":"2026-03-03T07:28:09+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""},{"type":"checksComplete","content":"","date":"2026-03-03T07:27:29+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""},{"type":"submitted","content":"Scientific Reports","date":"2026-03-02T05:22:47+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""}],"status":"published","journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"scientific-reports","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"externalIdentity":"scirep","sideBox":"Learn more about [Scientific Reports](http://www.nature.com/srep/)","snPcode":"","submissionUrl":"","title":"Scientific Reports","twitterHandle":"","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":true,"editorialSystem":"stoa","reportingPortfolio":"Scientific Reports","inReviewEnabled":true,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":true}}],"origin":"","ownerIdentity":"3b77c665-7992-4a03-9329-5caba4a444ec","owner":[],"postedDate":"March 11th, 2026","published":true,"recentEditorialEvents":[],"rejectedJournal":[],"revision":"","amendment":"","status":"under-review","subjectAreas":[{"id":64223706,"name":"Physical sciences/Engineering"},{"id":64223707,"name":"Physical sciences/Materials science"},{"id":64223708,"name":"Earth and environmental sciences/Solid earth sciences"}],"tags":[],"updatedAt":"2026-04-30T01:24:56+00:00","versionOfRecord":[],"versionCreatedAt":"2026-03-11 05:39:55","video":"","vorDoi":"","vorDoiUrl":"","workflowStages":[]},"version":"v1","identity":"rs-9005927","journalConfig":"researchsquare"},"__N_SSP":true},"page":"/article/[identity]/[[...version]]","query":{"redirect":"/article/rs-9005927","identity":"rs-9005927","version":["v1"]},"buildId":"XKTyCvWXoU3ODBz1xrDgd","isFallback":false,"isExperimentalCompile":false,"dynamicIds":[84888],"gssp":true,"scriptLoader":[]}