Experimental data from uniaxial compression tests and diagonal compression tests on unstabilized rammed earth specimens

Overview Experimental data from laboratory tests for unstabilized rammed earth mechanical characterization. Uniaxial compression tests (UCT) Conducted on cylindrical unstabilized rammed earth specimens (Ø 10.1 cm, height 11.5 cm) according to ASTM D1633 “Standard Test Methods for Compressive Strength of Molded Soil-Cement Cylinders.” A homogeneously distributed load was applied perpendicularly to the earth layers. Specimen surfaces in contact with the bearing blocks were leveled using a disc grinder. Tests were displacement-controlled with a loading rate of 1.3 mm/min. Diagonal compression tests (DCT) Conducted on unstabilized rammed earth panels (50 × 50 × 10 cm) following ASTM E519 “Standard Test Method for Diagonal Tension (Shear) in Masonry Assemblages.” Load was applied via a top steel shoe at a monotonic displacement rate of 1.2 mm/min. Displacements along both main diagonals, on both faces, were measured using displacement transducers with a 150 mm gauge length. Materials Natural soil from Seggiano (Grosseto, Italy) was used for all specimens. Classified as well-graded sand according to the European Soil Classification System (ESCS, ISO 14688-2:2018), the soil composition was 14% clay, 31% silt, 42% sand, and 13% gravel. Plastic limit: 18%; liquid limit: 38% (plasticity index: 20). Specimen preparation Samples were compacted with an energy of 600 kNm/m³ at 13% moisture content and cured for 28 days under constant ambient conditions (25°C, 60% relative humidity). Data Description The data in this repository correspond to raw measurements from uniaxial and diagonal compression tests, provided in CSV format. Files are named as XXX_YY.csv, where XXX indicates the type of test (UCT – Uniaxial Compression Test; DCT – Diagonal Compression Test) and YY is the specimen ID. UCT files have the format: time,load,displ time: testing time in seconds load: applied load in kilonewtons displ: vertical displacement in millimeters DCT files have the format: time,load,displ,ysin,xsin,ydes,xdes time: testing time in seconds load: applied load in kilonewtons displ: vertical displacement recorded by the machine in millimeters ysin: vertical displacement at the left side measured by the displacement transducer, in millimeters xsin: horizontal displacement at the left side measured by the displacement transducer, in millimeters ydes: vertical displacement at the right side measured by the displacement transducer, in millimeters xdes: horizontal displacement at the right side measured by the displacement transducer, in millimeters