The Role of Anisotropy on the Volumetric Behaviour of Opalinus Clay upon Suction Change

An experimental investigation to analyse the anisotropic volumetric response of shaly and sandy facies of Opalinus Clay upon suction variations is presented. Obtained results demonstrate the different behaviour of the tested facies to a wetting-drying cycle. The shaly facies exhibits higher water retention capacity and stronger volumetric response than the sandy facies. Anisotropic response is experienced by both facies with the strain perpendicular to bedding higher than in the parallel direction. The sandy facies exhibits a more pronounced anisotropic behaviour in particular during the drying phase. A detailed analysis of the response in the two directions with respect to the bedding orientation proves that the different anisotropic behaviour between the two facies is mainly caused by a different response parallel to bedding rather than perpendicular. Introduction