Determining the water content and void ratio of cement-treated dredged soil from the hydration degree of cement.

Many important geotechnical and engineering geology properties of cement-treated dredged soil (CDS) depend on its the water content and void ratio (WC&VR). Based on the hydration model of cement, this study proposes time-evolution models of WC&VR in CDS, and verifies their reliability by fitting to experimental data. The two fitting parameters τ and β in the models depended only on the type of soil. Increasing the cement content (A w) and initial water content (w 0) of the dredged soil accelerated the decrease rate of WC&VR with curing time, but barely affected the duration of each stage in the WC&VR evolution curves. Next, the specific evolution laws and mechanisms of WC&VR in the curing process were fully discussed. The changes in WC&VR were consistent, and both trends exhibited typical four-stage characteristics: an initial steady stage, an accelerated descent stage, a decelerated descent stage, and a final steady stage. In microstructural analyses by X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, and thermo-gravimetric analysis, the evolution of WC&VR was found to be mainly related to the formation of cement hydration products, and the evolution characteristics well accorded with the hydration properties of cement. • Evolution models for the water content and void ratio of cemented soil were proposed considering cement hydration model. • Verify the accuracy of the evolution models through experimental data. • Evolution laws and mechanisms of water content and void ratio in the cemented soil were fully interpreted. • The evolution of water content and void ratio in the cemented soil with time both have four-stage characteristics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]