Currently, utilization of hydrophilic polyurethane (W-OH) materials for slope protection in arid areas has proved to be a cost-effective protocol. The treatment effect highly depends on the interfacial performance between the W-OH treated and the original sandstone. This study aims to investigate the corresponding shear strength and its long-term performance under dry-wet cycles under the arid environment. The results from the direct shear test indicate the interface shear strength increases with W-OH solution concentration and decreases with the increase of water content of the Pisha sandstone. Further investigations under dry-wet cycles indicate the interface cohesion is obviously weakened by the dry-wet cycles, while the influence on the internal friction angle is not obvious. The correlation between the degradation level and the dry-wet cycles can be well fitted with the inverted Scurve using two combined exponential functions. Furthermore, the ethylene-vinyl acetate (EVA) content is utilized to enhance the durability performance under dry-wet cycles. It is found the EVA can obviously improve the bonding property and the resistance to dry-wet cycles. This study's results can serve as a solid base for the application of W-OH materials to resolve the soil erosion in the arid region.
This study focuses on investigating the shear behavior of the Shanghai clay-concrete interface under cyclic loading using a large-scale multifunctional shear apparatus. Considering that soil-structure interfaces are typically found in shallow soil layers or even above the ground surface, the interface zone is unsaturated in its natural state, the shear experiments were therefore conducted on the tested soil with different water contents. The corresponding matric suction of the tested soil under different water content and initial dry densities was determined by the filter paper method. The experimental findings indicate a substantial influence of matric suction on the interfacial strength, revealing a pronounced non-linear relationship. The interface exhibits the highest shear strength during the initial shear, which gradually decreases with an increasing number of shear cycles. This reduction can be attributed to the weakening of the bonding effect at the interface caused by cyclic shear. On the other hand, the matric suction decreases with water content increases, leading to a decrease in interface shear strength. Additionally, the vertical cumulative displacement of the soil increases with higher water content.