An artificial/reconstituted clay was prepared by mixing kaolin (K) and silt (S) in the proportion of 50% kaolin and 50% silt by weight employing a slurry deposition technique. The K-S clay has been used extensively to simulate natural clays for geotechnical centrifuge testing, often involving dynamic loading. It is necessary to accurately measure the soil shear wave velocity (V_s) or the low-strain shear modulus (G_max) for the analysis of geotechnical problems involving dynamic loading. In this study, V_s and G_max of K-S clay were measured using a novel device, utilizing piezoelectric transducer ring actuators, incorporated in an oedometer. The new device eliminates some of the shortcomings of the bender element test. For example, the piezoelectric transducer ring actuators do not penetrate the soil and hence do not cause any sample disturbance.

The value of V_s of the K-S clay was measured at different effective vertical pressure increments ranging between 25 and 500 kPa. The obtained values of V_s and G_max were independently compared with the values predicted using empirical correlations available in the literature for clay soil. An excellent agreement was found between the measured and the predicted values. The results of the present study are presented as V_s−σ′_m and G_max−σ′_m models. The proposed models will be helpful in designing a K-S clay testbed with a targeted stiffness for dynamic centrifuge applications.