Updated 27 May 2010
Outline
The Flat dilatometer, or DMT, is an in-situ device used to determine
the soil in-situ lateral stress and soil lateral stiffness and to
estimate some other engineering properties of subsurface soils. It is a
relatively simple test and its use in geotechnical investigations
becomes more and more common. However, it is not yet as common as
Standard Penetration Test and Cone Penetration Test in geotechnical
investigation.
Description and test procedure
The main part of the flat dilatometer consists of a flat stainless thin
steel blande with a circulat expandable steel membrane of 60 mm
diameter on one side. The test involves driving this steel blade into
the ground, inflate the steel membrane and measure the corresponding
pressure and deformation. Penetration of the steel blade is ususally
done using common in-situ penetration equipments as for instance those
used for Standard Penetration Test. The membrane of the blade is
connected to a gas pressure unit on the surface which provide the
pressure to inflate the steel membarne. At
a given penetration depth, the measurements are done by inflating the
membrane and making two readings: (i) the pressure required to just
begin to move the membrane against the soil "lift off", and (ii) the
pressure, required to move the center of the membrane 1.1 mm against
the soil. Sometimes a third measurements is made corresponding to
deflating the membrane. These readings are repeated at different
penetration depth increments. The DMT pressures readings are used to estimate the in-situ lateral stress and
lateral soil stiffness. DMT results have been interpreted and correlated with other
soil properties and used as the basis for some engineering design
methodologies.
The test can be applied to variety of geomaterials from extremely soft
soils to hard soils/soft rocks. However, the common the soil grains
should be smaller than the membrane diameter (60 mm) in order to
acheive representative results.
Test Standards
- ASTM D6635-01 Standard Test Method for Performing the Flat Plate Dilatometer Link
Related experimental results on Database
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- Use of the Flat Dilatometer Test (DMT) in geotechnical design,
G. Totani, S. Marchetti, P. Monaco & M. Calabrese, Preprint : IN
SITU 2001, Intnl. Conf. On In situ Measurement of Soil Properties,
Bali, Indonesia, May 2001
- The Flat Dilatometer Test (DMT) in Soil Investigations,The
Flat Dilatometer Test (DMT) in soil investigations, A Report by the
ISSMGE Committee TC16, Marchetti S., Monaco P., Totani G. &
Calabrese M. IN SITU 2001, Intnl. Conf. On In situ Measurement of Soil
Properties, Bali, Indonesia
- Simple description of DMT with photos,R. W. Boulanger, University of California at Davis
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