Analysis of Variation of Poisson\u27s Ratio with Depth of Soil

Through field tests on clay, soft soil, sand soil, and cl93 loam etc., we find: l) Propagating velocity of elastic wave of homogeneous soil is not a constant, but a function of depth. 2) Poisson\u27s ratio is not a constant either. It increases with the increase of depth. 3)The ratio of a lateral compressive stress to vertical compressive stress acted upon an element at different depth is not a constant either. With the increase of depth, the lateral compressive stress tends to be equal to the vertical compressive stress step by step. Test results of four types of soil are covered in this paper and an analysis is made theoretically as regards to these phenomena. Through tests and analysis, the author is of an opinion that the viewpoint of Poisson\u27s ratio decreasing with the increase of depth by D.D.Barkan is worthwhile being discussed