Direct shear tests: experimental setup based on a labview approach - experimental results in a silty sand soil

This work describes an experimental setup that was developed in order to automate the direct shear tests, with the objective of characterizing the mechanical resistance of the soil. This experimental setup ensures repeatability and automation in data acquisition, avoiding human errors, mainly when the test data vary with high dynamics. The described setup is based on LabVIEW approach, LVDT sensors and a 16-bit data acquisition board. For the direct shear test, the procedures guided by ASTM D-3080/D-3080M-11 "Standard Method for Direct shear Tests on soils under Consolidated Drained Conditions". This paper exposes the applicability study of the direct shear test to an existing silty sand soil, from the city of Bragança-Portugal, in order to verify the applicability of this test with the instrumented apparatus. The results obtained and the main conclusions are presented.