Prototype Testing of a Modified Poroelastic Matric Suction Sensor.

The matric suction is one of the stress state variables used in the interpretation of the engineering behaviour of soils. This thesis documents development of a Poroelastic Matric Suction Sensor (PE sensor). The advantage of this sensor is that it is a direct method with a relatively large range of suction measurement (up to 8MPa), without any cavitation. Modifications of the sensor were carried out to increase accuracy. The modified sensor was then evaluated by comparison with total suction measurements made in artificial silt and in fine grained material. In addition, the behaviour of the sensor when using oil sand tailings was also monitored and compared. The experimental results showed that the suction range of the sensor is about 8MPa, with a mean relative uncertainty of 0.5MPa, a standard deviation of 0.5MPa compared to the WP4T PotentiaMeter Device. The behaviour of the sensor at temperatures below 00C was also investigated.