Investigation of the hydro‐mechanical properties of silty sand material from Topolnica tailings dam

Abstract

<jats:title>Abstract</jats:title><jats:p>This paper describes the investigation process of the hydro‐mechanical properties of a material used in 134.0 m high tailings dam construction. The grain size analysis classifies the soil as silty sand – by product from the mining process. The soil water retention curve was determined for wetting cycle using direct measurements of suction and volumetric water content. To describe the relationship between these two variables, the Van Genuchten hydraulic model was used. The unsaturated hydraulic conductivity was obtained with Mini Disk Infiltrometer. These results will be used for physical and numerical modelling of the tailings dam Topolnica. The study analyzes the slope stability of unsaturated soil triggered by high intensity rainfalls.</jats:p>