Abstract: To study the influence of water content on expansive soils in Zhengzhou and Luoyang, the expansion stress, load expansion rate and shrinkage tests were carried out on the undisturbed soil and remolded soil samples. The variation of expansion stress, load expansion rate, shrinkage coefficient and total expansion and shrinkage deformation with soil water content were analyzed. The study results indicate that: (1) the expansion stress and load expansion rate decrease with the increase of water content; and the shrinkage coefficient increases with the increase of water content. When the water content increases, these parameters gradually tend to be stable; (2) The total expansion and shrinkage deformation show a trend of first decreasing and then increasing with the increase of the initial water content of the soil; (3) Reasonable control of fill moisture content and load can effectively control the total expansion and shrinkage deformation of the soil. Through the experimental research data, the quantitative relationship curve equation among the expansion stress, load expansion rate, shrinkage coefficient and water content was established, which provides a key theoretical basis for controlling the hazards of expansive soil in practical engineering.

Key words: Expansive Soil, Moisture Content, Expansion and Contraction Characteristics, Geotechnical Test