Prediction of Soil Compaction Due to Off-Road Vehicle Traffic

ABSTRACT SIMULTANEOUS field and iab-*J) oratory compaction data were examined in order to determine the prediction possibilities. Several existing theories were also considered for comparison. An equation repre-senting dry density in terms of applied pressure and moisture content was used to describe the field and labor-atory data. The pressure applica-tion on the agricultural soil varied from near 0 to 1.62 kg/cm2, and field data obtained at various moisture contents provided necessary informa-tion for arriving at the laboratory index test methods. The pattern of real compaction under tire loads was found to compare well with the standard Proctor compaction test. Results of such attempts are very useful for off-road machninery de-signers and farmers.