Geology and Material Property Comparisons for the Middle Gust Test Sites

The report summarizes the results of material property investigations conducted for the MIDDLE GUST wet and dry test sites to support a program of preshot, two-dimensional, free-field ground shock calculations. Both sites are situated in the Pierre clay shale formation of Cretaceous age; however, the wet site is overlain by a 9-ft-thick water-bearing stratum of alluvium, while the dry site is essentially devoid of soil overburden materials. The geologic physiography, stratigraphy, structure, and lithology of the subsurface materials at each site are briefly described and compared herein. Details of the laboratory testing programs are reviewed, and an overview of the variations with depth of the dynamic compression and shear behavior of the materials at each site is presented. (Modified author abstract) Presented at the Mixed Company/Middle Gust Project Review Meeting held in Santa Barbara, Calif., on 13-15 Mar 73. See also AD-775 406.