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The consolidation settlement of soil, particularly in medium stiff clay, is influenced by the load applied and the properties of the soil itself. When the load on a structure is doubled, the increase in consolidation settlement does not have a straightforward linear relationship without considering certain soil properties.
To accurately assess how much the consolidation settlement will increase due to the doubled load, it's essential to understand both the clay's density and its compressibility characteristics. The density of the clay influences how it responds to loading, while the compressibility can be quantified by parameters like the compression index. These properties help determine how much volume change—consolidation—occurs in the soil as stress increases.
Knowing just the compression index alone or assuming it will effectively remain the same does not provide a complete picture because the clay’s density and the initial state must also be evaluated to understand the full extent of the settlement. Therefore, recognizing the significance of the clay layer's density is crucial in determining the increase in consolidation settlement accurately when the load is doubled.