# Post-Cyclic Mechanical Behaviors of Undisturbed Soft Clay with Different Degrees of Reconsolidation
Many studies [15; 16; 30] also observed the same conclusion. It was also found that the specimens subjected to undrained cyclic loading exhibited an apparent overconsolidation compared with the monotonic tests [5]. The degree of apparent overconsolidation ratio (OCR\({}_{\text{app}}\)) increased with continued cyclic loading [24; 31]. [PERSON] et al. [28] also observed that the degree of apparent overconsolidation increased with higher CSRs. The relationship between OCR\({}_{\text{app}}\) and post-cyclic shear strength has been studied [32; 33; 34]. [PERSON] and [PERSON] [5] observed that the OCR\({}_{\text{app}}\) was the key factor of the effect on the post-cyclic shear behavior. [PERSON] et al. [34] found that the normalized shear strength ratio increased with increasing OCR\({}_{\text{app}}\) after liquefaction. [PERSON] et al. [35] studied the reconsolidation characteristics of Drammen clay after cyclic loading and the results showed that the variation of recompression index was related to the induced excess pore water pressure and axial strain during cyclic loading: for normally-consolidated Drammen clays, the recompression index decreases with increasing accumulative excess pore water pressure and shear strain. [PERSON] et al. [36] studied the post-cyclic reconsolidation characteristics of low-plasticity Fraser River silt. It was found that the volumetric strain during post-cyclic reconsolidation increased with the maximum excess pore water pressure and the maximum shear strain after cyclic loading: a method for estimating the post-cyclic reconsolidation strain of low plastic silt was presented. [PERSON] et al. [15,16] discussed the deformation and strength characteristics of fully-consolidated Ariake clay after cyclic loading and proposed a model for predicting post-cyclic shear strength based on the theory of equivalent overconsolidation. Due to the periodicity of traffic loading and storm wave loading, post-cyclic soft soil is usually in an intermediate state between unconsolidated and completely consolidated. At present, there is little research [34,37] on the post-cyclic shear characteristics of soil with different degrees of reconsolidation, making it necessary to study the effect of different degrees of reconsolidation of soft soils. There are few studies on the mechanical behavior of the soft clay located in the Pearl River Estuary; research into the post-cyclic mechanical behavior and microstructure of soft clay with different degrees of reconsolidation is even rarer. In the present work, a series of static and dynamic triaxial tests were conducted to study the post-cyclic mechanical behavior of soft clay located in the Pearl River Estuary. First, the effects of consolidated confining pressure, cyclic stress ratio, and degree of reconsolidation on post-cyclic undrained shear strength have been discussed. The development of excess pore water pressure and effective stress paths during post-cyclic shear process under various conditions was also investigated. Next, the microstructures of undisturbed soil specimens and with different degrees of consolidation were assessed. Then, the influences of different factors on the normalized post cyclic shear strength ratio (\(S_{c,cu}/S_{cu}\)) are analyzed. Finally, the model developed by [PERSON] et al. [15] to predict the post-cyclic shear strength after full reconsolidation was employed to depict the evolution of post-cyclic shear strength of the soft clay located in the Pearl River Estuary. The aforementioned results can provide an experimental basis for the engineering design of soft soil in the Pearl River Estuary.