Comparison of Gaussian and Indicator Based Sequential Simulation Methods for 3D Spatial Uncertainty Quantification in Subsoil Modeling Using Cone Penetration Tests

The simplicity and efficiency of the cone penetration test (CPT) for geotechnical investigation makes it one of the most commonly accepted as well as one of the most employed in situ testing methods worldwide. To predict the most probable soil types and their corresponding spatial uncertainty from CPTs, two geostatistical methods, the Sequential Gaussian Simulation (SGSIM) and Sequential Indicator Simulation (SISIM), are applied in a case study. Hereby, three dimensional (3D) models of the soil behavior index are calculated from the cone penetration resistance and skin friction. The CPTs were carried out to investigate the foundation of a dam in a pre-alpine valley filled with alluvial gravelly to sandy and clayey sediments. The case study demonstrates the ability of the proposed approaches to estimate the spatially distributed uncertainty of soil classification based on CPTs.