Abstract: This study investigates the shear strength characteristics of Wuhan remolded red clay and examines the influence of dry density and moisture content on shear strength of unsaturated remolded red clay with direct shear test. The experimental results show that under the condition of the dry density being 1.4g/cm³, with the increases of moisture content, the cohesive force of the remolded red clay increases first and then decreases, and when the water content is 27%, the cohesive force is the highest with the increases of moisture content, the internal friction angle and fluctuates within a small range first and then when the moisture content exceeds 30%, the internal friction angle decreases sharply; under the condition of moisture content being 25%, with the increases of dry density, the shear strength, cohesion and internal friction angle of red clay increases linearly, and the stress-strain relationship changes from a weakly softening type to a strong softening type.

Key words: red clay, moisture content, dry density, quick shear test, shear strength, Wuhan