The results of laboratory studies of compaction of weak watersaturated soils using surface vacuuming are presented. Experiments on the compaction of water-saturated peat by the method of surface vacuuming under the screens were carried out on a special installation. The vacuum was created under round sealed screens of different sizes and stiffness. As the results of the experiments showed, the mechanism of compaction of weak watersaturated soils during vacuuming from the surface under the

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... tion of a sealed coating is determined by the action of volumetric filtration forces. When vacuuming, in contrast to the compaction load, there is no soil venting around the perimeter of the compacted surface area, which significantly increases the efficiency of this method. And the use of flexible screens (geomembrane) opens up opportunities for construction. A series of compression tests was carried out to identify the similarities and differences in the consolidation processes when compacting different materials by vacuuming and equivalent load created by the press.