For an overconsolidated clay layer subjected to a new load that keeps the stress below its pre-consolidation pressure, which consolidation parameter, Compression Index (C_c) or Recompression Index (C_r), primarily governs the settlement?

For an overconsolidated clay layer subjected to a new load that keeps the stress below its pre-consolidation pressure, the Recompression Index (C_r) primarily governs the settlement. An overconsolidated clay is a clay that has previously experienced a higher effective stress in its past than it currently experiences. This maximum past effective stress is termed the pre-consolidation pressure (often denoted as σ'p or p'c). It represents the stress level at which the clay's stress-strain behavior transitions from a relatively stiff, recompression response to a more compressible, virgin compression response. When a new load is app....