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Prof. B V S Viswanadham, Department of Civil Engineering, IIT Bombay

 Module 3:
Lecture -1 on Compressibility and
Consolidation

Prof. B V S Viswanadham, Department of Civil Engineering, IIT Bombay

Contents
 Stresses in soil from surface loads;
 Terzaghi’s 1-D consolidation theory;
 Application in different boundary conditions;
 Ramp loading;
 Determination of Coefficient of consolidation;
 Normally and Over-consolidated soils;
 Compression curves; Secondary consolidation;
 Radial consolidation;
 Settlement of compressible soil layers and
 Methods for accelerating consolidation settlements.
Prof. B V S Viswanadham, Department of Civil Engineering, IIT Bombay
 Stresses in soil from surface loads

 An important function in the study of soil mechanics is

to predict the stresses and strains imposed at a given
point in a soil mass due to certain loading conditions.

 This helps to estimate settlement and to conduct

stability analysis of earth and earth-retaining
structures, as well as to determine stress conditions on
underground and earth-retaining structures

Prof. B V S Viswanadham, Department of Civil Engineering, IIT Bombay

Idealized stress-strain diagram
 At low stress levels the strain
increases linearly with stress
(branch ab), which is the elastic Elastic Plastic

Stress
range of the material. b c
 Beyond a certain stress level the
material reaches a plastic state,
and the strain increases with no
further increase in stress
(branch bc).
a Strain
Idealized stress-strain
diagram
Prof. B V S Viswanadham, Department of Civil Engineering, IIT Bombay
 Normal and shear stresses in σzz
Cartesian coordinate system dx
τzy x
An elemental soil mass with sides dy τzx dz
measuring dx, dy, and dz: 
τyx σyy
 Parameters σxx σyy, and σzz
are the normal stresses τyz
acting on the planes normal y τxy σxx
to the x, y, and z axes τxz
 (Considered positive when they
are directed onto the surface)
(If τij is a shear stress, it means the
stress is acting on a plane normal to the z
i axis, and its direction is parallel to the
j axis.)
For equilibrium:
Prof. B V S Viswanadham, Department of Civil Engineering, IIT Bombay
Equations of static equilibrium

dx
x
dy
dz

τxy +
z

Prof. B V S Viswanadham, Department of Civil Engineering, IIT Bombay

Equations of static equilibrium
Along x-direction:

Along y-direction:

Prof. B V S Viswanadham, Department of Civil Engineering, IIT Bombay

Equations of static equilibrium
Along z-direction:

The last term of the preceding equation is the self-weight

of the soil mass.
Thus,

These equations are written in terms of total stresses

Prof. B V S Viswanadham, Department of Civil Engineering, IIT Bombay
Equations of static equilibrium (in-terms of effective
stresses)

Thus,

where is the γ′ submerged

unit weight of soil.

 Note that the shear

stresses will not be affected
by the pore water pressure.

Prof. B V S Viswanadham, Department of Civil Engineering, IIT Bombay

Equations of static equilibrium (2-D)
In soil mechanics, a number of problems can be solved
by two dimensional stress analysis.

For a weight-less medium (i.e., γ = 0) the equations

of equilibrium are:

Prof. B V S Viswanadham, Department of Civil Engineering, IIT Bombay

Idealization of the stress–strain relationship
⇒ In general, soils are non-homogeneous, exhibit anisotropy
and have non-linear stress–strain relationships which are
dependent on stress history and the particular stress path
followed.

 Linearly elastic behaviour

being assumed between O
and Y′ (the assumed yield
point) followed by
unrestricted plastic strain (or
flow) Y′P at constant stress Typical stress–strain
relationship
Prof. B V S Viswanadham, Department of Civil Engineering, IIT Bombay
Non-hardening
behaviour

Elastic–perfectly
plastic model
Prof. B V S Viswanadham, Department of Civil Engineering, IIT Bombay
If only the collapse condition in a practical problem
is of interest then the elastic phase can be omitted
and the rigid–perfectly plastic model

Non-hardening
behaviour

Rigid–perfectly plastic model

Prof. B V S Viswanadham, Department of Civil Engineering, IIT Bombay
 In which plastic strain beyond the yield point
necessitates further stress increase.

 If unloading and reloading

were to take place
subsequent to yielding in
the strain hardening model
(i.e., at stress at new yield The plastic
strain beyond the
point Y′′ > Y′) yield point is
accompanied by
 An increase in yield stress is a stress decrease.
characteristic of strain hardening.
 A further idealization is the
elastic–strain softening plastic Elastic–strain hardening and
model, represented by OY′P′ softening plastic models
Prof. B V S Viswanadham, Department of Civil Engineering, IIT Bombay
 Stresses in soil from surface loads
 In practice the most widely used solutions are those for
the vertical stress at a point below a loaded area on
the surface of a soil mass.
The vertical stress increment at a given point below
the surface due to foundation loading is insensitive to
a relatively wide range of soil characteristics such as:

 heterogeneity,

 anisotropy and

 non-linearity of the stress–strain relationship.

Prof. B V S Viswanadham, Department of Civil Engineering, IIT Bombay
Stresses in soil from surface loads
 Accordingly, solutions from linear elastic theory, in
which the soil is assumed to be homogeneous and
isotropic, are sufficiently accurate for use in most
cases.

 The main exceptions are loose sands and soft clays,

particularly where they are overlain by a relatively
dense or stiff stratum.

 However, that increments of horizontal stress and of

shear stress are relatively sensitive to soil
characteristics

Prof. B V S Viswanadham, Department of Civil Engineering, IIT Bombay

 Stresses in soil from surface loads
Displacement solutions from elastic theory can be used
at relatively low stress levels.

Requires a knowledge of the values of Young’s modulus

(E) and Poisson’s ratio (ν) for the soil, either for un-drained
conditions or in terms of effective stress.
It should be noted that the shear modulus (G), where

G is independent of the drainage conditions, assuming

that the soil is isotropic.
Prof. B V S Viswanadham, Department of Civil Engineering, IIT Bombay
 Stresses in soil from surface loads
The volumetric strain of an element of linearly elastic
material under three principal stresses is given by:

 If this expression is applied to soils over the initial part of the stress-
strain curve, then for un-drained conditions ∆V/V = 0, hence ν =
0.5 (E = 3G)
 If consolidation takes place then ∆V/V > 0 and ν < 0:5 for drained
or partially drained conditions.

Prof. B V S Viswanadham, Department of Civil Engineering, IIT Bombay

 Stresses in soil from surface loads
The stresses within a semi-infinite, homogeneous, isotropic
mass, with a linear stress-strain relationship, due to a point
load on the surface, were determined by Boussinesq in
1885.
 The stresses due to surface loads distributed over a particular area
can be obtained by integration from the point load solutions.

 The stresses at a point due to more than one surface load are
obtained by superposition.

 In practice, loads are not usually applied directly on the surface but
the results for surface loading can be applied conservatively in
problems concerning loads at a shallow depth.
Prof. B V S Viswanadham, Department of Civil Engineering, IIT Bombay
Stresses due to point load
Bell shaped Variation of σz with r
e.g., Vertical for three different
load transferred values of z
to the soil from
an electrical
power line

Variation
of σz with z on
the vertical
through the
point of
application of
the load Q
Variation of vertical stress
due to point load ⇒
Prof. B V S Viswanadham, Department of Civil Engineering, IIT Bombay
Stresses due to point load
Stresses at X due to a point load Q on the surface are
as follows:

It should be noted that when v = 0.5, σθ = 0

Prof. B V S Viswanadham, Department of Civil Engineering, IIT Bombay

Stresses due to point load

can be written as:

⇒Expression for σz is independent of elastic modulus

(E) and Poisson’s ratio (ν).

Prof. B V S Viswanadham, Department of Civil Engineering, IIT Bombay

Influence factors for vertical stress due to point load

As r/z ↑  Ip ↓ σz  ∞

Prof. B V S Viswanadham, Department of Civil Engineering, IIT Bombay

 Vertical stress distribution along a vertical line
Q σz, max =
r
0.0888Q
z
θ = 39°13′50′′

As z increases, r/z ↓ for a constant

value of r
As z2 is involved in the denominator of the
expression for σz, first it increases with
depth and attains a maximum value and
then decreases with further increase in
depth.
Prof. B V S Viswanadham, Department of Civil Engineering, IIT Bombay
 Stress Isobar (or Pressure bulb)
 Stress contour or a line which connects all points
below the ground surface at which the vertical
pressure is the same.
 Pressure at points inside the bulb are greater than
that at a point on the surface of the bulb; and
pressures at points outside the bulb are smaller than
that value.
 Any number of stress isobars can be drawn for any
applied load.
 A system of isobars indicates the decrease in stress
intensity from the inner to outer ones.
 Isobars are Leminscate curves
Prof. B V S Viswanadham, Department of Civil Engineering, IIT Bombay
 Procedure for plotting Isobars

For example, σz = 0.1Q per unit area (10% Isobar)

= 0.1Z2

Z IP r/z r σz
0.5 0.025 1.501 0.75 0.1Q
1 0.1 0.9332 0.832 0.1Q
1.5 0.255 0.593 0.890 0.1Q
2 0.40 0.271 0.542 0.1Q
2.185 0.4775 0 0 0.1Q

Prof. B V S Viswanadham, Department of Civil Engineering, IIT Bombay

 Example Problem

A single concentrated load of 1000 kN acts at the

ground surface. Construct an isobar for σz = 40 kN/m2
by making use of the Boussinesq equation.

Now for Q = 1000 kN, σz, = 40 kN/m2 , we obtain the

values of r1 r2, r3 etc. for different depths z1,, z2, z3 etc.
The values so obtained are:

Prof. B V S Viswanadham, Department of Civil Engineering, IIT Bombay

Example Problem

Prof. B V S Viswanadham, Department of Civil Engineering, IIT Bombay

 Westergard stress distribution under a point load

 Boussinesq assumed that the soil is elastic, isotropic

and homogeneous; However, the soil is neither
isotropic nor homogeneous. The most common type
of soils that are met in nature are the water deposited
sedimentary soils

 The soils of this type can be assumed as laterally

reinforced by numerous, closely spaced, horizontal
sheets of negligible thickness but of infinite rigidity,
which prevent the mass as a whole from undergoing
lateral movement of soil grains (For this case ν or µ = 0)

Prof. B V S Viswanadham, Department of Civil Engineering, IIT Bombay

Westergard stress distribution under a point load

 (For this case ν or µ = 0)

For r/z = 0; Iw = 1/π = 0.3183

Prof. B V S Viswanadham, Department of Civil Engineering, IIT Bombay

Values of IB or Iw for use in
the Boussinesq or
Westergaard equation 

Geotechnical engineers
prefer to use
Boussinesq's solution as The value of Iw
this gives conservative =0.3183 at r/z = 0
results. (Which is 33% less
than Boussinesq IP)

Prof. B V S Viswanadham, Department of Civil Engineering, IIT Bombay

 Vertical stress due to a line load
e.g, long brick wall or railroad track

Series of point loads (~qdy)

-∞ (From Boussinesq’s solution)

y∞ x

z
Prof. B V S Viswanadham, Department of Civil Engineering, IIT Bombay
Vertical stress due to a line load

At x/z = 0 σz = 0.6366q/Z

can be used to estimate the lateral

pressure on an earth-retaining structure
due to a line load on the surface of the
backfill.

Prof. B V S Viswanadham, Department of Civil Engineering, IIT Bombay

 Vertical stress due to a line load

However, the structure will tend to

interfere with the lateral strain due to the
load q and to obtain the lateral pressure
on a relatively rigid structure a second
load q must be imagined at an equal
distance on the other side of the
structure.
Then, the lateral pressure is given by

The total thrust on the structure is given by: 

Prof. B V S Viswanadham, Department of Civil Engineering, IIT Bombay

Vertical stress due to a Strip load

A strip load is the load

transmitted by a structure
qs of finite width and infinitely
length of the soil surface.
qs (uniformly applied stress)

Prof. B V S Viswanadham, Department of Civil Engineering, IIT Bombay