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Geotechnical Engineering Handouts 1 PDF

The document provides an introduction to geotechnical engineering and soil mechanics. It discusses topics like weathering, soil formation, soil profile, soil classification, soil structure, and commonly used soil designations. The document is intended to give an overview of fundamental geotechnical engineering concepts.

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Roxaine Joy Tolledo Panti
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131 views

Geotechnical Engineering Handouts 1 PDF

The document provides an introduction to geotechnical engineering and soil mechanics. It discusses topics like weathering, soil formation, soil profile, soil classification, soil structure, and commonly used soil designations. The document is intended to give an overview of fundamental geotechnical engineering concepts.

Uploaded by

Roxaine Joy Tolledo Panti
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Geotechnical Engineering 1 Topic : Introduction to Geotechnical Engineering 1- Soil Mechanics

Introduction Weathering - Defined as the process by which rock is Soil Profile


converted into soil.
SOIL AND SOIL MECHANICS • Two types of weathering:
Soil (Solum) -the loose unconsolidated inorganic material – Mechanical
on the earth’s crust produced by the disintegration of rocks, – Chemical
overlying hard rock with or without organic matter. Mechanical Weathering
• Unloading
Soil mechanics - is the study of the engineering behaviour of • Frost Action
soil when it is used either as a construction material or as a • Organism Growth
foundation material. • Abrasion

Geotechnical Engineering - may be considered to include Wind and Water Abrasion


both soil mechanics and foundation engineering

FIELDS OF APPLICATION OF SOIL MECHANICS RESIDUAL AND TRANSPORTED SOILS


Foundations - The loads from any structure have to be Residual Soils - soils which are formed by weathering of
ultimately transmitted to a soil through the foundation for Chemical Weathering rocks that remain in position at the place of region.
the structure. • Decomposition of rock through chemical bonding Transported soil – soils transported from the place of origin
• Examples include: by various agencies such as wind, water, ice, gravity, etc.
Underground and Earth-retaining Structures - Underground Transported soils may be classified depending upon the
– Hydration
structures such as drainage structures, pipe lines, and – Oxidation transporting agency and the place of deposition:
tunnels and earth-retaining structures such as retaining – Carbonation Alluvial soils. Soils transported by rivers and streams:
walls and bulkheads. Sedimentary clays.
SOIL FORMATION Aeoline soils. Soils transported by wind: loess.
Pavement Design- Pavement Design may consist of the Glacial soils. Soils transported by glaciers: Glacial till.
design of flexible or rigid pavements. Lacustrine soils. Soils deposited in lake beds: Lacustrine
silts and lacustrine clays.
Excavations, Embankments and Dams - Excavations require Marine soils. Soils deposited in sea beds: Marine silts
the knowledge of slope stability analysis; deep excavations and marine clays.
may need temporary supports—‘timbering’ or ‘bracing’, the
design of which requires knowledge of soil mechanics. Broad classification of soils may be:
1. Coarse-grained soils, with average grain-size greater
SOIL FORMATION than 0.075 mm, e.g., gravels and sands.
Soil is formed by the process of ‘Weathering’ of rocks, that 2. Fine-grained soils, with average grain-size less than 0.075
is, disintegration and decomposition of rocks and minerals mm, e.g., silts and clays.
at or near the earth’s surface through the actions of natural
or mechanical and chemical agents into smaller and smaller
grains.

Catanduanes State University – College of Engineering Lecture Notes by DMToyado


Geotechnical Engineering 1 Topic : Introduction to Geotechnical Engineering 1- Soil Mechanics

COMMONLY USED SOIL DESIGNATIONS electrical properties, orientation and shape of soil grains,
nature and properties of soil water and the interaction
Bentonite. Decomposed volcanic ash containing a high of soil water and soil grains, also may be included in the
percentage of clay mineral— montmorillonite. It exhibits study of soil structure, which is typical for transported or
high degree of shrinkage and swelling. sediments soils.
Black cotton soil. Black soil containing a high percentage of
montmorillonite and colloidal material; exhibits high degree Single-grained Structure
of shrinkage and swelling. Single-grained structure is characteristic of
Boulder clay. Glacial clay containing all sizes of rock coarsegrained soils, with a particle size greater than 0.02
fragments from boulders down to finely pulverised clay mm. Gravitational forces predominate the surface
materials. forces and hence grain to grain contact results. The
Caliche. Soil conglomerate of gravel, sand and clay deposition may occur in a loose state, with large voids
cemented by calcium carbonate. or in a sense state, with less of voids.
Hard pan. Densely cemented soil which remains hard when Honey-comb Structure
wet. Boulder clays or glacial tills may also be called hard- This structure can occur only in fine-grained soils,
pan— very difficult to penetrate or excavate. especially in silt and rock flour. Due to the relatively smaller
Laterite. Deep brown soil of cellular structure, easy to size of grains, besides gravitational forces, inter-particle
excavate but gets hardened on exposure to air owing to the surface forces also play an important role in the process of
formation of hydrated iron oxides. settling down.
Loam. Mixture of sand, silt and clay size particles Flocculent Structure
pproximately in equal proportions; sometimes contains This structure is characteristic of fine-grained soils
organic matter. such as clays. Inter-particle forces play a predominant role in
Loess. Uniform wind-blown yellowish brown silt or silty clay; the deposition. TEXTURE OF SOILS
exhibits cohesion in the dry condition, which is lost on The term ‘Texture’ refers to the appearance of the
wetting. surface of a material, such as a fabric. It is used in a similar
Marl. Mixtures of clacareous sands or clays or loam; clay sense with regard to soils. Texture of a soil is reflected
content not more than 75% and lime content not less than largely by the particle size, shape, and gradation.
15%. • Sand - 2.0 - 0.05 mm - GRITTY Feel !
Moorum. Gravel mixed with red clay. • Silt - 0.05 - 0.002 mm – Talc – Floury Feel !
Top-soil. Surface material which supports plant life. • Clay - < 0.002 mm – Tends to be Sticky when Wet !
Varved clay. Clay and silt of glacial origin, essentially a
lacustrine deposit; varve is a term of Swedish origin meaning References:
thin layer.
Budhu, Muni. (2002). Soil Mechanics & Foundation. New York, .
Das, Braja. 1999. Fundamentals of Geotechnical Engineering.
STRUCTURE OF SOILS
The ‘structure’ of a soil may be defined as the manner of Terzaghi, Karl et. Al. 1995. Soil Mechanics For Engineering Practice..
arrangement and state of aggregation of soil grains. In a Venkatramaiah C. (2006) Geotechnical Engineering.New Delhi.
broader sense, consideration of mineralogical composition,

Catanduanes State University – College of Engineering Lecture Notes by DMToyado

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