56

so1L EXPLORATION

Terzaghi, K., R.B. Peck, and G. Mesri, (1996) Soil Mechanics in

Engineering Practice, 3rd Ed., John Wiley & Sons, New York, NY.

The soil exploration on large projects may call for the

determination of one or several of the following: relative
density of sand strata. penneability of sand strata. shearing
resistance of clay strata, or compressibility of clay strata.
In every instance the program of the exploration should
be prepared in accordance with the amount of useful
information that can be derived from the results of laboratory or field tests. With increasing complexity of the soil
profile the usefulness of elaborate laboratory investigations rapidly decreases. If the soil profile is erratic, the
efforts should be concentrated not on obtaining accurate
data regarding the physical properties of individual soil
samples, but on obtaining reliable information regarding
the structural pattern of the subsoil. Attempts to obtain
this information by means of boring and testing are likely
to be wasteful. Since erratic soil profiles are far more
common than simple and regular ones, the instances are
relatively rare in which elaborate and large-scale soil
testing is justified from a practical point of view. In the
following discussion of the means for obtaining reliable
information concerning the subsoil conditions, the influence of the degree of complexity of the soil profile on the
practical value of soil testing is consistently emphasized.

12.2

Geological Considerations

Most natural soil deposits represent one of the following

principal types: river-channel deposits, flood-plain deposits. delta deposits, shore deposits, glacial deposits, windlaid deposits, deposits formed by sedimentation in standing water, and residual soils formed in place by weathering. The only ones likely to have a fairly regular structure
are the flood-plain and wind-laid deposits and those
fmmed in large bodies of standing water at a considerable
distance from the shore. All the others are likely to be
distinguished by large and erratic variations, at least in
consistency or relative density, and usually in grain size
as well.
In the upper reaches of river systems, river-channel
deposits generally occupy the bottoms of valleys carved
out of rock. In the lower reaches they may be laid down
in winding and interlaced channels eroded out of the
broad sheet offine-grained sediments that have previously
been deposited by the river under different conditions
of sedimentation. The average grain size decreases with
increasing distance from the source, and at any one point
it is likely to increase in a general way with increasing
depth below the surface. However, the details of stratification are always erratic, and both grain size and relative
density vary in an unpredictable manner. Still more abrupt
and conspicuous are the variations in glacial ourwash
deposited by the melt waters along the rim of continental
ice sheets.
Flood-plain deposits are laid down during the highwater season on both sides of the lower courses of rivers.
They commonly consist of continuous layers of silt or

clay of fairly uniform thickness, separated from each

other by equally persistent layers of coarser sediments.
However, at any point or line the continuity of these strata
can be broken by bodies of other sediments occupying
troughs or abandoned river channels (Kolb and Shockley
1959). If such a body is located between two drill holes,
its presence may escape attention. Several well-known
foundation accidents have been ascribed to this cause.
Delta deposits are formed where water courses enter
bodies of standing water. The main features of deltas
are simple, but the details of their structure can be very
complex, as shown in Fig. 12.1, because the currents that
transport the sediments shift continually.
Shore deposits are composed of sediments that were
eroded by waves or carried into a body of standing water
by rivers and transported and deposited by shore currents.
They generally consist of sand and gravel. However, as
a result of important fluctuations in the lake or sea level
combined with the shifting of the water courses that cross
the coastal belt, the sand and gravel deposits may alternate
in an intricate manner with layers or pockets of silt, clay,
or peat. Deposits of this kind are referred to as composite
shore deposits. Figure 12.7 and the upper half of Fig.
I 0.2 illustrate the structure of deposits of this type.
The constituents of glacial deposits were picked up
and transported by ice and laid down when the ice melted.
The wasting away of ice sheets always alternates with
periods of temporary growth and advancement. The
advancing ice plows up or deforms previously deposited
layers of glacial material. Furthermore, at the ice rim
random sorting and shifting are carried on by the streams
of water that emerge from beneath the ice. Hence, glacial
deposits are among the most erratic with which the engineer has to deal. Irregular pockets and lenses of fine- and
coarse-grained materials intermingled with boulders may
follow each other in a chaotic manner (Fig. 12.1 ).
In contrast to glacial deposits, wind-laid sediments are
remarkably uniform. However, their boundaries may be
very irregular, because the wind may drop its burden in
irregular heaps on very uneven surfaces. Furthermore,
the fine-grained varieties known as loess (Article 2) may
completely lose their original homogeneity on account
of local leaching or weathering. Many faulty foundations
on !oess have resulted from the failure of the designers
to recognize the existence of these partial alterations.
The various transporting agencies, running water, ice,
and wind, deposit only part of their solid burden on their
way or at the end of their path. The remainder is carried
into large bodies of standing water such as lakes, bays,
or the open ocean. Once they get beyond the narrow zone
in which the shore currents travel, they are acted on by
no force other than gravity. Therefore, in contrast to all
other sedimentary deposits, those formed in large bodies
of standing water usually have a relatively simple structure that reflects the periodic or progressive changes in

ARTICLE 12

PROGRAM FOR SUBSOIL EXPLORATION

57

Leqencl
S!Jmbol
k (m/s)
Less thon 0.Z x 10- 6

60

CJ
ITIIJD

0.:? to 1.0x10-

/.0 to 5.0 x/0-

l!tl

5 to z5x;o- 6

l288l

Z:S to 125x10- 6

50

6
6

~ 40

: Ver!J Fti?e
Reddish Sona'

!'.:

-~-<::

~ :ro

4J

20

10

Sandstone

0-._Sfronq Aries/on Flow

Ver!J Coorse Semel cmcl Grovel

I

50

100

150

200

Oistonce in meters
Figure 12.1
copee, MA.

Permeability profile of relatively homogeneous glacial delta deposit near Chi-

the character of the material that enters the region of

sedimentation. It is also influenced to some extent b_y the
chemical composition of the water.
The effect of the seasonal changes in the character of
the suspended material is disclosed by the water-content
diagram (Fig. 10.1 b ). On account of this effect, the scattering of the water content from the average is as great for
vertical distances as small as a few centimeters as it is
for the entire depth. Still more conspicuous is the effect
of seasonal changes on the structure of sediments that
were laid down in freshwater lakes under arctic conditions
such as those prevailing in the northern United States
and in Canada during the Ice Age. In the summertime,

the suspended material in the offshore parts of the lakes

consisted of silt and clay, because the coarser materials
such as sand and gravel had already been laid down as
delta deposits at the mouths of the rivers. The silt particles
settled out during the summer. During the winter, however, no new material was carried into the lakes because
the rivers were completely frozen. Hence, beneath the
ice crust, only clay particles that did not settle during
the summer were deposited. Therefore, the sediment is
composed of light-colored summer layers consisting of
silt with some clay, and dark-colored winter layers consisting chiefly of clay. Each varve consisting of one silt
and one clay layer represents the deposit of one year.

58

SOIL EXPLORATION

These deposits are the varved clays (Fig. 12.2) mentioned

in Article 2. The thickness of the varve is commonly less
than I or 2 cm, but exceptionally as much as a meter. It
depends on the amount of material washed into the lake
during the summer season. Deposits of such clay are very
common in both North America and Europe north of
the 40th parallel. They are a prolific source of serious
construction difficulties.
If similar arctic rivers enter a bay of the ocean instead
of a freshwater Jake, the segregation according to particle
size is much less perfect because the salts contained in
the sea water cause flocculation of the clay particles.
Consequently, most of the clay is deposited simultaneously with the silt.
The preceding review has shown that nature created
an infinite variety of structural patterns ranging from the
simple stratification of offshore deposits formed in large
lakes to the utterly complex structure of masses of gravel,
sand, and silt that were laid down, plowed up, distorted,
locally eroded, and redeposited along the rim of a continental ice sheet. The character of residual soils, on account
of variations in the parent material and in the degree of
weathering, is no Jess complex. If borings are made in a
mass of soil at two points 25 or 50 m apart, the engineer
knows the character and the sequence of the strata along
two vertical lines. Between these two lines the strata may
be continuous. However, they may also wedge out at a
short distance from each line, and the sequence of strata
halfway between the two borings may not have the
remotest resemblance to that at either one. An intelligent
program for supplementary soil investigations can be prepared only by an engineer who is familiar with the elements of physical geology and with the geology of the
region in which the site is located.

Figure 12.2

Section through undisturbed sample of varved

clay taken in well-designed sarnplcr uf 100 n1rn diameter (cour-

tesy M. J. Hvorslev).

Geological literature is indexed extensively in publications of the various state and national geological surveys
and by such organizations as the Geological Society of
America. Several useful sources are listed at the end of
this article.
Insight concerning the geology of a site can often be
gained by a study of aerial photographs. Experts in airphoto interpretation from a geomorphic point of view can
usually define the surficial geology and make valuable
inferences about subsurface conditions. Such interpretations are virtually mandatory for large projects including
dams and reservoirs, transportation routes, or landslide
control.
In short, the engineer should cultivate the capacity for
geological observation and interpretation as an essential
element in subsurface exploration, should use existing
geological information, and should develop skill in airphoto interpretation. On large and complex projects the
services of a professional geologist may be needed to
assist in the planning and interpretation of the subsurface exploration.
12.3

Spacing and Depth of Exploratory Borings

The spacing between exploratory drill holes is presently

often governed by convention and not by rational consid
erations. On building sites the borings are commonly
spaced at about 15 to 20 min both principal directions.
On subway or earth-dam projects a spacing of 30 m is
generally considered the minimum. However, if the line
is very Jong or the site very large, the spacing is often
as great as 60 m. Even at that spacing the required amount
of drilling and testing may be very large.
Standardization of the spacing of exploratory drill holes
has obvious disadvantages. If the soil profile is very simple, the customary spacing is too small, whereas if the
profile is erratic, the spacing is excessive. To avoid the
Joss of time and money due to drilling superfluous bore
holes, subsurface soundings can often be used to advantage. A sounding, which is cheaper and more expedient
than a drill hole, may be made at each point where convention would call for a drill hole. If all the penetration
diagrams are similar, the soil profile is likely to be simple.
Exploratory drill holes are required al only one or two
locations where average conditions prevail, and near those
few points where the penetration diagrams indicate maximum deviations from the statistical average. If the geol
ogy of the site involves the possibility that the continuity
of the strata may be disrupted locally by channel fillings
or other bodies of foreign material, supplementary soundings should be made wherever there is any surface indication of the presence of a compressible inclusion, such as
a shallow depression on the surface of the ground. If a
sounding encounters such an inclusion, an exploratory
drill hole should be made near by to determine the type
of soil of which the inclusion consists.