MU-CIDC PGRI PROGRAM

MEWAR UNIVERSITY

Year of the Examination: 2014

Programme: PGRI 1ST Year 1ST Semester
Semester: 1ST Course Title: GEOTECHNICAL
ENGINEERING
Course Code: PRCTM-812 Maximum Marks: 100
Total No. of Questions:15
No. of Questions to be attempted: All

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Assignment No. -1
(Attempt all questions)

Q1. What are the various index properties of soil? Explain the significance of each?

Ans: Soil Index properties are  those properties of a soil that indicate the type and conditions of
the soil, and provide a relationship to structural properties such as grain-size distribution,
liquid limit, andplasticity index strength, compressibility, permeability, swelling potential,
etc.

The plasticity index (PI) is a measure of the plasticity of a soil. The plasticity index is the
size of the range of water contents where the soil exhibits plastic properties. The PI is the
difference between the liquid limit and the plastic limit (PI = LL-PL). Soils with a high PI
tend to be clay, those with a lower PI tend to be silt, and those with a PI of 0 tend to have
little or no silt or clay.

PI is used to relate to that how expansive the clays were. A PI lower than 20 to 24 was
generally a safe area...but higher than that and we would then have to respond to swelling
clay conditions.

It is a measure of the cohesive qualities of the binder resulting from the clay content. Also,
it gives some indication of the amount of swelling and shrinkage that will result in the
wetting and drying of that fraction tested. If some soils do not have sufficient mechanical
interlock they require amounts of cohesive materials to give a satisfactory performance. A
deficiency of clay binder may cause raveling of gravel wearing courses during dry weather
and excessive permeability.

Q2. A soil profile consists of layers of thickness equal to 2 m, 3 m and 4 m with coefficient of
permeability equal to 2 × 10–4cm/sec, 3.5 × 10–3cm/sec and 2 × 10–3 cm/sec. Find the
equivalent coefficient of permeability, when the flow is perpendicular to the layers?
Ans:-

where:
 is the superficial fluid flow velocity through the medium (i.e., the average velocity
calculated as if the fluid were the only phase present in the porous medium) (m/s)
  is the permeability of a medium (m2)
 is the dynamic viscosity of the fluid (Pa·s)
 is the applied pressure difference (Pa)
 is the thickness of the bed of the porous medium (m)

=(2x0.0001)*p/(u)*2=3.5*0.001*p/(u)*3=2*0.001*p/(u)*4
On Solving
Equivalent coefficient of permeability K=0.0007 cm/sec

Q3. What is flow net? What are the properties of flow net?

Ans:- Flow Nets are grid obtained by drawing a series of streamlines and equipotential lines is
known as a flow net. The flow net provide a simple graphical technique for studying two
dimentional irrotational flows especially in the cases where mathematically relations for
steam function and velocity function are either not available  to are are rather difficult
and cumbersome to solve.
 
Use of flow nets:
 Determaination of  the design of the outlets for their streamlining.
 Determaination of quantity of seepage and upward lift pressure bellow the
hydraulic structure.
 Determaination of the streamlines and equipotential lines.
 Determaination of the pressure and velocity distribution, for given boundaries
of flow.
Limitations of flow nets:
1.      The flow net analysis can not be applied in the region close to the boundary
where the effects of viscosity are predominant.
2.      In case of a flow of a fluid past a solid body, while the flow net gives a fairly
accurate picture of the flow pattern for the upstream part of the solid body , it can
give little information concerning the flow conditions at the rear because of
separation and eddies.

Q4. How would you find the shear strength of soil with the help of unconfined compression
test? What are its limitations?

Ans:- Test Procedure

 Remolded specimens are prepared in the laboratory depending on the proctors
data at the required molding water content
 If testing undisturbed specimens retrieved from the ground by various sampling
techniques, trim the samples into regular triaxial specimen dimensions (2.8” x
5.6”)
 There will be a significant variation in strength of undisturbed and remolded
samples
 Measure the diameter and length of the specimen to be tested
 If curing the sample (treated soils), wrap the samples in a geotextile and then a
zip bag. Place the samplein a humidity room maintained at a relative humidity of
90%
 MU-CIDC PGRI PROGRAM

 Prior to testing, avoid any moisture loss in the sample, place on a triaxial base
(acrylic). The ends of the sample are assumed to be frictionless
 The triaxial cell is placed above the sample and no confinement is applied
 The rate of strain is maintained at 1.2700 mm/min as per ASTM specifications
 The data acquisition system collects real time data and the test is stopped when
there is a drop observed in the strain versus load plot

Stress=F*(1-Axial strain)/(initial areqa of specimen)

Q5. What is sensitivity? How soils are classified based on sensitivity?

Ans:- Soil sensitivity is the estimate of a soil's ability to maintain its original strength when
bothered or remolded.

Plastic clay soils are not sensitive to vibration whereas silt and, especially, fine sands may
settle or liquefy as a result of vibrations from building activities or earthquakes. The fine
sands and silts my initially be in a low density state and the vibration can cause the grains
to tumble into a more compact state, but this reduction in void space may cause the soil to
be instantly saturated and liquefy.

Q6. An in-situ vane shear was conducted in clay at the bottom of a bore hole. A torque of 153
N-m was required to shear the soil. What was the undrained strength of clay? The vane
was 100 mm in diameter and 150 mm long.

Ans: Undrained shear strength=12* max. torque/(3.14*0.1^2*(0.1/Cos0+0.1/Cos0+6*0.15)

=12*153/(0.001*(0.1/1+0.1/1+0.9)
=12*153/(0.001*1.1)
=12*153/0.0011
=1669091 N/m2

Q7. Explain the terms: Active earth pressure, Passive earth pressure and Earth pressure at
rest.

Ans:-The active state occurs when a soil mass is allowed to relax or move outward to the point
of reaching the limiting strength of the soil; that is, the soil is at the failure condition in
extension. Thus it is the minimum lateral soil pressure that may be exerted.

The passive state occurs when a soil mass is externally forced to the limiting strength (that
is, failure) of the soil in compression. It is the maximum lateral soil pressure that may be
exerted

At rest lateral earth pressure, represented as K0, is the in situ lateral pressure. It can be
measured directly by a dilatometer test (DMT) or a borehole pressuremeter test (PMT). As
these are rather expensive tests, empirical relations have been created in order to predict
at rest pressure with less involved soil testing, and relate to the angle of shearing
resistance. Two of the more commonly used are presented below.
 Jaky (1948) for normally consolidated soils:

Mayne & Kulhawy for overconsolidated soils:

The latter requires the OCR profile with depth to be determined. OCR is the

overconsolidation ratio and   is the effective stress friction angle.

Q8. What are different modes of failure of rocks? Give examples of each.

Ans:- Many of research has been conducted to explain the modes of cracks in rock samples.
For hard and brittle cylindrical rock samples five distinct modes of failure were identified
and it is stated by (Szwedzicki and Shamu, 1999). These five types of failure are given
below. By this statement we can have a brief idea about the mode of failure of rock
samples under uniaxial compression

Simple extension:
It indicates a failure along a plane which is parallel to the way of compression. This failure
doesn't happen over and again and this failure mode recommended that the specimen
was reasonably free of discontinuities. In this mode of failure the rock specimen falls flat
along a plane to the heading of compression.

Multiple extension :
The multiple extension mode represents a failure where two or more fractures run parallel
to the long axis of this sample, with fractures vertical to that direction, multiple extension
failure takes place. In this type of failure the rock sample fails in two or more cracks.

Multiple fracturing :
Multiple fracturing incorporates specimen collapse along various planes at a few edges.
This sort of failure of the example is frequently rapid and savage with an enormous
amount of vitality being discharged. At the point when tensile failure is dominating, a large
portion of the breakdown planes are in vertical and perpendicular bearings to the stacking
power. At the point when shear powers are prevalent, the example breaks down along
planes slanted and crossing the mid tallness of the specimen e.g. hour glassing or cone
failure.

Multiple shear :
When fracturing takes place along two or more planes situated obliquely to the direction of
compression, but not being parallel to each other, the mode is called multiple shear. The
shear surfaces can be identified by the dust left behind when fracturing occurs.

Simple shear :
The single shear failure includes one or more real parallel shearing planes (zones)
arranged at a diagonal angle to the path of most extreme pressure. The shear planes
generally create over an unconfined a piece of the specimen. Single shear may
incorporate shear failure coming about because of uneven stacking of the specimen. This
happens when a solitary shear starts from the top or lowest part of the example and
advances outwards. The greatest testing burden for straightforward shear is frequently low
 MU-CIDC PGRI PROGRAM

contrasted and different failures since the failure plane is regularly connected with a weak
vein material. It creates the impression that shake examines in the uniaxial compressive
test dominatingly fizzle in shear (basic or numerous).

Different types of mode of failures are shown below in fig 1. There are five types of failure
are there.

Q9. What are different index properties of rocks? How are they determined? Explain any two.

Ans:-Laboratory tests were conducted on these rocks as follows: unit weight, Shore scleroscope
hardness, Schmidt hammer hardness, abrasion hardness, absorption, sonic-velocity
stress-strain under cyclic loading to 5,000 psi, uniaxial stress-strain to failure, and point-
load tensile strength. A total of 257 specimens with L/D ratios of 2:1 were tested.
Statistical studies were conducted with the IBM 7094 computer to determine correlation
and regression relationships for selected pairs of variables. A system of engineering
classification is proposed in which rocks are classified on the basis of their strength and
modulus properties either obtained directly from laboratory tests, or approximately from
index properties recommended herein. Application of the proposed engineering
classification system to data obtained by others is shown by individual charts for each of
several different rock types. Five charts are presented for estimating the strength or
modulus properties for intact rock from the numerical indices obtained by either the
Schmidt hammer, the Shore scleroscope, or the sonic pulse velocity, all used in
conjunction with the unit weight of the rock.

Q10. Explain finite and infinite slops with suitable example?

Ans:- There are two principal options open to us. If something is to be actual then we can either
maintain that it must be finite, or that can be infinite. Actual things must be determinate,
but is not clear whether infinite things can be determinate too. On the face of it, infinite
things are unlimited and indefinite, and hence not fully determinate in the required
sense.   Mathematics since Cantor, however, has succeeded in giving some kind of
determinacy to the notion of infinite sets, and hence it is no longer clear whether actual
things are not allowed to be infinite.

This may seem a rather academic point, but it turns out the the whole difference between
classical physics and quantum physics can be made to depend on this decision! If we
have actual events, for instance, then the two options are either allowing actual events to
succeed each other continuously in time, or requiring events to have non-zero time
intervals between them. The purpose of this book to show how this latter choice paves the
way for a realistic understanding of quantum mechanics. The fact that quantum theory has
 proved a good theory therefore provides some kind of evidence to support the idea that all
actualities must be finite.

Q11. How would you determine the specific gravity of soil?

Ans:- This test is done to determine the specific gravity of fine-grained soil by density bottle
method as per IS: 2720 (Part III/Sec 1) – 1980. Specific gravity is the ratio of the weight in
air of a given volume of a material at a standard temperature to the weight in air of an
equal volume of distilled water at the same stated temperature.

The apparatus used:

i) Two density bottles of approximately 50ml capacity along with stoppers
ii) Constant temperature water bath (27.0 + 0.2oC)
iii) Vacuum desiccators
iv) Oven, capable of maintaining a temperature of 105 to 110oC
v) Weighing balance, with an accuracy of 0.001g
vi) Spatula

PREPARATION OF SAMPLE
The soil sample (50g) should if necessary be ground to pass through a 2mm IS Sieve. A
5 to 10g sub-sample should be obtained by riffling and oven-dried at a temperature of
105 to 110oC.

Procedure to Determine the Specific Gravity of Fine-Grained Soil

i) The density bottle along with the stopper, should be dried at a temperature of 105 to
110oC, cooled in the desiccator and weighed to the nearest 0.001g (W1).

ii) The sub-sample, which had been oven-dried should be transferred to the density
bottle directly from the desiccator in which it was cooled. The bottles and contents
together with the stopper should be weighed to the nearest 0.001g (W2).

iii) Cover the soil with air-free distilled water from the glass wash bottle and leave for a
period of 2 to 3hrs. for soaking. Add water to fill the bottle to about half.

iv) Entrapped air can be removed by heating the density bottle on a water bath or a
sand bath.

v) Keep the bottle without the stopper in a vacuum desiccator for about 1 to 2hrs. until
there is no further loss of air.

vi) Gently stir the soil in the density bottle with a clean glass rod, carefully wash off the
adhering particles from the rod with some drops of distilled water and see that no
more soil particles are lost.

vii) Repeat the process till no more air bubbles are observed in the soil-water mixture.

viii) Observe the constant temperature in the bottle and record.

ix) Insert the stopper in the density bottle, wipe and weigh(W3).
 MU-CIDC PGRI PROGRAM

x) Now empty the bottle, clean thoroughly and fill the density bottle with distilled water at
the same temperature. Insert the stopper in the bottle, wipe dry from the outside and
weigh (W4 ).

xi) Take at least two such observations for the same soil.

REPORTING OF RESULTS

The specific gravity G of the soil = (W2 – W1) / [(W4-1)-(W3-W2)]

The specific gravity should be calculated at a temperature of 27 oC and reported to the
nearest 0.01. If the room temperature is different from 27 oC, the following correction
should be done:-

G’ = kG

where,
G’ = Corrected specific gravity at 27oC

k = [Relative density of water at room temperature]/ Relative density of water at 27oC.

Q12. Give sedimentation analysis of soil?

Ans:- Soil particles finer than 75 micron size cannot be sieved. The particle size distribution of
such soil is determined by sedimentary analysis. In the sedimentary analysis, the soil
fraction finer than 75 micron size is kept in suspension in a liquid. This analysis is based
on Stokes law, according to which the velocity at which particle settles in a fluid, its
velocity first increases under the action of gravity, but the drag force comes in to action,
and retards the velocity.

Q13. Describe stress pass test under static tri axial tests?

Ans:- A triaxial shear test is a common method to measure the mechanical properties of many
deformable solids, especially soil (e.g. sand, clay) and rock, and other granular
materials or powders. There are several variations on the test

The principle behind a triaxial shear test is that the stress applied in the vertical direction
(along the axis of the cylindrical sample) can be different from the stresses applied in the
horizontal directions perpendicular to the sides of the cylinder, i.e. the confining pressure).
In a homogeneous and isotropic material this produces a non-hydrostatic stress state,
with shear stress that may lead to failure of the sample in shear. In homogeneous and
anisotropic samples (e.g. bedded or jointed samples) failure may occur due to bending
moments and, hence, failure may be tensile. Also combinations of bending and shear
failure may happen in inhomogeneous and anisotropic material.

A solid is defined as a material that can support shear stress without moving. However,
every solid has an upper limit to how much shear stress it can support. The triaxial test is
designed to measure that limit. The stress on the platens is increased until the material in
the cylinder fails and forms sliding regions within itself, known as shear bands. A motion
where a material is deformed under shear stress is known as shearing. The geometry of
 the shearing in a triaxial test typically causes the sample to become shorter while bulging
out along the sides. The stress on the platen is then reduced and the water pressure
pushes the sides back in, causing the sample to grow taller again. This cycle is usually
repeated several times while collecting stress and strain data about the sample.

During the shearing, a granular material will typically have a net gain or loss of volume. If it
had originally been in a dense state, then it typically gains volume, a characteristic known
as Reynolds' dilatancy. If it had originally been in a very loose state, then contraction may
occur before the shearing begins or in conjunction with the shearing.

From the triaxial test data, it is possible to extract fundamental material parameters about
the sample, including its angle of shearing resistance, apparent cohesion, and dilatancy
angle. These parameters are then used in computer models to predict how the material
will behave in a larger-scale engineering application. An example would be to predict the
stability of the soil on a slope, whether the slope will collapse or whether the soil will
support the shear stresses of the slope and remain in place. Triaxial tests are used along
with other tests to make such engineering predictions.

Q14. Describe saturated and unsaturated tests in direct shear tests?

Ans:- Multistage direct shear tests have been performed on saturated and unsaturated
specimens of a compacted glacial till. A conventional direct shear apparatus was modified
in order to use the axis-translation technique for direct shear tests on unsaturated soils.
The soil can be subjected to a wide range of matric suctions. The testing procedure and
some typical results are presented. Nonlinearity in the failure envelope with respect to
matric suction was observed. Suggestions are made as to how best to handle the
nonlinearity from a practical engineering standpoint. Key words: shear strength,
unsaturated soils, negative pore-water pressures, soil suction, direct shear.

Q15. Describe incremental loading Odometer test?

Ans:-An oedometer test is a kind of geotechnical investigation performed in geotechnical

engineering that measures a soil's consolidation properties. Oedometer tests are
performed by applying different loads to a soil sample and measuring the deformation
response. The results from these tests are used to predict how a soil in the field will
deform in response to a change in effective stress.

Oedometer tests are designed to simulate the one-dimensional deformation and drainage
conditions that soils experience in the field. To simulate these conditions, rigid confining
rings are used to prevent lateral displacement of the soil sample. Porous stones are
placed on the top and bottom of the sample to allow drainage in the vertical direction. To
better simulate one-dimensional strain, a diameter-to-height ratio in the sample of 3:1 or
more is used. Because the process of consolidation involves movement of water out of a
soil, it is important to prevent drying of the soil.

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 MU-CIDC PGRI PROGRAM

Name: Sunir Garg

Roll No. MUR 1303660