MANILA: Room 206, JPD Building CM Recto Avenue, Manila
CEBU: 4/F J. Martinez Bldg., Osmeña Blvd., Cebu City
Telephone Number: (02) 516 7559(Manila) E-Mail: buksmarquez1 @yahoo.com
(032) 254 9967 (Cebu)
Review MODULE 24 – Geotechnical Engineering 5 – Part 2
SHEAR STRENGTH PARAMETERS – 24.03 UU: UNCONSOLIDATED-UNDRAINED TEST
(1) cohesion and (2) internal friction angle
𝛕 = 𝐜 + 𝛔 𝐭𝐚𝐧∅ (Mohr-Coulomb Failure Criterion) - Total stress test
- Q-test or Quick test
DIRECT SHEAR TEST - Drainage valve is always CLOSED.
Is one of the simplest laboratory or field test used to measure the
shear strength properties of soil or rock material. SITUATION.
An unconsolidated undrained test was conducted on a saturated
clay. The cell pressure was 200 kPa and failure occurred under a
Fz deviator stress of 220 kPa.
Porous Stone 1. Determine the angle of shearing resistance.
2. Determine the maximum principal stress at failure.
Upper Shear 3. Determine the undrained shear strength.
Box
Fx Soil Specimen
Lower Shear UC: UNCONFINED-COMPRESSION TEST
Box - 𝜎3 = 0, no confining pressure.
- Simple compression test.
Porous Stone - Special Case of UU:
SITUATION.
TRIAXIAL TEST A cylindrical specimen of saturated clay 4.50 cm-Ø and 9cm long
A common method to measure the shear strength parameters of is tested in an unconfined compression apparatus.
soil or rock material. It involves subjecting a cylindrical soil
sample to radial stresses (confining pressure) and controlled 1. Find the cohesion of the specimen if it failed at an axial load
increases in axial stresses or axial displacements. of 45 kg. The specimen’s length after the test was 8.10 cm.
Triaxial test data, in general, include evolution of axial and 2. Compute the angle of inclination of the failure plane with
volumetric strain, deviatoric and isotropic stress, and pore respect to the principal stresses.
pressure evolution. It is also possible to deduce the shear
strength parameters; namely friction angle, cohesion, dilatancy SITUATION.
angle, and the other dependent parameters. A cylindrical specimen of a saturated soil fails under a stress of
150 kPa in an unconfined compression test. The failure plane
Strain
makes an angle of 52° with the horizontal.
Gage
1. Compute the angle of internal friction of the soil.
2. Compute the cohesion of the soil.
3. Compute the shearing stress at the failure plane.
Soil
σ3 Specimen
Gate
Valve
Depending on the combination of loading and drainage
condition, three main types of triaxial tests can be carried out:
1. UU: Unconsolidated-Undrained Test
2. CD: Consolidated-Drained Test
3. CU: Consolidated-Undrained Test
MANILA: Room 206, JPD Building CM Recto Avenue, Manila
CEBU: 4/F J. Martinez Bldg., Osmeña Blvd., Cebu City
Telephone Number: (02) 516 7559(Manila) E-Mail: buksmarquez1 @yahoo.com
(032) 254 9967 (Cebu)
Review MODULE 24 – Geotechnical Engineering 5 – Part 2
24.04 CD: CONSOLIDATED-DRAINED TEST 24.05 CU: CONSOLIDATED-UNDRAINED TEST
- Effective stress test - Allows measurement of both total and effective stresses
- S-test or Slow test - R-test, because it is faster than S-test but slower than Q-
- Drainage valve is always OPEN. test
*For sand and normally consolidated clay, 𝑐 ≈ 0 - Drainage is OPEN during the CONSOLIDATION PHASE
but CLOSED during the SHEAR PHASE.
SITUATION. The data shown in the table were obtained in a SITUATION. Consolidated undrained tests were carried out on
consolidated-drained triaxial test of three identical soil two samples of a clay. The following results were obtained:
specimens.
Confining Deviator Pore
Sample
Test Minor Principal Major Principal Pressure Stress Pressure
No. Stress, 𝝈′𝟑 Stress, 𝝈′𝟏 A 420 kPa 320 kPa 205 kPa
1 50 kPa 230 kPa B 690 kPa 365 kPa 350 kPa
2 100 kPa 385 kPa
3 150 kPa 540 kPa 1. Determine the drained friction angle for sample A.
1. Compute the angle of internal friction. 2. Determine the undrained shear strength of sample A.
2. Compute the cohesion of soil.
3. Compute the shearing stress at a depth of 6m below the 3. Determine the maximum shear strength of sample B.
ground if a phreatic line is located 2m below the ground
surface and the soil has a dry unit weight of 16 kN/m³ and a SITUATION.
saturated unit weight of 20 kN/m³. A consolidated-undrained soil test was conducted on a normally
consolidated sample with an effective confining pressure 𝝈′𝟑 of
140 kPa. The sample failed when the deviator stress was 124
SITUATION. kPa. The pore water pressure in the sample at that time was 75
A consolidated-drained tri-axial test is conducted on a normally kPa.
consolidated clay. The cell pressure is 100 kPa and the applied
axial stress at failure is 200 kPa. 1. Compute the consolidated undrained friction angle for the
total stress strength envelope.
1. Compute the angle of shearing resistance.
2. Compute the drained friction angle for the effective stress
2. Determine the shear stress at failure. strength envelope.
3. Compute the angle of inclination of the failure plane with 3. What is the drained angle of internal friction if the soil
respect to the major principal planes. possesses cohesion of 12 kPa.
4. Determine the maximum shear stress at failure and the
angle of the plane on which it acts.
