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Introduction
ENGINEERING GEOLOGY AND ROCK MECHANICS
Unit-I (Part-I) General Geology
Nikhil Rathore
Assistant Professor
Department of Civil Engineering
Rajiv Gandhi Government Engineering College Kangra at Nagrota Bagwan, H.P.
Geology (Geoscience or Earth science): [Geo=Earth, Logos=Science] is the science that deals with the study of the earth.
Geology includes:
1. Scientific studies dealing with the origin, age & structure of the earth.
2. evolution, modification & extinction of various surface & sub-surface physical features (mountains, plateaus, plains,
valleys, basins etc.)
3. material making up the earth.
Scopes of Engineering Geology
Geology enables:
1. a civil engineer to understand engineering implications of certain conditions related to the area of construction, which
are essentially geological in nature.
2. a geologist to understand the nature of geological information that is absolutely essential for a safe design &
construction of a civil engineering project.
Importance of Geology in Civil Engineering
1. Geology provides a systematical knowledge of construction materials, their structure & properties.
2. The foundation problems of dams, bridges & buildings are directly related to geology of the area where they are to be
built.
3. The geological features like faults, folds, joint beds if found during construction are to be treated suitably to increase
the stability of foundation.
4. The knowledge of ground water is necessary in connection with excavation work, water supply, irrigation & many other
purposes.
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5. Geological information is of fundamental importance in exploration and exploitation of water resources of a region from
surface & sub-surface reserve of water.
6. The knowledge of erosion, transportation & deposition by surface water helps in soil conservation & river control.
7. Geological maps are greatly useful in proper planning of an engineering project.
a.
Topographical maps
gives detail of Relief features (physical shape or surface of earth)
are essential to understand relative merits & demerits of all the possible sites for the proposed structure.
b. Hydrological maps
gives details about the distribution & geometry of the surface water channel.
gives details about the occurrence & depth contours of groundwater below the surface of the earth.
c. Geological maps
gives detail about the petrological characters & structural disposition of rock types.
gives an idea about the availability of the materials of construction in the area.
useful information regarding fracturing & displacement that the site rock have undergone in the past can be
obatained.
8. By doing pre-geological survey of an area the cost of the project can be reduced.
9. The knowledge about the nature of the rocks is very necessary in tunneling, construction of roads & in determining the
stability of cuts & slopes.
Geological maps
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Hydrological maps
Topographical maps
Branches of Geology
A. Main Branches
1. PHYSICAL GEOLOGY (Dynamic Geology, Geomorphology): deals with different physical features of the Earth such as
mountain, plateaus, valleys, rivers, lake, glaciers etc.
It deals with the change occurring on the earth surface like marine transgression, marine regression, formation or
disappearance of rivers, springs & lakes.
2. MINEROLOGY: deals with the study of minerals. Minerals are the basic units with which different rocks & ores of the
earth are made up of.
It deals with the formation, occurrence, aggregation, properties & uses of minerals.
MINEROLOGY
PHYSICAL GEOLOGY
3. PETROLOGY: deals with the study of rocks; mode of formation, structure, texture, composition, occurrence of rocks.
It is further classified as Igneous Petrology, Sedimentary Petrology & Metamorphic Petrology.
4. STRUCTURAL GEOLOGY: The rocks which forms Earth’s crust undergoes various deformations, dislocation &
disturbances under the influence of tectonic forces. This results in the occurrence of different geological structures like
folds, faults, joints & unconformities in rocks.
The mode of formation, causes, types, classification of geological structure are studied in this branch of Geology.
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HISTORICAL GEOLOGY
STRUCTURAL GEOLOGY
5. HISTORICAL GEOLOGY: deals with the past history of the earth as deciphered from the study of rocks & features
associated with them.
Rocks contain within them enough evidence indicative of nature & time of their formation, composition, construction,
structural disposition & fossils.
All this information reveal a lot about the events that have passed since their formation.
PALEONTOLOGY: deals with the study of fossils & extinct animals & plants. The study of fossils helps to understand
the evolution of life on earth & the geological events that have occurred in the past. The type & nature of the fossils
found in a region give us an idea about the age of the rocks & the environment in which they were formed.
6. ECONOMIC GEOLOGY: deals with the study of those minerals, rocks, & other materials (fuel etc.) occurring on and in
the earth that can be exploited for the benefit of mankind.
These include a wide variety of ores of all the metals & non-metals, building stones, salt deposits, fuel (coal, petroleum,
natural gas etc.)
B. Allied Branches
1. GEOCHEMISTRY: deals with the chemical constitution of the Earth and studies specifically the distribution and relative
abundance of different elements and their various compounds occurring on and within the earth.
2. GEOPHYSICS: In this branch of science important principles, processes and methods of Physics are applied to solve
many geological problems.
Identification of water and oil bearing strata below the surface of the earth is carried out mostly by using geophysical
principles and processes.
3. GOEHYDROLOGY: deals specifically with the geological aspects of groundwater and surface water bodies with regard
to their occurrence and movement movement through different types of rocks.
4. ENGINEERING GEOLOGY: deals with the geotechnical studies of the sites and locations for major engineering projects
and for execution of safe, stable & economic construction.
5. ROCK MECHANICS: deals with the study of behaviour of rocks under various types of loads imposed on them.
6. GEOMECHANICS: deals with the study of natural force fields acting on the earth on global and regional levels.
7. METEOROLOGY: deals with the study of atmosphere (physical, chemical & biological aspects).
8. OCEANOGRAPHY: deals with the physical, structural, genetic and other aspects of the oceans.
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