Geotechnical Engineering

CE – Review
GEOTECHNICAL ENGINEERING
INSTRUCTION: Select the correct answer for each of the following Effective Stress Concept
questions. Mark only one answer for each item by shading the box Situation 4:
corresponding to the letter of your choice on the answer sheet provided. Given in figure SM 526 is a soil profile were ground water table
STRICTLY NO ERASURES ALLOWED. Use pencil no. 2 only. is 4 m below the ground surface.
14. Determine the effective stress (Kpa) at point B.
Fundamentals a. 70.56 c. 89.11
Situation 1: b. 63.80 d. 69.53
For a given Soil, the following are known. Gs = 2.74, moist unit
weight = 19 kN/m3 , and moisture content = 17%. 15. Determine the effective stress (Kpa) at point C.
1. Determine the dry unit weight (kN/m3). a. 129.06 c. 112.45
a. 16.2 c. 18.8 b. 107.91 d. 118.77
b. 19.5 d. 20.1
2. Determine the buoyant unit weight (kN/m3). 16. Determine how high (m) should the water table rise so that the
a. 10.3 c. 9.7 effective stress at C is 105 kpa.
b. 12.6 d. 11.9 a. 2.78 c. 2.29
3. Determine the void ratio. b. 1.56 d. 3.11
a. 0.562 c. 0.655
b. 0.370 d. 0.351 Capillary rise
4. Determine the porosity. Situation 5:
a. 0.36 c. 0.50 A dense silt layer has the following properties:
b. 0.40 d. 0.26 Void ratio, e = 0.40
5. Determine the degree of saturation (%). Effective diameter, d10 = 10
a. 65.89 c. 71.09 Capillary constant, C = 0.20 cm2
b. 51.33 d. 86.67 Free ground water level is 8m below the ground surface.
6. Determine the weight of water in kN to be added per cubic
meter of soil for a 100% degree of saturation. 17. Determine the height of capillary rise in the silt. Capillary rise
a. 1.12 c. 1.78 is given, =
b. 1.29 d. 1.45 ㌠

7. Determine the weight of water in kN to be added per cubic a. 4.5 m c. 5.5 m

meter of soil for a 93% degree of saturation. b. 6.0 m d. 5.0 m
a. 1.21 c. 1.87
b. 1.92 d. 0.85 18. Determine the vertical effective stress (kpa) at 5 m depth.
Assume = 26.5 t/ 3 and that the soil above the capillary
Situation 2: action rise and ground surface is partially saturated at 50%.
A sand fill 2 m depth has relative density of 40% with a specific a. 122 c. 151
gravity of 2.65. Laboratory results shown that the void ratios at b. 134 d. 147
loosest and densest states are 0.90, and 0.47, respectively.
8. Determine the In-situ void ratio. 19. Determine the vertical effective stress (kpa) at 10 m depth.
a. 0.663 c. 0.559 Assume = 26.5 t/ 3 and that the soil above the capillary
b. 0.802 d. 0.728 action rise and ground surface is partially saturated at 50%.
9. Determine the void ratio at relative density of 60%. a. 173 c. 213
a. 0.850 c. 0.711 b. 194 d. 201
b. 0.642 d. 0.532
10. Determine the decreased in thickness (mm) of the fill if it is Flow of water in soil
compacted to relative density of 60%.  Constant head
a. 79.32 c. 88.13 Situation 6:
b. 99.54 d. 101.45 See Figure SM 109
For a constant head laboratory permeability test on fine sand,
Situation 3: the following values are given:
The volume the soil measured before drying is 120 cm3. The Length of specimen, L = 15 inches
wet weight of soil is 215 g and dried weight is 162 g. Gs = 2.55. Diameter of specimen, D = 3 inches
11. Determine the void ratio Head difference, h = 22 inches
a. 0.889 c. 0.689 Water collected in 2 minutes = 0.057 cu. in.
b. 0.791 d. 0.942 Void ratio, e = 0.37
12. Determine the degree of saturation (%).
a. 93.85 c. 97.62
b. 88.15 d. 79.56
13. Determine the dry unit weight at zero air voids (kN/m3).
a. 13.64 c. 12.53
b. 15.28 d. 11.09

20. Determine the hydraulic conductivity (in/min) of the soil.

a. 0.00275 c. 0.00199
b. 0.00450 d. 0.00661

21. Determine the discharge velocity (in/min) through soil.

a. 0.00513 c. 0.00388
b. 0.00403 d. 0.00604

Engr. Louie A. Alcantara, CE, MP

 Geotechnical Engineering
CE – Review
22. Determine the seepage velocity (in/min)
a. 0.0149 c. 0.0155
b. 0.0224 d. 0.0190

Situation 7: CE Board Nov 2016

A permeable soil is underlain by an impervious layer. For the 29.. Which of the following most nearly gives the equivalent
permeable layer, k = 0.0052 cm/s, H = 4 m, and inclination coefficient of permeability for flow in the horizontal direction?
with respect to horizontal = 5. See Figure SM 022. a. 37.75 m/day c. 38.60 m/day
b. 35.42 m/day d. 36.47 m/day

30. Which of the following most nearly gives the hydraulic

gradient?
a. 0.005 c. 0.004
b. 0.003 d. 0.006

31. Which of the following most nearly gives the rate flow from
one stream to another per meter width?
a. 7.70 m3/day c. 11.67 m3/day
23. Determine the hydraulic gradient. b. 7.44 m3/day d. 12.08 m3/day
a. 0.0733 c. 0.0872
b. 0.0559 d. 0.0651 Situation 12:
See Figure SM 024
24. Determine the flow of water per meter width (m3/hr). Water flows in and out in the system shown to maintain a
a. 0.045 c. 0.058 constant head h = 1000 mm. Cross-sectional area of soil A =
b. 0.073 d. 0.065 10,000 mm2. Elevation of the water surface at the outlet
container is 600 mm.
25. Determine the total amount of water percolated per day per Hydraulic conductivities:
meter width (m3). K1 = 3 x 10-2 mm/s
a. 1.39 c. 1.75 K2 = 4 x 10-2 mm/s
b. 1.56 d. 1.08 Lengths of soil:
H1 = 300 mm
 Falling head H2 = 400 mm
Situation 8:
A falling head permeability test was run on a sample of D = 10
cm in diameter and L = 12 cm long. The head at the start of the
test was 92 cm. The coefficient of permeability of the soil was
found to be 6x10-6 cm/s. The diameter of the stand pipe was
1.5 cm. See figure SM 021.

32. Determine the equivalent coefficient of permeability (cm/s)

a. 3.5 x 10-5 cm/s c. 2.93x10-7 cm/s
b. 2.22x10 cm/s
-6
d. 1.54x10-6 cm/s

26. Determine the flow at the start of the test (cm3/hr). 33. Determine the pore water pressure (kpa) at elevation 500 mm.
a. 12.45 c. 14.89 a. 6.33 c. 7.52
b. 11.23 d. 13.01 b. 9.22 d. 8.01

27. Determine how much head (cm) was lost during the firs 30 34. Determine the head loss (mm) in elevation 200 mm.
minutes. a. 600 c. 650
a. 3.61 c. 86.72 b. 750 d. 500
b. 88.39 d. 5.28
Situation 13: CE Board May 2007/November 2008/ May 2009
28. Determine the flow after 30 minutes (cn3/hr). A test is set-up as shown in the figure below. A cylindrical mold
a. 12.5 c. 11.2 4” in diameter is filled with silt to a height H1 = 0.20 ft whose
b. 11.8 d. 12.3 coefficient of permeability is 6.10 x 10-4 ft/min.

 Equivalent Permeability A second coaxial mold, place on the top of the silt inside the
Situation 9: CE Board November 2010 first mold, has an inside diameter of 1.50” and height of H2 =
An unconfined aquifer underlies a confined aquifer as shown in 0.30 ft. Its thickness is negligible. The inside of this second
figure. mold is filled with the same silt, but the annular ring outside is
filled with sand whose coefficient of permeability is 2.50 x 10-3
ft/min.

The test set-up is a permeameter of constant head. Water is

placed in the mold and maintained at a level h = 1.25 ft above
the level of the outlet. If may be considered that the system
consist of a fictitious soil of thickness H = H1 + H2 and
coefficient of permeability Kf.
Engr. Louie A. Alcantara, CE, MP
 Geotechnical Engineering
CE – Review
were 1.60 m 1nd 1.40 m, respectively, from the initial
groundwater level. The diameter of the pumping well is 0.40 m.
41. Which of the following most nearly gives the transmissivity of
the aquifer?
a. 0.0622 m2/s c. 0.0626 m2/s
b. 0.0266 m2/s d. 0.0662 m2/s

42. Which of the following most nearly gives the drawdown in the
test well?
a. 2.75 m c. 2.85 m
b. 2.55 m d. 2.65 m

43. Which of the following most nearly gives the time of travel of
groundwater from the observation well at 30 m to the
pumping well if the porosity of the aquifer is 0.40?
a. 1.48 days c. 1.64 days
b. 1.56 days d. 1.80 days

 Flow Nets
Situation 16:
The section of a sheet pile is shown in figure SM 025. The
coefficient of permeability if the soil is k = 5 x 10-3 m/s.
Difference in the head of the upstream and downstream sides
is 5 m. Assume that each stream has an area of its water
surface as 1 hectare.

35. Which of the following most nearly gives the total amount of
flow of water through the soil?
a. 2.36 x 10-4 ft3/min c. 2.55 x 10-4 ft3/min
b. 2.10 x 10-4 ft3/min d. 2.28 x 10-4 ft3/min

36. Which of the following most nearly gives the equivalent

coefficient of permeability of the system?
a. 1.01 x 10-3 ft/min c. 1.14 x 10-3 ft/min
b. 1.08 x 10 ft/min d.
-3
1.05 x 10-3 ft/min

37. Which of the following most nearly gives the total amount of
flow percolated after 30 minutes?
a. 200.51 cm3 c. 216.59 cm3
b. 193.71 cm3 d. 178.45 cm3
44. Determine the seepage (Lit/sec) into the downstream side per
 Permeability Test in the Field (Unconfined Aquifer) meter width of the sheet pile.
a. 13.0 c. 11.5
Situation 14: CE Board May 2008/November 2017 b. 12.5 d. 10.7
A 300 mm diameter test well penetrates 27 mm below the
static water table. Water is pumped at a rate of 69 liters per 45. Determine the difference in head (m) of water level after 2
second for 24 hours. The water levels at two observation wells days.
35 m and 95 m from the test well were lowered by 1.10 m and a. 3.907 c. 4.568
0.50 m, respectively. b. 3.745 d. 4.789

38. Which of the following most nearly gives the rate of flow in Situation 17:
MLD? A masonry dam has a coefficient of permeability in the vertical
a. 6.31 c. 5.96 and horizontal directions of Kz = 4 m/day and Kx = 5 m/day,
b. 5.02 d. 4.87 respectively. Difference in head is 18 m and the distance
between the base of the dam and the downstream water
39. Which of the following most nearly gives the coefficient of surface is 18m. Assume z = 35 m and width of dam = 40 m.
permeability of the aquifer? See Figure SM 026.
a. 60.27 m/day c. 62.76 m/day
b. 61.87 m/day d. 67.19 m/day

40. Which of the following most nearly gives the transmissivity of

the aquifer?
a. 1713.76 m2/day c. 1627.25 m2/day
b. 1579.04 m /day
2
d. 1984.02 m2/day

 Permeability Test in the Field (Confined Aquifer)

Situation 15:
A pumping test was carried out in a confined aquifer 15 m
thick overlain by an impermeable layer 30 m thick. Rate of
pumping was 0.12 m3/s; drawdowns in observation wells
located at 15 m and 30 m from the center of the pumping well
Engr. Louie A. Alcantara, CE, MP
 Geotechnical Engineering
CE – Review
46. Determine the seepage flow (m3/day) 54. Which of the following most nearly gives the minimum center
a. 1590.09 c. 1205.71 to center spacing of piles achieve 100% efficiency?
b. 1431.08 d. 1345.78 a. 0.78 m c. 1.08 m
b. 0.61 m d. 0.86 m
47. Determine the uplift pressure (kpa) at A.
a. 156.96 c. 186.39 COMPRESSIBILITY OF SOIL
b. 180.78 d. 176.58 ∙ Compression index:
= 0.009(LL-10)
48. Determine the uplift force (kN) acting in the dam. Assume that
the uplift pressure under the dam varies uniformly. =
a. 133,450 c. 164,808
b. 145,771 d. 123,606
∙ SOIL SETTLEMENT:
PILES
a. Immediate settlement
‰‰〭 4 4 ‰1 2
1
a. Ultimate Bearing Capacity: Hi = pB ‰
〭
Fb = Ct 41‰ Where:
P= net pressure applied
B= Width or diameter of the foundation
b. Ultimate Frictional Capacity: = Poisson’s ratio
Ff = αcPL 〭=Modulus of elasticity of soil
c. Ultimate Capacity ‰ = Influence factor
Fult = +
b. Primary Consolidation Settlement
Where: b. 1 Normally Cinsilidated Soil
c = cohesion of soil Hp = log ( )
1+h0
α = Friction/ adhesion factor
P = Perimeter of the pile b. 2 Overconsilidated Soil
L = Length of the Pile when :
41쳌䁙 = Area of the pile at the tip Hp = log ( )
1+h0
t = Bearing capacity factor
when :
Situation 20:
Hp = 1+h log ( )+ log ( )
The soil stratification is shown in figure HKQA 0.21. 0 1+h0

Use FS= 2.5. Where:

H= Thickness of the consilidating clay
= Compression Index
= Swell Index
h = Initial void ratio
= Initial vertival effective soil stress
= Final vertical effective soil stress
= Preconsolidation pressure

c. Secondary Consolidation Settlement

α
Hs = log ( 2 )
1+h䁙 1

Where:
H= Thickness of the consolidating clay
49. Calculate the capacity of pile due to skin fruction only.
α = Secondary Compression Index
a. 431.28 kN c. 619.93 kN
hp = Void ratio at the end of primary consolidation
b. 727.78 kN d. 545.61 kN
1 = Time for completion of primary settlement
50. Calculate the end bearing capacity of the pile.
2 = Time after completion of primary settlement
a. 57.34 kN c. 86.01 kN
b. 91.50 kN d. 63.22 kN
Situation 22:
51. Calculate the design capacity of the concrete pile.
The soil is acted upon by a unifromly distributed lload of 60
a. 176.10 kN c. 195.45 kN
kPa at the ground surface. See figure GEOD 23.0.
b. 282.39 kN d. 316.40 KN

Analysis of Pile Groups

- Load Capacity of Pile Groups
Situation 21:
The pile shown in the figure consists of 12 piles, each 0.30 m in
diameter, arranged in a 3x4 matrix at a spacing of 1.20 m. the
piles penetrate a soft clay ( c= 20 kPa ); medium dense clay
(c= 56 kPa) Use = 1 for soft and medium dense clay and =
0.50 for stiff clay. t = 9.

52. Which of the following most nearly gives the capacity of the
pile group based on single pile failure mode?
a. 10,190.58 kN c. 8,761.32 kN
c. 7,598.53 kN d. 6,408.38 kN
53. Which of the following most nearly gives the capacity of the
pile group based on block failure mode? 55. Compute the settlement of the clay layer caused by primary
a. 9,408.71 kN c. 12,599.05 kN consolidation if the soil is normally consolidated.
c. 13,567.28 kN d. 15,636.15 kN a. 75.8 c. 48.3

Engr. Louie A. Alcantara, CE, MP

 Geotechnical Engineering
CE – Review
b. 96.7 d. 151.7 62. Compute the stress increase at the center of clay layer
56. Compute the settlement of the clay layer caused by primary assuming that the pressure beneath the footing is spread at an
consolidation pressure of clay is 230 kPa. angle of 2 vertical to 1 horizontal.
Use = /5. a. 18.17 kPa c. 25.51 kPa
a. 30.3 mm c. 15.2 mm b. 41.32 kPa d. 33.09 kPa
b. 17.1 mm d. 41.5 mm 63. Determine the size of the footing B so that the settlement in the
57. Compute the settlement of the clay layer caused by primary clay layer is the same beneath footings A and B. Footing A is 1.5
consolidation if the preconsolidation pressure of clay is 200 m square.
kPa. a. 2.52 m c. 3.24 m
Use = /5. b. 4.34 m d. 1.97 m
a. 70.7 mm c. 60.8 mm
b. 35.4 mm d. 21.5 mm 64. Determine the settlement beneath footing A.
a. 46.65 mm c. 35.04 mm
Situation 23: b. 68.27 mm d. 57.52 mm
A soil formation is composed of 5 m thick clay and 5 m thick
clay and 5 m thick sand being the sand above the clay. The Situation 26:
ground water table (GWT) is located at 2 m below the ground A group of friction piles is shown in figure SM 501. The total
surface. Assume E= 6900 kPa, ‰ = 0.79 and = 0.2. load on the pile less the soil displaced by the footing is Q=
1800 kN. The clay is f= 14 m thick and the silt is d= 2 m thick.
Ground water table is located d= 2 m below the clay surface.
Use a= 0.5 m, b= 3 m, c= 2 m and L= 9 m.

58. A rigid column footing 1.2 m in diameter is constructed. The

load on the footings is 170 kN. Determine the immediate
settlement.
a. 24.6 mm c. 16.1 mm
b. 19.8 mm d. 27.0 mm
59. Calculate the primary compression index.
a. 0.623 c. 0.590
b. 0.371 d. 0.222
60. Calculate the primary consolidation settlement of the normally
consolidated clay layer if there is a surcharge of 40 kPa acting
on the ground surface. (Neglect footing’s load)
a. 179.8 mm c. 89.9 mm
b. 201.5 mm d. 100.7 mm
61. Calculate the secondary settlement of the clay layer 5 years
after the completion of the primary consolidation settlement.
Time for completion of primary settlement is 2 years. Use =
0.02.
a. 34.9 mm c. 17.6 mm
b. 14.5 mm d. 25.8 mm

Situation 25:
Two footings rest in layer of sand 2.7 m thick. The bottom of
the footings are 0.9 m below the ground surface. Beneath the 65. Calculate the effective pressure (kPa) at the midheight of the
clay layer is hard pan. The water table is at a depth of 1.8 m consolidation clay layer.
below the ground surface. a. 159.03 kPa c. 147.61 kPa
b. 142.95 kPa d. 164.80 kPa
66. Calculate the compression index of the clay.
a. 0.2755 c. 0.2877
b. 0.2967 d. 2315
67. Calculate the approximate settlement of the foundation.
a. 125.07 mm c. 283.18 mm
b. 129.22 mm d. 138.29 mm

68. A layer of soft clay having initial void ratio of 1.5 is 10 m thick.
Under a cpmpressive load applied above it, the void ratio
decreased by one-half. Evaluate the reduction in the thickness
of the clay layer.
a. 3.0 m c. 3.5 m
b. 2.5 m d. 2.0 m
Stability of Earth Retaining Structures
Situation 3:
A vertical retaining wall 3 m high supports a horizontal backfill
on level on the top of the wall. The water table is located 2 m

Engr. Louie A. Alcantara, CE, MP

 Geotechnical Engineering
CE – Review
below the ground surface. The unit weight of the soil above the b. 299.97 KN/m d. 332.42 KN/m
water table is 15.72 KN/m3 and its angle of friction is 30°. The
saturated unit weight of the soil below the water table is 18.86 79. Which of the following most nearly gives the percentage of the
KN/m3 has an angle of friction of 26° and a cohesion of 10 total passive resistance utilized by the wall?
KN/m2. a. 86.12% c. 94.50%
69. Which of the following most nearly gives the passive force per b. 72.84% d. 77.71%
unit length of the wall using Rankine’s Passive Force Theory?
a. 237.14 KN c. 231.00 KN 80. Which of the following most nearly gives the tension in the
b. 242.82 KN d. 223.34 KN anchor?
a. 265.98 KN c. 294.75 KN
70. Which of the following most nearly gives the location of the b. 249.29 KN d. 323.41 KN
passive force from the bottom of the wall.
a. 0.98 m c. 0.81 m
b. 0.88 m d. 0.95 m

71. Which of the following most nearly gives the moment at the
bottom of the wall?
a. 221.51 KN.m c. 225.86 KN.m
b. 218.96 KN.m d. 213.60 KN.m

Tensile Crack
Situation 4:
A retaining wall has a vertical back and is 8 m high. The soil is
sandy loam of density 1.75 Mg/m3. It shows cohesion of 13
KN/m2 and an angle of friction of 20°. The upper surface of the
fill is horizontal. Neglect any effect of wall friction.

72. Determine the critical depth of the wall.

a. 2.16 m c. 3.81 m
b. 2.67 m d. 3.10 m

73. Determine the total thrust on the wall.

a. 133.68 KN/m c. 126.92 KN/m
b. 155.09 KN/m d. 143.40 KN/m

74. Determine the resultant thrust on the wall if drains are locked
and water builds up behind the wall until the water table is 3 m
above the bottom of the wall. Saturated Density of soil is 2
Mg/m2.
a. 188.56 KN c. 191.08 KN
b. 171.36 KN d. 167.32 KN

Cantilever Sheet pile walls

Situation 5:
Sheet piling is to function as a cantilever retaining wall 1.50 m
high. The soil weighs 17.28 KN/m3 and its angle of friction is
32°. The backfill has a horizontal surface. Use Rankine’s theory.

75. Which of the following most nearly gives the required depth of
penetration of the bulkhead?
a. 0.91 m c. 1.25 m
b. 1.04 m d. 1.16 m

76. Which of the following most nearly gives the total active force
on the wall?
a. 15.41 KN c. 18.77 KN
b. 20.06 KN d. 17.11 KN

77. Which of the following most nearly gives the reaction at the
bottom of the wall?
a. 28.53 KN c. 23.88 KN
b. 25.17 KN d. 26.83 KN

Anchored Cantilever Sheet pile walls

Situation 6:
An anchored sheet pile 10.50 m high is to retain 7.30 m deep of
soil. The soil has an angle of friction of 31° with a unit weight of
17 KN/m3. The sheet pile is anchored at a depth of 1.20 m
below the ground surface with center to center spacing of 3 m.

78. Which of the following most nearly gives the total active force
on the sheet pile per meter width?
a. 364.76 KN/m c. 281.16 KN/m
Engr. Louie A. Alcantara, CE, MP
 Geotechnical Engineering
CE – Review

Engr. Louie A. Alcantara, CE, MP