Soil Mechaincs Fall-2017 Semester Engr.
Fazal-E-Jalal
INTRODUCTION TO SOIL MECHANICS
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Soil Mechaincs Fall-2017 Semester Engr. Fazal-E-Jalal
Contents
Some basic Definitions: ................................................................................................... 3
1. Soil:.......................................................................................................................... 3
2. Soil Mechanics:........................................................................................................ 3
3. Geotechnical engineering: ....................................................................................... 4
4. Foundation Engineering: .......................................................................................... 4
Historical Perspective: ..................................................................................................... 5
Pre classical Period of Soil Mechanics (1700 –1776)...................................................... 5
Classical Soil Mechanics—Phase I (1776 –1856) ........................................................... 6
Classical Soil Mechanics—Phase II (1856 –1910) .......................................................... 6
Modern Soil Mechanics (1910 –1927) ............................................................................. 7
Geotechnical Engineering after 1927 .............................................................................. 8
Application & Importance of Soil Mechanics is Civil Engineering: ................................... 8
1. Uses of soil: ............................................................................................................. 8
a) Supporting material: ........................................................................................ 8
b) Raw construction material: .............................................................................. 8
c) Processed material: ........................................................................................ 9
d) Pottery Industry: .............................................................................................. 9
e) Bentonite clay: ................................................................................................ 9
2. Applications in Civil Engineering: ............................................................................. 9
Soil Problems in Civil Engineering: ............................................................................... 19
The solution of Civil Engineering problems: ............................................................... 21
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Soil Mechaincs Fall-2017 Semester Engr. Fazal-E-Jalal
INTRODUCTION
―Virtually every structure is supported by soil or rock. Those that aren‘t either fly, float, or
fall over.‖
Richard L. Handy
Some basic Definitions:
1. Soil: It is an unconsolidated (loose) agglomerate of minerals with or without organic
matter found at or near surface of earth crust, with which and upon which civil engineers
build their structures.
Soil mass is a particulate material consisting of solid particles with voids (pores) filled
with air or water or both.
2. Soil Mechanics: Branch of civil engineering that deals with the study of soil and
its behavior under different types of loads (external forces, T changes, moisture
variations etc.) using the principles of Engineering mechanics, Fluid mechanics,
Mechanics of dynamics, Thermal mechanics etc.
OR
Soil mechanics is the branch of science that deals with the study of the physical
properties of soil and the behavior of soil masses subjected to various types of forces.
OR
Soil mechanics is the science of equilibrium and motion of soil bodies.
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Soil Mechaincs Fall-2017 Semester Engr. Fazal-E-Jalal
3. Geotechnical engineering: It deals with applications of civil engineering
technology to some aspects of earth. (―Geotechnical‖ word was first used by Swedish
State Railways 1914-1922, as ‗Geotekniska‘). In today‘s world it‘s combination of Civil
engineering technology and Geology.
OR
It is the branch of civil engineering that deals with soil, rock, and underground water,
and their relation to the design, construction, and operation of engineering projects.
Related Geotechnical Engineering Problems are- Bearing capacity of soil under
foundations, Stability of natural and excavated slopes, Stability of temporary and
permanent earth-retaining structures, construction problems, controlling water
movements and pressures, and even maintenance and rehabilitation of old buildings.
4. Foundation Engineering: It applies Geology, Soil mechanics, Rock mechanics
and structural engineering to the design and construction of foundations for civil
engineering projects.
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Soil Mechaincs Fall-2017 Semester Engr. Fazal-E-Jalal
Historical Perspective:
One of the most famous examples of problems related to soil-bearing capacity in the
construction of structures prior to the 18th century is the Leaning Tower of Pisa in Italy.
The structure weighs about 15,700 metric tons and is supported by a circular base
having a diameter of 20 m (66 ft). Recent investigations showed that a weak clay layer
exists at a depth of about 11m (36 ft) below the ground surface compression, which
caused the tower to tilt. The tower was closed in 1990 because it was feared that it
would either fall over or collapse. It recently has been stabilized by excavating soil from
under the north side of the tower.
Based on the emphasis and the nature of study in the area of geotechnical engineering,
the time span extending from 1700 to 1927 can be divided into four major periods
(Skempton, 1985):
o Pre-classical (1700 to 1776 A.D.)
o Classical soil mechanics—Phase I (1776 to 1856 A.D.)
o Classical soil mechanics—Phase II (1856 to 1910 A.D.)
o Modern soil mechanics (1910 to 1927 A.D.)
Brief descriptions of some significant developments during each of these four periods
are discussed below.
Pre classical Period of Soil Mechanics (1700 –1776)
Studies relating to natural slope and unit weights of various types of soils, as well as the
semi-empirical earth pressure theories.
Henri Gautier (1660 –1737), studied the natural slopes of soils. The natural slope is
what we now refer to as the angle of repose. According to this study, the natural slopes
of clean dry sand and ordinary earth were 31 degrees and 45 degrees, respectively.
Also, the unit weight of clean dry sand and ordinary earth were recommended to be
18.1kN/m3 (115 lb/ft3) and 13.4kN/m3 (85 lb/ft3), respectively.
Henri Gautier
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The first laboratory model test results on a 76-mm-high (3 in.) retaining wall built with
sand backfill were reported in 1746 by a French engineer, Francois Gadroy. In 1729,
Bernard Forest de Belidor (1671–1761) published a textbook for military and civil
engineers in France. In the book, he proposed a theory for lateral earth pressure on
retaining walls.
Classical Soil Mechanics—Phase I (1776 –1856)
Most of the developments in the area of geotechnical engineering came from engineers
and scientists in France. In his famous paper presented in 1776, French scientist
Charles Augustin Coulomb (1736 –1806) used the principles of calculus for maxima and
minima to determine the true position of the sliding surface in soil behind a retaining
wall.
Charles Augustine Coulomb
In 1840, Jean Victor Poncelet (1788–1867), an army engineer and professor of
mechanics, extended Coulomb‘s theory by providing a graphical method for determining
the magnitude of lateral earth pressure on vertical and inclined retaining walls. The end
of Phase I of the classical soil mechanics period is generally marked by the year (1857)
of the first publication by William John Macquorn Rankine (1820 – 1872), a professor of
civil engineering at the University of Glasgow. This study provided a notable theory on
earth pressure and equilibrium of earth masses.
Classical Soil Mechanics—Phase II (1856 –1910)
Several experimental results from laboratory tests on sand appeared in the literature in
this phase. One of the earliest and most important publications is one by French
engineer Henri Philibert Gaspard Darcy (1803–1858). In 1856, he published a study on
the permeability of sand filters. Based on those tests, Darcy defined the term coefficient
of permeability (or hydraulic conductivity) of soil, a very useful parameter in
geotechnical engineering to this day.
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J.V. Boussinesq
Another noteworthy contribution, which was published in 1885 by Joseph Valentin
Boussinesq (1842–1929), was the development of the theory of stress distribution under
loaded bearing areas in a homogeneous, semi-infinite, elastic, and isotropic medium. In
1887, Osborne Reynolds (1842–1912) demonstrated the phenomenon of dilatancy in
sand.
Modern Soil Mechanics (1910 –1927)
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Soil Mechaincs Fall-2017 Semester Engr. Fazal-E-Jalal
Geotechnical Engineering after 1927
The publication of Erdbaumechanik auf Bodenphysikalisher Grundlage by Karl Terzaghi
in 1925 gave birth to a new era in the development of soil mechanics. Karl Terzaghi is
known as the father of modern soil mechanics.
[Terzaghi was born on October 2, 1883 in Prague, which was then the capital of the Austrian province of
Bohemia. In 1904 he graduated from the Technische Hochschule in Graz, Austria, with an
undergraduate degree in mechanical engineering. After graduation he served one year in the Austrian
army. Following his army service, Terzaghi studied one more year, concentrating on geological subjects.
In January 1912, he received the degree of Doctor of Technical Sciences from his alma mater in
Graz. In 1916, he accepted a teaching position at the Imperial School of Engineers in Istanbul. After the
end of World War I, he accepted a lectureship at the American Robert College in Istanbul (1918–1925).
There he began his research work on the behavior of soils and settlement of clays and on the failure
due to piping in sand under dams. In 1925, Terzaghi accepted a visiting lectureship at Massachusetts
Institute of Technology, where he worked until 1929. During that time, he became recognized as the
leader of the new branch of civil engineering called soil mechanics. In October 1929, he returned to
Europe to accept a professorship at the Technical University of Vienna, which soon became the
nucleus for civil engineers interested in soil mechanics. In 1939, he returned to the United States to
become a professor at Harvard University].
Application & Importance of Soil Mechanics is Civil
Engineering:
1. Uses of soil:
a) Supporting material: To bear the loads of structures resting on earth
b) Raw construction material: For construction of earth structures such as
Earthern dams, leeves (A dike, dyke, embankment, floodbank or stopbank is an
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elongated naturally occurring ridge or artificially constructed filler wall, which
regulates water levels. It is usually earthen and often parallel to the course of
a river in its floodplain), roads, airfields etc.
c) Processed material: In form of burnt bricks, concrete mix etc.
d) Pottery Industry: China clay (Kaolinite) is used as a raw material. Kaolinite also
used in paint, paper and pharmaceutical industries.
e) Bentonite clay: Drilling fluid for BH stabilization and foundation excavation
stabilization.
Soil mechanics is a subset of geotechnical engineering.
Soil mechanics involve the application of soil mechanics, geology, and hydraulics to
the analysis and design of geotechnical systems such as;
– Dams, embankments,
– Tunnels, canals and water ways,
– Foundations for bridges, roads, buildings,
– Solid waste disposal systems.
2. Applications in Civil Engineering:
a. In case of Shallow foundations,
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Soil Mechaincs Fall-2017 Semester Engr. Fazal-E-Jalal
b. In case of deep foundations,
c. In case of Retaining walls,
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d. In case of soil nailing,
e. In case of Earth dams,
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f. In case of Concrete dams,
g. In case of earth works,
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h. In case of Geofabrics,
i. In case of Sheet piles,
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j. In case of coffer dams,
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k. In case of Landslides,
l. In case of Shoring,
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m. In case of Tunneling,
n. In case of Liquefaction,
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o. In case of Ground Improvement,
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Soil Problems in Civil Engineering:
When firm surface is near the ground surface, a feasible means of transferring the
concentrated loads from the walls or columns of a building to the soil is through spread
footings. Arrangement of spread footings is known as Spread foundation. Today most of
the footings are of reinforced concrete. ―Shallow foundation‖ is used to describe an
arrangement where structural loads are carried by the soil directly under the structure.
Building with spread foundation Building with pile foundation
When the firm soil is not near the ground surface, common means of transferring the
weight of a structure to the ground is through vertical members such as Piles, caissons,
or piers. Generally caissons and piers are larger in diameter than piles. ―Deep
foundations‖ are those where Piles, caissons, or piers are used to carry the loads to firm
soil at some depth.
In design of any foundation system, the central problem is to prevent settlements large
enough to damage the structure or impair its functions. The critical settlement is not the
total settlement but the differential settlement , which is the relative movement of two
parts of the structure. Settlements as large as several feet are quite common in case of
flexible structures such as storage tanks and earth embankments.
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The solution of Civil Engineering problems:
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