BET305 Geotechnical Engineering 1

Tutorial

Week 8: Shear Strength of soil

Q1.A concrete block of 2m(L)x1m(W)x1m(D) was placed on a compacted
layer of coarse grained sands. A horizontal force of 45kN was required to
move the block over the sand. Calculate the friction coefficient(m) for the
concrete-sand interface. Convert this friction coefficient into friction angle for
3
the interface in degrees. Consider unit weight of concrete is 24kN/m .
2x1x1block
Sand
Concrete-sandinterface

Q.2 A series of direct shear tests were performed on samples of uncemented sand and overconsolidated clay. The peak shear stress
values and the corresponding normal stresses(in brackets) are
tabulated below for each sample.
A

Test 1

76 (102)

35(60)

Test 2

141 (195)

60(125)

Test 3

273 (379)

120(255)

You are asked to plot the data on a graph paper using equal horizontal and
vertical scales, and plot shear stress along the vertical axis and normal stress
along the horizontal axis. On the plot, you are asked to draw the MohrCoulomb strength envelope for both the samples, A and B. From the graph
plotted,

(i)

Estimate the shear strength parameters(c,) for each of the samples.

(ii)

Identify which sample is sand and which one is clay.

Sample
A

Soil Type

Explanation