crreli yes EPRI EL-6800 Project 1493-6 Testing Final Report Foundations ‘August 1990 ‘Transmission towers ‘Transmission lines. Design Manual on Estimating Soil Properties for Foundation Design Prepared by Cornell University Ithaca, New YorkSUBJECTS TOPICS AUDIENCE BACKGROUND: OBJECTIVE APPROACH RESULTS REP Oe Sw WN Mes Ge ‘Overhead structures and foundations / Overhead transmission Soils ‘Transmission towers Testing ‘Transmission tines Foundations Design ‘Transmission managers and engineers Manual on Estimating Soil Properties for Foundation Design This manual provides foundation engineers with a comprehensive reference on estimating engineering soil parameters from field or laboratory test data. Empirical correlations are used extensively to evaluate soil parameters. The manual describes the most impor- tant of these correlations completely and systematically with an emphasis on the correlations of relatively common tests, including those that are seeing increased usage in practice. The analysis of all geotechnical problems, such as transmission structure foundation design, requires the adoption of a soil behavioral model that must include all relevant soil properties. These soil properties are not known in advance and require the design engineer to either measure or ‘estimate properties using correlations. However, the source, extent, and limitations of correlations are most often obscured in the presentation of the relationships. When plotted, most correlations are presented as a sim- ple line, but in reality they may be based on a veritable shotgun blast of data points. ‘To present a readily usable, comprehensive set of correlations for estimat- ing soil properties with each correlation presented in the context of its historical evolution and statistical variability; to update existing correlations with new data when possible. The researchers established a context for basic soil characterization, in- cluding simple soil descriptions, classification, unit weight, relative density, and consistency. Next, they developed correlations for in situ state of stress, strength, elastic behavior, time-dependent deformability, and permeability— both for common tests and for newer tests coming into increasing use. This work is a collection of correlations that organize a huge body of dis- persed knowledge into a coherent framework. Comprehensive correlations are given for basic soil characterizations, in situ stress state tests, strength tests, tests of elastic and time-dependent deformability, permeability tess, and liquefaction resistance tests. Each correlation is constructed from its beginnings in the literature. Some correlations are original amalgams of EPRI EL-68008 lecvic Power Research InsiteEPRI PERSPECTIVE PROJECT several different presentations, and several correlations are consider- ably enhanced by the addition of new data. Further, many new correla- tions were developed when sufficient data were available. All of the presentations give the foundation designer an immediate feel for the variability of each relationship. This manual is intended to make the job of the transmission structure foundation designer easier. A second application is to aid in the devel- ‘opment of local scil property correlations specific to particular utility service areas. This use of the soil properties manual will tie in directly with the use of the TLWorkstation™ foundation task modules, CUFAD and MFAD (EPRI report EL-6420, volumes 16 and 17), and the recently released CUFAD+ EPRIGEMS module (report EL-6583-CCML). Finally, the manual can serve to alert the design engineer, who previously had only standard penetration test data on which to base soil characteriza- tions, that several other in situ tests are vastly superior predictors of soil properties. The engineer is thus presented with the data to make a cost-benefits analysis of the worth of better data on which to base de- sign. For other EPRI work on soil properties and foundation design see EPRI reports EL-2870 and EL-6420, volume 2. RP 1493.6 EPRI Project Manager: Vito Longo Electrical Systems Division Contractor: Cornell University For further information on EPRI research programs, call EPRI Technical Information Specialists (415) 855-2411