Civil PE Practice

Examination
Sixth Edition

Michael R. Lindeburg, PE

Professional Publications, Inc. • Belmont, California

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Morning Session
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1. Consider the borrow pit grid shown. Existing exca- . dry rodded bulk specific weight of CA: 100 lbf/ft3
vation depths (in feet) are shown adjacent to each
. fineness modulus (fm): 2.80, based on ASTM C125
corner.
. water required based on slump and CA size:
2.6 50 ft 3.3
mix water mix water
slump for 1=2 in CA for 3=4 in CA
50 ft (in) (lbf/yd3) (lbf/yd3)
(1) 3.2 (2) 2.2 1.9 1–2 270 250
2.7 3–4 320 300
5–6 350 320
50 ft
. bulk volume of dry rodded CA based on various
(3) (4) (5) 1.6 fineness moduli (fm):
2.9 50 ft 2.7 50 ft 2.3

50 ft maximum size
of CA fm = 2.6 fm = 2.7 fm = 2.8
2.0 (6) 1.8 (in) (ft3/ft3) (ft3/ft3) (ft3/ft3)
50 ft 1=
2 0.55 0.52 0.50
3=
4 0.65 0.62 0.60
The total undercut volume of this grid is most nearly 1 0.70 0.68 0.65
(A) 1300 yd3
For 27 ft3 of concrete mix, the absolute volumes of the
(B) 1600 yd3 water, cement, coarse aggregate (CA), and fine aggre-
(C) 1900 yd3 gate (FA) are most nearly

(D) 2100 yd3 (A) 4.25 ft3 water, 3.05 ft3 cement, 10.46 ft3 CA,
9.24 ft3 FA
(B) 4.81 ft3 water, 1.52 ft3 cement, 10.46 ft3 CA,
2. A given pozzolan contains approximately 20% cal-
10.21 ft3 FA
cium oxide and less than 2% carbon, and has a 0.5% loss
on ignition. This material is most likely to be (C) 4.25 ft3 water, 1.52 ft3 cement, 11.27 ft3 CA,
9.96 ft3 FA
(A) slag
(D) 4.81 ft3 water, 3.05 ft3 cement, 9.62 ft3 CA,
(B) class C flyash
9.52 ft3 FA
(C) class F flyash
(D) silica fume 4. A small construction firm receives a $100,000 check
for recently sold equipment. The owner decides to invest
the money for 10 years in an account with an 8% inter-
3. The design criteria for a normalweight concrete mix est rate. In addition, $20,000 is invested every year at
are as follows. the same interest rate. In 10 years, the total amount of
. maximum size of coarse aggregate (CA): 3=4 in money in the account will be most nearly
. water/cement ratio: 0.5 (A) $259,000
. slump for interior building columns: 3 in to 4 in (B) $318,000
. specific gravity of aggregates: 2.70 (C) $420,000
. specific gravity of cement: 3.15 (D) $506,000

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4 C I V I L P E P R A C T I C E E X A M I N A T I O N

5. Float is defined as the The unfactored anchor capacity of the tieback system is
most nearly
(A) continuation of an activity with the longest
duration (A) 75 kips
(B) time extension of an activity with the shortest (B) 150 kips
duration
(C) 320 kips
(C) time difference between late finish and late start
(D) 650 kips
(D) the amount of time an activity can be delayed
without delaying any succeeding activities
8. A large backhoe bucket has a capacity of 2.0 yd3 and
6. Consider the following precedence table and critical a cycle time of 40 sec. The production volume in a
path network. 10 hour day with a one-hour lunch break and two
15 minute breaks is most nearly
duration (A) 640 yd3
activity (days)
A 3 (B) 1300 yd3
B 4 (C) 1500 yd3
C 5
D 7 (D) 1800 yd3
E 8
F 9
9. A gravity retaining wall is holding soil backfill with
G 6
the properties shown. The total active force per unit
length of the wall is most nearly
D
1 3
A

start C E G 0.5 m
0 β = 11∘

B
2
F
4 end γ = 18 kN/m3
ϕ = 30∘
δ = 15∘
How many days are needed to complete this project? (angle of friction
4.0 m between soil
(A) 16 days
and wall)
(B) 17 days
(C) 22 days
(D) 25 days 90∘

7. Consider the soldier beam shoring system shown. It is 2.0 m

anchored to a soft limestone material through a circular
12 ft long, 6 in diameter diagonal shaft. The bond strength
between the anchor shaft and the limestone is 120 psi.
soldier beam (A) 40 kN/m
(B) 50 kN/m
(C) 70 kN/m
12 ft
30 ft (D) 80 kN/m

6 in

soft limestone
bond strength
= 120 psi

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Solutions
Morning Session
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1. Calculate the average depth of undercut, D, by sum- 3. Calculate the constituent material weights using the
ming the undercut depths at each of the corners and absolute volume (AV) method.
dividing the total by the number of corners. Calculate
the undercut volume, V, by multiplying the area by the Using the “water required” table given in the problem, a
3=
4 in coarse aggregate (CA) with a 3 in to 4 in slump
average depth of undercut.
requires 300 lbf of mix water.
average depth
To find the weight of cement, divide the water weight,
grid area of undercut volume
w, by the cement materials fraction, c.
number (ft2) (ft) (ft3)
1 2500 2.95 7375
2 1250 2.90 3625 w
3 2500 2.88 7200 ¼ 0:5
c
4 2500 2.60 6500
300 lbf
5 2500 2.00 5000 ¼ 0:5
6 2500 1.93 4825 c
c ¼ 600 lbf
total 34,525

To find the weight of CA, wCA, multiply the dry rodded

34;525 ft3 weight by the volume based on the fineness modulus
V total ¼ and the “bulk volume” table given in the problem.
ft3
27
yd3
¼ 1279 yd3 ð1300 yd3 Þ
 
lbf ft3
w CA ¼ 100 3 0:60 3 ð27 ft3 Þ
The answer is (A). ft ft
¼ 1620 lbf
2. Flyash is a relatively inexpensive substitute for Port-
land cement. Its price is about a third of Portland
cement’s. In concrete, an LOI (loss on ignition) of 2% To find the absolute volume (without fine aggregates,
or less is desired, but an LOI of less than 5% is accept- FA), divide the weight of the material by the product of
able. A low loss on ignition means that little organic the unit weight of water and the specific gravity of the
matter is present in the pozzolan (cementitious material.
material).
Class F flyash has a higher LOI and carbon content
300 lbf
than class C flyash, and it is usually less than 10% AVwater ¼
 ¼ 4:81 ft3
lbf
calcium oxide. Class F flyash also absorbs entrained 62:4 3 ð1:00Þ
air from the concrete paste and is, therefore, not recom- ft
mended on important structures, but may be used on 600 lbf
AVcement ¼
 ¼ 3:05 ft3
interior floor slabs. lbf
62:4 3 ð3:15Þ
ft
Class C flyash has more cement-like compounds, a lower
1620 lbf
LOI, gains more strength than Class F flyash, and is, AVCA ¼
 ¼ 9:62 ft3
lbf
therefore, desirable on bridge decks, retaining walls, and 62:4 3 ð2:70Þ
other important structures. Class C flyash has 10% to ft
30% calcium oxide, less than 2% carbon, and an LOI less
than 0.5%. Class C flyash is a pozzolan. It can be used in
place of cement by as much as 50% by weight. V subtotal ¼ 4:81 ft3 þ 3:05 ft3 þ 9:62 ft3
The answer is (B). ¼ 17:48 ft3

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68 C I V I L P E P R A C T I C E E X A M I N A T I O N

Find the absolute volume of the fine aggregate. 7. Anchorage strength in rock is

P u ¼ Abr ¼ 2prLbr
AVFA ¼ 27 ft3  17:48 ft3 ¼ 9:52 ft3
Pu is the unfactored anchor capacity, r is the radius of
the anchor shaft, L is the length of the anchor shaft, and
In practice, these volumes would be adjusted according br is the bond strength of rock. This equation represents
to the workability, durability, and strength properties the shear strength of the limestone over the surface area
required for the job. of the shaft.
The answer is (D). 6 in
r¼ ¼ 3 in
2



4. lbf
2pð3 inÞð12 ftÞ 120 2 12
in
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 P u ¼ 2prLbr ¼ in ft
lbf
1000
kip
20k
¼ 325:7 kips ð320 kipsÞ

The answer is (C).

100k

F ¼ ð$100;000ÞðF=P; 8%; 10 yrÞ 8. Cycle time refers to the amount of time it takes the
backhoe operator to load, dump, and swing back to load
þ ð$20;000ÞðF=A; 8%; 10 yrÞ another bucket of material.
¼ ð$100;000Þð2:1589Þ þ ð$20;000Þð14:4866Þ

sec
¼ $505;622 ð$506;000Þ ðcapacityÞðnet hours workedÞ
production ¼ hr
cycle time
The answer is (D).
ð2:0 yd Þð10 hr  1 hr  0:25 hr  0:25 hrÞ
3


5. Float is the amount of time an activity can be sec
 3600
delayed without delaying any succeeding activities. It ¼ hr
is also known as “slack time.” 40 sec
Total float is defined as the amount of time that an ¼ 1530 yd3 ð1500 yd3 Þ
activity in the critical path (e.g., project start) can be
delayed without delaying the project completion date. The answer is (C).

The answer is (D).

9. Coulomb’s equation for active force on soil should be
used to solve this problem.
6. The critical path is the longest path through the
project activities. For this job, there are four possible
scenarios. β = 11∘

1. A-D-G = 3 + 7 + 6 = 16 days
2. B-F = 4 + 9 = 13 days
3. A-E = 3 + 8 = 11 days
Ra
4. A-C-F = 3 + 5 + 9 = 17 days H = 40 m δ = 15∘

The longest path takes 17 days.

The answer is (B).
λ=
90∘

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