,,

.. '
Journal of The Institution of Engineers, Singapore
VoL 41, No. 3 2001

GEOTECHNICAL PROPERTIES OF OLD

ALLUVIUM IN SINGAPORE
W. W. Li1 and K. S. Wonl(l

ABSTRACT
Old Alluvium is the main geological formations in the
eastern part of Singapore. This material is
predominantly a silty and clayey sand with a fines
content of about 20% to 30%. The soil is highly
weathered at the top and slightly cemented at the lower
portion with SPT blowcounts increasing with depth.
The engineering properties of this soil are not well
understood. The development of the MRT North East
Line and Marina Line offered an excellent opportunity
to study. this material. The properties summarized in
c this paper are derived from the results of field and
laboratory tests along the MRT North-East and
Marina Lines. Some useful correlations were also
established which can be used in the preliminary
design of excavations in this material.
INTRODUCTION
The Old Alluvium is the major geological formation in
the eastern part of Singapore as shown in Fig 1.
According to Tan et al. (1980), the Old Alluvium (OA)
is a soil that possesses excellent shearing strength,
low compressibility and good workability as a
construction material. · Dames and Moore (1983)
summarised the geotechnical properties of OA based ,
on test data from the North-South and East-West
MRT Lines. Ranges of some of the soil parameters
were given but no correlation was presented. This soil
was noted to be highly variable. Poh et al. (1987)
reported that the particle size distribution of OA
covered a wide range. Orihara and Khoo (1998)
presented some correlations based on the data from
three sites. The engineering properties of this material
are still largely unknown.

[
~
---
IIIliiliill .
--- ..
~
--
.._,oa,-.,.'CION

~
L:J ---
.

.
E] ---
N

eD
-- --·
~

Pk%it
----
--
........, HMMAfDI

,_,

...
- ....... -+-

/ ---
................ ......::urc

Fig 1 Generalised geological map of Singapore Island (after PWD, 1976).

1
Research Student, School of Civil and Structural Engineering, Nanyang Technological University, BLK Nl, Nanyang Avenue,
Singapore 639798, Republic of Singapore.
2
Assoc. Professor, Geotechnical Research Center, School of Civil and Structural Engineering, Nanyang Technological University,
BLK Nl, Nanyang Avenue, Singapore 639798.

10
..
The Old Alluvium was encountered in over 400
boreholes along the North-East Line as well as
numerous boreholes along the Marina Line. Results
of site investigation as well as data from in-situ and
laboratory tests were provided to the authors at the
courtesy of Land Transport Authority of Singapore.
This resulted in a large database on soil properties of
the Old Alluvium. Results of the insitu and laboratory ·
tests have been scrutinised for reasonableness based
on experience. A substantial amount of data had been
discarded. The geotechnical properties summarised in
this paper were based on the selected data. Some
correlations were established. These typical values
and correlations can be used in a preliminary design.
Since the soil conditions of an alluvium are inherently
heterogeneous in nature, it is important to be site-
specific in the evaluation of soil properties for detailed
design.
SOIL rROFILE AND ZONING
Fig 2 shows the typical soil profile of the Old Alluvium
encountered along the North-East Line. It can
generally be subdivided into three zones. They are
the residual soil zone (OAI), weathered zone (OAII),
and cemented zone (OAIII).
O(d (
Residual Soil Zone (0Al) w)
N?lo
Reddish brown clayey sand or silty sand
tl-~ > -n (\~)
Weathered Zone (0Al!) 010 ' .Sv.J)
~I) <- j-.1 ~/C>JI
Yellowish brown clayey sand or silty sand
Cemented Zone (OA!Il)
Light grey to greenish grey
cleyey sand or silty sand
N} loo
Fig 2 Typical soil profile of the Old Alluvium.
The soils encountered in the residual soil zone (OAI)
were mainly clayey sand, silty sand, clayey silt and
locally some gravels. The colour varied from yellowish,
reddish, greyish to purplish brown. The consistency
of the soil ranged from loose to medium dense for
sand and gravel, medium stiff to very stiff for silt and
clay. The sand component was fine to medium in size.
The sand and gravel were subangular to subrounded
containing mostly quartz and feldspar. The SPT
N-value ranged from 5 to 25 with an average of 13.
This zone was usually stained with ferric oxides,
which could be the result of latarization.
The soil in the weathered zone (OAII) was
predominantly clayey sand and silty sand. The colour
ranged from yellowish brown to light grey or greenish
grey. The sand component was fine to coarse. The soil
was medium dense to very dense or very stiff to hard.
The SPT N-value varied from 26 to 99 with an average
of 51.
The soil in the cemented zone (OAIII) was mainly
clayey sand and silty sand. The colour was light grey
to greenish grey. The soil was very dense or hard. The
soil was cemented due to a lapse of long geological
time period and large overburden in the past. The
sand particles varied from fine to coarse containing
mostly quartz and feldspar. The shape was subangular
to subrounded. The gravels were flat, angular to sub-
angular in shape and milky white in color. The SPT
N-value was ~100.
SOIL COMPOSITION AND CLASSIFICATION
Soil Classification
Based on the Unified Soil Classification System
(USCS), the OA encompasses many soil types
including CH, CL, SM, SC, SP and SW. Fig 3 shows
the distributions of different soil types of OA. A total
of 77 4 soil samples were used in this analysis. Many
of the samples were originally classified in the British .
Soil Classification System (BSCS). They were
subsequently converted to uses in this study based
on test results of particle size analysis and Atterberg
Limits. Since the Atterberg Limits are not available
on all samples, the SC and SM were combined into
one group. The sandy soils with fines content less
than 12% were also combined as another group.
As shown in Fig 3a, the SC and SM soils make up
71% of OA. CL and CH soils cover 21% and soils with
fines < 12% make up the remaining 8%. Further
Fines <12% CH
8% 7% Fines < 12% CH
2% 9%
SC&SM
SC&SM
74%
68%
(a) All OA (b) OAI
Fines < 12% CH
5% 10%
SC&8 M
(c) OAII. (d) OAIII 75%
Fig 3 Soil distribution of the Old Alluvium: a) All OA;
b) OAI; c) OAII; d) OAIII.
1l
 refinements are shown in Figs 3b to 3d which show (a)
the soil type distributions of OAI, OAII, and OAIII Fines Content(%)
respectively. The SC and SM soils have the largest
portion, about 70% in all three zones of OA. Sandy 0 20 40 60 80 100
soils with fines <12% is only 2% in OAI but it rises to 0+---~~--~--~--~--~
21% in OAIII, which means that the soil becomes
more sandy with depth. Very little CL soil (4%) and
no CH soil were encountered in OAIII. This clearly
10 .: .
•

... .·.. :. .
••
(,'if·.;_·~-~::.... -
... :.r·.
.. . ....
i'! .,
gives a good profile of the weathering degree. A
decrease in clay content with depth indicates a
decrease in the degree of weathering.
::§
-:5
20 . ' ..
."-
• •• •
~ 30 •
Particle Size Distribution and Fines 40 Mean=29
Standard Deviation=S
Content
As can be seen from the grain size distribution 50L-----------------------~
envelope (Fig 4), the OA covers a wide range of (b)
particle sizes. Fig 5 shows the fines contents of the Fines Content (%)
SC&SM soils in OAI, OAII, and OAIII which are
typically between 20-30%. This suggests that OA may 0 20 40 60 80 100
behave like clay although it was classified as sand. 0+---~----~--~--~--__,
There is a slight reduction in fines content with depth a
a
as the mean values vary from 29%, 24% to 22% for a~; a
~
10
OAI, OAII, and OAIII respectively. DD iltlbD
8 :.,a 0° D

::§
-:5
20
:~{f." :
0
~ 30 D •a
a IP a
rl'aa
.. •
"" 40
I a
a a •
a

Mean=24
Standard Deviation=?

50L-----------------------~

(c)
Fines Content(%)
0 20 40 60 80 100
0+---~----~----~--~----~

Clay Silt
Particle Size (mml
Sand Gravel
10
+ + ++
.... +

il,·.
++ •·
l'ine odi~m Cca.... Fino Modium C..a"'" Fin• M><:liu Coan.e

::§ 20
Fig 4 Envelope of particle size distribution curves of the +
Old Alluvium from the North East Line .. t .~ t+
"" 30
40
··'+
+
++
+ +
+
Mean=22
Table 1 summarises the fines (particles passing + Standard Deviation=6
0.063 mm sieve) content for the different OA soil soL---~L-----------------~
types. The average fines content for CH, CL, SC&SM
and sandy soils with less than 12% fines are 84%, Fig 5 Fines content of SC&SM soils of the Old Alluvium;
67%, 24%, and 8.3% respectively. a) OAI; b) OAII; c) OAIII.

Table 1 Fines content for different OA soil types.

Soil CH CL SC&SM Fines <12%

Type Ave. S.D. Ave. S.D. Ave. S.D. Ave. S.D.

Fines(%) 84 14 67 14 24 7,8 8.3 2.5

12
INDEX PROPERTIES Water Content (%) PI
0 30 60 90 120 150 0 30 60 90 120 150
Figs 6 to 9 show the summary of bulk density, water
content and Atterberg Limits for OAI, OAII, and
0 .,
..---r;_-.:;
••••••

r
5 5
OAIII respectively. Table 2 gives a summary of the
index properties. 10 10 ~· ••~ ...
'I''!-.."!
15
.
• • is ~ ·r.:.
~ :=:.
•

..,.....
(a) OAI :§ 20 :§ 20 •
Unit Weight (kN/mS)
.:; t ~·
~ 25 ~ 25

10 14
OT---~~--_.--~~----~--~

10 .:..,.
18

•
22

••
26 30 30
35
40

45
30

35
40 •

..
4 5 - ' - - - -- - - - - . . J
] 20 • (a) (b)

-s LLandPL !%) Liquidity Index

g. 30
Cl
·~ 0 30 60 90 120 150 -5 - 0.5 0 0.5

:4Mr"::··. .. .. .
1\

40 Mean:20.3
•• 0
5
i~·-·-'"'
..
Standanl Deviation=0.67
10 "'4-"i~ ...
50~------------------------~ ~-
•:;. ..,.
(b) OAII
15 •t:•,
·-; .. :.. .
10 14
Unit Weight (kN/mS)
18 22 26 30
:§
.z:
'3-25
20
."*-...
+

. •
....
•• •

:t
Q
30 30 •
0+-----~--~----~----~--~
• 35 35
10 40
[:J
L
40

] 20 • • 45
"'
-s • • •
g. 30
~ . ~.·
.......
··tJ • Fig 7
(c)

Water content and Atterberg Limits of OAI:

a) water content; b) plasticity index; c) liquid limit
(d)

40 Mean:20.7
Standanl Deviation=O. 78 • and plastic limit; d) liquidity index.
50
(c) OAIII Water Content(%) PI
Unit Weight (kN/m3) 0 30 60 90 120 150 0 30 60 ' 90 120 150

..•....
0 0
10 . 14 18 22 26 30
0
5

:r:·.
.
•••..
10

..
t
10

...·.........
..·..:...
'it,j.•• ••
10
..,
. . .. 15 16 ~.,.

•• -~,
] 20 ] 20
] 20 '4
-s ,.~.
=g. 25
.:;
~ 25 ........ .
·.... .. a:
.
Q
g. 30
~ ""··l· 30
~ 30
.... ..
~,.,..

40 Mean=20.3
•
Standanl Deviation=l.03 ..
36
40

45
"r. 36
40 •
••
50~------------~----------~ 46
(a) (b)
Fig 6 Unit weight of OA: a) OAI; b) OAII; c) OAIII.
LLandPL !%l Liquidity Index
0 30 60 90 120 150 -6 -0.5 0 0.5
The unit weight ({? does not vary much and results 0
nre notably consistent with an average of20.3 kN/m3 . .
.,.·....,.. ..
....
6 + 5
The water content (w) typically varies between 10 to
40%. OAI has an average water content of 22%, while
10
~
~,.
..
.. , ..
. ··-·..
OAII and OAIII are 18.2 and 16.3%·respectively. This 15
~···~
indicates a trend of decreasing water content with !
.:;
20 ..;ji•..... .. !
~
th!pth. The specific gravity (G) generally lies between
2.6 and 2.7 with an average of 2.65. Q
g-25
. ..........
-Y,.•~I:
~· :- ~

~· .
30

....
35 ~· •
The liquid limit (LL) varies widely from 30% to 130%.
The plastic limit (PL) keeps within a narrow range of 40
~ L
40 ..
10'~· to 30%. The average plasticity index (PI) 45
clt•t:reases from 30, 25 to 15 for OAI, OAII and OAIII (c) (d)
rot~pectiv ely. The average liquidity indexes of OAI,
OAII, and OAIII are 0.05, - 0.04 and - 0.3 Fig 8 Water content and Atterberg Limits of OAII:
rc•t~pcctiv ely which indicates that the OA soils are a ) water content; b) plasticity index; c) liquid limit
hunvily overconsolidated. and plastic limit; d) liquidity index.

1
 Water Content ('ll>) PI
100
0 30 60 90 120 150 0 30 60 90 120 160
0 •
.
0
5 5 ....
....... 80

....... ~

i-
10 10 J ><
Cl)
15 15 "tl 60
..s
:g
.z
~26
20 !.;;
~26
20
..
.r:\:.
...
_. ~
·o 40
t:l
30
: t:l
30
:;;
U) •OAI
CIS
35 ' 36 a:: 20 • OAII
40 40
xOAill
45 45
(a) (b) 0 50 100 150
Liquid Limit (LL)
LLandPL<'ll>l Liquidity Index
0 30 60 90 120 150 -5 -0.6 0 0.5 Fig 10 The Old Alluvium in plasticity chart.
0

... ·,.
.. . ..... ~~
10
+ ••• long). For stiff soils, Mazier sampling was used. The
t•.. , ...
.
.
•.ft..., ~

.. ao•. . •
20 ,.,~ soil samples were obtained by rotary core drilling with
:g *!....... :g water flushing. Soil samples were collected in PVC
.....
~#,,_.
.;;g. :.• f.
30 ~ linings placed inside the core barrel. Laboratory tests
Q Q were then conducted by trimming these undisturbed
40 40
samples to the required size.

~
50 50
PL
60 Undrained Shear Strength
(c) (d)
The undrained shear strength (s) was determined
Fig 9 Water content and Atterberg Limits . of OAIII: from Unconsolidated Undrained (UU) Triaxial
a) water content; b) plasticity index; c) liquid limit Compression Tests. The UU tests were conducted on
and plastic limit; d) liquidity index. standard 38 mm diameter and 76 rom height
specimens. There were altogether 766 UU tests
conducted on OA samples. After a careful review of
Results of Atterberg Limits tests have been plotted the test results, only 174 tests were adopted for
on the plasticity chart as shown in Fig 10. The further study.
majority of the samples are located above A-Line.
Even points below the A-Line are very close to it. Results of UU tests are shown in Figs lla and llb. In
There are only 3.7% of the samples located below the general, su increases with increasing N values and
A-Line. This clearly indicates that the OA soils are decreases · with increasing liquidity index. The
more clayey than silty. correlation between su and N is shown in Fig lla.

Su = 5.4N (kPa) (1)

(_ SHEAR STRENGTH This result is in good agreement with the findings by
Undisturbed samples were obtained using a thin- Stroud (1974) who proposed a correlation of su = 4-6N
walled sampling tube (76 rom diameter and 700 rom (kPa) for insensitive clays and soft rocks. Orihara

Table 2 Summary of index properties of OA soils.

OAI OAII OAIII
Index
Properties
Min. Max. Ave. Min. Max. Ave. Min. Max. Ave.

w (%) 12.6 43.5 22 8 41 18.2 10 26 16.3

y{kN/m 3 ) 17.9 22.7 20.3 16.2 22.7 20.7 17.5 22 20.3

Yd (kN/m 3) 12.5 20.1 16.6 12.8 21.4 17.6 15.5 20.9 17.7

G 2.58 2.75 2.66 2.57 2.72 2.64 2.57 2.72 2.64

LL(%) 25 137 55 20 118 49 25 78 38

PL(%) 9 42 23 9 41 20 9 32 19

PI(%) 5 95 32 5 88 28 7 50 19

Ll(%) - 0.67 0.53 0.05 - 0.75 0.4 - 0.04 - 1.2 0.39 - 0.3

14
 (a) (a) OAI
800.---------------------------~
600
700 •
500
•
600 5u = 5.4N '2
500 R2 = 0.8005 •• ~ 400
~
~ 400 ...
~ 300
I:)
_,...
I
~
200
"' 300 $
200 100
100 0
0 200 400 600 800 1000
20 40 60 80 100 (a~+ a~)/2 (kPa)
N
(b) (b) OAII
1400.---------------------------~

1200
y=0.5863X+6.6945
~ 1000
. . . .- 800 c'=8.3kPa
~ 4>'=35.9°
-d'" 600
I
~.... 400
200
0~----T-----~--~----~----~
0 500 1000 1500 2000 2500
(a~ +a~)/2 (kPa)

(c) OAIII
Fig 11 Variation of undrained shear strength (su) of Old 1200
Alluvium from UU tests: a) with SPT N-value;
b) with liquidity index.
1000
'2 y=0.5745X+24.841
800
et al. (1998) reported an average correlation of su = 6N ~
. (kPa).
~
;::., 600 • c' =30.3kPa ot~ r aJ
•CQ
I:) 4>'=35.1°
_,...
I
400
Fig llb shows the correlation between su and liquidity $
index (Ll) as well as the relationship proposed by
Wood (1983). It appears that this relation is also 200
applicable to the OA soils. 0
0 500 1000 1500 2000
su = 172.21e- 4 .SLI (kPa) (2)
(cr~ +a~)/2 (kPa)
Fig 12 q'- p' plot for different zones of the Old Alluvium
EFFECTIVE STRESS PARAMETERS from consolidated undrained (CU) tests: a) OAI;
b) OAII; c) OAIII.
Consolidated Undrained (CU) Triaxial Test
Isotropically consolidated undrained triaxial (CIUC)
tests with pore pressure measurement had been
conducted to determine the effective strength attributed to the cementation between the sand
parameters (c' and ¢'). Results of a total of 150 CIUC particles.
tests on OA soils are summarised here. The data for
the three different OA zones were compiled and·
plotted in q'-p' diagrams as shown in Fig 12. Consolidated Drained (CD) Triaxial Test
Fig 13 shows the results of CD tests. Generally, the
The friction angle does not vary very much between cohesion can be taken as zero. The friction B.ngle is
the different OA zones. It is within the range of slightly smaller than that obtained from CU tests,
35-36.5°. However, c' changes with the different soil being approximately 34.5°. Table 3 gives the effective
zones. OAI has a very low cohesion, near 0 kPa. The strength parameters from CU and CD tests as well as
high cohesion (c' = 30.3 kPa) of OAIII is obviously the recommended values for design.
c'~.::; .:~>'~ llf.s"
15
 (a) All OA modulus from the first cycle of test. Er is the
900 unloading-reloading modulus of the second cycle. A
800 • ;:?total of 278 pressuremeter tests were conducted in
700 / OA using the OYO and Menard type pressuremeters.
Iii' Fig 14 shows the variations of EPMT and Er with
~ 600
SPT-N values. Results indicate that EPMT and Er
~ 500 c'=OkPa increase with N value. The E/EPMT ratio ranges
_.,
b 400 $'=34.5° mainly between 3 to 8 with no clear trend with N
I
300 • value.
~~
200
100
0 (a)
0 500 1000 1500 140
120 EpMT= 0.74N
(a~ +a~)/2 (kPa)
Iii' 100 R2 = 0.753 ..
. ... ..,
p..
~ 80
.. . .
(b) OAI
900
800
foo
::E
"'
60
ri:l 40
...
700
Iii' 20
~ 600 500 0
~
:::..
_.., 400 0 20 40 60 80 100
( b
I 300 N
~-
200
(b)
100 1000.-------------------------~
0 900
0 500 1000 1500
"'"'
800
700
Er = 3.72N
R2 = 0.60 .. . ..
(a~+a~)/2 (kPa) ~ 600
~ 500
(c) OAII .. 400
900 ri:l 300
800 200
700 100
Iii' 0+-~~~~--r-----r---~~--~
~ 500 600
c'=OkPa
0 20 40 60 80 100
~
:::.. N
b"' 400 $'=34.8°
I 300 • (c)
~~
200 18
100 16 •
• 14 •• • •
0 •
c 0 500
(a~ +a~)/2 (kPa)
1000 1500 foo
::E
~"'
12 •
10
r4" 86
•
•..
• . .
• •• •
·#• .• .,,...••
• ~
• •• • ••
•• •• • •• ••
·: . ,. •.a ..• •
••
Fig 13 q' -p' plot for the Old Alluvium from consolidated
drained (CD) tests: a) all OA; b) OAI; c) OAII. 4
2
·~........ ••
•
~

•
I
••• •••
•• • •••
• • •
•.
••
0
0 20 40 60 80 100
DEFORMATION PROPERTIES
N
Elastic Deformability EPMT and Er
Fig 14 Variations of modulus values of the Old Alluvium
The undrained moduli EPMT and E r can be obtained from pressuremeter tests with SPT N-values:
from pressure meter test. E PMT is the pressuremeter a) EPMT; b ) Er; c) E/EPMT·

tV(>· ).'{)(J-,J.(/tJc:> }•j r ) ]

Table 3 Effective shear strength parameters of different zones of OA.

OAI OAII OAIII

c' (k.Pa) ' ' (") c' (k.Pa) ''(") c'(k.Pa) ¢ '( " )

CUtest 1.9 36.1 8.3 35.9 30.3 35.1

CD test 0 34 0 34.8 Insufficient data

Recommended 0 35 5 35 25 35

16
 EPMT = 0.74N (MPa) (3) Soil Compressibility
~
Er = 3. 72N (MPa) --- (4)
The deformation parameters determined from the
conventional oedometer (OED) tests are the
compression index (Cc) and recompression index (Cr).
The correlations based on the data from 5 tests There were altogether 99 oedometer tests on OA.
reported by Orihara et al. (1998) for EPMT and Er are Unfortunately, some of them were highly disturbed
N and 2N respectively. and some were not loaded beyond the preconsolidation
pressure, only 16 tests were adopted for further study.

P 0 , Py and PL Figs 16 and 17 show the variations of Cc and Cr versus

The other important parameters from pressuremeter natural water content (wn) respectively. The
tests are lift-off pressure (P0), yield pressure (Py) and correlations are as follows:
limit pressure (PL). The variations of these parameters
with SPT-N value are shown in Fig 15. This figure
shows that P 0, PY, and PL increase with N. Rough 0.35
• •
correlations between P 0 , PY, PL and N are as follows: C0 = 0.0093wn - 0.028
0.3
P0 = 8.6N (kPa) (N < 100) (5) R 2 =0.811
0.25
PY = 41N (kPa) (N < 100) (6)
0.2
d..
PL = 106N (kPa) (N < 100) (7) 0.15

(a) 0.1
2000~------------~------------~

P0 = 8.642N 0.5
1500 R2 =0.2202 •
• • • 0
• 0 10 20 30 40
... Wn (%)

500
• •••
Fig 16 Compression index (cc) of Old Alluvium with
natural water content.

20 40
N
60 80 100
0.1
cr =0.003wn - 0.0232
..
(b) 0.08 R2 = 0.7464
6000.--------------------r--------,
Py = 41.31N •
R2 = 0.4397 •• ,.
•
I •.
0.06
4000

~ .. ·"·'. ....
.. .,.....
•• • • I. •
• • • •
(>•
...
CJ
0.04
....
p.."' 2000
.,.. .... :.•.. ....
•

,~
'

. . ........ 11• •
0.02
• •
0~~--~--~----~-----r----~ 0
0 20 40 60 80 100 0 10 20 30 40
N Wn (%)

(c)
15000 ~---------------------------. Fig 17 Recompression index (cr) of Old Alluvium with
• ••
natural water content .
PL= 106.88N
R2 = 0.4235 •
~10000
•
~.... Cc = 0.0093wn - 0.028 (8)

p.. 5000 Cr = 0.003wn - 0.023 (9)

As shown in Fig 18, the cc/cr ratios vary from 3 to 7

with an average of about 5.
20 40 60 80 100
N Overconsolidation Ratio (OCR)
Fig 15 Variations of P0 , P,, and PL values of Old Alluvium Fig 19 shows the correlation between c I p ratio and
from pressuremeter tests with SPT N-values. OCR. The preconsolidation pressures (cr~) used in

17
 8
(12)
•
6 • • The determination of P0 followed the recommendation
\
• by Briaud (1992) who also suggested that values of K 0
... obtained in this fashion have been found to be
~ 4 • reasonable and consistent with other measurements
u •• •
•••
• such as self-boring pressuremeter. Results are plotted
• in Fig 20 but the data are very scattered.
2

3
0 •
0 10 20 30 40 2.5

2
• • •:
.., .
~
Ko = 0.163(NPJa~)o.szs

••••••
•
Fig 18 Variation of c/cr ratio of Old Alluvium with natural •
~1.5 • •
•
.....-... ...
water content.
•• ••
• • •. • •
-•...-• .• .
1
\
4~------------------------------,
0.5
3.5
0
3 (dp)0 c =0.250CRo.s •
0 20 40 60 80
0 2.5 R2 = 0.8795
(NP8 )/a~
0
.-.. 2
~ 1.5 Fig 20 K 0 of the Old Alluvium from pressuremeter tests
with NP.fa'vo·
1

0.5 An attempt was made to correlate K 0 to the SPT

blowcounts, N, using known correlations such as:
0+-----~----,-----~-----r~--~

0 5 10 15 20 25 Ko,Nc = 1 - sin If!' (13)

OCR
Fig 18 Variation of c/cr ratio of Old Alluvium with natural
water content.
c OCR values were determined from the oedometer
tests. The undrained shear strength in (clp) 0 c was
determined using (1). The correlation shown in Fig 19
is
(clp) 0 c = 0.250CR0·8
This correlation assumed that the c I p ratio at the
normally consolidated state is 0.25 for OA soils. A
rough correlation between N-value and OCR is given
below
1.25
OCR= 0.146 N . Pa
. [ a~o ]
where 0"'110 is the in-situ effective overburden pressure
and P a is the atmospheric pressure.
Coefficie nt of Earth Pressure at Rest (K0 )
The coefficient of earth pressure at rest (K0 ) was
determined from the lift-off pressure (P0) in
pressuremeter tests by using the following formula:
(14)
Ko,NC = Ko,Nc../OCR
Since the friction angle If!' is approximately 35° as can
be seen from Fig 12, Ko,NC is equal to 0.43. By
substituting this value together with the correla tion
between OCR and N from (11) into (14), the following
equation for estimating K 0 of OA can be obtained:
0.625
Ko = 0.163[ N ·, Pa ] (15)
O'vo
(10)
where 0"'110 is the in-situ effective overburden pressure
and Pais the atmospheric pressure.
PERMEABILITY
The coefficient of permeability (k) was determined
(11) from both oedometer tests and insitu falling-head
permeability tests. The permeability from oedometer
tests gives a k value in the vertical direction while
the in-situ tests may reflect permeability in the
horizontal direction. The results are shown in Fig 21.
The permeabilities obtained from oedometer tests vary
from 1E-10 to 1E-8 m/s wh ereas those measured in
the field range from 1E-9 to 1E-6 m/s, which is a bout
100 times of those obtained from the laboratory tests.
The insitu permeability test s yielded more reliable
da t a than those carried out in the laboratory because

18
 (a)OAI l.OE-04
Permeability k (m/s)
l.E-11 l.E-10 l.E-09 l.E-08 1.E-07 l.E-06 l.OE -05 I" Oedometer TestJ

. .. .-: •••
l.E-05
• Insitu Test
0 l.OE - 06
5
••••
' ••
~
. . . .... . ..
-···-... .·. .
l.OE-07
10 • •
.,#• •• •• • l.OE-08
:§:
15
f • • • •
..!<:

...
' ..
-.
- ' ..
20 •••• • l.OE-09 ~
"'
il
"'" 25
Q
• • . 1.0E-10
..,
30
•Oedometer Test I l.OE-11
35
40 •
• I• Insitu Test J 0 20 40 60
Fines Content (%)
80 100

45~----------------------------------J

Fig 22 Variation of permeability of Old Alluvium with

(b) OAII fines content.
Permeability k (m/s)
l.E-11 1.E-10 l.E-09 l.E-08 1.E-07 l.E·06 l.E-05
0

...
5
•

!
'%
10
15
20
25
.......
··-~
•
..
.-,: .,. . . ...... •
•
•
• • ••
•
• • •
• which includes CH, CL, SC and SM. About 70% of the
Old Alluvium are SC and SM soils with about 20% to
30% fines. Even though they are classified as sand,
the soil actually behaves more like a clay because of
Q 30
the high fines content.
35
•
• •Oedometer Test 1
40
45 • • I• Insitu Test I The index properties of the Old Alluvium are typical
of those of an overconsolidated stiff clay. The
60~------------------------------~
undrained shear strength typically increases with
depth and is approximately equal to 5.4N (kPa). The
(c) OAIII
effective angle of shear resistance is about 35°. The
Permeability k (mls)
effective cohesion intercept generally increases with
l.E-11 l.E-10 l.E-09 l.E-08 l.E-07 l.E-06 l.E-05 depth.
0
5 The soil modulus obtained from pressuremeter tests
10 increases with the SPT N-value can be related as
15 follows: EPMT = 0.74N (MPa) and Er = 3.72N (MPa).
•
§ 20 •• •• The compression index (Cc) can be related to the
-5 natural water content where Cc = 0.0093wn - 0.028
"'"
Q) 25 • and the C!Cr ratio is about 5. The overconsolidation
••
0
30
35
.• • Oedometer Test I
ratio (OCR) can be estimated from (11) where
OCR = 0.146 (NPr/c:J'u0 )1· 25 • The coefficient of lateral
•
40
45
I • Insitu Test
earth pressure at-rest K 0 can be estimated from (15)
where K 0 = 0.163 (NP/c:J~ 0)0 · 625 .

Fig 21 Permeability of the Old Alluvium from both
oedometer tests and insitu tests: a) OAI; b) OAII;
c) OAIII.
11 larger volume of soil was tested and sampling
disturbance was avoided. Fig 22 shows the variation
of permeability with fines content. Laboratory results
indicate a gentle decrease in permeability with
increasing fines content. However, no clear trend is
observed with the field data.
The insitu permeabilities of OAI, OAII and OAIII are
of the order of 1E-7, 1E-8 and 1E-9 m/s respectively.
In general, the properties of OA are rather scattered.
This reflects the heterogeneous nature of an alluvium
deposit. The correlations established in this chapter
. can be used in preliminary designs. Due to the
variable nature of OA, site investigation should be
carried out with sufficient borings to establish the
subsurface conditions. Proper handling and testing of
the samples are of paramount importance.

SUMMARY
The Old Alluvium can be subdivided into three zones
m:cording to the degree of weathering: residual soil
zone (OAI), weathered zone (OAII), and cemented zone
tOAIII). This formation encompasses many soil types
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
The writers would like to express their gratitude to
the Land Transport Authority of Sin~::~oore for
providing the data and to J . N. Shirlaw, J . C. W. Ong,
J . C. W. Hsu, D. Wen and P. P. T. Teo for their co-
operation and support.
 ..
LIST OF SYMBOLS r bulk unit weight of soil
Symbol Descriptions
Yd dry unit weight of soil
c' effective cohesion intercept
cr', major principle effective stress
cc compression index
C1g minor principle effective stress
recompression index
cr'p preconsolidation pressure
(clp)oc ratio of undrained shear strenth to
effective insitu overburden stress for cr,o total insitu overburden stress
overconsolidated soil
O''vo effective insitu overburden stress
EPMT modulus of elasticity from pressuremeter
test ¢' effective friction angle of soil

E, unload-reload modulus of elasticity from

pressuremeter test REFERENCES
Briaud, J-L. (1992). The Pressuremeter. A. A.
E. undrained secant soil modulus Balkema, Rotterdam.
G specific gravity Dames & Moore (1983). Mass Rapid Transit System,
Singapore: Detailed Geotechnical Study
k coefficient of permeability Interpretative Report, Provisional Mass Rapid
Transit Authority, Singapore, 85-98.
Ko coefficient of lateral earth pressure at Orihara, K. & Khoo, K. S. (1998) "Engineering
rest Properties of Old Alluvium in Singapore and Its
Parameters for Bored Pile and Excavation
Ko,oc coefficient of lateral earth pressure at Design", Proc. 13th Southeast Asian Geotechnical
rest for overconsolidated soil Conference, Taiwan, 545-550.
Poh, K. B., Buttling, S. and Hwang, R. (1987). "Some
Ko,Nc coefficient of lateral earth pressure at MRT experiences of the soils and geology of
rest for normally consolidated soH Singapore," Singapore Mass Rapid Transit
Conference, Singapore, 177-191.
LI liquidity index Stroud, M. A. (1974). "The standard penetration test
- its application and interpretation," Proc.
LL liquid liiliit European Symp. On Penetration Testing,
Stockholm, Vol. 2.2, 367-375.
N Standard Penetration Test (SPT) blow
count Tan, S. B., Loy, W. C. and Lee, K. W. (1980).
"Engineering geology of the Old Alluvium in
I
'
OCR overconsolidation ratio Singapore," Proc., 11th S. E. Asian Conf. On Soil
Engrg., Taipei, Vol. 1, 673-684.
Po earth pressure at rest from Wood, D. M. (1983). "Index properties and critical
pressuremeter test state soil mechanics," Proc. Symposium on Recent
Developments in Laboratory and Field Tests and
PL limit pressure from pressuremeter test Analysis of Geotechnical Problems, Bangkok,
301-309.
Py yielding pressure from pressuremeter
test

PI plasticity index

PL plastic limit

p' (cr', + cr'3)/2

q' (cr'1 - cr'3)/2

qc cone resistance

Bu undrained shear strength of soil

w water content (moisture content) of soil

Wn natural water content of soil

20