GEOTECHNICAL ENGINEERING I (CE 208)

MODULE I
INTRODUCTION

The term "soil" can have different meanings, depending upon the field in which it is considered.
To a geologist, it is the material in the relative thin zone of the Earth's surface within which roots
occur, and which are formed as the products of past surface processes. The rest of the crust is
grouped under the term "rock".
To an agriculturist, it is the top layer of earth responsible for supporting plant life.
To an engineer, it is a material that can be:
built on: foundations of buildings, bridges
built in: basements, culverts, tunnels
built with: embankments, roads, dams
supported: retaining walls
Soil Mechanics is the application of laws of mechanics and hydraulics to engineering
problems dealing with sediments and other unconsolidated accumulations of solid particles,
which are produced by the mechanical and chemical disintegration of rocks, regardless of
whether or not they contain an admixture of organic constituents.
Soil Engineering is an applied science dealing with the applications of principles of soil
mechanics to practical problems.
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Geotechnical Engineering is broader term which includes soil engineering, rock mechanics

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and geology.

SCOPE OF SOIL ENGINEERING

- Vast application in the construction of various civil engineering works.
(i) Foundations- Foundation Engineering is an important branch of soil engineering
(ii) Retaining structures – Soil engineering gives theories of earth pressure on retaining
structures
(iii) Stability of slopes- Soil engineering provides methods for checking stability of slopes
(iv) Underground structures – the forces exerted by soil are discussed in soil engineering.
(v) Pavement design – behavior of subgrade under various loading is studied.

ORIGIN OF SOILS
- Formed by weathering of rocks due to mechanical disintegration or chemical
decomposition
- Soil may be considered as an incidental material obtained from the geologic cycle which
goes on continuously in nature.
- The geologic cycle consists of erosion, transportation, deposition and upheaval of soil.
- Exposed rocks are eroded and degraded by various physical and chemical processes.
- The products of erosion are picked up by agencies of transportation and are carried to

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 new locations where they are deposited.
- The shifting of the material disturbs the equilibrium of forces on the earth and causes
large scale earth movements and upheavals. The process results in further exposure of
rocks and the geologic cycle gets repeated.

 If the soil stays at the place of its formation just above the parent rock, it is known as
residual soil or sedimentary soil. Its engineering properties vary considerably from the
top layer to the bottom layer. The properties of bottom layer resemble that of the parent
rock in many respects.
 When the soil has been deposited at a place away from the place of its origin, it is called
transported soil. Its engineering properties are entirely different from the properties of
the rock at the place of deposition.

FORMATION OF SOILS:

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Soils are formed by either

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(a) physical disintegration or
(b) chemical decomposition

a) Physical Disintegration
- There is no change in the chemical composition.
- The soil formed has the properties of parent rock.
- Coarse grained soils, such as gravel and sand, are formed.
- Occurs due to the following physical processes.
i) Temperature changes – Different minerals of rock have different coefficients of thermal
expansion. Unequal expansion and contraction of these minerals occurs due to temperature
changes. When the stresses induced due to such changes are repeated many times, the particles
get detached from the rocks and the soils are formed.
ii) Wedging action of ice – Water in the pores of cracks gets frozen in very cold climates.
- As the volume of ice formed is more than that of water, expansion occurs.
- Rocks get broken into pieces.

iii) Spreading of roots of plants

iv) Abrasion – As water, wind and glaciers move over the surface of rocks, abrasion and
scouring takes place. It results in the formation of soil.

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b) Chemical Decomposition

- Original rock minerals are transformed into new minerals.

- Soils formed do not have properties of parent rock.
- Occurs due to the following chemical processes

i) Oxidation

Within the weathering environment, oxidation of a variety of metals occurs. The most
commonly observed is the oxidation of Fe2+ (iron) and combination with oxygen and water to
form Fe3+ hydroxides and oxides such as goethite, limonite and hematite. This gives the affected
rocks a reddish-brown coloration on the surface which crumbles easily and weakens the rock.
This process is better known as ‘rusting’.

ii) Carbonation

Carbonation of rock material is caused by carbon dioxide in the presence of water. Lime
stones are very much affected by carbonation.

iii) Hydration

Mineral hydration is a form of chemical weathering that involves the rigid attachment of

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H+ and OH- ions to the atoms and molecules of a mineral. When rock minerals take up water,
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the increased volume creates physical stresses within the rock. For example iron oxides are

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converted to iron hydroxides and the hydration of anhydrite forms gypsum. Another example of
hydration is the chemical decomposition of mineral fieldspar in granite to form kaolite.

iv) Leaching

Leaching is the process in which percolating water washes out water-soluble salts from
the soil. Soil produced by chemical weathering of rocks will be cohesive (silt and clay).

TRANSPORTATION OF SOILS

(1) Water transported soils – Flowing water is the most important agent of transportation
of soils.
- It carries a large quantity of soil either in suspension or by rolling.
- Size of soil particles carried by water depends upon the velocity. The swift water
can carry the particles of large size such as boulders and gravels. With a decrease
in velocity, the coarse particles get deposited. The finer particles are carried
further downstream and are deposited when the velocity reduces.
- A delta is formed when the velocity slows down to almost zero at the confluence
with a receiving body of still water.
- All types of soils carried and deposited by water are known as alluvial deposits.
- Deposits made in lakes are called lacustrine deposits.

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 - Marine deposits are formed when the flowing water carries soil to ocean or sea.
(2) Wind transported soils – The particle size of soil depends upon the velocity of wind.
The finer particles are carried far away from the place of formation.
- Soils dep[osited by wind are known as Aeolian deposits.
- Large sand dunes are formed by winds.
- Loess is a silt deposit made by wind.
(3) Glacier – Deposited Soils – Glaciers are large masses of ice formed by the compaction
of snow.
- As the glaciers grow and move, they carry soils with them.
- Drift is a general term used for the deposits made by glaciers.
- Deposits made by melting of glaciers are called till.
(4) Gravity – deposited soils – soils can be transported through short distances under the
action of gravity.
- Colluvial soils, such as talus, have been deposited by the gravity.

MAJOR SOIL DEPOSITS OF INDIA

The soil deposits of India may be classified in the following five major groups:

(1) Alluvial Soils

. I N
- Alluvial soils are by far the largest and the most important soil group of India.

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- A large part of north India is covered with alluvial deposits.
- The deposits are generally of low density and are liable to liquefaction in

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earthquake-prone areas.
(2) Black Cotton Soils
- A large part of central India and a portion of South India is covered with black
cotton soils.
- These are residual deposits formed from basalt or trap rocks.
- These are suitable for growing cotton.
- These are clays of high plasticity- high shrinkage and swelling characteristics-
low shearing strength- high compressibility.

(3) Lateritic Soils

- Formed by decomposition of rock, removal of bases and silica, and accumulation
of iron oxide and aluminium oxide.
- Presence of iron oxide gives these soils the characteristic red or pink colour.
- Lateritic soils exist in the central, southern and eastern India.
(4) Desert Soils
- A large part of Rajasthan and adjoining states is covered with sand dunes.
- Dune sand is uniform in gradation. The size of the particles is in the range of fine
sand.
- Sand is non-plastic and highly pervious.

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 (5) Marine Deposits
- These are mainly confined along a narrow belt near the coast.
- In the south-west coast of India, there are thick layers of sand above deep deposits
of soft marine clays.
- The marine deposits have very low shearing strength and are highly compressible.

PHASE RELATIONSHIP

- Soils are generally composed of three distinct phases. These are solids, water and air.
- The space occupied by water and air is defined as the void of the soil.
- The void may be partially or wholly filled by water or air.
- The components parts may be illustrated by a phase diagram. For convenience, all the
solid particles are segregated and placed in the lower layer of the three-phase diagram.
Likewise water and air particles are placed separately. The three-phase diagram is also
known as block diagram.

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(a) Actual soil mass, (b) Representation of soil mass by phase diagram
- Although the soil is a three-phase system, it becomes a two-phase system in the following
two cases:
(1) When the soil is absolutely dry, the water phase disappears.
(2) When the soil is fully saturated, there is no air phase.

(a) Saturated soil, (b) Dry soil represented as two-phase systems

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 - In a three-phase diagram, it is conventional to write volumes on the left side and the mass
or weight on the right side.

BASIC SOIL PROPERTIES

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(i) Void ratio (e) - It is the ratio of the volume of voids to the volume of the solids.

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- It is expressed as a decimal.

(ii) Porosity (n) - It is the ratio of the volume of voids to the total volume of soil mass.
- It is commonly expressed as percentage.

(iii)Water content (w) or Moisture content – It is the ratio of the weight of water to the
weight of solids (dry weight) of the soil mass.
- Commonly expressed as a percentage.

(iv) Degree of Saturation (S) – It is defined as the ratio of the volume of water in the voids
to the volume of voids
- Commonly expressed as a percentage.

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 - It is equal to zero when the soil is absolutely dry and 1005 when the soil is
fully saturated.
(v) Air Content (ac) - It is defined as the ratio of the volume of air voids to the total volume
of voids.

- Commonly expressed as percentage.

(vi) Percentage Air Voids (na) – It is the ratio of the volume of air voids to the total volume
of the soil mass.
- Commonly expressed as percentage

(vii) Mass Density – The mass of soil per unit volume is known as mass density.
- The following five different mass densities are used in soil engineering.
(a) Bulk mass density (ρ) – It is defined as the total mass per unit total volume.
- Also known as wet mass density or bulk density or density.

(b) Dry mass density (ρd) – It is the mass of solids per unit total volume.

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saturated.
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(c) Saturated mass density (ρsat) – It is the bulk mass density of the soil when it is fully

(d) Submerged mass density (ρsub or ρ’) – It is defined as the submerged mass per unit
total volume.

(e) Mass density of solids (ρs) – It is the ratio of the mass of solids to the volume of
solids.

(viii) Unit weight – it is the weight of soil per unit volume.

- Five different unit weights are there.
(a) Bulk unit weight (γ) – It is defined as the total weight per unit total volume.

(b) Dry unit weight (γd) – It is defined as the weight of soil solids per unit of total volume.

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 (c) Saturated unit weight (γsat) – It is the bulk unit weight when the soil is fully saturated.

(d) Submerged unit weight ( γsub or γ’) – It is the subm,erged weight per unit of total volume.

(e) Unit weight of solids (γs) - It is the weight of soil solids per unit volume of solids.

(ix) Specific Gravity of Solids (G) – it is defined as the ratio of mass or weight of a given
volume of solids to the mass or weight of an equal volume of water at 40C.

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Specific gravity of most natural soils falls in the range of 2.65 to 2.80.

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- The following two terms related with the specific gravity are also used

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(a) Mass specific gravity (Gm) – it is the ratio of the mass(weight) density of the
soil to the mass (weight) density of water.

(b) Absolute specific gravity (Ga) – Ratio of mass density of the absolute solids to
the mass density of water.

RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN BASIC SOIL PROPERTIES

1. Relationship between ‘e’ and ‘n’

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 2. Relationship between ‘ac’ and ‘na’

3. Relationship between ‘e’, ‘w’, ‘G’ and ‘S’

4. Relationship between γ and γd

5. Relationship between γ, G, e, S and γw

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This is a general equation from which the unit weights corresponding to the saturated and dry
states of soil may be got by substituting S = 1 and S = 0 respectively (as a fraction).

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The submerged unit weight γ′ may be written as

SENSITIVITY

For many naturally deposited clay soils, the unconfined compressive strength is greatly
reduced when the soils are tested after remoulding without any change in the moisture content.
This property of clay is called sensitivity. The degree of sensitivity may be defined as the ratio of
the unconfined compression strength in an undisturbed state to that in a remoulded state, or

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The sensitivity ratio of most clays ranges from about 1 to 8; however, highly flocculent marine

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clay deposits may have sensitivity ratios ranging from about 10 to 80. There are also some clays

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that turn to viscous fluids upon remolding.

THIXOTROPY

We know soil lose its strength under remoulding. The term thixotropy is related to
remoulding. The strength loss is due to
-alteration of soil structure
-disturbance of water molecules that were in adsorbed condition
But this change in remoulding is not one way. Sometimes this alternation is observed
reversible. If such soil is allowed to rest unaltered in respect of water loss, it is observed that it
regains strength to some extent. In geotechnical engineering, gaining of strength of soil with
course of time after it get remolded is known as thixotropy.

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