CEBU TECHNOLOGICAL UNIVERSITY - MAIN CAMPUS

COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING

HIGHWAY AND RAILROAD ENGINEERING

PLATE NO. 6
JUNE 4, 2022

SUBMITTED BY:
MUMAR, CHRISTINE ANN F.
III – D1

SUBMITTED TO:
ENGR. JOY LORRAINE PLANTAR
What are the formulas for each method and how does it work
1. Volume calculation with the use of End area method
The Average End-Area method is a useful tool for estimating quantities in
construction. It is an approximate method of calculating volume and is accurate enough for
most situations.

The general concept is that you calculate the total volume (V) of a material given,
the area of two ends (A) and the perpendicular distance between the two area-faces (L).
For a volume comprised of several sections you sum them up:

𝑨𝟏 + 𝑨𝟐
𝑽 = ∑𝑳
𝟐

You can use this anytime you need to quickly approximate the volume of a shape,
both in-practice and on the test. On the test you will often be told explicitly to use this method.

Other giveaways are if you are given a table of data similar to this:

Or if you are provided a picture like this (this results in the same volume as above):

And asked to calculate the total volume of material to excavate/fill the area. Here
is the solution to the two examples above:
2. Volume calculation with the use Prismoidal Method
The prismoidal method is used when a more exact method of determining earthwork
volumes is warranted. A prismoid is a solid having ends that are parallel and sides that are
trapezoidal. The ends and sides of the prismoid are not congruent, (i.e. they do not have the
same size or shape). Most earthwork solids obtained from cross-sections fit this description.

Prismoidal formula is accurate in finding the volume of prisms, pyramids, wedges, and
prismoids having irregular end sections. The estimation of earthwork gives nearly an
accurate volume. The formula given is V=d/3[Sum of areas of the end two sections+ 4(sum
of the even sections) +2(sum of the remaining sections)]

The volume (V) of a prismoidal shape is calculated from the two end-areas (A1 and
A2), the area (Am) of a section midway between A1 and A2, and the distance (L) between
the two outer sections
𝟏
𝑽 = (𝑨𝟏 + 𝟒𝑨𝒎 + 𝑨𝟐 + ) × 𝑳
𝟔

The midpoint area is determined from averaging the corresponding linear heights
and widths of the two end-areas and not by averaging their areas. The end-areas are in
square feet and the distance between sections is in feet. The volume in cubic feet is divided
by 27 to obtain the volume in cubic yards.
3. How to compute error of volume

Use percent error formula in computing the error of volume

𝒂𝒄𝒕𝒖𝒂𝒍 𝒗𝒐𝒍𝒖𝒎𝒆 𝒐𝒃𝒔𝒆𝒓𝒗𝒆𝒅 − 𝒆𝒙𝒑𝒆𝒄𝒕𝒆𝒅 𝒗𝒐𝒍𝒖𝒎𝒆

𝒆𝒓𝒓𝒐𝒓 𝒐𝒇 𝒗𝒐𝒍𝒖𝒎𝒆 = | | × 𝟏𝟎𝟎%
𝒆𝒙𝒑𝒆𝒄𝒕𝒆𝒅 𝒗𝒐𝒍𝒖𝒎𝒆

4. What is cut and fill?

Cut and fill is the process of constructing a railway, road or canal whereby the amount
of material from cuts roughly matches the amount of fill needed to make nearby
embankments, so minimizing the amount of construction labor.

Cut and fill in construction is also known as excavation and embankment. It occurs
when excavators move and place volumes of material to create an optimal terrain for a
building, railway, road or canal.

Here’s how each of the two terms is defined:

 Cut: This is the earth that is removed from an area (excavated earth)
 Fill: This is the earth that is brought into an area (embankment earth)
Various sections of a roadway design will require bringing in earth. Other sections will
require earth to be removed. Earth that is brought in is considered Fill while earth that is
removed is considered Cut. Generally, designers generate drawings called Cut and Fill
Diagrams, which illustrate the cut or fill present at any given site.