Chapter 1 Shear Strength A

Chapter 13
Shear Strength of Soil
Braja M. Das, Principles of Geotechnical Engineering, SI Edition, Tenth Edition. © 2022 Cengage. All Rights Reserved.
May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
Learning Objectives (1 of 2)
• Discuss the concept of shear strength.

• Identify the Mohr-Coulomb failure criterion.
• Recognize the plane of failure caused by shear.
• Employ a laboratory test for the determination of shear strength parameters.
• Apply the direct shear test for the determination of shear strength parameters.
• Employ the drained direct shear test on saturated sand and clay.
• Analyze the results of the direct shear test.
• Employ the triaxial shear test to determine shear strength parameters.
• Apply a consolidated-drained triaxial test.
• Employ a consolidated-undrained triaxial test.
© 2022 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly
accessible website, in whole or in part.
Learning Objectives (2 of 2)
• Discuss the critical void state for granular soils.

• Employ an unconsolidated-undrained triaxial test.
• Apply an unconfined compression test on saturated clay.
• Compare the empirical relationships between undrained cohesion and
effective overburden pressure.
• Discuss the sensitivity and thixotropy of clay.
• Analyze the strength anisotropy in clay.
• Employ a vane shear test.
• Describe the other methods used to determine undrained shear strength.
• Analyze stress path diagrams.
Mohr-Coulomb Failure Criterion
• The shear strength of a soil mass is the internal resistance per unit area
that the soil mass can offer to resist failure and sliding along any plane
inside it.
• Mohr (1900) presented a theory for rupture in materials based on a critical
combination of normal and shear stress.
• For soil mechanics, the shear stress on a failure plane is approximately a
linear function of the normal stress:
 f = c +  tan 
c is the cohesion
ϕ is the angle of internal friction
σ is the normal stress on the failure plane
Inclination of the Plane of Failure Caused by Shear
• The Mohr-Coulomb failure criterion expressed

in terms of effective stress is:
 f = c +   tan  
• c′ and ϕ′ are the cohesion and friction angle,
based on the effective stress
• c′ is approximately zero for sand, inorganic silt,
and normally consolidated clays
• ϕ′ is given for some soils in Table 13.1 in the
textbook
• Mohr’s circle is a tool used to calculate Figure 13.3 Mohr’s circle and failure envelope
the stresses on the failure plane from

the principal stresses.
Inclination of the Plane of Failure Caused by Shear
•The major principal stress may also be related to the minor principal stress:
𝜙′ 𝜙 ′
𝜎1′ = 𝜎3′ tan2 (45 + ) + 2𝑐 ′ tan 45 +
2 2
•This gives the major principal stress the soil specimen will fail at for a given
minor principal stress
Laboratory Test for Determination of Shear Strength
Parameters
• Laboratory methods to determine the shear strength parameters of a soil
specimen include:
• The direct shear test
• The triaxial test
• The direct simple shear test
• The plane strain triaxial test
• The torsional ring shear test
Direct Shear Test
• The soil specimen is placed in

a metal shear box that is split
horizontally into halves.
• A normal force is applied to the
top of the shear box.
• The specimen is sheared by
moving one half of the box
relative to the other.
Figure 13.4 Diagram of direct shear test arrangement
Direct Shear Test
• The test may be either stress-controlled

or strain-controlled.
• For a stress-controlled test, the shear
force is applied in equal increments
until the specimen fails.
• The displacement is measured at each load
by a dial gauge
• For a strain-controlled test, a constant
rate of shear displacement is applied by
a motor.
• The resisting shear force is measured by a
load cell Figure 13.4 Diagram of direct shear test arrangement
Direct Shear Test
The box is split horizontally into halves.
Normal force on the specimen is applied from the top of the shear box. The
normal stress on the specimens can be as great as 1050 kN/m:.
Shear force is applied by moving one- half of the box relative to the other to
cause failure in the soil specimen.
the shear force is applied in equal increments until the specimen fails.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tk43hxZTdPQ
Direct Shear Test
• The normal stress is calculated by:
Normal force
=
Cross − sectional area of specimen
• The shear stress is given by:
Resisting shear force

=
Cross − sectional area of specimen
Direct Shear Test
• In loose sand, the resisting shear
stress increases with shear
displacement up to a maximum of τf.
• For dense sand, the shear stress
increases up to the peak shear
strength, then decreases to the
ultimate shear strength.
Direct Shear Test
• The void ratio changes as the
specimen is displaced.
• At large displacements, the void ratio is
the same for both dense and loose
sands.
• This value is the critical void ratio.
Figure 13.7 Nature of variation of void ratio with shearing displacement
Direct Shear Test
For dry sand:

𝜎 = 𝜎′
𝑐′ = 0
The friction angle is:
′ −1
𝜏𝑓
𝜙 = tan
𝜎′
Averaging a number of
tests gives more
accuracy
Friction Angles of Granular Soils
Drained Direct Shear Test on Saturated Sand and Clay (1 of 2)
• A drained test is made on saturated soil.

• The rate of loading is kept slow enough to completely dissipate
the excess pore water pressure.
• Sand has a high hydraulic conductivity, so ordinary loading rates
allow for essentially complete drainage.
• Clay requires a very slow loading rate due to its low hydraulic
conductivity.
Drained Direct Shear Test on Saturated Sand and Clay (2 of 2)
• We may determine the residual

shear strength of clay from a
drained test, which is similar to the
ultimate shear strength in sand
• The drained angle of friction is:
 r 
r  = tan  
-1

Figure 13.10 Results of a drained direct shear test on an

overconsolidated clay
Drained Direct Shear Test on Saturated
Sand and Clay
General Comments on Direct Shear Test
• The direct shear test is the simplest and

most economical test for a dry or saturated
sandy soil.
• The reliability of the results may be
questioned because the soil must fail along Figure 13.14 Interface of a foundation material and soil
the split of the shear box, which is not
necessarily the weakest plane.
• The shear stress distribution over the shear
surface of the specimen is not uniform.
Figure 13.15 Direct shear test to determine interface friction angle

20
Example 13.1
© 2014 Cengage Learning Engineering. All Rights Reserved.

22
Example 13.2

23
Principles of Geotechnical Engineering, Eighth Edition SI Das/Sobhan

Example 13.2 continued

24

Formula pg …

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Chapter 1 Shear Strength A

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Chapter 13

Shear Strength of Soil

• Discuss the concept of shear strength.

• Discuss the critical void state for granular soils.

• The Mohr-Coulomb failure criterion expressed

the stresses on the failure plane from

• The soil specimen is placed in

• The test may be either stress-controlled

• The normal stress is calculated by:

• The shear stress is given by:

Resisting shear force

Figure 13.7 Nature of variation of void ratio with shearing displacement

For dry sand:

• A drained test is made on saturated soil.

• We may determine the residual

Figure 13.10 Results of a drained direct shear test on an

• The direct shear test is the simplest and

Figure 13.15 Direct shear test to determine interface friction angle

© 2014 Cengage Learning Engineering. All Rights Reserved.

© 2014 Cengage Learning Engineering. All Rights Reserved.

Principles of Geotechnical Engineering, Eighth Edition SI Das/Sobhan

© 2014 Cengage Learning Engineering. All Rights Reserved.

Principles of Geotechnical Engineering, Eighth Edition SI Das/Sobhan

© 2014 Cengage Learning Engineering. All Rights Reserved.

Principles of Geotechnical Engineering, Eighth Edition SI Das/Sobhan

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