Foundation Engineering Site Exploration

CHAPTER One

SITE EXPLORATION

Table of contents:
Page No.
1.1 Purpose of site exploration…………………………………………………………………………...2-
1.2 Subsurface Exploration program…………………………………………………………………..2-
1.2.1. Desk study or collection of preliminary information………………………….3-
1.2.2. Reconnaissance survey……………………………………………………………………….3-
1.2.3. Site Investigation………………………………………………………………………………..4-
1.3 Test Pits…………………………………………………………………………………………………………..5-
1.4 Borings…………………………………………………………………………………………………………….5-
1.4.1. Depth of Boreholes……………………………………………………………………………...5-
1.4.2. Number of Boreholes…………………………………………………………………………..6-
1.4.3. Borehole log………………………………………………………………………………………….8-
1.5 Sampling and Field testing……………………………………………………………………………..8-
1.6 Field / In-situ Tests……………………………………………………………………………………….10-
1.6.1. Sounding Tests……………………………………………………………………………………10-
1.6.2. Plate loading Test……………………………………………………………………………….14-
1.6.3. Vane shear Test………………………………………………………………………………….14-
1.7 The Geotechnical Report…………………………………………………………………………….…15-
1.7.1. Factual Report…………………………………………………………………………………….16-
1.7.2. Engineering Report……………………………………………………………………………..17-

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Foundation Engineering Site Exploration

1.1. Purpose of site Exploration:

The purpose of site exploration is to assess the suitability of a site for a particular
project or to investigate the cause of failure of an existing structure.

The primary objectives of soil exploration are:

 Determination of the nature of the deposits of soil.

 Determination of the depth and thickness of the various soil strata and their
extent in their horizontal direction.
 The location of the ground water table and fluctuations in GWT.
 Obtaining soil rock samples from the various strata.
 The determination of the engineering properties of the soil and rock strata
that affect the performance of the structure, and
 Determination of the in-situ properties by performing field tests.

The information gathered will be used as bases:

 For the selection of foundation.

 To decide on the depth of foundation.
 For the determination of the bearing capacity of the selected foundation.
 For the performance of settlement of the existing foundation.

1.2. Subsurface Exploration Program.

The following steps are involved in site exploration program:

1. Desk study or collection of primary information.

2. Reconnaissance survey.
3. Site Investigation.

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1.2.1. Desk Study or Collection of Preliminary Information.

In this step try to get the following:

 Information regarding the type of structure to be built and its general use.
For example:

Building:
 Appropriate column loads.
 Spacing of columns.
 Code requirements.

Bridge:
 Span length.
 Loading on piers and abutments.

 A general idea of the topography and the type of soil to be encountered.

These can be obtained from soil maps and geologic maps.

1.2.2. Reconnaissance Survey.

Visual inspection to the site to obtain information about:

 General topography of the site, possible existence of drainage ditches.

 Soil stratification from deep cuts, such as those made for construction of
other structures.
 Type of vegetation, which may indicate the type of soil.
 Type of construction nearby and existence of any cracks in walls or other
problems.

The nature of stratification and physical properties of the soil nearby can also be
obtained from any available soil exploration report for existing structures.

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1.2.3. Site Investigation:

The subsoil exploration should enable the engineer to draw the soil profile indicating
the sequence of the strata and the properties of the soils involved. In general, the
methods available for soil exploration may be classified as follows:

1. Direct Methods: Test pits, Trial pits or trenches.

2. Semi-direct Methods: Borings.
3. Indirect Methods: Soundings or Penetration tests and geophysical
methods.

This stage is the detailed investigation phase and it involves:

 Making test boreholes and /or test pits.

 Collecting soil samples.
 Conducting field tests.

A decision has to be made on:

 The depth of the boreholes.

 The number and the location of boreholes
 The sampling interval.
 Type of sample to be collected.
 Type of field tests to be conducted.
 Types of laboratory tests to be conducted.

The choice of appropriate testing method is affected by:

 Economy.
 Type of structure.
 Type of foundation, if predetermined.
 Type of soil.

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1.3. Test Pits:

Test pits or trenches are open type or accessible exploratory methods. Soils can be
inspected in their natural condition. The necessary soil samples may be obtained by
sampling techniques and used for ascertaining strength and other engineering
properties by appropriate laboratory tests.

Test pits will also be useful for conducting field tests such as the plate-loading test.

Test pits are considered suitable only for small depths- up to 3m; the cost of these
increases rapidly with depth. For greater depths, especially in granular soils, lateral
supports or braking of the excavations will be necessary. Ground water table may
have to be lowered.

Hence, test pits are usually made only for supplementing other methods or for minor
structures.

1.4. Boring:

Making or drilling boreholes into the ground with a view to obtaining soil or rock
samples from specified or known depth is called “boring”.

1.4.1. Depth of boreholes:

Investigation should be carried extend below the depth where the stress increase
from the foundation load is significant. This value is often take as 10 %( or less) of
the contact stress qo. For square footing this is about 2B, where B is the width of the
foundation. Since footing sizes are seldom known in advance of borings, a general
rule of thumb is twice the least lateral dimension of the structure. When the 2 X
width is not practical as, say, for a two story warehouse or department store, boring
depths of 6 to 15m may be adequate. On the other hand, for important9or high-rise)
structures that have small-plan dimension, it is common to extend one or more of
the borings to bedrock or to competent (hard) soil regardless of the depth.

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According to American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE), the following procedure is

used to establish the depth of investigation:

1. Determine the net increase of stress, ∆σ, under a foundation with depth.
2. Estimate the variation of the vertical effective stress, σ’ v, with depth.
3. Determine the depth, D=D1, at which the stress increase ∆σ is equal to
(1/10) q where q=estimated net stress on the foundation.
4. Determine the depth, D=D2, at which ∆σ/ σ’v =0.05.
5. Unless the bedrock is encountered, the smaller of the two depths, D1 and D2,
just determined is the approximate minimum depth of boring required.

If the proceeding rules are used, the depths of boring for a building with a width of
30.50m will be approximately the following, according to sowes (1970)

Table 1:

No of stress Boring depth(m)

1 3.5m
2 6.0m
3 10m
4 16m
5 24m

1.4.2. Number of boreholes:

There are no clear-cut criteria for determining directly the number and depth of
borings required on a project in advance of some subsurface exploration.

For buildings a minimum of three borings, where the surface is level and the first two
borings indicate regular stratification, may be adequate. Five borings are generally
preferable (at building corners and center), especially if the site is not level. On the
other hand, a single boring may sufficient for an antenna or industrial process tower
base in a fixed location with the hole made at the point. Five or Four borings are
sufficient if the site soil is non uniform (both to determine this and for the
exploration program). This number will be enough to delineate a layer of soft clay) or

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silt) and to determine the properties of the poorest material so that a design can be
made that adequately limits settlements for most other situations.

Additional borings may be required in very uneven sites or where fill areas have been
made and the soil varies horizontally rather than vertically. Even through the
geotechnical-engineer may be furnished with a tentative site plan locating the
building(s), often there are still in the stage where horizontal relocations can occur,
so the borings should be sufficiently spread to allow this without having to make
any( or at least no more that a few) additional borings.

1.4.3. Borehole Log:

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Information on the subsurface conditions obtained from the boring-operation is

typically presented in the form of a boring record, commonly known as “borehole
log”.

The borehole log should provide the following:

 A continuous record of the various strata identified at various depth of the

boring is recorded.
 Description or classification of the various types of soil or rock encountered.
 Data regarding ground water level.
 Size of hole.
 Method of excavation or boring.
 Dates work was carried out.
 The types and depths of samples taken.
 In-situ tests carried out and the depth at which they were conducted.
 Problems or any special conditions encountered during boring.

1.5. Sampling and Field Testing:

Types and spacing of samples depend on the material encountered and the types of
the project. As a general guide, undisturbed samples in clays, or a saturated
penetration test in sands, should be carried out at 1.5m to 3m intervals and at every
change in stratum, in shell and auger borings. Standard or cone penetration tests
should be carried out every 1.5m in rotary drill holes through sand and gravel.
Disturbed samples should be taken in all kinds of borings at 1.5m intervals and at
each change of stratum. In soft clays, or for special conditions, continuous sampling
may be necessary.

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Fig. 1.1. Typical example of borehole log.

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1.6. Field / In-situ Tests:

1.6.1. Sounding Tests:

Sounding tests are normally carried out to supplement borings. Since they are
relatively cheaper and faster than borings they are widely used in site exploration.

Sampling disturbances and sample preparation for laboratory tests significantly

affect the shear strength parameters. Consequently, a variety of field tests have
been developed to obtain more reliable soil shear strength parameters by testing
soils in-situ. In the following sections some of the most popular field tests are
described.

The most common sounding test devices are penetrometrs. Penetrometers are of
two: Static penetrometr and dynamic penetrometer. In both types of penetrometers
it is the resistance against penetration that is measured.

1.6.1.1. Cone Penetration Test:

The penetrometer essentially consists of a metal-rod with a wedge shaped tip having
a cross-sectional are of 10cm2. The metal rod is encased in a metal pipe with specific
dimensions.

The penetrometer is pushed into the soil with a constant speed (at about 0.25
meter/minute), and the corresponding point resistance and total resistance are
measured at specific depths. The point resistance is measured while pushing the
metal rod a distance of 13cm. then the metal rod and casing are pushed together a
distance of 7cm in which the total resistance is measure. The specific skin friction,
which is the difference between the total resistance and the point resistance, may
also be plotted. This parameter plays an important role in the design of piles.

The Cone Penetrometer Test (CPT) is an in situ test used for subsurface exploration
in fine and medium sands, soft silts and clays. The apparatus consists of a cone with
a 35.7 mm end diameter, projected area of 1000 mm2 and 600 point angle (Fig. 1.2)
that is attached to a rod. An outer sleeve encloses the rod.

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Figure 1.2: CPT apparatus (Budhu, 250)

The thrusts required to drive the cone and the sleeve 80 mm into the ground at a
constant rate of 10 mm/s to 20 mm/s are measured independently so that the end
resistance or cone resistance and side friction or sleeve resistance may be estimated
separately. A special type of the cone penetrometer, known as piezocone has porous
elements inserted into the cone or sleeve to allow for pore water pressure
measurements.

The cone resistance qc is normally correlated with the undrained shear strength. One
correlation equation is:

(1.1)

Where represents the total overburden pressure above the cone tip, and Nk is a

cone factor that depends on the geometry of the cone and the rate of penetration.
Average values of Nk as a function of plasticity index Ip can be estimated from

(1.2)

Results of cone penetrometer tests have also been correlated with the friction angle.
A number of correlations exist. Based on published data for sand (Roberston and
Campanella, 1983), you can estimate using:

(1.3)

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1.6.1.2. Standard Penetration Test (SPT):

The SPT is primarily used to assess in-situ properties of granular soils which can not
be sampled in an undisturbed state. It is also used in cemented soils and some clay.

A standard split-spoon sampler is driven 450mm into the soil by repeated blows from
a hammer of standard dimensions (mass of 63.5 Kg dropped from a height of 76cm).
The blows required to produce the first 150mm penetration are usually ignored and
the number of blows required driving the sampler a further 300mm is recorded as
“the N-value”.

The Standard Penetration Test (SPT) was developed around 1927 and it is perhaps
the most popular field test performed mostly in coarse grained (or
cohesionless) soils. The SPT is performed by driving a standard split spoon
sampler into the ground by blows from a drop hammer of mass 64 kg falling 760 mm
(Fig. 1.3). The sampler is driven 150 mm into the soil at the bottom of a borehole,
and the number of blows (N) required to drive it an additional 300 mm is counted.
The number of blows N is called the standard penetration number.

Figure 1.3: Standard Penetration Test (Budhu, 248)

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Various corrections are applied to the N values to account for energy losses,
overburden pressure, rod length, and so on. It is customary to correct the N values
to a rod energy ratio of 60%. The rod energy ratio is – the ratio of the energy
delivered to the split spoon sampler to the free falling energy of the hammer. The
corrected N values are denoted as N60. The N value is used to estimate the relative
density, friction angle, and settlement in coarse grained soils. The test is very
simple, but the results are difficult to interpret.

Typical correlation among N values, relative density, and , for coarse grained soils
are given in Table 1.4 below (Budhu, 248).

Table 1.4: Correlation of N, N60, Dr, , and ’ for coarse grained soils.
N N60 Description  (kN/m3) Dr (%) ’ ( 0 )
0–5 0–3 Very loose 11 – 13 0 – 15 26 – 28
5 – 10 3–9 Loose 14 – 16 16 – 35 29 – 34
10 – 30 9 – 25 Medium 17 – 19 36 – 65 35 – 40
30 – 50 25 – 45 Dense 20 – 21 66 – 85 38 – 45
> 50 > 45 Very dense > 21 > 86 > 45

The SPT is mostly used in coarse grained soils. However, in some countries, for
example, Japan and the United States, it is also used in fine-grained soils. Table 1.4
below shows, correlation of N60 and Su for saturated fine grained soils.

Table 1.4: Correlation of N60, and Su for fine grained soils.

N60 Description Su (kPa)

0–2 Very soft < 10

3–5 Soft 10 – 25
6–9 Medium 25 – 50
10 – 15 Stiff 50 – 100
15 – 30 Very stiff 100 – 200
> 30 Extremely stiff > 200

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1.6.2. Plate Loading Test:

A square or circular plate is seated on the stratum to be tested, usually at the

bottom of a trial pit, and loaded. Load is applied in the increments and maintained
until full settlement has taken place at each load increment.

Correlations are available to estimate the settlement of a full-sized foundation based

on settlement of the plate.

Plate loading tests are particularly suitable for coarse granular materials which
cannot be tested by normal laboratory means or by a penetration test. The main
pitfall in predicting settlement from these tests is that the zone of stressed soil
beneath the plat is much smaller than that beneath the larger foundation; it will thus
be unaffected by deeper strata whose load bearing and settlement characteristics
may critically affect the behavior of the foundation. With clays, tests do not usually
continue for long enough for consolidation to be completed so settlement cannot be
predicted. In order to obtain reliable results, plates should be as large as possible
and should never be less than 0.3m.

1.6.3. Vane Shear Test:

In soft and saturated clays, where undisturbed specimen is difficult to obtain, the
undrained shear strength is measured using a shear vane test. A diagrammatic view
of the shear vane apparatus is shown in Fig. 1.4. It consists of four thin metal blades
welded orthogonally (900) to a rod where the height H is twice the diameter D (Fig.
1.4). Commonly used diameters are 38, 50 and 75 mm.

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Figure 1.4: Shear vane apparatus.

The vane is pushed into the soil either at the ground surface or at the bottom of a
borehole until totally embedded in the soil (at least 0.5 m). A torque T is applied by
a torque head device (located above the soil surface and attached to the shear vane
rod) and the vane is rotated at a slow rate of 6 0 per minute. As a result, shear
stresses are mobilized on all surfaces of a cylindrical volume of the soil generated by
the rotation. The maximum torque is measured by a suitable instrument and equals
to the moment of the mobilized shear stress about the central axis of the apparatus.
The undrained shear strength is calculated from:

(1.4)

Field vane equipment is available for use either at the bottom of a borehole or for
direct penetration into the ground. Smaller laboratory versions are also available.

1.7. The Geotechnical Report:

Reports broadly fall into two categories:

1. The basic “Factual”, site investigation report which simply records its findings
of the site investigation, and
2. The “Comprehensive” or “engineering” report, which, in addition, interprets
those findings and makes specific recommendations.

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1.7.1. Factual Report:

A factual report typically contains the items described below:

 Introduction: the project is briefly described and the scope of the report is
defined. The name of the client and his consulting engineers are given.
Location of the site is often included in this section.
 Topography and Geology: the site, and possibly the surrounding area, is
briefly described. This will include general descriptions (whether the area is
flat, has rolling hills or whatever); will mention specific features (such as
stream or pond); and will state what is on site (possibly trees or buildings). A
briefly summary of published geological information is normally also given in
this section.
 Site Work: Details of the extent of the site work are given, including the
number of trial pits, boreholes and probes and the methods used. The types
and numbers of any field tests are also included. Overall dates of site working
are given.
 Laboratory Testing: The types and numbers of laboratory tests are given,
with overall dates for the testing program.
 Summary of Ground Conditions: It is usual, even in a factual report, to
summarize what conditions were encountered during the site work.
 Test Results: Results of all field and laboratory tests are presented in the form
of tables and graphs.
 Trial Pits and Borehole Records: Details of each trial pit and borehole are
given diagrammatically.
 Sit Plan: A plan or plans showing borehole and trial pit locations.
 Notes: At some point in the report there is usually a set of notes giving
standard abbreviations and symbols used. Details of some of the standard
tests may be explained and references may be made to the standards used in
carrying out the work. There is usually a general disclaimer to protect the site
investigation contractor should problems arise later due to ground conditions
which were not revealed during the ground investigation.

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1.7.2. Engineering Report:

Engineering reports usually contain all the items given in the factual report, either as
part of the report itself or as an appendix, plus additional items outlined below.
 Description of project: This is usually discussed more fully than in the factual
report. It will include, where possible, such items as the size and type
individual buildings and any particular considerations such as permissible
settlement.
 Results of the desk study: the desk study carried out by site investigation
firms for a factual report is usually fairly rudimentary and may only consist of
checking the appropriate geological maps. For the engineering report the desk
study section may be substantial but could be virtually non-existent,
depending on how much information is available.
 Discussion of ground conditions: Again, this is much more fully covered than
the sample summary which usually appears in the factual report. Where
appropriate, it will refer to possible seismic, hydrological or mining problems,
or any other special factors.
 Soil properties for Design: Design values of soil properties, such as shear
strength and compressibility, are given for each of the foundation soils
encountered. Variations in properties with a given soils, both across the site
and with depth, should be indicated. The extent and location of each of the
soil types and their distinguishing features should also be included.
 Foundation Design: Foundation types are recommended, along with
suggested founding depths, sizes, permissible loadings, expected settlement
and any other relevant details.
 Calculations: The recommended values of the soil properties and foundation
design details given in the previous two sections should be supported by
clearly laid out calculations. The assumptions made and the design methods
used should be stated so the work can be checked by others and values can
easily be amended if new information becomes available.
 Site Plans: These are usually more detailed that for the factual report and
normally show the proposed project layout.
 Other Items: These may include such items as a brief for the resident
engineer; a warning that specific problems may arise which will require
special treatment or a redesign of certain features; or a recommendation that
further investigation be carried out.

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