Fundamentals of

geotechnical
engineering-l
CEng-2131
Pre-requested by
Hydraulics-I and
Strength of
Materials.

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 Chapter-1
1. Introduction
Lecture Outline
1.1 Introduction

1.2 Soil Mechanics-Historical Perspective

1.3 Formation/Origin of soils

1.4 General types of soils

1.5 Clay Minerals

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 1.1 introduction
Definition of Soil and soil Mechanics

 The definition given to the word soil differs from one

discipline to another.

 By Geologist, soil is the material found in the relatively

thin surface region of the earth's crust where roots of
plants occur.

 By the agriculturalist on the other hand, soil is the top

thin layer of the earth where organic forces are
prevalent and which supports plant life.
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 1.1 Introduction (cont.)
 Engineering definitions of soil is however quite different from
those given in geology and soil science.

 Soil, by Geotechnical is also defined as a

consolidated/unconsolidated material, composed of solid
particles, produced by the disintegration of rocks. The void
space b/n the particles may be filled with water or air.

 Soil, by Geotechnical, means material that can be worked

without drilling or any other lose sedimentary deposit, such as
gravel, sand, silt, clay, or a mixture of these materials.

 It is the oldest and most complex engineering material due to

its variable nature from time to time and place to place. 4
 1.2 SOIL MECHANICS -HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE

 Prior to the 18th century, the practice of soil engineering

was based only on past experiences through a succession
of experimentation without any substantial scientific
backing.

 After encountering several foundation-related problems

during construction over past centuries, engineers and
scientists began to address the properties and behavior
of soils in a more methodical manner starting in the early
part of the 18th century.

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The geotechnical problems are till happening even if
with having todays care!

Embankment dam failure!

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 The Leaning tower of Pisa (Italian)- so called because it tilted
significantly due to the presence of a
non-uniform, sponge like saturated clay on which the foundation of
the tower rests.

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On road construction

Road failure on Arbaminch-Geressie-Kambe road

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To answer d/t soil related problems are solved by the
development of soil mechanics by contribution of the
following scientists and engineers.
 French scientist C.A. Coulomb determined the true position of
the sliding surface in soil behind a retaining wall in 1776.

 In the year 1857, the British scientist W.J.M. Rankine suggested

a notable theory on earth pressure and equilibrium of earth
masses.

 In 1856 the French engineer H.P.G. Darcy published a study on

the permeability of sand filters which he applied to soil.

 J.V. Boussinesq in 1885 forwarded the theory of stress

distribution under loaded bearing areas in a homogeneous, semi-
infinite, elastic, and isotropic medium. 9
 Cont….
 In the year 1911, A.M. Atterberg developed the
concept of consistency limits for clays.

 W. Fellenius developed slip-circle analysis of

saturated clay slopes in 1918.

 Karl Terzaghi gave birth to a new era in the

development of soil mechanics with the publishing of his
book on soil mechanics in 1925. Terzaghi's contributions
in this field have been immense and he is known to many
engineers as the father of modern soil mechanics.

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1.4 Origin of soil/Soil Formation

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WHY DIFFERENT ?

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 Formation of Soil(cont..)
Soil is generally formed by
disintegration and
decomposition (weathering)
of rocks through the action
of physical (or mechanical)
and chemical agents which
break them into smaller and
smaller particles.

Different stages of
weathering of rocks
and formation of soil. 13
Rock weathering to form soil

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1.4 Types of Soil

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 1.4 Types of Soil
 Soil types, based on geological and engineering
view points, are separately discussed below:
1. Geological consideration:

Geologist classify soil into two major categories:

residual soils and transported soil
i. Residual Soils:

When the rock weathering is faster than the transport process

induced by water, wind and gravity, much of the soil remains
in place. It is known as residual soil.

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1. Geological consideration:
ii. Transported Soil:
Glacial Soil: This type of soil is developed, transported and
deposited by the actions of glaciers. These deposits consists of
rocks fragments, boulders, gravels, sand, silt and clay in various
proportions (i.e., a heterogeneous mixture of all sizes of
particles).

Alluvial Soil: This type of soil (also known as fluvial soil or

alluvium) is transported and deposited to their present position
by streams and rivers.
Coarser or
Higher
Heavier
Reaches
Particles

Fine Lower
Particles Reaches 17
1. Geological consideration:
ii. Transported Soil…

iii. Aeolian Soil: The soil transported by geological agent

‘wind’ and subsequently deposited is known as wind blown
soil or Aeolian Soil.

iv. Colluvial Soil: A colluvial soil is one transported downslope

by gravity. There are two types of downslope movement –
slow (creep – mm/yr) and rapid (e.g., landslide)

v. Lacustrine and Marine Soil:

i. Lacustrine Soil is deposited beneath the lakes.

ii. Marine Soil is also deposited underwater i.e., in the

Ocean.
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 Types of Soil
2. Engineering consideration:

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2. Engineering consideration:
i. Clay: ( < .002mm)
– In moist condition, clay becomes sticky and can be rolled into threads.

– High dry strength, low erosion, low permeability, good workability and
compaction under moist condition. Also susceptible to shrinkage and
swelling.

ii. Silt: (.002mm < Size < .06mm)

– High capillarity, no plasticity and very low dry strength

– It possesses properties of both clay and sand.

iii. Sand: (.06mm < Size < 2mm)

– Particle shape varies from rounded to angular

– No plasticity, considerable frictional resistance, high permeability and low

capillarity

– Abundant quantities of sand are available in deserts and riverbeds

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2. Engineering consideration:
iv. Gravels: (2mm < Size < 60mm)
– They form a good foundation material.

– The gravels produced by crushing of rocks are angular in

shape while those taken from riverbeds are sub-rounded
to rounded.

v. Cobbles and Boulder:

– Particles larger than gravels are commonly known as cobbles
and boulders.

– Cobbles generally range in size 60mm t0 200mm.

– The materials larger than 200mm is designated as boulders.

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Engineering consideration:

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 Soil texture
 Common descriptive terms such as gravels, sands, silts
and clays(are called soil textures/types) are used to
identify specific textures in soil.

 Texture refers to the appearance /feel of a soil.

 Sands and gravels are grouped together as coarse-

grained soils where as Clay and silts are fine-grained
soils.

 Coarse-grained soils feel gritty and hard. Fine-

grained soils feel smooth.
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Coarse grained vs fine grained soils for
engineering use
 Coarse-grained soils have good load bearing capacities and
good drainage qualities, and their strength and volume change
characteristics are not significantly affected by change in
moisture conditions.
 They are practically incompressible when dense, but significant
volume change can occur when they are loose
 Fine-grained soils have poor load bearing capacities compared
with coarse-grained soils. This soils are practically
impermeable, and change strength and volume with variations
in moisture conditions.
 The engineering properties of coarse-grained soils are
controlled mainly by the grain size of the particles and their
structural arrangement.
 The engineering properties of fine-grained soils are controlled
by mineralogical factors rather than grain size. 24
 1.5 Clay Minerals
 Minerals are crystalline materials and make up the solid
constituent of a soil. Minerals are classified according to
chemical composition and structure.
 Most minerals of interest to geotechnical engineering are
composed of oxygen and silicon, two of the most abundant
elements on earth.
 Silicates are a group of minerals with a structural unit called
the silica tetrahedron. A central silica cation is surrounded by
four oxygen anion (negatively charged ions) one at each corner
of the tetrahedron (Fig. 2.2a).
 Silica tetrahedrons combine to form sheets, called silica
sheets, which are thin layers of silica tetrahedrons in which
three oxygen ions are shared between adjacent tetrahedrons
(Fig. 2.2 b). Silicate sheets may contain other structural units
such as alumina sheets. Alumina sheets are formed by
combination of alumina minerals, which consists of aluminum ion
surrounded by six oxygen hydroxyl atoms in an octahedron (Fig.
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2.2 c, d).
 Clay minerals(microscopically)

Figure 1.2: a) Silica tetrahedron b) Silica sheets c) Aluminum

Octahedron d) Alumina sheet 26
The main groups of crystalline minerals
that make up clays are the minerals:
kaolinite, illite, and montmorillonite.

Figure 1.3: Structure of kaolinite, illite and montmorillonite.

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 Clay Minerals
 Kaolinite has a structure that consists of one silica sheet and one
alumina sheet bonded together into a layer about 0.72 nm thick
stacked repeatedly (Fig. 2.3a). The layers are held together by
hydrogen bonds. Kaolinite is common in clays in humid tropical
regions.

 Illite consists of repeated layers of one alumina sheet sandwiched

by two silicate sheets. The layers, each of thickness 0.96 nm, are
held together by potassium ions.

 Montmorillonite has similar structure to illite, but the layers are

held together by weak van der Waals forces and exchangeable
ions. Water can easily enter the bond and separate the layers
resulting in swelling. Montmorillonite is often called a swelling or
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expansive clay.
Thank
you!! 29