SPT Iva

AICTE Programme, IITM– 22 September 2012
Practice of SPT– Anirudhan I.V. , Geotechnical Solutions, anirudhen@eth.net

1
PRACTICE OF SPT
ANIRUDHAN I V
anirudhen@eth.net
Geotechnical Solutions, Chennai
2
PENETROMETERS From 1840s

for measuring shear strength and other properties
STATIC PENETROMETERS
Correlate Penetration of a Cone or a Rod under static load
(Pocket penetrometer, SCPT, CPTU, eCPT, etc.)
DYNAMIC PENETROMETERS
Correlate Penetration of a Cone or a Rod or a Tube under
dynamic load such as hammer blows
(DCPT, DPT, SPT, LCPT, etc.)
SEMI DYNAMIC PENETROMETERS

Correlate Penetration of a falling Cone for measuring
liquid limit, plastic limit, Setting time of concrete/cement
6
CBR
Gradually loaded to failure or large
displacement.
Punching shear and usually no
CBR rebound
Generates load –displacement curve
Applicable at surface
7
Gradually, under constant rate

of penetration, plunges into the
soil by shearing
SCPT Measures limiting load when

penetrates into the soil
(No Sampling)
Applicable for reasonable depth with
the help of a pushing system
8
FOOTING All these tests measure the

PLT shearing load and is to be
CBR interpreted for
SCPT angle of friction φ or
undrained shear strength cu
(some time for modulus of subgrade)
Loading of penetrometer and

actual loading of a foundation
are normally static
9
NEW STATIC PENETROMETERS
Measures undrained shear resistance

CPT (U) Measures pore pressure
eCPT Measures dissipation of pore pressure
PIEZOCONE
More advanced methods to interpret
the data that helps classifying the soil
without extracting a sample
Can not be performed in very dense

soil
10
DCPT SPT FALLING CONE
Driven by a known Governed by self

energy, measures weight of the cone
penetration under this
dynamic load
11
Driving depth depends on

the density / type of
formation
Usually possible to a
depth of 8 to 10 meters.
No sampling
DCPT
Counts number of blows of

certain energy for certain
penetration
12
Conducted at the bottom

of a borehole.
Can be perfromed to large
depths
Sampling possible
SPT
Counts number of blows of

certain energy for certain
penetration
13
Useful for very soft

material
Requires heavy mass if
used in stiffer soil
Surface application
FALLING CONE
Measure penetration v/s

falling height and the mass
14
DCPT
SPT
FALLING CONE
Empirical correlations with density /
undrained shear strength
Test load is dynamic, while actual
loading of the foundation is static
15
SPT BY TERZAGHI & PECK
Terzaghi and Peck (1967) [4]

OD 2” (50mm)
ID 7/8” (34.9mm)
140 lb (63.5kg) falling 30 in (76.2cm)
Used winch drum and cathead to lift and drop the hammer
Number of blows required to penetrate the sampler for
one foot (305mm) was designated as ‘N’.
The input driving energy at the anvil is roughly 60% and
SPT N is subsequently taken as N60
16
SPT BY TERZAGHI & PECK
Developed charts for relative density.

Charts for undained shear strength of cohesive soil.
Ready charts for allowable bearing pressure of strip
footings on sand.
17
STATIC & DYNAMIC

BETWEEN SPT AND SCPT
Cone resistance qc in sand in terms of SPT ‘N’
For fine to medium sand qc = 3 to 5 N kg/cm2
This means, to measure qc of a sand with SPT ‘N’
equal to 25, one needs 1250 kg (10cm2 cone).
Further energy is required to take the cone to a

deeper level.
Whereas, SPT N = 24 can be determined using a

hammer of 63.5kg.
18
POPULARITY OF SPT
Readymade charts for density and angle of friction.

Readymade charts for undrained shear strength.
Readymade charts for net allowable bearing pressure
for strip footing.
Samples from different levels can be obtained.
Using boring tool, SPT can be performed to large
depths.
Energy required to conduct the test is small.
19
WORLD WIDE USE OF SPT
Country Argentina Brazil Germany

Sampler OD 5.02cm, OD 4.13 to 5.08 cm, OD 5.08cm,
ID 3.9 cm ID 2.54 to 3.48cm ID 3.48 cm
Inside clear 67 cm 46 cm to 62 cm 66.6 cm

length
Hammer 70 kg falling 70 cm 60 to 65 kg 63.5 kg
falling 75 cm falling 76.2 cm
Rod required 1.1/4” (31.8mm) 1” (25.4mm)
Seating drive 15 cm 15 cm to 30 cm 15 cm
20
WORLD WIDE USE OF SPT

INDIA
Researcher/ Terzaghi and Peck IS 9640 and IS
authority (1967) [4] 2131 [5]
Sampler OD 2” (50mm) OD 50.8±0.2 mm

ID 7/8” (34.9mm) ID 38mm
Hammer 140 lb (63.5kg) 63.5kg falling

falling 30 in 75 cm
(76.2cm)
21
SPT ‘N’
SPT ‘N’ was taken as the number of blows for
penetrating the sampler for 1 foot after a seating drive
of half foot, when driven by 140 lbs hammer falling
from 30 inches. Winch and cathead system was used
for lifting and dropping the hammer.
However, with varying parameters for the test set ups

used in different countries, including the procedure of
lifting and dropping the hammer, the designation ‘N’
remains.
Thus ‘N’ differs for different sets of people

22
PROCEDURE OF SPT IN INDIA (IS 2131)
1. Prepare a clean boreholes up to desired depth without

disturbing the soil within the test zone.
2. Lower the sampler using a string of standard rods.
3. Fix an anvil at the top of the rods.
4. Making a marking on the sounding rod coinciding with the
working level. Provide 3 markings at 15cm interval above the
working level.
5. Lift and drop the SPT hammer of 63.5kg for a height of 75cm
using winch and cathead.
6. Record the number of blows for every 15 cm penetration.
7. Report SPT ‘N’ as the total number of blows for penetrating
the sampler for 30cm discarding the first 15cm penetration.
23
PROCEDURES FOR BOREHOLE
Several methods are used in India

1. Hand auger for medium depths (mixing, loosening)
2. Power auger for deeper levels(mixing, loosening)
3. Rotary wash boring (disturbance)
4. Rotary boring with mud circulation (better method)
5. Percussion drilling(disturbance)
6. Bailer and chisel method (disturbance)
24
RECOMMENDED
PROCEDURE
FOR BORING
Rotary drilling with mud

circulation through side
jets. Rotary action is
used for cutting the soil,
while mud is used for
stabilizing the borehole
sides and to bring the
soil cuts to the surface.
25
RECOMMENDED
PROCEDURE
FOR BORING
26
RECOMMENDED
PROCEDURE
FOR BORING
It is significantly important to

provide a
TEST ZONE that is not
disturbed by boring operations
27
HYDRAULIC BALANCE
Water in borehole Water in borehole
Ground water
Hydraulic difference
 X Disturbance due
Disturbed soil to hydrostatic
imbalance
Undisturbed soil SPT 300mm penetration

28
SPT SAMPLER
BALL CHECK VALVE
IN THE HEAD PORTION
TIP HEAD
SPLIT HALVES
29
SOUNDING RODS
& SPT HAMMER
63.5kg
75cm
2
30
CONDUCTING SPT
3
31
Pull and drop Pull and drop Pull by

by four or by mechanical winch but
five persons winch drop by
magnet
release
63.5 Hammer
750mm 750mm 750mm
Anvil
32
Pull and drop by

four or five
persons
1. Difficulty in synchronizing the
actions of people
2. Difficulty in maintaining the
height
3. Difficulty in maintaining a
uniform speed
4. Friction from cathead is avoided
63.5 Hammer 5. Resulting N is usually more than
750mm N60
Anvil
33
Pull and drop

by mechanical
winch
1. Uniform energy
(for a given set up)
2. Easy to maintain the height
3. Easy to maintain uniform speed
4. Friction from cathead
5. Resulting N is usually close toN60
750mm
34
Pull and drop

by mechanical
winch
Engaging
Transmission
750mm Power
35
Pull by winch
but drop by
magnet release
1. Uniform energy
(for a given set up)
2. Easy to maintain the height
3. Easy to maintain uniform speed
4. No friction from cathead
5. Resulting N is usually close to N80
750mm
36
ENERGY LOSS DURING SPT

Friction from the pulley, winch, inertia from change
of direction
Interference of hammer sling with guide rod
Friction along the guide rod – hammer interface
Striking on a disfigured anvil
At the couplings of sounding rods
By buckling of the sounding rods
Loss in water /mud in the sampler (defunct ball valve)
These losses are different for different systems

and different at different times
37
RECORDING OF PENETRATION DATA
63.5kg
4th 15cm 75cm
3rd 15cm
2nd 15cm
1st 15cm
38

Depth 0-15 cm 15-30 cm 30-45 cm 45-60 cm N
3.00m 2 3 6 8 9
3.00m 3 4 7 9 11
3.00m 5 7 9 11 16
15.00m 35 45 58 103
15.00m 52 >100
15.00m 20 28 58 86
0-15 cm – considered as seating drive – disturbance during boring
The subsequent records depend on the actual disturbance.
The disturbance can be significantly varying
39

Blow counts for 15cm penetrations
and N Remarks
Case 1 st 2nd 3rd 4th N
1 5 7 9 16
2 5 7 9 12 16 Additional 15cm confirms consistency of the blow counts and
provides more sample
3 5 7 22 26 29 Sudden increase in blow counts in the 3rd penetration suggests
possible change in strata OR a defect in boring
4 9 12 2 3 14 Sudden decrease in blow counts in the 3rd penetration suggests

possible change in strata that confirmed by the 4th 15cm penetration
5 Penetrates under 63.5kg Zero Indicates very soft or loose soil

6 12 32 56 86
7 12 32 68/10cm >100 Test terminated as penetration is less than 30cm for 100blows
8 22 46 54/4cm >100 -do-
9 34 50/14cm >100 Test terminated as penetration is less than 2nd 15cm for 50 blows,
SPT N is taken as >100
10 50/10cm Test terminated as penetration is less than 1st 15cm for 50 blows,
taken as N >>100
11 25/2cm Test terminated as the sampler rebounded under hammer blow,
Taken as SPT refusal or rebound
40
SEATING DRIVE AND SPT ‘N’
Disturbed zone
Seating drive 7 12 6
15 to 30cm 12 18 6
30 to 45cm 15 20 13
SPT N 27 38 19
41
FREQUENCY OF TESTING
IS suggests 1.50m minimum

BS suggests 1.00m minimum
At every 0.75m at least up to 5.0m is beneficial-
Advantage is more data and less chance of
missing thin layers
Can be increased to 1.0m to 1.5m thereafter
42
SAMPLING
43
SPT IN WEATHERED ROCK
SPT blow count 50 blows /12cm

44

45
Same with fines washed off

46
CORRECTIONS FOR SPT

OVERBURDEN CORRECTION
Increase in the confining pressure towards depth offer more

resisting capacity for the soil, especially sand.
Thus soil (sand) having same shear strength (density), but
at different levels, offers different resistance.
SPT ‘N’ is influenced by this varying resistance.
It is hence recommended to normalise the SPT ‘N’

corresponding to an effective overburden of 1 bar by
applying ‘overburden correction’.
This correction is usually independent of the density.

47
CORRECTIONS FOR SPT

DILATANCY CORRECTION (WATER TABLE)
Dense and clean silty fine sand produces negative pore

pressure when the sampler is penetrated under continuous
application of hammer blow. This increases the resistance
resulting more number of blows and thus a higher ‘N’.
Arbitrarily, SPT N ≥15 is selected as indication of dense
condition. The N values larger than 15 are reduced by the
correction,
Corrected N = 15 + (N-15)÷2
48
CORRECTIONS FOR SPT

DILATANCY CORRECTION (WATER TABLE)
Terzaghi recommended this correction and hence it should
have been on N55 to N60.
When SPT is conducted using a trip hammer that produces

N80 or N90, there is a need to convert the N to N60 to see
whether the condition for correction is fulfilling.
Similarly when SPT is done in a soil having same density,

but at different depths, different N60 are produced. Hence,
N60 shall be normalised for overburden before applying
water table correction
49
CORRECTIONS FOR SPT

COMMON MISTAKES
Overburden correction is done for N in all types of soils.
Undrained shear strength of clay is not greatly influenced by
confining pressure and such correction is not justifiable for clay.
Dilatancy correction is done for fine to medium or clean fine sand

also. Only the SPT N in silty fine sand that has relatively lower
permeability may be corrected for dilatancy.
Correction for dilatancy is done before overburden correction.

50
USE OF SPT ‘N’ IN DESIGN

THE MOST COMMON
MISTAKES
This chart appearing in IS 8009 Part 1

is meant for preliminary determination
of allowable bearing pressure of a strip
footing supported by dry sand.
However, this chart is being used for

for all types of soil and foundations.
51
USE OF SPT ‘N’ IN DESIGN

THE MOST COMMON
MISTAKES
Use of same chart for determining φ for

Silty sand, Fine sand, Fine to medium sand,
Coarse sand, Gravelly sand, etc.
52
PROVISIONS IN IS 2131
Clause 2.3.1 mentions the use of winch and rope for conducting
SPT. However, it does not strictly enforce this.
Allowing other procedures, but not suggesting the differences is

a serious laps in IS 2131. This is because of the fact that the
only varying factor in SPT shall be the number of blows for 30
cm penetration.
53
Clause 3.1 suggests that driving casing leads to densification of

soil within the test zone.
In one of the clauses the code recommends the use of heavier

hammer for driving the casing, and in another it is recommended
to rotate the casing for lowering to the desired level.
When driving of casing densify the soil within test zone, it shall
not be allowed.
54
IS recommends corrections to SPT N for overburden and

dilatancy.
Some investigators report corrected N values in the logs leading

to confusion.
Code does not provide a guide for reporting the data. Because
of this, some report only the N value and not the detailed blow
counts.
55
Often, the sampler brings two or more types of sample

suggesting layer changes within the test zone. However, the
code does not insists on packing these samples separately.
56
CONCLUDING REMARKS
Standard Penetration test procedure followed in

different sites in India differs significantly and produces
non-reproducible SPT N values.
The procedure for preparing the borehole, the size and

shape of SPT hammers, the procedure of lifting and
dropping of the hammer, etc. differ from site to site.
There is no method for measuring the energy imparted

at the anvil of the striking system.
57
CONCLUDING REMARKS
In spite of all these deficiencies, SPT is the only field

test carried out in most of the soil investigation sites in
India.
The IS 2131 has misleading clauses that leads to

inappropriate procedures in the field. (use of
percussion drilling, use of cased boreholes, etc.)
Often the field procedures are faulty partly because of

ignorance and partly because of do not care attitude of
the crew at site.
58
THANK YOU
ANIRUDHAN I V
anirudhen@eth.net
Geotechnical Solutions, Chennai

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AICTE Programme, IITM– 22 September 2012

Practice of SPT– Anirudhan I.V. , Geotechnical Solutions, anirudhen@eth.net

PENETROMETERS From 1840s

SEMI DYNAMIC PENETROMETERS

Generates load –displacement curve

Gradually, under constant rate

SCPT Measures limiting load when

FOOTING All these tests measure the

Loading of penetrometer and

NEW STATIC PENETROMETERS

Measures undrained shear resistance

Can not be performed in very dense

DCPT SPT FALLING CONE

Driven by a known Governed by self

Driving depth depends on

Counts number of blows of

Conducted at the bottom

Counts number of blows of

Useful for very soft

Measure penetration v/s

Terzaghi and Peck (1967) [4]

Developed charts for relative density.

STATIC & DYNAMIC

Further energy is required to take the cone to a

Whereas, SPT N = 24 can be determined using a

Readymade charts for density and angle of friction.

WORLD WIDE USE OF SPT

Country Argentina Brazil Germany

Inside clear 67 cm 46 cm to 62 cm 66.6 cm

WORLD WIDE USE OF SPT

Sampler OD 2” (50mm) OD 50.8±0.2 mm

Hammer 140 lb (63.5kg) 63.5kg falling

However, with varying parameters for the test set ups

Thus ‘N’ differs for different sets of people

PROCEDURE OF SPT IN INDIA (IS 2131)

1. Prepare a clean boreholes up to desired depth without

PROCEDURES FOR BOREHOLE

Several methods are used in India

Rotary drilling with mud

It is significantly important to

Undisturbed soil SPT 300mm penetration

Pull and drop Pull and drop Pull by

Pull and drop by

Pull and drop

Pull and drop

ENERGY LOSS DURING SPT

Striking on a disfigured anvil

At the couplings of sounding rods

By buckling of the sounding rods

Loss in water /mud in the sampler (defunct ball valve)

These losses are different for different systems

RECORDING OF PENETRATION DATA

4th 15cm 75cm

RECORDING OF PENETRATION DATA

RECORDING OF PENETRATION DATA

4 9 12 2 3 14 Sudden decrease in blow counts in the 3rd penetration suggests

5 Penetrates under 63.5kg Zero Indicates very soft or loose soil

SEATING DRIVE AND SPT ‘N’

IS suggests 1.50m minimum

SPT IN WEATHERED ROCK

SPT blow count 50 blows /12cm

SPT IN WEATHERED ROCK