Mass haul diagrams

A. Arko-Adjei
Department of Geomatic Engineering
KNUST, Kumasi, Ghana
arkoadjei@hotmail.com

March 2014
Mass haul diagrams

• During the construction of long engineering

projects such as roads, railways, pipelines ,etc, a
considerable amount of earthworks is required to
be brought to site to form embankments and to
be removed from site during the formation of
cuttings.
• Mass haul diagram is used in the planning of these
earth movements in the construction site and the
subsequent cost estimation.
Mass haul diagrams
• This gives the contractor the idea of how much, to
where and to which area to transport the material
in order to optimise resources.
• The distance over which cut balances with fill can
be determined from the Mass haul diagram
• It also help to estimate the quantity of material to
be moved in in which direction the material is to be
moved
• The volume of material to be borrowed or waste
can be determined from the diagram
Definitions and terminology

• During construction the earth brought to form

embankment may come from another section of
the site such as a tip formed from excavated
material otherwise known as spoil heap.
• Any earth brought to the site is said to have been
borrowed.
Definitions and terminology

Borrowed material
• Is the volume of material brought into a section
owing to a deficiency of suitable material or
economic considerations or unsuitability of the
material.
Definitions and terminology

Waste
• The earth excavated to form cuttings may be
deposited in tips at regular intervals along the
project to form spoil heaps for later use in
embankments formation or may be wasted.
• A waste is the volume of material taken from
the section due to excess or unsuitability of the
material
Definitions and terminology
Shrinking and bulking
• Constructions materials often occupy different
volumes after excavation and compaction as
compared to when it was in its natural condition.
• The volume material occupies after compaction
depends on its shrinking or bulking factors
Definitions and terminology
Shrinking and bulking
• Different materials have different shrinking or bulking
factors
• Rocks undergo a bulking and has a bulking factor of
say 1.1
• Clay materials undergo shrinking and have shrinking
factor of say 0.8. (A 100 cubic metres of clay
material may occupy only 80 cubic metres after
compaction - a shrinkage factor of 80/100).
Definitions and terminology
Shrinking and bulking
• Two methods are used to calculate and estimate
volumes
• Amend the calculated volume, knowing the bulking
and shrinkage factors
• Amend the calculated volume of cut by multiplying
them by the factor used
Definitions and terminology
Haul distance
• Is the distance from the point of excavation of the
material to the tipping point.
Definitions and terminology
Average haul distance
• The distance from the centre of gravity of the
cutting or excavation to the centre of gravity of the
tip or filling.
• Note that since neither the excavation nor the tip
has a uniform shape it is better to use the centre of
gravity which will give a better approximation than
any point within the cut of fill.
Definitions and terminology
Free haul distance
• It is that distance, usually given and specified in the
contract over which a charge is levied on only for
volume of earth excavated and not its movement.
• If a tract moves within the free haul distance for an
excavated material during the construction, the cost
involved is not paid. However the cost of excavation
within the free haul distance is paid for.
Definitions and terminology

Free haul volume

• Is that volume of material which is moved
through the free haul distance.

Over haul distance

• Is that distance, in excess of the free haul
distance, over which it may be necessary to
transport material.
Definitions and terminology
Haul
• Is used when calculating the cost involved in the
earth-moving.
• It is the sum of the products of each volume of earth
material and the distance through which it is moved.
• This is equal to the total volume of excavation
multiplied by the average haul distance.
• Mathematically
Haul = vidi =VD
• The unit of haul is stationmetre.
Definitions and terminology
Freehaul
• Is that part of the haul which is contained within the
free haul distance
Definitions and terminology
Overhaul
• Is that part of the haul which remains after the
freehaul has been removed.
• It is equal to the product of the overhaul volume and
the overhaul distance.
Construction of the mass-haul diagrams

• The mass haul diagram is a plot of aggregate

volume of the against chainage.
• The x-axis represents the chainage along the
project from the position of zero chainage.
• The y-axis represents the aggregate volume of
material up to any chainage from the position of
the zero chainage.
 Construction of mass-haul diagram
Longitudinal section

E M
N
D L
C
O
Vertical distance

B Formation level
K
A F
P
G J
I
H
A

chainage

f
e
d g
Aggregated volume

+ c
b
h
a k’
f’ q p
o chainage
i
n
j
- m
k
l
Mass-haul diagram
Construction of mass-haul diagram

• When constructing mass haul diagrams, the

volume of cut is considered positive and the
volume of fill are considered negative.
• In order to facilitate the use of the mass haul
diagram, the vertical and horizontal axes of the
mass haul diagram is drawn at different scales to
exaggerate the diagram.
Construction of mass-haul diagram

• The mass haul diagram considers only earth

moved in a direction longitudinal to the direction
of the centerline of he project and does not take
into accounts any volume of material moved at
right angles to the centerline.
Construction of mass-haul diagram
Procedure
1. Calculate the cross-sectional area at regular intervals
for a given section.
2. Calculate the volume of cut and fill between
consecutive areas
3. Calculate the aggregated algebraic volume along the
site, cut being positive and fill being negative.
Note that the bulking and shrinking factors of the
material under consideration must be applied
before computing the aggregated volume.
Construction of mass-haul diagram

Procedure
4. Plot the longitudinal section along the proposed
center line is plotted, the proposed formation level
being included.
5. The axes of the mass haul diagram are drawn
underneath the longitudinal profile such that
chainage zero of the profile coincides with
chainage zero on the diagram.
6. The points are joined by curves or straight lines to
obtain the finished mass haul diagram.
 Construction of mass-haul diagram

E M
Vertical distance N
D L
C
O
B Formation level
K
A F
P
G J
I
H
A

chainage

f
Aggregated volume e
d g
+ c
b
h
a k’
f’ q p
chainage
o
i
n
j
- m
k
l
Characteristics of mass-haul diagram
Refer to the figure above
• Rising curve indicates cutting as the aggregate
volume is increasing. e.g. a to f.
• Maximum point on the curve agrees with the end
of the cut (f, F) and the minimum indicates the end
of fill.
• Falling curve indicates filling as the aggregate
volume is decreasing - f to k agrees with F to K on
the profile.
Characteristics of mass-haul diagram
Refer to the figure above
• Vertical difference between a maximum point and
the next forward minimum point represents the
volume of embankment in that section. i.e. (ff’ +
k’k) represents the volume of embankment on that
surface.
• The vertical difference between any two points
having no maximum or minimum represent the
volume between the chainage.
Characteristics of mass-haul diagram
• If any horizontal line is drawn cutting the mass haul
curve at any two or more points, such as a, q, p,
with the volume of cut and the volume of fill being
the same, it is known as balancing line.
• When the horizontal balancing line intercepts the
curve, the area above the curve indicates that earth
works must be moved forward to fill (a to q).
• If the curve lies below the horizontal line then the
earth work must be moved backwards to fill (p to
q).
Characteristics of mass-haul diagram
• The length of the balancing line between
intercepting points is the maximum haul distance
in that section. eg. aq and qp represents the
maximum haul distance aq=chainage q- chainage a
and
qp=chainage p - chainage q.
Characteristics of mass-haul diagram
• Q is the maximum haulage point for both forward
and back movement.
• The area contained between the curve and the
balancing line represents the haul in that section
(eg. afqf ’a)
Characteristics of mass-haul diagram
Note:
• Instead of calculating the centers so gravity of
excavations and tips, which can be a difficult task,
the average haul distance in each section can be
easily found by dividing the haul in that section by
the volume in that section
eg: average haul distance = area afgf ’a m3
ff ’ m3
Economics of mass-haul diagram
Cost of free haul
• Any earth moved over a distance not greater than
the free haul distance is cost only on the
excavation of its volume.
Economics of mass-haul diagram
Cost of overhaul
• Any earth moved over distances greater than the
free haul distance is charged both for its volume
and for the distance in excess of the free haul
distance over which it is moved. This charge can
be specified either for units of haul (i.e.
staionmetrer (m3 m) or for units of volume.
Economics of mass-haul diagram
Cost of waste
• Any surplus or unsuitable material which must be
removed from the site and deposited in a tip is
usually charged on units of its volume. This charge
may vary from one section of the site to another
depending on the nearness of tips.
Economics of mass-haul diagram
Cost of borrow
• Any extra material which must be brought on the
site to make up a deficiency is also usually charged
on units of volume. This charge may also vary from
one section of the site to another, depending on
the nearness of borrow pit or spoil heaps.
 Economics of mass-haul diagram

• If l is the overhaul distance, B the cost of overhaul

per m3 and e be the cost of excavation
• To move 1 m3 from cut to fill the cost
C1= e + l * B
• The cost to cut, waste of material, borrow and tip
C2 = 2e are economically the same
Thus 2e = e + l * B ………..(1)
 l = e/B, l is the limit of economic haul
Economics of mass-haul diagram
• If the distance travelled to fill is greater than l,
then it is not economical to borrow the
material
• The cost in wasting contains environmental
degradation quantity Ev in it as a result of
borrowing and wasting. From the formula in (1)
above
2e + Ev = e + l *B
l = e + Ev,
B
Uses of mass-haul diagram
Design
• Several formation levels are tried and a mass
haul diagram constructed for each. That
formation which gives the most economical
results and maintains the stimulated standards
(ie. Gradients restrictions in curve design, can be
used.
Uses of mass-haul diagram
Financing
• Mass haul diagram is used to indicate the most
economical method of moving earthworks
around the project and gives a good estimation
of overall cost in moving the earth material.
Uses of mass-haul diagram

Construction
• It helps in selecting the suitable plant and
machinery before construction starts.
Uses of mass-haul diagram

In planning ahead
• Mass haul diagrams can be used to indicate the
effect that other engineering works within the
overall project area will have on earth moving.