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HOLT'Z ., KOVACS • SIHEAHAN
-
A.n,Introduction, ·to
GEOTECHNICAL
ENGINEERING
AN INTRODUCTION TO
GEOTECHNICAL ENGINEERING
Third Edition
Robert D. Holtz, Ph.D., P.E., D.GE

University of Washington
William D. Kovacs, Ph.D., P.E., D.GE

University of Rhode Island
Thomas C. Sheahan, Sc.D., P.E.

Northeastern University
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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Holtz, R. D. (Robert D.), author. I Kovacs, William D., author. I

Sheahan, Thomas C., author.
Title: An introduction to geotechnical engineering/ Robert D. Holtz,
Ph.D., P.E., D.GE, University of Washington, William D. Kovacs, Ph.D.,
P.E., D.GE, University of Rhode Island, Thomas C. Sheahan, Sc.D., P.E.,
Northeastern University.
Description: Third edition. I Hoboken, NJ: Pearson Education, Inc., [2023]
I Includes bibliographical references and index.
Identifiers: LCCN 2022011439 I ISBN 9780137604388
Subjects: LCSH: Soil mechanics-Textbooks. I Rock mechanics-Textbooks. I
Geotechnical engineering-Textbooks.
Classification: LCC TA710 .H564 2023 I DDC 624.1/5136-dc23/eng/20220316
LC record available at https://lccn.Ioc.gov/2022011439
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ISBN-10: 0-13-760438-6
ISBN-13: 978-0-13-760438-8
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Contents
Preface xiii
Chapter 1 Introduction to Geotechnical Engineering 1
1.1 Geotechnical Engineering 1
1.2 The Unique Nature of Soil and Rock Materials 3
1.3 Scope of This Book 4
1.4 Historical Development of Geotechnical Engineering 5
1.5 Suggested Approach to the Study of Geotechnical ENgineering 6
1.6 Notes on Symbols, Units, and Standards 6
1.7 Some Comments on How to Study in General 7
Suggested Activities 8 • References 8
Chapter 2 Index and Classification Properties of Soils 9
2.1 Introduction 9
2.2 Basic Definitions and Phase Relations for Soils 9
2.2.1 Solution of Phase Problems 14
2.2.2 Submerged or Buoyant Density and Unit Weight 22
2.2.3 Specific Gravity 25
2.3 Soil Texture 27
2.4 Grain Size and Grain Size Distribution 28
2.5 Particle Shape 34
2.6 Atterberg Limits 35
2.6.1 One-Point Liquid Limit Test 40
2.6.2 Additional Comments on the Atterberg Limits 41
2.7 Introduction to Soil Classification 43
2.8 Unified Soil Classification System (USCS) 44
2.8.1 Visual-Manual Classification of Soils 51
2.8.2 Limitations of the USCS 54
2.9 AASHTO Soil Classification System 55
Problems 55 • References 62
Chapter 3 Geology, Landforms, and the Evolution of Geomaterials 64
3.1 Importance of Geology to Geotechnical Engineering 64
3.1.1 Geology 64
3.1.2 Geomorphology 65
3.1.3 Engineering Geology 65
3.2 The Earth, Minerals, Rocks, and Rock Structure 66
3.2.1 The Earth 66
3.2.2 Minerals 66
3.2.3 Rocks 67
3.2.4 Rock Structure 68
V
vi Contents
3.3 Geologic Processes and Landforms 71

3.3.1 Geologic Processes and the Origin of Earthen Materials 71
3.3.2 Weathering 71
3.3.3 Gravity Processes 77
3.3.4 Surface-Water Processes 80
3.3.5 Ice Processes and Glaciation 93
3.3.6 Wind Processes 104
3.3.7 Volcanic Processes 106
3.3.8 Grounc.lwaler Processes 108
3.3.9 Tectonic Processes 109
3.3.10 Plutonic Processes 111
3.4 Anthropogenic Geology 112
3.5 Properties, Macrostructure, and Classification of Rock Masses 113
3.5.1 Properties of Rock Masses 113
3.5.2 Discontinuities in Rock 113
3.5.3 Rock Mass Classification Systems 115
3.6 Products of Weathering 120
3.7 Clay Minerals 120
3.7.1 The 1:1 Clay Minerals 122
3.7.2 The 2:1 Clay Minerals 124
3.7.3 Other Clay Minerals 127
3.8 Specific Surface 128
3.9 Interaction Between Water and Clay Minerals 128
3.9.1 Hydration of Clay Minerals and the Diffuse Double Layer 129
3.9.2 Exchangeable Cations and Cation Exchange Capacity (CEC) 131
3.10 Soil Structure and Fabric of Fine-Grained Soils 132
3.11 Granular Soil Fabrics 135
Chapter 4 Compaction and Stabilization of Soils 146
4.1 Introduction 146
4.2 Compaction and Densification 147
4.3 Theory of Compaction 147
4.3.1 Process of Compaction 150
4.3.2 Typical Values; Degree of Saturation 152
4.3.3 Effect of Soil Type and Method of Compaction 153
4.4 Structure of Compacted Fine-Grained Soils 155
4.5 Compaction of Granular Soils 156
4.5.1 Relative or Index Density 156
4.5.2 Densification of Granular Deposits 157
4.5.3 Rock Fills 160
4.6 Field Compaction Equipment and Procedures 161
4.6.1 Compaction of Fine-Grained Soils 161
4.6.2 Compaction of Granular Materials 165
4.6.3 Compaction Equipment Summary 168
4.6.4 Compaction of Rockfill 168
Contents vii
4.7 Specifications and Compaction Control 169

4.7.1 Specifications 170
4.7.2 Compaction Control Tests 171
4.7.3 Problems with Compaction Control Tests 176
4.7.4 Most Efficient Compaction 180
4.7.5 Overcompaction 181
4.7.6 Rock Fill QA/QC 182
4.8 Estimating Performance of Compacted Soils 183
Chapter 5 Hydrostatic Water in Soils and Rocks 193
5.2 Capillarity 193
5.2.1 Capillary Rise and Capillary Pressures in Soils 198
5.2.2 Measurement of Capillarity; Soil-Water Characteristic Curve 202
5.2.3 Other Capillary Phenomena 202
5.3 Groundwater Table and the Vadose Zone 205
5.3.1 Definition 205
5.3.2 Field Determination 205
5.4 Shrinkage Phenomena in Soils 208
5.4.1 Capillary Tube Analogy 208
5.4.2 Shrinkage Limit Test 209
5.4.3 Shrinkage Properties of Compacted Clays 211
5.5 Expansive Soils and Rocks 213
5.5.1 Physical-Chemical Aspects 215
5.5.2 Identification and Prediction 215
5.5.3 Expansive Properties of Compacted Clays 218
5.5.4 Swelling Rocks 218
5.6 Engineering Significance of Shrinkage and Swelling 222
5.7 Collapsible Soils and Subsidence 223
5.8 Frost Action 225
5.8.1 Terminology, Conditions, and Mechanisms of Frost Action 226
5.8.2 Prediction and Identification of Frost-Susceptible Soils 230
5.9 Intergranular or Effective Stress 233
5.10 Vertical Stress Profiles 238
5.11 Relationship Between Horizontal and Vertical Stresses 241
Chapter 6 Fluid Flow in Soils and Rock 249
6.2 Fundamentals of Fluid Flow 249
6.3 Darcy's Law for Flow Through Porous Media 251
6.4 Measurement of Permeability or Hydraulic Conductivity 254
6.4.1 Laboratory and Field Hydraulic Conductivity Tests 257
6.4.2 Factors Affecting Laboratory and Field Determination of k 257
6.4.3 Empirical Relationships and Typical Values of k 258
6.5 Heads and One-Dimensional Flow 262
viii Contents
6.6 Seepage Forces, Quicksand, and Liquefaction 271

6.6.1 Seepage Forces, Critical Gradient, and Quicksand 271
6.6.2 Quicksand Tank 278
6.6.3 Liquefaction 281
6.7 Seepage and Flow Nets: Two-Dimensional Flow 281
6.7.1 Flow Nets 284
6.7.2 Quantity of Flow, Uplift Pressures, and Exit Gradients 289
6.7.3 Other Solutions to Seepage Problems 293
6.8 Seepage Toward Wells 294
6.9 Seepage Through Dams and Embankments 298
6.10 Control of Seepage and Filters 300
6.10.1 Basic Filtration Principles 301
6.10.2 Design of Graded Granular Filters 302
6.10.3 Geotextile Filter Design Concepts 304
6.10.4 FHWA Filter Design Procedure 305
Chapter 7 Compressibility and Consolidation of Soils 318
7.2 Components of Settlement 319
7.3 Compressibility of Soils 320
7.4 One-Dimensional Consolidation Testing 322
7.5 Preconsolidation Pressure and Stress History 325
7.5.1 Normal Consolidation, Overconsolidation, and Preconsolidation Pressure 325
7.5.2 Determining the Preconsolidation Pressure 326
7.5.3 Stress History and Preconsolidation Pressure 327
7.6 Consolidation Behavior of Natural and Compacted Soils 329
7.7 Settlement Calculations 329
7.7.1 Consolidation Settlement of Normally Consolidated Soils 338
7.7.2 Consolidation Settlement of Overconsolidated Soils 340
7.7.3 Determining C, and C, 0 342
7.8 Factors Affecting the Determination of O'~ 344
7.9 Prediction of Field Consolidation Curves 346
7.10 Approximate Methods and Typical Values of Compression Indices 351
7.11 Compressibility of Rock and Transitional Materials 353
7.12 Introduction to Consolidation 353
7.13 The Consolidation Process 354
7.14 Terzaghi's One-Dimensional Consolidation 1l1eory 355
7.15 Classic Solution for the Terzaghi Consolidation Equation 357
7.16 Determination of the Coefficient of Consolidation cv 368
7.16.1 Casagrande's Logarithm of Time Fitting Method 368
7.16.2 Taylor's Square Root of Time Fitting Method 372
7.17 Determination of the Coefficient of Permeability 374
7.18 Typical Values of the Coefficient of Consolidation cv 375
7.19 In Situ Determination of Consolidation Properties 376
7.20 Evaluation of Secondary Settlement 376
Contents ix
Chapter 8 Stresses, Failure, and Strength Testing of Soil and Rock 397
8.2 Stress at a Point 397
8.3 Stress-Strain Relationships and Failure Criteria 405
8.4 The Mohr-Coulomb Failure Criterion 407
8.4.1 Mohr Failure Theory 407
8.4.2 Mohr-Coulomb Failure Criterion 409
8.4.3 Obliquity Relationships 411
8.4.4 Failure Criteria for Rock 413
8.5 Stress Paths 414
8.6 Laboratory Tests for the Shear Strength of Soils and Rocks 420
8.6.1 Direct Shear Test 420
8.6.2 Triaxial Test 424
8.6.3 Special Laboratory Soils Tests 427
8.6.4 Laboratory Tests for Rock Strength 429
8.7 In Situ Tests for the Shear Strength of Soils and Rocks 430
8.7.1 In Situ Tests for Shear Strength of Soils 431
8.7.2 Field Tests for Modulus and Strength of Rocks 437
Chapter 9 An Introduction to Shear Strength of Soils and Rock 445
9.2 Angle of Repose of Sands 446
9.3 Behavior of Saturated Sands During Drained Shear 447
9.4 Effect of Void Ratio and Confining Pressure on Volume Change 449
9.5 Factors That Affect the Shear Strength of Sands 457
9.6 Shear Strength of Sands Using In Situ Tests 462
9.6.1 SPT 462
9.6.2 CPT 463
9.6.3 DMT 464
9.7 The Coefficient of Earth Pressure at Rest for Sands 464
9.8 Behavior of Saturated Cohesive Soils During Shear 467
9.9 Consolidated-Drained Stress-Deformation and Strength Characteristics 468
9.9.1 Consolidated-Drained (CD) Test Behavior 468
9.9.2 Typical Values of Drained Strength Parameters for Saturated Cohesive Soils 472
9.9.3 Use of CD Strength in Engineering Practice 472
9.10 Consolidated-Undrained Stress-Deformation and Strength Characteristics 474
9.10.1 Consolidated-Undrained (CU) Test Behavior 474
9.10.2 Typical Values of the Undrained Strength Parameters 479
9.10.3 Use of CU Strength in Engineering Practice 480
9.11 Unconsolidated-Undrained Stress-Deformation and Strength Characteristics 482
9.11.1 Unconsolidated-Undrained (UU) Test Behavior 482
9.11.2 Unconfined Compression Test 485
9.11.3 Typical Values of UU and UCC Strengths 488
9.11.4 Other Ways to Determine the Undrained Shear Strength 489
9.11.5 Use of UU Strength in Engineering Practice 491
x Contents
9.12 Sensitivity 494

9.13 The Coefficient of Earth Pressure at Rest for Clays 495
9.14 Strength of Compacted Clays 499
9.15 Strength of Rocks and Transitional Materials 503
Chapter 10 Shallow Foundations 512
10.1 Introduction to Foundations 512
10.2 Methodologies for Foundation Design 513
10.3 Introduction to Bearing Capacity 514
10.3.1 Bearing Capacity Failure Types 515
10.3.2 Terzaghi's General Bearing Capacity Theory 516
10.3.3 Modifications to the Basic Bearing Capacity Equation 517
10.4 Calculating Bearing Capacity for Different Loading Conditions 521
10.5 Bearing Capacity in Sands-The Drained Case 522
10.5.1 Determination of Input Parameters for Foundations on Sands 523
10.5.2 Effect of Water Table on Bearing Capacity of Shallow Foundations on Sand 525
10.6 Bearing Capacity in Clays 532
10.6.1 Bearing Capacity in Clays-The Drained Case 532
10.6.2 Bearing Capacity in Clays-The Undrained Case 535
10.7 Bearing Capacity in Layered Soils 536
10.7.1 Stiff Clay Layer over Soft Clay 537
10.7.2 Sand Layer over Clay 538
10.8 Determination of Allowing Bearing Capacity in Practice 539
10.9 Shallow Foundation Settlement 540
10.9.1 Introduction to Shallow Foundation Settlement 540
10.9.2 Components of Geotechnical Settlement 541
10.9.3 Stress Distribution Under Foundation 542
10.10 Immediate Settlement Based on Elastic Theory 551
10.11 Settlement of Shallow Foundations on Sand 554
10.11.1 Settlement in Sand Based on Standard Penetration Test 555
10.11.2 Settlements in Sand from Schmertmann Strain Influence Factor Method 557
10.11.3 Direct Estimate of Settlement Using CPT 560
10.12 Settlement of Shallow Foundations on Clay 560
10.13 Combined Foundations 564
10.13.1 Combined Footings 565
10.13.2 Mat Foundations 566
Chapter 11 Lateral Earth Pressures and Earth Retaining Structures 583
11.1 Introduction to Lateral Earth Pressures 583
11.2 Lateral Earth Pressure at Rest and Idealized Retaining Wall 584
11.3 Rankine Active Earth Pressure 588
11.3.1 Rankine Active State for Sands 590
11.3.2 Rankine Active Earth Pressure for Inclined Backfill 593
11.3.3 Rankine Active Earth Pressure for Clays 596
11.4 Coulomb Active Earth Pressure 602
Contents xi
11.5 Rankine Passive Earth Pressure 608

11.5.1 Rankine Passive Case for Sands 608
11.5.2 Rankine Passive Case for Clays-Drained Case 612
11.5.3 Rankine Passive Case for Clays-Undrained Case 613
11.5.4 Rankine Passive for Inclined Backfill 613
11.6 Retaining Wall Design 615
11.6.1 Introduction to Retaining Wall Design 615
11.6.2 Initial Proportioning of Retaining Walls 616
11.6.3 Provisions for Drainage Behind Retaining Walls 617
11.6.4 Applying Lateral Earth Pressure Theories to Wall Design and Analysis 619
11.6.5 Retaining Wall Stability Analysis Checks 620
Chapter 12 Deep Foundations 640
12.1 Introduction to Deep Foundations 640
12.2 Types of Deep Foundations and Installation Methods 641
12.2.1 Driven Pile Foundations 642
12.2.2 Vibratory-Installed Pile Foundations 646
12.2.3 Jacked Pile Foundations 646
12.2.4 Rapid Impact Piles 647
12.2.5 Jetted Piles 647
12.2.6 Screw Piles 647
12.2.7 Bored Piles 647
12.3 Determination of Pile Load Capacity and Settlement 653
12.3.1 End Bearing Resistance of Deep Foundations 654
12.3.2 Side Resistance of Deep Foundations 658
12.3.3 Deep Foundation Group Behavior 671
12.3.4 Bearing Capacity of Piles in Rock 674
12.3.5 Settlement of Piles 675
12.4 Piles Loaded in Tension and Laterally 678
12.4.1 Bearing Capacity of Piles Loaded in Tension 678
12.4.2 Laterally Loaded Piles- Ultimate Load Analysis 682
12.4.3 Laterally Loaded Piles-Deflection Analysis 685
12.5 Additional Topics in Deep Foundations 691
12.5.1 Negative Pile Side Friction 691
12.5.2 Pile Capacity Verification 692
Chapter 13 Advanced Topics in Shear Strength of Soils and Rocks 704
13.2 Stress Paths for Shear Strength Testing 704
13.3 Pore Pressure Parameters 710
13.3.1 Introduction to Pore Pressure Parameters 710
13.3.2 Pore Pressure Parameters for Different Stress Paths 713
13.4 Stress Paths During Undrained Loading-Normally and Lightly Overconsolidated Clays 714
13.5 Stress Paths During Undrained Loading-Heavily Overconsolidated Clays 724
13.6 Applications of Stress Paths to Engineering Practice 727
xii Contents
13.7 Critical State Soil Mechanics 732

13.8 Modulus and Constitutive Models for Soils 743
13.8.1 Modulus of Soils 743
13.8.2 Constitutive Relations 748
13.8.3 Soil Constitutive Modeling 749
13.8.4 Failure Criteria for Soils 750
13.8.5 Classes of Constitutive Models for Soils 752
13.8.6 The Hyperbolic (Duncan-Chang) Model 753
13.9 Fumlamenlal Basis of LheDrained Slrenglh of Sands 755
13.9.1 Basics of Frictional Shear Strength 755
13.9.2 Stress-Dilatancy and Energy Corrections 757
13.9.3 Curvature of the Mohr Failure Envelope 761
13.10 Behavior of Saturated Sands in Undrained Shear 762
13.10.1 Consolidated-Undrained Behavior 762
13.10.2 Using CD Tests to Predict CU Results 766
13.10.3 Unconsolidated-Undrained Behavior 770
13.10.4 Strain-Rate Effects in Sands 773
13.11 Plane Strain Behavior of Sands 773
13.12 Residual Strength of Soils 779
13.12.1 Drained Residual Shear Strength of Clays 779
13.12.2 Residual Shear Strength of Sands 781
13.13 Stress-Deformation and Shear Strength of Clays: Special Topics 782
13.13.1 Definition of Failure in CU Effective Stress Tests 782
13.13.2 Hvorslev Strength Parameters 783
13.13.3 The T 1!a~0 Ratio, Stress History, and Jlirgenson-Rutledge Hypothesis 788
13.13.4 Consolidation Methods to Overcome Sample Disturbance 799
13.13.5 Anisotropy 801
13.13.6 Plane Strain Strength of Clays 805
13.13.7 Strain Rate Effects 806
13.14 Strength of Unsaturated Soils 808
13.14.1 Matric Suction in Unsaturated Soils 808
13.14.2 The Soil-Water Characteristic Curve 810
13.14.3 The Mohr-Coulomb Failure Envelope for Unsaturated Soils 811
13.14.4 Shear Strength Measurement in Unsaturated Soils 812
13.15 Properties of Soils Under Dynamic Loading 814
13.15.1 Stress-Strain Response of Cyclically Loaded Soils 814
13.15.2 Measurement of Dynamic Soil Properties 817
13.15.3 Empirical Estimates of G max, Modulus Reduction, and Damping 820
13.15.4 Strength of Dynamically Loaded Soils 826
13.16 Failure Theories for Rock 827
Index 850
Preface
It has been over a decade since the publication of the second edition of An Introduction to Geotech-
nical Engineering. The impetus for this edition comes from a frequently heard need from faculty and
students for a textbook that covers both the fundamentals of soil mechanics and soil properties, and
also the basics of foundation engineering. As we noted in the preface to the second edition, technical
content in engineering degree programs continues to be reduced, and these three areas of geotechnical
engineering are often covered in a single undergraduate course. However, we continue to believe that
even in such a compressed course, a textbook that is sophisticated and carries appropriate rigor is an
ongoing necessity.
We still believe that there is a need for more detailed and modern coverage of the engineering
properties of geo-materials than is found in most undergraduate texts. This applies to students who
concentrate in geotechnical engineering as well as the general civil engineering undergraduate student.
Our students will be involved in increasingly more complex projects, especially those in transportation,
structural, construction, and environmental engineering. Those projects will increasingly involve envi-
ronmental, economic, and political constraints that will demand innovative solutions to civil engineering
problems. Modern analytical techniques using digital computers have had a revolutionary effect on en-
gineering design practice, allowing multiple what-if design scenarios to be produced and graphically de-
picted. However, the validity of the results from these computational procedures is highly dependent on
the quality of the geotechnical engineering design parameters as well as the geology and site conditions.
This edition is intended for use in either a stand-alone soil mechanics course or, as noted above,
a geotechnical engineering course that includes fundamental foundation engineering, both usually
taught to third- and fourth-year undergraduate civil engineering students. It might also be used in an
introductory graduate school soils mechanics class. We assume the students have a working knowledge
of undergraduate mechanics, especially statics and mechanics of materials, including fluids. In the first
part of the book, we introduce the "language" of geotechnical engineering-that is, the classification
and engineering properties of soils and rocks. Once the student has a working knowledge of the behav-
ior of geo-materials, he/she can begin to predict soil behavior, and then carry out the design of simple
foundations and earth structures.
We have tried to make the text easily readable by the average undergraduate. To this end, An
Introduction to Geotechnical Engineering is written at a rather elementary level, although the material
covered may at times be quite sophisticated and complex.
The emphasis throughout is on the practical, and admittedly empirical, knowledge of soil and
rock behavior required by geotechnical engineers for the design and construction of foundations, em-
bankments, earth retaining structures, and underground works. To strengthen this connection between
the fundamental and applied, we have tried to indicate wherever possible the engineering significance
of the property being discussed, why the property is needed, how it is determined or measured, and, to
some extent, how it is actually used in specific design applications. We illustrate some simple geotech-
nical designs-for example, determining the flow, uplift pressures, and exit gradients in 2-D seepage
problems, and estimating the settlement of shallow foundations on sands and saturated clays.
One thing that has not changed over the years is that units remain a problem with U.S. geo-
technical engineers. While this edition continues to use both the British and Systeme International
(SI) sets of units, we have chosen to abandon seldom used units in the SI system such as megagrams
(Mg), but continue to have examples and problems that use kilograms (kg) and kilonewtons (kN).
We continue to be careful to use the correct definitions of density (mass/unit volume) and unit weight
xiii
xiv Preface
(force or weight/unit volume) in phase relationships as well as in geostatic and hydrostatic pressure
computations.
If you have a laboratory component with your course, we consider this to be an important part of
the student's experience with soils as a unique engineering material. This is where you begin to develop
a "feel" for soils and soil behavior, so essential for the successful practice of geotechnical engineering.
An emphasis on laboratory and field testing is found throughout the text. The organization and devel-
opment of the material in the text are traditional and generally follow the order of a typical laboratory
portion of many courses. The early chapters introduce the discipline of geotechnical engineering, phase
relationships, index, and classification properties of soils and rocks, geology, landforms, and the origin
of geo-materials, clay minerals, soil and rock structures, and rock classification. These chapters provide
the background and terminology for the remainder of the text.
Following a very practical discussion of compaction in Chapter 4, Chapters 5 and 6 describe how
water influences and affects soil behavior. Topics presented in Chapter 5 include groundwater and
vadose water, capillarity, shrinkage, swelling, and collapsing soils, frost action, and effective stress.
Chapter 6 discusses permeability, seepage, and seepage control.
Chapters 7 through 9 deal with the compressibility and shear strength of soils and rocks. Chap-
ter 7 covers both compressibility behavior of natural and compacted soils and rock masses and basic
time-rate consolidation of soils. Chapter 8 begins with the theoretical underpinnings of stresses in a
soil mass, followed by a description of laboratory and field tests that attempt to model those conditions
in order to measure stress-strain-strength properties. Chapter 9 is an introduction to shear strength of
soils and rock and is suitable for undergraduate students if the course schedule permits, and can be
covered more extensively in a first soil mechanics course in graduate school.
Chapters 10 through 12 are new chapters in this edition, covering three fundamental areas of
foundation engineering: shallow foundations, lateral earth pressures and earth retaining structures,
and deep foundations. Chapter 10 introduces bearing capacity theory, followed by its application to
bearing capacity in sands and clays, and approaches to determining settlement of shallow foundations.
Chapter 11 covers the two theories of lateral earth pressure, Rankine and Coulomb, and then how
these are used for the design of retaining structures. Chapter 12 describes the estimation methods for
deep foundation bearing capacity, how we compute the tensile and lateral load capacity of piles, and
advanced topics in deep foundations that are often the source of significant field performance issues.
Chapter 13 first covers advanced applications of stress paths, and also includes sections on crit-
ical-state soil mechanics and an introduction to constitutive models. We then discuss some advanced
topics on the shear strength of sands that start with the fundamental basis of their drained, undrained,
and plane-strain strengths. The residual shear strength of sands and clays provides a transition into the
stress-deformation and shear strength of clays, where we discuss failure definitions, Hvorslev strength
parameters, stress history, the Jurgenson-Rutledge hypothesis, consolidation methods to overcome
sample disturbance, anisotropy, plane-strain strength, and strain-rate effects. We end Chapter 13 with
sections on the strength of unsaturated soils, properties of soils under dynamic loading, and failure
theories for rock.
Even though it is primarily for the beginning student in geotechnical engineering, advanced
students in other disciplines and engineers desiring a refresher in engineering properties may find
the book helpful. Advanced students, researchers, and practitioners will also likely make use of the
advanced topical coverage in Chapter 13.
Because of the many fully worked example problems, students and others learning from this
book can follow the solution steps for various types of geotechnical engineering problems, and assess
their understanding of the material. From the previous two editions, we know that many practicing
geotechnical engineers will find this book useful as a refresher and for the typical values given for
classification and engineering properties for a wide variety of soils; we have found such a compendium
very useful in our own engineering practice. We hope that the new chapters on foundation engineering
will provide further value in this regard.
Preface xv
RESOURCES FOR INSTRUCTORS

The solutions manual and test manual as well as PowerPoint figures of all images and tables from this
book can be downloaded electronically from our Instructor's Resource Center located at www.pearson
highered.com. The material available through the Instructor Resource Center is provided solely for
the use of instructors in teaching their courses and assessing student learning. If you are in need of a
login and password for this site, please contact your local sales representative for additional assistance
or support.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
To acknowledge all who have contributed to this edition and previous editions is a formidable task.
We have continued the practice of trying whenever possible to indicate by references or quotations,
concepts and ideas originating in the literature or with our former teachers, especially Profs. B. B.
Broms, A. Casagrande, R. J. Krizek, C. C. Ladd, J. K. Mitchell, J. 0. Osterberg, and H.B. Seed. Others
have made helpful suggestions or reviewed portions of the text, resulting in improvements to the final
product, including Prof. Mal Hill from Northeastern. We are indebted to Prof. Alan Lutenegger, who
provided considerable editing contributions to the foundation engineering chapters, and Prof. Aaron
Gallant and Danilo Botero Lopez were instrumental in revising the worked examples and end-of-
chapter problems. Molly Liddell provided invaluable administrative assistance in preparing the final
versions of chapters for copyediting.
Thank you to the reviewers of this edition: Andrew Assadollahi, Ph.D., P.E. (Christian Brothers
University), Ghada Ellithy, Ph.D. (Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University), Evert Lawton, Ph.D.,
P.E. (University of Utah), Anne Lemnitzer, Ph.D., M.Sc. (University of California, Irvine).
IN MEMORIAM
We are saddened by the loss of our dear friend and colleague, Bill Kovacs, who passed away in March
2020 at the age of 84. Bill was devoted to his family, especially to his wife Eileen. Besides his wife, he
is survived by his 7 children and 19 grandchildren. Bill will be remembered as a dedicated educator
who also loved being a geotechnical engineer. In his lectures he regularly drew on lessons learned from
his days in practice or his consulting experiences, and his delivery was peppered with deadpan humor,
clever puns, and subtle jokes. He was a remarkable mentor who was very generous with his time for
students and younger colleagues, never said an unkind word about anyone, and was a true friend to
many of us. His contributions to the three editions are inestimable in both their technical content and
overall presentation of the material. And, while we never divulge the source or even acknowledge the
existence of humor in the book, we do hope students and others using this book will think fondly of Bill
when they discover something to smile about in its pages.
R. D. HOLTZ
SEATTLE, WASHINGTON
W.D.KOVACS
(DECEASED)
T. C. SHEAHAN
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS
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CHAPTER 1
Introduction to Geotechnical
Engineering
1.1 GEOTECHNICAL ENGINEERING

Geotechnical engineering is concerned with the application of civil engineering technology to some
aspect of the earth, usually the natural materials found on or near the earth's surface. Civil engineers
call these materials soil and rock. Soil, in an engineering sense, is the relatively loose agglomerate of
mineral and organic materials and sediments found above the bedrock. Soils can be relatively easily
broken down into their constituent mineral or organic particles. Rock, on the other hand, has very
strong internal cohesive and molecular forces which hold its constituent mineral grains together. This is
true for massive bedrock as well as for a piece of gravel found in a clay soil. The dividing line between
soil and rock is arbitrary, and many natural materials encountered in engineering practice cannot be
easily classified. They may be either a "very soft rock" or a "very hard soil."
Other scientific disciplines have different meanings for the terms soil and rock. In geology, for
example, rock means all the materials found in the earth's crust, including what most of us would call
soil. Soils to a geologist are just decomposed and disintegrated rocks found in the very thin upper part
of the crust and usually capable of supporting plant life. Similarly, pedology (soil science) and agron-
omy are concerned with only the very uppermost layers of soil- that is, those materials important
to agriculture and forestry. Geotechnical engineers can learn much from both geology and pedology.
Geotechnical engineering has considerable overlap with these fields, especially with engineering geol-
ogy and geological engineering. But beginning students should remember that these fields may have
different terminology, approaches, and objectives than geotechnical engineering.
Geotechnical engineering has several different aspects or emphases. Soil mechanics is concerned
with the engineering mechanics and properties of soil, whereas rock mechanics is concerned with the
engineering mechanics and properties of rock- usually, but not limited to, the bedrock. Soil mechanics
applies to soils the basic principles of mechanics including kinematics, dynamics, fluid mechanics, and
the mechanics of materials. In other words, soil-rather than water, steel, or concrete, for example-is
the engineering material whose properties and behavior we must understand in order to build with it
or upon it. A similar statement could also be made for rock mechanics. However, because in significant
ways soil masses behave differently from rock masses, in practice, there is not much overlap between
1
2 Chapter 1 Introduction to Geotechnical Engineering
the two disciplines. This divergence is unfortunate from the viewpoint of the practicing civil engineer.
Inconveniently, the world does not consist only of soft or loose soils and hard rock, but rather, most
geo-materials fall somewhere between those extremes. In your professional practice you will have to
learn to deal with a wide range of material properties and behaviors.
Foundation engineering applies engineering geology, soil mechanics, rock mechanics, and structural
engineering to the design and construction of foundations for civil engineering and other structures. The
foundation engineer must be able to predict the performance or response of the foundation soil or rock to
the loads the structure imposes. Examples include foundations for industrial, commercial, and residential
buildings, bridges, towers, and retaining walls,as well as foundations for oil and other kinds of storage tanks
and offshore structures. Ships must have a drydock during construction or repairs, and the drydock must
have a foundation. During construction and launch, rockets and appurtenant structures must be safely
supported. Related geotechnical engineering problems that the foundation engineer faces are the stabil-
ity of natural and excavated slopes, the stability of permanent and temporary earth-retaining structures,
problems of construction, control of water movement and water pressures, and even the maintenance and
rehabilitation of old buildings. Not only must the foundation safely support static structural and construc-
tion loads, but it must also adequately resist dynamic loads due to wind, blasting, earthquakes, and the like.
If you think about it, we cannot design or construct any civil engineering structure, whether built
on the earth or extraterrestrial, without ultimately considering the foundation soils and rocks. The
performance, economy, and safety of any civil engineering structure ultimately are affected or even
controlled by its foundation.
Earth materials are often used as a construction material because they are the cheapest possible
building material. However, their engineering properties such as strength and compressibility are often
naturally poor, and measures must be taken to densify, strengthen, or otherwise stabilize and reinforce
soils so that they will perform satisfactorily. Highway and railway embankments, airfields, earth and
rock dams, levees, and aqueducts are examples of earth structures, and the geotechnical engineer is
responsible for their design and construction. Dam safety and rehabilitation of old dams are important
aspects of this phase of geotechnical engineering. A related consideration, especially for highway and
airfield engineers, is the design of the surface layer on the earth structure-the pavement. Here the
overlap between the transportation and geotechnical disciplines is apparent.
Rock engineering, analogous to foundation engineering for soils, is concerned with rock as a
foundation and construction material. Because most of the earth's surface is covered with soil ( or
water), rock engineering usually occurs underground (tunnels, underground power houses, petroleum
storage rooms, mines, yours, and so on). But some rock engineering problems occur at the surface, such
as in the case of building and dam foundations carried to bedrock, deep excavations to bedrock, stabil-
ity of rock slopes, and the like.
In recent years, geotechnical engineers have become increasingly involved in the solution of
environmental problems involving soil and rock. This interdisciplinary field is called geoenvironmental
engineering or environmental geotechnics. Especially challenging are problems of polluted groundwa-
ter, proper disposal and containment of municipal and industrial wastes, design and construction of
nuclear waste repositories, and remediation of hazardous waste repositories and other contaminated
sites. Although all these problems have a major geotechnical engineering component, they are inter-
disciplinary in nature, and their solutions require that geotechnical engineers work together with envi-
ronmental and chemical engineers, environmental and public health specialists, geohydrologists, and
regulatory agency personnel.
In presenting some of the typical problems facing the geotechnical engineer, we wanted you to
see, first, how broad the field is and, second, how important it is to the design and construction of civil
engineering structures, as well as to the basic health and safety of society. In a very real sense, geotech-
nical engineering combines the basic physical and mathematical sciences, geology, and pedology, with
environmental, hydraulic, structural, transportation, construction, and mining engineering. It truly is an
exciting and challenging field.
1.2 The Unique Nature of Soil and Rock Materials 3
1.2 THE UNIQUE NATURE OF SOIL AND ROCK MATERIALS

We mentioned earlier that soil-from a civil engineering point of view-is the relatively loose agglom-
eration of mineral and organic materials found above the bedrock. In a broader sense, of course, even
shallow bedrock is of interest to geotechnical engineers, as illustrated by examples given earlier.
The nature and behavior of soil and rock are discussed in greater detail throughout this text. For
now, we want just to set the stage for what you are about to study. We assume you understand that rock
refers to any hard solid aggregate or mass of mineral matter found in the earth's crust. You also already
have a layperson's idea about soil. At least you know in general what sand and gravel are, and perhaps you
even have an idea about fine-grained soils such as silts and clays. These terms have quite precise engineer-
ing definitions, as we shall later see, but for now the general concept that soils are particles will suffice.
Soils are particles of what? Well, soils are usually particles of mineral matter or, more sim-
ply, broken-up pieces of rock that result from weathering and other geologic processes (described in
Chapter 3) acting on massive rock deposits and layers. If we talk for the moment about the size of the
particles, gravels are small pieces of rock and typically contain several minerals, whereas sands are
even smaller pieces, and each grain usually consists of only a single mineral. If you cannot see each
individual grain of a soil, then the soil is either a silt or a clay or a mixture of each. In fact, natural soils
generally are a mixture of several different particle sizes and may even contain organic matter. Some
soils, such as peat, may be almost entirely organic. Furthermore, because soils are a particulate mate-
rial, they have voids, and the voids are usually filled with water and air. The physical and chemical
interaction of the water and air in the voids with the particles of soil, as well as the interaction of the
particles themselves, makes soil's behavior complicated and leads to some of its unique properties. It
is also what makes it a very interesting and challenging engineering material to study and understand.
Because of the nature of soil and rock materials and the complexity of the geological environ-
ment, geotechnical engineering is highly empirical, and requires both fundamental knowledge and expe-
rience. Soils and rocks are often highly variable, even within a distance of a few millimeters. In other
words, soils and rocks are heterogeneous rather than homogeneous materials. That is, their material or
engineering properties may vary widely from point to point within a soil or rock mass. Furthermore,
these materials in general are nonlinear; their stress-strain curves are not straight lines. To further com-
plicate things, soils in particular "remember" their previous loading history, and this fact strongly affects
their subsequent engineering behavior. It means that the geotechnical engineer must have knowledge of
the geologic history of a soil deposit. Instead of being isotropic, soils and rocks are typically anisotropic,
which means that their material or engineering properties are not the same in all directions.
Most of our theories about the mechanical behavior of engineering materials assume that they are
homogeneous and isotropic and obey linear stress-strain laws. Common engineering materials such as
steel and concrete do not deviate too significantly from these ideals, so we can use, with discretion, simple
linear theories to predict the response of these materials to engineering loads. With soils and rock, we are
not so fortunate. We may assume a linear stress-strain response, but then we must apply large empirical
correction or "safety" factors to our designs to account for the real materials' behavior. Furthermore, the
behavior of soil and rock materials in situ is often controlled by joints Gust don't inhale), fractures, weak
layers and zones, and other "defects" in the material, which our laboratory tests and simplified methods
of analysis often do not or are unable to take into account. That is why the practice of geotechnical engi-
neering is sometimes seen as more an "art" than a science. Successful practice depends on the good judg-
ment and experience of the designer, constructor, or consultant. Put another way, the successful geotech-
nical engineer must develop a "feel" for soil and rock behavior before a safe and economic foundation
or tunnel design can be made, an earth structure can be safely built, or an environmentally sound waste
containment and disposal system or a site remediation plan can be developed.
In summary, because of their nonlinear, nonconservative, and anisotropic mechanical behavior,
plus the variability and heterogeneity of natural deposits due to the capriciousness of nature, soils and
rocks are indeed complex engineering and construction materials. Helping you find some order in this
potential chaos is our primary objective in this book.
1.3 SCOPE OF THIS BOOK

In this revised introductory text, the emphasis is on the classification and engineering behavior of soil
and rock materials, followed by an introduction to the most important aspects of foundation engineering.
Successful practice of geotechnical engineering requires a thorough knowledge and understanding of the
engineering properties and behavior of soils and rocks in situ-that is, when they are subjected to engi-
neering loads and environmental conditions. Therefore, the beginning student must first develop an appre-
ciation for the engineering properties of geo-materials as distinct from other common civil engineering
materials before learning how to analyze and design foundations, earthworks, tunnels, and the like.
Actually, this first part is the hard part. Most engineering students (and engineers) are very good
at analysis and performing design calculations. But in geotechnical engineering, these calculations
alone cannot tell the whole picture. If an incorrect picture of the site geology has been assumed or the
wrong engineering properties assumed for the design, significant errors can result.
Since much of the practice of geotechnical engineering depends on the site geology, landforms,
and the nature of the soil and rock deposits at a site, we have included a portion of Chapter 3 on
geology and landforms. If you have had such a course, that portion of the chapter will serve as a good
review. If you haven't, you are strongly encouraged to take a physical geology or an engineering geol-
ogy course in connection with your studies of geotechnical engineering, and this chapter can provide
initial, basic information.
In the early chapters, we introduce some of the basic definitions, index properties, and classifica-
tion schemes for geo-materials that are used throughout the book. Classification of soils and rocks is
important because it is the "language" engineers use to communicate certain general knowledge about
the engineering behavior of the materials at a particular site.
The greatest portion of the book is concerned with the engineering properties of soils and rocks-
properties that are necessary for the design of foundations, earth and underground structures, and geoenvi-
ronmental systems.We describe how water affects soil and rock behavior, including hydraulic conductivity
and seepage characteristics. Then we get into compressibility, the important engineering property we need
to understand in order to predict the settlement of structures constructed on soil and rock masses.We then
describe some elementary strength characteristics of both soils and rocks. Strength is very important for
the stability of, for example, foundations, retaining walls,slopes, tunnels, and waste containment systems.
The later part of the book introduces key concepts and design methods for the most basic parts
of foundation engineering: shallow and deep foundations, and retaining structures. This is by no means
meant to serve as an exhaustive reference on all foundation engineering topics. However, as more civil
engineering programs offer a "merged" geotechnical engineering course with both soil mechanics and
foundation engineering, these later chapters provide foundation engineering fundamentals.
Finally, we have included a chapter on advanced topics in the shear strength of soil and rock that
is meant primarily for graduate study or for those who wish to extend their knowledge beyond the
coverage in earlier chapters on these topics.
Consistent with this emphasis on fundamentals, keep in mind that this is an elementary text that
emphasizes such basics, but with an eye toward the practical applications that you as a civil engineer
are likely to encounter. Having studied this text, you will be well prepared for any follow-up, more spe-
cialized studies in foundations and earthwork engineering, environmental geotechnics, rock mechanics,
and engineering geology. You should have a fairly good idea of what to look for at a site and how to
obtain the soil and rock properties required for most designs. If you are able to accurately classify the
materials, you will know the probable range of physical and engineering values for a given soil or rock
property. You will have some idea of how to estimate foundation capacity and the stresses on an earth
support structure. Finally, we hope you will learn enough about soils and rocks to be aware of your own
limitations, and to avoid costly and dangerous mistakes in those aspects of your professional career
that involve soils and rocks as engineering materials.
1.4 Historical Development of Geotechnical Engineering 5
1.4 HISTORICAL DEVELOPMENT OF GEOTECHNICAL ENGINEERING

As long as people have been building things, they have used soils and rocks as a foundation or
construction material. The ancient Egyptians, Babylonians, Chinese, and Indians knew about
constructing dikes and levees out of the soils found in river flood plains. Ancient temples and monu-
ments built all around the world involved soil and rock in some way. The Aztecs constructed temples
and cities on the very poor soils in the Valley of Mexico long before the Spaniards arrived in the
so-called New World. European architects and builders during the Middle Ages learned about the
problems of settlements of cathedrals and large buildings. The most noteworthy example is, of course,
the Leaning Tower of Pisa. Vikings in Scandinavia used timber piles to support houses and wharf struc-
tures on their soft clays. The "design" of foundations and other constructions involving soil and rock
was by rule of thumb, and very little theory as such was developed until the mid-1700s.
Coulomb is the most famous engineering name of that era. He investigated the problems of
earth pressures against retaining walls, and some of his calculation procedures are still in use today. The
most common theory for the shear strength of soils is named after him (Coulomb, 1776). During the
next century, the French engineers Collin and Darcy and the Scotsman Rankine made important dis-
coveries. Collin (1846) was the first engineer to systematically examine failures in clay slopes as well as
the measurement of the shear strength of clays. Darcy (1856) established his law for the flow of water
through sands. Rankine (1857) developed a method for estimating the earth pressure against retaining
walls. In England, Gregory (1844) utilized horizontal subdrains and compacted earth-fill buttresses to
stabilize railroad cut slopes.
By the turn of the century, important developments in the field were occurring in Scandinavia,
primarily in Sweden. Atterberg (1911) defined consistency limits for clays that are still in use today.
During the period 1914-1922, in connection with investigations of failures in harbors and railroads,
the Geotechnical Commission of the Swedish State Railways (Statens Jarnvagers Geotekniska
Kommission, 1922) developed many important concepts and apparatuses in geotechnical engineer-
ing. They developed methods for calculating the stability of slopes as well as subsurface investigation
techniques such as weight sounding and piston and other types of samplers. They understood import-
ant concepts such as sensitivity of clays and consolidation, which is the squeezing of water out of the
pores of the clay. At that time, clays were thought to be absolutely impervious, but the Swedes made
field measurements to show they weren't. The Commission was the first to use the word geotechnical
(Swedish: geotekniska) in today's sense: the combination of geology and civil engineering technology.
Even with these early developments in Sweden, the true father of modern soil mechanics
is an Austrian, Prof. Karl Terzaghi. He published the first modern textbook on soil mechanics in 1925,
and in fact the name "soil mechanics" is a translation of the German word Erdbaumechanik, which was
part of the title of that book (Terzaghi, 1925). Terzaghi was an outstanding and very creative engineer.
He wrote several other important books (for example, Terzaghi, 1943; Terzaghi and Peck, 1967; and
Terzaghi, Peck, and Mesri, 1996) and over 250 technical papers and articles. His name will appear often
in this book. He was a professor at Robert College in Istanbul, at Technische Hochschule in Vienna, at
MIT, and at Harvard University from 1938 until his retirement in 1956. He continued to be active as a
consultant until his death in 1963 at the age of 80. An excellent reference about his life and engineering
career is that of Goodman (1999) and is well worth reading.
Another important figure is Prof. Arthur Casagrande, who was at Harvard University from 1932
until 1969.You will see his name often in this book, because he made many important contributions to
the art and science of soil mechanics and foundation engineering. Since the 1950s, the field has grown
substantially, and many people have been responsible for its rapid advancement. Important contributors
to the field include Taylor, Peck, Tschebotarioff, Skempton, Bjerrum, Seed, Ladd, and Leonards.
Both Terzaghi and Casagrande began the teaching of soil mechanics and engineering geology in
North America. Before the Second World War, the subject was offered only at a very few universities,
mostly as a graduate course. After the war, it became common for at least one course in the subject to
be required in most civil engineering curricula. Graduate programs in geotechnical engineering were
implemented at many universities. Finally, there has been a real information explosion in the number
of conferences, technical journals, and textbooks published on this subject during the past four decades.
In terms of foundation engineering, we have already mentioned the important role that Coulomb
and Rankine played in the development of limit state analyses of lateral earth pressures for retaining
structures. It should come as no surprise that Terzaghi was a pioneer in this area as well, offering some of
the first rational methods for estimating soil capacity to support shallow foundations. In the 1950s,George
Meyerhof and Aleksandr Vesic and others similarly began to formulate more fundamentals-based meth-
ods for deep foundations. A number of advances in this area of geotechnical engineering were often
driven by contractors, innovating to build in difficult soils or use familiar materials in more efficient ways.
Important recent developments you should know about include soil dynamics and geotechni-
cal earthquake engineering, the use of computer modeling for the solution of complex engineering
problems, deformation-based analyses and designs, the introduction of probability and statistics into
geotechnical engineering analysis and design, and geo-environmental engineering and technology.
1.5 SUGGESTED APPROACH TO THE STUDY OF GEOTECHNICAL ENGINEERING

Because of the nature of soil and rock materials, both laboratory and field testing are very important
in geotechnical engineering. Student engineers can begin to develop a feel for soil and rock behavior in
the laboratory by performing the standard tests for classification and engineering properties on many
different types of soils and rocks. In this way, the novice can begin building up a "mental data bank"
of how certain soils and rocks actually look, how they might behave with varying amounts of water
in them and under different types of engineering loads, and the range of probable numerical values
for the different tests. This is sort of a self-calibration process, so that when you are faced with a new
soil deposit or rock type, you will in advance have some idea as to the engineering problems you will
encounter at that site. You can also begin to judge, at least qualitatively, the validity of laboratory and
field test results for the materials at that site.
Also important is a knowledge of geology. Geology is, of course, the "geo" part of geotechnical
engineering, and you should get as much exposure to it as you can during your academic career. After
a basic course in physical geology, courses in geomorphology and engineering geology are recom-
mended. Geomorphology is concerned with landforms, which are important to geotechnical engineers
because the soils and rocks at a site (and therefore the engineering problems) are strongly related to
the particular landform. Engineering geology is concerned with the applications of geology to primar-
ily civil engineering and has considerable interaction and overlap with geotechnical engineering.
The theoretical and analytical aspects of geotechnical engineering design also require a sound
knowledge of engineering mechanics, including strength of materials and fluid mechanics. It also helps
if you are familiar to some extent with basic structural analysis, reinforced concrete and steel design,
hydraulic engineering and hydrology, surveying and engineering measurements, basic environmental
engineering, and civil engineering construction - in other words, just about all the courses in a typical
undergraduate civil engineering curriculum.
1.6 NOTES ON SYMBOLS, UNITS, AND STANDARDS

As with most disciplines, a standard notation is not universal in geotechnical engineering, so we have tried
to adopt the symbols most commonly used. For example, the American Society for Testing and Materials
has a list of Standard Definitions of Terms and Symbols Relating to Soil, Rock, and Contained Fluids,
standard designation D 653. The International Society for Soil Mechanics and Foundation Engineering
1.7 Some Comments on How to Study in General 7
(ISSMFE, 1977) published an extensive list of symbols. Although we sometimes deviate from these rec-
ommendations because of our personal preference, we have generally tried to follow them.
Units used in geotechnical engineering can be politely called a mess, and, less politely, several
worse things. There has developed in practice, at least in the United States, a jumbled mixture of
cgs-metric, Imperial or British Engineering units, and hybrid European metric units. With the intro-
duction of the universal and consistent system of units, "Le Systeme International d'Unites" (SI) in
the United States and Canada, the profession had a wonderful opportunity to bring some coherence
to units in geotechnical engineering practice. However, since British Engineering units are still rather
commonly used in the United States, students need to be familiar with the typical values in both sets
of units. This edition of the book could be characterized as Jess tolerant of SI units than previous edi-
tions since efforts to use SI units more in the United States have largely failed. There are a number of
excellent, open source units conversions sites on the web, and we recommend you find and bookmark
one that suits your purposes.
We referred earlier to the American Society for Testing and Materials, commonly known as
ASTM, which develops and publishes technical standards for a multitude of materials, products, sys-
tems, and services through a highly organized volunteer committee structure. These committees arrive
at consensus to determine these standards. Throughout the text, we cite only active ASTM, AASHTO,
and British standards without associated years. In the case of ASTM standard, complete ASTM stan-
dards do have a date ( e.g., D 2216-19), which indicates the year of last revision (in this case, 2019).
Standards remain in the system for 8 years, and if not reapproved through the balloting process within
that period, are withdrawn from active status. AASHTO standards are generally reviewed every
4 years, and if a standard is no longer used, it may be discontinued and then ultimately deleted from the
book of standards. We have cited only those standards that were active at the time of publication and
have excluded the year in the citation.
1.7 SOME COMMENTS ON HOW TO STUDY IN GENERAL

It takes a while to learn how to study most effectively. You are probably using the study habits that you
got by with in grade school and high school. As you progress professionally, things are going to get harder,
starting in your third year of university or college, when you take mostly preprofessional courses. We have
all used the following methods to do homework assignments. (1) Just read the assignment to satisfy the
moral obligation to do so. (2) Go further by underlining or highlighting passages to emphasize the main
points. Consider what you are doing physically: the information goes through the eyes, down your neck
and arm into the writing fingers, completely bypassing the brain! Both (1) and (2) are pretty much a waste
of time unless you have a photographic memory. If we are really going to learn anything, most of us need
to study a third way: (3) Read a few pages and then close the book. Write down in your own words what
the main concepts are; a "bullet" format is OK, and you could also use index cards to capture details of
a particular topic on each card. You may have to cheat occasionally and look back at the book to create
your own notes, but you will have started the process of having the material in the brain. Yes, this will take
more time than "studying" using methods (1) and (2), but you will not be wasting your time.
A useful argument for doing it the recommended way is that you will have already started pre-
paring for the exams, because now you know the material. The rest of the time, you are brushing up or
reviewing the material, so you won't need to cram.
One big problem is that there may not be enough time in the week to use method (3) when you
are taking three or four other courses. However, follow it as much as you can. You have invested a lot
in your education. Don't waste time with methods (1) and (2).
Don't ask us to tell you how long it took for us to learn the correct way to study (it's too
embarrassing).
Our suggested approach will help you prepare for the Fundamentals of Engineering (FE or EIT)
exam and later the PE or PEng (professional engineer's exam). We strongly encourage you to take
(and pass) the FE exam before you graduate and receive your engineering degree.
SUGGESTEDACTIVITIES
1.1 Attend a lecture with a geotechnical engineering topic, either through your department's research seminar
series, your student chapter of the American Society of Civil Engineers, your local professional chapter, or
other organizing group in your area. Not only will you learn something about an engineering topic or project,
you may also be able to meet the speaker to build your professional network and learn why they became
interested in geotechnical practitioner or researcher.
1.2 Visit a local project site where the geotechnical phase is still underway. Ideally, an engineer or contractor may
be able to host you and other students, and explain the project and any details related to the geotechnical
design and construction.
1.3 Speak to one of your geotechnical faculty members about research and/or consulting they are doing, and if
you are interested, see if there are opportunities to participate in the research.
REFERENCES
ATTERBERG, A. (1911). "Lerornas Forhallande till Vatten, deras Plasticitetsgranser och Plasticitets- grader," ("The
Behavior of Clays with Water, Their Limits of Plasticity and Their Degrees of Plasticity"), Kungliga Lantbruk-
sakademiens Handlingar och Tidskrift, Vol. 50, No. 2, pp.132-158; also in Internationale Mitteilungen fur Boden-
kunde, Vol. 1, pp. 10-43 ("Uber die Physikalische Bodenuntersuchung und tiber die Plastizitat der Tone").
COLLIN,A. (1846). Recherches Experimentales sur Jes Glissements Spontanes des Terrains Argileux, Accompagnees
de Cunsideratiuns sur Quel4ues Principes de la Mechanic4ue Terreslre, Carilian-Gueury and Dalmunl, Paris.
Translated by W.R. Schriever under the title "Landslides in Clays by Alexandre Collin 1846," University of
Toronto Press, Canada, 1956, 161 p. (21 plates).
CouLOMB,C.A. (1776). "Essai sur une application des regles de Maximus et Minimis a Quelques Problemes de
Statique, Relatifs a lA.rchitecture," Memoires de Mathematique et de Physique, Presentes a l' Academie Royale
des Sciences, par Divers Savans, et lus dans ses Assemblees, Paris, Vol. 7 (Vol. for 1773 published in 1776),
pp. 343-382.
DARCY, H. (1856). Les Fontaines Publiques de la Ville de Dijon, Dalmont, Paris.
GOODMAN, R.E. (1999). Karl Terzaghi: The Engineer as Artist, ASCE Press, 340 p.
GREGORY, C.H. (1844). "On Railway Cuttings and Embankments with an Account of Some Slips in London Clay, on
the Line of the London and Croydon Railway," Minutes and Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers,
Vol. 3, pp.135-145. Reprinted in A Century of Soil Mechanics, Institution of Civil Engineers, London, 1969,482 p.
INTERNATIONAL SOCIETY FORSOILMECHANICS ANDFOUNDATION ENGINEERING (1977). "List of Symbols, Units, and
Definitions," Subcommittee on Symbols, Units, and Definitions, Proceedings of the Ninth International Confer-
ence on Soil Mechanics and Foundation Engineering, Tokyo, Vol. 3, pp.156-170.
RANKINE,W.J.M. (1857). "On the Stability of Loose Earth," Abstracts of the Papers Communicated to the Royal
Society of London, Proceedings of the Royal Society, London, Vol. VIII, pp.185-187.
STATENSJARNVAGERS GEOTEKNISKA KoMMISSION(1922). 1914-1922 Slutbetiinkande, (1914-1922 Final Report),
Presented to the Board of the Royal Swedish Railroads, Stockholm, 180 p. (42 plates).
STOKOE, K.H., II ANDLODDE,P.F.(1978). "Dynamic Response of San Francisco Bay Mud," Proceedings of the Earth-
quake Engineering and Soil Dynamics Conference, Los Angeles, ASCE, Vol. H, pp. 940-959.
TERZAGHI, K. (1925). Erdbaumechanik auf Bodenphysikalischer Grundlage, Franz Deuticke, Leipzig und Wein, 399 p.
TERZAGHI, K. (1943). Theoretical Soil Mechanics, Wiley, New York, 510 p.
TERZAGHI, K. ANDPECK,RB. (1967). Soil Mechanics in Engineering Practice, 2nd ed., Wiley, New York, 729 p.
TERZAGHI,K., PECK,RB., AND MESRI,G. (1996). Soil Mechanics in Engineering Practice, 3rd ed., Wiley, New
York,549 p.
CHAPTER 2
Index and Classification

Properties of Soils
2.1 INTRODUCTION
In this chapter, we introduce the basic terms and definitions used by geotechnical engineers to index
and classify soils. We need to establish a common language around how these properties are defined so
that when different engineers refer to and use property values, it means the same thing to all. Some of
these properties will have actual physical meaning (like density), while others may be so-called "index"
properties that only make sense relative to some comparative scale. Additionally, as in many sciences,
we want to be able to classify soils in some sort of commonly understood taxonomy. You may be famil-
iar with this term from biology, where biological organisms have a genus and species. We shall define
a relatively rigorous classification system for soils as well. The determination of physical, index, and
classification properties is typically the first step in understanding how the soils in question are then
used as engineering materials.
2.2 BASIC DEFINITIONS AND PHASE RELATIONS FOR SOILS

In general, any assemblage of soil consists of solid particles with voids in between. The solids are small
grains of different minerals, whereas the voids can be filled with either water or other fluid (for exam-
ple, a contaminant) or with air (or other gas), or filled partly with some of each (Fig. 2.1 ).
Su, the total volume V 1 of the soil mass consists of the volume of soil solids Vs and the volume of
voids Vv. The volume of voids is in general made up of the volume of water V w and the volume of air V0 .
A phase diagram (Fig. 2.2) shows the three phases separately. It's as if we could "melt down" all
the solids into a single layer at the bottom, then have the water sit on top of that, and finally have the
air in a single layer at the top. The phase diagram helps us solve problems involving soil phase relation-
ships. On the left side we usually indicate the volumes of the three phases; on the right side we show the
corresponding masses or weights. Even though the diagram is two-dimensional, it is understood that
the volume shown is in units of L3, such as cm 3 or ft 3 . Also, since we're not chemists or physicists, we
assume that the mass of air is zero.
9
10 Chapter 2 Index and Classification Properties of Soils
w In engineering practice, we usually measure the total vol-

ume VI' the mass of water Mw, and the mass of dry solids Ms.
Then we calculate the rest of the values and the mass-volume
relationships that we need. Most of these relationships are inde-
pendent of sample size, and they are often dimensionless. They
are very simple and easy to remember, especially if you draw
the phase diagram.
Three volumetric ratios that are very useful in geotech-
nical engineering can be determined directly from the phase
diagram (Fig. 2.2).
1. The void ratio e is defined as

V
e = _v (2.1)
vs
s where Vv = volume of the voids, and

Vs = volume of the solids.
FIGURE2.1 Soil skeleton containing The void ratio e is normally expressed as a decimal
solid particles (S) and voids with air rather than a percentage. The maximum possible range of e is
(A) and water (W).
between 0 and However, typical values of void ratios for
00 •
sands may range from 0.4 to about 1.0; typical values for clays
vary from 0.3 to 1.5 and even higher for some organic soils.
2. The porosity n is defined as
(2.2)
where Vv = volume of voids, and

V 1 = total volume of soil sample.
Porosity is traditionally expressed as a percentage. The maximum range of n is between 0 and 100%.
From Fig. 2.2 and Eqs. (2.1) and (2.2), it can be shown that
e
n= (2.3a)
1+e
and
n
e=-- (2.3b)
l-n
Volume Mass
v,
FIGURE2.2 Volumetric and mass

relationships for a soil shown in a phase
diagram. Note: Weights, W, may also be
used on the right side.
3. The degree of saturation S is defined as
S = ~w X 100(%) (2.4)
V
The degree of saturation tells us what percentage of the total void space contains water. If the soil is
completely dry, then S = 0%, and if the pores are completely full of water, then the soil is fully satu-
rated and S = 100%.
Now let us look at the other side, the mass or weight side, of the phase diagram in Fig. 2.2. First,
we will define a mass or weight ratio that is probably the single most important thing we need to know
about a soil-its water content w. It is also the only strictly mass- or weight-based parameter that we'll
define for phase relationships. The water content tells us how much water is present in the voids rela-
tive to the amount of solids in the soil, as follows:
M
W = ------1£. X 100(%) (2.5a)
Ms
where Mw = mass of water, and
Ms = mass of soil solids.
or in terms of weights,
w = WW x 100(%) (2.5b)
ws
where Ww = weight of water, and
Ws = weight of soil solids.
The ratio of the amount of water present in a soil volume to the amount of soil grains is based
on the dry mass or weight of the soil and not on the total mass or weight. The water content, which is
usually expressed as a percentage, can range from zero (dry soil) to several hundred percent. The nat-
ural water content for most soils is well under 100%, although in some marine and organic soils it can
range up to 500% or higher.
The water content is easily determined in the laboratory. The standard procedure is detailed in
ASTM standard D 2216. A representative sample of soil is selected and its total or wet mass or weight
is determined. Then it is dried to constant mass or weight in a convection oven at ll0°C. Normally, a
constant mass or weight is obtained after the sample is left in the oven overnight. The mass or weight
of the drying dish must, of course, be subtracted from both the wet and dry masses or weights. Then the
water content is calculated according to Eq. (2.5a) or (2.5b ). Example 2.1 illustrates how the calcula-
tions for water content are actually done in practice.
Example 2.1
Given:
A specimen of wet soil in a drying dish has a mass of 388 g. After drying in an oven at ll0°C
overnight, the sample and dish have a mass of 335 g. The mass of the dish alone is 39 g.
Required:
Determine the water content of the soil.
Solution: Set up the following calculation scheme; fill in the "given" or measured quantities a, b, and d,
and make the calculations as indicated for c, e, and f.
a. Mass of total (wet) sample + dish = 388 g

b. Mass of dry sample + dish = 335 g
c. Mass ofwater(a - b) = 53g
d. Mass of dish = 39 g
e. Mass of dry soil(b - d) = 296 g
f. Water content(c/e) x 100% = 17.9%
In the laboratory, masses are usually determined in grams (g) on an ordinary balance. The required
sensitivity of the balance depends on the size of the specimen, and ASTM D 2216 gives some
recommendations.
The water content may also be determined using an ordinary microwave oven. ASTM stan-
dard D 4643 explains the procedure. To avoid overheating the soil specimen, microwave energy
is applied for only brief intervals and repeated until the mass becomes nearly constant. A heat
sink, such as a glass beaker filled with water, helps to prevent overheating of the soil by absorbing
microwave energy after water has been removed from the soil pores. Otherwise, the water con-
tent is determined exactly as indicated in Example 2.1. Note that the microwave water content is
not a replacement for the oven dry water content but is used when the water content is needed
quickly. Other methods sometimes used in the field for water content determination are described
in Sec. 4.7.
Another very useful concept in geotechnical engineering is density. You know from physics that
density is mass per unit volume, so its units are kg/m The density is the ratio that connects the volu-
3
metric side of the phase diagram with the mass side. Several densities are commonly used in geotech-
nical engineering practice. First, we define the total, wet, or moist density p; the density of the particles,
solid density Ps; and the density of water Pw·We also give the corresponding unit weights,"/, which are
obtained by substituting M with the corresponding weight, W.
Ml Ms+ Mw
P ---
- - (2.6a)
vi v,
1=-
WI ws + WW
(2.6b)
vi vi
Ms
Ps (2.7a)
vs
ws
"Is =- (2.7b)
vs
= MW (2.8a)
Pw
vw
"fw - WW (2.8b)
vw
In natural soils, the magnitude of the total density p will depend on how much water hap-
pens to be in the voids as well as the density of the mineral grains themselves. Thus, p can range
from slightly above 1000 kg/m to as high as 2400 kg/m with corresponding units weights of
3 3
9.81 kN/m 62.4 lb/ft

3
(
3
to 23.4 kN/m (150 lb/ft

)
3
The high end of this range would be essentially

3
).
solid mineral, with a corresponding density/unit weight close to that of concrete.

Typical values of Ps for most soils range from 2500 to 2800 kg/m 3 (156 to 175 pcf). Most sands
have Ps values ranging between 2600 and 2700 kg/m 3 (162 to 169 pcf). For example, a common min-
eral in sands is quartz; its Ps = 2650 kg/m 3 . Most clay soils have a value of Ps between 2650 and
2800 kg/m 3 , depending on the predominant mineral in the soil, whereas organic soils may have a Ps
as low as 2500 kg/m 3 . Consequently, for most phase problems, unless a specific value of Ps is given, it
is usually close enough for geotechnical work to assume a Ps of 2650 or 2700 kg/m 3 . The density of
water varies slightly, depending on the temperature. At 4°C, when water is at its densest, Pw exactly
equals 1000 kg/m 3 (1 g/cm 3 ), and this density is sometimes designated by the symbol Po.For ordinary
engineering work, it is sufficiently accurate to take Pw ~ p = 1000 kg/m 3 . 0
Three other densities very useful in soils engineering are the dry density pd, the saturated density
PsaP and the submerged or buoyant density p' or Pb, and their corresponding unit weights.
Pd =vMs I
(2.9a)
- w
_s
'Yd - (2.9b)
Vt
Psat
Ms + M w( V = 0 S = 100 % ) (2.10a)
VI a '
'Ysat
ws +
VI
WW(V
a
= 0' S = 100%) (2.10b)
1
P = Psat - Pw (2.lla)
'Y
1
= 'Ysat - 'Yw (2.llb)
Among other uses, the dry density Pd is a common basis for judging a soil's degree of compaction
after we have applied some mechanical energy to it, for example by using a roller or vibratory plate
(Chapter 4). The saturated density PsaP as the name implies, is the total density of the soil when 100% of
its pores are filled with water; in this special case, p = Psai. The concept of submerged or buoyant density
p' is often difficult for students to understand, so it is discussed later after we have done a few example
problems. However, you may be familiar with this concept from studying aggregates, where a "basket" of
aggregate is weighed while it is submerged under water. Typical values of Pd, PsaP and p' for several soil
types are shown in Table 2.1, and Table 2.2 shows typical unit weights in terms of kN/m 3 and pcf.
From the basic definitions provided in this section, other useful relationships can be derived, as
we show in the examples that follow.
TABLE 2.1 Some Typical Values for Different Densities of Some Common Soil Materials
Density (kg/m 3)
Soil Type Psat Pd p'
Sands and gravels 1900-2400 1500-2300 900-1400
Silts and clays 1400-2100 600-1800 400-1100
Glacial tills 2100-2400 1700-2300 1100-1400
Crushed rock 1900-2200 1500-2000 900-1200
Peats 1000-1100 100-300 0-100
Organic silts and clays 1300-1800 500-1500 300-800
Modified after Hansbo (1975).
TABLE 2.2 Some Typical Values for Different Unit Weights of Common Soil Materials in Units of kN/m 3 and pcf
Unit Weight
'"Ysat '°Yd --y'

Soil Type kN/m 3 pcf kN/m 3 pcf kN/m 3
pcf
Sands and gravels 19-24 119-150 15-23 94-144 9-14 62-81
Silts and clays 14-21 87-131 6-18 37-112 4-11 25-69
Glacial tills 21-24 131-150 17-23 106-144 11-14 69-87
Crushed rock 19-22 119-137 15-20 94-125 9-12 56-75
Peats 10-11 60-69 1-3 6-19 0-1 0-6
Organic silts and clays 13-18 81-112 5-15 31-94 3-8 19-50
Note: Values are rounded to the nearest 1 kN/m3 and 1 pcf.
2.2.1 Solution of Phase Problems

Phase problems are very important in soils engineering. In this section, with the help of some numeri-
cal examples, we illustrate how most phase problems are solved. As in many disciplines, practice helps;
the more problems you solve, the simpler they are and the more proficient you become. Also, with
practice you soon memorize most of the important definitions and relationships, so you save time by
not having to look them up.
Probably the single most important thing you can do in solving phase problems is to draw a
phase diagram. This is especially true for the beginner. Don't spend time searching for the right formula
to plug into. Instead, always draw a phase diagram and show both the given values and the unknowns
of the problem. For some problems, simply doing this leads almost immediately to the solution; at least
the correct approach to the problem is usually indicated. Also, you should note that there often are
alternative approaches to the solution of the same problem, as illustrated in Example 2.2. The following
steps are recommended to solve these problems:
1. List the information you know (from the problem narrative).

2. Draw phase diagram, fill in the knowns and the unknowns.
3. Try to avoid big formulas.
4. If no masses or volumes are given, you can assume either one volume or one mass.
5. Fill in one side of the diagram until you get stuck or completely solve it, then "cross over" to the
other side using one of the p's, ,'s, or G 5 •
6. Write out equations in symbol form. Then place the numerical value along with its units in the
same order, and solve.
7. Check units and reasonableness of your answer.
Example 2.2
Given:
p = 1760 kg/m 3 (total density)
w = 10% (water content)
Ps = 2700 kg/m 3 (assumed)

Required:
Compute pd (dry density), e (void ratio), n (porosity), S (degree of saturation), and Psat (saturated
density).
Solution: Draw the phase diagram (Fig. Ex. 2.2a ). Assume that Vt = 1 m 3 .
Volume (m3 ) Mass (kg)
~
+
Va A
VI= 1.0
+-
Vw w
----1 Mw
M, ~ 1760
t-
Vs s Ms
! FIGURE Ex. 2.2a
From the definition of water content [Eq. (2.Sa)] and total density [Eq. (2.6a)] we can solve for
Ms and Mw. Note that in the computations water content is expressed as a decimal.
w = 0.10 = MW kg
Ms kg
Mt (Mw + Ms) kg
p = 1760 kg/m 3 3
l.0m
Submitting Mw = 0.lOM" we get
(0.l0Ms + Ms) kg
1760 kg/m 3
l.0m 3
Ms = 1600 kg and Mw = 160 kg
These values are now placed on the mass side of the phase diagram (Fig. Ex. 2.2b ), and the rest of the
desired properties are calculated.
Volume (m3) Mass (kg)
l Va= +0.247 A
Vv = 0.407 -r-1----------i f
I W Mw=160
----1~
Vw=;0.160
Vt =i,.o ~ M, 1760
Vs= r593 1-----s-----< M, Too j

FIGURE Ex. 2.2b
From the definition of Pw [Eq. (2.8a)] we can solve for Vw.

M
Pw = V w
w
or
V - Mw - 0.16kg = 0.160m3
w- Pw - 1000 kg/m 3
Place this numerical value on the phase diagram (Fig. Ex. 2.2b ).
To calculate v.,, we must assume a value of the density of the solids p,. Here assume
Ps = 2700 kg/m 3. From the definition of Ps [Eq. (2.7a)] we can solve for Vs directly, or
V = Ms = 160kg = 0.593m3
s Ps 2700 kg/m 3
Since V 1 = Va + Vw + V,, we can solve for Va, since we know the other terms.
Va = V1 - Vw - Vs = 1.0 - 0.593 - 0.160 = 0.247m 3
Once the phase diagram has been filled in, solving the rest of the problem involves just plugging
the respective numbers into the appropriate definition equations. We recommend that, when you make
the computations, you write out the equations in symbol form and then insert the numbers in the same
order as written in the equation. Also, it is a good idea to have the units accompany the calculations.
Solving for the remainder of the required items is easy.
From Eq. (2.9a),
Ms 1600 kg
Pd = 1600 kg/m 3
Vt lm 3
From Eq. (2.1),
vv Va + vw (0.247 + 0.160) m 3
e = - = = 0.686
vs vs 0.593m 3
From Eq. (2.2),
n = Vv = Va + Vw 100 = (0.247 + 0.\60) m3 100 = 40.7%
V, V, l.0m
From Eq. (2.4),
S = Vw = Vw 100 = 0.16m3 3100 = 39.3%
Vv Va + Vw (0.247 + 0.160) m
At the saturated density Psat all the voids are filled with water-that is, S = 100% [Eq. (2.lOa)].
Therefore, if the volume of air Va were filled with water, it would weigh 0.247 m 3 x 1000 kg/m 3 or
247 kg.Then
= Mw + Ms = (247kg + 160kg) + 1600kg = 20l0k /m3
Psat Vt 1 m3 g
Another, and perhaps even easier, way to solve this example problem is to assume Vs is a unit
volume, 1 m 3. Then, by definition, Ms = p s = 2700 (when p s is assumed equal to 2700 kg/m 3). The
completed phase diagram is shown in Fig. Ex. 2.2c.
Since w = Mw/Ms = 0.10, Mw = 2700 kg and M 1 = Mw +Ms= 2970 kg. Also, Vw = Mw
numerically, since Pw= 1000 kg/m 3; that is, 270 kg of water occupies a volume of 0.27 m 3. Before we
can proceed, two unknowns remain to be solved: Va and V,. To obtain these values, we must use the
given information that p = 1760 kg/m 3. From the definition of total density [Eq. (2.6a)],
Va=0.418 A
t- t
1
V = 1.688
Vw = 0.27
t-~--------< _
W
---t
Mw = 270
M1 = 2970
V, ~ 1.0 S M, ~rOO j
FIGURE Ex. 2.2c
p = 1760 kg/m 3 = M1 = 2970 kg

vi vi
Solving for V 1,
2970 kg = 1.688 m 3
1760 kg/m 3
Therefore
Va = V1 - Vw - Vs = 1.688 - 0.27 - 1.0 = 0.418 m 3
You can use Fig. Ex. 2.2c to verify that the remainder of the solution is identical to the one using the
data of Fig. Ex. 2.2b. This example illustrates that there often are alternative approaches to the solution
of the phase problems.
Example 2.3
Given:
Equations (2.3a) and (2.3b) relating the void ratio e and the porosity n.
Required:
Express the porosity n in terms of the void ratio e [Eq. (2.3a)] and the void ratio in terms of the
porosity [Eq. (2.3b)].
Solution: Draw a phase diagram (Fig. Ex. 2.3a).

t A For this problem, assume Vs = l (units arbitrary).
+-
Vv = e
1 w
From Eq. (2.1),Vv = e, since Vs = l. Therefore, V 1 = 1 + e.
From Eq. (2.2), the definition of n is Vv/VI' or
1+ e
e
n=-- (2.3a)
j V5 =1 s l +e
i
FIGURE Ex. 2.3a
Equation (2.3b) can be derived algebraically or from
l Vv
t= n A the phase diagram (Fig. Ex.
= l.
2.3b). For this case, assume
+-
vi
vt = 1 w From Eq. (2.2), Vv = n, since V 1 = l. Therefore

Vs = l - n. From Eq. (2.1), the definition of e = V)Vs.
j Vs= 1 - n
t
s So
e=--
n
(2.3b)
FIGUREEx. 2.3b l-n
Example 2.4
Given:
3
e = 0.58, w = 12%, Ps = 2800kg/m •
Required:
a. Pd
b. p
c. w for S = 100%
d. Psatfor S = 100%
Solution: Draw phase diagram (Fig. Ex. 2.4).
l e=
t0.58
A
f
FIGUREEx. 2.4
= 1.58
j +-
Vs= 1.0
t
w
s
Mw = 336
+t
Ms= 2800
a. Since no volumes are specified, assume Vs = l m 3 . Just as in Example 2.3, this makes the
Vv = e = 0.58m 3 and V 1 = l + e = l.58m 3 .FromEq.(2.9a),
and Ms = PsVs [from Eq. (2.7a)]. So
3
Pd= P(s = l~e' since Vs= lm inFig.Ex.2.4
2800 kg = 1772 k Im 3
(1 + 0.58) m3 g
Note: The relationship
(2.12)
is often very useful in phase problems.

b. Now for p:
We know that
Mw = wMs [from Eq. (2.5a)] and Ms = PYs
Psvs + wpSVS +
p=
Ps (l
- -+-e-,
w) •
smce
V
s = l m3
v, 1
Plug in the numbers.
= 2800kg(l + 0.12) = 1985 k /m 3

p (l + 0.58) m 3 g
The following relationship is often useful to know.

Ps (l + w)
P, = (1 + e) (2.13)
Check:
p
(2.14)
(1 + w)
= 1985 = 1772 kg/m 3

1.12
You should verify that P,1 = pl(l + w ), which is another very useful relationship to remember.
c. Water content for S = 100%:
From Eq. (2.4), we know that Vw = Vv = 0.58 m 3 . From Eq. (2.8a), Mw = VwPw =
0.58 m 3 x (1000 kg/m 3 ) = 580 kg. Therefore w for S = 100% must be
580
w<S=lOO%) = Mw = = 0.207 or 20.7%
Ms 2800
d. Psat:
FromEq.(2.lOa),weknow Psat =(Ms+ Mw)JV,, or
(2800 + 580) kg
Psat
1.58 m 3
= 2139.24 or 2139 kg/m 3
Check, by Eq. (2.13):

_ Ps(l + w)
Psat
1+ e
_ 2800(1 + 0.207)
1.58
= 2139 kg/m 3
Example 2.5
Given:
The definitions of the degree of saturation S, void ratio e, water content w, and the solid density
Ps [Eqs. (2.4), (2.1), (2.5a), and (2.7a), respectively].
Required:
Derive a relationship between S, e, w, and Ps·
Solution: Look at the phase diagram with Vs = l (Fig. Ex. 2.5).
Volume Mass
t
I/v=e
A
t
w
I
V: = Se
w *
Vs = 1 s
FIGURE Ex. 2.5 +
From Eq. (2.4) and Fig. Ex. 2.5, we know that Vw = SVv = Se. From the definitions of water
content [Eq. (2.5a)] and Ps [Eq. (2.7a)], we can place the equivalents for Ms and M 10 on the phase dia-
gram. Since from Eq. (2.8a), Mw = p10 Vw, we now can write the following equation:
MW = PwVw= wMS = wpSVS
or
Since Vs = l m 3,
(2.15)
Equation (2.15) is among the most useful of all equations for phase problems. You can also verify
its validity from the fundamental definitions of p10 , S, e, w, and Ps·
Note that, using Eq. (2.15), we can write Eq. (2.13) another way:
Ps(l + PwSe)
p = Ps Ps + PwSe (2.16)
l+e l+e
When S = 100%, Eq. (2.16) becomes

Psat (2.17)
Example 2.6
Given:
A soil contaminated with gasoline ( specific gravity = 0.9) with the following characteristics:
Ps = 2800 kg/m 3 , w = 22 % , volume of the gasoline is 18% of the volume of the water, and 90% of
the void space is filled with gasoline and water (after T. F. Wolff).
Required:
a. Complete the phase diagram in Fig. Ex. 2.6a.
b. Find the void ratio and porosity of the specimen.
c. Find the total and dry density of the specimen.
Volume (m3 ) Ps (kg/m 3 ) Mass (kg)
Air
II'.V = -
II'.=
s -
FIGURE Ex. 2.6a
Solution:
a. As we did with Examples 2.3 and 2.4, assume Vs = l m 3 . Then, using the basic definitions
for water content, density, and degree of saturation, fill in the blanks as shown in Fig. Ex. 2.6b.
b. Again, use the basic definitions of e and n. We find that e = 0.81 and n = 44.7%.
c. For both Pr and pd, simply take the values for Mr (3515 kg) and Ms (2800 kg) and divide
each by 1.81 m 3 to obtain Pr = 1945 kg/m 3 and Pd = 1549 kg/m 3 . Note that using
Eqs. (2.13) and (2.14) will give you erroneous results.
Here are the details: Calculate the mass of water by noting that M w = wM s = 0.22 x 2800 kg
of solids. (We assumed that Vs = l m 3, remember?). So, M w = 616 kg. Add that to the phase dia-
gram. Also, the volume of water is Mw/ Pw = 616 kg divided by 1000 kg/m 3 , or Vw = 0.62 m 3 .
Then the volume of gasoline = 18% of Vw = 0.18 x 0.62m 3 = 0.18m 3 . Because the spe-
cific gravity (Sec. 2.2.3) of gasoline is 0.9, its density is 0.9 x Pw. So the mass of the gasoline
Mg = 0.9 x Pw x Vg = 0.9 x 1000 kg/m 3 x 0.11 m 3 = 99 kg. Add these items to the phase dia-
gram (Fig. Ex. 2.6b).
Va= 0.08 Air

t
M1 = 3515
FIGURE Ex. 2.6b
Because 90% of the voids are filled with water and gasoline, the total amount of voids is
(Vw+ Vg)!0.90 = (0.62 + 0.11)/0.90 = 0.81m 3 • Subtracting Vw + Vg from VI' we find that
V 0 = 0.08 m . Now all the "holes" on the phase diagram are filled. The rest is a piece of cold apple
3
pie (parts band c).

e - Vv - 0.81 m 3 = 0.81
- V, - l.00m 3
n
= Vv
Vt
= 01.81
•81 X 100 = 44 7°¾
• o
P, = MV, = 3515 kg = 1945~

, 1.81 m 3 m3
2800 kg = 1549 ~
1.81 m 3 m3
2.2.2 Submerged or Buoyant Density and Unit Weight

In Eq. (2.lla), we simply defined the submerged or buoyant density as p' = Psat - Pw, without any
explanation other than giving some typical values of p' in Table 2.1. Strictly speaking, the total p should
be used instead of Psatin Eq. (2.lla), but in most cases submerged soils are also completely saturated,
or at least that is a reasonable assumption.
So when a soil is submerged, the total density as expressed by Eqs. (2.13) and (2.16) and is
partially balanced by the buoyant effect of the water. You will recall from Archimedes' principle that
the buoyancy effect is equal to the weight of water displaced by the solid particles in the soil mass. This
is shown in Fig. 2.3(a), where the submerged (net) weight is
W' = w, - Fb
In terms of masses,
W' = Msg - Vspwg = M'g
Thus, the submerged (net) mass
M' = Ms - VsPw
We obtain densities by dividing by the total volume V1: FIGURE2.3a Free-body diagram
of a submerged soil particle.
M' Ms Vs
- = p' = - - --p
VT VT VT w
Because Ps Ms/Vs and using the following equation,
Ps (2.18)
Pd = l +e
we obtain
(2.19)
There are several other ways to get Eq. (2.19). One way is to use Eq. (2.13)
Ps(l + w) (2.13)
P1 = (l + e)
from which we can obtain p' = Ps( 1 + w) - Pw
1+ e
Using Eq. (2.15), PsW = Pwe(S = 100% ),
p' = Ps + Pwe - Pw - Pwe

1+e
p' = Ps - Pw (2.20)
1+e
Note carefully the different meanings of the densities described earlier. The saturated density is
the total soil and water density when S = 100%, while the submerged density is really a buoyant or
an effective density. Note, too, that the difference between the saturated and submerged densities is
exactly the density of water [Eq. (2.11a)].
Some physical examples will help you understand the concept of submerged or buoyant density.
First, consider a bucket full of marbles; the relevant density is, of course, the dry density. Then fill the
bucket with water, and the relevant density is Psat. If the marbles are now placed in a bucket that has
numerous holes in it so that water can move freely into and out of the bucket submerged in a tank of
water, then the correct density of the marbles is the submerged or buoyant density p' [Fig. 2.3(b)].
Saturated mass Buoyant mass
Marbles Marbles in bucket

with all voids with holes in it, dipped
filled with 000 into water.
water 00
0
FIGURE2.3b Schematic showing the relevant change in mass due to buoyancy.
If we remove the bucket from the tank but keep it completely saturated, then the appropriate density
lS agam Psat.
A second, more realistic example is the case of rapid drawdown, which occurs when the water
level in a reservoir, canal, or river is quickly lowered. The result is that the density of the soils in the
adjacent dam or slope increases from submerged or buoyant to saturated. This is a critical case for the
stability of the dam or slope, because the embankment's gravitational forces approximately double in
magnitude, and these forces typically act to try to destabilize the slope. Therefore, rapid drawdown usu-
ally cuts the factor of safety against slope instability in half, which could lead to failure. See Table 2.1
for typical values of Psat and p'.
As with previous soil phase relationship parameters, weights can be substituted for masses, and
the saturated unit weight, 'YsaP and buoyant unit weight, -y', can be obtained. Table 2.2 shows typical
values of ')'sat and -y'.
Example 2.7
Given:
A silty clay soil with p s = 27 50 kg/m 3 , S = 100 % , and water content w = 42 % .
Required:
Compute the void ratio, the saturated density, and the buoyant or submerged density in kg/m 3 .
Solution: Place the given information on a phase diagram (Fig. Ex. 2.7)
Assume Vs= lm3; therefore, Ms= VsPs = 2750kg. From Eq. (2.15), we can solve fore
directly:
WPs 0.42 X 2750 kg/m 3
e - - - -------- 1.155
- PwS - 1000 kg/m 3 x 1.0
t t
Vv = Vw= 1 .155 w Mw = 1155
! !
f
V5 = 1.0 s
T M5 = 2750
l_ _L
S = 100% FIGUREEx. 2.7
ButealsoequalsVv,sinceVs = l.0;andM'" = 1155kg,sinceM'" = VwPw,wherepw = l000kglm 3 •

Now that all the unknowns have been found, we may readily calculate the saturated density [Eq. (2.lOa)]:
(1155 + 2750) kg = 1812 k Im 3

(l+l.155)m 3 g
We could also set S = 100% in Eq. (2.17) to obtain

Ps + P.ve (2.21)
Psat = l + e
Ps + Pwe [2750 + 1000(1.155)] kg = k Im 3

= l +e 1812
Psat (1 + 1.155) m 3 g
The buoyant density p' from Eq. (2.lla) is:
P1 = Psat - Pw = 1812 kglm 3 - 1000 kglm 3 = 812 kglm 3
In this example, p' is less than the density of water. Go back and look at Table 2.1 for typical values of
p'. The submerged or buoyant density of soil will be very important later on in our discussion of con-
solidation, settlement, and strength properties of soil.
2.2.3 Specific Gravity

You may recall from physics that the specific gravity G of a substance is the ratio of its unit weight T to
the unit weight of water, usually pure water at 4°C (symbol: To), or
G = 1 (2.22)
To
Although several different specific gravities can be defined, only the bulk specific gravity G 111 , the
specific gravity of solids Gs, and the specific gravity of water Gw are of interest in geotechnical engi-
neering. These are defined as
Gm - 1 (2.23)
To
Ts (2.24)
Gs
To
Gw = rw (2.25)
'Yo
Because the density and therefore the unit weight of water are a maximum at 4°C, the specific
gravity of water is exactly 1.0000 at that temperature. Because the value of Gw ranges between 0.9999
at 0°C and 0.9922 at 40°C, it is sufficiently accurate for most geotechnical work to assume Gw = 1.00
and , w ~ , 0 = constant. Note that specific gravity is a dimensionless quantity and its numerical
values are similar to what we used for densities in kg/m 3 divided by 1000. For example, the specific
gravity of solid quartz (that is, if we could create a piece that had no void space) is 2.65, and typical val-
ues for most soils range from 2.60 to 2.80. Organic soils will have lower specific gravities, while heavy
metallic minerals may occasionally have higher values.
If you need to determine the specific gravity of a soil, use ASTM standard D 854.
Example 2.8
Given:
A sample of soil has a bulk specific gravity of 1.91 and a specific gravity of solids of 2.69, and a
water content of 29% (after Taylor, 1948).
Required:
Determine the void ratio, porosity, degree of saturation, and the dry density of the sample in
a. British engineering units and b. SI units.
Solution: As before, when the size of the sample is not given, assume any convenient weight or volume.
For the SI case, let's assume the total volume V = l ft 3 , and for part b, assume V = l m 3 . Draw the
phase diagram for each case.
a. British engineering units:
From Eqs. (2.23) and (2.6b), Gm = W 1 /V 1,w; so
W 1 = GmVi,w = (l.91)(1ft 3 )(62.4lbf/ft 3 ) = 119lbf.Fromthedefinitionofwater
content, we know that Ws + 0.29 Ws = 119 lbf. Therefore, Ws = 92 lbf and Ww = 27 lbf.
FromEqs. (2.24) and (2.7b ), Vs = Ws/Gs, w;so 92 lbf/(2.69)( 62.4 lbf/ft 3 ) = 0.55 ft 3 .
From Eq. (2.8b ), Vw = Ws/Gw ,w; so 27 !bf/ ( 1.0 )( 62.4 lbf/ft 3 ) = 0.43 ft 3 . Figure Ex. 2.8a is
the completed phase diagram for part a of this example.
Therefore, the answers are e = 0.82; n = 45 % ; S = 96%; and ,,1 = 92 pcf.
Volume (ft3) Weight (lbf)
Va =+0.02 A
1
1
Vr= 1 ft3
t
Vw = 0.43 w 1
W1 = 119pcf
j
+-
Vs= 0.55
t
s j
FIGURE Ex. 2.8a Gs= 2.69
2.3 Soil Texture 27

+ A
Va =f 0.02
1 3 Vw = 0.43 w
t
Mw = 430
1
+
= 1m Mt= 1910
j +-
Vs= 0.55 s Ms= 1480
j
! !
Gs= 2.69
FIGURE Ex. 2.8b
b. SI units:
The solution for part b is basically the same as for part a, except you use V1 = 1 m 3
and,w = 10.0kN/m 3 .Theanswersfore,n,andSareidentical,and P,1 = 1480kg/m 3 . See
Fig. Ex. 2.8b for the completed phase diagram.

In summary, for the easy solution of phase problems, you don't have to memorize lots of
complicated formulas. Most of the formulas you need can easily be derived from the phase diagram, as
illustrated in the preceding examples. Just remember the following simple rules:
1. Draw a phase diagram.

2. Remember the basic definitions of w, e, p,, S, and so on.
3. Assume either Vs = 1 or V 1 = 1, if no masses or volumes are given.
4. Write out equations in symbol form. Then, place the numerical value along with its units in the
same order, and solve.
5. Check units and reasonableness of your answer.
2.3 SOIL TEXTURE

So far we haven't said much about what makes up the "solids" part of the soil mass. In Chapter 1 we
gave the usual definition of soil from an engineering point of view: the relatively loose agglomeration
of mineral and organic materials found above the bedrock. We briefly described how weathering and
other geologic processes act on the rocks at or near the earth's surface to form soil. Thus the solid
part of the soil mass consists primarily of particles of mineral and organic matter in various sizes and
amounts.
The texture of a soil is its appearance or "feel," and it depends on the relative sizes and shapes of
the particles as well as the range or distribution of those sizes. Thus, coarse-grained soils such as sands
or gravels obviously appear coarse textured, while a fine-textured soil is composed mainly of very small
mineral grains invisible to the naked eye. Silts and clay soils are good examples of fine-textured soils.
The texture of soils, especially of coarse-grained soils, has some relation to their engineering
behavior. In fact, soil texture has been the basis for certain soil classification schemes, although these
are more common in agronomy than in geotechnical engineering. Still, textural classification terms
(gravels, sands, silts, and clays) are useful in a general sense in geotechnical practice. A convenient
dividing line is the smallest grain that is visible to the naked eye. Soils with particles larger than this size
(about 0.075 mm) are called coarse grained, while soils finer than the size are (obviously) called fine
grained. Sands and gravels are coarse grained while silts and clays are fine grained.
TABLE 2.3 Textural and Other Characteristics of Soils
Soil Name
Gravels, Sands Silts Clays
Grain size Coarse grained Fine grained Fine grained
Can see individual grains Cannot see individual grains Cannot see individual grains
by eye
Characteristics Cohesionless Cohesionless Cohesive
Non plastic Non plastic Plastic
Granular Granular
Effect of water on Relatively unimportant Important Very important
engineering behavior (exception: loose, satu-
rated granular materials,
and dynamic loadings)
Effect of grain size distribution Important Relatively unimportant Relatively unimportant
on engineering behavior
For fine-grained soils, the presence of water greatly affects their engineering response - much more
so than grain size or texture alone. Water affects the interaction between the mineral grains, and this may
affect their plasticity (roughly defined as the soil's ability to be molded) and their cohesiveness (its ability
to stick together). While sands are nonplastic and noncohesive (cohesionless), clays are both plastic and
cohesive. Silts fall between clays and sands: they are fine grained yet nonplastic and cohesionless. These
relationships as well as some general engineering characteristics are presented in Table 2.3.
Note that the term clay refers both to specific minerals called clay minerals (discussed in
Chapter 3) and to soils which contain clay minerals. The behavior of some soils is strongly affected by
the presence of clay minerals. In geotechnical engineering, for simplicity, such soils are usually called
clays, but we really mean soils that contain enough clay minerals to affect their engineering behavior.
It is a good idea to get some practice identifying soils according to texture and other general
characteristics, such as plasticity and cohesiveness. This process is best done in the laboratory, and in
fact ASTM standard D 2488 provides an excellent guide for describing and identifying soils visually
and manually. Visual-manual description of soil is also mentioned when we discuss soil classification
later in this chapter.
2.4 GRAIN SIZE AND GRAIN SIZE DISTRIBUTION

As suggested in the preceding section, the size of the soil particle, especially for granular soils, has some
effect on engineering behavior. Thus, for classification purposes, we are often interested in the particle
or grain sizes present in a particular soil as well as the distribution of those sizes.
The range of possible particle sizes in soils is enormous. Soils can range from boulders or cobbles
several centimeters in diameter down to ultrafine-grained colloidal materials. (Particles in colloidal
materials are so small that their interactions are governed by electrostatic rather than gravitational
forces.) The maximum possible range is on the order of 108, so usually we plot grain size distributions
versus the logarithm of average grain diameter. We often use such scales in engineering and other dis-
ciplines to expand the small-scale data and compress the larger-scale data. Figure 2.4 indicates the divi-
sions between the various textural sizes according to three common engineering classification schemes.
Another random document with
no related content on Scribd:
Dice así el cuentecillo de la Silva, que no tengo por original, aunque
hasta ahora no puedo determinar su fuente:
«Un caballero de alta sangre, fué curioso de saber lo que las
influencias ó inclinaciones de los cuerpos celestiales prometian á un
hijo suyo que él tenia caro como su propia vida, y así hizo sacar el
juicio de la vida del mancebo (que era ya hombrecito) á un astrólogo
el más famoso de aquella tierra; el cual halló por su sciencia que el
mozo era amenazado y corría un grandísimo peligro, en el año
siguiente, de recibir muerte por una fiera cruel, la cual él nombró y
(pasando los límites de su arte) dijo sería un leon; y que el peligro
era tan mortal, que si este caballero no defendia la caza á su hijo
por todo aquel año, y no le ponia en algun castillo donde estuviese
encerrado y muy bien guardado hasta que el año pasase, que él
tenia por cosa imposible que este mancebo escapase al peligro de
muerte. El padre, deseando en todo y por todo seguir el consejo del
astrólogo (en quien él creia como en un oráculo verísimo), privando
á su hijo del ejercicio que él más amaba, que era la caza, lo encerró
en una casa de placer que tenia en el campo, y dejándole muy
buenas guardas, y otras personas que le diesen todo el pasatiempo
posible, los defendió á todos, so pena de la vida, que no dejasen
salir á su hijo un solo paso fuera de la puerta del castillo. Pasando
esta vida el pobre mancebo en aquella cárcel tristísima, viéndose
privado de su libertad, dice la historia que un dia, paseándose
dentro de su cámara, la cual estaba ricamente adornada y
guarnecida de tapiceria muy hermosa, se puso á contemplar las
diversas figuras de hombres y animales que en ella estaban, y
viendo entre ellos un leon figurado, principió á enojarse con él como
si vivo estuviera, diciendo: «¡Oh fiera cruel y maldita! Por ti me veo
aqui privado de los más dulces ejercicios de mi vida; por ti me han
encerrado en esta prision enojosa». Y arremetiendo con cólera
contra esta figura, le dió con el puño cerrado un golpe con toda la
fuerza de su brazo; y su desventura fué tal que detrás de la tapiceria
habia un clavo que salia de un madero ó tabla que alli estaba, con el
cual dando el golpe se atravesó un dedo; y aunque el mal no
parecía muy grave al principio, fué tal todavía, que por haber tocado
á un nervio, en un extremo tan sensible como es el dedo, engendró
al pobre mancebo un dolor tan grande, acompañado de una
calentura continua, que le causó la muerte»[176].
César Oudín, el mejor maestro de lengua castellana que tuvieron los
franceses en todo el siglo XVII y el más antiguo de los traductores
del Quijote en cualquier lengua, hizo en 1608 una reimpresión de la
Silva, añadiendo al fin, sin nombre de autor, la novela de El Curioso
Impertinente, que aquel mismo año publicaba en texto español y
francés Nicolás Baudouin[177]. Por cierto que esta segunda edición
de la Silva dió pretexto á un erudito del siglo xviii para acusar á
Cervantes de haber plagiado ¡á Medrano! Habiendo caído en manos
del escolapio D. Pedro Estala un ejemplar de la Silva de 1608,
donde está la novela, dedujo con imperdonable ligereza que
también estaría en la de 1583, y echó á volar la especie de que
Cervantes la había tomado de allí, «no creyendo haber
inconveniente ó persuadido á que no se le descubriría el hurto, si así
debe llamarse». Á esta calumniosa necedad, divulgada en 1787, se
opuso, con la lógica del buen sentido, D. Tomás Antonio Sánchez,
aun sin haber visto la primera edición de la Silva, de la cual sólo
tuvo conocimiento por un amigo suyo residente en París[178].
Compilaciones del mismo género que la Silva son algunos de los
numerosos libros que publicó en Francia Ambrosio de Salazar,
aventurero murciano que después de haber militado en las guerras
de la Liga, hallándose sin amparo ni fortuna, despedazado y roto,
como él dice, se dedicó en Ruán á enseñar la lengua de Castilla,
llegando á ser maestro é intérprete de Su Majestad Cristianísima. La
vida y las obras de Salazar han sido perfectamente expuestas por A.
Morel-Fatio en una monografía tan sólida como agradable, que
agrupa en torno de aquel curioso personaje todas las noticias que
pueden apetecerse sobre el estudio del español en Francia durante
el reinado de Luis XIII y sobre las controversias entre los maestros
de gramática indígenas y forasteros. Remitiendo á mis lectores á tan
excelente trabajo[179], hablaré sólo de aquellos opúsculos de
Salazar que tienen algún derecho para figurar entre las colecciones
de cuentos, aunque su fin inmediato fuese ofrecer textos de lengua
familiar á los franceses.
Tenemos, en primer lugar, Las Clavellinas de Recreacion, donde se
contienen sentencias, avisos, exemplos y Historias muy agradables
para todo genero de personas desseosas de leer cosas curiosas, en
dos lenguas, Francesa y Castellana; obrita impresa dos veces en
Ruán, 1614 y 1622, y reimpresa en Bruselas, 1625[180]. Es un
ramillete bastante pobre y sin ningún género de originalidad,
utilizando las colecciones anteriores, especialmente la de Santa
Cruz, con algunas anécdotas de origen italiano y otras tomadas de
los autores clásicos, especialmente de Valerio Máximo. Las Horas
de Recreación de Guicciardini, el Galateo Español de Lucas Gracián
Dantisco (del cual hablaré más adelante), pueden contarse también
entre las fuentes de este libro, poco estimable á pesar de su
rareza[181].
Más interés ofrece, y es sin duda el más útil de los libros de Salazar,
á lo menos por los datos que consigna sobre la pronunciación de su
tiempo y por las frases que recopila, ó interpreta, su Espejo General
de la Gramática en diálogos, obra bilingüe publicada en Ruán en
1614 y de cuyo éxito testifican varias reimpresiones en aquella
ciudad normanda y en París[182]. Este Espejo, que dió ocasión á
una agria y curiosa polémica entre su autor y César Oudín, no es
propiamente una gramática ni un vocabulario, aunque de ambas
cosas participa, sino un método práctico y ameno para enseñar la
lengua castellana en cortísimo tiempo, ya que no en siete lecciones,
como pudiera inferirse de la portada. La forma del coloquio escolar,
aplicado primeramente á las lenguas clásicas, y que no se
desdeñaron de cultivar Erasmo y Luis Vives, degeneró en manos de
los maestros de lenguas modernas, hasta convertirse en el pedestre
manual de conversación de nuestros días. Y todavía en este género
la degradación fue lenta: los Diálogos familiares que llevan el
nombre de Juan de Luna, aunque no todos le pertenecen, tienen
mucha gracia y picante sabor; son verdaderos diálogos de
costumbres que pueden leerse por sí mismos, prescindiendo del fin
pedagógico con que fueron trazados. Los de Salazar, escritor muy
incorrecto en la lengua propia, y supongo que peor en la francesa,
valen mucho menos por su estilo y tienen además la desventaja de
mezclar la exposición gramatical directa, aunque en dosis
homeopáticas, con el diálogo propiamente dicho. De éste pueden
entresacarse (como previene el autor) algunas «historias graciosas
y sentencias muy de notar»; por ejemplo, una biografía anecdótica
del negro Juan Latino, que Morel-Fatio ha reproducido y comenta
agradablemente en su estudio[183].
No importa á nuestro propósito, aunque el título induciría á creerlo,
el Libro de flores diversas y curiosas en tres tratados (París, 1619),
en que lo único curioso son algunos modelos de estilo epistolar,
sobre el cual poseemos otros formularios más antiguos, castizos ó
importantes, como el de Gaspar de Texeda. Salazar había pensado
llenar con cuentos la tercera parte de su libro; pero viendo que
ocupaban muchas hojas y que su librero no podía sufragar tanto
gasto, guardó los cuentos para mejor ocasión y los reemplazó con
un diálogo entre un caballero y una dama[184].
Podemos suponer que estos cuentos serían los mismos que en
número de ochenta y tres publicó en 1632, formando la segunda
parte de sus Secretos de la gramática española, que ciertamente no
aclaran ningún misterio filológico. La parte teórica es todavía más
elemental que en el Espejo, y la parte práctica, los ejercicios de
lectura como diríamos hoy, están sacados, casi en su totalidad, de la
Floresta Española de Melchor de Santa Cruz, según honrada
confesión del propio autor: «Lo que me ha movido á hacer imprimir
estos quentos ha sido porque veya que un librito que andava por
aqui no so podia hallar, aunque es verdad que primero vino de
España. Despues se imprimio en Brucelas (sic) en las dos lenguas,
y aun creo que se ha impreso aqui en París, y he visto que lo han
siempre estimado del todo. Este librito se llama Floresta española
de apoystemas (sic) y dichos graciosos, del qual y de algunos otros
he sacado este tratadillo»[185].
Salazar, que multiplicaba en apariencia más que en realidad las que
apenas podemos llamar sus obras, con cuyo producto, seguramente
mezquino, iba sosteniendo su trabajada vejez, formó con estos
mismos cuentos un Libro Curioso, lleno de recreacion y contento,
que es uno de los tres Tratados propios para los que dessean saber
lengua española (París, 1643), donde también pueden leerse dos
diálogos, no sé á punto fijo si suyos ó ajenos, «entre dos comadres
amigas familiares, la una se llama Margarita y la otra Luciana».
Mencionaremos, finalmente, el Thesoro de diversa licion (París,
1636), cuyo título parece sugerido por la Silva de varia leccion de
Pedro Mejía, que le proporcionó la mayor parte de sus materiales,
puesto que no creo que Salazar acudiese personalmente á Eliano,
Plinio, Dioscórides y otros antiguos á quien se remite[186]. El
Thesoro viene á ser una enciclopedia microscópica de geografía ó
historia natural, pero lleva al fin una serie de Historias verdaderas
sucedidas por algunos animales, que entran de lleno en la literatura
novelística. Algunas son tan vulgares y sabidas como la del león de
Androcles, pero hay también cuentos españoles que tienen interés
folklórico. Todos deben de encontrarse en otros libros, pero hoy por
hoy no puedo determinar cuáles. La historia del prodigioso perro que
tenía un maestro de capilla de Palencia en tiempo de Carlos V se
lee en el Libro del Can y del Caballo del protonotario Luis Pérez[187],
pero con notables variantes. La leyenda genealógica de los Porceles
de Murcia, que sirvió á Lope de Vega para su comedia del mismo
título[188], se encuentra referida en Salazar á Barcelona, y acaso
sea allí más antigua, puesto que en Provenza hallamos la misma
leyenda aplicada á los Pourcelet, marqueses de Maiano (Maillane),
poderosos señores en la villa de Arlés, cuyo apellido sonó mucho en
las Cruzadas, en la guerra de los Albigenses, en las Vísperas
Sicilianas y en otros muchos sucesos, y de la cual es verosímil que
procediesen el Guarner Porcel, el Porcelín Porcel y el Orrigo Porcel,
que asistieron con D. Jaime á la conquista de Murcia, y están
inscritos en el libro de repartimiento de aquella ciudad, puesto que el
blasón de ambos linajes ostenta nueve lechoncillos[189].
Más curiosa todavía es otra leyenda catalana sobre la casa de
Marcús, que Ambrosio de Salazar nos refiere en estos términos:
«En la decendencia de los Marcuses, linage principal de Cataluña,
se lee una Historia de una Cabra y un Cabrito, que aunque fué
sueño tubo un estraño effecto, que un Hidalgo llamado Marcus, por
desgracias y vandos de sus antecessores, vino á una grande
pobreza y necessidad, tanto que lo hazia andar muy afligido y
cuydadoso pensando cómo podria echar de sí tan pesada carga. Y
con tales pensamientos sucedió, que durmiendo soñó un sueño que
si dexava su tierra y se yva á Francia, en una Puente que está junto
á la Ciudad de Narbona hallaria un gran Thesoro. El qual
despertando estubo pensando si aquello era sueño ó fantasía. Por
entonces no quiso dar credito al sueño, pero bolviendo otras dos
vezes al mesmo sueño determinó yr allá, y provar sueño y ventura.
Estando pues en la dicha Puente un dia entre otros muchos acaeció
que otro hidalgo de aquella ciudad, por la mañana y a la tarde se
salia por aquella Puente passeando; y como notasse y viesse cada
dia aquel Estrangero, y que por mucho que él madrugase ya lo
hallava ally, y por tarde que bolviesse tambien, determinó
preguntarle la causa, como de hecho se lo preguntó, rogándoselo
muy encarecidamente.
«El hidalgo catalan después de bien importunado respondió
diciendo: «Aveis de saber, señor, que un Sueño me ha traydo aqui, y
es éste: que si me venia a esta Puente avia de hallar en ella un muy
grande Thesoro, y esto lo soñé muchas vezes». El Francés
burlándose del Cathalan y de su sueño respondió riendo: «Bueno
estuviera yo que dexara mi patria y casa por un sueño que soñé los
dias passados, y era, que si me yva á la Ciudad de Barcelona en
casa de uno que se llama Marcus, hallaria debajo una escalera un
grandíssimo y famoso Thesoro»; el hidalgo catalan, que era el
mesmo Marcus, como oyó el sueño del Francés y su reprehensión,
se despidió dél sin dársele á conocer y se bolvió á su casa. Luego
que llegó començó en secreto á cavar debajo su escalera
considerando que podria aver algun mysterio en aquellos sueños, y
á pocos dias ahondó cavando tanto que vino á descubrir un gran
cofre de hierro enterrado ally, dentro del qual halló una Cabra muy
grande y un cabrito de oro maciço, que se creyó que avian sido
idolos del tiempo de los Gentiles. Con las quales dos pieças,
aviendo pagado el quinto, salió de miseria, y fué rico toda su vida él
y los suyos: y instituyó cinco capellanias con sus rentas, que estan
aun oy dia en la ciudad de Barcelona»[190].
No todos los librillos bilingües de anécdotas y chistes publicados en
Francia á fines del siglo xvi y principios del xvii tenían el útil é
inofensivo objeto de enseñar prácticamente la lengua. Había
también verdaderas diatribas, libelos y caricaturas en que se
desahogaba el odio engendrado por una guerra ya secular y por la
preponderancia de nuestras armas. Á este género pertenecen las
colecciones de fanfarronadas y fieros en que alternan los dichos
estupendos de soldados y rufianes. Escribían ó compilaban estos
libros algunos franceses medianamente conocedores de nuestra
lengua, como Nicolás Baudoin, autor de las Rodomuntadas
castellanas, recopiladas de diversos autores y mayormente del
capitán Escardón Bonbardón, que en sustancia son el mismo libro
que las Rodomuntadas castellanas, recopiladas de los
commentarios de los muy aspantosos (sic), terribles e invincibles
capitanes Metamoros (sic), Crocodrillo y Rajabroqueles[191]. Y en
algunos casos también cultivaron este ramo de industria literaria
españoles refugiados por causas políticas ó religiosas, como el judío
Francisco de Cáceres, autor de los Nuevos fieros españoles[192].
En estos librejos pueden distinguirse dos elementos, el rufianesco y
el soldadesco, ambos de auténtica aunque degenerada tradición
literaria. Venía el primero de las Celestinas, comenzando por el
Centurio y el Traso de la primera, siguiendo por el Pandulfo de la
segunda, por el Brumandilón de la tercera, por el Escalión de la
Comedia Selvagia, para no mencionar otras. En casi todas aparece
el tipo del rufián cobarde y jactancioso, acrecentándose de una en
otra los fieros, desgarros, juramentos, porvidas y blasfemias que
salen de sus vinosas bocas. Algo mitigado ó adecentado el tipo
pasó á las tablas del teatro popular con Lope de Rueda, que
sobresalía en representar esta figura cómica, la cual repite tres
veces por lo menos en la parte que conocemos de su repertorio. El
gusto del siglo xvii no la toleraba ya, y puede decirse que Lope de
Vega la enterró definitivamente en El Rufián Castrucho.
No puede confundirse con el rufián, reñidor de fingidas pendencias y
valiente de embeleco, el soldado fanfarrón, el miles gloriosus, cuya
primera aparición en nuestra escena data de la Comedia
Soldadesca de Torres Naharro. Este nuevo personaje, aunque tiene
á veces puntas y collares rufianescos y pocos escrúpulos en lo que
no toca á su oficio de las armas, suele ser un soldado de verdad,
curtido en campañas sangrientas, y que sólo resulta cómico por lo
desgarrado y jactancioso de su lenguaje. Así le comprendió mejor
que nadie Brantôme en el libro, mucho más admirativo que
malicioso, de sus Rodomantades Espaignolles, donde bajo un título
común se reúnen dichos de arrogancia heroica, con bravatas
pomposas ó hipérboles desaforadas. El libro de Brantôme más que
satírico es festivo, y en lo que tiene de serio fué dictado por la más
cordial simpatía y la admiración más sincera. El panegírico que hace
del soldado español no ha sido superado nunca. Era un
españolizante fervoroso; cada infante de nuestros tercios le parecía
un príncipe, y á los ingenios de nuestra gente, cuando quieren darse
á las letras y no á las armas, los encontraba «raros, excelentes,
admirables, profundos y sutiles». Sus escritos están atestados de
palabras castellanas, por lo general bien transcritas, y él mismo nos
da testimonio de que la mayor parte de los franceses de su tiempo
sabían hablar ó por lo menos entendían nuestra lengua. No sólo le
encantaba en los españoles la bravura, el garbo, la bizarría, sino
esas mismas fierezas y baladronadas que recopila «belles paroles
profferées à l'improviste», que satisfacen su gusto gascón y no
hacen más que acrecentar su entusiasmo por esta nación «brave
bravasche et vallereuse, et fort prompte d'esprit». Síguese de aquí
que aunque Brantôme fuese el inventor del género de las
Rodomontadas, y el primero que las coleccionó en un libro que no
puede llamarse bilingüe, puesto que las conserva en su lengua
original sin traducción[193], lo hizo sin la intención aviesa, siniestra y
odiosa con que otros las extractaron y acrecentaron en tiempo de
Luis XIII.
Hora es de que tornemos los ojos á nuestra Península, y
abandonando por el momento los libros de anécdotas y chistes, nos
fijemos más particularmente en las colecciones de cuentos y
narraciones breves que en escaso número aparecen después de
Timoneda y antes de Cervantes. Una de estas colecciones está en
lengua portuguesa, y si no es la primera de su género en toda
España, como pensó Manuel do Faria[194], es seguramente la
primera en Portugal, tierra fertilísima en variantes de cuentos
populares que la erudita diligencia de nuestros vecinos va
recopilando[195], y no enteramente desprovista de manifestaciones
literarias de este género durante los tiempos medios, aunque
ninguna de ellas alcance la importancia del Calila y Sendebar
castellanos, de las obras de D. Juan Manuel ó de los libros
catalanes de Ramón Lull y Turmeda[196].
El primer cuentista portugués con fin y propósito de tal es
contemporáneo de Timoneda, pero publicó su colección después del
Patrañuelo. Llamábase Gonzalo Fernandes Trancoso, era natural
del pueblo de su nombre en la provincia de Beira, maestro de letras
humanas en Lisboa, lo cual explica las tendencias retóricas de su
estilo, y persona de condición bastante oscura, apenas mencionado
por sus contemporáneos. Aparte de los cuentos, no se cita más
trabajo suyo que un opúsculo de las «fiestas movibles» (Festas
mudaveis), dedicado en 1570 al Arzobispo de Lisboa.
Á semejanza de Boccaccio, á quien la peste de Florencia dió
ocasión y cuadro para enfilar las historias del Decameron, Trancoso
fué movido á buscar algún solaz en la composición de las suyas con
el terrible motivo de la llamada peste grande de Lisboa en 1569, á la
cual hay varias referencias en su libro. En el cuento 9.º de la 2.ª
parte, dice: «Assi a exemplo deste Marquez, todos os que este anuo
de mil e quinhentos e sessenta e nove, nesta peste perdemos
mulheres, filhos e fazenda, nos esfoçaremos e nāo nos
entristeçamos tanto, que caiamos em caso de desesperação sem
comer e sem paciencia, dando occasião a nossa morte». Trancoso
hizo la descripción de esta peste, no en un proemio como el
novelista florentino, sino en una Carta que dirigió á la Reina Doña
Catalina, viuda de D. Juan III y Regente del Reino. En esta carta,
que sólo se halla en la primera y rarísima edición de los Contos de
1575 y fué omitida malamente en las posteriores, refiere Trancoso
haber perdido en aquella calamidad á su mujer, á su hija, de
veinticuatro años, y á dos hijos, uno estudiante y otro niño de coro.
Agobiado por el peso de tantas desdichas, ni siquiera llegó á
completar el número de cuentos que se había propuesto escribir. De
ellos publicó dos partes, que en junto contienen veintiocho capítulos.
Una tercera parte póstuma, dada á luz por su hijo Antonio
Fernandes, añade otros diez.
Con el deseo de exagerar la antigüedad de los Contos e historias de
proveito e exemplo, supone Teófilo Braga que Trancoso había
comenzado á escribirlos en 1544[197]. Pero el texto que alega no
confirma esta conjetura, puesto que en él habla Trancoso de dicho
año como de tiempo pasado: «e elle levaba consigo duzentos e
vinte reales de prata, que era isto o anno de 1544, que havia quasi
tudo reales». Me parece evidente que Trancoso no se refiere aquí al
año en que él escribía, sino al año en que pasa la acción de su
novela. Tampoco hay el menor indicio de que la Primera Parte se
imprimiese suelta antes de 1575, en que apareció juntamente con la
Segunda, reimprimiéndose ambas en 1585 y 1589. La tercera es de
1596[198]. No cabe duda, pues, de la prioridad de Timoneda, cuyas
Patrañas estaban impresas desde 1566, tres años antes de la peste
de Lisboa. No creo, sin embargo, que Trancoso las utilizase mucho.
Las grandes semejanzas que el libro valenciano y el portugués
tienen en la narración de Griselda quizá puedan explicarse por una
lección italiana común, algo distinta de las de Boccaccio y Petrarca.
Trancoso adaptó al portugués varios cuentos italianos de Boccaccio,
Bandello, Straparola y Giraldi Cinthio, pero lo que caracteriza su
colección y la da más valor folklórico que á la de Timoneda es el
haber acudido con frecuencia á la fuente de la tradición oral. La
intención didáctica y moralizadora predomina en estos cuentos, y
algunos pueden calificarse de ejemplos piadosos, como el «del
ermitaño y el salteador de caminos», que inculca la necesidad del
concurso de las buenas obras para la justificación, aunque sin el
profundo sentido teológico que admiramos en la parábola dramática
de El Condenado por desconfiado, ni la variedad y riqueza de su
acción, cuyas raíces se esconden en antiquísimos temas populares.
Otros enuncian sencillas lecciones de economía doméstica y de
buenas costumbres, recomendando con especial encarecimiento la
honestidad y recato en las doncellas y la fidelidad conyugal, lo cual
no deja de contrastar con la ligereza de los novellieri italianos, y aun
de Timoneda, su imitador. El tono de la coleccioncita portuguesa es
constantemente grave y decoroso, y aun en esto revela sus
afinidades con la genuina poesía popular, que nunca es inmoral de
caso pensado, aunque sea muchas veces libre y desnuda en la
dicción.
El origen popular de algunos de estos relatos se comprueba también
por los refranes y estribillos, que les sirven de motivo ó conclusión,
v. gr.: «A moça virtuosa—Deus a esposa» (cont. III); «minha mãe,
calçotes» (cont. X), y otros dichos que son tradicionales todavía en
Oporto y en la región del Miño.
Algunas de las anécdotas recogidas por Trancoso son meramente
dichos agudos y sentenciosos que corrían de boca en boca, y no
todos pueden ser calificados de portugueses. Así el conocido rasgo
clásico de la vajilla mandada romper por Cotys, rey de Tracia, que
aquí se encuentra aplicado á un rey de España. La fuente remota
pero indisputable de esta anécdota, que pasó á tantos centones, es
Plutarco en sus Apotegmas, que andaban traducidos al castellano
desde 1533. Es verosímil, además, que Trancoso manejase la
Floresta Española de Melchor de Santa Cruz, impresa un año antes
que los Contos, pues sólo así se explica la identidad casi literal de
ambos textos en algunas anécdotas y dichos de personajes
castellanos. Puede compararse, por ejemplo, el cuento 8.º de la
Parte Primeira del portugués con éste, que figura en el capítulo III de
la colección del toledano:
«Un contador de este Arzobispo (D. Alonso Carrillo) le dixo que era
tan grande el gasto de su casa, que ningún término hallaba cómo se
pudiese sustentar con la renta que tenia. Dixo el Arzobispo: «¿Pues
qué medio te parece que se tenga?» Respondió el Contador: «Que
despida Vuestra Señoria aquellos de quien no tiene necesidad».
Mandóle el Arzobispo que diese un memorial de los que le
sobraban, y de los que se habian de quedar. El Contador puso
primero aquellos que le parecian á él más necesarios y en otra
memoria los que no eran menester. El Arzobispo tuvo manera como
le diese el memorial delante de los más de sus criados, y leyéndole,
dixo: «Estos queden, que yo los he menester; esotros ellos me han
menester á mí»[199].
También pertenece á la historia castellana este dicho del Marqués
de Priego, viendo asolada una de sus fortalezas por mandado del
Rey Católico: «Bendito y alabado sea Dios que me dió paredes en
que descargase la ira del Rey». (Cont. IX, parte 1.ª de Trancoso.)
Llegando á los cuentos propiamente dichos, á las narraciones algo
más extensas, que pueden calificarse de novelas cortas, es patente
que el autor portugués las recibió casi siempre de la tradición oral, y
no de los textos literarios. Por eso y por su relativa antigüedad
merecen singular aprecio sus versiones, aun tratándose de temas
muy conocidos, como el «del Rey Juan y el abad de Cantorbery»
(que aquí es un comendador llamado D. Simón), ó el de «la prueba
de las naranjas», ó el de «los tres consejos», parábola de
indiscutible origen oriental, que difiere profundamente de todas las
demás variantes conocidas y ofrece una peripecia análoga á la
leyenda del paje de la Reina Santa Isabel[200].
Todavía tienen más hondas raíces en el subsuelo misterioso de la
tradición primitiva, común á los pueblos y razas más diversas, otros
cuentos de Trancoso, por ejemplo, el de la reina virtuosa y la envidia
de sus hermanas, que la acusan de parir diversos monstruos, con
los cuales ellas suplantan las criaturas que la inocente heroína va
dando á luz. Innumerables son los paradigmas de esta conseja en la
literatura oral de todos los países, como puede verse en los
eruditísimos trabajos de Reinhold Köhler y de Estanislao Prato[201],
que recopilan á este propósito cuentos italianos, franceses,
alemanes, irlandeses, escandinavos, húngaros, eslavos, griegos
modernos, en número enorme. Sin salir de nuestra Península, la
encontramos en Andalucía, en Portugal, en Cataluña, y ni siquiera
falta una versión vasca recogida por Webster[202]. La novelística
literaria ofrece este tema con igual profusión en Las Mil y una
noches, en Straparola (n. 4, fáb. III); en la Posilecheata del obispo
Pompeyo Sarnelli, publicada por Imbriani (cuento tercero); en Mad.
D'Aulnoy, La Princesse Belle-Etoile et le prince Chévi. Carlos Gozzi
le transportó al teatro en su célebre fiaba filosofica «L'Augellino
belverde», y D. Juan Valera le rejuveneció para el gusto español con
la suave y cándida malicia de su deleitable prosa. Un nexo
misterioso pero indudable, ya reconocido por Grimm, enlaza este
cuento con el del caballero del Cisne y con las poéticas tradiciones
relativas á Lohengrin. Tan extraordinaria y persistente difusión indica
un simbolismo primitivo, no fácil de rastrear, sin embargo, aun por la
comparación de las versiones más antiguas. La de Trancoso
conserva cierta sencillez relativa, y no está muy alejada de las que
Leite de Vasconcellos y Teófilo Braga han recogido de boca del
pueblo portugués en nuestros días.
Persisten del mismo modo en la viva voz del vulgo el cuento del real
bien ganado que conduce á un piadoso labriego al hallazgo de una
piedra preciosa, y el de «quien todo lo quiere, todo lo pierde»,
fundado en una estratagema jurídica que altera el valor de las
palabras. Y aunque todavía no se hayan registrado versiones
populares de otras consejas, puede traslucirse el mismo origen en la
de «la buena suegra», que tanto contrasta con el odioso papel que
generalmente se atribuye á las suegras en cuentos y romances, y
que en su desarrollo ofrece una situación análoga á la astucia
empleada en la comedia de Shakespeare All's well that ends well,
cuyo argumento está tomado, como se sabe, del cuento
decameroniano de Giletta de Narbona (n. 9, giorn. III). Obsérvese
que Trancoso conocía también á Boccaccio, pero en este caso no le
imita, sino que coincide con él.
De El Conde Lucanor no creemos que tuviese conocimiento, puesto
que la edición de Argote es del mismo año que la primera de los
Contos; pero en ambas colecciones es casi idéntico el ejemplo
moral que sirve para probar la piadosa máxima: «Bendito sea Dios,
ca pues él lo fizo, esto es lo mejor»; salvo que en Trancoso queda
reducido á la condición de médico el resignado protagonista de la
pierna quebrada, que en la anécdota recogida por D. Juan Manuel
tiene un nombre ilustre: D. Rodrigo Meléndez de Valdés, «caballero
mucho honrado del reino de Leon». Los nombres y circunstancias
históricas es lo primero que se borra en la tradición y en el canto
popular.
El cuento «del hallazgo de la bolsa» se halla con circunstancias
diversas en Sercambi, en Giraldi Cinthio y en Timoneda[203]; pero la
versión de Trancoso parece independiente y popular, como lo es
también el cuento de «los dos hermanos», que en alguna de sus
peripecias (el pleito sobre la cola de la bestia, transportado por
Timoneda á la patraña sexta y no olvidado por Cervantes en La
Ilustre Fregona), pertenece al vastísimo ciclo de ficciones del «justo
juez», que Benfey y Köhler han estudiado minuciosamente
comparando versiones rusas, tibetanas, indias y germánicas.
La parte de invención personal en los cuentos de Trancoso debe de
ser muy exigua, aun en los casos en que no puede señalarse
derivación directa. Nadie le creerá capaz de haber inventado un
cuento tan genuinamente popular como el «del falso príncipe y el
verdadero», puesto que son folklóricos todos sus elementos: la
fuerza de la sangre, que se revela por la valentía y arrojo en el
verdadero príncipe, y por la cobardía en el falso é intruso, y el
casamiento del héroe con una princesa, que permanece encantada
durante cierto tiempo, en forma de vieja decrépita. Cuando Trancoso
intenta novelar de propia minerva, lo cual raras veces le acontece,
cae en lugares comunes y se arrastra lánguidamente. Tal le sucede
en el cuento del hijo de un mercader, que en recompensa de su
piedad llegó á ser rey de Inglaterra (cuento II de la 2.ª parte).
Trancoso parece haberle compaginado con reminiscencias de libros
caballerescos, especialmente del Oliveros de Castilla. Es una nueva
versión del tema del muerto agradecido. Los agradecidos son aquí
dos santos, cuyas reliquias había rescatado en Berbería el héroe de
la novela, y que con cuerpos fantásticos le acompañan en su viaje y
le hacen salir vencedor de las justas en que conquista la mano de la
princesa de Inglaterra.
Los cuentos de Trancoso en que debe admitirse imitación literaria
son los menos. De Boccaccio trasladó, no sólo la Griselda, sino
también la historia de los fieles amigos Tito y Gisipo (Decameron,
giorn. X, n. 8), transportando la acción á Lisboa y Coimbra. De
Bandello, la novela XV de la Parte 2.ª, en que se relata aquel acto
de justicia del Duque Alejandro de Médicis, que sirve de argumento
á la comedia de Lope de Vega La Quinta de Florencia[204]. De las
Noches de Straparola tomó, recortándola mucho, la primera novela,
que persuade la conveniencia de guardar secreto, especialmente
con las mujeres, y de ser obediente á los consejos de los padres. El
cuento está muy abreviado, pero no empeorado, por Trancoso, y el
artificio de simular muerto un neblí ó halcón predilecto del Marqués
de Monferrato, para dar ocasión á que la mujer imprudente y
ofendida delate á su marido y ponga en grave riesgo su vida, es
nota característica de ambas versiones, y las separa de otras
muchas[205], comenzando por la del Gesta Romanorum[206].
Giraldi Cinthio suministró á la colección portuguesa dos novelas, es
á saber, la quinta de la primera década, en que el homicida, cuya
cabeza ha sido pregonada, viene á ponerse en manos de la justicia
para salvar de la miseria á su mujer é hijos con el precio ofrecido á
quien le entregue muerto ó vivo[207]; y la primera de la década
segunda, cuyo argumento en Trancoso, que sólo ha cambiado los
nombres, es el siguiente: Aurelia, princesa de Castilla, promete su
mano al que le traiga la cabeza del que asesinó á su novio
Pompeyo. El incógnito matador Felicio, que había cometido su
crimen por amor á Aurelia, vuelve del destierro con nombre
supuesto, y después de prestar á la Princesa grandes servicios en la
guerra contra el Rey de Aragón su despechado pretendiente, pone
su vida en manos de la dama, la cual, no sólo le perdona, sino que
se casa con él, cumpliendo lo prometido[208]. En la primera de estas
leyendas fundó Lope de Vega su comedia El Piadoso Veneciano.
Si á esta media docena de novelas añadimos el conocido apólogo
del codicioso y el envidioso, que puede leerse en muchos libros de
ejemplos, pero que Trancoso, como maestro de latinidad que era,
tomó probablemente de la fábula 22 de Aviano, que es el texto más
antiguo en que se encuentra[209], tendremos apurado casi todo lo
que en su libro tiene visos de erudición y es fruto de sus lecturas, no
muchas ni variadas, á juzgar por la muestra. Ni estas imitaciones
ocasionales, ni el fárrago de moralidades impertinentes y frías que
abruman los cuentos, bastan para borrar el sello hondamente
popular de este libro, que no sólo por la calidad de sus materiales,
sino por su estilo fácil, expresivo y gracioso, es singular en la
literatura portuguesa del siglo xvi, donde aparece sin precedentes ni
imitadores. Los eruditos pudieron desdeñarle; pero el pueblo siguió
leyéndole con devoción hasta fines del siglo xviii, en que todavía le
cita un poeta tan culto y clásico como Filinto Elysio: «os Contos de
Trancoso, do tempo de nossos avoengos». Filinto se complacía en
recordarlos y no desdeñaba tampoco (caso raro en su tiempo) los
de tradición oral, «contos que ouvi contar ha mais de setenta e dois
annos», como las Tres Cidras do Amor, João Ratão y la Princesa
Doninha. «Com o titulo da Gata Borralheira, contava minha mãe a
historia de Cendrillon. E nunca minha mãe soube francez»[210].
El cuento literario medró muy poco en Portugal después de
Trancoso. Si alguno se halla es meramente á título de ejemplo moral
en libros ascéticos ó de materia predicable, como el Baculo pastoral
de Flores de Exemplos de Francisco Saraiva de Sousa (1657), el
Estimulo pratico, la Nova floresta de varios Apophtegmas y otras
obras del P. Manuel Bernardes, ó en ciertas misceláneas eruditas
del siglo xviii, como la Academia Universal de varia erudição del P.
Manuel Consciencia, y las Horas de Recreio nas ferias de maiores
estudos del P. Juan Bautista de Castro (1770). Sólo los estudios
folklóricos de nuestros días han hecho reverdecer esta frondosa
rama de la tradición galaico-lusitana, cuya importancia, literaria por
lo menos, ya sospechaba un preclaro ingenio de principios del siglo
xvii, que intentó antes que otro alguno reducir á reglas y preceptos
el arte infantil de los contadores, dándonos de paso una teoría del
género y una indicación de sus principales temas. Me refiero al
curioso libro de Francisco Rodríguez Lobo Corte na aldea e noites
de inverno, de que más detenidamente he de tratar en otra parte de
los presentes estudios, puesto que por la fecha de su primera
edición (1619) es ya posterior á las Novelas de Cervantes. Pero no
quiero omitir aquí la mención de los dos curiosísimos diálogos
décimo y undécimo, en que presenta dos tipos contrapuestos de
narración, una al modo italiano (Historia de los amores de Aleramo y
Adelasia—Historia de los amores de Manfredo y Eurice), otro al
modo popular «con más bordones y muletas que tiene una casa de
romería, sin que falten términos de viejas y remedios de los que
usan los descuidados». Con este motivo establece una distinción
Rodríguez Lobo entre los cuentos y las historias (sinónimo aquí de
las novelle toscanas), donde puede campear mejor «la buena
descripción de las personas, relación de los acontecimientos, razón
de los tiempos y lugares, y una plática por parte de algunas de las
figuras que mueva más á compasión y piedad, que esto hace doblar
después la alegría del buen suceso», en suma todos los recursos
patéticos y toda la elegancia retórica de Boccaccio y sus discípulos.
«Esta diferencia me parece que se debe hacer de los cuentos y de
las historias, que aquéllas piden más palabras que éstos, y dan
mayor lugar al ornato y concierto de las razones, llevándolas de
manera que vayan aficionando el deseo de los oyentes, y los
cuentos no quieren tanta retórica, porque lo principal en que
consisten está en la gracia del que habla y en la que tiene de suyo
la cosa que se cuenta».
«Son estos cuentos de tres maneras: unos fundados en descuidos y
desatientos, otros en mera ignorancia, otros en engaño y sutileza.
Los primeros y segundos tienen más gracia y provocan más á risa y
constan de menos razones, porque solamente se cuenta el caso,
diciendo el cortesano con gracia propia los yerros ajenos. Los
terceros sufren más palabras, porque debe el que cuenta referir
cómo se hubo el discreto con otro que lo era menos ó que en la
ocasión quedó más engañado...».
De todos ellos pone Rodríguez Lobo multiplicados ejemplos y
continúa enumerando otras variedades: «Demás destos tres
órdenes de cuentos de que tengo hablado hay otros muy graciosos
y galanos, que por ser de descuidos de personas en quien había en
todas las cosas de haber mayor cuidado, no son dignos de entrar en
regla ni de ser traídos por ejemplo. Lo general es que el desatiento ó
la ignorancia, donde menos se espera, tiene mayor gracia. Después
de los cuentos graciosos se siguen otros de sutileza, como son
hurtos, engaños de guerra, otros de miedos, fantasmas, esfuerzo,
libertad, desprecio, largueza y otros semejantes, que obligan más á
espanto que á alegría, y puesto que se deben todos contar con el
mismo término y lenguaje, se deben en ellos usar palabras más
graves que risueñas».
Trata finalmente de los dichos sentenciosos, agudos y picantes,
dando discretas reglas sobre la oportunidad y sazón en que han de
ser empleados: «Los cuentos y dichos galanes deben ser en la
conversación como los pasamanos y guarniciones en los vestidos,
que no parezca que cortaron la seda para ellos, sino que cayeron
bien, y salieron con el color de la seda ó del paño sobre que los
pusieron; porque hay algunos que quieren traer su cuento á fuerza
de remos, cuando no les dan viento los oyentes, y aunque con otras
cosas les corten el hilo, vuelven á la tela, y lo hacen comer
recalentado, quitándole el gusto y gracia que pudiera tener si cayera
á caso y á propósito, que es cuando se habla en la materia de que
se trata ó cuando se contó otro semejante. Y si conviene mucha
advertencia y decoro para decirlos, otra mayor se requiere para
oirlos, porque hay muchos tan presurosos del cuento ó dicho que
saben, que en oyéndolo comenzar á otro, se le adelantan ó le van
ayudando á versos como si fuera salmo; lo cual me parece notable
yerro, porque puesto que le parezca á uno que contará aquello
mismo que oye con más gracia y mejor término, no se ha de fiar de
sí, ni sobre esa certeza querer mejorarse del que lo cuenta, antes
oirle y festejarle con el mismo aplauso como si fuera la primera vez
que lo oyese, porque muchas veces es prudencia fingir en algunas
cosas ignorancia... Tampoco soy de opinión que si un hombre
supiese muchos cuentos ó dichos de la materia en que se habla,
que los saque todos á plaza, como jugador que sacó la runfla de
algún metal, sino que deje lugar á los demás, y no quiera ganar el
de todos ni hacer la conversación consigo solo»[211].
De estos «cuentos galantes, dichos graciosos y apodos risueños»
proponía Rodríguez Lobo que se formase «un nuevo Alivio de
caminantes, con mejor traza que el primero». Es la única colección
que cita de las anteriores á su tiempo, aunque no debía de serle
ignorada la Floresta Española, que es más copiosa y de «mejor
traza». Aunque Rodríguez Lobo imita en cierto modo el plan de El
Cortesano de Castiglione, donde también hay preceptos y modelos
de cuentos y chistes, sus advertencias recaen, como se ve, sobre el
cuento popular é indígena de su país, y prueban el mucho lugar que
en nuestras costumbres peninsulares tenía este ingenioso deporte,
aunque rara vez pasase á los libros.
Algunos seguían componiéndose, sin embargo, en lengua
castellana.
El más curioso salió de las prensas de Valencia, lo mismo que el
Patrañuelo, y su autor pertenecía á una familia de ilustres tipógrafos
y editores, de origen flamenco, que constituyen al mismo tiempo una
dinastía de humanistas[212]. Aunque Sebastián Mey no alcanzó
tanta fama como otros de su sangre, especialmente su doctísimo
padre Felipe Mey, poeta y traductor de Ovidio, filólogo y profesor de
Griego en la Universidad de Valencia, y hombre, en fin, que mereció
tener por mecenas al grande arzobispo de Tarragona Antonio
Agustín, es indudable, por el único libro suyo que conocemos, que
tenía condiciones de prosista muy superiores á las de Timoneda, y
que nadie, entre los escasos cuentistas de aquella Edad, le supera
en garbo y soltura narrativa. La extraordinaria rareza de su
Fabulario[213], del cual sólo conocemos dos ejemplares, uno en la
Biblioteca Nacional de Madrid y otro en la de París, ha podido hacer
creer que era meramente un libro de fábulas esópicas. Es cierto que
las contiene en bastante número, pero hay, entre los cincuenta y
siete capítulos de que se compone, otros cuentos y anécdotas de
procedencia muy diversa y algunos ensayos de novela corta á la
manera italiana, por lo cual ofrece interés la indagación de sus
fuentes, sobre las cuales acaba de publicar un interesante trabajo el
joven erudito norteamericano Milton A. Buchanan, de las
Universidades de Toronto y Chicago[214].
Exacto es al pie de la letra lo que dice Sebastián Mey en el prólogo
de su Fabulario: «Tiene muchas fábulas y cuentos nuevos que no
están en los otros (libros), y los que hay viejos están aquí por
diferente estilo». Aun los mismos apólogos clásicos, que toma casi
siempre de la antigua colección esópica[215], están remozados por
él con estilo original y con la libertad propia de los verdaderos
fabulistas. Hubiera podido escribir sus apólogos en verso, y no sin
elegancia, como lo prueban los dísticos endecasílabos con que
expresa la moralidad de la fábula, á ejemplo, sin duda, de D. Juan
Manuel, puesto que la compilación de Exemplos de Clemente
Sánchez de Vercial debía de serle desconocida. Con buen acuerdo
prefirió la prosa. Interrumpida como estaba después del Arcipreste
de Hita la tradición de la fábula en verso, hubiera tenido que forjarse
un molde nuevo de estilo y dicción, como felizmente lo intentó
Bartolomé Leonardo de Argensola en las pocas fábulas que á
imitación de Horacio intercala en sus epístolas, y como lo lograron,
cultivando el género más de propósito, Samaniego é Iriarte en el
siglo xviii, y creemos que la pericia técnica de Sebastián Mey no
alcanzaba á tanto. Pero en la sabrosísima prosa de su tiempo, y con
puntas de intención satírica á veces, desarrolla, de un modo vivo y
pintoresco, aun los temas más gastados. Sirva de ejemplo la fábula
de El lobo, la raposa y el asno:
«Teniendo hambre la raposa y el lobo, se llegaron hazia los
arrabales de una aldea, por ver si hallarian alguna cosa a mal
recado, y toparon con un asno bien gordo y lucido, que estava
paciendo en un prado; pero temiendose que por estar tan cerca de
poblado corrian peligro si alli esecutavan en él su designio,
acordaron de ver si con buenas razones podrian apartarle de alli,
por donde acercando a él la raposa, le habló de esta suerte:
«Borriquillo, borriquillo, que norabuena esteys, y os haga buen
provecho la yervecica; bien pensays vos que no os conozco, sabed
pues que no he tenido yo en esta vida mayor amiga que vuestra
madre. Oh, qué honradaza era: no havia entre las dos pan partido.
Agora venimos de parte de un tio vuestro, que detras de aquel
monte tiene su morada, en unas praderias que no las hay en el
mundo tales: alli podreys dezir que hay buena yerba, que aqui todo
es miseria. El nos ha embiado para que os notifiquemos cómo casa
una hija, y quiere que os halleys vos en las bodas. Por esta cuesta
arriba podemos ir juntos; que yo sé un atajo por donde acortaremos
gran rato de camino». El asno, aunque tosco y boçal, era por
estremo malicioso; y en viéndolos imaginó hazerles alguna burla;
por esto no huyó, sino que se estuvo quedo y sosegado, sin mostrar
tenerles miedo. Pero quando huvo oido a la raposa, aunque tuvo
todo lo que dezia por mentira, mostró mucho contento, y començó a
quexarse de su amo, diziendo cómo dias havia le huviera dexado, si
no que le devia su soldada; y para no pagarle, de dia en dia le traia
en palabras, y que finalmente solo havia podido alcançar dél que le
hiziese una obligacion de pagarle dentro de cierto tiempo, que pues
no podia por entonces cobrar, a lo menos queria informarse de un
letrado, si era bastante aquella escritura, la qual tenia en la uña del
pie, para tener segura su deuda. Bolviose la raposa entonces al lobo
(que ya ella se temió de algun temporal) y le preguntó si sus letras
podian suplir en semejante menester. Pero él no entendiéndola de
grosero, muerto porque le tuviesen por letrado, respondió muy

An Introduction To Geotechnical Engineering 3Rd Edition Robert D Holtz Full Chapter

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An Introduction to Geotechnical

Engineering 3rd Edition Robert D. Holtz

Robert D. Holtz, Ph.D., P.E., D.GE

William D. Kovacs, Ph.D., P.E., D.GE

Thomas C. Sheahan, Sc.D., P.E.

Please contact https://support.pearson.com/getsupport/s/ with any queries on this content.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Names: Holtz, R. D. (Robert D.), author. I Kovacs, William D., author. I

Our ambition is to purposefully contribute to a world where:

3.3 Geologic Processes and Landforms 71

4.7 Specifications and Compaction Control 169

6.6 Seepage Forces, Quicksand, and Liquefaction 271

9.12 Sensitivity 494

11.5 Rankine Passive Earth Pressure 608

13.7 Critical State Soil Mechanics 732

RESOURCES FOR INSTRUCTORS

1.1 GEOTECHNICAL ENGINEERING

1.2 THE UNIQUE NATURE OF SOIL AND ROCK MATERIALS

1.3 SCOPE OF THIS BOOK

1.4 HISTORICAL DEVELOPMENT OF GEOTECHNICAL ENGINEERING

1.5 SUGGESTED APPROACH TO THE STUDY OF GEOTECHNICAL ENGINEERING

1.6 NOTES ON SYMBOLS, UNITS, AND STANDARDS

1.7 SOME COMMENTS ON HOW TO STUDY IN GENERAL

Index and Classification

2.2 BASIC DEFINITIONS AND PHASE RELATIONS FOR SOILS

w In engineering practice, we usually measure the total vol-

1. The void ratio e is defined as

s where Vv = volume of the voids, and

where Vv = volume of voids, and

FIGURE2.2 Volumetric and mass

3. The degree of saturation S is defined as

a. Mass of total (wet) sample + dish = 388 g

9.81 kN/m 62.4 lb/ft

to 23.4 kN/m (150 lb/ft

The high end of this range would be essentially

solid mineral, with a corresponding density/unit weight close to that of concrete.

'"Ysat '°Yd --y'

2.2.1 Solution of Phase Problems

1. List the information you know (from the problem narrative).

Ps = 2700 kg/m 3 (assumed)

Volume (m3 ) Mass (kg)

! FIGURE Ex. 2.2a

Volume (m3) Mass (kg)

Vs= r593 1-----s-----< M, Too j

From the definition of Pw [Eq. (2.8a)] we can solve for Vw.

Volume (m3) Mass (kg)

p = 1760 kg/m 3 = M1 = 2970 kg

Solution: Draw a phase diagram (Fig. Ex. 2.3a).

Equation (2.3b) can be derived algebraically or from

vt = 1 w From Eq. (2.2), Vv = n, since V 1 = l. Therefore

Solution: Draw phase diagram (Fig. Ex. 2.4).

Volume (m3) Mass (kg)

and Ms = PsVs [from Eq. (2.7a)]. So

Note: The relationship

is often very useful in phase problems.

= 2800kg(l + 0.12) = 1985 k /m 3

The following relationship is often useful to know.

= 1985 = 1772 kg/m 3

Check, by Eq. (2.13):

Solution: Look at the phase diagram with Vs = l (Fig. Ex. 2.5).

When S = 100%, Eq. (2.16) becomes

Volume (m3 ) Ps (kg/m 3 ) Mass (kg)

FIGURE Ex. 2.6a