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Lecture-7
B. Seepage
– Seepage
– Laplace Equation for two dimensional flow
– Flow nets (Problem-3)
– Uplift pressure due to seepage (Problem-4)
Geotechnical Engineering-1
Course Instructor
Dr. M. Safdar, EEC UET Peshawar.
3
Permeability
Geotechnical Engineering-1
Course Instructor
Dr. M. Safdar, EEC UET Peshawar. 4
Permeability
Permeability is the measure of the soil’s ability to permit water to flow through its
pores or voids. It is property of soil.
• Soils are permeable due to the existence of interconnected voids through which water
can flow from points of high energy to points of low energy.
• Particle sizes and the structural arrangement of the these particles influence the rate of
flow in soil.
Geotechnical Engineering-1
Course Instructor
Dr. M. Safdar, EEC UET Peshawar. 5
Scope of Permeability in Geotechnical Engineering
Stability analyses of foundations and foundation excavations coming
in contact with flowing water and/or ground water.
Stability analyses of seepage through dams and/or embankments.
Stability analyses of seepage through earth retaining walls.
Design of drainage systems.
Water lowering.
Estimation of well yields and design of tube wells.
Geotechnical Engineering-1
Course Instructor
Dr. M. Safdar, EEC UET Peshawar. 6
Permeability
The total Head (h) causing a water flow is given by Bernoulli’s equation
Geotechnical Engineering-1
Course Instructor
Dr. M. Safdar, EEC UET Peshawar. 7
Permeability
The total Head (h) causing a water flow is given by Bernoulli’s equation
In case of water flowing through soil, velocity head can be neglected because the
seepage velocity is small, hence:
Geotechnical Engineering-1
Course Instructor
Dr. M. Safdar, EEC UET Peshawar. 8
Permeability
The head loss, Δh , can be expressed in a non dimensional form
Hydraulic gradient(i) between A and B is the total head loss per unit length
i=
Geotechnical Engineering-1
Course Instructor
Dr. M. Safdar, EEC UET Peshawar. 9
Darcy Law
Darcy’s law provides an equation for finding flow of fluid through porous
medium,
According to Darcy (1856) “the flow rate of water through soil of cross-
sectional area is directly proportional to hydraulic gradient (slope)”.
q = kAi
Geotechnical Engineering-1
Course Instructor
Dr. M. Safdar, EEC UET Peshawar. 10
Darcy Law
Assumptions
The following assumptions are made in Darcy’s law;
Geotechnical Engineering-1
Course Instructor
Dr. M. Safdar, EEC UET Peshawar. 11
Darcy Law
Darcy velocity is a fictitious velocity since it assumes that flow
occurs across the entire cross-section of the soil sample.
Flow actually takes place only through interconnected pore
channels.
Discharge velocity < Seepage velocity
Fig 1
Geotechnical Engineering-1
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Darcy Law
Refer to Fig 1
Geotechnical Engineering-1
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Hydraulic conductivity
For fairly uniform sand (that is, sand with a small uniformity coefficient), Hazen
(1930) proposed an empirical relationship for hydraulic conductivity in the form:
Where
Geotechnical Engineering-1
Course Instructor
Dr. M. Safdar, EEC UET Peshawar. 15
Hydraulic conductivity
Hydraulic conductivity of Stratified soils
Coefficient of permeability (hydraulic conductivity) of a layer may vary with direction
of flow (kv ≠ kh). Stratified soil deposits, large variation in kv & kh from layers to
layers. Thus equivalent hydraulic conductivity is calculated for layered soil deposits
series.
Geotechnical Engineering-1
Course Instructor
Dr. M. Safdar, EEC UET Peshawar. 16
Hydraulic conductivity
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Hydraulic Conductivity Determination (Laboratory)
Coefficient of permeability (k) is determined in the laboratory using two
methods.
Geotechnical Engineering-1
Course Instructor
Dr. M. Safdar, EEC UET Peshawar. 18
Hydraulic Conductivity Determination (Laboratory)
Constant head permeability test for coarse grained soils (sands, gravels and their
mixtures). ASTM D2434
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Course Instructor
Dr. M. Safdar, EEC UET Peshawar. 19
Hydraulic Conductivity Determination (Laboratory)
Constant head permeability test
Geotechnical Engineering-1
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Hydraulic Conductivity Determination (Laboratory)
Constant head permeability test
Problem-1:
Let a constant head permeability test was done and following data were obtain;
Q = 100 ml, A = 45 , h = 25 cm, L = 15 cm, t = 37 hrs
Solution:
Geotechnical Engineering-1
Course Instructor
Dr. M. Safdar, EEC UET Peshawar. 21
Hydraulic Conductivity Determination (Laboratory)
Falling/Variable head permeability test for fine grained soils (silts, clays
and their mixtures). ASTM D5084
Geotechnical Engineering-1
Course Instructor
Dr. M. Safdar, EEC UET Peshawar. 22
Hydraulic Conductivity Determination (Laboratory)
Falling/Variable head permeability test
Geotechnical Engineering-1
Course Instructor
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Hydraulic Conductivity Determination (Laboratory)
Falling/Variable head permeability test
Problem-2
Solution
Geotechnical Engineering-1
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Part (B) Seepage
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Seepage
Geotechnical Engineering-1
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Seepage
Flow of water through soils is called seepage. It is a phenomena, while
permeability is property of soil.
• Seepage occurs, when there is difference in water levels on the two sides of the
structure such as seepage into a cofferdam or seepage through earth dam or
embankment.
• Estimate the quantity of seepage and the seepage pressure acting on the
structure.
• The soil permeability is the main parameter required in the calculation of seepage
quantity.
• In many cases the flow of water through soil is not in one direction only, nor is it
uniform over the entire area perpendicular to the flow. In such cases, the ground
water flow is generally calculated by the use of graphs, called as flow nets. The
concept of the flow net is based on Laplace's equation of continuity, which
governs the steady flow condition for a given point in the soil mass.
Geotechnical Engineering-1
Course Instructor
Dr. M. Safdar, EEC UET Peshawar. 27
Seepage
Seepage
Geotechnical Engineering-1
Course Instructor
Dr. M. Safdar, EEC UET Peshawar. 28
Laplace Equation for two dimensional flow
To derive the Laplace differential equation of continuity, let us consider a single row of
sheet piles that have been driven into a permeable soil layer, as shown in Figure 1. The row
of sheet piles is assumed to be impervious. The steady-state flow of water from the
upstream to the downstream side through the permeable layer is a two-dimensional flow.
For flow at a point A, we consider an elemental soil block. The block has dimensions dx, dy,
and dz (length dy is perpendicular to the plane of the paper); it is shown in an enlarged
scale in Figure 2.
Figure 2 Figure 1
Geotechnical Engineering-1
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Dr. M. Safdar, EEC UET Peshawar. 29
Laplace Equation for two dimensional flow
The rates of outflow from the block in the horizontal and vertical directions are,
respectively,
Geotechnical Engineering-1
Course Instructor
Dr. M. Safdar, EEC UET Peshawar. 30
Laplace Equation for two dimensional flow
If the soil is isotropic with respect to the hydraulic conductivity that is, kx = kz
Geotechnical Engineering-1
Course Instructor
Dr. M. Safdar, EEC UET Peshawar. 31
Laplace Equation for two dimensional flow
Geotechnical Engineering-1
Course Instructor
Dr. M. Safdar, EEC UET Peshawar. 32
Laplace Equation for two dimensional flow
Geotechnical Engineering-1
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Dr. M. Safdar, EEC UET Peshawar. 33
Laplace Equation for two dimensional flow
Assumptions in deriving laplace equation for two dimensional flow:
Geotechnical Engineering-1
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Dr. M. Safdar, EEC UET Peshawar. 34
Flow net
Flow Net
A combination of a number of flow lines and equipotential lines is called a flow net.
The solution to Laplace Equation is represented by a family of flow lines and a family of
equipotential, referred as a flow net.
Flow net is a graphical representation of a flow field.
• A flow line is a line along which a water particle will travel from upstream to the
downstream side in a permeable soil. Also called as Stream line. The flow lines
intersect the equipotential lines at right angles.
• An equipotential line is a line along which the potential head at all points is equal.
It is simply a contour of constant total head
Flow line
Equipotential line
Geotechnical Engineering-1
Course Instructor
Dr. M. Safdar, EEC UET Peshawar. 35
Flow net
Flow Net Construction
Flow nets are constructed for the calculation of groundwater flow and the
evaluation of heads in the media. To complete the graphic construction of a flow net,
a flow net must meet the following criteria
(1) The boundary conditions must be satisfied, which are (see figure at next slide)
Condition 1: The upstream and downstream surfaces of the permeable layer (lines ab
and de) are equipotential lines.
Condition 2: Because ab and de are equipotential lines, all the flow lines intersect
them at right angles.
Condition 3: The boundary of the impervious layer that is, line fg—is a flow line and
so is the surface of the impervious sheet pile, line acd..
Geotechnical Engineering-1
Course Instructor
Dr. M. Safdar, EEC UET Peshawar. 36
Flow net
Flow Net Construction
Geotechnical Engineering-1
Course Instructor
Dr. M. Safdar, EEC UET Peshawar. 37
Flow net
Flow Net Construction
(2) Flow lines must intersect equipotential lines at right angles.
(3) The area between flow lines and equipotential lines must be curvilinear
squares.
(4) The quantity of flow through each flow channel is constant.
(5) The head loss between each consecutive equipotential line is constant.
(6) Flow lines cannot intersect each other.
(7) Equipotential lines cannot intersect each other.
Geotechnical Engineering-1
Course Instructor
Dr. M. Safdar, EEC UET Peshawar. 38
Flow net
Flow Net Construction
Geotechnical Engineering-1
Course Instructor
Dr. M. Safdar, EEC UET Peshawar. 40
Flow net
Seepage Calculation from a Flow Net
The drop in the piezometric level between any two adjacent equipotential lines
is the same. This is called the potential drop.
If the number of flow channels in a flow net is equal to Nf, the total rate of flow
through all the channels per unit length can be given by
Geotechnical Engineering-1
Course Instructor
Dr. M. Safdar, EEC UET Peshawar. 41
Flow net
Seepage Calculation from a Flow Net
If the elements are not square i.e. b1/l1=b2/l2=b3/l3 …….= n ( any value
other than 1,which is in case of squares ).
Geotechnical Engineering-1
Course Instructor
Dr. M. Safdar, EEC UET Peshawar. 42
Flow net
Geotechnical Engineering-1
Course Instructor
Dr. M. Safdar, EEC UET Peshawar. 43
Flow net
Problem-3
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Flow net
Solution
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Uplift pressure due to Seepage
Bernoulli’s equation =
Pressure at any point, X, at the base of structure under which seepage occurs is
given by :
Since the total head at X , = pressure head + elevation head
=/+
Re-arranging for ,
Δh=ΔH/nd
Geotechnical Engineering-1
Course Instructor
Dr. M. Safdar, EEC UET Peshawar. 46
Uplift pressure due to Seepage
Problem-4
Find the pressure at Point B and at base of the structure given in the
previous example.
Geotechnical Engineering-1
Course Instructor
Dr. M. Safdar, EEC UET Peshawar. 47
Uplift pressure due to Seepage
Solution:
Geotechnical Engineering-1
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Uplift pressure due to Seepage
Now to find the total force acting upward on base of structure. Use
Simpson rule/Trapezodial rule.
Geotechnical Engineering-1
Course Instructor
Dr. M. Safdar, EEC UET Peshawar. 49
Thank You
Any Question(s) ?
Geotechnical Engineering-1
Course Instructor
50
Dr. M. Safdar, EEC UET Peshawar.