Shear strength is the ability of soil to withstand forces that may cause it to fail during sliding or shearing is known as shear strength. It is a measure of the soil’s resistance to these pressures. The balance between the applied shear force and the resistance offered by cohesion and friction determines the shear strength of the soil. The soil will fail and experience sliding or shearing…
The liquid limit test of soil is a laboratory test used to measure the liquid limit of soil and its consistency when it is wet. This test is a part of atterberg limits test with plastic limit test as the other part.
Liquid limit is defined as the water content at which a…
AASHTO stands for American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials. Developed in 1992 a comprehensive soil classification system that helps field engineers in estimating the general properties and characteristics of the soil encountered during the…
If the concentration of harmful salts in the root zone of a plant increases to such an extent that plant growth is effected, this situation is called Salinity.
Salinity is the measure of all the salts dissolved in water. Salinity is usually measured in parts per thousand (ppt or % ). The average ocean salinity is 35ppt and the average river water salinity is 0.5ppt or less.
Salinity is the…
You might have been to a beach or near a river bank, have you ever noticed the cohesion-less sands there? I am currently working in a project which is in a mountain range with river crossing through and is actually construction of a dam, during my travelling so many times
I…
What Are Atterberg\'s Limit? Liquid Limit Plastic Limit Shrinkage Limit
October 15, 2016
You might have heard a lot in geotechnical engineering lectures about Atterberg limits but today I have brought to you a very unique and useful importation about Atterberg Limits which you might not even know.
Albert Mauritz Atterberg was a Swedish chemist and agriculture…
When the soil is added with water enough to make it paste like material it is termed as plastic state; in this state the soil can be molded into any shape without breaking and thus called plastic. If more water is added into the soil it will start flowing like a liquid; this state is termed as liquid state.
Have you ever visited a beach? Played with sand castles? If yes than you are lucky…
Have you ever visited a beach? Played with sand castles? If yes than you are lucky enough to physically use one of a very vital and important characteristic of soil which is termed as plasticity. Soil when added or applied with water go through many stages and phases. When…
Soil Cement is a low cost paving material when used as a base in the pavements for protection of subgrade, or used as a facing material for earth fill dams where suitable riprap is not available, or used as a bedding of drainage concrete heavy pipes, or is also used as slope…
Download Book on Soil mechanics and Foundation Engineering by Dr. K. R. Arora [PDF]
February 23, 2016
Soil mechanics and foundation engineering (geotechnical engineering) is a fast developing discipline of civil engineering. Considerable work has been done in the field in the last 6 decades. A student finds it difficult to have access to the latest literature in the field. The author has tried to collect the material from various sources and to present in the form of a text.
The text has been…
Download Soil Mechanics in Engineering Practice by Karl Terzaghi, Ralph B. Peck, Gholamreza Mesri [PDF]
December 4, 2015
Soil mechanics originated several decades ago under the pressure of necessity. As the practical problems involving soils broadened in scope, the inadequacy of the scientific tools available for coping with them became increasingly apparent.
Efforts to remedy the situation…
What are Stresses in Soil, Over burden Pressure, Total Stress, Effective Stress, Pore water Pressure
August 2, 2015
The Structural loads are supported on soil through foundations. These loads produce stresses and resulting strains or deformations in the soil below the foundation. The deformation in the vertical direction is usually termed as settlement, which occurs due to the vertical…
Sand replacement test method is used to determine the field density or in-place density of earth embankments, road fills, sub-grade, sub-base or any of compacted material. This method serves as base upon which one can accept the density of a compacted material to a specified magnitude or to a percentage of maximum unit dry density determined as proctor.
As we know that moisture content of the soil…
Building and civil engineering is a demanding and exciting process in which the constructions built provide enduring testimonies to the imagination, skill and initiative of all those concerned. The understanding of these process includes a knowledge of what buildings are…
In soil mechanics the equilibrium and movement of s oil b o dies is studied, where soil is understood to be the weathered natural material in the upper layers (say the upper 20 to 100 m) of the earth’s crust. This material may be gravel, sand, clay, peat, or some other…
To study about materials is very essential for civil engineers. Civil Engineers deal with variety of materials like concrete, cement, aggregates, soil, bricks and various others that are used to construct or to support some structural load.
The ultimate destination of load for any structure is soil. Soil absorbs as well as dissipates the load by stress phenomenon. As stress is defined as force by…
