Reg. No.

B.E / B.Tech. DEGREE EXAMINATIONS, NOV/DEC 2011 III SEMSTER CIVIL ENGINEERING

U4CEA12 / Soil Mechanics

Sl.No 1. 2. 3. 4. Activities To study the Question Paper and to Choose those to attempt Part A 3 Minutes x 15 Questions Part-B 25 Minutes x 5 Questions Quick revision & Winding up Total

Execution Plan

Time in Minutes 5 45 125 5 180

Time: Three Hours PART - A (15 X 2 Marks = 30 Marks)

Maximum: 100 marks

Answer all the Questions. Each question carries 2 marks 1. Sketch the soil phase system 2. Define density index 3. Define void ratio and porosity. 4. Differentiate between compaction and consolidation. 5. What is the use of Casagrande apparatus? 6. List out the factors affecting permeability. 7. What is mean by seepage pressure 8. Write the Laplace equation for two dimensional flow 9. Define influence chart. 10. What is mean by shear strength of soil?

11. What are the methods involved in shearing resistance test? 12. Write the advantages of Triaxial test. 13. Is the drained test called as slow test? Why? 14. Define finite slope 15.Sketch the Culmanns slip plane and force triangle.

Part B

(5 x 14 marks = 70 marks)

(Answer all the questions. Each question carries 14 marks) 16.a i)A soil sample has a porosity of 40%. The specific gravity of soilds is 2.70. Calculate a) void ratio b) dry density c) unit weight if the soil is 50% saturated and d) unit weight the soil is completely saturated. (10)

a ii) Define plasticity index and shrinkage limit

(4)

(or) 16. b i) an undisturbed statured specimen of clay has a volume of 18.9 cm3 .And mass of 30.2 g. on the oven drying he mass reduces to 18.0g. the volume of dry specimen has determined by displacement of mercury is 9.9 cm3 . Determine shrinkage limit, specific gravity, shrinkage ratio, and volumetric shrinkage. b ii) List out the factors affecting compaction. (10) (4)

17. a) The water table in a deposit of sand 8 m thick is at a depth of 3m below the surface. Above the
water table, the sand is saturated with capillary water. The bulk density of sand is 19.62 kN/m3.

Calculate the effective pressure at 1m, 3m and 8m below the surface. Hence plot the variation of total pressure, neutral pressure and effective pressure over the depth of 8m. (OR) 17. b) In a falling head permeameter test, the initial head (t=0) is 40 cm. The head drops by 5 cm in 10 minutes. Calculate the time required to run the test for the final head to be at 20 cm. If the sample is 6 cm is height and 50 cm2 in cross-sectional area, calculate the coefficient of permeability, taking area of stand pipe = 0.5 cm2. (14) (14)

18. a. A water tank is supported by a ring foundation having outer diameter of 10m and inner diameter of 7.5 m. the ring foundation transmits uniform load intensity of 160 KN/m2. Compute the vertical stress induced at a depth of 4 m , below the centre of ring foundation , using (a) Boussinesq analysis and ii) Westergaard`s analysis taking =0. aii) Define contact pressure (12) (2)

(Or) 18.b. Briefly Explain laboratory consolidation test (14) 19. a. Explain Mohr Coulomb failure theory. (OR) (14)

19. b. Explain Triaxial compression Test.

20. a. Briefly explain the friction circle method.

(14) (14)

(OR)

20. b. Write short notes on Bishop`s method.

(14)

KEY FOR U4CEA12

/ Soil Mechanics

PART - A (15 X 2 Marks = 30 Marks) Answer all the Questions. Each question carries 2 marks AIR WATER 1.

SOLIDS

2. It is defined as the ratio of difference between the voids ratio of soil in its looest state emax and its
natural void ratio e to the difference between the voids ratios in the loosest and densest state ID=emax-e/(emax-emin) 3. Void ratio :e=Vv/Vs, porosity: n=Vv/V

4. Compaction : artificially rearranged and packed together into closer state of contact by mechanical

means in order to decrese the porosity of the soil and thus increase the dry density. Consolidation: consequent escape of pore water is termed as consolidation.

5. Apparatus used to find liquid limit. 6. A)Effect of size and shape of particle b) effect of properties of pore fluid c)effect of structural arrangement of particles and stratification d) effect of degree of saturation and other foregin matter e) effect of adsorbed water. 7. By virtue of the viscous friction exerted on water flowing through soil pores, an energy transfer effect between the water and the soil. The force corresponding to the this energy is called seepage pressure. 8. 2/x2 + 2/y2 =0

9. Vertical stress at any point under a uniformly loaded area of any shape can be determine with the 10. shear strength means resistance to the deformation by continuous shear displacement of soil 11. Direct shear test , triaxial test , unconfined compression test, vane shear test. 12. Stress distribution on the failure plane is uniform, b) precise measurements of the pore pressure and volume change during the test are possible c) the shear test under all three drainage conditions can be performed complete control. 13. Yes. Drained test consolidated under normal load and then sheared load sufficiently slowly. so that complete dissipation of pore pressure takes place. so it is called slow test. 14. .If the slope of limited extent is called as finite slope. Example are the inclined faces of arth dam, embankments an cuts etc
particles. help of influence chart or influence diagram.

15. .

Part B ( 5 x 14 marks = 70 marks)

16. ai). GIVEN: a) e=n/n-1= (0.40/91-0.4)= 0.667 b)
C

(8)

Bed width b= 6 m
3

d = GW/(1+e)= 2.7 x 9.81)/1+ 0.667)= 15.89 KN/m = d(1+W)=15.89 X 1.123= 17.85 KN/m
(or) 3

) e = Wg/S= (OR)= W=Es/G=0.667 X0.5)/(2.70)= 0.124

= W/(G+eS)/(1+e)=(9.812 x (2.70+0.667 x 0.5)/(1+0.667)= 17.85 KN/m

D)

when the soil is fully saturated e=Wsat.G

Wsat = e/G=0.667/2.70=0.247

sat= d(1+Wsat)= 15.89 x 1.247=19.81 KN/m

limit of a soil Ip=WL-WP

aii) Plastic index is defined as the numerical diffeernece between the liquid limit and plastic shrinkage limit is defined the max .water content at which a reduction n water cotent at which soil can still be completely saturated.

(OR)
16.b) i)Given: M1=30.2 G Md=18g w=1 g/ cm V1=18.9 cm3, V2=9.9 cm3 i) (10)

Ws=(M1-Md)/Md-(V1-V2)w)/Md= X100=17.8 %

ii)G=Md/9V1-(M1-Md)= 2.69 iii)Shrinkage ratio SR= d/w=d/w= 1.82

iv) volumetric Shrinkage ratio = VS=( W1-W2) X SR= 91% bii) factors affect compaction (4)

1.Water content 2. Amount of compaction 3. Method of compaction 4. Type of soil 5.adition of amixtres

17.a) a) stress at D 8 M BELOW GROUND (14) If we inserted piezometric tube at D water will rise through a heiht hw=5m in it =(3+ 5) sat = 8 x 19.62 =156.96 KN/m2 u= hww= 5 x9.81 = 49.05 KN/m2 `= u = 107.91 KN/m2 b) stress at C 3m below ground level =sat= 3 x 19.62= 58.86 u=0; `=58.86 c) stress at A GROUND LEVEL =O u=-hcw=-3(9.81)= -29.43 KN/m2 `=29.43 KN/m2 d) stress at B, 1 m below ground level =1sat= 19.62 KN/m2 u=-2w =-2 x 9.81 =-19.62 KN/m2 `= (-u)=39.24 KN/m2 (OR) 17.b) Given:
...

(14)

In a time interval t= 10 mintues the head drops from intial value of h1=40 to h2= 40-5=35 cm K=2.3 aL/At log10 h1/h2= 2.3 aL/Aklog10 h1/h2 = m log10 h1/h2 M=2.3 aL/At constant 10= m log10 40/35 m = 172.5 units t= m log10 h1/h2=172.5log10 h1/h2 h1=40 and h2 = 20 cm t= 51.9 min m = 2.3 aL/Ak k= 1.33 x 10-5 cm/sec

18. ai) Bussinesq analysis

Inner radius Ri= 7.5/2= 3.75 m Outer radius Ro= 10/2= 5m Ri/z= 3.75/4= 0.9375

(12)

Ro/z= 5/4=1.25 z = 160( 1-(1/(1+(1.25)2) 3/2 )-160 (1-(1/( 1+ (0.9375)2 )3/2= 23.11 KN/m2 B) WESTGUAARD`S ANALYSIS a = RO (OR ) Ri for outer and inner radii respectively R/Z= 3.75/ 4 = 0.9375 Ro=/z= 1.25 z =17.57 KN/m2 aii) contact pressure: vertical pressure act at the surface of contact between the base of a footing and underlying soil mass. (2)

18.a) Consolidation is the process of gradual transfer of an applied load from the pore water to the soil structure as pore water is squeezed out of the voids. The amount of water that escapes depends on the size of the load and compressibility of the soil, The rate at which it escapes depends on the coefficient of permeability, thickness, and compressibility of the soil. The rate and amount of consolidation with load are usually determined in the laboratory by the one-dimensional consol -idation test. In this test, a laterally confined soil is subjected to successively increased vertical pressure, allowing free drainage from the top and bottom surfaces.

T h e various -___ _-_- L __.- _ corrosive material. All-elastic or combination plastic and metal consoli3 metal narts of the consolidometer shall be of the same nondometers may also be used to reduce electrochemical effects. The consolidometer shall conform to the following requirements, (1) Fixed-ring consolidometer shall have a rigid base with a recess for supporting the bottom porous stone and for seating and attaching the consolidation ring. The upper surface of the recess shall be grooved to permit drainage, The base shall also have (a) an inundation VIII - 2 ring to permit submergence of the specimen in water to prevent evaporationof water from the specimen during the test, and (b) suitable connectionsand a standpipe for making permeability tests, (2) Floating-ring consolidometerjy shall have a rigid base for supporting the bottom porous stone, The base shall be large enoughto permit free vertical movement of the consolidation ring and shall havea chamber surrounding the ring for submergence of the specimen. l?* Consolidation ring shall completely and rigidly confine and support the specimen laterally, The inside diameter of the ring shouldnot be less than 2-3/4 in. and preferably not less than 4 in.; use of largerrings for specimens of larger diameter, particularly with the fixed-ringconsolidometer, will reduce the percentage of applied load carried byside friction and consequently will provide .more accurate results. NNoqrrmmaallllyy, , ththee rraatitoio oof f tthhee hheeiigghhtt ooff rriinngg ttoo iinnssiiddee diiameetteerr of ring sshoulld be between 1/4 and l/6. The consolidation ring may be lined with a ma terial ssuucchh aass TTeefflloonn ttoo rreedduuccee tthhee ffrricicttioionn bbeettwweeeenn, tthhee rriinngg aanndd aa ssppeecci-imeaof fine-grained soil. A stainless steel ring is preferable for specimenscontaining abrasive particles.

c. Porous stones more pervious than the specimen of soil should be used to permit effec ive drainage. For routine testing, stones of medium porosity are satisfactory. The diarrie the porous stones t In the floating-ring consolidometer the friction between the inside of thering and the specimen is less than that in the fixed-ring type. oweverwhen very soft soils are te with the floating-ring conthe side friction will not su ort the weight of the ring, aoccurs towar the middle o he specimen from top and befloating-ring device is suit y for comparatively stihas the disadvantage that it c be used for perm shall be such as to prevent the squeezing out of soil through the clearancespaces between the ring and stone and to permit free compressionof the specimen without binding; tominimize thepossibility of binding,the sides of the upper porous stoneof the fixed-ring consolidometershould be slightly tapered away
_-- - - -

from the specimen, while both porousstones of the floatingring

-2O-CAGE BRASS

consolidometer should be tapered.A clearance of about 0.010 to 0.015 PLAN in. around the stone generally willbe adequate; however, if very soft soils are tested, a smaller clearSECTION A-A

ance may be desirable or retainer

-

Figure 3, rataiqer rings may be used as shown in Figure 1. Details of a typical reer ring are shown in Figure 3, The porous stones should 1)e cleaned r every test, preferably in an ultrasonic cleaner or by boiling and flushing.d. Loading devices of various types may be used to apply load toI The most commonly used is the beam-and-weight mechanism.The loading device should be capable of transmitting axial load tothe specimen quickly and gently, Also, the equipment should

be capable ofmaintaining the load constant for at least 24 hr. The equipment should be calibrated to ensure that the loads inr4inal.p.d g~rethnse actuallv
--

(or)

18.b) It seems reasonable to assume that a sliding failure of a soil will occur if on a certain plane the shear stress is too large, compared to the normal stress. On other planes the shear stress is sufficiently small compared to the normal stress to prevent sliding failure. It may be illustrative to compare the analogous situation of a rigid block on a slope, see Figure 20.2. Equilibrium of forces shows that the shear force in the plane of the slope is T = W sin _ and that the normal force acting on the slope is N = W cos _, where W is the weight of the block. The ratio of shear force to normal force is T/N = tan _. As long as this is smaller than a certain critical value, the friction coefficient f, the block will remain in equilibrium. However, if the slope angle _ becomes so large that tan _ = f, the block will slide down the slope. On steeper slopes the block can never be in equilibrium. In 1776 Charles-Augustin de Coulomb, a French scientist who also made important contributions to the theory of electricity, used the analogy with a sliding block load to propose that the maximum possible shear stress _f in a soil body is _f = c + _0 tan _. Here _0 is the normal (effective) stress on the plane considered. The quantity c is the cohesion, and _ is the angle of internal friction or the friction angle. An elementary interpretation is that if the shear stress on a certain plane is smaller than the critical value _f , then the deformations will be limited, but if the shear stresses on any single plane reaches the critical value, then the shear deformations are unlimited,indicating shear failure. The cohesion c indicates that even when the normal stress is zero, a certain shear stress is necessary to produce shear failure. In the case of two rough surfaces sliding over each other (e.g. two blocks of wood), this may be due to small irregularities in the surface. In the case of two very smooth surfaces molecular attractions may play a role. For soils the formula (20.1) should be expressed in terms of effective stresses, as the stresses acting from one soil particle on another determine the eventual sliding. For this reason the soil properties are often denoted as c0 and _0, in order to stress that these quantities refer to effective stresses. Coulomb failure criterion this failure criterion has also been indicated, in the form of two straight lines, making an angle _ with the horizontal axis. Their intersections with the vertical axis is at distances c. In order to underline that failure of a soil is determined by the effective stresses, the stresses in this figure have been indicated as _0. There are two planes, defined by the points C and D in Fig. in which the stress state is critical. On all other planes the shear stress remains below the critical value. Thus it can be conjectured that failure will start to occur whenever Mohrs circle just touches the Coulomb envelope. This is called the Mohr-Coulomb failure criterion. If the stress circle is completely within the envelope no failure will occur, because on all planes the shear stress remains well below the critical value, as given by equation (20.1). Circles partly outside the envelope are impossible, as the shear stress on some planes would be larger than the critical value. When the circle just touches the envelope there are two planes, making angles _/4 _/2 with the direction of the major principal stress, on which the stresses are critical. Sliding failure may occur on these planes. It can be expected that the soil may slide in the directions of these two critical planes. In the case represented by the figures in this chapter, in which it is assumed that the vertical direction is the direction of the major principal stress, see Figure 20.3, the planes on which the stresses are most critical make an angle _/4 _/2 with the vertical direction. Thus it can be expected that sliding failure will
.....

occur in planes that are somewhat steeper than 45_. If for instance _ = 30_, which is a normal value for sands, failure will occur by sliding along planes that make an angle of 30_ with the vertical direction.
. . . . . . .. . . . . . . ......... .......

19.a) Boussinesqs Method:

When a point load Q acting on the surface of a semi infinite solid, a vertical stress z produces at any point in addition to lateral and shear stress. Assumptions of Boussinesq theory: a. For soil, the soil mass is elastic, isotropic, homogeneous and semiinfinite. b. c. The soil is weightless. For load, the load is vertical, concentrated acting on the surface.

d.

Hooks Low Applied, it is mean that the constant ratio between stress and strain.

Boussinesqs Formula: Boussinesqs solved the problem of stresses produced at any point (A) due to point load Q. At point (A)

z= z = = =

R5 = (r2 + Z2)5/2

z = Where: z Z

I =
p

: Vertical stress at point A as shown in fig.(5) : Vertical dimension for point A at load
r r : Influence factor depend on ( z ) = F( z )

Ip Q

: Point load

r The variation of Ip for various value of z is gi

(Or) 19.b) TRIAXIAL TEST:The failure of a soil sample under shear could perhaps best be
investigated in a laboratory test in which the sample is subjected to pure distorsion, at constant volume. The volume could be kept constant by taking care that the isotropic stress _0 = 1 3 (_1 + _2 + _3) remains constant during the test, or, better still, by using a test setup in which the volume change can be measured and controlled very accurately, so that the volume change can be zero. In principle such a test is possible, but it is much simpler to perform a test in which the lateral stress is kept constant, the triaxial test, see Figure. In order to avoid the complications caused by pore pressure generation, it will first be assumed that the soil is dry sand. The influence of pore water pressures will be considered later. In the triaxial test a cylindrical soil sample is placed in a glass or plastic cell, with the sample being enclosed in a rubber membrane. The membrane is connected to circular plates at the top and the bottom of the sample,with two o-rings ensuring a water tight connection. The

cell is filled with water, with the pressure in the water (the cell pressure) being controlled by a pressure unit, usually by a connection to a tank in which the pressure can be controlled. Because the sample is completely surrounded by water, at its cylindrical surface and at the top, a pressure equal to the cell pressure is generated in the sample. The usual, and simplest, test procedure is to keep the cell pressure constant during the test. In addition to the lateral (and vertical) loading by the cell pressure, the sample can also be loaded by a vertical force, by means of a steel rod that passes through the top cap of the cell. The usual procedure is that in the second stage of the test the rod is being pushed down, at a constant rate, by an electric motor. This means that the vertical deformation rate is constant, and that the force on the sample gradually increases. The force can be measured using a strain gauge or a compression ring, and the vertical movement During the test the vertical displacement of the top of the sample increases gradually as a function of time, because the motor drives the steel rod at a very small constant velocity downwards. The vertical force on the sample will also gradually increase, so that the difference of the vertical stress and the horizontal stressgradually increases, but after some time this reaches a maximum, and remains constant afterwards, or shows some small additional increase, or decreases somewhat. The maximum of the vertical force indicates thatthe sample starts to fail. Usually the test is continued up to a level where it is quite clear that the sample has failed, by recording large deformations, up to 5 % or 10 %. This can often be observed in the shape of the sample too, with the occurrence of some distinct sliding planes. It may also be, however, that the deformation of the sample remains practically uniform, with a considerable shortening and at the same time a lateral extension of the sample. In the interior of the sample many sliding planes may have formed, but these may not be observed at its surface.The test is called the triaxial test because stresses are imposed in three directions. This can be accomplished in many different ways, however, and there even exist tests in which the stresses applied in three orthogonal directions onto a cubical soil sample enclosed in a rubber membrane) can all be different, the true triaxial test. This gives many more possibilities, but it is a much more complex apparatus, and the testing procedures are more complex as well.In the normal triaxial test the sample is of cylindrical shape, and the two horizontal stresses are identical. The usua diameter of the sample is 3.8 cm (or 1.5 inch, as the test was developed in England), but there also exist triaxial cells in which larger size samples can be tested. For tests on gravel a diameter of 3.8 cm seems to be insufficient to achieve a uniform state of stress. For clay and sand it is sufficient to guarantee that in every

cross section there is a sufficient number of particles for the ress to be well defined.

(14)

(OR)

20. b) i)