Geotechnical & Foundation Engineering

Prerequisites: Soil Mechanics

Specific Objectives of course:

To enhance the skills related to baring capacity and settlement evaluation of soils.
To apply principles of soil mechanics to engineering problems pertaining to retaining structures, foundations and embankments.

Course Outline:
Earth Pressures: Definition, pressure at rest, active and passive earth pressures. Coulomb’s and Rankine’s theories. Bell’s equation for cohesive frictional soils. Earth pressure diagrams for different loading configurations.
Bearing Capacity of Soils: Definition of: gross, net, ultimate, safe and allowable bearing capacity. Methods of obtaining bearing capacity: presumptive values from codes, from plate load test. Bearing capacity theories. Bearing capacity from SPT and CPT data.
Settlement Analysis: Definition, total settlement, differential settlement, angular distortion, immediate settlement. Primary and secondary consolidation settlements. Normally and pre-consolidated soils. Mechanics of consolidation, theory of one dimensional consolidation, assumptions and validity, Oedometer test: determination of compression index and coefficient of consolidation, magnitude and time rate of consolidation settlement. Causes of settlement and methods of controlling settlement. Allowable total and differential settlement.
Slope Stability: Types of slopes, Factors affecting stability and remedies. Types of failure. Methods of analysis: Ordinary methods of slices, Taylor’s stability number method, Swedish circle method.
Earth and Rock Fill Dams: Definition of an earth dam, types of earth and rock fill dams, Components of an earth dam and their functions. General design considerations and typical cross-sections.
Introduction to deep foundations: Types of piles, load carrying capacity of piles, group action, negative skin friction, pile load test.
Soil Improvement: Basic principles, objectives and methods.
Soil Dynamics: sources of dynamic loading, spring-mass-dashpot system, application to machine foundations, liquefaction.
Introduction to Geotechnical Computer Software

Lab Outline:

The Design work and/or experiments related to above mentioned outline shall be covered in the Laboratory/Design class.

Recommended Books:

Foundation Analysis and Design by Joseph E. Bowles (5th edition), McGraw-Hill
Principles of Foundation Engineering by Braja M. Das 5th Ed, Thomson-Engineering
Soil Mechanics in Engineering Practice by K. Terzaghi and R. B. Peck John Wiley and Sons, 3rd edition
Elements of Foundation Design by G. N. Smith and E. L. Pole. Harper Collins Distribution Services (February 12, 1981)
Donald P.Coduto, Foundation Design: Principles and Practices, Prentice Hall; 2 edition (July 20, 2000)