CE 252: Soil Mechanics

Lecture 1 and 2
 Soil definition:

Chambers’ Dictionary
defines soil as “the
ground: the mould in
which plants grow:
the earth which
nourishes plants”
(from Latin solum,
ground);
Soil definition:
To the civil engineer, soil is any
uncemented or weakly cemented
accumulation of mineral particles
formed by the weathering of rocks,
the void space between the particles
containing water and/or air.
Typically, the topsoil is excavated
before serious construction activity
begins. Underneath the topsoil is the
soil with whose engineering
properties we are concerned here.
As we go further down into the
ground, we will eventually rock.
 Soil Mechanics
Soil classification and composition
 Soil Mechanics
Compaction Characteristics
 Soil Mechanics
Stress strain relation
 Soil Mechanics
Flow of water and seepage
 Soil Mechanics
Consolidation and compressibility
 Soil Mechanics
Shear strength
 Soil Mechanics
Slope Stability
Text Book
 Lab groups and schedule
Monday }
Tuesday }14:00-17:00
Thursday }
Monday Batch 13/01/25 20/01/25 27/01/25 03/02/25 10/02/25 17/02/25 03/03/25 17/03/25 24/03/25 07/04/25 14/04/25 21/04/25
Tuesday Batch 21/01/25 28/01/25 04/02/25 11/02/25 18/02/25 04/03/25 18/03/25 25/03/25 01/04/25 08/04/25 15/04/25 22/04/25
Thursday Batch 16/01/25 23/01/25 30/01/25 06/02/25 13/02/25 20/02/25 06/03/25 20/03/25 27/03/25 03/04/25 17/04/25 24/04/25

Visual Identification All Groups - - - - - - - - - -

Specific gravity and Atterberg

- Gp-1 Gp-2 Gp-3 Gp-4 Gp-5 - - - - -
limits
Sieve and Hydrometer analysis Gp-2 Gp-3 Gp-4 Gp-5 Gp-1 - - - - -

Proctor compaction test - Gp-3 Gp-4 Gp-5 Gp-1 Gp-2 - - - - -

Will be decided later

Permeability Variable Head and
- Gp-4 Gp-5 Gp-1 Gp-2 Gp-3 - - - - -
Permeability Constant Head

In-situ Density by sand cone and

- Gp-5 Gp-1 Gp-2 Gp-3 Gp-4 - - - - -
core cutter

California Bearing ratio test - - - - - - Gp-1 Gp-2 Gp-3 Gp-4 Gp-5

Unconfined Compression - - - - - - Gp-2 Gp-3 Gp-4 Gp-5 Gp-1

Unconsolidated Undrained
- - - - - - Gp-3 Gp-4 Gp-5 Gp-1 Gp-2
Triaxial
Direct Shear - - - - - - Gp-4 Gp-5 Gp-1 Gp-2 Gp-3
Consolidation (loading and
- - - - - - Gp-5 Gp-1 Gp-2 Gp-3 Gp-4
unloading)
Make up/Lab Quiz Will be decided later
 Course Evaluation
Course evaluation:
Quiz (#2) – 10% [5 x 2];
Mid-semester examination – 25%;
End-semester examination – 40%;
Lab. – 20% [Lab. activity 15% + Lab. quiz (#1) 5%]
Class activity (surprise quiz/tutorial/assignment) – 5%

Note:
1.Grading policy: Relative
2.Attendance does not carry any weight.
3.No makeup quiz will be arranged, and neither marks will be prorated if absent in
a quiz.
4.Mid-semester examination marks cannot be prorated, but makeup can be
arranged if absent during mid-semester examination under unavoidable
circumstances and SUGC approves the leave.
5.Lab activity marks cannot be prorated, but one makeup lab can be arranged if
absent in a lab session under unavoidable circumstances and SUGC approves the
leave.
6.Any unfair means during any exam or quiz leads to ‘F’ grade.
7.Absence in the end-semester examination (or its makeup as per DOAA norms)
leads to ‘F’ grades.
 History of engineering practice of soil:
First century BC: during the reign of Emperor Augustus
Roman engineer, Vitruvius, who, paid great attention to soil
types (sand, gravel, etc.) and to the design and construction
of solid foundations based on the experience from trial and
error.

Coulomb (1773): The French Royal Engineers, Coulomb, was

interested in protecting old fortresses using sloping masses of
soil in front of it. Coulomb attempted to determine the lateral
force so that he could evaluate the stability of the fortress.
Coulomb assumed that the soil resistance was provided by
friction between the particles, and the problem became one
of a wedge sliding on a rough (frictional) plane.

Karl Terzaghi (1883–1963) is the undisputed father of soil

mechanics. The publication of his book Erdbaumechanik in
1925 laid the foundation for soil mechanics and brought
recognition to the importance of soils in engineering activities.
Origin of soil:
The materials that comprise the earth’s crust are
sediments and rock. Sediments are solid
fragments of inorganic or organic material
resulting from the weathering of rocks and are
transported and deposited by wind, water, or
ice.

Rocks are classified into three groups - igneous,

sedimentary, and metamorphic - based on the
earth’s process that forms them.
Types of soil:
Common descriptive terms such as gravels, sands, silts, and clays are used to identify
specific textures (appearance or feel) in soils.

Very coarse soils Boulder size > 300 mm

Cobble size 80 - 300 mm
Coarse soils Gravel size (G) Coarse 20 - 80 mm
Fine 4.75 - 20 mm
Sand size (S) Coarse 2 - 4.75 mm
Medium 0.425 - 2 mm
Fine 0.075 - 0.425 mm
Fine soils Silt size (M) 0.002 - 0.075 mm
Clay size (C) < 0.002 mm

Specific surface: surface area per unit mass or volume. Dispersion and physico-
chemical activities at particulate level depend on specific surface of the soil.
 Types of soil:
Common descriptive terms such as gravels, sands, silts, and clays
are used to identify specific textures (appearance or feel) in soils.
Transportation of Weathering Products
1. Glacial soils—formed by transportation and deposition of
glaciers
2. Alluvial soils—transported by running water and deposited along
streams
3. Lacustrine soils—formed by deposition in quiet lakes
4. Marine soils—formed by deposition in the seas
5. Aeolian soils—transported and deposited by wind
6. Colluvial soils—formed by movement of soil from its original
place by gravity, such as during landslides
 Types of soil:
Mineralogical composition

1. Calcareous soil — contains calcium carbonate and effervesces when treated with
hydrochloric acid.
2. Caliche — consists of gravel, sand, and clay cemented together by calcium carbonate.
3. Eolian soils — sand-sized particles deposited by wind.
4. Expansive soils — clays that undergo large volume changes from cycles of wetting and
drying.
5. Glacial till — is a soil that consists mainly of coarse particles.
6. Gypsum — calcium sulfate formed under heat and pressure from sediments in ocean brine.
7. Lateritic soils — residual soils that are cemented with iron oxides and are found in tropical
regions.
8. Loam — a mixture of sand, silt, and clay that may contain organic material.
9. Loess — a wind-blown, uniform, fi ne-grained soil.
10. Marl (marlstone) — a mud (see definition of mud below) cemented by calcium carbonate
or lime.
11. Mud — clay and silt mixed with water into a viscous fluid.
Clay mineral:
Most minerals of interest to geotechnical engineers are composed of oxygen and
silicon.
Silicates are a group of minerals with a structural unit called the silica tetrahedron.
A central silica cation (positively charged ion) is surrounded by four oxygen anions
(negatively charged ions), one at each corner of the tetrahedron.

Silica tetrahedrons combine to form sheets, called silicate sheets or laminae,

which are thin layers of silica tetrahedrons in which three oxygen ions are shared
between adjacent tetrahedrons
Clay mineral:
Silicate sheets may contain
other structural units such as
alumina sheets. Alumina
sheets are formed by
combination of alumina
minerals, which consists of alumina octahedron and octahedral (gibbsite) sheet
an aluminum ion surrounded
by six oxygen or hydroxyl
atoms in an octahedron
(gibbsite sheet).

In case Magnesium replaces

the aluminum atoms in the
octahedral units, the
octahedral sheet is called a
brucite sheet
Silica-gibbsite sheet
 Clay mineral:

I. Kaolinite
II. Illite (clay mica)
III. Montmorillonite

(I)

Kaolinite Illite Montmorillonite

The net negative
charge at clay surface
results of both
isomorphous
substitution and of a
break in the continuity
of the structure at its
edges.
Montmorillonite
Clay water interaction:

The net negative charge at clay surface results of both isomorphous substitution and
of a break in the continuity of the structure at its edges.

The negative charge on the surface of the soil particle attracts the positive
(hydrogen) end of the water molecules. The water molecules are arranged in a
definite pattern in the immediate vicinity of the boundary between solid and water.

More than one layer of water molecules sticks on the surface with considerable
force and this attractive force decreases with the increase in the distance of the
water molecule from the surface. The electrically attracted water that surrounds the
clay particle is known as the diffused double-layer of water. The plastic properties
of the clay is governed by this layer.
Clay water interaction:
The water located within the zone of influence is known as the adsorbed layer. The
viscosity of water within this layer is higher than free water.

Soils in which the adsorbed film is thick compared to the grain size have properties
quite different from other soils having the same grain sizes but smaller adsorbed
films. The most pronounced characteristic of the former is their ability to deform
plastically without cracking when mixed with varying amounts of water. Such soils
are called cohesive soils, for they do not disintegrate with pressure but can be
rolled into threads with ease.
Soil fabric and structure:
The geometric arrangement of soil
particles termed as soil fabric. On the
other hand, association of interparticle
forces with the geometric arrangement
together known as soil structure.

- Single grain structure – Settlement of coarse grained soil in

water

- Flocculent (end to face contact) – slat water environment

- Dispersed (face to face contact) – freshwater environment
Specific gravity of soil (Gs):

Specific gravity is defined as the ratio of the unit weight of a given material to the
unit weight of water.

Gs
Specific gravity of soil (Gs):

Specific gravity is defined as the ratio of the unit weight of a given material to the
unit weight of water.
 Particle size analysis:

This classification test determines the range of sizes of particles in the soil and the
percentage of particles in each of these size ranges. This is also called ‘grain-size
distribution’; ‘mechanical analysis’ means the separation of a soil into its different
size fractions

(i) Sieve analysis, for the coarse fraction (>0.075 mm or 75 μm).

(ii) Sedimentation analysis or wet analysis, for the fine fraction (<0.075 mm or 75 μm).
(iii) Optical and electrical sensing zone method
(iv) Laser light scattering techniques
(v) Surface area measurement techniques

Estimated particle size and particle size range – Solubility – Ease of

handling – Toxicity – Flowability – Intended use
Particle size analysis: sieve analysis (IS 2720 – PART IV, 1985)
Particle size analysis: sieve analysis (IS 2720 – PART IV, 1985)
Particle size analysis: wet analysis (IS 2720 – PART IV, 1985)
Hydrometer analysis
The hydrometer test involves mixing a small amount of soil into a suspension and
observing how the suspension settles in time. Larger particles will settle quickly,
followed by smaller particles.

When the hydrometer is lowered into

the suspension, it will sink into the
suspension until the buoyancy force is
sufficient to balance the weight of the
hydrometer.
Particle size analysis: wet analysis (IS 2720 – PART IV, 1985)
Hydrometer analysis
The analysis is based on ‘Stokes Law’ for what is known as the ‘terminal velocity’ of
a sphere falling through an infinite liquid medium.

γs= unit weight of the material of falling sphere in g/cm3,

γw = unit weight of the liquid medium in g/cm3,
μ= viscosity of the liquid medium in g sec/cm2, and
D = diameter of the spherical particle in cm