Breadth - Geotechnical Engineering Flashcards
what is total stress?
total stress is effective stress + pore water stress
what is effective stress?
effective stress is total stress - pore water stress
what is the unit weight of water?
62.4 lb/PCF
what happens when a point load is applied to a soil
the stresses spread laterally with depth and stress decreases with depth
what is lateral earth pressure and how many types are there?
lateral earth pressure is the pressure that soil exudes on walls. there are 3 types of pressures and they are at rest, active, and passive pressure.
what is active earth pressure?
when wall moves forward due to the earth’s pressure pushing on it
what is passive earth pressure?
when the wall moves towards the soil (falls or pushes back)
what kind of failure is experienced during passive earth pressure?
the soil behind the wall experiences shear failure
if a wall with lateral earth pressure is unable to yield or cannot yield then what kind of pressure is it experiencing?
it is an at rest earth pressure
what is rankine’s theory?
it applies to active and passive pressure for a frictionless wall with a vertical back and a horizontal backfill of soil
what is the total force equation for active and passive lateral forces?
the total force is P=kgammah^2half + ksurcharge*H
what is consolidation?
a stress increase caused by construction of foundations or loads
what can soil settlement be classified as (the stages of consolidation)?
immediate settlement, primary consolidation, and secondary consolidation
what happens during the phases of soil settlement?
elastic deformation happens which is the initial loading, primary consolidation is when pore water pressure starts to be expulsed.
what is the difference between consolidation and compaction?
compaction is an instantaneous process and water content does not change while increasing the density of unsaturated soils. consolidation is a time dependent process and water content decreases while increasing the density of a saturated soil by draining the water
when looking at consolidation what are the 2 questions we ask and study?
how much will it consolidate and for how long
when working with TWO sand for drainage layers what can we assume about it?
half the thickness in the equation because it is double pervious and will drain faster
what is an example of an at rest pressure?
cantilever wall
what is a braced sheet wall an earth pressure example of?
passive earth pressure
what is a shallow foundation?
the footing is close to the surface or ground level
what is a tie down and when do you use it?
tie downs are used with spread footings when they will need to resist tension and have to be anchored down
what happens when a load is applied to a soil that is too heavy?
shear failure will occur when the load exceeds the allowable bearing stress
what happens when there is uneven settlement underneath loads and footings?
shear forces and moments can occur underneath
when looking at clays and bearing stress in shallow footings, what should we keep in mind about cohesion?
cohesion can also be used to find the undrained shear strength of clay
what is eccentricity?
its the effect of moment on spread footings
what is the eccentricity moment on spread footings?
e = M /p
what component in the footing design will cause the settlement?
the rigidity of the spread footing and whether the foundation of the footing is rigid or flexible
what determines whther the foundation of the footing is flexible or not?
the depth of the footing will determine how rigid it is. a thick foundation = rigid. thin = flexible.
is there a formula for calculating the initial settlement in footings? where can it be found
under the settlement (elastic method) formula.
what 2 features cause slope failure?
overstressing or reducing the shear strength of soil
what are causes of slope failure?
- change in slope profile such as excavation
- increase in ground water pressure due to rain causing reduction in frictional resistance or swelling of clay
- freezing and thaw cycles
- vibrations caused by earthquakes
- increase in driving force on slope
what is the maximum slope for cuts in cohesionless soil?
it is the angle of internal friction
how do you find the factor of safety in slopes with a stability number?
you must go to the table that shows deep/shallow circles and the formula can be found there
what are the dashed numbers on the slope stability FoS chart??
the dashed values on the chart are the values for d
d=D/H
can you use a submerged soil when funding slope stability?
no you need to subtract the submerged soil with the unit weight of water
what happens if the slope angle is greater than 53 in a stability slope problem?
it will be toe failure
what is the different between Taylor’s Chart and the other slope failure method?
Taylor’s chart requires you to know the height before the slope. you will use the equation n*H
can you find the formula for FS in dry sand?
yes you must look for it and it will be the formula that has tan phi / tan b
what are the 3 protective systems from OSHA?
shoring, shielding, and sloping