Geotechnical

Engineering
ENGR. LOUIE A. ALCANTARA, CE, RMP
ENGR. LOUIE A. ALCANTARA, CE, RMP 2
ENGR. LOUIE A. ALCANTARA, CE, RMP 3
Situation 18: A 0.3 m x 0.3 m concrete pile 22 m long is driven in a clayey soil having an unconfined shear strength of 60
kPa. The unit weight of the clayey soil 18kN/m3. Assume that the frictional constant is 0.76,Nc = 9 and use FS = 3.

54. Calculate the capacity of pile due to skin friction only.

a. 1203.84 kN c. 601.92 kN
b. 655.51 kN d. 1311.02 kN

The ultimate Frictional Capacity is

Ff = αcPL = 0.76(60)(4 x 0.3)(22)

= 1203.84 KN

55. Calculate the end bearing capacity of the pile.

a. 48.6 kN c. 24.3 kN
b. 25.5 kN d. 50.9 kN

The ultimate bearing capacity is

Fb = CAN = 60(0.3)2(9)
= 48.6 KN
ENGR. LOUIE A. ALCANTARA, CE, RMP 4
Situation 18: A 0.3 m x 0.3 m concrete pile 22 m long is driven in a clayey soil having an unconfined shear strength of 60
kPa. The unit weight of the clayey soil 18kN/m3. Assume that the frictional constant is 0.76,Nc = 9 and use FS = 3.

56. Calculate the design capacity of the concrete pile.

a. 453.97 kN c. 417.48 kN
b. 208.74 kN d. 227.00 kN

The design/allowable capacity is

Fall = ( Fb + Ff) / FS
= (48.6 + 1203.84) / 3
= 417.48 KN

ENGR. LOUIE A. ALCANTARA, CE, RMP 5

Situation 19: The soil stratification is shown in figure

57. Calculate the capacity of pile due to skin friction only.

a. 431.28 kN c. 619.96 kN
b. 727.78 kN d. 545.61 kN
The ultimate Frictional Capacity is

= Ff1 + Ff2
= 0.8(30)(π x 0.52)(4) + 0.9(45)(π x 0.52)(7)
= 619.96 KN

ENGR. LOUIE A. ALCANTARA, CE, RMP 6

 58. Calculate the end bearing capacity of the pile.
a. 57.34 kN c. 86.01 kN
b. 91.50 kN d. 63.22 kN

The end bearing capacity is

Fb = CAN

Note: If Nc and α are not given

Use Nc = 9.0 and α = 1.0

Fb = 45(0.25π(0.52)2(9.0) = 86.01 KN

59. Calculate the design capacity of the concrete pile.

a. 176.10 kN c. 195.45 kN
b. 282.39 kN d. 316.40 kN

The design capacity is

Fdesign = (Ff + Fb)/FS
= (619.96 + 86.01) / 2.5 = 282.39 KN

ENGR. LOUIE A. ALCANTARA, CE, RMP 7

Situation 20: A 0.41 m square presstressed concrete pile is to be driven in a clayey soil with unconfined compressive strength
of 100 kPa, unit weight of 18.1 kN/m3 and Nc = 8. The design capacity of the pile is 360 kN with factor of safety of
2.0.

q = unconfined compressive strength

C = unconfined shear strength

ENGR. LOUIE A. ALCANTARA, CE, RMP 8

Situation 20: A 0.41 m square presstressed concrete pile is to be driven in a clayey soil with unconfined compressive strength
of 100 kPa, unit weight of 18.1 kN/m3 and Nc = 8. The design capacity of the pile is 360 kN with factor of safety of
2.0.

ENGR. LOUIE A. ALCANTARA, CE, RMP 9

Situation 20: A 0.41 m square presstressed concrete pile is to be driven in a clayey soil with unconfined compressive strength
of 100 kPa, unit weight of 18.1 kN/m3 and Nc = 8. The design capacity of the pile is 360 kN with factor of safety of
2.0.

61. Calculate the skin friction expected to develop

along the shaft of the pile if α = 0.76.
a. 623.20 kN c. 544.01 kN
b. 585.52 kN d. 652.76 kN

Fall = Fult/FS

Fall = ( Fb + Ff)/ FS

360 = (67.24 + Ff)/2

Ff = 652.76 KN

ENGR. LOUIE A. ALCANTARA, CE, RMP 10

Situation 20: A 0.41 m square presstressed concrete pile is to be driven in a clayey soil with unconfined compressive strength
of 100 kPa, unit weight of 18.1 kN/m3 and Nc = 8. The design capacity of the pile is 360 kN with factor of safety of
2.0.

62. Calculate the length of the pile.

a. 4.70 m c. 10.47 m
b. 11.23 m d. 6.22 m

The ultimate Frictional Capacity is

Ff = αcPL

652.76 = 0.76(50)(4 x 0.41)(L)

L =10.47 m

ENGR. LOUIE A. ALCANTARA, CE, RMP 11

Analysis of Pile Groups
- Load Capacity of Pile Groups
c= 20 kPa

c= 56 kPa

c =95Kpa

ENGR. LOUIE A. ALCANTARA, CE, RMP 12

 63. Which of the following most nearly gives the capacity of the pile
group based on single pile failure mode?
a. 10,190.58 kN c. 8,761.32 kN
c= 20 kPa
c. 7,598.53 kN d. 6,408.38 kN

based on single pile failure mode

c= 56 kPa

c= 20 kPa

c =95Kpa
c= 56 kPa

c =95Kpa

ENGR. LOUIE A. ALCANTARA, CE, RMP 13

 64. Which of the following most nearly
gives the capacity of the pile group
based on block failure mode?
c= 20 kPa based on block failure a. 9,408.71 kN c. 12,599.05 kN
mode c. 13,567.28 kN d. 15,636.15 kN

c= 56 kPa

c =95Kpa

ENGR. LOUIE A. ALCANTARA, CE, RMP 14

 65. Which of the following most nearly gives
the minimum center to center spacing of
piles achieve 100% efficiency?
a. 0.78 m c. 1.08 m
b. 0.61 m d. 0.86 m

6408.38 = 95(9) (3S+0.30)(2S+0.30)

ENGR. LOUIE A. ALCANTARA, CE, RMP 15

ENGR. LOUIE A. ALCANTARA, CE, RMP 16
(0+ 473.595)*12 = 0

ENGR. LOUIE A. ALCANTARA, CE, RMP 17

ENGR. LOUIE A. ALCANTARA, CE, RMP 18
b. Primary Consolidation Settlement

ENGR. LOUIE A. ALCANTARA, CE, RMP 19

ENGR. LOUIE A. ALCANTARA, CE, RMP 20
ENGR. LOUIE A. ALCANTARA, CE, RMP 21
ENGR. LOUIE A. ALCANTARA, CE, RMP 22
c. Secondary Consolidation
Settlement

ENGR. LOUIE A. ALCANTARA, CE, RMP 23

Situation 22: The soil is acted upon by a uniformly distributed load
of 60 kPa at the ground surface

ENGR. LOUIE A. ALCANTARA, CE, RMP 24

66. Compute the settlement of the clay layer caused by primary consolidation if the soil is normally consolidated.
a. 75.8 c. 48.3
b. 96.7 d. 151.7

The compression index of the clay layer is

Cc = 0.009(LL – 10) =0.009(48 – 10) = 0.342

ENGR. LOUIE A. ALCANTARA, CE, RMP 25

ENGR. LOUIE A. ALCANTARA, CE, RMP 26
ENGR. LOUIE A. ALCANTARA, CE, RMP 27
170 kN 69. A rigid column footing 1.2 m in diameter is constructed. The load on the footings is
170 kN. Determine the immediate settlement.
a. 24.6 mm c. 16.1 mm
b. 19.8 mm d. 27.0 mm

170 kN

ENGR. LOUIE A. ALCANTARA, CE, RMP 28

70. Calculate the primary compression index. The compression index of the clay layer is
a. 0.623 c. 0.590
b. 0.371 d. 0.222 Cc = 0.009(LL – 10)

Cc = 0.009(51.25 – 10)

Cc = 0.37125

ENGR. LOUIE A. ALCANTARA, CE, RMP 29

71. Calculate the primary consolidation settlement of the normally consolidated clay layer if there is a surcharge of
40 kPa acting on the ground surface. (Neglect footing’s load)
a. 179.8 mm c. 89.9 mm
b. 201.5 mm d. 100.7 mm

ENGR. LOUIE A. ALCANTARA, CE, RMP 30

ENGR. LOUIE A. ALCANTARA, CE, RMP 31
ENGR. LOUIE A. ALCANTARA, CE, RMP 32
ENGR. LOUIE A. ALCANTARA, CE, RMP 33
Situation 25:
Two footings rest in layer of sand 2.7 m thick. The bottom of the footings are 0.9 m below the ground surface.
Beneath the clay layer is hard pan. The water table is at a depth of 1.8 m below the ground surface.

73. Compute the stress increase at the center of clay layer

assuming that the pressure beneath the footing is
spread at an angle of 2 vertical to 1 horizontal.
a. 18.17 kPa c. 25.51 kPa
` `
b. 41.32 kPa d. 33.09 kPa

ENGR. LOUIE A. ALCANTARA, CE, RMP 34

73. Compute the stress increase at the center of clay layer assuming that the pressure beneath the footing is spread at an
angle of 2 vertical to 1 horizontal.
a. 18.17 kPa c. 25.51 kPa
b. 41.32 kPa d. 33.09 kPa

2
1

ENGR. LOUIE A. ALCANTARA, CE, RMP

35
74. Determine the size of the footing B so that the settlement in the clay layer is the same beneath footings A and B.
Footing A is 1.5 m square.
a. 2.52 m c. 3.24 m
b. 4.34 m d. 1.97 m
Assume that the clay is normally consolidated. If the
settlements in the clay layer is the same beneath
footings A and B, then

SA = S B
`

2
1

B = 3.24 m Ans. (c)

ENGR. LOUIE A. ALCANTARA, CE, RMP 36

75. Determine the settlement beneath footing A.
a. 46.65 mm c. 35.04 mm
b. 68.27 mm d. 57.52 mm

2
1

ENGR. LOUIE A. ALCANTARA, CE, RMP 37

Situation 26 : A group of friction piles are shown in the figure. The total load on the piles less the weight
of the soil displaced by the foundation is 1, 800 KN. The silt is 2 m thick and the clay is 16m thick,

ENGR. LOUIE A. ALCANTARA, CE, RMP 38

76. Which of the following most nearly gives the effective overburden pressure at mid height of the consolidating
clay layer?
A. 210.10 Kpa C. 118.57 Kpa
B. 242.13 Kpa D. 150.57 Kpa

ENGR. LOUIE A. ALCANTARA, CE, RMP 39

77. Which of the following most nearly gives the compression index of the clay
layer?
A. 0.29 C. 0.36
B. 0.43 D. 0.22

ENGR. LOUIE A. ALCANTARA, CE, RMP 40

78. Which of the following most nearly gives the settlement of the foundation ?
Cc = 0.2877
78. Which of the following most nearly gives the settlement of the foundation ?

ENGR. LOUIE A. ALCANTARA, CE, RMP 42

 The compression index of the clay layer is

Cc = 0.009(LL – 10) =0.009(50.02 – 10) = 0.36 Ans. (b)

ENGR. LOUIE A. ALCANTARA, CE, RMP 43

80. Determine the effective stress increase with the water table lowered by 5 m.
a.25.8 kPa c. 93.3 kPa
b.63.9 kPa d. 30.7 kPa

ENGR. LOUIE A. ALCANTARA, CE, RMP 44

 Pf =15.815(3) + (14.2)(5) + (18.85-9.81)(0.5) = 122.96 Kpa

ENGR. LOUIE A. ALCANTARA, CE, RMP 45

81. Determine the settlement.
a. 248.8 mm c. 409.6 mm
b. 457.8 mm d. 213.4 mm

ENGR. LOUIE A. ALCANTARA, CE, RMP 46

Situation 28 : A tank 12 m high filled with oil having a unit weight of 9.4 kN/m3 is to be built on a site. The existing soil
profile consists of a 3.6 m sand layer underlain by a 16 m clay layer. The water table is on the ground surface.
Neglect the weight of the tank.
Properties of clay: Property of sand: ϒSat= 18.88 kN/m3
ϒSat= 17.31kN/m3
e = 1.27 LI = 0.645 PL = 20%
w = 40%

ENGR. LOUIE A. ALCANTARA, CE, RMP 47

ENGR. LOUIE A. ALCANTARA, CE, RMP 48
 84. Which of the following most nearly gives the
minimum depth in the ground to which the tank must
be placed in order to minimize settlement?
15.4 m
a. c. 14.3 m
b. 5.1 m d. 6.2 m

To minimize the settlement, the weight of the soil excavated

must be equal to the weight of the oil.

Woil = Wsoil
9.4(12*Atank) =18.88(3.6Atank) + 17.31[(z-3.6)(Atank)]

Z = 6.19 m Ans.(d)

112.8*Atank) > 67.968(Atank)

ENGR. LOUIE A. ALCANTARA, CE, RMP 49

Stability of Earth Retaining
Structures

ENGR. LOUIE A. ALCANTARA, CE, RMP 50

ENGR. LOUIE A. ALCANTARA, CE, RMP 51
ENGR. LOUIE A. ALCANTARA, CE, RMP 52
ENGR. LOUIE A. ALCANTARA, CE, RMP 53
A vertical retaining wall 3 m high supports a horizontal backfill on level on the top of the wall. The water table is located
2 m below the ground surface. The unit weight of the soil above the water table is 15.72 KN/m 3 and its angle of
friction is 30°. The saturated unit weight of the soil below the water table is 18.86 KN/m 3 has an angle of friction of
26° and a cohesion of 10 KN/m2.

ENGR. LOUIE A. ALCANTARA, CE, RMP 54

85. Which of the following most nearly gives the passive force per unit length of the wall using Rankine’s Passive Force Theory?
a. 237.14 KN c. 231.00 KN
b. 242.82 KN d. 223.34 KN

ENGR. LOUIE A. ALCANTARA, CE, RMP 55

85. Which of the following most nearly gives the passive force per unit length of the wall using Rankine’s Passive Force Theory?
a. 237.14 KN c. 231.00 KN
b. 242.82 KN d. 223.34 KN

ENGR. LOUIE A. ALCANTARA, CE, RMP 56

Tensile
Crack

ENGR. LOUIE A. ALCANTARA, CE, RMP 57

Situation 28:A retaining wall has a vertical back and is 8 m high. The soil is sandy loam of density 17.18 KN/m 3. It shows cohesion of 13
KN/m2 and an angle of friction of 20°. The upper surface of the fill is horizontal. Neglect any effect of wall friction
87. Determine the critical depth of the wall.
a. 2.16 m c. 3.81 m
b. 2.67 m d. 3.10 m

17.18 KN/m3

ENGR. LOUIE A. ALCANTARA, CE, RMP 58

88. Determine the total thrust on the wall.
a. 133.68 KN/m c. 126.92 KN/m
b. 155.09 KN/m d. 143.63 KN/m

17.18 KN/m3

ENGR. LOUIE A. ALCANTARA, CE, RMP 59

 Situation 29:
Anchored Cantilever Sheet pile An anchored sheet pile 10.50 m high is to retain 7.30 m deep of soil. The
walls soil has an angle of friction of 31° with a unit weight of 17 KN/m 3. The sheet
pile is anchored at a depth of 1.20 m below the ground surface with center to
center spacing of 3 m.

89. Which of the following most nearly gives the total active
force on the sheet pile per meter width?
a. 364.76 KN/m c. 281.16 KN/m
b. 299.97 KN/m d. 332.42 KN/m

ENGR. LOUIE A. ALCANTARA, CE, RMP 60

90. Which of the following most nearly gives the percentage
of the total passive resistance utilized by the wall?
a. 86.12% c. 94.50%
b. 72.84% d. 77.71%

ENGR. LOUIE A. ALCANTARA, CE, RMP 61

91. Which of the following most nearly gives the tension in the anchor?
a. 265.98 KN c. 294.75 KN
b. 249.29 KN d. 323.41 KN

T = 88.66 (3) = 265.97

KN

ENGR. LOUIE A. ALCANTARA, CE, RMP 62

ENGR. LOUIE A. ALCANTARA, CE, RMP 66
A layer of soft clay having an initial void ratio of 1.50 is 10m thick. Under a
compressive load applied above it, the void ratio decreased by one-half. Find the
reduction in thickness of the clay layer.