DLS 021S/22J/22M

INTRODUCTION TO MASS HAUL DIAGRAMS

During the construction of long engineering projects such as roads, rail-

ways, pipelines and canals there may be a considerable quantity of earth
required to be brought on to the site to form embankments and to be re-
moved from the site during the formation of cuttings.

The earth brought to form embankments may come from another section
of the site such as a tip formed from excavated material (known as a spoil
heap) or may be imported on to the site from a nearby quarry. Any earth
brought on to the site is said to have been borrowed.

The earth excavated to form cuttings may be deposited in tips at regular

intervals along the project to form spoil heaps for later use in embankment
formation or may be wasted either by spreading the earth at right angles to
the centre line to form verges or by carting it away from the site area and
depositing it in suitable local areas.
This movement of earth throughout the site can be very expensive and,
since the majority of the cost of such projects is usually given over to the
earth-moving, it is essential that considerable care is taken when planning
the way in which material is handled during the construction.

THE MASS HAUL DIAGRAM is a graph of volume against chainage which greatly
helps inplanning such earth-moving.

The x axis represents the chainage along the project from the position of zero chainage.
The y axis represents the aggregate volume of material up to any chainage from the position
of zero chainage.

 When constructing the mass haul diagram, volumes of cut are considered
positive and volumes of fill are considered negative.

 The vertical and hori-zontal axes of the mass haul diagram are usually drawn at
different scales to exaggerate the diagram and thereby facilitate its use.

The mass haul diagram considers only earth moved in a direction longitu-
dinal to the direction of the centre line of the project and does not take into
account any volume of material moved at right angles to the centre line.

Formation Level and the Mass Haul Diagram

Since the mass haul diagram is simply a graph of aggregate volume against chainage, it will
be noted that if the volume is continually decreasing with chainage, the project is all
embankment and all the material will have to be imported on to the site since there will be no
fill material available for use. Such an occurrence will involve a great deal of earth-moving
and is obviously not an ideal solution. If a better attempt had been made in the selection of a
suitable formation level such that some areas of cut were balanced out by some areas of fill, a
more economical solution would result. Because of this vital connection between
the formation level and the mass haul diagram the two are usually drawn together as shown
in figure

(2) The volumes between consecutive areas and the aggregate volume along
the site are calculated, cut being positive and fill negative.

(3) Before plotting, a table is drawn up as shown in table 13.3. One of the
columns in table 13.3 shows bulking and shrinkage factors. These are necessary owing to the
fact that material usually occupies a different volume when it is used in a man-made
construction from that which it occupied in natural conditions. Very few soils can be
compacted back to their original volume. If 100 m 3 of rock are excavated and then used for
filling, they may occupy 110 m 3 even after careful compaction and the rock is said to have
undergone bulking and has a bulking factor of 1.1.

If 100 m 3 of clay are excavated and then used for filling they may occupy only 80 m 3 after
compaction and the clay is said to have under- gone shrinkage and has a shrinkage factor of
0.8. Owing to the variable nature of the same material when found in different parts of the
country, it is impossible to standardise bulking and shrinkage factors for different soil and
rock types. Therefore, a list of such factors has deliberately not been included since it would
indicate a uniformity that, in practice, does not exist. Instead, it is recommended
that local knowledge of the materials in question should be considered
together with tests on soil and rock samples from the area so that reli-
462 SURVEYING FOR ENGINEERS
Table 13.3
Mass Haul Diagram Calculations
Individual Bulking/ Corrected individual Aggregate
Chainage volume (m 3 ) Shrinkage volumes (m 3 ) volume (m 3 )
(metres) Cut(+) Fill(-) factors Cut(+) Fill(-) Cut(+) Fill(-)

able bulking and shrinkage factors (which apply only to that particular site) can be determined.
As far as the mass haul diagram is concerned, it is the volumes of fill that are critical, for
example, if the hole in the ground is 1000 m 3,the required volume is that amount of cut which
will fill the hole. There are two methods which can be used to allow for such bulking and
shrinkage. Either the calculated volumes of fill can be amended by dividing them by the factors
applying to the type of material available for fill or the calculated volumes of cut can be
amended by multiplying them by the factors applying to the type of material in the cut. In table

(4) The longitudinal section along the proposed centre line is plotted, the proposed formation
level being included.
(5) The axes of the mass haul diagram are drawn underneath the longitudinal profile such that
chainage zero on the profile coincides with chainage zero on the diagram.
(6) The aggregate volume up to chainage 50 is plotted at x = 50 m. The aggregate volume up to
chainage 100 is plotted at x = 100m and so on for the rest of the diagram.

(7) The points are joined by curves or straight lines to obtain the finished mass haul diagram.

TERMINOLOGY OF MASS HAUL DIAGRAMS

(1) Haul distance is the distance from the point of excavation to the point where the material is
to be tipped.

(2) Average haul distance is the distance from the centre of gravity of the excavation to the
centre of gravity of the tip.

(3) Free haul distance is that distance, usually specified in the contract, over which a charge is
levied only for the volume of earth excavated and not its movement. This is discussed further in
section 13.21
.
(4) Free haul volume is that volume of material which is moved through the free haul distance.

(5) Overhaul distance is that distance, in excess of the free haul distance, over which it may be
necessary to transport material. See section 13.21.

(6) Overhaul volume is that volume of material which is moved in excess of the free haul
distance.

(7) Haul. This is the term used when calculating the costs involved in the earth-moving and is
equal to the sum of the products of each volume of material and the distance through which it is
moved. It is equal to the total volume of the excavation multiplied by the average haul distance
and on the mass haul diagram is equal to the area contained between the curve and balancing
line (see section 13.20).

(8) Freehaul is that part of the haul which is contained within the free haul distance.

(9) Overhaul is that part of the haul which remains after the freehaul has been removed. It is
equal to the product of the overhaul volume and the overhaul distance.

(10) Waste is that volume of material which must be exported from a section of the site owing to
a surplus or unsuitability.

( 11) Borrow is that volume of material which must be imported into a section of the site owing
to a deficiency of suitable material.

Properties of the Mass Haul Curve

Consider the figure below
( 1) When the curve rises the project is in cut since the aggregate volume is increasing, for
example section eg. When the curve falls the project is in fill since the aggregate volume is
decreasing, for example section gcj. Hence, the end of a section in cut is shown by a maximum
point on the curve, for example point g, and the end of a section in fill is shown by a minimum
point on the curve, for example point j. The vertical distance between a maximum point and the
next forward minimum represents the volume of an embankment, for example (gh + kj), and the
vertical distance between a minimum point and the next forward maximum represents the
volume of a cutting, for example (ef + gh).

(2) Any horizontal line which cuts the mass haul curve at two or more points balances cut
and fill between those points and because of this is known as a balancing line.

In figure 13.35 the x axis is a balancing line and the volumes between chainages a and b, b
and c, and c and d are balanced out, that is, as long as the material is suitable, all the cut
material between a and d can be used to provide the exact amount of fill required between a
and d. The x axis, however, does not always provide the best balancing line and this is
discussed further in section 13.22.

When a balancing line has been drawn on the curve, any area lying above the balancing line
signifies that the material must be moved to the right and any area lying below the balancing
line signifies that the material must be moved to the left. In figure 13.35, the arrows on the
longitudinal section and the mass haul diagram indicate these directions of haul.

The length of balancing line between intersection points is the maximum haul distance in
that section, for example the maximum haul distance in section be is (chainage c - chainage
b).

(3) The area of the mass haul diagram contained between the curve and the balancing line is
equal to the haul in that section, for example afbea, bgchb and ckdjc. If the horizontal scale is
1 mm = R m and the vertical scale is 1 mm = S m', then an area of T mm 2 represents a haul of
TRS m' m. This area could be measured using one of the methods discussed in sections 13.2
to 13.4. Note that the units of haul are m' m (one cubic metre moved through one metre).

Instead of calculating centres of gravity of excavations and tips, which can be a difficult task,
the average haul distance in each section can be easily found by dividing the haul in that
section by the volume in that section, for example area bgchb m 3 m the average haul distance
between b and c = gh m 3

(4) If a surplus volume remains, this is waste and must be removed from
the site, for example lm; if a deficiency of earth is found at the end of
the project this is borrow and must be imported on to the site. It is
possible for waste and borrow to occur at any point along the site and
this is discussed in section 13.22.