Chapter 2: Foundations [5 Hours, Marks: 8/80]

2.1 Soil Exploration ( methods, improving bearing

capacity, load test)
2.2 Foundation and its types (deep, shallow):
2.3 Earthwork excavation of foundations (Soft soil,
hard rock, wet excavation):
2.4 Excavation of Trenches for pipes, cables, etc.
and refilling works:
2.5 Some common problems with existing
foundations:
Soil and its properties:
Soil is a mixture of irregularly shaped mineral particles of various sizes containing
voids between particles.
These voids may contain water if the soil is saturated, water and air if partly saturated,
and air if dry.
Under unusual conditions, such as sanitary landfills, gases other than air may be in the
voids.
The particles are a by-product of mechanical and chemical weathering of rock and
described as gravels, sands, silts, and clays.

Therefore:

➢Soil is uncemented geological deposits.

➢It is the basis of foundation.
➢Property of soil decides the type of foundation.
Soil Exploration / Soil Investigation:
Before actual foundation plan is drawn, it is desirable to visit the site of the work so as
to have the first hand knowledge of the soil, and the possible constraints likely to
come across during construction.
First hand information regarding type of underlying soil can be obtained from the
owners of adjoining structures.
In case of any doubt, in case of tall and important constrictions, it is good if detailed
soil investigation of underlying soils, is carried out, to large depths.

The purpose of site or soil investigation, or exploration, can be summarized as follows.

Purpose/Objectives of soil exploration:
✓To determine the value of safe bearing capacity of soil.
✓To select economic types of foundation.
✓To determine the depth of proposed foundation.
✓To predict likely settlement and make allowance for that in design.
✓To know underground water level and its problem.
✓To forecast the difficulties which are likely to be encountered due to nature of the
subsoil during construction and to take advance actions in this regard.
Sub-soil exploration:
Since the foundations have to transfer the load to the subsoil, surface
conditions at any given site must be adequately explored to obtained
information required for the design and construction of foundations.

Therefore:
➢Very important phase in construction and determines the
characteristics of underlying soil.
➢Soil investigation is must before undertaking construction works.
➢Acquires general picture of geology of area.
Sub-soil exploration is done for the following purposes:
❖ For new structures:
❖For existing structures:

For new structures:

•The selection of type and depth of foundation.
•The determination of bearing capacity of the selected foundations
•The prediction of settlement of the selected foundation.
•The determination of the ground water level.
•The evaluation of the earth pressure against walls, basements, abutments etc.
•The provision against construction difficulties.
•The suitability of soil and degree of compaction of soil.

For existing structures:

•The investigation of the safety of the structure.
•The prediction of settlement.
•The determination of remedial measures if the structure is unsafe or will suffer
detrimental (harmful) settlement.
Methods of Soil Exploration: ( 2069 B, 4/80)
Following are the methods which can be adopted for carrying out soil exploration:
1. Inspection:
Exposed surface of the ground, behavior of existing structures in the vicinity, Hard,soft,
water logged (marshy land) etc.
Classification of soil such as gravel, sandy, clayey. Drainage condition, landscaping.
Experience of other fellow engineers, conducting constructions in that locality. By
all these measures, it is possible to form fairly correct opinion about the nature of soil
and its likely behavior in future.

2. Trial or Test pits:

A square pit, known as a trial pit or test pit, helps to know type of soil at small
depth, pit size: 1.5*1.5 m² and depth 1.5m.
Following two points should be noted:
A sufficient number of test pits should be dug on the site to know the variation of the
ground.
The test pits should be examined at all the exposed levels of the ground and these
observations should be carried out as soon as the excavation of the test pits is
completed.
3. Probing:
The probing consists of driving either a hollow tube of diameter 35mm to 50 mm and
about 60cm long slit at its bottom end.
The hollow tube is driven into the ground, 30cm at a time, and withdrawn, and the soil
caught in the slit is inspected. By this method nature of soil formation at various
depths can be estimated.
With the help of this method, it is possible to examine the ground for a maximum
depth of 3m.

4. Boring: The following are the various boring methods commonly used;
a) Auger boring: Augers are used in cohesive and other soft soils above water table.
They may either be operated manually or mechanically.
•Hand augers are used up to a depth 6m.
•Mechanically operated augers are used for greater depths and they can also be used
in gravelly soils.
Augers are of two types: Spiral auger and Post-hole auger.
Samples recovered from the soil brought up by the augers are badly disturbed and are
useful for identification purposes only.
Others are: Auger and shell boring , Wash boring, Deep boring etc.
Wash boring
ROTARY DRILLING
5. Test piles: Test piles are nothing but driving of wooden or steel piles into the ground
under hammer blows. Sometimes the test piles are driven into the ground to obtain
the information of the solid strata.
With the help of this process, it is not possible to know definitely the kinds of strata
through which the test piles pass, as the material is not available for inspection. But
the idea of the nature of soil can be obtained from the number of blows required to
drive a pile or rod for specific length into the ground.
An experienced supervisor engaged in driving operation can easily judge the nature of
soil from the resistance offered by the soil, to the penetration of the rod or pile. This
method by itself is not a complete method. It should be verified by other methods of
soil exploration.

6. Sub-surface Soundings: In this method, the resistance of the soil with depth is
measured by means of a tool known as the penetrometer under static or dynamic
loading. The resistance to penetration is empirically correlated with some of the
engineering properties of the soil, such as density index, consistency, bearing capacity
etc. These tests are useful for general exploration of erratic soil profiles, for finding
depth of bed rock or stratum, and to have an approximate induction of the strength
and other properties of soils, particularly for cohesionless soils, from which it is
difficult to obtain undisturbed samples. The two commonly used tests are standard
penetration test and the cone penetration test.
7. Geo-physical methods:
This method of soil exploration is the most advanced method.
These methods are used when the exploration depth is substantial (very large) and the
speed of investigation is of primary importance.
These methods are mainly adopted to ascertain the depths at which useful minerals
and oils are available.

The two most commonly adopted methods for civil engineering purposes are as
follows:
1. Electrical resistivity method:
In this method, electrodes are inserted into the ground and electric current is
passed through them. Resistance offered by the soil to electric current reveals
the conditions of soil strata such as depth of the rock, depth of water table etc.
2. Seismic refraction method:
In this method, Vibrations are caused in the ground with the help of artificial
explosions. Seismic waves have different velocities in different type of soil. From
the fact that vibrations travel with larger speed in rocks than in the soil, depth of
the rock lying below the ground surface can be estimated.
Choice of the method:
The choice of a particular method for the examination of the ground will mainly be
governed by the following three factors:
1. Cost of exploration:
2. Nature of ground:
Clayey soils: boring for deep exploration, test pits (trial pits) for shallow
exploration.
Rocks: The boring and trial pits (test pits) are suitable for hard rocks and
soft rocks respectively.
Sandy soil: The borings are easy in such soils but special equipment will
be required for taking representative sample below the water table. If the
ground water table is lowered by any suitable method, the trial pits can
also be adopted for the sandy soils.

3. Topography: In hilly area, the choice between the vertical openings and horizontal
openings will depend on the geological structure of the site. For horizontal or gentle
slopes, the trial pits or vertical borings are considered suitable. For steeply inclined
strata, the inclined borings are desirable.
Bearing power or Bearing Capacity of soils:
The load of the structure is ultimately coming on the soil and hence it is of utmost
importance to know the strength and behavior of the soil.
Soils behave in a complex manner when loaded. Soils when stressed due to loading,
tend to deform.
The resistance to deformation of the soil depends upon factors like water content,
bulk density, angle of internal friction and the manner in which load is applied on the
soil.
Finer particle soils exhibit less bearing power than those having heavy and coarse
particles. Soils having finer particles are affected much more than those having coarser
particles due to change in moisture conditions.

The maximum load per unit area which the soil or rock can carry without yielding or
displacement is termed as the bearing capacity of soil.
Method of improving safe bearing capacity of soil:
Sometimes the required safe bearing capacity is not available at shallow depth or it is
so low that the dimensions of the footings work out to be very large and
uneconomical. Under such circumstances, it becomes necessary to improve the safe
bearing capacity of the soil by adopting the following methods:
Increasing depth of foundation: It has been found that in granular soil, the bearing
capacity increases with the depth due to the confining weight of overlying material.
However, this is not economical since the cost of construction increases with the
depth. Also, the load on the foundation also increases with the increase in the depth.
The method is useful only when better bearing stratum is encountered at greater
depth.
Compaction of soil: It has found that compaction of natural soil deposits (loose) or
man-made fills results in the improvement of bearing capacity and reduction in the
resulting settlements. Compaction of soil can be effectively achieved by the following
means:
Ramming moist soil: By using hand rammers or mechanical frog rammers or vibratory
rollers. The voids of the very much reduced, resulting in the reduction in settlements.
Rubble compaction into the soil: A Layer of 30 to 45 cm thick well graded rubble is
spread over the foundation level and well rammed. If this layer of rubble gets buried in
the soil (specially when it is very loose) another Layer of 15 cm thick rubble is spread
and well rammed manually. This results in an increase in the bearing value of the soil.
Flooding the soil: The bearing pressure of very loose sands can be increased
effectively by flooding the soil. The method is very effective in improving the safe
bearing pressure of dune sands, which cannot otherwise be effectively compacted.
Vibration: Heavy vibratory rollers and compactors may compact a layer of granular
soils to a depth of 1 to 3 m. If the method of flooding and then vibration is used, sandy
soil can be very effectively compacted, resulting in increased safe bearing power and
decreased settlements when super-structure loads come on the soil.
Vibroflotation: It is a commercial method which combines the effect of vibration and
jetting. A heavy cylinder, known a vibroflot is inserted in the ground (soil) while the
cylinder vibrates due to a rotary eccentric weight. A water jet on the tip of the vibro
flot supplies a large amount of water under pressure. As the vibro flot sinks, clean sand
is added into a crater that develops on the surface. The method is very useful when
foundation is required to support heavy loads spread over a greater area.
Compaction by pre-loading: This method is useful when the footing is founded on
clayey soils which result in long term settlements. Pre-loading results in accelerated
consolidation, so that settlements are achieved well before the actual footing is laid.
The load used for this process is removed before the construction of the footing.
Using sand piles: This method is very useful in sandy soil or soft soils. Hollow pipes
are driven in the ground, at close interval. This result in the compaction of soil
enclosed between the adjacent pipes. These pipes are then gradually removed, filling
and ramming sand in the hole, resulting in the formation of sand piles.
 Drainage of soil: It is a well known fact that presence of water decreases the bearing
power of soil, specially when it is saturated. This is because of low shearing strength of
soil in presence of excess water. Drainage results in decrease in the voids ratio (volume
of voids/volume of solids), and improvement of bearing power.
Confining the soil: Sometimes the safe bearing pressure of the soil is low because of
settlements resulting due to the lateral movement of loose granular soil. Such a
tendency of lateral movement can be checked by confining the soil, outside the
perimeter of foundation area, by driving sheet piles, thus forming an enclosure and
confining the soil.
Grouting: This method is useful in loose gravels and fissured rocky strata. Bores holes
in sufficient numbers are driven in the ground and cement grout is forced through
these under pressure. The cracks, voids and fissures (very fine hair cracks) of the strata
are thus filled with the grout, resulting in the increase in the bearing value. Cement
grout (1:1 or 1:2 cement & water) useful if the cracks are upto maximum width 1.6
mm)
Chemical treatment: In this method, certain chemicals are grouted in the place of cement grout.
The chemical should be such that it can solidify and gain early strength. Chemical grouting may
be used to fill cracks that are small as 0.1 mm. Inorganic chemicals like sodium silicate and Lingo
sulphate or organic chemicals like epoxy resin and other resins are generally used. These
chemical are in liquid form.
Others: Cement stabilization: Mixing soil, cement and water, Lime stabilization: Mixing soil,
lime and water, & Bituminous stabilization: Mixing of bitumen with soil.
Load Test:
Determines two parameters;
a. Ultimate bearing capacity of a soil
b. Likely settlement

Procedure:
Excavation depth >4bp
Load is applied via hydraulic
jack
Settlement are recorded from
a gauge attached
Load increment= 1/5th bearing
capacity
Settlements are observed for
each increment of load after an
interval of 1, 4, 10, 20, 40 & 60 min.
& hourly interval onward till
settlement rate is < 0.2mm/hr.
 2.2 Foundation and its types (deep, shallow):
Introduction: Every building consists of two basic components: the superstructure and
the substructure or foundations. The super-structure is usually that part of the
building which is above ground, and which serves purpose of its intended use. The
substructure or foundations is the lower portion of the building, usually located
below ground level, which transmits the load of the super-structure to the sub-soil. A
foundation is therefore that part of the structure which is in direct contact with the
ground to which the loads are transmitted. The soil which is located immediately
below the base of the foundation is called the sub-soil or foundation soil, while the
lowermost portion of the foundation which is in direct contact with the sub-soil is
called the footing.
The basic function of a foundation is to transmit the dead loads, super-imposed
loads (or, live loads) and wind loads from a building to the soil on which the building
rests, in such a way that
(a) Settlements are within permissible limits, without causing cracks in the super-
structure, and
(b) The soil does not fail. When loads are transmitted to the sub-soil, it settles. If this
settlement is slight and uniform throughout, no damage will be caused to the building.
But if the settlement is excessive or unequal, serious damage may result in the form of
cracked walls, distorted doors and window openings, cracked lintels, walls thrown out
of plumb etc., and sometimes the complete collapse of the building.
The foundation is thus the most important part of a building. Since it remains below
the ground level, the signs of failure of foundation are not noticeable till it has already
affected the building. A foundation should be sufficiently strong to prevent excessive
settlement as well as unequal settlement. Unequal settlement or differential
settlement may be caused by:
•weak sub-soils, such as made up ground
•shrinkable and expansive soils (such as clay)
•Frost action.
•movement of ground water, and uplift pressure,
•excessive vibrations, due to traffic, machinery etc
•slow consolidation of saturated clays, and
•Slipping of strata on sloping sites.

When designing the foundations, therefore, the above factors must be taken into
account.
Objectives / Functions of foundations:
1. To provide a leveled base for the superstructure.
2. To distribute the load of the structure over a larger area of substratum.
3. To increase stability; prevent tilting or overturning of the structure.
4. To prevent unequal settlement of the soil and superstructure.
5. To prevent lateral escape/movement of the supporting material.
6. To provide Safety against undermining. It provides the structural safety against undermining
or scouring due to burrowing animals and flood water.

Essential requirements of a good Foundation:

Foundations should be constructed to satisfy the following requirements:
1. Settlement: The foundations shall be constructed to sustain the dead and imposed loads and
to transmit these to the sub-soil in such a way that pressure on it will not cause settlement
which would damage (impair) the stability of the building or adjoining structures.
2. Stability: Foundation base should be rigid so that differential settlements are minimised,
specially for the case when super-imposed loads are not evenly distributed.
3. Depth of foundation: Foundations should be taken suficiently deep to guard the building
against damage or distress caused by swelling or shrinkage of the sub-soil.
4. Location: Foundations should be so located that its performance may not be affected due to
any unexpected future influence.
Types of Foundations: Foundations maybe broadly classified under two heads: (E6/80)
(2069R)
(a) Shallow Foundations: (ie.Df / B < or = 1.0)
(b) Deep Foundations: width (ie.Df / B >1.0)

According to Terzaghi (Karl von Terzaghi was an Austrian civil engineer and geologist,
called the father of soil mechanics);
A foundation is shallow if its depth is equal to or less than its width (ie.Df / B < or =
1.0) and It is placed immediately below the lowest part of the superstructure. A
shallow foundation is also known as Open foundation, since such foundation is
constructed by open excavation.
The footing is commonly used in conjunction with shallow foundations. A footing is a
foundation unit constructed under the base of a wall or column for the purpose of
distributing the load over a larger area.

In case of deep foundations, the depth is equal to or greater than its width (ie.Df / B
>1.0)
•It is relatively deep and need special precautions.
•The purpose of deep foundation is to attain bearing stratum deep inside the ground
in case of weak soil.
Deep foundations may be of the following types:
1. Pile foundation.
2. Well foundation or caissons.
Types of Shallow Foundations: (Exam: 8/80, 2073R)
•Spread footing
•Strip footing : L/B>5.0
•Offset and Strap (cantilever) footing
•Raft or mat foundation:
•Grillage foundation:

Spread footing:
• Independent Footing: Supports Single Column
•Single Footing
•Stepped Footing
•Sloped Footing
•Combined Footing ( Column, Pad or Isolating Footing): Supports two Columns:
RCF used when the columns carry an equal loads and TCF used when columns
carry unequal loads.
•Continuous Footing: Supports more than two columns.
 Cellular
Slab Raft Slab & beam

Raft Foundation
Strip footing: L/B > 5.0
Wall footing: It is generally used for ordinary building with load bearing walls. It
consists of several courses of bricks.
Inverted arch footing: It is used: When Bearing capacity of the soil is very poor and
deep excavation is not possible. Here, an inverted arch is constructed below the foot of
piers. for the foundations of structures such as Bridges, Reservoirs etc.
Eccentrically loaded footing: It is used when the exterior wall or column is situated
near the boundary of the plot, and it is not possible to extend the footing
symmetrically on either side.
Offset and Strap (cantilever) footing: If the independent footings of two columns are
connected by a beam, it is called a strap footing.
(B) Deep Foundations: (Df/B >1)
Deep Foundations are those in which the depth of the foundation is very large in
comparison to its width. The construction is adopted when the loose soil extends to a
great depth. The purpose of deep foundation is to attain bearing stratum deep inside
the ground in case of weak soil.
Deep foundations are of the following types:
1. Pile foundation
2. Caisson or well foundation

Pile Foundation:
Pile foundation is that type of deep foundation in which the loads are taken to a low
level by means of vertical members which may be of timber, concrete or steel. Pile
foundation may be adopted
I. Instead of a raft foundation where no firm bearing strata exists at any reasonable
depth and the loading is uneven,
II. when a firm bearing strata does exist but at a depth such as to make strip or
spread footing uneconomical, and
III. when pumping of sub-soil water would be too costly or timbering to excavations
too difficult to permit the construction of normal foundations.
Uses of piles:
in very poor soil condition,
in waterlogged soil (high water table),
in filling areas,
in areas with heavy loads,
in compressible soil,
in the areas where the mat or grillage foundations are not possible or very expensive.

Piles used for building foundation may be of four types:

(i) End bearing pile [Fig. 2.8 (a)]
(ii) Friction pile [Fig. 2.8 (b)]
(iii) Combined end bearing and friction pile [Fig. 2.8 (c)] and
(iv) Compaction piles [Fig. 2.8 (d)]
Some other types of pile:
•Sheet pile: Sheet piles are driven side by side into the ground to form a continuous
vertical wall for retaining soil. It is made out of wood, concrete or steel.
•Batter pile: When piles are driven at an inclination to resist large horizontal or
inclined forces, the piles are termed as batter piles.
•Anchor pile: Provides anchorage against horizontal pull from sheet piling or other
pulling factors.
•Fender pile: When the piles are used to protect concrete deck or other water front
structures (docks, piers etc) from the abrasion or impact that may be caused from
the ships they are called fender piles. The fender piles are ordinarily made up of
timber. Decking

Sheet

Anchor
Bearing
Fender
Batter
•Types of Piles according to material use:
•Steel pile: H-beam, Box piles, pipe piles, screw piles and disc piles
•Cement concrete piles:
•Cast-in-situ piles:
•Cased: Raymond, Mcarthor, Monotube, BSP base driven, Swage etc.
•Uncased: Simplex, Franki, Vibro, Vibro-expanded, Pedestral,
Pressure etc.
•Pre-cast piles:
•Pre-stressed piles:
•Timber piles:
•Composite piles:
•Sand piles:
Caisson or Well foundation:
Caissons are of three types.
Box caissons
Pneumatic caissons.
Open caissons or well foundation
Open Caisson or well foundation: Well foundations or caissons are box like structure-
circular or rectangular-which are sunk from the surface of either land or water to the
desired depth. They are much large in diameter than the pier foundations or drilled
caissons. Caisson foundations are used for major foundation works, such as for:

(i) Bridge piers and abutments in rivers, lakes etc,

(ii) Wharves or quay walls, docks. (Wharves or quay=>landings place, ships may tie
up, and loading and unloading)
(iii) Break waters and other structures for shore protections. (reduce intensity of
wave)
(iv) Large water front structures such as pump houses, subjected to heavy vertical and
horizontal loads.
Pneumatic caissons
This type of caisson is closed at top and open (during construction) at the bottom. The
water is excluded from the caisson chamber by means of compressed air.
Caisson or Well foundation:
 2.3 Earthwork excavation of foundations (Soft soil, hard rock, wet excavation):
Earthwork Excavation : An act of digging out or act of unearthing.
Excavation of foundation trenches can be done either manually with the help of
conventional implements, shown in Fig. 2.29 or with the help of special mechanical
equipment. Fig. 2.30 (a) shows a drag shovel which can excavate the foundation trench
upto a width of 1.7 m. Fig. 2.30 (b) shows a multi-bucket trencher, which can excavate
trenches upto 1.5 m width and 5 m deep. The boom is raised and lowered as required
by the driver moving a lever and can be locked in any position. The spoil is carried up
from the trench by buckets (having cutting teeth) attached to a continuous steel chain
and tipped on to a belt conveyor at the top the rise, from where it is deposited to
either left or right hand side of the trench.
Fig. 2.29 Implements for foundation excavation (Conventional Tools):
FIG. 2.30 Excavating equipment

Drag shovel
TIMBERING OF TRENCHES - SOILS.
When the depth of trench is large, or when the sub-soil is loose, the sides of the
trench may cave in. The problem can be solved by adopting a suitable method of
timbering.
Timbering of trenches, sometimes also known as shoring consists of providing timber
planks or boards and struts to give temporary support to the sides of the trench.

Timbering of deep trenches can be done with the help of the following methods:

1. Stay bracing: Used for supporting bench excavation in fairly firm soil conditions.
Max. Depth is 2 M.
2. Box sheeting: This method is adopted in Loose soil (Dry or Wet) conditions. Max.
Depth is 4 M
3. Vertical sheeting: Similar to box sheeting, this method is adopted in soft ground.
Max. Depth is 10M.
4. Runner system: Used in extremely loose soil and soft ground. Similar to vertical
sheeting, except that it is replaced by runners with iron shoe.
5. Sheet piling: These are driven into the ground to a very large depth, to resist lateral
earth pressure
 FIG. 2.31 Stay Bracing: 1. Stay bracing: Used for supporting bench excavation in fairly
firm soil conditions. Max. Depth is 2 M.

2. Box sheeting: This method is adopted in Loose soil (Dry or Wet) conditions. Max. Depth
is 4 M
3. Vertical sheeting:Similar to box sheeting, this method is adopted for Deep Trenches in soft
ground. Max. Depth is 10M.
4. Runner system: Used in extremely loose soil and soft ground. Similar to vertical sheeting,
except that it is replaced by runners with iron shoe.

Vertical sheeting: . Runner system:

5. Sheet piling: These are driven into the ground to a very large depth, to resist lateral
earth pressure. Adopted for Extremely Loose and Soft Ground.

Conditions for adopting sheet piling are:

•Soil to be excavated is soft or loose
•Depth of excavation is large
•Width of trench is large
•Presence of sub-soil water
Exam 8/80, 2070B)
Discuss the factors to be considered in Construction state of Trench Excavation:
• Type of Trench
•Soil Condition
•B.C of soil
•Depth of Trench
•Width of Trench
•GWT
•Possibility of slip of Earth
•Slope Stability
•Adjacent Structures.
•Future Expansion of Pipes, Cables, sewer lines etc
•Temporary Supports
•Safety of Adjacent Structures
•Traffic in the surroundings
•Provision of ladders
•Fencing and Lights
•First aid Box and Refilling works.
Excavation in soft soil:

• First of all, trenches are made as required.

• Then the poling boards are placed closer say 90cm
apart and held by wailings.

Excavation in hard soil:

• First of all, trenches are made as required.

• If the depth is more than 1.5m, then the hard soil
should be shored and timbered.
Excavations in ground with sub-soil water:
Excavations of foundation trenches in ground having high water table, or in water-
logged area pose great problems because of water oozing in the trench from sides,
bringing with it the soil from the sides.
The timbering, if provided, would become loose and collapse. Excavations can be
carried out by dewatering the sub-soil water.
Foundation dewatering can be done by the following methods:
(i) Ditches and sumps
(ii) Well point system
(iii) Shallow well system
(iv) Deep well system
(v) Vacuum method and
(vi) Electro-osmosis method.

(i) Ditches and Sumps: This is the simplest form of dewatering used in shallow
excavations in coarse grained soils. Shallow pits, called sumps are dug along the
periphery of the area-drainage ditches. The water from the slopes or sides flows
under gravity and is collected in sumps from which it is pumped out [Fig. 2.35(a)].
Well point system: This is the method of keeping an excavated area dry by
intercepting the flow of ground water with pipe wells driven into the ground.

Shallow well system: In this system, a hole of 30 cm in diameter or more is bored into
the ground to a depth not exceeding 10 m below the axis of the pump. A strainer
tube of 15 cm diameter is lowered in the bore hole having a casing tube. A gravel filter
is formed around the strainer tube by gradually removing the casing tube and
simultaneously pouring filter material, such as gravel etc. in the annular space. A
suction pipe is lowered into the filter well so formed. The suction pipes from a number
of such wells may be connected to one common header leading to the pumping unit.

Deep well system: When the depth of excavation is more than 16 m below the water
table, deep well drainage system may be used with advantage. The system is also
useful where artesian water is present. A 15 to 60 cm diameter hole is bored and a
casing with a long screen (5 to 25 cm) is provided. A submersible pump with a
capacity to push the water upto a height of 30 m or more is installed near the
bottom to the well. Each well has its own pump. Along with the deep wells arranged
on the outer side of the area under excavation, a row of well points is frequently
installed at the toe of the side slopes of the deep excavation.
Well point system
All pipe wells are connected to another horizontal pipe that pumps the water present in the
pipe wells.
Electro-osmosis
➢ Through this Method, the Earth is Stabilized by Passing a Direct Current Through
Electrodes Placed Inside the Ground to the Excavated Trenches.
➢ Two Electrodes are Driven into the Saturated Cohesive Soils.
➢ Anode and cathode are made into the ground.
➢ When direct current is passed, water shall start moving in the direction of current.
➢ Positive ions will move in the direction of current and free water being dragged
towards the negative electrodes where the water shall accumulate and finally flow
out.
.The potentials generally used in the process are from 40 to 180 volts, with electrode
spacing of 4 to 5 meters.
By Chemical Consolidation
➢ Used in soft water logged area.
➢ Chemicals like silicates of soda and calcium chloride are forced into
the soil.
➢ Soft soil gets converted into semi solid mass.

Freezing Process
➢ Suitable for excavation in water logged soils like sand gravel and silt.
➢ Not suitable for deep excavation.
➢ Freezing pipes are inserted around the excavated area.
➢ Freezing liquid is then supplied by refrigerator plant.
➢ Now, the ground around the pipes start to freeze forming a thick
frozen earth.
➢ The water around the frozen earth cannot penetrate inside.
Finally, excavation is carried out.
Vacuum Method
➢ Used in those places where
there is fine grained soil.
➢ A hole of 25 cm in dia. is
created around the well point
and air/water is jetted into it
under pressure.
➢ While jetting the water, the
sand flows upward to fill the
hole.
➢ The top portion is then
sealed.
Now, vacuum pumps are used to
create –ve pressure inside so
that atmospheric pressure
squeezes out the water.
 2.4 Excavation of Trenches for pipes, cables, etc. and refilling works:
Trenches are carried out principally to allow installation and repair of public utilities,
drains, and sewer pipes such as RCC Hume pipes. The pipe or conduit should be
positioned in the center of the trench.
The width of trench:
➢Up to depth one meter, the authorized width of trench for excavation shall be
arrived at by adding 25-30 cm to the external diameter of pipe (without socket or
collar), cable, conduit etc. Where a pipe is laid on concrete bed, the authorized width
shall be the external diameter of pipe (without socket or collar) plus 25-30 cm or the
width of concrete bed whichever is more.

➢For depth exceeding one meter: An allowance of 5cm per meter of depth for each
side of the trench shall be added to the authorized width (that is external diameter of
pipe plus 25cm) for excavation. This allowance shall apply to the entire depth of the
trench. In firm soils the side of the trenches shall be kept vertical up to depth 2 meters
from the bottom.
➢ In the case of more than one pipe, one cable, and one conduit etc, the diameter
shall be calculated as the horizontal distance from outside to outside of the outermost
pipes, cables, conduit etc.
➢ If the soil is soft, loose or slushy (liquid mud, watery), shoring to be done for
excavation in soft, loose or slushy soils.
Refilling Works:
• It is the process of arranging the backfill of the trench, compacting of the material,
leveling and reinstating the surface materials and to remove any surplus material.
Layers of backfill material must be rammed manually or by using machine if required.

• The backfill and reinstatement requirements include restoration of the trench and
any associated surfaces, such as driveways, paths, lawns, flowerbeds and tiling, etc
2.5 Some common problems with existing foundations: 8/80, 2069 B, 2070 R
Foundations are in regular contact with the ground which usually is in extreme
conditions. Therefore the physical conditions of the surrounding affect the foundation
in a great extent. There are several such problems which deteriorate the condition of
foundation some of which are to be followed:
Causes of foundation failure:
•Unequal settlement of the sub-soil.
•Unequal settlement of masonry.
•Unequal load distribution.
•Sub-soil moisture movement.
•Lateral pressure tending to tilt or over-turn the structure.
•Lateral movement of sub-soil.
•Shrinkage due to withdrawal of moisture from the soil below the foundations.
•Atmospheric action (i.e: sun, wind, rain, frost action)
End of Chapter 2.0