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IV. Soil Failure Mechanisms

The document outlines various soil failure mechanisms critical to geotechnical engineering, including bearing capacity failure, slope failure, liquefaction, and foundation settlement. It also details geotechnical testing methods, analysis concepts, structures, seismic terms, soil models, and improvement techniques. This comprehensive overview serves as a foundational reference for research and academic purposes in the field.

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13 views4 pages

IV. Soil Failure Mechanisms

The document outlines various soil failure mechanisms critical to geotechnical engineering, including bearing capacity failure, slope failure, liquefaction, and foundation settlement. It also details geotechnical testing methods, analysis concepts, structures, seismic terms, soil models, and improvement techniques. This comprehensive overview serves as a foundational reference for research and academic purposes in the field.

Uploaded by

rashedul.ce23
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© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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IV.

Soil Failure Mechanisms


Soil failure mechanisms are critical aspects in the analysis and design of geotechnical systems.
These failures may occur due to excessive loading, environmental conditions, or inherent
weaknesses in soil properties. Understanding these mechanisms enables engineers to design
more robust foundations and slope systems.

 Bearing Capacity Failure: Occurs when the soil beneath a foundation cannot sustain the
applied load, leading to sudden or progressive shear failure. A notable example is the
2013 collapse of a building in Thane, India, where poor soil strength and excessive load
contributed to failure.
 Slope Failure: The movement of soil masses along a slope due to gravitational forces,
often exacerbated by rainfall or seismic activity. The 2005 Kashmir earthquake induced
numerous slope failures in soft and weathered soil zones.
 Liquefaction: Happens when saturated, loose sandy soils lose strength due to earthquake
shaking, behaving like a liquid. During the 1964 Niigata Earthquake in Japan, widespread
liquefaction caused buildings to tilt and sink.
 Heaving: Upward movement of soil, often due to the swelling of expansive clay or frost
action. This has been problematic in parts of Texas, where expansive soils have led to
pavement uplift and foundation cracking.
 Lateral Spreading: Horizontal displacement of soil, typically due to liquefaction or
ground shaking. In the 1989 Loma Prieta Earthquake, lateral spreading caused severe
damage to bridge abutments and pipelines.
 Foundation Settlement: This includes immediate settlement (elastic deformation),
consolidation settlement (due to expulsion of pore water), and secondary settlement
(creep). For instance, Mexico City has experienced significant long-term settlement due
to consolidation of its clayey soil strata.
 Collapse Potential: Involves sudden settlement of collapsible soils when they become
saturated. A famous case is the collapse of light structures in Sudan and Egypt built over
loess deposits, which suddenly lost strength during heavy rains.

Incorporating these failure types into analysis helps engineers choose appropriate foundation
types, reinforcement methods, and ground improvement techniques, particularly in soft soil
zones or seismic regions.

 Bearing Capacity Failure: Occurs when soil can't support load.


 Slope Failure: Instability in inclined soil masses.
 Liquefaction: Sudden loss of strength during earthquake in saturated sands.
 Heaving: Upward soil movement.
 Lateral Spreading: Horizontal ground movement.
 Foundation Settlement: Can be immediate, consolidation, or secondary.
 Collapse Potential: Risk of sudden settlement.
V. Geotechnical Testing Methods
Laboratory Tests

 Moisture Content Test: Oven drying method.


 Atterberg Limits: Determines soil plasticity.
 Specific Gravity Test: Pycnometer used.
 Sieve Analysis: Determines grain size.
 Hydrometer Analysis: For fine-grained soils.
 Proctor Tests: Compaction characteristics.
 Permeability Test: Water flow under head.
 Shear Tests: Direct, triaxial, and UCS.
 Consolidation Test: Measures settlement.
 CBR Test: Used in pavement design.

Field Tests

 SPT: Resistance to penetration.


 CPT: Measures tip resistance.
 Plate Load Test: Determines bearing capacity.
 Vane Shear Test: In-situ shear strength.
 Field Density: Using core cutter or sand cone.
 Percolation Test: For drainage.
 DCPT: Dynamic cone penetration resistance.

VI. Geotechnical Analysis Concepts


 Effective Stress: Stress carried by soil skeleton.
 Stress Path: Variation during loading.
 Pore Water Pressure: Internal water pressure.
 Critical State Soil Mechanics: Soil behavior at failure.
 Compaction Curve: Relation between moisture and density.
 Settlement Analysis: Calculation of total and differential settlements.
 Earth Pressure Theories: Used in retaining wall design.
 Bearing Capacity Theories: Terzaghi, Meyerhof, Hansen, Vesic.
 Slope Stability: Using Limit Equilibrium, FEM, Method of Slices.

VII. Geotechnical Structures


 Shallow Foundations: Support near surface.
 Deep Foundations: Transfer loads to deeper strata.
 Retaining Walls: Hold back soil.
 Geosynthetics: Improve soil performance.
 Soil Nailing: Reinforces soil slopes.
 Ground Improvement: Enhances weak soils.
 Drainage Systems: Prevent water accumulation.
 Reinforced Soil: Combines soil with reinforcements.
 Cut-off Walls: Control seepage.
 Seepage Control: Prevents piping and erosion.

VIII. Seismic Geotechnical Terms


 Site Classification: Based on shear wave velocity.
 Soil Amplification: Increase in seismic wave intensity.
 Liquefaction Potential: Risk assessment.
 Seismic Slope Stability: Analysis under earthquakes.
 Dynamic Soil Properties: Includes shear modulus, damping ratio.
 Ground Response Analysis: Predicts ground behavior.

IX. Soil Models


In geotechnical design, selecting an appropriate soil model is crucial for predicting soil behavior
under various loading and environmental conditions. The choice of model depends on the soil
type, project scale, expected loading conditions (static, dynamic, cyclic), and the level of
accuracy required. For example, the Mohr-Coulomb model is widely used for its simplicity and
is suitable for preliminary design in many foundation and slope stability problems. More
complex models like Cam-Clay and Hardening Soil are necessary for simulating clay behavior
under consolidation and stress history in advanced numerical simulations such as Finite Element
Method (FEM). Applications vary from embankment analysis, tunnel design, to earthquake-
resistant foundations where constitutive models must accurately represent nonlinearity,
anisotropy, and time-dependent responses such as creep or cyclic degradation.

 Mohr-Coulomb: Basic strength envelope.


 Cam-Clay: For clays under consolidation.
 Hardening Soil Model: Advanced stress-strain.
 Drucker-Prager: Smooth yield surface.
 Bounding Surface: Captures cyclic loading.
 Hypoplasticity: Nonlinear behavior.
 Critical State Model: Based on long-term behavior.
X. Soil Improvement
 Compaction: Reduces voids.
 Stabilization: Adds stabilizers like lime.
 Grouting: Injecting cementitious materials.
 Stone Columns: Increases bearing capacity.
 Vertical Drains: Speeds up consolidation.
 Vibroflotation: Densifies loose soil.
 Preloading: Applies load before construction.
 Reinforced Earth: Includes geosynthetics.
 GEC: Geosynthetic-encased columns.

This document can serve as a foundational reference for research, presentations, or academic
exams in geotechnical engineering.

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