QUESTIONS & ANSWERS

2 Mark Question & Answers

Define soil?

Define Void Ratio

Uncemented
or
weakly
cemented
accumulation of mineral and organic particles and
sediments found above the bedrock, or DQ\
unconsolidated material consisting of discrete solid
particles with fluid or gas in the voids.

The void ratio of a soil is defined as the ratio of

volume of voids to the volume of solids.

Define specific gravity.

It is defined as the ratio of the mass of a given

volumes of solid gains to the mass of equal volume of
water at the same temperature

Define Soil Mechanics

According to (ASTM) Soil Mechanics ids

define as the application of the laws and principles of
mechanics and hydraulics to engineering problems
dealing with soil as an engineering material.

Define Density

The density of a substance is the mass per unit

volume of that substance. For water this is denoted by
w, and its value is about 1000 kg/m3. Small deviations
from this value may occur due to temperature
differences or variations in salt content. In soil
mechanics these are often of minor importance, and it is
often considered accurate enough to assume that w =
1000 kg/m3.

Draw the phase diagram

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The types of soil are

Granular: gravel, sand, (silt)
Cohesive: (silt), clay
Organic: marsh soil, peat, coal, tar sand
Man-Made: mine tailings, landfill waste, ash, and
aggregates.

List the Main Types of Soils

Define water content.

By definition the water content w is the ratio of

the weight (or mass) of the water and the solids,
w = W w/W p.

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What are the factors that affect hydraulic

conductivity?

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Define soil Index

Where,
emax = maximum void ratio corresponding to the
loosest state,
emin = minimum void ratio corresponding to the
densest state, and
e = void ratio of the sample.

Give an empirical correlation between PSD

and permeability.
An empirical correlation between PSD and
permeability has been developed
k = c (D10)2 cm/s
Where 100 < c < 150
Developed by Hazen for uniform, loose, clean sands
and gravels.

Define degree of saturation.

The degree of saturation is defined as the

ratio of volume of water to the volume of voids
CE 1251 Mechanics of soils

The hydraulic conductivity is influenced by a

number of factors including:
- Effective porosity
- Grain size and grain size distribution
- Shape and orientation of particles
- Degree of saturation
- Clay mineralogy

What are assumptions made to derive the

equation governing two dimensional steady
state seepage?
Several assumptions are required to derive the
equation governing two dimensional steady state
seepage.
The soil is completely saturated
There is no change in void ratio of the porous medium
The hydraulic conductivity is isotropic
Darcys law is valid
The water is incompressible

What are the steps in the construction of a

flownet?
Steps in Drawing a Flow Net
1) Define and clearly mark a datum.
2) Identify the boundary conditions (EP, FL, LCP).
3) Draw intermediate equipotentials and flow lines.
- draw coarse mesh with a few EPs and FLs
4) Verify the coarse mesh is correct.

- Are the boundary conditions satisfied ?

- Are all flow tubes continuous ?
- Are EPs z FLs ? only if isotropic medium
- Mostly squares ?
5) Add additional EPs and FLs for suitable refinement
of the flow net.
6) Calculate desired quantities of flow and heads.

Define Seepage velocity.

The actual velocity of water flowing

through the voids is termed as seepage velocity.

Give the formulae to determine the vertical

stress, horizontal stress under a circular
load.

What are the factors that affect the

permeability of a soil mass?
Some of the factors, which influence permeability,
are

Grain size
Viscosity
Temperature
Void ratio

Define Permeability.

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Give the formulae to determine the vertical

stress, radial stress Tangential stress,& shear
stress uner a point load

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The ease with which water can flow through a

soil mass is termed as permeability

What is Immediate settlement

The settlement which is caused by the elastic

deformation of dry soil and of moist and saturated soils
without any change in moisture content.

What is primary consolidation settlement?

The settlement which results of volume

change in the saturated cohesive soils because of
expulsion of the water that occupies the voids space.
Give the formulae to determine the vertical stress,
radial stress Tangential stress,& shear stress uner a
uniformly distributed load load

What is laminar flow.

Flow of fluids is described as laminar if a fluid

particles flow follows a definite path and does not cross
the path of other particles.

Define quick sand

Sand is said to be quick sand condition when

the flow is upward under a hydraulic gradient, which
reduces the effective stress to zero.

What is Frost heave

Water migrates upward from the water table to

the capillary fringe. When the atmospheric temperature
falls to the freezing point & the ice is formed. This results
in an increase in the volume of the soil. This is known as
frost heave.

Give the Allen Hazens Formula

2

K=cD10

K- Co-efficient of permeability
D10- Effective size(cm)
c-constant with a value between 100& 500.

Estimate the value of k of a soil with an

effective diameter of 0.2 mm.
2

K=cD10
2
C= 125, K= 125 x 0.02
CE 1251 Mechanics of soils
Noorul Islam College of Engineering

What are the limitations of coulombs theory?

= 0.05 cm/sec

What is Darcys law?

For laminar flow in a homogeneous soil the

velocity of flow (v) is given by

V= Ki
K= co-efficient of permeability
I-hydraulic gradient.

Give the Coulombs shear strength equation.

given by,

Seepage is the flow of water under

gravitational forces in a permeable medium. The flow
is generally Laminar.

What is Unconsolidated- Undrained condition?

In this type of test no drainage is permitted
during the consolidation stage. The drainage is also
permitted in the shear stage.

List the assumptions made in the Laplaces

equation

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What is consolidated- undrained condition?

In a consolidated- undrained test, the specimen

is allowed to consolidate in the first stage. The drainage
is permitted until the consolidation is complete.

What is the main cause of slope failue?

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What are the approximate methods of

determination of vertical stress under loaded
areas?

Equivalent point load method

Two to one load distribution method
Sixty degree distribution

Compression of solid particles & water in the

voids.
Compression & expulsion of air in the voids.
Expulsion of water in the voids.

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What are the reasons for compression of the

soil?

What are the stages of consolidation?

The stages of consolidation are

Initial consolidation
Primary consolidation
Secondary consolidation

What is a principal plane?

At every point in a stressed body, there
are three planes on which the sher stress are
zero. These planes are known as principal
planes.

CE 1251 Mechanics of soils

Noorul Islam College of Engineering

Slope failures occur when the rupturing force

exceeds resisting force.

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The following assumptions are made in the

derivation of the Laplace equation.
The flow is laminar.
Water & soil are incompressible.
Soil is isotropic & homogeneous.
The soil is fully saturated.
The flow is steady ie. flow condition do not
change with time.
Darcys law is valid.

The Coulombs shear strength equation is

S= c+ tan
C= cohesion
= Angle of internal friction

Define seepage.

The limitations of columb theory are

It neglects the effect of the intermediate principal
stress.
It approximates the curved failure envelope by a
straight line which may not give correct results.

What are the factors affecting permeability

tests?
The following five physical
characteristics influence the performance and
applicability of permeability
tests:
(1) position of the water level,
(2) type of material - rock or soil,
(3) depth of the test zone,
(4) permeability of the test zone, and
(5) heterogeneity and anisotropy of the test zone.

Define effective stress.

Effective stress equals the total stress minus the

pore water pressure, or the total force in the soil grains
divided by the gross cross-sectional area over which the
force acts.
Define Critical Depth.
If there is no distinct change in the character of
subsurface strata within the critical depth, elastic
solutions for layered foundations need not be
considered. Critical depth is the depth below the
foundation within which soil compression contributes
significantly to surface settlements. For fine-grained
compressible soils, the critical depth extends to that
point where applied stress decreases to 10 percent of
effective overburden pressure. In coarse-grained

months or even years after a dam is placed into

operation.
In essence, water that comes out of the ground at the
toe starts a process of erosion (if the exit gradient is high
enough) that culminates in the formation of a tunnelshaped passage (or "pipe") beneath the structure. When
the passage finally works backward to meet the free
water, a mixture of soil and water rushes through the
passage, undermining the structure and flooding the
channel below the dam. It has been shown that the
danger of a piping failure due to subsurface erosion
increases with decreasing grain size. Similar subsurface
erosion problems can occur in relieved drydocks, where
water is seeping from a free source to a drainage or filter
blanket beneath the floor or behind the walls. If the filter
fails or is defective and the hydraulic gradients are
critical, serious concentrations of flow can result in large
voids and eroded channels.

material critical depth extends to that point where

applied stress decreases to 20 percent of effective
overburden pressure.

What are the rules to be followed while

construction of flow net?

Define Porosity

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Soils usually consist of particles, water and

air. In order to describe a soil various parameters
are used to describe the distribution of these three
components, and their relative contribution to the
volume of a soil. These are also useful to determine
other parameters, such as the weight of the soil.
They are defined in this chapter. An important basic
parameter is the porosity n, defined as the ratio of
the volume of the pore space and the total volume
of the soil,
n = Vp/Vt.

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1. When materials are isotropic with respect to

permeability, the pattern of flow lines and
equipotentials intersect at right angles. Draw a pattern
in which square figures are formed between flow lines
and equipotentials
2. Usually it is expedient to start with an integer
number of equipotential drops, dividing total head by a
whole number, and drawing flow lines to conform to
these equipotentials. In the general case, the outer
flow path will form rectangular rather then square
figures. The shape of these rectangles (ratio b/l) must
be constant.
3. The upper boundary of a flow net that is at
atmospheric pressure is a "free water surface". Integer
equipotentials intersect the free water surface at points
spaced at equal vertical intervals.
4. A discharge face through which seepage passes is
an equipotential line if the discharge is submerged, or
a free water surface if the discharge is not submerged.
if it is a free water surface, the flow net figures
adjoining the discharge face will not be squares.
5. In a stratified soil profile where ratio of permeability
of layers exceeds 10, the flow in the more permeable
layer controls. that is, the flow net may be drawn for
more permeable layer assuming the less permeable
layer to be impervious. the head on the interface thus
obtained is imposed on the less pervious layer for
construction of the flow net within it.
6. In a stratified soil profile where ratio of permeability
of layers is less than 10, flow is deflected at the
interface
7. When materials are anisotropic with respect to
permeability, the cross section may be transformed by
changing scale as shown above and flow net drawn as
for isotropic materials. in computing quantity of
seepage, the differential head is not altered for the
transformation.
8. Where only the quantity of seepage is to be
determined, an approximate flow net suffices. If pore
pressures are to be determined, the flow net must be
accurate.

rules for flow net construction

Write a note on piping.

Piping and Subsurface Erosion. Most piping

failures are caused by subsurface erosion in or
beneath dams. These failures can occur several
CE 1251 Mechanics of soils
Noorul Islam College of Engineering

What is Degree of saturation?

The pores of a soil may contain water and
air. To describe the ratio of these two the degree of
saturation S is introduced as

S = Vw/Vp
Here Vw is the volume of the water, and Vp is the
total volume of the pore space. The volume of air
(or any other gas) per unit pore space then is 1 - S. If
S = 1 the soil is completely saturated, if S = 0 the soil
is perfectly dry.

Define water content

The water content is another useful

parameter, especially for clays. It has been used in
the previous chapter. By definition the water
content w is the ratio of the weight (or mass) of the
water and the solids,
w = Ww/Wp.

Define stress path.

A convenient way to represent test results,

and their correspondence with the stresses in the

field, is to use a stress path. In this technique the

stresses in a point are represented by two
(perhaps three) characteristic parameters, and
they are plotted in a diagram. This diagram is
called a stress path.

creating a permanent deformation of the

foundation of the rail, but the passengers, and the
car, may be unharmed. Of course, the guard rail
must be repaired after the collision, which can
relatively easily be done with the aid
of a tractor.

What is the significance of soil mechanics?

Write a short note on shear.

The deformations of a soil often depend

upon time, even under a constant load. This is
called creep.

Define plastic limit.

The transition from the plastic state to the

solid state is called the plastic limit, and denoted as
wP . It is defined as the water content at which the
clay can just be rolled to threads of 3 mm diameter.
Very wet clay can be rolled into very thin threads,
but dry clay will break when rolling thick threads.
The (arbitrary) limit of 3 mm is supposed to indicate
the plastic limit. In the laboratory starting with a
rather wet clay sample, from which it is simple to roll
threads of 3 mm, performs the test. By continuous
rolling the clay will gradually become drier, by
evaporation of the water, until the threads start to
break.

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In compression soils become gradually sti_er. In

shear, however, soils become gradually softer,
and if the shear stresses reach a certain level, with
respect to the normal stresses, it is even possible
that failure of the soil mass occurs. This means that
the slope of a sand heap, for instance in a depot
or in a dam, can not be larger than about 30 or
40 degrees. The reason for this is that particles
would slide over each other at greater slopes.

What is creep?

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Soil mechanics has become a distinct and

separate branch of engineering mechanics
because soils have a number of special
properties, which distinguish the material from
other materials. Its development has also been
stimulated, of course, by the wide range of
applications of soil
engineering in civil
engineering, as all structures require a sound
foundation and should transfer its loads to the soil.
The most important special properties of soils will
be described briefly in this chapter. In further
chapters they will be treated in greater detail,
concentrating on quantitative methods of
analysis.

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As a consequence of this phenomenon many

countries in deltas of large rivers are very flat. It
has also caused the failure of dams and
embankments all over the world, sometimes with
very serious consequences for the local
population. Especially dangerous is that in very
fine materials, such as clay, a steep slope is often
possible for some time, due to capillary pressures
in the water, but after some time these capillary
pressures may vanish (perhaps because of rain),
and the slope will fail. A positive application of
the failure of soils in shear is the construction of
guard rails along highways. After a collision by a
vehicle the foundation of the guard rail will rotate
in the soil due to the large shear stresses between
this foundation and the soil body around it. This
will dissipate large amounts of energy (into heat),
CE 1251 Mechanics of soils
Noorul Islam College of Engineering

Define liquid limit.

The transition from the liquid state to the plastic

state is denoted as the liquid limit, wL. It represents the
lowest water content at which the soil behavior is still
mainly liquid.

What are methods available for determination of

k for a soil sample?

Constant Head permeability test

Falling Head Permeability Test
Horizontal Capillary Test.

CE 1251- Mechanics of soils

16 Marks Questions
1) Explain the sieve analysis test in detail.

2) Explain the two methods of determination of the coefficient of permeability in the laboratory.

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3) Explain the liquid limit test.

4) Explain the method of determination of plastic limit in the laboratory.

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5) Explain the procedure of determining the shrinkage limit in the laboratory.

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6) Explain the Standard Proctor compaction test.

7) Explain in detail the classification of soil.

8) Explain the pycnometer method of determination of specific gravity of a soil mass.

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9) Explain core cutter method of determination of field density.

10) Explain the properties, uses & application of flownet.
11) Explain the method of construction of Newarks Influence chart
12) Explain the consolidation test in detail.
13) Write a detailed note on direct shear test.
14) Write a detailed note on Tri axial shear test.
15) What are the factors that influence the compaction of a soil mass?
16) What are the factors that affect the permeability of a soil mass.
17) Explain vane shear test
18) Explain UCC test.
CE 1251 Mechanics of soils
Noorul Islam College of Engineering

19) Explain the Swedish Circle method of Analysis of slopes.

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20) Explain the friction Circle method of analysis of stability of slopes.

CE 1251 Mechanics of soils

Noorul Islam College of Engineering