Engineering Geology Unit - I

INTRODUCTION: (Importance to a Civil Engineer):

The earlier studies of Civil Engineering couldnt see the design of a structure should be
preceded by a careful study of its environment, particularly foundations material on which
the structure was to be placed. When the St. Francis Dam in Southern California failed in
1928 with a loss of many lives and damages in millions of dollars, the civil engineering
profession awoke to the idea that the careful design of a structure itself is not all that is
required for the safety of structures. After the failure of St. Francis Dam, the need of
environment exploration with proper interpretation of the results was understood by all.

Geology (in Greek, Geo means Earth, ology means study of or Science of) is a branch of
science dealing with the study of the Earth. It is also known as earth science. The study of
the earth comprises of the whole earth, its origin, structure, composition and history
(including the development of life) and the nature of the processes.

Branches of Geology:

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Relevance of geology to civil engineering:

Most civil engineering projects involve some excavation of soils and rocks, or involve loading
the Earth by building on it. In some cases, the excavated rocks may be used as
constructional material, and in others, rocks may form a major part of the finished product,
such as a motorway cutting of the site or a reservoir. The feasibility, the planning and
design, the construction and costing, and the safety of a project may depend critically on the
geological conditions where the construction will take place. This is especially the case in
extended greenfield sites, where the area affected by the project stretches for kilometres,
across comparatively undeveloped ground. Examples include the Channel Tunnel project
and the construction of motorways. In a section of the M9 motorway linking Edinburgh and
Stirling that crosses abandoned oil-shale workings, the realignment of the road, on the
advice of government geologists, led to a substantial saving. In modest projects or in those
involving the redevelopment of a limited site, the demands on the geological knowledge of
the engineer or the need for geological advice will be less, but are never negligible. Site
investigation by boring and by testing samples may be an adequate preliminary to
construction in such cases. The long term economics depends on the engineering safety of
the manmade constructions. Durability and maintenance free service of the dams, canals,
structures like aqueduct etc. is only possible if engineering safety of them is assured. As
every structure is related to rock beneath, proper geological investigations are of utmost
importance.

Engineering geology importance:

Engineering geology provides a systematic knowledge of construction material, its

occurrence, composition, durability, and other properties. Examples of such construction
materials are building-stones, road materials, clays, limestone, and laterite.

The knowledge of the geological work of natural agencies such as water, wind, ice and
earthquake helps in planning and carrying out major civil engineering works. For examples,
the knowledge of erosion, transportation, and deposition helps greatly in solving the
expensive problems of river control, coastal and harbour work and soil conservation.

The knowledge about groundwater that occurs in the subsurface rocks and about its
quantity and depth of occurrence is required in connection with water supply irrigation,
excavation and may other civil engineering works.

The foundation problems of dams, bridges, and buildings are directly concerned with the
geology of the area where they are to be built. In these works, drilling is commonly
undertaken to explore the ground conditions. Geology helps greatly in interpreting the
drilling data.

In tunnelling, constructing roads, canals, and docks and in determining the stability of cuts
and slopes, the knowledge about the nature and structure of rocks is very necessary.

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Before starting a major engineering project at a place a detailed geological report, which is
accompanied by geological maps and sections, is prepared. Such a report helps in planning
and constructing the project.

The stability of the civil engineering structures is considerably increased if the geological
features like faults,1 joints,2 folding,3 and solution channels etc. in the rock beds are properly
located and suitably treated.

In the study of soil mechanics, it is necessary to know how the soil materials are formed in
nature.

For a major engineering project, precise geological survey is carried out and results thus
obtained are used in solving engineering problems at hand. The cost of engineering works
will considerably be reduced if the geological survey of the area concerned is done before
hand.

1- fault: a fracture or fracture zone in rock along which movement has occurred. 2- joint: a fracture in rock
along which there has been no displacement. 3- fold: a bend or flexure in a rock unit or series of rock units that
has been caused by crustal movements.

Engineering Geologist Vs Civil Engineer:

The engineering geologist presents geological data and interpretations for use by the civil
engineer. The civil engineers have to deal mostly with soil and rocks, timbers, steel, and
concrete. In a great majority of civil engineering, projects and the designs, involve the soils
and rocks almost directly.

Civil engineering is to construct the structure and facilities for transport, water supply,
hydropower, flood control, environmental protection, sewage and waste disposal, urban
development and more. In above fields, civil engineers construct and maintain waterways,
highways, railway, pipelines, dam and reservoirs and tunnels.

Role of the engineer in the systematic exploration of a site

The investigation of the suitability and characteristics of sites as they affect the design and
construction of civil engineering works and the security of neighbouring structures is laid
out in British Standard Code of Practice for site investigations (BS 5930:1981, formerly CP
2001). The sections on geology and site exploration define the minimum that a professional
engineer should know.

The systematic exploration and investigation of a new site may involve five stages of
procedure. These stages are:

1. Preliminary investigation using published information and other existing data;

2. A detailed geological survey of the site, possibly with a photo-geology study;

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3. Applied geophysical surveys to provide information about the subsurface geology;

4. Boring, drilling and excavation to provide confirmation of the previous results, and
quantitative detail, at critical points on the site; and
5. Testing of soils and rocks to assess their suitability, particularly their mechanical
properties (soil mechanics and rock mechanics), either in situ or from samples.

In a major engineering project, each of these stages might be carried out and reported on by
a consultant specialising in geology, geophysics or engineering (with a detailed knowledge of
soil or rock mechanics). However, even where the services of a specialist consultant are
employed, an engineer will have overall supervision and responsibility for the project. The
engineer must therefore have enough understanding of geology to know how and when to
use the expert knowledge of consultants, and to be able to read their reports intelligently,
judge their reliability, and appreciate how the conditions described might affect the project.
In some cases the engineer can recognise common rock types and simple geological
structures, and knows where he can obtain geological information for his preliminary
investigation. When reading reports, or studying geological maps, he must have a complete
understanding of the meaning of geological terms and be able to grasp geological concepts
and arguments. For example, a site described in a geological report as being underlain by
clastic1 sedimentary rocks might be considered by a civil engineer to consist entirely of
sandstones. However, clastic sedimentary rocks include a variety of different rock types,
such as conglomerates, sandstones and shales2 or mudstones. Indeed it would not be
unusual to find that the site under development contained sequences of some of these
different rock typessay, intercalated beds of sandstone and shale, or sandstone with
conglomerate layers. Each of these rock types has different engineering properties, which
could affect many aspects of the development work such as core drilling into, and
excavation of, the rock mass, and deep piling into the underlying strata.

The systematic testing of the engineering properties of soils and rocks lies between classical
geology and the older disciplines of engineering, such as structures. It has attracted the
interest of, and contributions from, people with a first training in either geology or
engineering, but has developed largely within departments of civil and mining engineering.

1- Clastic rocks are composed of fragments, or clasts, of pre-existing minerals and rock fragments.
2- Shale is a fine-grained, clastic sedimentary rock composed of mud that is a mix of flakes of clay minerals and tiny
fragments (silt-sized particles) of other minerals.

BRIEF STUDY OF CASE HISTORIES OF FAILURE OF SOME CIVIL ENGINEERING

CONSTRUCTIONS DUE TO GEOLOGICAL DRAW BACKS:

This is one of the most common causes of dam failures and has to do with the geology of
the dam site. Includes with the following considerations

1. Failure due to earthquake

2. Failure due to landslide

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3. Failure due to chemical weathering1 of foundation rocks (Effect Of Alkali-Silica

Reaction, Sulfate & Chloride On Concrete)
4. Failure due to physical weathering (temperature variations, or by heavy rain, or by
physical breaking)
5. Failure due to increase of fractures in geological structures (fault, folds &
unconformities2)

Brief study of case histories of failure of some civil engineering constructions:

1. Kaila Dam, Gujarat, India

The Kaila Dam in Kachch, Gujarat, India was constructed during 1952 - 55 as an earth fill
dam with a height of 23.08 m above the river bed and a crest length of 213.36 m. The
storage of full reservoir level was 13.98 million m3. The foundation was made of shale. The
spillway was of ogee shaped (S-Shaped) and ungated. The depth of cutoff was 3.21 m below
the river bed. In-spite of a freeboard3 allowance of 1.83 m at the normal reservoir level and
3.96 m at the maximum reservoir level the energy dissipation devices first failed and later
the embankment4 collapsed due to the weak foundation bed in 1959.

2. Kodaganar Dam, Tamil Nadu, India

This dam in India, was constructed in 1977 on a tributary of Cauvery River as an earthen
dam with regulators, with five vertical lift shutters each 3.05 m wide. The dam was 15.75 m
high above the deepest foundation, having 11.45 m of height above the river bed. The
storage at full reservoir level was 12.3 million m3, while the flood capacity was 1275 m3/s. A
2.5 m freeboard above the maximum water level was provided. The dam failed due to
overtopping by flood waters which flowed over the downstream slopes Hydraulics of the
embankment and breached the dam along various reaches. There was an earthquake
registered during the period of failure although the foundation was strong. Water gushed
over the rear slopes, as a cascade of water was eroding the slopes. Breaches of length 20 m
to 200 m were observed. It appeared as if the entire dam was overtopped and breached.

3. Tigra Dam: (Sank, Madhya Pradesh, India, 1917)

This was a hand placed masonry (in time mortar) gravity dam of 24 m height, constructed or
the purpose of water supply. A depth of 0.85 m of water overtopped the dam over a length
of 400m. This was equivalent to an overflow of 850 m3/s (estimated). Two major blocks
were bodily pushed away. The failure was due to sliding. The dam was reconstructed in
1929.

1 - Wear away or change the appearance or texture of (something) by long exposure to the atmosphere. 2 - A surface of
contact between two groups of unconformable strata (continuous deposited strata). 3- the amount of watertight surface
between a given level of lake, sea or river water and the lowest possible entry point during flooding or large waves. 4 - A
wall or bank of earth or stone built to prevent a river flooding an area.

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4. Vaiont Dam (USA)

This is an arch dam, 267 m high. During the test filling of the dam, a land slide of volume
0.765 Mm3 occurred into the reservoir and was not taken note of. During 1963, the entire
mountain slide into the reservoir (the volume of the slide being about 238 Mm 3, which was
slightly more than the reservoir volume itself). This material occupied 2 km of reservoir up
to a height of about 175m above reservoir level. This resulted in a overtopping of 101m high
flood wave, which caused a loss of 3,000 lives.

5. Baldwin Dam (USA)

This earthen dam of height 80m, was constructed for water supply, with its main earthen
embankment at northern end of the reservoir, and the five minor ones to cover low lying
areas along the perimeter. The failure occurred at the northern embankment portion,
adjacent to the spillway1 (indicated a gradual deterioration of the foundation during the life
of the structure) over one of the fault zones. The V-shaped breach was 27.5 m deep and
23 m wide. The damages were estimated at 50 million US dollar.

GEOLOGICAL CONSTRAINTS IN CIVIL ENGINEERING (Case Histories of Civil Engineering In

Respect of GEOLOGY):

The geology of an area dictates the location and nature of any civil engineering structures.
Roads and Railways
Problems for a road or railway project may be caused by any of the following geological
features:
Faults
Junctions between hard and soft formations
Boundaries between porous and impermeable
formations
Spring-lines
Fractured granites
weathered schists2
Landslip areas
Areas where beds dip towards the road or railway, as shown in the adjacent
diagram.

1 - A passage for surplus water from a dam. 2 - A coarse-grained metamorphic rock that consists of layers of different
minerals and can be split into thin irregular plates.

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If the terrain and proposed route are such that these

features cannot be avoided, construction of suitable
safety features is required. Earthwork construction
must include an embankment to stabilise areas of
landslip. Lightweight material on a concrete raft may
be needed where the road traverses deep,
compressible deposits.

Drainage holes can be drilled into rock to ensure that

water is drained from potential slip surfaces, such as bedding planes. Unless water is
properly drained from a rock embankment, pressures will build-up within and behind the
rock, eventually causing it to fracture and collapse. The Thredbo Village land-slide (1997) is
an Australian example of a catastrophic geological slope failure due to the build-up of water
within rocks and soil.

The Adelaide to Crafers Highway Project:

Because the terrain in the vicinity of the Adelaide-Crafers tunnels is so steep, the project
encountered many civil engineering challenges. Notably, the steepness of the terrain
increases the probability that rock-falls and landslides will occur.

The Crafers Highway is located on the western margin of the Mt Lofty Ranges, The ranges
themselves were formed by movement along fault lines. The highway crosses three major
faults, and there are many smaller faults in the area. These faults can and do have a major
impact on road-cutting stability.

Many of the rocks are siltstones or mudstones often described generically as slates
which show slaty cleavage. The area is geologically complex, consisting of slates and
quartzite with variable strengths ranging from low to very high. The amount of weathering
of the rock also varies considerably. Some sections are very weathered, while in others the
rock is fresh and unaltered. Sometimes joints are closely spaced, whereas in some areas
others there are very few.

Consequently, some of the road cuttings have been reinforced to prevent rock-falls. Various
treatments can be seen as you drive along the highway. In some places wire mesh has been
used, while other faces have been sprayed with concrete a treatment known as
shotcrete. Similarly different support types were used in the tunnel when different rock
types were being tunnelled. When the tunnel excavation was completed, a permanent
concrete lining was installed.

Dams:
Geological investigations of a site proposed for construction of a dam must be complete and
detailed. Features such as rock-types, geological structures, weathering, fractures and

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fissures must all be considered. The main considerations are that the material on which the
dam rests must be able to carry the weight of the structure without failing. The geology
upon which the dam is built must also be impervious1 to water. The abutments2, (the rock
faces to which the dam wall is attached) must also be impervious and strong enough to
support the dam wall, especially in the case of an arch dam (where more force is
transmitted to the abutments).

Failure of a dam can be due to many factors including:

Earthquakes
A sudden drop in water level
Inadequate protection of the reservoir side of the dam from wave action
Insufficient spillway capacity, so that water flows over the whole of the dam
surface, with consequent erosion

1 - Not allowing something to pass through; not penetrable. 2 - A structure built to support the lateral pressure of an arch
or span, e.g., at the ends of a bridge.

The type of dam selected depends largely on the nature of the surrounding rocks. If they are
strong and stable, an arch dam, such as the one shown below can be constructed. This type
of dam requires a minimum of construction materials, but the concrete must be of high
quality. The Barossa Reservoir Dam (the Whispering Wall), The Roosevelt Dam are examples
of an arch dams.

An earth and rock fill embankment dam, as shown in the diagram below must be
constructed where the surrounding rocks are not strong enough to support an arch dam.
This type of dam is more expensive to build, requiring much more material. The main weight
and strength of the dam is provided by compacted quarried rock. The core is made of
impermeable material, such as clay, bitumen1 or concrete.

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1 - A black viscous mixture of hydrocarbons obtained naturally or as a residue from petroleum distillation.
Kangaroo Creek Dam
Construction of the Kangaroo Creek Dam was first proposed around 1945. Tests of the
surrounding rocks, mainly schists and gneisses1, were carried out and it was concluded that
they would be strong enough to support an arch dam. However, the project was shelved
(sloped downwards). During the 1950s, an arch dam was constructed in Europe in an area
where the geology was similar to the Torrens Gorge. The geologists did not realise that
there was a fault at right angles to the foliation planes of the schist. This dam collapsed in
1958, and several hundred lives were lost.
When construction of the Kangaroo Creek Dam was again proposed in the 1960s, a careful
assessment of the surrounding rocks was made. The investigation took about 18 months.
Eventually it was decided that the foundation rocks on the south bank of the proposed site
were unstable to a considerable depth, and not strong enough to support an arch dam.
A much larger and more expensive earth and rock fill embankment dam was subsequently
built.

Building Foundations
Since the type of rock and soil inevitably affects stability of buildings, the quality of the
foundation rock must be investigated before construction commences. This rock must not
be weak, crushed, water saturated or have been subjected to chemical weathering. The
presence of fractures, faults, joints, cleavages, etc may indicate that the site is unsuitable for
building. The possibility of soil-creep, slope movement, landslides etc must be borne in mind
and factored into the design of any building foundation. Obviously, buildings should not be
situated too close to the coast, especially where the sea level is rising relative to the land.

Rock and soil tests are taken before homes are built. For larger buildings, deep holes may be
drilled to test the strength and stability of the rocks under the proposed building. The type
and strength of foundations required are determined from the results of these tests. People
who build houses in areas of clay soil are likely to find that windows and doors stick and that
cracks appear in brick walls. Piers under the house move and concrete slabs may crack. This
is because clays swell when wet and shrink after drying. Adelaides Bay of Biscay soils,
which underlie some of the north-eastern suburbs, contain a type of clay called

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montmorillonite which swells to almost twice its dry volume when wet. This is responsible
for many cracks in older buildings. These soils are said to be expansive.

1 - A metamorphic rock with a banded or foliated structure, typically coarse-grained and consisting mainly of feldspar,
quartz, and mica.
Two other types of problem soils are collapsing soils, which settle rapidly on wetting, and
compressible soils that consolidate and settle slowly over several years.
The footing is that part of a house that is in direct contact with the soil or rock forming the
foundation. Strip footings were the earliest type used. These consisted of concrete strips
beneath the walls of the house.
Strip footings proved to be unsuitable in areas of expansive soil, as the soil under the house
dried out and shrank (shrink), causing the problems shown in the diagram below.

SLOPE FAILURE
The term slope failure covers a wide range of ground movement, such as rock falls, deep
failure of slopes, and shallow debris flows. The photograph below shows the Thredbo
landslide (30 July 1997) where 18 people died.
Causes of Slope Failure
Gravity
Although gravity acting on an over-steepened slope is the primary cause of a landslide,
other contributing factors include:
Earthquakes that create stresses causing weak slopes to fail.
Volcanic eruptions that produce loose ash deposits and debris flows.
Vibrations from machinery, traffic, blasting, and even atmospheric thunder that may
trigger failure of very weak slopes.
Excess weight from accumulation of rain, snow, the stockpiling of rock or ore, or
from built structures that may stress weak slopes to failure .

Relief

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Slope failure occurs in hilly or mountainous regions all over the world essentially
wherever there is any significant topographic relief. In Australia, significant landslides
coincide with mountainous areas.

Water
Rock and soil slopes are weakened through saturation by melting snow or heavy rain. Water
filling the pores of permeable materials allows the grains to slide past each other with little
friction. Water acts as a lubricant increasing the ease of movement of rock and soil particles
(and therefore slope failure). Slope material that becomes saturated with water may
develop a debris flow or mudflow. The resulting slurry of rock and mud can pick up trees,
houses, and cars, causing the blocking of bridges and tributaries and increasing the
likelihood of flooding.

Undercutting
Undercutting is erosion of material at the foot of a cliff or steep bank e.g. on the outside
of a meander. Ultimately the overhang collapses and the process is repeated. Undercutting
caused by rivers, glaciers, or ocean waves creates over-steepened slopes, which are prone
to failure. Human activities, such as quarrying and road construction also result in
undercutting.

Rock Types
In unconsolidated material, that is material not held together by cement or by a strong
interlocking crystal structure, landslides start after a significant part of the whole rock mass
is saturated with water and therefore lubricated. A single shock or vibration can trigger the
down-slope movement of an entire unstable hillside. Any area of very weak or fractured
materials resting on a steep slope will be likely to experience landslides.

Slope Angle
A pile of sand always assumes the same angle of slope, whether it is a few centimetres high,
or a huge sand dune. The angle that the sand makes with the horizontal is called the angle
of repose. It is about 37 for fine sand, and steeper for coarse sand and angular pebbles, as
shown in the diagrams below.

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If a slope is steepened beyond this natural angle, for example for a road cutting, it then
becomes unstable and the slightest vibration may lead to slope failure. The angle of repose
is reduced if the sand or unconsolidated rock material becomes water-saturated. Moreover,
the angle of repose is significantly reduced underwater.

IMPORTANCE OF PHYSICAL GEOLOGY

As a branch of geology, it deals with the various processes of physical agents such as wind,
water, glaciers and sea waves, run on these agents go on modifying the surface of the
earth continuously. Physical geology includes the study of Erosion, Transportation and
Deposition (ETD).
The study of physical geology plays a vital role in civil engineering thus:
(a) It reveals constructive and destructive processes of physical agents at a particular
site.
(b) It helps in selecting a suitable site for different types of project to be under taken
after studying the effects of physical agents which go on modifying the surface of the
earth physically, chemically and mechanically

IMPORTANCE OF PETROLOGY
As a branch of geology it deals with the study of rocks. A rock is defined as the
aggregation of minerals found in the earths crust. The study of petrology is most
important for a civil engineer, in the selection of suitable rocks for building stones, road
metals, etc Petrology is the study of the nature of rocks and the processes that form the
rocks that comprise the Earth. The rock-forming processes we will consider those that
produce igneous, sedimentary and metamorphic rocks reflect, either directly or
indirectly, the production and redistribution of heat within the earth. Since plate tectonics
operates as an efficient heat-loss mechanism for the Earth, the study of petrology is
fundamental to understanding the large-scale geodynamics of our planet.
The goals are to give:

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1) A meaningful sampling of the approaches and philosophy behind petrologic

studies for stability of civil engineering constructions;
2) An appreciation for the diversity, complexity and geological significance of the
rocks that comprise the earth for long durable constructions;
3) A basis for understanding the importance of petrology in the civil engg.
constructions; and
4) To provide you with an opportunity to further development for particular
construction.

IMPORTANCE OF STRUCTURAL GEOLOGY

As a branch of geology, it deals with the study of structures found in rocks. It is also known
as tectonic geology or simply tectonics. Structural geology is an arrangement of rocks and
plays an important role in civil engineering in the selection of suitable sites for all types of
projects such as dams, tunnels, multi-storeyed buildings, etc. Structural geology is the study
of the three dimensional distribution of rock units with respect to their deformational
histories. The primary goal of structural geology is to use measurements of present-day rock
geometries to uncover information about the history of deformation (strain) in the rocks,
and ultimately, to understand the stress field that resulted in the observed strain and
geometries.

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