Chapter 4 Site Exploration Part I

De La Salle University -Manila
Department of Civil and Engineering
FOUNDEN
Site Exploration and
Characterization; Part I
Jonathan Rivera Dungca, D.Eng.

Associate Professor
Chapter 4: Site Exploration and
Characterization; Part I
“Subsurface material properties

cannot be specified; they must be
deduced through exploration.”
Charles Dowding (1979)

The Context for
Geotechnical Exploration
 What you know….
 Planned site development
 Proposed structure information
 Surface and subsurface data
 What you want to know…

 Geotechnical Design Recommendations
 Preliminary
 Final
What is Site Characterization?
One working definition:
 “The process by which a [geo-professional]
identifies and describes both the surface
and the subsurface materials and
conditions at a project site relative to an
established design objective.”
Or:
 “A project site so described.”
Some Common Objectives
 Identify & describe pertinent surface

conditions
 Determine location and thickness of
soil and rock strata (subsurface soil
profile)
 Determine location of groundwater
table
 Recover samples for laboratory testing
 Conduct lab and/or field testing
 Identify special problems and concerns
Geotechnical Project Sequence
 Site Research
 Field Reconnaissance
 Field Exploration
 Laboratory Investigations
 Geotechnical Interpretations, Analysis
 Report of Exploration
Non-Intrusive Exploration
Site Research
(Published Information)
 Development Plans
 Construction Plans
 Site Location Maps
 Topographic Maps
 Aerial Photographs
 Geologic Maps
 Soil Survey Maps
NAMRIA
The National Mapping and Resource

Information Authority (NAMRIA) surveys and
maps the nation's land and water environment,
primarily in support of the various programs of its
mother unit, the
Department of Environment and Natural Resources
and the national government. Among its major
mandates is to provide both the public and private
sectors with map-making services as well as
geographic and resource information
Other Agencies
 National Institute of Geological
Science (NIGS)
 Mine and Geo-science Bureau (MGB)
 Philippine Institute of Volcanology
and Seismology (PHIVOLCS)
 Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical
and Astronomical Services
Administration (PAGASA)
Field Reconnaissance
 Observation of Surface Conditions

 Accessibility
 Traffic Control
 Surface Drainage
 Geologic Features
 Vegetation
 Slopes
 Water
Geophysical Methods
 Electrical
Resistivity
Surveys
 Geophysical
Logging
Example: Non-Intrusive Exploration
Given: Prospective client calls with a

problem
 She owns a lot at Tagaytay City
 Wants to build a wood frame house
 Lot has a “cliff” around three sides of it,
80-foot drop to the water
Req’d: Can she build her house within
14 feet of the edge of the cliff, as she
plans to do?
Example
Example
Intrusive (Field) Exploration
Preliminaries: How Many
Borings & How Deep?
“No hard-and-fast rule exists for

determining the number of borings or
the depth to which borings are to be
advanced.”
Reference: Braja M. Das, Principles of Geotechnical

Engineering, 6th Edition
Preliminaries:
How Many Borings?
 At all exterior corners of buildings
 Spaced at no more than 50-100ft
(15-30m)
 Intervals on a grid pattern
 Center boring often extended to
greater depth
Preliminaries:
How Many Borings?
 Boring pattern should be adjusted to
reflect geological features observed on
the ground or from air photos
 For example, borings on a flood plain
should be arranged to show locations of
 point bars
 Natural levees
 Terraces
 As other important features can be missed by
an arbitrary grid pattern
Preliminaries:
How Many Borings?
Structure Subsurface Spacing of Borings
or Project Variability (ft)
Irregular 100-1000 (200, typical)
Highway
Average 200-2000 (500, typical)
Subgrade
Uniform 400-4000 (1000, typical)
Irregular 25-75
Multistory
Average 50-150
Building
Uniform 100-300
Source: Sowers 1979
How Many Borings?
How Deep?
Preliminaries:
How Many Borings?
Preliminaries:
How Many Borings?
Preliminaries:
How Deep (Bridges)?
 Boring depth is governed by various

factors, including:
 Foundation type
 Foundation load
 Lowering of grade line at
underpass?
 Channel relocation, widening,
dredging?
 Scour?
Preliminaries:
How Deep (Bridges)?
 Rules of Thumb
 Generally speaking, 50’- 80’ (15-24m) is
reasonable
 Must be sufficient to extend below the
bottom of a bearing capacity failure, which
generally is about 1.5 times the width of the
bearing area
 Local experience is helpful
 Look at nearby structures if available
 If no experience or other info available, plan
for long first hole, then adjust.
Preliminaries:
How Many Borings & How Deep?
“The final engineering can be

no better than the data upon
which it is based.”
Reference: George F. Sowers, Introductory Soil

Mechanics and Foundations: Geotechnical
Engineering, 4th Edition
Types of Drilling Equipment
Truck-Mounted Drill Rig
 Typical
Equipment Used
for Geotechnical
Drilling
 Truck Mounted
Drill Rig &
Support Truck
(Water Tank)
Field Drilling and Sampling
 Air or Mud Rotary
Drilling
Angle Drilling
 Assess geologic
features (dip,
strike, joints, etc.)
 Foundation testing
for bridge
abutments.
Confined Access/ Interior
Drilling
 Limited Access
Drill Rigs are
small in size, but
have the torque of
many full size truck
rigs.
 Capability, boring
depths, size, etc.
vary
 Esp. useful for
remedial sampling
Offshore Drilling/ Barge Rig
4 Exploration for
abutments,
bridges,
docks, etc.
Soil & Rock
Drilling & Sampling
Drilling vs. Sampling
 Drilling – “Just” a hole… no
sample
 Disturbed Sampling
“…Estimating the nature of the
formation from the cuttings is like
identifying the cow from the
hamburgers.” G.F. Sowers
 Undisturbed Sampling
 Retrieve a continuous core
 Applicable to both soil and rock
Drilling:
Rotary Bit
 Bit at the end of drill rod
rotated and advanced
 Soil/rock cuttings
removed by circulating
drilling fluid
 Common drilling fluid;
bentonite in water with
slurry density 68-72pcf
 Air may be used as
drilling fluid
Drilling:
Continuous Flight Auger
Drilling & Sampling
Hollow Stem Auger
 Casing with outer spiral
 Inner rod with plug/or pilot
assembly
 For sampling, remove pilot
assembly and insert
sampler
 Typically 5ft sections,
keyed, box & pin
connections
 Maximum depth 60-150ft
Drilling & Sampling
Hollow Stem Auger
Drilling & Sampling
Rock Coring
 Double-tube core
barrel is typical
 Diamond or tungsten-
carbide tooth bit
 Size of core samples
varies (NX, NQ, HQ,
etc.)
Drilling & Sampling
Rock Core Quality
 Core recovery
percentage
 Rock Quality
Designation (RQD)
 Defines the fraction of
solid core recovered
greater than 4 inches in
length
 Calculated as the ratio
of the sum of length of
core fragments greater
than 4 inches to the
total drilled footage per
run, expressed as a
percentage
Drilling & Sampling
Shelby Tube Sampler
 Suitable for SOIL
 Thin-wall Steel Tubes
 3.0" OD, 2.875" ID, 30.0"
long, 7.2 lbs
Ground Water
Groundwater Monitoring
 Groundwater level must

be determined during
geotechnical exploration
 Measure at time of
drilling and later (24 hrs,
1 week, etc.)
 Can be accomplished by
leaving selected soil
borings open
 Or, install a piezometer
Ground Water
 Piezometers
 Monitor Wells &
Sampling
 Permeability Tests

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De La Salle University -Manila

Department of Civil and Engineering

Jonathan Rivera Dungca, D.Eng.

“Subsurface material properties

Charles Dowding (1979)

 What you want to know…

 Identify & describe pertinent surface

The National Mapping and Resource

 Observation of Surface Conditions

Given: Prospective client calls with a

“No hard-and-fast rule exists for

Reference: Braja M. Das, Principles of Geotechnical

 Boring depth is governed by various

“The final engineering can be

Reference: George F. Sowers, Introductory Soil

 Groundwater level must

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