The primary objectives of soil exploration are: Determination of the nature of the deposits of soil.

. Determination of the depth and thickness of the various soil strata and their extent in the horizontal direction. The location of ground water table (GWT). Obtaining soil and rock samples from the various strata. The determination of the engineering properties of the soil and rock strata that affect the performance of the structure. Determination of the in-situ properties by performing field tests. Selecting the type and depth of foundation suitable for a given site Evaluating the load-bearing capacity of the foundation. Estimating the probable settlement of a structure. Determining potential foundation problems (for example, expansive soil, collapsible soil, sanitary landfill, and so on). Predicting lateral earth pressure for structures such as

Site Reconnaissance
Collection of data about the project Geologic study of the site Site inspection

Field Investigations
Preliminary Ground Investigation Detailed Ground Investigation

Boring Sampling Laboratory Testing

Methods for soil exploration

Test pits, trial pits or trenches Borings Soundings or penetration tests Geophysical methods

Permits visual inspection of soil strata in place. Especially useful for gravelly soil where boreholes may be difficult. Sampling done on exposed Soil samples can be lifted surfaces. from deeper depths by drilling bore holes by using mechanical devices called samplers. Standard Penetration Test (SPT) Cone penetration test (CPT) Electrical resistivity method Seismic refraction method

The process of boring consists of i. Drilling a hole and visually examining the cuttings coming out from different depths. ii. Lifting the soil samples from different depths by using mechanical devices called samplers.

Auger boring
Wash boring Percussion Rotary boring

boring

AUGER BORING Hand operated augers augers Used for boring holes
upto a maximum of 10 m and suitable for all types of soils above water table but suitable only below water table in clay soils.

Power driven
Used for greater boring depths where hard or stiff soil strata are encountered.

Wash boring: this is a simple and fastest method, used for making holes in all types of soils except boulders and rocks. Percussion boring: This method is used to make hole in all types of soils including boulders and rocks.

Rotary boring (Mud rotary drilling): This method is used to advance hole in rocks and soils. Rotating core barrels which are provided with commercial diamond bits or a steel bit with slots are used for rotary drilling. This method is used to obtain the rock cores, so this method is called as core boring or core drilling.

Disturbed samples samples Natural soil structure gets modified or destroyed during the sampling operation.

Undisturbed Original soil structure is preserved and the material properties have not undergone any modification. NonWhere in addition to alteration, soils from other layers get mixed up or the proportion of mineral constituents get altered.

Representative samples representative samples samples those the natural moisture content and the proportion of mineral constituents can be preserved with suitable precautions.

The standard penetration test is the most commonly used in-situ test, especially for cohesionless soils which can not be easily sampled. Generally used to determine the bearing capacity of sand and gravel soil. A split spoon sampler is used. It is a sampler tube which can be split open longitudinally after sampling which consists of a driving shoe, a split-barrel of circular cross section and a coupling.

The no of blows required for the last 300 mm of penetration is added together and recorded as the N- value at that particular depth of the borehole. The no of blows required to effect the first 150 mm penetration, called the seating drive, is discarded.
65 kg hammer dropping from 750mm

SPT Resistance(N value) is total no of blows to drive sampler 2nd and 3rd 150 mm increments

The boring log shows refusal and the test is halted ifa) 50 blows are required for any 150 mm penetration b) 100 blows are required for 300 mm penetration c) 10 successive blows produce no advance

Corrections in N value.: SPT values obtained in the field for sand have to be corrected before they are used in empirical correlations and design charts.

 Overburden correction: In granular soils, the overburden pressure affects the penetration resistance. If the two soils having same relative density but different confining pressures are tested, the one with a higher confining pressure gives a higher penetration number. As the confining pressure in cohesionless soils increases with the depth, the penetration umber for soils at a shallow depth is underestimated and that at greater depth is overestimated. For uniformity, the N values obtained from the filed tests under different effective overburden pressures are corrected to a standard effective overburden pressure. N= N * C Where, N = N value after overburden correction N = observed value C = overburden correction factor The correction factor proposed by Peck, Hanson and Thornburn is given by the equation C = 0.77 log(20/P) Where, P = effective overburden pressure at the depth at which N value is measured (kg/cm^2)

 Dilatancy correction: Silty fine sands and fine sands below the water table develop pore water pressure which is not easily dissipated. The pore pressure increases the resistance of the soil and hence the penetration number (N). Terzaghi and Peck (1967) recommend the following correction in the case of silty fine sands when the observed value is N exceeds 15. N = 15 + (N 15)/2 Importance of SPT N value : N value represents compression and shear strength parameters of the soil. N value is correlated to shear strength parameters (Cohesion and angle of internal friction). Design of foundations can be done directly using N value.

 The sieve analysis is carried out by sieving 1000 g of soil sample through the nest of sieves consists of 4.75 mm, 2.36 mm, 1.18 mm, 600 micro meter, 425 micro meter, 300 micro meter, 150 micro meter . The sieves are placed one below the other so that the opening decrease in size from the top sieve downwards with a pan at the bottom of the stack. 10 minutes of shaking by a mechanical shaker is given. The amount of soil retained on each sieve is weighed and the percentage of the total weight of soil passing through each sieve is calculated. % Retained = (wt of soil retained/total weight of soil taken)*100

Cumulative % retained = sum of % retained on all sieves of larger sizes and the % retained on that particular sieve

The property of soil which permits water to percolate through its continuously connected voids is called permeability. The coefficient of permeability may be determined in the laboratory by two methods Constant head method Variable head method Apparatus : Permeameter mould(internal diameter = 100 mm, height = 127.3 mm, capacity = 1000cc) Cover, base, detachable collar, porous stone Round filter paper(100 mm dia)

Constant Head Method :

k = (Q*L)/(A*h*t) Variable Head Method : k = (2.3*a*L*Log(h1/h2))/(A*t)

Shear strength of a soil is the capacity of soil to resist shearing stress. It can be defined as the maximum value of shear stress that can be mobilised within a soil mass. The shear parameters were calculated in laboratory by Direct Shear Test. Apparatus: Shear Box Assembly

Weight of empty mould, W1 = 10900 gm Weight of mould + sand, W2 = 14900 gm Height of mould = 17 cm Diameter of mould = 15 cm Volume of mould, V = (3.14 * 152 * 17) /4 = 3002.62 cm3 Minimum density = (W2-W1)/V = (14900-10900)/3002.62 = 1.33 g/cc Height of sand after compaction = 17 3 = 14 cm Volume of sand = (3.14 * 152 * 14)/4 = 2472.75 g/cc Maximum density = (W2-W1)/Volume of sand = (14900-10900)/2472.75 = 1.62 g

17 cm

15 cm

The dynamic cone test is a quick test and helps to cover a large area under investigation rather economically. It helps in identifying the uniformity or the variability of the subsoil profile at the site. The test is much less expensive and much quicker than the SPT. The equipment consists of a cone, driving rods, driving head, hoisting equipment and a hammer. The driving rods should be rods of suitable length with threads for joining A rod coupling at either end. The rods should be marked at every 100 mm. The driving head shall be of mild steel with threads at either end for a rod coupling. It shall have a diameter of 100

The cone with threads (recoverable) shall be of steel with tip hardened. The cone without threads (expendable) may be of mild steel. For the cone without threads, a cone adopter shall be provided.

The hammer used for driving the cone shall be of mild steel or castiron with a base of mild steel. It shall be 250 mm high and of suitable diameter. The weight of the hammer shall be 640 N (65 kg). The cone shall be driven into the soil by allowing the hammer to fall freely through 750 mm each time. The number of blows for every 100 mm penetration of the cone shall be recorded. The process shall be repeated till the cone is driven to the required depth. To save the

 Number of blows for 300mm penetration is called Cone penetration value denoted by N cbr. When the depth of investigation is more than 6 m, bentonite slurry may be used for eliminating the friction on the driving rods. The cone used in this case is of 62.5 mm size.