Unit Description and General Aims

The objective of presenting this Unit is to introduce students to advanced geotechnical engineering. Knowledge of geotechnical engineering is required in many civil engineering fields, e.g. civil construction, environmental, petroleum, and mining engineering.

This Unit deals with applying soil and rock mechanics fundamentals (taught in Soil Mechanics, a prerequisite unit) to the design of civil structures, such as shallow and deep foundations, retaining walls, embankments, and excavations, and analyzing their stability.

Topics that will be covered in detail include: lateral earth pressures and their computation using Rankine, Coulomb, and curved failure surface methods; the design of earth retaining structures; the determination of the ultimate bearing capacity of shallow foundations; drained and undrained slope stability analysis using a range of methods (e.g. ordinary method of slices and design charts). Practical application of various geotechnical principles to designing particular soil structures, such as landfill liners, is also covered.

Upon conclusion of this Unit, students will have been provided with the theoretical knowledge and practical skills to understand and solve various geotechnical issues.

Learning Outcomes

1. Take part in geotechnical exploration campaigns and analyze results.
   Bloom's Level 4
2. Assess various task requirements and geotechnical principles to recommend adequate geosynthetic materials for designing particular soil structures (e.g., landfill liners).
   Bloom's Level 5
3. Estimate lateral earth pressures using Rankine's and Coulomb's methods, and justify the method selection to design appropriate earth retaining structures.
   Bloom's Level 5
4. Evaluate and solve drained and undrained slope stability problems using appropriate methods (e.g. ordinary method of slices, design charts, and computer software).
   Bloom's Level 5
5. Calculate the load capacity of shallow and deep foundations.
   Bloom's Level 5

Student assessment

Overall requirements: Students must achieve a result of 50% or above in the exam itself to pass the exam, and must pass the exam to be able to pass the unit. An overall final unit score of 50% or above must be achieved to pass the unit once all assessment, including the exam, has been completed.

Prescribed and Recommended Readings

Required textbook(s)

• B. M. Das, 2022. Principles of Geotechnical Engineering, 10th Edition. Cengage Learning- ISBN: 978-0357420485

Reference Materials

• Budhu, M., 2011. Soil Mechanics and Foundations, 3rd Edition, John Wiley & Sons, Inc., USA - ISBN: 978-0470556849
• Knappett, J. and Craig, R.F., 2019. Craig’s Soil Mechanics, 9th Edition. CRC Press - ISBN: 978-1138070066

Unit Content

One topic is delivered per contact week, except for part-time 24-week units, where one topic is delivered every two weeks.

Topic 1

Introduction

• Outline
• Importance of geotechnical engineering
• Historical perspective
• Fundamentals of Geotechnical Engineering
  • Review of soil compaction
  • Review of the compressibility of soils
  • Review on shear strength of soils

Topic 2

Subsoil Exploration

• Introduction
• Planning for soil exploration
• Boring methods
• Standard Penetration Test and other common sampling methods
• Sample disturbance
• Correlations for Standard Penetration Number in cohesive and granular soils
• Other in-situ tests
  • Vane shear test
  • Borehole pressuremeter test
  • Cone penetration test
• Rock coring
• Soil exploration report

Topic 3

Geosynthetics

• Introduction (types and applications)
• Geotextile
• Geogrid
• Geomembrane
• Geonet
• Geosynthetic clay liner

Topic 4

Stability of Retaining Walls (Part I)

• Introduction
• At-rest, active and passive earth pressure
• Earth pressure at-rest
• Lateral pressure on unyielding retaining walls from surcharges
• Rankine’s active pressure
• Rankine’s passive pressure
• Yielding of a wall of limited height
• Rankine active and passive pressure with sloping backfill
• Rankine active and passive pressure for granular backfill

Topic 5

Stability of Retaining Walls (Part II)

• Diagrams for lateral earth-pressure distribution against retaining walls with vertical back
• Coulomb’s active pressure
• Coulomb’s passive pressure
• Active force on retaining walls with earthquake forces
• Common types of retaining walls in the field
• Introduction to the curved failure surface method
• Retaining walls with friction

Topic 6

Two-Dimensional Flow of Water Through Soils

• Introduction
• Laplace’s equation of continuity
• Flownet sketching
• Seepage calculation from flownets
• Flownets in anisotropic soils
• Mathematical solution for seepage
• Seepage around retaining walls
• Seepage through earth dams

Topic 7

Slope Stability (Part I)

• Definitions, modes of failure, factors of safety and critical height
• Stability of infinite slopes (with and without seepage)
• Stability of finite slopes using the Cullman’s method
• Stability of finite slopes using the mass procedure
• Stability of finite slopes using the Taylor’s method

Topic 8

Slope Stability (Part II)

• Stability of finite slopes using the ordinary method of slices
• Stability of finite slopes using the Bishop’s simplified method of slices
• Stability of finite slopes using the method of slices for steady-state seepage
• Stability analysis using modelling tools

Topic 9

Foundations (Part I)

• Introduction
• Common types of foundations
• Ultimate soil-bearing capacity for shallow foundations
• Terzaghi’s ultimate bearing capacity equation for shallow foundations
• Effect of groundwater table on shallow foundation design

Topic 10

Foundations (Part II)

• Introduction to deep foundations
• Types of piles and installation
• The load capacity of single piles
• Pile load test
• The load capacity of drilled shafts
• Pile groups
• Settlement of piles
• Settlement of drilled shafts

Topic 11

Evaluation of Geotechnical Performance

• Introduction
• Field instrumentation
• Monitoring and smart infrastructure
• Illustrative cases

Topic 12

Unit Review

In the final week, students will have an opportunity to review all contents covered in the Unit. Opportunity will be provided to clarify any outstanding issues.

Software/Hardware Used

Software

• Software: N/A

• Version: N/A

• Instructions:  N/A

• Additional resources or files: N/A

Hardware

• N/A

Unit Changes Based on Student Feedback