BVM ENGINEERING COLLEGE [AN AUTONOMOUS INSTITUTION]
202SE: GEOTECHNICAL ENGINEERING-I
CREDITS - 4 (Lc, Tc, Pc: 3, 0, 1)
nd
2 Year, B. Tech. (Civil Engineering)
Course Objective:
This course introduces the students to basics of geotechnical engineering covering basic definitions,
relationships and applications of the same in various geotechnical engineering computations. It also
provides knowledge of important civil engineering area such as permeability, effective stress principle,
vertical stress distribution within soil, compressibility, shearing strength and compaction of soils.
Teaching and Assessment Scheme:
Teaching Scheme Credits Assessment Scheme
(Hours per week)
Total
Theory Practical Marks
L T P C
ESE CE ESE CE
3 0 2 4 60 40 20 30 150
Course Contents:
Unit Teaching
Topics
No. Hours
1 Origin and Nature of the Soil: 03
Soil and soil mechanics, Formation of soil, weathering and erosion, introduc-
tion to rock mechanics.
2 Soil Structure and Clay Minerology: 03
Inter particle forces, structure of clay minerals, clay-water relations, Soil water.
3 Phase Diagrams and Basic Terminology: 04
Soil mass as a three phase system, basic definitions of terms relating physical
properties of soils, different relationships, their derivations and numerical ex-
amples.
4 Index Properties and Classification of Soils: 05
Classification of fine grained and coarse grained soils, IS classification of soils,
Textural classification, Unified soil classification etc., field identification tests.
5 Permeability and Seepage: 05
Darcy’s law, factors affecting permeability, laboratory and field permeability
tests, permeability of stratified soils,
Introduction to seepage, Flow net construction and use of flow net in 2-D flow
conditions.
6 Effective Stress Principle: 03
Total stress, neutral stress and effective stress, Critical hydraulic gradient,
quick sand condition, Capillary phenomenon and numerical examples.
7 Compaction: 06
Factors affecting compaction, Laboratory and Field Compaction of fine
grained and coarse grained soils, field control of compaction.
8 Consolidation of Soil: 07
Introduction, comparison between compaction and consolidation, initial, pri-
mary & secondary consolidation, spring analogy for primary consolidation, in-
terpretation of consolidation test results, Terzaghi’s theory of consolidation,
final settlement of soil deposits, computation of consolidation settlement and
secondary consolidation.
9 Subsurface Investigation: 06
Objectives of exploration, planning of exploration program, methods of explo-
ration, types of soil samples and soil samplers, depth of exploration, field pene-
tration tests: SPT, SCPT, and DCPT. Bore log and report writing.
Total 42
List of References:
1. B. M. Das, “Principles of Geotechnical Engineering”, Cengage Learning (Delhi)
2. Dr. A. K. Verma, “Geotechnical and Foundation Engineering”, Charotar Publishing House Pvt. Ltd.
3. Gopal Ranjan, Rao A.S.R “Basic and Applied Soil Mechanics”, New Age Int. (P) Ltd.
4. P. Purushothama Raj, “Soil Mechanics & Foundation Engineering”, Pearson Education
5. C. Venkatramaiah, “Geotechnical Engineering”, New Age Int. (P) Ltd.
6. Arora K. R., “Soil Mechanics & Foundation Engineering”, Std. Publisher
Course Outcomes (COs):
After successful completion of this course, students will be able to …
1. Understand basic definitions, relationships and apply the knowledge to solve different geotechnical
problems.
2. Analyze the soil behavior under hydrostatic and hydrodynamic conditions.
3. Apply the process and principles of compaction and consolidation for various field situations.
4. Understand the importance of soil investigation and apply it to different type of projects.
