FACULTY OF CIVIL ENGINEERING

UNIVERSITI TEKNOLOGI MARA

Soil Mechanics (ECG426) TUTORIAL 3B Consolidation of Soils

QUESTION 1

(a) Explain the difference between compaction and consolidation.

(CO1-PO1) (C1-C2)
(4 marks)

(b) During one of the loading stages in a consolidation test the following changes in thickness
were recorded.

Time (min) 0.00 0.15 0.25 0.50 1.00 2.25 4.00 6.25 9.00
Dial gauge
8.25 7.96 7.94 7.82 7.71 7.49 7.28 7.11 6.99
(mm)

Time (min) 16.00 25.00 36.00 49.00 64.00 81.00 100.0 300 1440
Dial gauge
6.87 6.79 6.74 6.71 6.68 6.66 6.65 6.60 6.52
(mm)

At the end of the last stage (1440 min), the thickness of the specimen was 17.40 mm, the
stress had been raised by 150 kN/m2 and the moisture content was 26.5%.

Using the root time method, determine:

i) the coefficient of consolidation, cv,

ii) he initial, primary and secondary compression ratios,
iii) the coefficient of volume compressibility, mv, and
iv) The permeability (k) of the soil sample.

Assume the specific gravity Gs = 2.68 (if necessary).

(CO1-PO1) (C3-C4)
(16 marks)
QUESTION 2

(a) What is the difference between primary consolidation and secondary compression?
(CO1-PO1) (C1-C2)
(4 marks)

(b) During one of the loading stages in a consolidation test the following changes in thickness
were recorded.

Time (min) 0.00 0.15 0.25 0.50 1.00 2.25 4.00 9.00 16.00
Dial gauge
0.39 0.64 0.69 0.75 0.84 0.99 1.15 1.50 1.80
(mm)

Time (min) 25.00 36.00 49.00 64.00 120.0 240.0 480.0 960.0 1440
Dial gauge
2.06 2.30 2.52 2.68 3.00 3.30 3.48 3.60 3.67
(mm)

At the end of the last stage (1440 min), the thickness of the specimen was 17.12 mm, the
stress had been raised by 150 kN/m2 and the moisture content was 28.5%.

Using the log time method, determine:

i) the coefficient of consolidation, cv,

ii) the initial, primary and secondary compression ratios,
iii) the coefficient of volume compressibility, mv, and
iv) The permeability (k) of the soil sample.

Assume the specific gravity Gs = 2.70 and you may use Appendix A to plot the graph.
(CO2-PO1) (C3-C4)
(16 marks)
QUESTION 3

(a) Explain the process of consolidation in a saturated clay soil as proposed by Terzaghi using
the piston and spring analogy.
(CO1-PO1) (C1-C2)
(6 marks)

(b) The following results were obtained from an oedometer test on a sample of saturated clay
soil. Based on this data:

Applied Pressure
0 25 50 100 200 400 800 0
(kN/m2)
Sample
19.60 19.25 18.98 18.61 18.14 17.68 17.24 17.92
thickness (mm)
Void ratio (e) 1.014 0.978 0.950 0.912 0.864 0.817 0.772 0.842

i) Plot the void ratio (e) against log effective pressure (log ’). Determine the
compression index Cc and the preconsolidation pressure ( ’pc). You may use
Appendix B to plot the graph.
ii) Plot the void ratio (e) against effective pressure ( ’). Determine the coefficient of
volume compressibility mv for the effective pressure range of 250 kN/m2 to 400
kN/m2.
(CO2-PO1) (C3-C4)
(14 marks)
QUESTION 4

(a) Observations of a building have shown that over the first two years after construction an
average settlement of 60 mm has taken place. Laboratory tests on specimen from the clay
layer beneath the building indicate an ultimate settlement of 280 mm. Assuming that the
60 mm settlement to be all due to consolidation under two-way drainage, give an estimate
of:

i) the time required for 50% of the ultimate settlement to take place,
ii) The amount of consolidation settlement to be expected after a period of 10
years (from the construction) has elapsed.
Use the relationship Uv = 1.13 Tv in your calculation.
(CO2-PO3) (C5-C6)
(8 marks)

(b) In an oedometer test, a clay sample of thickness 19 mm took 20 minutes to reach 50 %

consolidation. How long would the same soil of thickness 5 m at site to reach 90 %
consolidation under the same pressure and drainage conditions.
(CO2-PO3) (C5-C6)
(4 marks)

(c) During an oedometer consolidation test on a specimen of clay the thickness decreased
from 19.42 mm to 19.12 mm after the applied stress had been increased from 200 to 400
kPa and maintained for 24 hours. The stress increment was then removed and the sample
allowed swelling for the next 24 hours at a pressure of 200 kPa, at the end of which time
the water content was found to be 29.4 percent and the final thickness 19.25 mm.

Assuming Gs = 2.72, calculate:

i) the void ratio at the beginning and end of this stress-increment stage, and
ii) The coefficient of volume compressibility for this stress range.

(CO2-PO3) (C5-C6)
(8 marks)
QUESTION 5

(a) Why do we need to carry out consolidation tests and what parameters are deduced from
the test results?
(CO1-PO1) (C1-C2)
(5 marks)

(b) The following readings were obtained from an oedometer test on a specimen of saturated
clay. The load was held constant for 24 hr before the addition of the next increment.

Applied Stress
0 25 50 100 200 400 800
(kN/m2)

Thickness (mm) 19.65 19.30 19.03 18.66 18.19 17.73 17.29

At the end of the last load period the load was removed and the sample allowed
expanding for 24 hours, at the end of which time its thickness was 17.97 mm and its
moisture content found to be 31.3 percent. The specific gravity of the soil was 2.68.

i) Plot the void ratio (e) versus effective pressure ( ’) curve and determine the
coefficient of volume compressibility (mv) for an effective stress range of 250 – 350
kN/m2.
ii) Plot the void ratio (e) versus log effective pressure (log ’) curve and from it
determine the compressibility index Cc and the preconsolidation pressure ( ’pc). You
may use Appendix B to plot the graph.
iii) Plot the mv versus ’ curve for the soil.
(CO2-PO1) (C3-C4)
(15 marks)

Compiled by
AP Abd Rahman Mahamood
April 2012