CHAPTER-1

INTRODUCTION

1.1 TRANSPORTATION SIGNIFICANCE

Good transportation facilities contributes to development of a region and the nation as

well. It is vital to understand the role of transportation in the economic and social
prospective as it is very important for the development of any region. Transportation
is a wide term which involve movement of goods and individuals from one location to
another. For the various sectors it has its importance in different aspects such as for
industrial sector transportation is required to carry raw material, finished products
from one place to another and for cities it include movement of individuals from one
place to another. In our country there is large movement of persons and goods through
land transportation. Land/Surface transportation usually happens through highways,
rails and pipes.

Out of various surface transportation modes highways provide the maximum

flexibility for travel in respect with routes, direction, time and speed of travel. It has
been seen in past that development follow the path where good transportation
facilities are available. So it becomes necessary to develop road network for
development of any region. On the other hand railways provide cheap and bulk
movement of men and goods in less time. Industries are seen to expand along the
railway network as in present scene railways seems to be economical for
transportation of goods in comparison with highway as the fuel prices are on hike. So
overall there is requirement to develop surface transportation.

In order to meet geometric design requirement considering, terrain condition and to

minimize the cost of construction, roads and rails are built in cut and fill sections,
resulting in natural or artificial embankment slopes. Stability of these embankment
slopes always remains a worry to highway and geotechnical engineers.

In the present study artificial road embankment slopes at RGEC are studied, analysed
and remedial measures are recommended.

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1.2 Rajiv Gandhi Educational City (RGEC) Sonepat

The Rajiv Gandhi Education City (RGEC) is an ambitious project by government of

Haryana to develop a hub of higher education institutes. It is situated in Sonepat
district of Haryana, adjacent to Delhi. It is the largest education project in the National
Capital Region (NCR). Many universities have started their projects for establishing
their campus. IIT Delhi has taken possession of 50 acres of land for the extension of
its Delhi campus. About 107.80 crore has already been spent on the development of
city. In the first phase an area of 2514.52 acre is developed and there is plan for 2490
acre of future expansion.

1.3 EMBANKMENT SLOPES (Failures and Protection)

Slopes either occur naturally or are constructed by humans. Slope stability problems
have been faced throughout history when men or nature has disrupted the delicate
balance of natural soil slopes. Furthermore, the increasing demand for engineered cut
and fill slopes on construction projects has only increased the need to understand
analytical methods, investigative tools, and stabilization methods to solve slope
stability problems.
Slope failures depend on the soil type, soil stratification, groundwater, seepage and
slope geometry. A common type of failure in homogeneous fine-grained soils is a
rotational slide that has its point of rotation on an imaginary axis parallel to the slope.
Generally on road and highway embankment slopes, a flow slide occurs when internal
and external conditions, forces soil to behave like a viscous fluid. Flow slides can
occur in dry and wet soils. Slope failures are caused, in general, by natural forces,
human misjudgement and activities of burrowing animals.
Slope stability analysis is carried out commonly by using a limiting equilibrium
approach. In this method, it is presumed that failure is on the verge of occurring along
an assumed or known failure surface. The shearing resistance required to maintain a
limiting equilibrium condition is compared with the available shearing strength of the
soil. The ratio of the available shear strength to the mobilised shearing resistance is
the average factor of safety along that particular surface.
However, a slope may be internally stable but erosion failure can occur. Erosion is a
process of separating and transporting sediments by water, wind or gravity. Removal
of vegetation, disturbance of top soil, compaction, and creation of steep slopes are

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among the many causes of erosion. Water erosion is the most damaging type of
erosion and erosion control is thus a particular concern of new construction.
Numbers of effective slope stabilization methods have been developed and used
around the world. Slope stabilization can range from allowing native grass to re-
establish on a disturbed slope to building an engineered wall. Erosion control requires
a tool box approach that considers the level of effectiveness and acceptability of the
treatment. Site constraints can vary greatly and a “one-size-fits-all” approach is
unlikely to work. Instead the right tools have to be selected for the specific project in
light of its unique erosion and slope stabilization problems.
Common causes and trigger events for erosion in embankments or soil instability
include excessive slope angle or height, poor drainage, low strength foundation,
removal of vegetation that anchors soil, increased loading, environmental factors,
poor handling of fill materials, high ground water table, unsuitable geological features
and liquefaction. Although in transportation projects problems are often related to
water. Improper road construction techniques, including improper selection of
equipment, are a common cause of slope instabilities in embankments.
Consideration of slope protection and addressing surface water and ground water
issues during road construction and maintenance activities can reduce erosion and
enhance the long term performance of slopes and embankments. A combination of
adequate drainage, installation of protective devices and elements, and establishment
of desirable vegetation offers the best means for soil conservation.
There are dozens of techniques to stabilize slopes and prevent surface erosion.
Erosion control techniques generally protect the surface from being eroded by water
and wind examples include vegetative cover, crushed stone cover, mats and blankets.
The guiding principles are minimizing the exposed and disturbed areas and exposure
time, managing on-site storm water by reducing velocity and volume, installing
erosion and sediment control measures early in the construction phase and during
structural maintenance. Temporary erosion control measures should be used during
construction. Common devices for permanent erosion control include design
elements, ditches and liners, riprap, soil bioengineering and biotechnical stabilization
and vegetation establishment. Many erosion problem could be avoided altogether with
good design practices.
Soil bioengineering techniques utilize plant parts such as roots and stems to serve as
structural and mechanical elements in slope protection systems. The plants act as soil

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reinforcement, aid in water drainage, or serve as barriers to earth movement.
Similarly, biotechnical stabilization utilizes structures in combination with plants to
arrest and prevent slope failures and erosion with biological and mechanical elements
functioning together in an integrated and complementary manner. Biotechnical
stabilization applies to retaining structures, revetment and ground cover systems.
Retaining structures to help hold back the slope include walls of various shapes and
materials. The combined use of structural and vegetative elements example
conventional slope planting combined with low gabion walls has been reported to be
an attractive and cost-effective method to hold soil and prevent slope failures and
erosion. Others options for stabilizing weak soils include stabilizing vegetation and
structures, erosion control mats & mesh and earth work.
Mechanical stabilization techniques utilize non-vegetative or non-living components
such as rock, gabion baskets, concrete, geosynthetics, and steel pins to reinforce
slopes. Structures are generally capable of resisting much higher lateral earth
pressures and shear stresses than vegetation. Mechanical stabilization techniques
include retaining walls, mechanically stabilized earth, geo-synthetically reinforced
soil, and other in-situ reinforcement techniques.
Earthwork techniques involve the physical movement of soil, rock, and/or vegetation
for the purpose of erosion control and slope stabilization. This involves reshaping the
surface slope by methods such as creating terraces or benches, flattening over-
steepened slopes, soil roughening, or land forming. Earthwork techniques can be used
to control surface runoff and erosion and sedimentation during and after construction.

1.4 TOPIC OF RESEARCH & ITS IMPORTANCE

The topic of research “Slope Protection of High Embankments in Rajeev Gandhi

Education City(RGEC) Sonepat – A Case Study” has been taken for study with a
view to determine causes of failure of road slopes and various possible measures for
slope protection. This will help in finding suitable slope protection measure that will
be economical as well as effective to protect slopes for longer life time.

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1.5 OBJECTIVES OF THESIS

The purpose of the research is to know the causes of failure of slopes and study the
various protective measures available for slope protection and suggest the best
suitable protective measure. The main objectives of the study are:

1. To find the various causes of slope failure and major failure causing force

2. To collect the samples from the site

3. To carry out detailed lab investigation

4. To carry out slope stability analysis

5. To study various slope protection techniques

6. To find the suitable slope protection techniques

1.6 SCOPE OF WORK

The study has been conducted for the slopes in RGEC and the samples have been
collected from the various site locations. The various tests and results of the study are
applicable to soil collected from the sites at RGEC.

In this study the overall nature of embankment slopes are explored such as existing
conditions to embankment construction, evaluation of slope performance, various
methods of embankment slope protection etc. Effect of adding different percentages
of cement in soil is also studied on factor of safety of slope. The behaviour of soil in
context of its strength reflecting properties were also analysed in the laboratory and
the effect of cement additive on soil properties used is also studied.

Though the present study has been conducted on selected samples, the results may be
generalized and used for other similar kind of materials and conditions.

1.7 PRESENTATION OF WORK

The work undertaken for the dissertation has been presented in six chapters.

Chapter-1 “Introduction” it gives an overview about the study topic and the kind of
work it include, its importance, objectives of research work and scope of work.

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Chapter-2 “Literature Review” includes the study of earlier carried out work related
to the topic and study of standard guidelines for our work.

Chapter-3 “Materials and Characteristics” gives a description about the materials

used in study and characteristics of the material.

Chapter-4 “Experimental Investigation” consists of details about performing the

various tests in the laboratory as per IS specification, in order to achieve our
objectives.

Chapter-5 “Results and Analysis” gives detailed analysis of the various test
performed and their relevance for our work. Also includes slope stability analysis.

Chapter-6 “Conclusion and Scope of further Study” it include the conclusion based
on the study and the scope for future work.