Subsurface Exploration

DR. WALEED KH. EID

CIVIL ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT
FACULTY OF ENGINEERING &
PETROLEUM
OUTLINE
1. Introduction
2. Subsurface Exploration Program
➢ Collection of Preliminary Information
➢ Reconnaissance
➢ Site Investigation
✓ Planning
✓ Boring Depth
✓ Collecting soil samples
✓ In-situ testing
✓ Ground Water Observation
✓ Preparing Boring Log
3. Soil Investigation Report

Foundation Engineering CE451 Subsurface Exploration 2

I. INTRODUCTION

Subsurface Exploration:

The process of determining the

layers of natural soil deposits that will
underlie a proposed structure and their
physical properties.

3
I. INTRODUCTION

Subsurface Exploration: Why?

1. Selection of type of foundation suitable for a
given structure.
2. Evaluation of the load bearing capacity of
the foundation.
3. Estimation of the probable settlement of a
structure.

4
I. INTRODUCTION

Subsurface Exploration: Why?

4. Determination of potential foundation
problems.
5. Establishment of ground water table.

6. Prediction of lateral earth pressure for

structures.
7. Establishment of construction methods for
changing subsoil conditions.
5
I. INTRODUCTION

6
I. INTRODUCTION

Insufficient soil
investigation
work can lead to
disasters

7
I. INTRODUCTION

Failure of
Transcona grain
elevator, 1914

8
I. INTRODUCTION

Bridge collapse
due to foundation
failure from
earthquake, Japan

9
I. INTRODUCTION

Offshore jack-up
collapse

10
I. INTRODUCTION

Failed Sheet pile

Wall Near Bridge

11
I. INTRODUCTION

Collapse of highway
due to retaining wall
failure – Singapore,
2004

12
I. INTRODUCTION

Failure of Dam via

Erosion of Abutment
After Heavy Rain

13
I. INTRODUCTION

The Leaning Tower

of Shanghai (July,
2003)

14
I. INTRODUCTION

Subsurface Exploration:
Remember: Good
professional judgment constitutes
a major part of geotechnical
engineering and it comes with
practice.

15
II.SUBSURFACE EXPLORATION PROGRAM

Several Steps involved:

1. Collection of Preliminary Information:
A. Type of structure to be built and its use
B. Local building codes
C. General topography of the area
D. Type of soil to be encountered
E. History of the area

16
II.SUBSURFACE EXPLORATION PROGRAM

Several Steps involved:

2. Reconnaissance (make visual inspection of
the site)
A. The general topography of the site
B. Soil stratification from deep cuts
C. The type of vegetation
D. Ground water levels
E. The types of nearby construction

17
II.SUBSURFACE EXPLORATION PROGRAM

Several Steps involved:

3. Site Investigation
A. Planning
B. Making Boreholes
C. Collecting Soil Samples
D. In-situ Testing
E. Laboratory Tests
F. Ground Water Observation
G. Preparation of Boring Logs

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A. PLANNING

1. Minimum depth of boreholes

➢ ASCE (1972) rules
1
D=D1 at which   = 10 q
OR
  = 0.05
D=D2 at which  0

Choose the smallest

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A. PLANNING

1. Minimum depth of boreholes

➢ Sowers & Sowers (1970)
No of Stories Boring Depth, m
1 3.5
2 6
3 10
4 16
5 24

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A. PLANNING

1. Minimum depth of boreholes

➢ For hospitals & office buildings:
Db = 3S 0.7
to 6S 0.7

➢ In case of deep excavation:

Db = 1.5 Dexcavation

➢ If bedrock is encountered minimum core

boring is 3 meters
Foundation Engineering CE451 Subsurface Exploration 21
A. PLANNING

2. Spacing of boreholes:
Type of Project Spacing of Boreholes, m
Multistory buildings 10-30
One story industrial plant 20-60
Highways 250-500
Residential subdivisions 250-500
Dams & dikes 40-50

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B. EXPLORATORY BORING IN THE FIELD

Types of Borings:
1. Auger boring: Hand
augers (3-5 m)

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B. EXPLORATORY BORING IN THE FIELD

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B. EXPLORATORY BORING IN THE FIELD
2. Auger boring: Continuous flight auger:
➢ Continuous flight auger are powered by a
truck. This is the most common method for
advancing boreholes.
➢ Boreholes up to 70m are easily done.
➢ Continuous flight augers are available in 1
to 2m sections either solid or hollow stem.
➢ Solid stem sizes 67mm, 83mm, 102mm,
114mm.
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B. EXPLORATORY BORING IN THE FIELD
2. Auger boring:
➢ Hollow stem
auger: ID 63.5-
82.5 mm and
OD 158.75-
228.6 mm.
➢ Auger sections
can be added
as borehole
advances.
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B. EXPLORATORY BORING IN THE FIELD

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B. EXPLORATORY BORING IN THE FIELD
2. Auger boring:
➢ The tip of the auger is
attached to a cutter
head (Fingers, fish tale,
etc).
➢ The soil is brought up
by the flight auger.

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B. EXPLORATORY BORING IN THE FIELD
2. Auger boring:
➢ Change of soil layers
can be detected by
change of speed or
sound of drilling.
➢ Soil samples are
obtained at desired
depths by soil
samplers.
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B. EXPLORATORY BORING IN THE FIELD
2. Auger boring:
➢ Boring can be done on-shore and off-shore.

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B. EXPLORATORY BORING IN THE FIELD

3. Wash Boring
Casing of about 2-3 m
is driven into the
ground. The soil inside
the casing is removed
by a chopping bit. High
velocity water is forced
through drilling rod.

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B. EXPLORATORY BORING IN THE FIELD

3. Wash Boring
Water and chopped
soil particles rise to
the surface and
collected in a
container. Wash
boring is rarely used
nowadays.

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B. EXPLORATORY BORING IN THE FIELD

4. Rotary Boring
Used in sand,
clay or rocks.
Drilling mud is
forced down the
rod & bit back to
the surface with
cuttings.

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B. EXPLORATORY BORING IN THE FIELD

4. Rotary Boring
The drilling mud is a
slurry of water &
bentonite. Usually
used when soil is
likely to cave in. If soil
samples are needed
samplers are used.

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B. EXPLORATORY BORING IN THE FIELD

5. Percussion Boring
Good for hard soil &
rock. A heavy bit is
raised and lowered
to chop the hard
soil. Chopped soil is
brought to surface
by circulating water.

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C. COLLECTING SOIL SAMPLES

Two Types of Soil Samples:

1. Disturbed Samples: used for following
laboratory tests:
➢ Grain size analysis
➢ Determination of LL, Pl & PI
➢ Specific gravity of soil solids Gs
➢ Determination of chemical & organic content
➢ Classification of soil

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C. COLLECTING SOIL SAMPLES

Two Types of Soil Samples:

2. Undisturbed Samples: used for following
laboratory tests:
➢ Consolidation test
➢ Hydraulic conductivity (permeability tests)
➢ Direct shear test
➢ Triaxial tests (CD, CU & UU)

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C. COLLECTING SOIL SAMPLES

Disturbed Samplers:
➢ Split Spoon Sampler

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C. COLLECTING SOIL SAMPLES

Disturbed Samplers:
➢ Split Spoon Sampler

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C. COLLECTING SOIL SAMPLES

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C. COLLECTING SOIL SAMPLES

Disturbed Samplers:
➢ Split Spoon Sampler
Degree of disturbance:
Do2 − Di2
AR (%) = 2
X 100
Di
For split spoon AR= 111.5%
For undisturbed samples AR ≤ 10%

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C. COLLECTING SOIL SAMPLES

Undisturbed Samplers:
1. Thin walled tube
(Shelby Tube)
AR = 13.75%

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C. COLLECTING SOIL SAMPLES

Undisturbed Samplers:
2. Piston Sampler: used for soft or large soil
samples.

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C. COLLECTING SOIL SAMPLES

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D. IN-SITU TESTING
Different Types can be used:
1. SPT (Standard Penetration Test)
2. CPT (Cone Penetration Test)
3. VST (Vane Shear Test)
4. PMT (pressure Meter Test)
5. DMT (Dilatometer Test)
6. Geophysical Test (Seismic Refraction Test,
Cross hole Test, Resistivity Test)
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D. IN-SITU TESTING
1. SPT (Standard Penetration Test)
➢ Very common test
➢ Done according to ASTM D1586-99
➢ Split spoon sampler is driven into the soil by
a hammer (weight=622.72 N or 140 Lb)
dropped 762mm (30 inches).
➢ The number of blows required for spoon
penetration of three 152.4mm intervals is
recorded.
Foundation Engineering CE451 Subsurface Exploration 46
D. IN-SITU TESTING
1. SPT (Standard Penetration Test)
➢ The number of blows for the last two
intervals are added to give the standard
penetration number N at that depth.
➢ The sampler is withdrawn and the soil
sample is placed is a glass bottle and
labeled and transported to the laboratory for
further tests.

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D. IN-SITU TESTING

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D. IN-SITU TESTING

1. SPT (Standard Penetration Test)

➢ N in sands measures strength and
resistance and affected by overburden
pressure
➢ N in clays measures consistency.
➢ N should be corrected for overburden
pressure.

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D. IN-SITU TESTING

1. SPT (Standard Penetration Test)

N corrected = C N N Field

Liao & Whitman (1986)

1
C N = 9.78 where  v in kN
 v m2

Note that CN =1 at σ’v = 95.65 kN/m2

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D. IN-SITU TESTING
Consistency of Clays and approximate Correlation with The
Standard Penetration Number N

Standard Penetration Consistency Unconfined Comp Strength

Number N qu (kN/m2)
0-2 Very soft 0-25
2-5 Soft 25-50
5-10 Medium stiff 50-100
10-20 Stiff 100-200
20-30 Very stiff 200-400
>30 Hard >400

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D. IN-SITU TESTING

Relation between the Ncorrected Values and Dr of Sands

Standard Approximate Relative Internal Friction

Penetration Number Density, Dr (%) Angle, ᵠ
Ncor
0-5 0-5 26-30
5-10 5-30 28-35
10-30 30-60 35-42
30-50 60-95 38-46

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D. IN-SITU TESTING

Many Correlations:
A. Relative Density of Sands
➢ Marcuson & Biebanousky (1977)
Dr (%) = 11.7 + 0.76(222 N F + 1600 − 7.68 v − 50Cu2 ) 0.5
➢ Cubrinovski & Ishihara (1999)
0.5
  0.06 
1.7

 NF 
 0.23 +   
  D50   1 
Dr (%) =    (100)
9 
 v  

  pa 

 
Foundation Engineering CE451 Subsurface Exploration 53
D. IN-SITU TESTING

B. Peak friction angle Ф

➢ Peck, Hanson & Thornburn (1974)
 (deg) = 27.1 + 0.3 N cor − 0.00054 N cor
 2

➢ Schmertmann (1975)
0.34
 
 
  = tan −1  
NF
   v 
12.2 + 20.3
 p 


  a 

Foundation Engineering CE451 Subsurface Exploration 54

D. IN-SITU TESTING
C. Un-drained shear strength of clays cu:
➢ Stroud (1974)
cu = KN F
where K=3.5-6.5 kN/m2
D. Over-consolidation Ratio OCR:
➢ Mayne &Kemper (1988)
0.689
N
OCR = 0.193  where σv =MN/m2
  v 
Foundation Engineering CE451 Subsurface Exploration 55
D. IN-SITU TESTING
Final Notes about SPT:
1. All equations are approximate
2. Because the soil is not homogeneous the
value of N obtained from a given borehole
can vary widely.
3. For soil deposits that contain large boulders
and gravel, the SPT may erratic and
unreliable.

Foundation Engineering CE451 Subsurface Exploration 56

D. IN-SITU TESTING

2. Cone Penetration Test CPT

➢ Known as the Dutch cone penetration test.
➢ Used to determine the materials in a soil
profile & estimate their properties.
➢ No boreholes are necessary.
➢ The original version contains a 60° cone
with a base area of 10 cm2.

Foundation Engineering CE451 Subsurface Exploration 57

D. IN-SITU TESTING
Two types:
A. Mechanical friction cone penetro-
meter ASTM D3441-05

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D. IN-SITU TESTING
A. Mechanical friction cone penetro-meter
➢ The tip is connected to an inner rod. The tip
is first advanced about 40mm giving tip
resistance. Further thrusting the tip engages
the friction sleeve and the total resistance is
measured. The sleeve friction is obtained by
subtraction.
➢ Measures tip resistance (qc) and sleeve
friction (fc) both in kN/m2 .
Foundation Engineering CE451 Subsurface Exploration 59
D. IN-SITU TESTING
B. Electrical friction cone penetro-meter
➢ The tip is attached to a string of steel rods.
➢ The tip is pushed into the soil at the rate of
20mm/sec.
➢ Electrical wires from transducers are
threaded through the center of the rods and
continuously measure the tip & sleeve
resistance. Other parameters can be
measured i.e. pore water pressure.
Foundation Engineering CE451 Subsurface Exploration 60
D. IN-SITU TESTING
B. Electrical friction cone
penetro-meter

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D. IN-SITU TESTING

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D. IN-SITU TESTING

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D. IN-SITU TESTING

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D. IN-SITU TESTING

Foundation Engineering CE451 Subsurface Exploration 65

D. IN-SITU TESTING
B. Electrical friction cone penetro-meter
➢ Friction ratio is defined as:
friction resis tan ce f c
Fr = =
cone resis tan ce qc

➢ Many correlations are developed between

CPT results and soil parameters.

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D. IN-SITU TESTING

➢ Soil Type: Robertson & Campanella (1983)

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D. IN-SITU TESTING

➢ Relative Density of Sand: Kulhawy & Mayne

(1990):
 q 
 c 
 1   pa 
Dr =  1.8   0.5 
 305Q c OCR     v  
 
  p a  

Where OCR=over-consolidation ratio

Qc=compressibility factor (0.91,1.0,1.09)
Pa=atmospheric pressure
Foundation Engineering CE451 Subsurface Exploration 68
D. IN-SITU TESTING

➢ Drained Friction Angle for Sand ϕ: Robertson

and Campanella (1983):
  q c 
  = tan 0.1 + 0.38 log 
−1

   v 
➢ Un-drained Shear Strength for Clay cu:
Mayne & Kemper (1988):
 cu   qc −  v  1 qc −  v
  =   OR cu =
  v    v  NK NK
Foundation Engineering CE451 Subsurface Exploration 69
D. IN-SITU TESTING

➢ Pre-consolidation Pressure for Clay:

 p = 0.243 (q c )
0.96
c

➢ Over-consolidation Ratio OCR:

1.01
 qc −  v 
OCR = 0.37 
  v 
Where NK=15 for electric CPT & 20 for mechanical CPT

Foundation Engineering CE451 Subsurface Exploration 70

D. IN-SITU TESTING
3. Vane Shear Test VST:
➢ Done according to ASTM D-2573
➢ Used to determine the un-drained shear
strength of clay cu.

Foundation Engineering CE451 Subsurface Exploration 71

D. IN-SITU TESTING
3. Vane Shear Test VST:
➢ Consists of four blades on the end of the rod
➢ The height H of the vane is twice the diameter D.

Foundation Engineering CE451 Subsurface Exploration 72

D. IN-SITU TESTING
3. Vane Shear Test VST:

Foundation Engineering CE451 Subsurface Exploration 73

D. IN-SITU TESTING
3. Vane Shear Test VST:
➢ The vanes are pushed into the soil and
torque is applied at the top of the rod to
rotate the vanes at the rate of 0.1̊/sec to
induce failure in the clay. T=f(cu,H,D)
T
cu =
K
   D H  D 
2
K = 6 
 
1 + 
 10  2  3H 
Foundation Engineering CE451 Subsurface Exploration 74
D. IN-SITU TESTING
3. Vane Shear Test VST:
➢ For actual design cu should be corrected
cu ( corrected ) = cu ( VST )
Where
 = 1.7 − 0.54 log(PI%)
 = 7.01e −0.08( LL ) + 0.57

Foundation Engineering CE451 Subsurface Exploration 75

D. IN-SITU TESTING
3. Vane Shear Test VST:
Many correlations are developed between
VST and soil parameters
➢ Pre-consolidation Pressure for Clay: Mayne
& Mitchell (1988):

 p = 7.04(cu ( field ) )
0.83
c

Foundation Engineering CE451 Subsurface Exploration 76

D. IN-SITU TESTING
3. Vane Shear Test VST:
➢ Over-consolidation Ratio OCR:

 c u ( field ) 
OCR =   
  v 
 = 22(PI )
− 0.48

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E. LABORATORY TESTS
1. Mechanical Tests:
Done on disturbed samples
➢ Grain size distribution
➢ Water Content
➢ Atterberg limits (PL,LL,PI)
➢ Specific gravity
➢ Chemical & organic tests

Foundation Engineering CE451 Subsurface Exploration 78

E. LABORATORY TESTS
2. Strength Tests:
Done on undisturbed samples
➢ Consolidation Test
➢ Permeability Test
➢ Direct Shear Test
➢ Triaxial Test

Foundation Engineering CE451 Subsurface Exploration 79

F. GROUND WATER OBSERVATION
➢ Presence of ground water affects foundation
load bearing capacity and settlement.
➢ Ground water table encountered during
drilling operation is recorded on borehole
logs.
➢ Ground water table can be observed and
recorded through installation of piezometer.

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F. GROUND WATER OBSERVATION

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F. GROUND WATER OBSERVATION

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G. PREPARATION OF BORING LOGS

➢ Information collected from each borehole is

presented in graphical form (Boring Log)
➢ Boring Log should include the following
information:
1. Name & address of the drilling company
2. Driller’s name
3. Job description and number
4. Number, type and location of boring
Foundation Engineering CE451 Subsurface Exploration 83
G. PREPARATION OF BORING LOGS
5. Date of boring
6. Subsurface stratification
7. Elevation of water table and date observed
8. Standard penetration resistance and depth
of SPT
9. Number, type and depth of soil sample
collected
10.In case of rock coring, type of core barrel
used, recovery and RQD
Foundation Engineering CE451 Subsurface Exploration 84
Foundation Engineering CE451 Subsurface Exploration 85
III. SUBSOIL EXPLORATION REPORT

After all the required information have been

compiled, a soil exploration report is
prepared for the use of the design office and
for future construction works.
The report should include the following:
1. Scope of the investigation.
2. Description of the proposed structure.
3. Description of the location of the site

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III. SUBSOIL EXPLORATION REPORT

4. Description of the geology of the site.

5. Details of the field exploration (number,
depth and type of borings).
6. Description of the subsoil conditions.
7. Description of GWT condition.
8. Recommended foundation type and depth,
allowable soil bearing pressure and any
construction procedure.
Foundation Engineering CE451 Subsurface Exploration 87
III. SUBSOIL EXPLORATION REPORT

9. Conclusions and limitations of soil

investigation.
➢ Attachments to the report
1. Site location
2. A plan of boring locations with respect to
proposed structure
3. Boring logs
4. Laboratory test results.
Foundation Engineering CE451 Subsurface Exploration 88