Introduction & Different Methods of Soil Exploration, Soil Mechanics | Soil Mechanics Notes- Agricultural Engineering PDF Download

Introduction

The field and laboratory investigations required to obtain the necessary data of soils for proper design and successful construction of any structure are called soil exploration. The choice of the appropriate foundation and its depth depend on the bearing capacity, settlement of the foundation soil under the working loads. The bearing capacity and settlement depend on the various engineering properties of the foundation soils. The main objectives of the soil exploration are: determination of the nature of the soil deposits, depth and thickness of the different soil strata, location of the ground water table, collection of soil and rock samples for testing, determination of engineering properties of the soil and rock strata by laboratory or field tests that affect the performance of the structure placed on it. The soil index properties (like water content, Atterberg limits, etc.) and strength & compressibility characteristics (like cohesion, angle of internal friction, coefficient of consolidation, compression index) are very important parameters those are to be determined by testing. In the first stage of soil exploration, the aerial photographs, topographical maps, existing site investigation report (for nearby sites) are to be collected.

Different Methods

The methods available for soil exploration are:

1. Direct methods (like Test pits,trial pits or trenches)

2. Semi-direct methods (like Borings)

3. Indirect methods (like penetration test and geophysical methods)