TECHNICAL NOTE on THE APPLICATION OF THE ELECTRICAL FRICTION-CONE PENETROMETER TO GEOTECHNICAL INVESTIGATIONS 0___ INTRODUCTION The electrical friction-cone penetrometer in its present form is the result of approximately 30 years of research and development of ‘static’ cone penetrometers. The test essentially comprises the measurement of resistance to the penetration of a cone which has a 60° apex angle and 1000mm? base area. The test procedure is covered by test F5.1 of Australian Standard AS1289 ("Testing Soils for Engineering Purposes"). The cone and the friction sleeve (which is located immediately behind the cone), are strain gauged. The output electrical signals are transmitted by cables housed within the rods to a chart recorder. A continuous record of the cone resistance and the sleeve friction variation with depth is recorded. A typical trace is presented as Figure 1. AN, OF CONE SLEEVE INFORMATION 2.1 Inferred Soil Types ‘The ratio of the sleeve friction to the cone resistance is termed the friction ratio. ‘This parameter can be used as an indicator of the sail types. Typical relationships determined for Perth Soils are as follows: Friction Ratio (%) Inferred Soil Type <1s sands and gravels 1.5 - 6.0 silt/sand/clay mixtures > 6.0 clay, organic soils, peat NOTE: Exceptions to the above do exist. It is pointed out that charts based on overseas experiences are available for inferring soil types from the penetrometer results. These are generally not applicable to Perth soil conditions and will not be discussed further. 2709TN3 Electial Friction Cone Penetrometer Date: 301496 Revision 12789TN3.doc Page 2 2.2 Soil Consistences The cone resistances can be related to the density indices of the sands and to ‘the consistences of clays, using the following relationships developed for Perth conditions: Cone Resistance Sands (Relative Density) | (Clays Consistency) \ 0-2 very loose very soft to stiff 2-5 loose stiff to hard 5-15 medium dense N/A > 15 dense N/A. N/A denotes that the range is not generally encountered in clays. Exceptions to the above do exist. 2.3 Soll Stratiqraphy Strata boundaries are precisely defined. The area extent of any deposits that may be critical to the performance of the proposed development can be more accurately obtained than by conventional drilling and sampling methods. In the latter, the sampling interval generally determines the accuracy of boundary demarcation. 2.4 Shear Strength Mathematical procedures are available to estimate the cohesion and angle of friction properties of clays and sands respectively, by analysing the continuous cone resistance records. From this information, accurate estimates of safe bearing capacities can be made. 2.5 Compressibility The compressibilities of the sands and clays can be estimated from the cone resistance profiles. Empirically based correlations between Young's Modulus of Elasticity (Es) and cone resistance (qd) are available for Perth conditions. These relationships have been found to be very significantly different to those commonly reported in the literature and applicable to overseas conditions. It is worth pointing out that, in general, the Perth sands are less compressible ‘than the sands on which the overseas correlations were determined. 2789TN3 Eleotial Friction Cone Penetrometer Date: 304496 Revision 12789TN3.doc Page 3 3.0 CALIBRATION OF PENETROMETER When investigating new areas, where the empirical correlations between engineering soil properties and the penetrometer results have not yet been proved, the results of the penetrometer probes should be calibrated by conventional drilling, sampling and testing methods. The number of boreholes and associated testing will depend on the geological complexity of the area. We have found that such control is a pre-requisite when investigating the sandy clays, clayey sands and the over consolidated clays around Perth. ADVANTAGES Properly calibrated, the electrical friction-cone penetrometer can yield more geotechnical information per investigation expended dollar than any other commercially investigative technique. ‘This means that: ° for a given budget, the coverage calibrated using a cone can be much greater than by conventional drilling techniques. The greater the number of probes will reduce the likelihood of not encountering an important geological/geotechnical feature which could have a major influence on the performance of the proposed development; or ° alternatively, for a defined scope of work, the foundation investigation appropriation can be significantly reduced. Total and differential settlements (the. latter usually governs foundation designed in Perth sands) can generally be’ estimated with confidence because of the greater coverage and the amount’ of geotechnical information derived at each test location. Less conservative foundation design and more economical foundation systems are the end product. Soil and Rock Engineering Pty Ltd would be pleased to assist with any enquiries that you may have on the application of the electrical friction-cone penetrometer. 27893 Electical Freon Cone Penevometer Date: 20/4186 Revision 1ELECTRIC FRICTION-CONE PENETROMETER test No: 71 DEPTH (M) —— CONE RESISTANCE qc (MPa) FRICTION RATIO (%) Q 10 20 30 40 so o 2 4 6 8 0 0 4 8 16 peer retreeereEeE 16 EXAMPLE ONLY NOT RELATED TO PROJECT 20 + + 20 —— 0 100 200 300 400 soo . SLEEVE FRICTION fs (kPa) FIGURE