City University Civil Engineering Department

City UNIVERSITY
FACULTY OF ENGINEERING
CIVIL ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT

Course: Soil Mechanics II Class: juniors

Academic year: 2019 Instructor: Eng.Abdikadir Hajji

Course code: SM201703010710 Semester: 7th

ASSIGMENT TWO
DEADLINE: 17/04/2019
 Use the units appropriately
 Write clearly and neatly
 No red pen at all

1- A retaining wall, 4 m high, retains dry sand with an angle of friction of 20° and unit
weight of 12 kN/m3. Determine the earth pressure at rest. If the water table rises to the
top of the wall, determine the increase in the thrust on the wall. Assume the submerged
unit weight of sand as 5 kN/m3 .

2- For a retaining wall of H = 12.5 m, γ = 16 kN/m3, ϕ’ = 15ᶿ, c’ = 10 kN/m2, and

α =15ѳ. Calculate the Rankine active force, Pa, per unit length of the wall and the
location of the resultant force after the occurrence of the tensile crack.

3- Determine the total active thrust on the wall per lineal meter of a wall whose high is 8 m
of a level backed vertical wall and retains a soil with a bulk unit weight of 20 kN/m3 and
ϕ = 30°. The top of the soil is level with the top of the wall and is horizontal. If the soil
surface carries a uniformly distributed load of 50 kN/m2,

4- Excavation was being carried out for a foundation is plastic clay with a unit weight of 25
kN/m3. Failure occurred when a depth of 10 m was reached. What is the value of
cohesion if ϕ = 0° ? Given that Nϕ = 4

5- A wall, 14 m high, retains sand. In the loose state the sand has void ratio of 0.50 and ϕ =
30°, while in the dense state, the corresponding values of void ratio and ϕ are 0.30 and
53° respectively. Compare the ratio of active and passive earth pressure in the two cases,
assuming G = 2.75

Engineering Soil Mechanics II 1 Eng.Haji Ibnu Haji

City University Civil Engineering Department

6- A sandy loam backfill has a cohesion of 15 kN/m2 and ϕ = 10°. The unit weight is 11.0
kN/m3. What is the depth of the tension cracks ?

7- Determine the limiting values of the lateral earth pressure at a depth of 6 meters in a
uniform sand fill with a unit weight of 18.5 kN/m3 and a friction angle of 45° ? The
ground surface is level. If a retaining wall with a vertical back face is interposed,
determine the total active thrust and the total passive resistance which will act on the
wall.
8- Determine the pressure distribution on a wall after the occurrence of the tensile crack, if
the dry unit weight is 16kN/m3 , angle of friction ϕ = 10°. And α = 10ѳ . determine
height of the wall as well ? assume c’ = 10 kN/m2

9- . If the water table rises to the top of a wall, determine the increase in the thrust on the
wall of 10 m high, retains dry sand with an angle of friction of 10° and unit weight of 20
kN/m3. Determine the earth pressure at rest. Take 15 kN/m3 as a submerged unit weight
of sand.

10- determine the total active thrust and the total passive resistance which will act on the
wall and the limiting values of the lateral earth pressure at a depth of 7 meters in a
uniform sand fill with a unit weight of 25 kN/m3 and a friction angle of 15° ? The ground
surface is level. If a retaining wall with a vertical back face is interposed.

Engineering Soil Mechanics II 2 Eng.Haji Ibnu Haji