PG PROGRAMME IN GEOTECHNICAL ENGINEERING 2020

CE 641 - SITE INVESTIGATION PRACTICE

REPOT
BOREHOLE SHEAR TEST

NAME : S.M. SATHEEK

REG. NO : PG/E/GT/2020/25
Content
1.0 Introduction.

2.0 Component of the Borehole Shear testing equipment.

3.0 Testing Method.

4.0 Interpretation of result.

5.0 Advantage and Disadvantage.

6.0 Cost effectiveness.

7.0 Case History.

8.0 Reference.

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1.0 Introduction
The Borehole Shear Test was originally developed by Dr. R.L. Handy at Iowa State University. Therefore
it is also calling as the “Iowa Borehole Shear Test”. The borehole shear test is an in-situ test to determine
the shear strength parameters of the soil during subsoil exploration. It is a rapid and simple test that is
similar to performing a laboratory direct shear test.

The Borehole Shear Test is primarily intended to test fine-grained cohesive soils, such as clays and silts.
It can also be used to determine the in-situ measurement of the cohesion and friction angle of bedrock.
The test performs inside the predrilled borehole at required depth

2.0 Component of the Borehole Shear testing equipment

1. Shear head:

It consisting of two steel plate are contacted tightly to the borehole wall and generating a pressure
perpendicular to the borehole wall and pullout force.
2. Pulling Assembly:

It generate pullout force to the testing head through the extension rod by turning the handle and the
Pressure device to measure the pullout pressure.
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3. Readout unit:

It generate vertical pressure to testing head by loading the pneumatic pressure with hand pump or foot
pump and make measurement with the attached pressure device.

4. Extension rod & air hose:

Extension rod is connecting the Pulling assembly and Testing head, depending on measurement depth
the length of the rod shall be selected. The vertical pressure (perpendicular to the borehole wall) will
transfer to Testing head through air hose.

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3.0 Testing Method
The Borehole Shear test shall be performed inside the predrilled borehole. The diameter of the borehole
to be 75mm, the oversized borehole can be effect the accuracy of the test result, because the larger size
borehole sidewall can be loosening / softening. However, the 76mm (3 inch) diameter Shelby tube
borehole is good to minimize the disturbance of soil.
The testing procedure is
a) Shear head shall be assembled with extension and air hose, and lowered in to the predrilled
borehole up to the depth where the shear strength parameter is required.

b) Connect the shear head to the Pulling assembly and hand pump or foot pump and place it on top
of borehole (see Fig:1 Arrangement of the Borehole Shear tester)

c) The Shear head shall be pressurized by hand pump or foot pump and allow some time to
consolidate the soil under the shear head pressure and record the pressure reading.
The minimum time shall be allowed consolidate for sandy soil is 5 minutes and clayey soil is
10 – 20 minutes.

d) Then, the pressurized shear head will be slowly pulled upward by pulling assembly handle until
failure occurs and record the pullout force (shearing pressure) reading.

e) The test shall be repeated by increasing the Shear head pressure to the wall on the same place of
the borehole wall, without replacing shear head and resetting the pressure gauge and measure the
pullout force.

f) Plot the graph by recording the shear head pressure on X-axis and shearing pressure on Y-axis.

Usually the Borehole shear test shall begin from the top of the borehole to downward and test can be
made with rotating the shear head by 90 degree at same depth

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 Fig:1-Arrangement of the Borehole Shear tester

Fig:2 – Picture of testing on site

4.0 Interpretation of result

Shear head pressure = Normal stress, = F/A

Shearing Pressure = Shear stress,  = P/2A

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 According to the Mohr-Coulomb failure envelope the Cohesion (c) and Friction angle (shall be
determine from the plotted graph.

5.0 Advantage and Disadvantage

Advantages
1. Test can perform in a different depth in a one borehole
2. Directly evaluate the soil Cohesion (c), and friction angle (Ø) at a particular depth
3. Large no of test can perform in short time period
4. Small size, light weight and single person can handle the test.
5. Cheapest than laboratory shear test.
Disadvantage
1. Difficulty to fix the test rate and the drainage condition of the sample
2. No collection of stress – stain data.

6.0 Cost effectiveness and availability

 Comparatively cheaper than laboratory Direct shear test but if predrilled borehole is not available
in the site, then the testing cost will be very high including drilling the borehole.
 The borehole shear test is currently not available in Sri Lanka

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7.0 Case history
A case study was performed by using the Borehole shear test in unsaturated soil, by Charbel N. Khoury
and Gerald A. Miller at University of Oklahoma in 2006.
The title is “Influence of Flooding on Borehole Shear Test (BST) Results in Unsaturated soil”.
This study was done to evaluating the influence of soil suction on shear strength parameters, determined
from the Iowa Borehole Shear Test (BST) in unsaturated soil. A new technique the Flooded Borehole
Shear Test (FBST) was employed in this study.
There are four test was performed, two are in-situ and other two are laboratory tests to compare the shear
strength parameter result
In-situ test:
1. Borehole Shear Test. (BST)
2. Flooded Borehole Shear Test (FBST):
The BST test will perform after flooding the water in to the borehole.
Laboratory test:
1. soil suction (ua – uw) was determined using the filter paper technique on undisturbed specimens
(test method ASTM D 5298)
2. Multistage isotropically consolidated untrained Triaxial Test

7.1 Methodology of study

 Conventional Borehole Shear Test was conducted in hand augured boreholes at several depths
(depth from 1.5 ft to 7.5 ft at interval of 1 ft).

 Then, the borehole was filled with water and perform the BST again at the depth locations used
prior to flooding. The shear plate were rotated by 90 degree from the previous orientation used
before flooding and determined cohesion and friction angle. This test was referred as Flooded
Borehole Shear Test (FBST).

 The FBST were perform from the bottom of the borehole and moving upward. The water was
incrementally added to cover the desired test depth. To minimize the disturbance of the side of the
borehole used a funnel with hose to adding the water and no time lag was allowed between flooding
and BST testing to minimize soil swelling due to flooding.

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7.2 Result obtained from Case Study

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7.3 Conclusion of the Case Study
 Friction angle obtained from FBST were much lower than BST due to the reduction in the suction
due to flooding.

 Cohesion intercepts obtained from BST & FBST were generally small, but cohesion intercepts
obtained from FBST were slightly decreased compare to BST result.

 Effective stress friction angles determined from Multistage Triaxial Test (MTT) test were
generally in between obtained from the both BSTs and FBSTs

 Cohesion intercept obtained from the MTTs were much higher than those obtained from both BSTs
and FBSTs

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8.0 Reference
 Borehole shear tester model BST-75, ACE Instrument co. Ltd.
(http://aceco.co.kr/home_en/pro_en/13_In-situ_test/3.pdf - visited on 18/07/2020)
 Influence of Flooding on Borehole Shear Test (BST) Results in Unsaturated soil (Charbel N.
Khoury and Gerald A. Miller), 2006
 The American edge newsletter, winter 2012
 https://insitusoil.com/soil-borehole-shear-test/ visited on 10/08/2020
 https://www.handygeotech.com/borehole/ visited date on 10/08/2020

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