MANILA: Room 206, JPD Building, CM Recto Avenue, Manila

CEBU: 4/F J. Martinez Bldg., Osmeña Blvd., Cebu City

Telephone Number: (02) 516 7559 (Manila) E-Mail: buksmarquez1 @yahoo.com
(032) 254-9967 (Cebu)
Review Module - Geotechnical Engineering (Permeability)

PERMEABILITY A test in which the hydraulic gradient is continuously changing through the
A material is permeable if it contains continuous voids. duration of experiment
aL h1
23.03 DARCY’S LAW k = ln ( )
At h2
It states that the velocity of flow of water through saturated soil is directly
proportional to the hydraulic gradient.
v = ki
or
Q = kiA
v = discharge velocity
i = hydraulic gradient
A = cross sectional area of the sample perpendicular to the direction of
flow
k = coefficient of permeability / hydraulic conductivity

Seepage Velocity/Interstitial Velocity: a = area of the standpipe

v
vS = L = length of the soil specimen
n A = cross-sectional area of soil specimen
h1 = initial head difference at t1
1. From the figure shown, the thickness of a permeable soil layer is 1.1
h2 = final head difference at t2
m making an angle of 15 degrees with the horizontal. k = 3.78 x 10-2
cm/sec, e = 0.6
2. An experiment to determine the permeability of a soil sample was
a. Compute the hydraulic gradient
conducted. The permeameter in a falling head permeability test setup
b. Compute the flow rate in cu.m/hr/m
involves a cylindrical soil sample 100 mm in diameter and a height of 200
c. Determine the seepage velocity
mm. The hydraulic head in the 10-mm diameter standpipe through which
the test water passed dropped from 1 meter to 600 mm in one minute of
observation. From these data,
a. Evaluate the coefficient of permeability of the soil sample in cm/sec
b. Determine the time it takes for the water to drop from 1 meter to 750
mm.
c. What will be the hydraulic head in the standpipe after 2 minutes?

TEMPERATURE CORRECTION
R T = 2.42 − 0.475lnT

3. Compute the corrected value of hydraulic conductivity for the following

conditions:
23.02 LABORATORY METHODS OF DETERMINING HYDRAULIC a. If the test temperature in problem 1 is 40 degrees Celsius
CONDUCTIVITY b. If the test temperature in problem 2 is 10 degrees Celsius

CONSTANT HEAD PERMEABILITY TEST 23.04 PERMEABILITY TEST FROM PUMPING WELLS
A test in which the hydraulic gradient is constant throughout the duration A. Well in an unconfined aquifer underlain by an impermeable layer
of experiment.

qL r
k= Qln( 1 )
Aht r2
k=
k = coefficient of permeability π(h1 2 − h2 2 )
L = Length of the sample k = coefficient of permeability
H = constant head difference Q = rate of discharge
t = duration of experiment r1 = the farther distance from the center of the well
A = cross sectional area of the sample r2 = the nearer distance from the center of the well
h1 = hydraulic head at farther observation well
1. A sand sample of 40 sq.cm cross sectional area and 25 cm long was h2 = hydraulic head at nearer observation well
tested in a constant head permeameter. Under a head of 50 cm, the
discharge was 150 ml in 9 minutes, determine the hydraulic conductivity 1. After 24 hours of pumping at 75 liters/sec, the water level in an
in cm/sec. observation well at a distance of 100 m from the test well is lowered 0.5 m.

FALLING HEAD TEST

 MANILA: Room 206, JPD Building, CM Recto Avenue, Manila
CEBU: 4/F J. Martinez Bldg., Osmeña Blvd., Cebu City
Telephone Number: (02) 516 7559 (Manila) E-Mail: buksmarquez1 @yahoo.com
(032) 254-9967 (Cebu)
Review Module - Geotechnical Engineering (Permeability)

At another observation well located 50 m from the test well, the water LAYER DEPTH k (cm/sec)
level dropped by 1.0 m. If the test well penetrates 27 m below static water 1 3m 2.3x10-2
table, 2 5m 3.5x10-3
a. Estimate the rate of flow in cu.m/day. 3 7m 4.8x10-4
b. Evaluate the coefficient of permeability in m/day.
c. Determine the drawdown in the test well if the diameter of the well is 1. Determine the equivalent horizontal coefficient of
300 mm. permeability.
d. Compute the transmissibility of the aquifer in square meters per day. 2. Determine the equivalent vertical coefficient of
permeability.
PERMEABILITY TEST FROM PUMPING WELLS
B. Well in a confined aquifer underlain by an impermeable layer SITUATION. Water is supplied at a rate of 0.3589 cm3/min to maintain a
constant-head difference across the 150 mmx150 mm sample. The
hydraulic conductivities of the soils in the direction of flow through them
are as follows:
3. Determine the equivalent hydraulic conductivity.
4. Determine the constant head difference.
5. Determine the velocity of flow.
6. Determine hA
7. Determine hB

𝑟
𝑄𝑙𝑛(𝑟1 )
2
𝑘=
2𝜋𝑡(ℎ1 − ℎ2 )
k = coefficient of permeability
Q = rate of discharge
r1 = the farther distance from the center of the well
r2 = the nearer distance from the center of the well
h1 = hydraulic head at farther observation well
h2 = hydraulic head at nearer observation well
t = thickness of the aquifer

TRANSMISSIBILITY OF THE AQUIFER

𝑟 k(cm/sec)
𝑄𝑙𝑛(𝑟1 ) SOIL
𝑇= 2 A 1.2 x 10-5
2𝜋(𝑧2 − 𝑧1 ) B 2.4 x 10-4
z2 and z1 are corresponding draw down C 3.6 x 10-3
2. A permeability pumping test was carried out in a confined aquifer with SEEPAGE
the piezometric level before pumping is 2.18 m below the ground
surface. The aquiclude has a thickness of 5.7 m measured from the
SITUATION. If the cross sectional area of the tank is 1.0 m2, hydraulic
ground surface and the confined aquifer is 7.6 m deep until it reaches
conductivity k = 0.24 cm/sec, and the rate of seepage is 0.6 liters/sec.
the aquiclude layer at the bottom. At a steady pumping rate of 16 cu.m/hr
the drawdown in the observation wells were respectively equal to 1.62
m and 0.47 m. The distance of the observation wells from the center of
the test well were 15 m and 32 m respectively.
a. Compute the coefficient of permeability
b. Compute the transmissibility of the impermeable layer

HYDRAULIC CONDUCTIVITY FOR STRATIFIED SOILS

EQUIVALENT HORIZONTAL HYDRAULIC CONDUCTIVITY
𝑘1 + 𝑘2 + 𝑘3 + ⋯ + 𝑘𝑁
𝑘𝐻𝑒𝑞 =
𝐻1 + 𝐻2 + 𝐻3 + ⋯ + 𝐻𝑁
∑ 𝑘𝐻
𝑘𝐻𝑒𝑞 =
∑𝐻
EQUIVALENT VERTICAL HYDRAULIC CONDUCTIVITY
𝐻 𝐻1 𝐻2 𝐻3 𝐻𝑁 8. Determine the effective stress at point A
= + + +⋯+ 9. Determine the effective stress at point B.
𝑘𝑉𝑒𝑞 𝑘1 𝑘2 𝑘3 𝑘𝑁
∑𝐻 10. Determine the value of h to cause boiling
𝑘𝑉𝑒𝑞 =
𝐻 11. Determine the seepage force per unit volume acting on
∑ the tank.
𝑘

SITUATION. The data for stratified soil were given as SITUATION. Assuming e = 0.50 and sp.gr = 2.70
follows
 MANILA: Room 206, JPD Building, CM Recto Avenue, Manila
CEBU: 4/F J. Martinez Bldg., Osmeña Blvd., Cebu City
Telephone Number: (02) 516 7559 (Manila) E-Mail: buksmarquez1 @yahoo.com
(032) 254-9967 (Cebu)
Review Module - Geotechnical Engineering (Permeability)

12. Determine the effective stress at A

13. Determine the seepage force per unit volume acting on the tank.

FLOW NETS
Seepage through Isotropic Soil:
𝑘∆𝐻𝑁𝑓
𝑞=
𝑁𝑑
Seepage through Anisotropic Soil:
√𝑘𝑥 𝑘𝑧 ∆𝐻𝑁𝑓
𝑞=
𝑁𝑑
∆H = head difference between the upstream and downstream side
Nf = number of flow channels
ND = number of equipotential drops

SITUATION. The flow net for flow around a single row of sheet piles in
a permeable soil layer is shown in the figure. Given that C = 1.0 and
D10 = 0.015mm.

14. Determine the coefficient of permeability

15. Determine the head at point A measured from the ground surface.
16. Determine the head at point B.
17. Determine the head at point C.
18. Determine the head at point D.
19. Determine the rate of seepage under the sheet pile.

20. Draw the uplift pressure diagram for the dam shown below.