UNIT 5

Geological and Geophysical Investigation in Civil Engineering

1. Discuss the following key terms comprehensively.

a. SITE INVESTIGATION
A site investigation simply is the process of the collection of information, the
appraisal of data, assessment, and reporting without which the hazards in the
ground beneath the site cannot be known.

Site Investigation is grouped into the following stages:

 Soil Investigation
 Geologic survey map
 Preliminary investigation
 Detailed Site Investigation
 Supplementary investigation and construction control.

Purpose and Objectives of Site Investigation

 Selection of the type and the depth of foundation suitable for a given
structure.
 Evaluation of the load-bearing capacity of the foundation.
 Estimation of the probable settlement of a structure.
 Determination of potential foundation problems (for example, expansive
soil, collapsible soil, sanitary landfill, and so on).
 Establishment of ground water table.
 Prediction of lateral earth pressure for structures like retaining walls, sheet
pile bulkheads, and braced cuts.
 Establishment of construction methods for changing subsoil conditions.

The Purpose of Soil Investigation Program

 Selection of the type and the depth of foundation suitable for a given
structure.
 Evaluation of the load-bearing capacity of the foundation. 3. Estimation
of the probable settlement of a structure.
 Determination of potential foundation problems (for example,
expansive soil, collapsible soil, sanitary landfill, and so on).
 Establishment of ground water table.
 Prediction of lateral earth pressure for structure like retaining walls,
sheet pile bulkheads, and braced cuts.
 Establishment of construction methods for changing subsoil conditions.

Depth of Site Investigation

The site investigation should be carried to such a depth that the entire zone
of soil or rock affected by the changes caused by the building or the construction will
be adequately explored. This may be taken as depth at which vertical stress induced
 by the new construction is smaller than 10% of the existing overburden stress at that
level.

b. GEOLOGICAL METHODS
All important civil engineering projects like dams, reservoirs, tunnels, roads,
bridges and buildings are constructed on rocks or on soils. It is, therefore, essential
that the engineer should have the fullest knowledge possible of the strata or soil
through which works of construction are to be carried out or on which these have to
rest. When the geological characters of the site or of alignment are not properly
investigated or interpreted, the structures might involve considerably higher costs.

The main objects of geological investigations for most engineering projects are to
determine:
 The geological structure of the area;
 The lithology of the area;
 The ground water conditions in the region;
 The seismicity of the region;
These may be divided into two main groups: the surface investigations and the
subsurface investigations.

A. Surface Investigations  
These include preparation of topographic maps (if these are not
already available) using the normal mapping techniques. In fact all field
surveys begin with the preparation (or availability) of topographic maps
showing elevation contours relative to some datum.

B. Subsurface Explorations
These are accomplished by following two broad methods: The direct
methods involve examination of rocks or materials of the underground by
digging of drill holes, trial pits, adits, shafts, galleries and exploratory tunnels.
The indirect methods of subsurface explorations are used extensively and
involve application of geophysical techniques for obtaining fairly accurate
idea of subsurface geology.

c. EXPLORATION TECHNIQUES

The purpose of the exploration program is to determine, within practical

limits, the stratification and engineering properties of the soils underlying the site.
The principal properties of interest will be the strength, deformation, and hydraulic
characteristics. The program should be planned so that the maximum amount of
information can be obtained at minimum cost.

Steps of subsurface exploration program

1. Assembly of all available information on dimensions, column spacing, type and
use of the structure, basement requirements, and any special architectural
considerations of the proposed building. Foundation regulations in the local
building code should be consulted for any special requirements. For bridges the
soil engineer should have access to type and span lengths as well as pier
loadings. 
2. Reconnaissance of the area: This may be in the form of a field trip to the site
which can reveal information on the type and behavior of adjacent structures
such as cracks, noticeable sags, and possibly sticking doors and windows.
3. A preliminary site investigation: In this phase a few borings are made or a test
pit is opened to establish in a general manner the stratification, types of soil to
be expected, and possibly the location of the groundwater table.
4. Detailed site investigation: Where the preliminary site investigation has
established the feasibility of the project, a more detailed exploration program is
undertaken. 

A complete site investigation will consist of:

 Preliminary work
 Collecting general information and already existing data such as
study of geologic, seismic maps, etc. at or near site.
 Study site history – if previously used as quarry, agricultural land,
industrial unit, etc.
 Site Reconnaissance:
 Actual site inspection.
 To judge general suitability  Decide exploration techniques

Exploration
 Preliminary Investigations: Exploratory borings or shallow test pits,
representative sampling, geophysical investigations, etc
 Detailed Investigations: Deep boreholes, extensive sampling, in- situ testing,
lab testing, etc.
 Depth and spacing: In general, depth of investigation should be such that
any/all strata that are likely to experience settlement or failure due to
loading. Spacing depends upon degree of variation of surface topography
and subsurface strata in horizontal direction.

Methods of Investigation
 Test pits:
 Permits visual inspection of subsurface conditions in natural state.
 Max. depth limited to 18 -20 feet.
 Especially useful for gravelly soil where boreholes may be difficult.
 Sampling/testing done on exposed surfaces.

Methods of Boring

 Auger Borings:
 Simplest method of exploration and sampling.
 Power driven or hand operated.
 Max. depth 10 m
 Suitable in all soils above GWT but only in cohesive soil below GWT
 Auger and Shell boring
 Are suitable for soft or stiff clays and very stiff and hard clays and
sand pumps for sandy soils.
 Cylindrical augers and shells are used for making deep boring.
  Hand operated, mechanized ring are used for depths 25m, 50m
respectively. 
 Wash Boring:
 A casing is driven with a drop hammer. A hollow drill rod with
chopping bit is inserted inside the casing.
 Soil is loosened and removed from the borehole using water or a
drilling mud jetted under pressure.
 The water is jetted in the hole through the bottom of a wash pipe
and leaves the hole along with the loose soil, from the annual space
between the hole and wash pipe.
 The water reaches the ground level where the soil in suspension is
allowed to settle and mud is re- circulated.

Methods of Investigation

 Percussion drilling
 Grinding the soil by repeated lifting and dropping of heavy chisels or
drilling bits.
 Water is added to form slurry of cuttings. 
 Slurry removed by bailers or pumps.
 In general, a machine used to drill holes is called a drill rig (generally power
driven, but may be hand driven).
 A winch is provided to raise and lower the drilling tools into the hole.
 Probing or sounding methods:
 Drive a pipe or rod into the soil.
 Measure the resistance offered by the soil. Ex. CPT, SPT
 Geophysical methods:
 Seismic refraction method
 Electrical resistivity method.

d. Geophysical Methods

Geophysical method applies the principles of physics is studying the earth. Some of
the geophysical methods which are commonly used are resistivity, seismic,
gravity, magnet, electromagnet and radiometry.

Geophysical techniques also can be of help in locating cavities,

backfilled mineshafts and dissolution features in carbonate rocks and can be
extremely useful in determining the stiffness properties of the ground

Geophysical methods are generally less expensive, less invasive and less
time consuming. They provide a large-scale characterisation of the physical properties
under undisturbed conditions.

Geophysical methods are widely to the detection and delineation of diverse

near surface target, typically exploiting contrasts in the subsurface distribution of a
number of physical properties (e.g., magnetic susceptibility, density, and electric
conductivity).
e. Seismic
Seismic techniques have had relatively limited utilization, due to their
relatively high cost and the difficulty of acquiring and interpreting seismic data in
strongly faulted and altered igneous terranes, in mineral assessments and
exploration at the deposit scale. However, shallow seismic surveys employ less
expensive sources and smaller surveys than are typical of regional surveys, and the
cost of studying certain geo-environmental problems in the near subsurface may not
be prohibitive. Reflection seismic methods provide fine structural detail and
refraction methods provide precise estimates of depth to lithologies of differing
acoustic impedance. The refraction method has been used in mineral investigations
to map low-velocity alluvial deposits such as those that may contain gold, tin, or
sand and gravel. Applications in geo-environmental work include studying the
structure, thickness, and hydrology of tailings and extent of acid mine drainage
around mineral deposits.

There are two major classes of seismic waves:

 Body waves.  These are the fastest traveling of all seismic waves and are
called compressional or pressure or primary wave (P-wave).  The particle
motion of P-waves is extension (dilation) and compression along the
propagating direction.  P-waves travel through all media that support
seismic waves; air waves or noise in gasses, including the atmosphere.
 Surface waves.   Two recognized vibrations, which exist only at "surfaces" or
interfaces, are Love and Rayleigh waves.  Traveling along a surface, these
waves attenuate rapidly with distance from the surface.  Surface waves
travel slower than body waves.  Love waves travel along the surfaces of
layered media, and are most often faster than Rayleigh waves.  Love waves
have particle displacement similar to SH-waves.  A point in the path of a
Rayleigh wave moves back, down, forward, and up repetitively in an ellipse
like ocean waves. 
Wave theory.   A seismic disturbance moves away from a source location; the
locus of points defining the expanding disturbance is termed the wave front. 
Any point on a wave front acts as a new source and causes displacements in
surrounding positions.  The vector normal to the wave front is the ray path
through that point, and is the direction of propagation.  Upon striking a
boundary between differing material properties, wave energy is transmitted,
reflected, and converted.  

f. Electrical Methods
Electrical resistivity method is based on the difference in the electrical
conductivity or the electrical resistivity of different soils. Resistivity is defined as
resistance in ohms between the opposite phases of a unit cube of a material.
 ρ=( 𝑅𝐴 𝑙 )
 ρ is resistivity in ohm-cm,
 R is resistance in ohms,
 A is the cross sectional area (cm 2),
 L is length of the conductor (cm).

Principle
 - All electrical methods are based on the fundamental fact that different
materials of earth’s crust methods posses widely different electrical
properties. Resistivity, Electrochemical activity and dielectrical constant
are some of these properties that are generally studied through this
methods. Result obtained from such studies when interpreted properly
give sufficiently useful clues regarding the nature and make up of the
subsurface materials.

Two common methods:

1. Equipotential Methods: In this method 2 primary electrodes are inserted into

the ground, 6-7 metres apart from each other, across which current is
introduced. The position of these primary electrodes remains fixed in the
subsequent investigations. Potential between these primary electrodes is
determined with the help of two search electrodes and points of equal
potential found out along the entire region under investigation, which are
joined to get equipotential lines.
2. Resistivity Method: It is similar to equipotential method but in this case it is
the resistivity of the material of the subsurface which is determined from
which important interpretations are made. Here also, a known current is
introduced through two electrodes- the current electrodes, which are inserted
at some distances apart from each other. Potential gradient is then measured
directly with the help of two or more potential electrodes placed at proper
distances within the two outer current electrodes.

Advantages of Electrical Method

 It is a very rapid and economical method.

 It is good up to 30m depth.
 The instrumentation of this method is very simple.
 It is a non-destructive method.

Disadvantages of Electrical Method

 It can only detect absolutely different strata like rock and water.
 It provides no information about the sample.
 Cultural problems cause interference, e.g., power lines, pipelines, buried
casings, fences.
 Data acquisition can be slow compared to other geophysical methods,
although that difference is disappearing with the very latest techniques.

2. Explain the significance of analyzing and investigating the soil condition/behavior before
construction implementation.

All construction projects are made on the soil. The soil has to take the weight of the
structures. The soil testing before construction is first step and important step for many
reputed construction companies.

Soil testing is primarily done to test the bearing capacity of the soil. It also shows the
physical and chemical composition of the coil.  These characteristics may vary from layer to
layer of the same soil. The characteristics of the soil can change within small area due to
weather, climate change and the management of the site can also change the bearing
capacity of the soil.
 The soil must be able to withstand the weight of the building otherwise the loss to property
and life can occur. The soil investigations or analysis determines not only the bearing
capacity of the soil, but it also rate of settlement of the soil. This rate determines the rate of
the structure stabilization on the soil.

The soil testing also determines the length and depth of the pillars put in the soil to
lay the foundation of the building. The selection of suitable construction technique   and
knowing the possible foundation problems all are based on the results of the soil testing.
The water table level of the soil can be known only from the soil testing. The level of water table
shows the likely problem to the foundation of the building and level of humidity within the
foundation.  The choice of construction material may also be affected by the chemical and
mineral component of the soil. If analysis of the soil reveals that it contains sulphur, then the
sulphur resisting cement is used to protect the foundation of the buildings.

3. Identify the relevance of geological and geophysical investigation in the works of civil
engineers through the use of a graphic organizer.