ROCK AND ITS

ASSOCIATION IN
ENGINEERING

Dr Hamzah Hussin
Geoscience Programme
Faculty of Earth Science
Universiti Malaysia Kelantan
2
• Typically fresh granite, Grade I, is very strong to
extremely strong, with uniaxial compressive
strength (UCS) about 200 MPa.
• Grade II granite, slightly decomposed, is very
strong, with UCS about 100 to 150 MPa.
• Grade III granite, moderately decomposed, is
moderately weak to strong, with UCS about 10 to
80 MPa.
• Grade IV granite is weak when it is intact but is
classify ed as a soil when highly fractured and
composed of loosely interlocking fragments.
• However, within these decomposition grades wide
variations in strength occur due to the gradational
nature of rock decomposition and variability in the
degree of microfracturing.
• In general terms, engineering geological considerations largely relate to:
• Nature of plutonic rock formation: relatively little post-formation deformation results in relatively
uniform material characteristics over large areas and interpolation of drillhole information can
generally be made with a reasonable degree of confidence.
• Weathering: this is the dominant process which controls the engineering characteristics of
plutonic rocks. It is initiated at the surface and penetrates the rock via discontinuities. In the
unweathered state, plutonic rocks are very strong to extremely strong and the mass
characteristics are controlled by discontinuities.
• Discontinuities: faults, shears, tectonic joints and stress-relief joints weaken the rock mass and
promote irregular weathering where groundwater penetration has occurred.

4
• The key geological factors that may have an adverse influence on the engineering
properties of igneous plutonic rocks include:
• Contact margin and cooling effects
• heterogeneous and variable material properties (along irregular contact surfaces)
• local variations in material strength
• additional discontinuities, i.e. cooling joints
• Material weathering effects
• variations in material weathering effects (depth/ rate of chemical weathering and resulting soil
properties vary according to mineralogy)
• disintegration (variations in material strength for same weathering grade)
• Mass weathering effects
• stress-relief joint development (potentially affecting slope stability)
• development of corestones, coreslabs and irregular weathering below rockhead (prevalent in coarse-
grained rocks, potentially affecting foundations and tunnelling operations)
• Tectonic deformation
• Type of geological structures, notably structural discontinuities that developed in the rock mass; e.g.
faults, shear zones, joints, fractures, fissures, foliation, etc.
5
A. In the fresh state all plutonic rocks are competent, but as weathering increases, differences in material
properties become more apparent.
B. The development of fractures by mechanical disintegration can also reduce the strength of the material
C. Mass weathering is largely controlled by the discontinuity characteristics. Weathering along joints leads to
an irregular rockhead profile.
D. Plutonic rocks (especially granite) can develop extensive low-angle, undulating stress-relief joints which may
be dilated and clay infilled, very unfavorable for cut slopes
E. Weathering along sub-horizontal joints can result in seams of decomposed rock below the general rockhead
and in the formation of core slabs.
F. Weathering on three or more joint sets can result in corestones within the saprolite (soil) matrix and in tors
where the saprolite has been eroded.
G. Core stones are more common in coarser grained and more widely jointed plutonic rocks.

ADD A FOOTER 6
A) In the fresh state all plutonic rocks
are competent, but as weathering
increases, differences in material
properties become more apparent.

Fresh biotite granite at Mont Kiara

B) The development of fractures by
mechanical disintegration can also
reduce the strength of the material

EKVE Slope Bukit Lanjan rock slope

C) Mass weathering is largely controlled by
the discontinuity characteristics.
Weathering along joints leads to an
irregular rockhead profile.

Sharp contact between soil-rock

boundary, Pos Selim road.
Zone of highly
weathered granite,
showing at EKVE
Highway
D) Plutonic rocks (especially granite) can
develop extensive low-angle, undulating
stress-relief joints which may be dilated and
clay infilled.

Low angle stress relief (exfoliation/sheet) joints in

granite rock slope (Bukit Lanjan).
Construction of new development, apparently
without due consideration on the rock slope safety.
E Weathering along sub-horizontal joints can result in
seams of decomposed rock below the general
rockhead and in the formation of core slabs.

Weathering along sub-horizontal joint,

Sg Perting Dam Site, Bentong, Pahang
F) Weathering on three or more joint sets can
result in core stones within the saprolite
matrix and in tors where the saprolite has
been eroded.

Spheroidal weathering
in jointed granite, often
resulted in well
rounded corestone
boulders.
G) Corestones are more common in coarser
grained and more widely jointed plutonic rocks.

Bukit Sg Putih, Cheras

Pos Selim-Cameron Highland Road

14
 The key engineering geological factors that influence
the properties of the clastic sedimentary rocks include:

i. Variations in rock material strength and durability,

which are largely dependent on:
▪ composition and properties of the constituent grains.
▪ degree of diagenesis (e.g. compaction, cementation,
leaching).
ii. Sedimentary structures (e.g. bedding) may affect
rock mass properties by:
▪ introducing planes of weakness.
▪ acting as hydrogeological conduits or barriers.
iii. Potential vertical and lateral variability in material
and mass characteristics over short distances.

ADD A FOOTER 15
• Bedding planes are primary sedimentary structures
reflecting changes in the depositional environment.
Therefore adjacent beds may comprise materials of
significantly different composition, grain size and
cementing properties, which in turn leads to
heterogeneity in the engineering geological
properties. These beds can vary greatly in thickness
both laterally and vertically.
• The wide range of geological age of the sedimentary
rocks, also influences the engineering geological
properties as the older rocks have a higher likelihood
of being affected by regional tectonic activities.

16
Bedding structures may be folded
or tilted. Where such structures
are adversely orientated with
respect to an engineering
structure, stability and/or
groundwater issues may arise.

17
• Given the inherent variability of the
environments of deposition,
extrapolation of individual units
between outcrops or drillholes
requires knowledge of sedimentary
environments to reflect adequately the
possible range of engineering
geological properties.

Folded strata
being mistaken
for inclined
strata.
Disintegration (ravelling) of
shales once they are
exposed subaerially and
subjected to weathering
effects
ADD A FOOTER 20
 The key engineering geological consideration for limestone is that it weathers by dissolution.
Dissolution erodes the marble on surfaces in contact with moving water, often leading to
highly irregular rockhead profiles and cavities within the rock, i.e. ‘karst’.

Dissolution features which developed along the Sea notch around a limetone island that marked the
fractures/joints in the limestone. Pulau Anak recent sea level – a common features on limestone
Tikus, Langkawi. islands in Langkawi.
• Factors which affect the extent and degree of dissolution
include:
• purity of the limestone,
• extent and thickness of the limestone beds,
• frequency, orientation and number of discontinuity
sets,
• rate and duration of flow of groundwater containing
carbon dioxide over geological time, and
• size of the original limestone clasts and
permeability of the matrix where the limestone is
contained within other rock types.
• Establishment of sound geological models and the
characterization of the state and pattern of dissolution
within a site are key to understanding the potential
geotechnical constraints.
22
23
• A key engineering geological effect of dynamic metamorphism is the development
of foliation.
• When foliation coincides with an unfavorable slope aspect and angle, instability
can result.
• Unfavorable intersection of
foliation (cleavage) with joints and
other types of discontinuities, with
respect to the slope orientation
may give rise to slope failures.

Typical example of natural

toppling failure in pyhllitic
mudstone at Pulau Ular,
Langkawi, eventhough the
foliation plane is dipping into the
slope.
26
• In engineering terms, superficial deposits are soils. The strength of
superficial deposits varies from very soft to very stiff, and their consistency
from very loose to very dense. Weakly cemented deposits also occur.
• The geotechnical properties of superficial deposits, e.g. shear strength,
permeability, compressibility and susceptibility to internal erosion, depend
on factors such as particle size distribution, clast composition and stress
history, all of which can vary significantly both laterally and vertically within
a particular superficial unit.
• The way in which these factors vary is related to the processes operating
during their deposition and their subsequent geological history.
• Understanding these processes is a pre-requisite to formulating the
geological and ground models that provide the basis for predicting
engineering behavior.
• Caution should be exercised when using the published geological maps and memoirs for
engineering purposes because they have been compiled on the basis of stratigraphy rather than
properties of materials.
• Superficial deposits are only shown on the 1:20,000- scale geological maps if they were estimated
to be >2m thick.
• Superficial deposits in Malaysia can be broadly grouped into terrestrial and marine based on their
depositional environments.
• However, the engineering geological characteristics and geotechnical properties are more
conveniently discussed under three categories, namely:
o Terrestrial deposits (colluvium and alluvium), and
o Coastal Alluvium (marine clay deposits).
• At many sites, the main geotechnical issue is often the prediction of spatial variability based on
relatively few ground investigation data and engineering geological interpretation, rather than
determination of the geotechnical properties of a few soil samples based on laboratory testing. 28
• Terrestrial deposits, are mostly brownish in color, indicative of oxidation in a generally well-
drained subaerial or fluvial depositional environment.
• Lacustrine deposits, organic-rich deposits and strata that have been waterlogged for long
periods in oxygen-poor conditions are usually greyish in color. Where oxygen levels in the soil
have fluctuated over long periods of time, brown and grey mottling may occur.
• The variety of grain size, sedimentary structures and morphology of the sedimentary units
reflects the very wide range of energy and modes of sediment transport and deposition.
• Patterns of sediment erosion, transport and deposition are dominated by gravity in the mass
wasting products on the hillslopes, by fast flowing, intermittent streams further down slope,
and by meandering fluvial networks and occasional shallow lakes in the flatter-lying more
distant terrain.
• Re-erosion of sedimentary deposits adds to the complexity of the resulting accumulations.
• However, a more general term such as ‘colluvium’ is preferred for non-talus deposits because
the term ‘debris flow deposit’ implies a specific origin, and most colluvium will have a variety
of origins, from soil creep through to landsliding.
29
The engineering geological
characteristics of colluvium depend on
numerous factors. Primary controls
include:
▪ the rock type, structure and
degree of weathering of source
material,
▪ the processes of transportation
and deposition,
▪ the age of the deposit and
weathering history, and
▪ subsequent modifying factors
such as groundwater conditions.
Colluvium deposits overlying weathered mudstone-sandstone bedrock.
• Colluvium is commonly a heterogeneous material
consisting of rock fragments (ranging in size from
several millimeters to a meter or so) supported within a
sandy, clayey, silty matrix. Some generalizations are
possible :
• the larger boulders found in colluvium are generally
derived from coarse grained bedrock because of its
widely-spaced joints,
• granitic colluvium is generally thicker than volcanic
colluvium,
• older colluvium tends to have been eroded from drainage
lines and is therefore now more likely to be found on
interfluves, and
• older colluvium tends to be stiffer or denser and displays
more weathering of the clasts.
Slope cut in colluvium….
THANK YOU!

34