Kandahar University

Engineering faculty
Civil department
soil mechanics
Chapter one

Geotechnical Engineering—A
Historical Perspective

Lecturer: T.A. Esmatullah Masom

Date : 2024/2/ 9
Table Of Content
1.1 Introduction
1.2 Geotechnical Engineering before the 18th Century
1.3 Preclassical Period of Soil Mechanics (1700–1776)
1.4 Classical Soil Mechanics—Phase I (1776–1856)
1.5 Classical Soil Mechanics—Phase II (1856–1910)
1.6 Modern Soil Mechanics (1910–1927)
1.7 Geotechnical Engineering after 1927
Assignment

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1.1 Introduction
▪Geotechnical engineering: the branch of civil engineering.
▪Geotechnical engineering: involves natural materials found close to the
surface of the earth.
▪Geotechnical engineering has branches ( Soil mechanics, Tunneling,
Geophysics)
▪ Soil engineering: the application of the principles of soil mechanics to
practical problems.

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1.1 Introduction
▪ Soil: the uncemented aggregate of mineral grains and decayed organic matter
(solid particles, liquid, and gas).
▪ Geologist: The disintegrated rock material which has not been transported
from the place of origin.
▪ Soil is used as a construction material in various civil engineering projects. Or
it supports structural foundations.
▪ Soil mechanics deals with topics;
1. Study of the physical properties of soil
2. The behavior of soil masses subjected to various types of forces.

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1.1 Introduction
▪Civil engineers must study the physical properties of soil.
✓Origin & grain-size distribution
✓Plastic limit & liquid limit
✓Ability to drain water
✓Compressibility
✓Shear strength
✓Load-bearing capacity

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Application Of Soil Mechanics
Application of the principles of soil mechanics and rock mechanics:
1: design of foundations, (Bearing ground, directly supporting superstructures
load)
2: Underground and earth-retaining structures. (Drainage structures, pipelines,
tunnels, and earth retaining structures.
3: Pavement design. (Rigid and flexible pavements, Soil behavior, Traffic
load, shrink, swell, and frost action.
4: Excavations, Embankment, and Dams.

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Application Of Soil Mechanics

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Application Of Soil Mechanics

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Application Of Soil Mechanics

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Application Of Soil Mechanics

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Application Of Soil Mechanics

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Application Of Soil Mechanics

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1.2 Geotechnical Engineering Before The
18th Century
Geotechnical engineering before 18th century
Leaning Tower of Pisa, Italy
oConstruction start 1173
oStructure weight 15700 Metric ton
oHeight 54𝑚
oBase diameter 20𝑚
oWeak clay layer 11𝑚 depth
o 5𝑚, plumb (Bob)

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1.2 Geotechnical Engineering Before The
18th Century
o1990 closed/ fall over or collapse
oMitigation measures
oNorth side 70 Metric ton soil excavated
in 41 separate extraction
oThat spanned width of the tower
oThen ground gradually settled

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1.2 Geotechnical Engineering Before The
18th Century
Geotechnical engineering period
1. Pre-classical (1700 to 1776 A.D.)
2. Classical soil mechanics—Phase I (1776 to 1856 A.D.)
3. Classical soil mechanics—Phase II (1856 to 1910 A.D.)
4. Modern soil mechanics (1910 to 1927 A.D.)

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1.3 Pre-classical Period Of Soil Mechanics
(1700–1776)
oCalculating lateral earth pressure on the retaining wall

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1.3 Pre-classical Period Of Soil Mechanics
(1700–1776)
oThis era concentrated on the natural slope and unit weight of various types of
soil.

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1.3 Preclassical Period Of Soil Mechanics
(1700–1776)
According to this study, the Natural slope (Angle of repose) of clean dry sand
and ordinary earth is 31˚ and 45˚

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1.4 Classical Soil Mechanics—phase I
(1776–1856)
➢Jean Victor Poncelet (1788-1867)
oGraphical method for determining the magnitude of lateral earth pressure on
a vertical and inclined retaining wall
oSoil friction angle symbol (ϕ)
oUltimate bearing-capacity theory

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1.5 Classical Soil Mechanics—phase II
(1856–1910)
➢Henri Philibert Gaspard Darcy (1803-1858)
oSand permeability,
oCoefficient of permeability or Hydraulic conductivity

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1.6 Modern Soil Mechanics (1910–1927)
oResearch results, conducted on clay, published
oMost notable publications
➢Albert Mauritz Atterberg (1846-1916) a Swedish chemist
oClay-size fractions, smaller than 2 microns in size
oLiquid limit, plastic limit, shrinkage limit
➢Arthur Langley (1874-1956) a British civil engineer
oBearing capacity of shallow foundation on clay

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1.7 Geotechnical Engineering After 1927
➢Karl Terzaghi (1883-1963), Austria
oDeveloped the theory of consolidation of
clay
oInternational Society of Soil Mechanics and
Foundation Engineering (ISSMFE)
oThe first conference of the (ISSMFE)
oHarvard University in 1936 with Karl
Terzaghi presiding.
o1997 (ISSMFE) change to International
Society of Soil Mechanics and Geotechnical
Engineering (ISSMGE)

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1.7 Geotechnical Engineering After 1927
➢Covering a wide range of topics:
oEffective stress
oShear strength
oTesting with a Dutch cone penetrometer
oConsolidation
oCentrifuge testing
oElastic theory and stress distribution

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1.7 Geotechnical Engineering After 1927
oPreloading for settlement control
oSwelling clays
oFrost action
oEarthquake and soil liquefaction
oMachine vibration
oArching theory of earth pressure

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1.7 Geotechnical Engineering After 1927

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1.7 Geotechnical Engineering After 1927

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1.7 Geotechnical Engineering After 1927
➢Some of these geotechnical journals are:
oCanadian Geotechnical Journal (NRC Research Press in cooperation with the
Canadian Geotechnical Society)
oGeotechnical and Geoenvironmental Engineering (American Society of Civil
Engineers)
oGeotechnical and Geological Engineering (Springer, Germany)
oGeotechnical Testing Journal (ASTM International, USA)

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1.7 Geotechnical Engineering After 1927
oGeotechnique (Institute of Civil Engineers, UK)
oInternational Journal of Geomechanics (American Society of Civil
Engineers)
oInternational Journal of Geotechnical Engineering (Taylor and Francis, UK)
oSoils and Foundations (Elsevier on behalf of the Japanese Geotechnical
Society)

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1.7 Geotechnical Engineering After 1927
➢Ralph B. Peck, Canada
oFrom 1969 to 1973 President of ISSMGE
o250 highly distinguished technical
publications

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Assignment
✓Geosynthetic and its application
✓Uplift pressure
✓Example of soil mechanics-based mitigation
✓De-water And water injection
✓Submission (Next class)

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