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Course Catalog 1999/2000


Civil and Mining Engineering

ABG005 Soil Mechanics, Advanced Course 6.0 ECTS credits

TIMEPERIOD:
QII

LANGUAGE:English

EXAMINER
K Axelsson Prof


PREREQUISITES
Basic course in soil mechanics including soil physics and basic soil behavior. Stress-strain relationships in soils. Mean stresses and deviatoric stresses. Effective stress concept and consolidation theory. Bearing capacity. Classical consolidation theory and settlement calculation. Earth pressure against retaining walls. Slope stability with cylindrical slip surface. Common laboratory methods.

COURSE AIM
To provide a deeper understanding of some areas of soil mechanics and foundation engineering and to introduce the student to ongoing research in some areas of soil mechanics. A number of subjects well aimed for student final project work are also introduced. Further, the intention is to train the student's capability of finding information and to present it in the form of a small research paper.


CONTENTS
Strength and deformation properties of soils-constitutive modelling (30%).
Laboratory and field methods for the determination of strength and deformation properties of soils. The behaviour of soils under compression and shear. Reversible and irreversible deformation. The concepts of contractancy, dilatancy and critical state. Laboratory test with the performance of a triaxial test on a soil sample for the determination of its strength and deformation properties. theories for the constitutive modelling of soils, especially the flow theory of plasticity. Example cam Clay (critical state theory). computer laboration with the application of a constitutive driver for the simulation of a triaxial test.

Heat transfer mechanisms and frost action in soils (20%).
Methods for determination of thermal properties of soil. Derivation and calculation of frost front propagation by using the "Neumann equation". Frost susceptibility (classification). Ice lens formation. Frost heave. Unfrozen water in frozen soil. Models for calculation of frost heave in a freezing soil. Strength of frozen soil. Artificial freezing of ground. Permafrost and its technical and economical consequences.

Slope stability and landslides (20%).
Different slide mechnanisms. Classical methods of slope stability analysis with imphasis on drained analysis (co-analysis). Computer laboration with the drained analysis of a slope, comparison of different theories. Numerical methods of analysis. Geotechnical investigations and design of slide potential areas.

Classical and numerical calculation methods (15%).
The basic equations of the geotechnical boundary value problem. Analytical and numerical methods of solution. Some aspects on soft-ware for solving soil mechanic problems.

Soil reinforcement (15%)
Basic theories for soil reinforcement. Design methods case study of a wall reinforced by geotextile.


TEACHING
Teaching is given in classes, including problem-solving and informal discussions. Laboratory work. Assignments solved individually by the students. Writing and presenting a research paper. Oral presentation.


EXAMINATION

COURSE GRADE SCALE: U, 3, 4, 5

ITEMS/CREDITS

Research paper 3.75ECTS
Project work 1.50ECTS
Laboratory work 0.75ECTS

COURSE LITERATURE
Axelsson K: Constitutive modeling of soils on the basis of the theory of plasticity. Avd för geoteknik. Skrift 94:2. LTU.
Axelsson, K: Solving boundary value problems in geotechnical engineering-An introduction. Avd för geoteknik. Skrift 95:1. LTU.
Axelsson, K: Slope stability investigations. Concept, Avd för geoteknik. Skrift 94: . LTU.
Das, B.M.: Principles of Foundation Engineering. PWS-Publishing Company, 1995, ISBN 0-534-20646-8.
Phukan, A.: Frozen Ground Engineering. Prentice-Hall, Inc., New Jersey 07632. 1985. ISBN 0-13-330705-0.
Koerner, R. M.: Designing with Geosynthetics. Prentice-Hall, Inc., New Jersey. 1986. ISBN 0-13-201807-1.
Lecture notes published by the Department of Civil Engineering, LTU.



Further information: International Office
Valid for the academic year 1999/2000.

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Last edited 1999-12-15