Chapter 4: Soil Stresses
1. Subsurface exploration at the site of a proposed building reveals the existence of a thin
impervious stratum at a depth of 28 m below the ground level. The water table is at a depth of
2.5 m below the ground surface. Find out the maximum depth of excavation for a foundation
pit without the danger of blow at the bottom of the excavation.
2. The water table was found 1.6 m below the ground surface in a deep deposit of very fine sand.
Above the water table, the sand was found saturated by capillary water. The unit weight of
saturated sand was 2.2 t/m3. What will be the effective vertical pressure on a horizontal plane
at a depth of 4.5 m below the ground surface?
3. A fine sand deposit is located between the ground surface to a depth of 10m. The soil has an
average void ratio of 0.70 and specific gravity of 2.65. The water table is found at a depth of
4m below the ground surface. Above the water table the degree of saturation of sand is 55%.
Determine the total stress, pore water pressure and effective stress at a depth of 8m below the
ground surface. Calculate also the change in the effective stress if the soil gets saturated up to
a height of 1 m above the water table due to capillarity.
4. A soil deposit consists of an upper layer of 3m thick having an unit weight of 18KN/m 3 and
lower layer of 4m thick having an unit weight of 22 KN/m 3. Determine the total stress, pore
pressure and effective stress at the bottom of the lower layer (i.e. at 7m below ground surface)
if the water table is:
a) 1m below the ground surface.
b) Exactly at the ground surface.
c) 1m above the ground surface.
5. The water table in a deposit of sand 8m thick is at a depth of 3m below the surface. Above the
water table the sand is saturated with capillary water. The bulk density of sand is 20KN/m 3.
Calculate the effective pressure at 1m, 3m and 8m below the surface. Also plot the variation
of total pressure, neutral pressure and effective pressure over the depth of 8m.
6. A trench is excavated in fine sand up to a depth of 4m. The excavation is carried out by
providing necessary side supports and pumping water. The position of water table is 1m below
the ground surface at the sides of the excavation and there is no water inside the excavation.
Examine the possibility of quick sand condition if G = 2.64 and e = 0.7.
7. A 12m thick layer of relatively impervious stratum of clay lies over a bed of gravel aquifer.
Piezometer tubes are introduced to the level. In the tubes, water level is 3m above the top
surface of the clay strata. The properties of the clay soil are e = 1.2 and G = 2.7.
Determine: a) The effective stress at the top level of gravel strata.
b) The depth of excavation that can be made in the clay strata without the bottom heave.
8. A sand deposit is 12m thick and overlies a bed of soft clay. The groundwater table is 4m below
the ground surface. If the sand above the water table has a degree of saturation of 40%, plot
the diagram showing the variation of the total stress, pore water pressure and effective stress.
The void ratio of the sand is 0.8 and G = 2.7.
9. A soil profile consists of a surface layer of sand 4.0m thick (γ = 17 KN/m 3), an intermediate
layer of clay 3.0m thick (γ = 19 KN/m3), and the bottom layer of gravel 4.0m thick (γ = 18.5
KN/m3). The water level is at the upper surface of the clay layer. Determine the effective
pressure at various levels immediately after the placement of a surcharge load of 59 KN/m 2 to
the ground surface.
10. A soil profile consists of a surface layer of clay 5m thick (γ = 19 KN/m 3) and a sand layer 3m
thick (γ = 18 KN/m3) overlaying and impermeable rock. The water table is at the ground
surface. If the water table in a standpipe driven into the sand layer rises 3m above the ground
surface,
a) Draw the plot the variation of total stress, pore water pressure and effective stress.
b) Determine the increase in effective stress at top of the rock when the artesian head in the
sand is reduced by 2m.
11. A foundation of a concrete water tower is circular in plan. The soil is imposed to a pressure of
4000 kg/cm2. The radius of the foundation is 6 meters. Calculate the vertical pressure intensity
at a point 7.5 m directly below its center.
12. A water tower weighing 15000 KN is to be considered as concentrated load acting at the ground
surface. Compute the vertical stress at a depth of 8 meters below the surface. Also compute the
vertical stress at a distance of 7 m away from the center of the water tower.
13. A strip footing is given in plan as shown below. The load per unit area is 300 KN/m 2.
Determine the intensity of vertical stress at a point 5 m directly below the point A1.
14. A column footing of size 4.25 meter square is transmitting a load of 2000 kN from the ground
surface. Calculate the total vertical stress under one of the corners of the footing at a depth of
6 meters.
15. Two columns A and B are placed at 5-meter centre to center. Through point A, a load of 400
kN is acting and from point B a load of 240 kN. Calculate the vertical stress due to these loads
on a horizontal plane 2 m below the ground surface at points
a) Vertically below the points A and B and
b) 10m horizontally away from the point A.
16. A water tower in three pillars is in the form of a equilateral triangle in plan and the side of the
triangle are 10 meters. The total wt. of water tower is 1000 kN. Find the vertical stress ten
meter below the ground surface under any one of the legs.
17. A water tower has circular foundation of diameter 10 m. The total weight of the tower
including the foundation is 18000 kN. A very weak foundation of bearing capacity of 100
kN/m2 lies below the foundation level. Calculate the stress due to foundation load at the top
of the weak stratum. Give your comment with regard to the feasibility of the foundation
construction at the top surface of the weak layer.
18. The size of a mat foundation is 50 m * 20 m. The total load of the building imposed on the
foundation is 4000 kN. Calculate the pressure below the center of the foundation at 10 m
depth.
19. A point load of 1000 kN acts on the ground surface. a) Show the variation of vertical stresses
on a horizontal plane at a depth of 5 m below the surface. b) Show the variation of vertical
stresses on a vertical plane at r = 1 m.
20. A point load of 132 kN is applied at the ground surface. Construct a pressure bulb when the
stress imposed becomes 20% of the applied load.
21. A concentrated point load of 250 kN acts at the ground surface. Find the intensity of vertical
pressure at depth of 5 m below the ground surface at the point on the axis of loading using
Boussinesq analysis. What will be the difference in the vertical pressure at the same point if
the load shifted to a distance of 2 m from its original position horizontally.
22. Determine the increase in the vertical stress at 2m depth below A and B due to uniformly
distributed load of 40 kN/m2 on the ground surface shown by the shaded area in figure below.
23. A uniformly distributed load ABCDEF having a plan area as shown in the figure is placed on
the ground surface. The intensity of the load is 20 kN/m 2. Determine the increase in the
vertical stress due to the load at 6m depth below the corner points C and D.