UBGMUQ-15-2 – Soil mechanics
Soil Mechanics Coursework Brief 2019-20
1
Soil Mechanics Coursework (CW) Brief 2019-20 Introduction
This brief provides a detailed breakdown of how to evidence the learning outcomes, guidance on how to present your presentation and the marking criteria. Please take care to read through the whole brief and address each task in your submission. Submission date There is a 24-hour late period. If you modify your submitted work in this period it will be classed as a late submission. Submission format The submission is via Blackboard, which is accessible from the sidebar on the module Blackboard page. You must ALSO include a completed submission checklist as well as a self-reflection form as an appendix. A version of this is included at the end of this document. It is acceptable to complete the work for each section in a word processor and upload the work as a .doc, .docx or .pdf file. This submission will account for 25% of the soil mechanics final grade and the effort required is estimated around 5-7 hours or less.
UBGMUQ-15-2 – Soil mechanics
Soil Mechanics Coursework Brief 2019-20
2
General assessment guidance
The following guidance has been developed based on previous submissions. It provides advice on general good practice for the presentation of work in both an academic and professional settings and will be used in line with the marking scheme. 1. All equations are to be typed via word equation editor. 2. Equations, figures (including graphs) and tables require numbering and a descriptive caption e.g. “Figure 1: Graph of particle size distribution”. 3. Graphs should include a title, axes’ titles, units and where applicable a legend and annotations. 4. Symbols in all equations/expressions presented must be explained in detail in the main text. 5. All figures and tables must be referred to in the main text, and briefly discussed in the main text, e.g. “Referring to Figure 1 the particle size distribution is that of a uniformly graded soil”. Discussion should not be included in the caption. 6. All numerical results must include units (with the exception of dimensionless values, e.g., specific gravity 𝐺𝑠). 7. Accurate results and clear demonstration of independent thought and application of your understanding. 8. All sources must be cited and reference using the UWE Bristol Harvard Referencing Style. (http://www1.uwe.ac.uk/students/studysupport/studyskills/referencing/uweharvard.aspx)
Marking criteria
There is (1) section in the submission and is marked out of 100. Full marks are awarded for accuracy of results and where there is a clear demonstration of independent thought and application of your understanding, and for adherence to the general assessment guidance.
UBGMUQ-15-2 – Soil mechanics
Soil Mechanics Coursework Brief
Soil as a 3-Phase Material and Soil Classification (100 marks) Dredging is the scooping up of soils from the bottom of the waterways for land reclamation purposes or to keep rivers, canals, basins and channels clear of underwater obstruction. Dredging is also a critical element where marine piling needs to be set in place to enable quick commencement of steelwork and civil engineering construction projects. A dredging project has been proposed by a local council to dredge X(m) long section of a 12m wide canal up to a depth of 1.8m to reclaim land for the construction of a recreation centre. The material pumped out of the canal is described by data obtained from a sieving and compaction test as shown in Table 1 and Table 2 respectively. If the in-situ unit weight of the soil at the bottom of the canal is 22kN/m3 and the soil material is being pumped at a rate of 0.3m3 per minute. Take the specific gravity of the soil grains as 2.7 and X as the last three digits of your student ID (SID) number. Take X = 450m if last 3digits of your SID number is less than 300
Table 1: Data obtained from a sieving test Sieve no. Sieve size(mm) Mass Retained (g) 4 4.75 0 10 2.00 14.8 20 0.85 98 40 0.425 90.1 100 0.15 181.9 200 0.075 108.8 Pan – 6.1
Table 2: Raw data from a Standard Compaction Test (Proctor Test)
Column 1 Column 2 Column 3 No. Mass of mould and wet soil 𝑀𝑚𝑜𝑢𝑙𝑑+𝑀𝑤𝑒𝑡 (𝑔) Mass of wet soil sample and disc 𝑚𝑤𝑒𝑡+𝑚𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑐 (𝑔) Mass of dry soil sample and disc 𝑚𝑑𝑟𝑦+𝑚𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑐 (𝑔)
UBGMUQ-15-2 – Soil mechanics
Soil Mechanics Coursework Brief
4
1 2785
23.12
22.11 2 3059
25.69
24.25 3 3226
27.88
25.92 4 3283
22.19
20.65 5 3253
28.59
25.92 6 3199
24.75
22.41 Mass of mould 𝑀= 1135 𝑔 Volume of mould 𝑉 = 1000 𝑚𝑙 Soil specific gravity 𝐺𝑠 = 2.70
TASK
1. Plot the particle size distribution (PSD) curve using data from Table 1. [15 marks] 2. Determine the uniformity coefficient and coefficient of gradation. [10 marks]
3. Determine the textural composition of the soil (i.e., the amount of gravel, sand, etc.). [10 marks]
4. Plot the Compaction Curve using data from Table 2 and determine the maximum dry density and optimum moisture content. [20 marks]
5. Determine the volume of soil to be removed (dredged) [5 marks]
6. Determine the operational hours required to complete the dredging activity. [35 marks]
7. Discuss briefly the suitability of the pumped material for the construction of the proposed recreation centre based on your results. [5 marks]
UBGMUQ-15-2 – Soil mechanics
Soil Mechanics Coursework Brief
