Year Module
IMPORTANT INFORMATION:
This tutorial letter contains important information
about your module.
Open Rubric
CONTENTS
Page
1 INTRODUCTION .......................................................................................................................... 3
2 PURPOSE OF AND OUTCOMES FOR THE MODULE............................................................... 3
2.1 Purpose ........................................................................................................................................ 3
2.2 Outcomes ..................................................................................................................................... 3
3 LECTURER(S) AND CONTACT DETAILS................................................................................... 4
3.1 Lecturer(s) .................................................................................................................................... 4
3.2 Department ................................................................................................................................... 4
3.3 University ...................................................................................................................................... 4
4 MODULE-RELATED RESOURCES ............................................................................................. 5
4.1 Prescribed books .......................................................................................................................... 5
4.2 Recommended books ................................................................................................................... 5
4.3 Electronic Reserves (e-Reserves)................................................................................................. 5
4.4 Library services and resources ................................................................................................. 5
5 STUDENT SUPPORT SERVICES FOR THE MODULE ............................................................... 6
6 STUDY PLAN ............................................................................................................................... 6
7 PRACTICAL WORK ..................................................................................................................... 6
8 ASSESSMENT ............................................................................................................................. 6
8.1 Assessment criteria....................................................................................................................... 6
8.2 Assessment plan .......................................................................................................................... 6
8.3 Assignment numbers .................................................................................................................... 6
8.3.1 General assignment numbers ....................................................................................................... 6
8.3.2 Unique assignment numbers ........................................................................................................ 7
8.4 Due dates for assignments ........................................................................................................... 7
8.5 Submission of assignments .......................................................................................................... 7
8.6 Assignments ................................................................................................................................. 9
8.7 OTHER ASSESSMENT METHODS ........................................................................................... 12
8.8 EXAMINATION ........................................................................................................................... 12
9 FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS ........................................................................................ 13
10 SOURCES CONSULTED ........................................................................................................... 13
11 IN CLOSING ............................................................................................................................... 13
12 ADDENDUM ............................................................................................................................... 13
2
GTE3601/101/0/2019
1 INTRODUCTION
Dear student,
We are pleased to welcome you to this Geotechnical Engineering III module and hope that you
will find it both interesting and rewarding. We shall do our best to make your study of this
module successful. You will be well on your way to success if you start studying early in the
year and resolve to do the assignments properly.
A tutorial letter is our way of communicating with you about teaching, learning and assessment.
In this tutorial letter, you will find the assignment questions, information on assessment criteria
and student support services, as well as instructions for the preparation and submission of your
assignments. The tutorial letter also provides all the information you need about the prescribed
study material, other course-related resources and how to obtain them. Please study all the
information carefully and make sure that you obtain the prescribed material (prescribed book)
as soon as possible! This tutorial letter also includes certain general and administrative
information about this module.
A knowledge of the more common and abundant minerals that make up the majority of rocks
forming the crust of the earth is fundamental the identification of rock types and understanding
of how these weather to form soils on which structures are founded.
2.2 Outcomes
The outcomes for this module are:
Knowledge and understanding of performing and interpreting direct shear tests and
estimate shear strength parameters.
Knowledge and understanding of conducting and estimating shear strength of soils.
Ability to calculate in-situ stress in saturated soil with and without seepage, seepage
force, and implement measures to control heave in soil.
Understand basics principles of flow and soil permeability through porous media
including Bernoulli’s equation, Darcy’s Law, and Hydraulic conductivity.
3
Knowledge and understanding of performing and analysing constant head permeability
tests.
Knowledge and understanding of performing, analysing and reporting one-dimensional
compression tests and estimating of settlement parameters.
Knowledge and understanding of performing and reporting of sub-surface explorations.
Construction and analysis of flow nets for water flow calculations.
Basic knowledge of shear strength principles including the Mohr-Coulomb failure
criterion.
Basic understanding of Lateral Earth Pressure concepts and theory including Rankine's
theory of active and passive earth pressures with and without sloping backfill.
Understanding of the basic concept of ultimate bearing capacity of shallow foundations
including modification of bearing capacity equations for water table, factor of safety, and
eccentrically loaded foundations
3.2 Department
Department of Civil and Chemical Engineering
Unisa (Florida Campus)
Private Bag x6
Florida
1710
Phone: 011 471 2048/3132
Use the general E-mail address: civil&chemical@unisa.ac.za
3.3 University
www.http://unisa.ac.za
4
GTE3601/101/0/2019
4 MODULE-RELATED RESOURCES
4.1 Prescribed books
6 STUDY PLAN
Use your my Studies @ Unisa brochure for general time management and planning skills.
7 PRACTICAL WORK
The practical component for this module is GTEPRA3.
8 ASSESSMENT
8.1 Assessment criteria
The assessment of this course is based on both formative and summative assessment.
8.2 Assessment plan
6
GTE3601/101/0/2019
8.3.2 Unique assignment numbers
Assignment 1 774627
Assignment 2 780643
7
Yes, simply copying a few pages from the prescribed book is plagiarism. Pasting paragraphs
from Wikipedia into your assignment is plagiarism. And it does not stop being plagiarism if you
mention the source.
Skilled scientific writers can use direct block quotations to make a specific point. They know
what they are doing. You still need to develop your own voice, your own style of arguing the
point. Do not plagiarize.
Note that you also commit plagiarism if you copy the assignment of another student. We do
encourage you to work together and form study groups, but you are expected to prepare and
submit your own assignments. When we receive two or more identical assignments, we are not
able to work out who copied from whom. We will therefore penalize both students.
If you commit plagiarism you will be penalized and given no marks for your assignment.
This will have a serious effect on your chances to succeed in your studies because you
will have no semester mark.
A Signed Declaration
Every essay-type assignment we receive must include the following declaration along with your
name and the date:
“I declare that this assignment is my own work and that all sources quoted have been
acknowledged by appropriate references”.
We will subtract marks if this declaration is absent from your assignment, just as we will
subtract marks if your assignment does not have a Table of contents, List of references cited,
and so on.
8
GTE3601/101/0/2019
8.6 Assignments
Assignment 01
Question 1 (Soil Mechanics)
1.1 Prove that the saturated moisture content of a soil sample is given by the following formula:
1.2 A geotechnical laboratory in Polokwane collected five samples from a construction site in
Tzaneen and reported these results from a single boring. Determine which are not correctly
reported, if any, show your calculations. (10)
[15 marks]
Question 2 (Soil Permeability)
2.1 A pumping well test was made in sands extending to a depth of 15 m where an
impermeable stratum was encountered. The initial ground-water level was at the ground
surface. Observation wells were sited at distances of 3 and 7.5 m from the pumping well. A
steady state was established at about 20 hours when the discharge was 3.8 L/s. The
drawdowns at the two observation well were1.5 m and 0.35 m. Calculate the coefficient of
permeability. (08)
2.2 A layer of sand 6 m thick lies beneath a clay stratum 5 m thick and above a bed of thick
shale. In order to determine the permeability of sand, a well was driven to the top of the
shale and water pumped out at a rate of 0.01 m3/s. Two observation wells driven through
the clay at 15 m and 30 m from the pumping well and water was found to rise to levels of
3 m and 2.4 m below the ground water surface. Calculate the permeability of soil. (07)
[15 marks]
9
Question 3 (In-Situ Stresses)
For the figure shown below, if the area of the tank is 0.5 m2 and hydraulic conductivity of sand is
0.1 cm/s.
3.1 What is the magnitude and direction of the rate of seepage? (03)
3.2 If the value of h = 1.2 m, will boiling occur? Why? (06)
3.3 What should be the value of “h” to cause boiling? (06)
[15 marks]
10
GTE3601/101/0/2019
Assignment 2
Determine the size of square footing to carry a net allowable load of 295 kN. FS = 3. Use the
Terzaghi equation assuming general shear failure.
[20 marks]
Question 2
Design a retaining wall (see sketch below) which addresses the following:
Wall stem structural failure: The wall stem fails in bending. Most likely location is at the
base of the wall where the stem connects to the foundation.
Foundation bearing failure: A bearing failure of the soil under the toe of the foundation
and a forwards rotation of the wall.
Sliding failure of wall: Possible mode for non-cohesive soils. Wall moves outwards with
passive failure of soil in front of foundation and active failure of soil behind wall. Often
a key is required beneath the foundation to prevent sliding.
11
Notes:
This is a design, please make all reasonable assumptions.
As the designer, you have to determine the wall and base thicknesses.
Provide full A3 Engineering drawings backed by a 5 page technical calculation report
explaining your calculations.
[40 marks]
Total marks for assignment 2 [60]
8.8 EXAMINATION
12
GTE3601/101/0/2019
9 FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
N/A
10 SOURCES CONSULTED
N/A
11 IN CLOSING
Good luck with your studies
12 ADDENDUM
N/A
13