1. CONSOLIDATION
Civil engineering involves understanding soil behavior under load conditions, particularly the settlement that occurs in saturated soils. This chapter discusses the various types of settlement: immediate, primary consolidation, and secondary consolidation. Each type is influenced by factors such as soil compressibility and permeability, which dictate how soil responds to increased load over time.
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What we have learnt
- Civil engineering addresses the behaviors and properties of soils under load.
- Settlement consists of immediate, primary consolidation, and secondary consolidation.
- The movement of pore water pressures significantly influences the consolidation process.
Key Concepts
- -- Immediate Settlement
- The distortion of soil volume that occurs immediately after a load is applied at constant volume with negligible water flow, primarily affecting less pervious soils.
- -- Primary Consolidation
- A time-dependent process that involves the expulsion of pore water from soil voids, leading to rearrangement of soil particles and an increase in effective stress.
- -- Secondary Consolidation
- Also known as creep settlement, it describes the slow rearrangement of soil particles at constant effective stress after primary consolidation is complete.
- -- Compressibility of Soils
- The capacity of soil to deform under applied load, which significantly influences settlement behaviors.
- -- Permeability
- The ability of soil to allow water to pass through its pores, affecting the rate of pore water expulsion during consolidation.
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