TEXAS A&M UNIVERSITY

CVEN 365: Introduction to Geotechnical Engineering

Professor Briaud

Tel: 845-3795 (W) Tel: 693-3969 (H) Fax: 845-6554

Email: briaud@tamu.edu Web Site: http://ceprofs.tamu.edu/briaud

Office: 710 E, CE/TTI building

Office Hours: Tuesday from 9:00 am to 12:00 noon

 

Lectures:       Monday and Wednesday from 8:00 to 8:50 am, room 419 CVLB building.

Laboratory:   Time Depends on the Section.

Textbook:     Budhu, Muni, 2000, Soil Mechanics and Foundations, John Wiley & Son, New York, pp586.

Lectures:        1/21/2004        Introduction, Site Investigation         1 and 2.13

1/26/2004        Phase Relationships                           2.4

1/28/2004        Compaction, Soil Improvement         2.12

2/2/2004          Grain Size                                          2.5

2/4/2004          Grain Composition                             2.3

2/9/2004          Atterberg Limits                                 2.7

2/11/2004        Soil Classification                             2.8 & 2.9

2/16/2004        Effective Stress and Soil Suction       3.9

2/18/2004        Effective Stress and Soil Suction       3.9

2/23/2004        Hydraulic Conductivity                      2.10 & 2.11

2/25/2004        Seepage                                              9

3/1/2004          Seepage                                              9

3/3/2004          Seepage                                              9

3/8/2004          Swelling and Shrinking                     

3/10/2004        MID TERM EXAMINATION (8 to 8:50 am)

3/15/2004        SPRING BREAK                               

3/17/2004        SPRING BREAK                               

3/22/2004        Swelling and Shrinking                     

3/24/2004        Compression, Stress due to Load       3.3 to 3.5, 3.11

3/29/2004        Consolidation                                     4

3/31/2004        Consolidation                                     4

4/5/2004          Mohr Circle                                        5.6

4/7/2004          Shear Strength                                     5

4/12/2004        Shear Strength                                     5

4/14/2004        Shallow Foundations                          7

4/19/2004        Deep Foundations                               8

4/21/2004        Slope Stability                                    11

4/26/2004        Retaining Walls                                  10

4/28/2004        Landfills                                            

5/3/2004          Review                                               

5/7/2004          FINAL EXAMINATION (10 am to noon)

Grading:         Midterm = 30%, Final = 40%, Lab reports and Assignments = 30%

Notes:             Attendance at all laboratory sessions is required. Attendance at lectures will be monitored. Laboratory reports and assignments must be submitted within the first five minutes of the laboratory session on the due date. Any late report or assignment will receive a grade of zero. Not turning in a report or an assignment before the end of the course will result in a failing grade in the course.

 

Laboratory:    Week 1 (1/19)            No lab

                         Week 2 (1/26)            Intro and safety Issues/Sieve Analysis and Hydrometer Analysis

                         Week 3 (2/2)              Moisture content, Unit weight, and Compaction

                         Week 4 (2/9)              Atterberg Limits and Specific Gravity

                         Week 5 (2/16)            Visual Classification

                         Week 6 (2/23)            Hydraulic Conductivity

                         Week 7 (3/1)              Instrumentation, Data Acquisition

                         Week 8 (3/8)              Shrink Test and Soil Suction

                         Week 9 (3/15)            SPRING BREAK

                         Week 10 (3/22)          Swell Test

                         Week 11 (3/29)          Consolidation Test

                         Week 12 (4/5)            Direct Shear Test-Sand (consolidation)

                         Week 13 (4/12)          Unconfined and Triaxial Test on Clay

                         Week 14 (4/19)          Triaxial Test-Sand

                         Week 15 (4/26)          Last Lab meeting

                       

Assignments: will be given at the beginning of class and will be due the following week. The topics will include:

Weight-Volume Relationships, Classification, Compaction, Effective. Stress, Hydraulic Conductivity, Flow Nets, Consolidation Settlement, Mohr Circle, Shear Strength, Consolidation Rate.

 

(pdf)

Assignment 1	Solution 1
Assignment 2	Solution 2
Assignment 3	Solution 3
Assignment 4	Solution 4
Assignment 5	Solution 5
Assignment 6	Solution 6
Assignment 7	Solution 7
Assignment 8	Solution 8
Assignment 9	Solution 9 Procedure to solve problem 2
Assignment 10	Solution 10
Assignment 11	Solution 11

 

Example Exams (PDFs):

2000 Mid-Term

2001 Mid-Term

2003 Mid-Term

2004 Mid-Term

 

2000 Final

2001 Final

2003 Final

2004 Final

 

Teaching Assistants/Office Hours:

 

Office: Room 016B Civil Engineering Basement
 

Ian:
Monday and Wednesday (9-10 am)
Tuesday and Thursday (8-9 am)

 

 

Class Seating