Geotechnical engineering, also known as geotechnics, is the branch of
civil engineering
Civil engineering is a regulation and licensure in engineering, professional engineering discipline that deals with the design, construction, and maintenance of the physical and naturally built environment, including public works such as roads ...
concerned with the engineering behavior of
earth materials. It uses the principles of
soil mechanics
Soil mechanics is a branch of soil physics and applied mechanics that describes the behavior of soils. It differs from fluid mechanics and solid mechanics in the sense that soils consist of a heterogeneous mixture of fluids (usually air and ...
and
rock mechanics
Rock mechanics is a theoretical and applied science of the mechanical behavior of rocks and rock masses.
Compared to geology, it is the branch of mechanics concerned with the response of rock and rock masses to the force fields of their physical ...
to solve its
engineering
Engineering is the practice of using natural science, mathematics, and the engineering design process to Problem solving#Engineering, solve problems within technology, increase efficiency and productivity, and improve Systems engineering, s ...
problems. It also relies on knowledge of
geology
Geology (). is a branch of natural science concerned with the Earth and other astronomical objects, the rocks of which they are composed, and the processes by which they change over time. Modern geology significantly overlaps all other Earth ...
,
hydrology
Hydrology () is the scientific study of the movement, distribution, and management of water on Earth and other planets, including the water cycle, water resources, and drainage basin sustainability. A practitioner of hydrology is called a hydro ...
,
geophysics
Geophysics () is a subject of natural science concerned with the physical processes and Physical property, properties of Earth and its surrounding space environment, and the use of quantitative methods for their analysis. Geophysicists conduct i ...
, and other related sciences.
Geotechnical engineering has applications in
military engineering,
mining engineering,
petroleum engineering,
coastal engineering, and
offshore construction
Offshore construction is the installation of structures and facilities in a marine environment, usually for the production and transmission of electricity, oil, gas and other resources. It is also called maritime engineering.
Construction a ...
. The fields of geotechnical engineering and
engineering geology
Engineering geology is the application of geology to engineering study for the purpose of assuring that the geological factors regarding the location, design, construction, operation and maintenance of engineering works are recognized and accou ...
have overlapping knowledge areas. However, while geotechnical engineering is a specialty of
civil engineering
Civil engineering is a regulation and licensure in engineering, professional engineering discipline that deals with the design, construction, and maintenance of the physical and naturally built environment, including public works such as roads ...
, engineering geology is a specialty of
geology
Geology (). is a branch of natural science concerned with the Earth and other astronomical objects, the rocks of which they are composed, and the processes by which they change over time. Modern geology significantly overlaps all other Earth ...
.
History
Humans have historically used soil as a material for flood control, irrigation purposes, burial sites, building foundations, and construction materials for buildings. Dykes,
dams, and
canal
Canals or artificial waterways are waterways or engineered channels built for drainage management (e.g. flood control and irrigation) or for conveyancing water transport vehicles (e.g. water taxi). They carry free, calm surface ...
s dating back to at least 2000 BCE—found in parts of ancient
Egypt
Egypt ( , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country spanning the Northeast Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to northe ...
, ancient
Mesopotamia
Mesopotamia is a historical region of West Asia situated within the Tigris–Euphrates river system, in the northern part of the Fertile Crescent. Today, Mesopotamia is known as present-day Iraq and forms the eastern geographic boundary of ...
, the
Fertile Crescent
The Fertile Crescent () is a crescent-shaped region in the Middle East, spanning modern-day Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Palestine, and Syria, together with northern Kuwait, south-eastern Turkey, and western Iran. Some authors also include ...
, and the early settlements of
Mohenjo Daro and Harappa in the
Indus valley—provide evidence for early activities linked to
irrigation
Irrigation (also referred to as watering of plants) is the practice of applying controlled amounts of water to land to help grow crops, landscape plants, and lawns. Irrigation has been a key aspect of agriculture for over 5,000 years and has bee ...
and
flood control
Flood management or flood control are methods used to reduce or prevent the detrimental effects of flood waters. Flooding can be caused by a mix of both natural processes, such as extreme weather upstream, and human changes to waterbodies and ru ...
. As cities expanded, structures were erected and supported by formalized foundations. The
ancient Greeks
Ancient Greece () was a northeastern Mediterranean civilization, existing from the Greek Dark Ages of the 12th–9th centuries BC to the end of classical antiquity (), that comprised a loose collection of culturally and linguistically re ...
notably constructed pad footings and strip-and-raft foundations. Until the 18th century, however, no theoretical basis for soil design had been developed, and the discipline was more of an art than a science, relying on experience.
Several foundation-related engineering problems, such as the
Leaning Tower of Pisa, prompted scientists to begin taking a more scientific-based approach to examining the subsurface. The earliest advances occurred in the development of
earth pressure theories for the construction of
retaining walls
Retaining walls are relatively rigid walls used for supporting soil laterally so that it can be retained at different levels on the two sides. Retaining walls are structures designed to restrain soil to a slope that it would not naturally keep to ...
. Henri Gautier, a French royal engineer, recognized the "natural slope" of different soils in 1717, an idea later known as the soil's
angle of repose. Around the same time, a rudimentary soil classification system was also developed based on a material's unit weight, which is no longer considered a good indication of soil type.
The application of the principles of mechanics
Mechanics () is the area of physics concerned with the relationships between force, matter, and motion among Physical object, physical objects. Forces applied to objects may result in Displacement (vector), displacements, which are changes of ...
to soils was documented as early as 1773 when Charles Coulomb, a physicist and engineer, developed improved methods to determine the earth pressures against military ramparts. Coulomb observed that, at failure, a distinct slip plane would form behind a sliding retaining wall and suggested that the maximum shear stress on the slip plane, for design purposes, was the sum of the soil cohesion, , and friction , where is the normal stress on the slip plane and is the friction angle of the soil. By combining Coulomb's theory with Christian Otto Mohr's 2D stress state, the theory became known as Mohr-Coulomb theory. Although it is now recognized that precise determination of cohesion is impossible because is not a fundamental soil property, the Mohr-Coulomb theory is still used in practice today.[Disturbed soil properties and geotechnical design, Schofield, Andrew N., Thomas Telford, 2006. ]
In the 19th century, Henry Darcy developed what is now known as Darcy's Law, describing the flow of fluids in a porous media. Joseph Boussinesq, a mathematician and physicist, developed theories of stress distribution in elastic solids that proved useful for estimating stresses at depth in the ground. William Rankine, an engineer and physicist, developed an alternative to Coulomb's earth pressure theory. Albert Atterberg developed the clay consistency indices that are still used today for soil classification.[ In 1885, ]Osborne Reynolds
Osborne Reynolds (23 August 1842 – 21 February 1912) was an Irish-born British innovator in the understanding of fluid dynamics. Separately, his studies of heat transfer between solids and fluids brought improvements in boiler and condenser ...
recognized that shearing causes volumetric dilation of dense materials and contraction of loose granular material
A granular material is a conglomeration of discrete solid, macroscopic scale, macroscopic particles characterized by a loss of energy whenever the particles interact (the most common example would be friction when granulation, grains collide). T ...
s.
Modern geotechnical engineering is said to have begun in 1925 with the publication of ''Erdbaumechanik'' by Karl von Terzaghi
Karl von Terzaghi (October 2, 1883 – October 25, 1963) was an Austrians, Austrian Mechanical Engineer, mechanical engineer, geotechnical engineer, and geologist known as the "father of soil mechanics and geotechnical engineering".
Early life
I ...
, a mechanical engineer and geologist. Considered by many to be the father of modern soil mechanics and geotechnical engineering, Terzaghi developed the principle of effective stress, and demonstrated that the shear strength of soil is controlled by effective stress. Terzaghi also developed the framework for theories of bearing capacity of foundations, and the theory for prediction of the rate of settlement of clay layers due to consolidation.[Soil Mechanics, Lambe, T.William and Whitman, Robert V., Massachusetts Institute of Technology, John Wiley & Sons., 1969. ] Afterwards, Maurice Biot fully developed the three-dimensional soil consolidation theory, extending the one-dimensional model previously developed by Terzaghi to more general hypotheses and introducing the set of basic equations of Poroelasticity.
In his 1948 book, Donald Taylor recognized that the interlocking and dilation of densely packed particles contributed to the peak strength of the soil. Roscoe, Schofield, and Wroth, with the publication of ''On the Yielding of Soils'' in 1958, established the interrelationships between the volume change behavior (dilation, contraction, and consolidation) and shearing behavior with the theory of plasticity using critical state soil mechanics. Critical state soil mechanics is the basis for many contemporary advanced constitutive models describing the behavior of soil.[Soil Behavior and Critical State Soil Mechanics, Wood, David Muir, Cambridge University Press, 1990. ]
In 1960, Alec Skempton carried out an extensive review of the available formulations and experimental data in the literature about the effective stress validity in soil, concrete, and rock in order to reject some of these expressions, as well as clarify what expressions were appropriate according to several working hypotheses, such as stress-strain or strength behavior, saturated or non-saturated media, and rock, concrete or soil behavior.
Roles
Geotechnical investigation
Geotechnical engineers investigate and determine the properties of subsurface conditions and materials. They also design corresponding earthworks and retaining structures, tunnel
A tunnel is an underground or undersea passageway. It is dug through surrounding soil, earth or rock, or laid under water, and is usually completely enclosed except for the two portals common at each end, though there may be access and ve ...
s, and structure foundations, and may supervise and evaluate sites, which may further involve site monitoring as well as the risk assessment and mitigation of natural hazard
A natural disaster is the very harmful impact on a society or community brought by natural phenomenon or hazard. Some examples of natural hazards include avalanches, droughts, earthquakes, floods, heat waves, landslides - including submarin ...
s.[Terzaghi, K., Peck, R.B. and Mesri, G. (1996), ''Soil Mechanics in Engineering Practice'' 3rd Ed., John Wiley & Sons, Inc. ][Holtz, R. and Kovacs, W. (1981), ''An Introduction to Geotechnical Engineering'', Prentice-Hall, Inc. ]
Geotechnical engineers and engineering geologists perform geotechnical investigations to obtain information on the physical properties of soil and rock underlying and adjacent to a site to design earthworks and foundations for proposed structures and for the repair of distress to earthworks and structures caused by subsurface conditions. Geotechnical investigations involve surface and subsurface exploration of a site, often including subsurface sampling and laboratory testing of retrieved soil samples. Sometimes, geophysical methods are also used to obtain data, which include measurement of seismic waves
A seismic wave is a mechanical wave of acoustic wave, acoustic energy that travels through the Earth or another planetary body. It can result from an earthquake (or generally, a quake (natural phenomenon), quake), types of volcanic eruptions ...
(pressure, shear, and Rayleigh waves
Rayleigh waves are a type of surface acoustic wave that travel along the surface of solids. They can be produced in materials in many ways, such as by a localized impact or by piezo-electric transduction, and are frequently used in non-destruc ...
), surface-wave methods and downhole methods, and electromagnetic surveys (magnetometer, resistivity, and ground-penetrating radar). Electrical tomography can be used to survey soil and rock properties and existing underground infrastructure in construction projects.
Surface exploration
Exploration is the process of exploring, an activity which has some Expectation (epistemic), expectation of Discovery (observation), discovery. Organised exploration is largely a human activity, but exploratory activity is common to most organis ...
can include on-foot surveys, geological map
A geological map or geologic map is a special-purpose map made to show various geological features. Rock (geology), Rock units or stratum, geologic strata are shown by color or symbols. Bed (geology), Bedding planes and structural features such ...
ping, geophysical methods, and photogrammetry
Photogrammetry is the science and technology of obtaining reliable information about physical objects and the environment through the process of recording, measuring and interpreting photographic images and patterns of electromagnetic radiant ima ...
. Geological mapping and interpretation of geomorphology
Geomorphology () is the scientific study of the origin and evolution of topographic and bathymetric features generated by physical, chemical or biological processes operating at or near Earth's surface. Geomorphologists seek to understand wh ...
are typically completed in consultation with a geologist
A geologist is a scientist who studies the structure, composition, and History of Earth, history of Earth. Geologists incorporate techniques from physics, chemistry, biology, mathematics, and geography to perform research in the Field research, ...
or engineering geologist. Subsurface exploration usually involves in-situ testing (for example, the standard penetration test and cone penetration test). The digging of test pits and trenching (particularly for locating faults and slide planes) may also be used to learn about soil conditions at depth. Large-diameter borings are rarely used due to safety concerns and expense. Still, they are sometimes used to allow a geologist or engineer to be lowered into the borehole for direct visual and manual examination of the soil and rock stratigraphy
Stratigraphy is a branch of geology concerned with the study of rock layers (strata) and layering (stratification). It is primarily used in the study of sedimentary and layered volcanic rocks.
Stratigraphy has three related subfields: lithost ...
.
Various soil samplers exist to meet the needs of different engineering projects. The standard penetration test, which uses a thick-walled split spoon sampler, is the most common way to collect disturbed samples. Piston samplers, employing a thin-walled tube, are most commonly used to collect less disturbed samples. More advanced methods, such as the Sherbrooke block sampler, are superior but expensive. Coring frozen ground provides high-quality undisturbed samples from ground conditions, such as fill, sand, moraine
A moraine is any accumulation of unconsolidated debris (regolith and Rock (geology), rock), sometimes referred to as glacial till, that occurs in both currently and formerly glaciated regions, and that has been previously carried along by a gla ...
, and rock fracture zones.
Geotechnical centrifuge modeling is another method of testing physical-scale models of geotechnical problems. The use of a centrifuge enhances the similarity of the scale model tests involving soil because soil's strength and stiffness
Stiffness is the extent to which an object resists deformation in response to an applied force.
The complementary concept is flexibility or pliability: the more flexible an object is, the less stiff it is.
Calculations
The stiffness, k, of a ...
are susceptible to the confining pressure
Pressure (symbol: ''p'' or ''P'') is the force applied perpendicular to the surface of an object per unit area over which that force is distributed. Gauge pressure (also spelled ''gage'' pressure)The preferred spelling varies by country and eve ...
. The centrifugal acceleration
Centrifugal force is a fictitious force in Newtonian mechanics (also called an "inertial" or "pseudo" force) that appears to act on all objects when viewed in a rotating frame of reference. It appears to be directed radially away from the axi ...
allows a researcher to obtain large (prototype-scale) stresses in small physical models.
Foundation design
The foundation of a structure's infrastructure transmits loads from the structure to the earth. Geotechnical engineer
Engineers, as practitioners of engineering, are professionals who Invention, invent, design, build, maintain and test machines, complex systems, structures, gadgets and materials. They aim to fulfill functional objectives and requirements while ...
s design foundations based on the load characteristics of the structure and the properties of the soils and bedrock at the site. Generally, geotechnical engineers first estimate the magnitude and location of loads to be supported before developing an investigation plan to explore the subsurface and determine the necessary soil parameters through field and lab testing. Following this, they may begin the design of an engineering foundation. The primary considerations for a geotechnical engineer in foundation design are bearing capacity, settlement, and ground movement beneath the foundations.
Earthworks
Geotechnical engineers are also involved in the planning and execution of earthworks, which include ground improvement,[ slope stabilization, and slope stability analysis.
]
Ground improvement
Various geotechnical engineering methods can be used for ground improvement, including reinforcement geosynthetics such as geocells and geogrids, which disperse loads over a larger area, increasing the soil's load-bearing capacity. Through these methods, geotechnical engineers can reduce direct and long-term costs.
Slope stabilization
Geotechnical engineers can analyze and improve slope stability using engineering methods. Slope stability is determined by the balance of shear stress
Shear stress (often denoted by , Greek alphabet, Greek: tau) is the component of stress (physics), stress coplanar with a material cross section. It arises from the shear force, the component of force vector parallel to the material cross secti ...
and shear strength. A previously stable slope may be initially affected by various factors, making it unstable. Nonetheless, geotechnical engineers can design and implement engineered slopes to increase stability.
=Slope stability analysis
=
Stability analysis is needed to design engineered slopes and estimate the risk of slope failure in natural or designed slopes by determining the conditions under which the topmost mass of soil will slip relative to the base of soil and lead to slope failure. If the interface between the mass and the base of a slope has a complex geometry, slope stability analysis is difficult and numerical solution methods are required. Typically, the interface's exact geometry is unknown, and a simplified interface geometry is assumed. Finite slopes require three-dimensional models to be analyzed, so most slopes are analyzed assuming that they are infinitely wide and can be represented by two-dimensional models.
Sub-disciplines
Geosynthetics
Geosynthetics are a type of plastic polymer
A polymer () is a chemical substance, substance or material that consists of very large molecules, or macromolecules, that are constituted by many repeat unit, repeating subunits derived from one or more species of monomers. Due to their br ...
products used in geotechnical engineering that improve engineering performance while reducing costs. This includes geotextiles, geogrids, geomembranes, geocells, and geocomposites. The synthetic nature of the products make them suitable for use in the ground where high levels of durability are required. Their main functions include drainage
Drainage is the natural or artificial removal of a surface's water and sub-surface water from an area with excess water. The internal drainage of most agricultural soils can prevent severe waterlogging (anaerobic conditions that harm root gro ...
, filtration
Filtration is a physical separation process that separates solid matter and fluid from a mixture using a ''filter medium'' that has a complex structure through which only the fluid can pass. Solid particles that cannot pass through the filte ...
, reinforcement, separation, and containment.
Geosynthetics are available in a wide range of forms and materials, each to suit a slightly different end-use, although they are frequently used together. Some reinforcement geosynthetics, such as geogrids and more recently, cellular confinement
Cellular confinement systems (CCS)—also known as geocells—are widely used in construction for erosion control, Mechanically stabilized earth, soil stabilization on flat ground and steep slopes, channel (geography), channel protection, and s ...
systems, have shown to improve bearing capacity, modulus factors and soil stiffness and strength. These products have a wide range of applications and are currently used in many civil and geotechnical engineering applications including roads, airfields, railroads, embankments, piled embankments, retaining structures, reservoir
A reservoir (; ) is an enlarged lake behind a dam, usually built to water storage, store fresh water, often doubling for hydroelectric power generation.
Reservoirs are created by controlling a watercourse that drains an existing body of wa ...
s, canals, dams, landfill
A landfill is a site for the disposal of waste materials. It is the oldest and most common form of waste disposal, although the systematic burial of waste with daily, intermediate and final covers only began in the 1940s. In the past, waste was ...
s, bank protection and coastal engineering.
Offshore
''Offshore'' (or ''marine'') ''geotechnical engineering'' is concerned with foundation design for human-made structures in the sea
A sea is a large body of salt water. There are particular seas and the sea. The sea commonly refers to the ocean, the interconnected body of seawaters that spans most of Earth. Particular seas are either marginal seas, second-order section ...
, away from the coast
A coast (coastline, shoreline, seashore) is the land next to the sea or the line that forms the boundary between the land and the ocean or a lake. Coasts are influenced by the topography of the surrounding landscape and by aquatic erosion, su ...
line (in opposition to ''onshore'' or ''nearshore'' engineering). Oil platforms, artificial islands and submarine pipelines are examples of such structures.[Dean, E.T.R. (2010). Offshore Geotechnical Engineering – Principles and Practice. Thomas Telford, Reston, VA, 520 p.]
There are a number of significant differences between onshore and offshore geotechnical engineering.[Randolph, M. and Susan Gourvenec, Gourvenec, S., 2011. Offshore geotechnical engineering. Spon Press, N.Y., 550 p.] Notably, site investigation and ground improvement on the seabed are more expensive; the offshore structures are exposed to a wider range of geohazards; and the environmental and financial consequences are higher in case of failure. Offshore structures are exposed to various environmental loads, notably wind, wind wave, waves and Ocean current, currents. These phenomena may affect the integrity or the serviceability of the structure and its foundation during its operational lifespan and need to be taken into account in offshore design.
In subsea geotechnical engineering, seabed materials are considered a two-phase material composed of rock or mineral particles and water.[Das, B.M., 2010. Principles of geotechnical engineering. Cengage Learning, Stamford, 666 p.][Atkinson, J., 2007. The mechanics of soils and foundations. Taylor & Francis, N.Y., 442 p.] Structures may be fixed in place in the seabed—as is the case for piers, jetties and fixed-bottom wind turbines—or may comprise a floating structure that remains roughly fixed relative to its geotechnical anchor point. Undersea mooring of human-engineered floating structures include a large number of Offshore drilling rig, offshore oil and gas platforms and, since 2008, a few floating wind turbines. Two common types of engineered design for anchoring floating structures include Tension-leg platform, tension-leg and catenary Mooring (watercraft), loose mooring systems.[Floating Offshore Wind Turbines: Responses in a Sea state – Pareto Optimal Designs and Economic Assessment]
P. Sclavounos et al., October 2007.
Observational method
First proposed by Karl Terzaghi and later discussed in a paper by Ralph Brazelton Peck, Ralph B. Peck, the observational method is a managed process of construction control, monitoring, and review, which enables modifications to be incorporated during and after construction. The method aims to achieve a greater overall economy without compromising safety by creating designs based on the most probable conditions rather than the most unfavorable.[Nicholson, D, Tse, C and Penny, C. (1999). The Observational Method in ground engineering – principles and applications. Report 185, CIRIA, London.] Using the observational method, gaps in available information are filled by measurements and investigation, which aid in assessing the behavior of the structure during construction, which in turn can be modified per the findings. The method was described by Peck as "learn-as-you-go".[Peck, R.B (1969). Advantages and limitations of the observational method in applied soil mechanics, Geotechnique, 19, No. 1, pp. 171-187.]
The observational method may be described as follows:[
# General exploration sufficient to establish the rough nature, pattern, and properties of Deposition (geology), deposits.
#Assessment of the most probable conditions and the most unfavorable conceivable deviations.
#Creating the design based on a working hypothesis of behavior anticipated under the most probable conditions.
#Selection of quantities to be observed as construction proceeds and calculating their anticipated values based on the working hypothesis under the most unfavorable conditions.
#Selection, in advance, of a course of action or design modification for every foreseeable significant deviation of the observational findings from those predicted.
#Measurement of quantities and evaluation of actual conditions.
#Design modification per actual conditions
The observational method is suitable for construction that has already begun when an unexpected development occurs or when a failure or accident looms or has already happened. It is unsuitable for projects whose design cannot be altered during construction.][
]
See also
* Civil engineering
* Deep Foundations Institute
* Earthquake engineering
* Earth structure
* Effective stress
* Engineering geology
* Geological Engineering
* Geoprofessions
* Hydrogeology
* International Society for Soil Mechanics and Geotechnical Engineering
* Karl von Terzaghi
* Land reclamation
* Landfill
* Mechanically stabilized earth
* Offshore geotechnical engineering
* Rock mass classifications
* Sediment control
* Seismology
* Soil mechanics
* Soil physics
* Soil science
Notes
References
* Bates and Jackson, 1980, Glossary of Geology: American Geological Institute.
* Krynine and Judd, 1957, Principles of Engineering Geology and Geotechnics: McGraw-Hill, New York.
* Pierfranco Ventura, Fondazioni, Modellazioni: Verifiche Statiche e Sismiche Strutture-Terreni, vol. I, Milano Hoepli, 2019, pp.770, ISBN 978-88203-8644-3
* Pierfranco Ventura, Fondazioni, Applicazioni: Verifiche Statiche e Sismiche Strutture-Terreni, vol. II, , Milano, Hoepli, 2019, pp.749,ISBN 978-88-203-8645-0 https://www.hoeplieditore.it/hoepli-catalogo/articolo/fondazioni-modellazioni-pierfrancventura/9788820386443/1451
*Holtz, R. and Kovacs, W. (1981), ''An Introduction to Geotechnical Engineering'', Prentice-Hall, Inc.
*Bowles, J. (1988), ''Foundation Analysis and Design'', McGraw-Hill Publishing Company.
*Cedergren, Harry R. (1977), ''Seepage, Drainage, and Flow Nets'', Wiley.
*Kramer, Steven L. (1996), ''Geotechnical Earthquake Engineering'', Prentice-Hall, Inc.
*Freeze, R.A. & Cherry, J.A., (1979), ''Groundwater'', Prentice-Hall.
*Lunne, T. & Long, M.,(2006), ''Review of long seabed samplers and criteria for new sampler design'', Marine Geology, Vol 226, p. 145–165
*Mitchell, James K. & Soga, K. (2005), ''Fundamentals of Soil Behavior'' 3rd ed., John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
*Rajapakse, Ruwan., (2005), "Pile Design and Construction", 2005.
*Fang, H.-Y. and Daniels, J. (2005) ''Introductory Geotechnical Engineering : an environmental perspective'', Taylor & Francis.
NAVFAC (Naval Facilities Engineering Command) (1986) ''Design Manual 7.01, Soil Mechanics'' US Government Printing Office
NAVFAC (Naval Facilities Engineering Command) (1986) ''Design Manual 7.02, Foundations and Earth Structures'' US Government Printing Office
*NAVFAC (Naval Facilities Engineering Command) (1983) ''Design Manual 7.03, Soil Dynamics, Deep Stabilization and Special Geotechnical Construction'', US Government Printing Office
*Terzaghi, K., Peck, R.B. and Mesri, G. (1996), ''Soil Mechanics in Engineering Practice'' 3rd Ed., John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
*Santamarina, J.C., Klein, K.A., & Fam, M.A. (2001), "Soils and Waves: Particulate Materials Behavior, Characterization and Process Monitoring", Wiley,
*Firuziaan, M. and Estorff, O., (2002), "Simulation of the Dynamic Behavior of Bedding-Foundation-Soil in the Time Domain", Springer Verlag.
External links
Worldwide Geotechnical Literature Database
{{Authority control
Geotechnical engineering,