GEOTECHNICAL ENGINEERING

PAST AND FUTURE

Braja M. Das
The development of Geotechnical
Engineering up to about 1700 A.D. was
through experimentation without
scientific character
Galileo and Descartes made references
to the idea of speed and distance
moved without stating what it meant

Egypt

Mesopotamia

China

India
River

Annual rainfall
(mm)
Source

Flood rise (m)

Percentage
silt
Type of silt

Gradient
Nile

250

African lakes
and Abyssinia
5-7

0.17

Clay with up
to 20% sand
1:13,000
Tigris and
Euphrates
200

Mountains of
Armenia
5

0.75

Calcareous
loam
1:26,000
Huang Ho
(Yellow River)
500

Kunlum
Mountains
4-7

1 to 2

Loess

1:35,000
Indus

250

Hindu Kush &
Himilayays
4-5

0.43

Fine clay

1:7,000

Dykes dating back to about 2000 B.C. were
built in the basin of the Indus to protect the
town of Mohenjo Dara (in Pakistan after 1947).
During the Chan Dynasty in China (1120 B.C. to
249 B.C.) many dykes were built for irrigation
purposes. There is no evidence that measures
were taken to stabilize the foundations or
check erosion caused by floods.
Beginning around 2750 B.C., the five most
important pyramids were built in Egypt in a
period of less than a century (Saqqarah,
Medium, Dahshur South and North and Cheops).
This posed formidable challenges regarding
foundations, stability of slopes, and
construction of underground chambers
With the arrival of Buddhism in China during
the Eastern Han Dynasty in 68 A.D.,
thousands of pagodas were built. Many of
these structures were constructed on silt and
soft clay layers. In some cases the
foundation pressure exceeded the load-
bearing capacity of the soil, thereby causing
extensive structural damage.
One of the most famous example of soil
bearing capacity-related problems in the
construction of structures in the pre-18
th

century era is the Leaning tower began in
1173 A.D. when the Republic of Pisa was
flourishing and continued in various stages
for over 200 years.
OVERVIEW
1. Pre-Classical Soil Mechanics
(1717 1775)
1. Classical Soil Mechanics Phase I
(1776 1850)
1. Classical Soil Mechanics Phase II
(1850 1910)
1. Modern Soil Mechanics
(1910 Present)
Pre-Classical

Empirical earth pressure theories based on
natural slope and unit weight of earthfill
material.
Henri Gautier (1660 1737), after working in
the maritime service, took a senior post in
the Ponts et Chausses in 1713.
Henri Gautier
Paris - 1717 Dissertation
In the chapter on retaining walls, he classified soil as :
Soil

(lb/ft
3
)
Natural
slope
Clean dry sand
Ordinary earth
Compacted clay
115
85
31
o
45
o
Bernard Forest de Belidor (1694 1761),
professor mathematics at the military college at
La Fre, saw active services as an engineer
during the War of Austrian Succession, and
then settled in Paris; a member of the Academy
of Sciences and Fellow of the Royal Society.
Bernard Forest de Belidor
Paris, 1729
(a) Rock
(b) Sand
(c) Ordinary earth
(d) Soft earth
(e) Clay
(f ) Peat
In his textbook, he classified soil for foundation
problems as :
Earth Pressure on Retaining Walls
P= 1/2 H
2
/2
Earth
Natural
slope
= 45
o
Fill
H
de Belidor, 1729 ( Textbook )
A C
B
Following Balidor, many earth pressure
theories were developed summarized by
Mayniel (1808)
From archives of Corps du Gnie
Francois Gadroy (1705 1759), an officer in the
Corps du Gnie, served in the Netherlands, was
promoted to Captain at Valenciennes in 1747
and later became chief engineer at Brest.
Francois Gadroy
Chief Engineer at Brest, France 1746
Existence of slip plane behind retaining walls
First results of model tests
Typical Features Observed in a
Retaining Wall Failure
Crack

64
o
Earth Fill
de Belidor, 1729 ( Textbook )
Natural slope
(c. 45
o
)

Slip plane

Model Tests
Line of rupture

57
o
Sand
Natural slope
(31
o
)

3 in.

Jean Rodolphe Perronet (1708 - 1794), chief
engineer of the Ponts et Chausses and director
of the Ecole from its inception in 1747; member
of the Academy of Sciences and Fellow of the
Royal Society.
Jean Rodolphe Perronet
Director of Ecole Polytechnique
Paris, 1769
Slope stability
Intact ground and fill
Introduction of water into slope
(seepage analysis)
Classical Soil Mechanics
Phase I (1776 - 1850)
Dominated by :

c = 0 assumption
cohesion strength of clay

Era of Coulomb to Rankine
Charles Coulomb (1736 1806) studied at the
military engineering school at Mzires,
served in France and abroad from 1762 to
1781, and settled in Paris.
Charles Augustin Coulomb
France, 1776
Active and passive pressure theories.
Gaspard de Prony (1755 1839)
Distinguished civil engineer; held the Chair
of Mechanics at the Ecole Polytechnique.
G. C. M. R. Prony
Paris
Textbook: Nouvelle Architecture Hydraulique,
Vol. 1, Paris, 1790

Led to acceptance of Coulombs theory
J acques Fredric Francais (1775 1833)
studied at the Ecole Polytechnique, served
as an army engineer from 1801 and in 1811
became professor of fortifications and
surveying at Metz Military College.
J. F. Francais France, 1820
Extend Coulombs theory to active earth
pressure of a cohesive fill.
Short-term stability of excavated clay slope.
Claude Louis Marie Henry Navier (1785
1836), professor of applied mechanics at the
Ecole des Ponts et Chausses and, from
1831, also at the Ecole Polytechnique;
member of the Academy of sciences.
C. L. M. H. Navier Paris, 1833
Indirect mention of long-term
c = 0
hypothesis for slope in intact ground
Alexandre Collin (1808 1890) graduated
from the Ecole Polytechnique and was
appointed as a Ponts et Chausses engineer
on the Canal de Bourgogne in 1833. From
1855 he worked at Orleans as engineer-in-
chief of the Loire. He wrote on many
engineering subjects including hydrology
and grouting.
Block on Block
Friction Tests, Lias Clay
Collin (1846)
Clay having consistency of dry
soap
(kg/cm
2
)
Sample area = 57 cm
2
Static
Sliding (10 cm/sec)
= 36
o
S
Picture missed
J ean Victor Poncelet (1788 1867), after
serving as army engineer, became professor
of mechanics at Metz in 1824 and at the
Sorbonne from 1837. A member of the
Academy of Sciences, distinguished for his
work in applied mechanics and hydraulics.
C. V. Poncelet Paris, 1840
Correct solutions for linear wedge theory for
active and passive pressure (c = 0).
Sloping wall, sloping backfill, wall friction.
First introduction of symbol.
First analysis of ultimate bearing capacity.
William J ohn Macquorn Rankine (1820 - 1872)
F.R.S., professor of engineering at Glasgow
University. His teaching and writings exerted
a strong influence on British engineering
education and practice. The Manual remained
a standard textbook well into 20
th
century.
W. J. M. Rankine 1862
Earth Pressure Theory
Soil

lb/ft
3

(Degrees)
K
a
k
p
Saturated mud
Wet clay
Clay
Sand
Gravel
100
115
120
110
100
0
16
26
33
37
1.00
0.57
0.38
0.29
0.25
1.0
1.8
2.6
3.5
4.0

Henri Philibert Gaspard Darcy (1803 1853)
rose to a senior position in the Ponts et
Chausses, working on water supply at
Dijon, on the Paris-Lyon railway, and in
Paris. From 1855, he devoted himself entirely
to hydraulic research.
Classical Soil Mechanics Phase II
1850 - 1910
H. P. G. Darcy, 1856
- Experiment with grade filters
J. V. Boussienq, 1883
- Stresses and displacement of elastic field
O. Reynold, 1887
- Property of dilatency of granular material
and negative pore water pressure.
J oseph Valentin Boussinesq (1842 1929),
member of the Academy of Sciences,
professor of applied mathematics at Lille
and, from 1886, at the Sorbonne. His
celebrated Application des potentiels, giving
stresses and displacements in elastic
foundations, was published in 1885.
Osborne Reynolds (1842 1912), F.R.S.,
professor of engineering at Manchester from
1868 to 1905, distinguished for his research in
hydraulics.
Modern Soil Mechanics
1910 - Present
A. M. Atterberg, 1911
- Consistency of clay
J . Frontar, 1914
- Double shear test under normal load
( 0 )
Modern Soil Mechanics
1910 - Present
A. L. Bell, 1915
- Lateral pressure and resistance of clay
- Bearing capacity of clay foundations
W. Fellenius, 1926
- Slope stability, = 0 concept
Modern Soil Mechanics
1910 - Present
Karl Terzaghi, 1919 1925
Effective stress concept
Consolidation
Shear strength of clays
Permeability of clays
Publication of several articles in Engineering
News Record
Publication of Erdbaumechanik, 1925
















Karl Terzaghi
Father of Modern Soil Mechanics
Born October 2, 1883, at Prague (capital of
the Austrian Province of Bohemia)
B.S. in Mechanical Engineering (1904)
Technisch Hochschule, Graz. Austria
January 1912 Doctorate Technical Science
Karl Terzaghi
1916 Imperial School of Engineers,
Istanbul
1918 1925 Lecturer at American Robert
College, Istanbul
1925 1929 Lecturer, M. I. T. (USA)
1929 Returned to Vienna
1939 Returned to USA
Harvard University
1926 1936
(Dominated by Terzaghi)
1936 First ISSMFE conference Papers on
shear stress, effective stress, torsion test,
undisturbed sampling, direct cone test, pore
pressure measurement, significance of pre-
compression on testing, secondary
consolidation, electro-osmosis, swelling
clays, arching, frost action.

















1939 - 1948
1939 Terzaghi
45
th
James Forest lecture to Institute of
Engineers Soil Mechanics A New
Chapter in Engineering Science
General wedge theory (Terzaghi)
Consulting by Terzaghi in the Chicago
Subway project (strut load); Charity Hospital,
New Orleans, Louisiana (settlement)
Theoretical Soil Mechanics, Terzaghi, 1943
1939 1948 cont.
Skempton paper on = 0 concept for clay,
1947
Soil Mechanics in Engineering Practice,
Terzaghi and Peck, 1948
Fundamentals of Soil Mechanics, Taylor, 1948
Geotechnique, 1948 (journal)
1950 - 1960
Skempton pore pressure coefficient
A and B publication, 1954
Measurement of Soil Properties in the
Triaxial Test, Bishop and Henkel, 1957
ASCE Research Conference on Shear
Strength, 1960
1970 - 1985
Soil dynamics research initiated
(Richards et al.)
Earthquake geotechnical engineering
research accelerated (Seed et al.)
Advances in finite difference and finite element
solution
1970 1985 cont.
Geosynthetics and applications
Soil improvement and stabilization such as
mini-piles and geogrid reinforcement
The Future
Soil reinforcement
Field behavior of piles and drilled shafts
Waste management and environmental
geotechnics
Computer applications to field observation
and construction practices
The Future cont.
Earthquake engineering and soil dynamics
Behavior of soft clay and stability analysis
New techniques for soil improvement