CVL 205: Soil Mechanics
Unit I: Introduction
Concept of soil,Definition and meaning of soil mechanics, History of soil mechanics
Scope of soil mechanics, Soil formation
Unit II: Weight And Volume Relationship Of Soil
Definition of soil mass, Components of soil mass, Phase diagram of soil mass and its
labeling, Weight and volume of soil with usual notation, Dry soil and wet soil
Void ratio, Porosity and their relations, Types of water in soil, Bulk density, saturated,
submerged and dry density, Difference between adsorbed water and absorbed water in
soil, Saturated, partly saturated and dry soil
Unit III: Classification Of Soil
Definition of Coarse and fine grained soil, Homogeneity, Consistency, Cohesiveness,
Toughness, Shear strength, Compressibility, Difference between coarse and fine grained
soil, Two methods of soil classification, Grain size classification of soil as per I.S.I and
classification of soil using plasticity chart, Sieve analysis and Stoke’s law, Sedimentation
analysis of soil, Particle size - Distribution curve on semi log scale, States of consistency and
its diagram, Consistency limits- Liquid limit, plastic limit, shrinkage limit and plasticity
index (P.I), Laboratory methods to find out these limits, Field identification tests
Unit IV: Permeability
Definition and understanding of permeability, Different types of soil and permeability,
Laminar and turbulent flow, Importance of permeability, Darcy’s Law
Coefficient of permeability and its determination in laboratory, Factors affecting
permeability, Confined and unconfined aquifer, Dupit’s Formula, Field determination of
permeability by pumping out and pumping in test, Concepts meaning of seepage, Effects of
seepage, Flow lines and flow net diagram (only understanding)
