Module overview
Learn how the ground behaves in response to engineering loads and construction processes. Become expert at testing soil materials in the hands-on lab sessions, and develop skills to analyse geotechnical structures, including such as and retaining walls.
This module gives students the skills to apply the principles of soil mechanics – this is the engineering discipline concerned with the behaviour of geomaterials (soil and rock). During the first half of the module, you will learn the fundamental properties that control geomaterial behaviour – including stiffness, strength and groundwater flow. You will gain the practical skills to determine these properties through hands-on laboratory testing activities. The second half of the module provides students with the skills to link geomaterial properties to various engineering design challenges. These include the settlement of foundations, the stability of retaining walls and the seepage of water into excavations.
The skills and knowledge obtained in this module are essential for all civil engineers and are used when designing anything that interacts with the ground. All buildings and structures need foundations; all water supply and wastewater systems are affected by groundwater flow; all transport infrastructure must be founded on resilient base materials. This module builds on the introduction to geological materials covered in the first year, and provides a foundation for more detailed analysis of geotechnical structures later in this course.