INTEGRATED COURSE IN ENGINEERING GEOLOGY

Integrated educational activity

Course Sheet

Course code:

AI714

Academic Year of enrolment:

2021

Year of supply:

2023/2024

Degree:

Course of 1st Cycle Degree in BUILDING ENGINEERING

Moduls:

APPLIED GEOLOGY - 6 credits
GEOTECHNICAL ENGINEERING - 6 credits

Location:

PESCARA

Credits:

Programme Year:

Cycle:

Single Annual Cycle

Hours of classroom activity:

120

Prerequisites:

Mathematical analysis, Physics

Objectives

Provide the basic skills for the profession of engineering geologists in the fields of water resources, planning, construction and risk prevention; while the educational objectives of Geotechnique are to provide to the students the basic knowledge of soil mechanics and hydraulics, constitutive laws, in situ and laboratory investigation and experimentation techniques. Furthermore, the course aims to provide the ability (1) to determine the physical and mechanical parameters of the soil; (2) to plan and interpret the necessary investigations for the design of the main geotechnical works; (3) to use the terminology of the discipline appropriately; (4) to find and understand the scientific literature relating to the main themes of soil mechanics and its applications; (5) to acquire the methodological tools to continue their studies and to provide autonomously for their own updating and classification of the topics covered.

Contents

The course of Geoengineering in composed by two items: Applied geology and Geotechnique. The Applied Geology intends to provide the basic elements of stratigraphic, structural and geophysical geology to be used in the field of engineering applications. The knowledge of natural materials will be one of the topics addressed as well as their physical and mechanical characteristics. Importance will be given to studies on filtration in porous systems in one and two-dimensional fields. Another fundamental theme will be the study of slope stability analysis methods.
Geotechnique introduces to Soil mechanics, Geotechnical tests on site and in the laboratory and Foundations technical elements and supporting works.

Extended Syllabus

Applied Geology
Geological risks: hazard, vulnerability and exposure; classification of geological risks; impact and statistics, risk assessment and mitigation.
Geological-technical surveys and maps: geological exploration techniques, in situ surveys, surveys and sampling, geological-technical mapping, in situ survey planning. Preliminary characterization of rock and soil in situ and in the laboratory. Properties of rocks and soils for technical applications: behavior of different types of rock in construction; shales, sandstones and associated rocks; soluble rocks: limestones, dolomites and evaporites; plutonic igneous rocks and volcanic rocks; metamorphic rocks; rock structure, discontinuities and faults. Hydrogeology: hydraulic properties of soils, groundwater flow, groundwater, aquifers, and springs. Geological problems of engineering works: support structures, ground instability; surface and underground excavations, and support of rocks and land, natural and artificial slopes. Landslides: classification, types, mechanism, activity; site surveys; causes and factors of landslides; monitoring techniques; mitigation works and risk reduction measures. Innovative techniques: wireless sensor networks, infrared thermography, laser scanner, radar interferometry, remote sensing. Practical exercises in geotechnical laboratory, field trips, illustrative examples.
Geotechnique
0 - Introduction to the course: Peculiarities of geotechnics; Typical geotechnical problems
1 - Origin, constitution, and classification of soil: Soil formation; Soil structure; Relationship between phases and index properties; Grain size composition; Atterberg and consistency index limits; Classification systems
2 - Soil as porous media: Types of groundwater; Analysis of filtration motions in stationary conditions; Darcy's Law, One-dimensional Filtration; Permeability coefficient
3 - Soil stresses: Review on the analysis of continuous stresses and strains; Principle of Effective Tensions; State of stresses in geostatic conditions
Stress states induced by surface loads (Boussinesq and Steinbrenner solutions);
4 - Soil mechanics: Elastic model, plastic model, outline of complex rheological models; Drained and undrained conditions; Compressibility and tension history; Edometric test (diagrams and interpretations); One-dimensional consolidation theory (outline); Yielding criteria (Mohr-Coulomb, Tresca); Soil behavior with simple shear deformation; Direct and torsional shear tests (diagrams and interpretations); Triaxial tests CID, CIU, UU (diagrams and interpretations); Undrained resistance; Soil thrust (active and passive states)
5 - On-site investigations: Planning of investigations; Boreholes and sampling; Main on-site geotechnical tests
6 - Elements of Foundations and retaining structures: Shallow foundations: bearing capacity and settlement (outline); Pile Foundations: executive technologies; Main retaining structures and operating principles.

Recommended Bibliography

Lecture notes of the teachers.
GEOLOGIA APPLICATA ALL'AMBIENTE 2008 - Canuti, Crescenti, Francani - Editrice Zanichelli
Goodman R.E. - Engineering Geology: Rock in Engineering Construction. John Wiley & Sons Inc
Todd D.K. & Mays L.W. - Groundwater Hydrology. John Wiley & Sons Inc
Berardi - "Fondamenti di Geotecnica", Città Studi edizioni
Colleselli, Colombo - "Elementi di Geotecnica", Zanichelli

Teaching Methods

The course includes lectures and classroom exercises, field exercises and Online lectures. The exercises are aimed at clarifying, through application examples, the topics developed in class. The goal is to allow to the student to acquire a familiarity with the results of in situ and laboratory tests, an interpretative ability of the same, an attitude of formulating boundary problems, a critical use of mechanical parameters in the most recurrent geotechnical applications.

Evaluation methods

Verification of learning:

The exam will take place separately for the two integrated disciplines. For the part of Geotechnics there is a written test preparatory to the oral test in which a final grade of thirty will be established. At the same time, the oral exam for Applied Geology will take place. The arithmetic mean will provide the final grade will be calculated of the two votes. For both oral tests, the student will be asked no less than three questions regarding all the topics covered in the respective integrated courses. The written exam focuses on the applications of geotechnics in the field of filtration, of the theory of the soil as an elastic and / or plastic medium and on the development of in situ geognostic tests and laboratory tests.
The questions of the oral exam so require to illustrate orally, with the use of a support (paper or blackboard), arguments regarding the full exam program. For each question, the committee evaluates the accuracy, completeness and organization of the explanation, and also the detail and eventually the autonomy of study, the clarity of presentation and the property of language.

Contacts/More Information

The discipline needs good mathematical and physical preparation.Course frequency is recommended

Università degli Studi
"G. d'Annunzio"

Chieti - Pescara

Aree

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