Soil Strength

PART 1
LECTURE IV
Why do we need to study Soil Strength?

The safety of any geotechnical structure is dependent

on the strength of the soil. The term ‘strength of soil’
normally refers to the shearing strength or shear strength.

Ifthe soil fails, a structure founded on or within it can

collapse, endangering lives and causing economic
damage.
Important Terminologies and Notations.
• Shear strength of a soil (τf)[tau sub f] is the maximum
internal shear resistance to applied shearing forces.

• Effective
friction angle (Φ’)[phi prime] is a measure of the
shear strength of soils due to friction. It is also called
angle of shearing resistance.
Important Terminologies and Notations.
• Cementation (ccm) is a measure of the shear strength
(can also be interpreted as bond strength) of a soil from
forces that cement the particles.

• Soiltension (ct) is a measure of the apparent shear

strength of a soil from soil suction (negative pore water
pressures or capillary stresses)
Important Terminologies and Notations.
• Cohesion (co) is a measure of the resistance due to
intermolecular forces.

• Undrained
shear strength (su) is the shear strength of a soil
when sheared at constant volume.

• Apparentcohesion (C) is the apparent shear strength at

zero normal effective stress.
Important Terminologies and Notations.
• Critical
state is a stress state (failure stress state) reached
in a soil when continuous shearing occurs at constant
shear stress to normal effective stress ratio and constant
volume.

• Dilation
is a measure of the change in volume of a soil
when the soil is distorted by shearing.
BASIC CONCEPT
 z

x
When a soil is sheared, it mobilizes its fabric (structural
arrangement of its particles or grains) to effectively
resist the imposed shear stresses.
 Condition in which the soil fabric cannot resist
further shearing stresses.

FAILURE
Will occur along a path or swath within the
soil fabric that offers the least resistance.

Along the path of least resistance, the soil reaches a critical density or unit
weight that remains constant under continuous shearing.
 - Initial stresses

INITIAL STATE - Initial unit weight/density

- Overconsolidation Ratio
Have significant
influence on the soil
- Magnitude fabric that is mobilized
SHEARING
STRESSES during shearing.
- Direction

SHEAR STRAIN
Unlike a 3-dimensional truss, where the members are held
together at joints, the joints in soils are grain or particle
contacts.

It is these grain to grain contacts that

provide the shearing resistance.

The prevailing theory is that FAILURE occurs when the average frictional
resistance of grains along the path or swath of least resistance is
EXCEEDED.
Typical Response of Soils to
Shearing Forces
Typical Response of Soils to Shearing Forces
UNCEMENTED SOILS TYPE I
 Loose sands, normally consolidated and lightly
overconsolidated clays (OCR ≤ 2).

are observed to
 compress, meaning, they become denser until no further
change in volume occurs or until a constant void ratio,
which is the critical void ratio (ecs) is reached.
Typical Response of Soils to Shearing Forces
UNCEMENTED SOILS TYPE I
 Loose sands, normally consolidated and lightly
overconsolidated clays (OCR ≤ 2).

are observed to
• show gradual increase in shear stresses as the shear strain
increases (strain-hardens) until an approximately
constant shear stress, which we will call the ‘Critical State
Shear Stress’ (τcs) is attained.
Typical Response of Soils to Shearing Forces
UNCEMENTED SOILS TYPE I
 Loose sands, normally consolidated and lightly
overconsolidated clays (OCR ≤ 2).

are observed to
 at very low normal effective stress can also exhibit peak
shear stress during shearing.
Typical Response of Soils to Shearing Forces
UNCEMENTED SOILS TYPE II
 Dense sands, heavily overconsolidated clays (OCR > 2).

are observed to
 compress initially (attributed to particle adjustment) and
then expand, that is, they become looser [comparative-
adjective: more loose] until a critical void ratio (the same
void ratio as in type 1) is attained.
Typical Response of Soils to Shearing Forces
UNCEMENTED SOILS TYPE II
 Dense sands, heavily overconsolidated clays (OCR > 2).

are observed to
• show a rapid increase in shear stresses reaching a peak
value τp, at low shear strains and then show a decrease
in shear stress with the increasing shear strain (strain-
softens), ultimately attaining a ‘Critical State Shear Stress’
(τcs).
Typical Response of Soils to Shearing Forces
IMPORTANT:
the strain-softening response generally results from
localized failure zones called ‘SHEAR BANDS’.
SHEAR BANDS are soil pockets that have loosened and
reached the critical state shear stress. Between the shear
bands are denser soils that gradually loosen as shearing
continues. The shear bands are synonymous with the swath
within the soil fabric that offers the least resistance.
Typical Response of Soils to Shearing Forces
IMPORTANT:
“When a shear band develops in some types of
overconsolidated clays, the particles become oriented
parallel to the direction of the shear band, causing the final
shear stress of these clays to decrease below the critical state
shear stress.”
Typical Response of Soils to Shearing Forces
UNCEMENTED SOILS TYPE II-A
 the final shear stress attained is the residual shear stress, τr.

 have often been observed in slopes with clay-rich soils

that have failed in the past.

 the prior movement of these slopes polished the soil

particles reducing the frictional resistance.
DILATION
Volume expansion
Ameasure of the increase in volume of the soil with respect
to the change in shear strain.
Depends essentially on the structural arrangement of the soil
particles and the applied stress path.
Can be seen in action at a beach.
DILATION
If you place your foot on the beach sand just following a
receding wave, you will notice that the initially wet, saturated
sand around your foot momentarily appears to be dry (whitish
color). This results from the sand mass around your foot
DILATING and sucking water up into the voids. The water is
released, showing up as surface water when you lift your foot
up.
CRITICAL STATE SHEAR STRESS
The stress state reached by a soil when no further change in
shear stress and volume occurs under continuous shearing at
a constant normal effective stress.
Three Models for
Interpreting the Shear
Strength of Soils
Coulomb’s Failure Criterion
statesthat the shear strength of a soil is proportional to
normal effective stress acting on the failure (or slip) plane.

Coulomb’s failure criterion for saturated uncemented soils at

critical state

𝝉𝒄𝒔 = 𝝈′𝒏 𝒄𝒔 𝐭𝐚𝐧 𝝓′𝒄𝒔 𝑬𝒒. 𝟏

 𝝉𝒄𝒔 = 𝝈′𝒏 𝒄𝒔 𝐭𝐚𝐧 𝝓′𝒄𝒔 𝑬𝒒. 𝟏
where:

τcs = Vcs/A = shear stress at critical state,

Vcs = shear force at critical state
A = area of plane parallel to Vcs
(σ’n)cs = normal effective stress at critical state
Φ’cs = critical state friction angle
= a fundamental soil parameter and, for a given
soil, does not change with loading conditions
Since the area on which the shear force and the normal force act
is the same,
𝑽𝒄𝒔 = 𝑷𝒄𝒔 𝐭𝐚𝐧 𝝓′𝒄𝒔
Coulomb’s failure criterion for saturated uncemented soils at
peak stress state
𝝉𝒑 = 𝝈′𝒏 𝒑 𝐭𝐚𝐧 𝝓′𝒑 = 𝝈′𝒏 𝒑 𝐭𝐚𝐧 𝝓′ 𝒄𝒔 + 𝜶𝒑 𝑬𝒒. 𝟐
where:
τp = Vp/A = shear stress at peak state,
Vp = shear force at peak state
A = area of plane parallel to Vp
(σ’n)p = normal effective stress on the plane on which slip is
initiated
Φ’p = effective friction angle at peak state
= is not a fundamental soil parameter
Coulomb’s failure criterion for saturated uncemented soils at
peak stress state
𝝉𝒑 = 𝝈′𝒏 𝒑 𝐭𝐚𝐧 𝝓′𝒑 = 𝝈′𝒏 𝒑 𝐭𝐚𝐧 𝝓′ 𝒄𝒔 + 𝜶𝒑 𝑬𝒒. 𝟐
where:
αp = peak dilation angle
= is not also a fundamental soil parameter but
changes with loading conditions and the initial stress
state.
= at critical state, α = 0 and eq.2 reduces to eq.1
If a soil mass is constrained in the lateral directions, the
dilation angle is represented (Figure 2) as
−𝟏
−𝜟𝑯𝒐
𝜶 = 𝐭𝐚𝐧 𝑬𝒒. 𝟑
𝜟𝒙
where:
ΔHo = change in height; the negative denotes for expansion
Δx = change in horizontal displacement
Note: The dilation angle for a soil that tends to expand will be
positive.
From Eq.2, the peak shear stress increases as the dilation
angle increases. Thus, the peak friction angle is dependent on the
ability of the soil to dilate.
In the case of an unsaturated soil with some degree of
cementation and cohesion, the Coulomb’s friction law can
be written as
𝝉𝒑 = 𝑪 + (𝝈′ 𝒏 )𝒑 𝐭𝐚𝐧 𝝃𝒐 𝑬𝒒. 𝟒
where:
C = Co + Ct + Ccm = apparent shear strength at zero normal
effective stress
ξo = apparent friction angle

Note: Neither C nor ξo is a fundamental soil parameter.

Mohr-Coulomb’s Failure Criterion
Coulomb’s friction law for finding the shear strength of soils
requires that we know the friction angle and the normal
effective stress on the slip plane.

Both of these components are not readily known because

soils are usually subjected to variety of stresses.

By combining Mohr’s circle for finding stress state with

Coulomb’s frictional law, we can develop a generalized
failure criterion.
Mohr-Coulomb’s Failure Criterion
The Mohr-Coulomb (MC) failure criterion defines failure
when the maximum principal effective stress ratio called
‘maximum effective stress obliquity’,
𝜎′1
𝜎′3 𝑚𝑎𝑥

is achieved and not when the ‘maximum shear stress’,

𝜎′1 − 𝜎′3
2 𝑚𝑎𝑥

is achieved.
The Mohr-Coulomb criterion is expressed as:
a. Saturated or clean, dry, uncemented soils at critical state.

𝝈′𝟏 − 𝝈′𝟑
𝐬𝐢𝐧 𝝓′𝒄𝒔 = 𝑬𝒒. 𝟓
𝝈′𝟏 + 𝝈′𝟑 𝒄𝒔

𝝈′𝟏 − 𝝈′𝟑
𝝉𝒄𝒔 = 𝐜𝐨𝐬 𝝓′𝒄𝒔 𝑬𝒒. 𝟔
𝟐 𝒄𝒔

b. Saturated or clean, dry, uncemented soils at peak state.

𝝈′𝟏 − 𝝈′𝟑
𝐬𝐢𝐧 𝝓′𝒑 = 𝑬𝒒. 𝟕
𝝈′𝟏 + 𝝈′𝟑 𝒑

𝝈′𝟏 − 𝝈′𝟑 𝝈′𝟏 − 𝝈′𝟑

𝝉𝒑 = 𝒄𝒐𝒔 𝝓′𝒑 = 𝒄𝒐𝒔 𝝓′ 𝒄𝒔 + 𝜶𝒑 𝑬𝒒. 𝟖
𝟐 𝒑
𝟐 𝒑
The Mohr-Coulomb criterion is expressed as:
c. Unsaturated, cemented, cohesive soils

𝝈′𝟏 − 𝝈′𝟑
𝐬𝐢𝐧 𝝃𝒐 = 𝑬𝒒. 𝟗
𝟐𝑪 𝐜𝐨𝐭 𝝃𝒐 + (𝝈′ 𝟏 + 𝝈′ 𝟑 )

𝟏
𝝉𝒑 = 𝑪 + 𝐭𝐚𝐧 𝝃𝒐 𝝈′ 𝟏 (𝟏 − 𝐬𝐢𝐧 𝝃𝒐 ) + 𝝈′ 𝟑 (𝟏 + 𝐬𝐢𝐧 𝝃𝒐 ) 𝑬𝒒. 𝟏𝟎
𝟐
In figure 8.9, the angle BCO = θf represents the inclination of
the failure plane )BC) or slip plane to the plane on which the
major principal effective stress acts in Mohr’s circle. This angle
is
CRITICAL STATE:
𝝓′𝒄𝒔
𝜽𝒄𝒔 = 𝟒𝟓° +
𝟐

PEAK STATE:
𝝓′𝒑
𝜽𝒑 = 𝟒𝟓° +
𝟐
The MC failure criterion is a limiting stress criterion. Therefore,
the failure lines AG and AH (figure 8.9) are fixed lines in [τ,
σ’n] space.
The line AG is the failure line for compression.
While, the line AH is the failure line for extension (soil
elongates; the lateral effective stress is greater than the
vertical effective stress).
The shear strength in compression and in extension from
interpreting soil strength using the MC failure criterion is
identical, but in reality, this is not so.
The MC failure criterion, like the Coulomb failure criterion,
treats the soil above and below the failure plane as rigid
bodies.
Strains,
which are important for geosystems design are not
considered.
Also, the MC criterion does not consider the loading history
of the soil that is known to influence the shearing responses
of soils.
Tresca’s Failure Criterion
states that the shear stress at failure is one-half the principal
stress difference. (Note: Tresca’s criterion is a yield not a
failure criterion, but it is accepted and considered as failure
criterion.)
It is used to interpret the undrained shear strength, su, which
is the shear strength of a fine-grained soil under undrained
conditions.
The undrained shear strength is the radius of the Mohr total
stress circle as shown in figure 8.11a.
(𝜎1 )𝑓 −(𝜎3 )𝑓 (𝜎′1 )𝑓 −(𝜎′3 )𝑓
𝑠𝑢 = =
2 2
The subscript f in the equation is replaced by subscript cs for
critical state and subscript p for peak stress.
The shear strength under undrained loading depends only
on the initial void ratio or the initial water content or initial
confining pressure.
An increase in initial normal effective stress, sometimes
called confining pressure, causes a decrease in the initial
void ratio and a larger change in excess porewater pressure
when a soil is sheared under undrained conditions.
The result is that the Mohr’s circle of total stress expands and
the undrained shear strength increases (figure 8.11b).
Thus, su, is not a fundamental soil property. It’s value
depends on the magnitude of the initial confining pressure
or the initial void ratio or initial water content.
Analyses of soil strength and soil stability problems using su
are called total stress analyses (TSA).
END of PART 1