Department of Architecture & Civil Engineering, Unit Catalogue 2008/09 |
AR40324 Advanced geotechnical engineering |
| Credits: 3 |
| Level: Masters |
| Semester: 2 |
| Assessment: EX 100% |
| Requisites: |
| Before taking this unit you must take AR30083 |
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Aims: To give a knowledge and understanding of a range of more advanced geotechnical engineering problems than are covered in the core units.
Learning Outcomes: On completion of this unit, the successful student will be able to demonstrate: *a depth of understanding of the problems studied, and their relationship to design and construction. * a systematic understanding of this knowledge, and a critical awareness of current problems and/or new insights, much of which is at, or informed by, the forefront of this area of professional practice; and, * conceptual understanding that enables the student to evaluate critically current practice and new developments, and propose new solutions. Skills: Intellectual skills * To understand taught material - taught Professional/Practical skills * An ability to design and analyse solutions for more complex geotechnical engineering problems.- assessed Transferable/key skills * To communicate ideas verbally and in writing - facilitated and assessed. Content: The 'trees and foundations' problem. Importance of soil type, tree species and size, location relative to building, rainfall, ground cover, ground water movement, building brittleness. Behaviour of soil as water content is reduced and air enters. Approaches to risk in design and assessment of existing buildings. Need for an empirical approach in the face of inevitable shortage of data for a theoretical approach. Rock mechanics: tunnelling, excavations, hemispherical projection method for mapping joints, determination of stability of cut slopes. Soil dynamics and geotechnical earthquake engineering. |