Civil Engineering - Soil Mechanics and Foundation Engineering MCQs Part 2

1. The maximum shear stress occurs on the filament which makes an angle with the horizontal plane equal to

A.
30°

B.
45°

C.
60°

D.
90°

 Answer Option B

2. For determining the moisture content of a soil sample, the following data is available Weight of container = 260 g, Weight of soil sample and = 320 g container, Weight of soil sample (dried) and = 310 g container. The moisture content of the soil sample, is

A.
15%

B.
18%

C.
20%

D.
25%

 Answer Option C

3. Buoyant unit weight equals the saturated density

A.
multiplied by unit weight of water

B.
divided by unit weight of water

C.
plus unit weight of water

D.
minus unit weight of water.

 Answer Option D

4. Pick up the correct statement from the following:

A.
An unconfined compression test is a special case of triaxial compression test

B.
An unconfined compression test is a special case of direct shear test

C.
The confining pressure is maximum during an unconfined compression test

D.
The cylindrical specimen of a soil is subjected to major principal stress till it fails due to shearing along the plane of the failure.

 Answer Option A

5. A partially saturated soil is classified as

A.
one phase soil

B.
two phase soil

C.
three phase soil

D.
four phase soil.

 Answer Option C

6. Pick up the in-correct statement from the following: The soils which contain montmorillonite minerals

A. swell more when wet

B. shrink more when dry

C. possess high plasticity

D. possess high coefficient of internal coefficient

E. None of these.

 Answer Option D

7. For determing the specific gravity of soil solids, using a pycnometer of 500 cc., the following data is available : Weight of dry empty pycnometer = 125 g Weight of dried soil and pycnometer = 500 g Weight of dried soil and distilled = 850 g water filled in pycnometer up to top The specific gravity of soil soilds, is

A. 2.0

B. 2.25

C. 2.50

D. 2.75

 Answer Option C

8. Pick up the correct statement from the following:

A. Kaolinite is most stable clay

B. Kaolinite shows a very little sign of swelling on wetting

C. Kaolinite when wet, becomes moderately plastic because negative electro magnetic charges on platelets attrack water

D. Kaolinite is also called China clay

E. All the above.

 Answer Option E

9. A pile is being driven with a drop hammer weighing 1800 kg and having a free fall of 1.00 m. If the penetration with last blow is 5 mm, the load carrying capacity of the pile, -according to the Engineering News formula, is

A. 100 tonnes

B. 50 tonnes

C. 20 tonnes

D. 10 tonnes.

 Answer Option D

10. If the specific gravity and voids in soil sample are G and e respectively, the hydraulic gradient i, is

A.

B.

C.

D.

 Answer Option A

11. Pick up the correct statement from the following :

A. To an agriculturist, soil is the substance existing on the earth's surface, which grows and develops plants

B. To a geologist, soil is the material in a relatively thin surface zone within which roots occur, and rest of the crust is termed as rock irrespective of hardness

C. To an engineer, soil is the unaggregated and uncemented deposits of minerals and organic particles covering the earth's crust

D. All the above.

 Answer Option D

12. The ratio of settlement at any time 't' to the final settlement, is known as

A. co-efficient of consolidation

B. degree of consolidation

C. consolidation index

D. consolidation of undisturbed soil.

 Answer Option B

13. The Westergaard analysis is used for

A. sandy soils

B. cohesive soils

C. stratified soils

D. clayey soils.

 Answer Option C

14. If L and B are the length and breadth of a footing, e the eccentricity along the length and P and Q are the axial force and bearing capacity of the soil, then, to avoid tension,

A.

B.

C.

D.

 Answer Option A

15. 260 g of wet soil was taken in a pycnometer jar of weight 400 g in order to find the moisture content in the soil, with specific gravity of soil particles 2.75. The weight of soil and remaining water filled in pycnometer without air bubbles was 1415 g and the weight of pycnometer filled with water alone was 1275 g. The moisture content in the soil is

A. 24.2%

B. 18.2%

C. 53.8%

D. none of these.

 Answer Option B

16. The earth pressure of a soil at rest, is proportional to (where φ is the angle of internal friction of the soil)

A. tan (45° - φ)

B. tan (45° + φ)

C. tan2 (45° - φ)

D. tan2 (45° + φ)

E. none of these

 Answer Option E

17. A fundamental equation of void ratio(e), specific gravity (G), water content (ω) and degree of saturation (Sr) is

A. e =

B. ω =

C. G =

D. Sr =

 Answer Option A

18. The critical exist gradient of seepage water in soils, is

A. directly proportional to the voids ratio

B. inversely proportional to the specific gravity

C. directly proportional to the specific gravity

D. inversely proportional to the voids ratio

E. none of these.

 Answer Option E

19. Water content of a soil sample is the difference of the weight of the given sample at the given temperature and the weight determined after drying it for 24 hours at temperature ranging from

A. 80° to 90°C

B. 90° to 95°C

C. 95° to 100°C

D. 103° to 105°C

E. 105° to 110°C

 Answer Option E

20. The ratio of the volume of voids to the total volume of the given soil mass, is known

A. porosity

B. specific gravity

C. void ratio

D. water content.

 Answer Option A

21. The compression index of a soil

A. decreases with an increase in the liquid limit

B. increases with an increase in the liquid limit

C. decreases with an increase in the plastic limit

D. is not related with plastic limit.

 Answer Option B

22. Pick up the correct statement from the following:

A. The void space between the soil grains, is filled partly with air and partly with water

B. In perfectly saturated soil, the voids are completely filled with water

C. In dry soil, the voids are completely filled with air

D. all the above.

 Answer Option D

23. For a homogeneous earth dam 50 m high having 2 m free broad, a flow net was constructed and the results were : Number of potential drops = 2.4 Number of flow channels = 0.4. If coefficiency of permeability of the dam mateiral is 3 x 10-3 cm3/sec, the discharge per metre length of dam, is

A. 12 x 10-5 m3/sec

B. 24 x 10-3 m3/sec

C. 6 x 10-5 m3/sec

D. 24 x 10-5 m3/sec

 Answer Option D

24. W is the weight of soil having a moisture content ω. If V is the volume of proctor's mould, the dry density of the soil is

A.

B.

C.

D.

 Answer Option C

25. For shear strength, triaxial shear test is suitable because

A. it can be performed under all three drainage conditions

B. precise measurement of the pore pressure and volume change during the test is possible

C. stress distribution on the failure plane, is uniform

D. state of stress within the specimen during any stage of the test as well as at failure, is completely determined

E. all the above.

 Answer Option E

26. The degree of saturation of the soil sample stated in Q. No, 216, is

A. 60%

B. 62%

C. 64%

D. 66%

 Answer Option C

27. Number of piles required to support a column, is

A. 1

B. 2

C. 3

D. 4

 Answer Option C

28. The soil moisture driven off by heat, is called

A. free water

B. hydroscopic water

C. gravity water

D. none of these.

 Answer Option B

29. If the specific gravity of a soil particle of 0.05 cm diameter is 2.67, its terminal velocity while settling in distilled water of viscosity, 0.01 poise, is

A. 0.2200 cm/sec

B. 0.2225 cm/sec

C. 0.2250 cm/sec

D. 0.2275 cm/sec

E. 0.2300 cm/sec

 Answer Option D

30. The direct shear test suffers from the following disadvantage:

A. Drain condition cannot be controlled

B. Pore water pressure cannot be measured

C. Shear stress on the failure plane is not uniform.

D. The area under the shear and vertical loads does not remain constant throughout the test

E. All the above.

 Answer Option C

31. For a clay slope of height of 10 m, the stability number is 0.05, γ = 2.0 t/m3, C = 2.5 t/m2, the critical height of the slope of the soil, is

A. 4.0 m

B. 12.5 m

C. 25.0 m

D. 15.0 m

 Answer Option C

32. If σ0' and σ' represent initial and increased pressure ; e0 and e void ratios corresponding to initial and increased pressure ; and C0 the compression index (dimensionless), then, the virgin compression curve as expressed by Terzaghi empirical formula is

A. e = e0 + Cc log10 σ'/σ0'

B. e = e0 - Cc log10 σ'/σ0'

C. e0 = e - Cc log10 σ'/σ0'

D. e0 = e + Cc log10 σ0'/σ'

 Answer Option B

33. The equation τ = C + σ tan φ is given by

A. Rankine

B. Coulomb

C. Culaman

D. Mohr.

 Answer Option B

34. You are given a sample of soil containing coarse grains to determine its water content, you will use

A. pycnometer

B. oven-drying method

C. calcium carbide method

D. alcohol method.

 Answer Option A

35. Pick up the incorrect statement from the following:

A. Compaction has no effect on the structure of a soil

B. Permeability decreases with increase in the dry density of a compacted soil

C. A wet side compacted soil is more compressible than a dry side compacted soil

D. Dry side compaction soils swell more when given access to moisture

E. None of the these.

 Answer Option A

36. The maximum load carried by a pile, when it continues to sink without further increase of load, is known as

A. ultimate load carrying capacity

B. ultimate bearing capacity

C. ultimate bearing resistant

D. all the above.

 Answer Option D

37. The soil which contains finest grain particles, is

A. coarse sand

B. fine sand

C. silt

D. clay.

 Answer Option D

38. The general relationship between specific gravity (G), weight of water (γω), degree of saturation (Sr), void ratio (e) and bulk density (γ), is

A. γ =

B. γ =

C. γ =

D. γ =

 Answer Option B

39. If C is cohesion, F is factor of safety, γ is unit weight of soil and H is the maximum height of embankment, the stability number, is

A.

B.

C.

D.

E.

 Answer Option B

40. The angle between the directions of the failure and the major principal plane, is equal to

A. 90° + effective angle of shearing resistance

B. 90° + half of the angle of shearing resistance

C. 45° - half of the angle of shearing resistance

D. 45° + half of the angle of shearing resistance.

 Answer Option D

41. The compressibility of clays, is caused due to:

A. expulsion of double layer water from in between the grains

B. sliping of particles to new positions of greater density

C. bending of particles as elastic sheets

D. all the above.

 Answer Option D

42. A phreatic line is defined as the line within a dam section below which there are

A. positive equipotential lines

B. positive hydrostatic pressure

C. negative hydrostatic pressure

D. negative equipotential lines

E. none of these.

 Answer Option B

43. The ratio of the difference between the void ratio of the soil in its loosest state and its natural void ratio (e) to the difference between the void ratios in the loosest and fully dense state, is generally termed as

A. degree of density

B. relativity

C. density index

D. all the above.

 Answer Option D

44. Pick up the correct statement from the following:

A. The property of a soil that enables it to become stiff in a relatively short time on standing is called thixotropy

B. The ratio of shear strength in natural state to the remoulded shear strength under undrained conditions, is called degree of sensitivity.

C. The difference between the undisturbed shear strength and remoulded shear strength is known remoulding loss

D. The tendency of dense sand to expand on application of shearing load, is known as dilatancy

E. All the above.

 Answer Option E

45. According to the Indian Standards the specific gravity is the ratio of the unit weight of soil solids to that of water at a temperature of

A. 17°C

B. 23°C

C. 27°C

D. 30°

 Answer Option C

46. Pick up the correct statement from the following:

A. Illite bond is weaker than Kaolinite bond

B. Illite bond is stronger than montmorillonite bond

C. Illites do not swell when wet

D. Illites are composed of two silica tetrahedralsheets with a central octahedral sheet

E. All the above.

 Answer Option E

47. Determination of water content of a soil sample suspected to contain gypsum is made by drying the sample for longer period at a temperature not more than

A. 60°C

B. 80°C

C. 100°C

D. 110°C

 Answer Option B

48. Water formed transported soil is

A. alluvial

B. marine

C. lacustrine

D. loess.

 Answer Option A

49. A decrease in water content results in a reduction of the volume of a soil in

A. liquid state

B. plastic state

C. semi solid state

D. all of these.

 Answer Option D

50. Pick up the correct statement from the following:

A. If the ratio of depth to width is less than 2, it is shallow foundation

B. If the ratio of depth to width is more than 2, it is deep foundation

C. If the ratio of the length to width is between 1 and 2, it is spread foundation

D. If the length is large as compared to width, it is a strip foundation

E. All the above.

 Answer Option E