Civil Engineering - UPSC Civil Service Exam Questions MCQs Part 18

1. An equipment is purchased for Rs. 40, 000.00 and is fully depreciated by straight line method over 8 years. Considering interest on average annual cost at 15% p.a., the charge on the Company due to use of this equipment, if made uniformly over the 8 years, is

A.
Rs. 5, 750

B.
Rs. 8, 000

C.
Rs. 8, 375

D.
Rs. 14, 000

 Answer Option C

2. A vane shear test on a soil sample gives a moment of total resistance M. The shear stress at failure, 'S' being more of less uniform at top bottom and surface of cylinder of soil is given by (where H = height of vane, D = Diameter of vane)

A.

B.

C.

D.

 Answer Option C

3. The most important purpose of frog in a brick is to :

A.
emboss manufacturer's name

B.
reduce the weight of brick

C.
form keyed joint between brick and mortar

D.
improve insulation by providing 'hollows'.

 Answer Option C

4. Gross flange area for a riveted plate girder is to be designed considering net area as 80% of its gross area. Consider width of the flange as 500 mm while web plate as 1000 mm x 12 mm. The girder is to resist a maxi-mum BM of 4500 kNm. Maximum allowable bending stress in tension is 150 MPa. Gross flange area is

A.
22000 mm2

B.
35500 mm2

C.
46000 mm2

D.
73000 mm2

 Answer Option B

5. Uniformity coefficient of filter sand is given by :

A.
D50/D5

B.
D50/D10

C.
D60/D5

D.
D60/D10

 Answer Option D

6. For the compound bar shown in the below figure, the ratio of stresses in the portions AB : BC : CD will be

A. 4 : 1 : 2

B. 1 : 2 : 4

C. 1 : 4 : 2

D. 4 : 2 : 1

 Answer Option C

7. Compression index of a soil helps to determine

A. total time required for consolidation

B. time required for 50 percent consolidation

C. total settlement of clay water

D. pre-consolidation pressure of clay

 Answer Option D

8. At what distance from left support of the beam, is the shear force zero ?

A. 1 m

B. 1.25 m

C. 1.5 m

D. 2.5 m

 Answer Option C

9. What is the volume of a 6 m deep tank having rectangular shaped top 6 m x 4 m and botton 4 m x 2 m (computed through the use of prismoidal formula) ?

A. 96 m3

B. 94 m3

C. 92 m3

D. 90 m3

 Answer Option C

10. Why are intermediate vertical stiffeners provided in plate girders ?

A. To eliminate web buckling

B. To eliminate local buckling

C. To transfer concentrated loads

D. To prevent excessive deflection.

 Answer Option A

11. Under load, the void ratio of a submerged saturated clay decreases from 1.00 to 0.92. What will be the ultimate settlement of the 2 m thick clay due to consolidation ?

A. 20 mm

B. 40 mm

C. 80 mm

D. 160 mm

 Answer Option C

12. Ultimate strength of cement is influenced by which one of the following ?

A. Tricalcium silicate

B. Dicalcium silicate

C. Tricalcium aluminate

D. Tetracalcium alumino-ferrite

 Answer Option B

13. Among the following, which is/are not pre-treatment unit (s) ?

A. Bar screen and grit chamber

B. Flow equalization and proportioning tank

C. Neutralization for pH adjustment tank

D. Nutrient removal tank

 Answer Option A

14. A solid sphere will be in stable equilibrium if its centre of gravity lies

A. vertically above its geometric centre

B. vertically below its geometric centre

C. on the horizontal line through its centre

D. at the centre

 Answer Option B

15. The reaction at B due to the load as shown the given figure is

A.

B.

C. 2 W

D. 3 W

 Answer Option A

16. If 'p' is the precipitation, 'a' is the area represented by a rainguage, and n is the number of raingauges in a catchment area, then the weighted mean rainfall is

A.

B.

C.

D.

 Answer Option C

17. For the beam shown in the given figure, the maximum positive bending moment is equal to negative bending moment. The value of L1 is

A.

B.

C.

D.

 Answer Option D

18. A plane pin-jointed truss is shown in the figure. The force resisted by the member AD is

A. zero

B. 5002 kg. (compression)

C. 5002 kg. (tension)

D. 10002 kg. (tension)

 Answer Option C

19. In the figure shown aside, which one of the following correctly represents effective stress at C ? (Symbols have the usual meanings).

A. (h + z)γω

B. z.γω

C. z.γsub

D. h.γω + Z.γsat

 Answer Option D

20. What is range of values of Poisson's ratio for ductile materials ?

A. 0.10 to 0.15

B. 0.16 to 0.20

C. 0.21 to 0.24

D. 0.25 to 0.33

 Answer Option B

21. What is the magnitude of the resultant of parallel force system as shown in the figure ?

A. 70 kNm

B. zero

C. 70 KNm couple anti clock wise

D. 90 KN veritical force and a moment of 70 kNm clock wise.

 Answer Option C

22. A rod shown in the given figure is such that the lower part is made of steel and the upper part is made of copper. Both the ends of the rod are rigidly clamped. If an axial force P is applied at the junction of the two metals, given that the ratio Esteel/ECopper is equal to 2, then the force in the copper rod would be

A. P/5 tension

B. P/3 tension

C. P/3 compression

D. P/5 compression

 Answer Option A

23. 'Air binding' may occur in

A. Sewers

B. Artesian well

C. Aerator

D. Filter

 Answer Option D

24. For a vertical concentrated load acting on the surface of a semi-infinite elastic soil mass, the vertical normal stress at depth z is proportional to

A. z

B. z2

C. z3

D. 1/z2

 Answer Option D

25. Presence of nitrogen in waste water sample is due to the decomposition of

A. Carbohydrates

B. Proteins

C. Fats

D. Vitamins

 Answer Option B

26. The effective length of a fillet weld of length 'L' and size 's' is given by

A. L - s

B. L - 2s

C.

D. L

 Answer Option B

27. Two reservoirs are connected by two pipes A and B of same and length in series. If the diamerer of A is 30% larger than that of B, what is the ratio of head loss in A to that of B ?

A. 0.77

B. 0.59

C. 0.50

D. 0.27

 Answer Option D

28. A smooth sphere of weight W is supported in contact with a smooth vertical wall by a string fastened to a point on its surface, the other end being attached to a point in the wall as shown in the given figure. If the length of the string is equal to the diameter of the sphere, then the tension in the string and the reaction of the wall respectively will be

A. 4W/3, 2W/3

B. 2W/3, W/3

C. 5W/3, W/3

D. 3W/3, W/3

 Answer Option B

29. In an external focussing tacheometer, the fixed interval between the stadia hairs is 5 mm; the focal length of the objective is 25 cm ; and the distance of the vertical axis of the instrument from the optical centre of the objective is 15 cm. The constants of the tacheometer are

A. 50 ; 0.40 m

B. 50 ; 0.25 m

C. 100 ; 0.40 m

D. 30 ; 0.10 m

 Answer Option A

30. On a single rail track, goods trains loaded with heavy iron material run starting from A to B and then empty wagons run from B to A.The amount of creep in the rails

A. will be more in the direction of B to A

B. will be more in the direction of A to B

C. will be maximum in the direction of A and B

D. cannot be determined from the given data

 Answer Option B

31. What is the value of camber rate that should be provided in case of WBM pavement surface in an area of heavy rainfall ?

A. 1 in 30

B. 1 in 48

C. 1 in 60

D. 1 in 72

 Answer Option A

32. In the given figure, the latitude of the place of observation will be equal to declination of the star plus its co-altitude when the position of the star on the meridian is between

A. horizon and Pole

B. horizon and equator

C. equator and zenith

D. Pole and zenith

 Answer Option B

33. The following are the sewage treatment processes :1. Primary sedimentation2. Screening3. Grit removal4. Secondary sedimentation.When only preliminary treatment is to be given for sewage, select the required treatment proceses including their correct sequence from the codes given below:

A. 2, 3

B. 2, 3, 1

C. 1, 2, 3, 4

D. 3, 1, 2, 4

 Answer Option B

34. Consider the AoA network of a project shown in the given figure. (Activities are designated by alphabets and durations are shown around the stem of the arrow.) The critical path will be

A. 1-2-3-6-7-8

B. 1-2-3-5-7-8

C. 1-2-4-5-7-8

D. 1-2-4-6-7-8

 Answer Option B

35. Consider the following statements regarding the working stress design of under-reinforced RC sections:1. The neutral axis depth will be greater than that of a balanced section2. The stress in steel in tension will reach its maximum permissible value first3. The moment of resistance will be less than that of the balanced section4. The concrete on'the tension side is also to be considered for calculating the moment of resistance of the section.Of these statement :

A. 1 and 2 are correct

B. 1 and 4 are correct

C. 3 and 4 are correct

D. 2 and 3 are correct

 Answer Option D

36. The force in member FD in the given figure is

A. 50 kN compression

B. 50 kN tension

C. 150 kN tension

D. 100 kN compression

 Answer Option B

37. The ratio of the flexural strengths to two beams of square c. oss-section, the first beam being placed with its top and bottom sides horizontally and the second beam being placed with one diagonal horizontally, is

A. 3

B. 1/3

C. 1/2

D. 2

 Answer Option D

38. The standard plasticity chart to classify fine grained soils is shown in the given figure. The area marked 'X' represents

A. silt of low plasticity

B. clay of high plasticity

C. organic soil of medium plasticity

D. clay of intermediate plasticity

 Answer Option D

39. Which one of the following statements is correct ? In the lime-soda process of water softening

A. lime reduces carbonate hardness while soda removes non-carbonate hardness

B. only carbonate hardness is removed

C. lime reduces non-carbonate hardness while soda removes carbonate hardness

D. Only non-carbonate hardness is removed.

 Answer Option A

40. In standard penetration test, the splitspoon sampler is penetrated into the soil stratum by giving blows from a drop weight whose weight (in kg) and free fall (in cm) are, respectively,

A. 30 and 60

B. 60 and 30

C. 65 and 75

D. 75 and 65

 Answer Option C

41. The following data pertain to a waste-water sample :Initial D.O. = 8 mg/lFinal D.O. = 2 mg/lDilution = 1%.The B.O.D. of the given wastewater sample is

A. 600 mg/l

B. 6 mg/l

C. 0.6 mg/l

D. 1 mg/l

 Answer Option A

42. If p is the specific gravity of the material used in the design of a masonry dam of triangular section, then the ratio between the height and base width of the dam for structural safety and stability is equal to

A. 2p

B. p

C. 1/p

D. 1/p

 Answer Option B

43. Consider the following statements relating to the stability of floating as well as submerged bodies :1. A submerged body is stable when the centre of gravity is below the centre of buoyancy.2. A floating body is stable when the centre of gravity is above the centre of buoyancy.3. A floating body is stable when the centre of gravity is below the metacentre.4. A submerged body is in stable equilibrium when the centre of gravity coincides with the centre of buoyancy.Of these statements :

A. 1, 2 and 3 are correct

B. 2, 3 and 4 are correct

C. 1, 2 and 4 are correct

D. 1, 3 and 4 are correct

 Answer Option D

44. A vehcile was stopped in two seconds by fully jamming the brakes. The skid marks measured 9.8 metre's. The average skid resistance coefficient will be

A. 0.7

B. 0.5

C. 0.4

D. 0.25

 Answer Option B

45. Consider the following statements pertaining to intermediate stiffeners :1. Stiffeners are provided to exclusively bear concentrated loads.2. Stiffeners should bear tightly against top and bottom flanges.3. Maximum spacing of stiffeners is restricted 180 t, where t is the thickness of web.Which of the statements given above is are/correct ?

A. 1, 2 and 3

B. 1 and 2 only

C. 3 only

D. 2 only

 Answer Option C

46. A brick masonry wall of nominal thickness 200 mm carries an axial load of 26 kN/m and another load of 19 kN/m acting at an eccentricity of 45 mm. The resultant eccentricity and eccentricity ratio are respectively

A. 19 mm, 0.095

B. 19 mm, 1.00

C. 22 mm, 1.10

D. 24 mm, 1.20

 Answer Option A

47. What is the correct sequence of formation of the following compounds during chlorination of water in which ammonia is present ?1. NCl3 2. NH2Cl3. NHCl2Select the correct answer using the codes given below:

A. 1, 2, 3

B. 2, 3, 1

C. 3, 1, 2

D. 2, 1, 3

 Answer Option B

48. Which one of the following statements is not correct ?

A. Settling and sludge digestion occur in septic tanks in one compartment

B. Settling and sludge digestion occur in Imhoff tank in different compartments

C. Septic tank is a low-rate anaerobic unit whereas an Imhoff tank is a high rate anaerobic unit

D. The rate of sludge accumulation in septic tank is approximately 40-70 litres/capita/year

 Answer Option C

49. In a project logic, four activities M, N, O and P are required to be completed before starting activity Q. If the finish times of M, N, O and P are 12 days, 14 days, 15 days and 17 days respectively, the earliest event occurrence time for the activity Q is

A. 12 days

B. 14 days

C. 15 days

D. 17 days

 Answer Option D

50. A square column section of size 350 mm is 350 mm is reinforced with four bars of 25 mm diameter and four bars of 16 mm diameter. Then the transverse steel should be :

A. 5 mm dia @ 240 mm c/c

B. 6 mm dia @ 250 mm c/c

C. 8 mm dia @ 250 mm c/c

D. 8 mm dia @ 350 mm c/c

 Answer Option C