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WorksheetsSM&FE UNIT 2 PRACTICE QUESTIONS
Total questions: 20
Worksheet time: 10mins
Permeability is the property of soil that permits the flow of water through its
soil grains
capillary fringe
isolated voids
interconnected voids
Darcy’s law for flow through soil is valid for
laminar flow
turbulent flow
transitional flow
both laminar and turbulent flow
The coefficient of permeability (k) for fine‑grained soils like clays is best determined by the
pumping‑out test method
falling head method
constant head method
combined method
The seepage velocity (v_s) and the Darcy velocity (v) are related by the soil’s porosity (n) as
v_s = v·n
v_s = v/(1−n)
v_s = v/n
v = v_s/n
The phenomenon of quicksand condition in soil occurs when
the pore water pressure rises in the downward direction
the effective stress is very high
the effective stress becomes zero
the soil is perfectly dry
The effective stress (σ′) is given by the relation
σ′ = σ + u
σ′ = σ − u
σ′ = u − σ
σ′ = σ/u
In the formula for effective stress (σ′), σ represents
total stress
pore water pressure
shear stress
capillary pressure
The effective stress principle is known as
Bernoulli’s principle
Terzaghi’s principle
Hooke’s law
Cauchy’s principle
The phenomenon where water rises above the water table in soil pores due to surface tension is called
consolidation
compaction
seepage
capillary phenomena
The maximum shear stress a soil can withstand before failure is known as
shear strength
total stress
effective stress
pore pressure
Which one determines the shear strength (s) of a cohesive soil (clay) under undrained conditions?
s = σ tan φ
s = σ′ tan φ′
s = c′ + σ′ tan φ′
s = c_u (where c_u is undrained cohesion)
The angle of internal friction (φ) of soils is primarily a measure of
cohesive strength
frictional resistance between particles
compressibility
permeability
Which test is particularly useful for determining the undrained shear strength of clays?
Standard Penetration Test (SPT)
Vane Shear Test
Triaxial Test
Direct Shear Test
The Direct Shear Test is most suitable for determining the shear strength parameters of
coarse‑grained soils (sands)
fine‑grained cohesive soils (clays)
peat and organic soils
overconsolidated clays
The main disadvantage of the Direct Shear Test is that
it is not possible to determine the angle of internal friction
its plane of failure is predetermined
it takes a very long time to perform
specimen often breaks during measurement
In a partially saturated soil, the pore‑water pressure above the water table is
zero
atmospheric
negative
positive
Which factor does NOT significantly affect the permeability of soil?
void ratio
particle size
colour of the soil
viscosity of water
The critical hydraulic gradient (i_c) is the ratio of
γ_w to γ_sat
γ_w to γ′
γ′ to γ_sat
γ_sat to γ_w
The total stress (σ) at a point in a saturated soil mass at depth H below the ground surface and above the water table is
H γ_sat
H γ_w
H γ_d
H γ′
The major principal stress (σ_1) and minor principal stress (σ_3) at failure in a dry sand are related by
σ3σ1=tan2(45°+2ϕ)
σ_1 = σ_3 tan(45° + φ/2)
σ3σ1=tan2(45°−2ϕ
σ_1 = 3σ_3
