THE CITY COLLEGE OF NEW YORK CE 54100, SECTION 6X: HIGHWAY AND AIRPORT CONSTRUCTION CLASS NOTES FOR

LECTURES #4: EARTHMOVING, HEAVY CONSTRUCTION, EXCAVATING & LIFTING (References: Construction Methods and Management by S. W. Nunnally, 8th Edition, Chapter 2, pp 12- 23) Introduction Earthmoving is the process of moving soil from one location to another. This is an activity that will definitely be part of your work for road construction, airport taxiway, apron and runway construction and railway alignment construction. Earthmoving, however, has applications in other forms of construction and in landscaping works. This movement of soil is required to meet construction requirements w.r.t. location, elevation, density, MC, etc. These services require excavation, loading, hauling, placing (spreading and dumping), compacting, grading and finishing. How do we Select Equipment? The equipment you select for your earthmoving project (means and methods) could significantly impact project profitability and therefore, must be properly selected. Note that your principal concern here is to maximize the benefits to your company for the investment you will make in the equipment. The following factors should be considered in selecting your excavation equipment: Could the equipment do the work for which it has been selected? How can you maximize the profit/return on investment produced by the equipment? Could you maximize profits by selecting equipment with a low cost per unit of production? What is the life of the equipment? Is it useful after the end of the project? Would it be laid up? What would be its value then? Can we recover some costs after the work is done? Production of Earthmoving Equipment In estimating the Production capability of the earth moving equipment, it is measured as depicted in Eqn (2-1): Production = Average Volume per equipment cycle x Number of Cycles per hour. (2-1)

Excavating equipment have standard size buckets of varying bucket size capabilities, but their capacities have to be modified for each type of material being moved with the use of a factor, called the Fill Factor. The application of this factor to the nominal bucket volume per cycle gives us the average volume. Note also, that the cycles per hour are limited by the efficiency of the equipment which generates actual cycles achieved (or expected to be achieved) per hour and not the rated manufacturers cycles per hour. 1

Now Cost per unit of production= Equipment Cost per hour Equipment Production per hour (2-2)

There are two principal approaches to estimating job efficiency in determining the number of cycles/hr that need to be input to Equation 2-1: OR Multiply the number of theoretical cycles/hr by an Efficiency factor as shown in Table 2-1, below. These factors reflect experiential job conditions and management conditions. We can use the number of working minutes/hr to determine the number of cycles/hr. This is like an efficiency factor, # of minutes/60 minutes.

Earthmoving Materials Earth crust materials are soil and rock and these are the materials you will encounter as field practitioners. General Soil Characteristics Some terms follow: Trafficability Is the soil ability to support the repeated load imposed by construction vehicles? Could earthmoving equipment work efficiently in the soil? Trafficability is a function of the soil type and Moisture Content (MC). Let us look at Moisture Content: Loadability A measure of the difficulty in excavating a material from its natural state and loading the material in a piece of equipment say a truck. The range of characteristics from high Loadability to low Loadability goes from loose granular soil to compacted cohesive clays and rock. Soil weight is expressed in imperial units, in lb/yd3 or in metric units, in kg/m3. The unit weight of soil depends on soil type, degree of compaction and moisture content. For any soil type, there is a relationship between soil density (unit weight) and bearing capacity, hence the use of the soils unit weight as a measure of its compaction. All soils in nature contain some intrinsic amount of moisture. The moisture content in soil is expressed as a percentage of the soils dry weight. Moisture content (%) = Moist weight Dry weight x 100 Dry weight (2-3)

If a soil in its natural state weighed 150 lbs and in its dry state 125 lbs, using Equation 2-3 you will find that the MC of the soil is Moisture content (%) = 150 lbs 125 lbs 125 lbs x 100 = 20%

Soil Identification and Classification Soil consists of five fundamental material types: 1. Gravel Particle sizes range between inch (6 mm) and 3 inches (76 mm). Rock particles > 3 (76 mm) in diameter are considered to be cobbles or boulders 2. Sand Smaller than gravel but retained on the No. 200 sieve (0.7 mm openings) 3. Silt passes No. 200 sieve but are larger than 0.002 mm 4. Clay particles < 0.002 mm in diameter 5. Organic materials Partially decomposed vegetable matter. Note that Peat is a highly organic material with a fibrous texture, has an odor, is dark in color and is spongy and definitely, not a suitable material as a foundation for any form of construction work. 3

These material types can be found combined in different forms in soils you will encounter along an alignment for your road, runway, taxiway or apron. Soil Classification System Two principal soil classification systems are used for design and construction in the USA. These are: 1. The Unified System 2. American Association of State Highway and transportation Officials (AASHTO) System. Note that for both of these systems particles >3 are removed before classification testing is conducted. Liquid Limit of a Soil (LL). This is the moisture content (MC) expressed as a % of dry weight at which the soil will just start to flow in the standard shake test. The Plastic Limit of a soil (PL). This is the moisture content (MC) expressed as a % of dry weight at which the soil starts to crumble when rolled out into a thread of 1/4 inch (0.3 cm) in diameter. The Plasticity Index (PI). This is expressed as the LL PL and indicates the range MC within which the soil resides in the plastic state. The Unified System. Uses a 2-letter symbol to identify soil types. Figure 2-2 of the text shows the Unified System of Soils Classification field identification. REVIEW. The figure addresses both coarse grained and fine grained materials. Note that soils with <50% by weight passing the No. 200 sieve are considered to be coarse grained materials and soils with more than 50% by weight passing the #200 sieve are considered to be fine grained materials. Figure 2-1 shows curves for well graded and poorly graded granular material (sand and gravel). REVIEW. See Table 2-3 for the AASHTO system of soil classification by group number ranging from A-1 to A-7. REVIEW. As a construction engineer there will be occasions when you will have to do some form of field tests to determine what type of soil you are dealing with. There are two tests that you can carry out in the field to test these materials. They are: 1. Dry strength test 2. Shaking test. Dry Strength Test. Mold the soil into a ball of golf ball size with a putty consistency and add water as needed. Allow the sample to dry completely, and then attempt to break it using your thumbs and fore fingers. If you cannot break it then the soil is highly plastic. If it breaks, try powdering it between the thumb and fore finger of one hand. If difficult to break and powder, it has Medium Plasticity. If it is easy to break and powder, it has Low Plasticity. Shaking Test. With the material in a ball of about inch (19 mm) diameter, add water until it stops sticking to the fingers as it is being molded. Put sample in the palm and shake vigorously. If the moisture comes to the surface of the material quickly giving it a shiny texture, it is non-plastic silt. Review Table 2-4 for the construction characteristics of soil under the Unified System. Construction Characteristics 4

Table 2.4 below shows some important construction characteristics as classified under the Unified System that should be kept in mind if performing highway and airport pavement work on these types of soil.

Soil Volume-Change Characteristics There are three conditions or states of that soil you will encounter in your construction practice. These are: Bank Material in the natural state (undisturbed) with volume expressed in bank cubic yards (BCY) or bank cubic meter (BCM) Loose Material that has been disturbed from excavation with volume expressed in loose cubic yards (LCY) or loose cubic meter (LCM) Compacted material in a compacted with volume expressed in compacted cubic yards (CCY) or compacted cubic meter (CCM) Let us now look at Swell and Shrinkage in soils. Swell. A soil property when encountered when a soil is disturbed and the particulate system comes apart allowing the voids to be filled with air. This causes a unit volume of soil to appear to having a much larger volume. For example, 1 BCY of soil will occupy more space in its loose state, giving rise to the term SWELL expressed as a percentage of weight of the in bank volume over the weight of the loose soil volume of soil multiplied by 100. See Eqn 2-4 below

See Example 2-1 from text below.

Shrinkage. When we compact loose soil we drive out the air voids, causing the soil to occupy less volume that it did under the loose or bank conditions. [Note that although the soil is undisturbed in bank conditions, it still possesses a small percentage of air voids]. Figure 2-2 shows that 1 BCY = 1.25 LCY = 0.9 CCY for typical soil volume changes during earthmoving. REVIEW.

See example 2-2 on page 28.

Note that both the SWELL and SHRINKAGE formulas use the weight/bank or natural volume Load and Shrinkage Factors For earthmoving calculations, consistent units should be used to enable good estimating and payment. The Bank Cubic Yard (Cubic Meter) is commonly used but any of the three units address above viz., BCY (BCM), LCY (LCM) or CCY (CCM) could be used. In an earthwork contracts the pay yard (or meter) is the unit used as the basis for payment. Haul and spoil bank volume are commonly expressed in loose measure, so it is convenient to have a conversion factor to convert loose volume to bank volume. This factor is called the LOAD FACTOR. You can use either Equation 2-6 or 2-7 on Page 18 of the text to do this conversion. They are shown below. Load Factor = Wt/loose unit volume Wt/bank unit volume OR Load Factor = 1 1 + Swell (2-7) (2-6)

Note that if we multiply Loose Volume by the load factor, you will get Bank Volume. When we consider conversion from Bank Volume to Compacted Volume we think of the Shrinkage factor. We can obtain the Shrinkage factor by using any of the equations 2-8 or 2-9. The Shrinkage Factor converts bank volume to compacted volume. This is expressed as: Shrinkage Factor = Wt/bank unit volume (2-8) Wt/compacted unit Volume Note that if we multiply Bank Volume by the Shrinkage Factor you will get Compacted Volume. OR 7

Shrinkage Factor = 1 Shrinkage

(2.9)

Example 2-3 shows the computations for the load factor and how to determine the BCY and CCY from a volume of soil in LCY.

Table 2-5 shows typical soil weight and volume change characteristics for use in your computations. Review.

Spoil Banks When we excavate material, we either store it for reuse, or we haul it away. If we are keeping the material, it could be stored in a triangular shape, or in a conical shape (particularly if the height needs to be restricted). 8

A spoil bank refers to a soil bank that is long in relation to its width, and is usually triangular in X-section. See sketch below. Excavated material dumped to one location is referred to as a spoil heap and has a conical shape. See sketch below. In determining the dimensions of the heaped soil we must convert the Bank Volume Measure to loose volume measure. The bank and spoil dimensions are calculated using Eqns 2-10 and 2-11, if the soil angle of repose is known. [I have written up for you the derivations of these formulas]. See Table 2-6 for typical values for the angle of repose for excavated soil. The angle of repose corresponds to the angle of internal friction of the material and signifies the surface slope of the material that will allow the material to remain at rest when heaped in Triangular Spoil Bank or Conical Spoil Pile.

Estimating Earthwork Volume For any earth moving projects for roads and airfields, the Engineer must estimate the volume of material to be excavated to achieve the required constructed volume in place on site. The estimating process starts with a determination of the cross-sectional area of the of the cut or fill at comfortable intervals that would enable a fair estimation of the required volumes normally 100- ft (33 m) intervals are usually used. For rapidly changing terrains shorter intervals will be required. These plots are done about the centerline and the cut or fill calculated between each station and aggregated for the total sum of the earthwork volumes. Cut volumes are usually measured in bank measure. Compacted volumes of soil are usually measured in compacted measure. Volume units must be consistent for cut volumes and for fill volumes. Pit Excavations For these simple excavations, the volume is computed as: Volume = Horizontal Area x Average Depth (2-14)

To execute these calculations divide the area into convenient geometric shapes and compute their areas. The sum of the areas will give you the area of the cut. Multiply this area by the determined average depth and determine the volume. See Example 2-6 on Pages 33-34. 10

Trench Excavations For trench excavations, the volume is computed as: Volume = Cross sectional Area x Length (2-15)

For rectangular sections, this is straightforward. For trenches with sloping sides, the volume should be taken over short intervals, summing the areas computed for both ends, dividing by 2 to find the average area, and then multiplying by the length. The sum of these segment volumes will give you the total volume of the trench. Review pages 20 to 21 and review Figure 2-3 and example 2-6. Study Large Areas on Page 20 and plot in Figure 2-4 on Page 21 and example 2-8 on Page 20. Be familiar with Equation (2-16). Construction of and use of the Mass Haul Diagram (MHD) The mass haul diagram, used in highway and airport projects is a continuous curve representing the story of the accumulated volumes of earthwork done along an alignment. It is usually plotted along the centerline of the alignment. It is plotted against the actual profile of the alignment and downward slopes (left to right) of the mass diagram represent accumulating fill volumes and the rising curve (left to right) of the mass diagram represent cut volumes. The plot is an accumulated plot of the volumes. In determining the best alternative for a road or airport alignment, the mass haul diagram that minimizes the earthwork required to do the work. Figure 2-5 shows an example of a mass diagram. The upper plot is the ground profile and the lower plot is the Mass Haul Diagram.

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How do we use the Mass haul Diagram? In discussing the use of the Mass Haul Diagram, we can determine the length and direction of the haul within a balanced section, its average length, the location and amount of soil to be borrowed, and the amount of waste to be carted away. Figure 2-6 below shows how the Mass Haul Diagram (MHD) is used. In the figure, the upper plot represents the centerlines actual ground profile of the surface along an alignment. The Zero elevation line represents the desired elevation profile for the area. The lower plot represents the Mass haul Diagram which is plotted from cumulative volumes of earth movement. Areas in fill give negative volumes and will cause the plot to have a negative slope. Areas in cut give positive volumes and will cause the plot to have a positive slope. Lets see what we have here.

For a balanced section e.g. Sections 1, 2, 3 & 4 on the mass haul diagram, project the end points of the section vertically up to the ground profile points. In the case of balanced section #1 those points would be points A and B. Note that Point A begins a valley condition in the soil profile while point B is the peak of a hill. Note that Point C on the profile corresponds with the lowest point on the MHD in Section 1 and indicates where the earthwork changes from a fill operation to a cut operation, hence the change in slope of the MHD curve. Note that the direction in which the soil is moved within the balanced section is always from the cut zone to the fill zone, hence the arrow directions in the alignment profile in Figure 2-6. 13

The student must note that along the land centerline profile that is plotted for these calculations. Once a fill operation commences, the slope of the mass haul diagram will decrease. See Section A to C on the centerline profile then look at the mass haul plot below. Note that as soon as the cut begins on the hill at point C on the centerline profile the slope of the mass haul plot becomes positive and will only become negative again when the cut of the hill ends and the adjacent area on the profile requires a fill when the slope of the mass haul curve again becomes negative. Note also that the approximate average haul distance within a balanced section is a line located midway between the valley or peak of the mass haul curve for the section, and the balanced line of the section. In the case of Section #1 of the MHD, it is the line FG, located midway between the low point at C and the balance line AB. From Section 1 we could see that the Average Haul Distance is approximately 1800 ft or 549 m. Note that the MHD has a ve value from Point D, to the end of the section at Point E. Here the deficit is 50,000 BCY or 38,230 BCM and that volume has to be borrowed from somewhere else to complete the work. Note that the movement of soil on the diagram is always from the cut zone to the fill zone. Review Pages 21 to 22 and be conversant with Mass Haul Theory. Homework #4 Page 23, Problems 1, 2, 4 & 7.

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