Introduction

This online course is intended for junior or senior level undergraduate/graduate students with basic to intermediate geotechnical and civil engineers who want pursuing or transitioning to geotechnical engineer career path. This course work will cover principles of LRFD foundation design and analytical/numerical analyses for shallow/deep foundation designs, evaluation methods of engineering properties of soil/rock, guidance to field investigation plans considering project budget and scope, and practical exercise problem sets from actual author’s project experiences.

Geotechnical engineer should be trained to cope with non- uniform and heterogeneous soil/rock properties and able to effectively characterize the site ground condition with acceptable field/lab measures to recommend best suitable foundation type for the structures based on the first principles and discrete engineering judgements.

Dr. Lee is willing to share his professional experiences to let audience transit a conventional geotechnical practice based on ASD to a further sophisticate LRFD approach. During the exercise problem, author’s engineering calculation spreadsheets will be provided to audiences to help understand the analytical solutions of foundation analyses and verify the numerical solutions of other commercial software popularly in use.

Objectives

1. Clarify understanding of LRFD approach in geotechnical foundation design
2. Refresh geotechnical parameter evaluation and its application to real project problems
3. Acknowledge best available field/laboratory tests available to evaluate geotechnical parameters
4. Capable to prepare a geotechnical engineering report using LRFD
5. Analytical engineering tools to be provided for shallow/deep foundation analysis (Excel programs in either Imperial or SI units) during course exercises

Limited places.

Module I: Basics of Geo-materials Engineering Properties (1st week – Refresher “Foundation of foundation design”)

• – LRFD vs ASD/LFD
• – Strength, Service & Extreme Limit States
• – Soil/rock parameters review
• – Effective/total stress
• – Overburden/lateral earth pressures
• – 1-D consol test and data analysis (settlement amount and time rate)
• – Shear strength tests and data analysis
• – Field investigation methods (SPT, CPT, PLT)

Refresher Quiz (multiple choice)

Module II: Shallow Foundations (2nd & 3rd weeks)

Shallow Foundation Analysis (ASD versus LRFD)
Shallow Foundation Design

• – Bearing capacity calculation (general/local failure modes)
• – Settlement calculation (flexible/rigid foundation)
• – Mat/raft foundation

Geotechnical investigation plan for shallow foundation

• – Field investigation plan
• – Lab investigation plan
• – Data report and engineering report

Shallow Foundation Exercises (Quiz/Test optional)
Webinar I (2 hours for Refresher Q/A session on Friday of 2nd week module)

Module III: Deep Foundations (4th, 5th & 6th weeks)

Deep Foundation Analysis (ASD versus LRFD)
Deep Foundation Types
Geotechnical investigation plan for deep foundation

• – Field investigation plan
• – Lab investigation plan
• – Data report and engineering report

Vertical Pile Capacity

• – Structural capacity
• – Geotechnical capacity
• – Static analysis (alpha/beta method)
• – SPT/CPT based
• – Pile dynamic (CAPWAP) analysis
• – Static pile load test
• – Down-drag load calculation

Webinar II (2 hours Q/A session for Shallow/Deep Foundation Analyses on Friday of 4th week module)

Deep Foundation Exercises III, IV & V

Pile pull-out capacity
Batter Pile analysis
Pile Lateral capacity (p-y curve)
Pile dynamic (CAPWAP) analysis (optional depending on student level)
Pile Group Effects
– Vertical/lateral/uplift
– pile group settlement

Deep Foundation Exercises VI & VII

Webinar III (2 hours for summary session (Summary of LRFD & Q/A for entire course works, Friday of 6 th week)
Final Test (1 hour for multiple choices, deadline by a week after Webinar III)

Dr. Lee

Lecturer, Dr. Lee has over 15 years professional experiences of civil/ environmental /geotechnical industries and having published 12 technical papers at international peer review journal and conferences after Ph.D. graduation from Purdue University. He had worked for many city, state and federal projects and drafted and reviewed project documents/drawings including construction plans and engineering calculations for bridge/retaining wall structures, grading and right of way aspects to check conformance with construction codes, regulations and engineering standards of practice such as AASHTO, FHWA, DOT manuals and U.S. State specifications.

Developed geotechnical laboratory test manuals and managed Army Corp /AMRL /ASTM certified laboratory over 10 years. Also participated in several kick-off and on-site meetings for complex civil and/or geotechnical engineering features of development plans including embankment and slope analysis (Wisconsin, Iowa, Minnesota, Washington DOT); seepage analysis for flood wall design (Chicago and Jacksonville headquarters of USACE), earthquake and erosion hazards for levee/earth dam (FEM and probabilistic methods); deep foundations (driven pipe/H piles, drilled shaft for Wisconsin, Iowa, Minnesota, Illinois, Washington DOTs); retaining walls (MSE, CIP, and modular block walls); excavation shoring (cantilever and anchor system).

Dr. Lee considers himself within top 1% geotechnical engineer, familiar with advanced engineering design and innovative analysis methods (probabilistic/stochastic methods including LRFD) and having made discrete engineering judgments over many complex and interdisciplinary civil projects.

The course is delivered online through our easy-to-use Virtual Campus platform. For this course, a variety of content is provided including:

– eLearning materials
– Videos
– Interactive multimedia content
– Live webinar classes
– Texts and technical articles
– Case studies
– Assignments and evaluation exercises

Students can display the materials and work through the course at their own pace.
We regularly update this course to ensure the latest news and state-of-the-art developments are covered, and your knowledge of the subject is current.

Live webinars form part of our course delivery. These allow students and tutors to go through the course materials, exchange ideas and knowledge, and solve problems together in a virtual classroom setting. Students can also make use of the platform’s forum, a meeting point to interact with tutors and other students.

The tutoring system is managed by email. Students can email the tutor with any questions about the course and the tutor will be happy to help.

• – Undergraduates above junior or graduate level who are interested in learning advanced geotechnical Analyses.
• – Engineers who wants pursuing or transitioning to a Geotech engineer career path in future Geotech engineers who want to be more competent with LRFD approach Civil engineers who are involved in federal/local government project to renovate old infrastructures.
• – Structure/architectural engineers who want to learn how to evaluate geotechnical resistance of foundation

• – Lead civil/geotechnical projects as a capable foundation engineer
• – Accurately and precisely evaluate factored bearing capacity and settlement of shallow/deep foundation
• – Participate in government EPC projects (State or federal funded) employing LRFD approaches.
• – Design cost effective geotechnical investigation program considering the project budget and deadline
• – Verify your outputs from commercial foundation software (black boxed) with provided analytical tools