The Cone Penetration Test (CPT) is commonly used in site investigations to assess soil properties and predict potential settlement behavior.

Effective stress is defined as total stress minus pore water pressure, which is crucial for understanding soil behavior.

The factor of safety is defined as the ratio of the ultimate load to the allowable load, ensuring safety against failure.

Active earth pressure refers to the pressure exerted by soil when the retaining wall moves away from the soil, allowing the soil to expand.

Preconsolidation pressure refers to the maximum past pressure that the soil has experienced, which influences its current consolidation behavior.

In the Terzaghi bearing capacity equation, 'c' represents the cohesion of the soil, which contributes to the bearing capacity.

In the Terzaghi bearing capacity equation, 'q' represents the effective stress at the depth of the foundation, which is crucial for determining the bearing capacity.

A high coefficient of permeability indicates that water can flow easily through the soil, which is critical for drainage and stability considerations.

Consolidation refers to the expulsion of water from soil under load, leading to a decrease in volume.

Consolidation refers to the process of reduction in volume of soil due to the expulsion of water from the soil pores under load.

Effective stress is defined as total stress minus pore water pressure, which is crucial for understanding soil behavior.

Effective stress is defined as the total stress acting on a soil mass minus the pore water pressure within the soil.

Permeability refers to the ability of soil to transmit water, which is critical for understanding drainage and seepage in geotechnical engineering.

The plasticity index indicates the range of moisture content over which soil behaves plastically, calculated as the difference between the liquid limit and plastic limit.

The ultimate bearing capacity for a square footing can be calculated as q_u = c*N_c + q. For a depth of 1 m, N_c is approximately 5.0. Thus, q_u = 40 kPa * 5 = 200 kPa.

The coefficient of consolidation (Cv) is primarily dependent on the soil's permeability and compressibility.

The coefficient of consolidation (Cv) is used to calculate the rate at which consolidation occurs in saturated soils, influencing the time it takes for settlement to occur.

A high water table generally decreases the effective stress in the soil, leading to a reduction in bearing capacity.

In cohesive soils, the bearing capacity generally increases with depth due to the increase in effective stress.

Increasing the depth of a foundation generally increases its bearing capacity due to the greater confining pressure.

Increasing the drainage path length decreases the rate of consolidation because it takes longer for pore water to escape from the soil.

Increasing the load on a saturated clay layer increases both immediate settlement and consolidation settlement due to the additional stress on the soil.

Increasing the water content in a saturated clay layer typically increases settlement due to reduced effective stress and increased compressibility.

Increasing the width of a foundation generally increases its bearing capacity due to the larger area distributing the load over the soil.

Faster loading rates can increase settlement in clay soils because they do not have enough time to dissipate pore water pressure, leading to greater immediate settlement.

Preloading reduces long-term settlement in soft soils by accelerating consolidation and allowing excess pore water pressure to dissipate before construction.

Preloading is used to reduce long-term settlement by applying a temporary load to compress the soil and accelerate consolidation before the actual load is applied.

Preloading reduces future settlement by accelerating the consolidation process and increasing the effective stress in the soil.

Soil cohesion contributes positively to the bearing capacity of a foundation, particularly in cohesive soils.

Consolidation typically increases the bearing capacity of soil as it reduces voids and increases effective stress.