Soil Mechanics – Multiple Choice Questions (MCQs)

1. 25. What is 'consolidation'?

   • A. The gradual reduction in volume of a saturated fine-grained soil due to the expulsion of pore water under a sustained increase in effective stress
   • B. The immediate settlement of soil
   • C. The expansion of soil
   • D. The liquefaction of soil

2. 26. What is 'primary consolidation'?

   • A. The portion of the total consolidation that is due to the expulsion of pore water
   • B. The immediate settlement
   • C. The secondary compression
   • D. The rebound

3. 27. What is 'secondary compression'?

   • A. The volume change of saturated fine-grained soils after primary consolidation is complete
   • B. under constant effective stress
   • C. The immediate settlement
   • D. The primary consolidation

4. 28. What is 'coefficient of consolidation' (c_v)?

   • A. A parameter that indicates the rate at which consolidation occurs
   • B. A measure of compressibility
   • C. A measure of permeability
   • D. A measure of strength

5. 29. What is 'overconsolidation ratio' (OCR)?

   • A. The ratio of the maximum past effective stress to the current effective stress
   • B. A measure of current stress
   • C. A measure of settlement
   • D. A measure of strength

6. 30. What is 'normally consolidated soil'?

   • A. A soil that has never been subjected to an effective stress greater than its current effective stress
   • B. A soil that has been overconsolidated
   • C. A soil with high strength
   • D. A soil with low permeability

7. 31. What is 'overconsolidated soil'?

   • A. A soil that has been subjected to an effective stress greater than its current effective stress in the past
   • B. A soil that has never been consolidated
   • C. A soil with low strength
   • D. A soil with high permeability

8. 32. What is 'shear strength of soil'?

   • A. The resistance of soil to deformation by shear stress
   • B. The resistance to compression
   • C. The resistance to tension
   • D. The resistance to bending

9. 33. What is 'Mohr-Coulomb failure criterion'?

   • A. A widely used criterion to predict the shear strength of soils
   • B. based on cohesion and angle of internal friction
   • C. A criterion for consolidation
   • D. A criterion for permeability

10. 34. What is 'cohesion' (c)?

    • A. The component of shear strength independent of normal stress
    • B. present in fine-grained soils
    • C. The angle of internal friction
    • D. The normal stress

11. 35. What is 'angle of internal friction' (φ)?

    • A. The angle representing the frictional resistance between soil particles
    • B. present in granular soils
    • C. The angle of cohesion
    • D. The angle of repose

12. 36. What is 'direct shear test' used for?

    • A. To determine the shear strength parameters (c and φ) of a soil
    • B. To determine permeability
    • C. To determine consolidation characteristics
    • D. To determine particle size distribution