Civil Engineering

The primary functions of a retaining structure are: Separate an area of low elevation from an adjacent higher elevation area Prevent slope failure or soil movementCreate usable land on sloped terrainSupport excavationsProtect infrastructure such as roads and buildings Retaining structures do this by resisting lateral earth pressure generated by the retained soil or prevent it from collapsing by anchoring into them or reinforcing them. In […] Read More

We all know the meaning of the word “failure”. Based on the context though, this can mean a lot of different things. For every profession out there, it takes a different set of meanings. Here we will of course focus on civil engineering and construction. Although this post was written in plain English for nonengineers to follow, it is hoped that it will also be […] Read More

Engineers make assumptions all the time. All these assumptions are backed up by logic and theory, so instead of pursuing exact values, in civil engineering often times we are okay with close enough values, as long as the results are within acceptable limits and we can justify it with relevant proven theory. Doing so, saves a great deal of time and effort, which makes developing […] Read More

Civil Engineering is the oldest engineering discipline, which is practically as old as human civilization. Until about may be 100-150 years ago, there was no clear distinction between a civil engineer and an architect, but as the needs developed for designing the function and aesthetics of structures vs. their actual load carrying mechanisms, architecture and civil engineering began to go their separate ways, although they […] Read More

To understand what liquefaction is, we must first understand shear stress in soils, which in turn means, the strength of soil… Load carrying capacity of any material arises from its shear strength. Soils, rocks, which carry our structures are no exception to this rule. The greater a foundation material has shear strength, the better it can support our structures with less settlement. Shear strength is […] Read More

For non engineers, structural analysis may seem like an overly complex subject. A person who is not a civil engineer will never be required or even allowed to solve a real structure, but it is still good to give some general idea for learning. This came to my mind when I heard a question once, from a nonengineer, who drew sketch of a really simple […] Read More