Develpoment of a Comprehensive Excel Spreadsheet for Estimating the Output of Some Geotechnical Laboratory Experiments

Abstract

Geotechnical laboratory experiments are vital in determining the geotechnical properties of soil. These tests are generally performed for a number of times to obtain the best result and in most of the times, to average them to minimize the deviation in output. Hence to execute the process calculation is a tedious and hectic process, especially when the number of experiments is large or the steps of calculations are lengthy. Besides, the availability of software and spreadsheets to obtain accurate output is very rare in literature, and the few that are there are too in-comprehensive and incomplete dealing just a few of the many laboratory experiments that the entire geotechnical engineering is concerned. The work in this project is an honest effort to minimize the effort involved in the different Civil engineering laboratory experiments carried out at different institutes and construction sectors by designing a Microsoft Excel Spreadsheet that determines the output of the different geotechnical laboratory experiments along with the graph of related parameters wherever necessary. The process, procedure, input parameters and the calculations have been followed as per the Indian Standard Codes of Geotechnical Engineering. In cases, where the size of the apparatus or the related constants vary from place to place, the input columns have been provided where the different input can be incorporated in order to obtain the corresponding result. The excel spread sheet has been designed to make it a generalized one so that the utility of this spread sheet can be availed irrespective of variation in location and instruments. For all practical reference during the work, the Geotechnical Engineering Laboratory of NIT Rourkela has been used and the output has been tested on a number of inputs that wereobtained in different experiments done at NIT Rourkela. The result obtained has been found consistent. Also a few inputs of the book, “Principles Of geotechnical Engineering” by B M Das and “Soil Mechanics and foundations” by B C Punmia, Ashok Kr. Jain, Arun Kr. Jain have been tested and found consistent. Hence, this Microsoft Excel Spread sheet can be judiciously used in minimizing effort and obtaining the most accurate outputs in various laboratory experiments in Geotechnical Engineering