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Review
A REVI EW OF THE RELATI ONSHI P OF ROCK WEATHERI NG AND
CLI MATE AND ITS SI GNI FI CANCE TO FOUNDATI ON ENGI NEERI NG
M. K. SAUNDERS AND P. G. FOOKES
Engineering Geology Division, Geology Department, Imperial College, London (Great Britain)
(Received February 27, 1970)
SUMMARY
This paper is a preliminary review of the large field embraced by climate and
engineering aspects of the weathering of rock.
Factors affecting weathering and the development of residual soils in general
and their relationship to the engineering classifications of weathered materials are
briefly discussed. The development of residual soils within four principal climatic
zones of the world: periglacial, temperate, arid and humi d tropical, is examined in
more detail. The engineering behaviour of the residual soils in these zones is
reviewed and compared, firstly by considering the engineering properties of the
various soils and secondly by their performance as foundat i on material. The
results of the review are summarised in the form of tables and figures.
It is concluded from the work t hat generalized knowledge of climate and
engineering behaviour of weathering rock and residual soils is helpful in the planning
of engineering projects and in the economic design of site investigations, but it is
emphasised each site must be investigated on its own merits.
INTRODUCTION
The assessment of rock weathering is a problem which repeatedly faces the
engineer in foundat i on design. A layer of residual soil and weathered rock generally
lies above the fresh material and for deep foundat i on work especially, it is necessary
to underst and the behaviour of these materials; for example, in the consideration
of the stability of slopes or in the design of retaining walls. In the case of shallow
foundat i ons, the strength and consolidation characteristics for bearing capacity
and settlement calculations are generally more relevant, t hough the st udy of
deep weathering characteristics is still i mport ant .
Over recent years much work has been done on underst andi ng the weathering
process including the chemistry of decomposition, the effect of climatic conditions,
the pedological and engineering classification of the weathered products and their
significance to construction engineering. It is the purpose of this paper, therefore
to at t empt a preliminary review of this subject and to discuss briefly the processes
Eng. Geol., 4 (1970) 289-325
290 M. K. S AUNDERS AND P. G. FOOKES
of weat heri ng on soils and r ock and to relate aspects of weat heri ng phenomena to
engineering behavi our.
WE AT HE R I NG AND CLI MATE
The process of weat heri ng may be defined as "t hat process of al t erat i on of
rocks occurri ng under the direct influence of the hydr ospher e and at mospher e".
In this definition the t er m " r oc k" has been used in the geological sense to include
bot h soft rocks ~ or soils 1, and har d rocks. The weat heri ng process may be consi dered
to act in t wo phases, either or bot h of which may be present under a certain set of
condi t i ons. One phase is "di si nt egr at i on" and is the result of physical act i on on a
r ock which leads to its br eakdown wi t hout the chemical al t erat i on of the component
minerals. The ot her is " decompos i t i on" and is the phase in which chemi cal alter-
at i on of the par ent minerals occurs and results in the f or mat i on of secondar y or
"r esi dual " minerals.
The fact ors which hel p det ermi ne the weat heri ng pr oduct s of rocks most
significantly f r om an engi neer' s view are the climatic and geographi c condi t i ons under
which weat heri ng t akes place, the composi t i on of the source mat eri al , gr oundwat er ,
and the peri od of t i me over which weat heri ng has been active. The effect of climate
on the f or m of weat heri ng has been extensively studied 2 since the t urn of the cent ury
and recently WEINERT (1964) isolated vari ous climatic fact ors which influence the
weat heri ng processes and combi ned t hem into a single par amet er expressing the
bal ance of these factors. Desi gnat ed the N-value, this climatic par amet er has been
cal cul at ed for Sout h Africa, Hong Kong, part s of British Gui ana, I daho and
West ern Ger many. Wei nert f ound for exampl e, t hat in Sout h Afri ca for regions
where N> 5 the physical processes of di si nt egrat i on are mor e i mpor t ant t han the
chemi cal processes of decomposi t i on, whilst for regions where N< 5, the reverse
is true. I n the l at t er areas a t hi ck cover of residual soil can be expected.
For t he pur pose of this paper, the fol l owi ng br oadl y based climatic zones are
consi dered: (1) humi d t ropi cal zones; (2) ari d zones; (3) t emper at e zones; and
(4) periglacial zones, in t erms of t hei r weat heri ng pot ent i al and the engi neeri ng
behavi our of their weat hered product s. The l i mi t at i ons of assessing the effects of
cl i mat e on weat heri ng lie in the difficulty of establishing the amount of disinte-
grat i on and decomposi t i on occurri ng under present cl i mat i c condi t i ons and t hat
which has resulted f r om past climates. This pr obl em is especially difficult in much of
the present t emper at e regions, where a dr amat i c change f r om the glacial or periglacial
envi r onment has recently occurred in a geologically short time, i.e. since the last
glaciation. Thus, where a single cl i mat i c regi on is discussed in this paper, the
weat heri ng pr oduct s may be the result of a number of cl i mat i c envi r onment s all
1 Arbitrarily defined as those materials which can be dug or sampled by hand means.
2 Strakhov (1967) gives a full treatment of Russian work which has developed on slightly
different lines to those of western countries.
Eng. Geol., 4 (1970) 289-325
ROCK WEATHERING, CLIMATE AND FOUNDATION ENGINEERING 291
of which have cont r i but ed t o the weathering product s of the par ent material.
Several engineering classifications for the degree of r ock weathering have
been proposed, some of which are applicable to onl y one climatic zone, whilst
others may be ext ended to all zones. For example, an essentially qualitative
classification was described by KIERSCH and TREASHER (1955) for work on the
Fol som Dam in which t hey described the change in minerals of a quart z diorite
on bot h a mi croscopi c and megascopic scale, in f our stages of weathering: highly,
moderat el y, slightly weat hered and essentially fresh rock. MOYE (1955) successfully
used a six-fold classification for weathering zones on granites in connect i on with the
Snowy Mount ai ns Scheme in Australia, giving, in addi t i on t o criteria for field
recognition, a bri ef resume of engineering behavi our. KNILL and JONES (1965)
established a five-fold classification of weathering for gneiss bedr ock at Roseires
Dam on the Blue Nile, in which they give qualitative descriptions of the five
grades of decomposi t i on t oget her with an indication of the percent age core recovery.
A scheme for soft rock was adopt ed by SKEMPTON and DAVIS (1966) when inves-
tigating the engineering behavi our of the Keuper Marl in the Midlands of Britain.
Mor e recently engineering weathering schemes have been discussed by FOOKES
and HORSWILL (1969) and very fully by LITTLE (1967, 1969) who presents a scheme
following RUXTON and BERRY (1957). A compari son of some classification schemes
is given in Tabl e I. It needs to be emphasised t hat all these classifications primarily
sub-divide weat hered rock and t hat the true residual "soi l s" (approxi mat i ng to the
A and B pedological horizons) are generally cont ai ned within the engineering
zone VI.
WEATHERING IN THE CLIMATIC ZONES
Hu mi d tropical zone
The di st ri but i on of the soils f or med in this climatic zone is shown in Fig. 1,
where t hey are seen t o cover much of Cent ral America, the nor t h of Sout h America,
Cent ral Africa, Indi a and Malaysia t oget her with part s of Australasia. The areas
generally have high rainfall, oft en seasonal, with long periods of high t emperat ures.
A good general account of the process of weathering of acid igneous rocks in
this zone has been given by LUMB (1962a) following RUXTON and BERRY (1957)
- - s ee Tabl e I, and will t herefore be onl y briefly ment i oned here. The open-jointed
r ock near t he surface acts as collecting channels for run-off wat er which penetrates
al ong the j oi nt s or ot her fractures. The weat heri ng process t herefore starts off
al ong the fract ure planes which initially become stained with secondary minerals
f or med f r om the br eakdown of the least stable parent mineral. Weat heri ng slowly
attacks the r ock cont ai ned by the j oi nt s t o isolate t hem into blocks with kernels
of fresh material within a cover of decomposed rock. Fur t her at t ack continues,
the blocks themselves losing their corners to become spheroidal, until t ot al
decomposi t i on results in the f or mat i on of red residual soil, al t hough the original
Eng. Geol., 4 (1970) 289-325
292 M. K, SAUNDERS AND P. G. FOOKES
: E o z
~ o
l u L o r ~ =
g ~
m ~
o
( 3
o
t u
e~
-
e~

e~
" O
e -
e'~
c-
O
E
..-
texture may still be recogni sabl e. Vegetati onal effects ul ti matel y produce a t opsoi l
(see Fig. 2).
An account o f the f ormat i on o f other residual soi l s in tropi cal regi ons has
been given by CLARE (1957) and therefore again onl y a summary will be presented
here (see Fi g. 3, 4). The weatheri ng processes generally produce t wo major soil
Eng. Geol., 4 (1970) 289- 325
TABLE I pp. 293- 298
COMPARISON OF SOME ENGINEERING ROCK WEATHERING CLASSIFICATIONS
RUXTON a nd BERRY (1957) LITTLE(1969)
Zone Character //o age of Grade Degree o f
solid rock decompos#ion
Field recognition Engineering properties
surface layer contains humus and plant unsuitable for important foundations;
roots; unstable on slopes when cover is
no recognisable rock texture; destroyed
unstable on slopes when vegetable cover
destroyed
CHANDLER (1969) z
Description Zone
matrix only; distinguishable
from solifiuction or drift
by absence of pebbles;
plastic slightly silty clay;
may be fissured
FOOKESand HORSWILL(1969) 1
Term Grade
I Residual debris; structure- usually VI soil
less sandy clay or clayey zero
sand, 1 m to 25 m thick;
up to 30~ooclay, dominantly
quartz and kaolin, reddish
brown when very clayey;
light brown or orange when
less clayey
fully
weathered
IVa
true VI
residual
soil
Abbrevi- Soils (i.e. soft rocks)
ation
Rw the material is completely changed
to a soil of new structure and
composition in harmony with
existing ground surface conditions
Rocks ( i. e. hard rocks)
the rock is discoloured and is
completely changed to a soil with the
original fabric completely destroyed
IIa Residual debris with core
stones which are subordi-
nate, rounded and free;
equal amounts of gruss and
debris; less than 5~ clay
but plenty of clay-forming
minerats-sericite and
kaolin; light colour; less
than 10~ core stones;
deposit up to 60 m thick
l i b As IIa but 10~ to 50~o
core stones
less V
than 10
completely
weathered
rock completely decomposed
by weathering in place but
texture still recognisable; in
types of granite origin feldspars
completely decomposed to clay
minerals; cores cannot be
recovered by ordinary rotary
drilling methods; can be
excavated by hand
can be excavated by hapd or ripping
without use of explosives; unsuitable for
foundations of concrete dams or large
structures; may be suitable for foundations
of earth dams and for fill; unstable in high
cuttings at steep angles; requires
erosion protection
IVb matrix with occasional clay
stone pellets less than 1/8 inch
diameter but more usually
coarse sand size; little or no
trace of zone I structure;
permeability less than
underlying layers
completely V
weathered
Cw the material is altered with no
trace of original structure
the rock is discoloured and is
externally changed to a soil, but the
original fabric is mainly preserved;
the properties of the soil depend in
part on the nature of the parent rock
III Core stones with residual 50 to 90
debris; core stones domi-
nant, rectangular and
locked together; most
comminuted material is
gruss; deposit 7 m to 17 m
thick
IV highly
weathered
rock so weakened by weathering
that fairly large pieces can be
broken and crumbled in the
hands; sometimes recovered
as core by careful rotary
drilling; stained by limonite
similar to grade V; unlikely to be suitable
for foundations of concrete dams; erratic
presence of boulders makes it an unreliable
foundation stratum for large structures
partly
weathered
III
matrix with frequent lithorelicts
up to 1 inch; as weathering
progresses, lithorelicts become
less angular; water content of
matrix greater than that of
lithorelicts
highly IV
weathered
Hw the material is mainly altered with
occasional small lithorelicts of
original soil; little or no trace
of original structure
the rock is discoloured; discontinuities
may be open and the fabric of the
rock near to the discontinuities is
altered; alteration penetrates deeply
inwards, but lithorelicts are still present
IV Partially weathered rock; greater
minor residual debris than 90
along major structural
planes but more than 50~
may be iron stained in-
dicating significant
chemical decomposition
and breakdown of biotite;
3 to 30 m thick
Bedrock Fresh unweathered granite; c. 100
medium grained, light
grey; two sets of vertical
joints spaced 0.5 m to 12 m
HI moderately
weathered
II slightly
weathered
considerably weathered;
possessing some strength large
pieces (e.g. NX drill cores);
cannot be broken by hand;
often limonite stained; difficult
to excavate without use of
explosives
distinctly weathered with slight
limonite staining; some decomposed
feldspar in granites, strength
approaching that of fresh rock;
explosives required for excavation
excavated with difficulty without use of
explosives; mostly crushes under bulldozer
tracks; suitable for foundations of small
concrete structures and rockfill dams; may
be suitable for semi-pervious fill; stability
in cuttings depends on structural features,
especially joint attitudes
requires explosives for excavation; suitable
for concrete dam foundations; high
permeability through open joints; often more
permeable than the zones above or below;
questionable as concrete aggregate
II
unweathered
I
angular blocks of marl; first
indications of chemical
weathering; matrix starting
to encroach along joints
leading to spheroidal
weathering
mudstone (often fissured);
water content varies due to
different lithology
moderately III
weathered
slightly II
weathered
Mw
Sw
the material is composed of large
discoloured lithorelicts of
original soil separated by
altered material
the material is composed of
angular blocks of fresh soil, which
may or may not be discoloured;
some altered material starting to
penetrate inwards from
discontinuities separating blocks
the rock is discoloured; discontinuities
may be open and surfaces will have
greater discolouration with the
alteration penetrating inwards; the
intact rock is noticeably weaker, as
determined in the field, than the
fresh rock
the rock may be slightly discoloured:
discontinuities may be open and have
slightly discoloured surfaces; the
intact rock is not, as determined in the
field, weaker than the fresh rock
I flesh rock fresh rock may have some limonite
stained joints immediately
beneath weathered rock
staining indicates water percolation along
joints; individual pieces may be loosened
by blasting or stress relief and support may
be required in tunnels and shafts
fresh I Fr the parent soil shows no
discolouration, loss of strength
or any other effects due to
weathering
the parent rock shows no
discolouration, loss of strength or
any other effects due to
weathering
t For illustration of this classification see Fig.2-5.
After SKEMPTONand DAVIS(1966).
ReCK WEATHERING~ CLIMATE AND FOUNDATION ENGINEERING 299
Fig.2. A profile of weathered rhyolite, Hong Kong, in a road cutting. The weathering
grade numbers refer to the FOOKES and HORSWILL (1969) rock weathering grade classification
(Table I).
groups: (1) soils f r om which the weathering product s have been r emoved by
solution; and (2) soils in which the weathering product s have accumul at ed by
precipitation. In general the maj or rock group the siliceous rocks, cont ai n five
main constituents, silica, iron and al umi ni um oxides, alkaline earths and alkalis.
Soils deri ved f r om t hem can be charact eri sed by their accumul at i on of weathering
product s and may be sub-divided into: (1) ferruginous and al umi nous soils
(lateritic types); (2) calcium rich soils; (3) soils rich in evapori t e salts; and (4) red
and bl ack clay soils. The maj or gr oup of non-silica rocks are the calcareous rocks
and the chemical weathering of these is generally charact eri sed by leaching which
produces soils rich in silica and perhaps iron oxides, and are mainly clays.
When the parent material has a high silica cont ent and the soluble weathering
Eng. Geol., 4 (1970~ 289-325
300 M. K. SAUNDERS AND P. G. FOOKES
Fig.3. A profile of weathered basalt, western Ethiopia, in a road cutting. The form of the
weathered zone was governed by the original topography. In the foreground the road has cut
through two spurs on a hillside and the core of each spur is occupied by less weathered (Grade IV)
material. The weathering grade numbers refer to the FOOKES and HORSWILL (1969) rock weathering
grade classification (Table I).
product s are removed, the parent silica is chemically stable and t herefore silica
as quart z particles remain, and the soil is generally sandy or gravelly. However,
if the weathering product s are non-soluble and remain, residual material rich in
iron and al umi ni um oxides give rise to brightly col oured, fine-grained soils, as
well as nodul ar lateritic gravels or cement ed lateritic soils, dependi ng on the
extent of oxide accumul at i on. The general term "l at er i t e" is given to these soils
and the definition followed here is t hat laterites are red tropical soils which harden
on exposure t o the air. The accumul at i on of calcium as carbonat e often results
in nodul ar calcareous gravels which are f ound not abl y in nort hern Nigeria,
East Africa and India. When some har d rock types and soils rich in sedi ment ary
clay minerals weather, t wo maj or groups of residual clay soils result and can be
identified on the basis of col our. Firstly the red clays rich in iron oxides and
often rich in kaolin clay minerals, which are fairly widespread and are produced in
well-drained conditions. The white and pink clays of Hong Kong described by
LUMB (1962a, 1965) pr obabl y belong to a low iron oxide variety of this group.
Secondly, in a non-oxidising envi ronment , such as poorl y drai ned ground, black
clays often rich in mont mori l l oni t e, are produced.
Eng. Geol., 4 (1970) 289-325
ROCK WEATHERING~ CLIMATE AND FOUNDATION ENGINEERING 301
Fig.4. A profile of weathered meta-sediments, northern Zambia, in an open-cast2copper
pit. The beds are folded and this has partly controlled the form of the weathering zones which is
more pronounced in some beds, so unlike Fig.2 the zones are not sub-parallel to the ground
surface, but tend to follow the form of the folding. The weathering grade numbers refer to the
FOOKES and HORSWILL (1969) rock weathering grade classification (Table I). Note great depth of
weathering.
Ar i d zones
Soils f or med in this climatic zone are generally confined t o areas where the
evaporat i on exceeds the preci pi t at i on and are associated with the world' s hot
deserts. Rainfall is generally low (say less t han 150 mm per annum) and often
seasonal. Physical weathering is domi nant and the disintegration of the rock
mainly results f r om insolation, but oft en ot her fact ors such as abrasi on of wind-
bor ne particles may cont ri but e.
The pr oduct s of this type of weathering are generally coarse-grained materials
oft en with evapori t e salts. Par ent materials of a high silica cont ent pr oduce
detrital sands and gravels, which, when t r anspor t ed by wind give loess and sand-
dune deposits or when t r anspor t ed by wat er give alluvial sands and gravels.
(see Fig.5). Calcareous parent materials result in calcareous sands and gravels and
evapori t e salts are often present t hr oughout the soil profile especially in pl aya or
salina internally draining areas. FOOKES and KNILL (1969) divided i nt er-mont ane
desert basins into four sediment deposi t i on zones which may be correl at ed with the
degree of disintegration of the par ent mat er i al - - st r i ct l y speaking these zones are
charact eri sed by t r anspor t ed soils which are not pr oduced by weathering in situ.
Eng. Geol., 4 (1970) 289-325
302 M. K. SAUNDERS AND P. G. FOOKES
Fig.5. A side valley to Wadi Araba, southern Jordan, annotated to show desert zones 1 to
iII. Zone IV is missing in this locality.
Temper at e zone
The soils o f this cl i mat i c zone are f ound a r o u n d t he nor t h and s out h mi d-
l at i t udes and are t ypi cal l y podsol or pedal f er t ypes. The f or me r is char act er i sed
by an upper l eached zone, and gener al l y f or ms in f or est l ands wher e descendi ng
dr ai nage passes t hr ough t he humus . Thi s l eaches out t he i ron hydr oxi des f r om
t he A- 2 pedol ogi cal hor i zon t o r edeposi t t hem in a dar ker , mor e c ompa c t l ower
l ayer whi ch may ul t i mat el y devel op i nt o a har dpan. The pedal fers, mor e t ypi cal of
gr assl and, are not associ at ed wi t h l eachi ng and nor mal l y c a r bona t e is deposi t ed.
The rat e o f weat her i ng in this cl i mat i c zone is rel at i vel y slow, and t he soil profiles
devel oped are of t en less t han say 1 m t hi ck and do not have as much engi neer i ng
si gni fi cance as do t he resi dual soil profiles o f t he humi d t r opi cal zone whi ch of t en
at t ai n a t hi ckness in excess o f 100 m.
The deep weat her i ng profiles whi ch are char act er i st i c o f s ome deposi t s in
Bri t ai n as f or exampl e t he Keuper Mar l (CHANDLER 1969) ar e pr oba bl y l argel y t he
resul t o f t he cl i mat es t hat prevai l ed in this c ount r y dur i ng and af t er t he last Ice
Age.
Peri gl aci al zone
Thi s cl i mat i c zone is conf i ned t o t he ext r eme nor t he r n l at i t udes, wi t h small
regi ons in t he s out her n whi ch are yet o f little geot echni cal si gni fi cance. Pre-
Eng. Geol., 4 (1970) 289-325
ROCK WEATHERING, CLIMATE AND FOUNDATION ENGINEERING 303
cipitation is often low with temperatures remaining below freezing-point for
extended periods. The zone of present-day periglacial action covers Nor t h America,
Greenland, Iceland and parts of nort hern Scandinavia and U.S.S.R. During the
Pleistocene ice advances this zone extended farther south and covered consider-
able areas of Europe, Nort hern Asia and America and it is i mport ant to note t hat
the present-day climate zone map (Fi g. l ) does not indicate this former extent.
The predomi nant weathering process is disintegration brought about by
continual freeze-thaw action. Wat er held in the discontinuities freezes, exerting
destructive forces on the rock mass with resultant disintegration and the format i on
of talus and screes; further weathering produces particles of sufficiently small
size to be t ransport ed by wind and water. Slight chemical weathering occurs in
this climatic zone when prevailing conditions are opt i mum. The melting of the
supra-permafrost layer enables low-temperature water to dissolve high quantities
of carbon-dioxide from the atmosphere, and the underlying permafrost prevents
percolation, and concentration of weak acids results in slow decomposition. An
account of the mechanisms of periglacial weathering of northeast Greenl and is
given by WASHBURN (1969) in which the evidence of chemical decomposition in this
envi ronment is discussed. Washburn suggests t hat the prevalent idea t hat chemical
weathering is negligible is untrue, and cites extensive examples of oxidation,
solution and deposition of chemical carbonates, of cold desert varnish (a chamosite
coating whose development appears to be favoured by the local concentration of
moisture), and of case hardening whereby the surface of a porous rock is coated by
a cement generally formed by the evaporation of mineral bearing solutions.
GEOTECHNICAL PROPERTIES
Hu mi d t ropi cal zone
The friable nat ure of many of the residual soils formed in humi d tropical
zones makes the grading analysis as is known for soils of the temperature nort hern
latitudes less significant. Transport at i on and handl i ng causes disintegration of
some of the concretionary particles, and NIXON and SKIPP (1957) give examples of
the wide range of results obt ai ned when the soils are subject to different pre-
t reat ment techniques. A sample of laterite from Jinja, Uganda, gave about 5~o
passing the 0.06 mm size sieve when tested with no pretreatment, but when treated
with hydrogen peroxide and hydrochl ori c acid, the less t han 0.06 mm fraction was
60~. However, grading curves can be used for classification providing t hey are
used intelligently and their limitation is borne in mind. As an index test over a
particular site composed of residual soils derived from similar parent materials,
they are an invaluable tool.
Many aut hors have published grading curves for residual soils, and these
confirm the wide variety of material with which the engineer is faced in this zone.
When the weathering products are removed in solution from siliceous parent
Eng. Geol., 4 (1970) 289-325
304 M. K. S AUNDERS AND P. G. FOOKES
materials, the result is a typically coarse-grained material, sometimes gap-graded
when weathering is incomplete. The weathering product s f r om calcareous parent
materials are generally silts, clays and clayey silts, whilst those formed with the
accumul at i on of weathering product s are well-graded materials in the initial stages
of decomposi t i on, but in the final stages a fine-grained soil results. Residual soils
formed from similar parent materials may ultimately possess vastly different grading
curves. For example, VARGAS (1953b), LVMB (1965) and DA SILVA (1967) publish
a number of grading curves for soils derived from granites and rhyolites. The two
materials are similar in mineralogical composi t i on, but the individual mineral grains
of granite parent material is of coarse sand size, whilst the rhyolites are medi um to
fine silt size. Fr om this it appears t hat in general the finer grained the parent material,
the finer the resulting residual soil.
When det ermi ni ng the liquid and plastic limit of residual soils care must
again be used in i nt erpret at i on of results. The clay product s of chemical de-
composi t i on are oft en minerals with unusual engineering properties. For exampl e
the f oundat i on soils of several dam sites const ruct ed before the 1960's such as
Sasumua in Kenya, Kj i panoendj ang in Java and Li mot in the Philippines all
cont ai ned high quantities of halloysite, a t ubul ar clay mineral capabl e of retaining
large quantities of water. This loosely adsorbed wat er called "i neffect i ve" water by
DUMBLETON and WEST (1966) gives a high moisture cont ent to the sample. The
ineffective wat er therefore, gives At t erberg limits which fall below the A-line when
pl ot t ed on a Casagrande Plasticity Chart, but the behavi our of this clay as an
engineering material has proved quite satisfactory.
The met hod of pret reat ment also significantly affects the results of these
classification tests, TERZAGHI (1958) showed this with soils tests relating t o the
const ruct i on of the Sasumua Dam, where the dryi ng of the sample at 105 C pri or
to testing decreased the liquid limit by 29)/o. It is t herefore essential to record the
met hod of sample preparat i on when quot i ng At t erberg Li mi t values for residual
soils in order t hat the compar i son of results may be made on similar grounds.
SHERWOOD (1967) has shown anomal ous low plasticity results f r om Kenya red
clays aggregated by cementing act i on of free iron oxide.
The range of engineering propert i es of lateritic soils is appar ent from Fig.6
where the results of a number of tests made on residual soils are pl ot t ed on a
plasticity chart. VARGAS (1953b) showed t hat most of the points obt ai ned from
decomposed granite, gneiss and schist lay below the A-Line. The high liquid limit
values of these red "vol cani c" soils has been at t ri but ed by NrxoN and SKtPP (1957) to
the presence of active clay minerals.
In view of the vast range of engineering properties of the residual soils
suggested by the classification tests, the published shear strengths show surprising
consistency. The values of the angles of shearing resistance referred to effective
stresses (qS') or the angle of shearing resistance in drai ned condi t i ons (~ba), generally
fall in the region of 25 to 35 and show t he usual t endency t o increase with
Eng. Geol., 4 (1970) 289-325
ROCK WEATHERING~ CLIMATE AND FOUNDATION ENGINEERING 305
HUMID TROPI CAL
6 C
6C
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~ / / / _ _ ~ , p - - ~ L I N E S F O R H A L L O Y S I T I C S O I L S
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E N V E L O P E S R E F E R T O R E D S O I L S
. . - ~ z ~ . . % . . ~ : ~ . _ . ,,ALLO',S,r,~ SO,LS
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L I Q U I O LIMIT " / ,
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LIQUID LIMIT " / ,
Fig.6. Comparison of plasticity data of residual soils developed within two of the principal
climatic zones. The periglacial climate may include former climate weathering.
i nc r e as e d grai n s i ze o f t he par e nt r oc k. Be c aus e o f t he great vari et y o f resul t s
avai l abl e f or t r opi c al s oi l s , it is c o n v e n i e n t here t o l o o k f urt her at o n l y t h o s e f r o m
aci d i g ne o us par e nt r oc ks . LUMB ( 1962a) bri ef l y di s cus s es t he ef f ect o f s a mpl i ng
di s t ur banc e o n t he s t rengt h o f d e c o mp o s e d grani t e and r hyol i t e s o f Ho n g Ko n g .
By us i ng a 1.5 i nc h di ame t e r s a mpl e t ube, he c o mp a r e d t he var i at i on o f t he ave r age
"dri ven" v o i d rat i o wi t h t hat o f t he t rue v o i ds rat i o o f t he i n- s i t u mat e r i al and
s h o we d t hat t he s oi l s a mpl e s had an appr e c i abl y hi gher v o i d s rat i o, wh i c h i n t urn
af f ect ed t he s t rengt h charact eri st i cs. Sa mpl e s t es t ed whi c h we r e 1 0 0 ~ s at urat ed
e xhi bi t e d no c o h e s i o n , but wi t h de c r e as e d degrees o f s a t ur a t i o n t he s oi l s be c a me
mo r e c o he s i v e , t he i ncreas e be i ng mo r e appar e nt wi t h de ns e r s oi l s . Lu mb al s o
di s c us s e d t he i nf l uence o f v o i d r at i o o n t he v a l ue o f q~'; t he i nc r e as e o f t he angl e o f
s heari ng res i s t ance wi t h de c r e as i ng v o i ds rat i o b e c o mi n g great er f or f i ne- grai ned
Eng. Geol., 4 (1970) 289-325
306 M. K. SAUNDERS AND P. G. FOOKES
T AB L E l I
SUMMARY OF SHEAR STRENGTH, PERMEABILITY, CONSOLIDATION AND COMPRESSIBILITY CHARACTERIS-
TICS FOR SOILS FORMED IN HUMID TROPICAL ZONES*
Reference Parent o' or oa Remarks
material
Shear strength
VARGAS (1953b) gnei s s 25
gr ani t e 31
TERZA~HI (1958) r hyol i t e 30 - 36
LAMB (1962) gr a ni t e 28 -38 ~
FANSHAWE (1963) r hyol i t e 2 9 - 3 6
LITTLE (1965) gr a ni t e 30 - 35 o
CARLYLE (1965) r hyol i t e 31
LUMB (1965) gr ani t e 35
r hyol i t e 31
Ho (1965) gr a ni t e 31 -37
VARGAS et al . (1965) gnei s s 26 - 29
ba s a l t 29 o
MATYAS (1969) r hyol i t e 300- 34
TROW a n d MORTON ( 1969) pe r i dot i t e 340-36
C ' 0
C ' - - 0
C ' ~ 26 t o 30 KN/ m 2
c o mp a c t e d
c o mp a c t e d ; C ' = 10.6 t o
42 KN/ m 2
C ' 24 KN/ m"
C ' = 26 KN/ m 2
C ' - - 0
C ' - - 0
c o mp a c t e d ; C ' 7. 2- 62. 5
KN/ m z
C ' 24 t o 72 KN/ m 2
C ' - - 29 KN/ m 2
Reference Parent Permeability
material ( cm/ s ec)
Remarks
Permeability
TERZAGHI (1958)
LAMB (1962)
LUMB ( 1962b)
FANSHAWE (i 962)
FORD a n d ELL1OTT (1965)
LITTLE (1965)
CARLYLE (1965)
VARGAS et al. (1965)
r hyol i t e 3' 10 -7
gr a ni t e 1-10 5-1"10-3
gr a ni t e 5. 10- 4_2. 10 2
r hyol i t e 2' 10 6- 5' 10 '~
r hyol i t e 1.10 8- 9' 10 8
r hyol i t e 1. 10- 5_1. 10 4
gr ani t e 1.10 7 5. 10 6
r hyol i t e 1.10 7 4 . 1 0 - 7
gnei s s 3. 10 7- 6. 10- 6
ba s a l t 2. 10 7
MACKEY a n d
YAMASHITA (1967) gr a ni t e 2. 10 5-1"10 4
MATYAS (1967) r hyol i t e 2. 10 7- 6. 10 8
MACKECHNIE (1967) mi c a s chi s t 1. 10- z- 7. 10 -1
c o mp a c t e d
c o mp a c t e d
c o mp a c t e d
c o mp a c t e d
c o mp a c t e d
a ngl e o f s chi s t os i t y var i ed.
Reference Parent Cv ( cm2/ sec)
material
Coefficient of consolidations
TOMHNSON a n d HOLT
(1953) gr ani t e 1.1-10 1
FANSHAWE (1962) r hyol i t e 3. 8. 10- 4_2. 7. 10 2
LAMB (1962) gr ani t e 1. 8. 10- 3- 7. 1. I 0- 3
Remarks
f r o m di s s i pa t i on t es t s
Eng. Geol., 4 (1970) 289- 325
ROCK WEATHERING, CLIMATE AND FOUNDATION ENGINEERING
TABLE I I (continued)
307
Reference Parent Cv (cm2/sec) Remarks
material
LtJMB (1962b) granite 3. 2"10-1-32
rhyolite 1.8"10 3-5.3"10 -1
CARLYLE (1965) rhyolite 7.1"10 -2
FORD and ELLIOTT (1965) rhyolite 3.5.10-3_3.5.10 2
THURAIRAJAH (1967) - - 6.8'10-6--5.2'10 -5
MAcKECHNIE (1967) mica schist 3.2.10-1-2.5
from triaxial tests
slurries
black clay
angle of schistosity varied
Reference Parent mv (m2/KN) Remarks
material
Compressibility
VARGAS (1953b) granite 1.41.10 -4
gneiss 1.86"10 4
FANSnkWE (1962) rhyolite 8.4 '10-5-3.5'10 -4
LtrMB (1962b) granite 2.8 -10-5-10.3"10 -4
rhyolite 1.41.10-4-7.5-10 -4
* Important note: In most of these cases, the data in the literature has not recorded the degree
of weathering of the samples tested and no values of geotechnical properties can therefore be
given for individual weathering grades.
soils. F o r s t udyi ng t he shear st r engt h o f t he s at ur at ed r ed ear t hs (oxi di sed de c om-
pos ed grani t es) and de c ompos e d rhyol i t es, Lu mb used t he undr a i ne d tests whi ch
gener al l y gave t~ u = 0, wi t h a wi de r ange o f cohesi on, f r om 192 KN/ m 2 t o 278
KN/ m 2.
A s u mma r y o f t he publ i s hed dat a o f t he shear s t r engt h char act er i st i cs o f
r esi dual soils is gi ven i n Tabl e I I .
LUMB (1962a) al so de mons t r a t e d t he i nfl uence o f voi d r at i o on per meabi l i t y,
compr essi bi l i t y and on t he coeffi ci ent o f cons ol i dat i on on t he soils o f weat her ed
r hyol i t e and gr ani t e. I ncr ease i n voi ds r at i o gr eat l y i ncr eased all par amet er s f or
f i ne- gr ai ned a nd me di um- gr a i ne d soils, but t he i ncrease was less f or t he coar se-
gr ai ned soils. Lu mb s howe d st at i st i cal l y t ha t t her e is no si gni fi cant di fference i n
per meabi l i t y f or vert i cal , hor i zont al , cor ed, dr i ven or r e moul de d sampl es
o f t he r esi dual soils, a nd quot es val ues r angi ng f r om 3. 7. 10 - v cm/ sec at a voi d
r at i o o f 0. 40 t o 1.6.10 - 3 cm/ s ec at a voi d r at i o o f a bout 0. 65 f or t he medi um-
gr ai ned soils. The compr essi bi l i t y was l ow f or t he de c ompos e d gr ani t e a nd val ues
gener al l y r anged f r om a bout 1.10 - 4 m2 / KN t o 5.10 - 4 m2/ KN. He r epor t ed no
si gni fi cant di fference wi t h var i at i on in t he degree o f s at ur at i on. Hi gh val ues o f
coeffi ci ent o f cons ol i dat i on ar e r ecor ded, r angi ng f r om 1.67-10 - 2 t o 16.7 cm2/ sec,
t he val ues f or t he me di um gr ai ned soil bei ng a bout t en t i mes t hose o f t he fi ne-grai ned.
Eng. Geol., 4 (1970) 289-325
308 M. K. SAUNDERS AND P. G. FOOKES
Studies of some consol i dat i on characteristics of a residual soil f or med f r om
mi ca schist in Cent ral Afri ca by MACKECHNIE (1967) also show higher values of
coefficient of consol i dat i on t han would be expect ed f r om their index propert i es,
and ranged f r om 4. 2. 10-3 cmZ/sec to 1.3.10 -2 cm2/sec, l sot r opy of consol i dat i on
charact eri st i cs is confi rmed in these soils by consi derat i on of the angle of schistosity
within the residual soil. Permeabi l i t y values quot ed range f r om 1.3" 10-8 cm/ sec to
7. 1. 10- 7 cm/sec.
A s ummar y of publ i shed dat a on permeabi l i t y, compressi bi l i t y and con-
sol i dat i on coefficients is given in Tabl e II.
Ar i d z one
Within the ari d zone the gradi ng curve may be used extensively as a classifi-
cat i on test because the mat eri al s do not disaggregate significantly on movement
and the effects of pr et r eat ment are generally less t han t hose experi enced on soils
f r om the humi d t ropi cal zones. While the destructive agent s r emai n essentially
the same t hr oughout the zone, the t r anspor t i ng agents of wind and occasi onal l y
fl ood wat ers pr ovi de efficient sorting. It is empbasi sed t hat al t hough this is not
weat heri ng in the t rue sense but consi derat i on of sedi ment ar y envi r onment it is
useful for the pur pose of this paper to discuss the di st ri but i on of the di si nt egrat ed
mat eri al within the envi ronment .
When investigating the role of the engi neeri ng geologist in regi onal devel op-
ment s of Iran, FOOKES and KNILL (1969) used the division shown in Fig.7 based
on the nat ural sort i ng of the soils which give a charact eri st i c gradi ng curve in each
of the delineated zones as shown. The zones are devised pri nci pal l y on the basis
of the t r anspor t i ng agent. Wi t hi n Zone I, gradi ng sizes range f r om poor l y sort ed
medi um angul ar gravel to very large boul ders and in this zone and Zone I1,
gravi t y and wat er flow provi de the mai n force of movement . I n Zone I I deposi t i on
may t ake place f r om i nt ermi t t ent sheet and st r eam flow duri ng short periods of
flooding and here the soils are compos ed of mi xt ures of angul ar to sub- angul ar
sands and gravels, with included cobbl es and boulders. These sheet flows provi de
t he pri nci pal t r anspor t i ng agent s of Zone I l l , where t wo soil types may be differen-
t i a t e d - s i l t y st ony and sandy stony. Aeol i an deposi t s are to be f ound in the cent ral
part s of the desert desi gnat ed Zone I V where the mat eri al is poor l y graded. I t is
pri nci pal l y in this zone t hat evapori t e salts may be found.
Very little wor k appear s to have been done on the plasticity charact eri st i cs
of weat hered mat eri al s in the ari d zones of the world. The results of the tests
made in sout h-west central I r an by FOOKES and KNILL (1969) and some addi t i onal
unpubl i shed dat a I are present ed on the plasticity chart of Fig.7.
1 Kindly supplied by Messrs. Rendel, Palmer and Tritton, Consulting Engineers, London.
Eng. Geol., 4 (1970) 289-325
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310 M. K. SAUNDERS AND P. G. FOOKES
The permeabi l i t y characteristics of soils subject to disintegration in arid
regions generally become more ani sot ropi c f r om Zone I to Zone IV. Within
Zone II, where soils are composed of material grading f r om sands t hr ough gravels
and cobbles, to boulders, the permeability is high. Poor stratifaction results in
similar values of permeability in hori zont al and vertical directions. Consol i dat i on
of this material is generally low. In Zone III the permeability is more variable.
The silty st ony soil is very permeabl e and with low consol i dat i on characteristics,
but the silty st ony desert often contains silts and small amount s of clays and
evaporites and the permeability is correspondl y lower. Interdigitation of sheets
of the two soil types or lenses of either more silty or gravelly material inter-
fingering t hr oughout the main soil type can lead to local unexpected increases
in permeability, oft en with dangerous consequences for engineering situations.
The aeolian deposits of Zone IV have peculiar propert i es of permeability
and consolidation. Samples of loess tested showed a metastable collapse upon wetting
under reasonabl y high loads, with a dr op in void rat i o from 1.1 to 0.7. However,
in its normal state, loess can st and in veltical cuts many metres in height, al t hough
large vertical cracks can extend down t o several metres and may be typically over
20 cm wide. The vertical permeability of this material is t herefore much great er
t han t hat in a hori zont al direction; some furt her dat a is given by TURNBCLL (1948),
HOLTZ and GraBS (1952), and FOOKES and BEST (1969).
Temperate zone
The relatively thin weathering profiles f or med in unequi vocal t emperat e
climatic zones generally make the investigation of their geotechnical behavi our
of limited value and apparent l y little work has been published. The results of a
few classification tests have been published by aut hors investigating the mechanism
of weathering, but few strength or consol i dat i on values have been found.
The weat hered stiff crust extending to 3-4 m depth, typical of a number of
the Scandinavian Lat e Pleistocene marine clays, has been the subject of st udy by
MOUM and ROSENQU1ST (1957) who published grain size distribution curves for the
unweat hered and weat hered crust. The f or mat i on of this hard crust does not affect
the grain size to any considerable extent, al t hough the slightly higher sand cont ent
of the weat hered crust has been at t ri but ed to the aggregation of iron compounds.
A similar st udy was made by JORGENSON (1965) who investigated four Norwegi an
mari ne clays, but, al t hough grading curves were published for the upper layers of
the deposits, no absolute measurement s were given for the dept h of the "dr yi ng
cr ust " in these sediments.
The dat a f r om the At t erberg limit det ermi nat i ons by MOUM and ROSENQUIST
(1957) on t he weat hered crust of the mari ne clay show a ma r k e d mcrease in
plasticity with weathering, resulting, most pr obabl y from the mont mori l l oni t e
known to exist in this crust. They carried out tests to investigate the influence of
t emper at ur e and oxygen on the plasticity of a quick clay f r om Dr ammen. By
Eng. Geol.. 4 (1970~ 289-325
ROCK WEATHERING, CLIMATE AND FOUNDATION ENGINEERING 311
exposing a sample of unweat hered clay to air, bubbl ed t hr ough a slurry f or a
number of days, the plasticity is markedl y increased over a sample which has been
sealed f r om cont act with t he at mosphere. This increase has been at t ri but ed t o the
oxi dat i on of t ri oct ohedral mica and di oct ohedral mica by the weathering process.
Similarly, t he f or mat i on of mont mori t l oni t e f r om mica minerals is an oxi dat i on
process. El i mi nat i on of oxygen t herefore prevents weathering.
The effects of weathering on har d rocks have been studied by many workers.
SMITH (1957) published grading curves for an olivine basalt from Nor t her n Irel and
for the fresh material and for each of the zones of weathering. The upper soils
profiles consi dered by Smith are most pr obabl y the result of t emperat e weathering,
but the weat hered crust he mentions was f or med pr obabl y duri ng periglacial
conditions.
The t emperat e weathering of glacially deri ved loess has been studied by
KRINITZSKY and TURNBULL (1968) in the Mississippi region. The Vicksburg loess
is separable into t he upper calcareous loess some 20,000 years old, l eached (non-
calcareous) in the upper hori zons, underl ai n by a weathered, generally non-
calcareous zone. This overlies a loessic deposit of variable car bonat e cont ent
and degree of weathering. Thus, whilst pr i mar y weathering was in a periglacial
envi ronment , secondary weathering is at present occurri ng on the redeposited
material in a t emperat e zone. The values of plasticity characteristics given suggest
t hat the leaching increases the plasticity of the soil. FOOKES and BEST (1969) f ound
no change in the plasticity above and below the leached hori zon in loess f r om
south-east Bri t ai n of Lat e Glacial age.
Wor k by FRANKLIN (1970) on t he strength and porosities of various weat hered
Dar t moor rocks in south-west Engl and was based on quant i fi cat i on of a classifi-
cat i on scheme for mappi ng weat hered soils and rocks devel oped by FOOKES and
HORSWILL (1969), Tabl e I. Samples of a number of r ock types in vari ous stages of
weathering were used in the irregular l ump poi nt test t o indicate strength values.
The results give excellent correl at i on and suggest t hat t he chemical br eakdown of
the r ock does not occur until Zone IV weathering 1. The fine grai ned rocks are
mor e sensitive to weathering and show an increase in porosi t y f r om about 10~o in
Zone IV t o over 40~o in Zone V. SERAFIM and LOPES (1961) discuss in-situ shear
tests made in connect i on with f oundat i on design for a number of dams in nor t her n
Port ugal . Using an alteration index (i), defined as the percent age of wat er absorbed
t hr ough i mmersi on by a sample dried at 105C, they r epor t a drastic loss in
strength of weat hered granites from Alto Rabagao with increasing al t erat i on index
o f i = 3 t o i = 10.
z A similar conclusion was reached by CHANDLER (1969) on the weathering of cohesive Keuper
Marl.
Eng. Geol., 4 (1970) 289-325
312 M. K. SAUNDERS AND P. G. FOOKES
P e r i g l a c i a l z o n e
Periglacial soils in common with ot her sedi ment ary deposits can be classified
in various ways, for example dependi ng on their o~igin, or appearance or grading.
WEST (1968) conveni ent l y divides t hem into two main groups, viz: ( / ) sorted soils,
such as loess or cover sands, where t hey are uni forml y graded as silt and sand
respectively when they are blown to their place of rest by the wind; and (2) unsort ed
soils, generally solifluxion deposits of non-uni form grading produced by mixed,
water sat urat ed debris, flowing downhill under gravity. In common with the
disturbances pr oduced by periglacial action, solifluxion soils are often quite
variable in nature, distribution and extent and as such are difficult to investigate
satisfactorily and frequent l y erratic in their engineering behaviour. Strictly speaking
these soils, like the desert soils, are the results of weathering, el osi on and trans-
port at i on before deposition and are not weathered in-situ residual soils.
Studies by MARTINI (1967) into the susceptibility of various types of rock,
bot h fresh and weathered, to in-situ frost action showed that sandstones, several
types of granite and met amor phi c schists were most susceptible, whilst crystalline
limestones, gneisses and volcanics proved the most resistant. Generally, rocks
characterised by well-developed grains t ended to a well-graded breakdown material,
whilst crypt ocryst al l i ne and massive rocks having fine grains tended to give gap-
graded curves with relatively more coarse-grained material and silt material in
grain size below 0.5 mm. The amount of water present during disintegration
affected the resul t s--general l y a larger degree of disintegration occurri ng with
greater quantities of water.
The effects of cont i nual freeze-thaw processes on the disintegration of rock
masses has been studied extensively in the l abol at or y by CORTE (1966). He showed
t hat sorting can occur by the repeat ed process of freeze-thaw and t hat the coarsest
particles are ext ruded to the surface. This effect, which is increased if the freeze-
thaw action occurs from the top, can result in graded bedding in the sediment.
The effect on the geotechnical behavi our of weathering on the Keuper Marl,
a series of overconsol i dat ed mudst ones and silty mudst ones of Triassic Age, has
been studied by CHANDLER (1969). Al t hough a t emperat e climate prevails at present,
it is consi dered t hat the maj or weathering processes may have occurred in a perigla-
cial envi ronment . Chandl er gives the grading envelopes for four zones of increased
weathering, with Zone 1 (see Tabl e I) representing the unweat hered material.
The gradi ng curves suggest t hat differentiation on index propert i es may onl y be
made in the case of his highly weat hered Zone 1V material, none being readily
possible between the unweat hered and partially weat hered Zones I to llI. Chandl er
attributes this to the aggregation of the silt size particles in the partially weathered
marls, and t hat the mechanical breakdown which takes place during sample
preparat i on is similar to that t o which the soil has been subjected in the case of
Zone I l I weathering, i.e. only chemical weathering breaks down the silt-sized
material furt her and this is onl y f ound in the upper most (Zone IV) hori zon. The
Eng. Geol., 4 (1970) 289-325
ROCK WEATHERI NG, CLIMATE AND FOUNDATI ON ENGINEERING 313
plasticity dat a presented during this st udy confirms the difficulty of differentiating
between the four weathered zones.
The types of soil st ruct ure exhibited by the Keuper Marl in the t hree stages
of weathering is also indicated by the difference in the stress-strain relations of
drai ned triaxial tests. The Zone I unweat hered material exhibits al most brittle
characteristics while soils from Zone IV show a plastic failure. Weat heri ng reduces
the peak shear strength, but the residual value is not reached by weathering alone.
This agrees with the results published by LA ROCHELLE (1960), SKEMPTON (1964),
BISHOP et al. 0965) and BISHOP (1966) for weat hered and unweat hered London
Clay.
Results of consol i dat i on tests made on the Keuper Marl show t hat the
Zone III material behaves similarly to a lightly overconsol i dat ed deposit, and
estimates of the maxi mum post -consol i dat i on pressure from the moi st ure cont ent /
log p curve are much l ower t han geological evidence suggests. It is concl uded t hat
chemical weat heri ng removes the effect of l oad preconsol i dat i on on the soil
structure. SKEMPTON (1961) gave similar conclusions when investigating the past
stress hi st ory of London Clay.
In the geotechnical assessment of a site at Mundf or d, Norfol k, for the pr ot on
accelerator, WARD et al. (1968) published the results of plate l oadi ng tests made on
site. The Upper Chal k was divided i nt o five grades, Gr ade V representing the most
weathered, whilst Grades I, II and III described unweat hered chal k of different
original hardness. A good correl at i on was obt ai ned between the grade numbers
and the engineering propert i es of the chalk. The weat hered zones showed very
much lower beari ng capacities. The results of these full-scale plate l oadi ng tests
suggest t hat the creep of Grades I and II chal k under pressures of 400 KN/ m 2 can
be neglected in compar i son with the i mmedi at e deformat i ons. Wi t hi n Gr ade III
creep was r ecor ded but consi dered uni mport ant , but in Grades IV and V the test
results showed t hat creep was large and t hat secondary settlement coul d be
consi derabl y larger t han the i mmedi at e deformat i on.
CONSTRUCTI ON FEATURES
A summar y of engineering characteristics within the climatic zones is given
in Tabl e III.
Humid tropical regions
Many residual soils have been used successfully f or r oad and runway
const ruct i on, bot h as base courses and wearing surfaces. Satisfactory results
have oft en been obt ai ned with no stabilisation, al t hough COLLINS (1948) draws
at t ent i on t o the necessity of good compact i on and adequat e drainage. However,
many aut hors have warned against specifying t oo high a compact i on quot i ng
examples when a large number of passes of compact i ng equi pment is necessary t o
Eng. Geol., 4 (1970) 289-325
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318 M. K. S AUNDERS AND P. G. FOOKES
achieve specified Pr oct or densities. Nat ural soft laterite easily remoul ds to a soft
clay in the presence of water, but initial exposure to harden the laterite will
reduce this, and total prevent i on may be possible by the removal of the clay fines
to increase the permeability of the soil. When used as a low-grade wearing course,
laterite tends to corrugat e due to the loss of fines near the surface caused by
traffic or weathering, which may be prevent ed by a cement or bi t umi nous dressing,
al t hough POLLITT (1950) report s t hat regular brushing provides a satisfactory
remedy. NIXON and SKIPP (1957) stress the limitations of the l abor at or y testing of
lateritic soils, as the aggregate of samples is generally smaller t han t hat which
will be used in const ruct i on, and will give correspondi ng lower strengths. They
consider t hat C.B.R. tests should be made on trial areas to achieve reliable design
figures.
In the const ruct i on of roads and runways on the tropical red and bl ack clays,
similar precaut i ons to those ment i oned for the lateritic soils are necessary. Labor a-
t ory tests are more likely to provi de reliable dat a for their design t han for the
laterites, but emphasis should still be laid on full scale-field tests. N~xoN and
SKIPP (1957) quot e the example of l abor at or y C.B.R. tests on a red clay from
Jakart a, Java giving results of 1. 6~. Field measurement of the same clay was
6.0~o. An empirical t echni que suggested by BRYAN (1956) was used in connect i on
with the const ruct i on of the Paya Lebar Ai rport in Singapore, which was to measure
the C. B. R. value of a soil aft er Proct or compact i on and again aft er the test specimen
had come i nt o equilibrium with known humi di t y conditions. The red latosols may
be used as satisfactory subgrade material for pavements, but GRACE and HENRY
(1957) report the necessity of compact i on. Many fills are of low density but are
quite satisfactory as embankment s t hough generally unsuitable, however, f or a
wearing course for high traffic intensities on either roads or runways. Thei r
properties are often i mproved by the addition of granul ar material.
The black mont mori l l oni t e clays of the tropics are generally formed in poorl y
drai ned land and because of the i nadequat e drainage eart h roads on these soils
are frequent l y impassable duri ng the wet season. Considerable vol ume changes
occur duri ng wetting and drying resulting in severe deep cracks duri ng the dry
season. Met hods of burni ng the black clay to produce a low grade aggregate have
been investigated with a great degree of success. Aggregate impact values depend
on the t emperat ure of firing, and results report ed by CLARE (1957) on lumps of
Nigerian black clay range f r om 24. 3~ at 200C to 21.9~o, at 1.000C. Values for
typical British roadst ones range from 2 . 2 ~ (hornfels) up to 12~o (granites). Tests
on the burned, cool ed powdered lumps showed t hat for t emperat ures in excess of
500C, all plasticity was eliminated. A machi ne has been used extensively in
Australia t o burn the soil in situ and satisfactory t ransformat i on occurred to a
dept h of 15 cm.
I mpr ovement of the propert i es of tropical residual soils are generally good
aft er stabilisation. Tests by WIYTERKORN and CHANDRASEKHARAY (1951) on a
Eng. Geol., 4 (1970) 289-325
ROCK WEATHERING, CLIMATE AND FOUNDATION ENGINEERING 319
number of Puer t o Ri can and Cuban soils with a vari et y of stabilisers suggest t hat
oil of any t ype with ant i oxi dent and bactericidal additives shoul d provi de the
most satisfactory stabilising agent. They suggest t hat the susceptibility to stabili-
sation of lateritic soils increases with increased degree of laterisation. Cement has
been used as a stabiliser, and fREER (1948), ALCOCK (1949) in connect i on with
Lusaka Ai rport , and BRIGGS (1943) on r oad const ruct i on in Brazil all record
satisfactory operat i on of cement stabilised residual soils. Lime has been success-
fully used t o stabilise t ropi cal soils, and SCHOEIELD (1957) report s the use of 3~o
lime on a lateritic soil in Nyasal and t o increase the C. B. R. value f r om 2 0 ~ to
4 5 ~ and to reduce t he plasticity f r om 30~o to 8~o in less t han 24 hours. Tests by
CLARE (1957) show a reduct i on of plasticity f r om 4 8 ~ t o 0 ~ of a bl ack clay from
Sout hern Rhodesi a by the addi t i on of 4 ~ hydr at ed lime. Det ermi nat i ons were
made 28 days aft er the lime addition. UPPAL and CHADDA (1967) used lime to
stabilise the bl ack soils of Indi a and increased the soaked C.B.R. value f r om 3 ~
to over 80~o with the addi t i on of only 5 ~ lime. Plasticity indices also reduced from
40. 5~ to 6.9~o.
Slopes in residual soils have a similar, t hough less dramat i c ability t han loess
t o st and in vertical cuts. LITTLE (1969) notes t hat fiat slopes erode badly, and
t hat the most economi cal design is t o const ruct near-vertical walls and clean up
any slips which may occur. He suggests spraying the exposed surface with bi t umen
or to cover t hem with cement plaster. LUMB (1962b) records t hat the presence or
absence of the oxidised surface layer on the decomposed granites of Hong Kong has
a pr onounced effect on the occurrence of slides in cuttings. This zone is in an
advanced stage of weathering with the st ruct ure of the soil being dest royed with
associated compact i on from seasonal wetting and drying. The i mpermeabl e layer
which results limits the infiltration of wat er and prevents the decrease in cohesion.
Lumb noticed t hat the maj ori t y of the slides in Hong Kong are in the much finer
decomposed volcanics, and he at t ri but ed this t o the fact t hat the cohesion of the
finer-grained residual soils is less dependent on the degree of sat urat i on. On full
sat urat i on, the rhyolitic soils exhibited no cohesion, and failure was mor e likely to
occur. NIXON and SKIPP (1957) r epor t t hat lateritic soils st and permanent l y in a
vertical face in shallow cuttings, but t hey r ecommend inclined slopes for excavations
deeper t han 6 m. BRYAN and IBRAHIM (1949) collected useful dat a on the stability
of slopes in cuttings in Mal aya, whilst, mor e recently, BULMAN ( 1967) r ecommended
slope angles cut in Mal ayan soils to be 50-60 f or the coarser grained soils and
40-45 for the finer grained.
Wi t h a few differences, the f oundat i on probl ems associated with
t ropi cal residual soils are not greatly different f r om those encount ered with clays in
t he t emperat e zone. The har d crust of laterites has a high beari ng capacity and a
low compressibility resulting in small settlements. However, investigations of a
lateritic profile in Col ombo, Ceylon, report ed by NIXON and SKIPP (1957) reveal
t hat the strength of laterites may decrease with depth. They quot e undrai ned shear
Eng. GeoL, 4 (1970) 289-325
320 M. K. SAUNDERS AND P. G. FOOKES
strengths of 91 KN/ m / in the crust and of 26 KN/ m 2 at between 5 m and 6 m
below gr ound level. Seasonal variations may cause swelling and shrinking of clays
to greater depths t han are encount ered in t emperat e climates and these effects
coul d be t roubl esome in the case of shallow foundat i ons for lightly l oaded struc-
tures.
Arid regions
Weat her ed product s in this region provi de a plentiful supply of material f or
r oad and r unway const ruct i on. Unpaved airfields are widely used in this region,
where satisfactory pavement s are const ruct ed merely by grading and compact i ng
the surface. Within Zone II of FOOKES and KNmL (1969) arid region classification
Fig.7 the apr on deposits provi de a source of good base and sub-base material and
they quot e C. B. R. values of 4 7 ~ when unsoaked, reducing to 4 0 ~ when soaked.
The silty st ony and sandy st ony desert soils of Zone I11 also provi de satisfactory
road const ruct i on material, and the C. B. R. values indicate a mi ni mum thickness
of about 15 cm of sub-base material is required. C.B.R. values quot ed (unsoaked)
ranged from 6 ~ for a silty st ony soil to 42~o for a sandy type. Within Zone IV,
C.B.R. values are significantly lower; unsoaked values quot ed by Fookes and
Knill lie between 2. 5~ and 5 ~ . Any metastable st ruct ure of the loess shoul d be
dest royed by wetting and rolling pri or to const ruct i on. The material may be used
as a suitable sub-base or base for roads and runways with the addi t i on of coarser
material or of lime or cement.
TOMLINSON (1957) suggests t hat the areas adjacent to unpaved runways shoul d
slope away f r om the airstrip t o avoi d the t ransport at i on of eroded soil on to the
r unway and drainage channels. He records the i mport ance of preserving the surface
crusts of saline and calcareous soils. The heavy compact i on required of the
loose cohesionless calcareous soils in the Persian Gul f region results in the de-
struction of this crust, but it may be renewed by frequent l y spraying with salt
wat er followed by rolling. Calcareous sandstones, f or med by the deposition of
calcium carbonat es and gypsum in silica sands are generally associated with
hummocky t opogr aphy, and levelling may result in the removal of the hard cal-
careous layer over parts of the site, thus exposing the uncement ed sand to erosion.
Once disturbed, these soils have no ability to recompact , and wetting greatly
softens them. C.B.R. values quot ed by Toml i nson for a Kuwai t calcareous sand-
stone range from 40~o when dry to only 9 ~ when wetted.
The slope angles of this climatic region attained under the influence of
nat ural conditions is given in Fig.7; the arid deserts are generally fairly flat lying
away from the mount ai n regions and rarely exceed angles of a few degrees.
Within the apr on area (Zone II) however, slopes of up t o 15 may be f ound whilst
within the mount ai ns small rock fans may develop slopes of up to 30 . In the
central desert regions the flat t opogr aphy more or less eliminates the need of
extensive cutting for highways, railways etc., but t empor ar y excavat i on for
Eng. Geol., 4 (1970) 289-325
ROCK WEATHERING, CLIMATE AND FOUNDATION ENGINEERING 321
f oundat i on const ruct i on or trial pits are oft en necessary. The high strength of
the loess in dr y condi t i ons enables vertical walls to st and mor e or less indefinitely
with heights exceeding 10 m. It is consi dered t hat this unusual ability to st and in
vertical slopes shoul d be t aken advant age of, and t hat convent i onal slopes cut
back to gradients of 2:1 or 3:1 onl y dest roy the i nherent st ruct ure of the deposit.
The highly erosive nat ure of loess is t herefore exploited by wat er and the slopes
very short l y become gullied. Local col umnar slabbing oft en frequent , will pr obabl y
be t he onl y failures encount ered i f vertical slopes are maintained. The perpet ual
infilling of excavations by blown sand may be the most difficult probl em t hat en-
gineers will face in the const ruct i on of cuttings.
The weat hered soils in this area provi de good f oundat i on materials, and as
the wat er level is generally deep it has little effect on most engineering operat i ons.
However, because of the high salt cont ent which may occur where t here is a cont i nu-
ous supply f r om the bedrock, the use of sulphate resistant cement for all concret e
works is recommended. Differential settlement may be caused i f foundat i ons are
const ruct ed across soils of different salt concent rat i ons; leaching by t empor ar y
rivers may result in under gr ound cavities. As ment i oned previously wetting of
met ast abl e loess causes a compl et e loss in strength and subsequent cat ast rophi c
failure may result unless the precaut i on of flooding and rolling pr i or to const ruct i on
has been taken.
Temper at e zones
The soil profiles devel oped in the t emperat e climates are generally of
insufficient dept h t o create any maj or engineering probl em. Being onl y a few
tens of centimetres thick the soil may be easily removed, or a f oundat i on level
chosen below the weat hered material. TAYLOR and STEEL (1967) have discussed the
significance of the soil hori zons on the f oundat i on design f or domestic buildings
in Adelaide, Aust ral i a and have erected a pedological classification of the soil
types in t he area and made recommendat i ons for f oundat i on design in each of t he
soil zones. It appears t hat the designs pr oposed are not so much critically depend-
ent on the soil profiles, as the climatic condi t i ons present, not abl y t emper at ur e
and moi st ure variations, are the i mpor t ant fact ors affecting the design of t he foun-
dations.
Peri gl aci al zones
Effects of periglacial weathering exists bot h in the fossil state (largely in
what is now t emperat e zones) and in a present -day "act i ve" state.
The effects of past periglacial conditions are widespread, but in many places
t hey are obscured by association with solifluxion deposits wi ndbl own soils and
glacial debris. Fr ost shattering of near surface material, col d wat er leaching
and structures associated with hill movement (cambering, gulls and so on) appear
Eng. Geol., 4 (1970) 289-325
322 M. K. SAUNDERS AND P. G. FOOKES
to be the principal features of engineering concern and the whole subject is compl ex
and has recently been reviewed by HIGGINBOTTOM and FOOKES (1970).
The present-day periglacial envi ronment is associated with freeze-thaw
condi t i ons and may be found in the ext reme nor t her n and sout hern latitudes, and
covers about 2 0 ~ of the t ot al land mass. It is charact eri sed by a variety of perma-
frost geomorphol ogi cal features like pat t erned ground, pingos or t haw lakes.
Special engineering problems are associated with the design, const ruct i on and
mai nt enance of structures in this zone due to frost-heaving, subsidence from
melting ice, soil creep or solifluxion and landslides. However, little as yet appears
to have been published on the f oundat i on engineering problems but a full review
has recently been given by FERRIANS et al. (1969).
FERRIANS et al. (1969) show t hat the cost of highway const ruct i on is greatly
increased in permafrost regions due to the necessity of having a thick layer of
coarse gravel base material to prevent thawing of the permafrost . Too great a
thickness results in high settlements in the underlying active layer. They r ecommend
t hat cuttings should be avoi ded as these disrupt the t hermal regime by removal of
the insulating material which may result in permafrost thawing causing cata-
strophic slides.
Fine-grained, poor l y drai ned sediments generally include large amount s of
ice which, when thawing occurs, produces excessive wetting renderi ng them unstable.
These deposits should be avoi ded for foundat i ons and where possible coarse-
grai ned material should be used as t hey are subject to less frost-heave and less
settlement if thawing takes place. To prevent ice uplift on piles heaving can be
reduced by provi di ng adequat e drainage ar ound the piles.
CONCLUSIONS
The results of this paper are summari zed in the accompanyi ng tables and
figures. It is to be hoped t hat the review leads to a bet t er underst andi ng of the
effects of the climate on the weathering of rocks, but it can be appreciated, how-
ever, t hat it has been necessary to make considerable generalizations.
It is dangerous t o forecast the engineering behavi our of foundat i on materials
from empirical rules, al t hough in many cases experience gained on ot her sites
with similar sub-surface condi t i ons may serve as a guide to the economi cal design
of a site investigation, or in planning at the feasibility stage of an engineering
project. It is emphasi zed t hat each site should be investigated on its own merits
by its own programme.
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