Description: This book provides guidance on engineering in chalk. It describes the chalk's geological setting, its origins, occurrence, its stratigraphy, weathering and geomorphological situations, the material and mechanical properties. The descriptions are supported by a comprehensive set of photographs. It explains recommended schemes for the engineering description and classification of chalk, building on the work presented in CIRIA PR011, 'Foundations in Chalk'. The publication looks at the mechanical and material properties of intact, in-situ and compacted chalk and considers their implications for the design and construction of earthworks, cuttings, retaining walls and anchorages. Major sections deal with the selection and design of shallow and piled foundations. Based on analysis of the results of pile testing, the book makes recommendations for the design and choice of bored, CFA, driven cast-in-place and pre-formed piles in chalk and for estimating shaft and base resistances).

Keywords: ground engineering, piling, ground investigation and characterisation, soil-structure interaction.

Contents: 1 Introduction, 2 The engineering geology of chalk, 3 Description and classification of chalk, 4 Mechanical properties of the chalk, 5 Chalk in embankments and fills, 6 Cuttings, retaining structures and anchorages in chalk, 7 Shallow foundations, 8 Piled foundations, 9 Site investigations in chalk, 10 Concluding remarks, References