Question

The site of a proposed north-south road will cut through the western side of a hill. The proposed cutting is 13 m high with a batter angle of 70 degrees. The site has been drilled by a single diamond drill hole. In the drill hole, 10 m of dolerite overlies 5 m of sandstone. RQD for the dolerite is 80% and RQD for the sandstone is 50%. There was 20 cm of core loss at 5 m and 40 cm of core loss between 9.6 m and 10 m. Core samples were sent off for UCS measurements and came back with UCS for dolerite = 150 MPa and UCS for sandstone = 80 MPa. What further information do you need to consider the stability of the proposed road cutting? Suggest both geophysical and geological techniques that you could use in your assessment and why they would be useful.

Answer 1