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Foundation Engineering MCQ for GATE Civil Engineering
10 Questions5 Difficulty Levels13-15% in GATEFree Practice
This topic is part of the GATE Civil Engineering syllabus. Master it through progressive practice — starting from basic recall at Level 1 and building up to GATE-level problems at Level 5.
Difficulty Levels
L1 · Foundation · 1 Qs
L2 · Understanding · 1 Qs
L3 · Application · 0 Qs
L4 · Analysis · 0 Qs
L5 · GATE Ready · 2 Qs
GATE Exam Tip: Focus on understanding concepts first, then practice numerical problems. Most GATE questions in this topic require applying 2-3 concepts together.
Practice Questions — Try 4 Samples
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Q1 · Level 1 · GE-FND-0001
Terzaghi's bearing capacity equation for a strip footing on a c-φ soil is qu = cNc + qNq + 0.5γBNγ. In this equation, the term 'q' represents:
Q2 · Level 2 · GE-FND-0002
Meyerhof's bearing capacity theory differs from Terzaghi's theory primarily because Meyerhof considers:
Q3 · Level 5 · GE-FND-0010
A 7 m high retaining wall supports a c-φ backfill (c = 15 kPa, φ = 20°, γ = 17 kN/m³). The backfill carries a uniform surcharge of 30 kPa. Using Rankine's theory:
(a) Calculate the total active pressure at the base of the wall.
(b) Determine the depth of the tension crack.
(c) Calculate the total active thrust per metre length, considering the tension crack.
Q4 · Level 5 · GE-FND-0007
A 8 m high retaining wall supports a two-layer cohesionless backfill: top 3 m has γ₁ = 16 kN/m³, φ₁ = 35°; bottom 5 m has γ₂ = 19 kN/m³, φ₂ = 28°. The water table is at the base of the wall. Using Rankine's theory:
(a) Compute Ka for each layer.
(b) Draw the lateral pressure distribution.
(c) Calculate the total active thrust and its line of action from the base.