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3
Blasting and Earth Movement
Introduction to Soil Behavior
e stability of soils is derived from the shearing strength. e ability of soils to support
spread footings is directly proportional to their shearing strength. In a general manner,
soils may be classied as granular or cohesive. Granular soils have internal friction
resistance so that their shearing strength increases in relation to the normal pressure
to which they are subjected. Purely granular soils have no cohesion. Clays found in the
Appalachian basin are highly cohesive and have no angle of internal friction. ey have a
resistance to shearing due to their cohesive or molec