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Hill road earthwork, chainage 0-150 (50 m)

Short answer

Side-hill section areas computed using formulas for ground cross slope n:1, formation width 10m, cut slope 1:1, fill slope 2:1. Volumes by mean area with zero-point proportion. Earthwork: cutting 403.61 m³, filling 343.58 m³.

A road is to be constructed in hilly area with formation width of 10 m, side slopes in banking and cutting (2:1) and (1:1). The height of banking or depth of cutting at the centre line of the road are given below. The cross slopes of ground are also given at different sections. Calculate the quantities of earthwork.

DistanceCuttingFillingCross slope of ground
00.50--12:1
500.60--10:1
100--0.4015:1
150--0.6012:1

Given data and assumptions

  • Formation width B=10B = 10 m; side slope in cutting 1:11:1, in banking 2:12:1 (H:V).
  • Sections 50 m apart; cutting at 0 and 50 m, filling at 100 and 150 m.

Method

The ground has a transverse (cross) slope n:1n:1 (H:V), so each section is a side-hill section. With centre height hh (cutting +, filling −) above/below formation level, formation width BB and side slope s:1s:1:

xu=n (B/2+sh)n−s,du=h+xunxd=n (B/2+sh)n+s,dd=h−xdnA=12Bh+12[B2(du+dd)+h (xu+xd−B)]\begin{aligned} x_u &= \frac{n\,(B/2 + s h)}{n - s},\quad d_u = h + \frac{x_u}{n}\\ x_d &= \frac{n\,(B/2 + s h)}{n + s},\quad d_d = h - \frac{x_d}{n}\\ A &= \tfrac12 B h + \tfrac12\left[\tfrac{B}{2}(d_u + d_d) + h\,(x_u + x_d - B)\right] \end{aligned}

Here xu,xdx_u, x_d are the horizontal distances of the up-hill and down-hill toes from the centre line, and du,ddd_u, d_d are the heights of the ground above formation at the toes (formulas for cutting). For a section wholly in filling the roles swap: the down-hill toe is the far one, xd=n(B/2+sh)/(n−s)x_d = n(B/2 + s h)/(n - s) and xu=n(B/2+sh)/(n+s)x_u = n(B/2 + s h)/(n + s), with hh the filling height and ss the filling slope. Where the ground line crosses the formation level inside the road width (part cutting, part filling), the cutting and filling areas are found separately from the co-ordinates of the section (toe points from the same intersection equations). Volume between sections = mean area × distance, taken separately for cutting and filling. Where the centre changes from cutting to filling between two sections and one type of area is zero at one end, the change-over point is found by proportion of the centre heights, and that area is taken over its own part of the length only: V=12A×lV = \tfrac12 A \times l.

Sectional areas

ChainageCentre ht. hh (m)Cutting area (m²)Filling area (m²)
0+000cut 0.505.4620.000
0+050cut 0.606.6770.000
0+100fill 0.400.0004.624
0+150fill 0.600.0007.269

Working for one section:

Take chainage 0+000: centre cutting depth h=0.50h = 0.50 m, n=12n = 12, B=10.0B = 10.0 m.

  • Ground height above formation at the uphill edge =0.917= 0.917 m, at the downhill edge =0.083= 0.083 m.
  • Toe of the side slope on the uphill side at x=6.000x = 6.000 m from the centre line (ground above formation by 1.000 m); downhill toe at x=5.077x = 5.077 m (ground above formation by 0.077 m).
  • Area from the co-ordinates of the polygon: cutting =5.462= 5.462 m², filling =0.000= 0.000 m².

Change-over between 0+050 (wholly in cutting, 0.60 m) and 0+100 (wholly in filling, 0.40 m): the zero point is 50×0.60/1.00=30.0050 \times 0.60/1.00 = 30.00 m from 0+050, leaving 20.0020.00 m in filling.

  • Cutting =12×6.677×30.00=100.15= \tfrac12 \times 6.677 \times 30.00 = 100.15 m³
  • Filling =12×4.624×20.00=46.24= \tfrac12 \times 4.624 \times 20.00 = 46.24 m³

Volumes

BetweenDistance (m)Cutting (m³)Filling (m³)
0+000 – 0+05050.0303.460.00
0+050 – 0+10050.0 (30.00 cut + 20.00 fill)100.1546.24
0+100 – 0+15050.00.00297.34
Total150.0403.61343.58

Answer: Earthwork in cutting = 403.61 m³; earthwork in filling = 343.58 m³.

✓ Answer checked by Claude Opus 5.5 (high effort)

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