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Hill road earthwork, cross slope 1 in 5 (0-60)

Short answer

Using side-hill section formulas with cross slope 1:5, formation width 8 m, side slopes 1:1 in cutting and 2:1 in filling, the earthwork is 330.00 m³ in cutting and 1,110.00 m³ in filling.

Work out the quantity of earth work in cutting and filling of a portion of a hill road as per data given below: Cross slope = 1 in 5, formation width = 8 m, side slope in cutting = 1:1, side slope in filling = 2:1.

R.L. of formation699.20702.20704.20
R.L. of ground698.80700.00706.20
Distance (m)03060

Given data and assumptions

  • Formation width B=8B = 8 m; side slope in cutting 1:11:1, in filling 2:12:1; ground cross slope 11 in 55.

Method

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 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.

ChainageGL (m)FL (m)Depth of cutting / height of filling (m)
0+000698.800699.200filling 0.400
0+030700.000702.200filling 2.200
0+060706.200704.200cutting 2.000

Sectional areas

ChainageCentre ht. hh (m)Cutting area (m²)Filling area (m²)
0+000fill 0.400.5006.000
0+030fill 2.200.00034.000
0+060cut 2.0021.5000.000

Working for one section:

Take chainage 0+000: centre filling height h=0.40h = 0.40 m, n=5n = 5, B=8.0B = 8.0 m.

  • Ground height above formation at the uphill edge =0.400= 0.400 m, at the downhill edge =−1.200= -1.200 m.
  • Toe of the side slope on the uphill side at x=4.500x = 4.500 m from the centre line (ground above formation by 0.500 m); downhill toe at x=8.000x = 8.000 m (ground below formation by 2.000 m).
  • Area from the co-ordinates of the polygon: cutting =0.500= 0.500 m², filling =6.000= 6.000 m².

Volumes

BetweenDistance (m)Cutting (m³)Filling (m³)
0+000 – 0+03030.07.50600.00
0+030 – 0+06030.0322.50510.00
Total60.0330.001,110.00

Answer: Earthwork in cutting = 330.00 m³; earthwork in filling = 1,110.00 m³.

✓ Answer checked by Claude Opus 5.5 (high effort)

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