Use of geophysical survey in geotechnical engineering practice – From one of geotechnical engineers’ perspective

Abstract

Summary In geotechnical engineering practice, geotechnical investigation is one of the indispensable steps to identify the “fact” of the subsurface ground conditions. These days, geophysical survey is often used as a part of geotechnical investigation to gain additional subsurface ground information that will contribute to the geotechnical analysis and design. There are many useful correlations between geophysical outputs and geotechnical items. In this paper, typical situations where geotechnical engineers consider using geophysical survey will be described from geotechnical engineering perspective. Advantages of using geophysical survey and key points that need to be paid attention to will be also discussed. It is noted that contents of this paper are purely based on the author’s opinion and experience and may differ from other geotechnical practitioners.