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The Si-Eng
Si's civil engineering blog
All original by Si Shen.
All posts are personal opinions only.
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Volumetric behaviour of soil
This blog post explains some key points related to the volumetric behaviour of soil

Si Shen
Jun 123 min read
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Tips for complex analytical modelling in civil engineering
This blogpost shares a few tips about modelling from personal experience

Si Shen
Jul 13, 20243 min read
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Demystifying the observational method
Explaining the observational method in plain and understandable language

Si Shen
Jan 24, 20242 min read
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Engineering properties of Peat
Peat is generally considered as highly problematic and one of the least wanted soil types you want your foundation to be in. It is an...

Si Shen
Jul 3, 20221 min read
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The ‘reverse’, ‘sideways’ and ‘inclined’ bearing capacity problems
This blog post explains the ‘reverse’, ‘sideways’ and ‘inclined’ bearing capacity problems.

Si Shen
Mar 18, 20221 min read
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Simulating ground water
Ground water is a matter unique to geotechnical engineers

Si Shen
Feb 17, 20223 min read
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Consolidation settlement and heave of clay
soil acts as a sponge, in that it pushes out water when squeezed, and sucks in water when let go

Si Shen
Nov 26, 20212 min read
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How does a foundation fail
the ultimate failure of foundations is a lot more complicated to understand

Si Shen
Oct 11, 20213 min read
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Why are deviatoric stress and shear stress the same thing?
As an engineer initially studied concrete structures, I was confused for a long time as to why in geotechnics a ‘deviatoric stress’ is a...

Si Shen
Sep 22, 20213 min read
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Instrumentation and monitoring - an overview
Instrumentation and monitoring is an essential link of risk management in the cycle of design and construction

Si Shen
Aug 9, 20214 min read
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Mohr-Coulomb model for soil – when not to use it
The Mohr-Coulomb theory is perhaps the most widely used model in practical engineering for simulating soil behaviour

Si Shen
Jul 4, 20212 min read
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Ground water in underground construction
groundwater is a thorny problem for almost all underground constructions

Si Shen
Jun 7, 20213 min read
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Premortems in engineering design
the ‘premortem’ is an extremely useful management tool that can be equally applied to the way of us approaching engineering issues

Si Shen
Feb 15, 20212 min read
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A structural engineer’s understanding of rock engineering
Rock is a natural material and its behaviour isn’t as easy to grasp as an engineered material with well-defined properties such as...

Si Shen
Nov 30, 20202 min read
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Selection of foundation type
Whether the small and shallow foundation gives the design a ‘pass’ or not depends mainly on two criteria: resistance and settlement.

Si Shen
Nov 12, 20202 min read
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Atterberg limits – a theory to describe how watery the soil is
Atterberg limits – a theory to describe how watery the soil is

Si Shen
Oct 19, 20202 min read
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What structural engineers need to know about waterproofing membrane
the membrane is a delicate thing and requires a lot of careful detailing and handling.

Si Shen
Aug 26, 20201 min read
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Soil structure interaction (2) – lateral earth pressure
this blog continues on the thread to talk about lateral earth pressure

Si Shen
Feb 24, 20203 min read
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Foundation settlement – ground consolidation and creep
What causes the foundation of a structure to settle? This blog explains the reasons from a soil engineering perspective.

Si Shen
Feb 13, 20202 min read
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Reliability
Reliability is the consistency in performance. This is typically a much desired thing generally in life

Si Shen
Jan 28, 20203 min read
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