Pile foundations

The durability of a structure (depends/is depended) on how the foundation (builds/ is built) and on the property of the ground.

Prior to the beginning of the last century buildings (put up/were put up) mostly on stable ground. Bands of stone and baked bricks bound to­gether by lime mortar (served/ were served) as foundations.

Our ancestors could not even imagine on what kind of ground we (would build/would be built). Towns and cities (have appeared/have been appeared) in places where there had recently been swamps, on the permafrost ground of the northern regions of the country. Pile foundations (use/are used) widely there.

Piles (used/were used) in ancient times. Peter the Great widely (used/was used) piles in building the city. Interestingly, Ivan the Great's bell tower in the Krem­lin (about 500 years old) also (stands/is stood) on a peculiar pile foundation. The base (comprises/is comprised) of round, closely bound upright logs from 120 to 180 cm high. Upon the piles (rests/is rested) a massive stone slab. The piles (submerge/are submerged) in water to protect the wood from destruc­tion.

During the last few decades pile boring (has found/has been found) wide application. First a bore hole (fills/is filled) with steel framework, then with concrete, and the pile is ready.

Vocaulary notes

prior to - прежде чем; перед, раньше

put up - строить, воздвигать (здание)

ancestor ['ænsistə] - прародитель, предок

swamp [swɔmp] - болото, топь

bell tower ['tauə] - колокольня

peculiar [pi'kju:ljə] - особенный; своеобразный; необычный

upright log – вертикальное бревно

rest – покоиться; опирать(ся)

submerge [səb'mə:dʒ] – затоплять; погружать в воду

destruc­tion [dis'trʌk∫ən] - разрушение; повреждение

Ex 25. Translate the following sentences into Russian paying attention to the meaning of the word one.

1. The nature of the site of a building is one of the most important factors in architectural design. 2. The question of selection of site is one with which the architect is often faced. 3. Any building today is the product not of one craft but of many crafts which are all interdepend­ent one of the other. 4. In designing a building one should take care that most comfortable living conditions are created. 5. Differential settlement is when one part of a foundation settles more than another part. 6. One common type of shallow foundation is the spread footing. 7. The force of one or more growing ice lenses is sufficient to lift a layer of soil, as much as 30 cm or more. 8. During frost heave, one or more soil-free ice lenses grow, and their growth displaces the soil above them. 9. The nature of the site of a building is one of the most important factors in architectural design. 10. You should understand that many soils are a combination of these types, and many building sites contain more than one soil type. 11. Discussing a scientific problem with a layman sometimes helps one to see it from a different angle. 12. Taking part in a discussion one must learn to respect one's opponent's view. 13. The method employed in this construction is different from the one described above. 14. The interest in analysing one's own thoughts, thinking about the future, building systems and constructing theories is developed most markedly during adolescence.

Ex. 26. Translate the sentences into Russian paying attention to polysemantic functional words for and since:

a) 1. The experiment was a failure, for the measuring instruments were defective. 2. Cohesive soils such as clay lose their water much more gradually and buildings may slowly settle for many years before equilibrium is reached. 3. Marble is used for such interior elements as window sills, table surfaces and fireplace decoration elements. 4. I asked him to come for a chat, for I had something to tell him. 5. Are you for, or against this proposal? 6. Concrete is laid into a trench up to 3 or 4 feet deep, and provides a very solid foundation for whatever building material used. 7. For timber to deteriorate, two elements are needed: water and oxygen. 8. Piers are foundations for carrying a heavy structural load. 9. The topmost layer of soil is seldom suitable for a footing. 10. Any foundation should be continued for at least 150mm above ground level to give adequate protection to the base of the well from moisture, surface water, etc. 11. If you are building a foundation for the first time, a project like a garage or workshop is a wiser choice than a complex major project like the foundation for a new house. 12. For soil block to cure uncovered, there must be at least 10 rain-free days.

b) 1. Rocks are particularly suitable in areas where thermal mass is desired, since they can hold their temperature very well. 2. This problem has been puzzling architects since times immemorial. 3. Some timber piles used during 16th century in Venice still survive since they were below groundwater level. 4. Keeping roof and surface water away from footings is always a good idea since settlement can also occur with excessive water in the soil. 5. Stones have been used for the purpose of construction since the era of cavemen. 6. I would like to see much greater use of stone, since it is such a long lasting and beautiful material. 7. Since there is no vertical load to be supported by partitions, single studs may be used at door openings. 8. Thermal insulation standards first came into being in the 1960s, and have been revised several times since, with the most recent changes being introduced in 2006. 9. The Building Regulations were introduced in 1965 in the UK and have been amended several times since. 10. Another material which is very useful as building material is steel, it is better than iron since it is free from the rusting process.

Reading Practice

Read through text 3 (Frost Heaving) and then choose the best sentence given below to fill in each of the blanks.

E.g.: 1- e

Text 3. FROST HEAVING

Frost heaving can damage houses, barns, sheds, roadways, concrete slabs, basically anything that is connected to the Earth in a place where the ground freezes. (___1___) The problem is, the lifting may not be equal around the structure.

Frost heaving (or a frost heave) results from ice forming beneath the surface of soil during freezing conditions in the atmosphere. The ice grows in the direction of heat loss (vertically toward the surface), starting at the freezing front or boundary in the soil. (___2___). The growing ice is restrained by overlying soil, which applies a load that limits its vertical growth and promotes the formation of a lens-shaped area of ice within the soil. Yet the force of one or more growing ice lenses is sufficient to lift a layer of soil, as much as 30 cm or more. (___3___).

The dominant cause of soil displacement in frost heaving is the development of ice lenses. During frost heave, one or more soil-free ice lenses grow, and their growth displaces the soil above them. (___4___).

Frost heaving requires a frost-susceptible soil, a continual supply of water below (a water table) and freezing temperatures, penetrating into the soil. (___5___) Silty and loamy soil types, which contain fine particles, are examples of frost-susceptible soils.

Non-frost-susceptible soils may be too dense to promote water flow (low hydraulic conductivity) or too open in porosity to promote capillary flow. (___6___). These soils contain small amounts of fine particles and their pore sizes are too open to promote capillary flow.

Sentences to choose from:

1. Differential frost heaving can crack pavements and damage building foundations.

2. Examples include dense clays with a small pore size and therefore a low hydraulic conductivity and clean sands and gravels

3. Frost-susceptible soils are those with pore sizes between particles and particle surface area that promote capillary flow.

4. It requires a water supply to keep feeding the ice crystal growth.

5. Just as the phrase implies, the frost heaves, or lifts things up.

6. These grow with the continual addition of water from a groundwater source lower in the soil structure, below the freezing line in the soil.

Read text 4 divided into parts. Find answers to the questions which come before each of the coming passages.