The application of multivariate data analysis in the interpretation of engineering geological parameters

Abstract

The paper presents the evaluation of engineering geological laboratory test results of core drillings along the new metro line (line 4) in Budapest by using a multivariate data analysis. A data set of 30 core drillings with a total coring length of over 1500 meters was studied. Of the eleven engineering geological parameters considered in this study, only the five most reliable (void ratio, dry bulk density, angle of internal friction, cohesion and compressive strength) representing 1260 data points were used for multivariate (cluster and discriminant) analyses. To test the results of the cluster analysis discriminant analysis was used. The results suggest that the use of multivariate analyses allows the identification of different groups of sediments even when the data sets are overlapping and contain several uncertainties. The tests also prove that the use of these methods for seemingly very scattered parameters is crucial in obtaining reliable engineering geological data for design.

Keywords

• cluster analysis
• sedimentary rocks
• density
• cohesion
• angle of internal friction