Hydrostatic Pressure, Ground Water behind and in front of the Structure
| Hydrostatic pressure, groundwater behind and in front of structure |
The heel of a structure is sunk into impermeable subsoil so that the water flow below the structure is prevented. The load due water is assumed both in front of and behind the structure. The water in front of the structure is removed either with the help of gravity effects or is shallowly lowered by pumping. Both the face and back of the structure are loaded by hydrostatic pressure due to the difference in water tables (h1 and h2). The dimension hw represents the difference in water tables at the back and in front of structure - see figure:
Action of hydrostatic pressure