Soil Layers

This option is used only if the Horizontal Soil Layers option is selected in the Soil Profiles tab of the Project Settings.

The Soil Layers option is used to define:

• the sequence of soil layers that make up your soil profile
• the thickness of each layer
• the drainage condition at the bottom of each layer

To define your soil layer profile:

1. Select Layers from the Soils tab.
2. In the Soil Layers dialog:
• Click the Insert Layer Above or Insert Layer Below buttons to define the desired number and sequence of soil layers.
• For each layer, click on the Soil Name to select the soil type for each layer. The soil names correspond to the soil types defined in the Soil Properties dialog.
• Enter the Thickness of each layer or specify the Bottom Elevation
• As you enter the information in the dialog, an image of the soil profile will be displayed at the right of the dialog.
• If you need to delete a layer, click on the layer id number (at the left of the dialog) and select the Delete Layer button.
• If you are performing a time-dependent consolidation analysis, you can define the drainage condition at the bottom of each layer, by selecting the Drained at Bottom checkbox for the desired layer(s).
3. When you are finished defining the soil profile, select OK, and the soil profile will be displayed in the 3D View and in the Sidebar.

Right-Click Shortcut

In the 3D View, the Soil Layers and Soil Properties dialogs can be accessed with a right-click shortcut:

1. Right-click on a soil layer in the 3D View representation of your soil column profile.
2. Select Edit Soil Layer or Edit Soil Property to access the soil layer or soil property dialogs.