engineering geological studies of the west fayum depression area,egypt

The purpose of this study was to evaluate soils engineering geological characteristics with a view to determine their form of distribution and spatial variation across the study area.The present area was chosen because it is mainly located on the outskirts to the west of Fayum city which are projected for future expansion of the town for example construction of new social-economic and industrial/residential facilities.The study incorporated suitable field procedures, sampling criteria and laboratory chemical/mineralogical and engineering soils testing methods. Laboratory studies performed on soil samples collected from the field included index tests of natural moistureGeologically, the area is covered mainly by varying thickness of late middle Eocene (Gehannam Formation) and upper Eocene (Qarun Formation) covered by Quaternary deposits and cultivated land.