What’s next . . . So far, we have only considered how to determine the fi nal primary consolidation
settlement. This settlement might take months or years to occur, depending essentially on the hydraulic
conductivity (permeability) of the soil, the soil thickness, drainage conditions, and the magnitude of the
applied stress. Geotechnical engineers have to know the magnitude of the fi nal primary consolidation
settlement and also the rate of settlement so that the settlement at any given time can be evaluated.
The next section deals with a theory to determine the settlement at any time. Several assumptions are
made in developing this theory. However, you will see that many of the observations we made in Section 9.3
are well described by this theory.