Example; - The following table shows the calculations of quantities for mass-haul

construction.

Chainage Volume(m3) Swell,

Cut Fill shrinkage
factor
1000
1040 230
1100 480 0.9
1200 2560 0.9
1360 4560 0.9
1400 3990 0.9
1500 950 0.9
1600 1350
1700 4101
1780 4600
1820 Bridge
1900 430
2000 2370

solution
Chainage Volume(m3) Swell, Corrected Aggregate
Cut Fill shrinkage Volumes (accumulative)
factor Volume
1000 0
1040 230 -230 -230
1100 480 0.9 430 200
1200 2560 0.9 2300 2500
1360 4560 0.9 4100 6600
1400 3990 0.9 3550 10150
1500 950 0.9 850 11000
1600 1350 -1350 9650
1700 4101 -4101 5549
1780 4600 -4600 949
1820 Bridge Bridge 949
1900 430 -430 519
2000 2370 -2370 -1859

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 11000
bridge
949

1040 2000 chainage(m)

1500 1780 1820
-230

-1851

Terminology
 Haul Distance: - is the distance from point of excavation to the point where the material
is to be tipped or unloaded.
 Average Haul Distance:- is the distance from the center of gravity of the excavation to
the center of gravity of tip or fill.

Average haul distance

 Free Haul Distance: - is the maximum distance through which excavated material may
be transported without the added cost above the unit bid price.
 Over Haul Distance: - the distance that excavated material is transported beyond the free
haul distance.
 Borrow: - refers to the fill material that must be brought to the proposed highway site
from outside the highway corridor. Borrow does not include the material that is excavated
on site for use as fill.
 Waste: - is a material excavated fro roadway cuts but not required for making the
embankment.
 Economic Limit of Haul: - is the distance through which it is more economical to haul
excavated material than to waste and borrow.
 Haul: - This is the term used when calculating the costs involved in earth moving and is
taken as the sum of the product of each volume of material and the distance through
which it is moved. On mass-haul diagram it is equal to the area contained between the
curve and the balancing line (m3.m).

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 Properties of Mass-Haul Diagram

 Upward slope of the curve in the direction of the algebraic summation (1) indicates
excavation or cut section as the aggregate volume is increasing. Downward slope (2)
indicates fill as the aggregate volume is decreasing.

 On the curve, the maximum earthworks point (3) occurs at the end of an excavation and a
minimum earthwork point (4) at the end of an embankment.
 The vertical distance between a maximum point and the next forward minimum point
represents the whole volume of an embankment (example 3 + 4). Similarly, between a
minimum and the next forward maximum point, the whole volume of an excavation.
 Between any two points where the curve cuts the base line the volume of excavation
equals that of embankment, since the algebraic sum of the quantities between such points
is zero. The points (a) and (c), for example, show, on being projected to A and C that, the
earthwork is balanced between A and C, that is the material excavated from AB would
form the embankment up to the point C. There is also balance from C to D.
 Any horizontal line intersecting the mass curve at two or more points, similarly shows
lengths over which cutting and filling are equalized and called a balancing line. Thus xy
is a balancing line, the cut from X to B just filling the embankment from B to Y; the
volume moved being represented by bz.
 When the mass curve lies above the balancing line, the excavated material must be
hauled forward. When below, the direction of haul is backward.
 The length of balancing line intercepted by the mass curve represents the maximum haul
distance in that section. Thus, taking the base line as the balancing line, the greatest haul

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 distance involved in disposing of excavation AB is ac = AC, so that no material should be
hauled past C.
 The area of mass-haul diagram contained between the curve and balancing line is equal to
the haul in that section (example, area of abca) in m3m. the average haul distance in each
section can be found by dividing the haul in that section by the volume in that section.
area  abca 
Example average haul distance between a and c is in meters.
b

Costing Using Mass-Haul Diagram

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  Example:- In a project for which a section of the mass-haul diagram is shown below, the
free haul distance is specified as 100m. calculate the cost of earth moving in the section
between chainages 100m and 400m. If the charge for moving material is 1 Birr/m3 and
that for moving away overhaul is 1.05Birr/m3m. Take the X-axis as the balancing line;
area between the balancing line and the curve are measured using a planimeter and are as
follows;

Area of (J + K + L + M ) = 616000m3m. area of J = 128000m3m

∑V

100m
100m 400m chainage
L K M
1900m3 v
r J s
3
3500m
u
Solution:-
 Total volume to be moved is 3500m3.
 The free haul distance is fitted to the curve so that it touches the curve at points r and s.
This means that the volume uv is the free haul volume.
Uv = 3500-1900 = 1600m3.
Therefore J is costed at 1600m3 ҳ 1 Birr/m3 = 1600Birr.
 The remaining volume is overhaul volume and the distance through which it moves has two
components;
(1) the overhaul volume moved through the free the free haul distance is costed in its
volume only; 1900m3 ҳ 1 Birr/m3 = 1900Birr.
(2) the overhaul volume moved through the overhaul distance is the areas L and M. Areas
contained in L and M = (J + K + L + M) – ( J + K) = 616000-[128000 +1900*100] =
298000m3m.
Cost of overhaul is 1.05 ҳ2980000 = 312900 Birr.
 Therefore, the total cost is 1600 + 1900 + 312900 = 316400Birr.

Limit of Economic Haul

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 Where there are long hauls, it may be more economical to waste and borrow materials rather
than pay for the cost of overhauling. Therefore, it is necessary to compare the cost of
excavation plus overhaul to the cost of roadway excavation and borrow pit.
Let C = cost of roadway excavation per m3, b is the cost of borrow per m3, h is the cost of
overhauling per m3m, and x is the economic length of overhaul.
Cost of excavation and movement of 1m3 material from cut to fill is c + hx. Cost of excavation
from cut, waste and borrow and place 1m3 of material in fill is b + c; equating we have: c + hx =
b + c, x = b/h. Therefore, the Economic Limit of Haul (E.L.H) = Free Haul Distance (F.H.D) + x.

Choice of Balance Lines

∑V a b g h
e f

Mass-Haul Diagram

Formation level

chainage
x y
Longitudinal profile

 If two or more balance lines are drawn on the mass-haul diagram as shown in the figure
above, the earth from the cutting A is moved forwards and just fills the embankment B
and similarly the waste(spoil) from cutting C is moved backwards and just fills
embankment D. If the scheme is adopted, there is no material available to fills
embankment D. if the scheme is adopted, there is no material available to fill the
embankment E between chainages x and y, and fill material will have to be obtained from
borrow pit along the side of route in the vicinity of E or otherwise imported onto the site.
Similarly, as the spoil(waste) from cutting F run forwards, it will be sufficient to fill G,
and therefore the earth that is excavated from cutting H will have to be dumped along
side of route adjacent to H or otherwise removed from the site.
This procedure is referred to as borrowing and wasting. When the balance line jumps down
(as from ab to ef) borrowing must take place, and when it jumps up ( as from ef to gh)
wasting must occur.
The following factors should be considered before the final choice of a scheme of balance
lines is made.
 The uses of more than one balance line results in waste and borrow at intermediate points
along the project which will involve extra excavation and transportation of materials.

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  Short unconnected balance lines are often more economical than one long balancing line,
especially where the balancing lines are shorter than the free haul distance.
 The direction of haul should be considered in the choice of balancing lines as for distances
down hill hauling saves power or cost.