Embankments

Embankments, in Engineering, are employed for railways, elevated canals, roads, reservoirs, etc. In the case of railways and the like, they are only subject to vertical pressures due to the loads they carry and to their own weight; their dimensions are therefore calculated in relation to this and to the angle of repose (q.v.) of the material employed in their construction. Embankments for reservoirs or defence from encroachments of water have to withstand the lateral pressures of the water on one side of them, and must also be rendered impervious to water in case they should be gradually undermined. [Dam.]