ASTM_D_6429_-_20.pdf

Designation:D642920Standard Guide forSelecting Surface Geophysical Methods1This standard is issued under the fixed designation D6429;the number immediately following the designation indicates the year oforiginal adoption or,in the case of revision,the year of last revision.A number in parentheses indicates the year of last reapproval.Asuperscript epsilon()indicates an editorial change since the last revision or reapproval.1.Scope*1.1 This guide covers the selection of surface geophysicalmethods,as commonly applied to geologic,geotechnical,hydrologic,and environmental site investigations and subse-quent site characterization,as well as forensic and archaeologi-cal applications.These geophysical methods are rarely the solemethod used in the site investigation and are often used forpre-screening to guide how and where drilling,sampling orother targeted in-situ testing are conducted.This guide does notdescribe the specific procedures for conducting geophysicalsurveys.Individual guides have been developed for manysurface geophysical methods.1.2 Surface geophysical methods yield direct and indirectmeasurements of the physical properties of soil and rock andpore fluids,as well as buried objects.1.3 This guide provides an overview of applications forwhich surface geophysical methods are appropriate.It does notaddress the details of the theory underlying specific methods,field procedures,or interpretation of the data.Numerousreferences are included for that purpose and are considered anessential part of this guide.It is recommended that the user ofthis guide be familiar with the references cited(1-27)2and withGuides D420,D5730,D5753,D5777,D6285,D6430,D6431,D6432,D6820,D7046,and D7128,as well as PracticesD5088,D5608,D6235,and Test Methods D4428/D4428M,D7400/D7400M,and G57.1.4 To obtain detailed information on specific geophysicalmethods,ASTM standards,other publications,and referencescited in this guide,should be consulted.1.5 The success of a geophysical survey is dependent uponmany factors.One of the most important factors is thecompetence of the person(s)responsible for planning,carryingout the survey,and interpreting the data.An understanding ofthe methods theory,field procedures,and interpretation alongwith an understanding of the site geology,is necessary tosuccessfully complete a survey.Personnel not having special-ized training or experience should be cautious about usinggeophysical methods and should solicit assistance from quali-fied practitioners.1.6 UnitsThe values stated in SI units are to be regardedas standard.The values given in parentheses are for informa-tion only and are not considered standard.Reporting of testresults in units other than SI shall not be regarded as noncon-formance with this standard.1.7 This guide offers an organized collection of informationor a series of options and does not recommend a specificcourse of action.This document cannot replace education orexperience and should be used in conjunction with professionaljudgment.Not all aspects of this guide may be applicable in allcircumstances.This ASTM standard is not intended to repre-sent or replace the standard of care by which the adequacy ofa given professional service must be judged,nor should thisdocument be applied without consideration of a projects manyunique aspects.The word“Standard”in the title of thisdocument means only that the document has been approvedthrough the ASTM consensus process.1.8 This standard does not purport to address all of thesafety concerns,if any,associated with its use.It is theresponsibility of the user of this standard to establish appro-priate safety,health,and environmental practices and deter-mine the applicability of regulatory limitations prior to use.1.9 This international standard was developed in accor-dance with internationally recognized principles on standard-ization established in the Decision on Principles for theDevelopment of International Standards,Guides and Recom-mendations issued by the World Trade Organization TechnicalBarriers to Trade(TBT)Committee.2.Referenced Documents2.1 ASTM Standards:3D420 Guide for Site Characterization for Engineering De-sign and Construction Purposes1This guide is under the jurisdiction ofASTM Committee D18 on Soil and Rockand is the direct responsibility of Subcommittee D18.01 on Surface and SubsurfaceCharacterization.Current edition approved Aug.1,2020.Published September 2020.Originallyapproved in 1999.Last previous edition approved in 2011 as D6429 99(2011)1,which was withdrawn in March 2020 and reinstated in August 2020.DOI:10.1520/D6429-20.2The boldface numbers given in parentheses refer to a list of references at theend of this standard.3For referenced ASTM standards,visit the ASTM website,www.astm.org,orcontact ASTM Customer Service at serviceastm.org.For Annual Book of ASTMStandards volume information,refer to the standards Document Summary page onthe ASTM website.*A Summary of Changes section appears at the end of this standardCopyright ASTM