HAWASSA UNIVERISITY

INSTITIUTE OF TECNOLOGY DEPARTMENT

OF CIVIL ENGINEERING

GEOTECHICAL ENGINEERING PROJECT

1. BEZABIH LEMESSA 0002/12

2. SURAPHEL YEMANE 0021/12
3. CHIMDO KEBEDE 0004/12
4. ABDULKERIM MOHAMMED 0001/12
5. ELIAS ABDULHAKIM 0007/12
6. YODAHE AREGA 0029/12
 Experiment 1
Water content test
Objective: To determine the water content of soil samples in terms of its dry mass
Theory: The water or moisture content of a soil is defined as the ratio of the mass of the water in the
sample to the mass of solid materials.
• Water content with representative symbol is expressed as percentage.
• Physically, water content means the water percentage expressed in terms of weight.
• The water content is one of the most significant index properties used in the establishment of co-relation
between soil behavior and its properties.
• In fine grained soils, the consistency of a given soil type depends on its water content.
• A water content of a soil along with its liquid and plastic limit is used to express its relative consistency
termed as Liquidity Index.
• The water content of fine grained soils such as Silt and Clay is generally more than that of coarse
grained soils like Gravel and Sand.
• The water content of fine grained soils especially changes to a marked degree with a variation of its
water content.
Mathematically, water content is expressed as:

Where,Ww - weight of water Ws - weight of solid

Apparatus and Supplies:

 Drying Oven
 Water content container
 Desiccators
 Balance sews tire to 0.01g
 Miscellaneous tools, knives, spatula, scoop sample splitter
 Container handling apparatus
Procedure:
Identify or numerate each container using letters or numbers
Determine and record the mass of a clean and dry specimen container with its cover.
Select a representative test specimen. The amount of the test specimen selected for the test depends
on the maximum particle size.
Place the moist specimen in the container.
Determine and record the mass of container and moist soil.
Place the container with the moist soil in the drying oven.
Dry the soil to constant mass in the drying oven at a temperature of 105 oc – 115oc for 12-24 hours
Return to the lab after 24hrs. Remove the container from the oven.
Allow the material to cool in the desiccators to room temperature or until the container can be
handled comfortably with bare hands.

1. Determine and record the mass of the container and oven dried material.
 the water content for container

We can calculate that the water content of container L2 using the same procedure.
Trial number 1 2
Can code AD X4
Mass of can 20.4 20.8
Mass of can plus wet soil 121.5 110.4
Mass of can plus dry soil 15.8 s97.1
Mass of water 15.7 13.3
Mass of dry soil 85.4 76.3
Water content 18.384% 17.431%

Average water content, % = 17.9075

Conclusion:
Since water content is of the soil is 17.9075% from our observation.

Experiment 2
Sieve Analysis
Objective
 The objective of the test is to determine the particle size distribution in the soil.
Theory
Sieve analysis is a procedure for the determination of the particle size distribution of soil using a
series of standard sieves starting with the largest. The square holes thus formed between the wires
Provide the limit which determines the size of the particles retained on a particular sieve.
Therefore It is used to determine the grading and the fineness modulus, an index to the fineness
and coarseness and uniformity of aggregates. It is after this analysis is carried out that aggregates
are described as well graded, poorly graded, uniformly graded, gap graded etc.
Calculations
1. Percentage retained on each sieve = mass of soil retained *100
Total soil mass
2. Cumulative percentage = Sum of percentages retained on retained on any sieve all coarser
sieves. retained on retained on any sieve

3. Percentage finer than =100 per cent minus cumulative percentage retained any sieve size, P.
The results may be plotted in the form of a graph on semi-log paper with the percentage finer on the
arithmetic scale and the particle diameter on the log scale
 The uniformity of soil is expressed qualitatively by a term known as uniformity coefficient ,C u,
given by
Cu=D60
D10
Where D60=particle size such that 60% of the soil is finer than this size, and
D10= particle size such that 30% of the soil is finer than this size
 Coefficient of curvature (Cc) or the coefficient of gradation (Cg).
Cc= (D30)2
D60*D10
Where D30 is the particle size corresponding to 30% finer
For a well-graded soil, the value of the coefficient of curvature lies between 1 and 3.
Apparatus
 Balance
 Series of sieves
 sieve shaker
 oven
 Sieve brush
Procedure
1. Weigh 2000gm of a sample of soil.
2. Weigh the empty sieves and record the data.
3. Place the total soil of sample on the top sieve (having large opening size).
4. Shake the sample about 10 minute in a sieve shaker.
5. Weigh each sieve together with the soil retained on
6. Calculate the weight retained on each sieve.
7. Fill in the gradation chart & calculate the fineness modulus
Data
Sieve size Weight Wt of Wt of %wt retain Cumm %passing
 of soil
sieve sieve+retain retain %wt retain
1 25 757.1 820 62.9 2.97 2.097 97.93
2 19 727.4 804.5 77.1 2.57 4.667 95.33
3 9.5 607.1 1030 422.9 14.097 18.764 81.236
4 4.75 409.1 954.7 545.6 18.187 36.951 63.049
5 2.36 498.3 943 444.7 14.823 51.774 48.266
6
1.18 450.8 837 386.2 12.873 64.647 35.353
7 0.6 435 766.4 331.4 11.407 75.694 24.306
8
0.3 390.3 585.9 195.6 6.52 82.214 17.786
9 0.15 377.9 661.9 284 9.47 91.684 8.316
10 0.075 357.3 458.4 101.1 3.37 95.054 4.946
11 Pan 359.5 502 142.5 4.75 99.804

Conclusion
From the table we can determine
D10= 0.14
D30=0.14
D60= 4.75
CU = D60/D10= 4.75/0.14= 34
CC = D30^2/D10= (.45)^2/4.75*0.14 = 0.68
Soil with value Cu is greater than 2 is not uniform soil and soil with avalue of Cc is less than 1 is finr
grained soil. Since the soil is non uniform fine grained soil.

Experiment 3:
Liquid and Plastic limit test
Objective:to determine the liquid and plastic limit of a fine grained soil
Theory:The Liquid and Plastic limits are called Atterburg limits after the Swedish soil scientist, A.
Atterburg who developed the idea.
• Atterburg limits could be used as a measure of the soil strength since the state in which a soil
has a relation with the strength characteristics.
• A soil has lowest strength and largest deformation when the soil acts as a liquid.
 • The soil possesses the largest strength and lowest deformation at the solid stage.
• A measure of strength using atterburg limit is known as the liquidity index (LI).
• Liquidity index (LI) is defined as: -

LI =
Where: w moisture content

• Types of clay materials and their proportional amounts in a soil will affect the atterburg limits.
• Quantity called activity defined as the slope of the line co – relating PI and the clay fraction
(finer than 2mm) present in the soil.

• The use of these atterburg limits together as one helps in developing correlation such as
permeability, shear strength and etc…

Discussion:
The numerical difference between the liquid limit and the plastic limit is known as Plastic Index.
PI = LL – PL
The soil remains plastic when the water content is between the liquid limit and plastic limit.
When the water content is reduced below the plastic limit the soil attains a semi-solid state.
In the semi-solid state, the volume of the soil decreases with a decrease in water content till a stage is
reached when further reduction of the water content does not cause any reduction in the volume of the
soil.
In solids, no appreciable change in volume is observed with a change in water content.
The water content at which the soil changes from semi-solid to solid state is known as the shrinkage
limit (SL).
Below the shrinkage limit the soil does not remain saturated.

Air enters the voids of the soil, however, because of capillary tension developed the volume of the soil
doesn’t change. Thus the shrinkage limit is the water content at which the soil stops shrinking further and
attains a constant volume.
Shrinkage limit is also the lowest water content at which the soil is fully saturated.

1. Liquid limit
Apparatus and Supplies:
 Liquid limit device  Distilled water
 Grooving tool  Sieve No 40 (0.425mm opening)
 Spatula  Drying oven
 Dish  Desiccators
 Moisture content cans  Balance (0.01gm sensitivity)

Procedure:
1. Weigh 150gm of soil passing this sieve.
 2. Add distilled water to the soil and mix to form a uniform paste. The amount of
water should be such that the number of blows required to close the grove is
about 30 to 40.
3. Place a portion of the paste in a cup. Have the grooving tool ready.
4. Turn the handle of the liquid limit device at a rate of 2rev/sec and record the blows
necessary to close gap for a distance of 13mm.
1. Transfer the remaining soil to an evaporating dish and remix the entire specimen in the storage
dish adding water to increase the water content.
2. Repeat steps 4-6 producing lower no of blows to close the groove

By using the data given for the last three trials we constructed a table.

Liquid Limit
Trial No 1
Can code A29 FAB A71 G33
Mass of can 23.6 19.6 20.8 20.8
Mass of can + wet soil 74.5 69.1 43.8 45.5
Mass of can + dry soil 59.3 54.1 36.9 38.2
Mass of water 15.2 15 6.9 7.3
Mass of dry soil 35.7 34.5 16.1 17.4
Water content% 42.57% 43.5% 42.857% 41.95%
No of blows 20 23 27 32
L.L %

Therefore the water content at 25 blows is 42.72% and this represents the liquid limit.
For our observation the soil is silty clay with low compressibility.

2. Plastic limit
Apparatus and Supplies:
 Large glass plate  Balance
 Dish  Oven
Spatula  Desiccators
 Water content cans  sieve no 40
 Distilled water

Procedure:
1. Weigh 30gm of soil passing this sieve
 2. Add distilled water and mix thoroughly to form a uniform paste. The amount of
water added should be such that the water content is less than the liquid limit.
3. Roll the soil on a large glass plate with hand till 3.2mm diameter of threads is
obtained. When this is achieved break it into pieces; squeeze the pieces together
between thumbs and fingers of both hands into a uniform mass. Kneading and
rolling, until the soil can no longer be rolled into threads.
4. Gather the portions of the crumbled soil and determine the water content.
Computation:
Calculate the water content of the crumbled soil. This water content is the plastic limit of the soil.

PL
Where: Mw – mass of water
Ms – mass of dry soil

Plastic Limit
Trial No 1 2 3
Can No F32 Z22 P23
Mass of can 21 18 20
Mass of can+ wet soil 22 22 23
Mass of can + dry soil 21.8 21 22.2
Mass of water 0.2 1 0.8
Mass of dry soil 0.8 3 2.2
Water content% 25% 33.33% 36.36%
PLASTIC LIMIT% - -

From the two trials we can obtain the plastic limit of the soil sample by calculating the average as
follows:
PL = 94.69/3 then, PL = 31.56%
From our result we can calculate the plasticity index as:
PI = LL - PL
= 27.22 – 23.185 = 7.536%
Conclusion : The pI indicates the soil is silty clay loam with medium plasticity.

Experiment 4
COMPACTION TEST
Objective; To obtain the moisture content – dry density relationship for a soil and hence to determine
the optimum

Procedure

About 2.5 kg of the soil is provided that it will pass through a No. 4 sieve. The soil sample should be
mixed with water and placed in the standard mould provided in 3 approximately equal layers. Each
layer is to be compacted with 25 blows from a special compaction hammer. When the mould is full the
weight of soil should be measured and then two moisture content samples should be taken for drying in
the oven. The volume of the mould is approximately 944 cm 3 (1/30 ft3) and should be checked by
measurements of cylinder height and diameter. The remaining soil should be removed from the mould,
broken down until it will again pass a No. 4 sieve (determine visually), remixed with more water added,
and then re-compacted into the mould.

Compaction Test Procedure

1. Weigh the empty mould (with the base but without the collar)

2. Break soil lumps and sieve the soil through a No. 4 sieve

3. Add the required amount of water to the soil

4. Form a 50 to 75 mm layer of soil in the mould, and gently press the soil to smooth its surface

5. Compact the soil with 25 evenly distributed full height blows of the hammer.

6. Repeat the procedure with a second and third layer. After the compaction of the third layer, the
surface of the soil must be slightly above the top rim of the mould.

7. Remove the collar and trim off the soil above the top of the mould.

8. Weigh the mould and the sample

9. Remove the soil from the mould and obtain representative samples for moisture content
determinations.

10. Break the removed soil from the mould, remix with the original sample, and raise its water
content by 2 – 3%.

11. Keep repeating the compaction process until 5 runs have been made.

Trial number 1 2 3
Mass mould 3396.4 3396.4 3396.4

Mass mould (g) 4710 4965.7 4884.7

+sample

Volume of mould 943.9 943.5 943.5

bulk density of soil 1.39 1.66 1.58

Can code A29 AFAB A71

Wt of can 23.6 19.6 20.8

Wt of can +wet soil 109.0 120.0 171.5

Wt of can + dry soil 96 99 130

Wt of water 13% 21% 41.5%

Dry density of the soil 1.23 1.37 1.12

Wt dry soil 72.4 79.4 109.2

Water content%

Conclusion
From experimental graph maximum dry density of the soil is 2.30 and optimum moisture content of
the soil is 20.05%.