Learning Outcomes:

1. Definition soil material constituents.

2. Differentiate the shape, composition and
the size range of grains.
3. Describe and classify the soil.
4. Describe the mineral composition in
clays.
 Description of soil
• A statement describing the physical nature and state of the soil from a sample,
or a soil in situ.
• Visual examination, simple tests, observation of site condition, or geological
history.
 Classification of soil

• Separation of soil into classes or groups with similar characteristics

and potentially similar behaviour such as permeability, stiffness,
strength etc.
• Based mainly on sizes of soil, Atterberg limits etc.
• The class to which a soil belongs to can be used in its description.
 Soil Particle Types & Size
British Soil Classification System: Basic Soil Type Group

Very coarse BOULDERS >200mm

soils
COBBLES 60-200mm

Coarse soil G Coarse 20-60mm

GRAVEL
Medium 6-20mm

Fine 2-6mm
S Coarse 0.6-2.0mm
SAND
Medium 0.2-0.6mm

Fine 0.06-0.2mm
Fine Soil M Coarse 0.02-0.06mm
SILT
Medium 0.006-0.02mm

Fine 0.002-0.006mm

C CLAY <0.002mm
 GRAVEL SAND
Loose aggregation of rocks Particles are visible to naked
with occasional particles eye that are mostly made from
of quartz, feldspar and quartz and feldspar.
other minerals.

CLAY SILT
Greasy and sticky when wet, Dusty when dry and easily
hard when dry, and must be brushed off. An individual silt-
scraped or washed off sized particles are visible using a
Soil particle shapes
• Soil particle shapes are different considerably.
• Clay grains are usually very thin plates while silt, sand and gravel
grains are more rotund.
• Influences the engineering behavior: permeability, compressibility,
shrinking/swelling potential, strength etc.
• When the clay content is about 50% or more, the sand and silt
particles ‘float’ in a clay matrix, and the clay minerals primarily
dictate the engineering properties of the soil.
• When moisture is present, the engineering behavior of a soil will
change greatly as the percentage of clay mineral content
increases.
Shapes of Soils

• From broken rock particles

• General shape is rotund
• Rounded:
• Water- or air-worn; transported sediments
• Irregular:
• Irregular shape with round edges; glacial sediments
(sometimes sub-divided into 'sub-rounded' and 'sub-
angular')
Shapes of soils

• Angular:
• Flat faces and sharp edges; residual
soils, grits
• Flaky:
• Thickness small compared to
length/breadth; clays
• Elongated
• Length larger than breadth/thickness;
screed, broken flagstone
• Flaky & Elongated
• Length>Breadth>Thickness; broken
schist and slates
Surface texture of coarse particles

Quarry sand River sand

Mining sand Marine sand

Fine-Grained Soil - Clay & Silt
 Clay
• Clay particles are flaky.
• Thickness is very small relative to length & breadth
(1:100)
• Very high specific surface value (surface area per unit
mass)
• The surfaces carry small negative electrical charge
(anions) that will attract positive end of water
molecules H2O-.
• This charge depends on the soil mineral and may be
modified by an electrolyte in the pore water.
• In dry clay, the negative charge is balanced by
exchangeable cations like Ca2+, Mg2+, Na+, and K+
surrounding the particles held by electrostatic
attraction.
• When water is added to clay, these cations and a few
anions float around the clay particles forming diffuse
double layer. Innermost part is called adsorbed water.
Diffuse double layer

Double layer water

Montmorillonite

Double layer water

Kaolinite
Diffuse double layer
Specific Surface
• Ratio of surface area per unit weight.
• SAND grains are close to cubes or spheres in shape and have specific
surfaces near the minimum value.
• CLAY particles are flaky and have much greater specific surface values.
• The more elongated or flaky a particle is, the greater is the specific
surface.
• Example of specific surface of cubes, rods, sheets.
Specific Surface

Mineral Grain size (µm) Thickness (mm) Specific surface

(m2/g)

Quartz 100 d 0.02

Kaolinite 0.3-2.0 0.2d 20

Illite 0.2-2.0 0.1d 80

Montmorillonite 0.01-1.0 0.01d 800

 Clay mineral

• They are produced majorly from chemical weathering and

decomposition of feldspars and some mica.
• They form part of a group of complex alumino-silicates of
potassium, magnesium and iron which is known as layer-
lattice minerals.
• They are complex aluminium silicates composed of two
basic units: silica tetrahedron and alumina octahedron.
• The key to clay soils properties like plasticity,
compressibility, swelling/shrinkage potential, lies in the
structure of the clay minerals.
Silica tetrahedron

• Four O2 atoms surrounding one silicon atom

silica sheet
Alumina octahedron

Six hydroxyls (OH) atoms surrounding one

aluminium atom

Octahedral sheet (alumina or gibbsite sheet)

Main groups of clay minerals
• Combination of silica sheet and alumina sheet (gibbsite sheet) gives
three main groups of clay minerals
• Kaolinite
• Illites
• Montmorillonites
• Kaolinites
• Decomposition of orthoclase feldspars (essential mineral in granite).
• Kaolin is the principal constituent in china clay and ball clay.
• The kaolinite structure consists of a strongly bonded two-layer arrangement of
silica and gibbite sheets.
• Flaky mineral.
Alumina sheet
• Halloysite : particles are tubular or rod-like.
Silica sheet

Hydrogen
bonds
0.72 nm thick

Kaolinites Halloysite
Silica-gibbite sheets in a 1:1 lattice
Main groups of clay minerals
• Illites
• Three-layer gibbite sheet with K+ ions
providing a bond between adjacent silica
layers.
• Commonest clay minerals. Alumina sheet
• Formed by decomposition of some micas
and feldspars under marine conditions. Silica sheet Potassium
• Predominant minerals in marine clays and ions
shale (e.g. London clay, Oxford clay).
• Some illites are produced from weathering Each layer
of orthoclase in which not all of the Alumina sheet thickness is
potassium ions are removed.
0.96nm
Silica sheet

Alumina sheet

Silica sheet
Main groups of clay minerals
• Montmorillonites
• Formed by alteration of basic igneous
rocks containing silicates rich in Ca Alumina sheet
and Mg;
• Weak linkage by cations (Na+, Ca+). Silica sheet Layers held
together by Van
• Due to the weak linkage, water der Waals forces
molecule are easily admitted between and exchangeable
ions; easily
sheets. Thus, resulting in high infiltrated by
shrinking and swelling potential . water
Alumina sheet
• Expansive clay.
Silica sheet

Alumina sheet

Silica sheet
Buildings From Clay

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The importance of understanding the
properties of clay minerals.
• The most significant characteristic of any clay mineral is its
extremely flaky shape.
• Soil mineralogy controls the size, shape, and physical and
chemical properties of soil.
• The main properties to be considered in the engineering
aspect are: surface area, surface charge and adsorption,
base exchange capacity, flocculation and dispersion,
shrinkage and swelling, plasticity and cohesion.
• Kaolinite for example is a stable clay mineral, does not swell
easily in presence of water, thus will exhibit less
compressibility and settlement than montmorillonite.
The clay particles

Illite

Kaolinite
The individual clay particles

Kaolinite Illite
Soil Structure

• Besides mineralogy, another important aspect of soil which

contributes to the engineering properties of soil is the soil
structure.
• Tavenas (1979) mentioned that the term “soil structure” can
be defined by both particle arrangement which is known as
fabric association and inter-particle forces (bonding).
• The effects of structure are important in determining the
engineering behaviour of soils, apart from the effects of initial
porosity and stress history. For example, the arrangement of
particles affects the permeability of the soil.
 Soil Fabric
• Assuming soil particle to be rigid, during deposition,
mineral particles are arranged into structural
frameworks that we call soil fabric (also known as soil
structure).
• Soil structure or fabric is defined as the geometric
arrangement of soil particles to each other.
• Particle's arrangement for coarse-grained soils could
be in single grained structure of honeycomb structure.

Single grained Honeycomb

structure structure
Soil Fabric
Particle's arrangement for fine-grained soils could be
in could be in flocculated structure and dispersed
structure.
Soil Fabric – sediment structures
• When clay particles initially
dispersed in water come
close to each other, they
will aggregate into visible
flocs with face-to-edge
contact.
• In high salt environment,
the flocculations will be
more towards face-to-face (a) dispersed (b) nonsalt
contact. flocculation (c) salt flocculation
Soil Fabric
• The spaces between mineral particles are called voids.
• It can be filled either with liquid (eg water) or gases (eg
air).
• Changing volume of void causes soil to expand (dilate)
or compress (settle).
• Rate of settlement depends on interconnectivity of
voids.
• Settlement in fine-grained soil is slow and almost
ceaseless due to larger surface area – provides greater
resistance to the flow of water through voids.
Soil Fabric Clay – Peds, clusters,
domains

• Domain: Individual clay particles in aggregrated or flocculated arrangement in a

submicroscopic fabric.
• Clusters : Group of domains will form up clusters. Could be seen with a light
microscope.
• Peds: Clusters group together. Some other features such as joints and fissures
could be seen when clay particles are in this formation.
Soil Fabrics – close up
Soil Fabric – close up
 Comparison

Properties Coarse Grained Soil Fine Grained Soil

Load bearing Good Poor
Capacity
Drainage Good Poor – impermeable
Volume & Strength Not significantly affected Varies to moisture
change by moisture presence presence
Density Incompressible when Compressible at a slow
dense, significant volume rate.
change when loose Continuous process

Engineering Determined by particle Determined by

properties size and structural mineralogical factors
arrangement
37
Learning Outcomes:
•Describe the laboratory testing for
coarse and fined grained soils.
•Describe, calculate and classify the soil
using the sieve analysis method.

10/31/2024 38
SOIL TESTING

Test Objective Fine Grained Coarse

Soil Grained Soil

Moisture ❖ Determine the water content of a soil

Content sample
❖ Ratio of weight of water / weight of x x
solid

Specific Gravity ❖ Determine the soil Specific Gravity

value
❖ Ratio of the unit weight of given x x
material/ unit weight of water

Mechanical ❖ Determine the grain size of soils

Analysis (Particle ❖ Sieve Analysis
Size Distribution)
❖ Hydrometer Analysis x x
Atterberg Limits ❖ To determine the consistency of soil
with varying moisture contents
❖ Liquid Limit (LL)
❖ Plastic Limit (PL) x
❖ Shrinkage Limit (SL)

❖ To determine the hydraulic

Permeability conductivity of soil
❖ Constant Head Test x x
39
❖ Falling Head Test
 Specific Gravity, Gs

• The ratio of the unit weight of a given material to the unit weight
of water.
• Denoted as Gs
• Normal range of values fall between 2.6 – 2.9

10/31/2024 40
Coarse-grained Soils – Sieve Analysis Method

• Engineering properties of
coarse-grained soil depends
primarily on its sizes etc.
• For classification purpose, soil
is grouped into sizes using
particle size distribution – Sieve
Analysis
• BS 1377: "Methods of test for
soil for civil engineering
purposes".

10/31/2024 41
 File:Laborsiebmaschine BMK.jpg

Sieve Analysis
• The distribution of particle sizes is
obtained by screening a known
weight of the soil through a stack of
sieves with different openings- oven
dried.
• Size of the sieve openings is
decreasing from top to bottom.
• The soil retained on each sieve is
weighed and the percentage of soil
retained on each sieve is calculated.

10/31/2024 42
Sieve Analysis
• The results of percent of particles finer than a given sieve(not the
percent retained) are plotted on a semi-log graph.

Particle-Size Distribution Curve/Grading Curve (PSDC)

10/31/2024 43
Sieve Analysis –Calculations of the soil mass
retained on sieve
1. Determine the soil mass retained on
each sieve ( M1, M2, M3….Mn ) 200g

2. Determine the total mass of soil : 200g

M1+M2+M3….+Mn+Mp =  M
200g
3. Determine the cumulative mass of
soil retained above each sieve : 200g

Eg : For ith sieve = M1+M2+M3….+Mi

200g

200g

200g
10/31/2024 44
 Sieve Analysis –Calculations of the soil
mass retained on sieve
4. The mass of soil passing the ith sieve:
 M – ( M1+M2+M3….+Mi ) 200g

5. The percent of soil passing the ith sieve (or 200g

percent finer) :
F = [ M – ( M1+M2+M3….+Mi ) /  M ] x 100
200g

6. Plot out the Particle- size distribution curve

200g

200g

200g

200g

10/31/2024 45
Particle size distribution curve
• A grading curve is useful aid to soil description – often included in ground
investigation results.
• Results can be tabulated and plotted on a semi log graph in the form of a curve.

silty
CLAY poorly graded
(medium
sandy SAND)
SILT
Well-graded Well-
(very silty graded
SAND) (GRAVEL
SAND)

Sieve analysis
Typical particle distribution curves tests
(Whitlow, 2001)
Additional Parameters
D10 = Diameter in the PSDC corresponding to
10% finer

D30 = Diameter in the PSDC corresponding to

30% finer

D60 = Diameter in the PSDC corresponding to

60% finer

1. Effective size, D10

- the diameter in the PSDC corresponding
to 10 % finer.

2. Uniformity coefficient, Cu

Cu = D60 / D10

3. Coefficient of gradation, Cc
10/31/2024 Cc = D230 / D60 x D10 47
Additional Parameters

• Both Cu and Cc will be 1(one) for a single-sized soil

• For Gravel
Cu  4 and 1  Cc  3 (a well-graded soil)

• For Sand
Cu  6 and 1  Cc  3 (a well-graded soil)
Cc < 0.1 (a possible gap graded soil)

10/31/2024 48
Worked example

Answer:
Example 1
• An air dry soil sample weighing 2000g is brought into the lab for
mechanical grain-size analysis. The lab data are as follows:

Opening size Weight Retained (g)

(mm)
20 0
10 158
4.75 308
2.00 608
0.425 652
0.150 224
0.075 42
- 8
10/31/2024 50
Solution
• Tabulate the following info:
• Percentage retained
• Percentage retained on 20mm sieve

weight retained on 20mm sieve

=  100 %
total sample weight
• Cumulative percentage retained
• Percentage passing
• Plot on semi-log paper a graph of sieve opening
(mm) [abscissa on log scale] versus percentage of
passing [ordinate on arithmetic scale]

10/31/2024 51
Tabulated data:

Sieve size Weight Percentage Cumulative Percentage

(mm) Retained (g) Retained % percentage passing, %
retained, %
20 0 0 0.0 100.0
10 158 7.9 7.9 92.1
4.75 308 15.4 23.3 76.7
2.00 608 30.4 53.7 46.3
0.425 652 32.6 86.3 13.7
0.150 224 11.2 97.5 2.5
0.075 42 2.1 99.6 0.4
- 8 0.4 100.0 -

10/31/2024 52
Semi-log graph

10/31/2024 53
 Design of filters

• The filters for water-pumping and in the construction of

earth dams are required to prevent fine particles being
carried into pipes through mesh screens or into the void
space of coarser materials.
• An effective filter material can be designed using a few
simple rules and the grading characteristics of the soil to
be protected:
• The soil content exceeding a grain size 19 mm should be discounted.
• The filter should not contain material of particles size greater than 80 mm.
• The filter should have fines content (particle size < 75m) of not more than 5 %.
• The grading curve of the filter should have the same approximate shape as that of the
soil.
• The d15 size of the filter should lie between four times d15 for the soil and four times
d85 for the soil. For example: 4 x d15 (soil) < d15 (filter) < 4 x d85 (soil).
• The d85 size of the filter should be not less than twice the inside pipe diameter or
screen-mesh size (where applicable)
Worked example
Homework 1

• Why identifying grading curves and their parameters are important in

soil classification?

10/31/2024 56
Homework 2
• A sample of a dry coarse-grained material weighing 499.7 g
was shaken through a nest of sieves and the following
results were obtained:
Opening size Weight Retained (g)
• Plot the particle size
(mm)
distribution curve
• Determine
4.75 0 • The effective size
2.00 14.8 • The average particle size
0.85 98
• The uniformity coefficient
• The coefficient of
0.425 90.1 curvature
0.150 181.9 • Determine the textural
0.075 108.8
composition of the soil
(amount of gravel, sand etc)
- 6.1 • Describe the gradation curve

10/31/2024 57
Homework 3
• The results of a dry sieving test are given below; plot the
particle-size distribution curve
• The quantity passing the 63 um sieve and collected in the pan
was 3.9 g, and the original weighed quantity was 217.2 g.

Opening size (mm) Weight Retained (g)

3.35 0
2.00 2.5
1.18 12.5
600 um 57.7
425 um 62.0
300 um 34.2
212 um 18.7
150 um 12.7
63 um 13.1
Pan 3.9
10/31/2024 58
Soil Index Properties
FINE-GRAINED SOIL
 LEARNING OUTCOMES

• Describe, calculate and classify the fine-grained soil using

hydrometer analysis.
• Describe the fine-grained soil constituents.
• Describe and calculate the tests in classifying the fine-grained
soils.
• Determine the index properties of soils.
 FINE-GRAINED SOIL

• Hydrometer Analysis
• Based on principle of sedimentation of soil grains in water –
particles settle at different velocity depending on their shape,
size, weight and viscosity of water
• Assumption: all soil particles are spheres and velocity of soil
particles can be expressed by Stoke’s Law.
 HYDROMETER ANALYSIS Sedimentation
cylinder

• Sizes are determined

from the settling velocity -sodium
hexametaphosphate

of soil particles and used as a dispersing

agent.

times recorded. -Hydrometer measures

specific gravity in the
vicinity of its bulb at a

• Percentages between depth L

sizes (percentage finer)

are determined using
specific formula.
 HYDROMETER ANALYSIS
• Assuming shape of particles to be sphere, the velocity of soil
particle is expressed using Stokes’ Law

s − w 2 18L
= D D= (Gs −1) wt D
18
tD = time at diameter D
L = depth
Gs = specific gravity
w = density of water (unit weight)
 = viscosity of water
D = diameter of soil particles
HYDROMETER ANALYSIS
HYDROMETER ANALYSIS
 HYDROMETER ANALYSIS
• Results obtained from this
analysis is used in the
same application as Sieve
Analysis – plotting semi-log
graph
• Particle size analysis is
used to describe the
different soil textures –
percentage of gravel, sand,
clay etc) in a soil
FINE GRAINED SOIL CONSTITUENTS
• Due to its minuscule size, the shape has greater influence over its
engineering properties, rather than the size.
• Clay soils has flaky properties to which water adheres, thus
imparting the property of plasticity
• Four distinct states of soil:
• Solid, semi solid, plastic and liquid
• Consistency varies with the water content of the soil.
• Water content is the ratio of the mass of water to the mass of
solid particles.
• The water contents at which the consistency change from one state
to another is called consistency limits or Atterberg limits
 ATTERBERG LIMITS

• Liquid ,plastic and shrinkage limits are called Atterberg Limits

(A. Atterberg, 1911)
• Utilized in the classification of fine soils:
• Liquid limit (wLL) - change of consistency from liquid to
plastic
• Plastic limit (wPL) - change of consistency from plastic to
brittle/crumbly (semi solid)
• Shrinkage limit(WSL) – change from semi solid to solid (total
dry up), no more volume change
(Useful to determine of swelling / shrinkage capacity of soil).
ATTERBERG LIMITS/ CONSISTENCY LIMITS

Consistency
relationships
ATTERBERG LIMITS – PLASTICITY INDEX

• The consistency of most soils in the ground

will be plastic or semi-solid.
• Soil strength and stiffness behavior are related
to the range of plastic consistency.
• The range of water content over which a soil
has a plastic consistency is termed the
Plasticity Index, PI.
= liquid limit - plastic limit
Plasticity Index (PI)
= wLL – wPL
PLASTICITY CHART – LIQUID LIMIT, WLL

Low plasticity wLL = < 35%

Intermediate plasticity wLL = 35 - 50%

High plasticity wLL = 50 - 70%

Very high plasticity wLL = 70 - 90%

Extremely high plasticity wLL = > 90%

PLASTICITY CHART – PLASTICITY INDEX, PI

Description PI
Non-plastic 0
Slightly Plastic 1-5
Low Plasticity 5-10
Medium Plasticity 10-20
High Plasticity 20-40
Very High Plasticity >40

Plasticity Index, PI defines the range of water

content for which the soil behaves like a plastic
material.
 ATTERBERG LIMITS

Mineral LL PL PI (%)
(%) (%)
Montmorillonite 710 54 656

Illite 120 53 67

Kaolinite 53 32 21

Attapulgite 270 150 120

Plasticity Chart
 ATTERBERG LIMITS
• Typical values for Atterberg Limits
• This value depends on the type of predominant mineral, e.g.: for
Montmorillonite as predominant mineral, the PI can exceed
100%.

Soil Type WLL(%) WPL (%) IPL (%)

Sand Non-plastic
Silt 30-40 20-25 10-15

Clay 40-150 25-50 15-100

ATTERBERG LIMITS
Refer to page 102 - Das
 LIQUIDITY INDEX, IL
• A measure of soil strength using the Atterberg limits is
known as the Liquidity Index (IL)
W - WPL
Liquidity Index, IL = IP

• Liquidity index is the ratio of difference in natural/in situ water

content of a soil and its plastic limit to its plasticity index
• Liquidity Index gives the measure of soil strength.
• Values of IL:
• IL < 0 : semi solid solid or solid state
• 0 < IL < 1 : plastic state
• IL > 1 : liquid state
 ACTIVITY
• For a soil with particular mineralogy, plasticity index increases
linearly related to the amount of clay fraction (size <2m)
(Skempton, 1953)
• Used as an index to identify the swelling potential of clay soils.
• The degree of plasticity related to the clay content is called the
Activity of the soil.

IP
Activity, A =
(% clay particles <2m )
 ACTIVITY OF CLAYS

Description Activity Soil Activity

Inactive < 0.75 Kaolin clay 0.4 - 0.5
Normal 0.75 - 1.25 Glacial clay and 0.5 - 0.75
loess
Active 1.25 - 2.0 Most of British clays 0.75 - 1.25
including of
London Clay
Highly active >2 Organic estuarine > 1.25
clay
 DETERMINATION OF LIQUID,
PLASTIC AND SHRINKAGE LIMITS

• The Liquid Limit is determined by a method called

1. Casagrande Cup Method (A. Casagrande, 1932)
2. Fall Cone Method (Asia and Europe)

• Plastic Limit is determined by a simple test called ‘The Plastic

Limit Test’
• Fall Cone Method can determine both liquid and plastic limits.
DETERMINATION OF LIQUID LIMIT

• Casagrande Cup Method (A. Casagrande, 1932)

• Liquid Limit Test

The ‘cup’ is lifted and

dropped from a height of N = number of blows in
Liquid limit test device
10 mm. the liquid limit device for
and grooving tools
a 12.5 mm groove closure
wN = corresponding
moisture content
 TYPICAL RESULTS OF CUP
METHOD

The moisture content corresponding to N=25

from the flow curve is the liquid limit of the soil.
THE FALL CONE METHOD (BS 1377)

• Determine liquid limit and plastic limit.

• Liquid Limit
• The distance of the cone penetration in 5
seconds with varying water content is
recorded.
• Results are read at d = 20mm in which, the
corresponding water content % is the liquid
limit, WLL for the sample (80g cone)
• Plastic Limit
• For plastic limit, WPL ; a bigger cone is used
(240g) .
• WPL is read at d = 20mm.
TYPICAL RESULTS OF FALL
CONE METHOD
 PLASTIC LIMIT TEST

• The moisture content, in per cent, at which the soil crumbles

when rolled into threads of 3.2mm (1/8 in) in diameter.
 SHRINKAGE LIMIT
• Soil shrinks as moisture is gradually lost from it.
• The moisture content, in per cent, in which the
volume stop changing is defined as the shrinkage
limit.
• Example 1:
A liquid limit test conducted on a soil sample in
the cup device gave the following results:
Number of blows 10 19 23 27 40
Water content (%) 60.0 45.2 39.8 36.5 25.2

Two determinations for the plastic limit gave water

contents of 20.3% & 20.8%. Determine:
The liquid limit & plastic limit
Plasticity index
The liquidity index if the natural water content
is 27.4%
 ANSWER:
• Plot data
• Extract the liquid limit from graph = 38%
• Calculate the plastic limit = 20.6%
• Calculate Plasticity Index (IP) = 17.4%
• = liquid limit - plastic limit = wLL – wPL

Calculate Liquidity Index (IL) =0.39

Liquidity Index, IL = W - WPL
IP