Department of Civil Engineering,

MANIT Bhopal

Subject: Geotechnical Engineering-I

Subject Code: CE 224
Dr. Rakesh Kumar, Professor
▪ Geotechnical Engineering is the sub discipline of Civil
Engineering that involves applications of the principles of Soil
Mechanics and Rock Mechanics to design of foundations,
retaining structures and earth structures.

▪ Civil Engineer must study the properties of soil, such as its

origin, grain size distribution, ability to drain water,
compressibility, shear strength, and load bearing capacity.
Soil GeoTech.
Civil Engg.
Mechanics Engg.
Soil Mechanics: Soil Mechanics is the branch of science that deals
with study of physical properties of soil and behavior of soil masses
subjected to various types of forces.
1. Loads (static or dynamic),
2. Gravitational forces,
3. Water and
4. Temperature.

Rock Mechanics: Science dealing with the application of the

principles of mechanics to the understanding of the behavior of
rock masses.
Why we study Geotechnical Engineering
1. Virtually every structure is supported by soil or rock.
2. Geotechnical Engineering deals with the application of Civil
Engineering Technology to some aspects of earth.
Geotechnical Engineering deals with;
➢ Design of Foundation
➢ Stability of Slopes and Cuts
➢ Design of Earth Structures
➢ Design of Roads and Airfield etc.
 Origin of Soil

Soil is formed by weathering of rocks due to mechanical

disintegration (or) chemical decomposition; when the rock
surface is exposed to atmosphere for long duration.
 Origin of soil
Pedo-genesis

(i) Earth (ii) Origin of Birth

The scientific study of soils is known as pedology; the
process of soil formation is referred to as pedogenesis (soil
genesis).
 Formation of Soil
▪ Soil is generally formed by disintegration and decomposition
(weathering) of rocks through the action of physical (or
mechanical) and chemical agents which break them into
smaller and smaller particles.
Physical Weathering of Chemical Weathering of Biological Weathering of
Rocks Rocks Rocks
1. By flowing water, air, 1. Due to oxidation, Biological weathering is
snow, flowing ice, carbonation, caused by activities of
gravitational forces. decomposition living organisms - for
2. In physical weathering reduction. example, the growth of
the mineral constituents 2. Due to chemical roots or the burrowing of
of parent rocks are weathering the mineral animals.
remain unchanged/ constituents get
preserved in the soil. modified/changed in
the soil from their
parent rocks.
 What is SOIL ?
• An un-cemented or weakly cemented accumulation of mineral
particles which are formed by the weathering of rocks. It
includes different materials like boulders, gravels, sands, silts
and clays.
•To an agriculturist, soil means the top layer of the earth which
is responsible for supporting plant life.
•To a geologist, soil is thin outer layer of loose sediments within
which plant roots are present.
•For a civil engineer, soil means all naturally occurring,
relatively unconsolidated earth material-organic or inorganic in
character- that lies above the bedrock.
 Types of Soil
Due to Geological cycle of weathering, soils are classified as:
1. Transported Soil: After weathering, soil is transported by
different physical agencies like water, wind, snow, gravity from its
place of origin.
or
• Soil transported from the origin called transported soil. Soil has been
deposited at a place away from the place of origin by various
transporting agents such as air, water and ice or snow.
• The engineering properties of transported soil at a place of deposition
are entirely different from the properties of the parent rock. Most of
the soil deposits are transported soil only.
2. Residual Soil: After the weathering, if the soil is retained over
it i.e. on parent rock /still occupies the position of the rock from
which it has been formed, it is known as residual soil.
 Types of Soil Based on Origin
1. Alluvial Soil: It is the soil which is being deposited from the
suspension in running water. Transported soil/Physical weathered
found along the river bank.
2. Lacustrine Soil: It is the soil that is deposited from the suspension
in the fresh water for the lakes. Physical weathered/Transported soil.
3. Aeolian Soil: It is the soil which is formed due to transportation by
wind. Physical weathered/Transported soil.
4. Marine Soil: It is the soil which is deposited from the suspension in
the sea water. Physical weathered/Transported soil.
5. Glacial Soil: It is the soil that is transmitted due to flowing snow
(ice). Physical weathered/Transported soil.
6. Colluvial Soil: It is also known as Talus soil. It is transported by
gravitational forces. It is generally found at the bottom of the valley
near hilly areas. Physical weathered/ Transported Soil.
7. Loess Soil: It is uniform graded, wind blown silty soil having
calcium compounds and montmorillonite. Types of Aeolian/Physical
Weathered/ Transported Soil.
8. Loam Soil: It is also called garden soil. It is the mixture of clay, silt
and sand in different proportions. It contains some compounds of
organic matters also. Physical weathered.
9. Marl Soil: Calcium carbonated marine soil which is formed due to
decomposition of bones and cell mass of aquatic life (Both plants
and animals). Chemically weathered.
10. Black cotton soil: It is formed due to chemical weathering of basalt rock. It
is one type of residual soil. It contains high amount of montmorillonite clay
mineral which is responsible for high swelling and shrinkage characteristics.
11. Bentonite Soil: It is chemically weathered volcanic ash, which is generally
used as drilling mud in pile foundation or borings/drillings. It is highly plastic
and having high contain of montmorillonite clay mineral. Also show high
swelling and shrinkage characteristics.
12. Peat Soil: It is highly organic soil that consists of vegetables compound
matters in different stage of decomposition.
(i) Organic orders
(ii) Chemical weathered
(iii) Black to dark brown colour
(iv) High compressibility
13. Muck Soil: It is chemically weathered soil which is generally found
in the area having indeficient sewerage facilities or may be observed
after over flooding of the rivers.
14. Cumulose Soil: Mixture of peat soil and muck soil is termed as
cumulose soil.
 Principle Soil Types
On basis of genesis, colour, composition and location, soil
types in India are:
• Alluvial Soil
• Red and yellow Soil
• Laterite Soil
• Saline Soil
• Forest Soil
• Black Soil
• Arid Soil
• Peaty Soil
 Uses of Soil
❖ As a supporting material to bear the loads of
structures resting on earth
❖ As a raw constructional material for construction of earth
structures (Dams, levees, roads)
❖ As a processed material (Burnt bricks, concrete mix etc.)
❖ In Pottery (Kaolinite)
❖ Kaolinite is also used in paint and pharmaceuticals
❖ Bentonite is used in drilling
 Different types of soils:
1. Bentonitte: It is a type of clay with very high percentage of clay
mineral montmorilonitte. It results from decomposition of
volcanic ash.
2. Clay: It consists of microscopic and sub microscopic particles.
The soil size is less than 0.002mm.
3. Sand: It is a coarse grained soil having particles size
between 0.075 to 4.75mm. The particles are visible in eye
4. Silt: It is fine graded sand particles size from 0.002 -0.0075mm.
The particles are not visible through eyes.
5. Gravel: Coarse soil of size from 4.75 to 80mm
6. Cobbles: These are large size particles in range of size 80 to
300mm
7. Kankar: Impure form of limestone, it contains calcium carbonate.
8. Loam: It is a mixture of sand, silt and clay in alternate layers
9. Boulders: These are large size particles of size>300mm
 Cohesive soils
Soil, which absorbs water and having particles attraction
such that it deforms plastically at varying water content are
known as cohesive soil. Example: clay sand, plastic silt and
clay.
 Cohesion less soils

The soil composed of bulky grains are cohesive less soils. Its
plasticity effects is insignificant.
Example: non plastic silt and sand gravel.
 Soil Phases
➢ Soil deposits comprise the accumulated solid particles plus
the void space between the particles

➢ The void spaces are partially or completely filled with water or

other liquid.

➢ Voids space not occupied by fluid are filled with air or other
gas.

➢ Hence soil deposits are referred to as three-phase system, i.e.

Solid + Liquid (water) + Gas (air)
 PHASE DIAGRAM

❖Soil mass is in general a three phase system composed of solid,

liquid and gaseous matter.
❖The diagrammatic representation of the different phases in a
soil mass is called the phase diagram.
❖A 3 Phase system is applicable for partially saturated soil
whereas a 2-phase system is for saturated soil and dry states of
soil.
 Three-phase System

Soils can be classified as partially saturated (with both air

and water present), fully saturated (no air content) perfectly
dry (no water content).
In a saturated soil or a dry soil, the three-phase system thus
reduces to two phases only, as shown.
Symbols for Phase Relations of soils

𝑒 = 𝑉𝑜𝑖𝑑 𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜
𝑤 = 𝑤𝑎𝑡𝑒𝑟 𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑡𝑒𝑛𝑡 also known as moisture content
𝐺𝑠 = 𝑆𝑝𝑒𝑐𝑖𝑓𝑖𝑐 𝑔𝑟𝑎𝑣𝑖𝑡𝑦 𝑜𝑓 𝑠𝑜𝑖𝑙 𝑠𝑜𝑙𝑖𝑑
𝑛 = 𝑃𝑜𝑟𝑜𝑠𝑖𝑡𝑦
𝑆 𝑜𝑟 𝑆𝑟 = 𝐷𝑒𝑔𝑟𝑒𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝑠𝑎𝑡𝑢𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛
Symbols for Phase Relations of soils

𝛾𝑏 = 𝐵𝑢𝑙𝑘 𝑢𝑛𝑖𝑡 𝑤𝑒𝑖𝑔ℎ𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑠𝑜𝑖𝑙

𝛾𝑑 = 𝐷𝑟𝑦 𝑢𝑛𝑖𝑡 𝑤𝑒𝑖𝑔ℎ𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑠𝑜𝑖𝑙
𝛾𝑠 = 𝑈𝑛𝑖𝑡 𝑤𝑒𝑖𝑔ℎ𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑠𝑜𝑖𝑙 𝑠𝑜𝑙𝑖𝑑𝑠
𝛾𝑤 = 𝑈𝑛𝑖𝑡 𝑤𝑒𝑖𝑔ℎ𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑤𝑎𝑡𝑒𝑟
𝛾𝑠𝑎𝑡 = 𝑆𝑎𝑡𝑢𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑒𝑑 𝑢𝑛𝑖𝑡 𝑤𝑒𝑖𝑔ℎ𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑠𝑜𝑖𝑙
𝛾𝑠𝑢𝑏 = 𝑆𝑢𝑏𝑚𝑒𝑟𝑔𝑒𝑑 𝑢𝑛𝑖𝑡 𝑤𝑒𝑖𝑔ℎ𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑠𝑜𝑖𝑙
PHASE DIAGRAM
For purpose of study and analysis, it is convenient to represent the
soil by a PHASE DIAGRAM, with part of the diagram representing
the solid particles, part representing water or liquid, and another part
air or other gas.
 Weight Ratios

(1) Water Content w%

𝑊𝑤 𝑊𝑒𝑖𝑔ℎ𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑤𝑎𝑡𝑒𝑟
𝑤= 𝑥 100 %
𝑊𝑠 𝑊𝑒𝑖𝑔ℎ𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑠𝑜𝑖𝑙 𝑠𝑜𝑙𝑖𝑑𝑠

There is no upper limit of water content. In general it is

expresses in %. If w=0 i.e. soil is dry, Range 0 to ∞.
Volumetric Ratios
(2) Void ratio e
Volume of Voids, Vv
e=
Volume of Soilds, Vs
e≠0, because Vv≠0,e>0, no upper limit of e

(3) Porosity n%

Volume of Voids,Vv
n=
Total Volume of Soil,V

Saturated

(4) Degree of Saturation S% (0 – 100%)

𝑇𝑜𝑡𝑎𝑙 𝑉𝑜𝑙𝑢𝑚𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝑉𝑜𝑖𝑑𝑠 𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑡𝑎𝑖𝑛 𝑊𝑎𝑡𝑒𝑟, 𝑉𝑤

𝑆 𝑜𝑟 𝑆𝑟 = x 100
𝑇𝑜𝑡𝑎𝑙 𝑉𝑜𝑙𝑢𝑚𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝑉𝑜𝑖𝑑𝑠, 𝑉𝑣
 Soil unit weights
(1) Dry unit weight
Weightof soil solids Ws
d = =
Total volume of soil Vt

(2) Total, Wet, Bulk, or Moist unit weight

Total weight of soil Ws +Ww

= =
Total volume of soil Vt
(3) Saturated unit weight (considering S=100%, Va =0)
Weight of soil solids + water Ws +Ww
 sat = =
Total volume of soil Vt

Note: The density/or unit weight are ratios which connects the volumetric
side of the PHASE DIAGRAM with the mass/or weight side.
 Soil unit weights
(4) Unit Weight of Soil Solids
Weightof soil solids Ws
s = =
Volume of soil solid Vs

(5) Submerged unit weight

sub = sat w
Specific gravity, Gs

The ratio of the mass of a solid particles to the mass of an equal

volume of distilled water at 4°C
ws
Gs =
Vs  w
i.e., the specific gravity of a certain material is ratio of the unit weight
of that material to the unit weight of water at 27o C.

The specific gravity of soil solids is often needed for various

calculations in soil mechanics.

s
Gs = Gw = 1
w Gmercury = 13.6
Typical Values of Specific Gravity

Type of soils Specific gravity of soil

soilds, Gs
Sand 2.65-2.67
Silty Sand 2.67-2.70
Inorganic Clay 2.7-2.8
Soils with Mica and Iron 2.75-3.0
Organic Clay <2.0
Relationships Between Various Physical Properties
All the weight- volume relationships needed in soil mechanics
can be derived from appropriate combinations of six
fundamental definitions. They are:

1. Void ratio, e
2. Porosity, n
3. Degree of saturation, S or Sr
4. Water content, w
5. Unit weight, γ
6. Specific gravity, G or Gs
 Use of Phase diagrams in finding relationships physical
properties
• Remember the following simple rules:
1. Remember the basic definitions of w, e, Gs, S, etc.
2. Draw a phase diagram.
3. Assume either Vs=1 or Vt=1 or ws = 1 depending on given
values.
4. Solve the phase diagram for required values.
If given e, assume Vs =1 Air
e
Water 1+e

Solids 1

If given w, assume Ws =1
Air

w
Water
1+w
1 Solids
 1. Relationship between e and n
𝑉𝑣 𝑉𝑣
𝑒= =
𝑉𝑠 𝑉 − 𝑉𝑣
𝑉 𝑣 Τ𝑉
=
𝑉−𝑉𝑣 Τ𝑉

𝑛
=
𝑉Τ𝑉−𝑉𝑣Τ𝑉

𝑛
=
1−𝑛

Using phase diagram

Given : e e
required: n
1+e
Vv e
n= = 1
Vt 1+ e
 2. Relationship among e, S, w, and Gs
ww =  wVw =  wVw = Vw
w=
ws  sVs  wGsVs GsVs

Dividing the denominator and numerator of the R.H.S. by Vv

yields:

Se = wGs
This is a very useful relation for solving THREE-PHASE
RELATIONSHIPS.
2. Relationship among e, S, w, and Gs
2. Relationship among e, S, w, and Gs
Using phase diagram Given: e, S, Gs required: w

Air
e

e S w Water eS
1+e
Gs w + e S w

Gs w Solids 1

Ww = e S  w = e S
w=  w Gs = e S
Ws G s  w G s
3. Relationship among , e, S and Gs

W Ww +Ws  wVw +  sVs  wVw +  wGsVs

= = = =
V Vs +Vv Vs +Vv Vs +Vv
(Se + Gs )
= w
1+ e
Notes:
Unit weights for dry, fully saturatedand submerged cases
can be derived from the upper equation. Water content can be
used instead of degree of saturation.
 4. Relationship among , e, S and Gs
Using phase diagram
Given : e, S, Gs
required: 
Air
e

e S w Water eS
1+e
Gs w + e S w

Gs w Solids 1

Wt = (Gs + eS ) w W G
= d = s = s w
Vt 1+ e Vt 1+ e
Wt (water filled with water) (Gs + e) w
sat = =
Vt 1+ e
Various Unit Weight Relationships
 Solution of Phase Problems
• Method 1: Memorize relationships
Se = wGs  = (Se + Gs )  w
1+ e
e 
n=
1+ e d =
1+ w
• Method 2: Return to Basics
• Remember the following simple rules:
1. Remember the basic definitions of w, e, Gs, S, etc.
2. Draw a phase diagram.

3. Assume either Vs=1 or Vt=1 or ws = 1 depending on given values.

4. Solve the phase diagram.
 Method 2: Problem assumptions

If given e, assume Vs =1 Air

e
Water 1+e

Solids 1

If given w, assume Ws =1
Air

w
Water
1+w
1 Solids
 Example 1:

•In its natural state, a moist soil has a total volume of 9344.56 cm3 and a mass
18.11 kg. The oven-dry mass of soil is 15.67 kg. If Gs = 2.67, calculate the
moisture content, moist unit weight, void ratio and degree of saturation.

3475.66 cm3

2.44 kg
18.11 kg 9344.56 cm3 2440cm3

15.67 kg 5868.9 cm3

Relative Density
The relative density is the parameter that compare the volume reduction
achieved from compaction to the maximum possible volume reduction
The relative density Dr, also called density index is commonly used to
indicate the In-situ denseness or looseness of granular soil.

Volume reduction from compaction of granular soil

Dr can be expressed either in terms of void ratios or dry
densities.

111
Granular soils are qualitatively described according to their
relative densities as shown below

The use of relative density has been restricted to granular soils because of the
difficulty of determining emax in clayey soils. Liquidity Index in fine-grained
soils is of similar use as Dr in granular soils.
Remarks
The relative density of a natural soil very strongly affect its
engineering behavior.

The range of values of Dr may vary from a minimum of zero for

very LOOSE soil to a maximum of 100% for a very DENSE soil.

Because of the irregular size and shape of granular particles, it is

not possible to obtain a ZERO volume of voids.
 Example-1
Method 1
Method 2:
Given : w = 9.8% ,  =  kN/m3, Gs = 2.69
required: d , e, n, S

assume Ws =1 kN Air
0.01931
0.098/9.8
9.8/100 = 1.098/19.2
Water 1=
0.098 0.00998 = 0.0572
1.098

1 Solids 1/(2.69 x 9.81) =

0.03789

Vv 0.01931
W
d = s =
1
= 17.48 kN/m 3 n= = 100 = 33.76%
Vt 0.0572 Vt 0.0572

Vw 0.00998
e=
VV 0.01931
= = 0.51kN/m 3 S= = 100 = 51.68%
VS 0.03789 Vv 0.01931
 Example-2
• Field density testing (e.g., sand replacement method) has shown bulk
density of a compacted road base to be 2.06 t/m3 with a water content of
11.6%. Specific gravity of the soil grains is 2.69. Calculate the dry density,
porosity, void ratio and degree of saturation.
 Water Content
Importance of the Water Content of Soil
1.The water content of soil can be used as the index property to indicate the behaviour and
state of the soil.
2.Some physical properties of soil such as bearing capacity, settlement, dry unit weight
can be calculated when we know the water content of the soil sample.
3.Since the water content of soil sample changes during its transportation and storage.
Water content test should be the first test that is conducted immediately after it is received
in the laboratory.
4.The water content of soil can be determined accurately because it involves the
measurement of weights only. (Weights can be measured more accurately than volumes)
Indian Standard Code dealing with the determination of water content of the soil
is IS 2720 (Part 2)
 Water Content
The water content of the soil is a critical parameter that controls the engineering

behaviour of soil. The following are some methods used to determine the water

content:

1. Oven Drying Method

2. Sand Bath Method

3. Alcohol Method

4. Calcium Carbide Method

5. Pycnometer Method

6. Radiation Method

7. Torsion Balance Method

 Oven Drying Method
The oven-dry method is the standard laboratory method for determining the water content of
soil. It is a very accurate method.
Apparatus Required: Air-tight container, Electric oven, weighing machine, Desiccator.
Note: Desiccator is the sealable container that is used to keep moisture-sensitive items to
preserve their moisture content.
Procedure:
To determine the water content of the soil sample then we need to follow some following steps-
1.Dry and clean the container. Measure the weight of the empty container (W1).
2.Take the moist soil sample into the container and weigh it (W2).
3.The soil sample is kept in the electric oven to dry at a temperature of 1050 -1100 C for 24
hours.
4.Finally, Record the constant weight of perfectly dried soil sample with the container (W3).
 Observation and Calculations Table

Precautions:
1. The temperature in the oven should not get more than 1100 C because above this
temperature, the water of crystallisation may be lost.
2. Dry soil may absorb water from the moist soil, dried samples should be removed before
placing wet samples in the oven.
3. For inorganic soil, temperature is maintained between 105-110˚C for 24 hours.
4. For organic soil, it is not increased beyond 60˚C in order to avoid oxidation of organic
matters. For soil having gypsum, temperature is limited to 80˚C to avoid the loss of
structural water.
 Sand Bath Method
Sand bath method is a field method to determine the water content of soil. It is a rapid but
less accurate method.
Apparatus: Sand bath, tray, weighing machine, palette knife (Spatula)., stove or spirit
lamp
Note: A sand bath is a large, open vessel containing sand.
Procedure:
1.Clean and Weigh the empty tray (W1)
2.Take the soil sample in the tray. The sample should be crumbled and loosely placed in
the tray. Put some pieces of white paper on the sample. Weight the tray with the wet soil
sample (W2).
Calculations:
1.Place the tray on the sand bath. The sand bath is heated over a stove
for 20-60 minutes to dry the sample. The drying should continue till
the sample attain a constant mass.
2.During heating, the sample is turned with the palette knife.
Overheating of soil sample should be avoided. The white paper turns
brown when overheating occurs.
3.After drying the sample is removed from the sand bath, cooled and
weighed (W3)
 Alcohol Method
In this method, the drying process is completed by methylated spirit.
Apparatus Required: Air-tight container, knife, methylated spirit.
Procedure:
1.Take the weight of the clean and empty container (W1).
2. Place the soil sample loosely in the container and weigh the container with soil (W2)
3. Mix the methylated spirit (@ 1 mg per gm of soil with the wet soil.
4. Ignite the mixture. The mixed contents should be stirred by a knife to ensure complete drying.
5. After that the methylated spirit is completely burned away, the container is cooled with
desiccator.
6. Take the weight of the container and the dried soil (W3).
7. Since there is no control over temperature, it is not generally suitable for organic soil and soil
with gypsum content.

Calculations:
 Calcium Carbide Method
It is one of the quickest field method which gives the result within 5-7 minutes.
Calcium carbide method is based on the principle that when water in soil sample reacts
with Calcium carbide (CaC2), acetylene gas (C2H2) is produced. The water content of the
soil sample can be found indirectly from the pressure of the acetylene gas formed, It is
also called as Speedy or Rapid moisture test.
Apparatus: Airtight containers, Calcium carbide, Dial gauge
Procedure:
1.Take the soil sample in powdered form in the container and mix it thoroughly with the
calcium carbide.
2.The acetylene gas produced exert pressure on the diaphragm.
3.The dial gauge is so calibrated that it gives the water content of soil directly based on the
total mass (wt).
(4-6 g of sample is placed in moisture meter and calcium carbide is added in it which reacts
with the water present in the sample resulting in the formation of acetylene gas that exerts
pressure over the gauge which is further calibrated to give water content of soil in terms of
total mass of soil.)
CaC2 + H2O → C2H2 ↑ + Ca(OH)2
Calculations: The water content of the soil sample based on the dry mass is determined as:
w = w’ / (1 – w’)
 Pycnometer Method
Pycnometer method can be used only if the specific gravity of soil particles are known.
It’s a rapid method (Give results in 10-20 min) of testing a soil sample of known specific
weight. This method is perfect for coarse-grained soil and it’s not perfectly applicable for
fine-grained soil. The pycnometer is a bottle of size 900 ml and a brass conical cap is
used for cover. The conical cap is screwed up with a bottle and a rubber washer is added
inside the conical cap to prevent the leakage of water through walls of pycnometer and
conical cap.
Apparatus Required: Pycnometer, Tamping rod or vacuum tube
Note: Pycnometer is a glass jar of about 1-litre volume and fitted with a brass conical cap
having a small hole at its apex.
Procedure:
1.The clean and empty pycnometer with cap is taken and the weight is recorded (W1)
2.Place 200-400 gm of the moist soil sample in the pycnometer and determine its
weight (W2).
3.Fill the remaining volume of pycnometer gradually with distilled water or kerosene.
4.Remove the entrapped air either by heating and shaking the pycnometer or by applying
a vacuum.
5.Weigh the pycnometer with soil, water/kerosene (W3).
6.Empty the pycnometer and after cleaning thoroughly, fill it with water/kerosene and
take its weight (W4).
Calculations: We this formula to determine the water content-
w = [(W2 – W1)/(W3 -W4) × (G – 1)÷G) -1 ]
 Radiation Method
Radiation method is used to determine the water content of the soil in in-situ conditions.
Apparatus Required: Steel Casings, Emitters, Detectors, radioactive material (Cobalt 60)
Procedure:
1.The device containing a radio-active isotopes material (such as cobalt 60) is placed in a
capsule.
2.It is then lowered in a steel casing, placed in a borehole. The steel casing has a small
opening on its side through which rays come out.
3.A detector is placed inside another steel casing, which also has an opening facing the first
casing.
4.Neurons are emitted by radioactive materials. The water of soil cause loss of energy as a
result of scattering of neutrons by hydrogen atoms.
5.The loss of energy is proportional to the quantity of water present in the soil. The detector is
calibrated to give the water content directly.
Precautions: The radiation method should be used carefully as it may cause the radiation
problem. Therefore proper shielding should be ensured.
 Radiation Method
In this field method, two steel casings are lowered into medium. In first casing,
radioactive material (cobalt-60) is placed and in other casing, detector is placed.
When radioactive material is activated, it emits neutron which strikes with the hydrogen
atom present in water and losses its energy, which is detected by detector placed in
another casing. This loss of energy is further calibrated with water content of soil.
 Torsion Balance Method
The two main requirements for torsion balance method are:

1.The infrared lamp: This is a 250 W lamp. The lamp operates on single-phase AC of

voltage 220 to 230V. There is provision to control and regulate the input voltage in order

to adjust the drying heat and temperature.

2.The torsion balance: This unit is assembled over a magnetic damper which helps to

reduce the pan vibration. The torsion balance is calibrated to give water content in a

range of 1 to 100 percent with a least count of 0.2 percent. In order to read the

temperature, a thermometer is placed in the pan housing with a range of 40 to 150-degree

Celsius. In this method, there is no requirement for separate physical balance. The

balance scale called a drum is divided into different moisture contents w' which is

dependent on the weight of the soil mass.

Specimen Preparation
The moisture meter is calibrated by 25 gram of soil that has particles with size not less than 2
microns. Hence, the sample taken for the test must possess the same specification. The
prepared sample is protected from external moisture by keeping it in a pan.
Test Procedure
1.The soil sample(25 gram) is taken and placed over the raised lamp housing. The soil is then
evenly distributed on the sample plan.
2.Once the soil sample is placed, the lamp housing is lowered.
3.The infrared lamp is switched on.
4.A thermometer is provided in its socket that records the drying temperature which is kept at a
range of 105-degree Celsius.
5.A drum drive knob is used to rotate the drum scale until its pointer moves to index.
6.The drum scale gives the percentage of water content.
7.When the pointer on the drum scale remains constant, it forms the final reading. This
indicates that the soil has dried to a constant mass.
8.The value of water content read from the scale is based on the initial weight of the soil w'.
The water content based on the wet weight of the soil is obtained from the test, i.e. w'. Then,
w' = Ww/W
Ww = Weight of water; W= Total Weight
We have to determine the water content based on the dry weight of the soil, i.e. 'w'. Then,
w = Ww/Ws;
Ws= Weight of solids or dry weight of soil. Therefore,
w'= Ww/W = Ww/(Ww+Ws)
Then, (1/w') = (Ws +Ww)/Ww
= (1/w') = 1+ (Ws/Ww) = 1 + (1/w);
Hence, w = w' / (1-w’)
The test result can be obtained within 15 to 30 minutes. The result is dependent on the type
of soil and the amount of moisture present in the soil. The torsion balance method is a
suitable test for soils that reabsorb moisture quickly after drying.
 Torsion Balance Method

Torsion Balance method is very useful for soils which quickly re-absorb moisture from the
environment after drying. In this method, weighing and drying occur simultaneously.
Torsion balance is calibrated to give water content directly.
Apparatus Required: Infrared lamp, Torsional balance.
Procedure:
1.Keep the soil sample in the sample pan of the infrared lamp and spread evenly.
2.Start the infrared lamp and keep the temperature under 110-degree Celcius.
3.The water content can be read directly from the drum scale.
4.When the pointer of the drum scale become stationary, it indicates the soil has dried
(attained constant mass). This reading is the water content based on the dry weight (w’)
Calculations: Water content, w = w’ / (1 – w’)
 Unit weights of Soil
In laboratory and field conditions, the bulk unit weight is measured using
the following approaches:

• Water displacement method

• Core cutter method
• Sand replacement method
• Water balloon method
 Water Displacement Method
Water displacement method for determining the unit weight of soil sample brought
from the field. This method is suitable only for the cohesive soils because we need a
soil sample in the form of a lump.
Cohesive soils are those whose particles adhere to each other.
soil-sample
From the field we take out a small lump of soil from the ground and trim it down to
have some regular shape. This trimmed sample is weighed and weight noted down as
W1.
Now we will determine the volume of this sample by dipping it into the water. But
soil will disintegrate if it comes in contact with water. So to protect the disintegration,
sample is coated with the thin layer of paraffin wax. It has been shown thicker here
for better visibility.

This coated sample is weighed again and weight is noted as W2.

 We have weight of sample W1.
Weight of sample and wax W2.
Hence weight of wax Wwax would be W2 minus W1.
Here volume of wax can be determined by unit weight formula as this.

This is the volume of wax used to cover the soil sample. Next we take a container with
overflow management attached to it. Overflow management means if we keep on
filling this container with some liquid even after reaching its full capacity, the extra
liquid should not just spill over around but with a proper management it should get
collected.
Now fill this container up to the brim with water. Gradually lower the coated sample
into it. Because of it water level will rise and overflow water will be collected into the
measuring jar.
Lets say measured volume is Vw. This is the volume of water displaced by coated soil
sample.
Now as we know volume of displaced liquid is equal to the volume of object which
displaced it hence volume of collected water is equal to the volume of coated sample.
now this displaced liquid volume is volume of soil sample plus volume of wax.

Now by simply applying unit weight formula, we can calculate unit weight of soil
sample which will be equal to weight of soil sample only divided by its volume.
 In situ Unit Weight of Soil By Core Cutter Method:
Procedure
1. Measure the height (ℎ) and internal diameter (𝑑) of the core cutter and calculate its
volume.
2. Weigh the empty core cutter without dolly as (𝑊1) g.
3. Clean and level the location where density is to be determined.
4. Drive the core cutter, with a steel dolly on its top, into the soil to its full depth with the help
of a steel rammer, so that half of dolly will remain above the ground.
5. Excavate the soil around the cutter with a and gently lift the cutter filled with soil.
6. Weigh the core cutter with filled with soil (𝑊2), after trimming the top and bottom
surfaces of the sample and cleaning the outside surface of the cutter
7. Calculate bulk density of field soil as 𝛾 = (𝑊2 − 𝑊1) / 𝑉
8. Remove the soil from the core cutter, using a sample extractor and take representative soil
sample from it to determine the moisture content using any one method as 𝑤 %.
9. Calculate dry density of field soil as 𝛾𝑑 = (𝛾) / (1 + 𝑤)
10. Repeat all above steps two more locations in the field to determine average dry density of soil.
 Sample 1 Sample 2 Sample
3
Determining density of sand
Mass of empty core cutter (𝑊1) g
Mass of core cutter filled with field soil (𝑊2) g
Bulk Density of soil 𝛾 = (𝑊2 − 𝑊1) / 𝑉 , g /cc.
Water content
Container No.
Mass of empty container with lid (𝑤1) g
Mass of container with lid and wet soil (𝑤2) g
Mass of container with lid and dry soil (𝑤3) g
Mass of water (𝑤𝑤 = 𝑤2 − 𝑤3) g
Mass of dry soil (𝑤𝑠 = 𝑤3 − 𝑤1) g
Water content in % 𝑤 = (𝑤𝑤 / 𝑤𝑠) 𝑥 100
 In situ Unit Weight of Sand Replacement Method: Procedure
1. Remove the cap of sand pouring cylinder, close the shutter, fill the test sand passing
through 1mm and retained on 600 µm from the top.
2. Find the mass of sand pouring cylinder with sand (𝑊1). Place the sand pouring
cylinder over the calibration container, open the shutter and allow the sand to flow out
for filling the calibration container. Close the shutter.
3. Place this sand pouring cylinder now on a clean and plane surface. Open the shutter
and allow the sand to flow out for filling cone fully. Close the shutter, remove the sand
pouring cylinder, collect the sand which occupied in the cone and find out its mass
(𝑊2).
4. Refill the sand pouring cylinder with sand such that it weighs equal to initial mass
𝑊1. Place the sand pouring cylinder centrally on the calibration container with
volume 𝑉1.
5. Open the shutter and allow the sand to fill in the calibration container and cone
completely. Close the shutter and find the mass of cylinder with remaining sand as
(𝑊3).
6. Refill the sand pouring cylinder with sand such that it weighs equal to initial mass
𝑊1 and take it to the field, along with metal tray and trowel.
7. Place metal tray having central hole on the prepared ground, and excavate the
soil using trowel up to 150 mm (approximately) depth, remove loose soil
carefully and collect it in the metal container
8. Remove the metal tray having central hole, place the sand pouring cylinder full
of sand centrally over excavated pit.
9. Open the shutter and allow sand to fill in excavated pit and cone completely.
Close the shutter and take it to laboratory to find the mass of cylinder with
remaining sand (𝑊4).
10. Find the mass of soil collected from the pit (𝑊).
11. Determine water content of collected soil by oven drying method as 𝑤.
Repeat the steps two times more to get average value of dry density of field soil
 Observations:
Internal diameter of calibrating container (𝑑) = cm.
Internal height of calibrating container (ℎ) = cm.
Volume of calibrating container (𝑉1) = cm3.

Sample 1 Sample 2 Sample 3

Density of sand
Mass of sand pouring cylinder full of sand (𝑊1) g
Mass of sand in cone (𝑊2) g
Mass of cylinder after pouring sand in calibrating
container and cone (𝑊3) g
Mass of sand filled in calibrating
container (𝑊𝑠 = 𝑊1 − 𝑊3 – 𝑊2) g
Density of san (𝛾𝑠 = 𝑊𝑠/ 𝑉1) g /
 Density of soil
Mass of sand pouring cylinder full of sand (𝑊1) g
Mass of collected soil (𝑊) g
Mass of cylinder after pouring sand in excavated pit
and cone (𝑊4) g
Mass of sand filled in excavated pit

(𝑊5 = 𝑊1 – 𝑊4 – 𝑊2) g
Volume of collected soil = Volume of pit
= Volume of sand filled in excavated pit
(𝑉 = 𝑊5 / 𝛾𝑠 ) cc
Bulk density (𝛾 =𝑊/𝑉) g /cc
Rubber Balloon Method
In the RUBBER BALLOON Method the volume is
determined by inserting a balloon into the excavation and
filling it with water or an other fluid with known density.

Water Tower
with Scale

Valve

Rubber
Membran
e
 Specific Gravity of Soil’s
To determine the specific gravity of soil, you need to collect a representative
soil sample and prepare it by removing any large particles. The following
are the methods for determining the sp. Gr. Of the soil.

➢ Density bottle method

➢ Pycnometer method

➢ Measuring flask method

➢ Gas jar method

➢ Shrinkage limit method

The density bottle is suitable for all types of soil and it is the accurate method.
Whereas the specific gravity flask or pycnometer methods are only suitable for
coarse grained soils. This number indicate how much heavier/lighter a material is
than water.
In soils Sp. Gr. refers to mass of solid matter of a given soil sample as compared
to equal volume of water.
Specific gravity is a fundamental property of soils and other construction
materials. This dimensionless unit is the ratio of material density to the density of
water and is used to calculate soil density, void ratio, saturation, and other soil
properties.
 Procedure for Specific Gravity test
Apparatus:

• Density bottle of 50 ml with stopper having

capillary hole.

• Pycnometer (900ml)

• Balance to weigh the materials (accuracy 10gm).

• Wash bottle with distilled water.

• Alcohol and ether.

• Constant temperature water bath

 Test Procedure:
1. Clean and dry the density bottle

a. Wash the bottle with water and allow it to drain.

b. Wash it with alcohol and drain it to remove water.

c. Wash it with ether, to remove alcohol and drain ether.

2. Weigh the empty bottle with stopper (W1)

3. Take about 10 to 20 gm of oven soil sample which is cooled in a desiccator. Transfer
it to the bottle. Find the weight of the bottle and soil (W2).

4. Put 10 ml of distilled water in the bottle to allow the soil to soak completely. Leave it
for about 2 hours.3
 Test Procedure:
5. Again, fill the bottle completely with distilled water put the stopper and keep the bottle
under constant temperature water baths (Tx℃).
6. Take the bottle outside and wipe it clean and dry note. Now determine the weight of the
bottle and the contents (W3).
7. Now empty the bottle and thoroughly clean it. Fill the bottle with only distilled water and
weigh it. Let it be W4 at temperature (Tx℃).
8. Repeat the same process for 2 to 3 times, to take the average reading of it.

Calculation:
Weight of substance
Specific gravity of soil= weight of an equal volume of water
2
W −W
1
= (W −W )−(W
2 1
−W )3 4

Specific Gr. Values are generally reported at 270C. If T0C is the test
temperature the specific gravity at 270C is given by
0 0 Sp. Gr. of water at T0C
Gs27 C= GsT C x
Sp. Gr. of water at 270C
1.Density bottle method
•It is a laboratory method in which a density bottle with a stopper with a hole is used to
determine the specific gravity of soil particles.
•Most of the time, a 50-ml density bottle is used in the test [IS: 2720 Part 2].
•At 105 to 110°C, the density bottle is cleaned, dried, and then cooled. The weight of
the bottle and the weight of the cap is measured.
•About 5 to 10 grams of oven-dried soil samples are transferred in the bottle and
weighed.
•If the sample has coarser particles, it must be ground down until it fits through a 2-mm
sieve before the test.
•The sample is then covered with distilled water. The water soaks into the soil for about
two hours. Until the bottle is half full, more water is added to it.
In a vacuum desiccator, a vacuum pressure of about 55cm of mercury is used for
about an hour to get rid of air trapped in the soil. An alternative way of getting rid
of the entrapped air is by heating the soil. To make the bottle full, more water is
added to it, and after that, the cap is put on top of the bottle. The weight is then
measured.
The bottle is then emptied, washed, and refilled with distilled water. The bottle
needs to be filled to the same level as before. The water in the bottle is measured.
Let
M1= Mass of empty bottle,
M2 = Mass of bottle and dry soil,
M3= Mass of bottle, soil, and water, and
M4= Mass of bottle filled with water.
If the mass of solids Ms is subtracted from M3 and replaced by the mass of water
equal to the volume of the solids, the mass M4 can be obtained.
Specific Gravity G= Ms/(Ms+M4-M3)
• At times, Kerosene can also be used instead of water. If Gk is kerosene's specific
gravity at the test temperature, the Specific Gravity of Soil formula is:

G= [(M2-M1) Gk] / [(M2-M1)-(M3-M4)]

• Other liquids like paraffin, alcohol, and benzene are also sometimes used.

• The density bottle method works for fine-grained soils, which have more than 90%
of their particles passing through a 2mm IS sieve.

• But the method can also be used for medium-grained and coarse-grained soils in
case the particles are fine enough to pass through a 2mm IS sieve.
2.Pycnometer method
The method of determining Specific gravity of soil by Pycnometer (900 ml) is similar to

the density bottle (50ml) method. Since the pycnometer comprises a large apparatus,

around 200 and 300g of oven-dried soil is required for the test.

The Pycnometer method can be used for any kind of soil, but it works best with

medium-grained soils like Sands. It is suitable for soils passing more than 90% through

a 20 mm IS sieve and coarse-grained soils passing more than 90% through a 40 mm IS

sieve. The specific gravity of soil formula is given by:

G= (M2-M1)/[(M2-M1)-(M3-M4)]

Where, M1= Mass of empty pycnometer, M2= Mass of pycnometer and dry soil

M3= Mass of pycnometer, soil, and water, M4= Mass of pycnometer filled with water

only
3.Measuring flask method
This test comprises a measuring flask with a graduation mark at the 250 ml (or 500 ml)
level and is similar to the density bottle method.

It comes with an adaptor for hooking it up to a vacuum line in order to get rid of any
entrapped air.

About 80-100g of oven-dried soil is used in the test.

This method works well with both fine- and medium-grained soils.

4.Glass Jar method

A glass jar of 1-litre capacity is used for this method.

The top of the jar is made of rubber.

This method is similar to the pycnometer method.

Specific Gravity of Soil at Various Temperature
The specific gravity of soil can actually change with temperature variations. As
temperatures rise, the specific gravity tends to decrease. To ensure consistency in
measurements, it is common practice to conduct specific gravity tests at a standard
temperature like 20 degrees Celsius (68 degrees Fahrenheit).

Importance of Specific Gravity of Soil Solids

Specific gravity is the ratio of the soil density to the density of water. This soil
parameter can be used to ascertain various soil properties like soil density, void ratio,
saturation, and other soil properties.

It is important for the design of foundations, ascertaining the stability of soil

embankments, and computation of settlement in case of soil fills.
Soil Type Specific Gravity (G)
Gravel and Sand 2.65 - 2.80

Silt 2.68 - 2.70

Inorganic Clay 2.70 - 2.80

Organic Soil 1-2

 Consistency of soil
In the case of coarse-grained soil, the particles are separate, and particle
size distribution and relative density can provide indications on the
engineering behaviour.
When it comes to fine- grained soil, the particles often stick together due
to cohesion, and the properties are highly influenced by the moisture
content. The ease at which soil can be deformed is known as consistency.
The same soil can exist in solid state or can behave like a liquid with
variation in water content. This range from liquid solid was divided into
four distinct states by Swedish Engineer Atterberg in 1911. The four
stages are separated by three moisture contents, which are known as the
Atterberg limits or consistency limits
 Atterberg Limits
Liquid Limit (wL or LL):Liquid limit is the water content at which soil changes from
plastic to liquid state. It is defined as the water content at which a soil pat in the standard
liquid limit apparatus cut by a groove of standard dimensions will flow together for a
distance of 12 mm under impact of 25 blows of standard height.
Clay flows like liquid when w > LL

Plastic Limit (wP or PL):Plastic limit is defined as the minimum water content at which
soil just begin to crumble when rolled into a thread of approximately 3 mm in diameter.
Lowest water content where the clay is still plastic

Shrinkage Limit (wS or SL):Shrinkage limit is the maximum water content at which a
reduction in water content will not cause a decrease in the soil volume.
At w<SL, no volume reduction on drying
 Liquid Limit
Name of experiment: Determination of liquid limit using Casagrande's liquid
limit apparatus (IS 2720).
Aim: To determine the liquid limit of the given soil sample using Casagrande's
liquid limit apparatus.
Apparatus required: Casagrande's liquid limit apparatus, grooving tool, IS sieve
of 425 µm, mixing dishes, weighing balance, spatulas, oven.
ASTM Tool, Casagrande Tool
Bottom=2 mm - 2mm
Top=13.6 mm – 11 mm
Height= 10 mm – 8 mm

Casagrande's liquid limit apparatus and grooves

ASTM tool is
used in case of
silty soil i.e. low
compressible soil
and Casagrande
tool is used for
high
compressible soil
i.e. clay
Procedure:
❖ Take about 120 gm of air-dried soil passing 425 µm I.S sieve.
❖ The sample is then mixed with distilled water to form a uniform paste.
❖ A part of this paste is then spread into the cup liquid limit device using spatula. At
the point of maximum thickness, the depth of soil can be 1 cm. Excess soil has to
be trimmed.
❖ Divide the paste in the cup along centre line, using the grooving tool such that
firm dimensions are made.
❖ The cup being dropped 10 mm in a standard liquid limit apparatus operated at a
rate of two shocks per sec (2 RPM) till the two parts of the paste join together
for at least 1 cm length, by flow, and record the number of blows.
❖ If the number of blows are between 10 and 40, keep a representative sample from
the cup for water content determination.
• Prepare paste of soil finer than 425 micron sieve.
• Place Soil in Cup.

• Cut groove in soil paste with standard groovin g tool

• Rotate cam and count number of blows
of cup required to close groove by 1/2”
❖ Repeat the test such that four readings of number of blows are obtained
1

between 10 and 40.

Experiment No. Sample 1 Sample 2 Sample 3 Sample 4

Container No.
Mass of empty container
with lid (𝑤1) g
Mass of container with lid
and wet soil (𝑤2) g
Mass of container with lid
and dry soil (𝑤3) g
Mass of water (𝑤𝑤 =
𝑤2 − 𝑤3) g
Water content in % 𝑤 =
(𝑤𝑤 / 𝑤𝑠) 𝑥 100

(i) Liquid limit (from graph):

(ii) Flow index:
• Obtain water content for each test

• Plot water content versus number of blows on semi-log paper

LL Test Results

Interpolate LL water content at 25 blows

Log N
25

water content, % LL= w%

170
Flow index:
Flow index is defined as the slope of the flow curve
Where N2, N1 are the number of blows
corresponding to the water content W1, W2
 Plastic Limit
The minimum water content at which a soil will just
begin to crumble when it is rolled into a thread of
approximately 3 mm in diameter.
173
1. Calculate the water
content of each of the
plastic limit moisture
cans after they have
been in the oven for at
least 16 hours.

2. Compute the
average of water
content to determine
the plastic limit

174
 Shrinkage Limit
Name of experiment: Determination of shrinkage limit of the soil (IS 2720)

Aim: To determine the shrinkage limit of the given soil sample.

Apparatus required: Evaporating dish, spatula, shrinkage dish, straight

edge, glass cup, two glass plates, IS 2 mm and 425-µm sieves, mercury,
weighing balance and oven.

Theory: Shrinkage limit is the maximum water content at which a reduction

in water content will not cause a decrease in the soil volume. The value is
highly useful in areas where soils undergo significant changes in volume.

Procedure:

➢ Take about 100 gm of the soil sample from passing through 425 µm IS
sieve.

➢ Take a part of the soil sample in an evaporating dish and mix with distilled
water till the voids are filled in.
➢ Weigh the empty shrinkage dish (𝑊1). Fill the paste in the shrinkage dish
in three equal layers, after coating inside of the dish with a thin layer of
grease or oil.

➢ Weigh the shrinkage dish with wet soil as 𝑊2.

➢ Dry the sample in air for 6 to 8h, till the colour of the sample becomes
light and then in the oven at temperature 105° C to 110° C for 12 to 16 h.

➢ Weigh the shrinkage dish with oven-dried soil and note as 𝑊3.

➢ Determine the volume of shrinkage dish which is evidently equal to

volume of the wet soil as follows. Take out the soil cake from the dish;
keep the empty shrinkage dish in a stainless- steel cup and fill with
mercury. Find the weight of shrinkage dish with full of mercury (𝑊4).
Use the weight of mercury to determine the volume of wet soil pat.
➢ Determine the volume of dry soil pat by removing the pat from the
shrinkage dish and immersing it in the glass cup full of mercury.
➢ Place the glass cup in a larger one and fill the glass cup to overflowing
with mercury. Remove the excess mercury by covering the cup with
glass plate with prongs and pressing it.
➢ Wipe out the outside of the glass cup. Then, place it in another larger
dish, which is, clean and empty carefully.
➢ Place the dry soil pat on the mercury. It floats submerge it with the
pronged glass plate which is again made flush with top of the cup.
➢ The mercury spills over into the larger plate. Measure the weight of the
plate with mercury, and use the weight of mercury 𝑊𝑠 to determine the
volume of dry pat.
 Observation Table
Sample 1 Sample 2 Sample 3
Weight of an empty shrinkage dish, 𝑊1

Weight of the shrinkage dish with wet soil, 𝑊2

Weight of shrinkage dish with oven dried soil, 𝑊3

Weight of dry soil, 𝑊𝑑 = 𝑊3 − 𝑊1

Volume of wet soil pat (𝑉1), in cm3

Volume of dry soil pat (𝑉2) in cm3

Shrinkage limit 𝑤𝑠 ={(W2 − W3) – (V1 −V2)γ𝑤} / (Wd) x100

 Definition of Plasticity Index

• Plasticity Index is the numerical difference between the Liquid

Limit w% and the Plastic Limit w%

Plasticity Index = Liquid Limit – Plastic Limit

PL w% LL

PI = LL - PL
Plastic (remoldable)

175
Soil classification is the division of soil into groups in which the
behaviours of the soils within a specific group are identical under a
particular set of physical conditions. Soil classification is a useful tool for
engineers as it helps them understand and interpret a given soil's
performance and decide the soil's suitability for different engineering
applications.
❖ If we classify and categorize soils, it will be convenient
for us to study them. We arrange the soils into different
groups such that soils in a particular group have similar
behaviour. This arranging of soils is called classification
system of soil.
❖ Any soil classification system must provide us the
information about the expected engineering properties of
a soil. It works as a language of communication
between engineers. Classification is done so as to
convey the same meaning universally.
Purpose:
Sieve Analysis
• This test is performed to determine the percentage of different
grain sizes contained within a soil.
• The mechanical or sieve analysis is performed to determine the
distribution of the coarser, larger-sized particles, and the
hydrometer method is used to determine the distribution of the
finer particles.
Significance:
• The distribution of different grain sizes affects the engineering
properties of soil.
• Grain size analysis provides the grain size distribution, and it is
required in classifying the soil.
 Major Soil Groups

Cohesive Granular soils or

soils Cohesionless soils

Clay Silt Sand Gravel Cobble Boulder

0.002mm 0.075mm 4.75 mm 80 mm 300 mm > 300 mm

Grain size (mm)

Fine grain Coarse grain

soils soils
 Determination of GSD
• In coarse grain soils …... By sieve analysis

Fine grain soils …... By hydrometer analysis

Sieve Analysis
 Sieve Designation - Large

Sieves larger than

the #4 sieve are
designated by the
size of the
openings in the
sieve
 Sieving procedure
(1) Write down the weight of each sieve as well as the bottom pan to be used in the
analysis.
(2) Record the weight of the given dry soil sample.
(3)Make sure that all the sieves are clean, and assemble them in the ascending order of
sieve numbers Carefully pour the soil sample into the top sieve and place the cap over it.
(4) Place the sieve stack in the mechanical shaker and shake for 10 minutes.
(5) Remove the stack from the shaker and carefully weigh and record the weight
of each sieve with its retained soil. In addition, remember to weigh and record
the weight of the bottom pan with its retained fine soil.
 Data Analysis:
(1) Obtain the weight of soil retained on each sieve by subtracting the weight of
the empty sieve from the mass of the sieve + retained soil, and record this weight
as the weight retained on the data sheet. The sum of these retained weights
should be approximately equals the initial weight of the soil sample. A loss of
more than two percent is unsatisfactory.

(2)Calculate the percent retained on each sieve by dividing the weight retained
on each sieve by the original sample weight.

(3)Calculate the percent passing (or percent finer) by starting with 100 percent
and subtracting the percent retained on each sieve as a cumulative procedure.

139
I.S sieve Weight retained in Percentage Cumulative Percentage
number or each sieve (gm) retained on percentage finer
size in mm each sieve retained
4.75
4.00
3.36
2.40
1.46
1.20
0.60
0.30
0.15
0.075
 Grain size distribution
100

80
% Finer

60

40

20

0
0.0001 0.001 0.01 0.1 1 10 100
Particle size (mm)
 Unified Soil Classification
To determine W or P, calculate Cu and Cc
D60
Cu =
D10 x% of the soil has particles
D302 smaller than Dx
Cc =
( D60  D10 )
100

80
Finer

60
%

40

20

0
0.0 0 0 1 0.0 0 1 0.01 0.1 1 10 100
Particle size (mm)
Result:

𝐷10:

𝐷30:
𝐷60:

𝐶𝑢:

𝐶𝑐:

Soil classification:
 100

80
hydrometer sieve
% Passing

60
fines sands gravels

40

D10 = 0.013 mm
20
D D30 = 0.47 mm
30
D60 = 7.4 mm
0
0.001 0.01 0.1 1 10 100

Grain size (mm)

Grain Size Distribution Curve

• can find % of gravels, sands, fines

Define D10, D30, D60.. as above.

The curve A is a flat S curve, which implies that the mass/weight consists of particles of
different size in good proportion. Such soils are call well graded soil. In such soils, the
space between larger particles will be occupied by smaller particles, and the void space will
be minimum. Curve with intermediate flat portions as in B represents gap graded soil,
where particles of intermediate size are missing. Very steep S curves like C represents
uniformly graded soil, in which particles are of similar size. Curves like D on the left upper
side of the graph represents fine particles, and as the curve shifts right, it indicates that the
particles are of larger size.
 Grain Size Distribution
Describe the shape Criteria
Example: well graded
Well − graded soil
D10 = 0.02mm (effective size) 1  Cc  3 and Cu  4
D 30 = 0.6 mm
(for gravels)
D 60 = 9 mm
1  Cc  3 and Cu  6
Coefficient of uniformity
(for sands)
D60 9
Cu = = = 450
D10 0.02
Coefficient of curvature
(D 30 ) 2 (0.6)2
Cc = = =2
(D10 )(D60 ) (0.02)(9)

153
Question: What is the Cu for a soil with only one grain size?

Coefficient of uniformity
Finer

D 60
Cu = =1
D10

Grain size distribution

 Determination of GSD
Fine grain soils …... By hydrometer/pipette analysis
 Stokes’s Law

Small particles of particular size range in liquid suspension have a tendency to settle
down due to multiple type of forces acting on them. This behaviour of particles is known
as sedimentation.
In soil mechanics we use this property of small particles to analyze the particle size
distribution. Particle size distribution is the method of separation of soil sample into
different fractions based on their particles sizes.
Particles of size smaller than 75 micron cannot be sieved because smaller particles carry
charges on their surface and have tendency to stick to each other and other particles, even
to the sieves or to the experimenter’s hand. So handling such kind of soils would be very
difficult.
So to analyze soils containing these particles we use the method sedimentation
analysis. This method is based on the Stokes law.
According to this law a small particle in a liquid suspension tries to settle down
due to its own weight under the action of gravity. And because of acceleration
due to gravity its downward velocity keeps on increasing.

But Two forces,

One is Buoyant force, which acts upwards and acts due
to the pressure difference on the body inside the liquid.

second is drag force, which is a resistive force and acts

opposite to the direction of motion of the body.
These two forces starts acting on the particle in the opposite direction of particle’s
motion and start retarding the particle until it acquires the equilibrium condition. And
because of which particle’s velocity becomes constant. That is, now particle falls with
a constant velocity, which is called its terminal velocity.

The expression for terminal velocity can be

obtained by writing equation of equilibrium for
this falling particle in fluid.
Particle’s weight W downward, buoyant force
B and drag force D upwards.
So equilibrium equation will be W equal to B
plus D. W=B+D
Weight can be written as volume of particle multiplied by its unit weight gamma s.
Buoyant force will be weight of liquid, in our case that liquid is water, this particle
has displaced which is volume of particle multiplied by the unit weight of water it
displaces.
Drag force on a small spherical particle moving through a viscous fluid is given by
6 pie eta are wee.

Eta is the dynamic viscosity of soil suspension

Dynamic viscosity is also represented as letter mu.
ϒs is unit weight of soil particle
And ϒw is unit weight of water
Solving this equation and after a little rearrangement we get the terminal velocity
as this. Remember this as equation number 1.

In this equation these quantities are constant for a particular soil and water and
viscosity is constant for a particular temperature.

So we can see the relationship between settling terminal velocity of the particle
and its diameter.

We can see that larger the diameter of a particle, higher its speed will be and
smaller the particle slower it will settle to the bottom.
Now by simple equation of motion we know that velocity of any particle which falls
through a height of He centimeter in time t mins, would be He upon t. Here substitute
the value of velocity from the equation number 1 and we get this equation.

remember this as equation number 2. Here these quantities are constant,

So we observe a relationship between diameter of a soil particle and its time of

settlement to the depth He. By this we can calculate the time required t by any soil
particle of diameter D to settle down to a depth of He.
To start with let’s first prepare the soil suspension for sedimentation
analysis. We take about 50 gm of oven dried soil sample which passed
through 75 micron sieve. Put it into a vessel and mix about 100 ml of a
dispersing agent.

We need to mix dispersing agent because fine soil particles tends to stick to each other
and in the liquid suspension they form bigger flocs. These flocs behave like a single
particle and according to above established equation number 1, they settle with greater
speed than the individual particles should settle. Hence true sedimentation results cannot
be obtained.
Dispersing-agent-preperation
There is also a method given for the preparation of dispersing agent. We prepare it by
mixing 33 gm of sodium hexameta-phosphate and 7 gm of sodium carbonate to one litre
of distilled water.
Back to our sample, after mixing the dispersing agent the sample is stirred with a
mechanical stirrer for few minutes.
Then sample is transferred to a measuring jar and distilled water is added to it to
make the suspension volume 1000 ml.
By placing a hand over the jar make the jar upside down a few times so as to
ensure complete mixing.
 Here we assume that our suspension is
completely mixed and is homogeneous. That
means we assume that all the soil particles of
different sizes are uniformly distributed
throughout the suspension and concentration of
particles of different sizes is the same at all
depths. This means the number of different
sized particles at any depth is the same.

For clarity let’s take fewer particles and show all the particles of different sizes separated.
As per the equation number 1 we can know particles of larger diameter will have higher
settling velocity and will settle earlier then small sized particles.
At the beginning of the sedimentation, amount of particles at any layer of the
suspension will be same. But as time proceeds, particles start settling down and
amount of particles of different layers become different.

By equation number 2 we know that in time t a particle of diameter D would have

settled for He depth, which means above this depth He, only particles of size
smaller than D will be present, because He is the depth from the surface and we
are considering the particle of size D which has traveled the maximum distance so
we can be sure that no particle of this size will be present above this layer.
So if we take a sample from the depth He all particles smaller
than D will be present in this sample and in the same
concentration as were in the beginning because of being the
same settling velocity of similar sized particles. That is, two
particles will leave the layer and two particles will arrive in the
layer at the same time. So number of particles of particular
size on the layer will remain the same.

As we know percentage finer is weight of sample with particles of size smaller

than D divided by weight of the total soil sample with all the particles present in it.

By taking weight of highlighted layer at the beginning and after time t we can
simply calculate percentage finer.
To determine the weight of soil particles on this layer we employ two methods
1. Pipette method
2. Hydrometer method
In the pipette method the weight of solids is determined directly by collecting
sample of soil suspension from a specified sampling depth using pipette.
In hydrometer method the weight of solids is calculated indirectly by reading
the density of soil suspension on hydrometer.

There are some limitations of the Stokes law, and hence sedimentation analysis
does not give correct values of the particle size analysis and the percentage
finer. These limitations are eventually also the limitations of both pipette and
hydrometer method.
Limitations of Stoke’s Law
1. Stokes law is based on the assumption that all the soil particles are
spherical. But fine soils particles are never spherical and actually are flaky or
needle shaped in reality.

2. Specific gravity of solids for different particles is different, but we use its
average value.

3. Stokes law is applicable when fall of particle is in the liquid which has
infinite extent, that is no boundary is present. But our suspension is in the
jar and its walls affect the results to some extent as falling particles may
collide with the wall.
4. We have also assumed that there is no interference on the movement of a
particle by other surrounding particles. But practically there is a lot of
interference. Particles may collide and may change their course and velocity.
However it has been shown that for suspension of 50 gm per litre or less
particle to particle influence is negligible.
5. Sedimentation analysis cannot be used for particles of size larger than 0.2
mm because they may cause to generate turbulent conditions and stokes law is
not applicable for that.
6. Sedimentation analysis is also not applicable for particles smaller than 0.2
micron because such small particles may set Brownian motion in the
suspension and these particles do not settle as per stokes law.
Sedimentation Analysis- Hydrometer Method
Hydrometer is an instrument used to measure the relative density of liquids
based on the concept of buoyancy. Relative density means density of a
substance relative to the density of reference substance. That is, it is the ratio
the density of the substance to the density of the reference substance.

The hydrometer we use in our experiment is calibrated to give the relative

density values of any liquid relative to the density of water.
When relative density is expressed relative to water it is usually called
specific gravity.
So in our case we can say our hydrometer measures the specific gravity of
the liquid.
Hydrometer consists of a sealed hollow glass tube with a
narrow stem which has graduations for measurement.
Readings on the tube increase downwards and decrease
upwards.

Hydrometer-bottom It also has a wider bottom portion for

buoyancy which contains a material called ballast such as
lead or mercury for stability.
 In sedimentation analysis we learned this equation.

In hydrometer method this effective depth He is not constant. Because the depth at
which hydrometer takes its readings keeps on changing with time.
Casagrande has shown that hydrometer gives the value of specific gravity at the
center of its bulb.

For this experiment we prepare exactly 1000 ml

soil sample as described in the sedimentation
theory. At the beginning of the sedimentation,
being a homogenous soil suspension, particles
of different sizes are uniformly distributed
throughout the soil suspension.
 Let’s show fewer particles here.

Now as time proceeds, particles start settling down, according to the Stoke’s
Law large particles settles with greater speed than small particles do.
The lower layers of the suspension have higher
specific gravity than that of upper layers.

With time few particles settle to the bottom leaving the suspension with lesser
amount of soil particles, which makes the suspension lighter or less dense. That is
its density and specific gravity decreases. Hence in equilibrium condition of
hydrometer, now suspension provides lesser buoyant force to the hydrometer. That
means, hydrometer’s weight being constant and buoyant force decreasing,
hydrometer starts settling down. And with it changes its readings.
Then how do we measure the depth at which hydrometer is taking the
reading.

For that, we need to calibrate the hydrometer.

That means we need to establish the
relationship between effective depth He which
is the depth at which the hydrometer is
measuring the specific gravity of the
suspension and the hydrometer readings we
observe.
Readings on the hydrometer stem gives directly
the specific gravity value of the liquid at the
center of the bulb. But we record hydrometer
readings by subtracting 1 from them and
multiply that by 1000 and represent them as
Rh.

Rh = (Hydrometer Reading - 1) x 1000

For example if we notice the reading 1.025 on the scale then we will note
hydrometer reading as 25.
Rh = (1.025 - 1) x 1000
Rh = 25
Now before determining the effective depth let
us measure the volume of the hydrometer.
neglect the volume of the hydrometer neck and
only consider the volume of the bulb.

For volume determination we take a graduated cylindrical vessel and fill it

partially with water. Now we immerse the hydrometer into it and we notice
the rise of water. The volume rise in the vessel is noted down as VH and
that’s the volume of the hydrometer.
 Determination of the effective depth He

Imagine a jar filled with some liquid. Let’s say

that hydrometer is going to measure the
specific gravity of this liquid at the layer AA
inside the liquid. The depth of this layer from
the free surface is called effective depth He.
Also mark the free surface as BB. Insert the
hydrometer into the liquid, these layers rises to
AA’ and BB’.

Hydrometer is still taking the reading at the layer AA but that particular layer has
risen up to the AA’.
❖ Let’s say the cross-sectional area of the jar is capital A. so rise of the layer AA will
be half the volume of the hydrometer divided by the cross-sectional area of the jar.
❖ Now to determine the rise of the top layer BB, notice hydrometer’s bulb is fully
submerged below this layer and hence whole hydrometer’s volume will be
responsible for the rise of this layer. So rise will be volume of hydrometer divided
by the jar cross-sectional area.
❖ Now we can calculate effective depth as height of hydrometer’s submerged neck H
plus half height of the hydrometer bulb h/2 minus rise in the layer BB plus rise in
the layer AA.

And after simplification it can be written as this.

❖ Now we determine the values of effective
depth corresponding to each reading mark
Rh on the hydrometer. Plot these points on
a graph and draw the curve by connecting
the dots.
❖ This curve, which is actually a straight line,
is called calibration curve of hydrometer.
❖ Now with this curve we can determine the
effective depth for any reading of the
hydrometer.
Our aim with this experiment is to have particle size distribution so we need to
calculate percentage finer than different particle sizes. So let’s start the
experiment. We prepare exactly 1000 ml soil suspension.

❖ After complete mixing the jar is placed and a stopwatch is started. Then we
insert the hydrometer in the suspension to note down our first reading which is
taken after 30 seconds.
❖ Further readings are taken after 1 minute, 2 minutes and 4 minutes.
❖ After taking these readings hydrometer is taken out from the jar and floated in to
another cylinder containing distilled water.
We take more readings after 8 minutes, 15 minutes, 30 minutes and 1, 2, 4, 8
and 24 hours from the beginning of the sedimentation.

❖ Now if we notice, the reading we noted is not the correct specific gravity of
soil suspension as this suspension also contains particles of dispersing
agent.
❖ Also by the effect of meniscus we happened to take the false reading.
❖ There is another problem that hydrometer is calibrated at a particular
temperature and the temperature at which we are experimenting may be
different.
❖ Hence to rectify these mis-readings we apply few corrections to the
readings we take.
First one is Meniscus Correction:
We know liquid’s top surface get curved near any other surface
because of the effect of surface tension. This is called meniscus.

❖ In our case we will always take the lower reading than the
actual hence meniscus correction will always be positive.
Meniscus correction is denoted as capital Cm.
❖ We can determine this meniscus correction by taking the
reading at the top and bottom of meniscus in distilled water
cylinder, as we can see both the meniscus in the distilled
water.
Second one is Temperature Correction:
Hydrometers are generally calibrated at 27°C temperature, so if the
temperature of the suspension is different from 27C, we need to apply the
temperature correction to the reading we take.
❖ Generally if temperature of any liquid rises, its density decreases
which causes liquid to provide lesser buoyant force to the hydrometer.
Consequently hydrometer settles more to give us the lesser reading.
❖ Remember: hydrometer readings decrease upwards. So in this case
temperature correction will be positive. And on the other hand if the
test temperature is lower than 27C the liquid will be denser. Buoyant
force will increase and hence hydrometer will go less deep than it
should. So reading will be higher than the actual and in this case
temperature correction will be negative. Hence temperature
correction, which is denoted by capital Ct, can be both positive and
negative.
 Third correction is Dispersing Agent Correction:

When we add dispersing agent to the soil suspension, its

particles increase the density of the suspension which also
causes hydrometer to settle less and provide higher reading.
Therefore dispersing agent correction will always be
negative and is denoted by capital Cd.
❖ We can determine dispersing agent correction by taking
the hydrometer reading in distilled water and taking the
reading after adding the equal amount of dispersing agent
we are going to use in our actual soil suspension but
keeping the liquids volume same. The difference between
the readings is the dispersing agent correction.
Hence the corrected hydrometer reading capital R after applying all the
corrections can be given as this.
R = Rh + Cm ± Ct - Cd
Now let’s establish the relationship between hydrometer reading and
percentage finer.
We know percentage finer as weight of soil sample containing particles of size
smaller than D divided by weight of the total soil sample with all the particles
present in suspension.
 Let’s assume after time t when we dip hydrometer into the
suspension it gives specific gravity reading on this layer,
and in this time t this particle of size, say, D has traveled
up to this depth. And we know that this depth is effective
depth He.
If we are able to determine the weight of solids in this
layer at the beginning when all the particles of all the
sizes present at this depth and after time t when particle of
size D just settles below this layer then we will be able to
calculate the percentage finer than D.

Let’s write this equation as equation number one. And numerator as 1A and
denominator as 1B.
For 1B, at time t = 0 suspension is homogenous and if we take weight of solids that is
weight of soil particles of any two layers of the suspension, it will be same. So weight of
soil particles per ml in any layer will be total weight of soil sample initially taken
divided by the total volume of the soil suspension.
Now for 1A
After time t particles will be in this position and
hydrometer takes reading at this layer. So let’s
say volume of this layer is Vlayer.
Weight of soil particles per ml in this layer will
be Wsolids in layer divided by Vlayer.

We estimate weight of solids present at this layer using the hydrometer reading.
Let’s imagine this hydrometer reading at that layer after application of all the
corrections becomes R. And we represent hydrometer reading as this.

It is the specific gravity value of the suspension at this layer. Now we know that
specific gravity is equal to unit weight of suspension at this layer (Ylayer) to the
unit weight of water. Also gamma layer can be written as weight of suspension in
this layer divided by volume of this layer (Vlayer).

Weight of this layer will be weight of water and weight soil particles present in
this layer.
Lets re-write the equation and represent water and solids of this layer as occupying
certain volume in this layer.

From this we can write weight of water present in this layer as unit weight of water
multiplied by volume of water present in this layer.
Here we can write volume of water as volume of layer minus volume of solids
present in that layer.
Now we can write volume of solids as (Ws/ GYw) using simple specific gravity
formula.

Solve it for weight of solids per volume of layer.

Here we are going to take all our measurements in gram and centimeters, so unit
weight of water gamma w will be equal to 1 gram per centimeter cube.
Now we have calculated what we needed to determine the percentage finer.
Let’s substitute that and rearrange it.

Remember that we prepared our suspension of volume 1000 ml.

So finally we get the value of the percentage finer than particle of size D present
in a soil sample using hydrometer.
As the time proceeds we take hydrometer
readings at different times and we get
different values of specific gravity of
suspension. Consequently different values of
the percentage finer.
Using all these values we plot a graph
between percentage finer than D and the
diameter of the particle D.
Sedimentation Analysis by Pipette Method
Pipette method is one of the methods of taking observation of liquid soil
suspension for the purpose of sedimentation analysis of soils containing fine
particles.

For the preparation of soil suspension we took some 50 gm of oven dried soil
sample which weighed as Wtotal.
We mix 100 ml of dispersing agent to our taken sample.
Dispersing agent is prepared by mixing two components to 1 litre of distilled
water.
The weight of dispersing agent’s particles is Wdispersing agent.
And finally distilled water was added to make the solution 1000 ml.
Lets say this total volume as capital V.
➢ For pipette method we need only 500 ml of soil suspension.
➢ We require this kind of arrangement to take out a small
portion of suspension from a specified depth time to time.
Sedimentation jar is placed below this pipette.
➢ First we determine the volume of the pipette. For that we use
distilled water. We immerse the nozzle of the pipette into this
water and using stop cock arrangement we suck up the water
in the pipette. Then we discharge this water into measuring
jar and volume of the pipette can be known. Lets say this
volume as Vpipette.
➢ Now for the sampling, first sedimentation jar containing
the prepared soil suspension is placed in constant
temperature of 27°C for about an hour.
➢ The jar is then taken out and a rubber bung is placed at its
top to close its mouth. Then tube is inverted a few times so
that suspension becomes homogeneous. Bung is removed
and jar is placed over the constant temperature bath.
➢ The pipette arrangement is fixed over the jar and a stop
watch is started to record the time of settlement of
particles.
➢ Particles in the suspension start settling down. According to
the equation…
➢ When 2 minutes elapsed then we take our
first sample. Pipette is gradually lowered to
the depth of 100 mm into the suspension
about 20 seconds before the sample is to be
taken.
➢ By our established formula we can
determine in time 2 mins, that is 120
seconds, D sized soil particle would have
traveled to the 100 mm distance. So in and
above this layer we will find all the particles
of size smaller than D.

We will be taking all our samples from this depth. The sample is sucked
into the pipette using stop cock and pipette is taken out.
➢ The taken sample is then transferred to the weighing bottle. If any particle remains
adhered to the tube, the distilled water is used to transfer it into the bottle. Then the
sample is dried in oven at 105°C to 110°C for 24 hours.
➢ After drying weight of the sample is taken and say it as WDry.
Now here we have
➢ Total weight of solids in the suspension.
➢ Weight of particles of dispersing agent.
and weight of solids of small sample taken after 2 mins W(Dry), which has only
particles smaller than a particular diameter.

But all of weight of solids W(Total) contained in the volume capital V which we took
as 1000 ml and weight of particles of dispersing agent W(Dispersing Agent) is also
contained in the volume V. But weight of solids of extracted sample W(Dry) are in the
volume of pipette V(pipette) which is only 10 ml.
So lets represent each in per ml weight so that we can compare them with each other.
➢ As we know percentage finer is weight of sample with particles of size smaller
than D divided by weight of the total soil sample with all the particles present in
suspension.
➢ As our extracted dried sample contains all the particles of size smaller than D and
total sample has particles of all sized in it.
➢ So in the percentage finer equation lets substitute per ml weight of extracted
sample which contains all the particles smaller than size D. And in the
denominator substitute per ml weight of all the particles of all sizes.
➢ Also notice that this extracted sample also has some particles of dispersing agent,
so lets remove their concentration in the equation.
This is how we calculate the percentage finer with the pipette method.
In similar fashion more samples are taken after 4, 8, 15 and 30 mins and 1, 2, 4, 8
and 24 hours and percentage finer for different sized particles can be known.
This method’s merit is that it is very accurate.
But demerits are:
Apparatus is quite delicate and expensive. It also requires very sensitive weighing
balance for smaller extracted samples from the suspension. Also The procedure is
very long.
For quick particle size analysis of fine particles hydrometer method is more
suitable.
Engineering Classification of Soils
 Overview

Two Systems of Classification

1. Pedagogical Classifications(Soil weathering, texture,

chemistry, profile thickness, etc.)

2. Engineering Classification (Soil texture, Degree of plasticity,

Atterberg's Limits)

124
❖ There are numerous amounts of soils present on the surface of earth each containing
soil particles of different sizes, shapes and composition.
❖ If we classify and categorize soils, it will be convenient for us to study them. We
arrange the soils into different groups such that soils in a particular group have similar
behaviour. This arranging of soils is called classification system of soil.
❖ Any soil classification system must provide us the information about the expected
engineering properties of a soil. It works as a language of communication between
engineers. Classification is done so as to convey the same meaning universally.
❖ An engineer in one country classifies a soil as SW then another engineer in some other
country should be able to understand what kind of soil the other engineer is talking
about.
❖ Of course, we need to do a detailed soil investigation and testing for the
complete knowledge of engineering properties of soil but a
classification system provides an idea about soil’s engineering
behaviour.
❖ Any such classification should be simple to use and should have limited
number of groups. Generally, we classify soils as cohesionless and
cohesive or coarse-grained and fine-grained.
❖ But these terms are too general and they certainly do not classify a soil
when it is a mixture of different soils grains in different proportions.
❖ Soil grain size has a great influence on the behaviour of soils. So most
soil classification methods use particle size as a basis to classify the
soils in groups.
 Purpose
• Classifying soils into groups or sub-groups with similar engineering behavior.
• Classification systems were developed in terms of simple indices (GSD and
plasticity).
• These classifications can provide geotechnical engineers with general guidance
about engineering properties of the soils through the accumulated experience.
Communicate
between
engineers

Simple indices Classification Estimate Achieve

system engineering engineering
GSD, LL, PI (Language) properties purposes
Use the
accumulated
experience
 Classification Systems
1. Textural Soil Classification

2. American Association of State Highway and Transportation

Officials (AASHTO) System (Preferred by Transportation
Engineers).

3. Unified Soil Classification System (USCS) (Preferred by

Geotechnical Engineers).

4. Indian Standard Soil Classification System (ISSCS)

 1. Textural Soil Classification
❖ Soils are also classified based on their texture. Texture of a soil means how a soil
visually appears and feels. Texture is influenced by the size, shape and gradation of
soil particles in a soil.
❖ A triangular representation of Textural Classification System was suggested by US
Bureau of Public Roads. In this system the term texture is used to express the
percentage of the three constituents of the soil, Sand, Silt and Clay on the three
sides of an equilateral triangle.
❖ This system assumes that the soil does not contain the particles of size larger than
sand.
❖ According to this system, boundaries between the various soil are given
as follows:
Soil Fraction Diameter (mm)
Gravel > 2.00
Sand 2 - 0.05
Silt 0.05 - 0.005
Clay < 0.005
❖ This equilateral triangle is divided into 12 zones; each zone indicates a
type of soil. If we know the percentages of sand, clay, and silt in our
soil sample, we can use this triangle to know our soil type out of these
twelve soil types classified in the triangle. In above Example % of
Sand=30, % of Silt =30, % of clay=40
❖ But this system also does not takes into account the plasticity and
consistency properties which are important when it comes to the fine-
grained soils.
❖ The textural soil classification system is developed by the U.S
Department of Agricultural System (USDA) and is widely used in the
field of agriculture. This classification system is more suitable for
coarse-grained soil.
2. American Association of State Highway and
Transportation Officials system (AASHTO)
Origin of AASHTO: (For road construction)

➢ This system was originally developed by Hogentogler and Terzaghi in 1929

as the Public Roads Classification System.
➢ Afterwards, there are several revisions. The present AASHTO (1978) system
is primarily based on the version in 1945. (Holtz and Kovacs, 1981)
 i. Definition of Grain Size No specific
grain size-use
Atterberg limits

Silt and
Boulders Cobbles Sand Clay
Gravel

300 mm 75 mm No.4 No.200

4.75 mm 0.075
19 mm No.10 No.40 mm
2.0 mm 0.425 mm

214
 For coarse-grained soils (gravel and sand), determine the percent passing the
#10, 40, and 200 Sieves

#10
#200
#40

216
Procedure for AASHTO Classification
➢ According to the AASHTO (American Association of State Highway and
Transportation Official) soil classification system, the soil is classified into 7 inorganic
groups, A -1 through A - 7, with 12 subgroups in all. It has an additional group A - 8
for peat or muck. Soils within each group are further assessed using the group index.

➢ The required tests are sieve analysis and Atterberg limits.

➢ For coarse-grained soils (gravel and sand), determine the percent passing the #10, 40,
and 200 sieves, and for fine grained soil (clay and Silt) , determine the liquid limit
and plasticity index.

➢ The group index, an empirical formula, is used to further evaluate soils within a group
(subgroups). Classification system is based on both particle size and the plasticity
characteristics.
Group Index (GI)=0.2a+0.005ac+0.01bd
where, a = that part of the percentage of soil particles passing the 75𝜇 greater
than 35 and not exceeding 75 expressed as a whole number (0-40)
b = that part of the percentage of soil particles passing the 75𝜇 greater
than 15 and not exceeding 55 expressed as a whole number (0-40)
c = that part of the liquid limit greater than 40 and not greater
than 60 expressed as a whole number (0-20)
d = that part of the plasticity index greater than 10 and not exceeding
30 expressed as a whole number (0-20)
If any term becomes negative, it is dropped. The GI should be rounded to the
nearest whole number. If the computed value is negative it is reported as zero. The
classification is carried out by proceeding from left to right in the chart of table
and selecting the first groups that fits the test data. A complete classification
includes the GI in parentheses. Thus, A-2-6(3) indicates a soil type A-2-6, having
a GI of 3.
In general, the greater the GI value the less desirable a soil is for highway
construction within that subgroup. A GI zero indicates a good material, while a GI of
20 or more indicates a very poor subgrade material.
In AASHTO System initially there was no place for organic soil so additional group
A-8 was introduced for peat or muck.

Classification of Black Cotton Soil of India

3. Unified Soil Classification System (USCS)
It was first developed by Casagrande and later it was modified by Bureau of
Reclamation and the Corps of Engineers of the USA. This system has also been
adopted by American Society of Testing Materials, ASTM. It is the most popular
system based on both grain size and plasticity characteristics of soils.
This system identifies soils primarily as coarse-grained, fine-grained and highly
organic soils.
 Definition of Grain Size No specific
grain size-use
Atterberg limits

Silt and
Boulders Cobbles Gravel Sand Clay

Coarse Fine Coarse Medium Fine

300 mm 75 mm No.4 No.200

4.75 mm 0.075
19 mm No.10 No.40 mm
2.0 mm 0.425 mm
 Symbols
Soil symbols: Liquid limit symbols:
G: Gravel H: High LL (LL>50)
S: Sand L: Low LL (LL<50)
M: Silt
C: Clay Gradation symbols:
O: Organic W: Well-graded
Pt: Peat P : Poorly-graded
Well − graded soil
Example: SW, Well-graded sand 1  Cc  3 and Cu  4
SC, Clayey sand (for gravels)
1  Cc  3 and Cu  6
SM, Silty sand,
(for sands)
MH, Elastic silt
 % Passing sieve No. 200 (0.075 mm)

< 50% > 50%

Coarse-grained soils Fine-grained soils
Silt (M)
Clay (C)
•Grain size distribution •Use Plasticity chart
•LL, PL

Required tests: Sieve analysis

Atterberg limit
 % Passing sieve No. 200 (0.075 mm)

< 50% > 50%

Coarse-grained soils Fine-grained soils
Silt (M)
% Coarse soil (Co) = 100 - % Passing # 200 Clay (C)
% Gravel (G) = 100 - % Passing # 4

G > 1/2 Co G < 1/2 Co •Use Plasticity chart

Gravel (G) Sand (S) •LL, PL

% Passing sieve No. 200

< 5% GW, GP, SW or SP Use → Cu, Cc W : well graded P: poorly graded

5% -12 % GW-GM, GW-GC, GP-GM, GP-GC, SW-SM, SW-SC, SP-SM, SP-SC
> 12% GM, GC, SM, SC Use → plasticity charts
To determine if well graded (W) or poorly graded (P), calculate Cu and
Cc
D60
Coefficient of uniformity Cu =
D10

D302
Coefficient of gradation C =
( D60  D10 )
c

187
 D60
Coefficient of uniformity Cu =
D10

D302
Coefficient of gradation Cc =
( D60  D10 )

Conditions for Well-graded soils

For Gravels → Cu > 4 and Cc is between 1 and 3
For Sand → W if Cu > 6 and Cc is between 1 and 3

188
 The soil components are assigned group symbols as indicated below:
Coarse grained soils: Gravel : G Fine grained soils: Silt : M
Sand : S Clay : C
Organic Soil : O
Major Division Group Typical Names
Symbols
Coarse Gravels 50% Clean Gravel with no GW Well-graded gravels and gravel-
Grained Soils or more of fines or little fines- sand mixture with little or no fines
more than coarse 200 no. Sieve <5%
GP Poorly-graded gravels and gravel-
50% retained fraction on 4
sand mixture with little or no fines
on 200 no. no. sieve.
sieve Gravel with fines- GM Silty gravels, gravel-sand -silt
200>12% mixture (poorly graded)
GC Clayey gravels, gravel-sand – clay
mixture (poorly graded)
Sands more Clean Sand with SW Well-graded Sands and gravelly
than 50% fines-200 no. Sieve sands with no fines
fraction <5%
SP Poorly-graded Sands and gravelly
passes 4 no.
sands with no fines
sieve.
Sand with fines- SM Silty sand, sand -silt mixture
200>12% (poorly graded)
SC Clayey sand, sand-clay
mixture(poorly graded)
 Used for Fine grained soils to determine whether silt (M) or clay (C)

60
C o m p a r i n g so i l s a t e q u a l l i q u i d l i mi t
50 To u g h n e s s a n d d r y s t r e n g t h i n c r e a s e
w i t h i n c r e a s i n g p l a st i c i t y i n d e x
40
CH
Plasticity

30
index

20 OH

CL or
10 CL OL
or MH
ML
0 ML
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100
L i q u i d l i mi t
P l a st i c i t y c h a r t

Below A-line is silt – use symbol M LL > 50 → High plasticity

Above A-line is clay – use symbol C LL< 50 → low plasticity
184
 Plasticity Chart

Low plasticity w L = < 35%

Intermediate plasticity w L = 35 - 50%
High plasticity w L = 50 - 70%
Very high plasticity w L = 70 - 90%
Extremely high plasticity w L = > 90% 176
Major Division Group Typical Names
Symbols
Fine-grained Silts and Clays ML Inorganic silts and very fine
Soils 50%or Liquid limit sand
more passes 200 50% or less CL Inorganic clays of low to
no. sieve medium plasticity
OL Organic silts and organic silty
clays of low plasticity
Silts and Clays MH Inorganic silts of high plasticity
Liquid limit CH Inorganic clays of high
greater than plasticity
50%
Highly organic OH Organic clays of medium to
soils high plasticity
PT Peat, Muck and other highly
organic soils
 Organic Soils
• Highly organic soils- Peat (Group symbol PT)

A sample composed primarily of vegetable tissue in various stages of

decomposition and has a fibrous to amorphous texture, a dark-brown to
black color, and an organic odor should be designated as a highly organic
soil and shall be classified as peat, PT.
• Organic clay or silt (Group symbol OL or OH):

The soil’s liquid limit (LL) after oven drying is less than 75 % of its
liquid limit before oven drying.” If the above statement is true, then the
first symbol is O.

The second symbol is obtained by locating the values of PI and LL

(not oven dried) in the plasticity chart.
192
 Borderline Cases (Dual Symbols)
Coarse-grained soils with 5% - 12% fines.

❖ About 7 % fines can change the hydraulic conductivity of the coarse-

grained media by orders of magnitude.
❖ The first symbol indicates whether the coarse fraction is well or poorly graded. The
second symbol describe the contained fines. For example: SP-SM, poorly graded
sand with silt.
Fine-grained soils with limits within the shaded zone. (PI between 4 and 7
and LL between about 12 and 25).

❖ It is hard to distinguish between the silty and more claylike materials.

❖ CL-ML: Silty clay, SC-SM: Silty, clayed sand.

Soil contain similar fines and coarse-grained fractions.
− possible dual symbols GM-ML
 Summary of the USCS

coarse grain soils fine grain soils

[>50% larger than 0.075 mm] [>50% smaller than 0.075 mm]
% of fines
0 5 12 CoF 50 FP 100

e.g., SM e.g., CH
CoGr
CoGr - CoF
e.g., GP
e.g., GP-GC

Co: Coarse F: Fines Gr: Gradation P: Plasticity

G = Gravel M = Silts W = well graded H = LL > 50

S = Sands C = Clays P = poorly graded L = LL < 50

210
4. Indian Standard Soil Classification System
(ISSCS)
ISSCS is the same as USCS with one modification the fine-grained soils are
subdivided into 3 subgroups of low, medium, and high compressibility, whereas,
in USCS, fine-grained soils are subdivided into 2 subgroups of low and high
compressibility. 4 major groups and their symbol are given below:

1. Coarse-grained soils - Gravel (G) and Sand (S)

2. Fine-grained soils - Silt (M) and Clay (C)

3. Organic soils (O)

4. Peat (Pt)
Like USCS, coarse-grained soil is categorized based on grain size distribution in this
classification system, whereas fine-grained soil classification is based on plasticity.
According to ISSCS, the classification based on grain size distribution is as shown
below:

Coarse-Grained Soil Fine-Grained Soil

Gravel Sand Silt & Clay

Boulder Cobble
(mm) (mm) Coarse Fine Coarse Medium Fine Clay
Silt (mm)
(mm) (mm) (mm) (mm) (mm) (mm)

> 300 300 - 80 80 - 20 20- 4.75 4.75 - 2 2-0.425 0.425-0.075 0.002-0.075 < 0.002
Classification of Coarse-Grained Soil (Based on ISSCS)
According to the IS soil classification system, coarse-grained soil is graded
based on particle size, gradation characteristics (Cu and Cc), and percentage
fineness. The soil in which 50% or more soil particles are retained on a 75-
micron sieve (0.075 mm) is classified as coarse-grained soil. Coarse-
grained soils are further subdivided according to 3 cases which are
described below -
 Case 1: % fineness < 5% by weight
The coarse-grained soils are classified as Gravel (G) if more than 50% of the coarse
fraction of the soil is retained on a 4.75 mm sieve; otherwise, it is classified as Sand (S).
They are further divided based on their gradation characteristics.
Gravel: Coarse fraction retained on 4.75 mm > 50%
1. GW ⇒ Well-graded gravel
Cu ≥ 4 and 1 ≤ Cc ≤ 3
2. GP ⇒ Poorly graded gravel
Cu < 4, or 1 > Cc, or Cc > 3

Sand: Coarse fraction retained on 4.75 mm < 50%

1. SW ⇒ Well-graded sand
Cu ≥ 6 and 1 ≤ Cc ≤ 3
2. SP ⇒ Poorly graded sand
Cu < 6, or 1 > Cc, or Cc > 3
Case 2: % Fineness is between 5-12% by weight
In this case, dual symbols will be used as a borderline case. For example, GW - GM.
The first part of the dual symbol represents gradation characteristics (well-
graded/poorly-graded), and the second part of the dual symbol represents the type of
fines (silt or clay)
Gravel: Coarse fraction retained on 4.75 mm > 50%
1. GW-GC ⇒ Well-graded gravel containing clay as fine
Cu ≥ 4 and 1 < Cc < 3 and clay fraction > silt fraction
2. GP-GC ⇒ Poorly graded gravel containing clay as fine
Cu < 4 or 1 > Cc or Cc > 3 and clay fraction> silt fraction
3. GW-GM ⇒ Well-graded gravel containing silt as fine
Cu ≥ 4 and 1 < Cc < 3 and clay fraction < silt fraction
4. GP-GM ⇒ Poorly graded gravel containing silt as fine
Cu < 4, or 1 > Cc, or Cc > 3 and clay fraction < silt fraction
Sand: Coarse fraction retained on 4.75 mm < 50%
1. SW-SC ⇒ Well-graded sand containing clay as fine
Cu ≥ 6 and 1 < Cc < 3 and clay fraction > silt fraction
2. SP-SC ⇒ Poorly graded sand containing clay as fine
Cu < 6 or 1 > Cc or Cc > 3 and clay fraction> silt fraction
3. SW-SM ⇒ Well-graded sand containing silt as fine
Cu ≥ 6 and 1 < Cc< 3 and clay fraction < silt fraction
4. SP-SM ⇒ Poorly graded sand containing silt as fine
Cu < 6, or 1 > Cc, or Cc> 3 and clay fraction < silt fraction
Case 3: %fineness > 12% by weight
In this case, coarse-grained soil is classified based on its grain size and plasticity chart.
The subgroups for this case are as follows:
Gravel: Coarse fraction retained on 4.75 mm > 50%
1. GC ⇒ Clayey gravel
Ip > 7% (clay fraction > silt fraction)
2. GM ⇒ Silty gravel
Ip < 4% (silt fraction > clay fraction)
Sand: Coarse fraction retained on 4.75 mm < 50%
1. SC ⇒ Clayey sand
Ip > 7% (clay fraction > silt fraction)
2. SM ⇒ Silty sand
Ip < 4% (silt fraction > clay fraction)
One thing to remember in this case is if the plasticity index is between 4% -7%, then
dual symbols will be used. (GC-GM or SC-SM)
Classification of Fine-Grained Soil (Based on ISSCS)
According to the IS, soil classification system, fine-grained soils are those in which more
than 50% of soil grains pass through a 75-micron sieve (0.075). Fine-grained soils are
categorized using the plasticity chart and compressibility (wL). Liquid limit (wL) and plastic
limit (wP) are determined for soil, and the plasticity index is calculated (IP = wL- wP). Based
on this IP and wL, the soil is on the plasticity chart. The plasticity chart is shown in the
diagram below:
➢ The A-line is a boundary that represents the relationship between IP and
wL. The equation of A-line is given as
IP=0.73(wL-20)
➢ If the soil lies above A-line (IP of soil > IP of A-line), then it is clay(C),
and if the soil lies below A-line (IP of soil < IP of A-line), then it is either
silt (M) or organic soil (O). Another boundary line, the U-line, represents
the upper limit beyond which no soil should exist. If the soil goes above
this boundary, the test to determine wL and wP is performed again. The
equation for U-line is given as
IP=0.9(wL-8)
Based on the soil classification, the fine-grained soils are further classified based
on their compressibility according to the following cases:
Case 1: wL< 35%
The soil has low compressibility and is classified as low plastic soil. The low
plastic soil can be denoted as CL (low plastic inorganic clay), ML (low plastic
silt) or OL (low plastic organic clay)
Case 2: 35% < wL< 50%
The soil has intermediate compressibility and is classified as medium plastic soil.
The medium plastic soil can be denoted as CI (medium plastic inorganic clay), MI
(medium plastic silt) and OI (medium plastic organic clay)
 Case3:wL>50%
The soil has high compressibility and is classified as highly plastic soil. The
highly plastic soil can be denoted as CH (high plastic inorganic clay), MH
(high plastic silt) and OH (high plastic organic clay).
Organic and inorganic soils are plotted in the same area on the plasticity
chart. Organic soils are distinguished from inorganic soils by odour and
colour or liquid limit test on oven dry samples. If the wL of the oven dry
sample is less than 3/4th of the in-situ soil sample, then the soil is organic,
otherwise inorganic. Highly organic clay, like peat, is classified as Pt.
Indian Standard Soil Classification System
ISSCS is in many respects similar to Unified Soil Classification System. There is
one basic modification which is in the classification of fine-grained soils.
In Indian classification system fine-grained soils are divided into three categories of
low, medium and high liquid limit instead of only two categories of low and high
liquid limit in USC System.
Medium category is defined between liquid limit 35 to 50%. So in the
graph another vertical line at liquid limit 35% can be drawn and soils
falling in this region are denoted by symbol I, such as CI, MI and OI.

The classification criterion for coarse-grained soils is the same as in

the Unified System. It has similar naming processes.
The division of soil fractions purely on the basis of grain size can be shown as
this.

Soil particles of size greater than 300 mm are called boulders

particles between 80 mm and 300 mm are called cobbles.
Gravel is defined between 80 mm to 4.75 mm
Sand ranges from 0.075 mm to 4.75 mm
Silts particles have size between 0.075 mm and 0.002 mm
And clay particles are of size below 0.002mm or 2 micron.