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SOIL ON SITE? [STEP-BY-STEP
GUIDE]
Suryakanta | July 1, 2015 | Geotechnical, How To, Soil Investigation | 1
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CLASSIFICATION OF SOIL
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The principle terms used by civil engineers to describe soils are
Gravel (particle size larger than 4.75 mm) HOW TO INCREASE
Sand (particle size within 4.75 mm to 0.075mm) REPETITION OF
Silt & Clay (particle size less than 0.075mm) PLYWOOD
Most natural soils consist of a mixture of two or more of these How to Increase …
constituents and may contain an admixture of organic material in a partly
or fully decomposed state. The mixture is given the name of the
constituent that appears to have the most influence on its behavior, and
the other constituent are indicated by adjectives.
00:00 08:39
For example, silty clay has predominantly the properties of clay but
consists a significant amount of silt.
While identifying and classifying the soils in the field, we need to use the
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following steps in a logical sequence.
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1. Identifying as Coarse Grained Soil or Fine Grained Soil
2. Classifying Coarse Grained Soil
3. Classifying Fine Grained Soil Like Page
STEP-1 [IDENTIFYING AS COARSE 1 friend likes this
GRAINED SOIL OR FINE GRAINED SOIL]
In the first step we try to identify the soil as coarse grained soil (CGS) or
fine grained soil (FGS).
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11/28/2018 HOW TO IDENTIFY & CLASSIFY SOIL ON SITE? [STEP-BY-STEP GUIDE] - CivilBlog.Org
Coarse grained soils are those soils whose individual particles are visible
by the naked eye. Sandy soil and gravelly soil fall in this group.
Fine grained soils are those soils whose individual particles are not visible
by the naked eye. Silty soil and clayey soil fall in this group.
To know more about coarse grained soil and fine grained soil please read
my post what are the primary differences between coarse grained soil &
fine grained soil
The following procedure is adopted in the field to identify the soil as CGS
or FGS
Take a representative sample of soil and spread it on a flat surface or
palm of the hand.
Remove all particles whose sizes are larger than 75 mm.
If the soil contains more than 50% of visible particles then the soil is
said to be a coarse grained soil.
If the soil contains less than 50% of visible particles then the soil is
said to be a fine grained soil.
Once the soil is identified as coarse grained soil or fine grained soil, then
we further sub divide it on the basis of percentage of different sizes
present in the soil mass. Coarse grained soil can be sub divided into
gravelly soil or sandy soil.
STEP-2 [CLASSIFYING COARSE GRAINED
SOIL]
A coarse grained soil is said to be gravelly soil if the percentage of
gravel is greater than sand.
If percentage of fines (i.e. silt & clay) present in a gravelly soil is less
than 5%, then it is identified as clean gravel. Clean gravel can be
either classified as well graded gravel (GW) or poorly graded gravel
(GP).
GW– if there is good representation of all particle sizes
GP – if there is an excess or absence of intermediate particle sizes.
If percentage of fines (i.e. silt & clay) present in a gravelly soil is more
than 12%, then it is identified as dirty gravel. Dirty gravel can be
either classified as silty gravel (GM) or clayey gravel (GC).
GM– if the fines have little or no plasticity
GC– if the fines are of low to medium to high plasticity.
Gravels containing 5 to 12% fines are given boundary classification,
which is generally done at laboratory.
A coarse grained soil is said to be sandy soil if the percentage of sand
is greater than gravel.
If percentage of fines (i.e. silt & clay) present in a sandy soil is less
than 5%, then it is identified as clean sand. Clean sand can be either
classified as well graded sand (SW) or poorly graded sand (SP).
SW– if there is good representation of all particle sizes
SP – if there is an excess or absence of intermediate particle sizes.
If percentage of fines (i.e. silt & clay) present in a sandy soil is more
than 12%, then it is identified as dirty sand. Dirty sand can be either
classified as silty sand (SM) or clayey sand (SC).
SM– if the fines have little or no plasticity
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SC– if the fines are of low to medium to high plasticity.
Sand containing 5 to 12% fines are given boundary classification,
which is generally done at laboratory.
STEP-3 [CLASSIFYING FINE GRAINED
SOIL]
Fine grained soil is primarily of two types i.e. silt & clay. The distinction
between silt & clay cannot be based on particle size because the significant
physical properties of the two materials are related only indirectly to the
size of particles. Furthermore, since both are microscopic, physical
properties other than particle size must be used as criteria for field
identification. There are 4 nos of field test that we can easily conduct on
the field to describe or classify silt & clay. These are
Dilatancy
Dry strength
Toughness
Dispersion
Let us discuss each one of them one by one.
1. DRY STRENGTH TEST
The dry strength provides one basis for distinction. A small briquette of
the soil is molded and allowed to dry in the air. It is then broken and a
small fragment about 1.0 cm in size is pressed between thumb and
forefinger. The effort required to break the fragment provides a basis for
describing the strength as ver low, low, medium, high or very high. A clay
fragment can be broken only with great effort, where as a silt fragment
crushes easily.
2. DILATANCY OR SHAKING TEST
Since silts are considerably more permeable than clays, the dilatancy or
shaking test may also be used to distinguish between the two materials. In
this test a small amount of soil is mixed with water to a very soft
consistency in the palm of the hand. The back of the hand is then lightly
tapped. If the soil is silty, water rises quickly to its surface and gives it a
shiny or glistening appearance. Then if the soil pat is deformed, in some
instances by squeezing and in others by stretching, the water flows back
into it and leaves the surface with a dull appearance. Usually, the greater
the proportion of clay in the sample, the slower the reaction to the test.
The reaction is described as rapid, slow or none.
3. TOUGHNESS / PLASTICITY TEST
The property of plasticity is characteristic of clays and may be used as the
basis for a simple field test. At certain moisture contents a soil that
contains appreciable quantities of clay can be deformed and remolded in
the hand without disintegration. Thus, if a sample of moist soil can be
manipulated between the palms of the hands and fingers and rolled out
into a long thread, it unquestionably contains a significant amount of clay.
As moisture is lost during continued manipulation, the soil approaches a
non-plastic condition and becomes crumbly. Just before the crumbly state
is reached, a highly plastic clay can be rolled into a long thread, with a
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diameter of approximately 3mm, which has sufficient strength to support
its own weight. Silt, on the other hand, can seldom be rolled into a thread
with a diameter as small as 3mm without severe cracking, and is
completely lacking in tensile strength unless small amounts of clay are
present. The record of a simple plasticity test should indicate not only
whether a plastic thread can be formed, but also the toughness of the
thread as it nears the crumbling stage. This condition is described as weak
and friable, medium, or tough.
4. DISPERSION TEST
The fourth procedure, known as the dispersion test, is also useful for
distinguishing between silt & clay, and for making a rough estimate of the
relative amounts of sand, silt and clay in a material. A small quantity of the
soil is dispersed with water in a glass cylinder or test tube and then
allowed to settle. The coarser particles fall out first and the finest particles
remain in suspension the longest. Ordinarily sand settles in 30 to 60 sec.
Materials of silt size settles in 15 to 60 min, whereas that of clay size
remains in suspension for at least several hours and usually for several
days unless the particles of clay combines in groups or flocules.
After conducting these tests we can use the table given below to classify
the soil as silt or clay.
Time to
Toughness
Typical Dry Dilatancy settleIn
of plastic
Name Strength Reaction Dispersion
thread
test
Sandy None to Weak to 30 sec to
Rapid
silt very low friable 60 min
Very low Weak to 15 to 60
Silt Rapid
to low friable min
15 min to
Clayey Low to Rapid to
Medium several
silt medium slow
hours
30 sec to
Sandy Low to Slow to
Medium several
clay high none
hour
15 min to
Silty Medium Slow to
Medium several
clay to high none
hour
Several
High to
Clay None Tough hour to
very high
days
15 min to
Organic Low to Weak to
Slow several
silt medium friable
hour
Medium Several
Organic
to very none Tough hour to
clay
high days
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Suryakanta
Geotechnical-Material Engineer. You can
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me just visit AboutMe
ONE COMMENT
eyoel January 23, 2016 Reply
i need to discuss a lot of things regarding Geotechnical
issues
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