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Effect of organic content on the engineering properties of jordanian clayey

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Article  in  International Journal of Civil Engineering and Technology · November 2017

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International Journal of Civil Engineering and Technology (IJCIET)
Volume 8, Issue 11, November 2017, pp. 1018-1026, Article ID: IJCIET_08_11_100
Available online at http://www.iaeme.com/ijciet/issues.asp?JType=IJCIET&VType=8&IType=11
ISSN Print: 0976-6308 and ISSN Online: 0976-6316

© IAEME Publication Scopus Indexed

EFFECT OF ORGANIC CONTENT ON THE

ENGINEERING PROPERTIES OF JORDANIAN
CLAYEY SOILS
Dr. Orabi Al Rawi, Eng. Mohammed N.Assaf and Dr. Taiseer Rawashdeh
Faculty of Engineering, Isra University, Amman, Jordan

ABSTRACT
This research aims at determining the influence of mixing an organic material with
a fine grained soil, on the physical and mechanical properties for the resulted mix using
various percentages of organic matter, and then to compare the obtained results with
those related to original soil (natural material without mixing), and consequently to
draw different relationships that clarify a comparison between the results, and to
indicate the extent of the effect of the mixing process on the behavior of the resulted soil.
To achieve the above objectives, an artificial organic material (Pitmos) was
prepared and mixed with clayey soil samples (collected from a construction site in
Amman), and then several laboratory tests (including Atterberg limits, permeability and
unconfined compression) had been conducted for the above investigation.
Out of the results of this research, it was concluded that the existence of organic
materials in a soil (especially in fine grained soils) may increase the soil's ability to
show considerable volumetric changes, increase its permeability, and decrease its shear
strength. And as a summary, it is not recommended to carry out foundations on fine
grained soils that contain more than 2% organic matter.
Key words: Clayey Soils, Organic Matter, Bearing Capacity and Volumetric Changes of
Soil.
Cite this Article: Dr. Orabi Al Rawi, Eng. Mohammed N.Assaf and Dr. Taiseer
Rawashdeh, Effect of Organic Content On The Engineering Properties of Jordanian
Clayey Soils, International Journal of Civil Engineering and Technology, 8(11), 2017,
pp. 1018-1026.
http://www.iaeme.com/ijciet/issues.asp?JType=IJCIET&VType=8&IType=11

1. INTRODUCTION
Organic matter in soils consists of a complex mixtures of plant and animal remains decomposed
to varying extents, substances synthesized by biological or chemical means from the
decomposition products, plant and animal secretions and their decomposition products (Malkawi
A., Alawneh A. and Abu-Safaqah O., 1999) [5].

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 Effect of Organic Content On The Engineering Properties of Jordanian Clayey Soils

In civil engineering, several studies showed that organic soils may exhibit very low bearing
capacities, and considered them as soft soils due to their high settlement values even under
moderately applied loads. Accordingly, there is a tendency in the field of construction to avoid
executing projects above this type of problematic soils. Besides that, the improvement of an
organic soil in the site may expense more time, budget, and efforts. Nevertheless, the necessity
of understanding the behavior of this soil and other types of problematic soils is increasingly
requested due to the demand of lands for construction projects.
Based on the above statements, and from the initial stages of this research, it was realized
that organic soils in Jordan still needs conducting more comprehensive (experimental)
investigations in order to recognize their engineering behavior and performance (as a
foundation ground) when exposed to structure's loads, especially that wide areas of the kingdom
are covered with fine grained soils containing different ratios of organic matter.

2. LITERATURE REVIEW
Several researchers studied the effect of organic content on the engineering properties and
performance of a soil. The majority of these concluded that the presence of organic matter in a
soil may affect its quality and engineering behavior. However, some of these studies are briefly
explained below.
Franklin et al. 1973 [4] studied the influence of organic content on the compaction and shear
strength characteristics for mixtures of inorganic soils and peat. The authors compared the
behavior of the mixtures with that of natural soil samples of the same organic content. They
noticed that even though the nature of the organic matter was different, the mixture behaves
similarly to natural samples at equal organic contents, provided that the mineralogy of the
nonorganic fraction is kept the same.
Ekwue E., 1990 [3] studied the effects of organic matter on the soil's strength properties.
Measurements of bulk density, moisture retention, aggregate stability and shear strength were
taken for sandy loam and loamy sand soils with different organic-matter contents. The research
concluded that organic material reduces the overall soil stability without affecting the strength
of individual aggregates. In addition, organic matter from both grass and peat reduced bulk
density and increased moisture retention; whereas, organic matter from grass increased the soil's
shear strength.
Malkawi A., 1999 [5] investigated the effects of organic matter on the physical and
physicochemical properties of illitic soils, where organic matter was mixed with inorganic illitic
clayey soil at eight levels. The results of this research showed that at low organic contents, the
soil particles tend to aggregate, whereas at higher organic contents the soil particles tend to
disperse. In addition, the existence of organic matter showed a decrease in the maximum dry
density and an increase in the optimum water content. Furthermore, final free swell for illitic
soils increased with increasing levels of the mixed ratios of organic material. Similar results
were observed by Metzger L. and Yaron B.; Odell R., Thornburn T. and McKenzie L. [6, 7].
Zeng L. et al, 2016 [10] investigated the effect of organic matter (soluble and insoluble in
water) on the physical properties of sixty four clayey samples. The results of this investigation
showed that organic clays instituted by original clays and humic acid insoluble in water, the
particle size distributions and particle densities of the mixtures can be approximately
determined pro ratio of each component. In addition, a nonlinear relation was found between
Atterberg limits and the organic content. Also, the changing rate of liquid limits with organic
content depends on the liquid limit of original clays. The same note was stated by Olgun M. and
Yıldız M.; Santagata M., Bobet A., Johnston C. and Hwang J.; Zentar R., Abriak N. and Dubois V.
[8, 9, 11].

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 Dr. Orabi Al Rawi, Eng. Mohammed N.Assaf and Dr. Taiseer Rawashdeh

3. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
The methodology of this research consisted of two parts. The first part (the theoretical part)
included collecting and reviewing for previous studies concerning the subject of this research;
whereas, the second part (the practical part) focused on conducting the laboratory tests program
for natural and mixed soil samples, analyzing for results, and writing of conclusions.
Through the period of carrying out the practical part, undisturbed fine grained soil samples
were obtained from a depth of 2.5m for a site in Amman (using Shelby Tube sampler). The
obtained samples were put inside waterproof plastic bags, then placed in a wooden box and
transported to the laboratory of Isra University. Moreover, an artificial material namely
"Pitmos" (rich of organic matter content) was brought to the laboratory for the purpose of
mixing it with the collected fine grained material. However, mixed soil samples (remoulded
samples) comprising the original soil and different Pitmos contents (2%, 5%, 10%, 15%, and
20% by weight) had been prepared (with the same initial unit weight and moisture content for
the original soil) for laboratory tests program.
Several engineering properties for the original soil and those for the mixed soil samples had
been obtained through implementing a set of laboratory tests. These tests were performed
according to American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) Standards [1], including:
• Water Content.
• Specific Gravity.
• Bulk Density.
• Particle-Size Analysis.
• Atterberg Limits.
• Permeability.
• Unconfined Compression.
In general, the major purpose of the above tests was to determine the effect of organic
material (if existed with a soil) on the engineering properties and performance of this soil, and
then to estimate the engineering problems that may be occurred as a result of such soil
conditions.

4. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

4.1. Tests Results for the Original Soil
The results of testing water content, bulk density, and specific gravity for the original soil are
indicated in Table 1; whereas, Table 2 & 3 shows the results of sieve and hydrometer analysis
tests for the same soil, respectively.

Table 1 Water Content, Bulk Density and Specific Gravity Tests Results for the Original Soil
Type of Test Results
Water Content % 17
Bulk Density gm/cm3 1.61
Specific Gravity 2.7

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 Effect of Organic Content On The Engineering Properties of Jordanian Clayey Soils

Table 2 Sieve Analysis Test Results for the Original Soil

Sieve Mass of Retained Retained Soil Accumulative Percent Finer
Number Soil, gm % Retained Soil , %
4 9.1 1.8 1.8 98.2
10 14.2 2.8 4.6 95.4
40 19.0 3.8 8.4 91.6
200 15.7 3.1 11.5 88.5

Table 3 Hydrometer Analysis Test Results for the Original Soil

Time Temperature R Rcl Rcp L D Percent Finer
sec °C cm mm
2 21 43 44.2 39.1 9.2 0.028 77.4
5 21 41 42.2 37.1 9.6 0.018 73.5
10 21 40 41.2 36.1 9.7 0.013 71.5
15 21 38 39.2 33.9 10.1 0.011 67.1
30 22 37 38.2 32.7 10.2 0.008 64.7
60 22 34 35.2 29.7 10.7 0.005 58.8
250 23 30 31.2 25.4 11.4 0.003 50.9
1440 21 23 23.2 19.1 12.5 0.001 37.8
R: hydrometer reading
Rcl: corrected reading for effective length
Rcp: corrected reading for % Finer,
D: diameter of Particles, and L: effective length.
Referring to the results indicated in Tables 2 & 3, the grain size distribution curve for the
original soil was drawn in Figure 1. Considering the above results and the obtained relationship,
it was realized that the percent of fine material was about 89%; whereas, the remaining percent
(about 11%) was coarse. In order to classify this soil according to the Unified Classification
System, liquid and plastic limit tests were conducted; their results are shown in Table 4.
Therefore, based on the Plasticity Chart relationship shown in Figure 2, the soil was classified
as (CL).
100
90
80
70
PRECENT PASSING %

60
50
40
30
20
10
0
10 1 0.1 0.01 0.001
GRAIN SIZE (mm)

Figure 1 Grain Size Analysis for the Original Soil

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 Dr. Orabi Al Rawi, Eng. Mohammed N.Assaf and Dr. Taiseer Rawashdeh

Table 4 Liquid and Plastic Limits Tests Results for the Original Soil
Liquid Limit Test Results Plastic Limit Test Results
Test No. 1 2 3 4 5 1 2 3
Number of blows 32 27 24 23 16
Mass of wet soil
sample + container 30.54 34.65 35.80 28.88 34.87 18.75 20.35 25.37
(gm)
Mass of dry soil
sample + container 26.98 28.78 28.30 22.78 25.65 17.80 19.11 23.22
(gm)
Mass of container
10.23 11.88 9.72 10.87 10.45 13.50 13.45 13.52
(gm)
Water content (%) 21.36 34.73 40.36 51.21 60.65 22.09 21.90 22.16
Summary of Results Liquid Limit = 40 Plastic Limit = 22

80.0 %

70.0 %

60.0 %
"A" Line
50.0 %
Plasticity Index

40.0 % CH

30.0 %
CL MH
20.0 %

10.0 %
CL-ML
0.0 %
0.0 % 10.0 % 20.0 % 30.0 % 40.0 % 50.0 % 60.0 % 70.0 % 80.0 % 90.0 % 100.0 % 110.0 %
Liquid Limit

Figure 2 Plasticity Chart for Classifying the Original Soil

The coefficient of permeability for the original soil was obtained using the falling head
permeability test. According to Braja D. and Khaled S., 2015, [2], the value of this coefficient
was calculated using the following equation:

.
Where:
: Cross-sectional area of the stand pipe = 0.1265 cm2
: Length of soil sample = 15cm
: Cross-sectional area of the soil sample = 314 cm2
: Elapsed time of test = 3480 sec
: Initial head of water = 115 cm
: Ending head of water = 104 cm

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 Effect of Organic Content On The Engineering Properties of Jordanian Clayey Soils

Table 5 Unconfined Compression Test Results for the Original Soil

Proving
Deformation Vertical
Ring Corrected Vertical
Dial Strain* Stress,
Dial Area, cm² Load**, kg
Reading kg/cm²
Reading
0 0 0 11.33 0 0
20 7 0.0263 11.64 4.34 0.37
40 15 0.0526 11.96 9.30 0.78
60 22 0.0789 12.30 13.64 1.11
80 30 0.1052 12.66 18.60 1.46
100 36 0.1318 13.05 22.30 1.70
120 37 0.1578 13.45 23.94 1.71
140 38 0.1842 13.88 23.56 1.69
160 38 0.2105 14.35 23.56 1.64
180 38 0.2368 14.85 23.56 1.59
*
Using a dial gauge factor of 0.001315
**
Using a dial gauge factor of 0.62

4.2. Tests Results for the Mixed Soil Samples

Liquid and plastic limits tests were conducted for the mixed soil samples (of various organic
contents). The determination of "moisture content corresponding to 25 blows" test results (i.e.,
liquid limit results) for soil samples of various organic ratios are presented in Figure 3. This
figure shows that the liquid limit values for soil samples with organic content of 0%, 2%, 5%,
10%, and 20% (by weight) are 40, 45, 49, 59, and 63, respectively. Accordingly, it is clearly
indicated that the liquid limit is increasing with the increase of the soil's organic content.
90%

80%

0%
70%

60%
Moisture Content, %

2%
50%

40% 5%

30%
10%
20%

10% 20%

0%
10 Number of Blows 100

Figure 3 Liquid Limit for various ratios of organic content

Figure 4 summarizes Atterberg limits tests results for both the original and mixed soil
samples. The general trend for this figure shows an increase of plasticity index with the increase
of the soil's organic content.

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 Dr. Orabi Al Rawi, Eng. Mohammed N.Assaf and Dr. Taiseer Rawashdeh

70

Moisture Content, % 60

50

40

30 L.L
P.L
20

10

0
0% 2% 5% 10% 20%
Organic Content, %

Figure 4 Liquid Limits (L.L) and Plastic Limits (P.L) for various ratios of organic content
Falling head permeability tests results for the mixed soil samples are shown in Table 6.
Whereas, Figure 5 shows the variation of the coefficient of permeability with the variation of
the percentage of soil's organic content. Considering these results, it is clearly indicated that the
above coefficient is increasing with the increase of the soil's organic content.

Table 6 Falling head permeability tests results for the mixed soil samples
Organic Content, % 2 5 10 20
Cross-sectional area of the stand 0.1265 0.1265 0.1265 0.1265
pipe, cm2
Diameter of soil sample, cm 20 20 20 20
Length of soil sample, cm 15 15 15 15
Cross-sectional area of the soil 314 314 314 314
sample, cm2
Initial head of water, cm 115 115 115 115
Ending head of water, cm 102 98 97 101
Elapsed time of test, sec 3000 2820 2700 1920
Coefficient of permeability cm/sec 2.41x10-7 3.43x10-7 3.81x10-7 4.09x10-7
Correction Factor RT at t = 21°C 0.976 0.976 0.976 0.976
Coefficient of permeability 2.35x10-7 3.35x10-7 3.72x10-7 3.99x10-7
(corrected to 20°C)

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 Effect of Organic Content On The Engineering Properties of Jordanian Clayey Soils

4.50

coefficent of permability (cm/s)*10-7

4.00
3.50
3.00
2.50
2.00
1.50
1.00
0.50
0.00
0% 2% 5% 10% 20%
ratio of mixing organic matter

Figure 5 Coefficient of permeability versus organic content for the original and mixed soil samples
Figure 6 shows a Stress-Strain relationship to determine the peak stress for both the original
and mixed soil samples. Considering this relationship, and in spite of the existence of variations
in the curvature of some relations, it was realized that the peak stress value is declining with
the increase of mixing ratio.
2
1.8
1.6
1.4
STRESS (Kg/cm2)

1.2 0%
1 2%
0.8 5%

0.6 10%

0.4 20%

0.2
0
0 0.05 0.1 0.15 0.2 0.25 0.3
STRAIN

Figure 6 Stress-strain relationship for the original and mixed soil samples

5. CONCLUSIONS
Considering the results of this research; the following conclusions are drawn:
1. Increasing the plasticity index as a result of increasing the organic content in the soil could show
a higher ability for the soil to expand and shrink, that may lead to considerable bad effects on
the buildings resting on these types of materials.
2. Increasing the coefficient of permeability as a result of increasing its organic matter means an
increase of voids between soil particles had been occurred; and this may decrease the possibility
of using this soil as an impermeable material in some civil engineering projects.

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 Dr. Orabi Al Rawi, Eng. Mohammed N.Assaf and Dr. Taiseer Rawashdeh

3. The unconfined compressive strength for the clayey soils in Jordan (in general) is relatively
moderate to low. Therefore, increasing the organic matter in these soils will cause more decrease
in the values of its strength.
4. For Jordanian construction sites, it is not recommended to use fine grained soils that contain
more than 2% organic matter as a foundation ground material.

REFERENCES
[1] American Society for Testing and Materials (2015). Annual Book of ASTM Standards 4(13),
West Conshoken, PA.
[2] Braja, D., and Khaled S. Principles of Geotechnical Engineering. USA, 2016, (9) pp.
218−226.
[3] Ekwue E., Organic-matter effects on soil strength properties. Soil and Tillage Research,
16(3), 1990, pp.289-297.
[4] Franklin, A. F., Orozco, L. F., Semrau, R. Compaction of slightly organic soils. Journal of
Soil Mechanics and Foundation Division, ASCE 99, 1973, 541–557, No. SM7.
[5] Malkawi A., Alawneh A. and Abu-Safaqah O. Effects of organic matter on the physical and
the physicochemical properties of an illitic soil. Applied Clay Science, 14(5), 1999, pp.257-
278.
[6] Metzger L. and Yaron B. Influence of sludge organic matter on soil physical properties. In
Advances in soil science, 1987, pp. 141-163.
[7] Odell R., Thornburn T. and McKenzie L. Relationships of Atterberg limits to some other
properties of Illinois soils. Soil Science Society of America Journal, 24(4), 1960, pp.297-
300.
[8] Olgun M. and Yıldız M. Effect of organic fluids on the geotechnical behavior of a highly
plastic clayey soil. Applied Clay Science, 48(4), 2010, pp.615-621.
[9] Santagata M., Bobet A., Johnston C. and Hwang J. One-dimensional compression behavior
of a soil with high organic matter content. Journal of Geotechnical and Geo-Environmental
Engineering, 134(1), 2008, pp.1-13.
[10] Zeng L., et al. Experimental study on physical properties of clays with organic matter
soluble and insoluble in water. Applied Clay Science, 132, 2016, pp.660-667.
[11] M.Ashni and V.Janani, Experimental Study on Pull-out Capacity of Helical Pile in Clayey,
Volume 8, Issue 4, April 2017, pp.1514-1521, International Journal of Civil Engineering
and Technology (IJCIET).
[12] N. Vijay Kumar, SS.Asadi and A.V.S. Prasad, Estimation of Bearing Capacity of Black
Cotton Soil Using Rock Dust and Geo-Textile Sheet: An Experimental Study, International
Journal of Mechanical Engineering and Technology 8(10), 2017, pp. 886–895
[13] Zentar R., Abriak N. and Dubois V. Effects of salts and organic matter on Atterberg limits
of dredged marine sediments. Applied Clay Science, 42(3), 2009, pp.391-397.

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