Introduction

The California Bearing Ratio (CBR) test was developed by the California Division of Highways as a
method of classifying and evaluating soil subgrade and base course material for flexible pavements. CBR
is a measure of resistance of a material to penetration of standard plunger under controlled density and
moisture conditions. CBR test may be conducted in remolded or undisturbed sample. Test consists of
causing a cylindrical plunger of 50mm diameter to penetrate a pavement component material at
1.25mm/minute. This load is expressed as a percentage of standard value at a respective deformation
level to obtain CBR value.

Materials and Apparatus:

Loading machine or compression machine that can operate at a constant rate of 1.25mm per minute.
Cylindrical molds of 150mm diameter and 175mm height provided with a collar of about 50mm length
and detachable perforated base.
Compaction rammer, surcharge weight-annular weights each of 2.5kg and 147mm diameter.
Sieves- ¾ in. US Sieve and No. 4 US Sieve

Procedure

1. Air dry your soil until there is no more visible moisture. You can use the stove if your
soil is too wet.
2. Using the rammer or a rubber mallet crush lumps
3. Sieve your soils until you get 5kg using either of the following:
a. If your soil has aggregates/rocks use Sieve ¾ in. Sieve (US) or 19mm Sieve (ASTM)
b. If your soil is purely fine (no rocks) use Sieve no. 4 or 4.75mm Sieve (ASTM)
4. Using the values of your HMC (Hygroscopic Moisture Content) and OMC (Optimum Moisture
Content), compute for the weight of the water needed.
5. Mix the water and soil in a pan until the mixture becomes homogenous. Take about 100-150g of
soil for moisture content determination before and after soaking with two (2) trials each.
6. Mold 1 sample in a 6” diameter mold in five (5) equal layers to a total depth of 7”.
Compact each layer X times using a 4.54kg rammer with an 18” drop height.
7. Soak the samples in water for four (4) days and take swell readings before and after soaking.
8. Take dial readings from the CBR machine corresponding to a series of penetration depths.
9. Compute for the CBR values at 0.25 and 0.5 penetrations and determine the CBR value.
10. Graph your group’s CBR experiment by using the values of resistance to penetration vs the
resistance. Use the trendline to graph your results.
11. Graph the results of the other groups and compare it to your results.

Formula: Copy during class.

Important Questions: (Answer these questions in your Observation and Conclusion)

1. What is the behavior of the soil during compaction?
2. Observe the appearance of the soil before and after soaking, did it strengthen or weaken (effective)?
3. Describe the results obtained in your CBR experiment and compare it with the other groups.
4. How would you relate the results of your CBR value in connection to the number of days soaked?
5. Why do you think the soil needs OMC during CBR test? How is it related to the CBR value?
Mass of Sample, g Moisture Content Determination
Optimum Moisture Content (%) Initial Moisture Content
Maximum Dry Density (kg/m3 ) Container No.
Hygroscopic Moisture Content (%) Mass of Container + Wet Soil (g)
Water to be added (ml) Mass of Container + Dry Soil (g)
Number of blows Mass of Container (g)
Density Determination Initial Moisture Content (%)
Mold No. Final Moisture Content
Mass of Mold + Soil (g) Container No.
Mass of Mold (g) Mass of Container + Wet Soil (g)
Volume of Mold, (m3 ) Mass of Container + Dry Soil (g)
3
Wet Density (kg/m ) Mass of Container (g)
Dry Density (kg/m3 ) Final Moisture Content (%)
Penetra ti o
n Di a l Tota l
Ps i Corrected Ps i
Rea di ng Pounds
0.0125 Curi ng Method :
0.0250 Ca l i bra ti on Fa ctor :
0.0375 Area of Pi s ton (i n.) :
0.0500 Specimen Height (in.) :
0.0750 CBR a t 0.1 :
0.1000 CBR a t 0.2 :
0.2000 CBR :
0.3000
0.4000
0.5000

1
0.9
Resistance to Penetration, Psi

0.8
0.7
0.6
0.5
0.4
0.3
0.2
0.1
0
0 2 4 6 8 10 12

Penetration, inches

Date Molded Verified By:

Date Tested Verified By:
 Penetration Penetration Load
Newtons MPa CBR
(mm) (Converted) Reading
0.5 50 6 1311.989 0.6776805
1 100 10 2186.649 1.1294675
1.5 150 11 2405.314 1.2424142
2 200 12 2623.979 1.355361
2.5 250 14 3061.309 1.5812544 22.92 %
3 300 15 3279.974 1.6942012
4 400 17 3717.303 1.9200947
5 500 18 3935.968 2.0330414 19.74 %
7.5 750 25 5466.623 2.8236686

1. The original data that you have is on columns “Penetration (Converted) and “Load Reading”.
2. Input the values of “Penetration (mm)” in column 1 as is. You now have 3 columns with values.
3. Compute for the value of the “Newtons” column by converting the values in the column “Load
Reading” by multiplying each one by the 2.229 (Calibration Factor), 10 (Adjusting Factor) and by
9.81 (gravity). Example: 6 x 9.81 x10 x 2.229 = 1311.989
4. Compute for the values of the “MPa” column. Divide every value in the “Newtons” column by the
Area of the Piston (1936). Example: 1311.989 Newtons/1936mm2 = 0.6776805 MPa.
Remember: 1N/mm2 = 1MPa.
5. Using the “MPa” values obtained in load reading 2.5 and 5, divide them by 6.9 and 10.3,
respectively then multiply them by 100.
Example: For 2.5, (1.581/6.9)*100 = 22.92% and For 5, (2.033/10.3)*100 = 19.74%
6. The higher value between the two values in step 5 is your CBR in %.

a. Assess whether this value passed the standard of DPWH from your last lecture and
determine if it can be used in the road project.
b. Graph the values of the Load in MPa versus the Penetration in cm using scatter plot.
Create a trendline to smoothen the graph like in this example.
c. Do not include the “Penetration (Converted)” Column in your laboratory report.
d. Not including a and b will automatically deduct 5% in your lab report grade.