SOIL

Sr. Mohd Dzulkarnaen Sudirman, MISM

Lectuer
Building Surveying Department
Faculty of Architecture, Planning & Surveying
Universiti Teknologi MARA Perak
The Soil
 Made up of ORGANIC and INORGANIC
substances

 Soil Degradation occurs when soil quality is

affected so that crop production reduces

 Caused by changes in weather, acidification,

desertification, erosion, salinization
DEFINITION
 The simplest classification of geological deposits
falls generally into two major classes to provide
engineers and others with basic information which is:
 “ROCK”- which refers mainly to a hard rigid and
strongly cemented deposit, and
 “SOIL”- which refers to the soft, or loose and
cemented deposis
Soil Production Through Decomposition
Soil Production through Wind Erosion
Soil Production Through Weathering
Soil Production through Infiltration
Soil Formation Facts
To form 2.5 centimeters (1 inch) of topsoil,


may require between 200 and 1000

years.

The thickness of the soil varies from a

thin film on very young lands, near the
poles and on the tops of mountains, to
more than 3 meters (10 feet) on very old
lands, such as certain forests.
IMPORTANCE
 For construction purposes
 Structure implementation
 Foundation choices
 Reduce the risk of soil/foundation failure
SOIL STRATUM @ LAYERS
SOIL STRATUM @ LAYERS
 2 layers
 Topsoil
 Ground soil
Top soil
 150-300mm from soil surface
 Contains vegetation, rubbish & rotten materials
 Not suitable in supporting foundation/structure
 Usually the top soil will be cart away before
construction
GROUND SOIL
 Situated between top soil & rock layer
 The thickness of the soil varies depending on the
rock formation
 This layer are compacted naturally which
occasionally can support light construction
SOIL FORMATION
 3 types of formation
 Transported soil
 Residualsoil
 Organic soil
TRANSPORTED SOIL
 E.g – gravel, sand, silt and clay
 Produce by the formation of wind and water
 Dust flown by wind
RESIDUAL SOIL
 E.g – top soil & laterite
 weathering action on rock fragments which breaks
and crushed and becomes smaller pieces
ORGANIC SOIL
 E.g – top soil and peat
 Produce by the formation of rotten vegetation and
animals
ROCK FORMATION
 Divided into 3 major groups:
 Igneousrocks
 Sedimentary rocks

 Metamorphic rocks
IGNEOUS ROCK
 E.g – basalt & granite
 Formed by solidification of molten materials which
has ascended towards the surface from the hot
lower levels of the earth crust
SEDIMENTARY ROCKS
 E.g-sandstone, shale, limestone
 Formed by deep fissures and swallow holes which
are cavities formed at some time by the passage of
water through soft rock.
METAMORPHIC ROCKS
 E.g-slates, quartzite, marble
 These rocks include any sedimentary deposit or
igneous rock which, after consolidation, has become
altered by heat or pressure
TYPES OF SOIL
 2 types of soil
 Non-cohesive soils
 Cohesive soils
COHESIVE SOILS
• Fine grained particles are closely integrated and stick
together
• Particle size ranges between 0.06mm or less
• The level of cohesiveness depends on the size, shape and
water level
• When its wet, it is soft and when its dry it becomes hard
• Has a high level of moisture content
• Always experiences shrinkage and extension process
• The increasing of water level can caused soil strengths to
differ
• Therefore the depth of the foundation should be constructed
at least 1m from the earth surface
 High level of water content can caused difficulty in
earth excavation which will flood the construction
site
 E.g- clay,silt, peat and laterite
NON-COHESIVE SOIL
 The soil particles are not sticking to each other
 The particle size ranges between 0.06mm-200mm
 Non-cohesive soils has a high value for a
construction site
 Water are easy to flow out because of its hollow
particle
 E.g- gravel, sands
CLASSIFICATION OF SOILS
 Soil classification can be done by:
 Grain size-divided into several sizes
 Coarse grain non-cohesive
 Fined grained cohesive
 Organic soil
Can be done by sieving and sedimentation technique
- Sieving : for non-cohesive soil such as gravel and sand
- Sedimentation : for cohesive soil such as clay and silt
 Moisture content
 Moisture content classification for cohesive soil
such as clay and silt
 Can be classified by moisture content test or
plastic limit/liquid limit test. Refer to BS
1377:1975
GROUND WATER
 Usually refer to the ground water level
 Water usually come from rain and water penetration into the
earth opening which can penetrates until 12000m
 Water content depends on:
 Surface slopes/gradients
 Vegetation

 Weather

 Soil opening and penetration

- Ground water content will influence construction works where it involved

the stabilization and strength of the soil.
- Usually high level of water content require a much more
complicated foundation system.
- It will also make more difficult when water penetrates
into excavation work and will obstruct workers and
machineries.
- Water proof retaining wall needed in such cases
SOIL CHARACTERISTIC IN RELATION
TO CHOICE OF FOUNDATIONS
 Soil have different attribute when load implied on
them. The characteristic are:
 Compressibility

 Permeability

 Plasticity
 CHOICES OF FOUNDATION
Solid chalk, sands and gravels or sand and gravels with Shallow strip or pad footings as appropriate to the load
only small proportions of clay, dense silty sands bearing members of the building

Uniform, firm and stiff clays

-Where vegetation is insignificant
-Where trees and shrubs are growing or to be planted close
to the site
-Where trees are felled to clear the site and construction is
due to start soon afterward
-Bored piles and ground beams, or strip foundations at
least 1m deep
-Bored piles and ground beams
-Reinforced bored piles of sufficient length with the top 3m
sleeved from the surrounding ground and with suspended
floor

Soft clays, soft silty clays Strip footing up to 1m wide if bearing capacity is sufficient,
or raft

Peat Bored piles with temporary steel lining or precast or insitu

piles driven to firm strata below

Mining and other subsidence area Thin reinforced rafts for individuals houses with load
bearing walls and for flexible building