FACULTY OF ENGINEERING

DEPARTMENT OF CHEMICAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL ENGINEERING

ECH 3903 : MATERIAL ENGINEERING LABORATORY

 
SIZE OF PARTICLES IN DIFFERENT TYPE OF SOIL USING PARTICLE SIZE ANALYSER
(PSA)
 
LECTURER : DR. MUHAMMAD HEIKAL BIN ISMAIL
DEMONSTRATOR : MISS NURHAZIRAH BINTI IBRAHIM

GROUP NO : G6 (Tuesday lab) and G6 (Thursday lab)

NAMA NO MATRIC
ABU HURAIRAH BIN ABDUL WAHAB 191900
SAARONI
MIRAA A/P MURUGA 192606
TASNIM ASYIQIN BINTI TARMIZI 192178
NORHALISA HUSNA BINTI MOHD 193471
HALIM
DIVAGAR A/L SIVASELVAM 194893
ANBARASAN A/L MADES 193162
HARIHARAN A/L DEVARAJ 194895

Date of experiment performed : 21th November 2019

Date of report submitted : 20th December 2019
Size of Particles in Different Type of Soil Using Particle Size Analyser (PSA)

Abu Hurairah, Miraa, Tasnim Asyiqin, Norhalisa Husna, Divagar, Anbarasan, Hariharan
Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, UPM, Serdang, Selangor, 43400, Malaysia

in final form 7 December 2019

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Abstract
Soil particle size analyses (PSA) will be affecting the properties of the soil in terms of the function and the
working operation. The range of the particle size suggests the different types of soil particles that can be found
especially for agriculture purposes. The most common of the soil type studies is clay, silt, and sand. Since the size
range is relatively small, the particle size can be analyzed by using a laser diffraction method that computes the
size in micrometer unit size. Clay sample size theoretically recorded under 2-micrometer size, silt is between 4-
micrometer until 60-micrometer and lastly, sand is normally recorded between 60-micrometer until 1000-
micrometer. The main objective of these studies is to investigate on how the particle size of different soil types
will affect the movement of water that is to determine the permeability of the soil. From this, the most suitable
soil type for agricultural purposes can be determined by the flow water movement and the different range of the
soil size particle. Since clay has the lowest particle size following by the silt and sand, therefore the water
movement is lower for clay but it can hold most water compared to silt and sand. The second-lowest water
movement is silt and then the sand will have the fastest water movement because of the porosity between the soil
particles. From these studies, the expected plant crops that can be grown on that particular soil is that clay soil is
suitable for flowers such as apple and pear trees. For silt soil, it is suitable for gardening the Japanese Maples and
Hostas since this type of plant requires moist soil that drains wells make them well-suit to grow in silty soil. For
sandy soil, the most common plant’s favors are tulips and tree mallow.

___________________________________________________________________________________________

1.0 INTRODUCTION The angular variety in the strong light dissipated

Soil particle analysis is the basic step to check the
soil characteristic and its physical property based on
the determination of size range that built up to form
any type of soil. To determine the size range for the
soil, laser diffraction is used by allowing the light
wave to passed through the sample. Laser diffraction
will allow the light flow with the combination of
Mastersizer 2000 that attached to Hydro 2000 MU.
1
when the laser is passed through the soil sample
where the smaller soil particle will disperse the light
at high angles while the bigger soil particle will
disperse the light at the smaller angles. The optical
bench works to accumulate all the raw data from the
soil and then used it to compute the particle size
range of the soil sample used. The soil will be
entering the wet cell to enable the Malven software
to detect the sample and determine the particle size.
This laser diffraction operates based on the Mie
theory of light scattering whereas it enables to
calculate of the particle size distribution by assuming
the capacity equal to the sphere model diameter. The
use of the laser diffraction to analyze the particle
size is practical since it only requires a shorter time
to obtain the result, a smaller amount of sample
needed and can determine a wide quantity diversity
of the soil sample.
The determination of the particle size
distribution for the soil can control the permeability
of the soil which is by studying the movement of
water from the different types of soil. Generally, the
water will move between the spacing between the
soil particles, so different types of soil will have a
different rate of water flow movement since the
particle size varies for each type of soil. The soil
with a smaller particle size will have the tendency to
hold much water compared to the soil that has bigger
size of the particle. The smaller the size, the easier
the soil can absorb the water since the space between
the soil is bigger. This study will demonstrate the
water movement from the soil with a different range
of types and sizes. Since soil is an important aspect
of the agricultural system, the soil used must be
suitable for the specific type of plant crops. The
selective soil for agriculture must be satisfied with
the greater water flow movement required for
agricultural purposes.
2.0 METHOD
2
In this experiment, 100g of 3 types of soil
which are sand, silt and clay were recovered from
the fields. The samples then is crushed to become
smaller particles and cleaned thoroughly to remove
coarse fragments so that can minimize the amount of
inherent particle size variability. For the preparation
of Mastersizer 2000, Hydro 2000 MU unit is
switched on and ionised water is pumped at
2800rpm through the system for 5 minutes to clean
the whole system. After 5 minutes, stop the pump
and check the lens for smudge and particulates. If
there was any smudge on the lens, repeat the
cleaning process a few more times with a cleaned
ionised water. Once the cleaning process is done,
discard the cleansing water and pour approximately
800ml of the dispersant (ionised water) into the
beaker.
To analyse the sample, ensure that the
Mastersizer unit has been turned on and connected
properly to the computer. The connection status will
be indicated at the bottom right of the main program
window. Then, switch on ultrasonic to remove large
agglomerates or residue in the system. Take the
ionised water prepared in the beaker earlier and set
the pump to 2000rpm. To begin new measurement of
sample, from the Menu bar in the main program
window, select ‘File’ > ‘New’ and save using ‘sand’
as the name for sand sample. From the Menu Bar in
the main program window, select ‘Measure.>
‘Manual’. A new window will appear. Check the
background scatter and make and make sure the light
energy value is less than 20 for each detector
number. A value of more than 20 indicates that the
lens require cleaning. Make sure the laser intensity is
between 75% - 100%, the laser diffraction is in OK
mode too. If there is a humming sound, then the
system need to be cleaned. Once the setting is
completed, click ‘Start’ and follow the on-screen
procedures. The system will measure the background
first before instructing to add in our sample. Sample
is added slowly into the beaker until good laser
obscuration value is achieved. The acceptable value
is between 10% - 29% (green box). Wait for analysis
and record the data. Repeat the steps for silt and clay
too.
Next, a permeability test is conducted to determine
the permeability of each of the soil sample. First, put
filter paper into a filter funnel and place around 5g
of soil sample in the filter paper. Pour 10 ml of
distilled water and start taking the time using a
stopwatch before taking the time taken for the
distilled water to completely drained through the
soil.

3.0 Results

Figure 3: Graph of Volume(%) vs Particle size(μm)

for silt

Figure 1: Graph of Volume(%) vs Particle size(μm)

for clay

Figure 4: Graph of Cumulative volume(%) vs

Particle size(μm) for silt

Figure 2: Graph of Cumulative volume(%) vs

Particle size(μm) for clay

Figure 5: Graph of Volume(%) vs Particle size(μm)

for sand

3
 D[v,0.1] (μm) D[v,0.9] (μm)

Compa Graph Actual Graph Actual

rison

Clay 1.259 1.259 12.589 12.690

Silt 2.818 2.775 60.256 59.885

Figure 6: Graph of Cumulative volume(%) vs
Particle size(μm) for sand
Sand 158.489 185.500 794.328 787.955

Type of Clay Silt Sand

soil Table 3: Volume distribution (%) of clay,
silt and sand
D[3,2] 2.942 5.976 186.856
(μm)

D[4,3] 5.959 24.701 475.431

(μm)
Type of soil Clay Silt Sand

Table 1: Mean Diameter of clay, silt and

sand using D[3,2] and D[4,3] techniques Time taken 9.81 6.33 3.54
for water
flow through
the soil (s)
Type of Clay Silt Sand
soil
Table 4: Time taken for water flow
Mode 0 100 0 through the clay, silt and sand

Median 2.170 2.198 1.002

4.0 DISCUSSION
Table 1 shows the value of mean diameter of
Standard 39.726 42.849 30.202 clay, silt and sand at D[3,2] and D[4,3] for different
deviation data. This value indicates the diameter of the sphere
which divide the sample’s mass into specified
percentage. By observing Table 1, it can see that
there are differences between the mean diameter for
Table 2: Mode, Median and Standard different data. Based on the table, the mean diameter
deviation of particle size of clay, silt and at D[3,2] and D[4,3] for sand is 186.856 𝜇m and
sand
4
475.431 𝜇m respectively which is higher than the
mean diameter for clay and silt.
Table 2 shows the value of mode, median
and standard deviation of the particle size for
different type of soil tested. The value of particle
size most commonly found in the analysis is
represented by Mode. The mode particle size for
clay and sand is obtained as 0 𝜇m while 100 𝜇m for
silt. Next, median values are defined as the value
where half of the population resides above this point,
and half resides below this point. Median values for
the particle size of clay is 2.170 𝜇m, while for silt is
2.198 𝜇m and 1.002 𝜇m for sand. This value is one
of the most meaningful for particle size distributions.
The standard deviations of the particle size for clay,
silt and sand is 39.726 𝜇m, 42.849 𝜇m and 30.202
𝜇m respectively.
Table 3 shows the volume distribution (%)
of different type of soil. Based on Table 3, it can be
observed that there is a slight difference between the
graphical data and the actual data. This difference is
due to errors that might happen when conducting the
experiment which will be discussed later in
recommendations. As future observation, for silt and
sand, the actual data is lower than graphical data for
D[v0.9]. While, for clay, actual value is higher than
graphical value for D[v,0.9]. However, both the
graphical value and the actual value for clay, silt and
sand are nearest to each other.
Clay that is used for this experiment is not
pure as it is mixed with the other type of soil which
give us an inaccurate result. Since it is not pure like
the other samples,  the particle size of 10% volume
of clay which is 1.259 𝜇m is taken to compare with
the theoretical value from the references which is
less than 2 𝜇m. Hence, it is proven that particle size
of clay is less than 2 𝜇m from the experiment.
The theoretical value for the particle size of
silt is in a range of 4 𝜇m - 60 𝜇m. From the
experiment, 90% volume of silt has a particle size of
59.885 𝜇m which is in the range of the theoretical
value. For the sand, the theoretical value is in a
range of 50 𝜇m - 1000 𝜇m. The particle size value
for 90% volume of sand is 787.955 𝜇m which is also
lies in the range of theoretical value. Hence, all the
experimental values of particle size for clay, silt and
sand match the theoretical values from the article.
Then, a simple test is conducted to test the
permeability of the different type of soil with water.
5
5 g from each soil is used as the sample and 10 ml of
water is used for this permeability test where the
result is observed by recording the time taken for the
water to flow through the soil. From Table 4, the
time taken for the clay, silt and sand is 9.81 s, 6.33 s
and 3.54 s respectively. This indicates that soil with
bigger particle size allows water to pass through in a
short period. In this case, the fast movement of water
through the soil since its particle size is bigger while
slow movement of water through clay which has
smaller particle size. Thus, the permeability of water
through soil depends on its particle size and the
order of water permeability through soil is increasing
from clay, silt and lastly sand. Clays are made up of
very small particles where some kinds of clay are
layered together in sheets. Clay can hold water and
nutrients between those fine layers. Another
important aspect of clays is that each of these
individual layers has many "parking spaces" for
plant nutrients. Tiny clay particles have more surface
area than larger particles of sand or silt. Sand is
loose and single grained. The individual grains can
be easily seen and felt. Thus, for agricultural
purposes, clay soil is suitable for apple and pear
trees, silt soil is suitable for Japanese Maples and
Hostas plant while sand soil is suitable for Tulips
and Tree mallow.
5.0 CONCLUSION
To conclude, measurement of particle size
distributions is routinely carried out across a wide
range of industries and is often a critical parameter
in the manufacture of many products. The particle
size distribution of a solid sample is determined by
using particle size analyzer (PSA). There are a few
types of PSA in the industry. For this experiment,
Malvern Mastersizer 2000 (Hydro) is used. It uses a
solvent to mix well with the sample before the
measurement of the size of the particle sample.
Measuring particle size distributions and
understanding how they affect your products and
processes can be critical to the success of many
manufacturing businesses.
From those results, particle size is obtained
for three different samples which are, silt, clay and
sand. Based on the objectives, clay is recorded as the
smallest particle compared to silt and sand. Sand is
the largest particle among all three samples.
Although the results are convincing with reference,
there are some errors while conducting this
experiment. Firstly, the sample is not mixed well
with the solvent. The time taken to take the reading
from the software is fast. Therefore, the result is less
accurate. Besides, the cleaning process is not done
properly. Thus, the previous particles stayed as a
contaminant for the new sample. At once, the
rotation is remained at cleaning speed which is 2800
rpm, where more bubbles are produced and affected
the results. Then, the clay is a mixture of silt and
clay. Since it is impure, the exact measured value for
clay is hard to measure.
6.0 RECOMMENDATION
The recommendations are the solvent chosen
must sink well wit the sample. The wrong pair will
give a better result. Both the sample and solvent
must mix well too. High speed for better for
cleaning, but to run the experiment, it is not suitable.
Running the experiment with high speed will form
bubbles in the beaker. Those bubbles will give
inaccurate readings. For cleaning the speed is
2800rpm whereas for an experiment it is 2000rpm.
Before inserting the sample, the solvent runs without
the sample for a few minutes for a good calibration.
Since clay naturally occurs as a mixture,  pure clay
must be prepared first to obtain the accurate reading
for clay. Therefore, if this recommendation is taken
into account, errors can be reduced to produce good
results.
7.0 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
We would like to express our sincere
gratitude to our lecturer, Dr. Heikal bin Ismail for
providing his invaluable guidance, comments and
suggestions throughout the experiment. We would
specially thank Miss Nurhazirah Binti Ismail for
constantly suggesting us on what sample to use and
guide us to complete this project. We have also
taken help from different people for the preparation
of this report. Without kind instructions and proper
guidance from all involved persons, this project
would not be successful. In every phase of this
project, their supervision and enlightenment shaped
this report completely. We would also like to thank
our group members for their effort and commitment
given while completing this report
8.0 REFERENCES
[1] Deng, Y., Cai, C., Xia, D., Ding, S., &
Chen, J. (2017). Fractal features of soil
particle size distribution under different
land-use patterns in the alluvial fans of
collapsing gullies in the hilly granitic region
of southern China. PLOS ONE, 12(3),
e0173555.
doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0173555
[2] Fisher, P., Aumann, C., Chia, K.,
O'Halloran, N., & Chandra, S. (2017).
Adequacy of laser diffraction for soil
particle size analysis. PLOS ONE,
12(5),e0176510.
doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0176510
[3] Miller, B. A., & Schaetzl, R. J. (2012).
Precision of Soil Particle Size Analysis
using Laser Diffractometry. Soil Science
Society of America Journal, 76(5), 1719.
doi: 10.2136/sssaj2011.0303
[4] Šinkovičová, M., Igaz, D., Kondrlová, E., &
Jarošová, M. (2017). Soil Particle Size
Analysis by Laser Diffractometry: Result
Comparison with Pipette Method. IOP
Conference Series: Materials Science and
Engineering, 245, 072025. doi:
10.1088/1757-899x/245/7/072025
[5] Ball, J. (2011). Soil and Water Relationship.
Retrieved from
https://www.noble.org/news/publications/ag
-news-and-views/2001/september/soil-and-
water-relationships/
[6] Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc. (2014). Silt.
Encyclopaedia Britannica. Retrieved from
https://www.britannica.com/science/silt