➢ ATTERBERG LIMITS

Soils, especially fine-grained clay and silt soils, are measured as wet/moist/dry or basically
by its consistency. Soil consistency is described as the resistance of soil to deformation and
rupture. Physical properties of soil, such as color, texture, structure, and porosity are
considerably influenced by the amount of water present in them. Therefore, consistency of
soil changes along with the amount of water present in it.

According to Albert Atterberg, a Swedish agricultural scientist, he mentioned that depending

upon the water content, soil may appear in liquid state, plastic state, semi-solid state, or solid
state. In each state, the consistency of soil is different, so are its engineering properties. The
boundary between each state can be defined based on the change in the soil’s behavior.
Thus, Atterberg Limits are the water content at which soil changes from one state to another.
It can be also called as consistency limits. These limits are significant in understanding the
behavior of clays.

1. Liquid State – happens when fine-grained soil is mixed in large quantities of water. In
this state, soil flows like a liquid and has zero shear strength, meaning it would fail
under applied loads.

• Liquid Limit (LL) – is the transition from liquid state to plastic state and it takes
place when the water content of the mix is reduced and the soil becomes
stiffer and start developing shear resistance.

2. Plastic State – In this state, soil does not flow like liquid anymore and soil can be
molded into different shapes without rupturing it due to its plasticity.

• Plastic Limit (PL) – is the transition from plastic state to semi-solid state. It
takes place when the water content of the soil is further reduced and its
plasticity decreases.

3. Semi-Solid State – In this state, if we try to mold the soil, it cracks. The soil loses its
plasticity and becomes brittle.

Note that from liquid state to semi-solid state, soil remains fully saturated. Up to this point,
the reduction of water content results to the reduction of the volume of soil as well.

• Shrinkage Limit (SL) – is the transition from semi-solid state to solid state.
This is where the soil stops shrinking. Thus, it can be defined as the lowest
water content at which soil is fully saturated. If we further reduce the water
content below this limit, the sample begins to dry up in the surface and the
color also begins to change.

4. Solid State – In this state, no volume change in soil can be observed with water
content reduction. The soil does not shrink anymore.
In the graph above, we can observe that in the decrease of the water content of soil, the
volume also decreases. However, below the shrinkage limit (SL), the volume of soil remains
constant.

In summary, these Atterberg Limits, namely the Liquid Limit, Plastic Limit, and Shrinkage
Limit, are the basic measure of the water content of a fine-grained soil. Having a
fundamental knowledge with these limits is important in the practice of civil engineering as
soils support structures, pavements, or other loads and must be evaluated to predict their
behavior under applied forces and variable moisture conditions.

➢ DIFFERENCES BETWEEN RIGID AND FLEXIBLE PAVEMENTS

Pavements are ground surfaces which carries a considerable amount of load. These are
primarily constructed for use of vehicles and pedestrians. The two broad categories of
pavements are the flexible pavement and rigid pavement.

The main difference between the two is their manner of load distribution to the subgrade.

In rigid pavement, the load is distributed over a wide area of subgrade soil. In flexible
pavement, the load spreads over an increasingly larger area, which carries it deep enough
into the ground through successive layers of granular material. Therefore, a load of any
magnitude diminishes as it is transmitted directly downwards from the surface.

Other differences between the two are further explained in a table from the Daily Civil article:
Resources:

https://www.iamcivilengineer.com/what-are-atterberg-limit-liquid-limit/
https://www.globalgilson.com/blog/atterberg-limits-a-quick-reference-guide
https://mathalino.com/reviewer/geotechnical-engineering/consistency-soil-atterberg-limits
https://gineersnow.com/engineering/civil/difference-flexible-rigid-pavement
https://dailycivil.com/difference-flexible-pavements-rigid-pavements/