Session 2

Soil Consistency
In this session we will learn various physical and engineering properties with
the help of which a soil can be properly identified and classified are called the
index properties

Lecture:

When clay minerals are present in fine-grained soil, that soil can be remolded
in the presence of some moisture without crumbling. This cohesive nature is
because of the absorbed water surrounding the clay particles. In the early
1900s, a Swedish scientist named Albert Mauritz Atterberg developed a
method to describe the consistency of fine-grained soils with varying moisture
contents. At a very low moisture content, soil behaves more like a brittle solid.
When the moisture content is very high, the soil and water may flow like a
liquid. Hence, on an arbitrary basis, depending on the moisture content, the
nature of soil behavior can be broken down into four basic states: solid,
semisolid, plastic, and liquid
Liquid Limit Test

A soil is place in the grooving tool which consists of a brass cup and a hard
rubber base. A groove is cut at the center of the soil pat using a standard
grooving tool. The cup is then repeatedly dropped from a height of 10 mm
until a groove closure of 12.7 mm. The soil is then removed and its moisture
content is determined. This test is then repeated at various moisture contents
with the corresponding number of drops. The soil is said to be at its liquid limit
when exactly 25 drops are required to close the groove for a distance of 12.7
mm (one half of an inch).

The liquid limit is defined as the moisture content required to close a distance
of 12.7 mm along the bottom of the groove after 25 blows.

Plastic Limit Test:

A soil sample is rolled into threads until it becomes thinner and eventually
breaks at 3 mm. It is defined as the moisture content in percent at which the
soil crumbles when rolled into threads of 3.0 mm. If it is wet, it breaks at a
smaller diameter, if it is dry it breaks at a larger diameter.
Shrinkage Limit Test:
It is performed in the laboratory with the porcelain dish approximately 45 mm
in diameter and about 12.7 mm high. The dish completely filled with wet soil.
The mass and volume of the wet soil is then recorded. The dish is then oven
dried, then the mass and volume of the oven dried soil is also recorded.
The soil shrinks during the drying process, so moisture is gradually lost from it.
During the drying process it will reached a stage at which more loss of
moisture will result in no further volume change. The moisture content in
percent at which the soil mass ceases to change is known as the shrinkage
limit.

Plasticity index = difference between liquid limit and plastic limit. It is a

measure of the range of moisture content that encompasses the plastic state.
PI = LL – PL
Plasticity index Plasticity Type of soil
(%)
0 Non Plastics sand
˂7 Low Plastic silt
7-17 Medium plastic Silty clay or clayey
silt
˃17 Highly Plastic clay

Liquidity index = a ratio which signifies the relative consistency of a cohesive

soil in the natural state.
ω−��
LI = ��−��

LI(Liquidity index) consistency

0 - 0.25 stiff

0.25 - 0.50 Medium to soft

0.50 - 0.75 soft

0.75 - 1 Very soft

When liquidity index = 0 means the soil is at the plastic limit and when liquidity
index = 1 means it is at the liquid limit.
Consistency Index
�.�. − �
C.I.= �.�−�.�.

C.I.= consistency index

L.L.= liquid limit
ω = moisture content
P.I.= plasticity index

Shrinkage limit
(�₁ −�₂ ) (�₁−�₂)
SL = �₂
(100) - �₂
ρw (100)

M₁ = mass of wet soil in the dish in grams

M₂ = mass of dry soil in the dish in grams
V₁ = initial vol. of wet soil in the dish in cc
V₂ = final vol. of dry soil in the dish in cc
ρw = density of water (1 gr/cm³)

Shrinkage ratio
‘Shrinkage ratio’ is defined as the ratio of the volume change expressed as
percent of the dry volume to the corresponding change in moisture content
from the initial value to the shrinkage limit:

�₂
SR = V₂ ��

��
SR = �
� −��

SR = shrinkage ratio
M2 = mass of dry soil in the dish in grams
V2 = final vol. of dry soil in the dish in cc
ρw = density of water (1 gr/cm³)

Specific gravity
�
Gs = � ��
−
�� ���

Gs = specific gravity
SL = shrinkage limit
SR = shrinkage ratio
M₂ = mass of dry soil in the dish in grams
V₂ = final vol. of dry soil in the dish in cc.
ρw = density of the water ( 1 gr/cm³)
Volumetric Shrinkage

�� −��
VS = ��
X100%

V1 = initial vol. of wet soil in the dish in cc

V2 = final vol. of dry soil in the dish in cc

Degree of shrinkage Quality of soil

(%) (resistance to
shrinkage)
˂5 Good
5-10 Medium
10-15 Poor
˃15 Very poor

Flow Index

�₁− �₂
If = �₂
��� ( )
�₁
If = flow index
ω1 = moisture content of soil, in percent, corresponding to N1 blows
ω2 = moisture content corresponding toN2 blows

Toughness index
��
Toughness index = ��

Activity of Clay
Skempton defined a quantity called activity, which is the slope of the line
correlating PI and percent finer than 2 �m. This activity may be expressed as
�. �.
�� =
������� ����� ����
. �����

�� Soil type
˂0.75 Inactive
0.75-1.25 Normal
˃1.25 Active
Examples:

A soil sample was determined in the laboratory to have a liquid limit of 41%
and a plastic limit of 21.1%. If the water content is 30%, determine the
following:
a. Plasticity index.
b. Liquidity index.
c. What is the characteristic of the soil?
a) liquid
b) plastic
c) dense
d) brittle solid
Note:
LI < 0 - brittle solid
LI < l - plastic
LI > l - liquid
The following are results from the liquid and plastic limit test for a soil.
No. of blows Moisture content
(N) (%)
15 42
20 40.8
28 39.1
The plastic limit is 18.7%

a. Compute the liquid limit using table

b. What is the plasticity index of the soil?
c. What is the liquidity index if the water content is 24%.?
d. What is the consistency index.?
In a liquid limit, using a cone penetrometer, the following readings were
recorded and tabulated as shown.

Plastic Limit Test

Trial γwet (kN/m3) γdry (kN/m3)
1 128.6 105.4
2 141.4 116.8
3 132.6 109.6
4 134.5 111.2
5 136.0 113.4

Liquid Limit Test

Moisture content Cone Penetration
(%) (mm)
42.5 16.0
47.5 17.5
58.1 22.8
60.0 26.0

a. Determine the liquid limit of the soil.

b. Determine the plasticity index of the soil.
c. If the natural water content of the soil is 38%, determine the liquidity index.
A saturated soil has the following characteristics.
Initial volume = 25 cm3
Final volume = 16 cm3
Mass of wet soil = 45 g
Mass of dry soil = 31 g
Determine the shrinkage limit of soil
Determine the shrinkage ratio.
Determine the sp.gr. of soil
Determine the volumetric shrinkage of soil
The Atterberg’s Limit of a given soil are: LL=60%, PL=45%, SL=25%. The
specific gravity of soil solids is 2.67. A sample of this soil at liquid limit has a
volume of 20cc. What will be its final volume if the sample is brought to its
shrinkage limit.
The mass specific gravity of a saturated specimen of clay is 1.84 when the
water content is 38%. On oven drying the mass specific gravity falls to 1.70.
Determine the specific gravity of solids and shrinkage limit of the clay.