FACULTY OF APPLIED SCIENCE (AS)

UNIVERSITI TEKNOLOGI MARA SHAH ALAM

BACHELOR OF SCIENCE (HONS) ENVIRONMENTAL TECHNOLOGY

AS229

SOIL SCIENCE AND ANALYSIS

EVT533

LAB REPORT EXPERIMENT 2&3

SOIL TEXTURE BY “FEEL METHOD” & SOIL COLOR

NAME: SITI NURAZIEMAH BINTI AZMY

STUDENT NUMBER: 2021373309

CLASS: AS2292C

LECTURER’S NAME: DR SABARINA BINTI MOHD YUNUS & DR YONG SOON KONG

DATE OF SUBMISSION: 8 NOVEMBER 2021

EXPERIMENT 2&3: SOIL TEXTURE BY “FEEL METHOD” & SOIL COLOR

OBJECTIVE

SOIL TEXTURE BY “FEEL METHOD”

1. To know the characteristics of soil materials sand, silt, and clay based on the texture of the soil
through the “Feel Method”.
2. To determine soil texture class by using the “Feel Method”.

SOIL COLOR

1. To know the soil’s color that different from each other.

2. To apply Munsell color on soil for the soil color determination.
3. To analyze the color of soil by using Munsell book chart.

INTRODUCTION

SOIL TEXTURE BY “FEEL METHOD”

Soil texture defined as the distribution of the particle’s size of silt, clay, and sand and make up the
mineral fraction of the soil. Soil’s texture will affect the water’s volume that soil can grip, how much water
move through the soil, and if the soil is useful and rich in minerals.

SOIL COLOR

Soil are multicolored and have variety of colors. To know the color of the soils used, Munsell color
chart is used. Munsell color chart is defined as one system that design color based on the arrangement of
the color. Munsell system classified and named the color of soils by calculated the scales of hue, value,
and chroma.

METHOD

SOIL TEXTURE BY “FEEL METHOD”

1. About one tablespoon of soil sample is taken and was put on one of the hand.
2. A drop by drop water was added and continued until the soil reached sticky condition.
3. A ball of soil was made from the soil. The data was recorded on the table and observation either
the soil can form a ball or not was recorded.
 4. Soil was squeezed to form a ribbon using thumb finger with constant pressure in order to get
accurate and same length.
5. The action was observed in order to determine if the soil can form into ribbon or not. The result
was recorded in the table.
6. Step 1 until 5 was repeated for the second soil sample.

SOIL COLOR

1. A little water was added to the soil sample in order to make paste and a small amount of soil was
smeared on a pieces of paper.
2. The soil’s color was searched on Munsell color chart that match closely to the soil’s color.
3. The hue, value, and chroma was recorded on the table.
4. Step 1-3 was repeated for the other soil sample and was recorded on the table.

DATA

SOIL TEXTURE BY “FEEL METHOD”

SOIL 1

STEP 1 Soil ball remains when squeezed – Soil ball breaks when squeezed SAND
step 2
STEP 2 Formation of ribbon from the soil – Soil does not form a ribbon LOAMY
step 3-5 SAND
STEP 3 Excessively wet soil (Ribbon <2.5 Very Gritty Very Smooth Neither Gritty nor
cm long) Smooth
SANDY SILT LOAM
LOAM LOAM (M)
(MC) (M)
STEP 4 Excessively wet soil (Ribbon 2.5 to Very Gritty Very Smooth Neither Gritty nor
5 cm long) Smooth
SANDY SILTY CLAY
I
CLAY CLAY LOAM (F)
LOAM LOAM
(MC) (F)
 STEP 5 Excessively wet soil (Ribbon >5 cm Very Gritty Very Smooth Neither Gritty nor
long) Smooth
SANDY SILTY CLAY (F)
CLAY CLAY (F)
(MC)

SOIL 2

STEP 1 Soil ball remains when squeezed – Soil ball breaks when squeezed SAND
step 2
STEP 2 Formation of ribbon from the soil – Soil does not form a ribbon LOAMY
step 3-5 SAND
STEP 3 Excessively wet soil (Ribbon <2.5 Very Gritty Very Smooth Neither Gritty nor
cm long) Smooth
SANDY SILT LOAM
LOAM LOAM (M)
(MC) (M)
STEP 4 Excessively wet soil (Ribbon 2.5 to Very Gritty Very Smooth Neither Gritty nor
5 cm long) Smooth
SANDY SILTY CLAY
CLAY CLAY LOAM (F)
LOAM LOAM
(MC) (F)
STEP 5 Excessively wet soil (Ribbon >5 cm Very Gritty Very Smooth Neither Gritty nor
long) Smooth
SANDY SILTY CLAY (F)
I
CLAY CLAY (F)
(MC)
SOIL COLOR

Parameters Hue Value Chroma Soil Color Full Description

OVEN-DRIED SOIL 1 7.5Y 1 2 Brown

OVEN-DRIED SOIL 2 N3 0 0 Grey

FIELD SOIL 3 (surface 7.5Y 1 1 Brown black
soil at location 1)

FIELD SOIL 4 (sub- 7.5Y 1 2 Brown

surface soil at location
1)
FIELD SOIL 5 (surface N3 0 0 Grey
soil at location 2)

FIELD SOIL 6 (sub- N5 0 0 Light Grey

surface soil at location
2)
INTERPRETATION

In soil texture by “Feel Method”, 2 types of soil sample had been used to determine the soil’s
texture for both soil. For the first soil which is dark brown soil, it shown that the soil sample is silt clay
loam due to the texture that was very smooth. The soil passed the step which can form a ball and It can
form ribbon which is 3.5 cm on the first ribbon, another 3.5 cm for the second ribbon and 3.5 cm for the
last ribbon which make the soil can form about 3.5 cm ribbon length and make him classified as silty clay
loam soil that has fine texture and very smooth. For the second soil sample. The second soil sample which
is grey soil shown that the soil sample is clay due to the texture which is neither smooth or gritty. The
sample passed the step which can form a ball and it can form ribbon which is 6 cm on the first ribbon,
another 6 cm for the second ribbon and 6 cm for the last ribbon which make the soil can form 6 cm of
ribbon. The soil classified as clay soil that has fine texture and neither smooth or gritty texture.

Next experiment which was soil color, 6 types of soils had been used on this experiments. For the
first soil that had been dried up for one day shown that the color of soil is brown with the hue is 7.5Y,
value of soil is 1 and the chroma is 2. It shown that the soil maybe had lost mineral since it was left to be
dry up than when it on the field. For the second soil that also been dried up for one day shown that the
color of soil is grey with the hue is N3 with 0 value and chroma. It shown that the soil is not lost a lot of
mineral after been dried up. For the third soil that had been recorded on the field at location 1. The soil
color that had been recorded on the surface is dark brown while the hue is 7.5Y with the value and chroma
are 1 and 1 respectively, for and sub-surface shown that the soil color is brown while the hue is 7.5Y with
the value and chroma respectively are 1 and 2. It shown that the soil maybe had a lot of mineral. And for
the soil that had been recorded on the field at location 2. The soil color that had been recorded on the
surface is grey with the hue is N3 with both value and chroma both are 0, and sub-surface shown the soil
is in light grey color while the hue is N5 with the value and chroma are 0 for both.

ERROR

For soil texture by “Feel Method”, some error can occur when the experiment being conducted.
In this experiment, the soil maybe had been mixed by others foreign matters, so it hard to determine the
soil texture.

For soil color experiment, error can occur when the soil color was not matched closely to the
Munsell color chart and will affect the hue, value, chroma, and even the color of the soil. If the soil is too
wet or too dry, it will difficult to identified the color of the soil and end up picked the wrong color on the
Munsell color chart.

SAFETY

In soil texture by “Feel Method” experiment, possibilities of minor hand’s injury such as cuts can
occur while taking the soil samples if not wearing the proper equipment.

Next, for soil color experiment, the possibilities to get injured due to not use the proper
equipment. The soil probably had dangerous materials that might injured hand.

SUGGESTION

For experiment 2, use the proper equipment to take the soil sample in order to make sure no
incident happen during experiment. Wear glove to protect hand and use shovel to take out some soil
samples.

For experiment 3, use the proper equipment to take out the soil such as wear glove to protect
hand and use shovel to dig the soils. Do not use too much water on the soil in order to get the right color
on Munsell color chart.

ASSESSMENT

1. Describe factors that determines soil color

= Soil color is determined by the mineral composition and organic contents and also the water.
2. Explain why soil can be red in color
= Soil can be red in color because of iron content in the soil. Thin coats occur from the ferric oxides
on particle of the soil.
3. Surface soil normally is black in color. Explain.
= Soil surface usually in black color due to organic matter’s existence and rich of clay with the
chemicals and metals existence.

CONCLUSION

For the experiment 2 conclusion, both the dark brown and gray soil have the fine texture which
were the dark brown soil is silt clay loam soil which was very smooth and the gray soil is clay soil that
neither smooth or gritty.
 For experiment 3 conclusion, students can identify the soil sample by using Munsell color chart
easily and can determine the hue, value, and chroma by using it.

REFERENCES

SOIL TEXTURE BY “FEEL METHOD”

 Queensland Government. (n.d.). Retrieved from Soil Texture:

https://www.qld.gov.au/environment/land/management/soil/soil-properties/texture

 Yong Soon Kong, A. K. (2018). Laboratory Manual for Soil Science and Analysis . In A. K. Yong Soon
Kong, Laboratory Manual for Soil Science and Analysis. UiTM Press.

SOIL COLOR

 Britannica. (n.d.). Retrieved from Munsell Color System:

https://www.britannica.com/science/dispersion-physics

 Yong Soon Kong, A. K. (2018). Laboratory Manual for Soil Science and Analysis . In A. K. Yong Soon
Kong, Laboratory Manual for Soil Science and Analysis. UiTM Press.