NDUHURA RONALD

ronald146@gmail.com
0774145729/0703117592
NDEJJE UNIVERSITY

PROJECT: UPGRADING OF ATIAK-LAROPI ROAD [66 KM] TO PAVED

SATANDARD

INTRODUCTION

INDUSTRIAL TRAINING

This is a study module that exposes and introduces students to the real engineering practical work on
site and it involves attaining practical skills, competence and experiences as concerns the field of
engineering.

Industrial training is one of the basic practical requirements for a student pursuing a Bachelor’s degree
in civil Engineering at Ndejje University.

It is meant to equip students with first hand practical knowledge and skills regarding to the theoretical
studies they attend to in lecture rooms during the first, second, and third years of study.

Objectives of industrial training

 To provide an opportunity to students to apply principles and techniques theoretically learnt

from class into real life problem solving.
 To enable students get hands on experience in real life work situations that they are expected to
work in when they graduate.
 To develop students ‘understanding of work ethics, employment demands, responsibilities and
opportunities in the field.
 To provide opportunity to students and the academic staff to interact with stakeholders and
potential employers so as to appreciate field operations that can generate information for
curricular review and improvement at the university.
 To enhance and strengthen the linkages between the university and various stakeholders.

Industrial training with EPTISA STRABAG

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ronald146@gmail.com
0774145729/0703117592
NDEJJE UNIVERSITY

BACKGROUND OF THE SITE

The upgrading of the Atiak-Laropi-Road to Paved Standard started on 1st June 2020. The 66 km
road starts in Atiak at a junction off the Gulu – Atiak - Nimule road and runs in a north-westerly
direction through the towns of Zapi, Pekelle and Adjumani town to the end showers of the Albert
Nile at Laropi in MOYO District.

OVERVIEWS

The existing gravel surfaced road was dusty and pot holed and developed gullies which present
navigational challenges during dry and rainy season respectively and was to widened and
upgraded to grade 11 Bitumen standard with culverts, shoulders and drainage channels. It is to
be widened up to 700 m carriageway plus 2 x 200 m shoulders.

The project is being implemented by STRABAG/ ZUBLIN International as the contractor, the
Uganda National Roads Authority as the supervisor and Eptisa Servicios de Ingenieria, S.L. as
the supervisor’s representative.

The project includes the construction of landing piers on both banks of the Albert Nile

Industrial training with EPTISA STRABAG

 NDUHURA RONALD
ronald146@gmail.com
0774145729/0703117592
NDEJJE UNIVERSITY

Figure 1 showing Layout of the road

Industrial training with EPTISA STRABAG

 NDUHURA RONALD
ronald146@gmail.com
0774145729/0703117592
NDEJJE UNIVERSITY

SITE layout
Site at chainage KM 31+400.The site camp for the project accommodates, offices laboratory, workshop,
petrol station and staff.
Stationary machines i.e. cranes and batch plants for asphalt production which are in a fixed position in
the quarry for their entire duration on the site. Once located, these objects either cannot be relocated,
or are not desired to be relocated.
It also has an increased number of moving objects for example trucks and earthmoving equipment e.g.
bulldozers, rollers, compactors etc. Which perform their task by moving on the site .The Company has a
workshop that facilitates parking, repair and maintenance of these moving machines. This work shop is
located at a bit distance to eradicated noise pollution to the offices

Site was organized depending on the productivity, safety, and security .To realizes these
objectives.
The productivity increment on the site project was reached minimizing the travel distance
between the offices and the residence of the prominent workers by the construction of their
places of residence near their respective offices that eased supervision of the project
The project has two stores for the equipment and materials at the camp and at the quarry of
which both are near the guard houses making the storage visible which provided safety
The site has access roads and on-site paths which efficiently worked on to decrease the time and cost
of handling resources and can improve the safety on construction sites during transportation.

ACTIVITIES IN THE FIRST WEEK

 Site visiting of the project

 Laboratory tests
INTRODUCTION

On arriving at the site in the morning on Tuesday, 14th may 2022, I was taken around the various
offices where I was introduced to the various people in the different EPTISA offices;
Supervisors, surveying’s and Materials Engineer, Eng. kodall who took me to the laboratory
department place from where I meet senior laboratory assistants and technicians who highlighted
on the different tests being done in this project. These tests include basing in British standard,

Industrial training with EPTISA STRABAG

 NDUHURA RONALD
ronald146@gmail.com
0774145729/0703117592
NDEJJE UNIVERSITY

o Atterberg limits Test (LL,PL,PI)

o Particle Size Distribution Test.
o California Bearing Ratio Test.
o Sand Replacement Method test
o particle size distribution test
o moisture content determination
o Moisture Content Test
o Specific Gravity Test by Pycnometer Method.

VISITING OF THE ROAD PROJECT

I was taken around the road project Eng. DAVIS MUGUMYA where I saw and appreciated the
various activities that were taking place i.e. excavation and concrete works at chainage 0+044 ,
surveying cut and fill at different chainages.

The following tests were carried in the same week,

MDD AND OMC TEST

This was performed as BS 1377: part 4: 1990.

It was to obtain relationships between compacted dry density and soil moisture content, using
two magnitudes of manual Compactive effort. The test was used to provide a guide for
specification on the field compaction.

The moisture content which gives the highest dry density is called the optimum moisture
content for the type of compaction which is less than plastic limit

Apparatus

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NDEJJE UNIVERSITY

Standard Proctor mold, Straight edge, mixing tray, scoop, Moisture content tins, Electric oven,
Electric balance, Light rammer 4.5Kg dropped at a height of 450mm at a 5 number of
compacted layers and measuring cylinder

PROCEDURES FOR THE DETERMINATION OF THE COMPACTION TEST BS HEAVY

• Preparation of 5 samples each of 6kg of material passing through the 20mm test sieve
and riffled.
 Samples prepared for light compaction were given 27 blows for 3 layers; this was
performed for all the 5 test samples prepared while varying moisture content gradually
such that at least 2 values lay either side of the optimum moisture content.
 With known weights of mold and base plate, the collar was attached and the whole
mold set placed on affirm compaction platform.
 After successful compaction exercise, trimming of the compacted sample was done by
use of a straight edge.
 The weight of the compacted sample and the mold was taken.
 Take a representative sample of min 300g from the mold for moisture content
determination.
 Discard the remainder of the sample.
 This whole process shall be carried out for all the reimaging 4 portions
 After 24 hours, moisture content was determined then the bulk density and dry density
of compacted soil sample was also calculated.

(Mass of compacted soil∈mould )

Bulk density ¿
(Volume of the mould )

Dry density = (Bulk density*100)/MC+100

Then a graph of Dry density against moisture was plotted and Maximum dry density was read
off at the peak of the graph with Optimum moisture content.

ATTERBERG LIMITS TESTS

These are classification tests which are carried out on the fraction of soil that passes through a
0.425mm sieve which are used to determine moisture content at which fined grained clay and silt
soils transition between the different phases.

These tests include;

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NDEJJE UNIVERSITY

1. Liquid limit test, Cone penetrometer method using BS1377:Part 2

This test was carried out to establish moisture content at which a soil changes to plastic state
from liquid state.

It is based on the penetration of the tip gauge into the soil of a standardized cone

EQUIPMENTS

 A tight polythene bag

 A flat glass plate
 Two spatulas
 A penetrometer
 A cone stainless steel
 An evaporating dish
 An oven
 Wash bottle containing clean water
 A metal straight edge
 Balance (0.01g accuracy
 Sieve [425 micron]
 Cone penetrometer

Preparation of a sample

After receiving the soil sample it is dried in air .If clods are there in soil sample then it is broken
with the help of wooden mallet.

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0774145729/0703117592
NDEJJE UNIVERSITY

Add water to the soil sample on the glass plate that passed through a 0.425mm sieve and mix it
thoroughly with the spatulas to obtain a thick homogeneous paste .place it in water tight
polythene for 16 hours to enable water to spread throughout the soil.

Procedures

1. About 400g of the sample is placed on a glass plate and mixed for 10 minutes.
2. Add more distilled water if necessary so that the first cone penetrometer reading is about
15mm
3. Then the wet soil paste is transferred to the cylindrical cup of cone penetrometer
apparatus, ensuring that no air is trapped in this process.
4. Finally the wet soil is leveled up to the top of the cup and placed on the base of the cone
penetrometer apparatus.
5. The penetrometer is so adjusted that the cone point just touches the surface of the soil
paste in the cup and the initial ready is to be taken.
6. The vertical clamp is then released allowing the cone to penetrate into soil paste under its
own weight for 5 seconds.
7. After 5 seconds the penetration of the cone is noted to the nearest millimeter
8. Lift out the cone and clean it carefully.
9. Take a moisture content sample of about 20g from the area penetrated to the oven at
about 1100c and determine the moisture content
10. The cup is washed and dried each time the soil is removed for the addition of water.
11. The test is repeated at least to have four sets of values of penetration in the range of 14 to
28 mm.
12. The exact moisture content of each trial is determined

Calculation

 A graph representing moisture content on Y – axis and the cone penetration on X – axis
is prepared. A best fitting straight line is then drawn.
 The moisture content corresponding to cone penetration of 20 mm. is taken as the liquid
limit of the soil.

Industrial training with EPTISA STRABAG

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ronald146@gmail.com
0774145729/0703117592
NDEJJE UNIVERSITY

Precautions

 Soil used for liquid limit determination should not be oven dried prior to testing.
 After mixing the water to the soil sample , sufficient time of 16 -24hrs should be given to
permeate the water throughout out the soil mass
 Wet soil taken in the container for moisture content determination should not be left open
in the air; the container with soil sample should immediately be weighed.

2. PLASTIC LIMIT TEST

The plastic limit of a soil is the moisture content at which soil becomes too dry to be plastic,
expressed as a percentage of the weight of the oven-dry soil, at the boundary between the plastic
and semisolid states of consistency. It is the moisture content at which a soil will just begin to
crumble when rolled into a thread (3 mm) in diameter using a ground glass plate or other
acceptable surface.

The results of two trials must be obtained to obtain their average. This method is based Upon BS
1377 Part 2:1990

APPARATUS

 Evaporating dishes
 Pulverizing apparatus - mortar and rubber covered pestle.

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NDEJJE UNIVERSITY

 (0.425 mm) sieve.

 Spatula
 Balance sensitive to 0.01 g.
 Watering bottle
 distilled water
 Oven

PREPARATION OF TEST SAMPLE

It is prepared in a continuance of the liquid limit test; a test material of 40g could be prepared
conveniently as part of the liquid limit test.

PROCEDURE

 Allow the soil sample to partially dry until it becomes plastic enough to be shaped into a
ball
 Squeeze and roll test sample into an ellipsoidal shaped mass.
 Roll this mass between the fingers or palm of hand until the heat of the hands has dried
the soil sufficiently for slight cracks to appear on its surface
 Divide the sample into 2 sub samples and carry out separate determination on each
portion
 Divide each of the two sub samples into more 4 samples
 Mold the soil in the fingers to equalize the distribution of moisture.
 Form the soil into a thread about 6mm diameter between the first finger and thumb of
each hand
 Use enough pressure to reduce the diameter of the thread to about 3mm in 5 to 10
forward and back movements of the hand
 Pick up the soil , mould it between the fingers to dry it further, form it into a thread and
roll it out again as specified above
 The procedure shall be repeated until the thread shears both longitudinally and
transversely when rolled to about 3mm diameter.
 The first crumbling point id the plastic limit

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 Gather together the pieces of crumbled soil thread and transfer them to the suitable
container for the determination of the moisture content and replace the lid immediately.
 Repeat the rolling process on the other 3 portions of the sub sample ,placing them in the
container for the determination of moisture content
 Repeat the rolling procedures on the 2nd sub sample as described above so that second
complete separate determinations are made

The two moisture contents are averaged to obtain the plastic limit if the test results vary
appreciably by 0.5% moisture content. Then calculate the average of the of the 2 moisture
content values and express it to the result to the nearest whole number. This is the plastic limit

PLASTICITY INDEX, Ip

This is the difference between the liquid limit (Wl ) and the plastic limit ( Wp)

LINEAR SHRINKAGE TEST

The shrinkage Limit Test is one of the Atterberg Limits methods of defining characteristics of
cohesive soils. The shrinkage limit of cohesive soils is defined as the water content at which
further loss of moisture will not cause a decrease in volume .Soil sample test is usually taken
from a larger sample prepared for liquid and plastic limit tests

Procedures

 Determination of penetration 20mm, and put in the greased mold with the
palette knife.
 Remove Air bubbles or voids by lightly tapping the base of the
mold on a flat rubber mat.
 Slightly overfill the mold and then level off the excess
soil with a palette knife.
 Remove all soil adhering to the rim and edge of the
mold by wiping with a damp cloth to stop friction between the soil in the mold and any
adhering to the edges of the mold.
 Air dry the soil water mixture in the mold slowly at room temperature for 12 to 24 hours
and then transfer it to an oven and dry to constant weight at 105oC.

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NDEJJE UNIVERSITY

 Allow the mold and the dry soil to cool and measure the mean length of the soil bar to the
nearest millimeter. If the soil bar has cracked into pieces during drying, carefully
reposition the cracked edges together, then firmly hold the separate parts together and
measure the bar’s length. If the soil bar is curved, remove it carefully and measure the
length of the top and bottom
surfaces with a piece of string.
 The mean of the two lengths is the length of the soil bar.

Note: Curling and curving can be prevented by slow drying of the mound and soil- water
mixture. This can be done by air drying for periods of 48-72 hours the oven drying of
60oC – 65oC until shrinkage has largely ceased, and then at 105oC to 110oC to complete
the drying.

The linear shrinkage of the soil is calculated as a percentage

of the original length of the soil bar in the mound from the equation:
Ls
Percentage of the linear shrinkage = (1- ) * 100 to the nearest 0.5%
L
Where L is the length of the mold
Ls id the length of the soil bar

Industrial training with EPTISA STRABAG