Week 3. CE322 Volume-Weight Relationship

Physical
Properties of
Soil Part 1:
Weight - Volume
Relationship
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Weight – Volume Relationship
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(a) Soil element in natural state; (b) three phases of the soil element
Assuming that the weight of the air is negligible, we can express the total weight of the sample as:
Where:
Va = Volume of air
Vs = Volume of soil
Vw = Volume of water
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Volumetric
Relationship
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The following five volumetric relationship are widely used in soil engineering:
1. VOID RATIO (e)
- is defined as the ratio of the volume of voids to the volume of solids.
The void ratio is expressed

as a decimal (such as 0.4,
0.5, etc). For coarse-
grained soils, the void ratio
is generally smaller than
that for fine-grained soils.
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2. POROSITY (n)
- is defined as the ratio of the volume of voids to the total volume
Porosity is generally expressed

as a percentage. The porosity of
a soil cannot exceed 100% as it
would mean Vv is greater than V,
which is absurd. In fact, it will
have a much smaller value.
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Porosity is also known as

percentage voids.
Relationship between Porosity and Void Ratio

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3. DEGREE OF SATURATION (S)
- is defined as the ratio of the volume of water to the volume of voids
Degree of saturation is
generally expressed as a
percentage. It is equal to
zero when the soil is
absolutely dry and 100%
when the soil is fully
saturated.
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4. PERCENTAGE AIR VOIDS (na)
- is the ratio of the volume of air to the total volume
5. AIR CONTENT (ac)

- is the ratio of the volume of air to the volume of voids
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Weight
Relationship
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The following two weight relationship are widely used in soil engineering:
1. MOISTURE CONTENT (w)
- is also referred to as water content and is defined as the ratio of the weight of water to
the weight of solids in a given volume of soil
The water content is also known as the

moisture content. It is expressed as a
percentage. The water content of the sine-
grained soils (silts and clay) is generally
more than that of the coarse-grained soils
(gravel and sand). The water content of
some of the fine-grained soils may be even
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more than 100%, which indicates that more

than 50% of the total mass that of water.
2. UNIT WEIGHT (γ)
- is the weight of soil per unit volume
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The unit weight can also be expressed in terms of the weight of soil solids, the moisture
content, and the total volume:
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Volume-Mass
Relationship
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The volume-mass relationship are in term of mass density
1. BULK MASS DENSITY (ρ)
- is defined as the total mass (M) per unit total volume (V).
The bulk mass density is also known as the wet mass density or
simply bulk density or density. It is expressed in kg/m3, Mg/m3 or
gm/ml. 1Mg/m3 = 1000 kg/m3 = 1 gm/ml
2. DRY MASS DENSITY (ρd)

- is defined as the mass of solids (Ms) per unit total volume (V)
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3. SATURATED MASS DENSITY (ρsat)
- is defined as bulk mass density of the soil when it is fully saturated
4. SUBMERGED MASS DENSITY

- When the soil exists below water, it is in a submerged condition. When a volume of
soil (V) is submerged in water, it displaces an equal volume of water.
- Is defined as the submerged mass per unit of total volume.
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5. MASS DENSITY OF SOLIDS (ρs)
- is equal to the ratio of the mass of solids to the volume of solids.
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Volume-Weight
Relationship in
terms of Unit
Weights
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The volume-weight relationship are in term of unit weight
1. BULK UNIT WEIGHT
- is defined as the total weight per unit total volume
The bulk unit weight is also known as the total unit weight or the wet
unit weight. It is expressed as N/m3 of kN/m3.
2. DRY UNIT WEIGHT

- is defined as the weight of solids per unit total volume.
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3. SATURATED UNIT WEIGHT
- is defined as the bulk unit weight when the soil is fully saturated
4. SUBMERGED UNIT WEIGHT

- When the soil exists below water, it is in a submerged condition.
- Is defined as the submerged weight per unit of total volume.
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5. UNIT WEIGHT OF SOIL SOLIDS
- is equal to the ratio of the weight of solids to the volume of solids
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Relationships among
Unit Weight, Void Ratio,
Moisture Content,
and Specific Gravity
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Relationships among Unit Weight, Void Ratio, Moisture Content, and Specific Gravity
To obtain a relationship among unit weight
(or density), void ratio, and moisture
content, let us consider a volume of soil in
which the volume of the soil solids is one.
The weights of soil solids and water can be

given as:
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Specific gravity of soil solids (Gs)

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Unit weight of sol:
Dry unit weight of sol:
Void ratio
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Degree of saturation
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If the soil sample is saturated—that is, the

void spaces are completely filled with water.
saturated unit weight (ysat)
S = 1, thus
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Densities
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Relationships among
Unit Weight,
Porosity, and
Moisture Content
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Relationships among Unit Weight, Porosity, and Moisture Content
Porosity
The weight of soil solids (Ws) and the weight

of water (Ww)
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dry unit weight
moist unit weight

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Soil sample that is saturated and has V = 1
Saturated unit weight
Moisture content of a saturated sample

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Various Unit Weight

Relationships
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Various Unit Weight Relationships
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Various Unit Weight Relationships
Void Ratio, Moisture Content, and Dry Unit Weight for Some Typical Soils in a Natural State
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Relative Density
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Relative Density
- commonly used to indicate the in situ denseness or looseness of granular soil. It is
defined as:
where
Dr = relative density, usually given as a percentage
e = in situ void ratio of the soil
emax = void ratio of the soil in the loosest state
emin = void ratio of the soil in the densest state
The values of Dr may vary from a minimum of Qualitative Description of Granular Soil Deposits
0% for very loose soil to a maximum of 100%
for very dense soils. Soils engineers
qualitatively describe the granular soil deposits
according to their relative densities. In-place
soils seldom have relative densities less than
20 to 30%. Compacting a granular soil to a
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relative density greater than about 85% is

difficult.
Relative Density
The relationships for relative density can also be defined in terms of porosity:
where nmax and nmin porosity of the soil in the loosest and densest conditions, respectively.
Substituting these equations, the Dr is:
where
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Yd(min) = dry unit weight in the loosest condition (at a void ratio of emax)
Yd = in situ dry unit weight (at a void ratio of e)
Yd(max) = dry unit weight in the densest condition (at a void ratio of emin)
Thank You!
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Week 3. CE322 Volume-Weight Relationship

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Physical

The void ratio is expressed

Porosity is generally expressed

Porosity is also known as

Relationship between Porosity and Void Ratio

5. AIR CONTENT (ac)

The water content is also known as the

more than 100%, which indicates that more

2. DRY MASS DENSITY (ρd)

4. SUBMERGED MASS DENSITY

2. DRY UNIT WEIGHT

4. SUBMERGED UNIT WEIGHT

The weights of soil solids and water can be

Specific gravity of soil solids (Gs)

Unit weight of sol:

Dry unit weight of sol:

If the soil sample is saturated—that is, the

saturated unit weight (ysat)

The weight of soil solids (Ws) and the weight

moist unit weight

Saturated unit weight

Moisture content of a saturated sample

Various Unit Weight

relative density greater than about 85% is

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