LABORATORY EXERCISE No.

2
Determination of Specific Gravity of Soil Solids

I. GENERAL INFORMATION

Date/s and December 10, 2022; 10:00 AM - 11:00 AM

Time/s of
Testing:
Tested by: Andrich Rey D. Cortes

Basic Soil is dark grey, dry, and sandy

Description of
Soil:
Soil Sample CE Hydraulics Laboratory, Ateneo de Davao University, Roxas Ave,
Taken From: Poblacion District, Davao City, 8000 Davao del Sur

II. MEASUREMENTS

Specific Gravity Test Data Mark Results

Trail 1 Trial 2 Trial 3

Mass of Empty Pycnometer m1 13.39 g 13.44 g 13.46 g

Mass of Pycnometer+ Sample, g m2 59.75 g 56.21 g 62.29 g

Mass of Pycnometer + Sample + m3 95.88 g 93.84 g 97.80 g

Water, g

Mass of Pycnometer Completely m4 67.32 67.44 g 67.30 g

Filled with Water Only

III. EQUATIONS, GRAPHS, AND CALCULATION SPACE

General Formula:
𝑀2−𝑀1
𝐺𝑠 = (𝑀4−𝑀1)−(𝑀3−𝑀2)

` Trial 1
59.75 − 13.39
𝐺𝑠 = (67.32−13.39)−(95.88−59.75)
= 2. 60

Trial 2
56.21 − 13.44
𝐺𝑠 = (67.44−13.44)−(93.84−56.21)
= 2. 61
 Trial 2
62.29 − 13.46
𝐺𝑠 = (67.30−13.46)−(97.80−62.29)
= 2. 66

Average
2.60+2.61+2.66
𝐺𝑠𝑎𝑣𝑒 = 3
= 2. 62

IV. DISCUSSION OF RESULTS

Three trials were performed to determine the specific gravity of the soil sample. To obtain
the specific gravity of the soil sample, the masses of the empty pycnometer, pycnometer with
the soil sample, pycnometer with the soil sample and water, and pycnometer with water must be
determined. The pycnometer had varying masses in different trials, and these were 13.39 g,
13.44 g, and 13.46 g. Also, since the height of the soil sample was not fixed in all trials, the
masses of the pycnometer with the soil sample varied. These were 59.75 g, 56.21 g, and 62.29
g. On the other hand, the masses of the pycnometer with the sample and water were 95.88 g,
93.84 g, and 97.80 g. Finally, the masses of the pycnometer with water only were 67.32 g, 67.44
g, and 67.30 g. With these data gathered, the computed specific gravity of the soil samples for
trials 1, 2, and 3 were 2.60, 2.61, and 2.66, respectively. The average specific gravity was 2.62.
V. CONCLUSION & RECOMMENDATION
The specific gravity of a soil solid is an important property of soil. It is defined as the
weight of a given volume of soil to the weight of an equal volume of distilled water. Thus, it is
vital to determine the specific gravity of soil to how much heavier or lighter the soil is than water
and can be used to analyze soil for different purposes. In this laboratory experiment, the specific
gravity of the sandy soil sample was determined by weighing the masses of the empty
pycnometer, pycnometer with the soil sample, pycnometer with the soil sample and water, and
pycnometer with only water.
The average specific gravity of the soil sample was 2.62, which indicates that the soil
sample is 2.62 times heavier than water. For sandy soil, the specific gravity ranges from 2.63 to
2.67. However, the sandy soil sample did not fall under this range which means that there were
several errors made during the experiment.
As stated earlier, there were various sources of errors that caused the erroneous results.
First, the mass of the water is assumed to be constant as the temperature increases. In theory,
there must be a reduction in the mass of water. However, in the experiment, when calibrating
the mass-temperature relationship of the water, there was no reduction in the mass observed.
This may be caused by two reasons: (1) the weighing balance used is only precise to the third
decimal place, which is also in kg, and (2) the interval of the temperature change is low.
Furthermore, the water that was used in the experiment was tap water and not distilled water.
Thus, it is recommended that distilled water since that was indicated in the laboratory manual.
Moreover, the were varying amounts of soil and water placed in the pycnometer. Hence, it is
recommended that the soil sample must have the same height in the pycnometer across all the
trials. Lastly, the pycnometer was not dry, causing the mass of an empty pycnometer to vary in
the different trials.
VI. DOCUMENTATION
Video Documentation:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/16Og0X7OChQ47umO-kLfPOjZtyAIDwCUl/view?usp=share_link

Lab Equipment Handling Form:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1yFOQiTrnNMuJXo3Tz1bb0ebiRlwoW-kb/view?usp=share_link

Submitted by: Noted by:

ANDRICH REY D. CORTES ENGR. KEN P. COSARES

____________________________________ ____________________________________
(SIGNATURE OVER PRINTED NAME) Course Professor