NAME:

COURSE AND SECTION:

CE-12 LAB
SOIL MECHANICS

SIEVE ANALYSIS OF SOIL

OBJECTIVES: At the end of the test, the students must be able to:

a.) Find the grain size distribution of a sample.

b.) Produce a grain size distribution curve.

GENERAL DISCUSSION: The grain size test is an exercise in identifying the size of sand/soil grains present.
The sizes when plotted on a grain size curve will be a guide to the interpretation of the different grain size
& it can also be a source for the identification of the original sand/soil. A characteristic of sand/soil that
can be identified from the grain size chart is whether the sand/soil is well graded or not.

MATERIALS: 1000- 1500 grams of oven dried sample.

APPARATUS: Scoop, short hand bristled brush, set of sieves, balance w/ 0.1-gram accuracy, aluminum
tray & oven w/ temperature control.

PROCEDURE:

1. Weigh original sample.

2. Oven dry sample.

3. Cool to room temperature.

4. Weigh oven dried sample materials & record.

5. Nests the sieve in order to size, the course at the top & a receiver at the bottom.

6. Pour sample into top sieve & place the set on the shaker.

7. Set the shaker timer to 10 mins. or until a negligible quantity of the sample passes motion sieve. But in
hand sieving, lateral & vertical motion of the size should be accompanied.

8. Remove each size one at a time. Turn each sieve upside down on a tray & brush it clean.

9. Weigh the sample retained on each individual sieve & record. Note that the sum of the weight of the
material retained on each sieve at the end of analysis must be equal to the total weigh of the sample
at the beginning. It is important that an accurate record is kept of the weighs (to the nearest 0.1 gram)
of all the materials and any container used of all stages of the analysis

10.Convert the result to give the percentage passing of each sieve. The percentage should be of the
original total mass of each size.
 WORKSHEET FOR SIEVE ANALYSIS

Mass of original sample:

Mass of oven dry:

Mass of the container:

Mass of wash oven dry:

Moisture content:

Sieve size Weight Weight % Passing % Retained Governing REMARKS

(mm) Retained Passing Specs Passing

75

63

50

37.5

25

19

12.5

9.5

4.75

2.0

0.425

0.075

Pan

TOTAL