Republic of the Philippines

BATANGAS STATE UNIVERSITY

The National Engineering University
Alangilan Campus
Golden Country Homes, Alangilan, Batangas City, Batangas, Philippines 4200
Tel Nos.: (+63 43) 425-0139 loc. 2121 / 2221
E-mail Address: ceafa@g.batstate-u.edu.ph | Website Address: http://www.batstate-u.edu.ph

College of Engineering

Department of Civil Engineering

Laboratory Experiment No. 4

Determination of Organic Content

In Partial Fulfillment of the

Requirements for the subject
Geotechnical Engineering I (Soil Mechanics)

Submitted By:
Deynata, Dio Rafael C.
Manaig, Kathleen Anne M.
Montealto, Elaine D.
Otero, Bea Mae C.
Ponce, Stephanie Kate C.
Group No. 2

Submitted To:
Engr. Emmanuel P. Maala

October 1, 2022

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PURPOSE
This test is performed to determine the organic content of soils. The organic content is
the ratio, expressed as a percentage, of the mass of organic matter in a given mass of soil to
the mass of the dry soil solids.

STANDARD REFERENCE
ASTM D2974-14 -Standard Test Methods for Moisture, Ash, and Organic Matter of Peat
and Organic Soils.

MATERIALS AND EQUIPMENT

● Oven
● Balance
● Gloves
● Tongs
● Moisture can or porcelain dish
● Spatula

PROCEDURES
1. Determine and record the mass of the moisture can.
2. Place 50g of oven-dried sample in the moisture can. Soft lumps in the sample should
be crushed using a spoon or spatula. The thickness of the sample in the can should not
exceed 3cm.
3. Determine and record the mass of the moisture can plus the soil sample.
4. Place the moisture can with the soil sample in the oven for at least 16 hours at 110 ±
5℃.
5. Remove the moisture can using tongs and allow it to cool to room temperature.
6. Weigh the sample and record the mass.

DATA ANALYSIS/COMPUTATION
1. Calculate the mass of the dry soil.
2. Calculate the mass of the ashed (burned) soil.
3. Calculate the mass organic matter.
4. Calculate the organic mass (content).

Tabulations:

Sample 1 2

MC = Mass of empty, clean moisture can (g) 12 12

MCD = Mass of moisture can and dry soil (g) 62 62

MCA = Mass of moisture can and ash/burned soil (g) 48 57

MD = Mass of the dry soil (g) 50 50

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 MA = Mass of the ash/burned soil (g) 36 45

MO = Mass of organic matter (g) 14 5

OM = Organic Matter, % 28 10

Calculations:
Mass of the Dry Soil
MD1 = 62 g - 12 g = 50 g
MD2 = 62 g - 12 g = 50 g
Mass of the Ashed Soil
MA1 = 48 g - 12 g = 36 g
MA2 = 57 g - 12 g = 45 g
Mass of the Organic Matter
MO1 = MD1 - MA1 = 50 g - 36 g = 14 g
MO2 = MD2 - MA2 = 50 g - 45 g = 5 g
Percentage of the Organic Matter (%)
OM1 = (MO1/MD1)*100 = (14 g/50 g)*100 = 28%
OM2 = (MO2/MD2)*100 = (5 g/50 g)*100 = 10%

DISCUSSION
In this exercise, the percentage of the organic matter was determined by obtaining the
masses of the dry soil, ashed or burned soil, and organic matter. The mass of the dry soil of
samples 1 and 2 both obtained 50 grams by subtracting the mass of the moisture can and dry
soil to the mass of empty, clean moisture can. Similarly, the mass of the ashed soil was
obtained by subtracting the mass of the moisture can and ashed or burned soil to the mass of
the empty, clean moisture can. 36 grams and 45 grams were then obtained for samples 1 and
2, respectively. Moreover, the mass of the organic matter is calculated by subtracting the
mass of the ashed soil from the mass of the dry soil. Sample 1 got 14 g and sample 2 got 5 g
of organic matter. Finally, to calculate the percentage of organic matter, the quotient of mass
of organic matter and mass of the dry soil is multiplied by 100 wherein sample 1 got 28%,
while sample 2 got 10%.

SUMMARY/CONCLUSION
Organic matter benefits the soil in a number of ways. It is the reservoir of water and
nutrients in the soil, which helps keep the water infiltration high and also helps in reducing
soil compaction. More than that, organic matter also affects the engineering properties and
behavior of soil. Several studies have revealed that organic content has an influence on soil’s
shear strength and compaction characteristics. According to research by Ekwue (1990), the
presence of organic material decreases soil stability but does not affect the strength of
individual aggregates. Since the high presence of organic matter in soil detriment its
engineering qualities, knowing its amount is significant to know what sort of stabilization
may be applied to improve its capacity and make it suitable for construction purposes.

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 In this laboratory exercise, the data were already collected so we only had to compute
and analyze the results. Both sample 1 and 2 has a dry mass of 50g. After putting the samples
in the oven, the two samples conveyed different amounts of organic matter. It was computed
that sample 1 has 14g of organic matter which is 28% of its original mass. Meanwhile,
sample 2 has 5g of organic matter and is 10% of the original mass. Since the two samples are
obtained from different locations, it is only right that they produced different amounts.
Although in some cases, samples found in a close area could also have different
characteristics.
In conclusion, the sample from BatStateU Alangilan Campus (sample 1) consists of
more organic matter than the sample obtained from Malitam, Batangas City.

RECOMMENDATION
● Since the data acquired from the experiment is used to evaluate the characteristic of
soil, it is important to make sure that the samples are weighed accurately.
● Tabulate the data so it would be convenient to plug into the formulas for computation.

DOCUMENTATION

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REFERENCES

Abdallah IHusein Malkawia, A. S.-S. (1999). Effects of organic matter on the physical
and the physicochemical properties of an illitic soil. Applied Clay Science,
257-278.

Al-Rawi, D. O. (2017). Effect of Organic Content on the Engineering Properties of

Jordanian Clayey Soils. International Journal of Civil Engineering and
Technology (IJCIET).

Greeshma Pradeep, T. V. (2015). Effect of Organic Matter on the Geotechnical

Properties of Soil and Impact of Lime-Salt Stabilization in Strength
Improvement of Organic. International Journal of Engineering Research &
Technology (IJERT).

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