Module 4 GEO

UNIVERSITY OF LA SALETTE, INC.
College of Engineering and Architecture

Dubinan East, Santiago City
MODULE 4: SUPERFICIAL DEPOSITS
Introduction
Soils. The term regolith is used to include the mantle of surface deposits and soils overlying the
bedrock. The regolith may vary in thickness from less than 1 m to over 30 m; its density, usually
between 1.5 and 2, is less than that of rock.
Geologists and engineers give different meanings to the word ‘soil’. Geologists use the term to
refer to any rock waste, produced by the disintegration of rocks at the surf ace by weathering
processes, which has formed in situ. These untransported surface deposits are called sedentry or
residual deposits.
In contrast, engineers use the term ‘soil’ more widely and more loosely, to describe any
superficial or superficial deposit which can be excavated without blasting. This definition covers
transported sediments as well as residual deposits. Thus, engineers would regard ‘soil’ as
including water-transported sediments (alluvium), wind transported material (dunes and loess),
sediment transported by glaciers or their melt waters (till or glacial drift) and material moved
downhill by gravity (colluvium), and these will be discussed in this module. You are also
referred to the discussion of sedimentary rocks. Some rocks (such as London Clay) may even be
thought of as ‘soil’ by the engineer, since these can be easily excavated.
Learning Outcomes
At the end of module 4 you are expected to:
1. explain what is the geological importance of superficial deposits;
2. list and explain the definitions of the three soil separates as used in the twelve major soil
classes of the USDA Textural Classification System.
3. correctly classify each soil sample into one of the twelve major USDA textural classes using
USDA soil texture triangle.
MODERN RESIDUAL SOILS

Soil development and engineering grades of weathering
Most modern soils are developed on top of other superficial deposits, which are either
transported or residual. In the latter case, the present-day soil is developed from an older one.
Only occasionally is the development of soils taking place immediately on top of solid bedrock,
with a continuous gradation into it. A profile through a modern soil typically shows, from top to
bottom, plant debris grading downwards into decaying organic matter, which in turn grades into
the weathered parental material or saprolite.
Figure 3.5 shows a typical residual deposit developed by weathering in situ above bedrock. The
bedrock shows a gradual change upwards from fresh rock into weathered rock showing
discolouration, and then into more severely weathered material, which increases in amount until
this module is for the exclusive use of the University of La Salette, Inc. Any form of reproduction, distribution,
uploading, or posting online in any form or by any means without the written permission of the university is
strictly prohibited.
1
all the rock mass is decomposed. The rock mass may decompose to give either a continuous
framework, in which structures originally occurring in the rock mass appear as ghost structures,
or corestones, which gradually decompose nearer the surface.
To describe the degree of weathering of the rock mass from which an overlying residual soil has
formed, engineers have devised a descriptive scheme for grading the progressive changes. This is
shown in Table 3.1. All grades of weathering may be visible in a large rock mass, with variation
in grade related to the relative ease with which water has penetrated at different points. This is
likely to be determined by the presence of open cracks in the rock mass.
In Figure 3.5, the grade of weathering of the rock mass has been indicated at various levels in the
residual deposit. Note that the thicknesses of the zones in the residual deposits shown in Figure
3.5 are highly variable. Zone II may vary up to 5 m but discolouration may extend along joints
and cracks deep into the rock mass. Zone III is usually between 2 and 6 m thick and zone IV can
be many tens of meters thick. Zone V is variable and zone VI usually thin, 2 m or less.
Soil description
The decomposition of the organic matter produces a variety of acids, the most important of
which is carbonic acid. These acids move downwards and react with existing minerals at lower
levels in the soil, producing soluble components which in turn move downwards. The soil layer
in which these reactions occur and from which soluble compounds are removed is called the
leached (or eluviated) layer, or the A horizon. The soluble components are deposited below it in
the illuviated layer (the B horizon). These uppermost three layers (the organic debris, the A
horizon and the B horizon) comprise the solum. Below it there is minimal solution and
redeposition in the C and R horizons; C consists of weathered and R of fresh parental material
(Fig. 3.6).
2
Figure 3.5 Two typical residual deposits overlying bedrock. (a) Continuous framework with
ghost structures (a structured saprolite) appearing in the decomposed rock, with total
decomposition (a massive saprolite) occurring just below the modern soil layer. (b) Corestone
development from the original bedrock, with corestones decreasing upwards until total
decomposition again occurs just below the modern soil layer.
3
In humid regions, acidic soils called pedalfers occur. Aluminium and iron are removed from the
leached layer and precipitated as oxide or hydrated oxide at greater depths, but usually within
0.5m of the surface. This process of solution and precipitation is called podzolisation, and the
soils are called podzols. The original alkali elements (sodium, potassium, barium and calcium)
go into solution and are eventually carried away from the soil by drainage.
Only the upper layer of the soil in arid regions receives any moisture, and there is no seepage
through it. Organic material and carbon dioxide are also scarce and, as a consequence,
carbonates are precipitated within the soil. Alkaline soils of this type with carbonate layers are
called pedocals. They are closed chemical systems from which nothing is removed, unlike
pedalfers, which are open systems.
Figure 3.6 Profiles of two major kinds of soil. (a) Acid soils from which soluble constituents are
removed by water draining from the bottom of the profile, characteristic of humid regions. (b)
Alkaline soils from which water is insufficient to drain all the way through the ground,
characteristic of arid or semi-arid regions.
In arid regions where soils are enriched in lime, a layer of caliche may be formed. Such a deposit
is formed on a peneplain in a climate that leads to sharply defined alternations of saturation and
desiccation. Caliche is a ‘hard cap’ deposit produced by upward capillary migration of ground
waters during the arid period. Depending upon the composition of the underlying rock, and
therefore the composition of these migrating solutions, precipitates of carbonate (calcrete),
4
siliceous (silcrete) or ferruginous (ferricrete) materials may be deposited. The position of
deposition of different chemical layers depends upon the solubility of the constituents of the
migrating solutions, the most soluble salts being deposited nearest the surface (although
rainwater action may produce a reversed sequence just below the surface).
Soil terminology
The boundaries between individual soil layers may be sharp or gradual. The terms used are given
in Table 3.2. The layers are designated by the use of capital letters, with lowercase letters to
identify subdivisions or to denote the special properties of a particular layer. For example, Bsa
signifies an accumulation of soluble salts in the B layer, and BAz indicates more precisely the
layer of horizon B in which sulphate accumulation occurs. The symbols and their definitions are
shown in Table 3.3.
5
Classification of residual soils

Most modern soils develop profiles related to the climatic and vegetational zones in which they
occur, and for this reason they are referred to as zonal soils. In contrast, azonal soils have poorly
defined profiles. Intrazonal soils are produced by unusual local climatic or geological
conditions, and examples are hydromorphic soils, formed where there is an excess of
waterwhich saturates rock and soil, hydromorphic soils, where there is an excess of alkalis
because salt water is present or there has been much evaporation, and calcimorphic soils, where
excess lime is present. Intrazonal soils also include gleys, bog soils, salt crusts and brown forest
soils. For example, gleys occur where there are fluctuations in the level of water saturation in the
soil. A classification of residual soils is given in Table 3.4 and descriptions of the important soil
groups are given in Appendix A. Variations in physical conditions on a local scale may produce
corresponding changes in the soils being formed, even though the parental material is identical.
This relationship is called a soil catena. For example, soil on the side of a hill receives moisture
from higher up the hill, whereas soil at the bottom of the slope receives additional moisture from
a larger gathering area plus some dissolved salts from the same source.
Table 3.3 (a) Designation of layers of soils by capital letters, with numbers to designate
gradational layer (from Olsen 1984). (b) Letters used to denote special properties of a layer of
soil. Subscripts not given in the table include f (frozen soil), which is applicable in tundra soils
with permafrost, m (hard pan), where an indurated layer occurs, and b, which indicates a soil
layer buried by a surface deposit.
6
TRANSPORTED SUPERFICIAL DEPOSITS
7
Transported superficial deposits are formed of rock debris which has been carried by some
natural agent from where it was formed by weathering and erosion to where it now occurs. They
are ‘soils’ in the engineering sense but not in the geological usage of the term. Rock decay with
little or no transport of the products is termed weathering; and when the rock or its products is
simultaneously removed, this is termed erosion. The effects of burial and other processes will
eventually transform these products into layers of sedimentary rock. For that reason, some of
them (marine clays and sands, beach sands, estuarine and deltaic muds, lagoonal clays and lake
deposits), which discusses the formation of rocks. Transported superficial deposits are described
and classified most simply by reference to the agent that moved them and the local conditions
that controlled their deposition. Four important agents of erosion and transport (wind, rivers, the
sea at coasts, and glaciers) and the deposits associated with them are described in the following
sections.
Aeolian (windborne) deposits
A strong wind blowing across rock debris or soil can lift and carry fine material as dust, and can
move the larger sand grains by rolling them and making them bounce across the surface. This
wind borne movement of material occurs in areas with little or no vegetation and is typical of hot
desert regions, although the process also operates in cold deserts and some coastal areas. Wind
both transports and sorts the material. The finer, silt-sized fraction is carried in suspension by the
wind, and may travel great distances before it is eventually deposited as loess. The coarser
material that remains forms sand dunes. Both loess and sand dunes are liable to further erosion
by wind unless their surface is established by vegetation or another binding agent. They are
composed mainly of quartz with a smaller fraction of other stable minerals such as iron oxides.
Near coasts calcite in the form of shell debris may occur occasionally. Clay minerals are virtually
absent.
Erosion and transport by wind are most important in desert regions, which lack a protective
cover of vegetation and a skin of surface water to bind the grains together. Conditions favouring
the formation of aeolian deposits were, however, more widespread in the present temperate
zones during and immediately after the Great Ice Age, which ended approximately 10000 years
ago (see Section 3.5.1). For example, lowered sea levels at certain times left broad stretches of
beach sand exposed to wind action, and assisted the formation of sand dunes along many British
coasts. In other regions that were free, or freed, of ice and temporarily devoid of plants, the
deposits left by the retreating ice, together with other soils, provided sources of loess.
Alluvial (riverborne) deposits
Lateral erosion by a river into its banks eventually produces a valley which is much wider than
its course. Erosion at one point is matched by deposition at another and a wide valley is
eventually filled with alluvial deposits. These include cross-bedded and evenly bedded sands,
silts and gravels, plus spreads of fine silt and clay across the flat floodplain at the sides of a river
(Fig. 3.7). These fine-grained layers are related to periods of spate, when flood waters spilling
8
beyond the river channel suffer a sudden decrease in their rate of flow. Settling of the load of
suspended sediment takes place in the slack water covering the floodplain, especially close to the
banks. Large mounds form along the sides of a major river in this way, and are called levees.
Figure 3.7 The mountain stream has deposited the coarser part of its load as an alluvial fan
where the gradient changes suddenly at the plain. Deposition of finer sediment has taken place at
the coast to form a delta. As the river winds towards the coast, it cuts a broad floodplain. The
river terrace is an older floodplain, which is now well above the river bed.
Any sudden decrease in the rate of flow of a sediment-laden river affects its ability to transport
sediment, and part of its load settles. This happens commonly when the river enters the sea or the
still waters of a lake. The result is a shallow (or even emerged) area in the lake, fanning out from
the mouth of the river, called a delta. Similarly, when an upland stream flowing down steep
slopes enters more level country, deposition, usually of coarser detritus, takes place. At the
change of slope, large stones settle near the apex of a fan-shaped mound, within which gravel
and finer deposits are present down stream. The stream follows a channel cut through its own
deposits. The magnitude, proportions and composition of the alluvial fan are dependent on the
change of slope and the size of stream (see Fig. 3.8). A small stream a metre or two wide when
not in spate may build an alluvial fan up to 2–3 m thick and about 100 m wide.
9
Figure 3.8 An alluvial cone (or fan) formed where the mountain stream descends into a flat-
lying area in the Scottish Highlands. (British Geological Survey photograph, B773, published by
permission of the Director; NERC copyright.)
Glacial (iceborne) deposits

Erosion by ice, and deposition of superficial deposits from it, are processes limited
geographically at the present day to arctic regions and to very high mountains. Quite recently on
a geological scale of time, however, wide areas of the present temperate zones, including most of
Britain, were aff ected by glaciation and many of their superficial deposits were laid down
directly from ice, or from melt waters flowing from the glaciers. This Great Ice Age, which
ended approximately 10000 years ago and spanned a period of about two million years, occurred
during the division of geological time called the Pleistocene. During it, not only were superficial
1
0
deposits called glacial drift laid down over wide areas of Britain and North America, but glacial
erosion shaped the solid rock surface (rock head), and fluctuations of mean sea level left coastal
deposits well above present high water mark. For these reasons, an account is given of other
processes active during and after the Pleistocene, and of the erosional and other phenomena
related to glaciation, as well as of glacial deposits.
SOIL PARTICLE SIZE
As discussed in the preceding section, the sizes of particles that make up soil vary over a wide
range. Soils generally are called gravel, sand, silt, or clay, depending on the predominant size of
particles within the soil. To describe soils by their partcle size, several organizations have
developed particle-size classications. Table 2.3 shows the particle-size classications developed
by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the American
Association of State Highway and Transportation Ofcials, and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
and U.S. Bureau of Reclamation. In this table, the MIT system is presented for illustration
purposes only. This system is important in the history of the development of the size limits of
particles present in soils; however, the Unied Soil Classication System is now almost universally
accepted and has been adopted by the American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM).
1
1
Figure 2.10 Higher magnication of the sand grains highlighted in Figure 2.9 (Courtesy of
David J. White, Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa)
Size Criteria for Soil Separates in the USDA Textural Classification System
Soil separates are the individual size-groups of mineral particles. The scheme used in the U.S.
Department of Agriculture is shown below. Mechanical analyses of soils in soil survey
laboratories of the U.S. Department of Agriculture are reported using this system.
Size Limits of USDA Soil Separates
Name of separate Diameter range (millimeters)
Silt 2.0-0.05
Clay 0.05-0.002
Sand Less than 0.002
The sand separate is subdivided into very coarse sand, coarse sand, medium sand, fine sand, and
very fine sand. The size ranges for these subdivision are given below:
Subdivisions Fine sand
Very coarse sand Very fine sand
Coarse sand Diameter range (millimeters)
Medium sand 2.0-1.0
1
2
1.0-0.5 0.25-0.10
0.5-0.25 0.10-0.05
USDA SOIL TEXTURE TRIANGLE

Sand, Silt and Clay
One of the key ways that we characterize rocks is by
texture. Remember that texture refers to how
something feels. It can feel grainy, rough, or
smooth. Larger particles feel rough while smaller
particles feel smooth. For soil, we also use texture to
help characterize the type. The texture of soil, just
like rocks, refers to the size of the particles that
make up the soil. The terms sand, silt, and clay refer
to different sizes of the soil particles. Sand, being
the larger size of particles, feels gritty. Silt, being
moderate in size, has a smooth or floury texture.
Clay, being the smaller size of particles, feels sticky.
Look at the figure to the right. The size of the circle
is relative to each size particle. Obviously, sand is
not that big otherwise your time at the beach wouldn’t be so enjoyable. But we can use this
graphic to understand the difference in size between each of the three ingredients of soil. As you
1
3
can see (barely), clay is an extremely tiny dot on the page. Silt is a little bigger, but sand is
considerably larger compared to the other two especially clay.
A Soil Texture Chart

The Soil Texture Chart gives names associated with various combinations of sand, silt and clay
and is used to classify the texture of a soil. A coarse-textured or sandy soil is one comprised
primarily of medium to coarse size sand particles. A fine-textured or clayey soil is one
dominated by tiny clay particles. Due to the strong physical properties of clay, a soil with only
20% clay particles behaves as sticky, gummy clayey soil.
USDA SOIL TEXTURE TRIANGLE
1
4
Reading a Soil Texture Chart

The sides of the soil texture triangle are scaled for the percentages of sand, silt, and clay. Clay
percentages are read from left to right across the triangle. Silt is read from the upper right to
lower left. Sand is read from lower right towards the upper left portion of the triangle. The
boundaries of the soil texture classes are highlighted with a bolder line. The intersection of the
three sizes on the triangle gives the texture class. Let’s walk through this in more detail trying to
identify a loam soil. The black dot highlights a spot inside this area that would be classified as
this type of soil.
1
5
So loam, our best growing soil, would have a soil texture of 20% clay, 40% silt, and 40% sand.
One great thing about using this chart is the ease of checking your work. All three parts have to
add to 100%. If your numbers don’t equal 100%, you’ve made a mistake.
Behavioral Properties of USDA Textural Classes

Some of the most important properties that can be used to differentiate a soil’s behavior in the
USDA Textural Classification System are defined and discussed below:
Specific Surface - Specific surface is the surface are of a soil particle per unit of mass. For
instance, sands are the largest soil separate but have a relative high unit mass. Therefore, they
1
6
have small specific surfaces. Clays, although very small particles, have extremely low mass and
large specific surfaces. Small, intermediate, and large are the terms used to describe a soil
particle’s specific surface.
Plasticity - Plasticity is the property of a soil that enables it to change shape continuously under
the influence of an applied stress and to retain that shape on removal of the stress.
Stickiness - Stickiness is the adhesion exhibited by a soil water mixture to other objects. It
depends on the amount and type of clay and the water content. Descriptive terms used are non-
sticky, slightly sticky, sticky, and very sticky.
Particle Compositions - Composition is the material that constitutes a soil’s make up. It may be
parent rock material such as lime stone, a primary mineral such as quartz, or a clay mineral such
as montmorillonite. It my also be combination of any all of these.
Visibility - is the ease with which an observer can actually see the individual particles of a soil.
The degrees of description used are:
1. Can be seen with naked eye
2. Can be seen with the aid of a hand lens
3. Can only be seen with an electron microscope
Shape - is the form of the individual soil particle. The terms normally used to describe particle
shape are round, irregular, and flat.
Size and Percentage Criteria for the Twelve Major USDA Textural Classes
Major Textural Classes
1
7
The 12 major soil textural classes are based on the relative percentage of sand, silt, and clay in
the soil sample or material. The definitive criteria for each of these classes are:
1
8
1
9
2
0
2
1
ACTIVITY: Answer the following questions. Write (Handwritten) your answer in a

separate short bond paper. Images and USDA textural triangle can be printed.
Activity 1
1. What is the geological importance of superficial deposits?
2. For the soil profiles below, label the horizons (A, B, or C) and the parent material in each of
the soil profiles using the spaces provided next to each image.
_________ __________ __________

Activity 2:
1. list and explain the definitions of the three soil separates as used in the twelve major soil
classes of the USDA Textural Classification System.
2. Plot the date given below on the USDA textural triangle and determine correct textural class
of each example soil. Use separate USDA Textural triangle for each of the soil sample.
Soil Sample % Sand % Clay % Silt Textural Class
1 60 30 10
2 20 50 30
3 30 30 40
4 5 35 60
2
2
5 15 45 30
SUMMARY
Two Types of general soil formation
 Residual Soils - Soils that formed in place
- Particle size assortment with depth
- Properties like parent rock
- Pretty Uniform horizontally
 Transported Soils - Moved form place of origin
- May be classified into several groups:
Alluvial soils - Running water
Lacustrine soils - Lake
Glacial soils - Glaciers
Marine soils - Ocean
Aeolian soils - Wind
Colluvial soils - Gravity, rockfall, and landslide
 Major Textural Classes
Sand, Loamy Sand, Sandy Loam, Loam, Silt Loam, Silt, Sandy Clay Loam, Clay Loam,
Sand Clay, Silt Clay, Clay
References:
A. G.H . Blyth (1984), A Geology for Engineers Seventh Edition, Biddies Ltd
A. C.Mclean and C.D. Gribble (1985), Geology for Civil Engineers Second Edition, Biddies Ltd
B. M. DAS (2018), Principles of Geotechnical Engineering Ninth Edition, Nelson Education Ltd.
2
3

Module 4 GEO

Uploaded by

Document Information

Original Title

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

Module 4 GEO

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

UNIVERSITY OF LA SALETTE, INC.

College of Engineering and Architecture

MODERN RESIDUAL SOILS

Classification of residual soils

TRANSPORTED SUPERFICIAL DEPOSITS

Glacial (iceborne) deposits

USDA SOIL TEXTURE TRIANGLE

A Soil Texture Chart

Reading a Soil Texture Chart

Behavioral Properties of USDA Textural Classes

ACTIVITY: Answer the following questions. Write (Handwritten) your answer in a

_ ____

You might also like