Soil Classifications;

Particle Size and

Texture
Classification Systems, Engineering Considerations
 Introduction

Particle size and size distribution are important

characteristics that affect soil behavior. Various agencies
and professional organizations have devised classifications
that provide subdivisions that are the most useful for
specific applications.
 Outline of Topics

 Textural Classifications

 Engineering Considerations
 Textural Classifications

Soil texture – is the appearance and feel of the material as

determined primarily by its particle size. The major classes
are:
- gravel
- sand
- silt
- clay
Based on the percentages of each, soils are classified into
various textural groups. However, a grain size analysis of the
sample is needed prior to classification.
 Soil Particle Size
Several of the most common classifications are based
on grain size ranges:

➢ Wentworth scale
➢ USDA (US Dept. of Agriculture)
➢ ASTM (American Society for the Testing of Materias)
➢ AASHTO (American Association of State Highway &
Transportation Officials)
➢ USCS (United Soil Classification System)
Soil Particle Size…
The Wentworth scale is used widely by geologists in
the U.S.A. The USDA classification is used by
agronomists. AASHTO and ASTM classifications are
mostly used by the highway departments. And the
USCS is used primarily by geotechnical engineering
firms.
Here in the Philippines, the DPWH as well as some
private testing centers use the AASHTO method of
classification.
We shall discuss the commonly used ones: AASHTO &
USCS method of classification.
Soil Texture
The term texture involves the appearance or feel of the soil
as determined by its particle size, shape and gradation. Sands
and gravels are coarse-textured soils, whereas silts and clays
are fine-textured.
Fine-textured soils consist primarily of grains too small to be
seen individually by the naked eye.
In addition for engineering purposes, soils are subdivided into
two types: granular and cohesive. Sands and gravels are
granular while clays are cohesive.
Soil Texture…
Cohesion is the property by which soil particles stick together
without any confinement. This is due to the presence of
electrostatic charges on fine clay particles(Holtz et al. 2011).
Cohesive soils exhibit plasticity; the ability to be rolled into a
thin thread before breaking into small pieces.
Sands and gravels are nonplastic and cohesionless. Silts
have properties intermediate between extremes of sands and
clays. They are fine-grained but typically nonplastic and
cohesionless. Clays are plastic and cohesive.
Soil Texture…
Cohesionless soils have no shear strength unless confined;
that is, they lack the ability to hold together without
confinement. Instead they obtain their strength from grain-to-
grain contact, which provides frictional resistance between
grains. This requires and external force be applied to obtain the
contact and strength.
Soil Texture…

Grain size distribution (range of

grain sizes) has an important effect on
the engineering behavior of granular
soils. Soil particles can range from
boulder size (103 mm) down to
extremely fine colloidal materials (10-5
mm). Grain sizes between 4.75 mm and
0.074 mm are classified bases
according to US standard sieve
numbers.
Soil Texture…
The American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) has
developed industry accepted standards outlining the
procedures for the testing of soil properties.

- ASTM D6913 for course-grained soils

- ASTM D7928 (hydrometer analysis) for fine-grained soils

Soil Classifications
The United Soil Classification System (USCS) developed by
Casagrande (1948) is one of the most commonly used systems in
engineering. According to this system, coarse-grained soils are
classified on the basis of grain size distribution and fine-grained
soils on the basis of plasticity characteristics as indicated by
Atterberg limits.
Silts and clays, according to USCS, are distinguished on the
basis of plasticity characteristics, not particle size. This is
accomplished by plotting on Casagrande’s plasticity chart.
According to Casagrande, plasticity characteristics are
more predictive of engineering behavior of fine-grained soils
than particle sizes.
Casagrande’s Plasticity Chart
Soil Classifications
The AASHTO classification uses grain size distribution and
plasticity characteristics of material passing No. 40 sieve.
However, only three sieves (NO. 10, 30 and 200) are used for
grain size distribution analysis.
The soil is divided into eight groups (A-1 to A-8). Groups A-1,
A-2 and A-7 are further subdivided into subgroups.
A parameter referred to as the group index is used to rate
the quality of the soil as highway subgrade material. The higher
the group index, the more undesirable are the properties of the
soil for highway construction.
Engineering Considerations of Rock Weathering

Weathering significantly deteriorates the engineering

properties of intact rock as well as the engineering behavior of
rock mass. The following illustrates the engineering problems
associated with rock weathering.

A. If weathered rock is to be used for engineering purposes,

such as fill material or riprap, its engineering properties should
be determined on samples that are representative on the
state of weathering, not on fresh samples.
B. Depth to the soil-rock interface can range from a few
centimeters to tens of meters. This is important to consider if
the structure is to be located on bedrock or load needs to be
transmitted to bedrock.
Engineering Considerations of Rock Weathering

C. Clay minerals can develop in fractures of weathered rock,

reducing the shear strength of the rock mass and affecting its
hydrologic regime.

D. Weathering by solution of carbonate and sulfate rocks

(limestone, dolomite, marble and gypsum) can result in Karst
conditions involving formation of underground cavities, caves,
and solution channels along fractures that can be quite wide.
Karts conditions can also lead to the formation of sinkholes. In
karst terrains, the top of bedrock occurs at variable depths
below the residual soil.
Karst Topography
Karst Topography
Karst Topography
Engineering Considerations of Rock Weathering

E. Clay-bearing rocks, such as claystones, mudstones and

shales, can change into a soil-like material upon
disintegration due to weathering. Cut slopes in these rocks
deteriorate rapidly, resulting in slope stability problems.

F. The presence of saprolite make it more difficult to determine

the soil-bedrock interface where foundation support for
structures can be attained. Saprolite is a weak, friable,
chemically weathered combination of soil and rock that
retains the original structure and fabric of the rock.
Saprolite
Engineering Considerations of Rock Weathering

G. Differential weathering of sedimentary rocks, consisting of

alternate unit of harder and softer rocks, results in
undercutting, which in turn, results in rock falls, some of which
can be hazardous.

H. Corestones are rounded rock mass residuals that are

surrounded by completely decomposed rock. They are a
common feature of tropically weathered granites but can
also occur in other types of rocks containing common
discontinuities. They make it more difficult to locate the soil
bedrock interface.
Differential Weathering
Corestones
Engineering Considerations of Rock Weathering

G. Duricrust is a case-hardened crust of a residual accumulation

of iron and aluminum (laterite and bauxite) or the
precipitation of calcite and silica from groundwater. Laterite
the most common, consists of a red-brown, iron-rich deposit
that is generally crumbly and porous. As it is deceptive a
detailed subsurface investigation is necessary before locating
a structure on it.
H. The soil-rock interface, or rockhead, is the idealized surface
where the soil ends and the hard rock begins. In some
locations it is sharp but commonly there is a gradual
transition between the two. Building foundation, sewer line
construction, and tunnel placement are examples where
there is critical need to establish this surface.
Duricrust
Soil-Rock Interface(gradational)
Soil-Rock Interface(sharp boundary)
End of Topic