Experiment No.

4: Grain size
analysis

Part II: Hydrometer analysis.

-Hydrometer analysis is the procedure generally
adopted for determination of the particle-size
distribution in a soil for the fraction that is finer
than No. 200 sieve size (0.075 mm).

The lower limit of the particle-size determined

by this procedure is about 0.001 mm.
 tools
1- Sensitive balance.
2- Hydrometer.
3- Control cylinder.
4- Sedimentation cylinder.
5- Thermometer.
6- Mixer.
7- Stop watch.
 Procedure
Dry the sample ( which passed sieve # 200 ) in an oven,
then take ( 50 gram ) of it to do the hydrometer test
on it .
Prepare two cups filled with 125 mL water , then add
to one of them Sodium Hexametaphosphate
substance ( so that the concentration become 4 % , so
for this cup we need 5 gram of the substance ) .
Put one of the two cups in the control cylinder and add
water to 1000ml.
Put the Hydrometer in the control cylinder and wait
until it is rest at the water then tack its reading this
reading called Zero Condition - .
 Put the soil in the other cup , then we have to mix it -
slurry in a mixer for 5 minutes with adding water to
the mixer till we fill half of the mixer .
Move the soil to the sedimentation cylinder and add
water to 1000 ml.
Close the cylinder then we have to rotate it 30 times in
a minute and wait a bit, then put the Thermometer
and the Hydrometer in the sedimentation cylinder .
Record the value of the Temperature and take the
reading of the Hydrometer after specific periods of
time these time periods depend on the specifications
of the experiment (1,2,4 ,....) minutes then keep
recording the Hydrometer readings at the specific
times till the Hydrometer reading reach the Zero
Condition reading .
 1 min T=20 C Ra= 47mm
2 min T=20 C Ra= 42mm
4 min T=20 C Ra= 37mm
8 min T=20 C Ra= 32mm
16 min T=20 C Ra= 29mm
 45

40

35

30
% passing

25

20

15

10

0
1 0.1 0.01 0.001
Grain Size ( mm )