Basic Definitions and Relationships

By:
Dr. Arvind Kumar Jha
PhD in Geotechnical Engineering (IISc
Bangalore) Associate Professor
Manipal University Jaipur
E-Mail ID: arvindkumar.jha@Jaipur.manipal.edu
8/11/2018 Prepared By: Dr. Arvind Kumar Jha, MUJ 1
 OUTCOMES:
After completion of this chapter, students will be able to

1. Understand the basic properties, characterization and mineralogy of soils for analyses and
investigation of its engineering properties such as compaction characteristic, hydraulic
conductivity, shear strength, compressibility etc.
2. Investigate and analyze the suitability of soils and its improvement techniques for structures
to be constructed such dam, road, foundation of building and so on.
3. Conduct the various geotechnical projects and to solve the complex engineering problems,
learn to interpret and analysis of data, improve the skill to write the technical reports and its
presentation.

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 TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. PHASE RELATIONSHIP OF SOIL: TWO AND THREE PHASE DIAGRAM

2.BASIC DEFINITIONS: SPECIFIC GRAVITY, VOLUME RELATIONSHIPS,
WEIGHT RELATIONSHIPS
1. Volume Relationship
2. Weight Relationship
3. Relationship between Mass-Volume and Weight-Volume
4. Weight-Volume Relationships
5. Mass-Volume Relationships
6. Specific Gravity
3. WEIGHT-VOLUME INTER-RELATIONSHIPS
1. Inter-relationship between various parameters
Numerical Examples

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 Phase Relationship of Soil
‘Phase’ means any homogeneous part of the system different from other parts of the system
and
separated from them by abrupt transition.
Soil is a complex physical system which includes solid particles or soil grains and the void spaces that
exist between the particles.
Soil = Solid Particles + Void Spaces
Void Spaces = Liquid + Gas or, Liquid or, Gas

For purposes of analysis, The representation of soil mass

by a block diagram is called ‘Phase-diagram’ and, is a
convenient means of developing the weight-volume
relationship for a soil.

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 Dry soil Saturated Partially Saturated soil
8/11/2018 soil Three-phase systems 5
 Basic definitions

For purposes of analysis, The representation of soil mass by a block diagram is called ‘Phase-diagram’ and, is
a
convenient means of developing the weight-volume relationship for a soil.

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Prepared By: Dr. Arvind Kumar Jha, MFUiJ g. 2.2: Three phase of soil element
 Volume Relationship
Void Ratio (e): It is the ratio of the volume of voids (Vv) to the volume of solids (Vs) in soil mass. It is
always expressed in decimal.

𝐞 = 𝑽𝒗 = 𝑽𝒂+ 𝑽𝒘 ……………………..………………….. (2.1)

𝑽𝒔 𝑽𝒔

Porosity (η): It is the ratio of the volume of voids (Vv) to the total volume of soil mass (V). It is
always expressed in percentage.
𝑽 𝒂 + 𝑽𝒘
𝜂 = 𝑽𝒗 ∗ 𝟏𝟎𝟎% = ∗ 𝟏𝟎𝟎% ……………………………….. (2.2)
𝑽 𝑽𝒂+ 𝑽𝒘+𝑽𝒔

Degree of Saturation (S): it is the ratio of the volume of water in the voids to the volume of
voids.
𝐒 = 𝑽𝒘 ∗ 𝟏𝟎𝟎% ……………………..…………….. (2.3)
𝑽𝒗

It is always expressed as a percentage. When S = 0%, the soil is completely dry, and when S = 100%,
the
soil is fully saturated. The degree of saturation is between zero and 100%, the soil mass being said to
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be ‘partially’ saturated—the most common condition in nature.
 Volume Relationship

Percentage air void or, air void (𝒏𝒂): the ratio of the volume of air voids to the total volume of the
soil mass. It is commonly expressed as a percentage.

𝒏𝒂 = 𝑽𝑽𝒂 ∗ 𝟏𝟎𝟎% ……………………..…………….. (2.4)

Air content (𝒂𝒄): it is the ratio of the volume of air voids to the total volume of voids. It is
commonly expressed as a percentage.

𝒂𝒄 = 𝑽𝒂 ∗ 𝟏𝟎𝟎% ……………………..………………….. (2.5)

𝑽𝒗

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 Weight Relations
Water content, or moisture content (𝒘): it is the ratio of the mass of water (Mw) to the mass of
solids
(Ms) in the soil, i.e.
𝒘 = 𝑴𝒘 ∗ 𝟏𝟎𝟎% ……………………..………………….. (2.6)
𝑴𝒔

In terms of weight,
It is the ratio of the weight of water (Ww) to the weight of solids (dry weight) (Ws) of the soil mass. It
is commonly expressed as a percentage.

𝒘 = 𝑾𝒘 ∗ 𝟏𝟎𝟎% ……………………..………………….. (2.7)

𝑾𝒔

The water content, which is usually expressed as a percentage, can range from zero (dry soil) to several
hundred percent. The natural water content for most soils is well under 100%, but for the soils of
volcanic
origin (for example bentonite) it can range up to 500% or more.
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 Relationship between Mass-Volume and Weight-Volume

In SI units, the mass M, is normally expressed in kg and the density ρ in kg/m3or, in g and g/cm3
or Mg and Mg/m3 respectively. The density of water ρo at 4 °C is exactly 1.00 g/cm3 (= 1000 kg/m3 = 1
Mg/m3).
The density ρ, may be converted to unit weight, γ,
𝛾 = 𝜌𝑔 ……………………..………………….. (2.8)
The 'standard' value of g is 9.807 m/s2 (= 9.81 m/s2 for all practical
purposes).
Conversion of Density of Water 𝝆𝒘 to Unit Weight 𝜸𝒘

𝑘𝑔 𝛾𝑤 = 𝜌 𝑤 𝑔 2
Substituting, 𝜌𝑤 = 1000 and 𝑔 = 9.81𝑚/𝑠
𝑚3

𝑘𝑔 𝑘𝑔 𝑚
= 9810
𝑚3 𝑠 2
𝛾𝑤 = 1000 𝑚 3 9.81
𝑚 𝑠2
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 Since, 1N (Newton) = 1 𝑘𝑔.𝑚 ,
𝑠2

𝛾𝑤 = 9810 𝑘𝑁
3 = 9.81
Or, 𝑚 𝑚3

𝑔 𝑘𝑁
𝛾𝑤 = 1 ∗ ∗ 9.81 = 9.81
𝑚3
𝑐𝑚3
In general, the unit weight of a soil mass may be obtained from the
equation
𝜸 = 𝟗. 𝟖𝟏𝝆 𝒌𝑵 ……………………..………………….. (2.9)
𝒎𝟑

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 Weight-Volume Relationships
Total or Bulk unit weight (𝜸) of soil: is defined as the total weight per unit total volume of the soil
mass.

𝜸 = 𝑾𝑽 ……………………..………………….. (2.10)

Unit Weight of soil solids (𝜸𝒔): is the ratio of the weight of soil solids per unit volume of solids
alone. It is also sometimes called the ‘absolute unit weight’ of a soil.

𝜸𝒔 = 𝑾𝒔 ……………………..………………….. (2.11)
𝑽𝒔

Unit weight of water (𝜸𝒘): it is the weight per unit volume of water.

𝜸𝒘 = 𝑾𝒘 ……………………..………………….. (2.12)
𝑽𝒘

Dry unit weight (𝜸𝒅): it is defined as the weight of soil solids per unit of total volume of soil mass.

𝜸𝒅 = 𝑾𝑽𝒔 ……………………..………………….. (2.13)

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Saturated unit weight (𝜸𝒔𝒂𝒕): it is defined as the bulk unit weight of the soil mass in the saturated
condition.
Submerged unit weight or, buoyant unit weight (𝜸𝒔𝒖𝒃 𝒐𝒓, 𝜸′ ): it is the unit weight of soil mass in
the sub- merged condition. In other words, it is the submerged weight of soil solids (Ws)sub per unit of
total volume, V of the soil.
(Ws)sub is equal to the weight of solids in air minus the weight of water displaced by the solids. This
leads to:
𝑾𝒔 𝒔𝒖𝒃 = 𝑾𝒔 − 𝑽𝑺 ∗ 𝜸𝒘 ……………………..………………….. (2.14)
Since the soil is submerged, the voids must be full of water; the total volume V, then, must be equal to
(Vs + Vw), Then,
𝑾𝒔 𝒔𝒖𝒃 = 𝑾 − 𝑾𝒘 − 𝑽𝑺 ∗ 𝜸𝒘
𝑾𝒔 𝒔𝒖𝒃 = 𝑾 − 𝑽𝒘 ∗ 𝜸𝒘 − 𝑽𝑺 ∗ 𝜸𝒘
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 𝑾𝒔 𝒔𝒖𝒃 = 𝑾 − (𝑽𝒘+𝑽𝑺) ∗ 𝜸𝒘
𝑾𝒔 𝒔𝒖𝒃 = 𝑾 − 𝑽 ∗ 𝜸𝒘 ……………………..………………….. (2.15)
Dividing Eq. 2.15 throughout by V, the total volume,

𝑾𝒔 𝒔𝒖𝒃 𝑾 − 𝑽 ∗ 𝜸𝒘
=
𝑽 𝑽
𝜸𝒔𝒖𝒃 𝒐𝒓, 𝜸 ′ = 𝜸𝒔𝒂𝒕 − 𝜸𝒘 ……………………..………………….. (2.16)
[Above equation is a direct consequence of Archimedes’ Principle which states that the apparent loss
of weight of a substance when weighed in water is equal to the weight of water displaced by it]
It may be noted that a submerged soil is always saturated, while a saturated soil need not
be submerged.

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 Mass-Volume Relationships
The mass-volume relationships can be established from the earlier equations by substituting ρ for
γ
and M for W.
Total or Bulk density (𝝆) of soil:
𝜌=𝑀
𝑉

Density of soil solids (𝝆𝒔): 𝑀𝑠

𝜌𝑠 =
𝑉𝑠

Density of water (𝝆𝒘): 𝑀𝑤

𝜌𝑤 =
𝑉𝑤

Dry density (𝝆𝒅): 𝑀𝑠

𝜌𝑑 =
𝑉

Submerged density or, buoyant density (𝝆𝒔𝒖𝒃 𝒐𝒓, 𝝆′ ): 𝝆𝒔𝒖𝒃 𝒐𝒓, 𝝆′ = 𝝆𝒔𝒂𝒕 − 𝝆𝒘

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 Specific Gravity
Mass Specific Gravity (Gm) or ‘bulk specific gravity’ or ‘apparent specific gravity’: it is defined as the ratio
of mass or bulk unit weight of soil to the unit weight of water at the standard temperature (4°C).
𝜸
𝑮𝒎 = ……………………..………………….. (2.17)
𝜸𝒐
Specific gravity of soil solids (G) or, ‘Absolute specific gravity’ or, ‘Grain Specific Gravity’: It is defined as
the ratio of the unit weight of solids (absolute unit weight of soil) to the unit weight of water at the standard
temperature (4°C).

𝑮= 𝜸𝒔
= 𝑽𝒔∗𝜸𝒔 𝒐 ……………………..………………….. (2.18)
𝑾
𝜸𝒐

Specific gravity of water (Gw): It is defined as the ratio of the unit weight of water to the unit weight of water at
the standard temperature (4°C).
𝜸𝒘
𝑮𝒘 = ……………………..…………………….. (2.19)
𝜸𝒐
Since the variation of the unit weight of water with temperature is small (i.e. vary from 1.00 to 0.995), this value
is very nearly unity, and for the practical purpose, the value of Gm is taken as unity.

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 Weight-Volume Inter-Relationships
The volume of solids (Vs) may be taken as unity.

Fig. 2.3: Unit three phase diagram

Total Volume (V) of soil mass = Va + Vw + Vs

V = 1 + Vv …………………..…...………………………..
(2.20) Total Weight (W) of soil mass = Wa + Ww + Ws = V* γt
W = 0 + Ww + Ws = Vw*γw + Vs*G* γw
………………….. (2.21)
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 Prove Relationships Involving Unit Weights, Grain Specific Gravity, Porosity, Void Ratio,
Degree of Saturation, Water Content, Percent Air Voids and Air Content
To
Prove S. N. Relationships
1 𝜂 𝒆
𝒆= , 𝒐𝒓, 𝜂 =
𝟏−𝜂 𝟏+𝒆
2 𝒏𝒂 = 𝜂 ∗ 𝒂𝒄
3 𝑺∗𝒆=𝒘∗𝑮 S. N. Relationships
4 𝟏+𝒘 7
𝜸= ∗ 𝑮𝜸𝒘 𝜸𝒔𝒖𝒃 = 𝑮 − 𝟏∗ 𝜸𝒘
𝟏+𝒆
𝟏+𝒆
5 𝑮+𝑺∗𝒆 8
𝜸= ∗ 𝜸𝒘 𝟏 − 𝒏𝒂 𝑮𝜸𝒘
𝟏+𝒆 𝜸 =
𝒅
𝟏 + 𝒘𝑮
𝜸𝒔𝒂𝒕 =𝑮 + 𝒆 ∗ 𝜸𝒘
𝟏+𝒆

𝑮𝜸𝒘
𝜸𝒅 =
𝟏+𝒆

6 𝜸
𝜸𝒅 =
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 Numerical Examples
1. The mass of a chunk of moist soil is 20 kg, and its volume is 0.011m3. After drying in an oven, the mass reduces to 16.5
kg. Determine the water content, the density of moist soil, the dry density, void ratio, porosity and the degree of
saturation. Take G = 2.70. (Ans: w = 21.21%; wet density (ρ) = 1818.18 kg/m3; dry density (ρd) = 1500.0 kg/m3; e =
0.80; n = 44.44%; S = 71.58%)
2. A soil specimen has a water content of 10% and a wet unit weight of 20 kN/m3. If the specific gravity of solids is 2.70,
determne the dry unit weight, void ratio, and the degree of saturation. Take, γw = 10 kN/m3. (Ans: dry unit weight (γd) =
18.18 kN/m3; e = 0.49; S = 55.10%)
3. A moist soil sample weighs 3.52 N. after drying in an oven, its weight is reduced to 2.9 N. the specific gravity of soilds
and the mass specific gravity are, respectively, 2.65 and 1.85. determine the water content, void ratio, porosity and the
degree of saturation. Take γw = 10 kN/m3. (Ans: w = 21.38%; unit weight (γ) = 18.5 kN/m3; dry unit weight (γd) =
15.24 kN/m3; e = 0.74; n = 42.53%; S = 76.56%)
4. A soil has a porosity of 40%, the specific gravity of soilds of 2.65 and a water content of 12%. Determine the mass of
water required to be added to 100 m3 of this soil for full saturation. (Ans: Volume of additional water for full
saturation = 0.349 m3; Volume of water required for 100 m3 of soil = 20.94 m3)

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 Numerical Examples
5. A sample of clay was coated with paraffin wax and its mass, including the mass of wax, was found to be 697.5 gm. The sample
was immersed in water and the volume of the water displaced was found to be 355 ml. The mass if the sample without wax was
690.0 gm, and the water content of the representative specimen was 18%. Determine the bulk density, void ratio and the degree of
saturation. The specific gravity of the solids was 2.70 and that of the wax was 0.89. (Ans: Bulk density = 1.99 gm/ml; Dry density
= 1.69 gm/ml; e = 0.60; S = 81%)
6. By the three phase soil system, show that the degree of saturation “Sr” (as ratio)in terms of mass unit weight γm, water content
ratio of w and specific gravity of soil G and unit weight of water γw is given by the expression.
𝑤
𝑆𝑟 =
𝛾𝑤(1 + 𝑤)
𝛾𝑚 −𝐺
1
7.Dry sand of 10,676 gm is poured fully into cyldinder having internal diameter of 200 mm and height of 200 mm. The porosity of
the sand is 35%. Water is carefully added until the sand becomes saturated. While the porosity remains the same. Determine:
a) The saturated density of the soil
b) The amount of water needed to saturate the soil
c) The specific gravity of sand particles
d) The water content of the sand at saturated condition
e) The amount of water needed to produce a degree of saturation of 80%.
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