CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW FOR SOILS

2.1 Definition

Soil is an accumulation or deposit of earth material, derived naturally from the disintegration of
rocks or decay of vegetation that can be excavated readily with power equipment in the field or
disintegrated by gentle mechanical means in the laboratory

2.2 Soil types

There is wide range of soil types available as highway construction materials and has made it
obligatory on the part of the highway engineer to identify and classify different soils. A survey of
locally available materials and soil types conducted in India revealed a wide variety of soil type’s
i.e. Gravel, moorum and naturally occurring soft aggregates, which can be used in road
construction.
Broadly, the soil types can be categorized as Laterite soil, Moorum / red soil, Desert sands,
Alluvial soil, Clay including Black cotton soil.

Fig. 2.1 Indian standard grain size soil classification system

Gravel: These are coarse materials with particle size under 2.36 mm with little or no fines
contributing to cohesion of materials.

Moorum: These are products of decomposition and weathering of the pavement rock. Visually
these are similar to gravel except presence of higher content of fines.
Silts: These are finer than sand, brighter in color as compared to clay, and exhibit little cohesion.
When a lump of silty soil mixed with water, alternately squeezed and tapped a shiny surface
makes its appearance, thus dilatancy is a specific property of such soil.

Clays: These are finer than silts. Clayey soils exhibit stickiness, high strength when dry, and
show no dilatancy. Black cotton soil and other expansive clays exhibit swelling and shrinkage
properties. Paste of clay with water when rubbed in between fingers leaves stain, which is not
observed for silts.

2.3 Tests on soils (subgrade)

The tests used to evaluate the strength properties of soils may be broadly divided into three
groups:
1. Shear tests; these tests are carried out on soil samples in the laboratory in order to find
out the strength properties of soil, a number of representative samples from different
locations are tested. Some of the commonly known shear tests are direct shear test, tri-
axial compression test, and unconfined compression test.

2. Bearing tests; Bearing tests are loading tests carried out on sub grade soils in-situ with a
load bearing area in order to study the overall stability of the part of the soil mass under
stress. The results of the bearing tests are influenced by variations in the soil properties
within the stressed soil mass underneath

3. Penetration tests; Penetration tests may be considered as small scale bearing tests in
which the size of the loaded area is relatively much smaller and ratio of the penetration to
the size of the loaded area is much greater than the ratios in bearing tests. The penetration
tests are carried out in the field or in the laboratory.

2.4 California Bearing Ratio Test

The CBR is a measure of resistance of a material to penetration of standard plunger under
controlled density and moisture conditions. It was developed by the California Division of
Highway as a method of classifying and evaluating soil-sub grade and base course materials for
flexible pavements. CBR test, an empirical test, has been used to determine the material
properties for pavement design. Empirical tests measure the strength of the material and are not a
true representation of the resilient modulus.
CBR test is a penetration test wherein a standard piston, having an area of 50 mm diameter, is
used to penetrate the soil at a standard rate of 1.25 mm/min. The pressure up to a penetration of
12.5 mm and it's ratio to the bearing value of a standard crushed rock is termed as the CBR.
The ratio at 2.5 mm penetration is used as the CBR. In some case, the ratio at 5 mm may be
greater than that at 2.5 mm. If this occurs, the ratio at 5 mm should be used. The test procedure
should be strictly adhered if high degree of reproducibility is desired.

2.4 Sampling for construction Materials

2.4.1 Definitions of some Terms Used

1. Sample; a sample is a portion or a combination of portions of a lot of a material whose

degree of representation is not necessarily important and is therefore not specified.

2. Representative Sample; a representative sample is a portion or a combination of portions

of a lot of a material whose degree of representation is important and is therefore
specified. The representation of a sample varies between the extremes of being poorly
representative and absolutely representative. This simply means that the larger the sample
in proportion to the lot, the more representative it becomes, until the whole lot is tested in
order to term it as absolute representation.

3. Sample Lot; sample lot is a specific heap, load, tank, drum or quantity of material which
can be represented by a specific sample. The size of a lot is usually determined by:
 Consignment or delivered quantity.
 The way in which it is stored when the sample is taken.
 Variation of the characteristics of the material.
 4. Primary or Field Sample; this is the sample originally taken from the lot at the storage
site, and its size is determined by the degree of representation or accuracy, can be obtained
relative to the purpose for which the sample is taken.

5. Secondary or Laboratory Sample; this is the sample taken from the original sample
which is used to extract the test samples. A secondary sample is divided up to provide test
samples and is usually obtained by division of the original sample on site and its size is
determined by the specific tests for which it is needed.

6. Tertiary or Test Sample; this is the material used for a specific test. It is extracted from
the secondary sample and its quantity depends on the quantity prescribed for the particular
test which is to be done.

2.4.2 Sampling from a trial pit in natural gravel, soil and sand

This describes the way of taking of samples from a test pit with vertical sides, at least one square
meter and which has been excavated in a natural deposit of gravel, soil or sand by means of a
pick and shovel or any mechanical excavator or large auger. The samples may be needed for the
centre line survey of the natural information or for any of the following proposed uses:

 Gravel for subgrade, selected layer, sub-base, base-course, asphalt and coarse aggregate
for concrete.
 Soil for subgrade, selected layer, sub-base and binder.
 Sand for subgrade, selected layer, as a stabilizing agent for clayey materials and as fine
aggregate for concrete and bituminous mixes.
The Apparatus used may include; a prospecting pick, a suitable tape measure, a spade, pick,
suitable sample containers such as strong canvas or plastic bags or sacks, suitable canvas sheets
approximately 2 x 2m, a riffle, and basin approximately 500 mm in diameter etc.

2.4.2.1 Method of sampling

The sides of the test pit are inspected to their full upper edge of the test pit, then sample every
distinguishable gravel, soil or sand layer by holding a spade or canvas sheet at the lower level of
the layer against the side of the pit and by cutting a sheer groove to the full depth of the layer
with a pick a or spade.
Place the material obtained in this way in ample bags. The canvas sheet may also be spread out
on the floor of the test pit and at least twice the amount of material needed for the final sample
must be loosened from the layers. Once all the layers have been sampled the material from each
layer must be combined on either a clean, hard, even surface or on a canvas sheet and properly
mixed with a spade.
Then quarter out a representative sample of the layer as specified by the set standards
Though, it is customary to fill one small sample bag which can holed about 10kg, and two or
three larger bags each holding about 30 to 40 kg. Here the sampler must be guided by his
discretion and experience.
The sample bags must all be clearly and indelibly marked so that the samples can be identified in
the laboratory and the identifying reference must agree with that given in the covering report or
form.

2.4.3 Sampling from the stockpiles

2.4.3.1 Sampling while stockpile is being formed by the off-loading of material

Select one or two positions on the consolidated surface of every layer of the stockpile at random
while the pile is being formed. Make a vertical test hole through the layer with the pick and
shovel.
Place a canvas sheet in the bottom of the hole and cut a groove in the side of the hole from top to
bottom, letting this material fall onto the canvas sheet.
Gather a sufficient quantity of material by cutting successive grooves, frequently raising the
canvas sheet from the hole and tipping its contents onto another canvas sheet on the surface.
Mix the material on the canvas sheet and divide it, by means of the riffle and the quartering
method into the required size so that each sample bag or container contains a representative
sample of the material taken from the test hole.
2.4.3.2 Sampling from an already completed Stockpile
Select at least twelve sampling positions in a random manner. Approximately half the positions
may be on top of the stockpile if its surface is fairly large.

2.4.4 Sampling with a mechanical loader digger

2.4.4.1 Sampling from the sides of a stockpile
Scoop the sample from the sides of the stockpile from the bottom towards the top and fill the
bucket of the loader-digger and deposit the material on a clean hard surface, it could be the flat
steel back of a truck or a hard clean ground surface are. Mix the material thoroughly with the
spade and quarter it out into smaller equal parts using the quartering method until a quantity
approximately twice the size is obtained.
Deposit this material on a canvas sheet, mix it thoroughly again and further divide it with the aid
of the riffle until the desired sample, consisting of one or more bags, each representative of the
sample, has been obtained.

2.4.4.2 Sampling from the top of the stockpile

Use the load-digger to make a hole approximately 2 m deep, scoop a load of material from the
side of the hole, working from the bottom to the top, and deposit it in the back of a truck. Mix
and divide the sample as appropriately described 2.5.4.1 above.
CONCRETE MIX DESIGN

Concrete mix design is a method of correct proportioning of ingredients of concrete in order to

optimize the properties of concrete as per site requirements or the determination of the relative
proportions of ingredients of concrete to achieve desired strength and workability in a most
economical way.
The procedure of mix design is followed with reference to the specified concrete characteristics
below;
i. Grade, C 25 at 28 days with 5% defective rate. It has been discovered that concrete cube
strength follow a normal distribution, there is always a possibility however remote that a
result will be obtained less than the specified strength. It has therefore become the
increasing practice to specify the quality of concrete not as minimum strength but as a
characteristic strength below which a specified proportion of the test results, often called
“ defectives” may be expected to fall.
ii. Portland cement, class 42.5
iii. The maximum size of aggregates to be used is 14mm
iv. The slump of concrete to be considered will range between 50 to 125 mm basing on the
general specifications.
v. The specifications specify a minimum cement content of 330kg/m3 and a maximum of
500kg, a maximum W/C ratio of 0.5 and a mean / target strenght of 40Mpa

The basic procedures in mix design include

1. Find the target mean strength.

2. Determine the curve of cement based on its strength.
3. Determine water/cement ratio.
4. Determine cement content.
5. Determine fine and coarse aggregate proportions

FM. = 3.26 (Zone I) 600 micron passing = 32 %

Specific gravity = 2.75

Target mean strength = Characteristic strength + K * s

K= Himsworth Coefficient is taken as 1.65 for 5 % probability of failure.
s = Standard deviation
The values of s are given in IS 10262 for fair, good and very good degree of control.

Calculation:

F M = Cumulative % weight retained (up to 150 μ)/ 100

Standard deviation of samples of cube results should be regularly checked. The revised IS 456
2000 assumes a standard deviation of 4 Mpa for concrete grades up to M25 and 5 Mpa for grades
above M25. Higher standard deviation mean poor control at site on concrete operation.
Acceptance criteria for accepting cube results are given in revised IS 456 2000. The cube results
should be regularly checked for these acceptance criteria.
Target mean strength = Characteristic strength + K * s
= 25 + 1.64 x 4= 31.56N/mm2

Determination of the curve of cement based on its strength.

The strength of cement is determined either by conventional methods given in IS 4031-1988 Part
6 or by accelerated curing reference mix method mentioned in IS 10262 –
1982 page15 (Appendix B Clause 3.1.1.) The cement is classified into various curves based on
the strength of cement.

Curve Strength of Cement (N/mm2)

A 31.9 to 36.8 N/mm2
B 36.8 to 41.7 N/mm2
C 41.7 to 46.6 N/mm2
D 46.6 to 51.5 N/mm2
E 51.5 to 56.4 N/mm2
F 56.4 to 61.3 N/mm2
Given the strength of cement as grade 42.5, curve strength of cement is C.
Determination of water cement ratio
Basing on curve C and target mean strength of 32N/mm2, water/cement ratio is interpolated
from the graph below. (IS 10262 Fig 2)
From the figure w/c ratio is 0.43

Determine the cement content

The cement content is obtained from the expression
3
Weight of water per m
Water/cement ratio= 3 ……………………………………………eqn (3.3)
Weight of cement per m
3
Weight of water per m
214.24
The cement content = water = = 498 kg/m3………………………..eqn
ratio 0.43
cement
(3.4)
The water demand is for 14 mm maximum size of crushed aggregate and Crushed sand of zone
II (F.M. = 3.19) for a slump range of 50 to 125 mm (compaction factor= 0.9) Table 4 and 5
page no 9 IS 10262-1982

Water Demand =208 lit for compaction factor of 0.8

Add 3% water for incremental compaction factor of 0.1

Water demand = 208 + 6.24

= 214.24 Lit
Cement Content =214.24/0.43
= 498Kg/m3
Determination of fine and coarse aggregaates

Sand % by volume for zone II sand, compaction factor 0.8 and water cement ratio 0.43 for
14mm down coarse aggregate = 40% (Refer table 2 Annexure III, page no 65 of
Durocrete Mix Design Manual)

Corrections
Correction for zone 1 sand = +1.5%
Correction for water/cement ratio of 0.43= - 3%
Net Sand content = 40+1.5-3=33.5%
Weights of fine and coarse aggregates are calculated as
V = (W +C/Sc + 1/p (fa/Sfa)) x 1/1000
V = (W +C/Sc + 1/1-p x (Ca/Sca) ) x 1/1000
V = Absolute volume of fresh concrete i.e. (gross volume –volume of entrapped Air)
= 1-.02=0.98
W = water demand = 208Lit
C = cement content = 498Kg
p = ratio of fine aggregate to total aggregate =0.335
fa = total quantity of fine aggregate in Kg per m3
ca = total quantity of coarse aggregate in Kg per m3
Sc = Specific Gravity of Cement =3.15
Sfa = Specific gravity of fine aggregate =2.75
Sca = Combined Specific Gravity of Coarse aggregate (Assuming 30% of coarse aggregate is
10mm down aggregate =2.90 x 0.7 + 2.86x 0.3=2.89
Fa= 606 Kg/m3
Ca =1278Kg/m3
CHAPTER THREE: CONCRETE MIX DESIGN BY DOE

Concrete mix design is a method of correct proportioning of ingredients of concrete in order to

optimize the properties of concrete as per site requirements or the determination of the relative
proportions of ingredients of concrete to achieve desired strength and workability in a most
economical way.
The procedure of mix design is followed with reference to the specified concrete characteristics
below;
i. Grade, C 25 at 28 days with 5% defective rate. It has been discovered that concrete cube
strength follow a normal distribution, there is always a possibility however remote that a
result will be obtained less than the specified strength. It has therefore become the
increasing practice to specify the quality of concrete not as minimum strength but as a
characteristic strength below which a specified proportion of the test results, often called
“ defectives” may be expected to fall.
ii. Portland cement, class 42.5
iii. The maximum size of aggregates to be used is 14mm
iv. The slump of concrete to be considered will range between 50 to 125 mm basing on the
general specifications.
v. The specifications specify a minimum cement content of 330kg/m3 and a maximum of
500kg, a maximum W/C ratio of 0.5 and a mean / target strenght of 40Mpa

Determination of the target mean strength

Due to the variability of Concrete strength, the concrete mix is designed to have a considerably
higher strength than characteristic strength by an amount termed margin. The variation in
strength is caused by statistical variation in results and variation in degree of control exercised at
site. This higher strength is defined as the target mean strength.
Therefore, Target mean strength = Characteristic strength + M………………………….eqn (3.1)
And Margin, M = k x s …………………………………………………………………...eqn (3.2)
where, k is a constant and s is the standard deviation.
Table 3.1; the values of constant, k
Percentage defectives Constant, k
 10% 1.28
5% 1.64
2.5% 1.96
1% 2.33

The revised IS 456 2000 assumes a standard deviation of 4 Mpa for concrete grades up to M25
and 5 Mpa for grades above M25. Higher standard deviation mean poor control at site on
concrete operation. [Mix design manual]
Considering the 5% defective rate, the k value was taken as 1.64 from table 3.1 above and the
standard deviation, s as 4.
Thus margin, M = k x s, (eqn 3.2) =1.64x4 = 6.56 N/mm2
Target mean strength = Characteristic strength + M, (eqn 3.1) = 25+6.56 = 32N/mm2.
Hence, the target mean strength = 32 N/mm2
Determination of the curve of cement based on its strength.
The strength of cement is determined either by conventional methods given in IS 4031-1988 Part
6 or by accelerated curing reference mix method mentioned in IS 10262 –1982 page15. The
cement grade 42.5 can develop an average strength of 54.5.The cement is classified into various
curves based on the strength of cement.
Curve Strength of Cement (N/mm2)
A 31.9 to 36.8 N/mm2
B 36.8 to 41.7 N/mm2
C 41.7 to 46.6 N/mm2
D 46.6 to 51.5 N/mm2
E 51.5 to 56.4 N/mm2
F 56.4 to 61.3 N/mm2
Given the strength of cement as grade 42.5, curve strength of cement is E. After which the
water/cement ratio is determined

Determination of water/cement ratio, water content and the cement content

For curve E and the target strength of 32, the water/cement ratio is 0.50 from fig.3.1
Table 3.2 considers maximum size of aggregates, aggregate type i.e. crushed or uncrushed, and
the specified slump for the selecting water content. With the maximum size of aggregates being
14mm, considering the crushed type of aggregates and a slump value between 50 and 125, a
water content of 240kg/m3 is interpolated.

The cement content is obtained from the expression

3
Weight of water per m
Water/cement ratio= 3 ……………………………………………eqn (3.3)
Weight of cement per m
3
Weight of water per m
240
The cement content = water = = 480 kg/m3………………………..eqn
ratio 0.50
cement
(3.4)
Figure 3.1: Relationship between water/cement ratio and concrete strength at 28 days for
different cement curves

Table 3.2: Approximate free water content (kg/m 3) required to give various level of
workability
Slump (mm) 0-10 10-30 30-60 60-180
Vibe time (s) > 12 6-12 3-6 0-3
Maximum size of Type of
Aggregates (mm) Aggregates
10 Uncrushed 150 180 205 225
 Crushed 180 205 230 250
20 Uncrushed 135 160 180 195
Crushed 170 190 210 225
40 Uncrushed 115 140 160 175
Crushed 155 175 190 205
Note; When coarse and fine aggregates of different types are used the free water content is
2 1
estimated by the expression W f + W c
3 3
Where, W f = free water content appropriate to type of fine aggregates and
W c= free water content appropriate to type of coarse aggregates

3.4.4 Determination of the concrete density

With the given aggregate type i.e. crushed and calculated free water content, the appropriate wet
density is determined from the figure 3.2.
The wet density is obtained as 2360 kg/m3.
The total aggregate content = D-W-C……………………………………………eqn (3.5)
Where D is the density of wet concrete, W is water content and C is cement content.
Total Aggregates = 2360-240-480= 1640 kg/m3.
3.4.5 Determination of fine and coarse aggregate content
43 % was found passing through the 600um sieve, a 48.8% proportion of fine aggregates is
interpolated from the values obtained from Figure 3.3 and figure 3.4.
 Figure 3.2: Estimated wet density of fully compacted concrete

Figure 3.3: Recommended proportions of fine aggregates passing 0.6mm sieve

 Figure 3.4: Recommended proportions of fine aggregates passing 0.6mm sieve

The fine aggregate content = Total aggregate content x proportion of fine aggregates
48.8
Fine content= x 1640 = 800 kg/m3……………………………………………….eqn (3.5)
100
Coarse aggregate content = total aggregates content- fine aggregate content
Coarse aggregates content = 1640 – 800 = 840kg/m3 ……………………................eqn (3.6)
Therefore, the required individual constituent contents are;
Constituents Cement Water Fine aggregates Coarse aggregates
Content (kg/m3) 480 240 800 840

480 800 840

Mix ratio: : : i.e. Cement: Sand: Aggregate, The ratio becomes, 1:1.6:1.75
480 480 480
 SURFACE DRESSING DESIGN

Design information

The design road is situated in northern Uganda where the area is covered by a tropical climate
and is to be upgraded from gravel to a bituminous paved road class II. The road consists of a
mechanically stabilized gravel sub-base, crushed stone road base and double surface dressing.
It’s expected to carry more than 2000 commercial vehicles per day per lane.

The surface dressing is to be laid on a primed road base on which the chippings will penetrate
moderately under medium and heavy traffic.

The chipping sizes available from the proposed quarry at km 110+500 LHS are shown in the
table below.

Table 1.1; the available sizes of proposed chippings are as follows

Chipping size Medium size Flakiness index

20
10

The chippings from the quarry are cubical in shape and the bitumen grade of 80/100 penetration
is to be used in the design of surface dressing.

The spray rate for binder shall be adjusted for flat terrain with moderate traffic speeds, downhill
grades >3% for high traffic speed and uphill grades >3% for low speed traffic.

Selection of surface hardness and traffic category

In order to obtain the recommended sizes of chippings, the surface hardness category and traffic
category have to be obtained.

From table 4.20 TRL 1993 below, the surface hardness category is normal, for a bituminous road
base or base course into which chippings penetrate moderately under medium and heavy traffic.

From table 4.21 TRL 1993 below, the traffic category 1, for traffic volume >2000 veh/day.
Selection of chipping size

Considering the surface hardness to be normal and the traffic category of 2, the appropriate size
of chippings is selected as 20 for the first seal layer.

The road is to be upgraded from gravel to a bituminous surface road, a double surface dressing is
recommended. This means that the second layer will have chipping size of about half the
nominal size of the first layer to ensure good interlocking between the two layers.

Hence chipping size of second layer = 0.5(20) =10mm

Table 1.2: Recommended chipping sizes

Surfacing layer Chipping size ALD

First seal 20
Second seal 10

The ALD of the aggregates is obtained from figure 1.1 by considering the medium size and the
flakiness index of aggregates