CE161P-2

GEOTECHNICAL
ENGINEERING 1

MODULE 1
PART I

SCHOOL OF CIVIL, ENVIRONMENTAL, AND GEOLOGICAL ENGINEERING

SCHOOL OF CIVIL, ENVIRONMENTAL, AND GEOLOGICAL ENGINEERING
SCHOOL OF CIVIL, ENVIRONMENTAL, GEOLOGICAL ENGINEERING

INTRODUCTION TO SOIL MECHANICS

What is GEOTECHNICAL ENGINEERING?

 The term “geo” means earth or soil, indicating it has something to do with the
earth.
 Geotechnical engineering deals with the engineering aspects of soils and rocks,
sometimes known as geomaterials.
 It is a relatively young discipline that would not have been part of the curriculum in
the earlier part of the last century.
 The designs of every building, service, and infrastructure facility built on the
ground must give due consideration to the engineering behavior of the underlying
soil and rock to ensure that it performs satisfactorily during its design life

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INTRODUCTION TO SOIL MECHANICS

Branches of Geotechnical Engineering

1. Soil Mechanics
 is a scientific field of the civil engineering discipline that studies the
mechanical behavior of soil.
 Soil mechanics is critical in civil engineering as it describes the principles that
govern the way civil infrastructure projects such as buildings, bridges, tanks,
embankments, dams, and tunnels, are supported by the soil.

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INTRODUCTION TO SOIL MECHANICS

Branches of Geotechnical Engineering

2. Rock Mechanics
 Engineering the properties and mechanics of rocks – including the application
of dynamics, fluid mechanics, kinematics, and material mechanics.
3. Foundation Engineering
 This brings together geology, soil and rock mechanics, and structural
engineering for the design and construction of foundations for a range of civil
engineering projects.
 This field involves predicting the performance of foundation soil and rock to a
load imposed by a structure while considering performance, economy, and
safety.

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INTRODUCTION TO SOIL MECHANICS

Karl Anton von Terzaghi (1883-1963)

 He is recognized as the “Father of Soil Mechanics
and Geotechnical Engineering”​
 Started modern soil mechanics with theories of
consolidation, lateral earth pressures, bearing capacity
and stability​
 According to Terzaghi (1948):
 Soil mechanics is the application of laws of mechanics and
hydraulics to engineering problems dealing with sediments and
other unconsolidated accumulations of solid particles by
mechanical and chemical disintegration of rocks regardless of
whether or not they contain admixtures of organic constituents.

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INTRODUCTION TO SOIL MECHANICS

Importance of Geotechnical Engineering

 Every application of soil mechanics involves uncertainty because of the variability
of soils – their stratification, composition, and engineering properties.
 Geotechnical engineering involves a range of applications such as designing
foundations, retaining walls, dams, sheet piles, braced excavations, reinforced
earth structures, evaluating slope stability, and implementing ground improvement
techniques.

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INTRODUCTION TO SOIL MECHANICS

Importance of Geotechnical Engineering

 Foundations such as footings or piles are used to support buildings and transfer
the loads from the superstructure to the underlying soils.

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INTRODUCTION TO SOIL MECHANICS

Importance of Geotechnical Engineering

 Retaining walls are used to provide lateral support and maintain stability between
two different ground levels. Sheet piles are continuous impervious walls that are
made by driving interlocking sections into the ground. They are useful in
dewatering work.

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INTRODUCTION TO SOIL MECHANICS

Importance of Geotechnical Engineering

 Braced excavation involves bracing and supporting the walls of a narrow trench,
which may be required for burying a pipeline. Lately, geosynthetics are becoming
increasingly popular for reinforcing soils in an attempt to improve the stability of
footings, retaining walls, etc.

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INTRODUCTION TO SOIL MECHANICS

GEOTECHNICAL LESSONS FROM FAILURES

 All structures that are founded on earth rely on our ability to design safe and
economic foundations. Due to the inherent variability of soils, occasional
failures may happen.
 Failures occur because of the following:
 Inadequate site and soil investigations
 Unforeseen soil and water conditions
 Natural hazards
 Poor engineering analysis, design, construction, and quality control
 Usage outside the design conditions

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INTRODUCTION TO SOIL MECHANICS

GEOTECHNICAL LESSONS FROM FAILURES

Failure of the Transcona Grain Elevator in 1913.
 One of the earliest failures that was investigated and contributed to our knowledge
of soil behavior is the failure of the Transcona Grain Elevator (in Canada) in 1913.
 Within 24 hours after loading the grain elevator at a rate of about 1m of grain
height per day, the bin house began to tilt and settle. Fortunately, the structural
damage was minimal and the bin house was later restored.
 No borings were done to identify the soils and to obtain information on their
strength. Rather, an open pit about 4m deep was made for the foundations and a
plate was loaded to determine the bearing strength of the soil.

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INTRODUCTION TO SOIL MECHANICS

GEOTECHNICAL LESSONS FROM FAILURES

Failure of the Transcona Grain Elevator in 1913.
 Peck and Bryant conducted soil investigation
and found out that the applied pressure from
loads imposed by the bin house and the
grains ware nearly equal to the calculated
maximum pressure that the soil could
withstand.
 We also learn from this failure the
importance of soil investigations, soil
tests, and the effects of rate of loading.
 The Transcona Grain Elevator was designed
at a time when soil mechanics was not yet
born.

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SCHOOL OF CIVIL, ENVIRONMENTAL, GEOLOGICAL ENGINEERING

SOIL PROPERTIES & RELATIONSHIP

Soil Mechanics
 It is the discipline that studies the mechanical behavior of soil.
 Differs from classical fluid mechanics or solid mechanics as the soil is:
a) a heterogeneous mixture of solid particles (gravel, rock, sand, silt, and clay), liquid,
and gas (three-phase system), and
b) is a particulate material.
 Understanding and predicting soil’s behavior is complex as it is stress-dependent
and nonlinear.

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SOIL PROPERTIES & RELATIONSHIP

What is SOIL?
 Soils are natural resources obtained from
weathering and decomposition or
disintegration of rocks.
 They provide food, shelter, and
construction materials.
 Soils are the oldest and most complex
engineering materials.
 A heterogeneous mixture of fluids (air and
water) and particles (clay, sand, silt and
gravel), sometimes it may contain organic
solids, liquids, gases and other matters

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SOIL PROPERTIES & RELATIONSHIP

Soil
 Soil mass as it exists in nature is a more or less
random accumulation of soil particles, water
and air-filled spaces.
 Since the volume occupied by soil mass may
generally be expected to include material in all
the three states of matter – solid, liquid and
gas, soil is, in general, referred to as the
“three-phase system”.
 The two extreme cases here are dry soils and
saturated soils, both having only two phases.

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SOIL PROPERTIES & RELATIONSHIP

Soil Composition
 Let’s consider the soil mass shown in (a), where all three phases are present. For
clarity, we'll separate and arrange the phases as shown in (b), creating a phase
diagram.

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SOIL PROPERTIES & RELATIONSHIP

Soil Properties
 Water Content
 Void Ratio
 Porosity
 Degree of Saturation
 Air Content & Percent of Air Voids
 Unit Weight of Soil; and
 Specific Gravity of Soil Solids

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SOIL PROPERTIES & RELATIONSHIP

 Water Content (w) is a ratio, often

expressed as a percentage, that is used to
quantify the amount of water present within the
soil.
𝑴𝑴𝒘𝒘
𝑾𝑾𝑾𝑾𝑾𝑾𝑾𝑾𝑾𝑾 𝑪𝑪𝑪𝑪𝑪𝑪𝑪𝑪𝑪𝑪𝑪𝑪𝑪𝑪, 𝒘𝒘 = 𝒙𝒙 𝟏𝟏𝟏𝟏𝟏𝟏𝟏
𝑴𝑴𝒔𝒔

𝑴𝑴𝒕𝒕 − 𝑴𝑴𝒔𝒔
= 𝒙𝒙 𝟏𝟏𝟏𝟏𝟏𝟏𝟏
𝑴𝑴𝒔𝒔
 Can also be in terms of weight (W), such as in
kN.

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SOIL PROPERTIES & RELATIONSHIP

 Water Content (w)

Sample Problem:
1. A soil sample weighs 26.2 g was placed in a 105°C
oven for 24 hours. The dry soil sample turned out
to be 19.5 g. What is the water content?
Ans: 34.4%

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SOIL PROPERTIES & RELATIONSHIP

 Void Ratio (e) is defined as the ratio of the

volume of voids to the volume of solids.
 It helps in understanding how compacted or
loose the soil is.
𝑽𝑽𝒗𝒗
𝑽𝑽𝑽𝑽𝑽𝑽𝑽𝑽 𝑹𝑹𝑹𝑹𝑹𝑹𝑹𝑹𝑹𝑹, 𝒆𝒆 =
𝑽𝑽𝒔𝒔
𝑽𝑽𝒕𝒕 − 𝑽𝑽𝒔𝒔
=
𝑽𝑽𝒔𝒔

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SOIL PROPERTIES & RELATIONSHIP

 Void Ratio (e)

Sample Problem:
2. A 1 m-thick fill is compacted by a roller, and the
thickness reduced by 90 mm. If the initial void ratio
of the fill was 0.94, what is the new void ratio after
the compaction?
Ans: 0.76

Note:
 Soil grains are incompressible. Their mass, Ms and
volume,Vs remain the same at any void ratio.

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SOIL PROPERTIES & RELATIONSHIP

 Porosity (n) is the ratio, often expressed as a

percentage, of the volume of voids to the total
volume.
 It indicates how much water or air the soil can
hold and how it drains. Higher porosity means
soil can store more water. Lower porosity leads
to quicker drainage, preventing waterlogging and
enhancing soil air supply.
𝑽𝑽𝒗𝒗
𝑷𝑷𝑷𝑷𝑷𝑷𝑷𝑷𝑷𝑷𝑷𝑷𝑷𝑷𝑷𝑷, 𝒏𝒏 =
𝑽𝑽𝒕𝒕
𝑽𝑽𝒕𝒕 − 𝑽𝑽𝒔𝒔
=
𝑽𝑽𝒕𝒕
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SOIL PROPERTIES & RELATIONSHIP

Void Ratio – Porosity Relationship
 The void ratio and porosity of a soil are related properties that
describe the volume of voids (empty spaces).
 Void ratio is a measure of how much of the soil's volume is
made up of voids, whereas porosity is a measure of the
percentage of the soil's total volume that is composed of
voids.
𝑉𝑉𝑣𝑣
 This relationship helps to understand the space available for 𝑬𝑬𝑬𝑬. 𝟏𝟏: 𝑉𝑉𝑉𝑉𝑉𝑉𝑉𝑉 𝑅𝑅𝑅𝑅𝑅𝑅𝑅𝑅𝑅𝑅, 𝑒𝑒 =
𝑉𝑉𝑠𝑠
water, air, and other fluids within the soil. As porosity
increases, void ratio also increases, indicating more empty 𝑬𝑬𝑬𝑬. 𝟐𝟐: 𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃, 𝑛𝑛 =
𝑉𝑉𝑣𝑣
space within the soil. 𝑉𝑉𝑡𝑡

 This has implications for water retention, drainage, and other

engineering and environmental considerations in soil
mechanics.

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SOIL PROPERTIES & RELATIONSHIP

Void Ratio – Porosity Relationship
 Mathematically, the void ratio (e) and porosity (n) are
related by the equation:
𝑛𝑛
𝒊𝒊 𝑒𝑒 =
1 − 𝑛𝑛
𝑒𝑒 𝑬𝑬𝑬𝑬. 𝟏𝟏: 𝑉𝑉𝑉𝑉𝑉𝑉𝑉𝑉 𝑅𝑅𝑅𝑅𝑅𝑅𝑅𝑅𝑅𝑅, 𝑒𝑒 =
𝑉𝑉𝑣𝑣
𝒊𝒊𝒊𝒊 𝑛𝑛 = 𝑉𝑉𝑠𝑠
1 + 𝑒𝑒 𝑉𝑉𝑣𝑣
𝑬𝑬𝑬𝑬. 𝟐𝟐: 𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃, 𝑛𝑛 =
𝑉𝑉𝑡𝑡

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SOIL PROPERTIES & RELATIONSHIP

 Degree of Saturation (S) is defined as

the ratio of the volume of water to the total voids.
 It is a key factor in understanding the water
content and behavior of soil.
𝑽𝑽𝒘𝒘
𝑫𝑫𝑫𝑫𝑫𝑫𝑫𝑫𝑫𝑫𝑫𝑫 𝒐𝒐𝒐𝒐 𝑺𝑺𝑺𝑺𝑺𝑺𝑺𝑺𝑺𝑺𝑺𝑺𝑺𝑺𝑺𝑺𝑺𝑺𝑺𝑺, 𝑺𝑺 = 𝒙𝒙 𝟏𝟏𝟏𝟏𝟏𝟏𝟏
𝑽𝑽𝒗𝒗
 Dry soils have no water, and the voids are filled
with only air. Saturated soils have no air, and
the voids are filled with only water.
 Soils beneath the water table are often assumed
to be saturated.

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SOIL PROPERTIES & RELATIONSHIP

Soil States
1. Dry Soil (S = 0%)
 Air is only present in the voids
AIR
 Sometimes known as Oven-dried AIR WATER
WATER
2. Saturated Soil​ (S = 100%)
 Water is only present in the voids​ SOLID SOLID SOLID
PARTICLES PARTICLES PARTICLES
3. Partially Saturated/Moist Soil​
(S = between 0% to 100%) (1) (2) (3)

 There is water along with air is present

in the voids

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SOIL PROPERTIES & RELATIONSHIP

Soil States
4. Submerged​ (S = 100%)
 A saturated type of soil but submerged in water.

WATER

WATER

SOLID
PARTICLES

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SOIL PROPERTIES & RELATIONSHIP

 Air Content (a) is the ratio of the volume of

the air to the volume of the voids.
𝑽𝑽𝒂𝒂
𝑨𝑨𝑨𝑨𝑨𝑨 𝑪𝑪𝑪𝑪𝑪𝑪𝑪𝑪𝑪𝑪𝑪𝑪𝑪𝑪, 𝒂𝒂 =
𝑽𝑽𝒗𝒗

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SOIL PROPERTIES & RELATIONSHIP

Degree of Saturation – Air Content Relationship
 Mathematically, the degree of saturation (S) and Air
content (a) are related by the equation:

𝒊𝒊 𝑺𝑺 + 𝒂𝒂 = 𝟏𝟏

𝑉𝑉𝑣𝑣
𝑬𝑬𝑬𝑬. 𝟏𝟏: 𝑉𝑉𝑉𝑉𝑉𝑉𝑉𝑉 𝑅𝑅𝑅𝑅𝑅𝑅𝑅𝑅𝑅𝑅, 𝑒𝑒 =
𝑉𝑉𝑠𝑠

𝑉𝑉𝑣𝑣
𝑬𝑬𝑬𝑬. 𝟐𝟐: 𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃, 𝑛𝑛 =
𝑉𝑉𝑡𝑡

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SOIL PROPERTIES & RELATIONSHIP

 Air Void Ratio (avr) represents the

proportion of the total volume of void spaces (air-
filled gaps) in a soil sample to the total volume of
the soil.
 It plays a crucial role in understanding soil
properties and behaviors, including permeability,
compressibility, and strength.
𝑽𝑽𝒂𝒂 𝒆𝒆 − 𝒘𝒘𝑮𝑮𝒔𝒔
𝑨𝑨𝑨𝑨𝑨𝑨 𝑽𝑽𝑽𝑽𝑽𝑽𝑽𝑽 𝑹𝑹𝑹𝑹𝑹𝑹𝑹𝑹𝑹𝑹, 𝒂𝒂𝒂𝒂𝒂𝒂 = =
𝑽𝑽𝒕𝒕 𝟏𝟏 + 𝒆𝒆

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SOIL PROPERTIES & RELATIONSHIP

 Density (𝝆𝝆,𝑟𝑟ℎ𝑜𝑜) of the soil is simply the

mass per unit volume.
 However, because of the different phases
present within the soil, there are several forms
of densities/unit weights used in geotechnical
engineering.

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SOIL PROPERTIES & RELATIONSHIP

Density (𝝆𝝆)
 The most common one is the bulk density (𝝆𝝆m),
also known as total, moist, or wet density. It is the
total mass divided by total volume.
𝑴𝑴𝒕𝒕
𝝆𝝆𝒎𝒎 =
𝑽𝑽𝒕𝒕
 Dry density (𝝆𝝆d), is the density of the soil at the
same volume, assuming there is no water
(Mv = 0).
𝑴𝑴𝒔𝒔
𝝆𝝆𝒅𝒅 =
𝑽𝑽𝒕𝒕

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SOIL PROPERTIES & RELATIONSHIP

Density (𝝆𝝆)
 Saturated density (𝝆𝝆sat) is the bulk density when
the voids are filled with water
𝑴𝑴𝒕𝒕
𝝆𝝆𝒔𝒔𝒔𝒔𝒔𝒔 = ; 𝐰𝐰𝐰𝐰𝐰𝐰𝐰𝐰 𝐒𝐒 = 𝟏𝟏𝟏𝟏𝟏𝟏𝟏
𝑽𝑽𝒕𝒕
 Submerged density (𝝆𝝆′), also known as total,
effective, or buoyant density, is the effective
density of the soil when submerged (considering
buoyancy effects).
𝝆𝝆′ = 𝝆𝝆𝒔𝒔𝒔𝒔𝒔𝒔 − 𝝆𝝆𝒘𝒘

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SOIL PROPERTIES & RELATIONSHIP

 Unit Weight (𝜸𝜸,𝑔𝑔𝑎𝑎𝑚𝑚𝑚𝑚𝑎𝑎) is the weight of

soil per unit volume.
 When weight (e.g., kN) is used instead of mass
(e.g., g, kg, t), density becomes unit weight (𝜸𝜸).
 The definitions of bulk unit weight (𝜸𝜸m), dry unit
weight (𝜸𝜸d), saturated unit weight (𝜸𝜸sat), and
submerged unit weight (𝜸𝜸′) are similar to those of
corresponding densities.

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SOIL PROPERTIES & RELATIONSHIP

Density (𝝆𝝆) & Unit Weight (𝜸𝜸)
 REMEMBER that [ 𝛄𝛄 = 𝝆𝝆𝝆𝝆 ]
 Density of water (𝝆𝝆w):
= 1.0 g/cm3
= 1000 kg/m3
= 1.0 t/m3
 and, its Unit weight (𝜸𝜸w):
= 9810 N/m3
= 9.81 kN/m3

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SOIL PROPERTIES & RELATIONSHIP

Unit Weight – Dry Unit Weight – Water content Relationship
 The relationship of unit weight, dry unit weight, and moisture
content can be given as:

𝒊𝒊 𝜸𝜸 = 𝜸𝜸𝒅𝒅 (𝟏𝟏 + 𝒘𝒘)

𝜸𝜸
𝒊𝒊𝒊𝒊 𝜸𝜸𝒅𝒅 = 𝑬𝑬𝑬𝑬. 𝟏𝟏: 𝑊𝑊𝑊𝑊𝑊𝑊𝑊𝑊𝑊𝑊 𝑐𝑐𝑐𝑐𝑐𝑐𝑐𝑐𝑐𝑐𝑐𝑐𝑐𝑐, 𝑤𝑤 =
𝑊𝑊𝑇𝑇 − 𝑊𝑊𝑠𝑠
(𝟏𝟏 + 𝒘𝒘) 𝑊𝑊𝑠𝑠

𝑊𝑊𝑡𝑡
𝑬𝑬𝑬𝑬. 𝟐𝟐: 𝑈𝑈𝑈𝑈𝑈𝑈𝑈𝑈 𝑊𝑊𝑊𝑊𝑊𝑊𝑊𝑊𝑊𝑊𝑊, 𝛾𝛾 =
𝑉𝑉𝑡𝑡

𝑊𝑊𝑠𝑠
𝑬𝑬𝑬𝑬. 𝟑𝟑: 𝐷𝐷𝐷𝐷𝐷𝐷 𝑈𝑈𝑈𝑈𝑈𝑈𝑈𝑈 𝑊𝑊𝑊𝑊𝑊𝑊𝑊𝑊𝑊𝑊𝑊, 𝛾𝛾𝑑𝑑 =
𝑉𝑉𝑡𝑡

Note:
 The equations derived (in terms of unit weight) can be in terms of “density”

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SCHOOL OF CIVIL, ENVIRONMENTAL, GEOLOGICAL ENGINEERING

SOIL PROPERTIES & RELATIONSHIP

Dry Unit Weight at Zero Air Void (𝝆𝝆zav)
 The weight of soil solid per unit volume of a
saturated soil mass.
𝑮𝑮𝒔𝒔 𝜸𝜸𝒘𝒘
𝝆𝝆𝒁𝒁𝒁𝒁𝒁𝒁 =
𝟏𝟏 + 𝒆𝒆

𝑮𝑮𝒔𝒔 𝜸𝜸𝒘𝒘
= ; 𝒔𝒔𝒔𝒔𝒔𝒔𝒔𝒔𝒔𝒔 𝑺𝑺 = 𝟏𝟏
𝟏𝟏 + 𝒘𝒘𝑮𝑮𝒔𝒔

Note:
 The equations derived (in terms of unit weight) can be in terms of “density”

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SCHOOL OF CIVIL, ENVIRONMENTAL, GEOLOGICAL ENGINEERING

SOIL PROPERTIES & RELATIONSHIP

 Specific Gravity (G) is defined as the ratio of the

unit weight of a given material (e.g. soil) to the
unit weight of water.
𝝆𝝆
𝑮𝑮 =
𝝆𝝆𝒘𝒘
 Specific Gravity of soil solid (Gs) can be
expressed as:
𝑴𝑴𝒔𝒔
𝑮𝑮𝒔𝒔 =
𝑽𝑽𝒔𝒔 𝝆𝝆𝒘𝒘
 Specific Gravity can also be in terms of “unit
weight”

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SCHOOL OF CIVIL, ENVIRONMENTAL, GEOLOGICAL ENGINEERING

SOIL PROPERTIES & RELATIONSHIP

Sample Problem:
3. In its natural state, a moist soil has a volume of
9.34 x 10-3 m3 and weighs 177.6 x 10-3 kN. The
oven-dried weight of the soil is 153.6 x 10-3 kN. If
Gs = 2.67, calculate:
a. Moisture content (%) Ans: 15.63%
b. Moist unit weight (kN/m3) Ans: 19.01 x 10-3
c. Dry unit weight (kN/m3) Ans: 16.45 x 10-3
d. Void ratio Ans: 0.59
e. Porosity Ans: 0.37
f. Degree of saturation (%) Ans: 70.39%

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SCHOOL OF CIVIL, ENVIRONMENTAL, GEOLOGICAL ENGINEERING

SOIL PROPERTIES & RELATIONSHIP

Sample Problem:
4. The saturated unit weight and the water content in
the field are found to be 18.55 kN/m3 and 33%,
respectively. Determine the specific gravity of the
soil solids and the field void ratio.
Ans: 0.883 & 2.67 respectively
5. A cylindrical soil sample prepared for laboratory
testing has a diameter of 71 mm, a height of 142
mm, and weighs 10.675 x 10-3 kN. If the degree of
saturation is 93% and the specific gravity of soil
solids is 2.71, determine:
a. void ratio Ans: 0.77
b. water content Ans: 26.43%
c. water content under fully
Ans: 28.42%
saturated condition
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