Unified soil classification system is adopted by ASTM D-2487-98 and IS: 1498-1970 for

classification and identification of soils for general engineering purpose.

Unified Soil Classification System and Symbol Chart:

Fig: Unified soil classification system for coarse grained soils

 Fig: Unified soil classification system for fine grained soils

Fig: Soil Plasticity chart as per Unified soil classification system

Unified Soil Classification System (USCS)
Soils are broadly classified into three divisions:

Coarse grained soils: In these soils, 50% or more of the total material by weight is larger
than 75 micron IS sieve size.
Fine grained soils: In these soils, 50% or more of the total material by weight is smaller
than 75 micron IS sieve size.
Highly organic soils and other miscellaneous soil materials:
These soils contain large percentage of fibrous organic matter, such as peat, and the
particles of decomposed vegetation. In addition, certain soils containing shells, cinders
and other non-soil materials in sufficient quantities are also grouped in this division.

1. Coarse grained Soils

Coarse grained soils are further divided into two sub-divisions:

a) Gravels (G): In these soils more than 50% of the coarse fraction (+75 micron) is larger
than 4.75 mm sieve size. This sub-division includes gravels and gravelly soil, and is
designated by symbol G.

b) Sands (S): In these soils, more than 50% of the coarse fraction is smaller than 4.75mm
IS sieve size. This sub-division includes sands and sandy soils.

Each of the above sub-divisions are further divided into four groups depending upon
grading and inclusion of other materials.

1. W : Well Graded
2. C : Clay binder
3. P : Poorly graded
4. M : Containing fine materials not covered in other groups.
These symbols used in combination to designate the type of grained soils. For example,
GC means clayey gravels.

2. Fine grained soils

Fine grained soils are further divided into three sub-divisions:

a) Inorganic silts and very fine sands: M

b) Inorganic clays: C

c) Organic silts and clays and organic matter: O.

The fine grained soils are further divided into the following groups on the basis of the
following arbitrarily selected values of liquid limit which is a good index of
compressibility:

i) Silts and clays of low compressibility:

Having a liquid limit less than 35 and represented by symbol L.

ii) Silts and clays of medium compressibility:

Having a liquid limit greater than 35 and less than 50 and represented by symbol I.

iii) Silts and clays of high compressibility:

Having a liquid limit greater than 50 and represented by a symbol H.

Combination of these symbols indicates the type of fine grained soil. For example, ML
means inorganic silt with low to medium compressibility.

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2. AASHTO Soil Classification System - AASHTO Chart

Besides Soil Classification on other criteria, the AASHTO Soil Classification System
classifies soils into seven primary groups, named A-1 through A-7, based on their relative
expected quality for road embankments, sub-grades, sub-bases, and bases. Some of
the groups are in turn divided into subgroups, such as A-1-a and A-1-b. Furthermore,
a Group Index may be calculated to quantify a soil’s expected performance within a group.
To determine a soil’s classification in the AASHTO system, one first determines the relative
proportions of gravel, coarse sand, fine sand, and silt-clay.
AASHTO Liquid Limit Vs Plasticity Index
In the AASHTO Soil Classification System:

 gravel is material smaller than 75 mm (3 in.) but retained on a No. 10 sieve;

 coarse sand is material passing a No 10 sieve but retained on a No. 40 sieve; and fine
sand is material passing a No. 40 sieve but retained on a No. 200 sieve.
 Material passing the No. 200 sieve is silt-clay and is classified based on Atterberg limits.
 It should be noted that the division between gravel and sand is made at a smaller size
(No. 10 sieve) in the AASHTO Soil Classification System than in the unified system (No.
4 sieve).

Secondly, if any fines are present, Atterberg limits are determined and the plasticity
index is calculated. A soil is a granular material if less than 35% of the soil by weight
passes the No. 200 sieve (#200). Granular materials are classified into groups A-
1 through A-3. Soils having more than 35% passing the No. 200 sieve are silt-clay and
fall in groups A-4 through A-7. Having the proportions of the components and the
plasticity data, one enters one of the two alternatives AASHTO classification tables and
checks from left to right until a classification is found for which the soil meets the criteria.
It should be noted that, in this scheme, group A-3 is checked before A-2. Soils classified
as A-1 are typically well-graded mixtures of gravel, coarse sand, and fine sand. Soils in
subgroup A-1-a contain more gravel whereas those in A-1-b contain more sand.

Soils in group A-3 are typically fine sands that may contain small amounts of non-plastic
silt. Group A-2 contains a wide variety of “borderline” granular materials that do not
meet the criteria for groups A-1 or A-3. Soils in group A-4 are silty soils, whereas those
in group A-5 are high-plasticity elastic silt. Soils in group A-6 are typically lean clays,
and those in group A-7 are typically highly plastic clays. Within groups containing fines,
one may calculate a group index to further evaluate relative quality and supporting value
of a material as sub-grade. The group index is calculated according to the following
empirical formula:

Group index F 35 – ( )0.2 0.005 LL 40 – ( ) + [ ] + 0.01 F 15 –

( )PI 10 – ( )
https://www.slideshare.net/MylanNejyar/examples-on-soil-classification
The Basics of Soil Classification for Geotechnical
Engineering
FEBRUARY 19, 2020

View the complete article here.

Whatever is being built, it is only as strong as the soil or rock it sits

upon. For foundation engineers, knowledge of soil mechanics is more
important than ever as we venture into locations with low quality, and
even unknown, soil conditions.

What is Soil?

Look closely at the dirt underneath your feet. You are standing on
mineral particles that were formed from decomposed rock. Rock
breaks down due to weathering (by air, ice, wind, and water) and
chemical processes. Soil also includes air, water, or
organic materials derived from the decay of vegetation. (And other
living things, like birds and bugs.)

Basic Soil Types

There are four basic soil types:

Sand

Sand is made up of very tiny pieces of weathered rock (typically granite,

limestone, and quartz). It’s inability to hold water and lack of nutrients
make it a poor choice for growing most types of plants. However,
coconuts and melons are best grown in sandy soil. Sand is best used
for drainage systems.

Silt

Silt is primarily found near water – like rivers and lakes. That’s because
this type of soil is easily moved by currents. Silt is comprised of
mineral particles that are larger than sand, but tinier than clay.
Because it is both fine and smooth, it holds water well – particularly
when compared to sand. Silt is quite fertile and is often used to
improve the quality of the soil used to grow crops.
Clay Soil

Clay is sand’s polar opposite. There is little or no air inside of it

causing the particles to closely pack together. It will readily hold water,
which makes it sticky. But, dry it out and it’s very smooth. Obviously,
the perfect choice for making a vase, but lousy for drainage. It’s the
densest of soils and provides no breathing room for plant roots to
expand and grow.

Loam

Loam is a combination of the other three types of soil. It holds the best
qualities of silt, sand, and clay. It can retain moisture, has a healthy
amount of nutrients, but is not so dense that it will keep roots from
expanding. It is perfect for farming and for this reason is
called agricultural soil.

How is Soil Classified?

Unified Soil Classification System (USCS)

The Unified Soil Classification System (USCS) is a standardized way for

geotechnical engineers to describe soil. The classification is used in
the design of structural-related projects, such as bridges, retaining
walls, and buildings. This more precise classification is based on grain
size analysis and Atterberg Limits testing of soil samples from the
proposed site.

Modified Unified System (MUD)

The Modified Unified System (MUD) procedure involves visually and

manually examining soil samples with respect to texture, plasticity and
color. Soil descriptions are based upon the judgment of the person
making the description. Classification tests are not intended to be
used to verify the description, but to provide further information for
analysis of soil design problems or for possible use of the soil as a
construction material.

This system is intended to provide the best description of the soil

sample to those involved in the planning, design, construction, and
maintenance processes.

Soil Characteristics

There are many different ways to determine how a soil will perform.
Here we define some of these characteristics:

Shear strength

Shear strength is a measure of how much force a soil can withstand

before it collapses against itself.

Permeability

Permeability describes how readily water flows through the soil.

Compressibility

Compressibility describes how easily the soil’s volume is reduced when

subjected to mechanical loads. The rate of consolidation is also
important so that settlement of the structure is within a limit that
extends its use and durability.

Consolidation

Soil voids are pockets of air and water within the soil. Consolidation is
the compression that occurs when steady pressure is applied to the
soil and the water within the voids is expelled. This characteristic
usually applies to silts and clays. Clays that are saturated with water
consolidate at a slow rate because their permeability is low.

Consolidation is different from compaction. Compaction happens

when unsaturated soil increases in density because air is pushed out of
the voids. Consolidation of soil occurs when its density increases
because water is drained from its voids.

Other Information for Describing Soils

You may see a bunch of brown dirt, but the foundation engineer sees
(and tests for) much more.

Color

Color description is restricted to two colors. Examples of soil color

include brown, black, gray, and red. If soil is comprised of three or
more colors, it should be described as multi-colored or mottled. The
two predominant colors are then noted.

Moisture

The in-situ moisture content of a soil is described as dry, moist, or wet.

Plasticity

Soil is described as very plastic, plastic, low-plastic, or non-plastic.

The soil sample must be in moist or wet condition for plasticity
determination. Testing plasticity is fairly simple:
You’ll take a small sample of wet soil and roll it into a wire-like strip
about 3mm thick. If you can’t form the strip at all, it’s non-plastic. If
you can form the strip, but it breaks easily, it’s low-plastic. It is plastic
if you can form the strip, but if you break it, you cannot form it again.
Finally, if the strip you form is not easy to break, and the same sample
can be formed into a strip many times, it is considered very plastic.

Structure

Soil structure is described as fissured, blocky, or layered.

Fissured

Can be broken along visual fractures with little resistance.

Blocky

You can easily break the soil down into angular lumps. These lumps
cannot be further broken down (without inordinate pressure).

Stratified

Different soils are layered on top of each other. These can be differing
colors or soil types. Layers less than a quarter of an inch thick are
described as laminated. Fine-grained layers are identified as varved.

Particle shape

Coarse-grained soils are described as angular, sub-angular, sub-

rounded, or rounded. Descriptions of fine-grained soils will not
include a particle angularity or shape.
Wait… There’s More

Any additional descriptive terms considered helpful in identifying

the soil should be included, such as calcareous and cemented.

Calcareous

This type of soil has high levels of calcium and magnesium carbonate –
perfect for growing grapes for wine.

Cemented

A chemical agent like calcium carbonate holds the particles of

cemented soil together. You cannot manually crush small samples of
cemented soil into a powder with your fingers.
OSHA Classification

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) classifies

soil as Type A, Type B, or Type C. Why do they care? Because every
year 40 construction workers die when trenches collapse. Knowing the
type of soil – and implementing the proper precautions — before they
start digging literally saves lives.

Type A soil is the safest to excavate. Type C soil is dangerous.

An easy and fairly reliable way to determine the type of soil is to test
its cohesiveness. (Soil is cohesive or granular. Cohesive soil sticks
together. Stickier soil has more clay in it.) To estimate the compressive
strength of the soil, stick your thumb in it. You really have to try hard
to make an indentation in Type A soil. You thumb will sink up to about
the end of your thumbnail if it’s Type B. If your thumb sinks all the way
into the soil sample, it’s Type C.

Type A Soil

Type A soil has a compressive strength of at least 1.5 tons per square
foot. It is not fissured nor does it have water seeping through it. It
should not vibrate from pile drivers or heavy traffic.

Type B

Type B soil does not stick together as much as Type A soil. Its
compressive strength is between 0.5 and 1.5 tons per square foot.

Type C

Type C soil is very unstable because its particles don’t stick together
and it has a low compressive strength equal or less than 0.5 tons per
square foot. Any soil with water seeping through it is classified as Type
C.
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 1. Atterberg Limits of Soil Classification - Atterberg Test

A fine-gained soil can exist in any of several states; which state depends on the
amount of water in the soil system. When water is added to a dry soil, each particle
is covered with a film of adsorbed water. If the addition of water is continued, the
thickness of the water film on a particle increases. Increasing the thickness of the
water films permits the particles to slide past one another more easily. The behavior
of the soil, therefore, is related to the amount of water in the system. Approximately
sixty years ago, Albert Atterberg defined the boundaries of four states in terms of
"limits" called Atterberg Limits which are as follows:

Atterberg Limits Definitions

 Liquid limit: The boundary between the liquid and plastic states;
  Plastic limit: The boundary between the plastic and semi-solid states;

 Shrinkage limit: The boundary between the semi-solid and solid states.

Absorption – the
process of taking something into another substance, the
process through which one substance permeates another. An example of this
is a liquid permeating a solid.

Adsorption - In simple terms, adsorption is the attraction of molecules onto

the surface of a solid. the adhesion in an extremely thin layer of molecules (as of gases, solutes,
or liquids) to the surfaces of solid bodies or liquids with which they are in contact

Casagrande's Definition
These limits have since been more definitely defined by A. Casagrande as the water
contents which exist under the following conditions:

 Liquid limit: The water content at which the soil has such a small shear strength that it
flows to close a groove of standard width when jarred in a specified manner.

 Plastic limit: The water content at which the soil begins to crumble when rolled into
threads of specified size.

 Shrinkage limit: The water content that is just sufficient to fill the pores when the

Liquid Limit Definition

The Liquid Limit, also known as the upper plastic limit, is the water content at which soil
changes from the liquid state to a plastic state. OR

It is the minimum moisture content at which a soil flows upon application of very small
shear force. OR

The moisture content at which any increase in the moisture content will cause a plastic
soil to behave as a liquid. The limit is defined as the moisture content, in percent,
required to close a distance of 0.5 inches along the bottom of a groove after 25 blows in
a liquid limit device.

Liquid Limit (LL or wL) - the water content, in percent, of a soil at the arbitrarily defined
boundary between the semi-liquid and plastic states.
Plastic Limit Definition
The Plastic Limit, also known as the lower plastic limit, is the water content at which a
soil changes from the plastic state to a semisolid state. OR

The soil moisture content at which any increase in the moisture content will cause a
semi-solid soil to become plastic. The limit is defined as the moisture content at which a
thread of soil just crumbles when it is carefully rolled out to a diameter of 1/8 inch. The
plastic limit is defined as the moisture content where the thread breaks apart at a
diameter of 3.2 mm (about 1/8 inch). A soil is considered non-plastic if a thread cannot
be rolled out down to 3.2 mm at any moisture possible.

Plastic Limit (PL or wP) - the water content, in percent, of a soil at the boundary
between the plastic and semi-solid states.

Plasticity of Soil
It is defined as the property of cohesive soil which posses the ability to undergo
changes of shape without rupture or a change in volume.

Non plastic soils

Soil that do not have plastic limit are reported as being non-plastic e.g fairly clean sand,
rock dust etc. Non plastic soils make excellent road materials when properly confined
under wearing course .e.g. Rock dust. Even when wet they form hard, durable surface
whereas clean sand displaces easily under the load. However, their use for base course
or for fill brings difficult construction problems.

Plasticity Index (PI)

Plasticity Index is the range of water content over which a soil behaves plastically. It
indicates the degree of plasticity of the soil. PI is the difference between the liquid limit
and the plastic limit. Greater the difference, greater is the plasticity of the soil. Soils with
a high PI tend to be predominantly clay, while those with a lower PI tend to be
predominantly silt. Soils with high plasticity index are highly compressible. Plasticity
index in also a measure of cohesiveness with high value of PI indicating high degree of
cohesion. Experience shows that soils with high P.I are much less desirable for sub
grade or base course than those having less indexes. For base course common
specification is P.I < 3.

Shrinkage Limit
It is the maximum water content at which a reduction in water content will not cause a
decrease in volume of the soil mass. It is the lowest water content at which soil can still
be saturated.

Liquidity Index / Water Plasticity Ratio

The Atterberg limits are found for re-moulded soil samples. These limits as such do not
indicate the consistency of undisturbed soil. The index to indicate consistency of
undisturbed soils is called liquidity index of the soil or Water Plasticity Ration of the soil.
Its advantage is that The liquidity index (LI) is used for scaling the natural water content
of a soil sample to the limits.

Flow Index
The curve obtained from the graph of water content against the log of blows while
determining the liquid limit lies almost on a straight line and is known as the flow curve.
The equation for flow curve is:

W = - If Log N + C

Where 'If is the slope of flow curve and is termed as "Flow Index"

Toughness Index
The shearing strength of clay at plastic limit is a measure of its toughness. It is the ratio
of plasticity index to the flow index. It gives us an idea of the shear strength of soil.