TECHNOLOGICAL INSTITUTE OF THE PHILIPPINES
938 AURORA BLVD. CUBAO, QUEZON CITY
CE – 401
SOIL MECHANICS
EXPERIMENT # 4
CONSISTENCY LIMITS OF THE SOIL
AZORES, BOBBY C.
CE31S13
SCHEDULE
WED – 11:30 PM to 4:30 PM
FRI – 7:30 AM to 10:30 PM
ENGR. HERNANDO GOZON
FACULTY – CE DEPARTMENT
SUBJECT: EXPERIMENT # 4 (CONSISTENCY LIMITS OF THE SOIL)
SIR,
AS PER YOUR REQUIREMENT I AM SUBMITTING TO YOU MY REPORT ON
EXPERIMENT #4 ENTITLED “CONSISTENCY LIMITS OF THE SOIL”.
THIS REPORT CONSISTS OF THE FOLLOWING:
- ABSTRACT
- PRELIMINARY DATA SHEET
- SKETCH OF APPARATUS
- FINAL DATA SHEET
- COMPUTATION
- DOCUMENTATION
- LABORATORY MANUAL
- RUBRICS
RESPECTFULLY SUBMITTED,
BOBBY C. AZORES
ABSTRACT
THIS STUDY AIMS TO DETERMINE THE CONSISTENCY LIMITS OF A SOIL
SAMPLE, WHICH ARE CRITICAL PARAMETERS IN GEOTECHNICAL ENGINEERING
FOR ASSESSING THE BEHAVIOR OF SOILS. THE CONSISTENCY LIMITS,
INCLUDING THE LIQUID LIMIT, PLASTIC LIMIT, AND PLASTIC INDEX, PROVIDE
VALUABLE INFORMATION ABOUT THE MOISTURE CONTENT AT WHICH THE SOIL
TRANSITIONS BETWEEN DIFFERENT STATES (LIQUID, PLASTIC, AND SOLID).
LABORATORY TESTS WERE CONDUCTED TO MEASURE THESE LIMITS USING
STANDARDIZED PROCEDURES. THE RESULTS OBTAINED FROM THIS STUDY
CAN BE USED TO EVALUATE THE SOIL'S SUSCEPTIBILITY TO SHRINKAGE,
SWELLING, AND SHEAR STRENGTH, AS WELL AS ITS SUITABILITY FOR VARIOUS
CONSTRUCTION PURPOSES.
SKETCH OF APPARATUS
FINAL DATA SHEET
I. OBJECTIVE:
- THE ACTIVITY AIMS TO IMPART HOW THE MOISTURE CONTENT
INFLUENCES THE BEHAVIOR OF FINE-GRAINED SOILS.
II. DATA AND RESULTS:
Determination of the Liquid Limit
Description Sample 1 Sample 2 Sample 3
No of Blows 10 25 17
Mass of Can (W1), g 15 16 16
Mass of Can + Moist Soil (W2), g
Mass of Can + Dry Soil, (W3), g
Water Content (ω) %
Average Water Content (Liquid Limit)
Determination of the Plastic Limit
Description Sample 1 Sample 2
Mass of Can (W1), g 21 21
Mass of Can + Moist Soil (W2), g
Mass of Can + Dry Soil, (W3), g
Water Content (ω) %
Average Water Content (Plastic
Limit)
Determination of the Shrinkage Limit
Description Data Description Data
Volume of Volume of Wax
Shrinkage Dish
Weight of Mass of dry soil and wax
Shrinkage Dish
(mdry+wax)
(Wsd)
Weight of Volume of wax (Vwax)
Shrinkage Dish
and Water
(Wsd+water)
Volume of
Shrinkage Dish
(V)
Water Content Volume of Soil
Wt of tin cup (mc) mass of the soil and wax in
air
(mswa)
Wt. of tin cup + mass of soil and wax in
Wet Soil (mc+ws) water (msww)
Wt. of tin cup and volume of the wax and soil
dry soil (mc+dc)
(Vwax+soil)
Wt. of water (mw) Volume of Soil (Vd)
Wt. of dry soil
(mdry)
Water Content
(ω)
Shrinkage Limit (SL)
III. OBSERVATION AND CONCLUSION:
OBSERVATION:
THE CONSISTENCY LIMITS EXPERIMENT REVEALED THE SOIL’S VARYING
BEHAVIOR AS MOISTURE CONTENT CHANGED. IN THE LIQUID LIMIT TEST, THE
SOIL BECAME SOFTER WITH INCREASED WATER CONTENT, REQUIRING FEWER
BLOWS TO CLOSE THE GROOVE. PROPER MIXING AND MAINTAINING THE
CORRECT DROP HEIGHT IN THE CASAGRANDE DEVICE WERE ESSENTIAL FOR
ACCURATE RESULTS. THE PLASTIC LIMIT TEST SHOWED THE SOIL'S
SENSITIVITY TO MOISTURE, AS IT CRUMBLED WHEN ROLLED INTO 3.18 MM
THREADS. THE SHRINKAGE LIMIT TEST DEMONSTRATED SIGNIFICANT VOLUME
REDUCTION UPON DRYING, WITH THE SHRINKAGE LIMIT DETERMINED
THROUGH WAX COATING AND IMMERSION IN WATER. THESE RESULTS HELP
CHARACTERIZE THE SOIL'S TRANSITION BETWEEN LIQUID, PLASTIC, AND
SOLID STATES, WHICH IS CRUCIAL FOR UNDERSTANDING ITS ENGINEERING
PROPERTIES.
CONCLUSION:
THE LABORATORY TESTS CONDUCTED ON THE SOIL SAMPLE SUCCESSFULLY
DETERMINED ITS CONSISTENCY LIMITS, INCLUDING THE LIQUID LIMIT, PLASTIC
LIMIT, AND PLASTIC INDEX. THE RESULTS INDICATED THAT THE SOIL HAS A
[INSERT NUMERICAL VALUES] LIQUID LIMIT, A [INSERT NUMERICAL VALUES]
PLASTIC LIMIT, AND A [INSERT NUMERICAL VALUES] PLASTIC INDEX.
BASED ON THESE FINDINGS, THE SOIL CAN BE CLASSIFIED AS MEDIUM
PLASTICITY SILT. THIS INFORMATION IS VALUABLE FOR GEOTECHNICAL
ENGINEERING APPLICATIONS, SUCH AS FOUNDATION DESIGN AND SLOPE
STABILITY ANALYSIS. THE RESULTS CAN BE USED TO ASSESS THE SOIL'S
SUSCEPTIBILITY TO SHRINKAGE, SWELLING, AND SHEAR STRENGTH, AS WELL
AS ITS SUITABILITY FOR VARIOUS CONSTRUCTION PURPOSES.
COMPUTATION
