ENGINEERING CLASSIFICATION OF SOILS

An engineer often considers a soil as any cemented or weakly cemented accumulation of

mineral or rock particles formed by the weathering of rocks. The void space separating
the particles may contain air and/or water. Sometimes soils are crudely described
according to the geological processes active in their formation:
i) Residual soils products of in-situ weathering (no transport)
ii) Transported soils- subdivided according to the agent of transportation into:
-

Gravity
Wind
Water
Glaciers

The range of particle sizes, the varying degree of rounding and sorting and the loading
histories of the soil have a significant influence on the physical and engineering
properties. Soils may be formed by physical and/or chemical weathering and biological
processes. Erosive processes lead generally to coarser soils although glaciers may
produce rock floor. Chemical weathering produces changes in mineral form of the parent
rock and the formation of fine-grained clay soils.

The predominant soil types are shown in the table below, which also indicates what is
referred to as their firmness or strength:

Soil Type

Term

Field test

Sands, gravels

Loose

Can be excavated with a spade; 50mm wooden peg

can be easily driven
Requires a pick for excavation; 50mm wooden peg
is hard to drive
Visual examination; pick removes soil in lumps
which can be abraded
Easily moulded or crushed in the fingers.
Can be moulded or crushed by strong pressure in the
fingers
Exudes between the fingers when squeezed in the
hand
Moulded by light finger pressure
Can be moulded by strong finger pressure
Cannot be indented by the thumbnail
Can be indented by the thumbnail
Fibres already compressed together
Very compressible and open structure
Can be moulded in the hand and smears the fingers

Dense

Silts

Clays

Slightly
cemented
Soft or loose
Firm or dense
Very soft

Soft
Firm
Stiff
Very stiff
Organic, Peats Firm
Spongy
Plastic

Table 1. Soil types and field estimation of strength

CLAY MINERALS
Most clay minerals forming clay soils are of plate-like form having a high specific
surface (surface area: mass ratio). Surface forces hence play an important role in the
engineering behavior of clay soils.
Basic clay mineral structure.
Clay mineral structures are shown in Figures 1 to 3. The basic structural units consist of a
silica tetrahedron and an alumina octahedron. (Silicon and Aluminium may be partially
replaced these units by other elements). Basic units combine to produce characteristic
sheet structures and hence the plate-like form. The most common clay minerals are
kaolinite, illite and montmorillonite. They are formed by varied stacking arrangements of
the tetrahedra and octahedra with different types of bonding between combined sheets.

Kaolinite
Single sheet of silica
tetrahedra (T) combined
with single sheet of alumina
octahedra (O).
Very limited isomorphous
substitution

Illite
Sheets of alumina
octahedrons between and
combined with two silica
tetrahedrons. (TOT:TOT)
Substitution of Al by Mg
and Iron in Octahedral sheet
and partial substitution of
Silicon by Al in tetrahedral
sheet.

TO:TO sheets held fairly

tightly together by
hydrogen bonding (1
particle = 100+ stacks).
Absorb little water. Low
swelling and shrinkage
potential,

Combined TOT:TOT sheets

held together by fairly weak
bonding due to potassium
ions. Absorb more water
than kaolinites and have
higher swelling/shrinkage
potential.

Montmorillonite
Same basic structure as
illite.

Partial substitution of Al by
Mg in the octahedral sheet.
Water molecules and
(exchangeable) cations
other than potassium
present in space between
combined TOT sheets.
Very weak bond between
combined TOT sheets due
to these ions. Extremely
high water absorption
between TOT sheets,
swelling and shrinkage
potential.

Table 2. Properties of Clay minerals

The interparticle forces between clay mineral particles influences the structural form they
assume, figure 3.
Dispersed net repulsion particles assume face-to-face orientation
Flocculated net attraction particles tend to be edge-to-face and edge-to-edge. In
natural clays - may get aggregations combining to form larger assemblages such as
cardhouse/bookhouse, or turbostratic structures. Clay assemblages may form a matrix
between larger particles e.g. Silt grains.

Mineral
name

Structure

Between
layers

H-bond
linkage

l = 0.2-2.0
t= 0.05-0.2

10-30

tubular
l = 0.5
t= 0.05

40-50

15

Particle Size ranges

G

Kaolinite
G

Halloysite

H2O

Illite

Approx.
exchange
capacity
(me/100g)

Approx.
size
(m)

K+
linkage

l = 0.2-2.0
t= 0.001-0.01

Specific
surface(
m2/g)

50-100

30

Montmorillonite

Vermiculite

Mg

Weak
crosslinkage
between
Mg/Al
ions

Mg2+
linkage

Figure 1. Clay Mineral Structures

l = 0.1-0.50
t= 0.001-0.01

l = 0.15-1.0
t= 0.01-0.1

200-800

100

20-400

150

a.

b.

c.

Figure 2. a). Kaolinite, b). Illite and c.) Montmorillonite

a.

b.

c.

Figure 3. Clay structure a) Undisturbed salt water deposit, b.) Undisturbed fresh water
deposit and c.) Remoulded.

SOIL TYPES
Soils may be crudely classified according to grain size, Table 1, in to:
i)
ii)

fine grained (predominantly clay and silt size) or

coarse grained (sand and gravel sizes predominant

or in shear strength terms

i)
ii)
iii)

cohesive (eg. clays, clay silt mixtures, organics) (c-soils or = 0 soils)

cohesionless (eg. sands and gravels) (C=0 or frictional soils)
Mixtures eg sandy clays etc (c- soils)

Size range

Grain Size
Term

Boulders
Cobbles
Gravel

Sand

Silt

Clay*

Grain Size
BS/European.
mm
>200

ASTM mm
(in)

F.P.C.

350 (12) and

above
75 (3)-350 (12)
19 (0.75) 75 (3)

Larger than
basketball
Grapefruit
Orange or Lemon

4.75 (3/16) - 19
(0.75)
2.0 (3/32) -4.75
(3/16)
0.42 (0.016) - 2.0
(3/32)
0.074 - 0.42
(#200-#40)

Grape or Pea

Coarse
Medium
Fine

>60<200
>20<60
>6<20
>2 <6

Coarse

> 0.6 <2

Medium

> 0.2 < 0.6

Fine

> 0.06 < 0.2

Coarse

>0.02 <0.06

0.005-0.074

Medium
Fine

>0.006 <0.02
>0.002 <0.006
<0.002

0.002 and below

Rock Salt
Sugar
Powdered
Sugar
Cannot be seen
with naked eye
at distance >
200mm

* In ASTM Silts and clays referred to as FINES further differentiation based on Index
tests.
Table 2. Classification of soils according to grain size.

All clay size particles are not necessarily clay minerals think of an example ?
A clay soil may consist of a mixture of clay and silt size particles.
Clays and silts possess varying properties of cohesion and plasticity
Sands and gravel are cohesionless and show no plasticity unless mixed with
?
Most soils consist of a mixture of the various size ranges which must be
determined using particle size analysis
Clay size particles have major influence on engineering properties - how ?

PARTICLE SIZE ANALYSIS

A dried sample of soil is shaken, usually after washing, through a vertical stack of
sieves, Figure 4, coarse at the top to fine at the bottom, and the mass retained on each
sieve recorded. A semi-log particle size distribution or grading curve is shown in
Figure 5. On this chart the percentage passing/smaller is plotted on the vertical axis
(normal scale) and the particle size in mm on the horizontal axis (log scale). The soil
is thus divided into percentage values of each size range. (clay, silt, sand, gravel etc.).
The flatter the curve the greater the range of particle sizes, the steeper the curve the
smaller the size range.
Well Graded
Coarse soil where there is no excess of particles in any size range and where no
intermediate sizes are lacking, Figure 6
Poorly Graded
Coarse soil where there are a high proportion of particles having sizes within a narrow
range (uniformly graded) or where particles of both large and small sizes exist but there
is a much lower proportion of intermediate size particles (gap-graded), Figure 6.

Figure 4. Particle size analysis of coarse grained soils using sieves.

PARTICLE SIZE DISTRIBUTION CURVE

0.002

Clay

0.006

M
Silt

0.02

0.06

0.2

Gr

ad
ed

Gr

av
el

d Sa
nd
0.6

M
Sand

W
ell

20

Wel
lG

40

rade

ilt

lty
i
S

60

ay
Cl

nd
yS
ilt
Ve
ry
Sa
nd
yS

80

Sa

Percentage finer

100

20

M
Gravel

60 mm

Figure 5. Particle Size Distribution Curves for various soils

Figure 6. Particle Size Distribution Curves for well graded and poorly graded (uniform
and gap) soil,

The particle sizes at which specified percentages of the soil are smaller (pass through)
may be used to further characterize the soil, Figure 7
Effective size of a soil distribution, D10
D10 Maximum particle size of the smallest 10% of the sample. (10% passes,90%
retained)
Also used are:
D15 Maximum particle size of the smallest 15% of the sample. (15% passes)
D30 - maximum particle size of the smallest 30% of the sample. (30% passes)
D60 Maximum particle size of the smallest 60% of the sample. (60% passes)
D85 Maximum particle size of the smallest 85% of the sample. (85% passes)
The Coefficients of uniformity, CU and Curvature, CZ reflect the general slope/shape
of the grading curve where:
D60
D 2 30
CU =
CZ =
D10
D60 D10

Grading Curve

%
Percentage finer
60

30
10
d10

Figure 7. Particle Size Grading Coefficients

d30

d60

Particle Size
(mm)

Particle size analysis of silt and clay size fractions: (Hydrometer and Pipette
Methods), Figure 8.
The smallest sieve size opening generally used is 0.063mm below this the distribution
of silt and clay sizes is determined using sedimentation techniques (hydrometer or
pipette) These methods are based on Stokes law which states that the settling velocity at
which suspended spherical particles in solution is proportional to the square of the
particle diameter. A sample of the fine fraction of the soil is liquefied by adding water
and then allowed to settle. The specific gravity of the suspension will change with time as
the particles settle (largest first). This change in specific gravity is measured using the
hydrometer and correlated with the grain size present. In the pipette test samples of a
suspension are taken from a fixed elevation in a measuring cylinder at times, t, and the
percentage of various grain sizes determined (It should be noted that Stokes Law does not
apply to particles < 0.0002mm).

Figure 8. Particle size analysis of fine soils

ATTERBERG LIMITS AND CONSISTENCY INDICES

Consistency of Clays
Consistency refers to the texture and firmness of a soil and is often directly related to
strength. Soils may be termed Soft, Medium Stiff (Medium firm), Stiff (or firm) and
Hard.
With clays, the shear strength is often discussed in terms of cohesion and unconfined
compressive strength. (UCS).
To determine the UCS of a clay a cylindrical sample is subjected to an axial load until
it fails in shear. This test can be carried out in the laboratory, Figure 9.
In the field the UCS may be determined using either a pocket penetrometer or vaneshear test. (figure 10). Table shows values of strength for the various consistency
terms. An important relationship which will be discussed later in the course is:

Unconfined Compressive Strength = 2 X Cohesion or Shear Strength of a clay soil.

Figure 9. a. Laboratory Uniaxial Compression Test on Soil.

a.

b.
Fig 10 a, Pocket Penetrometer and b. Hand shear vane tester

Sensitivity
The strength of a clay soil is related to its structure. If the structure is altered (changes
in particle arrangement (remoulding/reworking) or chemical changes) the altered
strength of the clay is less than the original strength. This leads us to a type of
behavior known as Sensitivity which is very important in Canada and Scandinavia.
Sensitivity may be defined as the ratio of:
S =

a.

UCS of undisturbed clay

UCS of remoulded clay

(at identical water contents)

b.

Figure 11. a. Solid to liquid State and b. Quickclay slide (Lemieux)

Sensitivity in soils may be classified according to:
Sensitivity
2-4
48
8-16
> 16

Terminology
Most clays
Sensitive
Extrasensitive
Quick clays

Consistency of remoulded soils

The consistency of a soil in the remoulded soil varies in proportion to the water
content. At higher water contents the soil-water mixture behaves a liquid, at lower
water contents it behaves plastically and at still less water contents it behaves as a
semi solid and solid. An important component of soil classification is to determine the
water contents at which these phase/behavior changes occur. With reference to Figure
12 the following may be defined:

Liquid Limit, (LL or wL) is the water content at the division between liquid
and plastic state.(water content, w = mass of water/mass of dry soil X 100%
Plastic Limit, (PL or wP) is the water content at the division between plastic
and semi-solid states.
Shrinkage Limit (SL or wS) is the water content at the division between the
semi-solid and solid states.

Total Soil Volume

Plasticity Index (PI)

Natural water content

Va
Vd

Vs

Semiplastic
Solid solid

ws

Liquid

Plastic

wp

wL

% Water Content
Fig 12 .Consistency indices (Atterberg Limits)
Plasticity Index (PI) =

wL-wP

Liquidity Index, IL

w - wP
wL-wP

w - wp
PI

If w > wL the IL > 1; remoulding turns soil to slurry. (Cu=15-50kN/m2)

If w <wP then IL < 0; cannot remould soil as its outside plastic range (Cu=50-250kN/m2).
Most clays have IL between 0 and 1.
At water contents, above the Shrinkage Limit it can be seen from Figure 12 that the total
volume of the soil increases with increase in water content.

Although the absolute values of these indices have very little direct use in design they
are used in classification and correlations between the limits and engineering properties
are very useful in assessing the potential engineering behavior and use of soils. The tests
used for determining these limits (sometimes called Atterberg limits) are described in
what are known as ASTM standards in North America. It should be recognized that the
details of such tests may vary worldwide and this will be illustrated with reference to the
Liquid Limit test.
LIQUID LIMIT TESTS
a. Using the Casagrande Device
The Casagrande device is used in North America for determining the liquid limit of soils.
The apparatus is shown on Figures 13 and 14. The soil is air dried and sieved through a
no 40 sieve. This material is then mixed with water to form a remoulded soil paste. The
paste is placed in the standard dimension Casagrande cup and level of. A groove is
formed across the soil as shown in Figure 13 using a special grooving tool. The handled
to the Casagrande cup is rotated at a set speed and the number of bounces of the cup on
the hard base counted. The rotation is continued until the groove in the soil flows and
closes over a specified length. The number of blows of the cup is noted and a sample of
the soil taken to determine the moisture content. The test is repeated at increasing water
contents by adding water, each time noting the number of blows required to close the
groove. A graph of the log of the number of blows against water content is drawn and the
moisture content requiring 25 blows to close the groove is determined the Liquid Limit
of the soil. This test is subject to operator error and to increase repeatability motorized
versions are available. Correlations between LL values obtained from the cone
penetration test are good except at higher water contents. The Casagrande test has fallen
into disuse in much of Europe having been replaced by the Cone Penetrometer.
b. Using the Cone Penetration Device
Air-dry and mixing the soil
Sieve at least 200g of the soil through a 425m sieve and place on a glass plate.
Mix soil with distilled water into a paste
Fill a 55mm diameter and 40mm deep metal cup with the paste and smooth of the
surface
Place cone of mass 80g level with and at center of soil surface, Figure 15.
Release cone so it penetrates into soil and record amount of penetration over 5
seconds
Repeat test adding a little more wet soil, until difference between two results is
less than 0.5mm, Note average penetration and determine moisture content of soil.
Repeat 4+ times with increasing water contents. (use enough water for
penetrations in 5 secs to lie in range 15-25mm)
Plot penetration against moisture content and find moisture content for 20mm
penetration that is the Liquid Limit of the soil. (Figure 15)
A One Point version of the Cone Penetrometer test is sometimes used. The
penetration and moisture content are determined as above. The moisture content
for 20mm penetration (the LL) is then found using a correction factor.

Figure 13. Casagrande Liquid Limit Test

40
Sieve Analysis

Wc

#40

3
Casagrande Cup
Part of soil used for
hydrometer analysis

Figure 14. Casagrande Test Results

Log. No.Blows

Repeat test
several times at
different water
contents

550mm
Cone Penetration (mm)

30o Cone

24

20

14

LL = 55%

50

55

60

Moisture Content (%)

Figure 15. Liquid Limit using Cone Penetrometer.

PLASTIC LIMIT TEST
Approximately 20g are prepared as for the Liquid Limit test.
Mix the soil on a glass plate with just sufficient water to make it plastic enough to
roll into a ball.
Roll the ball as shown in Figure 16 to form a soil thread. The thread is rolled until
it just starts to crumble at a thread diameter of 3mm. At this point determine the
water content of a section of the thread this value is the Plastic Limit of the soil.
Repeat the test at least once.
It is also possible to determine the Plastic Limit using a Cone penetrometer when
the water content giving a penetration of 2mm is taken as the Plastic Limit.

Figure 16. Determination of Plastic Limit,

SHRINKAGE LIMIT AND LINEAR SHRINKAGE

For soils with very small clay content the liquid and plastic limit tests may not produce
reliable results. An estimate of the plasticity index can then be found by measuring the
linear shrinkage and using:
PL = 2.13 X LS
150g of soil is prepared and made into a paste in a similar manner as for the LL and PL
tests. The paste is then placed into a brass mould, Figure 17 and the surface leveled off.
The soil is then air-dried at 60-65oC until it has shrunk clear of the mould and then
placed in an oven and drying completed at 105-110oC. After cooling the sample length is
measured and the LINEAR SHRINKAGE found from:
% Linear Shrinkage,LS = {1- Length after drying/Initial length} X 100.
The Shrinkage Limit may be determined using a 76mm long and 38mm diameter soil
core. The cylindrical core is slow dried and frequent measurements of mass and volume
taken. The volume measurements may be made by immersing the soil in a known volume
of mercury in a mercury displacement vessel. A volume/water content graph can be
constructed and the Shrinkage Limit as shown in Figure 12 determined. This test is not
very common as the SL value has little direct use in soil classification.

Figure 17. Linear Shrinkage apparatus.

UNIFIED SOIL CLASSIFICATION

Various engineering classifications of soils have been adopted throughout the world. The
most common classification, the Unified Soil Classification is presented in Figure 18.

Working inwards from the LHS:

Coarse grained soils are distinguished from fine grained soils by the percentage
(> or < 50% respectively) retained on the No. 200 sieve (0.074mm mesh)
o Coarse grained soils are further subdivided into gravels and sands based
on the percentage (> or < 50% respectively) retained on the No. 4 sieve
(4.75mm (3/16) mesh)
Gravels are sub-divided into clean (Well graded, GW, or Poorly
Graded, GP) and with fines (silty (GM) or clayey (GC))
Sands are sub-divided into clean (Well graded, SW, or Poorly
Graded, SP) and with fines (silty (SM) or clayey (SC))
(The grading curve coefficients, Cu and Cz are used to distinguish between well
and poorly graded coarse soils.
Fine grained soils are subdivided according to their Liquid Limits into low
plasticity clays, CL, silts ML and organic clays/silts OL (LL < 50%) and high
plasticity clays, CH, silts, MH and organic clays/silts, OH (LL > 50%)
Highly organics soils are recognized as Peat (Pt)

Coarse-grained soils

Fine-grained soils

Organic soils
Pt = PEAT

Primary letter
G = GRAVEL
S = SAND
F = FINES
M = SILT
C = CLAY

O = organic

Secondary letter
W = well graded
P = poorly graded
Pu = uniform
Pg = gap graded
L = low plasticity
(undifferentiated)
I = intermediate plasticity
H = high plasticity
V = very high plasticity
E = extremely high plasticity

Figure 18. UNIFIED SOIL CLASSIFICATION SYSTEM

FIELD IDENTIFICATION OF SOILS

Figure 19 shows commonly used criteria in field identification of soils including:
Grain size
Crushing strength
Dilatency
Consistency
Forest Practice Road Guidebook (Soil Grain Size)

Forest Practice Road Guidebook (Soil Description)

Forest Practice Road Guidebook (Soil Density Non Cohesive Soils)

Forest Practice Road Guidebook (Field Consistency Test for Cohesive Soils)

ENGINEERING USE OF SOILS

The engineering classification of soils can be used as a preliminary estimate of the
potential engineering use of soils. Will the soils be freely draining or impermeable, will
they be highly compressible etc. These factors are obviously important in choosing a
suitable material for the core material of an earth dam or for the foundation of a building.
Figure 20 shows a chart for assessing the engineering use of soils.
Some soils are liable to collapse, others to liquefaction. Some clays containing high
montmorillonite contents are particularly susceptible to shrinkage and swelling with
seasonal changes in water content.