SOIL MECHANICS

Plasticity and Structure of

Soil
Introduction
 Plasticidad del suelo:

Propiedad del material para deformarse sin rebote elástico y

sin desmoronarse

Source: http://www.handbuiltpotteryonline.net/wp-
content/uploads/2011/03/pottery-2.jpg
Introduction

Dry Soil
http://mobilizingideas.files.wordpress.com/2011/12/dry-soil.jpg

Wet Soil
http://larzizou.files.wordpress.com/2008/06/p1030433-large.jpg
Introduction
 Presence of water in the voids affects the engineering
behavior of fine grained soils

 Plasticity is due to the electric charges of the clay particles

 Solid Semisolid Plastic  Liquid

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content/uploads/2011/03/pottery-2.jpg
• Consistency of fine grained soils
 Solid
 Semisolid
 Plastic
 Liquid

An Introduction to Geotechnical Engineering, Second Edition Copyright ©2011, ©1981 by Pearson Education, Inc.
Robert D. Holtz • William D. Kovacs • Thomas C. Sheahan All rights reserved.
Atterberg Limits
 Threshold water contents at which certain types of
engineering behavior can be expected

 Compare natural water contents with these threshold values

to assess engineering behavior

 Swedish scientist Albert Atterberg – 1900s

 Liquid limit

 Plastic limit

 Shrinkage limit

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Liquid Limit
 Threshold water content at which soil starts to behave like liquid
 ASTM D4318
 Arthur Casagrande

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Principles of Geotechnical Engineering Braja M. Das

© 2010 Cengage Learning

8
Engineering. All Rights Reserved.
Liquid Limit

https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=pM-w_cvk1nA#t=179

9 8/22/2014
Liquid Limit
 Establish the moisture content for 25 blows
 Perform on 3 to 4 specimens that range 25 blows
 Obtain water content for each test
 Plot water content versus number of blows on semi-log paper

Flow Index

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IF es Fw en Badillo
Liquid Limit
 US Army Corps of Engineers (1949)
 One point liquid limit test

 Fall Cone Method (British Standard- BS 1377)

 Water content at which a penetration of 20 mm is achieved in
5 sec

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Principles of Geotechnical Engineering Braja M. Das

© 2010 Cengage Learning

12
Engineering. All Rights Reserved.
Plastic Limit
 Threshold water content between plastic and semisolid
states

 ASTM D 4318

 Soil crumbles when rolled into 4.2 mm diameter threads

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Plastic Limit

https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=pM-w_cvk1nA#t=575

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Plasticity Index
 Plasticity index, PI = LL – PL

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Shrinkage Limit
 Threshold moisture content at which further loss in
moisture does not cause volume changes

 ASTM D427 and ASTM D4943

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Principles of Geotechnical Engineering Braja M. Das
Liquidity Index
 Liquidity Index, LI

 Sensitive Clays, LI > 1

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Activity, A

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Plasticity Chart

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