• Introduction
• Soil
• Weathering
• Principal
Types of Soil
• Describing
Coarse-Grained
Soil
• Describing
Fine-Grained
Soil
CHAPTER 2: SOIL FORMATION
INTRODUCTION
For engineering purposes, soil is defined as the uncemented aggregate of mineral grains
and decayed organic matter (solid particles) with liquid and gas in the empty spaces between the
solid particles. Soil is used as a construction material in various civil engineering projects, and it
supports structural foundations. Thus, civil engineers must study the properties of soil, such as its
origin, grain-size distribution, ability to drain water, compressibility, shear strength, and load-
bearing capacity. Soil mechanics is the branch of science that deals with the study of the physical
properties of soil and the behavior of soil masses subjected to various types of forces. Soil
engineering is the application of the principles of soil mechanics to practical problems.
Geotechnical engineering is the subdiscipline of civil engineering that involves natural materials
found close to the surface of the earth. It includes the application of the principles of soil mechanics
and rock mechanics to the design of foundations, retaining structures, and earth structures.
Soil mechanics and Foundation engineering are generally considered as part of
Geotechnical Engineering. It encompasses topics associated with the physical and index properties
of soil, water flow through soils, stress and deformation in soils, strength parameters, bearing
capacity, field exploration techniques, laboratory testing and brief reflection on geology.
Soil mechanics is one among the important subject in civil engineering. It includes all
problems of investigation, design, construction and maintenance of earth dams and all kinds of
earth embankments and earthworks, as well as laboratory investigation. Soil mechanics in civil
engineering is divided into three parts:
Physical Properties
Deals with the physical and mechanical properties of homogeneous specimen of
undisturbed and remolded soil. It discusses those properties which serves as convenient criteria for
distinguishing between different soils and provide instructions for describing soils adequately.
Theoretical Soil Mechanics
Deals with theories regarding interaction soil and water, with the limiting conditions for
the equilibrium of soil masses and with the deformation produced by external forces.
Problems of Design and Construction
Deals with the factors which must be considered in the determination of the proper and
appropriate design of foundation. It is becoming more and more accepted practice with the major
industrial concerns to carry out soil investigations on one or more sites, usually under option, so
that the problem associated with foundation design, drainage, ease of excavation, suitability of fill
materials, etc. all may be determined and evaluated prior to definite purchase. The knowledge of
the foundation engineer on the origin, manner of occurrence and characteristics of these materials
is essential for the success of the foundation design and construction.
SOIL
Soil is a natural aggregate of mineral grains with or without organic constituent that can be
separated by such gentle mechanical means of agitation of water. It is the only thing in this world
that can be composed of the three phases of matter, which are solid, liquid and gas. The typical
combination of soil is a combination of soil particles (solid), water (liquid) and air (gas). The
combination is generally referred to as soil mass, which range from a variety of soft, highly
compressible silts, clays or organic matter to firmer formations of sand, gravel and rock.
The solid phase may encompass a wide range of shapes, and may vary in size from large
pieces hard, dense rock of boulders to very tiny particles invisible to the naked eye. The liquid
phase consists of water containing various amounts and types of dissolved electrolytes. The gas
phase consists of typically air, although organic gases may also exist in area of high biological
deposits. All of these materials may occur over a wide range of compositions, densities, moisture
and air content.
WEATHERING OF SOILS
Implicit within the definition of soil is the notion that soil is the product of decomposition
from rock sources. There are four stages can be identified in the formation of soil: 1) Weathering
and Transportation; 2) Deposition; 3) Sediment alteration; and 4) Movements of the earth’s crust.
Weathering is the breakdown of rocks and minerals into soils. Rock is a natural aggregate
of mineral grains connected by a strong and cohesive forces. Rocks are broken into three major
groups: sedimentary, igneous, and metamorphic.
➢ Igneous Rocks
These rocks are frequently regarded as parent material because they are the first
product to be formed by the cooling of molten magmas, or by the recrystallization
of older rocks under heat and pressure great enough to render them fluid.
➢ Sedimentary Rocks
Sedimentary rock is the product of deposition of plant and animal remains and of
materials formed by the chemical decomposition and physical disintegration of
igneous, sedimentary or metamorphic rocks. Sedimentary rocks are generally
classified into two major sediment types, chemical and elastic. Chemical group fit
the sediments formed by materials that have been transported in solution and later
precipitated. The elastic, or mechanical sediment evolved from materials that were
transported and deposited primarily by mechanical means.
➢ Metamorphic Rocks
Metamorphic rocks constitute a major part of the earth’s crust. These are rocks that
originally belonged to other groups but were altered by chemical and physical
influences, including elevated temperatures and mechanical stresses or pressures in
the earth’s crust. Two categories of metamorphism have been identified, contact
metamorphism and dynamic metamorphism.
Contact metamorphism occurs primarily as a result of temperature increase,
frequently in rather narrow zones around hot magma masses. Dynamic
metamorphism results primarily from the action of differential pressure, commonly
related to major earth movements and deformations. Such rock bear sign of
mechanical strain addition to recrystallization and neomineralization. The strain
from dynamic metamorphism is frequently depicted in the form of comparable to
the metallic structure found in rolled metal types.
Soils are formed from the rock cycle:
Weathering may occur without transportation and subsequent deposition, in which case a
“residual soil” is formed. Weathering can be classified, simply, as physical or chemical. The more
common agents associated with physical weathering are water, temperature and stress relief
(uplift). Chemical weathering can occur at normal (surface) temperatures or can be associated with
temperatures in excess of 100˚C and pressures greater than one atmosphere.
The products of weathering can be transported via wind, water, ice or mass movements
(landslides). In all cases further degradation of the parent material or alteration of the sediment can
occur.
When the transportation velocity is slow enough, particles in suspension will settle. As the
sediment thickness builds up, further changes in the soil can occur. These changes could be
chemical or physical. Taken to extremes of pressure or temperature a new rock form may emerge.
Any movement of the earth’s crust, abrupt or gradual, uplift or subsidence, will change the
environmental conditions under which the soil exists. The soil formation cycle then recommences.
Since all soils result from weathering of minerals (organic soils are excluded from this
discussion) present in the parent rock, it can be argued that the presence of primary rock-forming
minerals in soil is indicative of their stability or the time for which weathering has been proceeding.
PRINCIPAL TYPES OF SOIL
The principal terms used by civil engineers
to describe soils are:
a. Gravel – Coarse-grained soil
b. Sand – Coarse-grained soil
c. Silt – Fine-grained soil
d. Clay – Fine-grained soil
Most of the natural soils consist of
mixture of two or more of these
constituents and many contain admixture
of organic materials partly in a fully
decomposed state. This mixture is given
the name of the most constituents are
indicated by adjectives.
Examples: silty clay, organic silt
DESCRIBING COARSE-GRAINED SOIL
The coarse-grained materials are mineral fragments that may be identified primarily on the
basis of grain size:
Gravel – grains having diameter greater than about 2mm
Boulder – grains having diameter exceeding about 200mm
Sand – when the grain are visible to the naked eye, but are less than about 2mm. Coarse
sand, medium-coarse sand, fine sand.
Other Description of Sand and Gravel
• Rounded, sub-rounded, sub-angular, angular
• Uniformly or poorly-graded – if all the particles of a coarse-grained material are
approximately the same size.
• Gap graded – some natural deposits composed of a mixture of particles of uniformly
coarse size and uniformly fine size but are lacking in particles of the intermediate
sizes.
• Well-graded – soil containing a good representation of all particle sizes ranging
from coarse to fine.
DESCRIBING FINE-GRAINED SOIL
Various kinds of fine-grained soil:
Inorganic Silt – constitute the portion of the microscopic soil fraction, possess little or no
plasticity or cohesion. The least plastic varieties consisting primarily of very fine rounded
quartz grains are called “rock flour”. The more plastic varieties containing an appreciable
quantity of flaked-shaped particles are called “plastic silt”.
Clay – predominantly an aggregate or microscopic flake shaped crystalline minerals
characterized by the colloidal properties of plasticity, cohesion, and the ability to absorb
ions. The majority of this type of soils are insoluble in acids. They appear to have
appreciable affinity of water, are elastic when wet, water retentive and coherent when dry.
Most clay minerals are crystalline, with sheet like or layered structures of two varieties:
silica sheets and alumna sheets.
Organic Silt – fine-grained more or less plastic soil containing mineral particles of silt size
and finely divided particles of organic matters. Shells and visible fragments or partly
decayed vegetative matter may be present.
Organic Clay – clay soils which owes some of its significant physical properties to present
finely divided organic matter.
Peat or Muck – high organic soil deposits distinguished by a dark brown to dark color, by
the presence of fibrous particles of vegetable matter in varying states of decay and by the
characteristic organic odor.
The engineer should be suspicious of the presence of organic material if the soil has dark
brown, dark gray or black color. If the organic odor cannot be distinguished, it can sometimes be
brought out by a sight amount of heat.
The distinction between silt and clay cannot be based on grain size because the significant
physical properties of the two materials are related only indirectly to the size of the particle. Since
both are microscopic, physical properties other than grain size must be used as criteria for field
identification.
Identification Test for Silt and Clay
Test Silt Clay
Dry Strength Very low, even oven-dry strength is High to very high. Exceptionally
low. Rubs off the surface of the high if oven-dried. Powder will not
sample. Powders easily. rub off the surface.
Shaking Test Rapid reaction. Typically silts have Sluggish or no reaction. Surface of
a livery appearance when shaken. the sample lustrous.
Plasticity Test Plastic thread has little strength. Plastic thread has high strength.
Dries quickly. Crumbles easily as it Dries slowly. Usually stiff and
dries below plastic range. tough as it dries below plastic
range.
Dispersion Settle 15 to 60 minutes. (sand settle Settle in several hours or day unless
in 30 to 60 seconds) flocculation occurs.