Properties and Behavior of Soil – Online Lab Manual

OVERVIEW

This OER is funded by the Department of Civil Engineering to facilitate the students of the junior-level lab in soil mechanics course CE 3143. The students undergo through difficulties in finding proper theoretical background of the experiments of soil mechanics. They were supposed to purchase textbooks and print handouts which cost them time and money. Although free resources are available on the internet, those are not comprehensive and well organized. Most of them are inappropriate in respect to our lab facility. This online manual helps students to understand both the theory and the experiment demonstration simultaneously. Comprehensive lab manual related to UTA facility, exceptional visual and audio description made this OER self explanatory.

CREATION PROCESS

Dr. MD Sahadat Hossain, professor of Civil Engineering Department created a team in Fall 2020 for this OER. During the COVID-19 pandemic, he felt the necessity of an online lab manual that will help distance learning. MD Azijul Islam, Faria Fahim Badhon and Tanvir Imtiaz, who taught the course CE 3143 in several semesters were assigned to write the materials, record and edit the videos. After extensive review by professional editors the OER was published in Pressbook with embedded videos in Spring 2021.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Dr. Sahadat Hossain, Ph.D., P.E. is a Professor of Civil Engineering Department and Director of Solid Waste Institute for Sustainability (SWIS) at the University of Texas at Arlington. Dr. Hossain has more than 25 (twenty-five) years of professional and research experience in geotechnical and geo-environmental engineering. Dr. Hossain’s research experience includes slope stability analysis, innovative slope stabilization techniques, assessment of geo-hazard potential, and recycled aggregate materials for base and sub-base applications, pavement crack mitigation, and sustainable waste management.

Mr. Md Azijul Islam is a Ph.D. candidate at the University of Texas at Arlington. Mr. Azijul has more than 5 (five) years of professional, teaching and research experience in geotechnical and geo-environmental engineering. His research interests include ground improvement, foundation engineering, pavement materials, slope stability analysis and landslide prevention, and disaster management.

INTRODUCTION

The moisture content of soil also referred to as water content, is an indicator of the amount of water present in soil. Moisture content is the ratio of the mass of water contained in the pore spaces of soil to the solid mass of particles in that material, expressed as a percentage. A standard temperature of 110 ± 5°C is used to determine the mass of the sample.

PRACTICAL APPLICATION

• Almost all soil tests determine the natural moisture content of the soil, and it is essential knowledge for all studies of soil mechanics. The natural moisture content provides an idea of the state of the soil in the field.
• Moisture content is one of the most important index properties used for the correlation of soil behavior and its index properties.
• The moisture content of the soil is used to express the phase relationships of water, air, and solids in a given volume or weight of the material.
• For cohesive soil, the consistency of a given soil, along with its liquid and plastic limits is used to express its relative consistency.