Laboratory Work No.

TITLE: DETERMINATION OF SHRINKAGE LIMIT OF SOIL

OBJECTIVE:

LIST OF EQUIPMENT AND APPARATUS:

1. evaporating dish
2. spatula
3. shrinkage dish
4. straight edge
5. glass cap or glass plate with 3 sprongs of immersing the soil pat in the mercury.
6. Graduated cylinder for measuring volume of displaced mercury
7. Balance sensitive to 0.01 gram
8. Drying oven
9. Soil pan
10. Mercury
11. Sieve # 40

A sample weighing about 30 gram shall be taken from the thoroughly mixed
portion of the material passing the #40 sieve. The sample shall be placed in the
evaporating dish and thoroughly mixed with distilled water in an amount sufficient to fill
the soil voids completely and to make the soil pasty enough to be readily worked into
the shrinkage dish without the inclusion of air bubbles. The amount of water required to
furnish triable soil with the desired consistency to furnish plastic soils may exceed the limit
by as much as 10%.

The inside of the shrinkage dish shall be coated with vaseline or some other heavy
grease to prevent the adhesion of the soil to the dish. An amount of the wetted soil equal
to about 1/3 of the volume of the dish shall be placed in the center of the dish, and the
soil caused to flow the edges by tapping the dish on a firm surfaced cushion by several
layers blotting paper or similar material. An amount of soil shall be added approximately
equal to the first portion, and the dish tapped until the soil is thoroughly compacted and
all included air has been brought to the surface.

The dish when filled and struck off level shall be weighed immediately and the
weight recorded as the weight of the dish and wet soil. The soil pat shall be allowed to
dry in air until the color of the pat turns from dark to light. It shall then be oven-dried to
constant weight at 110 degrees Celsius and weighed, the weight being recorded as the
weight of the dish and dry soil. The volume of the empty dish shall be determined by filling
the dish to overflowing mercury, removing the excess by pressing a glass plate firmly over
the top of the dish, and measuring the volume of the mercury held in the dish by means
of a graduated cylinder. This volume shall be recorded as the volume of the wet soil pat,
V. The volume of the dry soil pat shall be determined by removing the pat from the
shrinkage dish and immersing it in the glass cup full of mercury in the following manner.
 The glass cup shall be filled with overflowing mercury and the excess mercury shall
be removed by pressing the glass plate with 3 prongs firmly over the top of the cap. Any
mercury which would e adhering to the outside of the cap shall be carefully wiped off.
The cap filled with mercury shall be placed in the evaporating dish and the soil pat shall
be placed on the surface of the mercury. It shall then be carefully forced under the
mercury by means of the glass plate with 3 prongs and the plate shall be placed firmly
over the top of the cap. It is essential that no air be trapped over the soil pat. The volume
of the mercury so displaced shall be measured in the graduated cylinder and recorded
as the volume of the dry soil pat, Vd.

Calculation of the moisture content, w

( W - Wd)
w = --------------- x 100%
Wd

where:

w = moisture content of soil when placed in dish

W = weight of wet soil
Wd = weight of dry soil

The Shrinkage Limit

The shrinkage limit of soil is that moisture content expressed as a percentage of

the weight of the oven-dried soil, at which a reduction in moisture content will cause an
increase in the volume of the soil mass. Thus:

( M1 – M2) (V1 – V2)

SL = ----------------- (100) - -----------------------(100)(specific gravityH2O)
M2 M2

where:
SL = shrinkage limit
M1 = mass of wet soil pat
M2 = mass of dried soil pat
V1 = volume of wet soil pat
V2 = volume of dried soil pat

Optional Method: When both the true specific gravity, G and the shrinkage ratio, R are
known, the shrinkage limit may be calculated as:
 1 1
SL = ( ------ - ----- ) x 100%
R G

Shrinkage Ratio:

The shrinkage ratio of a soil is the ratio between a given volume change expressed
as a percentage of the dry volume and the corresponding change in moisture content
above the shrinkage limit, expressed as the percentage of the weight of the oven-dried
soil.
The shrinkage ratio, R shall be calculated from the data obtained in the volumetric
shrinkage determination by the following formula:

M2
SR = -------------------------------
V2(Specific Gravity)

Lineal Shrinkage:

The lineal shrinkage of a soil for a given moisture content is the decrease in one
dimension expressed as a percentage of the original dimension of the soil mass when the
moisture equivalent is reduced from the amount equal to the field moisture equivalent
or liquid limit to the shrinkage limit.

The lineal shrinkage shall be obtained either by means of a formula or by means

of the chart for determining lineal shrinkage from volumetric.

GENERAL DATA:

TRIAL 1 TRIAL2
Weight of Empty Can 30.9gms 28.89gms
Weight (Can + Wet Soil) 176.03gms 181.98gms
Weight (Can + Dry Soil) 114.14gms 115.82gms
Volume (Water in Can) 90 cc 100 cc
Weight (Soil + Candle + can) 118.85gms 120.18gms
Volume(Soil + Candle) 52 cc 54cc
Shrinkage Limit
Shrinkage Ratio
Specific Gravity
COMPUTATIONS:

TRIAL 1:
W(candle) = Wcandle + can + soil - Wsoil + can
=118.85 – 114.14
=4.71gms

Vcnadle = WCandle/(Gs x Specific DensityH2o)

=4.71 / 0.90 x 1
=5.23 cc

M1 = Weight (Can + Wet Soil) - Weight of Empty Can

=176.03 – 40.09
=145.94 gms

M2 = Weight (Can + Dry Soil) - Weight of Empty Can

=114.14 – 30.09
=84.05

V1 = Volume (Water in Can)

=90cc

V2 = Volume(Soil + Candle) – Volume(candle)

=52 – 5.23
=46.77cc

SL1= [(M1 – M2)/M2](100) – [(V1 –V2)/M2](100)(1)

= [(145.94 – 84.05)/84.05](100) – [(90 –46.77)/84.05](100)(1)
= 17.44

SR = M2/V2(specific density)
= 84.05/46.77(1)
=1.79

1
GS = ------------------------------
1 SL
---------- - -----------
SR 100

1
GS = ------------------------------
1 17.79
---------- - -----------
1.79 100

GS = 2.60
TRIAL 2:
W(candle) = Wcandle + can + soil - Wsoil + can
=120.18-115.82
=4.36 gms

Vcnadle = WCandle/(Gs x Specific DensityH2o)

=4.36 / 0.90 x 1
=4.84 cc

M1 = Weight (Can + Wet Soil) - Weight of Empty Can

=181.98 - 2.89
=153.09 gms

M2 = Weight (Can + Dry Soil) - Weight of Empty Can

=115.82 – 28.89
=86.93 gms

V1 = Volume (Water in Can)

=100 cc

V2 = Volume(Soil + Candle) – Volume(candle)

=554 – 4.84
=49.16 cc

SL2= [(M1 – M2)/M2](100) – [(V1 –V2)/M2](100)(1)

= [(153.09 – 86.93)/86.93](100) – [(100 –49.16)/86.93](100)(1)
= 17.623
SR = M2/V2(specific density)
= 86.93/49.16(1)
=1.768

1
GS = ------------------------------
1 SL
---------- - -----------
SR 100

1
GS = ------------------------------
1 17.623
---------- - -----------
1.768 100

GS = 2.568
DRAWING OF APPARATUS:

Weighing of the can. Mixing soil and water and weighing the dried soil.
placing it in the can.

Coating the dried soil with wax. Weighing of the soil with candle

Determining the volume of soil with candle.

GENERAL DISCUSSIONS:

Soil which undergo large volume changes in water content maybe troublesome
if used for highway or railroad fills or if structural foundations are placed on them. The soil
volume changes can result in bumps in roads and cracks in structures since the volume
changes may not and usually will not be equal.

The liquid and plastic limits may be used to predict potential trouble in soils due to
changes made in volume. However, to obtain a quantitative indication of how much
change in the moisture can occur before any appreciable volume change occurs and
to obtain, if volume changes do occur, an indication of the amount of change, a
shrinkage limit test should be performed.

This test begins with a given volume of fully saturated soil (preferably but not
necessary) at a water content above the liquid limit. The soil is dried. It is assumed during
drying that down to a certain limiting value of water content, no further change in
volume occurs with loss of pore water. This limiting value of water content is termed as a
shrinkage limit.

Physically, this means that any moisture changes below the shrinkage limit do not
cause volume changes in the soil. Above the shrinkage limit, volume changes will occur
with change in water content.

REMARKS AND CONCLUSION:

By performing thus experiment we have determined the shrinkage limit of our soil
sample in which calculated to be 17. 53 as average of the two trials we have performed.
Specific gravity also have determined and verified by this experiment having an average
value of 2.584 in the two trials, which is very close to the calculated GS in the past
experiment entitled determining specific gravity of soil.