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Sieve Analysis 1 125837

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23 views

Sieve Analysis 1 125837

Uploaded by

edward asiedu
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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5 PARTICLE SIZE DISTRIBUTION TEST

5.1 Definition and Theory


Soil consists of individual particles, or grains. In order to classify soil for engineering
purposes, one needs to know the distribution of the size of grains in a given soil mass. Particle
size distribution is an index (means of expression) indicating what sizes of particles are present
and in what proportions within a soil. The mechanical or sieve analysis is performed to
determine the distribution of gravel and sand sizes (coarse) particles, and the hydrometer analysis
is used to determine the distribution of silt and clay size (fine) particles. The sieves are made of
woven wires with square openings. Stacks of BS and ASTM sieve apertures are compared in
Table 1. As the sieve number increases the size of the opening decreases.
Table 1: Typical BS and ASTM Sieves
BS Sieve Designation ASTM D422 Designation Aperture
1 in 26.5 mm
¾ in 19.0 mm
½ in 0.53 in 13.2 mm
3/8 in 3/8 in 9.5 mm
¼ in 0.265 in 6.7 mm
3/16 in No. 4 4.75 mm
No. 7 No. 8 2.36 mm
No. 14 No. 16 1.18 mm
No. 25 No. 30 600 μm
No. 36 No. 40 425 μm
No. 52 No. 50 300 μm
No. 72 No. 70 212 μm
No. 100 No. 100 150 μm
No. 200 No. 200 75 μm

Based on the BS, soils may be grouped into the following categories;
Gravel particles: 60mm to 2mm
Sand particles: 2mm to 0.06mm
Silt particles: 0.06mm to 0.002mm
Clay particles: < 0.002mm (2μm)

5.2 Standard Reference


BS 1377 Part 2:1990 Methods of test for Soils for civil engineering purposes – Part 2:
Classification tests (Clause 9.2)
ASTM D422: Standard Test Method for Particle Size Analysis of Soils

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5.3 Significance
State the significance here.

5.4 Equipment and Materials


· Balance

· BS test sieves

· Mechanical sieve shaker

· Oven

· Metal trays

· Sieve brush

· Riffle box

5.5 Procedure
Sample preparation for Wet Sieving
The procedure given involves preparation of the sample by wet sieving to remove silt and clay-
sized particles, which are rejected, followed by dry sieving of the remaining coarser material.
1. Dry soil sample overnight in an oven at a temperature of 105 to 110°C.
2. Measure about 300 to 1000g of oven dried soil sample by riffling
3. Place the soil a little at a time on the 2.00mm sieve nested in the 63μm sieve and wash
over a sink with clean water until the material passing the 63 µm test sieve is virtually
clear. Ensure that neither test sieves is overloaded in the process
4. Transfer the fractions retained on each sieve together into a tray and dry in an oven for at
least 16hrs.
5. Determine the mass of dried soil to an accuracy of 0.1% after cooling.
6. Prepare a stack of sieves to cover the particles present down to 63µm sieve.
7. Place a pan below the 63µm sieve.
8. Carefully pour the soil sample into the top sieve and place a cover over it.

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9. Shake the sieve stack manually for 10 minutes while keeping the stack upright.
Alternatively, you may place the sieve stack in a mechanical shaker and shake for
5 minutes
10. Remove the stack from the shaker and carefully record the weight of soil retained on each
sieve, including the pan.

5.6 Calculations
The following calculations are necessary in order to draw the particle size distribution curve.
1. Calculate the mass of soil retained on each sieve and record this mass as the weight
retained on the data sheet. As a check, the sum of these retained masses should not differ
from the initial dry mass by more than two percent.
2. The mass retained on the pan (total amount of fines or material passing 63µm sieve) is
the sum of the amount lost in the washing process and the mass that passed the 63µm
sieve after dry sieving.
3. Express the mass retained on each sieve as a percentage of the initial dry sample mass.
Note that it is not the mass after washing.

,
% of soil retained on n th sieve = 100 =

4. Calculate the cumulative percentage retained on each sieve.


Cumulative % retained on this sieve = (summation of % retained on previous
sieves) + (% retained on this sieve)
or
Cumulative % of soil retained on the nth sieve = ∑
5. Calculate the cumulative percent passing (percent finer) through each sieve.

Cumulative % of soil passing through the nth sieve =100 - ∑

6. Express the results on a semi-logarithmic graph of percentage finer plotted as the ordinate
(linear scale) against particle sizes (logarithmic scale) plotted as abscissa. Connect the
points with a smooth curve
(5) Compute Uniformity coefficient, Cu and Coefficient of gradation, Cc for the soil.

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=

=
×
Where is the particle size value at which 10% of the soil by weight is finer
is the particle size value at which 30% of the soil by weight is finer
is the particle size value at which 60% of the soil by weight is finer

N.B
Procedure for Dry Sieving method
The procedure for wet sieving shall apply to the dry sieving method without the need for
washing. After steps 1 and 2, skip steps 3-5 and continue from step 6.

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PARTICLE SIZE DISTRIBUTION
DATA SHEET

Project Name : __________________________________________________


Sample ID : __________________________________________________
Date : ______________________

Sieve size Cumulative


Weight Percentage Percentage
BS Percentage
retained retained passing
designation Metric retained
(g) (%) (%)
(in) (mm) (%)
3 75.00
2.5 63.00
2 53.00
1.5 37.50
1.043 26.50
0.748 19.00
0.520 13.20
0.374 9.50
0.264 6.70
0.187 4.75
0.132 3.35
0.079 2.00
No. 14 1.00
No. 25 0.600
No. 36 0.425
No. 52 0.300
No. 100 0.150
No. 200 0.075

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