UNIT IV

COMPACTION

EFFECTIVE STRESS PRICIPLE

VERTICAL STRESS
UNIT IV COMPACTION
 COMPACTION
Compaction is the application of mechanical energy
to a soil so as to rearrange its particles to a closer
packing by pressing it and thus to reduce the void
ratio. Air present in the soil is expelled during this
process of pressing and hence the mass density of
soil is increased

It is applied to improve the properties of an existing

soil or in the process of placing fill such as in the
construction of embankments, road bases,
runways, earth dams, and reinforced earth walls.
Compaction is also used to prepare a level surface
during construction of buildings 3
 COMPACTION

The objectives of compaction are:

•To increase the shear strength and therefore its bearing

capacity and stability of slopes

•To reduce compressibility and subsequent settlement under

working loads

•To reduce soil permeability making it more difficult for

water to flow through

•Compaction can prevent liquefaction during earthquakes

4
 CONSOLIDATION

Consolidation is also a process of treatment given to

soil, wherein the void space in the soil in reduced
due to squeezing out of water under sustained static
load.

The difference between compaction and consolidation are as

follows.

5
 Difference between compaction
and consolidation
COMPACTION CONSOLIDATION

Rapid process Gradual process (time

(time
dependent)
Momentary mechanical load such Sustained static load is applied
as rolling, tamping and vibration for a long time
is applied (dynamic load)
Air present in the voids of the Water present in the
(partially saturated) soil is (completely saturated) soil is
released or expelled released or squeezed
It is an artificial process Mostly, it is a natural process

6
 Factors affecting Compaction

 Water content of soil

 The type of soil being compacted

 The amount of compactive energy used

7
 Effects of water content
 Adding water at low moisture contents makes it
easier for particles to move during compaction,
and attain a lower void ratio. As a result
increasing moisture content is associated with
increasing dry unit weight till OMC.
 As moisture content increases, the air content
decreases and the soil approaches the zero-zero-air
air--
voids line.
 The soil reaches a maximum dry unit weight at
the optimum moisture content
 Because of the shape of the no-no-air
air--voids line
further increases in moisture content have to
result in a reduction in dry unit weight.
8
 Compaction curves for different soils

Well graded sand

Low plasticity silt

Dry density

Low plasticity clay

High plasticity clay

Water content, (%)

9
 Effects of soil type
Typical Values
3
gdry )max (kN/m ) mopt (%)
Well graded sand SW 22 7
Sandy clay SC 19 12
Poorly graded sand SP 18 15
Low plasticity clay CL 18 15
Non plastic silt ML 17 17
High plasticity clay CH 15 25

 Gs is constant, therefore increasing maximum dry unit

weight is associated with decreasing optimum moisture
contents
 Do not use typical values for design as soil is highly
variable 10
Range of optimum moisture content (OMC, %)

Sand sandy silt or Silt Clay

silty sand

6-10 8-12 12--16

12 14--20
14

11
 Effects of varying compactive effort
ze
inc re a s ing c o m p a c tive ro
e ne rg y -a
ir-
vo
Dry unit weight id
s lin
e

Moisture content

 Increasing energy results in an increased maximum

dry unit weight at a lower optimum moisture content
 There is no unique curve. The compaction curve
depends on the energy applied
 Use of more energy beyond OMC has little effect 12
 Presentation of results
 Gsg w 
If the soil is saturated and g dry  
G
 s w  1 

Impossible
Zero-air-
Dry unit weight

voids line S
= 100%

S = 90%
S = 50% S = 75%

M oisture content
13
 Field specifications
During construction of soil structures (dams, roads) there is
usually a requirement to achieve a specified dry unit weight.

Accept
Dry unit weight

Reject

Moisture content

(a) > 95% of (modified) maximum

dry unit weight 14
 Field specifications
During construction of soil structures (dams, roads) there is
usually a requirement to achieve a specified dry unit weight.

Accept Reject Accept

Dry unit weight

Dry unit weight

Reject

Moisture content Moisture content

(a) > 95% of (modified) maximum (b) >95% of (modified) maximum dry
dry unit weight unit weight and w within 2% of OMC
15
 Sands and Gravels
For (cohesionless)soils without fines alternative specifications are
often used. These are based on achieving a certain relative density.
e max  e
Id 
e max  e min

e = current void ratio

emax = maximum void ratio in a standard test
emin = minimum void ratio in a standard test

16
 Sands and Gravels
For (cohesionless)soils without fines alternative specifications are
often used. These are based on achieving a certain relative density.
e max  e
Id 
e max  e min

e = current void ratio

emax = maximum void ratio in a standard test
emin = minimum void ratio in a standard test

Id = 1 when e = emin and soil is at its densest state

Id = 0 when e = emax and soil is at its loosest state 17
 Sands and Gravels
We can write Id in terms of gdry because we have
Gs g w
e   1
g dry

18
 Sands and Gravels
We can write Id in terms of gdry because we have
Gs g w
e   1
g dry
g dry max
(g dry  g dry min )
Id 
g dry (g dry max
 g dry min )

19
 Sands and Gravels
We can write Id in terms of gdry because we have
Gs g w
e   1
g dry
g dry max
(g dry  g dry min )
Id 
g dry (g dry max
 g dry min )

The terms loose, medium and dense are used, where typically
loose 0 < Id < 0.333
medium 0.333 < Id < 0.667
dense 0.667 < Id < 1

20
 Sands and Gravels
We can write Id in terms of gdry because we have
Gs g w
e   1
g dry
g dry max
(g dry  g dry min )
Id 
g dry (g dry max
 g dry min )

The terms loose, medium and dense are used, where typically
loose 0 < Id < 0.333
medium 0.333 < Id < 0.667
dense 0.667 < Id < 1
The maximum and minimum dry unit weights vary significantly
from soil to soil, and therefore you cannot determine dry unit 21
weight from Id
 LABORATORY COMPACTION TEST

Laboratory Compaction
The variation in compaction with water content and compactive effort is first
determined in the laboratory. There are several tests with standard procedures
such as:
Indian Standard Light Compaction Test (similar to Standard Proctor Test)
Indian Standard Heavy Compaction Test (similar to Modified Proctor Test)

Indian Standard Light Compaction Test

Soil is compacted into a 1000 cm3 mould in 3 equal layers, each layer receiving
25 blows of a 2.6 kg rammer dropped from a height of 310 mm above the soil.
The compaction is repeated at various moisture contents.

22
Indian Standard Heavy Compaction Test
It was found that the Light Compaction Test (Standard Test) could not reproduce
the densities measured in the field under heavier loading conditions, and this led
to the development of the Heavy Compaction Test (Modified Test).
The equipment and procedure are essentially the same as that used for the
Standard Test except that the soil is compacted in 5 layers, each layer also
receiving 25 blows. The same mould is also used. To provide the increased
compactive effort, a heavier rammer of 4.9 kg and a greater drop height of 450
mm are used.
To assess the degree of compaction, it is necessary to use the dry unit weight,
which is an indicator of compactness of solid soil particles in a given volume. The
laboratory testing is meant to establish the maximum dry density that can be
attained for a given soil with a standard amount of compactive effort.

23
 Laboratory Compaction tests
 Equipment Handle

collar (mould
extension)
Sleeve guide

Cylindrical
soil mould
Hammer for
compacting soil
Base plate

24
 Laboratory Compaction tests
 Equipment Handle

collar (mould
extension)
Sleeve guide

Cylindrical
soil mould
Hammer for
compacting soil
Base plate

25
 Comparison of Laboratory compaction tests

Type of test Mould Mass of Drop of Number Energy

Volume hammer hammer of layers delivered
(cm3) (kg) (mm) in J/m3

Standard 1000 2.6 310 3

Proctor
(Light
compaction)
Modified 1000 4.5 450 5
Proctor
(heavy
compaction)

26
Influence of water content and compactive energy on
compaction

•Increasing the water content

•Increasing the compactive effort

Effect of Increasing Water Content

As water is added to a soil at low moisture contents, it becomes easier for the
particles to move past one another during the application of compacting force.
The particles come closer, the voids are reduced and this causes the dry density
to increase. As the water content increases, the soil particles develop larger water
films around them.
This increase in dry density continues till a stage is reached where water starts
occupying the space that could have been occupied by the soil grains. Thus the
water at this stage hinders the closer packing of grains and reduces the dry unit
weight. The maximum dry density (MDD) occurs at an optimum water
content (OMC), and their values can be obtained from the plot.

27
Effect of Increasing Compactive Effort
The effect of increasing compactive effort is shown. Different curves are
obtained for different compactive efforts. A greater compactive effort reduces
the optimum moisture content and increases the maximum dry density.

28
An increase in compactive effort produces a very
large increase in dry density for soil when it is
compacted at water contents drier than the
optimum moisture content. It should be noted
that for moisture contents greater than the
optimum, the use of heavier compaction effort will
have only a small effect on increasing dry unit
weights.
It can be seen that the compaction curve is not a
unique soil characteristic. It depends on the
compaction effort. For this reason, it is important
to specify the compaction procedure (light or
heavy) when giving values of MDD and OMC.

29
 Presentation of results
In the test, the dry density cannot be determined directly, and as such the
bulk density and the moisture content are obtained first to calculate the dry
density as,

where = bulk density, and w = water content

A series of samples of the soil are compacted at different water contents,

and a curve is drawn with axes of dry density and water content. The
resulting plot usually has a distinct peak as shown. Such inverted ?V?
curves are obtained for cohesive soils (or soils with fines), and are known
as compaction curves.

30
COMPACTION CURVE

31
 Dry density can be related to water content and degree of saturation (S) as

Thus, it can be visualized that an increase of dry density means a

decrease of voids ratio and a more compact soil.

Similarly, dry density can be related to percentage air voids (na) as

The relation between moisture content and dry unit weight for a saturated soil
is the zero air-voids line. It is not feasible to expel air completely by
compaction, no matter how much compactive effort is used and in whatever
manner.

32
Engineering Behaviour of Compacted Soils
The water content of a compacted soil is expressed with reference to the OMC.
Thus, soils are said to be compacted dry of optimum or wet of optimum (i.e.
on the dry side or wet side of OMC). The structure of a compacted soil is not
similar on both sides even when the dry density is the same, and this difference
has a strong influence on the engineering characteristics.
Soil Structure
For a given compactive effort, soils have a flocculated structure on the dry side
(i.e. soil particles are oriented randomly), whereas they have a dispersed
structure on the wet side (i.e. particles are more oriented in a parallel
arrangement perpendicular to the direction of applied stress). This is due to the
well-developed adsorbed water layer (water film) surrounding each particle on
the wet side.

33
Swelling
Due to a higher water deficiency and partially developed water films in the dry
side, when given access to water, the soil imbibes more water and will soak and
then swell more.
Shrinkage
During drying, soils compacted in the wet side tend to show more shrinkage than
those compacted in the dry side. In the wet side, the more orderly orientation of
particles allows them to pack more efficiently.
Construction Pore Water Pressure
The compaction of man-made deposits proceeds layer by layer, and pore water
pressures are induced in the previous layers. Soils compacted wet of optimum will
have higher pore water pressures compared to soils compacted dry of optimum,
which have initially negative pore water pressure.

Permeability
The randomly oriented soil in the dry side exhibits the same permeability in all
directions, whereas the dispersed soil in the wet side is more permeable along
particle orientation than across particle orientation.
Compressibility
At low applied stresses, the dry compacted soil is less compressible on account of
its truss-like arrangement of particles whereas the wet compacted soil is more
compressible.
34
The stress-strain curve of the dry compacted soil rises to a peak and
drops down when the flocculated structure collapses. At high applied
stresses, the initially flocculated and the initially dispersed soil samples
will have similar structures, and they exhibit similar compressibility and
strength

35
Field Compaction and Specifications
To control soil properties in the field during earthwork construction, it is usual to
specify the degree of compaction (also known as the relative compaction).
This specification is usually that a certain percentage of the maximum dry
density, as found from a laboratory test (Light or Heavy Compaction), must be
achieved. For example, it could be specified that field dry densities must be
greater than 95% of the maximum dry density (MDD) as determined from a
laboratory test. Target values for the range of water content near the optimum
moisture content (OMC) to be adopted at the site can then be decided, as shown
in the figure.

36
For this reason, it is important to have a good control over moisture
content during compaction of soil layers in the field. It is then up to the
field contractor to select the thickness of each soil lift (layer of soil added)
and the type of field equipment in order to achieve the specified amount of
compaction. The standard of field compaction is usually controlled through
either end-product specifications or method specifications.

37
 End-Product Specifications
In end-product specifications, the required field dry density is specified as a
percentage of the laboratory maximum dry density, usually 90% to 95%.
The target parameters are specified based on laboratory test results

The field water content working range is usually within ± 2% of the laboratory
optimum moisture content

It is necessary to control the moisture content so that it is near the chosen value.
From the borrow pit, if the soil is dry, water is sprinkled and mixed thoroughly
before compacting. If the soil is too wet, it is excavated in advance and dried.
In the field, compaction is done in successive horizontal layers. After each layer
has been compacted, the water content and the in-situ density are determined at
several random locations. These are then compared with the laboratory OMC and
the sand
MDD using either of these two methods:

replacement method, or the core cutter 38

method
Method Specifications
Procedure for the site is specified giving:
Type and weight of compaction equipment
Maximum soil layer thickness
Number of passes for each layer
They are useful for large projects. This requires a prior
knowledge of working with the borrow soils to be used

Field Compaction Equipment

There is a wide range of compaction equipment.
Compaction achieved will depend on the,
thickness of lift (or layer)
the type of roller
the number of passes of the roller
Speed of the roller
and the intensity of pressure (contact pressure) on the soil

The selection of equipment depends on the soil type as indicated.

39
 Compaction equipment
Equipment
Smooth wheeled rollers,
vibrating
Rubber tired rollers
Grid rollers
Sheepsfoot rollers, static
Sheepsfoot rollers, vibratory
Vibrating plates
Tampers, rammers
Impact rollers
Most suitable soils
static or Well graded sand-gravel, crushed rock,
asphalt
Coarse grained soils with some fines
Weathered rock, well graded coarse
soils
Fine grained soils with > 20% fines
as above, but also sand-gravel mixes
Coarse soils, 4 to 8% fines
All types
Most saturated and moist soils

Also drop weights, vibratory piles 40

Various method of compaction
Compaction by different equipments
Compaction by explosives
Compaction piles
Precompression
Compaction by pounding
Vibrofloatation method
Terra probe method

41
Vibrofloatation method
Thick deposits of loose sandy soils upto 30 m depth
Cylindrical tube 2 m dia, fitted with water jets at top and
bottom.
It contains a rotating eccentric mass which develops a
horizontal vibratory motion.
The vibrofloat is sunk into the loose soil upto the desired
depth using the lower water jet. This water jet creates a
momentary quick condition ahead of the vibrofloat and
the soil will loose shear strength. After reaching the
desired depth, the vibrofloat vibrates laterally and causes
compaction in the horizontal direction to a radius of about
1.5 m.

42
 Suitability of various methods of compaction in the field

For cohesionless soils only

Smooth wheel rollers for small thickness
Vibratory rollers, vibrofloatation, terra probe, blasting, compaction
piles and explosives are used for compaction of large thickness of
soil

For cohesive soils only

Sheep-foot rollers and (precompression is also effective)

Both cohesionless and cohesive soils

Tampers (suitable in confined area)
Pneumatic tyres (suitable for all type of soil)
Pounding method is heavy tamping, high energy compaction (all
types of soil)

43
44
45
46
 Smooth wheel Rollers

47
 Pneumatic- tyred rollers

48
 Sheep Foot rollers
49
 Vibratory Plate Compactors

50
 Vibratory rollers
51
Following are the result of a compaction test
Volume of the mould: 950 cc
Weight of the mould: 1000 gm
Specific gravity of sample G=2.7
Plot the compaction curve and indicate M D D and OMC
(optimum moisture content)
Plot the zero air void line. Also calculate void ratio,
degree of saturation and theoretical max dry density.
Calculate the percentage air voids at MDD and OMC.
Mass of mould 2.68 2.85 2.91 2.87 2.87 2.85
and wet soil (kg)

Water content % 12 14 16 18 20 22

52
 Solution

Mass of mould 2.68 2.85 2.91 2.87 2.87 2.85

and wet soil
(kg)
Mass of wet 1.68 1.85 1.91 1.87 1.87 1.85
soil (kg)
Water content 12 14 16 18 20 22
% (0.12) (0.14) (0.16) (0.18) (0.2) (0.22)

53
Water content , 12 14 16 18 20 22
W, (%) (0.12) (0.14) (0.16) (0.18) (0.20) (0.22)
Mass of wet soil 1.68 1.85 1.91 1.87 1.87 1.85
(M), kg

Bulk density
M
b 
V
Dry density
b
d 
1 w

Void ratio, (e)

 G 
e   w   1
 d 
Deg of saturation
wG
S 
e

Theoretical MDD
G w
 d max 
1  Gw

54
Water content , 12 14 16 18 20 22
W, (%) (0.12) (0.14) (0.16) (0.18) (0.20) (0.22)
Mass of wet soil 1.68 1.85 1.91 1.87 1.87 1.85
(M), kg

Bulk density 1.68/0.95 1.85 /0.95 1.91 /0.95 1. 870.95 1.87 /0.95 1.85 /0.95
M
b  = 1.77 = 1. 95 = 2.01 = 1.97 = 1. 97 = 1. 95
V
Dry density 1.77 / 1+0.12 1. 95 / 1+0.14 2.01 / 1+0.16 1.97 / 1+0.18 1. 97 / 1+0.2 1. 95 / 1+0.22
b
d  = 1.58 = 1.71 = 1.73 = 1.67 = 1.64 = 1.60
1 w

Void ratio, (e) 0.58 0.56 0.62 0.65 0.69

(2.70 x 1 /
 G  1.58) -1 =
e   w   1 0.71
 d 

Deg of saturation 0.12 x 2.7 0.65 0.77 0.78 0.83 0.86

/0.71 =0.46
wG
S 
e
Theoretical MDD 2.04 1.96 1.89 1.82 1.75 1.69
G w
 d max 
1  Gw

55
MDD – OMC relationship

Scale
X- axis: 1 % (0.01)
Y-Axis: 0.02 g/cc

MDD= 1.738 g/cc

OMC = 15.5 %

56
MDD – OMC relationship
Zero air void line /100 % saturation line/Theoretical max dry density

57
To calculate percentage air voids (na ) at MDD – OMC

From the graph, MDD = 1.74 g/cc

OMC =15.5 %
(1  na )G w
W K T d 
1  wG
(1  na )G w
d 
1  wG
 d 1  wG   (1  na )G w
 d 1  wG 
(1  na ) 
G w
  1  wG  
(na )   d  1
 G w 
-na = {1.74 (1+0.155*2.7) / (2.7 x1.0)} – 1

-na = -0.085 or

Percentage air voids (na ) = 8.5 % 58