Republic of the Philippines

DAVAO ORIENTAL STATE COLLEGE OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

Mati, Davao Oriental

DEPARTMENT OF ENGINEERING AND TECHNOLOGY

SOIL MECHANICS SECTION
Name:______________________________
Course:_____________________________
Subject:_______________________
Semester and Year: ___________________
Grade:______________________________
:_____________________

Student I.D. No._________________

Time and Days:_________________
Instructor

EXPERIMENT No. 1
(WATER CONTENT DETERMINATION)
REFERENCES
ASTM D2216 (ASTM Standards sec. 4 vol. 4.08)
AASHTO T265 (Standard Specifications for Transportational Materials and
Methods of Sampling and Testing, Part II)
MATERIALS AND APPARATUS
1. Moisture cans
2. Oven with temperature control
3. Balance sensitive to 0.01 grams
PROCEDURE
1. Determine the weight of the moisture can plus cover and record as Wc. (Be
sure to label and record the label of each moisture cans).
2. Place a representative sample of wet soil in the can.
a. To provide a reasonable accurate results, the following
representative wet soil sample weights are recommended.
Max size of soil particles
(95-100% passes the given sieve)
--------------------------------------------No. 4 (4.75 mm)
No. 40 (0.420 mm)
12.5 mm

Recommended minimum
sample weight (grams)
-------------------------------100
10 to 50
300

b. Cover the can with its cap to avoid loss of water.

3. Determine the weight of the closed can plus wet soil and record as Wa.
4. Remove the cover and place the sample in the oven (it is a usual practice to
place the cover on the bottom of the can).
5. Dry the sample to a constant temperature of 110 plus or minus 5 degree
centigrade.
a. Drying the soil for 24 hours or at least overnight (12 to 18 hours) is
enough in most cases to attain a constant sample weight and that
weight could be used for the weight of dry soil.
b. A temperature of 60 degrees centigrade may be used for some soils
with temperature sensitive properties such as peat and highly organic
soils since using an oven temperature of 110 degrees centigrade
may affect the properties of these soils.
6. Obtain the weight of dry soil plus can with cover and record as Wb.
a. Be careful in handling the hot container. Use a pair of tongs or
gloves.
b. If a dessicator is available and when it is desired to measure the
weight after cooling, place the soil sample inside the dessicator so
that the soil does not absorb water from the laboratory atmosphere.
7. Compute the water content using the given form.