ICC (EC) Soils - Material Testing (edit), combined|Latest Edition
Questions with Verified A+ Graded Answers 2026\2027
The strength of a soil, or the ability to compact a soil into a suitable construction material will
depend on?
Soil type
Soil density
The amount of water in the soil
Types of soils
Gravel (mm to cm's in size)
Sand (mm in size)
Silt (fine particles with little cohesion)
Clay (has cohesion, can stick together)
Organic soils (peat, topsoil)
Organic soils (O)
Have a large componet of dead or decaying plants, and are not used in construction
Silt and Clay
Classified based on whether the soil is plastic (clay) or non-plastic (eg. can you roll it into a ball
or string)
Gravel and Sand
are classified based on whether or not all the particles are roughly the same size (uniform, like a
beach) or if there is a large variety in particle size (well-graded).
Soil layers
1. (complex zone) 3 to 4m
2. (glacio-lacustrine clay) 2-12m
3. Glacial till, up to 9m in thickness
4. Carbonate bedrock, the upper surface of which is often fractured, weathered and irrgular
Soil has two componets of strength
Cohesion (clay only)
Friction (when individual soil grains move across on another)
,The three types of shear failure of soil are
general shear failure (bulging / tilting)
local shear failure (slight bulging)
punching shear failure (little to no bulging)
Soil strength is used to determine
The bearing capacity of a foundation
The stability of natural or man-made earth slopes or retaining walls
Test for soil strength include;
Unconfined compression test
Direct shear test
Triaxial compression test
Soil strength depends upon
density and moisture content
Unconfined compression test
useful for determining the strength of soils
Gradation refers to the range of measured soil particle sizes. Gradation results in classifying soil
types as
Boulders ( >12" )
Cobble ( 3" to 12" )
Gravel ( >2 mm )
Sand ( 0.075 to 2 mm )
Silt ( 0.002 to 0.075 mm )
Clay ( <0.002 mm )
The particle size distribution of coarse-grained soils is typically determined by?
Mechanical sieve analysis
The particle size distribution of fine-grained soil is determined using a ?
hydrometer analysis
Two parameters help to identify soils that are well-graded?
The Coefficient of Uniformity (Cu)
The Coefficient of Curvature (Cc)
, The hydrometer analysis is used to determine the gradation of
slit and clay-sized particles.
Only soil particles passing the # 40 sieve (0.425) are used in the
hydrometer analysis
Hydrometer readings give us two things?
The specific gravity, or density, of the fluid tells us the % of material still in suspension.
The average downward velosity of the hydrometer can give us the diameter of the particle that
is just coming out of solution.
The Swedish soil scientist, _____ , developed a method of quantitatively describing the effect of
soil moisture on the consistency of fine-grained soils.
Albert Atterberg
Although Atterberg proposed five limits only the following three are in common useage today.
Liquid Limit
Plastic limit
Shrinkage limit
Only the Liquid Limit and Plastic Limit are normally used to?
classify soil plasticity
It is important to remember that all values related to the Atterberg limits are simply?
moisture content values
moisture content =
mass of water in the soil ÷ mass of dry soil
The Liquid limit (LL) is
the moisture content above which the soil behaves as a liquid.
The plastic limit (PL) is
defined as the moisture content above which the soil behaves as a plastic; where plasticity is
defined as the ability of a soil to undergo deformation at a constant volume.
The plasticity index (PI) is
Questions with Verified A+ Graded Answers 2026\2027
The strength of a soil, or the ability to compact a soil into a suitable construction material will
depend on?
Soil type
Soil density
The amount of water in the soil
Types of soils
Gravel (mm to cm's in size)
Sand (mm in size)
Silt (fine particles with little cohesion)
Clay (has cohesion, can stick together)
Organic soils (peat, topsoil)
Organic soils (O)
Have a large componet of dead or decaying plants, and are not used in construction
Silt and Clay
Classified based on whether the soil is plastic (clay) or non-plastic (eg. can you roll it into a ball
or string)
Gravel and Sand
are classified based on whether or not all the particles are roughly the same size (uniform, like a
beach) or if there is a large variety in particle size (well-graded).
Soil layers
1. (complex zone) 3 to 4m
2. (glacio-lacustrine clay) 2-12m
3. Glacial till, up to 9m in thickness
4. Carbonate bedrock, the upper surface of which is often fractured, weathered and irrgular
Soil has two componets of strength
Cohesion (clay only)
Friction (when individual soil grains move across on another)
,The three types of shear failure of soil are
general shear failure (bulging / tilting)
local shear failure (slight bulging)
punching shear failure (little to no bulging)
Soil strength is used to determine
The bearing capacity of a foundation
The stability of natural or man-made earth slopes or retaining walls
Test for soil strength include;
Unconfined compression test
Direct shear test
Triaxial compression test
Soil strength depends upon
density and moisture content
Unconfined compression test
useful for determining the strength of soils
Gradation refers to the range of measured soil particle sizes. Gradation results in classifying soil
types as
Boulders ( >12" )
Cobble ( 3" to 12" )
Gravel ( >2 mm )
Sand ( 0.075 to 2 mm )
Silt ( 0.002 to 0.075 mm )
Clay ( <0.002 mm )
The particle size distribution of coarse-grained soils is typically determined by?
Mechanical sieve analysis
The particle size distribution of fine-grained soil is determined using a ?
hydrometer analysis
Two parameters help to identify soils that are well-graded?
The Coefficient of Uniformity (Cu)
The Coefficient of Curvature (Cc)
, The hydrometer analysis is used to determine the gradation of
slit and clay-sized particles.
Only soil particles passing the # 40 sieve (0.425) are used in the
hydrometer analysis
Hydrometer readings give us two things?
The specific gravity, or density, of the fluid tells us the % of material still in suspension.
The average downward velosity of the hydrometer can give us the diameter of the particle that
is just coming out of solution.
The Swedish soil scientist, _____ , developed a method of quantitatively describing the effect of
soil moisture on the consistency of fine-grained soils.
Albert Atterberg
Although Atterberg proposed five limits only the following three are in common useage today.
Liquid Limit
Plastic limit
Shrinkage limit
Only the Liquid Limit and Plastic Limit are normally used to?
classify soil plasticity
It is important to remember that all values related to the Atterberg limits are simply?
moisture content values
moisture content =
mass of water in the soil ÷ mass of dry soil
The Liquid limit (LL) is
the moisture content above which the soil behaves as a liquid.
The plastic limit (PL) is
defined as the moisture content above which the soil behaves as a plastic; where plasticity is
defined as the ability of a soil to undergo deformation at a constant volume.
The plasticity index (PI) is
