A cube of dried clay having sides 4 cm long has a mass of 110 g. The same cube of soil, when saturated at unchanged volume has a mass of 135 g. Draw the soil element showing the volumes (cm) and weights of the constituents, and then determine the specific gravity of soil solids and the voids ratio

Answer 1

Given:
Side length of cube of dried clay, L = 4 cm
Mass of dried clay, M_dried = 110 g
Mass of saturated clay, M_saturated = 135 g

First, let's calculate the volume of the cube of dried clay:
Volume of cube = L^3
Volume of cube = 4^3 = 64 cm^3

Next, let's calculate the volume of the solids when the cube is saturated:
The volume of solids = Volume of cube = 64 cm^3

Now, let's calculate the volume of water in the saturated cube:
Volume of water = Volume of saturated cube - Volume of solids
Volume of water = 64 cm^3 - 64 cm^3 = 0 cm^3

Now, let's determine the weight of the solids when saturated:
Weight of solids = M_saturated - weight of water
Weight of solids = 135 g - 0 g = 135 g

Now, let's calculate the specific gravity of the soil solids:
Specific Gravity (G_s) = Weight of soil solids / Volume of soil solids
Specific Gravity (G_s) = 135 g / 64 cm^3
Specific Gravity (G_s) = 2.109 g/cm^3

The void ratio is calculated as the ratio of the volume of voids to the volume of solids:
Void ratio (e) = Volume of voids / Volume of solids
Void ratio (e) = 0 / 64 cm^3
Void ratio (e) = 0

Therefore, the specific gravity of the soil solids is 2.109 g/cm^3 and the voids ratio is 0.