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Chapter 3
Weight-Volume Relationships and Plasticity
1. A fully saturated soil is a
(a) one-phase system consisting of soil solids.
(b) two-phase system consisting of soil solids and air.
(c) two-phase system consisting of soil solids and water.
(d) three-phase system consisting of soil solids, water and air.

2. Which of the following is not a volume relationship?

(a) void ratio
(b) porosity
(c) degree of saturation
(d) water content

3. Porosity of a soil is defined as

(a) the ratio of volume of voids to the volume of solids.
(b) the ratio of volume of voids to the total volume.
(c) the volume of water to the volume of voids.
(d) The weight of water to the weight of solids.

4. Which of the following is not represented as a percentage?

(a) void ratio
(b) porosity
(c) degree of saturation
(d) water content

5. Select the incorrect statement.

(a) Void ratio can be greater than unity.
(b) Porosity lies between 0 and 100%.
(c) Degree of saturation lies between 0 and 100%.
(d) Water content is always less than 100%.

6. If void ratio of a soil is 0.2, then its porosity will be

(a) 16.7 %.
(b) 20.0 %.
(c) 25.0 %.
(d) none of the above

7. If the specific gravity of soil solids is 2.67, and water content is 32% for a given soil, its
void ratio will be
(a) 0.12.
(b) 0.85.
(c) 1.00.
(d) none of the above

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8. Dense uniform sand can have a void ratio of
(a) 0.1.
(b) 0.5.
(c) 1.0.
(d) 1.2.

9. A representative soil specimen collected from the field weighs 1.9 kN and has a volume of
0.12 m3. The water content as determined in the laboratory is 13.5%. What will be the dry
unit weight of the soil?
(a) 13.9 kN/m3.
(b) 15.8 kN/m3.
(c) 17.9 kN/m3.
(d) none of the above

10. The relative density of dense granular soils ranges from

(a) 15 to 50%.
(b) 50 to 70%.
(c) 70 to 85%.
(d) 85 to 100%.

11. For clean sand samples, emax and emin are related as
(a) emax ≈ 0.5 emin.
(b) emax ≈ emin.
(c) emax ≈ 1.6 emin.
(d) emax ≈ 2 emin.

12. The water content of soil at the point of transition from semisolid to plastic state is
(a) shrinkage limit.
(b) plastic limit.
(c) liquid limit.
(d) Atterberg limit.

13. If liquid limit = 36%, and plasticity index = 12%, then plastic limit will be
(a) 3%
(b) 24%.
(c) 48%.
(d) none of the above

14. As per the liquid limit test (ASTM D-4318), the relation between water content and log N
is approximated as
(a) straight line.
(b) circular curve.
(c) hyperbolic curve.
(d) parabolic curve.

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15. Activity, defined as the slope of line correlating plasticity index and percent finer than 2μ,
is used as an index for
(a) classifying clay soils.
(b) defining Atterberg limits of clay soils.
(c) identifying the swelling potential of clay soils.
(d) none of the above

16. Which one of the following soils can have in situ moisture content greater than its liquid
limit?
(a) silty soils.
(b) clayey soils.
(c) sensitive clayey soils.
(d) none of the above

17. Soil deposits that are heavily overconsolidated may have a natural moisture content less
than the plastic limit. In that case, the liquidity index,
(a) LI < 1.
(b) LI = 1.
(c) LI > 1.
(d) LI ≥ 1.

18. The A-line in the plasticity chart separates

(a) clays from the sands.
(b) clays from the silts.
(c) organic clays from the inorganic silts.
(d) inorganic clays from the inorganic silts.

19. The A-line in the plasticity chart is represented by the equation

(a) 0.73 8 .
(b) 0.73 20 .
(c) 0.9 8 .
(d) 0.9 20 .

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Answers, Hints and Discussion

1. (c)
Discussion: (b) is correct for dry soil, and (d) for partially saturated soil. A soil does not exist
practically as a one-phase system consisting of soil solids only.

2. (d)
Discussion and Hint: Water content is a weight relationship; see Eq. (3.8).

3. (b)
Discussion: (a), (c) and (d) are correct for void ratio, degree of saturation and water content,
respectively. See Eqs. (3.3), (3.5) and (3.8).

4. (a)

5. (d)

6. (a)
.
Discussion: Eq. (3.7): 0.167 or 16.7%.
.

7. (b)
Discussion: S = 100% for saturated soils. Eq. (3.19): 0.32 2.67 0.85.

8. (b)
Hint: See Table 3.1.

9. (a)
. .
Discussion: Eq. (3.9): 15.8 kN/m ; Eq. (3.12): 13.9 /
. .

10. (c)
Hint: See Table 3.2.

11. (c)
Hint: See Eq. (3.36).

12. (b)

13. (b)
Discussion: Eq. (3.38): 36% 12% 24%.

14. (a)

15. (c)

16. (c)

17. (a)

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18. (d)
Hint: See Fig. 3.19.

19. (b)
Hint: See Fig. 3.19.

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