University of Benghazi

Faculty of Engineering
Civil Engineering Department

Soil Mechanics Lab (CE331)

Test 4 – Compaction Test

Standard | ASTM D 698 – 00

Standard | AASHTO T 099-95
Date of test | 22/7/2012
Teacher | Ghassan Gehani

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17935 : ‫• ﺍﻟﺮﻗﻢ ﺍﻟﺪﺭﺍ��ﻱ‬
Compaction Test

1) Abstract :
This test covers laboratory determination to the relationship
between water content and dry unit weight of soils according to
(Standard Proctor Test).

2) Introduction :
Standard Proctor Test:
In the Proctor test, the soil is compacted in a mold that has a
1
volume of 944 cm3( ft3), The diameter of the mold (Figure 1) is
30

101 .6 mm (4 in.).
During the laboratory test, the mold is attached to a baseplate at
the bottom and to an extension at the top.
The soil is mixed with varying amounts of water and then
compacted in three equal layers by a hammer (Figure 2) that
delivers 25 blows to each layer.
The hammer has a mass of 2.5 kg (6.5 lb) and has a drop of 30.5
mm (12 in.).
For each test, the moist unit weight of compaction,g, can be
calculated as :
𝑊
𝛾=
𝑉𝑚𝑜𝑙𝑑
Where :
W = Weight of the compacted soil in the mold.
Vmold = Volume of the mold.

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 Figure 1 | Mold Figure 2 | Hammer

For each test, the moisture content of the compacted soil is

determined in the laboratory; With the known moisture content,
the dry unit weight can be calculated as :
𝛾
𝛾𝑑 =
1 + 𝑚𝑐
The values of 𝛾𝑑 is determined and can be plotted against the
corresponding moisture contents to obtain the maximum dry unit
weight and the optimum moisture content for the soil.
The procedure for the standard Proctor test is elaborated in
ASTM Test Designation D-698 (ASTM, 2007) and AASHTO Test
Designation T-99 (AASHTO, 1982).

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 3) Apparatus :
1) Mold Assembly (Figure 3) :
The molds shall be cylindrical in shape,
made of rigid metal and be within a specific
capacity and dimensions.
The walls of the mold may be solid, split, or
tapered, The “split” type may consist of two
half-round sections, or a section of pipe split
along one element, which can be securely
locked together to form a cylinder meeting
the requirements of this section.
The “tapered” type shall an internal
Figure 3 | Mold
diameter taper that is uniform and not more
than 0.200 in./ft (16.7- mm/m) of mold
height.
Each mold shall have a base plate and an extension collar
assembly, both made of rigid metal and constructed so they
can be securely attached and easily detached from the mold.
The extension collar assembly shall have a height extending
above the top of the mold of at least 2.0 in. (50.8-mm) which
may include an upper section that flares out to form a funnel
provided there is at least a 0.75 in. (19.0-mm) straight
cylindrical section beneath it.
The extension collar shall align with the inside of the mold,
the bottom of the base plate and bottom of the centrally
recessed area that accepts the cylindrical mold shall be
planar.
2) Manual Rammer.
The rammer shall be equipped with a guide sleeve that has
sufficient clearance that the free fall of the rammer shaft and
head is not restricted.
The guide sleeve shall have at least four vent holes at each
end (eight holes total) located with centers.

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 3) Balance .
4) Drying Oven (Figure 4) :
Thermostatically controlled, preferably of a
forced-draft type and capable of maintaining a
uniform temperature of 230±9°F (110±5°C)
throughout the drying chamber. Figure 4 | Drying Oven
5) Mixing Tools:
Miscellaneous tools such as mixing pan, spoon, trowel,
spatula, etc., or a suitable mechanical device for thoroughly
mixing the sample of soil with increments of water.

4) Procedure:
1) Weight (3kg) of a Soil which passed it through the # 4 sieve.
2) Determine the weight of the compaction mold with its base
(without the collar) by using the balance and record the
weights.
3) Compute the amount of initial water to add by the following
method:
A) Assume water content for the first test to be 7 percent.
B) Compute water to add from the following equation:
(𝑠𝑜𝑖𝑙 𝑚𝑚𝑠𝑠 𝑖𝑛 𝑔𝑟𝑚𝑚𝑠)×(7)
Water to be add (mL) =
100
4) Measure out the water, add it to the soil, and then mix it
thoroughly into the soil using the trowel until the soil gets a
uniform color.
5) Assemble the compaction mold to the base, place some soil in
the mold and compact the soil in the number of 3 equal layers,
the number of drops of the rammer per layer is 27.
The drops should be applied at a uniform rate not exceeding
around 1.5 seconds per drop, and the rammer should provide
uniform coverage of the specimen surface.
Try to avoid rebound of the rammer from the top of the
guide sleeve.
6) The soil should completely fill the cylinder and the last
compacted layer must extend slightly above the collar joint. If

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 the soil is below the collar joint at the completion of the drops,
the test point must be repeated.
7) Carefully remove the collar and trim off the compacted soil so
that it is completely even with the top of the mold using the
trowel.
Replace small bits of soil that may fall out during the
trimming process.
8) Weigh the compacted soil while it’s in the mold and to the
base, and record the mass, determine the wet mass of the soil
by subtracting the weight of the mold and base.
9) Remove the soil from the mold and take soil moisture content
samples from the top and bottom of the specimen; Fill the
moisture cans with soil and determine the water content.
10) Add 3 percent more water based on the original sample mass,
and re-mix as in step 4. Repeat steps 5 through 9 until, based
on wet mass, a peak value is reached followed by two slightly
lesser compacted soil masses.

5) Readings and Calculations :

Data Value

Soil sample mass 3 kg

3
Volume 0.00093 m

Table 1 | Water Content Determination

Moisture Can Number 44 36 30 105

Weight of Can + Wet Soil (g) 99.8 132.8 172.1 206.9

Weight of Can + Dry Soil (g) 94.2 122.8 154.6 181.2
Weight of Water (g) 5.6 10 17.5 25.7
Weight of Can (g) 21.2 21.5 21.5 21.2
Weight of Dry Soil (g) 73 101.3 133.1 160
Water Content (𝑚𝑐 ) % 7.67% 9.87% 13.15% 16.06%

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Table 2 | Density Determination

Assumed Water Content 7% 10% 13% 16%

Water Content (𝑚𝑐 ) % 7.67% 9.87% 13.15% 16.06%
Weight of soil + mold (kg) 8.476 8.551 8.616 8.609
Weight of mold (kg) 6.713 6.713 6.713 6.713
Weight of soil in mold (kg) 1.763 1.838 1.903 1.896
Wet Density (kN/m3) 18.586 19.377 20.062 19.988
Dry Density 𝛾𝑑 (kN/m3) 17.2624323 17.63637 17.73133 17.22248

17.8
𝛾𝑑−𝑚𝑚𝑚
17.7
Dry Density (kN/m3)

17.6

17.5

17.4

17.3

17.2

17.1
0.00% 5.00% 10.00% O.M.C 15.00% 20.00%
Moisture Content (%)

Figure 5 | Dry Density – Moisture Content Curve

From Figure 5 we get that:

Maximum 𝜸𝒅 = 17.755 kN/m3
Optimum Moisture Content = 12.4%.

Main Calculation’s Equations:

𝑊𝑐𝑜𝑚𝑝𝑚𝑐𝑡𝑒𝑑 𝑆𝑜𝑖𝑙 = 𝑊𝑠𝑜𝑖𝑙+𝑚𝑜𝑙𝑑 − 𝑊𝑚𝑜𝑙𝑑
𝑊𝑤𝑒𝑡 𝑠𝑜𝑖𝑙+𝑐𝑚𝑛 − 𝑊𝑑𝑟𝑦 𝑠𝑜𝑖𝑙+𝑐𝑚𝑛
𝑚𝑐 =
𝑊𝑑𝑟𝑦 𝑠𝑜𝑖𝑙+𝑐𝑚𝑛 − 𝑊𝐶𝑚𝑛
𝑊𝑐𝑜𝑚𝑝𝑚𝑐𝑡𝑒𝑑 𝑚𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑢𝑟𝑒 𝑠𝑜𝑖𝑙
𝛾=
𝑉𝑚𝑜𝑙𝑑
𝛾
𝛾𝑑𝑟𝑦 =
(1 + 𝑚𝑐 )
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 The maximum dry unit weight at given moisture content
with zero air voids can be calculated using the equation:

𝐺𝑠 𝛾𝑤
𝛾𝑧𝑚𝑣 =
1 + 𝑚𝑐 𝐺𝑠

22.5
22
21.5
Dry Density (kN/m3)

21
20.5
20
19.5
19
18.5
18
0.00% 5.00% 10.00% 15.00% 20.00%
Misture Content (%)

Figure 6 | Zero-air-void curve (GS = 2.7)

6) DISCUSSION:
1) The Optimum Moisture Content of the soil sample is
found to be 12.4% with maximum 𝛾𝑑 of 17.75 kN/m3,
and this lab result is used in the field for having the
maximum dry unit weight.
2) At the beginning the dry density was increasing while the
water content increases because the water acts like a
softening agent to make the soil particles slide into
voids; but after the moisture content reached 12.4% the
dry density started to decrease when the moisture
increases and that’s because the water started to push
out the soil particles and takes its place.
3) After applying this value to the field, it’s compared to
95% of the labs results.

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 4) The results of this test have some error sources due to
hammer releasing from a drop height less than 30 cm so
that the compaction is done with less effect.

7) Conclusion :
In this test we’ve determinate the Optimum Moisture Content of a
soil sample and it’s founded to be 12.4% with maximum 𝛾𝑑 of
17.75 kN/m3.

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