STUDENT CODE OF ETHIC

(SCE)
DEPT. OF CIVIL ENGINEERING TECHNOLOGY
FACULTY OF ENGINEERING TECHNOLOGY

I, hereby confess that I have prepared this report on my own effort. I also admit not
to receive or give any help during the preparation of this report and pledge
that everything mentioned in the report is true.

_________________
Student Signature

Name

Matric No. :
Date

STUDENT CODE OF ETHIC

(SCE)
DEPT. OF CIVIL ENGINEERING TECHNOLOGY
FACULTY OF ENGINEERING TECHNOLOGY

I, hereby confess that I have prepared this report on my own effort. I also admit not
to receive or give any help during the preparation of this report and pledge
that everything mentioned in the report is true.

_________________
Student Signature

Name

Matric No. :
Date

STUDENT CODE OF ETHIC

(SCE)
DEPT. OF CIVIL ENGINEERING TECHNOLOGY
FACULTY OF ENGINEERING TECHNOLOGY

I, hereby confess that I have prepared this report on my own effort. I also admit not
to receive or give any help during the preparation of this report and pledge
that everything mentioned in the report is true.

_________________
Student Signature

Name

Matric No. :
Date

STUDENT CODE OF ETHIC

(SCE)
DEPT. OF CIVIL ENGINEERING TECHNOLOGY
FACULTY OF ENGINEERING TECHNOLOGY

I, hereby confess that I have prepared this report on my own effort. I also admit not
to receive or give any help during the preparation of this report and pledge
that everything mentioned in the report is true.

_________________
Student Signature

Name

Matric No. :
Date

STUDENT CODE OF ETHIC

(SCE)
DEPT. OF CIVIL ENGINEERING TECHNOLOGY
FACULTY OF ENGINEERING TECHNOLOGY

I, hereby confess that I have prepared this report on my own effort. I also admit not
to receive or give any help during the preparation of this report and pledge
that everything mentioned in the report is true.

_________________
Student Signature

Name

Matric No. :
Date

1.0 OBJECTIVE
To Determine the permeability of soils of intermediate and low permeability (less than 10
-4 m/s) i.e. Silts and Clays.
2.0 LEARNING OUTCOME
At the end of this experiment, students are able to:

Describe the general accepted practice to determine the coefficient of

permeability of silt sand clays.

Identify the relationship between permeability and pore size of the fine grained
soils.

Measure the coefficient of permeability of silts and clays.

3.0 THEORY
In the falling head test a relatively short sample is connected to a standpipe which provides
both the head of water and the means of measuring the quantity of water flowing through the
sample. Several standpipes of different diameters are normally available from which can be
selected the diameter most suitable for the type of material being tested.
In permeability tests on clays, much higher hydraulic gradients than are normally used with
sands can be applied, and are often necessary to induce any measurable flow. The cohesion of
clays provides resistance to failure by piping at gradients of up to several hundred, even
under quite low confining or surcharge pressures. Dispersive clays however are very
susceptible to erosion at much lower gradient.
The falling head principle can be applied to an undisturbed sample in a sampling tube and to
a sample in an oedometer consolidation cell. The equation used in determine the permeability
of fine grained soils is given in Eqn (1).

Permeabili ty, k

h
aL
log e 1
A(t 2 t1 )
h2

..Eqn (1)

The time difference (t2-t1) can be expressed as the elapsed time, t (minutes). The heights h1
and h2 and the length, L are expressed in millimetres, and the areas A and a in square
millimetres. Eqn (1) then becomes Eqn (2).

Permeabili ty, k

h
aL
log e 1 ( mm / s )
Ax60t
h2

..Eqn (2)
To convert natural logarithms to ordinary (base 10) logarithms, multiply by 2.303. If k is
epxressed in m/s, the above equation becomes Eqn (3).

Permeabili ty, k

h
2.303aL
log 10 1 ( m / s )
1000 xAx60t
h2
..Eqn (3)

Where: a = area of cross-section of standpipe tube,

A = area of cross section of sample
h 1 = heights of water above datum in standpipe at time t 1
h 2 = heights of water above datum in standpipe at time t 2
L = heights of sample
t = elapsed time in minutes

4.0 TEST EQUIPMENTS

1. Permeameter cell, comprising:
Cell body, with cutting edge (core cutter), 100 mm diameter and 130 mm long.
Perforated base plate with straining rods and wing nuts.
Top clamping plate.
Connecting tube and fittings.

Figure 1: Compaction permeameter

(Courtesy of ELE International, 2007)
5.0 PROCEDURES
1. Apparatus are assembled,
a. The apparatus is set up as shown in Figure 2. The volume of water passing
through a sample of low permeability is quite small and a continuous supply
of de-aired water is not necessary, but the reservoir supplying the de-airing
tank should be filled with distilled or de-ionised water.
2. Manometer tubes are calibrated,
a. The areas of cross-section of the three manometer tubes should be determined
as follows for each tube:
i. The tube is filled with water up to a known mark near the top of the
scale, the nearest mm is observed,
ii. Water is run off from the tube into a weighted beaker, until the level in
the tube has fallen by about 500mm or more,
iii.
The new water level on the scale is read to the nearest mm,
iv. The beaker containing water from the tube is weighed (weighings
should be to the nearest 0.01g)
v. The diameter of the manometer can be calculated as follows:
diameter , a=

1000 mw
mm2
h1 h2

If

mw

= mass of water (g),

h1

= initial level in tube (mm),

h2

= final level in tube (mm),

A = area of cross-section of tube (mm2)

vi.

The measurements is repeated for two or three times for each tube, and
the results are averaged.

3. Cell is prepared,
a. The cell is dismantled,
b. The cell body is checked to be clean and dry, and it is weigh to the nearest
0.1g,
c. The mean internal diameter (D) and length (L) are measured to the nearest
0.5mm.
4. Sample is prepared,
a. Undisturbed sample can be taken by means of core cutter.
b. Make sure that the sample is a tight fit in the body and there are no cavities
around the perimeter through which water could pass,
5. Cell is assembled.
6. Cell is connected.
7. Sample is saturated and is de-aired.
8. Manometer system is filled.
9. Test is run.
a. Screw clip at inlet is opened to allow water to flow down through the sample,
and the water level in the standpipe is observed,
b. As soon as the level h 1 is reached, the timer clock is started,
c. The time is observed and recorded when the level h 3 is reached, and when h 2
is reached then the clock s stopped,
d. Screw clip at inlet is closed.
10. Test is repeated.
11. Permeability is calculated.
12. Result is reported.

Figure 2: Falling head permeability cell with manometer tubes

(Courtesy of ELE International, 2007)

6.0 RESULTS AND CALCULATIONS

Falling Head Permeability Test
Sample diameter, D:
Sample area, A:
Mass of mould:
Mass of sample:
S.G. measured/assumed:

99.89 mm
7836.71 mm2
1850 g
2273 g

Sample length, L:
140.31 mm
Sample volume, V:
1099.57 cm3
Mass of sample+mould: 4123 g
Voids ratio:

Bulk density, :
Mositure content:

16.43 kN/m3
20 %

Dry density, :
Test temperature:

Standpipe diameter:

3.92 mm

Standpipe area, a:
mm2

14.94 kN/m3
25 c
12.07 mm

Reading:
Reference
point
1
2
3
4

Height
above
datum, y
(mm)
900
800
700
600

Height
above
outlet, h
(mm)
800
700
600
500

Calculations:
Average for time :
2.50+ 6.02+ 10.14+15.21
=8.4675 min
4

Height ratios :
Height above datum , y (mm)
Height above outlet ,h (mm)

Test
No.
1
2
3
4
Average :

Time, t
(min)

Height
ratios

2.50
6.02
10.14
15.21
8.4675

1.125
1.143
1.167
1.20
1.15875

Reference point 1 :

900 mm
=1.125
800 mm

Reference point 2 :

800 mm
=1.143
700 mm

Reference point 3 :

700 mm
=1.167
600 mm

Reference point 4 :

600 mm
=1.20
500 mm

Average for height ratios :

1.125+1.143+1.167 +1.20
=1.15875
4

7.0 DISCUSSION
Permeability refers to the capacity of soil to allow water passes through it. In order
words, the ease with which water can flow through a soil. Pore spaces between soil particles

are interconnected to ease the flow of water where the water flows from higher pore pressure
to lower pore pressure zone. This property is necessary for the calculation of seepage through
earth dams or under sheet piles wall. It is also needed for the calculation of seepage rate from
waste storage facilities such as landfills and ponds. Moreover, it is used to calculate the rate
of settlement of clayey soil deposits.
11
By using the formula given, the value of k ( permeability ) is 4.994 10 m/s .

There were several errors which may affect the test results. For instance, the air bubbles
trapped in soil sample or the degree of saturation of the soil specimen, for example the soil is
not 100 % saturated, some of the head loss occurred in the apparatus rather than in the sample
and difficulty of accurately measuring heads relative to tail water and significant figures.
There are some precautions that we need to concern and prevent the errors occurs
happened. Firstly, we must record the readings multiple times and get the average value to
obtain higher degree of accuracy. Water was allowed to flow through the sample before test
was conducted to allow any clogs and excess loose sand to remove. We must make sure that
the specimen is stabilized before recording the results.

8.0 QUESTIONS

1.

h1
2.303 aL
Permeability, k = 1000 A 60 t log 10 h 2

( )

2.303 ( 12.07 106 ) ( 140.31 103 )

900
k 1=
log 10
6
800
1000 ( 9836.7110 ) 60 2.50

( )

10

1.352 10

m/s

2.303 ( 12.07 106 ) ( 140.31 103 )

800
k 2=
log 10
6
700
1000 ( 9836.7110 ) 60 6.02

( )

6.366 1011 m/s

2.303 ( 12.07 106 ) ( 140.31 103 )
700
k3 =
log 10
6
600
1000 ( 9836.7110 ) 60 10.14

( )

4.363 1011 m/ s
2.303 ( 12.07 106 ) ( 140.31103 )
600
k 4=
log 10
6
500
1000 ( 9836.71 10 ) 60 15.21

( )

3.440 1011 m/s

h1
2.303 aL
Average Permeability, k = 1000 A 60 t log 10 h 2

( )

k=

2.303 ( 12.07 106 ) ( 140.31 103 )

log 10 ( 1.15875 )
1000 ( 9836.71 106 ) 60 8.4675
11

4.994 10

2.

m/s

In conclusion, we can able to measure the coefficient of permeability of slits and clays,
describe the general accepted practice to determine the coefficient of permeability of slits
and clays and identify the relationship between permeability and pore size of the fine
grained soils.

9.0 CONCLUSION
From this experiment we can conclude that we have learned about the determination
of the coefficient of permeability of silts and clay. We also found that as the pore size
increase, the permeability will also increase. The application involve falling head
permeability include estimation of the quantity of underground seepage water in various
hydraulic condition and quantification of water during pumping for underground
construction.