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Geotechnical Engineering Laboratory Assignment Types of Samplers

Submitted to: Engr. Jahanzaib Submitted by: Shay haq 2010-civ-33

Department of Civil Engineering University of Engineering and Technology Lahore.

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Types OF Samplers:
Split Spoon Sampler

Standard Split spoon sampler is the most commonly used sampler for obtaining a disturbed sample of the soil.

Characteristics:
the inside diameter of the split spoon sampler is 38mm and outside diameter is 50mm. the coupling head may be provided with a check valve and 4 venting ports of 10mm diameter to improve sample recovery. This is driven into the ground at the bottom of a borehole by blows from a slide hammer with a weight of 63.5 kg (140 lbs.) falling through a distance of 760 mm (30 in). The sample tube is driven 150 mm into the ground and then the number of blows needed for the tube to penetrate each 150 mm (6 in) up to a depth of 450 mm (18 in) is recorded. The sum of the number of blows required for the second and third 6 in. of penetration is termed the "standard penetration resistance" or the "N-value". In cases where 50 blows are insufficient to advance it through a 150 mm (6 in) interval the penetration after 50 blows is recorded. The blow count provides an indication of the density of the ground, and it is used in many empirical geotechnical engineering formulae. After the borehole has been made, the sampler is attached to the drilling rod and lowered into the holes. The sample is collected by jacking of forcing the sampler into the soil by repeated blows of a drop hammer. The sampler is then withdrawn. The split tube is separated after removing the shoe and the coupling and the sample is taken out. It has been placed in a container, scaled and transported to the laboratory.

If the soil encountered in the borehole is fine sand and it lies below the water table, the sample recovery becomes difficult. For such soils the spring core catcher is used to avoid recovery. As the sample is lifted, the spring close and form a dome and retain the sample. While taking samples, care should be taken to ensure that the water level in the hole is maintained slightly higher than the piezometric level at the bottom of the hole. It is necessary to prevent quick sand conditions.

The split tube may be provided with a thin metal or plastic tube liner to protect the sample and to hold it together. After the sample has been collected, the liner and the sample it contains are removed from the tube and ends are scaled

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Split spoon sampler is basically a thick walled steel tube, split length wise. A drive shoe attached to the lower end serve as the cutting edge. The sample head is screwed at the upper end of the split spoon. The standard size of the split spoon sampler is 35mm internal and 50.8mm external diameter. The sampler is lowered to the bottom of the borehole by attaching it to the drill rod. The sampler is then driven by forcing it to the soil/ground by blows from a hammer. The assembly of the sampler is then extracted from the hole and the cutting edge and coupling at the top are unscrewed. The two halves of the barrels are separated and the sample is thus exposed. The sample may be placed in a glass jar and sealed after visual examination. For determining penetration resistance (N value) of soil which can be related to unconfined Compressive strength, Penetration resistance (N value) of soil is determined by giving a number of blows with a 65 kg. Weight falling through a given distance of 75 cm required to penetrate.

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Components:
It consists of three components:

2010civil33 1) 2) 3) Driving shoe, made of tool steel, about 75mm long. Steel tube about 450mm long, split longitudinally in two halves Coupling at the top of the tube about 150mm long.

Advantages:
With the help of the split spoon sampler it is easy to obtain samples in unconsolidated materials above 100ft. It produces good-quality samples for both description and chemical analysis. It is relatively efficient and inexpensive at shallow and intermediate depths.

Disadvantages:
Split spoon sampler provides disturbed samples and cannot be used in soils where water table is present.

Shelby Tube Sampler:

2010civil33 Shelby tubes are thin wall tube samplers made of stainless steel. The outside diameter of the tube may be between 40 to 125mm. the commonly used samplers have outside diameter of either 50.8mm or 76.2 mm. the bottom of the tube is sharpened or beveled, which acts as cutting edge. The area ratio is less than 15% and the inside clearance is 0.5% to 3%. For sandy soils the length of the tube is between 5 to 10 times the diameter and for clayey soil the length of the tube is between 10 to 15 times the diameters. The diameter generally varies between 40 and 125mm and thickness varies from 1.25 to 3.15mm.

The sampler tube is attached to the drilling rod and lowered to the bottom of the borehole. It is then pushed into the soil. Care shall be taken to push the tube into the soil by a continuous rapid motion without impact or twisting. The tube should be pushed to the length provided for the sample. At least 5 minutes after pushing the tube into its final position, the tube is turned two revolutions to shear the sample off at the bottom before it is withdrawn. The tube is taken out and its ends are sealed before transportation. Shelby tubes are used to obtain the undisturbed sample of clay.

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Shelby tube samplers consist of a one-piece, thin-walled, hollow steel tube with an open-end that has been honed to a cutting edge. The main purpose of the Shelby Tube sampler is to recover relatively undisturbed soil samples suitable for laboratory tests of engineering properties such as strength, compressibility, permeability, and density. They are very useful for collecting soils that are particularly sensitive to sampling disturbance, including fine cohesive soils and clays, provided that the soil has not been disturbed by sinking the borehole and are free from large particles.

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Specification of sizes:

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Benefits:
Thin walled tubes of the samplers are made of steel or of brass. Steel is less liable to buckle when pressed into the stiffed soils. But may corrode. Brass is easier to handle in laboratory when it is necessary to cut off part of the tube and sample for testing while preserving the remainder. By means of Shelby tube sample we can collect good quality, virtually undisturbed samples for description and chemical analysis Shelby tube samples is effective in fine, cohesive soils

2" samplers are ideal for use through 3 1/2" geotechnical direct push systems (dual tube) and 2 1/4" ID hollow stem augers 3" samplers are ideal for use through 4 1/2" ID hollow stem augers Not recommended for drilling through gravel or hard clay.

Draw backs

2010civil33 Shelby tube sampler is used for normally consolidated clays and overconsolidated clays. It is not suitable for non-cohesive or granular soils Shelby tube sampler has an open end no cutting edge so it is necessary to start from the ground level or pre drill a bore hole The sampler tubes are fabricated from the cold formed seamless steel tubing. A major disadvantage of the use of steel for the sampler is the danger of corrosion.

Hydraulic Piston Sampler:

The piston consists of a thin walled tube with a piston inside. The piston keeps the lower end of the sampling tube closed when sampler is lowered to the bottom of the hole. After the sampler has been lowered to the desired depth, the piston is prevented from the moving downward by a suitable arrangement, which differs in different types of piston samplers. The thin tube sampler is pushed past the piston to obtain the sample. The piston remains in contact with the top of the sample. The presence of the sample prevents rapid squeezing of the soft soils into the tube and reduces the disturbance of the sample. A vacuum is created on the top of the sample, which helps in retaining the sample, during the withdrawal of the sampler. The piston provides protection against the water pressure which otherwise would have occurred on the top of the sample during withdrawal of the sampler. Piston samplers are used for getting undisturbed soil samples from soft and sensitive clays.

Piston samplers are a reliable and effective option where dual tube sampling is not possible due to depth, below groundwater, or difficult lithologys. The center rod and tip will displace the caving soils and the tip will keep the caving soils from entering the sampler preventing premature sample collection and minimizing the chance for cross-contamination. When the piston sampler is used in conjunction with the AMS dual tube system, it can be very efficient for difficult lithologys and is ideal for sampling below groundwater and in caving soils. The design employs a basket retainer in the drive tip so that an optional core catcher may be used to prevent sample losses in fine/sandy soils or saturated soils. Hydraulic piston sampler is designed for taking the undisturbed samples in low strength fine soils such as silt and soft to stiff clays. The necessary hydraulic load is generated from the hydraulic power unit on a drilling rig, or by using a purpose built hydraulic power pack. An operating pressure of 1200 psi is usually sufficient for taking samples in soil conditions for which the unit is designed. The piston sampler is of the stationary type. The entire unit is rigid and fixed length 2850mm from the drilling rod connection at the top head to the piston head at the bottom. The only moving part is the hydraulic cylinder which slides up and down the central rods. The stroke length is exactly 1m.

2010civil33 The sample tube is attached to the lower end of the hydraulic cylinder by means of 3 screws. Hydraulic oil flowing through the piston sampler causes the cylinder with attached sample tube to move downwards into the soil. At the end of the stroke the apparatus is lifted out of the ground and the full sample tube is removed, replacing it with an empty one. The direction of flow of hydraulic oil is then reversed, causing the cylinder with attached sample tube to move upwards. When the cylinder has moved to its highest extent, the piston head is visible at the bottom end of the sample tube. The apparatus is then lowered into the ground ready for taking the next sample. To ensure a good seal against the bore of the sample tube, the pressure exerted by the piston seal can be adjusted by tightening or loosening the screws on the back-plate of the piston head. (The back plate compresses the seal when it is tightened up).The standard sample tube is 4" bore (101.6 mm) made from aluminum and is 1000 mm long. With a wall thickness of just 1.75 mm, these tubes produce a soil sample with minimum disturbance. The area ratio is just 7%.

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Characteristics of Piston Sampler:

Sample flowing/heaving sands, swelling clays and soils below groundwater. Sample through caving soil. Eliminate prep robing with use of Dual Tube System. Recover samples consistently. Variety of sample sizes available.

Specifications of Piston Sampler:

The outfit consists of sampling tube, 550 or 580mm effective length piston, one piston connecting rod 1 meter long And a drive head with check valve and adaptor for drill rod.

Comparison
PROPERTIES SPLIT SPOON SAMPLER $ 99 Tube sampler C3125 C-183 T-127 hogentogler SHELLBY TUBE $ 312 Density tube sampler S3757 D-2937 T-20 hogentogler PISTON TUBE $ 260 Drying piston tube 10305-2 209-99 hogentogler

PRICE DESCRIPTION MODEL ASTM AASHTO MANUFACTURER