Variation in air void content of compacted fill by considering variation in particle density / Badrul Nizam Ismail and Nurhanis Yahaya

Compaction plays a vital role in earthworks to ensure that engineered fill such as embankment is performed at its required capacity. Two main criteria that need to be checked for compacted fill are density and air void content. The air void content is crucial to avoid the possibility of wetting collapse, i.e. failure when water fills the air void. In this study, the effect of different particle densities due to different particle sizes was investigated. The effect of different particle densities on air void content was also investigated. The particle density of soil was determined using two configurations: 1) by combining all sizes and 2) by separating it into five different sizes. The air void content was determined using two different values of particle density. It was found that particle density varies with different size, and it increases as the particle size decreases. This variation results in different air void contents. It was also found that at higher dry density, the air void content might provide a different value that is significant as it differentiates between comply and non-comply. Therefore, this study highlights the importance of considering the effect of variation in particle density in determining the air void content of compacted fill.