Madison Gilbert (Safety Manager)

Collaborators: Emily Edwards (Project Manager), Brittany Kropp (Technical Manager), Drew

(Materials Manager)

AP Environmental Science

Norris

9 March 2016

Soil Composition Lab

Data

Fig. 1​: Visual representation of the different percentages of soil found in each test

test % clay % silt % sand soil type

ribbon test 5 10 85 loamy sand

hydrologic test 10 45 45 sandy loam

 Table 1​: Data found from both types of soil tests

Fig 2. ​Pictures of the soil before and after settling during the hydrologic test. The layers of
sediment are marked in expo marker by the order in which they settled.

Conclusion

Our results show us that soil types can produce different results. The ribbon test found

that the soil type was loamy sand, and contained more sand than clay and silt. However, the

hydrologic test found that the soil type was sandy loam, and contained the same amount of sand

and silt, but less clay. Although both soil types are viewed as accurate, they produce very

different results, as shown by the data. Many discrepancies occur between the percentages of

each type of soil in the sample based off the test used. I believe that the hydrologic test is more

reliable than the ribbon test because it takes more scientific measurements into account. With the

ribbon test, it simply uses your opinion to determine the soil type. At least the hydrologic test

allows you to measure the amount of each type of soil used, and then apply the measurements to

the soil triangle. The soil triangle is a way to determine soil type based off the percentage of each

soil in the sample. The three sides of the triangle are labeled (either silt, clay, or sand), and the

percentages increase as you continue along the side. To determine soil type, a straight line is

drawn away from each side (based off type and percentage), and the intersection of all three lines
occurs in the box of the correct soil type. It is important to determine soil structure because

different structures have different effects on the environment. These effects are usually explained

through the permeability of the soil. Permeability is the ability of water or liquid to move

through soil particles. It is the most important characteristic when determining the water holding

capacity of soil. Soil with high permeability does not have the ability to hold a large amount of

water. Whereas soil with low permeability has the ability to hold water for a long period of time

(due to the closeness of its soil particles). Therefore, soil structure is important because it can

explain what kinds of plants are able to reside there. Plants requiring a large amount of water will

not be able to reside in soils that have high permeability; plants that don’t require a lot of water

will be able to reside in these types of soil easily. Plants that normally live in dry conditions,

such as the desert, will need to reside in soil with a low permeability, so they are able to gain

water from the soil for a longer period of time. Plants living in a biome such as the tropical

rainforest, can reside in soil with a high permeability because rainfall is constant and continuous

in that biome. A high percentage of sand seems to be a common characteristic of soils in this

area, whereas a very small percentage of clay is found in most soil types here as well. Septic

tanks would not work well in the state of North Carolina because flooding is an often occurance

here. Flooding makes the soil saturated which means that there won’t be any unsaturated soil to

purify the water in septic tanks. Industries such as agriculture, mining, construction, logging, and

archeology would find it important to know the structure of soil because that information is

necessary for the employees in these industries to complete their jobs effectively and efficiently.

Some error might have occurred in the tests do to inaccurate measurements. The ribbon test data

was found in a very opinionated way. And might have differed from person to person. The
measurements for the hydrologic test were made by eye, so there could be some discrepancy

there. These measurements can be made more accurate in the future by using more precise

equipment, and having multiple people run the tests for the same sample, then using comparisons

to formulate final results. Overall, the measurements should have been made in a more concise

manner. The original purpose of the experiment was made because we were able to correctly

identify the soil type of our sample. Our results were different from those of our classmates

because we all had different soil types; the type of soil varies from yard to yard which explains

the differences in our results.