AN INVESTIGATION OF NUCLEAR METHODS OF DETERMINING MOISTURE CONTENTS AND COMPACTED DENSITIES OF SOILS AND AGGREGATES

RESULTS ARE PRESENTED OF LABORATORY AND FIELD TESTING OF A PORTABLE NUCLEAR GAUGE FOR THE MEASUREMENT OF IN-PLACE MOISTURE CONTENT AND DENSITY OF EARTHEN STRUCTURES. BOTH LABORATORY AND FIELD EVALUATIONS HAVE BEEN DIRECTED TOWARD DETERMINING A PRACTICAL AND ACCURATE METHOD OF TEST OPERATION TO CONSTRUCTION CONTROL AND INSPECTION. ATTENTION WAS NOT DIRECTED TOWARD EVALUATING DETAILS OF MACHINE OPERATION, BUT RATHER ON HOW TO OBTAIN MEANINGFUL RESULTS. UPON RECEIPT OF THE NUCLEAR EQUIPMENT FORM THE MANUFACTURER THR FOLLOWING STEPS WERE TAKEN: (1) FAMILIARIZATION OF PERSONNEL WITH THE SCALER AND GAUGES, (2) THE NUCLEAR EQUIPMENT WAS BRIEFLY TESTED IN THE FIELD IN COMPARISON WITH THE CONVENTIONAL METHOD, RESULTS INDICATING THAT LABORATORY CALIBRATION WOULD BE REQUIRED TO OBTAIN GOOD CORRELATION, (3) CALIBRATION CURVES WERE DETERMINED BY TESTING VARIOUS SOILS AND AGGREGATES COMMON TO IDAHO. ALSO, SPECIFIC FACTORS INFLUENCING MACHINE ACCURACY WERE DISCOVERED AND EVALUATED, I.E., LEVEL SURFACE FOR THE D/M GAUGES, AIR GAPS BETWEEN GAUGE AND SURFACE, WARM UP TIME, (4) AT THE COMPLETION OF CALIBRATION AND OPERATING PROCEDURE TESTS, FIELD EVALUATION WAS STARTED, (5) A CONSTRUCTION PROJECT WITH A LARGE QUANTITY OF EARTHWORK WAS SELECTED FOR FIELD TRIALS. A STATISTICAL METHOD OF SAMPLE SELECTION WAS USED. DUPLICATE NUCLEAR AND CONVENTIONAL TESTS WERE MADE AT EACH OF 42 RANDOMLY SELECTED TEST SITES, AND (6) STATISTICAL ANALYSIS WAS MADE OF TEST DATA TO DETERMINE CORRELATION OF THE TWO METHODS. /AUTHOR/

• Record URL:
  https://apps.itd.idaho.gov/apps/research/Completed/RP026.pdf
• 
• Supplemental Notes:
  • Hpr, Bpr-26
• Corporate Authors:

  Idaho Department of Highways

  P.O. Box 7129
  Boise, ID  United States  83707

  Bureau of Public Roads /US

  400 7th Street, SW
  Washington, DC  United States  20590
• Authors:
  • ANDERSON, F
  • Larsen, J
• Publication Date: 1968-1

Media Info

• Media Type: Digital/other

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Aggregates; Construction management; Evaluation; Field studies; Field tests; Inspection; Laboratory studies; Measuring instruments; Nuclear tests; Portable equipment; Radioisotopes; Soil densification; Soil water; Statistical analysis; Test procedures
• Old TRIS Terms: Aggregate characteristics; Construction control; Construction inspection; Insitu methods
• Subject Areas: Construction; Data and Information Technology; Geotechnology; Highways; Materials;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00215872
• Record Type: Publication
• Source Agency: Bureau of Public Roads /US
• Files: TRIS, STATEDOT
• Created Date: Apr 2 1994 12:00AM