The shrinkage limit of a soil is the moisture content at which:
- the soil is considered saturated.
- any loss of moisture will not result in any volume changes.
The shrinkage limit is much less commonly used than the other Atterberg limits, the plastic limit and liquid limit. I have never seen the shrinkage limit reported on any of my projects.
Many geotechnical engineers refer to the shrinkage limit as the boundary between the solid and semi-solid state of a soil.
The ASTM test for shrinkage limit of a soil is ASTM D4943. For the other Atterberg limits, the test is ASTM D4318.
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