Saturated unit weight
Description
In fluid mechanics, specific weight represents the force exerted by gravity on a unit volume of a fluid. Specific weight can be used as a characteristic property of a fluid. Specific weight is often used as a property of soil to solve earthwork problems. (Soil is the mixture of minerals, organic matter, gases, liquids, and the myriad of organisms that together support plant life).
In soil mechanics, specific weight may refer to: the “Saturated unit weight” of a soil when all void spaces of the soil are completely filled with water, with no air.
Variables
γs | Saturated unit weight of the soil (N/m3) |
Gs | Specific gravity of the solid (dimensionless) |
e | Void ratio (the volume of void-space/the volume of solids) (dimensionless) |
γw | Unit weight of water (N/m3) |