Abhirami Suresh, Ajith K.P, Sandra Supran, Annie Joy
The internal erosion has been closely linked to the soil composition and its dispersivity. Dispersivity is the property of soil by virtue of which soil break down into their component particles when wet. Once a dispersive soil is exposed to water, clay particles may disperse and remain as suspended particles in water. In appearance, dispersive clays are like normal clays that are stable and somewhat resistant to erosion, but in reality they can be highly erosive and subject to severe damage or failure. The common soil classification index tests do not distinguish between dispersive and nondispersive clay soils. The recommended tests for the identification of dispersive clay soils are pinhole test, crumb test and double hydrometer test. This article reports the results of dispersivity tests carried out on soils collected from various locations in Kerala.