ABSTRACT

The mechanism of soil–water interaction is complex and its behavior is not only dependent on soil types, but is also related to the environmental conditions and stress histories. Soil–water acidity is important to the geotechnical engineer because of its corrosive effect on foundation structures and construction materials. Reactions from soil–water interactions include heat of wetting, ion exchange reaction, and redox reaction. Bacterial activities can cause acceleration of ion exchange reaction and accession of the decomposition process in soil–water system and consequently influence soil–water properties such as volume change, compressibility and shear strength. To evaluate the soil–water system, it is necessary to treat the soil element in three-phases: solid, liquid, and gas. The liquid portion can be divided into two regions: gravity water and environmental water. Environmental waters are strongly influenced by the local environmental and are less easily removed as compared to gravity water.