ABSTRACT
The physical and mechanical properties of the Late Pleistocene Malan loess are similar to those of Holocene Loess. The extensively studied physical properties of loess include particle composition, dry density, porosity, specific gravity, moisture content, plastic limit, liquid limit, plasticity index, and liquidity index. The plasticity index of loess is one of the measures of the water-physical property. The lower the collapsibility coefficient, the worse the collapsibility is, and the better the physical and mechanical properties are. The physical properties, mineral composition, and microstructure of loess affect its mechanical properties. The dry density of loess is the ratio of the mass of solid particles to the total volume of loess. The natural moisture content of loess is the ratio between the mass of soil water and that of soil particles under natural conditions. The state of loess can be classified as solid, semi-solid, plastic, or flow according to the liquidity index.
