Final answer:
Cohesive soils have particles that stick together, and examples include clay, silt, peat, and chalk. These soils are essential in engineering and construction for ensuring soil stability and water management.
Step-by-step explanation:
Cohesive soils are types of soils that stick together due to the attraction between their particles.
Examples of cohesive soils include:
The cohesive quality of these soils is often due to fine particles and the presence of moisture, which acts as a binding agent.
Clay, for instance, becomes very sticky and plastic-like when wet due to its fine particles and mineral composition, including feldspar, silica, and iron.
Similarly, silt, a fine-grained sedimentary material, has cohesive properties when mixed with water. This characteristic is crucial for various engineering and agricultural applications.
Peat, an accumulation of partially decayed vegetation or organic matter, is also considered a cohesive soil, as is chalk, a soft, white, porous sedimentary carbonate rock.
It's essential to understand the properties of these soils for endeavors such as construction, where soil stability and water movement play critical roles. Engineers must account for the adhesive and cohesive forces in soil to ensure proper water management and structural integrity.