Engineering Geology/2.1 Soil phases, relationships and inter relationships

In general, the soil mass has three constituents, solid, water and air. These constituent do not occupy separate spaces but are blended together forming a complex material, the properties of which depend upon the relative percentage of these constituents, their arrangement and variety of other factors.

For calculation purposes, it is always more convenient to show these constituents occupying separate spaces. The simple diagrammatic representation of actual soil system is phase diagram.