Name: ___________________________________________ Section: _____
Earth Science Lab Experiment: LIQUEFACTION
QUESTION: What happens to loose sediment when an earthquake shakes it up?
MATERIALS: Plastic bucket, sand, water, brick, rubber mallet.
PROCEDURE:
1. Fill the bucket with an amount of sand designated by your teacher.
2. Pour water to just below the surface of the sand.
3. Wiggle the skinny end of the brick down into the wet sand so it stands up like a
tall building would.
4. Now, very gently and repeatedly, tap the side of the bucket with the rubber mallet
and notice what happens to the sand and the brick.
QUESTIONS:
1. BEFORE you tapped the bucket, describe the level of the “ground water.”
2. Describe what happened WHILE you tapped the side of the bucket.
3. AFTER you tapped the bucket, describe the level of the “ground water.”
4. Draw a diagram of the position of sand grains BEFORE, DURING and AFTER
an earthquake below:
Sand Grains BEFORE
Sand Grains DURING
Sand Grains AFTER
5. How is the classroom model like what happens during a real earthquake?
6. What kind of soil is favorable for causing “liquefaction?”
7. Name a few things that an engineer could do to a building to make it less
susceptible to damage due to liquefaction?
8. Why does groundwater rise to the surface during liquefaction, causing the “quick
sand” effect?