Abstract: Throughout a series of compaction tests on different soil samples, the family of dry density curves of the low liquid limit silty soils is developed in order to study the compaction mechanism of these soils. The test results show that: there is a significant amount of the air existing in the pore voids of the silty soils so that they are not really well compacted. It is also necessary to replace the traditional method of compaction with more effective vibratory compaction method or to mix the silty soils with the finer particles so that the soil properties could be improved. Silty soils are very sensitive to water content. A strict control of the moisture content during the construction is necessary.

Key words: low liquid silt, compaction property, compaction test, moisture content