Laboratory Equipment & Services Information System by Centralized Laboratory Management Office (CeLMO)

The oedometer is a laboratory device used for the examination of soil compressibility under a load and under conditions of prevented lateral strain in the soil. An undisturbed soil sample is installed for the test and then the initial height of the soil and the change in height due to load application are measured.

Oedometer tests are performed by applying different loads to a soil sample and measuring the deformation response. The results from these tests are used to predict how a soil in the field will deform in response to a change in effective stress.