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Quicksand
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{{Short description|Mixture of sand, silt or clay with water, which creates a liquefied soil when agitated}} {{About|the geological feature}} {{More citations needed|date=April 2022}} [[File:Quicksand warning.jpg|thumb|right|Quicksand and a warning sign about it at a gravel quarry in England]] [[File:Quicksand (4596511338).jpg|thumb|Quicksand on the [[River Thames|Thames]]]] '''Quicksand''' (also known as '''sinking sand''') is a [[colloid]] consisting of fine [[granular material]] (such as [[sand]], [[silt]] or [[clay]]) and [[water]]. It forms in saturated loose sand when the sand is suddenly agitated. When water in the sand cannot escape, it creates a [[Liquefaction|liquefied]] soil that loses strength and cannot support weight. Quicksand can form in standing water or in upward flowing water (as from an [[Artesian aquifer|artesian spring]]). In the case of upward-flowing water, [[effective stress|forces]] oppose the force of gravity and suspend the soil particle. The cushioning of water gives quicksand, and other liquefied sediments, a spongy, fluid-like texture. In accordance with [[Archimedes' principle]], objects in liquefied sand sink to the level at which the weight of the object is equal to the weight of the displaced soil/water mix and the submerged object floats due to its buoyancy. [[Soil liquefaction]] may occur in partially saturated soil when it is shaken by an [[earthquake]] or similar forces. The movement combined with an increase in [[pore pressure]] (of groundwater) leads to the loss of particle [[Cohesion (chemistry)|cohesion]], causing buildings or other objects on that surface to sink.
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