Compactability of Agro based Geopolymer using Sodium Silicate Activator

Abstract

The strength of a fine-grained lateritic soilfrom three (3) different localities on Abuja – Lokoja road where road failure happen was treated with rice husk ash (RSA), cement andsodium silicate activator (SSA), with varying percentage examined by means of Atterberg, Compaction and triaxial shear tests. The addition of optimum cement with additives changes laterite sample of plasticity index (PI) into non-plastic and resulted in a minimum of 11.90 % reduction in PI of lateritic soil which led to the belief that additives decreases plasticity of soils, and this is an advantage, because reduction in PI contents indicates animprovement.Thecompaction characteristics of the natural lateritic soils were altered with the addition of optimum contents of OPC with each of RHA, KCP and SSA. The MDD of cement-stabilized residual soil slightly increased with the increase in cement content, whereas by adding RHA, KCP and cement, the OMC is decreases steeply. Also, CBR results shows that CBR of the soil-cement-SSA content increases upon adding sodium silicate activator content up to 4% SSA content before the value experiences reduction at much higher SSA content. But, theRHA-treated residual soils decrease the CBR value from 6% upwards. This, again, alludes that RHA alone is not suitable as stabilizer.