Consolidation behavior of a soft mud treated with small cement content

Abstract

Soft mud can be found in many large size reclaimed lands. Such soils present extremely high settlement potential that needs to be alleviated by means of effective ground improvement techniques. Current knowledge on applying small cement content to reduce settlement potential of soft mud is limited. This study concerns the consolidation behavior and settlement potential of soft mud treated with small cement content. Based on the pH values of soft mud–cement mixtures, oedometer specimens with cement content of 6% were prepared for consolidation tests. The test results show that preconsolidation pressure is rapidly developed and secondary compression is reduced. The ratio of secondary compression index to compression index is also reduced, indicating a change in grain size characteristics. The coefficient of consolidation is increased for consolidation pressures smaller than the preconsolidation pressure. This indicates that treating the soft mud with a small cement content can be very effective for reducing settlements in cases where new loads are small to medium and the time for ground improvement is limited.