Abstract
Oil and its derivatives not only change the chemical and biological properties of the soils, but also affect their geotechnical properties. Effects of oil contamination on a sandy soil which mixed with bentonite was assessed in terms of compaction, shear strength, and consolidation behavior. The experiments were carried out by polluting dry sandy soil with 2.5, 5, 7.5, 10% w/w crude oil at different bentonite contents (0, 5, 10, 15, 20% w/w). Results of compaction tests indicated that at a fixed bentonite content, with increasing crude oil content, the maximum dry density increases, while the optimum water content decreases. Similarly, at a fixed contaminant content, increasing the bentonite content in the soil leads to increase in soil maximum dry density and the optimum moisture content. Moreover, direct shear tests revealed that at a specific bentonite content, higher contamination concentration causes lower internal friction angle. The effect of oil content on the coefficient of consolidation (Cv) and void ratio of soils with 0, 5, 10, 15, and 20 percent bentonite contents was studied. The results of consolidation tests indicated that at a fixed bentonite content Cv has an overall increasing pattern which is in its maximum amount at 5% oil content.
Highlights
By increasing the global demand for oil products, the possibility of oil leakage to water and soil would increase
Presence of bentonite in soil presumably introduces some specific geotechnical behavior when subjected to oil contamination
All of the samples will be on the dry side of the compaction curve and their differences lies in the various crude oil contents [3]
Summary
By increasing the global demand for oil products, the possibility of oil leakage to water and soil would increase. Many studies have investigated the effects of oil contamination on geotechnical properties of different soil compositions so far. Presence of bentonite in soil presumably introduces some specific geotechnical behavior when subjected to oil contamination. This effect is investigated comprehensively in current study. Nazir [1] investigated the effect of motor oil contamination on Atterberg limits, unconfined compressive strength, coefficient of permeability, and compressibility characteristics of over-consolidated clay. Results indicate that with increasing motor oil, unconfined compressive strength decreased by about 38% as compared to the control value and the Atterberg limits are decreased and the coefficient of permeability is considerably increased during the first 3 months of contamination. Increasing the gas oil content resulted in decreasing compressibility and friction angle and increasing cohesion of kaolinite soils [2]
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