Abstract
The effectiveness of the use of waste fly ash (FA) and cement (OPC) in the stabilization of subgrade soils and the reasons likely to influence the degree of stabilization were investigated. Incorporating waste fly ash (FA) and cement (OPC) as additives leads to significant environmental and economic contributions to soil stabilization. This study involves laboratory tests to obtain the Atterberg limit, free swell index (FSI), the unconfined compressive strength (UCS), the California bearing ratio (CBR), and the scanning electron microscope (SEM). The test results for the subgrade soil illustrate that the Atterberg limit, plasticity index, and free swell index are decreasing with the addition of different proportions of fly ash and cement, i.e., 0%, 5%, 10%, 15%, and 20% and 0%, 2%, 4%, 6%, and 8%, respectively. The CBR value of untreated soil is 2.91%, while the best CBR value of fly ash and cement mixture treated soil is 10.12% (20% FA+8% OPC), which increases 71.34% from the initial value. The UCS of untreated soil is 86.88 kPa and treated soil with fly ash and cement attains a maximum value of 167.75 kPa (20% FA+8% OPC), i.e., increases by 48.20% from the initial value. The tests result show that the stability of a subgrade soil can be improved by adding fly ash and cement. While effectiveness and usability of waste FA and cement are cost-effective and environmentally friendly alternatives to expansive soil for pavement and any other foundation work in the future.
Highlights
Emerging tendency of utilizing waste material in soil strengthening or soil stabilization is operational all over the world in present times
The study highlighted the stabilization of the problematic subgrade soil with cement and fly ash was investigated, and the effect of the stabilization on the characteristics and geotechnical properties of the subgrade soil were studied
The swelling potential of soil reduces with the inclusion of fly ash and cement
Summary
Emerging tendency of utilizing waste material in soil strengthening or soil stabilization is operational all over the world in present times. The primary reason behind this trend is the enormous production of fly ash, plastics, rice husk, and other wastes, which are not merely harmful and leads to deposition problems. Using these wastes in construction work will tremendously reduce this problem. Stabilization can deal with all kinds of subgrade materials, from expansive clay to granular substances. This allows the establishment of design precedents and the determination of suitable chemical additives and admixture rates to achieve the required engineering performance. Stabilization of subgrade soils with mixtures controls possible changes in soil volume and improves soil strength [8]
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