Performance of Nickel Slag as a Stabilization Material for Soft Soil

Abstract

The chemical soil stabilization method is an effort to improve soil bearing capacity according to soil work specifications in construction. The use of conventional stabilization materials, such as cement and lime, is considered environmentally unfriendly. Utilizing by-products from the mining industry becomes an alternative that can be developed in soil improvement efforts. This research aims to examine the influence of nickel slag on the enhancement of soil bearing capacity as observed through its unconfined compressive strength value. In this study, the concentration of added nickel slag as a stabilization material is 3%, 6%, 9%, and 12% by dry soil weight. The test specimens used are cylinders with a diameter of 5 cm and a height of 10 cm. Unconfined compressive strength testing is conducted after the specimens are cured for 14 days. The results of this study indicate that the clay soil used is classified as organic clay with high plasticity based on the USCS classification, with an unconfined compressive strength value of 0.2 kg/cm2. The addition of nickel slag with concentrations of 3%, 6%, 9%, and 12% results in respective increases in unconfined compressive strength by 46%, 50%, 68%, and 47%. These findings demonstrate that the optimum nickel slag content of 6% provides the maximum unconfined compressive strength. Therefore, it can be concluded that nickel slag, as a source of silica, has the potential to be used as an alternative material in soft soil improvement.