Problematic Soft Soil Improvement with Both Polypropylene Fiber and Polyvinyl Acetate Resin

Abstract

Several methods are used to improve mechanical properties of loose soils including rewetting, soil replacement, compaction control, chemical additives, moisture control, thermal methods, and more recently, discrete fibers. All the methods are applied to soft soil to increase load bearing capacity and to improve other properties such as prevention of erosion and dust generation. In the present study, a new method of soil improvement using both discrete polypropylene (PP) fibers and polyvinyl acetate (PVAc) is introduced. The method is applied to improve load bearing capacity of a problematic sandy soil in both dry and saturated states. Based on the results from CBR tests on various specimens, it has been revealed that the combination of PP fiber and PVAc resin with weight percentages of 0.1 and 0.6 %, respectively, had the optimum effect in increasing the CBR value in both saturated and dry soil specimens. It should be mentioned that this method has caused a great increase in the CBR value in the saturated soil.