Abstract
This study evaluated the strength properties of compacted lateritic soils reinforced with polypropylene (PP) waste strips cut from recycled plastic packing with the goal of promoting sustainability through using local materials for engineering work and reusing waste materials as low-cost reinforcements. Waste PP strips with widths of 15 mm and different lengths were uniformly mixed with clayey sand (SC) and clay (CL) soils with the goal of using these materials as low-cost fiber reinforcements. The impact of different PP strip contents (0.25% to 2.0%) and lengths (10, 15, 20, and 30 mm) on the unconfined compressive strength (UCS) of the soils revealed an optimum combination of PP strip content and length. Statistical analysis showed that PP strip content has a greater effect than the PP strip length on the UCS for both soils. Results led to the definition of an empirical equation to estimate the UCS of strip-reinforced soils. The results from direct shear tests indicate that the SC soil showed an increase in both apparent cohesion and friction angle after reinforcement, while the CL soil only showed an increase in friction angle after reinforcement. California bearing ratio (CBR) tests indicate that the SC soil experienced a 70% increase in CBR after reinforcement, while the CBR of the CL soil was not affected by strip inclusion.
Highlights
Finding new ways to recycle plastic waste from water bottles, disposable cups, plates, or plastic packaging for foods has become a major challenge worldwide
An extensive experimental program was conducted in order to assess the effect of polypropylene waste strips mixed with lateritic soils
The use of PP strips as reinforcements in both sandy clay (SC) and CL lateritic soils led to an increase in unconfined compressive strength (UCS), as well as a clear influence of PP strip length on the soil stiffness
Summary
Finding new ways to recycle plastic waste from water bottles, disposable cups, plates, or plastic packaging for foods has become a major challenge worldwide. The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development [1] sets out in its goals a substantial reduction in waste generation through recycling, reduction, and reuse and encourages the use of local materials in engineering works. Environmental challenges have stimulated researchers to find techniques to improve the strength properties of geotechnical materials [2]. In the context of alternative or recycled waste materials in soil improvement, tire shreds and rubber fibers have been extensively studied [3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10]. The use of fiber reinforcement, especially with local soils, has been recognized as a viable technique for soil improvement in numerous geotechnical engineering applications. Distributed polymeric additions, such as polypropylene (PP) and polyethylene terephthalate (PET), incorporated in soils improve their mechanical behavior
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