Stabilization Effect of Aluminum Dross on Tropical Lateritic Soil

Abstract

This experimental research assessed the engineering and geotechnical properties of Aluminum dross (ALDR). Glumly, this solid waste is usually open dumped with detrimental effect on the environment. In a bid to reduce solid waste in the environment and also improve pavement interlayer properties, this research utilized ALDR as a stabilizer for tropical lateritic soil. The lateritic soil was stabilized with the addition of this solid waste at 2% intervals from 2% to 16%. Response surface analysis was used in optimizing the strength and consistency of the stabilized soil sample. The addition of this non-conventional stabilizer helped in modifying the engineering properties of the soil sample, this had indications on the atterberg limit as the liquid limit, and the plasticity index increased from 43% to 54.61% and 28.02%- 40.8% respectively, while the plasticity index reduced from 15.1% - 13.8% signifying soil improvement. The load-bearing capacity of the sample increased from 51.22% to 62.41%. Additionally, the unconfined test showed that addition of ALDR residue improved the consistency of the stabilized soil sample. From the model equation, a positive relationship exists between CBR and UCS. R2value of 0.81 showed the robustness of the model developed. The research showed that aluminum dross is a suitable material for improving the engineering properties of the tropical lateritic soil towards a sustainable road construction.