Strength estimation of cement-treated marine clay with wide ranges of sand and initial water contents

Abstract

A new strength estimation equation for cement-treated clay is proposed for marine clay with wide ranges of sand and initial water contents. The proposed equation can determine the strength of cement-treated soil by using two parameters, the ratio of the cement content to the mass of fine particles in the soil and the volumetric solid ratio excluding sand, where sand is defined as particles greater than 0.075 mm. A series of strength tests was performed on cement-treated soil with various sand, cement, and initial water contents. From the test results, it was found that the strength of cement-treated clay is primarily determined by the ratio of the water and cement contents to the fine-grained soil and was not related to the sand particles. The applicability of the proposed equation was compared to that of the existing three strength estimation equations. The proposed equation demonstrated the best fitness between the measured and the estimated strengths of marine clays with the wide ranges of sand and initial water contents.