Dry Side Of Optimum Research Articles

Flow through and Volume Change Behavior of a Compacted Expansive Soil Amended with Natural Biopolymers

Natural biopolymers offer a sustainable alternative for improving soil behavior due to their inert nature, small dosage requirement, and applicability under ambient temperatures. This research evaluates the efficacy of natural biopolymers for ameliorating an expansive soil by using a 0.5% dosage of cationic chitosan, charge-neutral guar gum, and anionic xanthan gum during compaction. The results of laboratory investigations indicate that the flow through and volume change properties of the expansive soil were affected variably. The dual porosity, characterized by low air entry due to inter-aggregate pores (AEV1 of 4 kPa) and high air entry due to the clay matrix (AEV2 of 200 kPa) of the soil, was healed using chitosan and guar gum (AEV of 200 kPa) but was enhanced by the xanthan gum (AEV1 of 100 kPa and AEV2 of 200 kPa). The s-shaped swell–shrink path of the soil comprised structural (e from 1.23 to 1.11), normal (e from 1.11 to 0.6), and residual stages (e ranged from 0.6–0.43). This shape was converted into a j-shaped path through amendment using chitosan and guar gum, showing no structural volume change, with e from about 1.25 to 0.5, but was reverted to a more pronounced form by xanthan gum, with e from 1.5 to 1.32, 1.32 to 0.49, and 0.49 to 0.34 in the three stages, respectively. The consolidation behavior of the soil was largely unaffected by the addition of biopolymers such that the saturated hydraulic conductivity decreased from 10−9 m/s to 10−12 m/s over a void ratio decrease from 1.1 to 0.6. At a seating stress of 5 kPa, the swelling potential (7.8%) of the soil slightly decreased to 6.9% due to the addition of chitosan but increased to 9.4% and 12.2% with guar gum and xanthan gum, respectively. The use of chitosan and guar gum will allow the compaction of the investigated expansive soil on the dry side of optimum.

Effect of compaction water on strength and hydraulic properties of bentonite-based liner

The abundance of pond ash and its resemblance to natural sand encourages its use as a substitute for sand in sand–bentonite (SB) liner material. Compaction water content influences the geoengineering properties of cohesive soil to a great extent. Accordingly, the compaction, strength, permeability and shrinkage characteristics of both pond ash–bentonite (PAB) and SB mixes are investigated at standard and modified Proctor compaction energies at various water contents to support the recommendation of the PAB mixture as an alternative landfill liner. At similar compaction conditions, the PAB mix exhibits higher unconfined compressive strength (UCS) and hydraulic conductivity than the SB mix. The UCS values of mixes compacted on the dry side of optimum are higher than those of mixes compacted on the wet side. Dry-side compacted mixes exhibit a reduction in hydraulic conductivity with permeation time, whereas no substantial reduction in hydraulic conductivity is noticed for wet-side compacted mixes. Furthermore, the volumetric shrinkage of both PAB and SB mixes is within the permissible value of 4%, for a wide range of water variation from the dry to the wet side of optimum. The observed mechanical properties are correlated to the shape of coarse fraction particles and the corresponding microstructural arrangements of the compacted specimens.

Improved Fatigue Performance and Cost-Effectiveness of Natural Rubber Latex–Modified Cement-Stabilized Pavement Base at Raised Temperatures

The increased temperature at the early state of curing affects the fatigue properties of pavement base materials. The fatigue properties of stabilized pavement bases and subbases govern the performance and service life of pavement structures. This research study utilized natural rubber latex (NRL) to enhance the tensile fatigue properties of cement-stabilized base materials at various temperatures. The effects of influence factors such as cement content (3%, 5%, and 7%), NRL replacement ratio (0%, 10%, 15%, 20%, 25%, and 30%), and temperature (25°C, 40°C, and 60°C) on indirect tensile strength (ITS), indirect tensile resilient modulus (IT Mr), and indirect tensile fatigue life (ITFL) were studied in this research. NRL replacement was found to improve the UCS, ITS, IT Mr, and ITFL of cement (C)-stabilized soil up to the highest values at the optimum NRL replacement ratios, which were 20%, 15%, and 10% for cement contents of 3%, 5%, and 7%, respectively. The cement-NRL (C-NRL)-stabilized samples were found to have superior ITS, IT Mr, and ITFL values compared with C-stabilized samples for the same cement content but had the same rate of reduction in ITS due to the raised temperature. For the NRL replacement ratio on the dry side of optimum, the C-NRL-stabilized samples had lower rate of IT Mr reduction than the C-stabilized samples, although they had the same ITS due to the higher toughness. Therefore, the rate of ITFL reduction of C-NRL-stabilized samples was lower than that of the C-stabilized samples. It was proven in this research that the NRL replacement could reduce the thickness (superior IT Mr) of a cement-NRL-stabilized base course for a given traffic volume and service life, and therefore the construction (material and operation) cost by 17.26% benchmarked to a C-stabilized base course. Finally, the cost-effective design method for C-NRL-stabilized bases course was proposed, which will promote the use of NRL as an alternative green additive instead of synthetic polymer.

Undrained Cyclic Loading Response of Subgrade Soil Subjected to Varying Moisture Content and Stress Level

Subgrades that are constructed from fine-grained cohesive soils undergo large settlements; therefore, the study of their deformation behavior is important to avoid early deterioration in the traffic infrastructure. In this study, the deformation behavior of two different types of cohesive subgrade soils at different compaction states has been addressed that considered the effect of influencing factors, such as water content, deviatoric stress, and confining pressure (σ3). The results from the unconsolidated undrained cyclic triaxial tests show that the deformation behavior of soil is highly influenced by the level of applied deviatoric stresses and moisture content on the wet side of optimum (WS) and is slightly affected by σ3 and moisture content on the dry side of optimum (DS). The elastic strain (ɛe) component showed a decreasing trend with an increase in the number of load cycles (N) and then attained a steady value toward a higher N; however, the plastic strain (ɛp) component continuously increased for a given magnitude of applied cyclic deviatoric stresses (σd,c). From the test results, logarithmic strain models were proposed to predict the long-term total (ɛt) strain and ɛp that developed in cohesive subgrade soils, which were subjected to various combinations of variations in moisture content and stresses. The proposed model has been compared with the existing model and shows better prediction ability with a coefficient of correlation (R2) of >95% in most cases.

Correlating unsoaked CBR with UCC strength for SC and SP soil

Most of the civil engineering structures are constructed on the ground and are supported by soil strata or rock strata present at the site. As soil is heterogeneous, its properties vary from one place to another within a distance of few meters. Thus it is tough to predict the behavior of soil without studying its engineering properties in detail. One of the important laboratory test that is generally conducted for the flexible pavement design is California Bearing Ratio (CBR) test. CBR test is a laborious and time consuming process and may lead to delay in execution of construction projects and thus cause increase in construction costs. Thus an effort has been made to correlate unsoaked CBR value of soil with the UCC strength of soil by Simple Linear Regression Analysis (SLRA) so that based on the UCC strength of soil unsoaked CBR value of soil can be predicted. In this project, 2 types of disturbed soil samples were collected from in and around Chennai region and were classified as Clayey Sand (SC) and Poorly Graded Sand (SP) based on the index properties of each soil. Unconfined Compression (UCC) test and unsoaked CBR test were conducted on the two soil samples by varying the moisture content (MC), to determine whether the maximum strength gain was observed on the dry side or wet side of optimum moisture content (OMC) and to study the extent of increase in UCC and CBR strength compared to control specimen (CS) prepared at OMC. From the results, it was observed that maximum strength gain was attained on the dry side of optimum.

Stabilisation of Dredged Soil for Road Pavement

Solid wastes are all the waste which arise from human being and mammal activities that are normally solid and are surplus as unwanted material. In this study, the firm waste has been generated by dredging the Dal Lake, which posesses grave dumping and ecological problems around the Dal Lake. In this study, different percentages of dredged material (by weight) were added to normal silty clay soil samples (obtained from Srinagar city in India) and their index properties and compaction characteristics (using Modified Proctor Compaction tests) were determined. Disturbed soil specimens for various laboratory tests dmax and corresponding water content on the dry side of optimum. CBR sample stabilize with dredged soil were experienced for unsoaked and soaked (soaked for 4 days) conditions. Tests results shows great improvement in engineering properties and CBR value with rise in normal silty clay soil contents in dredged soil. therefore, dredged soil has both rewards. First, to avoid the remarkable ecological problems caused by large scale discarding of dredged soil and second, to help in suitable development of environment about well-known dal lake.

The effect of clay water content in the Jet Erosion Test

The understanding of the onset of breaching induced by surface erosion is fundamental to enable definition of the level of protection afforded by embankments and provision of standards for the design of new structures and the upgrading of existing ones. Compacted embankment materials are generally partially saturated due to seasonal variation in the water content. At the onset of the overflow process embankments undergo to a wetting process due to the changes at the outer surface boundary conditions (i.e. overflow). Erosion behaviour is known to be a counterbalance between gravity forces and shear erosion forces. However, as the particle size decreases (i.e. clayey soils), gravitational forces become negligible and electrochemical interaction between particles play a dominant role. Clay microstructure (e.g. particle configuration and inter-particle forces) changes with the hydro-mechanical stresses history. Thus, it is necessary to consider the microstructural changes in particle configuration to understand the influence of microstructure on the macroscopic behaviour of clay during erosion. Upon wetting, clay have a swelling/collapse behaviour. This research presents experimental results on erosion of clay samples compacted at the same initial dry density but with different compaction water content. The influence of different wetting times on erosion is also investigated. We show that for a given as-compacted water content, the longer the wetting stage, and hence the higher the sample water content, the more erodible the samples. Additionally, for samples compacted at the same dry density, the ones compacted on the dry side of optimum are more erodible than samples compacted at the optimum water content, despite the lower water content at formation. We hypothesise that this may be due to the formation of a different initial microstructure in sample on the dry side of optimum (i.e. bi-modal pore size distribution). Our results contribute to the fundamental understanding of time-dependent mechanisms that influence erosion of clay embankments during overflow and, hence, to embankment failure. In addition, these tests show how basic concepts of unsaturated soil mechanics can serve as a guide to ‘design’ the compaction conditions of embankment material.

Evaluation of the Compressibility and Compressive Strength of a Compacted Cement Treated Laterite Soil for Road Application

This study presents experimental results of a laboratory investigation carried out on the compressibility, physical properties, compressive strength and microstructure of a cement–lateritic soil mixing. The investigation was conducted on a compacted fine grained lateritic soil, both untreated and treated with CEMII/BM 32.5 N cement (up to 9% by weight of dry soil), in order to evaluate the effect of cement content and curing time on the behavior of lateritic soil–cement mixtures compacted at modified proctor energy for various dry densities and molding water contents. Preliminary tests on cement amended soil showed improved physical properties. The unconfined compression tests show an increase of the unconfined compressive strength, reflecting an improvement of mechanical strength of the treated lateritic soil. The incremental oedometer tests showed that yield stress (σ′y) increased with both cement content and curing time, but decreased with increased molding water content. Reduction in modified compression index (Ccϵ) and modified recompression index (Crϵ) with increasing cement content and curing time was recorded for all tested water contents, the coefficient of consolidation (Cv) is increased for effective vertical stresses smaller than the yield stress. The results also show that it would be desirable that the soil sample is prepared at the dry side of optimum (ωDRY) when the optimum moisture content is not reached on the site. These positive impacts are mainly related to the fact that cement addition gives way to the formation of ettringite, calcite, portlandite and calcium silicate hydrates (afwillite and tobermorite) which derived principally from cement hydration.

Effect of soil parameters on modulus of resilience based on portable falling weight deflectometer tests on lateritic sub-grade soils

The use of portable falling weight deflectometers (PFWDs) has gained prominence among pavement engineers in the characterisation of soil sub-grade based on modulus of stiffness. The values of modulus of resilience and the corresponding values of the rebound deflection measured using the PFWD are largely influenced by the soil stiffness. The focus of the present investigation is on the study of the effect of soil parameters such as grain size distribution, maximum dry density (MDD) and optimum moisture content (OMC) on the values of modulus of stiffness (E PFWD ) obtained using the PFWD for tests performed on lateritic soil blends. Tests were conducted on various blends of lateritic soil samples compacted to MDD at moulding water contents set to the optimum moisture content (OMC), dry-side of optimum at OMC−3% and wet-side of optimum at OMC+3%. The regressions developed between the values of E PFWD and the percentage of fines and the percentage of sand for lateritic and lithomargic soils indicate a strong linear relationship between these variables for tests on un-soaked and soaked soils. The regressions developed will be of immense benefit to pavement engineers in estimating the values of the modulus of resilience for lateritic soils for the design of pavement sub-grades and embankments.

Water sensitivity and microstructure of compacted loess

Abstract Loess is abundant around the world, and China has the most extensive and thickest distribution of loess, which is currently widely used as subgrade or subbase of roads after ground improvement by compacting. This paper presents a study to investigate the effects of compaction parameters (compaction energy and water content) on the bearing capacity and microstructure of compacted loess. The bearing ratio, mineralogy, microstructure of loess compacted with different compaction water contents and energies were characterized by California bearing ratio testing, X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy to elucidate the origin of water sensitivity. A total of 72 samples were compacted with different compaction energies and water contents, on the dry side of optimum, at optimum and on the wet side of optimum, using the Proctor procedure for soaked and un-soaked CBR testing. The compacted samples exhibit expansibility and strength loss (decreasing of CBR values) when soaked in water. For a given compaction energy, the samples compacted on dry side of optimum have higher strength and bearing capacity in terms of unsoaked CBR value, but have higher expansion and more strength loss when soaked in water. From the microstructural point of view, the microstructure characteristics like pore size and shape, porosity, particle contact and association change with the compaction water content and energy. The results show that the water sensitivity is strongly related to the mineralogy and microstructure of the compacted loess. For the Engineering implications in transportation construction, compaction at a very low water content should be avoided for the water sensitivity and metastable structure of dry compacted samples.

Physicochemical and consolidation properties of compacted lateritic soil treated with cement

The consolidation of a fine-grained lateritic soil, treated with compound Portland cement (CEMII/BM 32.5N) up to 9% by weight of the dry soil and prepared at three different molding water contents (ωDRY, OMC, and ωWET), was investigated by means of a one-dimensional consolidation test. The physicochemical and microstructural properties of the compacted lateritic soil-cement mixture were investigated using Raman spectroscopy, polarized light microscopy (PLM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and pH measurement. The results show that cement admixtures resulted in the formation of tobermorite, afwillite, ettringite, portlandite, and calcite. However, tobermorite and afwilite, which are calcium silicate hydrates (CSH) whose mechanisms of formation are the pozzolanic and alkali silica reactions, appear from 6% added cement. The fixing point of the pH (12.4) is also obtained from 6% added cement. It is the threshold value at which the material begins to develop an adequate mechanical performance. In general, as the content of cement in the soil is increased, the yield stress increases from 1 to 3 times in comparison to untreated soil. For effective vertical stresses smaller than the cement-induced yield stress, the primary consolidation process for specimens treated with cement is 2–7 times faster than that for specimens not treated with cement, while for effective vertical stresses higher than the cement-induced yield stress, the primary consolidation process for specimens treated with cement is about 0.5–1.5 times faster than that for specimens not treated with cement. Permeability and secondary compression are reduced 1–9 times and 2–11 times that of the untreated samples, respectively. These changes are attributed to the creation of chemical bonds and aggregation that accompany the addition of cement. The results also show that it would be desirable for soil samples to be prepared at the dry side of optimum (ωDRY) when the optimum moisture content (OMC) is not reached at the site. These results indicate that significant and desirable changes in soil behavior can be achieved when the soil is admixed with CEM II/BM 32.5N cement, thus providing the possibility of using the tested lateritic soil in road construction.

Pore-size distribution of a compacted silty soil after compaction, saturation, and loading

Soil microstructure is an important feature that controls soil behaviour at the macroscale. This microstructure depends on the sample preparation method and evolves during saturation and loading. This paper investigates the effects of compaction water content, drying techniques adopted prior to performing porosimetry, saturation and loading on the evolution of the microstructure of a silty soil. Mercury intrusion porosimetry is used to obtain the pore-size distribution at different states of soil presenting single and double porosity. It is observed that in presence of aggregates (obtained from a compaction on the dry side of optimum), the bimodal pore-size distribution is not significantly affected by the saturation process at zero stress. This feature of behaviour is quite specific to low plasticity silty soil. Conversely, loading under saturated conditions has a more significant effect on the pore-size distribution. This bimodal distribution converges into a single mode of pore size when the stress is significantly greater than the apparent preconsolidation pressure. The observed experimental results are interpreted in the light of pore-size distribution evolution during saturation and loading.

Unsaturated shear strength properties of a compacted expansive soil from Regina, Canada

AbstractThe main objective of this research was to investigate the unsaturated shear strength properties of the compacted expansive soil from Regina (Saskatchewan, Canada). Laboratory investigations on a typical expansive clay (liquid limit of 77% and plastic limit of 27%) were conducted using both saturated and unsaturated samples. Results indicated that the SWCC had one AEV of 10 kPa forwandθand two AEVs forS: 10 and 7000 kPa due to drainage through inter-clod pores and soil matrix, respectively. Most of the shrinkage occurred aroundS ≈ 80%, whereas desaturation before and after this value was associated with small changes in void ratio. Likewise, the peak stress on the dry side of optimum along with the initial gradient of the stress-displacement curve of up to 250 kPa and 13,350 kPa/mm, respectively, decreased to 170 kPa and 5670 kPa/mm on the wet side of optimum. The variation in cohesion followed the compaction curve and increased from 24 kPa on dry side to 65 kPa at optimum and then decreased to 33 kPa on wet side. The friction angle followed an L-shaped trend and decreased from 44° on dry side to 29° at optimum and to 27° on wet side. Finally, the S-shapedϕbcurve was in agreement with compaction characteristics and the SWCC. Theϕbcurve comprised 1° increase on dry side (and approaching residual suction), 12° increase around optimum (between AEV and residual suction), and 2° increase on wet side that tended to approach ϕ near saturation.

Effect of thermal history on the properties of bentonite

The effect of thermal history on the properties of bentonite was studied through a number of experimental tests. The desired thermal history was created on samples of bentonite by keeping them at a fixed temperature (50, 100, 150, 200 and 250 °C) for a specific duration (3, 7, 14 and 30 days). Standard compaction, Atterberg limits, free swelling and swelling pressure tests were carried out on the samples on the dry side of optimum, optimum and wet side of optimum of the compaction curve with desired thermal history. In addition chemical tests were carried out on the flooding water at the end of the swelling test. The results showed that the changes in compaction characteristics were not considerable but the Atterberg limits, free swelling and swelling pressure of the soil were changed due to the thermal history in comparison with the soil without any thermal history. The magnitudes of free swelling and swelling pressure were dependent on the location of prepared sample on the compaction curve. In addition, the changes in Atteberg limits and swelling parameters (amount of free swelling and swelling pressure) were functions of magnitude of temperature and duration of time that the sample experienced the temperature in its temperature history. The effects of temperature and also duration of exposure of the soil to temperature was discussed with the aid of the Diffuse Double Layer (DDL) theory. It was found that the temperature may change the gradation of soil due to cementation of particles as a result of formation of some salts and oxides that help to paste the particles together and change the properties of the soil.

Dominant Parameters Controlling the Permeability of Compacted Fine-Grained Soils

Permeability behaviour of compacted fine-grained soils has immense practical importance in view of the performance of various geotechnical engineering structures such as embankments, earth dams, sub-grades of pavements, compacted clay liners at land fills and the like. Many factors appear to control the permeability behaviour of compacted fine-grained soils. The present paper discusses these factors critically with illustrations. Soils of same liquid limit level having almost same void ratio exhibit significantly higher values of coefficient of permeability on the dry side of optimum when compared with those on wet side of optimum. It has been brought out that void ratio is not the only factor controlling the coefficient of permeability. But it is the soil fabric/effective pore size which controls significantly the coefficient of permeability at the same void ratio level. It has been further brought out that placement condition, soil fabric, effective pore size, clay mineralogical composition and void ratio appear to control the coefficient of permeability in the order of their importance.

Laboratory investigation of the effect of cyclic wetting and drying on the behaviour of an expansive soil

The behaviour of an expansive soil was studied through a number of experiments involving cycles of wetting and drying. Laboratory tests were conducted on compacted samples of an expansive soil (a mixture of bentonite and kaolin, CH) in a modified oedometer under different constant surcharge pressures. The void ratio and water content of samples were determined at different stages. The results show that the swelling–shrinkage was reversible after the soil reached the equilibrium condition where the deformations were the same and the wetting and drying paths (in the water content–void ratio space) converged to an S-shaped curve. The hysteresis phenomenon was studied through the variation of the void ratio with suction, and the results showed that it diminished gradually with the increase in cycles of wetting and drying. The effect of fabric on the behaviour of soil samples was studied during cycles of wetting and drying. The results show that the samples with lower initial water content (on the dry side of optimum) have more swelling potential than samples with a higher initial water content (on the wet side of optimum).

Compressive Strength of Compacted Clay-Sand Mixes

The use of sand to improve the strength of natural clays provides a viable alternative for civil infrastructure construction involving earthwork. The main objective of this note was to investigate the compressive strength of compacted clay-sand mixes. A natural clay of high plasticity was mixed with 20% and 40% sand (SP) and their compaction and strength properties were determined. Results indicated that the investigated materials exhibited a brittle behaviour on the dry side of optimum and a ductile behaviour on the wet side of optimum. For each material, the compressive strength increased with an increase in density following a power law function. Conversely, the compressive strength increased with decreasing water content of the material following a similar function. Finally, the compressive strength decreased with an increase in sand content because of increased material heterogeneity and loss of sand grains from the sides during shearing.

Compaction characteristics of fine grained soil and rice husk ash mixture

This study presents the compaction characteristics of fine grained soil and rice husk ash (RHA) mixture. Three types of fine grained soils viz., montmorillonite clay, kaolinite clay, and one local soil has been used in the present study. From the compaction tests results it is observed that with increase in RHA content (0–30%) maximum dry density (MDD) decreases and also optimum moisture content (OMC) increases irrespective of types of fine grained soil. Based on the experimental data, a number of linear regression models have been developed to estimate MDD and also OMC of fine grained soil and RHA mixture. Empirical models also presented to estimate dry density in terms of water content of dry side of optimum or water content of wet side of optimum, compaction energy, RHA content, and also specific gravity of fine grained soil and RHA mixture. The above models may be useful for the field engineers within the range of compaction energy from 300 kJ m−3 to 2700 kJ m−3, RHA content from 0%–30%, specific gravity of fine grained soil and RHA mixture from 2⋅311–2⋅750, and OMC for soil from 16⋅8%–37⋅0%.

Compaction behaviour of fly ashes

Fly ashes are used widely in many geotechnical applications. In most of the applications, compaction of the fly ashes is essential to improve their engineering behaviour. This paper presents the compaction behaviour of fly ashes along with the mechanisms controlling their behaviour. To this end, their compaction curves have to be presented on recently proposed volume-based parameters, namely solid volume occupation and water volume content, instead of weight-based parameters such as dry density and water content. For a given fly ash the variation in solid volume occupation with water volume content for any given compactive effort has been explained as being due to variation in the pore water pressure. Fly ashes resist the external compactive effort by shear resistance and positive pore water pressure development. The strength of fly ashes at any point on the dry side of optimum is the same, and on the wet side of optimum decreases with water volume content. The variation between the compaction curves of different fly ashes is essentially due to their differences in fineness and frictional characteristics.

Subject index of volume 93

The consolidation of a fine-grained lateritic soil, treated with compound Portland cement (CEMII/BM 32.5 N) up to 9% by weight of the dry soil and prepared at three different molding water contents (ωDRY, OMC, and ωWET), was investigated by means of a one-dimensional consolidation test. The physicochemical and microstructural properties of the compacted lateritic soil-cement mixture were investigated using Raman spectroscopy, polarized light microscopy (PLM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and pH measurement. The results show that cement admixtures resulted in the formation of tobermorite, afwillite, ettringite, portlandite, and calcite. However, tobermorite and afwilite, which are calcium silicate hydrates (CSH) whose mechanisms of formation are the pozzolanic and alkali silica reactions, appear from 6% added cement. The fixing point of the pH (12.4) is also obtained from 6% added cement. It is the threshold value at which the material begins to develop an adequate mechanical performance. In general, as the content of cement in the soil is increased, the yield stress increases from 1 to 3 times in comparison to untreated soil. For effective vertical stresses smaller than the cement-induced yield stress, the primary consolidation process for specimens treated with cement is 2–7 times faster than that for specimens not treated with cement, while for effective vertical stresses higher than the cement-induced yield stress, the primary consolidation process for specimens treated with cement is about 0.5–1.5 times faster than that for specimens not treated with cement. Permeability and secondary compression are reduced 1–9 times and 2–11 times that of the untreated samples, respectively. These changes are attributed to the creation of chemical bonds and aggregation that accompany the addition of cement. The results also show that it would be desirable for soil samples to be prepared at the dry side of optimum (ωDRY) when the optimum moisture content (OMC) is not reached at the site. These results indicate that significant and desirable changes in soil behavior can be achieved when the soil is admixed with CEM II/BM 32.5 N cement, thus providing the possibility of using the tested lateritic soil in road construction.