STABILIZATION OF AN EXPANSIVE SOIL USING MARBLE SLURRY DUST AND LIME

Abstract

Expansive soils occurring in vast regions of the world cause serious problems for civil engineering structures. These soils swell when given an access to water and shrink when they dry out. Several attempts have been made to control the swell-shrink behavior of these soils. Soil stabilization using chemical admixtures is the oldest and most widespread method of ground improvement. In this study, waste marble slurry dust, which is a by-product of marble industry, was used for stabilization of expansive soils in addition to lime. The expansive soil was prepared in laboratory as a mixture of bentonite and local soil. Waste marble slurry dust and lime was added with predetermined percentage, varying from 0 to 30 percent to the expansive soil. The grain size distribution, consistency limits, mineral composition, percentage of swell and rate of swell were determined for the soil samples. Swelling percentage decreased and rate of swell increased with increasing stabilizer percentage. Also, samples were cured for 7 days and 28 days before applying swell tests. It was found that curing of samples reduces the swell percentages and rate of swell.