Lime slurry stabilisation of an expansive soil

Lime slurry and lime pile techniques are viable choices for in-situ stabilisation of expansive soil deposits. This paper reports the results of a laboratory study on in-situ chemical stabilisation of an expansive soil that permeated lime slurry through an artificially desiccated expansive soil specimen. The soil was desiccated in the laboratory to induce shrinkage cracks in the compacted expansive soil. The shrinkage cracks greatly assisted migration of lime slurry in the expansive soil mass. The efficiency of lime slurry in chemically stabilising the desiccated expansive soil was investigated by comparing the physico-chemical properties and engineering properties of the treated soil with those of the natural soil specimen at two radial distances. Experimental results indicated that migration of lime slurry through the desiccated soil promoted strong lime modification and pozzolanic reactions in the soilmass. The strong soil-lime reactions rendered the soil less plastic, reduced the swell magnitude, and increased the unconfined compressive strength of the lime-slurry treated specimens. Laboratory results indicate that slurry application to soil deposits with shrinkage is effective, and that it may therefore be preferable to chemically stabilise soil deposits during the dry season