Investigative Study of Behaviour of Treated Expansive Soil Using Empirical Correlations

© 2018 American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE).All Rights Reserved. In this study, the effect of the soil mixing method on the swelling behaviour of expansive soils is investigated. Recent studies have demonstrated the modification effect of cement and inclusion of by-products such as pulverised fuel ash (PFA) and ground granulated blast furnace slag (GGBS) on the plasticity of expansive soils at a water-To-cement ratio of unity. In this study, the volume change of cement/PFA/GGBS improved expansive soil was evaluated using empirical correlations. One-dimensional oedometer experiment and tests to determine the index properties of both the natural and treated soils were performed. Complimentary numerical modelling of the loaded natural and treated soils using the SoilWorks MIDAS software were also carried out. Analyses of results indicated a significant influence of the binders on the plasticity properties of the expansive soil. Results obtained by the addition of 10% each of PFA and GGBS to the cement treated expansive soils showed a considerable reduction of plasticity. By using the index property-based correlations, the swelling potential of the treated soils were shown to be effectively reduced in the range of 10-80%. Comparisons with numerical analysis indicated slight variations