Mechanical properties of lime-treated clay reinforced with different types of randomly distributed fibers

• Published in: Arabian journal of geosciences 2018-03, Vol.11 (6), p.1-14, Article 122
• Main Authors: Boz, Aslı, Sezer, Alper, Özdemir, Tuba, Hızal, Gül Ece, Azdeniz Dolmacı, Özlem
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Basalt; Clay; Compressive strength; Curing; Curing (processing); Earth and Environmental Science; Earth science; Earth Sciences; Fiber reinforced polymers; Fibers; Geo-Resources-Earth-Environmental Sciences; Iccesen 2017; Lime; Mechanical properties; Polypropylene; Soil; Soil compaction; Soil lime
• ISSN: 1866-7511; 1866-7538
• DOI: 10.1007/s12517-018-3458-x

In this paper, a comparative experimental study was carried out to evaluate the effect of inclusion of different fiber types on strength of lime-stabilized clay. In this scope, a series of unconfined compressive strength tests were carried out on specimens including basalt and polypropylene fiber compacted under Standard Proctor effort (i.e., 35% by weight of soil). The effects of curing period (1, 7, 28, and 90 days), fiber type (basalt and polypropylene), fiber content (0, 0.25, 0.5, 0.75, 1%), fiber length (6, 12, and 19 mm), and lime content (0 and 9%) on strength properties were investigated. The results revealed that both basalt and polypropylene fibers increased the strength without inclusion of lime. For specimens including lime, strength of polypropylene fiber-reinforced specimens was remarkably higher than that reinforced with basalt fiber for lime-stabilized clay. However, greatest strength improvement was obtained by use of 0.75% basalt fiber of 19 mm length with 9% lime content after 90-day curing. Additionally, results of strength tests on specimens including 3 and 6% lime and 12-mm basalt fiber after 1, 7, 28, and 90-day curing were presented. It is evident that the use of 6-mm basalt fiber and 12-mm polypropylene fiber were the best options; however, efficiency of fiber inclusion is subject to change by varying lime contents. It was also observed that the secant modulus was increased by use of lime; however, strength of the correlations among secant modulus and unconfined compressive strength values was decreased by increasing amount of lime for specimens including both basalt and polypropylene fibers.