Determination of suitability of Al-Hassa clay as a road layer through mechanical stabilization

Abstract

Abandoned sites due to undesirable soil properties has dramatically increased, and the outcome of this resulted to the scarcity of land. This resulted in the finding alternative ways of mitigating the situation. Amongst which is to modify the engineering properties of the native problematic soils to meet the design specifications. The research work seeks to mechanically stabilize the clay soil using sand which is abundant, cheap, environmentally friendly and sustainable. To also propose its suitability to be as base or sub-base layer of an unpaved rural road. Soil characterization was carried out by conducting grain size analysis and consistency limits. The optimum percentage replacement of sand was carried out using 0, 10, 20, 30 and 40% sand. A triaxial compression test and unconfined compression test were carried out for these purposes. The optimum percentage of sand replacement was found to be 20%, which was used for California Bearing Ratio (CBR) test to determine the CBR value, which 54.5%. The CBR value from 20% sand replacement estimated from the test is suitable for sub-base layer for construction of a road.