Saudi Journal of Engineering and Technology (SJEAT)
Volume-6 | Issue-04 | 77-83
Original Research Article
Performance Evaluation of Crushed Glass in Stabilizing Lateritic Soil for Road Pavement Layers
Akanbi DO, Sule E, Achema F, Bakam VA
Published : April 30, 2021
Abstract
Crushed Glass (CG) is a recycled material obtained from crushing waste glass and has been established as a partial replacement for cement in concrete. However, this research investigated the performance evaluation of using CG as a stabilizing agent to improve lateritic soil for road pavement layers. The CG powder used is 75µm and classified as type GE according to the new standard ASTMC 1866/C1866M-20 passed in early 2020 [10]. An A-7-6(11)/CL lateritic soil sample was studied and classified using AASHTO and Unified Soil Classification System (USCS). The soil was treated with CG in a stepped concentration of 0, 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12, 14 and 16 % of weight of dry lateritic soil. Atterberg limit tests were carried out on the soil and soil-CG samples. The properties of compaction, California Bearing Ratio (CBR) and unconfined compressive strength (UCS) were also determined for the soil and soil-CG mixes using British Standard Light (BSL) compaction energy for the soil and soil-CG samples. Results show that, the liquid limit of the soil-CG mixture decreased with increase CG content, while the plastic limit increased with increase in CG content. The MDD and OMC also increased with increasing CG content, but up to 6% content, and then decreased with further increment in CG content. The soaked and unsoaked CBR values of the soil-CG mix are higher than the CBR value for the lateritic soil alone. These values are less than the specified minimum values of 30 and 80%, respectively, for road subbase and base courses. This implies that CG cannot be used as a “stand-alone” additive for soil stabilization. Also, the UCS of the lateritic soil and soil-CG mix increased with curing age and increasing CG content, and the soil-CG have higher UCS values than the lateritic soil alone. For instance, the UCS of lateritic soil, soil-CG mix with 4% and 12% CG at 7 days curing age are 259.69, 300.09 and 388.39 kN/m2, respectively. The values are correspondingly 441.59, 479.30 and 599.91KN/m2 at 28days curing age, a trend that can be attributed to time-dependent strength gain action of the CG, which is a type GE pozzolana. Again, the UCS values of the soil-CG mixtures though increase with increase in both the curing age and CG content are less than 1710 kN/m2, minimum specified as a criterion for adequate soil stabilization with Ordinary Portland Cement (OPC). This further confirmed that CG, a waste, cannot be used as a “stand-alone” stabilization agent but as an additive to supplement OPC, thereby reducing the cost of stabilization.