SOIL STABILIZATION USING LIME AND FLY ASH

1. AMIT BHAKTA, 2. AHAMMAD ALI MALLIK, 3. SUDIPAN SAMANTA, 4. JOYDEEP PAUL,

5. SNEHA KARMAKAR
Assistant Professor Sourav Mitra, Department of Civil Engineering,
Abacus Institute of Engineering Technology.

ABSTRACT

Soil stabilization is the process of improving the shear strength parameters of soil and thus increasing
the bearing capacity of soil. It is required when the soil available for construction is not suitable to
carry structural load. Soils exhibit generally undesirable engineering properties. Soil Stabilization is the
alteration of soils to enhance their physical properties. Stabilization can increase the shear strength of
a soil and/or control the shrink-swell properties of a soil, thus improving the load bearing capacity of a
sub-grade to support pavements and foundations. Soil stabilization is used to reduce permeability and
compressibility of the soil mass in earth structures and to increase its shear strength. The main
objective of this paper is to review the physical and chemical properties of soil in different types of
stabilization methods. Stabilization and its effect on soil indicate the reaction mechanism with
additives, effect on its strength, improve and maintain soil moisture content and suggestion for
construction systems. Soil stabilization can be accomplished by several methods. All these methods fall
into two broad categories namely mechanical stabilization and chemical stabilization. Mechanical
Stabilization is the process of improving the properties of the soil by changing its gradation and
chemical stabilization of expansive soil comprises of changing the physic -synthetic around and within
clay particles where by the earth obliges less water to fulfill the static imbalance and making it
troublesome for water that moves into and out of the framework so as to fulfill particular designing
road ventures.
 INTRODUCTION

Soil stabilization may be defined as the alteration or preservation of one or more soil properties to
improve the engineering characteristics and performance of a soil.
Stabilization, in a broad sense, incorporates the various methods employed for modifying the
properties of a soil to improve its engineering performance. Soil stabilization refers to the procedure in
which a special soil, cementing material, or other chemical materials are added to a natural soil to
improve one or more of its properties. One may achieve stabilization by mechanically mixing the
natural soil and stabilizing material together so as to achieve a homogeneous mixture or by adding
stabilizing material to an undisturbed soil deposit and obtaining interaction by letting it permeate
through soil voids.
Lime and fly ash materials have binding properties, so they are used for the stabilization of soil. Fly ash
is the waste material generated from the thermal power plants, so their use make the soil stabilization
cheaper. The term soil stabilization means the improvement of the stability of bearing power of the
soil by the use of controlled compaction, proportioning under the addition of suitable admixtures or
stabilizers. Soil stabilization deals with physical, physicochemical and chemical methods to make the
stabilized soil serve its purpose as pavement component material.

Principles in Soil Stabilization

1. Evaluating the properties of given soil.
2. Deciding method of supplementing the lacking property by the effective and
economical method of stabilization.
3. Designing the stabilized soil mix for intended stability and durability values.
4. Considering the construction procedure by adequately compacting the stabilized layers.

Effect of Soil Stabilization

Soil stabilization may result in any one or more of the following changes:
Increase in stability, change in physical properties like density or swelling, change in physical
characteristics.
 SELECTION OF MATERIALS

1. RED SOIL: Red soils generally derived from crystalline rock. They are usually poor growing soils, low
in nutrients and humus and difficult to cultivate because of its low water holding capacity. Red soils
denote the third largest soil group of India covering an area of about 3.5 lakhs sq.km over the
peninsula from Tamil Nadu in the south to Bundelkhand in the north and Rajmahal hills in the east to
kachchh in the west.
2. ALLUVIAL SOIL: The term alluvium is not typically used in situations where the formation of the
sediment can clearly be attributed to another geologic process that is well described. This includes
lakes sediments, river sediments or glacially-derived sediments. Alluvial soil is loose, unconsolidated
soil or sediments which has been eroded, reshaped by water in some form, and re deposited in a non-
marine setting.
3. CLAYEY SOIL Clay soil is composed of tiny particles that are hard and able to become easily
compacted. This compaction makes it difficult to plant or even shovel within the soil. Clay minerals are
hydrous aluminium phyllosilicates that may contain varying amounts of iron, magnesium and alkali
metals.
4. LIME Hydraulic lime is a general term for varieties of lime, or slaked lime, used to make lime mortar
which set through hydration thus they are called hydraulic. Hydraulic lime provides a faster initial set
and higher compressive strength. The terms hydraulic lime and hydrated lime are quite similar and
may be confused but are not necessarily the same material.
The two basic types of hydraulic limes are -
1. Natural hydraulic lime
2. Artificial hydraulic lime.
5. FLY ASH Fly ash is a by-product from burning pulverized coal in electric power generating plants.
During combustion, mineral impurities in the coal fuse in suspension and float out of the combustion
chamber with the exhaust gases.
Two types fly ash are commonly used in concrete:
 Class c
 Class F
Class c are often high-calcium fly ashes with carbon content less than 2 %;whereas class F are generally
low calcium fly ashes with carbon content less than 5% but some times as high as 10%.In general, class
c ashes produced from burning sub-bituminous are anthracite coals. Performance properties between
class c and class f ashes are varying depending on chemical and physical properties of the ash. Many
class c ashes when exposed to water will react and become hard just like cement but not class f ashes.
Most, if not all, class f ashes will only react with the by-products formed when cement reacts with
water. Class c and class f fly ashes were used in this research project.
 TEST FOR SOIL SAMPLES

1) Specific gravity,
2) Liquid limit & plastic limit,
3) Standard proctor test,
4) Direct shear,
5) California bearing ratio,
6) California bearing ratio.