A Statistical Model for the Geotechnical Parameters of Cement-Stabilised Hightown’s Soft Soil: A Case Stufy of Liverpool, UK

Authors: Hassnen M. Jafer, Khalid S. Hashim, W. Atherton, Ali W. Alattabi

Abstract:

This study investigates the effect of two important parameters (length of curing period and percentage of the added binder) on the strength of soil treated with OPC. An intermediate plasticity silty clayey soil with medium organic content was used in this study. This soft soil was treated with different percentages of a commercially available cement type 32.5-N. laboratory experiments were carried out on the soil treated with 0, 1.5, 3, 6, 9, and 12% OPC by the dry weight to determine the effect of OPC on the compaction parameters, consistency limits, and the compressive strength. Unconfined compressive strength (UCS) test was carried out on cement-treated specimens after exposing them to different curing periods (1, 3, 7, 14, 28, and 90 days). The results of UCS test were used to develop a non-linear multi-regression model to find the relationship between the predicted and the measured maximum compressive strength of the treated soil (qu). The results indicated that there was a significant improvement in the index of plasticity (IP) by treating with OPC; IP was decreased from 20.2 to 14.1 by using 12% of OPC; this percentage was enough to increase the UCS of the treated soil up to 1362 kPa after 90 days of curing. With respect to the statistical model of the predicted qu, the results showed that the regression coefficients (R2) was equal to 0.8534 which indicates a good reproducibility for the constructed model.

Keywords: Cement admixtures, soft soil stabilisation, geotechnical parameters, unconfined compressive strength, multi-regression model.

Digital Object Identifier (DOI): doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.1125971

References:

[1] Sariosseiri, F. & Muhunthan, B. 2009. Effect of Cement Treatment on Geotechnical Properties of Some Washington State Soils. Engineering Geology 104 (1-2): 119-
[2] Modarres, A., and Nosoudy, Y. M. (2015) Clay Stabilisation Using Coal Waste and Lime – Technical and Environmental Impact. Applied Clay Science, pp. 1-8.
[3] Jafer, H. M., Atherton, W., Ruddock, F. M. & Loffil, E. 2015. Assessing the Potential of a Waste Material for Cement Replacement and the Effect of Its Finennes in Soft Soil Stabilisation. International Journal of Environmental, Chemical, Ecological, Geological and Geophysical Engineering, 9(8), 794-800.
[4] Jauberthie, R.; Rendell, F.; Rangeard, D. and Molez, L. 2010. Stabilisation of estuarine silt with lime and/or cement. Applied Clay Science, 50, 395-400.
[5] Farouk, A. and Shahien, M. M. 2013. Ground improvement using soil–cement columns: Experimental investigation. Alexandria Engineering Journal, 52, 733-740.
[6] Onal, O. 2014. Lime Stabilization of Soils Underlying a Salt Evaporation Pond: A Laboratory Study. Marine Georesources & Geotechnology, 33, 391-402.
[7] Rios, S.; Cristelo, N.; Viana da Fonseca, A. and Ferreira, C. 2016. Structural Performance of Alkali-Activated Soil Ash versus Soil Cement. Journal of Materials in Civil Engineering, 28, 04015125.
[8] Makusa, G. P. 2012. Soil Stabilization Methods and Materials in Engineering Practice. Luleå, Sweden: Luleå University of Technology.
[9] Eskisar, T. (2015). "Influence of Cement Treatment on Unconfined Compressive Strength and Compressibility of Lean Clay with Medium Plasticity." Arabian Journal for Science and Engineering 40(3): 763-772.
[10] Ahnberg, H., S. E. Johansson, H. Pihl, and T. Carlsson “Stabilising effects of different binders in some Swedish soils”. Ground Improvement, Vol. 7, pp 9-23, 2003.
[11] British Standard 1990a. BS 1377-2:1990, Methods of test for soils for civil engineering purposes - Part 2: Classification tests. London: UK: British Standard Institution.
[12] British Standard 1990b. BS 1377-4-1990, Methods of test for Soils for civil engineering purposes - Part4: Compaction-related tests. London: UK: British Standard institute.
[13] British Standard 1990c. BS 1377-7-1990- methods of test for Soils for civil engineering purposes - Part 7: Shear strength tests (total stress). London: UK: British Standard institute.
[14] Pallant, J. (2005). SPSS Survival Manual. Australia, Allen & Unwin.
[15] Tabachnick, B. G. and L. S. Fidell (2001). Using Multivariate Statistics. Boston, Allyn and Bacon.