Effect of Optimum Utilization of Silica Fume and Lime On the Stabilization of Problematic Soils

Abstract

Chemically stabilized soil studies have revealed that the efficiency of stabilization is primarily depends on the natural environment of the soil. Problematic soils such as silt and clay do not satisfy the standards for structural applications at this stage because under relatively mild stress conditions, the soils can expand, collapse, disperse, settle excessively, or even fail which can lead to structural failure. Moreover, the improvement of kaolin soil stays a test because of the significant expense and non-eco-accommodating material such as concrete. This study aims at the kaolin soil stabilization by utilizing 4% and 6% of silica fume and several percentage inclusion of lime. The lime percentages of 3%, 5%, 7%, and 9%, whereas the ratio of silica fume is set at 4% and 6%. The primary goal of this study is to increase the shear strength of soft kaolin soil blended with 4% and 6% of silica fume (SF) and varying amounts of lime (L). The soil parameters were evaluated for kaolin soil alone and for 4% and 6% of silica fume blended with varying percentages of lime. The findings disclose that the optimal percentages of silica fume and lime in terms of maximum shear strength at 176.91 kPa of improvement were 4% and 7% respectively due to the pozzolanic reaction between silica fume and lime was more successful with soil particles. The combination of silica fume and lime blended with the kaolin soil can highly enhanced the strength of the soil up to 88.10% compared to the lime and silica fume mixed alone with the optimal proportion of 4% of silica fume and 7% of lime which can reduce the environmental pollution with the reduction in carbon dioxide emission during production and provides economic benefits due to the low cost of materials.