Improving the Mechanical Properties of Dunes Soils in Southern Iraq by Adding Carboxymethyl cellulose

Abstract

Abstract Due to climate change, resultant dunes zones have increasingly been a severe issue for the environment and people. Its impacts turn out on land degradation and reduction of surface moisture. This research aims to experimentally analyse the mechanical behaviour of desert Dunes soils by adding Polymer type Carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC) resin. The collected soil samples were from a site adjacent to Nasiriya–Baghdad highway in Thi-Qar province. The experimental design was set up into two groups with different percentages of the polymer material (5%, 10%, 15%, and 20%) and different weight percentages of water added to the natural soil (dunes soil). Compaction, classification, and shear strength tests are the essential measurements of the samples in this study. The analysis shows that the natural dunes soil is low plasticity sandy silt with a friction angle of about 31.40. Both groups, PNS and POM, reveal nearly the same changes in PHI angles. They increase at the first Polymer addition (5%) and decrease at the third addition (15%) and return to increase at the fourth addition (20%). This means that the best polymer addition is at 5%, and the worst addition is at 15% even though the change in PHI angle adequately is not high.