Micro Level Analysis of Weak Soils Stabilized with Locust Bean Waste Ash (LBWA)

摘要

Many ground improvement techniques have been evolved in the past decade in order to reduce the potential of severity of the weak soils. Out of those techniques, soil stabilization is the most effective technique. This paper presents the results of a laboratory investigation of the use of Locust Bean Waste Ash (LBWA) as a material for stabilization of weak soils. Two types of soils were treated with varying quantities of LBWA under laboratory condition. To determine the effectiveness of LBWA as a stabilizer, general geotechnical soil properties including free swell index, Atterberg limits, specific gravity, grains sizes analyses, moisture density relationship, Unconfined Compressive Strength (UCS) and California Bearing Ratio (CBR) tests have been investigated. X-Ray Diffraction analysis (XRD), Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) and X-Ray Fluorescence spectroscopy (XRF) were carried out in order to determine the improvement in strength of the soils at micro level. It’s revealed that the LBWA improved the UCS of two soils samples by 69 % and 124 % for the CI and CH soils respectively during 21 days curing. Results of the XRD, SEM and XRF have shown changes in the peaks of XRD pattern, decreases in the pores in the SEM images and changes in the chemical compositions.