Effect of polypropylene tape fibre reinforcement on swelling behaviour of an expansive soil

摘要

ABSTRACT: The objective of this study was to examine the influence of discrete and randomlyndistributed fibres on heave of an expansive soil. One-dimensional swell tests were conducted on anremoulded expansive soil with and without fibres. In this study, fibre content was varied as 0.25nand 0.5% and fibre length as 30, 60 and 90 mm. A twin semi-circular-shaped fabricated mouldnwith a front Perspex sheet was developed for testing. Digital imaging technique was used tonobserve heave of the soil in both unreinforced and fibre-reinforced conditions. Displacementnprofiles obtained from image analysis were used for interpreting swell or upward movement profilesnof the specimens. Heave observed in the digital image analysis was compared with that obtainednfrom dial gauge readings. Reduction in heave was directly proportional to fibre content and fibrenlength. Reduction in heave was the maximum at low aspect ratios at both fibre contents of 0.25nand 0.5%. Test results revealed that fibre length is a key factor that influences the reinforcingneffect of fibre. Discrete and randomly distributed fibres were found efficacious in reducing heave.