Stabilization of the swelling soil for earth construction
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1
Faculty of Science, Helwan University, Cairo, Egypt
2
G&W Science and Engineering, Cairo, Egypt
3
Faculty of Engineering, Shoubra - Banha University, Cairo, Egypt
Publication date: 2020-09-02
Cement Wapno Beton 25(3) 198-207 (2020)
ABSTRACT
This study is concerned with the method of cast earth as part of an
investigation series on earth construction. The effect of two clay
swelling inhibitors; polyethylene glycol [PEG] and of carboxymethyl
cellulose [CMC] on the swelling of a clay-bearing soil are studied
to enable the stabilization of the soil with CEM I 42.5 N. The soil
composed of 14% clay, quartz, and calcite, is stabilized with 10%
cement. 3% polycarboxylate superplasticizer is added relative
to the mass of the cement, to gain the soil pourable properties.
The results show that the PEG and CMC clay-swelling inhibitors
reduce the expansion of the soil by ~30 and ~40% and lead to
a maximum increase of 24 and 46% in the 90-day compressive
strength respectively. The interactions between clay, cement, and
swelling inhibitors are discussed. The findings allow advantageous
applications for producing building units for construction purposes
in desert areas.