The use of Jordanian oil shale ash as a soil stabilizing agent

Abstract

The primary objective of this paper is to evaluate the potential use of Jordanian oil shale ash as a soil stabilization agent. Three types of soil were used in this study along with three percentages of oil shale: 5%, 10% and 15% by dry weight of the soil. Swelling pressure tests and unconfined compression tests were conducted on remoulded samples mixed with a predetermined percentage of the oil shale ash at different curing times. It was found that higher percentages of the shale ash increase the unconfined compressive strength and minimize the swelling pressure of the soil. Furthermore, the test results indicate that the optimum time for the stabilization of soil mixed with oil shale ash occurs at seven days.