Investigation on Industrial Waste Material for Stabilizing the Expansive Soil

Abstract

The increasing demand of fertilizer for agricultural field to make the farmable land results in the more generation of byproducts during the manufacturing stages. These byproducts can be utilized by various treatment techniques for the reduction of its contaminants due to its disposal for long time. In this study, the strength characteristics of two expansive clayey soils were studied and it was observed an enhancement in strength by the addition of an industrial waste product, Phosphogypsum as a stabilizing agent at various percentages of 2, 4, 6 and 8 by weight of soil. The attainment in strength characteristics of soil due to the mixing of additive has studied by conducting Unconfined Compressive strength tests at the various time periods of 14, 28 and 60 days. UCS results showed that soil solidification process by the additive exhibited the maximum compressive strength of 50% when the addition of Phosphogypsum reached by 6% at the curing period of 28 days. The improvement in soil characteristics were analysed chemically and it was also studied under microstructural analysis, X- Ray Diffraction methods. Microstuctural studies reported a remarkable change in the mineralogy of the treated soil, with the fine phases formed due to the pozzalonic reactions which are responsible for the strength development. Thus the Phosphogypsum waste in the clay as a soil stabilizer suggests a most economical material for the remarkable improvement in the properties of soil and it will be the best options to manage this waste as sustainable material towards the green environment.