Effect of fine particles on strength and stiffness of cement treated sand

Abstract

Naturally available sands are always found with finer particles of varying sizes and proportions which are generally not accounted for in the geotechnical design of a cemented soil system. This paper explores the behavior of cemented sand with fine particles in smaller proportions. Two types of cements: (1) ordinary portland cement (OPC), (2) calcium sulfoaluminate cement (CSA); three cement contents: 3%, 5%, 7% and four fine (kaolin powder) contents: 0%, 1%, 3%, 5% are considered in this study. The ultrasonic pulse velocity (UPV), shear wave velocity (Vs) and unconfined compressive strength (UCS) are measured to investigate the effects of fine particles on the cemented sand. The results show that fine particles do affect quite significantly the mechanical properties of cement-treated sand, even at negligent proportions. The strength and stiffness increase with fine content in both types of cement. The increase in strength and stiffness with increasing fine contents is attributed to the increased density with kaolin acting as a filler material facilitating more contact points among the particles. The results also show that the effect of fine particles on cemented sand depends not only on their relative volume and mineralogy but also on the type of the binding material.