Experimental investigation of consolidation properties of nano-bentonite mixed clayey soil

Abstract

As a new soil improvement method, adding nano-bentonite can enhance the engineering properties of soil. To study the stabilization effect of nano-bentonite on soil consolidation properties, a series of one-dimensional odometer tests were conducted on a clayey soil with different nano-bentonite mixing contents (i.e., 0.5%, 1%, 1.5%, and 2%). The effects of nano-bentonite on the coefficient of consolidation and permeability of the test soil were analyzed. The results show that adding a certain amount of nano-bentonite does not significantly affect the original consolidation characteristics of soil samples, but displays a notable effect on accelerating water drainage. Among all the soil samples, when the nano-bentonite mixing content is 0.5%, the final compression amount is the largest and the final void ratio is the smallest. The coefficients of consolidation and permeability increase with increasing nano-bentonite mixing content under high stress state. The test results indicate that nano-bentonite can facilitate internal cementation of soil particles, which effectively reduces the compressibility of clayey soil.