Stabilization of Clayey Soils Using Chloride Components

Soils exhibit generally undesirable engineering properties. Soil Stabilization is the alteration of soils to enhance their physical properties. Stabilization can increase the shear strength of a soil and/or control the shrink-swell properties of a soil, thus improving the load bearing capacity of a sub-grade to support pavements and foundations. Stabilization and its effect on soil indicate the reaction mechanism with additives, effect on its strength, improve and maintain soil moisture content and suggestion for construction systems. The main objective of this paper is to improve the physical and chemical properties of clay soil by using chemical additives like chloride compounds as NaCl, CaCl 2 and MgCl 2. Various proportions of NaCl, CaCl 2 and MgCl 2 was mixed with soil and basic engineering properties such as specific gravity, liquid limit, compaction characteristics and consolidation parameters were determined. It has been observed that an addition of different percentages like 4%, 8% and 12% of chloride compounds into clayey soils increased the dry density and decreased the moisture content. The liquid limit, plastic limit and plasticity index decreased with the increase in chemical content. This appears due to the fact that addition of NaCl, CaCl 2 and MgCl 2 filled up the voids between particles of soil as particle size of NaCl, CaCl 2 and MgCl 2 is smaller than soil particles and can be easily replaced the voids. The compression index and swelling index was decreased with the increase in chloride compound percentage.