Some Experimental Studies on Strength Characteristics and Micro Structural Behavior of Nanomaterials Stabilized Soft Soils

Abstract

Since the soil is a particulate system with a wide variety of particles, it has become one of the newlinemost complex natural materials to be worked out. Soft soil deposits pose challenging problems for newlinegeotechnical engineers. Estimating the reliable behavior of these soils, which can be used as a newlinefoundation medium or as a construction material, becomes a daunting task. However, treated soft newlinesoils can be used as a resource for various engineering infrastructures. For the chemical newlinestabilization of soils, many chemical additives such as polymers, cement, nanomaterials, and other newlinecompounds are available for their treatment. However, nanomaterials, including Nano-Al2O3 newline(Nano-alumina), Nano-SiO2 (Nano-silica), Nano-CuO (Nano-copper), and Nano-CaSO4.2H2O newline(Nano-gypsum), have recently gained the attention of researchers. In contrast to traditional and newlinenon-traditional additives, the nano materials are admixed directly with the soil or additive for newlinestabilizing marginal soil deposits. newlineIn this study, nanomaterial additives were selected to investigate their effect on the strength newlinebehavior of clay soils. Soil samples were collected from two sites, 5-10 km apart from the outskirts newlineof Srinagar city, JandK-India, and classified in the laboratory. Microstructural analysis was done on newlinevirgin soil samples to compare them with the treated samples. Based on basic geotechnical testing, newlineweak specimens were selected for treatment using nanomaterials such as Nano-Al2O3, Nano-SiO2, newlineNano-CuO, and Nano-CaSO4.2H2O. Nanomaterials of 99.9% purity and average particle size of newline30-50 nm were used for respective experimental studies. Various percentages (0.5%, 1.0%, 1.5%, newlineand 2.0%) of nanomaterials by dry weight of the soil were added. The experimental program newlinestarted with the determination of basic geotechnical laboratory characteristics, including all basic newlinetests on in-situ and remolded samples. The second set of testing comprised of the schematic newlinenanomaterials testing which was carried out on soil samples from the weakest site. Test