Durability against Wetting-Drying Cycles of Sustainable Biopolymer-Treated Soil

Abstract

The world today is more oriented towards sustainable and environmental-friendly solutions in every field of science, technology, and engineering. Therefore, novel sustainable and eco-friendly approaches for soil improvement have also emerged. One of the effective, promising, and green solutions is the utilization of biopolymers. However, even though the biopolymers proved to be effective in enhancing the soil-mechanical properties, it is still unknown how they behave under real environmental conditions, such as fluctuating temperatures, moisture, plants, microorganisms, to name a few. The main research aim is to investigate the durability of biopolymer-improved soil on the cyclic processes of wetting and drying. Two types of biopolymers (Xanthan Gum and Guar Gum), and two types of soils (clean sand and silty sand) were investigated in this study. The results indicated that some biopolymer-amended specimens kept more than 70% of their original mass during wetting-drying cycles. During the compressive strength analysis, some biopolymer-treated specimens kept up to 45% of their initial strength during seven wetting-drying cycles. Furthermore, this study showed that certain damaged soil-biopolymer bonds could be restored with proper treatment. Repeating the process of wetting and drying can reactivate the bonding properties of biopolymers, which amends the broken bonds in soil. The regenerative property of biopolymers is an important feature that should not be neglected. It gives a clearer picture of the biopolymer utilization and makes it a good option for rapid temporary construction or long-standing construction in the areas with an arid climate.

Rock‐like strength enhancement of Indian desert sand using commercially available polysaccharide biopolymers

“…The results of this research are in line with the strengthening efficiency provided by (Qureshi et al, 2017) in which sand was collected from the Al‐Sharqia desert in Oman and mixed with XG biopolymer. The study performed by Soldo and Miletic (2022) on silty and clean sand using XG and GG and found that by mixing the biopolymer with sand, the strength was increased because of the adhesion between the biopolymer and the sand particles. Fatehi et al (2019) conducted a study using SA biopolymer in different percentages with dune sand and found that values increase as the biopolymer percentage increases, and the results were consistent with the present study.…”

Calcareous silt earthen construction using biopolymer reinforcement

“…Carrageenan shows the strongest ability in strength loss prevention against water erosion. The durability of biopolymertreated soils has been examined by Soldo & Miletic (2022). They showed that the UCS of silica silty sand treated with Xanthan gum and Guar gum drops over 50% with one wet-dry cycle for 1% mass ratio of biopolymer.…”

Geotechnical Investigation and Microanalysis of Black Cotton Soil Amended with Guar Gum and Polyethylene Terephlate Fibre

“…Initially, 0.5%, 1%, 1.5%, and 2% of the biopolymer by weight of the clay soil are mixed with the clay soil. In a plastic tray, the biopolymer powder and soil are thoroughly blended to guarantee that there are no biopolymer lumps [36,37]. Te geotechnical tests are conducted immediately after mixing the biopolymer into the soil.…”