Stabilization of a Clay Soil Using Cementing Material from Spent Refractories and Ground-Granulated Blast Furnace Slag

Abstract

Nowadays, huge amounts of refractory materials are generated around the world. The majority of them lack valorization methods. This study analyzes the ability of a doloma and two magnesia spent refractory wastes as soil stabilizers on their own, as well as when combined with Ground-Granulated Blast Furnace Slags (GGBS). These materials showed a limited ability for the soil’s plasticity modification from a plasticity index of 15.6 to a minimum of 12.7. The high pH of the additives increased the soil’s pH from 7.88 to values in the range of 10.94–11.25 before the 28 days, allowing the development of the pozzolanic reactions. Unconfined compressive strength (UCS) increased along the curing time, reaching a maximum value of 5.68 MPa after 90 days. Based on the UCS, the optimum refractory GGBS ratios oscillate between 30:70 and 50:50. The UCS values after soaking samples reduced the unsoaked results between 68.70% to 94.41%. The binders considered showed a low effect against the soil swelling and the lack of delayed expansive effects because of the MgO hydration. Finally, X Ray Diffraction (XRD) tests showed that the stabilization only slightly modified the combinations of mineralogy and the formation of Magnesium Silicate Hydrate (MSH) gels.

Potential of Soil Stabilization Using Ground Granulated Blast Furnace Slag (GGBFS) and Fly Ash via Geopolymerization Method: A Review

“…The strength of soil is a measure of its ability to absorb forces without collapsing [ 6 , 7 ]. A soil’s ability to bear normal and shear pressures can be used to determine its strength [ 65 , 71 , 72 ].…”

“…Another issue in civil engineering is clayey soil [ 4 , 5 ]. Clayey soil is a global issue, causing several difficulties for civil engineers, building enterprises, and property owners [ 6 , 7 , 8 ]. Clayey soils are seen as a potential natural hazard capable of wreaking havoc on engineering buildings [ 9 , 10 ].…”

“…The mechanical and chemical stabilization alteration of one or more soil properties has been termed as soil stabilization [ 21 , 22 ]. Most researchers studied to improve the engineering properties by increasing the compressive strength of the soil [ 6 , 8 , 12 , 16 , 17 , 23 ] according to the ASTM D 4609 standard [ 24 ] (>0.8 Mpa). Soil stabilization can be described as a collective term for any physical, chemical, or combination of those approaches used to enhance certain features of natural soil in order for it to meet the engineering requirements [ 3 , 4 , 9 , 10 , 11 , 15 , 21 , 24 ].…”

Strength performance of low-bearing-capacity clayey soils stabilized with ladle furnace slag

“…By incorporating industrial by-products, economic benefits are provided, and they also contribute to a more sustainable approach to soil stabilization, effectively reducing the carbon footprint (Behnood 2018 ; Xu and Yi 2019 ). Therefore, numerous new research challenges have been undertaken to develop environmentally friendly stabilizers based on these innovative materials (Nidzam and Kinuthia 2010 ; Wilkinson et al 2010a , b , James and Pandian 2016 ; Brand and Fanijo 2020 ), such as ground granulated blast furnace slag (GGBFS) (Obuzor et al 2012 ; Hossein Rafiean et al 2020 ; Seco et al 2021 ), basic oxygen furnace slag (BOFS) (Poh et al 2006 ; Mahieux et al 2009 ; Kambole et al 2017 ), button fly ash (Yoon et al 2009 ), and cement kiln dust (Mosa et al 2017 ).…”

Analysis of soil characteristics on expansive clay stabilization using shell ash

“…The combination of lime and pozzolana produces higher shear strength parameters than expansive clay. [8] found that limestone is effective in stabilizing high-plasticity clays and expansive clays. It is evidenced by the increase in the results of the unconfined compression test, and the liquid limit value decreased and the plastic limit value increased.…”