Lime Stabilization Technique for the Improvement of Marine Clay

ABSTRACT

Marine clays are present in many parts of the world and these deposits are characterized by poor engineering properties such as low strength and high compressibility. These deposits are sensitive to changes in the stress system and the system chemistry of the pore fluid, and the use of a lime stabilization technique for such problematic clays is not new. In the present investigation an attempt was made to examine the diffusion of lime in the lime treated marine clay from the lime column or lime injection points and the changes which occurred in the engineering behavior of the soil system. The formation of new reaction products due to soil-lime reactions has resulted in particle growth of soil particles and the same has been confirmed using scanning electron microscopy. The test results indicated that the presence of excessive sodium ions in sea water do not retard the effective penetration of lime into the soil and that there is significant improvement in the engineering behavior of the soil system. The lime column and lime injection techniques can therefore be conveniently used to improve the behavior of soft marine clay deposits.