Mechanical Properties of Lateritic Soil Reinforced with Geotextile Material (Nigerian Bagco Super Sack)

Abstract

Due to the effect of urbanization and industrialization, soil improvement has been an area of major concern in the field of construction. Consequently, the modification of soil mechanical properties with invasive methods (e.g., sand drainages, piles, partial compensation techniques, etc.) or reinforcement techniques (e.g., geotextiles, geogrids, fibers, etc.) is becoming increasingly common. This research was to ascertain the mechanical properties of lateritic soil reinforced with locally available geotextile material in Nigeria (bagco supper sack). Soil samples were collected and their index and strength properties including; moisture content, particle size distribution, specific gravity, Atterberg limits, compaction and California Bearing Ratio were carried out. The samples were singly reinforced and also doubly reinforced with the Bagco Supper Sack Bag. Compaction and CBR tests were conducted on the reinforced soil. From the result, the soil can be classified as A-7-6 which is an inorganic clayey soil of very low to medium plasticity with a general subgrade rating of fair to poor according to AASHTO classification. The compaction test results showed an increase in the Maximum Dry Density and a corresponding decrease in Optimum Moisture Content when it was doubly reinforced and no increase when it was singly reinforced. The MDD increased from the average of 1.92g/cm³ for the control sample to 2.0g/cm³ for the doubly reinforced. While for the simply reinforced, there was a decrease in the MDD. The CBR results showed a gradual increase for singly reinforced soil and a rapid increase when they were doubly reinforced. This showed that Nigerian Bagco Supper Sack Bag can be used as soil reinforcement especially when doubly reinforced.

Keywords: Geosynthetics, geotextiles, reinforced soil, California Bearing Ratio, Maximum Dry Density, Optimum Moisture Content, Bagco Super Sack

DOI: 10.7176/CER/12-2-09

Publication date: February 29^th 2020