Geopolymer Soil Stabilization Using Acacia Ash for Strength Improvement

Abstract

This paper presents the stabilization of black cotton soil (BC soil) using Acacia ash. The ash is collected from acacia plant and alkali activators like sodium hydroxide and sodium silicate were used. This study mainly concentrates on the effectiveness of acacia ash and alkali activators in stabilization for enhancing the strength properties of BC soil and to obtain optimum proportion of acacia ash. In this study the molar concentration of sodium hydroxide was 8M and the addition of acacia ash was 15% and 18%. The samples were prepared with and without mix of alkali activators. The unconfined compressive strength (UCS) test was conducted on soil specimens to characterize the strength. The test was performed before and after stabilization. The results revealed that 8M of NaOH with 15% acacia ash gave maximum UCS value. The moisture changes in BC soils, compressibility, plasticity and strength properties can be greatly improved with the addition of Acacia ash. From the results the strength properties of BC soil were improved is clearly visualized. Finally, the study showed that the acacia ash with alkaline activators used could improve the strength properties of BC soil.