Abstract
This paper studies the changes in physicochemical and mechanical properties of lime-treated loess at different lime contents and curing days. The physical tests were conducted in particle size distribution, Atterberg limits, specific gravity, specific surface area and cation exchange capacity of lime-treated loess, while its chemical tests included electrical conductivity, total dissolved solids, pH, and oxidation reduction potential of extracts from 1:5 soil to water. Finally, the relevant mechanical tests were performed in unconfined compressive strength. The results showed that the physicochemical and mechanical properties of lime-treated loess were altered during hydration and pozzolantic reactions, which caused the formation of aggregation and new cementitious minerals. As a result, the performance of lime-treated loess acquired great improvement compared to that of untreated loess. The improvement can attribute to the first immediate aggregation formation due to flocculation induced by cation exchange, and then the filling between the aggregations or particles due to the formation of new cementitious minerals. In addition, the results indicated that the chemical properties of lime-treated loess are more relatively sensitive to environmental change than their physical and mechanical properties.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Abdelmadjid L, Muzahim A-M (2008) Effect of hydrated lime on the engineering behaviour and the microstructure of highly expansive clay. The 12th International Conference of International Association for Computer Methods and Advances in Geomechanics (IACMAG), pp 3590–3598
Aldaood A, Bouasker M, Al-Mukhtar M (2014a) Geotechnical properties of lime-treated gypseous soils. Appl Clay Sci 88–89:39–48
Aldaood A, Bouasker M, Al-Mukhtar M (2014b) Impact of wetting-drying cycles on the microstructure and mechanical properties of lime-stabilized gypseous soils. Eng Geol 174:11–21
Al-Mukhtar M, Khattab S, Alcover J-F (2012) Microstructure and geotechnical properties of lime-treated expansive clayey soil. Eng Geol 139–140:17–27
ASTMD422-63 (2007) Standard test method for particle-size analysis of soils. ASTM International, West Conshohocken
Barker J, Rogers C, Boardman D (2006) Physio-chemical changes in clay caused by ion migration from lime piles. J Mater Civ Eng 18:182–189
Barker J, Rogers C, Boardman D (2007) Ion migration associated with lime piles: a review. Ground Improvement 11:87–98
Beetham P, Dijkstra T, Dixon N, Fleming P, Hutchison R, Bateman J (2015) Lime stabilisation for earthworks: a UK perspective. Proc ICE-Ground Improv 168:81–95
Bell FG (1996) Lime stabilization of clay minerals and soils. Eng Geol 42:223–237
Bennert T, Maher M, Jafari F, Gucunski N (2000) Use of dredged sediments from Newark Harbor for geotechnical applications. In: dil TB, Fox PJ (eds) Geotechnics of high water content materials. ASTM STP, West Conshohocken, pp 152–164
Boardman D, Glendinning S, Rogers C (2001) Development of stabilisation and solidification in lime-clay mixes. Géotechnique 51:533–543
Cambi C, Carrisi S, Comodi P (2012) Use of the methylene blue stain test to evaluate the efficiency of lime treatment on selected clayey soils. J Geotech Geoenviron Eng 138:1147–1150
Cassidy DP, Srivastava VJ, Dombrowski FJ, Lingle JW (2015) Combining in situ chemical oxidation, stabilization, and anaerobic bioremediation in a single application to reduce contaminant mass and leachability in soil. J Hazard Mater 297:347–355
Chew S, Kamruzzaman A, Lee F (2004) Physicochemical and engineering behavior of cement treated clays. J Geotech Geoenviron Eng 130:696–706
Ciancio D, Beckett CTS, Carraro JAH (2014) Optimum lime content identification for lime-stabilised rammed earth. Constr Build Mater 53:59–65
Çokça E, Birand AA (1993) Determination of cation exchange capacity of clayey soils by the methylene blue test. Geotech Test J 16:518–524
Cuisinier O, Auriol J-C, Le Borgne T, Deneele D (2011) Microstructure and hydraulic conductivity of a compacted lime-treated soil. Eng Geol 123:187–193
Eades J, Grim R (1966) A quick test to determine lime requirements for soil stabilization. Highway Res Rec 136:61–72
Eisazadeh A, Kassim K, Nur H (2012) Cation exchange capacity of phosphoric acid and lime stabilized montmorillonitic and kaolinitic soils. Geotech Geol Eng 30:1435–1440
GB/T50123 (1999) Standard for soil test method. Ministry of Construction, P. R. China (in Chinese)
Hino T, Jia R, Sueyoshi S, Harianto T (2012) Effect of environment change on the strength of cement/lime treated clays. Front Struct Civil Eng 6:153–165
JGS (2010) Basic handbook of the soil testing, 2nd edn. Japanese Geotechnical Society, Tokyo (in Japanese)
Kiefer WS, Macke RJ, Britt DT, Irving AJ, Consolmagno GJ (2012) The density and porosity of lunar rocks. Geophys Res Lett 39:L07201
Le Runigo B, Cuisinier O, Cui YJ, Ferber V, Deneele D (2009) Impact of initial state on the fabric and permeability of a lime-treated silt under long-term leaching. Can Geotech J 46:1243–1257
Lemaire K, Deneele D, Bonnet S, Legret M (2013) Effects of lime and cement treatment on the physicochemical, microstructural and mechanical characteristics of a plastic silt. Eng Geol 166:255–261
Locat J, Berube MA, Choquette M (1990) Laboratory investigations on the lime stabilization of sensitive clays: shear strength development. Can Geotech J 27:294–304
Locat J, Trembaly H, Leroueil S (1996) Mechanical and hydraulic behaviour of a soft inorganic clay treated with lime. Can Geotech J 33:654–669
Mathew P, Rao S (1997) Effect of lime on cation exchange capacity of marine clay. J Geotech Geoenviron Eng 123:183–185
Metelková Z, Boháč J, Přikryl R, Sedlářová I (2012) Maturation of loess treated with variable lime admixture: pore space textural evolution and related phase changes. Appl Clay Sci 61:37–43
Pei X, Zhang F, Wu W, Liang S (2015) Physicochemical and index properties of loess stabilized with lime and fly ash piles. Appl Clay Sci 114:77–84
Rogers CDF, Glendinning S, Roff TEJ (1997) Lime modification of clay soils for construction expediency. In: Proceedings of the ICE—Geotechnical Engineering pp 242–249
Russo G, Modoni G (2013) Fabric changes induced by lime addition on a compacted alluvial soil. Geotechn Lett 3:93–97
Santamarina J, Klein K, Wang Y, Prencke E (2002) Specific surface: determination and relevance. Can Geotech J 39:233–241
Sariosseiri F, Muhunthan B (2009) Effect of cement treatment on geotechnical properties of some Washington State soils. Eng Geol 104:119–125
Sivapullaiah PV, Manju (2005) Kaolinite-alkali interaction and effects on basic properties. Geotech Geol Eng 23:601–614
Warkentin BP (1961) Interpretation of the upper plastic limit of clays. Nature 190:287–288
Zhang F, Wang G, Kamai T, Chen W, Zhang D, Yang J (2013) Undrained shear behavior of saturated loess at different concentrations of sodium chlorate solution. Eng Geol 155:69–79
Acknowledgements
This study was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 41402240), the Natural Key Basic Research Development Plan of China (No. 2014CB744703), the Opening fund of State Key Laboratory of Geohazard Prevention and Geoenvironment Protection (No. SKLGP2016K020), and the Supported by the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities (lzujbky-2017-k19). The authors’ special thanks go to the editor and two anonymous referees, whose valuable comments led to substantial improvement of this manuscript.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Zhang, F., Pei, X. & Yan, X. Physicochemical and Mechanical Properties of Lime-Treated Loess. Geotech Geol Eng 36, 685–696 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10706-017-0341-6
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10706-017-0341-6