Modification of soft soils with ground granulated blastfurnace slags with activated magnesium oxide

Abstract

Portland cement (PC) is commonly used material in soil stabilisation treatment. However, with the rise of environmental consciousness, more environmentally friendly industrial by products have been used and investigated to replace PC. This paper addresses the use of ground granulated blast furnace slag (GGBS) activated by reactive magnesia (MgO) for the stabilisation of clayey soil. Unconfined compressive strength was used as a key parameter to examine the mechanical properties of the stabilized clayey soil under the influence of varying MgO:GGBS ratio, binder content and curing age. The unconfined compression strength, stiffness and stress-strain responce of the treated soil have been found to show significant changes comparable to soil treated with PC.