Study of geotechnical properties of a gypsiferous soil treated with lime and silica fume

The gypsiferous soils are significantly sensitive to moisture and the water has a severe destructive effect on them. Therefore, the effect of lime and silica fume addition on their mechanical properties, when subjected to water, is investigated. Gypsiferous soil specimens were mixed with 1, 2 and 3% lime and 1, 3, 5 and 7% silica fume, in terms of the dry weight of soil. The specimens were mixed at optimum moisture content and cured for 24 hours, 7 and 28 days. 86 specimens in the sizes of unconfined compression strength test mold were prepared to perform unconfined compressive strength and durability tests. The results proved that adding even 1% of each of these additives can lead to a 15 times increase in unconfined compressive strength, compared with untreated specimen, and this increases as the curing time is prolonged. Also, after soaking, the compressive strength of the specimens stabilized with 2 and 3% lime plus different percentages of silica fume was considerably higher than before soaking. The durability of the treated specimens increased significantly after soaking. Direct shear tests showed that lime treatment is more efficient than silica fume treatment. Moreover, it is concluded that the initial tangent modulus and the strain at failure increased as the normal stress of the test was increased. Also, the higher lime contents, up to certain limits, increase the shear strength. Therefore, simultaneous use of lime and silica fume is recommended to improve the geotechnical properties of gypsiferous soils.