A Study on the Strength of Bagasse Ash Blended Clay

Bagasse ash, an agriculture waste product, is used to improve the strength of the soil. Bagasse ash was added in quantities of 2, 4, 6 and 8% of dry weight of soil. The study shows that on blending with soil, it improves the stiffness of the soil matrix, its strength and deformation modulus. The pozzolanic material present in the bagasse ash leads to the formation of cementitious gels that result in enhanced strength of the blended soil. It also improves the durability of the blended soil. Cement is added as a secondary stabilizer to improve the strength and particularly the durability in minimum quantities of 0.1, 0.5 and 1%. The study shows that the optimum bagasse ash content to be used to stabilize the soil is 4% and cement is 0.1%.