Effect of Pollutants on the Physical and Engineering Behavior of Lime-Treated Marine Clay

Rapid industrial growth and increasing population has resulted in the discharge of wastes into the ocean, wastes which ultimately reach the seabed and contaminate the marine sediments. The soil-contaminants interaction, and their associated physico chemical properties with sediments control the behavior of marine clays. Marine clay deposits of low strength and high compressibility are located in many coastal and offshore areas. There are several foundation problems encountered in these weak marine clays. In this study, experimental work was carried out in the laboratory to stabilize soft marine clays using the lime column technique. Also the lime-induced effects on the physical and engineering behavior of marine clays in sulfate-contaminated marine environment was investigated. Consolidation tests indicate that compressibility of the lime-treated samples was reduced to 1/2-1/3 of the virgin soil after 45 days treatment. The test results also suggest that the lime column technique can be conveniently used to improve the behavior of contaminated marine clay deposits.     

Compressibility behaviour of lime-treated marine clay

The necessity to tap natural marine resources from the ocean beds represents a considerable challenge for the construction of offshore structures on weak marine deposits. The use of lime to improve the behaviour of soft clays is not new. The present investigation examines lime-induced changes in the compressibility of marine clay. The test results indicate a reduction of 1/2 to 1/3 in the compressibility of the soil system within 30 to 45 days of treatment. The formation of various cementation compounds due to soil–lime reactions improves the soil characteristics with time. The results encourage the application of lime column and lime injection techniques to improve the engineering behaviour of soft marine clayey deposits. However, one has to be cautious in applying the lime technique to marine clays that contain sodium sulfate.     

Sulphate Attack in Lime-Treated Marine Clay

ABSTRACT

The use of lime to improve the properties of soft clays is not new. Recently the deep lime mixing technique has been extended to coastal regions for improving the behavior of weak marine clays. But lime treatment technique should be approached carefully for clay containing a high percentage of sodium sulphate. The presence of sulphate in lime-treated clays may result in high swelling due to the formation of the expansive mineral, ettringite. A limited study of lime-treated marine clays has shown a need to further explore the formation of ettringite and its stability with time. In this article, a laboratory investigation was carried out to examine the influence of sodium and calcium sulphates on the behavior of lime column treated marine clay. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) was used to identify the formation of various reaction products, including ettringite. Test results indicate that the formation of ettringite in the lime-sodium sulphate-clay system adversely affects the engineering behavior of the marine clay, whereas the addition of calcium sulphate significantly improves the engineering characteristics of the soil.     

Sulphate Attack in Lime-Treated Marine Clay

The use of lime to improve the properties of soft clays is not new. Recently the deep lime mixing technique has been extended to coastal regions for improving the behavior of weak marine clays. But lime treatment technique should be approached carefully for clay containing a high percentage of sodium sulphate. The presence of sulphate in lime-treated clays may result in high swelling due to the formation of the expansive mineral, ettringite. A limited study of lime-treated marine clays has shown a need to further explore the formation of ettringite and its stability with time. In this article, a laboratory investigation was carried out to examine the influence of sodium and calcium sulphates on the behavior of lime column treated marine clay. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) was used to identify the formation of various reaction products, including ettringite. Test results indicate that the formation of ettringite in the lime-sodium sulphate-clay system adversely affects the engineering behavior of the marine clay, whereas the addition of calcium sulphate significantly improves the engineering characteristics of the soil.     

Physico-chemical and mineralogical studies on cochin marine clays

Large deposits of marine clays are encountered all along the Indian coastal belt. These clays are pleistocene to recent in origin, are considered to be young, and were deposited in a salt or brackish environment. These clays are very soft in consistency with low in-situ strength and high compressibility. The properties of these soil deposits depend mainly on the clay minerals present. In the present investigation, the mineralogical studies of some Cochin marine clays were carried out using XRD technique. The physical and chemical properties of these deposits were also reported. The test results were compared with some earlier reported works on marine clays.     

Permeability characteristics of lime treated marine clay

An attempt has been made to investigate the lime induced permeability changes in the permeability and engineering behavior of different lime column treated soil systems. Lime columns treated marine clay shows an increase in permeability up to a maximum value of 15–18 times that of untreated soil with time. The shear strength of the treated soil systems show an increment up to 8–10 that of untreated soil within a period of 30–45 days curing. In the case of lime injection systems, the permeability has been increased up to 10–15 times that of untreated soil, whereas the strength of the soil has been higher by 8–10 times that of untreated soil. Further, consolidation tests show a reduction in the compressibility up to 1/2–1/3 of original values. The test results revealed that both lime column and injection techniques could be used to improve the behaviour of underwater marine clay deposits.     

Lime injection technique to improve the behaviour of soft marine clays

Soft marine clay deposits pose several foundation problems and such weak clay deposits have been found both along seacoasts and in offshore areas spread over many parts of the world. We suggest using some chemical injection techniques to improve the engineering behaviour of soft underwater marine clays. A test programme was carried out by injecting lime into a soft marine clay in a test tank. The penetration of lime into the soil was established by taking a number of pH measurements and calcium oxide estimation from samples taken at various radial distances. The improvement in the plasticity characteristics of the soil has been verified by indices tests. Test results indicated the improvement in the strength and reduction in the compressibility of the soil with time. The beneficial changes that occurred in the soil have been attributed to the formation of cementation compounds and these compounds have been identified by using X-ray Diffraction Technique (XRD). The test results show good promise for the use of lime grouting in the treatment of weak marine clayey deposits.     

Enhancing the mechanical properties of marine clay using cement solidification

Abstract

The use of soft clay and dredged marine clays as the construction material is challenging. This is because the high water content, high compressibility and low permeability of the clay causing the instability of ground and structure. This detrimental effect of soft clay can be improved by the cement solidification process, which is relatively cheap and efficient. This paper mainly focuses on the study of improvement on the mechanical behavior of cement mixed marine clay. The soil is reconstituted by using ordinary Portland cement of 5%, 10%, 15% and 20% by its mass. The study reveals that cementation of clay significantly improves the peak and residual strength of soil. Similarly, the primary yield stress of the soil is also improved from 16 to 275?kPa as cement content increases from 5% to 20%, respectively. By using statistical tools, the relationships between various parameters are established, which are very important to define the mechanical behavior of the clay. This study reveals that the yield surface of the solidified marine clay is not a smooth elliptical surface. Rather it is composed of two linear surfaces followed by a log-linear surface which can be modeled by using simple parameters obtained from triaxial tests.     

Rheological characteristics and one-dimensional isotache modelling of marine soft clays

Abstract

This paper presents a novel elasto-viscoplastic constitutive formulation based on the isotache concepts and the Nishihara model. Incorporating a novel viscoelastic body to include the delay elastic deformation of marine soft clays under the external load, the proposed model is used to evaluate the theories of consolidation-creep coupling, strain rate dependency and stress relaxation of saturated marine soft clays, and hence, the methodology used to determine the parameters of the model is discussed. Ningbo marine soft clay is selected as an example to interpret the determination of the model parameters on a field scale. A series of conventional oedometer tests are conducted as well. Eventually, we utilize the model to simulate several kinds of rheological tests, including one-dimensional (1-D) long-term compression tests on Ningbo marine soft clays, 1-D constant rate of strain (CRS) tests on Batiscan clays and 1-D stress relaxation tests on Hong Kong marine deposits. These findings indicate good agreement between the computational and experimental results, suggesting the given model can provide reliable forecasts for the rheological characteristics of marine soft clays.     

Electro-osmotic stabilization of marine clay with chemical piles

Weak marine clay deposits exist all along the seacost of many parts of the world. Due to the poor engineering characteristics of these deposits, they pose several foundation problems to various coastal structures. Because of the high salt content in these deposits, the electro-osmotic technique has been effectively adopted to stabilize these deposits with some inorganic additives. In this investigation, the physico-chemical changes that occurred in a marine clay with various inorganic additives are presented and discussed. The improvement in the strength and plasticity characteristics of the soil have also been studied and reported. The newly formed reaction products arising out of the diffusion of lime are identified using X-ray diffraction technique (XRD). The present study indicates great promise regarding the use of electro-osmotic technique with inorganic additives as a quick remedial measure for the in-situ stabilization of coastal marine clay deposits.     

Engineering behaviour of MICP treated marine clays

Abstract

In the present scenario, with much focus on sustainable development worldwide, Microbially Induced Calcite Precipitation (MICP) is a promising biological soil improvement technology. However, only very limited research is reported on the effectiveness of this technique in marine clays. This paper presents the salient features of an experimental study conducted on two typical marine clays stabilised by MICP. Effectiveness of the technique was evaluated through a series of one-dimensional consolidation tests, unconfined compression tests, and index property determinations. It is found that biostimulation approach is not effective in marine clay; bio-augmentation is needed for soil improvement. Bio-augmentation results in the reduction of liquid limit and plasticity index to about 29% and 47%, respectively for the marine clays. A comparable improvement in volume change behaviour is also observed. There is a marked increase in undrained shear strength, upto about 148%, of MICP treated marine clays at toughness limit water content. Curing is also found to have a significant role in soil improvement. The observed transition in the nature of the tested marine clays from that of fat clay to elastic silt suggests the potential of the proposed approach. An empirical equation is also proposed to predict compression index of MICP treated marine clays.     

Fabric and mineralogical studies on lime treated marine clays

The use of lime to improve the engineering properties of weak marine clays is a common method from the past. Recent studies indicate that the various foundation problems occurred with passage of time for offshore structures due to hostile wave conditions and adverse climatic conditions. Hence, there is an urgent need to improve the engineering properties of these soft deposits using well established ground improvement techniques. In the present investigation, an attempt has been made on two marine clays to investigate the microchanges that occurred at particulate level due to the addition of lime and sodium hydroxide chemicals. The influence of sodium hydroxide additive on the fabric of lime treated marine clays has also been studied using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) technique. The formation of various new reaction products due to soil-lime reactions and their stability in marine environment were also studied and reported using x-ray diffraction (XRD) technique. The test results indicate that lime stabilization is effective for improving the properties of marine clays and the presence of sea water increases the efficiency of lime stabilization.     

Engineering behavior of uplifted Smectite‐rich Cochin and Mangalore marine clays

Abstract

The present study aims to assess whether the smectite‐rich Cochin and Mangalore clays, which were deposited in a marine medium and subsequently uplifted, exhibit consistency limits response typical of expanding lattice or nonexpanding (fixed) lattice‐type clays on artificially changing the chemical environment. The chemical and engineering behaviors of Cochin and Mangalore marine clays are also compared with those of the smectite‐rich Ariake Bay marine clay from Japan. Although Cochin, Mangalore, and Ariake clays contain comparable amounts of smectite (32–45%), Ariake clay exhibits lower consistency limits and much higher ranges of liquidity indices than the Indian marine clays. The lower consistency limits of the Ariake clay are attributed to the absence of well‐developed, long‐range, interparticle forces associated with the clay. Also, Ariake clay exhibits a significantly large (48–714 times) decrease in undrained strength on remolding in comparison to Cochin and Mangalore clays (sensitivity ranges between 1 and 4). A preponderance of long‐range, interparticle forces reflected in the high consistency limits of Cochin and Mangalore clays (w_L range from 75 to 180%) combined with low natural water contents yield low liquidity indices (typically <1) and high, remolded, undrained strengths and are considered to be responsible for the low sensitivity of the Indian marine clays.     

Lime migration studies in marine clays

Weak marine clay deposits are present in several regions of the world and they are imposing severe problems for structures founded in these deposits. The use of lime to improve the properties of these soft deposits is not new. In the present investigation, a test programme was carried out to study the migration of lime into the marine clay from the installed lime columns and lime slurry injected points. The formation of various cementation compounds due to soil-lime reactions were identified by X-ray diffraction studies and the attributed changes occurring in the engineering properties of the soil systems were studied. The test results indicate that a sufficient amount of lime is diffused into the soil systems with time and the presence of excessive sodium ions in sea water does not retard the effective penetration of lime into the soil. It is suggested that both the lime-column and lime-injection techniques can be conveniently used to improve the behaviour of soft marine clayey deposits. For weak marine clays under large depths of water, the lime-injection technique is better suited.     

A Laboratory model study on the performance of lime pile application for marine soils

In this study, research was conducted to examine the performance of the lime pile application, a deep chemical stabilization method to improve the engineering characteristics of marine soil deposits. By using a laboratory-scale model, the marine soil sample was compacted into soil blocks in circular steel test tanks, with the installation of lime piles in them. An experimental program examined the effect of lime piles on physical and engineering properties of the soil in terms of curing periods and lime pile radial distances. Test results showed that clay fines, linear shrinkage, compressibility, and swelling pressure decreased, while permeability, preconsolidation pressure, and stiffness increased significantly with an increase in curing periods and within a close distance to the lime piles. Also, the electrical resistivity of the treated soils was examined to monitor the changes in their electrical properties. Finally, the correlation between the measured electrical resistivity and swell pressure values of the tested soils at different curing periods suggested that the electrical resistivity values can be used as a monitoring technique for deep chemical treatments of the subsurface soil.     

Undrained monotonic shear behavior of marine soft clay after long-term cyclic loading

Abstract

In the coastal area, nearshore and offshore structures have been or will be built in marine soft clay deposits that have experienced long-term cyclic loads. Therefore, the mechanical behavior of marine clay after long-term cyclic loading needs to be investigated. In this research, a series of monotonic and cyclic triaxial tests were carried out to investigate the postcyclic mechanical behavior of the marine soft clay. The postcyclic water pore pressure, shear strength and secant stiffness are discussed by comparing the results with the standard monotonic test (without cyclic loading). It is very interesting that the postcyclic behavior of marine soft clay specimen is similar to the behavior of overconsolidated specimen, that is, the specimen shows apparent overconsolidation behavior after long-term cyclic loading. Then relationship between the overconsolidation ratio and the apparent overconsolidation ratio is established on the basis of the theory of equivalent overconsolidation. Finally, a validation formula is proposed which can predict the postcyclic undrained shear strength of marine soft clay.     

Pollutants behaviour and temperature effect on chemical piles treated marine clay

Weak marine clay deposits are present in several regions of the world and they are imposing severe problems for structures founded in these deposits. The use of chemicals lime to improve the properties of these soft deposits is not new. In the present investigation, a test programme was carried out to study the influence of temperature on the engineering behaviour of chemical piles treated clays in the presence of sulphate and chloride contaminated marine environment. The formation of various cementation compounds due to soil-lime reactions were identified by X-ray diffraction studies, and the attributed changes occurred in the engineering properties of the soil systems were also brought out. The test results indicated that the increase in temperature has improved the engineering properties of soil significantly.     

Modeling of embankment beneath marine deposited soft sensitive clays considering straightforward creep degradation

Abstract

One method straightforwardly describing the creep degradation behavior of soft marine clay is proposed and applied to the embankment modeling. Based on the experimental phenomena, the evolution of creep coefficient of soft structured clay is identified comparing with reconstituted clay, and formulated using the creep coefficient of reconstituted clay and a creep-based structure parameter relating to the inter-particle bonding. The contributions of inter-particle bonding and debonding to creep coefficient are thus considered and the creep degradation behavior is then captured straightforwardly. The creep coefficient is extended to 3D and incorporated into a newly developed elasto-viscoplastic model to describe the creep degradation in a direct way. Based on the correlations, the liquid limit is adopted as the viscosity related input parameter. The model is derived using Newton–Raphson algorithm and implemented into a Finite Element code for coupled consolidation analysis. The general applicability on creep degradation of the model is validated by simulating 1D creep, 1D CRS (constant strain rate) and 3D undrained creep tests. Finally, the enhanced model considering creep degradation is applied and validated by simulating one test embankment and one test fill on marine deposited soft sensitive clays.     

Geotechnical Aspects of Clayey Sediments Off Badagara on the Kerala Coast,India

Offshore geotechnical surveys form part of an integrated investigation to rejuvenate a decrepit minor port at Badagara, Kerala on the southwestern coast of India. The sediments typify a fluvio-marine milieu ranging from silty clay, sand, silty sand, sandy silt and clayey silt. Geotechnical and sedimentological studies of shallow cores reveal the geotechnical aspects besides the depositional history of the sediments. Downcore geotechnical variations and regressive coefficients based on their inter-relationships highlight diverse factorial inferences. X-Ray Diffraction data indicate the prominent clay type.

A comparative evaluation of the geotechnical characteristics of clayey sediments off Badagara, with similar studies along various sectors of the Kerala coast, both on land as well as in the near shore, is broadly attempted. Geotechnical studies carried out earlier on the uplifted Cochin marine clays provide comparative data for evaluating the possible variations between present day marine clayey sediments occurring along the Kerala coast and uplifted marine clays which, besides their gross variations in levels with respect to the present sea-level, also obviously relate to a much older depositional environment and provenance during probable Holocene times.     

Experimental Evaluation of Leaching Effects on the Compressibility of Marine Clay and its Strain Rate Dependency

This study investigated how leaching affects compressibility behavior of marine clay and its strain rate dependency based on laboratory tests using three pairs of specimens. Each pair of specimens consisted of leached and unleached samples with identical geotechnical properties except soil salinity. The behavior characteristics of the leached and unleached specimens were evaluated using several series of constant rate-of-strain (CRS) tests with differing strain rates. The results revealed that the compressibility of leached clay increased as its salinity decreased. However, void ratio, Atterberg limits, and preconsolidation pressure in leached samples were lower than those in unleached clay. The increased compressibility and decreased preconsolidation pressure may be induced from a weakening of the interparticle bonds in the leached soil skeleton. The CRS test results with differing strain rates revealed that higher strain rates corresponded with higher levels of effective stress and higher apparent preconsolidation pressure in both leached and unleached clays.