Desiccation Induced Shrinkage of Compacted Lateritic Soil Treated with Blast Furnace Slag

A reddish brown lateritic soil treated with up to 15% blast furnace slag was compacted with three compactive efforts, (standard Proctor, West African Standard and modified Proctor) with moulding water contents ranging between 10 and 20% of weight of dry mixture. Compacted samples were extruded and allowed to dry in the laboratory for 30 days with measurements taken every 5 days to monitor volumetric changes due to drying. Four specimens compacted on the wet side of optimum using standard proctor effort; at the various slag treatments after 10 days of drying were subjected to four cycles of drying and three cycles of wetting. The results obtained showed that the changes in mass and volumetric shrinkage were rapid within the first 5 days of drying. These changes were proportional to the moulding water contents and were unaffected by the compactive effort. The volumetric shrinkage strain increased with increasing moulding water content and compactive efforts. As the water content relative to the optimum increased towards the wet side, the volumetric shrinkage strain increased and it decreased towards the dry side. For all compaction energies, the initial degree of saturation increased and regardless of the slag content, the volumetric shrinkage strain increased. As the slag content increased, the initial degree of saturation at which the permissible 4% volumetric shrinkage occurred increased. Slag content had marginal effects on the volumetric shrinkage strain as no clear trend was established. For each slag treatment the volumetric shrinkage strain did not vary significantly with increasing number of drying cycles.