Soft Clay Stabilization Using Three Industry Byproducts: Fid-Bau Portal

Soft Clay Stabilization Using Three Industry Byproducts

Xu, Bo / Yi, Yaolin

In order to reduce the disposal of industrial byproducts and the environmental impacts associated with ordinary Portland cement (OPC) production, it is encouraged to use industrial byproducts to replace OPC for soil stabilization. In this context, this study attempts to use three industrial byproducts, including ground granulated blast furnace slag (GGBS), ladle slag (LS), and phosphogypsum (PG), for soft clay stabilization. The GGBS-LS was used as the main binder, and the PG was used to enhance the strength development of GGBS-LS-stabilized soft clay. The GGBS-LS-PG-stabilized clay with different binder contents and $PG : (GGBS + LS)$ ratios were prepared and cured for different periods and then subjected to different tests, including unconfined compressive strength (UCS), one-stage batch leaching, X-ray diffraction analysis (XRD), field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), and energy-dispersive X-ray (EDX) spectroscopy analysis. The results indicated that the addition of PG could effectively enhance the strength development of GGBS-LS-stabilized clay. With $PG : (GGBS + LS)$ ratios of 10%–20%, the GGBS-LS-PG-stabilized clay could achieve higher 28-day and 112-day strength than that of OPC-stabilized clay. The leaching of Pb and Zn from the GGBS-LS-PG-stabilized clay was three to five orders of magnitude lower than that of raw LS and could satisfy the three common drinking water regulations. The addition of PG produced more ettringite in the stabilized clay, enhancing the strength development of stabilized clay. The findings indicate that the three industry byproducts can replace OPC to stabilize soft clay, which has significant benefits in both cost and sustainability.