Potential application of cement amended marine clay as liner material

One of the major problems being faced today in the society is solid waste disposal. Compacted clay soils are commonly used as liner materials in waste containment systems. As marine clay is abundant in the coastal belt of Kochi, this locally available soil was used in the study. Desiccation cracking of clay mass can lead to development of shrinkage cracks and also provide pathways for moisture migration into the landfill. In order to minimize the adverse effect of cracks, the behaviour of sun-dried marine clay amended with cement in different percentages of 1%, 2%, and 4% were studied. To stimulate the field conditions, the samples were subjected to alternate wetting and drying cycles. For different cement content, three cycles of alternate wetting and drying were performed. The study indicates that the extent of crack formation decreases with increase in cement content and the optimum percentage of cement amendment is 4%.