Reduction in Soil Compaction by Utilization of Waste Tire Rubber

Hardpan is one of the major problems found in many parts of Thailand where monocropping and repeated plowing at the same depth are conducted. This work aimed to study the feasibility of using crumb rubber produced from waste tires to alleviate the soil compaction problem. Effects of particle size and loading of crumb rubber on the degree of soil compaction were investigated. The quality of water extracted from crumb rubber was also analyzed to determine the severity of environmental contamination. The scope of work was further extended into field tests. The results reveal that the addition of crumb rubber into sandy loam subsoil significantly reduced the bulk density of the compacted soil and permitted greater water permeation through the compacted soil layer. The effects were more pronounced with either increasing crumb rubber loading or reducing crumb rubber particle size. For the field test, the addition of small crumb rubber (S-crumb) at 30%wt. resulted in a significant reduction in penetration force in conjunction with a considerable increase in water permeability. The results clearly confirm the reduction in soil compaction by the addition of crumb rubber. From a quality analysis of the extracted water, most poisonous heavy metals were below the detection limits of the test equipment, except zinc.