Geotechnical Properties of Lateritic Soil Stabilized with Periwinkle Shells Powder

This study used eco-friendly materials known as Periwinkle Shell Powder (PSP) in stabilizing the engineering properties of lateritic soil. Preliminary test was performed on the un-stabilized lateritic soil for the purposes of identification and classification (natural moisture content, liquid limits, plastic limits, and plasticity index). The engineering tests were conducted on the lateritic soil stabilized with additions of (2, 4, 6, 8 and 10 %) PSP and OPC respectively. The result showed that cement gave a progressive increase in the Maximum Dry Density (MDD) of the lateritic soil from 1875 kg/m3 (2 %) to 2294 kg/m3 (10 %) respectively. This represents 22 % increase in the MDD from the un-stabilized state. For PSP, the Maximum MDD was attained at 6 % (1974 kg/m3), representing 5.3 % increase in MDD of the soil from the un-stabilized state. For both stabilizing agent, the Optimum Moisture Content (OMC) increases from 13.65 % to 13.83 % and from 11.72 % to 14.41 % for Cement and Periwinkle Shell Powder respectively. PSP recorded an increase of 5.6 % of CBR value compared with OPC that recorded an increase of 34 % CBR value. The study therefore concluded that Periwinkle Shell Powder (PSP) could be considered as good stabilizer for clayey or lateritic, and its uses as a stabilizer could also provide a big relief to the environmental pollution caused by its indiscriminate dumping.