A Study on Stabilization of Soils by Using Egg Shell Powder and Basalt Fiber

One of the most important aspects of building a solid infrastructure is soil stabilization. The weight of the soil not only supports the loads, but also retains the structure’s strength, durability, and stiffness. Researchers have long been involved in soil stabilization, and different practices have been used to accomplish this aim, as well as various additives such as asphalt, lime, and Fly Ash. In a manner to contribute the soil stabilization research a sustainable waste material like Eggshell powder and Basalt fiber were used to attain the soil with significant soil bearing capacity. A combination of 5%, 10% and 15% of eggshell powder along with 2%, 3% and 4% of Basalt fiber were used. The standard proctor test was used to test the soil for basic and fundamental parameters such as OMC-MDD, the CBR was used to access load penetration, and the unconfined compression strength test was used to assess the soil’s shear strength. The best and optimum results we obtained at 10% of eggshell powder with 3% of Basalt fiber for the weight of soil masses. Satisfactory results are obtained at the other combination also. Different parameters were analyzed using comparative charts and was found out that one parameter is correlated with other soil parameters. Based on these investigations, it has been shown that the UCS increases as the amount of Basalt fiber added to Eggshell powder increases. The highest UCS value is achieved at 10% Eggshell powder and 3% Basalt fiber. The “bridge effect” of fiber reinforcement in soil prevents stress cracks from spreading further, and the intermixing of basalt fiber with the soil serves as a reinforcing element in binding the soil particles.