Performance Evaluation of Clay Soil by the Addition of Nano Silica and Basalt Fiber

Transportation satisfies a fundamental human need. Since the beginning of time, people have traveled for pleasure or nourishment. Because the success of a country is closely linked to the quality of its transportation infrastructure, everyone has high expectations for these amenities. The need for a transportation system that is economically viable, environmentally benign, socially legitimate, sustainable, and practically acceptable presents significant issues for civil engineers today. The current construction environment makes standard procedures inappropriate, which is fueling interest in technology such as ground improvement. Among all forms of transportation, an affordable road network is essential to the economic development of developing nations like India. If the subgrade layer of the pavement is weak in the case of a highway, then more pavement thickness is needed, which raises the cost of pavement construction. Basalt fibers are utilized to fortify the subgrade soil because they are practically acceptable, affordable, and readily available regionally, and environmentally friendly. Proctor Compaction tests and California Bearing Ratio (CBR) testing were performed on locally accessible soil that was reinforced with basalt fiber and nano-silica in this study. By dry weight of soil, the percentages of basalt fiber and nano-silica were calculated to be 4%, 6%, and 8%. To determine the ideal amount, basalt fiber was taken at 02%, 03%, and 04% in the current study. From these experiments, it has been analyzed that with the increase of Basalt fiber content in addition to Nano-Silica, the UCS increases and maximum value of UCS is obtained at 8% of Nano-Silica with 03% of Basalt fiber. The intermixing of Basalt fiber with the soil acts as a reinforcing material in binding the soil particles and the ‘bridge effect’ of fiber reinforcement in soil impedes the further development of tension cracks.