May/19/2021

Highway Engineering II
CENG 4183
Lecture six

Eyob Tesfamariam
binitesfa@[Link]
Chapter six: Stabilized Pavement Materials
6.1. Mechanical stabilization

6.2. Cement Stabilization

6.3. Lime Stabilization

6.4. Bitumen Stabilization

Thickness in (mm)
Reminder

CBR value%
 Stabilization
Questions to be addressed on this chapter
1. What is stabilization?
2. What is the Purpose/ importance/ objectives of stabilization?
3. How to deal with problematic soil
4. What kind of factors to be considered?
5. What kind of material needs stabilization?
6. What are the common types of stabilizers and stabilization?
Stabilization is the process of blending (mixing) of materials (i.e.
stabilizer with soil aggregate) to improve certain properties of
material. Which is
* Strength * Plasticity
* Density * Workability
* Durability * Permeability and
* Combination of the above
Objective of soil stabilization (Purpose of stabilization)
We stabilize marginal materials (particularly/partially fulfill the
specification) (of questionable or minimal quality or at border or
edge) in which stabilization can’t change the whole properties
 To Improve the strength, stability and bearing capacity for
subgrade, sub base, base coarse and low-cost road surfaces,
 To Improve the volume stability –undesirable properties such as
swelling, shrinkage, high plasticity characteristics and
difficulty in compaction, etc. used by change in moisture,
 To Improve durability:- increase the resistance to erosion,
weathering or traffic
 To Improve high permeability, poor workability, frost
(Ice crystals forming a white deposit) susceptibility etc.
What kind of material needs stabilization
Problematic Soils categorizes subgrade materials with low
strength or other unfavorable properties such as:
 Expansive soils (Black cotton soil)
 Dispersive soils (Spreading by diffusion)
 Organic soils
 Saline soil (soil Containing salt) or presence of saline water

These soils require special treatment before acceptance in

pavement foundation so that they will be re-classified to fall into
one of the subgrade categories for the purpose of pavement design.

Soil stabilization is the alteration of the properties of an

existing soil either by blending two or more materials and
improving particle size distribution or by the use of stabilizing
additives to meet the specified engineering properties.
Which kind of material exactly need stabilization are:-
Three basic criteria's
1) For week and poor sub grade soil
2) Marginal (of questionable or minimal quality or at border or edge)
pavement material that particularly/partially fulfill the specification
3) If the specification governs (if specification requires to put
stabilization)
e.g. Rigid pavement
Also some flexible pavement
Cement or lime stabilized road
bed
Crushed or
How to deal with poor sub grade soils
 Re-align or Replacement or Stabilization (improvement)
Problematic soil sub grade soil having CBR < 3%, Swell > 3(5)%,
higher LL or Activity of clay = PI/Clay fraction:
Inactive < 0.75,
Normal clay 0.75 – 1.25,
Active clay 1.25 – 2
High active clay > 2 (e.g. Bentonite > 6 & Na - montmorillonite = 7)
The factors that should be considered in soil stabilization include:
 Physical and Chemical Composition of the soil to be stabilized,
 Availability and Economical Feasibility of stabilizing agents,
 Ease of application,
 Site Constraints (workmanship, accessibility and for the intended
purpose),
 Climate, Curing time and safety.
Such factors be taken into account in order to select the proper type of stabilization
 Different Types of Stabilizers
 Cement
 Lime
 Fly-ash
 Bitumen
 Lime cement LC
 Lime cement fly-ash LCF
 Basically Four techniques of soil stabilization are commonly practiced
in pavement construction.
1) Mechanical Stabilization
2) Cement Stabilization,
3) Lime Stabilization and
4) Bitumen Stabilization
The suitability of these methods depends on site constraints, materials,
climate, and economic feasibility. The stabilizing process with admixture
involves the addition of a stabilizing agent to the soil, mixing with sufficient
water to achieve the optimum moisture compaction of the mixture and final
curing to ensure that the strength potential is realized.
6.1. Mechanical Stabilization
Mechanical stabilization is a method by which a soil or gravel is mixed with
the original soil in order to improve the grading and mechanical
characteristics of the soil. Very common in Ethiopia.
* The cheapest and easiest stabilization
* It is an improvement of an available material by blending it with one or more
material in order to improve the particle size distribution and plasticity
characteristics.
Liquid Limit and plasticity index
𝐏𝐈 = 𝐋𝐋 − 𝐏𝐋
Plasticity limits
Generally be used as satisfactory design criteria for mechanical
stabilized materials.
Strength Tests
Stabilized materials may be assessed by strength tests suitable for this
purpose at the density and moisture conditions prevailing in the pavement
during the service life. One of the most commonly used strength tests is the
laboratory CBR test.
Design of stabilized mixtures to reach satisfactory road pavement involves:
1. Characterizing the individual materials,
2. Proportioning them to fit the selected criteria,
3. making up a trial mixture to adequate investigation and design, good
construction and control testing techniques. This involves careful
proportioning and thorough mixing of the constituent materials to
produce a uniform un segregated final product which can be
compacted and finished in accordance with the specification.
 6.2. Cement Stabilization
Cement is an effective stabilizing agent applicable to a wide range of
soils and situations.
It has two important effects on soil behaviors:
1. Reduces the moisture susceptibility of soils: cement binds the particles
greatly and reduces moisture induced volume change
2. Develop inter-particle bonds in granular materials: increased tensile
strength and elastic modulus.
Soil properties progressively change with increasing cement contents
.
For practical reasons, two categories of cement stabilized materials
have been identified.
a) Cement modified materials: cement is used to reduce plasticity, volume-
change, etc. and the inter-particle bonds are not significantly developed.
b) Cement bound materials: cement is used to sufficiently enhance modulus
of elasticity and tensile strength. Cement bound materials have practical
application in stiffening the pavement.
Selection of cement content
The cement content determines whether the
characteristics of the mixture are dominated by the properties
of the original soil or by the hydration products. As the
proportion of cement in the mixture increases, so the
strength increases. Strength also increases with time.

The choice of cement content depends on

 the strength required,
 the durability of the mixture and
 the soundness of the aggregate.
Cement Stabilization
A number of factors influence the quality of the cement-soil
interactions. The most important factors can be categorized into four
groups:
1. Nature and type of soil
2. Cement content
3. Moisture content
4. Pulverization, mixing, compaction, and curing conditions.
Nature and type of soil:- this include: clay content (max 5%), plasticity
of the soil (max LL=45), gradation, content of organic materials (max
2%), sulphate content (max 0.25% for cohesive soils and 1 % for non-
cohesive soils) and PH content.
* Soils with high clay content and high plasticity are difficult to mix
and high additive contents are required for an appreciable change in
properties.
* Pre –treatment with lime however is good method to allow
the soil to be cement-stabilized later. (double stabilization)
Cement content:- the cement required to stabilize soils effectively
vary with the nature and type of soils. The criteria used are The
compressive strength (about 1.7MPa) after seven days.
The quantity required for gravely soils is generally much less than
required for silty and clayey soils.
Generally, a soils is regarded to be suited for cement-stabilized if the
soil has
• A maximum grain size than 75 mm,
• Percent's passing and retained 0.075 mm sieve is less than 35%
and greater than 55% respectively and
• Liquid and plastic limits less than 50 and 25 respectively.
Based on experience, the general guidelines is given in the following table
Moisture content
Moisture is required for hydration of
cement to take place, to improve the
workability and facilitate the compaction
of the soil cement mixture.
The soil-cement mixture exhibit the
same type of moisture density relationship
as an ordinary soil.

Thus, for a given compaction effort, there is an optimum moisture

content at which the maximum density is obtained. It is, however, seen that the
highest compressive strength can be obtained with specimens compacted
slightly below the optimum for maximum density. Pulverization, mixing,
compaction, and curing conditions
Many procedures of construction are available, but can be categorized
into mixing in plant (in a travelling plant and stationary plant for dry mixing),
and in place mixing.
 Since cement stabilized materials constitute
in most cases the main structural part of
pavements, much attention is given to their
mechanical characteristics such as:
•Tensile and compressive strength,
•Deformation behavior and
•Fatigue characteristics
 6.3. Lime Stabilization
Lime is a broad term which is used to describe calcium oxide
(CaO)-quick lime; calcium hydroxide Ca(OH)2 hydrated
lime and calcium carbonate (CaCO3)-carbonate is of no
value for stabilization.
Commonly used products of quick lime and hydrated lime
are hydrated calcitic lime (CaO), dolomitic quick lime
(CaOMgO).
Lime can be applied as dry hydrated, quick or slurry lime.
Lime is an effective stabilizing agent for clayey to
improve both workability and strength and improve PI.
Lime is not effective with cohesion less or low cohesion
materials without the addition of secondary (pozzolanic-
fine materials which react with lime to form cementations
compounds) additives.
• Mix design procedures for lime stabilization are the
determination of the maximum amount of lime that can be
taken by the soil before free lime occurs (i.e. the lime content
above which further increases do not produce significant
additional strength) or the lime requirement to attain a specific
strength levels.
• Characteristics related design procedures are related to the conditions
for which they have been developed.
• When lime is used for subgrade improvements, the design lime
content may be designated as the lime content above which no
further appreciable reduction in PI occurs or

• Minimum lime content is increased 0.5 to 1.0% to offset the effect

of field variability.
 6.4. Bituminous Stabilization
Bituminous materials are used as stabilizers to retard or completely
stop moisture absorption by coating soil or aggregate grains in the soil-
aggregate mixture.
Bituminous stabilization is used with non-cohesive granular materials-
where the bitumen adds cohesive strength and with cohesive materials where
the bitumen “waterproofs” the soil thus reducing loss of strength with increase
in moisture content.
Both effects take place partly from the formation of bituminous film
around the soil particles which bonds them together and prevents the
absorption of water and partly from simple blocking of the pores, preventing
water from entering the soil mass. Because more care is necessary in
bituminous stabilization to achieve satisfactory mixing, its use has not been as
widespread as cement and lime stabilization.
Bituminous materials: -The bituminous materials that are used for
stabilization works are mostly penetration grade bitumen and cutback
bitumen and bitumen emulsion. The characteristics of cutbacks
depended on the particle size distribution of the soil, the temperature of
application, and the type of mix plant.
Emulsions suitable for soil stabilization in rapid drying climate
conditions, since this is equivalent to adding water to the soil as well as
bituminous binder.
* In the tropics, where the temperature is high the use of emulsions
may be an advantage since it helps to provide part of the optimum
moisture content for compaction, thereby reducing the amount of
water necessary for this purpose.
Soils requirements: -
Bituminous materials are used for the stabilization
1. For both cohesive and non-cohesive granular soils.
2. For Soils which can readily pulverized by construction equipment
are satisfactory for bituminous stabilization.
* Cohesive soils => satisfactory bearing capacity <=> low
moisture content => bitumen stabilizer as waterproof maintain them at
low moisture contents and high bearing capacities.
Depending on the particle size distribution and physical
properties of the available soil materials and the function of the
stabilizing bitumen, there are four types of soil-bitumen mixtures in
highway engineering.
1. Soil-bitumen :- this is a mixture of cohesive soil and bitumen for
waterproofing purposes. * The maximum grain size should
preferably not greater than one-third of the compacted layer. * The
bitumen requirements commonly range from 4-7% of the dry
weight of the soil.
2. Sand bitumen:- sands such as beach, river, pit, or existing
roadway sand may be stabilized with bitumen if they are
substantially free from vegetable matter, lumps or balls of clay or
adherent films of clay. Sometimes it may require admixture of filler
material to meet mechanical stability requirements. The required
amount of bitumen content ranges from 4-10%, the optimum should
be determined by compaction, strength, and water resistance testing
and should not exceed the pore space of the compacted mineral mix.
3. Waterproofed granular stabilization:- This is a system in which a
soil material possessing good gradation of constituent particles from
coarse to fine and having high potential density is waterproofed by
uniform distribution of small amount (1-2%) of bitumen.
4. Oiled earth:-This is a soil surface, consisting of silt-clay material
made water and abrasion resistant by slow or medium curing bitumen
 There are Two Opposing Effects
 The Thinner the film of bitumen the stronger the material
 However, Thick film or filled pores are the most effective in
preventing ingress of water.
 Too much bitumen, however, causes loss of strength by lubricating
the particles and preventing interlock.
The mix design procedure for bituminous treatments of soils
may be considered under four headings;
1. Mix design for stability in non-cohesive or cohesive materials;
2. Mix design for sand-bitumen mixes, and
3. Mix design for oiled earth roads.
4. Mix design for waterproofed granular stabilization
Thank you