Improvement of the engineering behavior of sand-clay mixtures using kenaf fiber reinforcement

Abstract The reinforcement of structural elements and construction materials using natural fibers has gained popularity among researchers and industries due to environmental concerns and financial problems of synthetic fibers. The contribution of natural fibers as soil reinforcement elements enhances the shear strength properties as the stresses in the soil mobilize tensile resistance in the fibers. Despite the specific limitations of direct shear test, it is considered as one of the most commonly used techniques that gives the design engineers a quick measure of soil strength properties when a certain fine content exists in the soil mixture. Therefore, this study is intended to present the results of a series of large-scale direct shear tests on compaction characteristics and shear strength properties of kenaf fiber reinforced soil. A total number of 128 tests have been carried out to determine the compaction and shear strength characteristics of unreinforced and reinforced sand-clay mixtures. Subsequently, the influence of kenaf fiber reinforcement on the stress-displacement relationship, volume change, ductility and failure state of reinforced soil was evaluated. Based on the results, the addition of a certain amount of kenaf fiber to the sand-clay mixture enhances the mixture ductility, improves the shear strength parameters, and ultimately makes it an appropriate candidate to be used in construction projects such as pavement layers, slope protection, embankment, and building foundation.

[1]  Mostafa Mohamed,et al.  Unconfined Compression Strength of Reinforced Clays with Carpet Waste Fibers , 2013 .

[2]  S. Joshi,et al.  Are natural fiber composites environmentally superior to glass fiber reinforced composites , 2004 .

[3]  L. J. Waldron,et al.  The shear resistance of root-permeated homogeneous and stratified soil. , 1977 .

[4]  R. Sridhar,et al.  Effect of random inclusion of sisal fibre on strength behaviour of soil , 2002 .

[5]  Kim André Larsen,et al.  Embedment Effects on Vertical Bearing Capacity of Offshore Bucket Foundations on Cohesionless Soil , 2017 .

[6]  Farhang Pourboghrat,et al.  Kenaf natural fiber reinforced polypropylene composites: A discussion on manufacturing problems and solutions , 2007 .

[7]  N. P. Barbosa,et al.  Behaviour of composite soil reinforced with natural fibres , 1999 .

[8]  K. Ashik,et al.  A Review on Mechanical Properties of Natural Fiber Reinforced Hybrid Polymer Composites , 2015 .

[9]  T. Al-Refeai,et al.  Behavior of granular soils reinforced with discrete randomly oriented inclusions , 1991 .

[10]  B. Mohanty,et al.  Performance evaluation of silty sand subgrade reinforced with fly ash and fibre , 2008 .

[11]  Hota V. S. GangaRao,et al.  Critical review of recent publications on use of natural composites in infrastructure , 2012 .

[12]  A. Arulrajah,et al.  Shear strength of a fibre-reinforced clay at large shear displacement when subjected to different stress histories , 2017 .

[13]  Z. Ishak,et al.  Degradation of dynamic mechanical properties of pultruded kenaf fiber reinforced composites after immersion in various solutions , 2011 .

[14]  G. L. Sivakumar Babu,et al.  Strength and Stiffness Response of Coir Fiber-Reinforced Tropical Soil , 2008 .

[15]  Gopal Ranjan,et al.  Probabilistic Analysis of Randomly Distributed Fiber-Reinforced Soil , 1996 .

[16]  R. A. Jewell,et al.  Direct shear tests on reinforced sand , 1987 .

[17]  D. H. Gray,et al.  Static Response of Sands Reinforced with Randomly Distributed Fibers , 1990 .

[18]  J. Zornberg.  Discrete framework for limit equilibrium analysis of fibre-reinforced soil , 2002 .

[19]  Arul Arulrajah,et al.  Practical approach to predict the shear strength of fibre-reinforced clay , 2017 .

[20]  E. Selig,et al.  Preparing Test Specimens Using Undercompaction , 1978 .

[21]  Siavash Salamatpoor,et al.  Evaluation of Babolsar Sand Behaviour by Using Static Triaxial Tests and Comparison with Case History , 2014 .

[22]  Siew-Ann Tan,et al.  Enhanced performance of reinforced soil walls by the inclusion of short fiber , 2005 .

[23]  Ikuo Towhata,et al.  Experimental evaluation of dynamic deformation characteristics of sheet pile retaining walls with fiber reinforced backfill , 2010 .

[24]  Martin P. Ansell,et al.  The effect of alkalization and fibre alignment on the mechanical and thermal properties of kenaf and hemp bast fibre composites: Part 1 – polyester resin matrix , 2004 .

[25]  Andrzej Sawicki,et al.  Plastic Limit Behavior of Reinforced Earth , 1983 .

[26]  M. Misra,et al.  Natural, Fibers, Biopolymers and Biocomposites , 2009 .

[27]  A. Arulrajah,et al.  Effect of fiber reinforcement on shear strength and void ratio of soft clay , 2018, Geosynthetics International.

[28]  Bin Shi,et al.  Interfacial shear strength of fiber reinforced soil , 2010 .

[29]  F. Ahmad,et al.  Performance evaluation of silty sand reinforced with fibres , 2010 .

[30]  A. Athijayamani,et al.  Mechanical properties of natural fibers reinforced polyester hybrid composite , 2010 .

[31]  Saeed Ahmadi,et al.  Numerical modeling of train-induced vibration of nearby multi-story building: A case study , 2016 .

[32]  Mohd Sapuan Salit,et al.  Combined multi-criteria evaluation stage technique as an agro waste evaluation indicator for polymeric composites: date palm fibers as a case study. , 2014 .

[33]  Pedro Domingos Marques Prietto,et al.  Engineering Behavior of a Sand Reinforced with Plastic Waste , 2002 .

[34]  D. Paukszta,et al.  The Influence of Processing and the Polymorphism of Lignocellulosic Fillers on the Structure and Properties of Composite Materials—A Review , 2013, Materials.

[35]  Chunling Li,et al.  Mechanical response of fiber-reinforced soil , 2005 .

[36]  A. Taghavi Ghalesari,et al.  Numerical analysis of settlement and bearing behaviour of piled raft in Babol clay , 2018 .

[37]  A. Choobbasti,et al.  Behavior of eccentrically loaded shallow foundations resting on composite soils , 2019, Journal of Building Engineering.

[38]  S. M. Sapuan,et al.  Mechanical properties of hybrid kenaf/glass reinforced epoxy composite for passenger car bumper beam , 2010 .

[39]  Henri Vidal,et al.  THE PRINCIPLE OF REINFORCED EARTH , 1969 .

[40]  Mina Dawood,et al.  Mechanical properties of kenaf fiber reinforced concrete , 2011 .

[41]  Nilo Cesar Consoli,et al.  Strain-hardening behaviour of fibre-reinforced sand in view of filament geometry , 2009 .

[42]  R. Michalowski,et al.  FAILURE OF FIBER-REINFORCED GRANULAR SOILS , 1996 .

[43]  A. Soltani,et al.  Rubber powder–polymer combined stabilization of South Australian expansive soils , 2018, Geosynthetics International.

[44]  Bearing capacity of sandy soil treated by Kenaf fibre geotextile , 2017, Environmental Earth Sciences.