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Laboratory investigation on the effect of a combination of xanthan gum and clay on the behavior of sandy soil

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Abstract

The chemical treatment process ensures an improvement in mechanical properties of the soil such as shear strength, permeability and bearing capacity. However, sometimes this technique has several negative effects on the environment depending on the chemical agent used. Remediation technology by biopolymers is one of the new promising ecological and environmentally friendly solutions. Therefore, this experimental work is carried out to investigate the effect of kaolin clay contents on the shear strength of sand treated with xanthan gum (XG). Direct shear tests were performed on Sand-Kaolin mixtures with Kaolin proportions of 0; 10; 20 and 30%, treated with xanthan gum content of 0.25% and 0.5%. The treated samples were cured for 7, 14 and 28 days before testing. Results have shown that the xanthan gum improved significantly the shear strength of sand-Kaolin mixtures compared to the clean sand. Furthermore, a considerable enhancement of cohesion and friction angle of soil was observed particularly for sand-Kaolin mixtures.

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Abbreviations

PH:

Potential of hydrogen

Fc:

Fines content

G S :

Specific density

D 50 :

Medium size

C U :

Uniformity coefficient

C C :

Coefficient of curvature

emin :

Void ratio

emax :

Maximum void ratio

Ip:

Plasticity index

W:

Water content

Kc:

Kaolin content

Sc:

Sand content

W i :

Initial water content

X G :

Xanthan gum content

γ d :

Dry density

W7 days :

Water content of specimen at 7 days

W14 days :

Water content of specimen at 14 days

W28 days :

Water content of specimen at 28 days

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Acknowledgements

All tests were carried out in the laboratory of Material Sciences & Environment at Hassiba Benbouali of Chlef, Algeria. The writers acknowledge the technicians who contributed to this experimental program.

Funding

The authors are grateful for the financial support received from the Directorate General for Scientific Research and Technological Development, Algeria.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Laboratory of Materials Science and Environment (LMSE), Hassiba Benbouali University of Chlef, Chlef, Algeria

    Hachemi Adda Berkane, Noureddine Della, Mehdi Missoum Benziane, Sidali Denine, Abdelnacer Boukeffoussa Elroul & Hadjer Feknous

  2. Department of Civil Engineering, University Center of Tipaza, Tipaza, Algeria

    Sidali Denine

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  1. Hachemi Adda Berkane
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  2. Noureddine Della
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  3. Mehdi Missoum Benziane
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Contributions

H.A.B., N.D., M.M.B., S.D., A.B.E. and H.F. contributed equally to this work H.A.B., N.D., M.M.B., S.D., A.B.E. and H.F. wrote the whole manuscript. H.A.B. and M.M.B. drew all the figures and tables. N.D., M.M.B. and S.D. reviewed and edited the paper. M.M.B., S.D., A.B.E. and H.F. conceptualized the work. All authors read and approved the final paper.

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Correspondence to Noureddine Della.

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Berkane, H.A., Della, N., Benziane, M.M. et al. Laboratory investigation on the effect of a combination of xanthan gum and clay on the behavior of sandy soil. Innov. Infrastruct. Solut. 7, 269 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s41062-022-00867-z

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