How Plastic Waste can be Utilized for the Stabilization of Soils for Road Pavement Construction

Civil Engineering

This study demonstrates how plastic wastes can be used as soil stabilizers. Plastic waste in the form of bottles and grocery bags were processed into strips and granules. Different blends of soil and waste plastic granules on one hand, and blends of soil and waste plastic strips on the other hand, were prepared. Engineering properties of each of the mixtures were determined in the laboratory. The properties of the soil specimens containing waste plastic additives were compared with the properties of the raw soil determined under similar conditions. It was found that the presence of waste plastic granules in the soil helped to reduce the sensitivity of the soil to changes in moisture; all soil samples that contained waste plastic additives gave greater maximum dry densities at lower moisture contents compared with the raw soil samples under the same compaction effort; the strength of the soils increased for every percentage increase in the quantity of waste plastic additives up to a certain limit; Soil specimens containing waste plastic granules performed better than those containing waste plastic strips. It was concluded that plastic waste, when processed into granules in the manner described in this study, can be effectively used to stabilize soils for road pavement construction.

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