Date of Publication :8th May 2017

Abstract: The construction of engineering structures on fine grained soil is a challenging task and therefore considered as one of the biggest concern in geotechnical engineering. As the methods used conventionally were very uneconomical and time consuming, there is an urgent need for development of new techniques to satisfy the performance and economical criteria, which enhances the geotechnical properties of soil. It is necessary to adopt safer, economically feasible, environmentally sound and cost effective materials to improve geotechnical properties of Kuttanad clay, by utilizing stabilizers such as Metakaolin (Traditional stabilizer), Terrazyme (Non-traditional stabilizer) and Crumb Rubber Powder (By-product stabilizer). From the experimental investigation it is found that 6% of Metakaolin, 200ml/2m3 of Terrazyme and 10% of Crumb Rubber Powder are the optimum values for improving the geotechnical properties of Kuttanad clay after 14 days of curing period. In the present study an attempt is made to investigate the combined effect of optimum values of these three stabilizers on plasticity, shear strength and consolidation characteristics of Kuttanad clay by conducting Atterberg Limits test , Triaxial Compression test and One Dimensional Consolidation test respectively. The test results indicated that Kuttanad clay treated with a combination of 6% of Metakaolin, 200ml/2m3 of Terrazyme and 10% of Crumb Rubber Powder showed improvement in shear strength behaviour, reduced plasticity and consolidation characteristics after 14 days of curing period when compared to untreated Kuttanad clay

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