Bio-Enzyme Stabilization of Red Clay Soil
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Date
2021-04
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Addis Ababa University
Abstract
Enzyme based liquid soil stabilizers have emerged as an alternative soil stabilization technique
and are being introduced to the road construction industry, with an objective to improve the
geotechnical properties of soils and ultimately reduce the overall cost of the projects. However,
evidence to support the effectiveness of these products as stabilizer is based on manufacturer’s
claims in their marketing brochures and manuals. Thus there is a need for an independent
assessment of these products. Accordingly, this study is performed to evaluate the effect of
TerraZyme which is an Enzyme based liquid stabilizer in improving the engineering properties
of a red clay soil.
Soil samples were collected from five different location in the northern part of Addis Ababa, and
different laboratory tests were conducted on the soil samples with and without the application of
TerraZyme. These tests include Particle Size Distribution, Plasticity Index, CBR and
Unconfined Compressive Strength tests.
The result obtained shows a slight increment in the UCS and CBR tests of the soil but the
improvement is very small to warrant a large scale application of TerraZyme for red clay soil.
Therefore, the type of soils in which the TerraZyme application can produce an optimal result
should be investigated before applying TerraZyme on a large scale projects.
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Keywords
Bio-Enzyme, Red Clay Soil