An experimental study on the stiffness of a lime-treated clayey soil

The present work investigates the stiffness of a compacted lime-treated clayey soil using bender elements. The studied soil was sieved through various target maximum grain size (Dmax), humidified to reach the target water contents wi, then mixed with 3% of quick lime powder prior to static compaction at a dry density of 1.60 Mg/m3. Two initial water contents and four maximal grain sizes were accounted for. The soil stiffness was then monitored in variable time intervals until reaching stabilization. Afterwards, the soil specimen was subjected to full saturation followed by air-drying to come back to its initial water content. The results show that the soil stiffness after lime-treatment is significantly dependent on the aggregates size. The wetting-drying cycles seem to slightly increase the soil stiffness in the case of lime-treated specimens and decrease the soil stiffness in the case of untreated specimens.