Bamboo Fiber-Reinforced Soil for Sustainable and Eco-Friendly Approach in Enhancing the Strength and Stiffness of Soil

In recent years, there has been a notable upsurge in the integration of sustainable and eco-friendly practices in civil engineering, particularly through the incorporation of natural fibers. This approach has garnered considerable attention due to its cost-effectiveness, local abundance, biodegradability, and positive environmental impact. Significant gains in tensile strength, shear strength, and other mechanical qualities have been observed in soil containing natural fibers. The past decade has witnessed a growing recognition of the favorable influence of randomly distributed natural and synthetic fibers on soil stabilization and reinforcement in civil engineering applications. An experimental study was conducted on the native soil of Doimukh, Itanagar, Arunachal Pradesh, India, with a focus on reinforcing the soil using Bamboo fibers. Random additions of different amounts of bamboo fiber were made, amounting to 0.25, 0.5, 0.75, and 1% of the soil’s dry weight. Both reinforced and unreinforced soil samples were prepared at the maximum dry density that corresponded to the ideal moisture content. To find the soil’s CBR value, stiffness modulus (σa/ε), and shear strength parameters (c, φ), triaxial compression tests and CBR tests were run on both sets of soil samples. The aim of the investigation was to determine how increasing fiber length and content affected the stiffness modulus, CBR value, and shear strength parameters (c, φ). The values obtained for the reinforced soil’s strength parameters were then contrasted with those of the unreinforced soil. The test outcomes reveal a favorable association between soil fiber content and length with shear strength parameters, stiffness modulus, and CBR value. This indicates that incorporating bamboo fiber improves these strength parameters, demonstrating the efficacy of bamboo fiber in enhancing soil properties. As a result, the utilization of bamboo fiber emerges as a remarkably efficient and sustainable solution, potentially resulting in a significant reduction in the thickness of the pavement subgrade.