Stabilization of Clayey Soils Against Internal Erosion Using Cement-Crushed Glass Mixture

Surface and internal erosion of soils caused by drainage or seepage of water are the main reason of failure in many engineering projects especially hydraulic structures and embankment dams. This type of failure is considered one of the most catastrophic failure in all engineering projects due to the huge loss of properties and lives. Therefore, the need for stabilizing the soil against erosion is a major goal of geotechnical engineer. This research presents a comprehensive experimental testing program of using cement-glass mixture to stabilize clayey soils against internal erosion. Two types of clayey soils (CH and ML) were mixed with different percentages of cement-crushed glass mixtures by dry weight of the soil and tested at different curing times. Hole Erosion Test (HET) was employed to evaluate the internal erosion parameters mainly the erosion rate index and the critical shear. The results showed that the addition of 5% and 8% of cement-crushed glass by dry weight of clay resulted in a significant reduction in the internal erosion and substantial increase in the critical shear stress for ML and CH soils, respectively. The value of the erosion index (IHET) increased from 2.7 (very rapid erosion) to 5.5 (very slow erosion) for ML and from 3.2 (moderately rapid) to 5.7 (very slow erosion) for CH soil. This study also showed that the rate of internal erosion decreased with curing time and the effect of the cement- crushed glass mixture on ML soil is higher than CH soil in resisting internal erosion.