Journal of the Korean Geo-Environmental Society ISSN:1598-0820(Print) 2714-1233(Online) 한국지반환경공학회 논문집

In tropical regions, lateritic soil is frequently used in road embankment. However, it is one of the sources of road failure owing to its low strength. Generally, cement and lime are used as stabilizers for lateritic soil, but they are not environmentally friendly. Some studies try to use eggshells, for they are food waste and share the same chemical composition as lime. Previous researchs have shown that eggshell powder could enhance the strength of lateritic soil. This research investigated the effect of particle size of the eggshell powder and the effect of the protein-membrane presence in the eggshell on stabilizing capacity of soil. Through laboratory tests, unconfined compressive strength was examined for various particle sizes. The particle size of eggshell powder ranging between 150 µm and 88 µm was appropriate size that made an excellent stabilizer at 3% concentration. On the other hand, the protein-membrane reduced the stabilizing ability of the eggshell powder when the content of eggshell powder is less than 4% in soil. Numerical analysis of road embankment was performed based on the results obtained in the laboratory tests. It is shown that the eggshell powder has improved the stability of the sub-base of the road embankment.