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Parameters Controlling Strength, Stiffness and Durability of a Fibre-Reinforced Clay

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Abstract

This study aims to highlight the effect of fibre–clay contact area in a fibre-reinforced clay matrix with different fibre contents and types. Fibre-reinforced samples were prepared at two compaction densities (1600 and 1800 kg/m3) using four fibre types (i.e. basalt, carbon, polypropylene and glass) with five fibre contents of 0.1–0.5%. A series of unconfined compressive strength (UCS), shear wave velocity and soaking tests were carried out to determine the strength, stiffness, peak strain energy and durability of the compacted samples. A statistical approach (ANOVA) was utilized to determine significant differences between variables affecting the parameters of the fibre-reinforced clay. Results indicated that carbon fibre reinforcement achieved the highest UCS value (684 kPa) and initial shear modulus (568 MPa), and polypropylene fibre reinforcement proposed the highest strain energy at peak (25 kJ/m3) due to its high strain at failure. The optimum fibre content concerning the peak strain energy of high-density samples was found to be 0.3% fibre. Carbon and polypropylene fibre-reinforced samples lasted the longest (5 days) in soaking conditions. It is recommended to reinforce the soil with 0.3% of carbon fibre compacted at the maximum dry density for field applications that require high strength and durability performance. In this study, a novel regression model has been developed to correlate the UCS and shear modulus (G0) of the fibre-reinforced clay. The proposed correlations successfully predict the UCS of fibre-reinforced soils with different soil types, fibre contents and densities. The results revealed that the sample density and fibre–clay contact area is dominant to determine the strength, stiffness and durability characteristics of the fibre-reinforced clay.

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Data Availability

Some or all data, models, or code that support the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.

Code Availability

Not applicable.

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Acknowledgements

The authors greatly appreciate the discussions and help from Prof. Dr. Nilo C. Consoli from Universida de Federal do Rio Grande do Sul and Assoc. Prof. Dr. Pedro Ferreira from University College London.

Funding

The authors express their appreciation to Office of Research Coordination and Support, Middle East Technical University, Northern Cyprus Campus for funding this research group. Scientific Research Project Code FEN-20-YG-4.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Civil Engineering Program, Middle East Technical University, Northern Cyprus Campus, via Mersin 10, Kalkanli, Guzelyurt, North Cyprus, Turkey

    Abdullah Ekinci & Ala Abki

  2. College of Engineering and Aviation, Central Queensland University, 120 Spencer Street, Melbourne, VIC, 3000, Australia

    Mehdi Mirzababaei

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  1. Abdullah Ekinci
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Contributions

AE has prepared the draft copy of the manuscript, conducted research study and managed the laboratory works; AA has conducted the laboratory work, some parts of the analysis and formatted the manuscript; MM has written the discussion and some parts of the introduction section, reviewed and edited the complete original copy of the manuscript.

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Correspondence to Abdullah Ekinci or Ala Abki.

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Ekinci, A., Abki, A. & Mirzababaei, M. Parameters Controlling Strength, Stiffness and Durability of a Fibre-Reinforced Clay. Int. J. of Geosynth. and Ground Eng. 8, 6 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40891-022-00352-8

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