Suitability of brick kiln waste as a stabilizer for clayey soils

Due to increased use of brick masonry for construction of buildings in Pakistan, huge quantities of Brick Kiln Waste (BKW) are generated which not only create disposal problems but are a hazard to the environment. In order to get rid of such problems, it is necessary to investigate suitability of the BKW as a stabilizer to the clayey soils. For this purpose, an experimental program was carried out to stabilize clayey soil with the BKW ranging from 5 to 40%. Basic geotechnical tests were performed on the clayey soil blended with the BKW. The results showed that the clayey soil became coarser and more suitable as a subgrade material with addition of the BKW. There was negligible reduction in dry density up to 7% when the BKW added was 40%. As expected, the cohesion and friction angle of the blended soils respectively decreased and increased with inclusion of the BKW. As compared to the clayey soil, the ultimate bearing capacity of the blended soil having 40% of the BKW increased by 21%. This study shows that clayey soils stabilized with the BKW could be used as a partial fill material for highway embankments and foundations of buildings.