Influence of Fiber Addition on Mechanical Properties of MICP-Treated Sand
Publication: Journal of Materials in Civil Engineering
Volume 28, Issue 4
Abstract
Microbial-induced calcite precipitation (MICP) is one of the environmentally friendly ways to improve engineering properties of sandy soil. A laboratory study was conducted to investigate the effect of randomly distributed discrete fiber on the mechanical properties of MICP-treated soil and to discover the corresponding mechanisms. Specimens were prepared at four different fiber ratios (0.1, 0.2, 0.3, and 0.4% by weight of sand). MICP were catalyzed by Sporosarcina pasteurii at the concentration of . MICP-treated sand samples were prepared using full-contact flexible molds. The results showed that remarkable improvements in shear strength, ductility, and failure strain were achieved with fiber addition in the MICP-treated sand. The unconfined compression strength (UCS) and shear strength increased gradually with an increase in fiber content up to a fiber content of 0.3%. The optimum fiber content in the MICP-treated sand was found to be 0.2–0.3%. The UCS of MICP-treated sand at the optimum fiber content is more than two times higher than that without addition of fiber. The failure strain of MICP-treated sand at the optimum fiber content is nearly three times higher than that without addition of fiber. Residual strengths of MICP-treated sand at the optimum fiber content are near 100 kPa, while the residual strength is 0 kPa for that of MICP-treated sand without fiber. The cohesion and angle of internal friction of fiber-reinforced sand prepared at different ratios of fiber increased by 29–45 kPa and 7.6–11°, respectively. The inclusion of fibers increases the residual strength occurring after peak stress and decreases the brittle behavior of the MICP-treated sand.
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Acknowledgments
This material is based on work supported by the National Science Foundation under Grant No. 1039502 and FHWA RMRC. The first author acknowledges financial support from HuaiHai Institute of Technology. Dr. Robert Moser and Stacy Holton at the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Engineer Research Development Center helped with the SEM analysis.
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© 2015 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Aug 27, 2014
Accepted: Aug 5, 2015
Published online: Oct 12, 2015
Discussion open until: Mar 12, 2016
Published in print: Apr 1, 2016
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