Strength and Durability of Lime-Treated Jarosite Waste Exposed to Freeze and Thaw

An alternate freezing and thawing cycle (F-T) is a weathering process that is very common in cold regions. In a laboratory, the durability of any stabilized or nonstabilized material can be studied by subjecting the material to alternate cycles of freezing and thawing. In this study, a study of strength and durability of lime-treated jarosite waste exposed to freezing and thawing is investigated. Jarosite with different ratios of lime is compacted in the laboratory and exposed to a maximum of five freezing and thawing cycles. In addition, an attempt has been made to quantify the potential of lime, F-T cycle, and ratio of F-T cycle (C)/curing period (t), in the assessment of unconfined compressive strength (${\mathit{q}}_{\mathit{u}}$) and split tensile strength (${\mathit{q}}_{\mathit{t}}$) of lime-treated jarosite. A number of unconfined compressive and splitting tensile strength tests are carried out on jarosite samples stabilized with various lime contents. The results show that both ${\mathit{q}}_{\mathit{u}}$ and ${\mathit{q}}_{\mathit{t}}$ increase polynomially with the increase in lime content (L), and a power function has been fitted to assess the optimum relationship between ${\mathit{q}}_{\mathit{u}}$ and C/t ratio, as well as between ${\mathit{q}}_{\mathit{t}}$ and C/t ratio. It is observed that for the relationship among ${\mathit{q}}_{\mathit{u}}$, L, and C/t, as well as ${\mathit{q}}_{\mathit{t}}$, L, and C/t, the optimum fit could be obtained after applying a power equal to 1.3 to the lime content (L) parameter and $-0.25$ to the C/t ratio parameter. Finally, a unique relationship between ${\mathit{q}}_{\mathit{t}}$ and ${\mathit{q}}_{\mathit{u}}$ is also established, i.e., ${\mathit{q}}_{\mathit{t}}/{\mathit{q}}_{\mathit{u}}=0.17$, being independent of the parameters C/t ratio and lime content (L).