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Experimental Study of Tunis Soft Soil Improved by Deep Mixing Column

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Abstract

Tunis soft clay belongs to the category of problematic soils because of its weak strength characteristics, high compressibility and high content of organic matter (22%). Deep mixing column (DM) presents a well-developed technique to improve the properties of Tunis soft soils by increasing its bearing capacity and reducing settlements. This paper describes a laboratory experimental program performed to assess the effectiveness in improving the shear strength of Tunis soft clay. The two mains objectives of this research are to evaluate the effect of reinforcement by DM on the behaviour of the Tunis soft clay and to investigate parameters of influence on its strength characteristics. Five parameters are studied from the performed tests: (1) curing time: CT = 7, 14, 21 and 28 days; (2) injection pressure: IP = 50, 100 and 150 kPa; (3) water–cement ratio w/C = 0.7, 1 and 1.2; (4) rotation rate V = 15, 30 and 40 rpm and (5) consolidation pressure: б3 = 100, 150 and 200 kPa.

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Abbreviations

C:

Cement

CT:

Curing time

C′:

Drained cohesion

CCU :

Consolidated undrained cohesion

Cu :

Undrained shear strength

rpm:

Revolutions per minute

IP:

Injection pressure

q:

Deviatoric stress

V:

Rotation rate

w:

Water

φ′:

Drained friction angle

φCU :

Consolidated undrained friction angle

б3 :

Consolidation pressure

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Université de Tunis El Manar – Ecole Nationale d’Ingénieurs de Tunis, LR14ES03-Ingénierie Géotechnique, BP 37 Le Belvédère, 1002, Tunis, Tunisie

    Wissem Frikha, Habib Zargayouna, Samia Boussetta & Mounir Bouassida

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  1. Wissem Frikha
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  2. Habib Zargayouna
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  3. Samia Boussetta
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  4. Mounir Bouassida
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Correspondence to Wissem Frikha.

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Frikha, W., Zargayouna, H., Boussetta, S. et al. Experimental Study of Tunis Soft Soil Improved by Deep Mixing Column. Geotech Geol Eng 35, 931–947 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10706-016-0151-2

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