Plastic waste fibrous clay consolidation with optimum water content.

Clay soils are characterized by low bearing capacity and poor soil characteristics. Because the soil at the research location has high plasticity and shrinkage value, it must be managed carefully to fulfill the requirement. The research aims to determine the physical and mechanical properties of the soil before and after stabilization. The solution is to mix the soil with PET plastic waste at concentrations of 0%, 0.5%, 1%, 1.5%, and 2% of the weight of the soil. PET plastic is produced from white and thin plastic bottle waste that is twice chopped. The analysis revealed that increasing the plastic content decreases the water content, specific gravity, liquid limit, shrinkage limit, and plasticity index, while increasing the plastic limit value. The results of the soil mechanical properties showed that the maximum dry density increased, while the optimum water content decreased with the addition of plastic. The original soil consolidation obtained Cv of 0.000965 cm3/sec, Cc of 0.40612, and Sc of 0.015143 cm. With the addition of waste, the value of Cv increases, while the values of Cc and Sc decrease. According to the results above, the waste can be used to stabilize clay. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]