Study on engineering properties of xanthan gum reinforced kaolinite

The strengthening efficiency of biopolymer treated soil depends on biopolymer type, concentration ratio, soil type, initial water content, curing time and mixing method. In this study, the physical and mechanical properties of xanthan gum (XG) treated kaolinite were investigated through compaction test, Atterberg limit test, triaxial test and unconfined compression test. The results indicated that the optimum water content (OWC) increased from 30.3% of untreated clay to 33.5% of 5% XG treated clay, while the maximum dry density has a slight increase from 13.96 kg/m3 to 14 kg/m3 of 0.2% XG treated clay and decrease to 2.7 kg/m3 of 5% XG treated clay. Meanwhile, the plastic limit of XG treated clay increased with the increase of XG concentration, while 0.5% XG treated clay can be observed the maximum liquid limit with 79.5%. Moreover, there are the ideal water content about 1.3-1.5 times of the optimum water content achieving the maximum dry density and curing time to obtain the maximum compressive strength for different XG contents, which the UCS is 1.52 and 2.07 times of the maximum UCS of untreated soil for 0.5% and 1% XG treated clay, respectively. In addition, hot-dry mixing can achieve highest UCS than other mixing methods (e.g., dry mixing, wet mixing and hot-wet mixing).

Automated summary

The efficiency of biopolymer-treated soil depends on various factors such as the type and concentration of biopolymer used, soil type, initial water content, curing time, and mixing method. In this study, the effects of xanthan gum (XG) treatment on the physical and mechanical properties of kaolinite were investigated. The results showed that XG treatment increased the optimum water content and plastic limit of the clay, while the maximum dry density varied with XG concentration. The study also found that the ideal water content and curing time for achieving maximum compressive strength varied with XG content, with hot-dry mixing yielding the highest strength compared to other mixing methods.