Study of the Performance of Waste Plastic in Clay Soil Stabilization

Every year, tons of plastic garbage is produced, damaging our environment. So, recycling these waste plastic has become a need of this time. Therefore, using such materials in technical applications like soil stabilization will be advantageous. Additionally, stabilization using waste plastic is a practical option that is also easily accessible around us. In this research, the soil was stabilized with Waste Plastic. Waste Plastic and Bottle Strips were collected and used as soil reinforcement in this study to improve the engineering performance of subgrade soil. The plastic strips were cut in two distinct aspect ratios (5 mm x 5 mm) and (5 mm x 10 mm) and were prepared to add at two different weight proportions (1% and 2%). Unconfined Compressive Strength testing was then carried out. The testing findings revealed that shear strength parameters improved significantly. The current analysis yielded the following Compressive Strength values: 27.68 psi and 32.73 psi when 1.0% and 2.0% of plastic bottle strips (5mm x 5mm) were used, and 17.32 psi and 21.99 psi when 1.0% and 2.0% of plastic bottle strips were used (5 mm x 10 mm). The results demonstrate that in the instance of bottle strips, mixing smaller strip sizes created an increase in shear strength on the soil. Any additional increase in strip size has resulted in a loss in compressive strength because increasing strip size generates un-compacted weak shear planes. So, this can be concluded that using waste plastic in clay soil for soil stabilization is recommended since it helps to both reduce the cost of stabilization and protects the environment.