The Influence of Moisture Content on Tensile and Compressive Strength of Artificially Cemented Sand

Applying Portland cement to soils is an excellent technique when it is necessary to improve local soil for the construction of stabilized pavement bases and to have a support layer for shallow foundations. Consoli et al. (2007, 2009, 2010) developed a rational dosage methodology for artificially cemented soils based on porosity/cement index, which can be applied to unconfined compressive strength, as well as to splitting tensile strength. Furthermore, a unique qt /qu relationship was found, independent of the cement content and voids ratio. Following the assessment of the main factors that influence the strength of artificially cemented soils, the present research aims to quantify the influence of the moisture content in the tensile and compressive strength of an artificially cemented sand. A program of splitting tensile tests and unconfined compression tests was carried out. There were tested three voids ratio (0.65, 0.73 and 0.81), four cement contents (3%, 5%, 7% and 9%) and five moisture contents (6%, 8%, 10%, 12% and 14%). The results show that the reduction in moisture content of the compacted mixture increases both the tensile and compressive strengths. Furthermore, it has been shown that qt /qu relationship was kept constant, being independent of the porosity/cement ratio and the moisture content.