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SoilCement

Soilcementisahighlycompactedmixtureofsoil/aggregate,cement,
andwater.Itiswidelyusedasalowcostpavementbaseforroads,
residentialstreets,parkingareas,airports,shoulders,andmaterials
handlingandstorageareas.Itsadvantagesofgreatstrengthand
durabilitycombinewithlowfirstcosttomakeittheoutstandingvalue
initsfield.Athinbituminoussurfaceisusuallyplacedonthesoil
cementtocompletethepavement.

Soilcementissometimescalledcementstabilizedbase,orcement
treatedaggregatebase.Regardlessofthename,theprinciplesgoverningitscompositionand
constructionarethesame.

WhatTypeofSoilisUsed?
Thesoilmaterialinsoilcementcanbealmostanycombinationofsand,silt,clay,gravel,orcrushed
stone.Localgranularmaterials,suchasslag,caliche,limerock,andscoria,plusawidevarietyofwaste
materialsincludingcinders,flyash,foundrysands,andscreeningsfromquarriesandgravelpits,canall
beutilizedassoilmaterial.Oldgranularbaseroads,withorwithoutbituminoussurfaces,canalsobe
reclaimedtomakegreatsoilcement.

HowisSoilCementBuilt?
Beforeconstructionbegins,simplelaboratorytestsestablishthecementcontent,compaction,andwater
requirementsofthesoilmaterialtobeused.Duringconstruction,testsaremadetoseethatthe
requirementsarebeingmet.Testingensuresthatthemixturewillhavestrengthandlongtermdurability.
Noguessworkisinvolved.
Soilcementcanbemixedinplaceorinacentralmixingplant.Centralmixingplantscanbeusedwhere
borrowmaterialisinvolved.Friablegranularmaterialsareselectedfortheirlowcementrequirements
andeaseofhandlingandmixing.Normallypugmilltypemixersareused.Themixedsoilcementisthen
hauledtothejobsiteandspreadonthepreparedsubgrade.

Compactionandcuringproceduresarethesameforcentralplantandmixedinplaceprocedures.

Therearefourstepsinmixedinplacesoilcementconstructionspreadingcement,mixing,compaction,
andcuring.Theproperquantityofcementisspreadontheinplacesoilmaterial.Thenthecement,the
soilmaterial,andthenecessaryamountofwateraremixedthoroughlybyanyofseveraltypesofmixing
machines.Next,themixtureistightlycompactedtoobtainmaximumbenefitformthecement.No
specialcompactionequipmentisneededrollersofvariouskinds,dependingonsoiltype,canbeused.
Themixtureiscementedpermanentlyatahighdensityandthehardenedsoilcementwillnotdeformor
consolidatefurtherundertraffic.

Curing,thefinalstep,preventsevaporationofwatertoensuremaximumstrengthdevelopmentthrough
cementhydration.Alightcoatofbituminousmaterialiscommonlyusedtopreventmoisturelossitalso
formspartofthebituminoussurface.Acommontypeofwearingsurfaceforlighttrafficisasurface
treatmentofbituminousmaterialandchips.5to.75inchthick.Forheavydutyuseandinsevere
climatesa1.5inchasphaltmatisused.

Contractorsbiddingonsoilcementjobsknowthatconstructionwillberelativelyeasyandproblemfree
weatherdelaysrareandreworkingofcompletedsectionsunnecessary.

WhyUseSoilCement?
Failinggranularbasepavements,withorwithouttheiroldbituminousmats,canbesalvaged,
strengthened,andreclaimedassoilcementpavements.Thisisanefficient,economicalwayof
rebuildingpavements.Sinceapproximately90percentpercentofthematerialusedisalreadyinplace,
handlingandhaulingcostsarecuttoaminimum.Manygranularandwastematerialsfromquarriesand
gravelpitscanalsobeusedtomakesoilcementthushighgradematerialsareconservedforother
purposes.

Highwayandcityengineerspraisesoilcementsperformance,itslowfirstcost,longlife,andhigh
strength.Soilcementisconstructedquicklyandeasilyafactappreciatedbyownersandusersalike.

HowDoesSoilCementPerform?
Soilcementthicknessesarelessthanthoserequiredforgranularbasescarryingthesametrafficover
thesamesubgrade.Thisisbecausesoilcementisacemented,rigidmaterialthatdistributesloadsover
broadareas.Itsslablikecharacteristicsandbeamstrengthareunmatchedbygranularbases.Hard,
rigidsoilcementresistscycliccold,rain,andspringthawdamage.

Oldsoilcementpavementsinallpartsofthecontinentarestillgivinggoodserviceatlowmaintenance
costs.SoilcementhasbeenusedineverystateintheUnitedStatesandinallCanadianprovinces.
Specimenstakenfromroadsshowthatthestrengthofsoilcementactuallyincreaseswithagesome
specimenswerefourtimesasstrongastestspecimensmadewhentheroadswerefirstopenedto
traffic.Thisreservestrengthaccountsinpartforsoilcementsgoodlongtermperformance.

IsSoilCementEconomical?
Thecostofsoilcementcomparesfavorablywiththatofgranularbasepavement.Whenbuiltforequal
loadcarryingcapacity,soilcementisalmostalwayslessexpensivethanotherlowcostpavements.
Economyisachievedthroughtheuseorreuseofinplaceornearbyborrowmaterials.Nocostlyhauling
ofexpensive,granularbasematerialsisrequiredthus,bothenergyandmaterialsareconserved.

PavementApplications
Soilcementpavementshavemanyusesfromcitystreets,countyroads,stateroutes,andinterstate
highways,toparkinglots,industrialstoragefacilities,andairports.Infact,thefamilyofsoilcement
pavementproductscanactuallybedividedupintothreemaincomponentseachwiththeirownunique
contributiontoapavementstructure.ThesecomponentsincludeCementModifiedSoils(CMS),
CementTreatedBase(CTB),andFullDepthReclamation(FDR).Clickonproductnamebelowfor
moreinformation.

SoilCementBasics
CementModifiedSoils(CMS)
Amendsundesireableproperitesofproblemsoilsorsubstandard
materialswitharelativelysmallproportionofportlandcementso
thattheyaresuitableforconstruction.

FullDepthReclamation(FDR)
Recyclesoldasphaltandunderlyingbasematerialtocreatea
stronger,cementstabilizedbaseforanewroad.

CementTreatedBase(CTB)
Aggregatematerialand/orgranularsoilsmixedwithmeasured
amountsofportlandcementandwaterhardensaftercompaction
andcuringtoformadurablepavingmaterial.

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