Geotechnical Reuse

of Waste Materials

G. V. Ramana

Department of Civil Engineering

Indian Institute of Technology Delhi
• New Construction
• Expansion
• Rehabilitation
• Maintenance

Requires large quantities of

Construction materials  Soil
The use of waste material in various civil
and environmental engineering
applications can provide an attractive
way to reduce the wastes to be disposed
of, and it may also provide fiscal
benefits.
 Types of Waste Materials
S.No. Category of Examples
waste
1 Agricultural Animal manure, crop wastes, and
wastes lumber and wood wastes
2 Domestic wastes Compost, glass and ceramics,
incinerator ash, plastics, sewage
sludge, scrap tires, and waste
paper
3 Industrial wastes Blast-furnace (iron) and steel
slags, cement and lime kiln
dusts, coal ash by-products,
construction and demolition
debris, foundry wastes, paper
mill sludge, reclaimed concrete
and asphalt, and silica fume
4 Mineral wastes Coal refuse, mine tailings,
phosphogypsum, quarry waste,
spent oil shale, and waste rock
 Common Waste Materials
Of the above mentioned waste materials, the
following two types have the potential to be useful
in civil and environ mental engineering applications:

1. Process Generated Waste Materials

- Fly ash
- Blast furnace slag
- Foundry sand
- Paper mill sludge
- Sewage sludge
- Incinerator ash
2. Construction Generated Waste Materials
- Glass
- Plastics
- Scrap tires
- Construction debris
- Wood
 Developed Countries

• Reclaimed paving materials

• Coal fly ash
• Rubber tires
• Blast furnace slag
• Steel slag
• Coal bottom ash
• Boiler slag
• Used motor oil
• Waste paper
• Mine tailings
• Sewage sludge
 India

• Fly Ash
• Mine Tailings
• Construction and Demolition Debris
(building materials)

earth dams, road and rail

embankments, filling of low lying
areas, embankments of canals and
lakes, backfill material behind
retaining structures
Waste characteristics for soil
replacement
• should not be classified as a hazardous
material
• should not have any biodegradable
materials
• particles should remain physically and
chemically stable in long term
• should not contain deleterious materials
such as chlorides and sulphates
• particle size range should be such that
standard earth moving equipment can be
used
• should not harm the ground water quality
• fairly homogeneous and less variability
Issues to be Considered for Waste Reuse

1. Sources and quantities generated

2. Problems of disposal
3. Potential reuses
4. Physical and chemical properties
5. Engineering properties
6. Environmental concerns
7. Economic considerations
(cost of transport: usually within 25
to 50 km radius only)
8. Typical field applications
Coal ash in ash ponds
– particles are silt to sand size
– composed of amorphous alumina-
silicate
Mine tailings in tailings ponds
– particles are usually silt to sand size
– composed of crushed rock
Mining over burden
– particles are gravel to cobble size
– composed of excavated soil and rock
Construction and demolition waste
Basic Material is Silica
Additional precautions while using waste
as a construction material!
Embankment constructed with compacted coal ash
with soil layer on top and sides and intermediate soil
layers

The waste material should be covered with

local soil cover on the top and sides of the
embankment or fill

Intermediate covers should be used

Properly designed transition filters
should be provided between waste
material and all covers or drainage
elements
Small to medium height tailing dams constructed with
carefully designed drains and transition filters
For underground utilities such as pipes,
sewage lines etc., passing through the waste,
provide a soil blanket or a filter

Selection of appropriate compaction

equipment and layer thickness for
compaction of waste
FLY ASH

Additive
Layering
Fill Material
 FLY ASH
Potential Reuses

1. In Concrete Mix Design

Fly ash up to about 15% per unit weight of cement
required can be substituted without reduction in
strength

2. As a substitute mineral filler in asphalt paving

mixtures
Mineral filler in asphalt paving mixtures consists of
particles ( less than No. 200 sieve in size) that fill the
voids in a paving mix and serve to improve the
cohesion of the binder (asphalt cement) and the
stability of the mixture. Fly ash meets all these
requirements.
 FLY ASH

3. For soil stabilization and sub-bases

Combining fly ash with lime yields a product that is
comparable to bituminous aggregate material (BAM)
commonly used in subbases for road construction.
4. As trench backfill, embankment material, berms,
and cover material
5. As structural fill
One of the most promising reuse. This is borne out
best in some construction projects where large
volumes of soil would otherwise be needed as fill.
 Field Applications

Advantages of using fly ash in field are:

1. Relatively low unit weight and
2. High shear strength,
Which results in good bearing support with minimal
settlement.
Drawbacks of using fly ash:
1. Proneness to erosion - require control measures
2. May have corrosion potential – protection of metal pipes
placed within or near the fly ash fill required
3. Possibility of sulfate attack – it depends on the sulfate
content of the fly ash. Fly ash can attack adjecent concrete
foundations and walls. Protection measures (such as using
waterproof membrane or sulfate-resistant cement ) may be
necessary.
Low-lying area filled with coal ash
Coal ash used to fill area behind retaining wall
FOUNDRY SAND
 Potential Reuses
Foundry sand is a by-product of the metal
casting process. Its potential reuses
include:
1. Landfill daily cover,
2. Construction fill / road base material,
3. Flowable fill,
4. Cement manufacturing,
5. Asphalt, and
6. Precast concrete.
 Engineering Properties
The engineering properties of spent foundry sand are
comparable to those of conventional sands.

Typical properties of spent green foundry sand

 Field Applications

Foundry sand has been used as a substitute

for the fine aggregate in asphalt paving
mixes and flowable fill applications but it
suffers from following Drawbacks:
1. It has been found to be too fine to satisfy
some specifications for fine aggregate and
2. Many jurisdictions (for example ASTM C 33)
precludes using spent foundry sand unless it
is blended with natural sand or other
suitable materials.
SCRAP TIRES
 Possible Reuses
Some of the applications of scrap tires are as follows:
1. Tire chips in embankments, retaining walls, and
bridge abutment backfills – Shredded tires have very
low density which permits construction of weak
foundations, better stability against slope failure due
to reduced weights, and lower differential settlements.
2. Whole tire retaining structures
3. Frost penetration limitation – tire chips have a low
thermal conductivity, making them ideal for this
application ( 8 times better than gravel for reducing
frost penetration)
continued…..
4. Rubberized asphalt concrete – have long pavement
life due to decreased thermal cracking, less potholing,
decreased deformation, and less reflective cracking.
5. Organic compound removal from landfill leachate – tire
chips have a relatively high sorption capacity for
organic compounds.
6. Railroad crossings – Crumb rubber compares well with
timber crossings with respect to life span.
7. Highway applications – in stabilization of and widening
shoulders of roads.
continued…..
 Landfill applications
a) Gas migration control trenches – used to control the
lateral migration and discharge of landfill gas under
active and passive extraction.
b) Gas collection and venting layer in closure cap
systems
c) LCRS drainage layers – to collect the leachate and
and conveying it to the LCRS.
d) Leachate recirculation trenches – located in the
waste itself and are used to convey the recirculated
leachate back into the landfill in a landfill operated
as wet cell.
e) Drainage layer in covers – this layer drains the
surface infiltration, thus preventing or minimizing the
generation of leachate.
continued…..
8. Retarding VOC movement – tire shreds added to the
bentonite in the cutoff slurry walls improves the
performance of the walls in retarding the migration of
contaminants.
9. Removal of VOCs in wastewater treatment plants –
ground tires have good sorption capacity for VOCs.
10. Use of tires as a noise barrier
11. Miscellaneous uses – scrap tires are used as stair
treads, mats, flooring tiles, sewer rings, guardrails, golf
driving mats, and playground covers.
 Field Applications

Conducting field tests on scrap tires documented following

applications in engineering:
1. As a backfill material – have ability to reduce the
lateral earth pressure against the abutments of
concrete bridge.
2. For insulation of a landfill side slope liner – sand
covered with waste tire chips performed best.
3. Tire chips are effective in controlling the depth of frost
penetration.
4. Pavement on top of the embankment constructed
using tire shreds as lightweight fill meets 20-year
design criteria, but the deflection was found to be more
than conventional earthen embankments.
 Evaluation process for
geotechnical reuse

1.Identification of all relevant engineering, environmental, occupational

health and safety, recyclability, and economic issues associated with
the proposed waste material and application
2.Establishment of laboratory testing and assessment procedures and
criteria that the material should meet prior to acceptance
3.Testing and assessment of the results of the material and application
for approval or disapproval using the established procedures and
criteria
4.Consideration of the possibility of modifying the material prior to
rejecting the material if the material does not meet the established
criteria
5.Identification of issues that could impose significant constraints on
the implementability of the proposed application
6.Determination of whether a field demonstration is necessary to
supplement evaluation and assessment tests and criteria and
implement the demonstration, if required
BLAST FURNACE SLAG
 Potential Reuses

1. Aggregate in base and surface

course in asphalt
2. As an additive to portland
cement in concrete and
3. In embankment and ice control
abrasive (very limited)
 Chemical Composition
The chemical composition of slag is calculated from
elemental analysis determined by x-ray fluorescence.

Typical chemical composition of iron and steel slag

Engineering Properties
The engineering properties of slag are comparable to typical
granular soils, making slag an excellent material for a wide
variety of fill applications ranging from light weight to well
compacted.

Typical properties of Iron and Steel slag

 Field Applications
Advantages of using blast furnace slag in field include:
1. Ability to stabilize wet, soft underlying soils at early
construction stages,
2. good durability to be placed in almost any weather,
3. Extremely high stability,
4. Almost complete absence of settlement after
compaction and
5. Its high insulating value can be used to minimize
frost heaving in granular bases.
 Drawbacks of using blast furnace slag:

1. Volumetric instability – limits its use as backfill behind

structures
2. The formation of tufalike precipitates (white powdery
precipitates formed by the chemical reaction of
atmospheric carbon dioxide and free lime in the steel
slag) – results in deposits that clog subdrains and
drain outlets.
PAPERMILL SLUDGE
 Potential Reuses

Paper mill sludge is a by-product of the

papermaking process. Its potential
reuses include:
1. As an additive to damaged soils to
restore organic materials necessary for
plant recovery, and
2. Can be used in place of clay liners in
landfill covers.
Engineering Properties

Water content – 150 to 268%

Specific gravity – 1.80 to 1.97
Permeability – 1 × 10-7 to 5 × 10-6 cm/sec
(after Moo-Young and Zimmie, 1995a,b)
 Field Applications
Papermill sludge can be used in two
different ways:
1. It can be added to soil directly as an
organic agent
2. It can used as a substitute for compacted
clay in landfill closure operations
3. It can be applied to soils for abandoned
mine lands rehabilitation.