MATERIALS FOR SOIL-CEMENT

Only three basic ingredients are needed for soil-cement: soil material, Portland cement, and water.
Low first cost is achieved mainly by using inexpensive local materials. The soil material, which makes
up the bulk of soil-cement, is either in place or obtained nearby, and the water is usually hauled only
short distances.

The soil in soil-cement can be a wide variety of materials. The material that occurs on the road,
street, or other area to be improved is commonly used – with or without its bituminous surfacing.
Some materials that have been used include fine-textured soils; sandy materials; glacial materials
that are variable mixtures of sand, gravel, silt, and clay; granular materials that have local names of
caliche, limerock, disintegrated granite, ash, cinders, scoria, and red dog; well-graded granular
materials such as crushed rock and crushed gravel; waste products from aggregate production; and
poorly graded and dirty sands from gravel pits.

The quantities of Portland cement and water to be added and the density to which the mixture must
be compacted are determined by standardized tests. The water serves two purposes; it helps to
obtain maximum compaction (density) by lubricating the soil grains and it is necessary for cement
hydration, which hardens and binds the soil into a solid mass. Properly built soil-cement contains
enough water for both purposes.

Portland Cement

Any type of Portland cement may be used that complies with the latest specifications for Portland
cement (American Society for Testing and Materials ASTM C150, Canadian Standards Association A5-
M, or American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials, AASHTO M85) or blended
hydraulic cements (ASTM C595 or AASHTO M240). Portland cement types I and II are most
commonly used.

Water

The water used in soil-cement should be relatively clean and free from harmful amounts of alkalies,
acids, or organic matter. Water fit to drink is satisfactory. Sea water has been used satisfactorily when
fresh water unobtainable.

Soil Materials

Since soil-cement obtains its stability primarily by the hydration of cement and not by cohesion and
internal friction of the materials, practically all soil materials and combinations of materials can be
hardened with Portland cement. The general suitability of soil materials for soil-cement can be
judged, before they are tested, on the basis of their gradation and their position in the soil profile.

Gradation

On the basis gradation, soil materials for soil cement can be divided into three broad groups:
1. Well graded sandy and gravelly materials with about 10 to 35% of non-plastic fines have the
most favorable characteristics and generally require the least amount of cement for
adequate hardening. Glacial and water-deposited sands and gravels, crusher-run limestone,
caliche, limerock, and almost all granular materials work well if they contain 55% or more
material passing the No. 4 (4.75-mm) sieve and 37% PASSING THE No. 10 (2.00-mm) sieve.
These sands and gravels are readily pulverized, easily mixed, and can be built under a wide
range of conditions.
Coarsely graded crushed stone and gravel base course materials with more than 45%
retained on the No. 4 (4.75-mm) sieve are being used successfully. However, because of their
coarse gradation, these materials may require additional non-plastic fines or higher cement
contents than less coarsely graded materials. When these coarse-graded aggregates are used
in soil-cement it is important, as it is for all soil-cement materials, that the mix design not be
based exclusively on compressive strength, but be based on the ASTM or AASHTO standard
freeze-thaw and wet-dry tests.
2. Sandy materials deficient in fines, such as some beach, glacial, and windblown sands, make
good soil-cement, though the amount of cement needed for adequate hardening usually is
slightly greater than with the materials in the first group. Because of poor gradation and
absence of fines in these sands, construction equipment may have difficulty in obtaining
traction. Traction can be vastly improved by keeping the sand wet and by usinf track-type
equipment. These materials are likely to be tender and to require special procedures during
final compaction and finishing to obtain a smooth, dense surface.
3. Silty and clayey soils make satisfactory soil-cement, but those containing high clay contents
are harder to pulverize. Generally, the more silty and clayey the soil, the higher the cement
content required to harden it adequately. Construction with these soils is more dependant
on weather conditions. If the soil can be sufficiently pulverized, it is suitable for use in soil-
cement.

Soil Profile

A Soil profile is a vertical cross section of the earth’s surface that exposes the different soil
horizons or layers. Each soil horizon is generally of a different gradation (texture), structure, and
color. Color indicates the soil’s chemical makeup. In some instances, gradation of the soil is
secondary to chemical makeup in so far as the soil’s reaction with Portland cement is concerned.
For instance, a red soil indicates the presence of iron and generally reacts exceptionally well with
cement. Conversely, a black farmland soil may react rather poorly with cement because of the
presence of organic material.

In some locations in northern glaciated areas and in eastern and southeastern coastal areas,
there are some sandy soils that require exceptionally high cement factors. Two alternative
corrective measures can be considered: (1) replacing or blanketing the poorly reacting sand with
a normally reacting soil; or (2) adding to the sandy soil a small percentage of calcium chloride, a
friable, clayey soil, or a calcareous material such as limerock or limestone screenings. Sodium
chloride, seawater, and other chemicals may also be effective.*

Soil formed from similar parent material and under similar conditions of climate, topography,
drainage, and vegetation are similar and have similar profiles. These soils have been identified
according to soil series by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Natural Resources Conservation
Service. Many areas have been surveyed and mapped according to this classification system; and
the maps and accompanying reports are a valuable aid in soil survey work. Studies have shown
that soils of the same soil series and the horizon and of similar texture, wherever they are found,
will require the same amount if cement.**

Old Roadway Material

The materials usually found in old gravel or stone roads and streets make excellent soil cement.
They are generally friable, mix easily, and require only a minimum amount of cement. Frequently
the old bituminous mat, if present, can be salvaged by pulverizing it and mixing it with the old
base-course material for processing with cement. The reuse of these materials with cement is an
economical way to strengthen and rebuild wornout granular base pavements. Chapter 4 provides
further details on recycling failed flexible pavements.

Borrow materials

From a construction or cost standpoint, it is sometimes advantageous to use a borrow material

instead of the soil in place. The existing soil or the soils encountered in cut sections may have a
very high clay content and require a relatively high cement factor. Also, a considerable effort may
be required to pulverize these soils properly. Deposits of friable or granular materials that
require much less cement and very little pulverizing can often be found nearby and can be used
to blanket the existing soil or can be combined with it. Selective grading often is used to place
the most favorable soil at the top of the grade. Comparative cost estimates will indicate the most
economical materials or combination of materials to use.

LABORATORY TESTS

Before construction starts, the soil materials that will be treated with cement should be
identified and representative samples of each type forwarded to a laboratory for testing. These
test determine the minimum cement content required to harden each material adequately and
the approximate optimum moisture content and density values for use in construction.

The optimum moisture content and maximum density for molding laboratory test specimens are
determined by the moisture-density test for soil-cement (ASTM D558 or AASHTO T134). The
required amount of cement is determined by laboratory wet-dry and freeze-thaw tests (ASTM
D559 and D560 or AASHTO T135 or T136).

Short-cut test methods have also been developed to determine the cement content required for
granular soils. State highway department laboratories and many commercial testing laboratories
are equipped to run the soil-cement tests.

In some areas special test methods and criteria have been developed specifically for local
conditions. For the particular soil materials and climate involved, these locally developed tests
methods have proved satisfactory.

Table 1 gives the normal range of cement requirements for soils of the various AASHTO soil
groups. Table 2 gives average cement requirements for a number of miscellaneous materials and
special types of soil. These average cement requirements can be used for rough cost estimates
and then confirmed or revised as laboratory test results become available.
A proper cement content is the primary requirement for soil-cement construction. In the
discussions that follow, it is assumed that cement factors and boundaries of the various soil
materials have been determined for the area to be constructed.