Utilization of Waste Fibers in Road Construction

Abstract

In this project, we are using plastic as a fiber in road construction. We have used plastic milk bags as a fiber because global plastic production is growing with the population growth and many environmental issues can arise as a result of the significant increase in the use of plastics like polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP). Therefore, it\'s critical to find strategies for getting rid of these waste products without endangering the environment. The disposal of plastic becomes complicated because they are not biodegradable. It is therefore better to recycle than to dispose of. One of the trends in plastic recycling is its use in road construction. Road transport is undoubtedly the lifeline of the nation and its development is a vital concern. Therefore, we decided to use the concept of using plastic as a fiber in road construction. This type of recycling can also help protect the environment from greenhouse gases that are released into the atmosphere during disposal. This will also exhibit high strength, better binding properties, stability and increased resistance to wear, and better durability and tear of pavements.

Introduction

I. INTRODUCTION

Roads are the key to economic development. A good road network is an essential infrastructure that accelerates the development process through connectivity and opening up underdeveloped regions to trade and investment. Roads play a key role in the development of intermodal transport and create connections with airports, railway stations, and ports. Since independence, there has been a huge increase in the volume of road traffic, both passenger and freight. However, the main road network consisting of national and state highways does not match this increase in traffic. Fiber reinforced road has a history of adding huge performance improvements at a reasonable cost. The future of pavements must be more durable, crack resistant, and cost-effective. Fiber-reinforced road construction provides high performance and safety. Various experiments are being carried out to improve the properties of the road. The use of waste plastic in road construction represents a recent development in this field of study. Due to their effectiveness, durability, and affordable construction, plastics are being used more and more in road construction.

Most nations around the world are starting to experience problems with waste disposal. Large-scale accumulation of these waste materials results in issues with the environment and the economy. The most widespread waste is plastic waste materials. Plastic is non-biodegradable and many researchers have found that plastics take about 4500 years to decompose. Several studies have shown that plastic disposal causes many health problems and reduces soil fertility. The production of plastics worldwide has exceeded 400 million tons and the recycling of plastics is only 10%.[1] These materials are the ones that we use the most frequently every day. Large amounts of plastic waste are created, including the polyethylene terephthalate (PET) used to make plastic bottles and the polypropylene (PP) used to make plastic bags and carpets. The recycling and reuse of these materials in construction applications as a solution to protect the environment from plastic waste material pollution have been the subject of numerous studies by researchers looking for efficient ways to reduce the pollution of these materials. When building roads, using these materials as soil stabilizers is an efficient use of them. The base layers of the road can be made better by stabilizing the soil with plastic waste.

II. LITERATURE SURVEY

The paper explains how adding thermoplastic modifiers to conventional bitumen can improve the bitumen's viscoelastic behavior and alter its rheological characteristics. High-density polyethylene (HDPE) and polypropylene (PP) were the two types of modifiers used; it was found that they had varying degrees of influence, increasing the softening point and decreasing the penetration value while increasing the overall dynamic and absolute viscosities of the binder.[2]

The optimal percentage of waste plastics is equal to 0.3% and 0.4% of the dry unit weight of soil, respectively, for gravel and fly ash materials, according to the paper's descriptions of direct shear tests and CBR tests. When laid on an expansive soil subgrade with gravel or flash sub bases reinforced with an ideal percentage of waste plastics, the load-carrying capacity of the flexible pavement has increased significantly. When compared to waste plastics reinforced fly ash sub base, gravel reinforced with waste plastics in the model flexible pavement performed better at all deformation levels.[3]

The paper illustrates an experimental study that was conducted to show how three industrial wastes, including fly ash, stone dust, and waste recycled product (WRP) made from recycled blast furnace slag from a steel plant, could be used in pavements after being randomly reinforced with HDPE plastic waste strips. In this study, the feasibility of using plastic strips to reinforce industrial waste materials was examined by measuring CBR values, subgrade modulus (ks), CBRI, and PPLR at 12.5 mm penetration.[4]

The paper describes that waste plastic is utilized in bituminous mixes. Using a shredding machine, the plastic waste is reduced to fit through a 2.36mm sieve. After heating the aggregate mixture, the plastic was evenly spread over the aggregates. To create the mix formula, these plastic-coated aggregates were combined with hot bitumen. The shredded plastic waste is combined with hot aggregate to create the plastic-modified mix, which is then made with bitumen that contains 6%, 8%, 10%, 12%, and 14% plastic by weight. When 12% plastic waste is added to the mixture, it has been discovered that the Marshall stability value is at its highest. With the inclusion of plastic in the mixture, the flow value continuously rises. With the addition of plastic waste, the percentage of air voids in the mixture continuously decreases, and the VFB continuously rises.[5]

The paper explains how poor stabilization leads to road cracks. When compared to the properties of soil without stabilization, it can be said that the engineering properties of soil are enhanced after stabilization with waste plastic. Therefore, in the case of flexible pavements, plastic can be used as a reinforcement material to reduce fatalities in the soil subgrade. The ideal amount that can be used to stabilize the soil subgrade is 5% of waste plastic by weight of the soil sample.[6]

The paper tells that there are many types of waste materials available in many parts of India, such as fly ash, baggage, GGBS, plastic waste, and rice husk ash, and they are all easily available and have a low cost compared to conventional materials. We can reduce the soil's tendency to swell and improve its properties by adding waste materials to expansive soils like black cotton soil. Utilizing waste materials in the highway sector is necessary for both environmental protection and the country's sustainable development. Utilizing industrial wastes is cost-effective for the neighborhood and environmentally responsible. We can effectively improve the properties of soil by mixing fiber with waste. It is possible to compare the stabilization of soil samples with the use of cement and other materials to the use of lime and other materials.[7]

It is described in the paper that fly ash is mainly used for concrete and soil stabilization because its properties are the same as those of cement.  During the process of generating electricity, it is a waste material produced by combustion.  Adding 5% fly ash to expansive soil reduces swell pressure and swell potential from around 175 kph to 75 kph, respectively. Initially, it decreased by about 60% when fly ash was added, but later on, it gradually increased.  When the fly ash was increased to 15% mixed with the same cement content, the soaked CBR value was found to be increased, and when the fly ash increased, it decreased. A significant improvement in strength and reduction of swelling is observed when 15% of fly ash is mixed with 5% of cement. Therefore, 15% of fly ash with 5% of cement can effectively stabilize soil at low costs by using 15% of fly ash with 5% of cement.[8]

According to the study, local soil gains more CBR value when HDPE, LDPE, and PP waste plastic are added. The CBR value of the plain soil was 7.9%, but it was increased to 26.9% by the addition of 5% each of waste HDPE, LDPE, and PP plastic. The CBR value increased the maximum when the amount of waste plastic in the mixture was 5%. The Bearing Ratio Index (BRI) value for HDPE waste plastic was discovered to be around 3.40, whereas LDPE and PP had BRI values of 2.57 and 2.93, respectively. With the addition of HDPE, LDPE, and PP to the subgrade soil, a significant reduction in pavement crust thickness has been observed. The total crust thickness was decreased from 635mm to 455mm with 5% HDPE waste plastic material, compared to 490mm and 470mm for LDPE and PP, respectively. Using 5% HDPE in the subgrade of the road can reduce the cost of road construction by 20%, while 5% LDPE and PP in a similar crust section can reduce costs by 5% and 15%, respectively. [9]

According to the study, when lime content rose from 1% to 5% during the modified Proctor test, the ideal moisture content gradually dropped from 21.5% to 13.84%. For lime contents ranging from 1% to 4%, the maximum dry density values increased from 17.59 kN/m3 to 18.527 kN/m3. However, the maximum dry density value decreases when 5% lime is added. The maximum dry density is 18.527 KN/m3, and the optimal values are thus obtained for soil blended with 4% lime, with the optimal moisture content being 14.1463%. Black cotton soil has a CBR value of 2.005%. The CBR values for 1% to 4% lime increased from 3.3416% to 3.8428% after adding lime content to the soil. But the CBR values start to fall after 5% lime content. In a different study, the inclusion of plastic fiber content increased CBR values from 3.9416% to 6.1819% gradually, and the values decreased with further addition of PF percentage. The soil added with 4% lime and 0.75% plastic fibers has the highest CBR value. The Free Swell Index is calculated as 50% for black soil and drops to 35.7% for soil mixed with 4% lime. In soil mixed with 4% lime, the Specific Gravity for black cotton soil dropped to 2.33 from 2.6. Since 4% lime has been added to the black soil, the liquid limit has dropped from 64% to 50.4%. When 4% lime was added to the black soil, the plastic limit was lowered from 15.38% to 11%. Indicators of plasticity decreased from 48.62% to 39.40% when black soil and 4% lime have been combined.[10]

The paper explains that regardless of the amount of ceramic dust added, the liquid limit, plastic limit, and plasticity index continue to decline. The soil is changed from the CH group to the CL group by the addition of 30% ceramic dust. With an increase in the percentage of ceramic dust addition, MDD continues to rise while OMC continues to fall. The UCS keeps rising with an increase in the percentage of ceramic dust addition. With an increase in the percentage of ceramic dust addition, the soaked CBR keeps rising. When 30% ceramic dust was added, the soaked CBR value increased by 150% in comparison to untreated soil. With an increase in the percentage of ceramic dust addition, the cohesion value keeps falling and the angle of internal friction keeps rising. According to the results of the compaction test, maximum dry density decreases as coir content increases while ideal moisture content rises.[11]

II. EXPERIMENTAL STUDY

A description of the material and the methods used for the test are given in the below paragraph:

C. Method

The experimental study included a variety of laboratory test which is as follow:

1. Standard Proctor Test

The soil must be compacted to increase its strength before road construction. A labor-intensive field test to perform soil compaction is called the Standard Proctor Test. To determine the ideal moisture content and maximum dry density of the soil sample, the Standard Proctor Test was used. The soil used for the test was 3 kg and the soil was passed to the 4 mm sieve. The soil sample was dived into three-layer and for each layer, 25 blows were applied and gradually the water was added to the soil.

2. CBR (California Bearing Ratio)

A penetration test used to assess the subgrade strength of roads and pavements is called the California Bearing Ratio test. The test results are used to determine the penetration thickness (2.5mm – 5mm) and it is also used as an index of the strength and bearing capacity of the soil. In this test, we have compacted soil in three layers, and in between each layer, a plastic grid of 2cm by 2cm is placed of radius 15cm. The soil was compacted using light dynamic compaction. The hammer which was used for compaction was allowed to fall freely from a height of 31cm. Only flexible pavements are suitable for use with this technique. The road pavement needs to be designed and built with less thickness the stronger the subgrade is (the higher the CBR reading), which results in significant cost savings. In contrast, if CBR testing reveals that the subgrade is weak (a low CBR reading), we must build a suitable thicker road pavement to distribute the wheel load over a larger area of the weak Subgrade to prevent the weak subgrade material from deforming and leading to the failure of the road pavement.

From the above readings and graphs, we observed that initially, the California Bearing ratio(C.B.R) of the soil was less, and after introducing plastic fiber in the soil the California Bearing ratio(C.B.R) value was observed to be increased. So it clearly states that by adding plastic as a fiber in the soil the bearing capacity of the soil increases.

TABLE 1

. Comparison of soil penetration without and with plastic fiber

V. ACKNOWLEDGMENT

We sincerely thank our guide Mr. Arpit Vyas for his/her guidance and constant support and also for the stick to our backs.

We thank the HOD, Dr. Seema Jagtap, the Principal, Dr. B. K. Mishra, and the college management for their support.

Conclusion

The following conclusions were drawn from the above experimental study: 1) A fiber-modified mixture not only significantly lowers overall pavement maintenance and construction costs, but also reduces reflective and fatigue cracking. 2) It provides support to the bituminous layer, which decreases the chances of pothole formation. 3) Due to this the maintenance cost of the road decreases. 4) Soil properties can be effectively improved by adding fiber. 5) The flexible pavement\'s load-carrying capacity has successfully been significantly increased. 6) It also reduces the accumulation of plastic by using it effectively to increase the durability of the subgrade.

References

[1] A Review on Use of Plastic in Construction of Roads Chada Jithendra Sai Raja et al. JOURNAL OF ADVANCEMENT IN ENGINEERING AND TECHNOLOGY. [2] Use of waste plastic materials for road construction in Ghana.Johnson et al.,2017. [3] Utilisation of Waste Plastics in Flexible Pavement Construction Laid on Expansive Soil Subgrade. D. S. V. Prasad JNTU, Kakinadam, AP, India and G. V. R. Prasada Raju JNTU, Kakinadam, AP, India. [4] The behavior of plastic waste fiber-reinforced industrial wastes in pavement applications.J. N. Jha et al.,2014. [5] Use of Plastic Waste in Bituminous Road Construction Pratiksha et al.,2016. [6] Stabilization of Subgrade with Waste Plastic as Stabilizer in Flexible Pavements. Vol. 5, Issue 10, October 2016 S.Sameer et al. [7] Utilization of Waste Materials for the Strengthening of Pavement Subgrade-A Research A. Vijayakumar et al.International Journal of Innovative Technology and Exploring Engineering (IJITEE) ISSN: 2278-3075, Volume-8, Issue- 9S2, July 2019. [8] Magdi m.e. Zumrawi (2015), “Stabilization of pavement subgrade by using fly ash activated by cement,” American Journal of civil engineering and Architecture, pp 218-224. [9] EFFECT OF WASTE PLASTIC FIBRE ON THE STRENGTH CHARACTERISTICS OF THE HIGHWAY SUBGRAD Khan Adnan J et al. 2018 IJRTI | Volume 3, Issue 8 | ISSN: 2456-3315. [10] Use of Lime and Waste Plastic Fibers for Subgrade Stabilization R. Ratna Prasad et al.2018 IJRTI | Volume 3, Issue 8 | ISSN: 2456-3315. [11] STRENGTH IMPROVEMENT OF SUBGRADE SOIL USING CERAMIC WASTE POWDER TREATED WITH COIR FIBRE Shelji S Shihab and Dr.Usha Thomas. 2020 IJCRT | Volume 8, Issue 8 August 2020 | ISSN: 2320-2882. [12] TRANSPORTATION RESEARCH RECORD 1226 6, Properties and Design of Fiber Reinforced Roller Compacted Concrete. [13] USE OF STEEL FIBER IN CONCRETE PAVEMENT, National Conference on Recent Trends in Engineering & Technology. [14] Performance of the Steel Fibre Reinforced Rigid Concrete Pavement in Fatigue Chee Keong Lau et al. Received: 11 September 2020; Accepted: 14 October 2020; Published: 16 October 2020. [15] “ANALYSIS OF POLYESTER FIBRE REINFORCED CONCRETE SUBJECTED TO ELEVATED TEMPERATURES” SIDDESH PAI & KAUSHIK CHANDRA. International Journal of Civil, Structural, Environmental and Infrastructure Engineering Research and Development (IJCSEIERD) ISSN 2249-6866.

Copyright

Copyright © 2023 Akshat Shah, Harshad Sawakhande, Dinesh Prajapati, Dhruman Shah, Ast Prof. Arpit Vyas. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.