Evaluation of Portland Limestone Cement-Treated Subgrade Soils and Bases in Kansas

Due to the sustainability, benefit of Portland-limestone cement (PLC) (also referred to as Type IL cement) by reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 10%, it has been increasingly used to replace Ordinary Portland Cement (OPC) in civil engineering applications. In the US and Canada, PLCs are made with Portland cement and between 5% and 15% fine limestone. This type of cement has been considered to have equivalent performance to Type I Portland cement; therefore, a 1:1 replacement policy has been adopted. The conclusion that performance is equivalent was based on testing of ready-mixed concrete or structural concrete. Cement has also been commonly used to treat subgrade soils and bases. Subgrade soils often contain fine particles, including clay particles that can have different minerals. It is well recognized that chemical reactions between cement and clay particles are different from those between cement and aggregates. Since cement-treated subgrade soils and cement-treated bases (CTB) use a smaller amount of cement than concrete, their properties may be more sensitive to possible property changes of limestone cement. Unfortunately, PLC-treated subgrade soils and bases have not been well evaluated; therefore, it is necessary and important to evaluate the performance of PLC mixed with subgrade soils and base materials. This proposed study will evaluate the properties of PLC-treated subgrade soils and treated bases in Kansas as compared with those treated with Type I OPC using laboratory tests.

Language

• English

Project

• Status: Active
• Funding: $77554
• Contract Numbers:

  K-TRAN: KU-24-5

  RE-0883-01

  C2232

• Sponsor Organizations:

  Kansas Department of Transportation

  Eisenhower State Office Building
  700 SW Harrison Street
  Topeka, KS  United States  66603-3754
• Performing Organizations:

  University of Kansas Center for Research, Incorporated

  2291 Irving Hill Drive, Campus West
  Lawrence, KS  United States  66045
• Principal Investigators:

  Han, Jie

  Parsons, Robert

• Start Date: 20230701
• Expected Completion Date: 20250630
• Actual Completion Date: 0

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Base course (Pavements); Cement treated soils; Limestone; Portland cement; Subgrade materials
• Geographic Terms: Kansas
• Subject Areas: Highways; Materials; Pavements;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01894701
• Record Type: Research project
• Source Agency: Kansas Department of Transportation
• Contract Numbers: K-TRAN: KU-24-5, RE-0883-01, C2232
• Files: RIP, STATEDOT
• Created Date: Sep 26 2023 5:47PM