Micro to Nanolevel Stabilization of Expansive Clay Using Agro-Wastes

The circular economy encourages the production and consumption of sustainable embankment geomaterials their blends utilizing recycled waste materials in roads, railway tracks, airfields, underground structures. Geomaterials comprising high-plastic soft expansive clay pose excessive settlement during cyclic traffic/railway/airfield loading resulting uneven geometry overlying layers. This paper demonstrates multiobjective optimized improvement (C) geotechnical characteristics by cost-effective agro-wastes additives at microlevel (by 3% to 12% rice husk ash, i.e., RHA), nanolevel 0.6% 1.5% derived green nano-SiO2, NS), synergistic micro (NS-RHA). swell potential, resilient modulus (MR), initial elastic (Es), unconfined compressive strength (UCT), California bearing ratio (CBR) C its were determined. chemical characterization conducted through Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) optical microscopic tests. outcome this study depicted that cost for composite, (1.2% NS-9% RHA)/(9% RHA) is 1.22 whereas stiffness MR (NS-RHA)/MR(RHA) Es (NS-RHA)/Es(RHA) UCT(NS-RHA)/UCT(RHA) CBR(NS-RHA)/CBR(RHA) found be 2.0, 1.64, 2.17, 2.82, respectively. FTIR revealed compatibility between C, RHA, & NS from durability perspective. Cost-stiffness results can applied experts economize stabilization use agro-waste development.