Experimental study on the effects of composite reinforcement of ionic soil stabilizer and sand on bentonite

Abstract This paper utilizes both the ionic soil stabilizer (ISS) and sand to strengthen bentonite, as ISS effectively reduces its expansive properties and sand rapidly improves its strength to reduce cracks. Various experiments are conducted to analyze the changes in physical and mechanical properties of the bentonite strengthened by ISS-sand (ISB). The results show that not only do the sand particles enhance the strength of bentonite, but also the ISS significantly reduces its expansibility. Furthermore, the mass ratio of sand to bentonite has different effects on the unconfined compressive strength (UCS) and the freeze-tolerance of sand-reinforced bentonite (SB) and ISB. These findings suggest that a comprehensive consideration of the sand mixing rate is necessary when implementing ISS reinforcement on natural expansive soil.