Effects of xanthan gum biopolymer onsome geotechnical properties of a clay

This study presents geotechnical characteristics of a low plasticity clay improved by xanthan gum biopolymer. The samples were prepared by mixed clay at various proportions by weight of xanthan gum biopolymer (0%, 0.5%, 1.0%, 1.5%, 2.0%, 3.0%), and then tested at the end of different curing times (0 day, 7 days, 28 days, 56 days). To demonstrate the influence of xanthan gum biopolymer on the clay, an intensive series of unconfined compressive strength, direct shear, laboratory vane shear, fall cone, oedometer, permeability, swelling and liner shrinkage tests were carried out on the samples. According to the testing results, strength of the clay samples increased with both content of biopolymer and curing time. The tests results also indicated that permeability of the samples with xanthan gum biopolymer is lower, whilst the compression index and swelling percentages values are higher than the samples without treatment.