Soil Stabilization Using Lime: Advantages, Disadvantages and Proposing a
Potential Alternative
1, 2Ibtehaj Taha Jawad, 1Mohd Raihan Taha, 1, 2Zaid Hameed Majeed and 1Tanveer A. Khan
1Department of Civil and Structural Engineering, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Malaysia
2Department of Civil Engineering, College of Engineering, University of Babylon, Iraq
Abstract: This study is an overview of previous studies on lime (quick and hydrated) -treated soil. Lime is the
oldest traditional stabilizer used for soil stabilization. The mechanism of soil-lime treatment involves cation
exchange, which leads to the flocculation and agglomeration of soil particles. The high pH environment then causes
a pozzolanic reaction between the free Ca+2 cations and the dissolved silica and alumina. Lime-treated soil
effectively increases the strength, durability and workability of the soil. Such treatment also improves soil
compressibility. A fluctuation behavior was observed on the influence of lime on soil permeability. However, the
factors affecting the permeability of the soil-lime mixture should be extensively studied. Nonetheless, lime treatment
has a number of inherent disadvantages, such as carbonation, sulfate attack and environment impact. Magnesium
oxide/hydroxide are thus proposed as a suitable alternative stabilizer to overcome at least some of the disadvantages
of using lime in soil stabilization.
Keywords: Lime, magnesium oxide, soil stabilization, treatment mechanism