The Effect of Rubber Fills on the Performance of Infrastructure

One of the most environmentally friendly methods to recycle scrap tires is by shredding them into tire derived aggregate (TDA). TDA possesses desirable properties for various civil engineering applications and has been successfully used as fill material in numerous projects. To address the limitations of previous studies, 27 direct shear tests were conducted using a large-scale direct shear box (3 feet wide, 3 feet long, and 2 feet deep) on different TDA types mixed with soil. Additionally, 9 large-scale compressibility tests were conducted on the soil-TDA mixtures. TDA content was varied from 0 to 100% by weight in the soil mixtures. The direct shear tests were performed under confining pressures of 3.63, 7.25, and 10.88 psi. The results indicated that adding TDA to the soil significantly reduces the dry unit weight of the mixtures. When 25% TDA (Type A or Type B) was added to the soil, it provided the same shear resistance for the soil alone at all considered confining pressures. The compressibility test results showed that the inclusion of TDA increased the compressibility of the mixtures. It was observed that adding TDA to the soil contributed to a strain-hardening behavior in the mixtures. Also, adding 25% TDA reduced lateral earth pressure by 20% on average.

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Report number: cmr 24-018
Published: October 2024

Project number: TR202013

Authors: Mohamed Elashram, Ahmed Gheni, Mohamed ElGawady

Performing organization: Missouri University of Science & Technology