1.

1 CLAY SOIL

Clays are called secondary silicates, because they are formed from the weathering of primary

rock-forming minerals. Clay occurs in small particle sizes (<0.002 mm) and are very fine grained

and lake shaped; they are separated from sand, gravel and silt due to the negative electrical load on

the crystal edges and positive electrical load on the face. (Nazile Ural)

Clay soil is rich in iron and used around the world as a construction material because of its

properties most commonly for bricks or roof tiles. The relative ease with which clay can be extracted

from the ground and processed by adding water to change its shape or increasing its strength by

adding fibers that it can be considered sustainable. In addition it provides relatively good thermal

insulation and thermal mass. (https://www.designingbuildings.co.uk/Clay_in_Construction) Also, the

binding property of the clay is the main motive for using it for building purpose. The properties of

the soil are governed by the clay content and its behavior and therefore, the cohesive character of

clay contributes to the strength and durability of the stabilized soil blocks. (Claudia Zapata, et.al

2016)

Figure 1. Clay Soil

1.1.1 CHARACTERISTICS OF CLAY SOIL

1.1.1.1 Plasicity
 It is sticky,has the ability to form and retain the shape by an outside force, has a

unique “crystal” structure of the molecules, plate like, flat, 2-dimensional, water affects

it.

1.1.1.2 Particle Size

Clay occurs in small particle sizes (<0.002 mm) and are very fine grained.

1.1.1.3 Particle Structure

Clay soils are flat sheets and sliding

1.1.1.4 Metamorphosis by Fire/Temperture

When subjected to enough heat, clay becomes hard and permanent – rock like.

It metamorphoses from a plastic, malleable material into a material that

resembles stone or rock. It lasts for thousands of years, is water impervious,

has a different crystalline structure, and other different physical properties that

when it was not fired.

( http://leecollegelibrary.com/ceremics/clay/clay3.html )

1.1.2 COMPOSITION OF CLAY SOIL

Clay comprises small pores of air and solid particles with no void spaces. It is soft

and high humidity and will quickly harden if continuously exposed to high ambient

temperatures. However, clay has a low shear strength and high compressibility level.

(AURUM Press 3000 (2010), Assessed on 18th October 2016,

http://www.aureka.com/earth-construction-equipment/aurum-press-3000)

The Study, “Effect of Clay on Soil – Cement Blocks” by S.Krishnaiah, it was stated that the locally

inorganic used for the study on stabilized soil blocks and come with Clay Soil to investigate the effect to

blocks resulted to satisfy the requirement which is the compressive strength and durability of the soil
block.

(https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/2

42379901_Effect_of_Clay_on_Soil_Cement_Blocks&ved=2ahUKEwjW2Iv94oDlAhUCQN4KHRviAn

wQFjABegQIBRAB&usg=AOvVaw1a-N_w0NuzpZwKn3Yw4hUk)

“Optimum Soil Grading for the soil – Cement Blocks” (B.V. Venkatarama R., et.al.), the paper

deals with an experimental study on the influence of soil grading on the characteristic of soil – cement

blocks. Influence of clay content of the soil – cement block on strength, absorption and durability

characteristics. Optimum clay content leading to maximum strength is in the range of 14%-16%, initial

rate of absorption decreases with increase in clay content of the block and Optimum clay content for the

highest modulus of the blocks and for highest shear-bond strength is about 16%. (

https://ascelibrary.org/doi/abs/10.1061/(ASCE)0899-1561(2007)19%3A2(139) )

1.2 LATERITIC/LATERITE SOIL

Laterite is a soil and rock type rich in iron and aluminum and is commonly considered to

have formed in hot and wet tropical areas. Laterites are rusty-red coloration because of high iron

oxide content. ( https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laterite )

Figure 2. Laterite Soil

1.2.1 COMPOSITION OF LATERITIC SOIL

Laterite Soil consists of clay and iron particles, and characterized by hardening

properties, chemical content and structural evolution. It is porous and soft at high

humidity, where exposing it continuously to high ambient temperatures would cause it to

harden. (AURUM Press 3000 (2010), Assessed on 18th October 2016,

http://www.aureka.com/earth-construction-equipment/aurum-press-3000)

Laterite is composed of both cohesionless and cohesive soils. The cohesionless

portion consist of gravel, sand and silts while the cohesive portion includes fine particles

usually in silt and clay sizes. Lateritic soils behave in a unique way with some laterites

changing volume when exposed to humidity variations while others are not affected.

Hence, some components are referred to as stable i.e gravel and sand, while silt and clay

are referred to as unstable. Stability in this sense is based on their ability to withstand

variations in terms of moisture without a significant change in its properties, which is of

course fundamental in materials for building construction. Rigassi, (1995) described the

properties of each of these components of lateritic soil as follows:

a) Gravels; composed of fragments of rock of varying hardness, whose size fall between

2 - 20 mm with stable mechanical properties when it comes in contact with water.

b) Sands; composed of mineral particles, with size ranging between 0.06 - 2 mm. Stable,

though lacks cohesion when dry, it has an appreciable degree of internal friction, which

means, it offers a great resistance (i.e. mechanical) to intra-particle movement. It is

normally characterised by apparent cohesion when wet due to the surface tension of the

water present in the void spaces.

c) Silts; consist of grain particles ranging from 0.002 to 0.06 mm; cohesion is low when

dry and it offers lower resistance to intra-particle movement than sands. Silts are

characterized by cohesion in wet condition and susceptible to swell and shrinkage on

exposure to varying levels of humidity, leading to appreciable change in volume. In the

dry state, they have very

poor cohesion and therefore cannot be used independently as main material for building.

d) Clays; the finest of the particle sizes in lateritic soil, generally smaller than 0.002mm.

Their characteristics differ completely from the larger sized particles in that they consist

mainly of microscopic clay minerals which include: kaolinite, illite and montmorillonite.

Clay particles are usually coated in a thin-film of absorbed water molecules and since

they 8 are microscopic, they tend to be very light in comparison to surface tension forces

acting on the film of absorbed water. Clays unlike gravel and sand, are not stable and

quite sensitive to varying humidity. Due to strong attraction of clay to water, its volume

increases due to increase in moisture content as a result of thick films of absorbed water

(Mitchell and Soga,2005). On the other hand; as clay dries out, shrinkage cracks may

appear in the clay mass with a reduction in strength. The cracks also form pathways for

water during subsequent wetting up events. This creates a major problem when clay is

being used independently as a building construction material. Thus, a combination of the

stable constituents i.e gravel and sand with silt and clay forms good soil material for

construction purposes. Lateritic soils appear to be best suited in this regard because it is

made up of all these different particle sizes in varying proportions (well-graded).

(A review of the use of lateritic soils in the construction/development of sustainable

housing in Africa: A Geological Perspective Oyelami, C.A. and Van Rooy, J.L.)