The by-product of iron obtained from the blast furnace is referred to as ground granulated blast furnace slag (GGBS). Its major composition is silicate and aluminosilicate of melted calcium which gets frequently extracted of blast furnace. Each year, approximately ten to twenty mega tonnes of GGBS is manufactured industrially. If such a huge quantity of GGBS is not utilized or disposed properly, it can cause pollution by degrading the environment. From past researches, GGBS is well known to have good binding properties due to which when GGBS is mixed with soil, it transmits cementitious behaviour along with soil. It behaves like soil stabilizing agent and improves soil properties. The properties of ground granulated blast furnace slag are very much similar to that of cement. Hence, GGBS is well utilized nowadays as an alternative in place of cement. Since GGBS is a waste by-product, its use in construction is economical and reduces the threat to environment pollution. In this research, the optimum dosage of ground granulated blast furnace slag (GGBS) was mixed with clayey soil to make the soil stable and suitable for construction purpose and to improve the soil strength considerably. The maximum dry density, optimum moisture content, liquid limit, plastic limit and plasticity index at varying percentages of GGBS (0%, 8%, 12%, 16% and 20%) addition in the clayey soil were examined. The maximum dry density and the corresponding optimum moisture content for the virgin clayey soil are found equal to 16.43kN/m3 and 18% respectively. The maximum dry density and the corresponding optimum moisture content for the clayey soil containing 16% GGBS mixture are found equal to 17.42kN/m3 and 24% respectively.

Ground granulated blast furnace slag (GGBS), maximum dry density (MDD), optimum moisture content (OMC), liquid limit, plastic limit, plasticity index.