Performance of Stabilised Lateritic Soil with Citric Acid Cross Linked Cassava Starch Biopolymer for Rural Highway Infrastructure
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.65150/EP-gjetr/V2E9/2026-14Keywords:
Lateritic soil, Citric acid cross-linked cassava starch (CLSS), Biopolymer, rural highway, Laboratory test.Abstract
This study investigated the geotechnical and pavement performance of lateritic subgrade soil stabilized with citric acid cross-linked cassava starch (CLSS) biopolymer for rural highway infrastructure. Ten mix designations (S1-S10) were formulated by varying CLSS content (0-15% by dry weight of soil) and citric acid cross-linking concentration (5%, 7.5%, 10% by weight of starch). Laboratory test was carried out in accordance with BS 1377:1990 - involving Atterberg limits, Modified Proctor compaction, Unconfined Compressive Strength (UCS) at 7, 14, and 28 days curing. Also, California Bearing Ratio (soaked and un-soaked), and durability test were done under six wetting-drying (W-D) cycles. The results show that the optimum mix, S9 (15% CLSS, 7.5% citric acid cross-linking), reduced the Plasticity Index from 18.3% to 7.1% (a 61.2% reduction), the Free Swell Index from 42% to 14% (a 66.7% reduction), and swell from 2.4% to 0.3% (an 87.5% reduction). The 28-day UCS improved from 260 kPa (S1) to 1,480 kPa at S9, a 469.2% improvement, whilst soaked CBR increased from 9% to 103% (a 1,044.4% improvement). S9 retained 89.0% of its initial UCS after six W-D cycles with a mass loss of only 2.93%. These findings establish CLSS as a technically viable, environmentally sustainable, and good locally sourced stabilizer for lateritic subgrade soils in tropical rural highway construction.
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Copyright (c) 2026 Pam Yakubu Dalyop , Olumuyiwa Samson Aderinola, Tosin Samuel Ayeni (Author)
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