Rigid pavement design in black cotton soil areas in Chhattisgarh: A Study

Abstract

Land in cotton soil is very fertile and is very good for agriculture purpose. But rigid pavement design in such type is soil is very challenging due to its quick changing properties due to climatic conditions. For Rigid Pavement various procedures must be followed to avoid damage. Black Cotton soil has high swelling and shrinkage properties; it is hard as long as it remains dry, but it loses its stability when wet. On drying, the soil shrinks and cracks very badly. The construction of roads in such soil areas has always presented serious problems, due to the extremely load bearing capacity of the subgrade when it is wet and extensive swelling during wetting. Aim of this paper is to find the difficulties and to suggest best method of construction in such a challenging area(s).