Lime Stabilization

TRB State of the Art Report 5: Lime Stabilization analyzes current practice in lime stabilization and suggests additional informational resources on the issue.

For many years, various forms of lime, including products with varying degrees of purity, have been utilized successfully as soil stablizing agents. However, hydrated high calcium lime Ca(OH)2, monohydrated dolomitic lime Ca(OH)2.MgO, calcitic quicklime CaO, and dolomitic quicklime CaO.MgO are most frequently used. Although lime hydrates dominate the U.S. market, quicklime use has increased over the past 20 years and currently accounts for 25 percent of the total stabilization lime on an annual basis. Many significant engineering properties of soils are beneficially modified by lime treatment.

Although lime is primarily utilized to treat fine-grained soils, it can also be used to modify the characteristics of the fine fraction of more granular soils. Lime treatment can expedite construction, modify subgrade soils, and improve strength and durability of fine-grained soils. Lime-treated soils have been used as modified subgrades, subbase materials, and base materials in pavement construction. The location of the lime-treated layer in the pavement system is dictated by strength, durabilty, and other design criteria. Railroad subgrades have also been successfully stabilized with lime.