Abstract:
This thesis presented the study of engineering properties of weathered Clay Soil reinforced with Vetiver grass root focusing on the shear strength of soil and root tensile strength affecting shear strength of soil. The study of shear strength comprised of direct shear test of both reinforced soil and non-reinforced soil in field and laboratory concerning effects of growing periods. The study of root tensile strength was carried out by considering effects of root diameter and growing periods in laboratory. In the field, the 4-weeks-old Prachuab khiri khan vetiver sterns ,which are 20 centimeter long with root length of 10 centimeters, were planted in a grid pattern of lOcm xlOO cm. While in laboratory, the grass were planted in PVC cylinder with the diameter of 15 cm. Tensile test of vetiver root and direct shear test of soil were undergone in laboratory and in field for growing periods of 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6 months, respectively. From test results, the growing rate of Vetiver roots, which have direct proportion to the growing periods, range in between 11.0 to 34.5 of initial stem length. The tensile resistance is directly proportional to root diameter. The ultimate tensile strength is indirectly proportional to root diameter. At the average root diameter of 1.20 mm., the ultimate tensile strength is equal to 135.03 ltsc. The modulus of elasticity is indirectly proportional to root diameter. All three equations have R' coefficient over 0.8, therefore, reflects high degree of reliability. Moreover, the increased shear strength of soil in laboratory, which rely on the ratio of root cross sectional area to soil cross sectional area and growing period, have tendency to increase after 3 months of growing period. The increased shear strength from laboratory testing are also higher than from the field testing in the range ,of 19.47 percent to 942.79 percent and 17.55 percent to 182.27 percent, respectively. However, the shear strength resistance of soil in laboratory and in field have the same trend.