Performance evaluation of marginal materials in geosynthetic reinforced base layers

The high-altitude regions are prone to natural disasters such as landslides, and tunnelling that generate substantial amounts of debris. Utilising these waste (marginal) materials in the pavement sector offers a viable solution. This study aims to stabilise tunnel muck, landslide debris, and Reclaimed Asphalt Pavement using geosynthetics (geogrid, geocell, double geogrid, and geogrid + geocell) for the base course. Cyclic Plate Load tests were performed on pavement prototypes built with available marginal materials and conventional GSB as the base/subbase course, with Black cotton and silty soil subgrades. The results indicated that geosynthetic reinforcement significantly improved the performance of marginal materials by lowering permanent deformation and increasing design life. The pavement prototypes reinforced with double geogrid and geogrid + geocell indicated rutting performance equivalent to conventional GSB for specific combinations. Additionally, incorporating geosynthetics in pavement layers increased the structural strength of the base layers by a layer coefficient ratio factor ranging from 1.1 to 2.5.