Durability Study of Coir Geotextile Embedded in Different Types of Subgrade Soil

Coir fiber is a natural fiber extracted from the husk of coconut. Coir geotextiles made from coir fibers which are biodegradable and eco-friendly are a good alternative to polymeric geotextile. Biodegradation is a factor which limits its civil engineering applications. Hence this study is made to explore the degradation rate of coir geotextiles embedded in different soils. Coir geotextiles composed of lignocelluloses fiber found to be more durable compared to other natural geotextiles. Coir geotextiles improves the CBR values of subgrades, reduces the settlement and are effective in road pavements. But in some soil conditions, coir was powdered or decayed off. In this study, coir geotextile used in field study is embedded in five different types of soil having different compressibility characteristics and chemical constituents. The soil used in the study is collected from different test sites. . Laboratory studies were conducted and rate of degradation is reported. The embedment period is varied from 0 to 135 days. The degradation rate is evaluated by conducting wide width tensile strength test and CBR test using coir samples before and after embedment. The surface morphological characteristics of raw and degraded coir samples and chemical analysis of soil samples are also reported. From the study it is clear that coir geotextile embedded in soil from road 3 with clay of high compressibility degraded at a slower rate compared to other soils.