TR
EN
Durability and Mechanistic–Empirical Performance Implications of Bamboo Leaf Ash–Stone Dust Stabilised Lateritic Subbase under Moisture Exposure and Traffic Loading
Abstract
Lateritic soils are widely used in tropical pavement construction but often exhibit high fines, plasticity, and moisture susceptibility that undermine long-term performance. This study synthesizes engineering, chemical, and microstructural evidence from a lateritic soil stabilized using stone dust (SD) and bamboo leaf ash (BLA) to assess (i) moisture-related durability indicators and (ii) mechanistic–empirical (M–E) performance implications relevant to cyclic traffic loading. Lateritic soil was treated with SD (0–30% at 5% intervals) and with combined SD-BLA blends (BLA: 3 to 9%; SD: 5 to 20%) and tested for Atterberg limits, compaction (BSL/WAS/BSH), soaked and unsoaked CBR, UCS, and shear strength. XRF confirmed the pozzolanic character of SD and BLA (SiO₂+Al₂O₃+Fe₂O₃ = 85.51% for SD; 66.71% for BLA), while XRD/SEM evidenced microfabric densification and cementitious bonding in stabilized blends. The combined SD–BLA blend provided the best overall performance, with an optimum at 10% SD + 3% BLA (by dry soil mass), reducing plasticity (PI down to ~10%) and increasing strength. Moisture durability improved substantially: under British Standard Heavy (BSH) compaction, soaked California bearing ratio (CBR) increased from ~18% (natural) to ~65.48% (SD-BLA optimum) and the CBR retention ratio (soaked/unsoaked) improved from ~0.44 to ~0.71. For M-E interpretation, resilient modulus was conservatively estimated from CBR using a standard correlation, indicating a marked increase in wet-condition stiffness and reduced rutting susceptibility, thereby improving seasonal performance of subbase layers. These results support SD-BLA as a low-carbon stabilizer system for lateritic pavement layers, while highlighting the need for follow-on repeated-load and wet-dry cycling to fully quantify cyclic durability.
Keywords
Supporting Institution
The authors affirm that no financial support, grants, or other assistance was obtained during the course of this study or in the preparation of the submitted work.
Ethical Statement
The authors have no competing interests to declare regarding the research, authorship, and publication of this article. The authors also state that the materials and methods used in this study do not require ethics committee approval or any legal-special permissions.
References
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Details
Primary Language
English
Subjects
Civil Geotechnical Engineering, Construction Materials
Journal Section
Research Article
Authors
Publication Date
August 31, 2026
Submission Date
June 1, 2026
Acceptance Date
August 3, 2026
Published in Issue
Year 2026 Volume: 4 Number: 2
APA
Ameen, I. O., Salami, L. O., & Bello, A. A. (2026). Durability and Mechanistic–Empirical Performance Implications of Bamboo Leaf Ash–Stone Dust Stabilised Lateritic Subbase under Moisture Exposure and Traffic Loading. Alpha Journal of Engineering and Applied Sciences, 4(2), 105-131. https://doi.org/10.70988/ajeas.1957903
AMA
1.Ameen IO, Salami LO, Bello AA. Durability and Mechanistic–Empirical Performance Implications of Bamboo Leaf Ash–Stone Dust Stabilised Lateritic Subbase under Moisture Exposure and Traffic Loading. AJEAS. 2026;4(2):105-131. doi:10.70988/ajeas.1957903
Chicago
Ameen, Ifedolapo Omowumi, Lukman Olaide Salami, and Afeez Adefemi Bello. 2026. “Durability and Mechanistic–Empirical Performance Implications of Bamboo Leaf Ash–Stone Dust Stabilised Lateritic Subbase under Moisture Exposure and Traffic Loading”. Alpha Journal of Engineering and Applied Sciences 4 (2): 105-31. https://doi.org/10.70988/ajeas.1957903.
EndNote
Ameen IO, Salami LO, Bello AA (August 1, 2026) Durability and Mechanistic–Empirical Performance Implications of Bamboo Leaf Ash–Stone Dust Stabilised Lateritic Subbase under Moisture Exposure and Traffic Loading. Alpha Journal of Engineering and Applied Sciences 4 2 105–131.
IEEE
[1]I. O. Ameen, L. O. Salami, and A. A. Bello, “Durability and Mechanistic–Empirical Performance Implications of Bamboo Leaf Ash–Stone Dust Stabilised Lateritic Subbase under Moisture Exposure and Traffic Loading”, AJEAS, vol. 4, no. 2, pp. 105–131, Aug. 2026, doi: 10.70988/ajeas.1957903.
ISNAD
Ameen, Ifedolapo Omowumi - Salami, Lukman Olaide - Bello, Afeez Adefemi. “Durability and Mechanistic–Empirical Performance Implications of Bamboo Leaf Ash–Stone Dust Stabilised Lateritic Subbase under Moisture Exposure and Traffic Loading”. Alpha Journal of Engineering and Applied Sciences 4/2 (August 1, 2026): 105-131. https://doi.org/10.70988/ajeas.1957903.
JAMA
1.Ameen IO, Salami LO, Bello AA. Durability and Mechanistic–Empirical Performance Implications of Bamboo Leaf Ash–Stone Dust Stabilised Lateritic Subbase under Moisture Exposure and Traffic Loading. AJEAS. 2026;4:105–131.
MLA
Ameen, Ifedolapo Omowumi, et al. “Durability and Mechanistic–Empirical Performance Implications of Bamboo Leaf Ash–Stone Dust Stabilised Lateritic Subbase under Moisture Exposure and Traffic Loading”. Alpha Journal of Engineering and Applied Sciences, vol. 4, no. 2, Aug. 2026, pp. 105-31, doi:10.70988/ajeas.1957903.
Vancouver
1.Ifedolapo Omowumi Ameen, Lukman Olaide Salami, Afeez Adefemi Bello. Durability and Mechanistic–Empirical Performance Implications of Bamboo Leaf Ash–Stone Dust Stabilised Lateritic Subbase under Moisture Exposure and Traffic Loading. AJEAS. 2026 Aug. 1;4(2):105-31. doi:10.70988/ajeas.1957903
