Enhancement of properties of laterite soil used as subgrade using xanthan gum biopolymer

Konkan area is the western coast line of India with 70.7% of its area is covered by laterite soil. Many engineering issues like foundation issues, subgrade issues, erosion and slope problems are being confronted because of these laterite soils. Utilization of xanthan gum in stabilizing laterite soils has been the subject of extensive research. Sets of untreated samples and those treated with various dosages of xanthan gum were subjected to Modified Proctor tests, Direct Shear tests, and California Bearing Ratio (CBR) tests to evaluate their effects on soil properties. The usage of xanthan gum to improve the subgrade soil's properties is covered in this article. The results demonstrate that the biopolymer xanthan gum can be employed effectively to increase the biopolymer-based soil stabilization. According to IRC, the pavement crust thickness was calculated using the CBR value and it shows that thickness was reduced by 10.67% on average for xanthan gum-treated soil in different combinations, with combination D providing the greatest reduction in thickness of 13.55%. The study results show that using xanthan gum to strengthen laterite soil could save finances. On average, all combinations save up to 18.10% of the total cost of the life cycle, but combination D saves the most funds, up to 24.10%.