Engineering Geology, 7 (1973) 155-165

© Elsevier Scientific Publishing Company, Amsterdam - Printed in The Netherlands

GEOTECHNICAL PROPERTIES OF KUWAITI "GATCH" AND THEIR

IMPROVEMENT

G. RIEDEL and A. B. SIMON

Dorsch Consult Ingenieurgesellschaft mbH, Munich (Germany)
(Accepted for publication July 16, 1973)

ABSTRACT

Riedel, G. and Simon, A. B., 1973. Geotechnical properties of Kuwaiti "gatch" and their improve-
ment. Eng. Geol., 7: 155-165.

Due to the difficulties experienced with the so-called gatch soils, the Ministry of Public Works
of Kuwait engaged the services of the firm DORSCH, Consulting Engineers of Munich, Germany, to
study the properties of gatch and to recommend methods to improve its suitability for road construc-
tion. An investigation program was agreed upon and selected samples were obtained from Kuwait.
Prior to the geotechnical tests, mineralogical analyses were carried out. Surprisingly they found
no trace in the samples of gypsum which was believed to cause damage to the highways built on
gatch. The geotechnical tests performed indicated that the gatch soils were very sensitive to moisture
and were therefore unsuitable as highway construction materials. However, their properties could be
improved by various stabilization methods. It was found that cement stabilization was the most
promising method since it not only increased the bearing capacity of the soil but also reduced its
swelling characteristics.

INTRODUCTION

A tiny piece o f desert at the end o f the Persian Gulf has turned out to be one of the
world's most important oil-producers since World War II. The name of this country,
Kuwait, became synonymous with wealth and development. The sudden riches have been
used to finance not only schools, hospitals and housing projects, but also for the general
improvement o f the infrastructure. A new water supply was provided, harbours were
built and the land connections to the neighbouring countries were improved.
Since the mid-1950's a huge highway construction programme has been realized by the
Ministry o f Public Works. However, progress was often hampered by the lack o f suitable
construction materials. The deserts o f Kuwait contain only a limited quantity o f useable
construction materials. On the surface there was a small quantity o f gravel (hard and
156 G. RIEDEL AND A. B. SIMON

durable stone material mostly derived from igneous rocks). This gravel was collected and
used as concrete aggregates for structures or as aggregates for bituminous mixes for the
roads and streets. Since the beginning of the 1970's, the haulage distance was becoming
more and more uneconomical because the areas around the City of Kuwait (and its
neighbours Ahmadi and Jahara) had been cleared of such material.
In the late 1960's some bed-rock (soft limestone) was investigated for construction
purposes. However, the results were rather disappointing because of the insufficient
durability of the rocks and the uneconomic thickness of the layers in the quarry. Besides
the sands, mostly polluted by large amounts of shell-fragments, there exist large deposits
of a gravelly silt sand locally known as "gatch". This soil is common in the Persian Gulf
area and it is frequently used for construction purposes.
At the beginning of road construction in Kuwait (approximately 1950- 1958) this
gatch was used as base course for practically all roads and streets in Kuwait. Experience
gained during the construction of several highways, especiaily on the first Kuwait-Ahmadi
road and the Kuwait-Sulaibikhat road, indicated that gatch has several undesirable
properties. Particularly important, as far as road construction is concerned, is its loss of
strength combined with swelling due to an increase in the moisture content.
In cooperation with the Ministry of Public Works of Kuwait, the authors were
instrumental in carrying out a research programme to find the most economical way to
improve the load-bearing characteristics of gatch.

RESEARCH PROGRAIVIME

Characteristic material samples were obtained from three different places in Kuwait.
The samples were selected and forwarded by the Ministry from three different borrow
areas near the town of Kuwait. They were marked as Gatch I III without giving the
exact location of the sampling.
The proposed test programme on gatch included the following investigations: (1) mineral
content; (2) physical properties; (3) soil mechanical properties; (4) mechanical stabiliza-
tion; (5) cement stabilization; (6) lime stabilization; (7) bituminous stabilization.
This report will summarize the results of this investigation with the necessary conclu-
sions.

M i n e r a l c o n ten t

All three gatch samples were tested by the X-ray method for their mineral constituents.
The investigations indicated the results shown in Table I. The term "Others" includes all
clay minerals and amorphous hydroxides.
The combined amount of carbonates (calcite + dolomite) ranges between 6 and 13%.
Not only does this percentage vary considerably, but also the calcite versus dolomite ratio
is quite different in the various samples. In Gatch I and III, the ratios were found to be
about 5:1 and 4:9, whereas in Gatch II the ratio is contrary, 2:5. This fact may explain
GEOTECHNICALPROPERTIES OF KUWAITI"GATCH" 157

TABLE I

Mineral content of the gatch samples

Gatch I (%) Gatch II (%) Gatch III (%)

Quartz (SiO2) 80 85 75
Feldspar (orthoclase, plagioclase, K, Na, Ca (AI2Si2Os ) 5 3 5
Calcite (CaCOa) 5 2 4
Dolomite (CaMg(COa ) 2) 1 5 9
Others 9 5 7

the different behaviour of the samples regarding flocculation. The Gatch samples I and
III indicated extremely rapid flocculation in the hydrometer tests, while Gatch II behaved
normally. The quantitative chemical analyses showed approximately the same amounts
of carbonates as the X-ray tests.
A supplementary test was performed on another sample by G. Bidlo (personal com-
munication, 1971) in Hungary. By means of the thermogravimetric method, he identified
illite as the clay mineral. He considered that based on its mineral content the gatch must
be a weathering product of igneous rock. This is contrary to other reports, which found
gypsum and other sedimentary materials in similar samples obtained from the surrounding
area (Bathurst, 1971).

Preparation of samples

The gatch occurs in the borrow pits as a medium-dense well-graded soil ranging to
boulder-sized blocks. Various grains are cemented together to form these blocks.
The three samples of gatch contained many lumps of calcareous sand concretions
which were crushed into pieces smaller than 20 mm. Resulting from this process, the
apparent amount of gravel contained in the gatch increased considerably and the samples
did not represent the in-situ conditions in Kuwait. To avoid any misunderstandings, the
expression "gravel size" will be used in this report to describe the large grains obtained
by crushing. "Natural gravel" means hard rock fragments also found in the deposits.
All geotechnical tests were performed according to AASHO (!966) specifications.

Gradation

After preparation (crushing the calcareous concretions), the samples were thoroughly
mixed and their grain-size distribution determined. The tests indicated that all three
samples can be classified as silty sands and belong to the soil group A-2-4 of the AASHO
(1966) Classification. The individual grain-size distribution curves have been plotted in
Fig. 1. The specific gravity of gatch ranged from 2.63 to 2.72 g/cm 3 according to tests
performed on all three samples.
 I i Fine Medium [ Coarse I Cobbles
I MSeadni ud m [ Coarse I Fine
Clay I Silt G ravel
I
ASTM SIEVE SIZES No. 200 100 ?0 SO &O 2S 16 6 /, s~6; V=. 3/~,, 1"1Y~'1/2"z" 3" ," ~" B"

O0

gO

I0

!0

1.002 0.006 0.02 .OS 0.2 0.6 ZO 6g IUU

Grain Sizes in MiLlimeters

~'ig.l. Grain-size distribution of gatch samples.

Z
GEOTECHNICALPROPERTIESOF KUWAITI"GATCH" 159

The grain-size distribution of the three samples can be summarized as follows:

Gravel size % Sand % Fines %

Gatch I 3 81 16
Gatch II 11 76 13
Gatch III 11 71 18

Although the gradation of the different gatch samples appears to be similar, attention
must be called to the fact that these results were obtained on artificially crushed samples.
Some of the gravel sizes could be reduced to sand by manual pressure - particularly
those of Gatch I - since they are only calcareous concretions. Consequently, the
gradation of in-situ gatch and that of a material placed and compacted in earthworks
changes continuously and within very wide limits. Visual observations indicated that
Gatch II contained a significant higher amount of natural gravel than the other samples.

A tterberg limits

The plasticity of gatch was tested on material passing the no. 40 sieve. Two of the
samples had no plasticity, whereas the third sample (Gatch III) showed a plasticity index
of about 10%.

Proctor compaction

The relation "maximum dry density versus optimum moisture content" was deter-
mined by means of the modified Proctor Compaction Tests. The obtained results are
summarized in Table II. The tests also indicated that the actual moisture content may
differ from the optimal value by about 4% and still enable the attainment of 95% density
with the same compaction effort.
Gradation tests performed after the Proctor tests showed some crushing of the lime
concretions during the compaction. The crushing resulted in a uniform decrease in the
gravel and sand sizes and in the corresponding increase in the amount of fines smaller

TABLE II

Modified proctor densities of gatch samples

Max. dry density Opt. water content

(ton/m3) (%)

Gatch I 2.01 9.0

Gatch II 2.05 8.6
Gatch III 2.09 7.6
160 G. RIEDEL AND A. B. SIMON

than 0.006 mm. However, the increase of fines did not exceed 5% relative to the whole
sample.

Bearing capacity

In order to investigate the bearing characteristics of the various gatch samples, their
CBR (California Bearing Ratio) values were determined. The tests were performed on
samples prepared at optimum moisture content and compacted in five layers by 25
blows of the standard rammer on each layer. The obtained compactions were calculated
in relation to the maximum dry densities (modified Proctor Tests). The range was
97-99%. A second series of tests was performed on specimens soaked in water for four
days to simulate the effect of saturation on the bearing characteristics. The CBR values
obtained at the optimum moisture content indicated very well bearing capacities for
each gatch sample. It was found that all three samples showed a CBR value of about 95.
The bearing capacity after soaking was about half of the original value (ranging from 40
to 80) but still quite significant. The decrease was smaller on one of the samples, due
probably to the higher amount of natural gravel in this sample.
Since such CBR values would indicate a good sub-base material, the whole test
program was repeated with less compaction, that is ten blows per layer. Thus, the bearing
values of inadequately compacted materials were investigated. The obtained compactions
were again calculated in relation to the maximum dry densities (modified Proctor Tests).
They ranged between 89 and 93%, with an average value of 91.5%. These results indicate
a significantly lower bearing capacity of inadequately compacted gatch (CBR about 40)
than the previous tests performed on dense material. The loss of strength after soaking
(CBR ranging from 15 to 30) is also considerable and can cause the failure of pavement
under unfavourable circumstances.
The swelling characteristic of gatch also was investigated. It was found that some
values were up to about 1%. However, some tests, particularly those carried out on
Gatch II, showed less swell. Based on the above tests, it appears that the bearing capacity
of gatch is governed largely by its density. The loss of strength due to saturation also can
be quite considerable. Similarly, the saturation of gatch may result in unfavourable
volume-change phenomena. The damage noted on several Kuwaiti roads built of gatch
may have been caused by its unfavourable volume-change characteristics. If a satisfactory
compaction cannot be guaranteed, this soil is unsuitable as road-building material unless
its properties can be improved.

Mechanical stabilization

The effect of granular material on the bearing characteristics of gatch was studied by
adding 10%, 20% and 30% of natural gravel to the gatch samples. Prior to mixing, the
natural gravel was crushed to sizes not larger than 20 mm to facilitate the use of
GEOTECHNICALPROPERTIES OF KUWAITI"GATCH" 161

standard CBR moulds. The gradation of the natural gravel was determined before crush-
ing. The optimum moisture content of gatch was not adjusted to the higher percentage
of granular materials, since it was expected that the increased amount of hard natural
gravel would result, during compaction, in increased smashing of the calcareous lumps,
this would induce a corresponding enrichment of fines in the original gatch.
The gatch-gravel mixtures were brought to the previously determined optimum
moisture content and compacted in five layers by ten blows of the standard rammer.
This reduced compaction effort assisted in the comparison of achieved improvements to
the properties of inadequately compacted gatch. The obtained compaction ranged from
about 92 to over 100%. The CBR tests were performed immediately on one specimen and
after four days soak on another one. The measured values have been listed in Table III.

TABLE III

Influence of gravel content on the CBR value

With no gravel With 10% gravel With 20% gravel With 30% gravel
opt. 4 days opt. 4 days opt. 4 days opt. 4 days
moist, soak moist, soak moist, soak moist, soak

Gatch I 39 25 48 38 28 27 22 21
Gatch II 38 30 42 36 48 49 51 48
Gatch III 38 15 44 20 66 31 50 49

The above test results show considerable scatter and no trend for improvement as far
as bearing characteristics are concerned. The reduction of loss of bearing capacity after
saturation can be emphasized and regarded as an improvement. Nevertheless, the sur-
prisingly low CBR value of 22 obtained on Gatch 1 combined with the unusual decrease
in bearing capacity with an increasing ratio of natural gravel, points out the shortcomings
of mechaniCal stabilization. Probably a much higher amount of granular material is needed
to achieve a satisfactory bearing capacity for the gatch. Hence this method appears to be
uneconomical in Kuwait under the special circumstances of the country.

Cement stabilization

Compressive strength
Judged by its grain-size distribution according to the literature (Road Research Lab.,
1961), the gatch appeared to be a material well suited for cement stabilization. However,
the following tests failed to support this assumption.
The necessary tests were performed on cylindrical specimens (diameter 60 mm, height
90 mm). The previously prepared soil samples (max. size 20 mm) were brought to an
optimum water content and compacted in steel moulds to densities averaging 98%
modified Proctor density using a standard compaction procedure. The moulded specimens
162 G. RIEDEL AND A. B. SIMON

were cured for 7 days in the moist room or 4 days in the moist room and 3 more days
under water, respectively, and their 7-days strength determined. The tests included
specimens with 4, 6 and 8% cement content. The obtained results have been summarized
in Table IV.
The results indicated only a slight increase in strength, although the cement was
doubled from 4% to 8%. Also the method of curing (moist room or under water) had no
effect on the strength properties (see Fig.2). Since the strength of the specimens ranged
from 5 to 6 kg/cm 2 for each gatch sample, the conclusion could be drawn that the
measured strength represents the compressive strength of the calcareous concretions
(lumps). Visual observation of the shear faces on the broken cylinders alter testing also
supports this conclusion.
Since the minimum strength required o f a soil cement mixture is about 20 kg/cm 2
according to the literature (Sommer, 1968) and this value was not even approximated by
these tests, cement stabilization does not appear to be an adequate way to improve the
suitability o f gatch for construction purposes.

Volume change
The effect of cement on the volume-change characteristics of gatch was also investi-
gated. F o r this purpose, CBR specimens were prepared with 2 and 4% of cement and
their swelling was measured. The beating characteristics of these mixtures were also

TABLE IV

Unconfined compressive strength (in kp/cm 2 ) vs. cement content (% by weight)

Cement content
4% 6% 8%
7 days 4 + 3 days 7 days 4 + 3 days 7 days 4 + 3 days

Gatch I 6.0 5.6 6.1 5.7 6.4 6.0

Gatch II 5.4 4.9 5.7 5.6 6.1 5.8
Gatch III 5.4 5.2 5.6 5.4 5.9 5.7

7 days strength

- - rnol

t. 5 6 8%
Fig.2. Influence of cement on 7 days strength.
GEOTECHNICALPROPERTIESOF KUWAITI"GATCH" 163

measured by the CBR method. The specimens were compacted at optimum moisture
content in 5 layers by 10 blows of a standard rammer: The tests were performed after
7 days curing plus 4 days soaking, respectively. The tests indicated that even a slight
amount of cement had a very considerable effect on the swell properties, while the
untreated gatch samples showed swell values of up to about 1%. For the specimen with
2% cement content a swell value not exceeding 0.02 was measured. This value was further
reduced when 4% cement was added to the gatch. Hence it can be concluded that the
addition of not more than 2% cement reduces the swelling of gatch to a negligible
amount.

CBR values
The CBR tests performed indicated that the load-bearing characteristics of gatch can
be considerably improved by cement. Compared with an original average CBR value of
38, the gatch with 2% cement content showed a CBR value of more than 100. An increase
in the cement content to 4% resulted in scarcely any increase in the bearing capacity of
the samples. However, more significant is the fact that the loss of bearing capacity due to
saturation was reduced to a minimum by the addition of cement. The obtained results are
within the limits of accuracy of the CBR method. The individual test results have been
summarized in Fig.3. For the sake of comparison also included are the CBR values which
were measured on untreated samples compacted to lower densities by the same compac-
tion effort.

Lime stabilization

Since the grain-size distribution curves of the different gatch samples indicated only a
slight amount of fines which showed - according to the Atterberg limits - hardly any

CEMENT
*/,

I/ .-"J/

s s

0
0 io 200 250 CBR

at optimum moisture
------ after /. days soak

Fig.3. Influence of cement content on the CBR values.

164 G. RIEDEL AND A. B. S|MON

plasticity, the gatch does not appear to be a material suited for lhne stabilization. To
achieve improvements in the soil characteristics, the lime must react with the clay
minerals, and some ion change take place on the surface of the particles. Since clay
minerals are rather scarce in the gatch soils, the chemical reactions and their effects are
negligible. As the mineralogical tests (see above) indicated significant percentages of
carbonates for all gatch samples and the amount of available samples was rather limited,
tests for lime stabilization were omitted.

Bituminous stabilization

In order to increase the bearing capacity of granular soils and to reduce their loss of
strength due to saturation by water, it is quite common in hot and dry countries to mix
the soil with bitumen. The bond between particles provided by the bitumen is permanent
and unsusceptible to changes in the moisture content. The bitumen is usually added to
the soil as cold-mix in form of emulsion or cut-back (Leonards, 1962).
The theoretically required amount of pure bitumen ranged in the order of 3.5-4%,
based on the original grain-size distribution of the samples (Kezdi, 1967). Accordingly,
the gatch was mixed with 5% cut-back bitumen. In order to facilitate mixing the two
components, the gatch was slightly heated, thus simulating the natural condition of the
soil in Kuwait. The moisture content of the samples was 2% below the optimum value.
During mixing, it was observed that the percentage of fines increased substantially, so
much so that the amount of bitumen became insufficient in relation to the new grain-size
curve.
The prepared soil-bitumen mixture was compacted in CBR moulds in 5 layers by 10
blows of the standard rammer. The obtained compaction of the specimens ranged from
89 to 93% related to the modified Proctor densities. The compacted specimens were
tested also by the CBR method to facilitate the comparison of bearing-capacity values
achieved by the various stabilization methods. To improve the evaporation of diluent,
the moulds containing the compacted specimens were placed on pedestals. The tests were
carried out after 3 days and resulted in CBR values ranging from 17 to 36.
The CBR values measured on samples exposed to an additional 4 days' soak ranged
from 4 to 18. Due to the lower densities, the observed swell of the specimens was con-
siderable, ranging in the order of 0.2%. The favourable bearing capacity obtained on one
of the samples may be the result of the high proportion of gravel as mentioned previously
The significant loss of strength due to saturation can be explained by the inadequate
compaction of the samples and the insufficient amount of bitumen in the mixtures.
In order to investigate the effect of curing, several specimens were tested 5 days after
moulding. It was found that the additional 2 days of curing did have an influence on the
bearing capacity since the measured CBR values were up to 40% higher than the ones
obtained originally. Due to this shortcoming of the mixing method, the bituminous
stabilization tests were discontinued.
GEOTECHNICALPROPERTIES OF KUWAITI"GATCH" 165

CONCLUSIONS

The geotechnical tests performed indicated that the gatch possesses a high bearing
capacity, provided the material has been compacted properly. Inadequate compaction
results in a rapid reduction of bearing capacity. The influence of saturation was charac-
terized by a loss of bearing capacity amounting to about half the original value and some
volume change.
Several methods of stabilization were investigated. The mechanical stabilization gave
rather scattered results and no marked improvement of the bearing capacity was observed.
The favourable experience obtained on the Kuwait-Basra Road with a ratio of 70%
natural gravel to 30% gatch cannot be regarded as a successful method of gatch stabiliza-
tion because the gatch served only to fill in the voids of gravel which had rather poor
gradation characteristics. Furthermore the scarcity of granular material in Kuwait renders
this procedure quite uneconomical.
The original aim of cement stabilization has not been achieved because the lumps of
calcareous concretions prevented the attainment of the internationally required strength
limit. Nevertheless, further tests indicated that even the admixture of 2% cement greatly
improves the bearing capacity characteristics of gatch and eliminates the objectionable
effects of saturation, thus rendering this material usable in the subgrade. It is recommended
that for practical reasons not less than 3% cement be added to the gatch.
The bituminous stabilization also indicates promising results. However, the obtained
values have not been conclusive due to the small dimensions of the standardized testing
equipment and the difficulties experienced during mixing.

REFERENCES

AASHO (American Association of State Highway Officials), 1966. Standard Specification for Highway
Materials and Methods of Sampling and Testing, Part II. Washington, D.C., 9th ed.
Bathurst, R. G. C., 1971. Carbonate Sediments and Their Diagenesis. Elsevier,Amsterdam, pp. 178- 212.
Kezdi, A., 1967. Stabilizalt FSldutak (Stabilized Earthroads). Akademiai Kiado, Budapest,
pp. 415-417.
Leonards, G. A., 1962. Foundation Engineering. McGraw-Hill,New York, N.Y., p. 388.
Road Research Laboratory, 1961. Soil Mechanicsfor Road Engineers. H. M. Stationary Office, London,
pp. 234-248.
Sommer, H., 1967/68. Zementgebundene Tragschichten im westeuropi~ischenStrassenbau (Cement-
stabilized Base Courses in the Western European Highway Construction). In: Betonstrassen-
Jahrbuch, Beton-Verlag,Diisseldorf, p. 227.