Highway engineering &construction effect of using salty water in compaction processes on some properties of base courses

Unlike taped water, salty water is not commonly used in compaction of base layers. However, in some cases taped water is not available or it is expensive to be used. In such cases, theavailable water source is the sea (salty) water. This is the case inthe semi-arid and arid areas.This research is pointed to study the possibility of using salty water in compaction process of base courses in the semi- arid and arid areas. To study this possibility, two stages areinvestigated. The first stage is studying the behavior of basecourse materials compacted using salty water during and immediately after construction. The second stage is studying the, effect of leaching or the increase in moisture content on thelayers compacted using salty water. The effect of using salty water in compaction process on volume changes of the compacted materials is also studied as a part of the second stage.A comparison between the obtained results using both taped andsalty water is also made. Three types of base course materials and four types of water are used in this research. Results indicate that base course layers compacted using salty water will exhibit a stabilized action immediately after construction leading to,increase their strength. This gaining strength will be lost if theselayers is exposed to increasing moisture content afterconstruction of base courses. It can be concluded that salty watercan beused in the compaction process of base courses but with using a suitable drainge system and design conditions.