Drying and Atterberg limits of Cochin marine clay

Marine clays are reported to undergo an irreversible change in plasticity on drying. Various reasons such as the presence of halloysite and allophane minerals that change their structure, presence of sesquioxides or organic matter that undergo cementation and presence of salinity that generates strong attractive forces leading to aggregation on drying have been reported. In this study, the properties of Cochin marine clay, obtained from Cochin, India, in air-dried and oven-dried conditions were evaluated. The study shows that the plasticity characteristics get altered on drying, but can be reversed by proper dispersion using dispersion tools. Abbreviations: CMC: Cochin marine clay; LL: liquid limit; PL: plastic limit; SL: shrinkage limit.