ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Built Environ.
Sec. Geotechnical Engineering
Microstructural and Strength Analysis of Lower Himalayan Soil in Arunachal Pradesh Using Biomedical Waste as Additives
Provisionally accepted
- 1North Eastern Regional Institute of Science and Technology, Nirjuli, India
- 2Central Institute of Technology Kokrajhar, Kokrajhar, India
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The escalating generation of biomedical waste poses critical environmental and health challenges globally. This study investigates the sustainable utilization of shredded nitrile gloves (NG) and Plaster of Paris (POP) as stabilizing additives for silty sand soil from the landslide-prone Nirjuli-Banderdewa corridor in Arunachal Pradesh, India. Comprehensive geotechnical characterization included compaction tests, Unconfined Compressive Strength (UCS), California Bearing Ratio (CBR), and advanced microstructural analysis using Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) and Energy Dispersive X-ray Spectroscopy (EDX). Nitrile gloves were incorporated at 0.35%, 0.5%, and 1% by dry weight, while POP was added at 3%, 6%, and 9%. Results demonstrated that the optimal combination of 0.5% NG and 6% POP achieved a 109% increase in UCS and more than doubled both soaked and unsoaked CBR values compared to untreated soil. Microstructural analysis revealed enhanced particle bonding, reduced porosity, and improved fabric integrity through bridging mechanisms and cementitious gel formation. The stabilized soil meets IRC specifications for heavily trafficked road subgrades, demonstrating a viable circular economy approach for biomedical waste management while addressing geotechnical challenges in the seismically active Himalayan region.
Keywords: biomedical waste, California bearing ratio, Energydispersive X-ray spectroscopy, Nitrile gloves, Plaster of Paris, Scanning electron microscopy, soil stabilization, Unconfined compressive strength
Received: 14 Nov 2025; Accepted: 15 Jan 2026.
Copyright: © 2026 Kalita, Omo, Paron, Yangchin and Paksok. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Yachang Omo
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