One of the common problems of coastal embankments is water seepage. The Senggarang Coastal Embankment (SCE) is examined in the present work, with the objective of proposing the improvement of the earth structure via chemical stabilization. The stabilized soil embankment was simulated and analyzed with PLAXIS 8 to identify a conceptual proposition of solution using a conventional and innovative stabilizer, i.e., lime-ZnO and cement-CSP (cockle shell powder). The base of the embankment was assumed to be bedrock, in order to eliminate the passage of water below the embankment. Stabilization was taken as 100 % for the embankment, i.e., a homogeneous earth structure made entirely of stabilized soil for seepage mitigation. Input parameters for the simulations were acquired from both field samples and past studies. Varying water levels due to tidal effect were applied in the model to determine the changes of pore pressure distribution which could potentially lead to instability of the embankment. As water level increases with the rising tide, total displacement of the original earth embankment was found to increase as the soil weakened, with decreasing effective shear stress. Replacement of the embankment backfill with cement-CSP and lime-ZnO were both observed to significantly reduce the displacements. The use of both stabilizers not only improves the SCE’s engineering performance in terms of reduced water seepage and displacement, accompanied by increased strength, but the ‘green’ nature of the former, as derived from organic waste, also enhances the appeal of the stabilization technique.

The seaward slope of embankment that experience erosion due to washing of soil particles from the wave action might resulting the slope become steeper by time and posing a threat to the closest residents. The objective of this research is to examine the existing slope protection methods for Senggarang Coastal Embankment (SCE) in terms of functionality and performance. This paper explores the possible success and failure factors of the slope protection methods by performing the stability analysis of the slope. Desk research were conducted to identify the potential slope protection scheme for SCE then simulated with PLAXIS 2D to refine the proposed solution. Embankment was simulated using silty clay with different water level at 1 m, 2 m and 3 m to see the total displacement, effective stress, excess pore pressure and discharge of seepage. As a result, the deformation for embankment with innovative method is 10% lower than embankment without any slope protection. Meanwhile, the discharge of seepage for embankment with innovative slope protection has reduced by 40% compared to the embankment in the absence of slope protection. In summary, this study has found the water level effect on the displacement and stability of the embankment. The higher the water level, the higher the displacement of the embankment.

This paper assesses the mechanical properties of cement brick containing Expanded Polystyrene Beads (EPS) and Palm Oil Fuel Ash (POFA) as partial replacement of sand and Ordinary Portland Cement (OPC). The aim of this research are to determine the mechanical properties of brick containing EPS and POFA as partial replacement of sand and OPC. The dosage for EPS replacement is 20%, 30%, 40% and 50% EPS whereas 5%, 10%, 15%, 20% and 25% of POFA replacement. The mechanical properties of the bricks are density, compressive strength and water absorption. The bricks with 30%, 40% and 50% EPS replacement have density below 1680 kg/m 3 which considered as lightweight brick. The brick with 50% EPS replacement recorded lowest density which is 1328 kg/m 3 while 1629 kg/m 3 for the brick with 25% POFA replacement at 56-days of curing. The water absorption testing for these brick are between 7.20%-18.19%. Brick with 0% POFA and 50% EPS replacement has the lowest water absorption properties whereas brick with 25% POFA and 0% EPS replacement has the highest water absorption properties.

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High Performance Concrete (HPC) has a few characteristics: high strength, high early strength, high modulus of elasticity, high durability and long life in severe environments, low permeability and diffusion, resistance to chemical attack, toughness and impact resistance and so on. Almost 70 to 80% of the volume of the concrete is occupied by aggregate which have a great impact on characteristics and properties of a concrete. Not only course aggregate but fine aggregate also contributes a lot toward the performance of HPC. Thus, this research studied on the influence of various sand gradations on mechanical properties and concrete quality of HPC. The sand gradation utilized in the study are normal size sand, sand passing through sieve size 1180µm, sand passing through sieve size 600µm and sand passing through sieve size 300µm. The mechanical properties of HPC being studied are compressive strength and splitting tensile strength while the concrete quality of HPC is determined by using water absorption and Ultrasonic Pulse Velocity (UPV) test. The results show that the mechanical properties and concrete quality increased as the size of sand particles decreased. The optimum sand gradation is the sand passing through sieve size 300µm which achieved highest mechanical properties and concrete quality showing the highest result of compressive strength (123.9MPa), splitting tensile strength (8.91N/mm2), lowest percentage of water absorption (0.55%) and highest UPV value (7743N/mm2).

Bitumen and interlocking paving blocks are the common materials used in the construction of flexible road pavements in Malaysia and other developing countries. In the last few years, more focus has been paid on the interlocking paving block when dealing with less durable area because of certain environmental and organizational limitations. Nonetheless, cement has been used as a bonding agent in the conventional concrete interlocking paving block (CIPB) and has a detrimental effect on the environment. This research was therefore conducted to examine the alternative material to paving block by substituting cement content with plastic wastes; so called as an Eco-interlocking paving block (Eco-IPB). The aim of this research was to produce a sustainable, lightweight, stiff and cost-effective product. In this research, the Eco-IPB was prepared in four different LDPE/sand blends of 1:1, 1:2, 1:3 and 1:4. The thermal analysis and physical tests were conducted to determine the temperature effect and physical performance of plastic bags. The performance of Eco-IPB was evaluated with regard to the density measurement, water absorption and compression test. The findings showed that the optimum LDPE/sand ratio of Eco-IPB of LDPE was 1:2 based on the high compressive strength of 20.80 MPa which had been achieved. Moreover, the widespread use of plastic waste as an alternative construction material will help to reduce plastic residues and promote green technology.

In Malaysia, the remediation of soils polluted by organic compounds is a challenging issue in environmental engineering. Improper treatment and conventional remove-and-replace approaches have low performance in terms of cost and sustainability. Hence, chemical stabilisation has been utilised worldwide to enhance the engineering properties of organic soils. This study focused on stabilising organic soil using cementitious-based chemicals blended with netted-polymeric fibre to improve its strength. This paper reviews the relevant past work as a basis for work in the pipeline. The study aims to determine the effectiveness of netted-polymeric fibre reinforcement on the shear strength characteristics of the stabilised organic sand. The fibre has tensile resistance that can be mobilised by normal pressures acting on fibre reinforcement soil. The best mixture of sand, clay, organic content and stabiliser for organic soil treatment will be identified as the way forward. The shear strength characteristics of the stabilised organic soil samples would then be evaluated parametrically using field application considerations.