Geotechnical evaluation of Turkish clay deposits: a case study in Northern Turkey

Clay deposits in Oltu-Narman basins (Erzurum, northern Turkey) have been studied to determine their engineering properties and to evaluate their uses for geotechnical applications. These deposits are concentrated in two different stratigraphic horizons namely the Late Oligocene and the Early Miocene sequences. Clay-rich fine-grained sedimentary units are deposited in shallow marine and lagoonar mixed environments. Their clay minerals originated by the alteration of Eocene calc-alkaline island-arc volcanics, preferably from pyroclastics (trachite and andesite flow), which form the basement for the Oltu depression. Smectite group clay minerals are found abundant in clay deposits. The experimental results show that the clay soils have high plasticity behaviors and low hydraulic conductivity properties. The optimum water content, the free swell, and the swelling pressure of clay samples decreased and the maximum dry unit weight of clay samples increased under high temperature. Consequently, it is concluded that the expanding of clay soils is an important soil problem that cannot be avoided in the significant parts of Oltu city and its villages. However, the soils of clay-rich layers in the outcrops-section of clay deposits can be successfully used to build compacted clay liners for landfill systems and to construct vertical and horizontal barriers for protection of ground water and for preventing soil pollution in geotechnical applications.