Abstract
Construction wastes such as concrete and asphalt have been reduced, recycled and reused. However, scraped woods are not sufficiently recycled. Attempts to improve material property of the scraped woods by adding biodegradable plastics (PLA) have been made in various fields. In this study, an applicability of biodegradable material for drainage layer in fill material was investigated. A granular material with biodegradability was buried under a ground during different periods in order to change degree of biodegradation. Mechanical behavior of the granular material was examined by various soil testing. Main conclusions are as follows. 1) Biodegradable rate of the granular material is low as compared with other materials. 2) Compression and tensile strengths of a single particle decrease with increasing the duration in which the material was buried in the ground. 3) Influence of deterioration due to biodegradation on drained shear and cyclic strengths as particulate media is not recognized.
