## 3 Results
### Data Analysis on Sustainable and Innovative Techniques for Soils on the Ecuadorian Coast
* Oil palm: Using the palm oil extraction process as a reference, it is found that for every ton of fresh fruit bunches, approximately 20 kg of dried sludge from drying beds, 220 kg of empty bunches, and between 0.8 and 1.0 m\({}^{3}\) of liquid effluent are generated. In this way, 760 kg per processed ton is utilized, with 24% of this being waste. * Dry hard corn: Corn cultivation produces a large amount of biomass, of which 50% is the grain. Processing generates waste corresponding to the cob and leaves, representing just over 11.8% of the corn plant. * Rice: This crop produces between 30% and 45% of rice straw, and rice husks are produced in large quantities during processing: 100 kg of rice produces 20 kg of husks. Rice processing waste accounts for an average of 20% of its production. * Cocoa: Large amounts of significantly differentiated materials are wasted in the cocoa industry. Industrial waste includes the husk, and agricultural waste includes the shell and mucilage. The husk is obtained after drying, fermenting, and roasting the grain, representing about 12% of the seed. From the research by [PERSON] et al. [128], it is evident that residues such as sugarcane bagasse, banana and plantain leaves, oil palm, and rice have been used within the sustainable technique with a chemical action mechanism such as rice husk ash, sugarcane bagasse and straw ash, and plantain leaf ash, as shown in Table 4. Meanwhile, ground rice husk and plantain fibers have been used in the physical-mechanical mechanism, and the latter is also used within the biological action mechanism. A cross-sectional analysis of the main industrial and agricultural products manufactured and generated in Ecuador highlights soil improvement techniques with a sustainable and innovative approach that is compatible with and highly adaptable to the coastal environment. For instance, the stabilization of plastic soils using ground rice husks and crushed ceramics to improve pavement subgrades has already been investigated in Ecuador [42], as well as the stabilization of expansive clays in the province of Manabi using pozzolan derived from rice husk ash [44]. These cases illustrate the potential to explore other agro-industrial and industrial by-products as sustainable alternatives for improving expansive soils along the Ecuadorian coast. As part of the on-site investigation, sampling was conducted at three locations along the Rocafuerte-Tosagua-Chone Highway in the province of Manabi on the Ecuadorian coast. Expansive soils were found in this section, especially in the Rocafuerte canton, where future studies in this line of research will focus. The photographic record of the sampling shows the typical behavior of expansive soils on the Ecuadorian coast with their potential for contraction in the dry season and expansion in the rainy season (Figure 10a,b). In Ecuador, expansive soils are found mainly in the coastal and Amazonian regions (Figure 1) [45]. The coastal provinces of Esmeraldas, Manabi, Guayas, and El Oro present a higher frequency of this phenomenon [129]. Topography and climate influence the presence of these soils. The climate of the study area in Manabi (Rocafuerte-Tosagua) is dry tropical during some months and humid tropical during the rest of the year [129]. Variation in soil moisture content is the \"catalyzing\" element of the expansion phenomenon [130]. The change in moisture content is influenced by climate, among other factors [130]. Seasonal fluctuations in humidity, cycles of rainfall and evaporation, and wet and dry seasons soften the soil and can cause failures [44; 45; 46]. Expansive clays are susceptible to these volumetric changes produced by variations in moisture content [44]. The sources consulted directly mention the El Nino phenomenon and its impact:  
* In 1997 and 1998, the El Nino phenomenon drastically affected the country's roads, primarily the Rocafuerte and Tosagua highways in the Manabi Province of Ecuador [130].