New types of binders are being developed as an alternative to traditional cement. These alternatives are developed to have better properties and to be more environmentally friendly. Geopolymer is a novel binder that is produced from by-products such as fly ash, rich hushes ash and bio mass ash. In this experiment, fly ash, which was a by-product from electrical-generating power plants, was used during the synthesis of geopolymer. According to ASTM standard C168, fly ash is categorized into two types: class F and class C. This research focuses on the effects of using both types of fly ashes on mechanical properties of geopolymer. The experiment studies the changes on setting time, drying shrinkage and compressive strength of geopolymer mortar when 0, 25, 50, 75 and 100 percent of total weight of class F fly ash (LCF) is substituted with class C counterpart (HCF). The study used sodium silicate (Na2SiO3) and sodium hydroxide (NaOH) as alkali activators. The samples were cured for 24 hours either at an ambient temperature of 25°C or at an elevated temperature of 60°C.The result showed that the setting time of pure LCF geopolymer mortar was 6 times longer than that of the pure HCF ones. In addition to setting time, the specimens with 25 percent of their total binders weight replaced by HCF appeared to have the highest strength. However, the increase in HCF also increased the drying shrinkage by 6 and 12times when the specimens were cured at25°C and at 60°C respectively
Mix proportions and mechanical properties of concrete containing very high-volume of Class F fly ash