Physical, Thermal and Microstructural Characterization of Earth Mortars Stabilized with Incorporating Air Additive

In recent years, the search for non-conventional materials has intensified, aiming to reduce environmental impacts in the civil construction sector as a strategy for more sustainable development. Among these materials, earth mortars are a promising option, as they have technological, economic, and environmental advantages. Due to the absence of literary data on the use of air-incorporating additives (AEA) in earth mortars, the objective of this article is to verify the influence of the incorporation of AEA (0,10, 20, and 40% of the total volume of the mixture) in the mechanical properties (compression strength at 28 days), physical (total water absorption by immersion), thermal, and microstructural (scanning electron microscopy) of the referred mortars. The study was carried out in a stabilized earth mortar, with a 1:3 mass mix proportion (binder: aggregate). The raw materials used were constituted by binders (cement, hydrated lime, fly ash, metakaolinite), aggregates (sand, a coarse fraction of the soil), additives (AEA, calcium chloride, superplasticizer), and water. The water-binder material ratio (a / bm) was fixed at 0.65, and the consumption of binder and aggregate was 461.71 and 1385.12 kg, respectively, per m3 of the mixture. The tests demonstrated that the incorporation of the additive influenced the behavior under compression (strength and stiffness reduction), thermal performance (conductivity reduction), and physical behavior (absorption and voids index´s increases) compared to the mixture without AEA. From the analysis of the results, it was found that the incorporation of air in the mortars led to an increase in porosity, directly influencing the thermal insulation capacity, measured by thermal conductivity. Microstructure changes were observed through SEM images, corroborating the influence of the AEA. Under compression loads, the stiffness reduction decreases the risk of eventual cracking, however, the reduction in strength should be controlled to meet normative limits.

Fresh Properties and Mix Design for 3D-Printable Decorative Concrete

Постановка задачи. Рассмотрение закономерностей влияния вида цемента и модификаторов вязкости на технологические свойства смесей для 3D-печати определяется необходимостью одновременного обеспечения показателей пластичности и формоустойчивости смесей и декоративности композитов на их основе. Результаты. Представлены результтаты экспериментальных исследований основных реологических характеристик декоративного бетона для строительной 3D-печати. Выявлено влияние состава бетона на подвижность и формоустойчивость смеси. Установлено, что вид используемого цемента изменяет пластичность смеси и формоустойчивость под весом вышележащих слоев. Смеси с оптимальным компонентным составом декоративного бетона для строительной 3D-печати имеют следующие реологические характеристики: предел текучести K @ 1,0-2,2 кПа, структурная прочность s = 1,5-4,5 кПа, относительные пластические деформации Δ = 0,03-0,07 мм/мм. Данные характеристики определяют способность смеси к пластическому деформированию без разрушения структуры при течении, а также способность сохранять форму при печати слоя и нагружении вышележащими слоями. Выводы. Оптимальные диапазоны свойств смесей для 3D-печати могут быть изменены в 2-3 раза за счет использования цементов с различным гранулометрическим составом. Регулирование подвижности и формоустойчивости смесей с различными видами цемента главным образом обеспечивается применяемым модификатором вязкости. Statement of the problem. This paper present the rheological properties of 3D-printable decorative concrete. The effects of the mix proportion on its plasticity and shape stability are presented together. It has been established that a kind of cement changes the plasticity of fresh mixtures and its resistance to load during printing. Results. The fresh mixtures of 3D-printable decorative concrete with effective mix design had plastic yield value K @ 1.0-2.2 kPa, structural strength s = 1.5-4.5 kPa, value of plastic deformations Δ = 0.03-0.07 mm/mm. That has defined the ability of these mixes to plastically deform without any structure destruction and hold its shape, resist the deformation under compressions load during multi-layer casting. Conclusions. Shape stability of 3D-printable mix can be changed by 2-3 times by using cement with an efficient ranging of a particle size. The plasticity and shape stability of fresh mixes can be regulated using viscosity modifiers whose type depends on the type of cement.

Durability and microstructure study of alkali-activated slag concrete with quartz sand subjected to different exposure conditions

Purpose One of the sources for the increase in the carbon footprint on the earth is the manufacturing of cement, which causes a severer environmental impact. Abundant research is going on to diminish CO2 content in the atmosphere by appropriate utilization of waste by-products of industries. Alkali-activated slag concrete (AASC) is an innovative green new concrete made by complete replacement of cement various supplementary cementitious raw materials. Concrete is a versatile material used in different fields of structures, so it is very important to study the durability in different exposures along with the strength. The purpose of this paper is to study the performance of AASC by incorporating quartz sand as fine aggregate under different exposure conditions. Design/methodology/approach The materials for this innovative AASC are selected based on preliminary studies and literature surveys. Based on numerous trials a better performance mix proportion of AASC with quartz sand is developed with 1:2:4 mix proportion, 0.8 alkali Binder ratio, 19 M of NaOH and 50% concentration of Na2SiO3. Subsequently, AASC cubes are prepared and exposed for 3, 7, 14, 28, 56, 90, 112, 180, 252 and 365 days in ambient, acid, alkaline, sulfate, chloride and seawater and tested for compressive strength. In addition, to study the microstructural characteristics, scanning electron microscope (SEM), energy dispersive X-ray analysis and X-ray diffraction analysis was also performed. Findings Long-term performance of AASC developed with quartz sand is very good in the ambient, alkaline environment of 5% NaOH and seawater with the highest compressive strength values of 51.8, 50.83 and 64.46, respectively. A decrease in compressive strengths was observed after the age of 14, 56 and 112 days for acid, chloride and sulfate exposure conditions, respectively. SEM image shows a denser microstructure of AASC matrix for ambient, alkaline of 5% NaOH and seawater. Research limitations/implications The proposed AASC is prepared with a mix proportion of 1:2:4, so the other proportions of AASC need to verify. In general plain, AASC is not used in practice except in few applications, in this work the effect of reinforced AASC is not checked. The real environmental exposure in fields may not create for AASC, as it was tested in different exposure conditions in the laboratory. Practical implications The developed AASC is recommended in practical applications where early strength is required, where the climate is hot, where water is scarce for curing, offshore and onshore constructions exposed to the marine environment and alkaline environment industries like breweries, distilleries and sewage treatment plants. As AASC is recommended for ambient air and in other exposures, its implementation as a construction material will reduce the carbon footprint. Originality/value The developed AASC mix proportion 1:2:4 is an economical mix, because of low binder content, but it exhibits a higher early age compressive strength value of 45.6 MPa at the age of 3 days. The compressive strength increases linearly with age from 3 to 365 days when exposed to seawater and ambient air. The performance of AASC is very good in the ambient, alkaline environment and seawater compared to other exposure conditions.

FRESH PROPERTIES AND MIX DESIGN FOR 3D-PRINTABLE DECORATIVE CONCRETE

Statement of the problem. This paper present the rheological properties of 3D-printable decorative concrete. The effects of mix proportion on its plasticity and shape stability are presented together. It has been established that kind of cement changes plasticity of fresh mixtures and its resistance to load during the printing. Results. The fresh mixtures of 3D-printable decorative concrete with effective mix design had plastic yield value Ki 1.0 - 2.2 kPa, structural strength σ0 = 1.5 - 4.5 kPa, value of plastic deformations Δpl = 0.03 - 0.07 mm/mm. That is defined the ability of these mixtures to plastically deform without structure destruction and hold its shape, resist the deformation under compressions load during multi-layer casting.Conclusions. Shape stability of 3D-printable mixture can be changed by 2--3 times by using cement with efficient ranging of a particle size. The plasticity and shape stability of fresh mixtures can be regulated with usage of viscosity modifiers, the type of which depends on the type of cement.

Change of Strength of Recycled Concrete with Age

In this paper, a mathematical model of the relationship between the amount of various components of recycled concrete and its compressive strength is established by using a large number of experimental data on the strength performance of recycled concrete and BP artificial neural network technology. In this paper, the influence trend of water binder ratio and aggregate substitution rate on the strength of recycled concrete is studied by this model. Taking recycled concrete with different recycled aggregate as the research object, a nonlinear structural model reflecting the mapping relationship between mix proportion and strength of recycled concrete is established in this paper. In this paper, the predicted values of the model are compared with the experimental data. The research shows that the strength model of recycled concrete based on BP neural network established in this paper can predict the compressive strength of recycled concrete at the corresponding age according to the mix proportion of recycled concrete, and the prediction accuracy is high. The application of BP neural network effectively reduces the times of a large number of repeated mix proportion test when preparing recycled concrete in practical engineering, reduces the waste of human and material resources, and has good economic benefits.

Influence of Prominent Temperature on the Compressive Strength of Self Compacting Concrete

In an extensive research scenario, the self-compacting concrete influence a major role in the advanced construction technology which gives the higher impact on its strength and durability of the structure, for its assessment there were various types of physical and chemical testing techniques are available. In this article the work represents the compressive strength of self-compacting concrete in various temperature testing like 200o C and 400 o C with the consideration of 100% cement and different mix proportion of admixtures for the replaceable of cement like Fly-ash with 30% and 15% and GGBFS 30% and 15% and the addition of polypropylene fibre with 1% and 2% with all of its mix proportion. The fundamental tests of the concrete are performed as per the Indian Standard code. The results indicate that an enhancement of compressive strength at the maximum optimized temperature.

Strength Characteristics of M40 Grade Concrete using Waste PET as Replacement for Sand

The wide variety of industrial and domestic applications of plastic products has fuelled a global trend in their use. The vast amount of plastic items that are discarded after use, on the other hand, pollutes the environment. In light of this, the current study investigated the use of Polyethylene Terephthalate (PET) as substitute for natural sand in concrete production. Locally sourced river sand was replaced with industrially ground waste PET in proportions of 4 to 20% at a step of 4% by the weight of natural sand whereas other concrete constituents (cement, granite, water-cement ratio and superplasticizer) were kept constant. A Grade M40 concrete with a mix proportion of 1:1:2:0.35 (cement: sand: granite: water-to-cement ratio) was used for all concrete mixes. Concrete without PET represents the control. Fresh (Slump) and hardened (compressive, split tensile and flexural) properties of the produced concrete were assessed using standard testing methods. The results showed that the slump of concrete decreased by 1.8% and 12.5% with an increase in PET content from 0 to 20%. The 28-day compressive strength of concrete containing PET was lower than the control. However, concrete with 4% PET compared considerably well with control with the compressive strength value exceeding the target strength of 40 N/mm2 while concretes containing PET beyond 4% had compressive strength below the target strength. The split tensile strength of concrete containing 4% PET was higher than that of the control but exhibited lower flexural strength than the control at the age of 28 days. It was concluded that the reuse of PET as a substitute for natural sand as an alternative waste disposal solution for eco-friendly concrete development and attainment of a pollution-free environment is viable.