Eco-Friendly Optimum Structural Concrete Mix Design

Najib N. Gerges, Camille A. Issa, Elias Sleiman, Sara Aintrazi, Jad Saadeddine, Remi Abboud and Marc Antoun
Additional contact information
Najib N. Gerges: Department of Civil Engineering, University of Balamand, Balamand P.O. Box 100, Lebanon
Camille A. Issa: Department of Civil Engineering, Lebanese American University, Byblos P.O. Box 36, Lebanon
Elias Sleiman: Department of Civil Engineering, University of Balamand, Balamand P.O. Box 100, Lebanon
Sara Aintrazi: Department of Civil Engineering, University of Balamand, Balamand P.O. Box 100, Lebanon
Jad Saadeddine: Department of Civil Engineering, University of Balamand, Balamand P.O. Box 100, Lebanon
Remi Abboud: Department of Civil Engineering, University of Balamand, Balamand P.O. Box 100, Lebanon
Marc Antoun: Department of the Built Environment, Eindhoven University of Technology, 5612 AZ Eindhoven, The Netherlands

Sustainability, 2022, vol. 14, issue 14, 1-24

Abstract: Concrete, the most consumed man-made material worldwide, has shaped the environment and the modern world. Even though concrete is a major contributor to the carbon footprint, it is indispensable for building the sustainable world of tomorrow. Researchers have been exploring ways to reduce the carbon footprint and to implement strategical waste management plans in which wastes are repurposed. Pollution has been a challenge for almost all countries, especially with the increase in the release of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere and the emissions resulting from wastes in unmanaged landfills. Additionally, the areas available for landfills have become scarce. Daily all around the world, generated are wastes such as wood ash, waste glass, used tires, construction debris, and demolition wastes. These wastes usually accumulate in landfills for years, as they are mostly nondecomposable. This research explores a solution to this twofold problem in which concrete components are replaced by wastes and by-products, which in return reduces the need for raw materials that have a significant carbon footprint and repurposes wastes as part of a circular economy. In this research, wood ash is used as a partial replacement of cement and sand, fine crushed glass and crumb rubber as partial replacements of sand, and crushed glass and recycled concrete aggregates as partial replacements of gravel. The optimum eco-friendly structural concrete mix was determined to be the combined mix consisting of 5% wood ash as a partial replacement of cement; 20% wood ash, 20% fine crushed glass, and 2% crumb rubber as partial replacements of sand; and 5% crushed glass and 50% recycled concrete aggregates as partial replacements of coarse aggregates. By mass, the recycled waste materials constituted 32% of the mix, translating into 34% of its volume. Additionally, identified were mixes that may be used for structural applications.

Keywords: compressive strength; splitting tensile strength; modulus of elasticity (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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