Microstructure and Mechanical Properties of Sustainable Concrete Incorporating Used Foundry Sand and Coal Bottom Ash
Piotr Smarzewski ()
Additional contact information
Piotr Smarzewski: Faculty of Civil Engineering and Geodesy, Military University of Technology, 2 Gen. Sylwestra Kaliskiego, 00-908 Warsaw, Poland
Sustainability, 2025, vol. 17, issue 13, 1-26
Abstract:
This study investigates the potential for sustainable concrete production using industrial by-products: used foundry sand (UFS) and coal bottom ash (CBA). These materials were partially substituted for natural aggregates to reduce environmental impact and promote circular economy practices. UFS was used as a replacement for fine aggregate, while both fine and coarse CBA were tested as substitutes for sand and gravel, respectively. The materials were characterized using X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) to evaluate their mineralogical and microstructural properties. Six concrete mixtures were prepared with varying replacement levels (up to 70% total aggregate substitution) at a constant water-to-cement ratio of 0.50. Compressive strength tests were conducted at 28 days, supported by microstructural observations. Results showed that high levels of UFS and CBA led to reduced strength, mainly due to weak interfacial bonding and porous ash particles. However, moderate replacement levels (e.g., 20% fine CBA) maintained high strength with good structural integrity. The study concludes that both UFS and CBA can be used effectively in concrete when carefully dosed. The findings support the use of industrial waste in construction, provided that material properties are well understood and replacement levels are optimized.
Keywords: used foundry sand (UFS); coal bottom ash (CBA); recycled aggregate concrete; microstructure; compressive strength; X-ray diffraction (XRD); SEM/EDS (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations:
Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/17/13/5983/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/17/13/5983/ (text/html)
Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.
Export reference: BibTeX
RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan)
HTML/Text
Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:17:y:2025:i:13:p:5983-:d:1690507
Access Statistics for this article
Sustainability is currently edited by Ms. Alexandra Wu
More articles in Sustainability from MDPI
Bibliographic data for series maintained by MDPI Indexing Manager ().