Towards Sustainable Masonry Construction Through Natural Aggregate Replacement by Fine Recycled Aggregates in Cement–Lime Mortars

Vadim Grigorjev, Miguel Azenha and Nele De Belie ()
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Vadim Grigorjev: Magnel-Vandepitte Laboratory, Department of Structural Engineering and Building Materials, Faculty of Engineering and Architecture, Ghent University, Technologiepark Zwijnaarde 60, 9052 Gent, Belgium
Miguel Azenha: The Institute for Sustainability and Innovation in Structural Engineering (ISISE), Department of Civil Engineering, University of Minho, Building 02, 4800-058 Guimarães, Portugal
Nele De Belie: Magnel-Vandepitte Laboratory, Department of Structural Engineering and Building Materials, Faculty of Engineering and Architecture, Ghent University, Technologiepark Zwijnaarde 60, 9052 Gent, Belgium

Sustainability, 2025, vol. 17, issue 3, 1-19

Abstract: Sustainable development relies on the circularity in the built environment, which, in turn, includes recycling construction and demolition waste and using recycled materials. However, using fine recycled fractions is challenging, especially considering the requirements for new building applications. Yet, producing more widely applied recycled coarse aggregates usually leads to the simultaneous generation of recycled sand fraction, which contains many fines that pose potential problems. This work presents the direct incorporation of concrete and mixed waste-based recycled sand and recycled fines in masonry mortars, on the one hand, as a complete aggregate replacement and, on the other, only replacing the finest aggregate fraction. Such mortars are assessed based on the fresh and hardened mortar properties and are compared to natural aggregate-containing mortars. In the fresh state, the mortars with recycled fines and recycled sand required more mixing water to produce comparable consistency and workability. In a hardened state, mortars with recycled mixed waste sand and fines have demonstrated increased mechanical strength compared to natural aggregate mortars. In contrast, those containing recycled concrete aggregates and fines were inferior in that regard. This indicates the potential of using recycled mixed waste fractions to improve masonry mortar performance, although both types might be important in enhancing the sustainability of masonry construction.

Keywords: sustainable masonry; mortar; recycled concrete aggregates; recycled mixed aggregates; fines (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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