In this study, the potential for reuse of waste brick (WB) by alkaline activation in a new geopolymer brick was examined. The effect of the incorporation of ground granulate blast furnace slag (GGBFS), the molarity of sodium hydroxide (NaOH) and the silicate to sodium hydroxide ratio (Na 2 SiO 3 /NaOH) on the mechanical properties of the final product was investigated. The manufacturing of geopolymer bricks was carried out by mixing WBs, GGBFS, sand with a solution of hydroxide and sodium silicate. The samples were prepared according to different formulations. The optimal compressive strength obtained is 89.91 MPa, for a GGBFS/WB ratio of 80/20, an 8 M molarity of NaOH and a silicate/hydroxide ratio of 2/1. This study shows an effective feasibility for the recovery and recycling of industrial waste into a valuable product for the construction sector. This recycling method can bring environmental and economic benefits by using it as an alternative material to fired brick in construction. Given the results obtained, it will be interesting to study the environmental and economic impact as well as the durability properties of these geopolymer bricks.
Graphical abstractKeywords Geopolymer · Recovery of waste bricks · GGBFS · Reuse · Alkaline activation · Compressive strength
The objective of this paper is to propose a pre-experimental framework of printability pre-assessment of cementitious materials. This study firstly presents a general review of additive manufacturing in construction and then examines the main characteristic of the material formulation and printability properties based on extrusion technique. This framework comes with experimental tests to determine a qualitative printability index of mixtures. It uses mix-designs reported in the literature to define interval ratio of mixture design to be investigated in this study. The focus was put on two criteria that influence the formulation namely flowability and buildability. Two practiced based tests, mini slump and cone penetrometer, were used to draw the flowability and buildability dimensionless index. The results were analyzed by introducing an optimal printability coefficient and examining their time evolution. An optimal time of printing was determined Toptimal. Finally, a 3D mortar printing system and its operational process are presented. Then, based on the measurement, the optimal mixture is identified and printed in a large-scale geometry.
This article presents the environmental assessment of geopolymer bricks produced from clay and waste bricks. The life cycle approach is the method used in this research to qualify, identify and compare the environmental impacts of geopolymer bricks and fired bricks. The results reveal that the manufacturing process of geopolymer bricks implies for the same compressive strength of fired bricks, a reduction of CO2 emissions by up to 55% for clay-based geopolymer bricks. This research checks the environmental interests of the application of geopolymerization technology in the production of bricks.
The intensity and rate of construction operations require logistics and transportation that can adapt to the changing nature of activities on a day-to-day basis of construction and that enable rapid decision-making. This paper aims to design an integrated RFID technology system for managing construction materials onsite. The integration includes managing materials during the front-end and the execution phases, managing the inventory, locating materials on site with Global Positioning System GPS, and developing Kanban systems for managing different stakeholders’ inputs onsite. The research also sheds the light into the effect of using RFID on leveraging valuable data. RFID systems can gather large amount of tag data via wireless connections.
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