A Compensatory Approach for Enhancing the Strength and Durability of Green Concrete Composites (GCC) with Multiple Combinations of Recyclable Pozzolanic Materials (RPM)

Abstract

Recyclable Pozzolanic materials (RPM) derived from wastes are increasingly used in mortar and concrete for a number of purposes, chief among them being the reduction of cement quantity, which lowers construction costs as well as carbon footprint. Among these, the most often used mixture ingredients in concrete are fly ash (FA), rice husk ash (RHA), palm oil fuel ash (POFA), granulated slag (GS), silica fume (SF), construction debris waste powder (CDW), and calcined clay (CC). Recent studies reveal that they are reasonable to impart mechanical strength when applied individually; however, their combined effects are not extensively investigated due to the characteristic conflicts existing in their elemental composition and the resulting pozzolanic activities. We present a comprehensive evaluation of durability and strength properties of different combinations of binary and ternary replacements of specific pozzolanic components in varying amounts (5%, 10%, 15%, and 20%). These combinations were so chosen as to provide a compensatory effect on the apparent binding properties based on the difference in their geometry and composition. The results indicate that 5% of the ternary combination had good corrosion resistance and durability, whereas 10% of the single mode, 5% of the binary mode, and 5% of the ternary mode have high mechanical properties, durability, and resistance to corrosion. These insightful findings show that use of optimized mixtures of composite pozzolanic materials can improve the mechanical properties of concrete mixes by compensating each other for their intrinsic limitations, thereby ensuring higher sustainability towards green concrete applications.