Combined Effects of Densified Polystyrene and Unprocessed Fly Ash on Concrete Engineering Properties

Abstract

Abstract:The present study evaluated the combined effects of two types of waste materials of expanded polystyrene (EPS) and unprocessed fly ash (FA) on different properties of concrete. A novel recycling technique of densifying waste EPS is used to produce a novel lightweight aggregate (LWA). This new technique has solved the problem of segregation in concrete by coating EPS particles with a natural binder of clay and cement. Nine different concrete mixtures with a water to cement ratio of 0.8 were used. The densified EPS and unprocessed FA were partially replaced with natural aggregate and Portland cement, respectively. The engineering properties, including workability, density, compressive strength, ultrasonic pulse velocity (UPV), and water absorption (WA) were investigated at different curing times. According to the experimental results, there is a decrease in compressive strength and UPV with increasing this novel LWA content in concrete. However, by using a suitable mix design, the utilisation of these two waste materials in concrete using an appropriate recycling technique is possible.

Combined Effects of Bottom Ash and Expanded Polystyrene on Light-weight Concrete Properties

“…According to [4,5], choosing lower substitutions of EPS in concrete mixture is within satisfactory limits. However, one of the main goals of the present work is to utilise as much EPS aggregate as possible, solving the disposal problem of waste expanded polystyrene foam and producing light-weight concrete blocks with low thermal conductivity in construction the High-Rise buildings.…”

“…As we know, EPS aggregate is a light-weight material. Therefore, it can be partially replaced volume of concrete mixture to produce light-weight concrete, which is an important material in reducing the dead-weight of concrete complying with special concrete structures of high-rise buildings [4,5].…”

Sustainable Design and Engineering: A Relationship Analysis between Digital Destructive and Non-Destructive Testing Process for Lightweight Concrete

“…As the EPS-beads' content increases directly, the concrete density decreases. That occurs because the density of EPS-beads is much less than that of natural rocky coarse aggregate [2]. The density variations also occur due to the variations in the entrapped air content against the different EPS-beads' dosage contents.…”

“…Due to this, in the present research, the velocity values are high because due to the increasing volume of EPS-beads the entrapped air voids increased, which also decreased the strength and velocity values. An investigation into the engineering properties of concrete reported that as a consequence of the cement-water hydration as a consequence of the cement-water hydration process over curing time, the physical and chemical changes will occur in the concrete and will increase the strength and density and, as a result, will increase the UPV values of concrete [2,60].…”

“…Lightweight material production is destined to become a dominant building material in the new era [1]. The basic constituents of concrete are cement, fine aggregate (sand), coarse aggregate, and water [2,3]. Concrete is extremely hard and rigid, and its thermal as well as natural qualities are not very high [4].…”