Development of high strength self-compacted concrete with supplementary cementitious materials

Abstract

Self-compacting concrete (SCC) is the type of concrete that can flow under its own weight and completely fills the formwork without using vibration efforts. Since the manufacturing of cement has negative effects on the environment, the construction industry is putting a lot of effort to explore alternative supplementary cementitious materials (SCMs). This study is aimed to produce high-strength SCC with SCMs i.e., silica fume (SF) and fly ash (FA). The laboratory tests were conducted to determine the fresh and hardened properties of newly produced high strength SCC with binary and ternary use of SF and FA as partial replacement of cement. The replacement levels of cement with SF and FA were 5 to 20% and 5 to 30% with 5% increment by weight of cement, respectively. The results have revealed that both the fresh and hardened properties of SCCs depend on the binary and ternary use of SCMs. Furthermore, a substantial increase in the compressive, spilt tensile and flexural strength was observed for all the mixes of SCC with the addition of SCMs. However, the optimum replacement level of cement for producing high strength SCC was found as 10% SF and 15% FA. The resulting green concrete is not only good from strength point of view but also helps to some extent in management of the waste. It also helps in reducing the adverse impacts on environment in general and individuals’ health in particular due to reduced waste and reduced production of the ingredients of concrete.