Upcycling agro-waste fibres for cleaner production of concrete – technical feasibility and environmental considerations

Abstract

The construction sector is actively adapting various measures such as use of green materials, optimization of design, activities and clean technology for the reuse of waste materials to reduce the environmental footprints. Among the green materials, replacement of concrete constituents has tremendous impact on the overall environmental benefits. The recycling of agro-waste fibres in concrete construction is comparatively less attempted due to the limitations in their applications. Present study focuses on comparative evaluation of proportioning coconut fibre and sisal fibre in concrete as singular and binary mixtures. The mechanical properties of the agro-waste fibre reinforced concrete in various proportions (from 0.5% to 2.5%) revealed a substantial increase in the compressive, tensile and flexural strength values. The binary mixture with a maximum value of 1.5% is found to be the best performing combination. The associated environmental impacts were identified using a two-step cause-evidence-impact methodology, suggesting the identification of critical steps in reducing environmental pollution and increasing the benefits.