Mechanical Properties of High Calcium Flyash- GGBFS Geopolymer Paste, Mortar and the Effect of Glass Fibre Mesh on the Strength of Geopolymer Mortar Tile

Abstract

In this paper, a combination of high-calcium fly ash (HCFA) and ground granulated blast furnace slag (GGBFS) was used along with a combination of sodium hydroxide (NaOH) and sodium silicate(Na2SiO3) as alkaline activators (AAs) to produce geopolymer paste and mortar. The alkaline activator ratio (AAR) was maintained at 1.5 apart from their molarity at 10 for the study. A rational method, namely minimum voids approach was used for the mix design. A commercially available glass fibre mesh was used as reinforcement in the geopolymer mortar produced above, to assess its potential for use as a flooring tile. The influence of W/S (water-to-solids) ratio and the influence of various fine aggregates, namely, river sand (R), manufactured sand (M) and construction demolition waste (D) on the various geopolymer system (GP) and on the strength characteristics, are highlighted. A maximum transverse strength (TS) of 6.25 N/mm2 could be attained by the geopolymer tile, using three layers of glass fibre mesh and GP mortar developed. The study indicates that a combination of FA and GGBFS helps us to attain substantial strength under ambient temperature in geopolymer mortar.