A Study on the Strength Aspects of Concrete with Metakaolin, GGBFS and Rice Husk Ash as Partial Replacement of OPC

Abstract

The impact of the OPC on the environment is important as its production generates a large amount of CO2. In order to reduce the use of pure raw materials as resources, the use of industrial waste or secondary materials in construction sites for the production of cement and concrete has been encouraged. The volume of wastes generated worldwide has increased over the years due to the population, social and economic performance and social development. One of the most attractive options for waste management is to minimize waste and reuse the possibility of recycling. The cost of cement used in concrete works is increasing and unsatisfactory, but the demand for this material and other housing needs is rising, so it is important to find alternatives that can be used alone or in a partial replacement. In this research work several auxiliary cementitious ingredients such as metakaoline, GGBFS and Rice Husk Ash (RHA) were used to improve the strength properties of the conservative concrete. Metakaolin and GGBFS was used at a fixed percentage of 10 percent as fractional substitution of the OPC-43 grade cement, while the RHA was used at different percent ranging from 0 to 25 percent at an increment of 5 percent in each case as fractional substitution of the OPC-43 grade cement. Numerous examinations were executed so as to envisage the effect of these materials over the strength and engineering properties of the concrete. The test results conclude that the usage of the metakaolin, GGBFS and the RHA in combined form increased the strength and engineering properties of the conventional concrete up to a great extent. From the obtained test results it can be further concluded that the particle size of the supplementary cementitious materials plays a significant role in enhancing the internal micro-structure of the concrete and which further leads to the higher strength of the concrete. Also the main reason behind the advanced strength was the presence of the metakaolin and GGBFS in the concrete, whose chemical properties densifies the concrete and made the concrete more stable and promotes higher strength. Future work can also be done on the usage of several other supplementary cementitious materials at different other percentages so as to improve concrete properties.