Use of Taguchi Method to Optimize the Mix Design of Pervious Geopolymer Concrete

Abstract

The challenges related to the impervious pavement, including tire-pavement noise, urban heat island effect, and skid resistance, can be mitigated using pervious pavements. Instead of cement, Pervious geopolymer concrete (PGC) utilizes industrial wastes that would otherwise end up in landfills to produce an alkali-activated binder. This paper aims to optimize the mix design of PGC for superior mechanical performance using the Taguchi method. The binder consisted of a 3:1 blend of ground granulated blast furnace slag and fly ash. A total of nine PGC mixtures were designed, considering four factors, each at three levels, namely the binder content (400, 450, 500 kg/m3), dune sand addition (0, 10, 20%), alkaline activator solution-to-binder ratio (AAS/B, 0.55, 0.60, 0.65), and sodium hydroxide (SH) molarity (8, 10, 12). The signal-to-noise (S/N) ratios were determined to optimize the mixture proportions for superior mechanical performance, with compressive strength being the response criterion. Results showed that the optimum mix was made with a binder content of 500 kg/m3, dune sand addition of 20%, AAS/B of 0.60, and SH molarity of 12 M. Experimental research findings serve as a guide for optimizing the production of PGC with superior compressive strength while minimizing the number of experiments.