Empirical Study on the Mechanical Attributes of Geopolymer Concrete: Experimental Findings

EasyChair Preprint 12104

Abstract

Cement is essential in global building, notably contributing to infrastructure development and impacting economies. However, its manufacturing necessitates the use of significant raw resources such as limestone, resulting in CO₂ emissions and contributing to global warming. Current research in this sector is mostly focused on developing ecologically friendly solutions. In the study, a geopolymer binder is considered as a substitute for the traditional cement binder, offering comparable effectiveness. This document explains how to make Geopolymer concrete was created by eliminating Portland cement and instead activating industrial byproducts such as Fly ash, Ground granulated blast furnace slag, Metakaolin and silica fume. Local standard quartz sand size 300 µm, and brass coated steel fibers with diameters of 0.28 mm and lengths of 13 mm were used in the concrete mix. The fresh characteristics slump value and mechanical properties (compressive strength) of the resulting geopolymer concrete were evaluated when cured at 60 ºC and 100 ºC temperature for 24 hours and after that cured at ambient temperature for 7 and 28 days. The study included 12 molar concentrations of NaOH. The Geopolymer Concrete with steel fibers achieved the highest average compressive strengths, reaching 59.24 N/mm² with 2% of 13 mm length fibers in hand mix at 12 M concentration. The compressive strengths observed in this investigation are equivalent to high strength previously reported in the literature. Using industrial by-products and diverging from traditional curing procedures for geopolymer concrete production will improve sustainability and allow for cast-in-situ geopolymer applications.

Keyphrases: Geopolymer concrete, Sodium Silicate solution, Sodium hydroxide pellets, compressive strength

@booklet{EasyChair:12104,
  author    = {Sandeep Thapa and Suman Debnath and Suhasini Kulkarni and Hardik Solanki and Snehansu Nath and Joy Amit Sanghvi and Jenish Shaileshbhai Bhensdadiya},
  title     = {Empirical Study on the Mechanical Attributes of Geopolymer Concrete: Experimental Findings},
  howpublished = {EasyChair Preprint 12104},
  year      = {EasyChair, 2024}}