An Investigation of the Effect of Waste Glass Additive on Strength and Microstructure Properties of Mortars

Abstract

The importance of recycling waste in terms of ecological efficiency becomes more evident every day. Cement based mortars are one of the building materials that are widely used in building production. Especially the energy and raw materials consumed in cement production are important in terms of ecological efficiency. Savings in the amount of cement in cement-based mortars will be beneficial in this sense. With this perspective, in this study, the usability of waste glass in mortar production was investigated experimentally. Following the production stage of the test specimens, workability measurements were made first. Compressive and flexural strength tests were performed on the produced mortar samples to determine their strength properties. Microstructural examinations were carried out using the SEM technique. Unlike other studies, morphological findings were detailed with the help of EDX analyses. As a result, with the addition of waste glass, a decrease in the strength values of the test specimens was determined. It was also found that glass wastes with 10% substitution rate improved the workability.