Early Age of Volume Weight, Indirect Tensile Strength and Tensile Elastic Modulus of Foam Concrete Containing Blended Cement

Abstract

Abstract Portland composite cement is a type of blended cement produced by the Indonesian cement factories where fly ash as one of the ingredient and the production is based on efforts to reduce CO2 emissions in the cement production process. This research is part of the sustainability infrastructure development which is carried out through the use of Portland composite cement as a cementitious material in the manufacture of foam concrete. The purpose of this paper was to contribute to the understanding of the early age volume weight, indirect tensile strength and tensile elastic modulus of the hardened foam concrete. In this study, two mix designs of foam to mortar ratio of 32.53%: 67.47% and 55.41%: 44.59%, by volume were used to produce foam concrete. The test results showed a good compatibility of Portland composite cement-superplasticizer based mortar in combination with foam can be achieved to determine the foam concrete slurry stability and can thus form hardened foam concrete. By using foam to mortar ratio of 32.53%: 67.47%, volume weight, indirect tensile strength and tensile elastic modulus achieved were 1508.3 kg/m3, 0.83 MPa and 207.5 MPa at three days, and 1476.9 kg/m3, 0.89 MPa and 254.3 MPa at 7 days, respectively. Tensile strength of foam concrete with foam content of 55.41%: 44.59% at 3 days and 7 days were 0.37 MPa and 0.46 MPa, respectively. The foam to mortar rasio of 55.41%: 44.59% produced foam concrete with tensile elastic modulus of 137 MPa and 200 MPa, at 3 days and 7 days respectively.