Investigation on sustainably developed concrete by valorizing granite waste as replacement of fine aggregates

Abstract

Abstract Concrete that uses waste from the granite industry as a mixing component consumes less natural aggregate and has fewer disposal issues. Impact of recycled granite particles on the characteristics of concrete is discussed in this paper. Investigations were conducted on concretes with 0.4 and 0.5 w/c ratios with various partial and complete substitution percentages of granite particles as natural sand by weight. More specifically, the percentages of replacement followed were 0% – 100% with an interval of 10% (i.e., 10%, 20%, 30%, 40%, 50%, 60%, 70%, 80%, 90%, and 100%). The mechanical and durability tests enlisting compressive strength, flexural strength, split tensile strength and water penetration test, abrasion resistance test for mechanical parameters and durability parameters respectively were performed. Moreover, ultrasonic pulse velocity and rebound hammer test were also done to assess the mechanical property through non-destructive testing method. In comparison to nominal concrete, the tests revealed that presence of granite slurry had positive effect on the concrete's compressive strength upto 40% replacement for both the water cement ratios. However, the outcomes indicated that adding 50% of waste granite to concrete reduced its compressive and tensile strength, with the impacts being more intense in the case of higher replacements. Moreover, the presence of granite particles made fresh concrete less workable. The weakened intermediate region between aggregate and cement paste was seen in microstructure photographs of the concrete containing granite cutting waste.