Effect of Sustainable Fibres on Properties of Structural Perlite Concrete Containing Local, Sustainable Materials

Abstract

For sustainability in the construction field, finding a substitute for cement and recycling the waste in concrete is important. This paper shows the effect of sustainable copper fibres on some properties of perlite structural lightweight concrete containing sustainable materials. Research includes slump, density, compressive strength, flexural strength and thermal conductivity tests. The materials used to cast the specimen are ordinary Portland cement, local ash, metakaolin, combined coarse and fine perlite aggregate, and super-plasticizer. The concrete is reinforced with 1% copper fibres by volume of concrete. The results show that adding sustainable material to the concrete increased compressive strength by a percentage of 2.79% for 28 days and improved flexural and tensile strength by 40% and 8.36%, respectively, at 28 days. The density was within the limits of structural lightweight concrete, while the thermal conductivity was within the limits of insulation concrete, in addition to economic benefits and reducing world waste.