Using recycled asphalt pavement (RAP) as a natural aggregate (NA) replacement supports environmental preservation but requires performance evaluation. This study investigated the mechanical properties of concrete containing RAP and the potential of silica fume (SF) and superplasticizer (SP) to enhance these properties. Thirty-five concrete mixtures were prepared with a 0%, 25%, 50%, 75%, or 100% replacement of natural coarse aggregate by crushed coarse RAP. SF (0–21%) and SP (0–2.1% per 100 kg of cement) were added separately as admixtures. Tests on compressive, splitting, and flexural strength showed that RAP generally reduced compressive and splitting tensile strength but increased flexural strength at low RAP content. SF and SP partially restored strength losses, with higher RAP content benefiting more from these admixtures. Optimal compressive strength gains ranged from 8% to 58%, with splitting and flexural tensile strength improvements of 40% and 28%, respectively. The ideal SF and SP contents were 5–7% and 0.8–1.5%, respectively. These findings demonstrate that 100% RAP concrete, combined with appropriate admixtures, can meet performance requirements, offering a sustainable solution for structural applications and promoting resource conservation.

This paper studied the effect of fly ash (FA) and natural pozzolana (NP) as partial cement substitutes on sustainable concrete permeability and mechanical and microstructural properties. Batches with 10, 20, 30, 40, and 50% FA and NP replacements for cement were prepared and tested for compressive strength after 7, 28, and 56 curing days and for flexural strength after 28 curing days. Permeability testing was conducted on all samples. A qualitative microstructural analysis was performed using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy-dispersive X-ray (EDX). The mechanical properties results showed slight strength improvements when replacing the cement with low percentages of the pozzolanic materials. The compressive strengths of the batches with 10% FA and NP replacements of cement showed compressive strength increases of 11.63 and 8.75%, respectively, compared to that of plain concrete. On the other hand, the flexural strength for the batches with FA replacement of cement achieved at least a 15.6% increase compared to that of the control. Moreover, FA and NP replacement of cement had a positive impact on batch permeability, with decreased permeability values reaching 78.3 and 56.5%, respectively, compared to that of the control. Furthermore, the microstructural analysis indicated that adding FA and NP would enhance cement hydration by the formation of dense hydration products such as calcium–silicate–hydrate (C-S-H) crystals, which increased hardened concrete strength. Finally, the cost analysis showed that the batch with a 10% FA replacement of cement is the ideal one in this study.

This study investigates experimentally the shear strengthening and repairing of reinforced concrete (RC) deep beams damaged by heat utilizing near-surface mounted carbon fiber reinforced polymers (NSM-CFRP) ropes. The main parameters adopted in this research are rope orientation (45°, 90°) and rope spacing (150 mm, 200 mm). For this purpose, ten RC deep beams were cast and tested until failure was reached. The test results showed that using NSM-CFRP ropes with various configurations significantly enhanced the shear capacity for repaired and strengthened deep beams. All the tested beams enhanced the ultimate load capacity for the strengthened beams ranging between 19% to 46%, while for the repaired beams, the values ranged between 40.8% to 64.6%. The CFRP ropes oriented at 45° recorded the highest enhancement result in shear capacity. Notably, all tested beams had a satisfactory rise in the enhancement ratio. Consequently, the economic aspect should have priority.

An experimental and analytical investigation was conducted on reinforced concrete (RC) beams strengthened in flexure using the near-surface mounted carbon-fiber-reinforced polymers (NSM-CFRPs) technique. A total of 11 full-scale RC rectangular beams were cast and tested under a monotonic three-point bending test, up to failure. The main test variables adopted in this study were the concrete compressive strength (high, medium, and low), the number of CFRP strips, and the strip length. The results indicated that the use of NSM-CFRPs strips in different configurations efficiently increased the load-carrying capacity of the strengthened RC beams, in which all these beams exhibited a higher moment resistance than the corresponding un-strengthened beam. Results also showed that all strengthening schemes were successful in increasing the flexural capacity of the specimens tested. Such increases ranged between 10.36% and 52.28%. Notably, a significant improvement in the ultimate load ratio was observed with beams having a low compressive strength of 17-MPa, then followed by the beams with medium strength (32-MPa), and finally beams with high compressive strength (47-MPa). The NSM technique reduced the occurrence possibility of the CFRP de-bonding failure mode. Furthermore, the test results were compared with theoretical predictions using the ACI 440.2R17 guidelines and showed a good agreement between these results.