This study presents the development and experimental assessment of novel, high strength, cementless binders that incorporate alkali-activated local waste. A silica-rich diabase mud (DM), currently considered as waste, was previously investigated for geopolymerization, signifying that the DM lacked the necessary reactivity to provide a stable geopolymer binder alone. Moreover, even after incorporation of small amounts of cement and metakaolin, the DM mixtures still did not yield adequate mechanical properties. In this study, the local DM was instead combined with another industrial byproduct known as Ground Granulated Blast-furnace Slag (GGBS) in varying mixtures. The mixture design trials enabled the development of three high strength cementless geopolymer mixtures with 28-day compressive strengths ranging between 60 and 100 MPa, comparable to conventional concrete compressive strengths. The results indicate that the innovative geopolymer material is very promising for the manufacturing of pavement tiles and other precast construction products. Most importantly, this study presents the first successful development of a construction material of adequate compressive strength that can absorb large quantities of the abundant quarry waste, following a course of 10 years of unsuccessful attempts to valorize the local DM. Although difficulties were encountered due to a high reactivity rate, especially for the mix that included the highest GGBS content, prototype pavement tiles were manufactured and assessed experimentally. The results reveal a promising potential of valorizing the local DM in the development of precast geopolymer products, despite the effects of shrinkage cracking on the experimental evaluation of the material mechanical properties.

The concepts of sustainability and waste utilization have received urgent attention in the European construction industries. Material selection plays a vital role in the manufacturing process of sustainable building construction. The general objective of this study is the transformation of waste diabase mud into a value-added product. The diabase mud was characterized, and different parameters were selected for the cement, as well as the metakaolin in the mixture. This paper includes analytical research results of a geopolymer paste embedded with diabase mud waste material as its precursor, and a combination of sodium hydroxide (NaOH) and sodium silicate (Na₂SiO₃) as its alkaline activators to form a geopolymeric system. The compressive strength of the optimum mix sample was recorded as 14.0 MPa at 72 h. The embedding of a diabase mud into a geopolymer resulted in a viable composite for use in the construction industry.