Obtained natural sands can present different particle size distributions (PSD), although they have the same mineralogical origin. These differences directly influence the physical and mechanical behavior of mortars and, therefore, the performance of mortar and ceramic renderings. Standardizing the particle size of sands based on pre-established requirements in normative standards (NBR 7214 or ASTM C778) is one way to minimize these effects. However, these standards do not consider the optimization of the granular skeleton through the analysis of bulk density and PSD, which may be insufficient to obtain satisfactory results. Therefore, this paper analyzes the effects of using different particle size ranges on the physical and mechanical behavior of cement and hydrated lime mortars. The properties of consistency index, bulk density, air content, capillary water absorption, water absorption by immersion, flexural strength, compressive strength, and dynamic modulus of elasticity were evaluated. For this purpose, standardized sands of the same mineralogical origin were made with different particle size ranges, being: (i) standardized sand constituted by 25% of coarse and fine fractions (S25-control), (ii) standardized sand constituted by 30% of coarse fraction and 20% of fine fraction (S30-20), and (iii) standardized sand composed by 40% of coarse fraction, and 10% of fine fraction (S40-10), respectively. The results indicated that variations in the particle size composition of the standardized sands are necessary to obtain mixtures with higher compactness and, therefore, mortars with better physical and mechanical performance. Thus, the dosage of the particle size fractions of standardized sand should consider the optimization of the granular skeleton, being the unit mass and the granulometric composition as important parameters to meet this premise.

This study investigated the physical-mechanical effects of cement-lime mortars containing recycled aggregate of construction and demolition waste (CDW). The natural aggregate (NA) was replaced by volume at 25%, 50%, 75% and 100% by mixed recycled aggregate (MRA) obtained from the CDW crushing. Five types of mortars were prepared with a volumetric ratio of 1:1:6 (cement, lime and aggregate) and water/binder ratio based on the fixed consistency of 260 mm. The effects of MRA on fresh and hardened mortars’ properties were analyzed. The results were analyzed using a one-way ANOVA. MRA incorporation improved most of the physical-mechanical properties of mortars tested, except for hardened bulk density, water absorption and porosity. In the long-run, mechanical strengths significantly increased in all compositions, especially those with higher percentages of MRA. The results obtained showed that the use of MRA in masonry mortars is an alternative to reduce the generation of waste and consumption of natural resources.

The consumption of natural resources and energy increased proportionally with the growth of the world population and its economic level. There was an increasing exponential consumption of natural resources, which implied an increase in environmental impacts. The construction sector is responsible for a very significant production of construction and demolition waste (CDW). Thus, there is a concern in search of a more sustainable final disposal. Many studies have been investigated the development of new materials with the incorporation of recycled aggregates from CDW. This paper presents a study of performance evaluation of concrete blocks produced with CDW. For that purpose, an experimental campaign was performed, including a characterization of the aggregates used. The incorporation of 100% of fine and coarse recycled aggregates. The mixtures were designed according to the condition of the aggregate (dry, washed or saturated). The performance of these blocks was evaluated in terms of mechanical strength and water absorption. Some additional tests were also performed to deeper analyze of the microstructure of these blocks. To assess the durability of the concrete blocks, a full-scale road was built. The results were very positive, since there were no significant differences between the modified concrete blocks and the reference sample (0% of the CDW). The modified block with fine aggregate presented the best performance of all the blocks, concerning mechanical strength. In addition, the performance of concrete blocks with washed recycled aggregates had a better performance compared to the others. The results obtained were satisfactory for the application of the blocks in the streets with low movement and low load.