In general, plastic waste has been growing remarkably. Numerous waste plastic products are generated by manufacturing processes, service industries, and municipal solid waste (MSW). The increase in plastic waste increases concern about the environment and how to dispose of the generated waste. Thus, recycling plastic waste becomes an alternative technique to the disposal of plastic waste in a limited landfill. One of the solutions is to use plastic waste as recycled material in concrete construction to produce what is called green concrete. This research illustrates a summary of studies that utilized polyethylene terephthalate (PET) in concrete as a volume ratio or concrete aggregate replacement. It presents data with regard to mixing design and concrete behavior when PET is used. Moreover, using PET in concrete industries may reduce environmental pollution such as the emission of carbon dioxide and plastic waste disposal problems.
Enhancing concrete's mechanical properties has become a prominent field in recent years. Numerous studies investigated the possibility of enhancing the mechanical properties of concrete by adding additive materials. Few studies investigated the effects of copped CFRP on the tensile strength of normal-strength concrete (NSC) and low-strength concrete (LSC). In this study, the effects of Chopped Carbon Fiber Reinforced Polymer (CCFRP) on the mechanical properties of LSC and NSC were investigated. The method of the study was experimentally investigating the effects of CCFRP on the mechanical properties of LSC and NSC. Different volume fractions (0%, 0.25%, 0.5%, and 0.75%) of chopped carbon fibers were added to the concrete mix for the 13 MPa and 28 MPa concrete grades, and five mix trials were conducted to achieve concrete with 13 MPa and 28 MPa. The ratios (1:1.5:2.5) for the normal strength mix and (1:2.6:4.1) for the low strength mix were chosen. Three tests were conducted to evaluate the effects of chopped CFRP on the mechanical properties of concrete: compressive strength, tensile strength, and flexural strength. A total of 120 pieces were cast, including 24 beams, 48 cubes, and 48 cylinders. The casted cubes were 15 × 15 × 15 cm and the cylinders were 15 cm in diameter and 30 cm in length. Prism beams with a 15 × 15 cm cross-section and a 56 cm length were tested under a single point load. The samples were tested at 7 and 28 days of age, and the sample density was recorded. The results revealed that adding 0.25% CCFRP increased the compressive strength of LSC from 9.5 MPa to 11.2 MPa which is about 10% enhancement and slightly affected the compressive strength of NSC by about 5%. On the other hand, adding 0.25% CCFRP to both LSC and NSC increased split tensile strength from 2.5 MPa to 3.6 MPa which is about 44% enhancement for NSC and 16.6% for LSC. Similar improvements were made in flexural strength of normal strength increased from 4.5 MPa to 5.4 MPa. Whereas the effects on LSC were unremarkable. As such, this study recommends 0.25% CCFRP fiber as the ideal dosage.
6 March 2025 in Construction and Building Materials
Research is in progress on the applications of ultra-high performance concrete (UHPC) as a new additive material in construction technology. Over the last twenty years’ significant improvements have been achieved in mechanical properties of UHPC, such as its strength, workability, and ductility, with further improvements made in self-placing properties, higher density, and durability compared with normal concrete. One of the biggest advantages offered by ultra-high performance concrete over normal concrete is the possibility to minimize the cross-sectional dimensions of the structural elements. UHPC can be used to provide significant long-span members, whilst also showing less variation, creep, and drying shrinkage compared to conventional concrete. After many years of development and research into UHPC’s properties, it is being used in commercial applications to meet the rising demand for quality constructions. Many projects in the world started using UHPC for different construction objectives such as long spans, columns, jacketing, rain-screen cladding systems, panel systems, façades, etc. Furthermore, there are not enough sources in the literature describing mixture design, preparation, and curing. This research gives an overview of the uses of UHPC in structural and architectural applications. DOI: https://doi.org/10.33976/JERT.10.1/2023/2
The most popular flooring solution for composite building construction is composite slabs, which are made of profiled steel sheets and a concrete topping. The e The most popular flooring solution for composite building construction is composite slabs, which are made of profiled steel sheets and a concrete topping. The e