Wood ash is a residue from the artisanal brick burning process that is produced in the poorest areas of Peru. It is a major problem because there is no management of this type of solid waste and it contaminates large sectors of the population. In this sense, it is important to use sustainable natural elements such as wood ashes that can contribute to the performance of concrete. For this reason, the objective of this research was to evaluate the influence of the incorporation of wood ash on the mechanical properties of concrete, with incorporations of 8%, 12% and 16%, as a function of the weight of cement, for which cylindrical specimens and beams were prepared. The results with respect to slump and unit weight were considerably reduced below their standard samples, unlike the temperature, which had increases that ranged between 3°C. On the other hand, the combined mixture of 8% wood ash resulted in the highest compressive strength, reaching 308,73 kg/cm2 which represents an increase of 9,04% with respect to the standard sample, while the flexural strength was 45,32 kg/cm2 representing an increase of 5,96% with reference to the standard sample. It is concluded that the addition of wood ash significantly improves the mechanical properties of concrete with an optimum dosage of 8%, the result contributes to make it technically feasible as an addition in the elaboration of sustainable concrete in civil construction.

Over the years, the world has tried to increase the recycling of materials, especially those of artificial origin, this in order to produce compounds that are sustainable and sustainable. Among these materials, concrete stands out as a versatile element, to which different external agents can be added; however, since many of them are not compatible with aggregates, cement or water, can cause some alterations in their mechanical performance. Therefore, the present investigation addressed the study of an artificial material called Microporous Ethylene Vinyl Acetate (MEVA), in order to evaluate its influence on the mechanical properties of structural concrete. MEVA additions were used in ranges of 5.00 %, 10.00 %, 15.00 % and 20.00 % with respect to the volume of concrete, to analyze its behavior in the mix, both in physical and mechanical properties. The results show that the workability and unit weight are affected by the increase in MEVA. Despite this, the mechanical performance showed significant increases in the compressive strength of 8.81 %, tensile of 22.86 %, flexion of 24.51 % and modulus of elasticity of 2.12 %, with the addition of 5.00 % of MEVA after 28 days. Nevertheless, at higher doses there is a reduction in said strengths. For these reasons, it is concluded that the incorporation of MEVA at 5.00 % greatly improves the mechanical properties of concrete for structural use, in relation to the theoretical design strength of 21.00 MPa.

In the search to achieve eco-friendly techniques that ensure significant improvements in the properties of hot mix asphalt (HMA), recycled materials are being considered with greater application, coming from the pavement itself and also from artificial elements such as rubber. In this sense, the objective was to study the behavior of the mechanical and microstructural properties of HMA by adding pulverized recycled rubber (PRR) and recycled asphalt pavement (RAP), taking into account a control group without any addition and an experimental group with PRR and RAP. The research involved the production of briquettes with the modification of asphalt cement (AC) using doses of 3%, 5%, and 7% of PRR as a replacement by weight of AC. Then, the optimal percentage of PRR was combined with 10%, 20%, and 30% RAP as a partial substitute for the coarse aggregate. It should be noted that in both aspects, the thermogravimetric and microstructural performance of the asphalt mixture was evaluated. Subsequently, the results obtained indicate that the HMA is MAC-1 type, and it was established that the combinations of PRR and RAP significantly influence the physical-mechanical properties of the HMA with 3%PRR+10%RAP. On the other hand, the findings of the PRR thermogravimetric analysis show that the degradation of HMA occurs at 350°C, causing the loss of both mechanical and microstructural properties. However, infrared spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy revealed that the PRR adheres correctly with the aggregate, improving the morphology and texture of the HMA. Doi: 10.28991/CEJ-2025-011-02-02 Full Text: PDF

El comportamiento de las precipitaciones en el norte peruano se caracteriza por presentar lluvias con pocos meses lluviosos y muchos meses secos, por lo cual, surge la necesidad de abordar el estudio de la regularidad de las lluvias en esta zona del país con fines de pronóstico y prevención. El objetivo de la presente investigación fue evaluar la agresividad climática y concentración de precipitaciones empleando los índices de Fournier (IF), Fournier modificado (IFM), Fournier-Maule modificado (IFMM) y concentración de precipitaciones (ICP), estos parámetros permiten estimar la agresividad y concentración pluvial empleando precipitaciones mensuales y anuales con correlaciones respecto a la altitud y la precipitación media. Para este caso, se usaron registros pluviométricos de las estaciones meteorológicas de la cuenca Chancay-Lambayeque ubicada en el norte de Perú agrupadas mediante su vector regional. Los resultados indican una buena correlación entre la altitud y la precipitación media (R² = 0,69), además el índice de agresividad climática que mejor desempeño muestra es el IFMM respecto a la altitud (R² = 0,62) y precipitación media (R² = 0,87), también el ICP indica buenas correlaciones en cuanto a la altitud (R² = 0,69) y precipitación media (R² = 0,62). En consecuencia, los hallazgos de la investigación manifiestan que el IFMM y ICP son los mejores estimadores para la cuenca estudiada ya que explican su agresividad climática variable y un comportamiento estacional según la concentración de precipitaciones.