Low-Carbon Concrete Development: Integrating Silica Fume, Glass Powder and Recycled Aggregates

Authors

  • Md. Saniul Haque Mahi Department of Civil Engineering, Dhaka International University, Badda, Bangladesh
    • Abdimajid Mohamed Jama Department of Civil Engineering, Dhaka International University, Badda, Bangladesh
      • Abdifatah Abdiwahab Abdi Department of Civil Engineering, Dhaka International University, Badda, Bangladesh
        • Abdirahin Amin Abuu Department of Civil Engineering, Dhaka International University, Badda, Bangladesh

          DOI:

          https://doi.org/10.38032/jea.2025.02.002

          Keywords:

          Low-carbon concrete, Recycled aggregate, Silica fume, Glass powder, Sustainable construction

          Abstract

          Low-carbon concrete has an essential role in the reduction of the environmental impact of the building industry. Ordinary concrete manufacture is a significant contributor of carbon emissions due to high amount of energy that is needed in the processing of cement. The use of industrial by-products and recycled materials will offer a green solution to this problem. The research aims at exploring the use of silica fume (SF), waste glass powder (GP), and recycled coarse aggregate (RCA) as partial cement and natural aggregate replacements in developing eco-friendly concrete with reduced carbon footprint. A total of 16 concrete mixes (K0-K15) were designated with a mix ratio of 1:1:2 and a water-cement ratio of 0.45. Workability, compressive strength and tensile strength of different mixtures were tested. It was found that SF and RCA reduced workability because of the higher water demand, whereas GP increased it at low replacement levels, but the opposite happened at high GP contents e.g., in mix C30R100 (34 mm slump). The strength was significantly lowered by the porosity and poor bonding of RCA, but to a certain extent, SF countered this impact via pozzolanic responses. As an example, Mix C20R50 (20% cement replacement, 50% RCA) had about 85% of the strength of the control mix (C0) with 90 mm slump and 28-day compressive strength of 39.6 MPa, demonstrating that a reasonable trade-off between performance and sustainability is possible. A right combination of these materials may facilitate sustainability without compromising the structural performance. Mix C20R50 attained the best balance and showed better strength retention and reasonable workability without chemical admixtures. The study contributes to low-carbon concrete technologies by promoting the use of industrial byproducts, and recycled materials in construction.

          References

          Gencel, O., Karadag, O., Oren, O.H. and Bilir, T., 2021. Steel slag and its applications in cement and concrete technology: A review. Construction and Building Materials, 283, p.122783. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2021.122783

          World Business Council for Sustainable Development, 2009. Cement Technology Roadmap 2009: carbon emissions reductions up to 2050, International Energy Agency.

          Berenguer, R.A., Capraro, A.P.B., de Medeiros, M.H.F., Carneiro, A.M. and De Oliveira, R.A., 2020. Sugar cane bagasse ash as a partial substitute of Portland cement: Effect on mechanical properties and emission of carbon dioxide. Journal of Environmental Chemical Engineering, 8(2), p.103655. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jece.2020.103655

          Shen, D., Jiao, Y., Kang, J., Feng, Z. and Shen, Y., 2020. Influence of ground granulated blast furnace slag on early-age cracking potential of internally cured high performance concrete. Construction and Building Materials, 233, p.117083. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2019.117083

          Zemri, C. and Bouiadjra, M.B., 2020. Comparison between physical–mechanical properties of mortar made with Portland cement (CEMI) and slag cement (CEMIII) subjected to elevated temperature. Case Studies in Construction Materials, 12, p.e00339. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cscm.2020.e00339

          Chandra, L. and Hardjito, D., 2015. The impact of using fly ash, silica fume and calcium carbonate on the workability and compressive strength of mortar. Procedia Engineering, 125, pp.773-779. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.proeng.2015.11.132

          Ardalan, R.B., Joshaghani, A. and Hooton, R.D., 2017. Workability retention and compressive strength of self-compacting concrete incorporating pumice powder and silica fume. Construction and Building Materials, 134, pp.116-122. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2016.12.090

          Padavala, S.S.A.B. and Potharaju, M., 2022. Performance evaluation of mechanical and durability properties of fly ash and silica fume based concrete for sustainable building material. Transdisciplinary Journal of Engineering & Science, SP-1, pp.53-62.

          Mohammadyan-Yasouj, S.E. and Ghaderi, A., 2020. Experimental investigation of waste glass powder, basalt fibre, and carbon nanotube on the mechanical properties of concrete. Construction and Building Materials, 252, p.119115. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2020.119115

          Nafees, A., Amin, M.N., Khan, K., Nazir, K., Ali, M., Javed, M.F., Aslam, F., Musarat, M.A. and Vatin, N.I., 2021. Modeling of mechanical properties of silica fume-based green concrete using machine learning techniques. Polymers, 14(1), p.30. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/polym14010030

          Alaloul, W.S., Musarat, M.A., Haruna, S., Law, K., Tayeh, B.A., Rafiq, W. and Ayub, S., 2021. Mechanical properties of silica fume modified high-volume fly ash rubberized self-compacting concrete. Sustainability, vol. 13, p.5571. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/su13105571

          Bouchikhi, A., Benzerzour, M., Abriak, N.E., Maherzi, W. and Mamindy-Pajany, Y., 2019. Study of the impact of waste glasses types on pozzolanic activity of cementitious matrix. Construction and Building Materials, 197, pp.626-640. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2018.11.180

          Paul, S.C., Šavija, B. and Babafemi, A.J., 2018. A comprehensive review on mechanical and durability properties of cement-based materials containing waste recycled glass. Journal of Cleaner Production, 198, pp.891-906. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2018.07.095

          Du, Y., Yang, W., Ge, Y., Wang, S. and Liu, P., 2021. Thermal conductivity of cement paste containing waste glass powder, metakaolin and limestone filler as supplementary cementitious material. Journal of Cleaner Production, 287, p.125018. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2020.125018

          Xiao, R., Zhang, Y., Jiang, X., Polaczyk, P., Ma, Y. and Huang, B., 2021. Alkali-activated slag supplemented with waste glass powder: Laboratory characterization, thermodynamic modelling and sustainability analysis. Journal of Cleaner Production, 286, p.125554. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2020.125554

          Tan, K.H. and Du, H., 2013. Use of waste glass as sand in mortar: Part I–Fresh, mechanical and durability properties. Cement and Concrete Composites, 35(1), pp.109-117. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cemconcomp.2012.08.028

          Shayan, A. and Xu, A., 2004. Value-added utilisation of waste glass in concrete. Cement and concrete research, 34(1), pp.81-89. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/S0008-8846(03)00251-5

          Zidol, A., Tognonvi, M.T. and Tagnit-Hamou, A., 2017. Effect of glass powder on concrete sustainability. New Journal of Glass and Ceramics, 7(2), pp.34-47. DOI: https://doi.org/10.4236/njgc.2017.72004

          Idir, R., Cyr, M. and Tagnit-Hamou, A., 2010. Use of fine glass as ASR inhibitor in glass aggregate mortars. Construction and Building Materials, 24(7), pp.1309-1312. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2009.12.030

          Khmiri, A., Chaabouni, M. and Samet, B., 2013. Chemical behaviour of ground waste glass when used as partial cement replacement in mortars. Construction and building materials, 44, pp.74-80. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2013.02.040

          Meyer, C., 2009. The greening of the concrete industry. Cement and concrete composites, 31(8), pp.601-605. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cemconcomp.2008.12.010

          de Castro, S. and de Brito, J., 2013. Evaluation of the durability of concrete made with crushed glass aggregates. Journal of Cleaner Production, 41, pp.7-14. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2012.09.021

          Chen, C.M. and Wangaard, F.F., 1968. Wettability and the hysteresis effect in the sorption of water vapor by wood. Wood Science and Technology, 2, pp.177-187. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00350907

          Raju, A.S., Anand, K.B. and Rakesh, P., 2021. Partial replacement of Ordinary Portland cement by LCD glass powder in concrete. Materials Today: Proceedings, 46, pp.5131-5137. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.matpr.2020.10.661

          Chand, G., Happy, S.K. and Ram, S., 2021. Assessment of the properties of sustainable concrete produced from quaternary blend of portland cement, glass powder, metakaolin and silica fume. Cleaner engineering and technology, 4, p.100179. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.clet.2021.100179

          Bueno, E.T., Paris, J.M., Clavier, K.A., Spreadbury, C., Ferraro, C.C. and Townsend, T.G., 2020. A review of ground waste glass as a supplementary cementitious material: A focus on alkali-silica reaction. Journal of cleaner production, 257, p.120180. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2020.120180

          Çakır, Ö. and Sofyanlı, Ö.Ö., 2015. Influence of silica fume on mechanical and physical properties of recycled aggregate concrete. HBRC journal, 11(2), pp.157-166. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.hbrcj.2014.06.002

          Ibrahim, K.I.M., 2021. Recycled waste glass powder as a partial replacement of cement in concrete containing silica fume and fly ash. Case Studies in Construction Materials, 15, p.e00630. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cscm.2021.e00630

          Lalitha, S., Alaguraj, M. and Divyapriya, C., 2017. Experimental study on use of waste glass powder as partial replacement to cement in concrete. International Journal of Engineering Sciences & Research Technology, 6(10).

          Tabsh, S.W. and Abdelfatah, A.S., 2009. Influence of recycled concrete aggregates on strength properties of concrete. Construction and building materials, 23(2), pp.1163-1167. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2008.06.007

          Downloads

          Published

          22-06-2025

          Issue

          Vol. 6 No. 02 (2025)

          Section

          Research Articles

          License

          Copyright (c) 2025 Md. Saniul Haque Mahi, Abdimajid Mohamed Jama, Abdifatah Abdiwahab Abdi, Abdirahin Amin Abuu

          Creative Commons License

          This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.

          How to Cite

          Mahi, M.S.H. (2025) “Low-Carbon Concrete Development: Integrating Silica Fume, Glass Powder and Recycled Aggregates”, Journal of Engineering Advancements, 6(02), pp. 41–47. doi:10.38032/jea.2025.02.002.