Effect of fine aggregate replacement with Class F fly ash on the mechanical properties of concrete

This paper presents the results of an experimental investigation carried out to evaluate the mechanical properties of concrete mixtures in which fine aggregate (sand) was partially replaced with Class F fly ash. Fine aggregate (sand) was replaced with five percentages (10%, 20%, 30%, 40%, and 50%) of Class F fly ash by weight. Tests were performed for properties of fresh concrete. Compressive strength, splitting tensile strength, flexural strength, and modulus of elasticity were determined at 7, 14, 28, 56, 91, and 365 days. Test results indicate significant improvement in the strength properties of plain concrete by the inclusion of fly ash as partial replacement of fine aggregate (sand), and can be effectively used in structural concrete.     

Properties of concrete incorporating high volumes of class F fly ash and san fibers

The results of an experimental investigation to study the effects of replacement of cement (by mass) with three percentages of fly ash and the effects of addition of natural san fibers on the slump, Vebe time, compressive strength, splitting tensile strength, flexural strength and impact strength of fly ash concrete are presented. San fibers belong to the category of “natural bast fibers.” It is also known as “sunn hemp.” Its scientific (botanical) name is Crotalaria juncea. It is mostly grown in the Indian subcontinent, Brazil, eastern and southern Africa and some parts of the United States (Hawaii and Florida). A control mixture of proportions 1:1.4:2.19 with W/Cm of 0.47 and superplasticizer/cementitious ratio of 0.015 was designed. Cement was replaced with three percentages (35%, 45% and 55%) of class F fly ash. Three percentages of san fibers (0.25%, 0.50% and 0.75%) having 25-mm length were used.The test results indicated that the replacement of cement with fly ash increased the workability (slump and Vebe time), decreased compressive strength, splitting tensile strength and flexural strength and had no significant effect on the impact strength of plain (control) concrete. Addition of san fibers reduced the workability, did not significantly affect the compressive strength, increased the splitting tensile strength and flexural strength and tremendously enhanced the impact strength of fly ash concrete as the percentage of fibers increased.     

Biomass fly ash in concrete: SEM, EDX and ESEM analysis

This document summarizes microscopy study of concrete prepared from cement and fly ash (25% fly ash and 75% cement by weight), which covers coal fly ash and biomass fly ash. All the fly ash concrete has the statistical equal strength from one day to one year after mix. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Energy dispersive X-ray (EDX) and environmental scanning electron microscopy (ESEM) analysis show that both coal and biomass fly ash particles undergo significant changes of morphology and chemical compositions in concrete due to pozzolanic reaction, although biomass fly ash differs substantially from coal fly ash in its fuel resources.     

Development of high volume fly ash cements for use in concrete construction

The paper describes a study undertaken to examine the use of high levels of low-lime fly ash (high volume FA) as a cement component in concrete, beyond the 30% level commonly adopted. The results indicate that FA levels up to 45% by mass can be combined with Portland cement (PC, C1) to produce the range of practical concrete design strengths, although early strength, which may be critical in construction, can be reduced compared to PC, and lower level FA concretes. The study progressed to consider the use of a rapid hardening Portland cement (C2) and low energy clinker (C3) combined with FA at 45%, as a means of overcoming these early strength shortfalls. Both were found to be effective in matching early strength behaviour of PC concrete. Tests covering fresh (workability loss, bleeding and moisture loss), engineering (strength development, modulus of elasticity, drying shrinkage and creep) and durability (absorption, permeability, carbonation rates and chloride diffusion) properties of these concretes were then carried out. The results indicate that in almost all cases, either similar or enhanced performance was achieved with the high volume FA concrete, compared to that of PC and these findings offer a route to extending FA use. The practical implications of the study are also examined.     

Performance characteristics of high-volume Class F fly ash concrete

More than 88 million tonnes of fly ash is generated in India each year. Most of the fly ash is of Class F type. The percentage utilization is around 10 to 15%. To increase its percentage utilization, an extensive investigation was carried out to use it in concrete. This article presents the results of an experimental investigation dealing with concrete incorporating high volumes of Class F fly ash. Portland cement was replaced with three percentages (40%, 45%, and 50%) of Class F fly ash. Tests were performed for fresh concrete properties: slump, air content, unit weight, and temperature. Compressive, splitting tensile, and flexural strengths, modulus of elasticity, and abrasion resistance were determined up to 365 days of testing.Test results indicated that the use of high volumes of Class F fly ash as a partial replacement of cement in concrete decreased its 28-day compressive, splitting tensile, and flexural strengths, modulus of elasticity, and abrasion resistance of the concrete. However, all these strength properties and abrasion resistance showed continuous and significant improvement at the ages of 91 and 365 days, which was most probably due to the pozzolanic reaction of fly ash. Based on the test results, it was concluded that Class F fly ash can be suitably used up to 50% level of cement replacement in concrete for use in precast elements and reinforced cement concrete construction.     

Utilization of fly ash with silica fume and properties of Portland cement-fly ash-silica fume concrete

This paper reports the normal consistency, setting time, workability and compressive strength results of Portland cement-fly ash-silica fume systems. The results show that water requirement for normal consistency was found to increase with increasing SF content while a decrease in initial setting time was found. Workability, measured in term of slump, was found to decrease with silica fume content (compared to blends without silica fume). However, it must be noted that despite the reduction in the slump values, the workability of Portland cement-fly ash-silica fume concrete in most cases remained higher than that of the Portland cement control concrete. Furthermore, the utilization of silica fume with fly ash was found to increase the compressive strength of concrete at early ages (pre 28 days) up to 145% with the highest strength obtained when silica fume was used at 10 wt%. Moreover, scanning electron micrographs show that utilization of fly ash with silica fume resulted in a much denser microstructure, thereby leading to an increase in compressive strength.     

Enhanced mechanical properties of wood ash and fly ash as supplementary cementitious materials

The incorporation of fly ash (FA) and wood ash (WA) in concrete as supplementary cementitious materials (SCM) was studied. The chemical composition of ordinary Portland cement, FA and WA was determined according to ASTM C-114. SEM and optical microscopy were used for the analysis of concrete. Setting time, compressive strength, water absorption and acid resistance of the concrete with different percentages of SCM ranging from 0 to 60% were evaluated. The results obtained showed that setting time and rate of water absorption increased with the increase in percentage of SCM. After 7 and 28 days, the compressive strength of concrete with 20% FA as SCM was higher than that with substitution with 20% WA. Resistance of concrete against sulphate attack increased with an increase in the percentage of FA. It was found that incorporating more than 20% WA resulted in a decrease in sulphate attack resistance.     

The effect of combustion conditions in a full-scale low-NOx coal fired unit on fly ash properties for its application in concrete mixtures

The wide implementation of low-NO_x combustion technologies in pulverized coal combustion can lead to higher levels of carbon in fly ash and increase the adsorptivity toward surfactants of the carbon. Consequently, the air entraining agent (AEA) requirements of the fly ash used for concrete production increases, which can complicate the stabilization of entrained air. In this study, a low-NO_x tangential fired 875 MW_th power plant burning bituminous coal have been operated under extreme conditions in order to test the impact of the operating conditions on fly ash adsorption behavior and NO_x formation. It was found that the AEA adsorption of the fly ash was reduced up to five times compared to reference operation, when the plant was operated with minimum furnace air staging, three levels of burners instead of four and without recycled flue gas. The lower AEA requirements of the fly ash at these conditions were primarily caused by a reduction in total carbon content, while the AEA adsorptivity of the residual carbon was lowered to about 60% of reference value. The tested operation mode, however, increased the NO_x level in the flue gas before the DeNO_x plant by 60% compared to reference operation.     

Use of municipal solid waste incineration fly ash in concrete

With a view of reducing the quantities to be landfilled, the Solvay Company has been working on the development of a new physicochemical treatment for municipal solid waste incineration (MSWI) fly ashes: the Revasol process. This process allows reducing the soluble fraction, fixing heavy metals and eliminating dioxins. This article reports on the characteristics of a treated ash and on its use in concrete. For the latter point, three characteristics were chosen: the compressive strength and the durability of the hardened concrete and its behavior to leaching. From mechanical and durable points of view, the ash incorporated in the concrete behaves like ordinary sand. The leaching tests carried out on the concrete confirm that the process makes it possible to obtain materials without major risks for the environment. Also, these results as a whole suggest that the use of waste in concrete constitutes a potential means of adding value.     

Evaluation of the radiological safety aspects of utilization of Turkish coal combustion fly ash in concrete production

The aim of this study is to evaluate radiological safety aspects of the utilization of fly ash in concrete manufacturing in the construction industry. The specific activities of ²²⁶Ra, ²³²Th and ⁴⁰K in one hundred 55 concrete mixture samples incorporating 10, 20 and 30 wt.% of fly ash collected from the 11 coal-fired thermal power plants were measured by means of gamma-ray spectrometry with HPGe detector. The results of the measurement were used to evaluate the radiological safety aspects of utilization of the fly ash as cement replacement in concrete by assessing the radium equivalent activity, the gamma index, the absorbed gamma dose rate and the corresponding annual effective dose due to the external exposure in indoor. The results of evaluation show that all concrete mixture samples are within the recommended safety limits except for concrete mixture samples incorporating 30 wt.% fly ash of Kangal coal-fired thermal power plant.     

Effect of fly ash and nanosilica on compressive strength of concrete at early age

The replacement of cement by mineral admixtures in concrete has been of increasing interest in the construction industry. Nevertheless, several of the potential replacements, such as fly ash class F, lower the compressive strength of concrete at early age. This project investigates the use of nanosilica to compensate for such loss of compressive strength. A statistical experimental design involving mixtures of Portland cement, fly ash and nanosilica, in addition to water/binder ratio as an external factor, is proposed to study their combined effect on the compressive strength of concrete. This design allows estimating a cubic regression model that properly accounts for the effects of the mixture components within a constrained experimental region. The range of each factor was selected according to levels normally used in the industry. Finally, an optimisation strategy permits to recommend the use of nanosilica when high percentages of cement replacement by fly ash are present.     

An experimental study on strength development of concrete containing fly ash and optimum usage of fly ash in concrete

This paper presents a laboratory study on the strength development of concrete containing fly ash and optimum use of fly ash in concrete. Fly ash was added according to the partial replacement method in mixtures. A total of 28 mixtures with different mix designs were prepared. 4 of them were prepared as control mixtures with 250, 300, 350, and 400 kg/m³ cement content in order to calculate the Bolomey and Feret coefficients (K_B, K_F). Four groups of mixtures were prepared, each group containing six mix designs and using the cement content of one of the control mixture as the base for the mix design. In each group 20% of the cement content of the control mixture was removed, resulting in starting mixtures with 200, 240, 280, and 320 kg/m³ cement content. Fly ash in the amount of approximately 15%, 25%, 33%, 42%, 50%, and 58% of the rest of the cement content was added as partial cement replacement. All specimens were moist cured for 28 and 180 days before compressive strength testing. The efficiency and the maximum content of fly ash that gives the maximum compressive strength were obtained by using Bolomey and Feret strength equations. Hence, the maximum amount of usable fly ash amount with the optimum efficiency was determined.This study showed that strength increases with increasing amount of fly ash up to an optimum value, beyond which strength starts to decrease with further addition of fly ash. The optimum value of fly ash for the four test groups is about 40% of cement. Fly ash/cement ratio is an important factor determining the efficiency of fly ash.     

Variation in fly ash properties with milling and acid leaching

Coal-burning power plants that consume pulverized solid fuels produce large amounts of fly ash as a residue. Fly ashes have been used in construction, agriculture, metal recovery and water pollution control. This paper considers the variation in properties of fly ashes to be used in the field of construction.The fly ashes produced in two coal-burning power plants in Asturias (Spain) were physically and chemically characterized in order to determine their pozzolanic activity and reactivity. Fly ashes are used as hydraulically active additives as they are a finely divided inorganic material. They were examined to determine whether they could be used as special preservatives in cements and concretes. To improve their properties, they are mechanically activated by wet milling as well as chemically activated by leaching with 30% by weight sulfuric acid at different temperatures and times.     

Bulk magnetic susceptibility measurements for determination of fly ash presence in concrete

Reproducible measurements of magnetic susceptibility χ_m of laboratory and field extracted concrete core samples were achieved with simple instrumentation. There was a nearly linear relationship between χ_m and the mass of fly ash per unit volume, or its volume fraction. The magnetic response of a given FA was not significantly affected by the process of curing and subsequent evolution of the concrete over two years, or by carbonation of the concrete. Field extracted concrete cores exhibited a wide range of χ_m values. The group of specimens with the highest values of χ_m also had the lowest chloride ion diffusivity, consistent with the presence of admixed FA. Conversely, specimens with nil magnetic response included those from concrete with the highest chloride diffusivity. The magnetic measurements provided reasonable order-of-magnitude indications of FA presence in field extracted cores. However, precise determination of FA content from magnetic measurements of field cores does not appear feasible in the absence of additional information.     

Effect of fly ash on the physico-chemical and mechanical properties of a porcelain composition

The ceramic industry is one of the largest consumers of natural raw materials but has also the capacity and potential to make significant contributions in solving environmental problems by consuming solid rejects of various industries.     

Durability of concrete incorporating large volumes of low-quality fly ash

The carbonation, corrosion of steel reinforcement in concrete and corrosion resistance of concrete, incorporating large volumes of low-quality fly ash (LVLQFA), were studied. The effect of concentration of carbon dioxide used in the experiment on estimating the carbonation resistance of LVLQFA concrete were also investigated. Test results show that the LVLQFA concrete with an activator has good carbonation and corrosion resistances of steel reinforcement. The corrosion resistance of LVLQFA concrete is better than that of the control concrete. The concentration of carbon dioxide used in the experiment has considerable effect on estimating the carbonation resistance of LVLQFA concrete.     

Nano-crystal glass-ceramics obtained from high alumina coal fly ash

Glass has been obtained by melting high alumina coal fly ash with fluxing additives. A thermal treatment was employed to convert the obtained glass into nano-crystal glass-ceramics. X-ray diffraction (XRD) patterns show that the main crystalline phases in both the glass-ceramics are anorthite (CaAl₂Si₂O₈) and wollastonite (CaSiO₃). The crystals are homogeneously dispersed within the parent glass. The average crystal size is below 200 nm. Physical and mechanical properties, such as density, thermal expansion coefficient, hardness, and bending strength, of the glass have been examined and the corresponding microstructures are discussed. The results demonstrate that the glass-ceramics have potential for a wide range of construction application.     

Application of biomass gasification fly ash for brick manufacturing

Biomass gasification technology offers an attractive way to use low-grade fuels in energy production with high efficiency and low environmental impact. However, an issue calling for further development is the volume and quality of fly ash, since biomass gasification fly ash contains more un-reacted carbon compounds than fly ash from direct combustion of similar fuels. This restricts direct gasification ash utilisation for many applications and makes some pre-treatment necessary, representing a significant share of the overall operating cost of gasification-based systems for energy production. Therefore, economical methods for the management of this type of ash without any pre-treatment are attractive.In this paper, we present an initial study on the manufacture of bricks made of gasification ash. Our goal was to come up with a product which satisfies two basic requirements: (a) it has elevated percentages of fly ash; and (b) it enables utilisation of ash without any pre-treatment. We have manufactured bricks by means of conventional moulding and curing methods, using ash percentages of up to 20 wt.%. No special additives were added to provide the bricks with acceptable mechanical and/or insulating properties. The fly ash used was generated in a fluidised bed pilot plant for processing olive mill cake, a by-product of the olive oil industry produced in large quantities in several EU countries.Some mechanical and environmental properties of ash gasification bricks were studied and compared with typical values for commercial bricks. The results lead us to conclude that the bricks could be used commercially as low density clay masonry units with a good thermal insulating capacity and, therefore, the potential for commercial development is promising. In addition, the environmental benefit of waste gasification added to the ash utilisation makes the overall process more attractive.     

Fly ash effects: I. The morphological effect of fly ash

The morphological effect is an important part of fly ash effects. The paper analyzes emphatically this effect and points out that it is composed of the filling role, surface role and lubricating role. For different fly ash, these roles are different. They must be considered synthetically when the morphological effect is analyzed. Analyzing result shows that the filling role is relative to the particle size, the surface role is relative to the specific surface area and the water affinity and the lubricating role is relative to the shape of particle. The morphological effect of fly ash is the synthetical embodiment of these roles.