A Study on High Strength Geopolymer Concrete with Alumina-Silica Materials Using Manufacturing Sand

Abstract

High strength concrete is an essential need for construction industry since the importance of the structures are of a deep concern. Concrete is said to be high strength concrete (HSC) when the compressive strength exceeds 55 N/mm2. Due to the vast infrastructure development around the world, the need for high strength concrete is increasing day by day. Nowadays, in the construction industry the environmental conditions, types of structures, availability of materials and effect of greenhouse gases in the past were not as same as today. The structures built today have to face a lot of challenges to withstand the hysterias effects. Nowadays the infrastructure development increased by constructing innovative structures in the aspects of size and shape. Presently the architects are keen in constructing lean structures to increase the aesthetic looks of the structure. For the construction of such innovative structures, high strength concrete is essential. On the other hand, the availability of the materials for cement concrete and the emission of carbon dioxide to atmosphere due to the production of cement are the serious issues emerging in the construction industries creating major problems regarding environmental safety conditions. This study is mainly concentrated to produce high strength concrete with sustainable materials without cement to find a solution to the above problems. This is achieved by using geopolymer concrete with alumina-silica materials, made up of fly ash, Ground Granulated Blast Furnace Slag (GGBS), Manufacturing Sand (M Sand), crushed stone aggregate and alkaline solution. In this study high strength geopolymer concrete with and without Manufacturing Sand is considered for research and the results obtained are compared with high strength cement concrete with and without Manufacturing Sand. In this study river sand is completely replaced with M Sand. The use of Manufacturing Sand in the concrete contributes to the strength due to its better gradation.