Durability evaluation of wheat straw reinforced concrete for sustainable structures

Abstract

Agricultural waste is available in abundance around the globe. Aiming towards sustainable development, researchers have studied their potential as construction materials with satisfactory outcomes. There is a need to explore the durability of such waste in cement concrete against different aging conditions. To start with, wheat straw is considered. In this study, the durability of wheat straw in concrete is determined by aging the wheat straw-reinforced concrete specimens for 4 years. The properties of 4-year-aged plain concrete and 0-day-aged respective specimens are used as reference. Approximately 25 mm long soaked, boiled, and chemically treated straw with 1 %, 2 %, and 3 % content, by mass of wet concrete, are considered to make wheat straw reinforced concrete matrices. The residual static properties are determined experimentally after the exposure of specimens to room, climatic, and alternate wetting and drying conditions. The microstructural analysis is also done to determine the change in the straw's chemical, physical, and failure mechanism and its bond with the composite after 4 years of aging. The study concluded with a significant increase of 108 % and 8 % in the residual flexural toughness index of the optimized wheat straw reinforced concrete matrix under climatic conditions compared to plain concrete and 0-day-aged specimens, respectively. Also, the long-term behavior of wheat straw reinforced concrete is comparable with plain concrete to have more sustainable and durable structures.