Feasibility Study of Brick Aggregate as a Partial Replacement of Natural Stones in Dry Lean Concrete Mix

Abstract

This study aims to use two types of brick aggregates as partial replacements for natural stone and checks their feasibility as road aggregates in dry lean concrete (DLC) mixes. Laboratory studies were performed by partially replacing natural stones with both types of brick aggregates, and the optimum contents were evaluated. The paper describes a detailed analysis of DLC mixes with several percentages of bricks including a number of laboratory tests such as the moisture density, strength parameters, ultrasonic pulse velocity, and resistance to acid attack. For the replacement of stone with brick aggregate, the prime focus was paid to the usage of cement content and the aggregate to cement (A/C) ratio. An A/C ratio of 10:1 is found to be suitable for 100% replacement of natural stone aggregate (NSA) with first-class brick aggregate (FCBA), whereas an A/C ratio of 11:1 may be suitable for the use of 100% overburnt brick aggregate (OBBA). However, high contents of the A/C ratio can also be used if NSA is partially replaced by OBBA or FCBA. The strength parameters of DLC mixes such as flexural strength or split tensile strength showed a reduction of about 20%–22% when replaced by 50% OBBA and FCBA, while the compressive strength was within the limit (i.e., 7 MPa after 7 days of curing). Finally, the cost analysis showed that the production cost of DLC mixes can be reduced by about 15.6%–16.2% and 29%–32%, if the stone aggregates are partially (50% by volume) or fully replaced by FCBA and OBBA, respectively. Thus, the paper indicates that not only the scarcity of stone aggregates can be minimized but the cost can also be reduced by partially or fully replacing NSA with FCBA and OBBA.