Impact of manufactured fiber aggregate in the production of lightweight concrete

Abstract

The present investigation experimentally tested the impact of alkali-resistant glass fibres (AR-GF) on manufactured aggregate properties through cold-bonding pelletization and the impact of manufactured aggregates in the production of lightweight concrete. The aggregates manufactured in this study were produced with a combination of 80% fly ash, 10% cement and 10% hydrated lime at 0%, 0.10%, 0.12%, 0.14%, 0.16%, 0.18%, 0.20% addition of AR-GF. Seven mixture combinations of aggregates were tested with various properties like production efficiency, bulk density, specific gravity, water absorption, and impact strength. Selected the optimum mixture combination of manufactured aggregate to study lightweight concrete's slump, density, and compressive strength and compared with natural aggregate concrete. Test results on manufactured aggregates indicate that, as the percentage addition exceeds 0.18% of AR-GF, aggregate properties do not show adequate results. Also, the lightweight concrete result shows that slump value increases with manufactured aggregate. Similarly, the compressive strength result satisfies the structural grade for concrete. The utilization of manufactured aggregates in the production of lightweight concrete results in both economic and ecological benefits.