Influence of bentonite as partial replacement of cement in basalt fiber concrete

Abstract

Concrete is commonly accepted construction material in the construction field. Concrete is second in terms of per-capita consumption in the world that is about approximately 500 kilograms. This leads to increase in consumption of Ordinary Portland Cement(OPC). The environment is at risk in terms of damage caused by Carbon dioxide(CO2) emission during OPC manufacturing process. Hence this is the hour to reduce consumption of OPC by partial replacement. The present study focuses on finding of optimum percentage substitution of OPCwith bentonite. As the concrete is weak in tension, basalt fiber is used in concrete to add the tensile properties to concrete. The investigation is carried out using cube, cylinders, and beams specimens with varying percentages of bentonite and basalt fiber by cement weight. The workability and mechanical properties like slump cone, compression, split tensile, flexure strengthis measuredfor different combinations of fiber and bentonitein conventional and trial mix concrete.Specimens are casted, cured, and tested for 3, 7 and 28 days as per Indian standards. The test results of conventional concrete and trial mix concrete are compared,and it is observed that 10% bentonite replacement and 1.5% basalt fiber replacement given optimum results.From the study benefit of bentonite as partial replacement material to cementis recommended.