Influence of Curing Age and Mix Composition on Compressive Strength of Volcanic Ash Blended Cement Laterized Concrete

Olawuyi B.J,Babafemi A.J,Olusola K.O

doi:10.9744/ced.14.2.84-91

Abstract

This study investigates the influence of curing age and mix proportions on the compressive strength of volcanic ash (VA) blended cement laterized concrete. A total of 288 cubes of 100mm dimensions were cast and cured in water for 3, 7, 28, 56, 90 and 120 days of hydration with cement replacement by VA and sand replacement by laterite both ranging from 0 to 30% respectively while a control mix of 28-day target strength of 25N/mm2 (using British Method) was adopted. The results show that the compressive strength of the VA-blended cement laterized concrete increased with the increase in curing age but decreased as the VA and laterite (LAT) contents increased. The optimum replacement level was 20%LAT/20%VA. At this level the compressive strength increased with curing age at a decreasing rate beyond 28 days. The target compressive strength of 25N/mm2 was achieved for this mixture at 90 days of curing. VA content and curing age was noted to have significant effect (α ≤ 0.5) on the compressive strength of the VA-blended cement laterized concrete.

Highlights

Basic conventional building materials, like cement and sand, are becoming increasingly expensive to obtain because of high cost incurred in cement production, sand excavation process, pre-treatment and transportation
This paper presents influence of curing age and mix proportion on the compressive strength of VAblended cement laterized concrete, as part of an ongoing research on the use of volcanic ash as a pozzolana in laterized concrete with experimental design for up to 120days of hydration in consonance with previous works such as Matawal [7], Neville [8] and Neville & Brooks [9] respectively
The mean compressive strength of VA-blended cement laterized concrete and the effects of curing age and percentage replacements of cement with volcanic ash is presented in Table 3, while Figures 1 to 4 show graphically the effect of this variables at the various levels of laterite content (0%, 10%, 20%, and 30% respectively)

Summary

Introduction

Like cement and sand, are becoming increasingly expensive to obtain because of high cost incurred in cement production, sand excavation process, pre-treatment and transportation. According to Fitch and Branch [4], the need for shelter must be met by materials that the environment can afford Such materials must be widely and readily available, appropriate to the environmental demands, thermally efficient and socially acceptable [5]. The building system derived from such materials must allow participation from the community and thereby improving the cash economy of that community This is what Adegoke and Ajayi [6] referred to as appropriate technology. Examples of such locally available building materials that fit into these descriptions are cement replacement materials such as rice husk ash, corncob ash, sawdust ash, volcanic ash and conventional sand replacement materials such as erosion sand and laterite. B.J. et al.. / Influence of Curing Age and Mix Composition / CED, Vol 14, No 2, September 2012, pp. 84–91

Literature Review

Materials and Methods

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Results and Discussion

Conclusion