Properties of recycled green building materials applied in lightweight aggregate concrete

Abstract

This study uses recycled green building materials based on a Taiwan-made recycled mineral admixture (including fly ash, slag, glass sand and rubber powder) as replacements for fine aggregates in concrete and tests the properties of the resulting mixtures. Fine aggregate contents of 5% and 10% were replaced by waste LCD glass sand and waste tire rubber powder, respectively. According to ACI concrete-mixture design, the above materials were mixed into lightweight aggregate concrete at a constant water-to-binder ratio (W/B = 0.4). Hardening (mechanical), non-destructive and durability tests were then performed at curing ages of 7, 28, 56 and 91 days and the engineering properties were studied. The results of these experiments showed that, although they vary with the type of recycling green building material added, the slumps of these admixtures meet design requirements. Lightweight aggregate yields better hardened properties than normal-weight concrete, indicating that green building materials can be successfully applied in lightweight aggregate concrete, enabling an increase in the use of green building materials, the improved utilization of waste resources, and environmental protection. In addition to representing an important part of a "sustainable cycle of development", green building materials represent a beneficial reutilization of waste resources.