Recycling Cupola Slag in Concrete as Partial Replacement of Fine Aggregate for Sustainable Construction

Abstract

Abstract: In the current study an effort has been made to investigate the impact of cupola slag inclusion, on the mechanical and durability properties of concrete. Different percentages (10%, 20%, 30%, 50%, and 80%) of cupola slag were used to substitute fine aggregate and corresponding results have been observed. Also, different mechanical and durability tests were carried out to check the suitability of replacing natural fine aggregate by cupola slag. Compressive strength was found to be increased by cupola slag inclusion up to a percentage replacement of fine aggregates of 30%, after which further cupola slag addition resulted in a loss of strength. For flexural and tensile strength similar trends were observed. On the other hand, as the amount of cupola inclusion increased from 0% to 80%, a decreasing trend in both water penetration depth and water absorption was observed. Likewise, for all the aforementioned criteria a notable improvement in chloride penetration was observed due to the inclusion of cupola slag. The study basically focuses on present concern regarding industrial waste which poses a risk to the environment. Industrial waste has been utilized in a sustainable manner, as it has shown improvement in properties as compared to ordinary concrete mix. Such type of modified concrete can be employed in harsh exposure conditions as can be found from durability tests. The findings of this study show that cupola slag is a sustainable matter that works well as a partial replacement for natural sand.