Abstract
In this paper, the structural performance of reinforced concrete (RC) beams containing high volume ground granulated blast furnace slag (GGBFS) and recycled coarse aggregate (RCA) in replacement of Ordinary Portland cement (OPC) and natural coarse aggregate (NCA), respectively, with lime activator is studied. Nine beams of different combinations of RCA and GGBFS with/without lime and superplasticiser are designed as per IS: 456 (2000). The beams are subjected to two-point loading under universal testing machine. Various structural parameters like cracking, load bearing capacity, load vs. deflection, stiffness and energy absorption are studied. All the beams except two beams have failed in shear. These two beams, which are prepared using RCA, GGBFS, lime and superplasticiser, fail in flexure and show better structural performance than the control beam. It may be due to the reason that the above combination enhances the compressive strength of the concrete significantly, i.e. up to 16% more than that of the control mix, and consequently the shear strength. The enhanced shear strength changes the failure mode from shear failure (brittle) to flexural failure (ductile) showing better structural performance. Moreover, these two beams have shown up to 7.14%, 8.18%, 18.3%, 45% and 53.3% enhancements in cracking load, load bearing capacity, stiffness, deflection and energy absorption, respectively, as compared to those of the control beam. A comparison between the results obtained experimentally in the present investigation and predicted from different standard codes and model shows that the experimental results are in a conservative side due to which these codes/guidelines can be used safely for the GGBFS based RAC. This study clearly reveals that the concrete containing high volume GGBFS and RCA with addition of lime and superplasticiser having better structural performance in comparison to the normal can be used safely in structural applications by utilising high volume of wastes, preserving huge natural resources, reducing cement consumption and enhancing the environmental soundness due to which it can achieve sustainability in the construction industry.
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