Raw Material For Construction Research Articles

Geoinformation modeling of sand injectites

The results of application of geoinformation modeling technology to create a three-dimensional model of Paleogene sand injectites are presented. The mineralogenic significance of sand injectites as sources of glass and construction raw materials is described. The modeling process using the obtained data set and three-dimensional modeling environment Blender is revealed step by step. The compiled spatial models can be used in blocking and calculation of reserves and resources at the objects of subsoil use.

Сharacteristics of demolition waste management in the regions of Ukraine

The volume of waste left from war-related destruction amounts to 10-12 million tons per year. Such volume is comparable to the annual volume of municipal solid waste generated in Ukraine. This situation led to formation of unauthorized landfills and complicated the existing problem of industrial, consumer, construction and demolition waste management. Consequently, the issue of destruction waste management became a pressing environmental and socio-economic problem. The objective of this research is to assess the characteristics of destruction waste management in the regions of Ukraine. Destruction waste is generated during construction of new buildings and public structures, as well as during renovation or demolition of existing buildings and structures; including general-use facilities. It is estimated that, before the war, nearly 7 million tons of construction and demolition waste was generated annually, with more than 50% being transported to municipal solid waste landfills. Specialized landfills for its disposal were virtually non-existent in the regions of Ukraine, so this waste, despite its resource value, was taken to municipal solid waste landfills or unauthorized dumps. Some components of construction and demolition waste are toxic. Destruction waste includes parts (fragments) of damaged (destroyed) objects, as well as materials and items that were inside or next to such objects at the time of damage (destruction) and/or during disassembly activities, including those that fully or partially lost their consumer properties and cannot be reused at the place of their origin or discovery. Destruction waste pollutes the environment, so one of the ways to reduce environmental risks is to develop an effective waste management system to stop chaotic processes during disassembly activities. Destruction waste differs from construction and demolition waste by the presence of accompanying hazardous components, complicating the development of a waste management system. The main components of destruction waste should be used as secondary raw materials for construction, production of building materials and other purposes. Provided that appropriate physical-geographic, engineering-geological, hydrogeological, technical, and socio-economic conditions are available, it is advisable to create temporary waste storage sites, with their subsequent use as secondary raw materials in the post-war period for restoration of civil, industrial, and transport infrastructure in the regions of Ukraine.

Impact of Wollastonite and Glass Powder as Partial Cement Replacement on the Properties of Concrete

Abstract: Scientists are currently concentrating their efforts on waste products, agricultural waste, and other natural elements in an effort to develop technologies that might be utilized as raw materials for construction. Recycling, on the other hand, stimulates the economy and contributes to the creation of a cleaner, safer environment. To solve this problem, a variety of ingredients are used in place of some cement, such as fly ash, GGBS, silica fume, wollastonite, waste glass powder, etc. You can cut down on pollutants in the environment by replacing part of the cement with wollastonite and glass powder. Since glass does not biodegrade, filling it with shattered glass is an unsustainable and damaging activity for the environment. Silica makes up the majority of glass. Wollastonite is a naturally occurring material that costs less than cement. This study's main goal is to investigate possible impacts and determine how the wollastonite-glass powder (W-GP) combination influences the mechanical properties and longevity of M40-grade concrete. We study the properties of concrete strength after adding wollastonite at 5%, 10%, 15%, and 20%. In order to maintain the optimal percentage of wollastonite replacement, mineral admixtures such as glass powder (5%, 10%, 15%, and 20%) can be used in place of more cement. Test results show that utilizing cement instead of 15% wollastonite yields superior outcomes to employing the recommended mixture. The mixture that demonstrated the largest strength enhancement was composed of 15% wollastonite and 15% GP.

Characterization of Micro-seismic Activity in Northern Cyprus Using Complexity and Corner Frequency Methods

Cyprus is an island country located in the eastern Mediterranean, to the south of Türkiye and the western of Syria and Lebanon, and is a popular tourist destination. Due to being surrounded by seas on all four sides, meticulous planning of rescue, assistance, and evacuation plans is necessary in the face of disasters such as earthquakes and tsunamis. Tectonically, the southern part of the island is controlled by the Cyprus Arc, while the northern part is dominated by the Kyrenia Range. The demand for raw materials for construction and industry is met through controlled quarry blasting operations carried out by open-pit quarry companies in the districts of Kyrenia and Nicosia. As a result, both natural and artificial seismic events occur in the region, and these quakes are documented in seismic catalogs by seismology centers. However, due to the low energy content of micro-seismic events and the inadequacy of seismic stations on the island, the source types of these seismic events can be misidentified in the catalogs. In this context, the study focuses on 122 seismic events with magnitudes between 0.9≤Ml≤2.7 that occurred in Northern Cyprus during the January 2018 - December 2021 period (4 years). The seismic events recorded by the station LFK, operated by Boğaziçi University Kandilli Observatory and Earthquake Research Institute Regional Earthquake-Tsunami Monitoring Center (KOERI-RETMC), were classified using Linear and Quadratic Discriminant Functions based on complexity and corner frequency methods. According to the results obtained, 10 of the 122 seismic events were identified as natural, and 96 were determined to be artificial, resulting in a general success rate of 86.89%. However, classification results for 16 seismic events were inconclusive with the methods used. As a result, more detailed secondary analyses should be conducted to accurately determine the source types of micro-seismic events, and the seismic catalogs should be updated accordingly.

Quantifying the impact of earthquakes on urban energy consumption and carbon emissions in Tokyo from a nexus perspective

Unexpected events can have profound impacts on urban resource supply and consumption. The Great East Japan Earthquake (3.11 hereafter) triggered not only the planned blackout in the Tokyo Metropolitan Region soon after the disaster but also the energy shift to fossil fuels to recover from the disfunction of Fukushima nuclear power plants. Previous research has mainly focused on the direct energy consumption and carbon emissions of different sectors while the intensity and extensity of the impact on industries and the environment have never been empirically addressed. This study explores energy-use efficiency and carbon emissions in Tokyo from 2011 to 2015 through a lens of nexus using environmentally extended input-output analysis and community-wide carbon analytic approaches. Results show that the energy consumption is the largest exporter and importer of carbon emissions, whereas energy losses and carbon emissions caused by energy conversion and transmission are almost twice as much as those caused by the direct parts. Strong nexus effects among building and material, transportation, and energy consumption were observed. The 3.11 greatly impacted the energy structure and carbon emission patterns because of the increased consumption of coal for electricity. The share of energy consumption and carbon emissions by raw materials for construction also increased because of the increased demand for the reparation and reconstruction of buildings and transport systems. This structural change provided new scientific evidence for governments to implement decarbonization policies while preparing for unprecedented events.

Dampak Kerusakan Sumber Daya Alam Akibat Kegiatan Penambangan Komoditas Batu Gamping di Kecamatan Panceng, Kabupaten Gresik, Provinsi Jawa Timur

The aim of limestone mining activities is to obtain the main raw material, namely limestone, which can then be used as a construction raw material such as cement. This data collection method is to collect primary data obtained from identifying activity locations and secondary data obtained from Journal Reviews and other scientific articles and then compiling them into a narrative. From the results of this analysis, it can be seen that there is a positive impact, namely the recruitment of workers from the local area and a negative impact, namely a decrease in ambient air quality, a decrease in water quality, soil erosion, disruption of flora and fauna and plant vegetation.

Recycling of Mine Wastes in the Concrete Industry: A Review

The mining industry generates a substantial amount of waste materials, including tailings and waste rocks, which, if not managed correctly, pose threats to the environment and public health due to their long-term accumulation and disposal. Simultaneously, the construction sector consumes important amounts of natural resources like water and rocks. However, research shows that inert mining waste can serve as a substitute for conventional raw materials in construction, particularly in concrete. This review focuses on using mining waste as an alternative to concrete technology to promote cleaner practices in construction and circular economy in mining. Mining waste, with its physical characteristics and chemical composition, can function as diverse components in concrete, such as sand, aggregates, and binders. This article assesses these properties and explores their incorporation into concrete production, aiming to stimulate further research and development, foster environmentally responsible approaches, and underline the direct link to reaching SDGs to achieve sustainability in the construction industry.

Evaluating the impact of wood flow management software on administrative costs and efficiency for wood suppliers in the Southeastern U.S.: a case study of Timber Resource Analytics and Contract Tracking software

The southeastern U.S. forest industry serves as a crucial source of raw materials for construction and paper production for the global economy. However, this industry faces persistent challenges in wood supply chain management, often centered around logistical inefficiencies and administrative burdens. Additionally, increased operational overhead, due to rising costs, has exerted strain on the business success of wood suppliers. Administrative procedures and record keeping have traditionally been a labor-intensive process for this sector of the wood supply chain. However, technological solutions, such as new wood flow and logistics management software, can enhance efficiency and cost-effectiveness of these procedures. This research investigated the impact of wood flow management software on administrative costs for southeastern U.S. wood suppliers. Utilizing a case study approach, we compared administrative time and cost savings of software users and non-software users, to determine potential financial benefits of software adoption. The research design centered on gathering insight from both user groups, through individual interviews, allowing for a comparative analysis of the software’s efficiency metrics. Results indicated that wood suppliers who utilized software saved an average of 43 hours per week on administrative tasks, resulting in estimated annual savings of approximately $62,000 United States dollars (USD). The greatest reported time and cost savings were attributed to scheduling jobs and organizing information. Adoption of wood flow logistics software may result in additional monetary savings through increased efficiency in administrative procedures and communications. These research findings will be useful to wood suppliers interested in improving operational efficiency and reducing administrative costs.

Preface

Providing the national and world economy with mineral raw materials is an integral part of development and scientific and technological progress. The modern world is moving to new forms of interaction, concentrating its trends on digitalization, computerization and automation of all processes of human life. However, these trends require the use of strategically important minerals (coal, natural gas, ores of ferrous and non-ferrous metals, rare earth metals, construction raw materials, etc.), as well as critical raw materials, the list of which is supplemented every year in accordance with the trends of scientific and technological progress and the development of the state’s economy.About half of the industrial potential of Ukraine and up to 20% of its labor resources are related to the mining and use of minerals. Due to the export of mineral raw materials and products of their processing, Ukraine receives about 60% of the total amount of export revenues. At the same time, the subsoil of Ukraine still has a significant potential for building up the mineral and raw material base.The issue of mining and processing of minerals during the war requires special attention in Ukraine. The conference “Challenges of ensuring Ukraine’s mineral resources in the context of post-war reconstruction - 2023” is designed to contribute to solving the urgent issues of reconstruction and modernization of Ukraine after the end of the war and the country’s integration into the European Union.List of the committee members who organized the conference is available in the pdf.

Environmental performance of bamboo-based office paper production: A comparative study with eucalyptus

Bamboo has being used as alternative raw material for construction, reinforcing fibers, paper production, among other applications. Although its recognized potentials as raw material, there are doubts about its environmental performance compared to traditional wood-based products, including paper production, which hinders bamboo-based paper plants in large scales. This study aims to assess the environmental performance of producing office paper from bamboo. Emergy synthesis (with ‘m’) and global warming potential indicators are calculated and compared with the traditional eucalyptus paper-based production. Results highlights the importance in including the renewability fractions of each input resources into emergy calculations for production systems with high human-labor intensity such as the bamboo agricultural production. Office paper produced from bamboo has similar renewability (28%), moderate environmental load (3.23 vs. 2.49), and emergy unsustainability (0.34 vs. 0.60) compared to paper produced from eucalyptus, but bamboo showed lower performance for global efficiency (568 vs. 442 sej/tonpaper), emergy yield (1.09 vs. 1.49), and emergy investment (10.79 vs. 2.05). Focusing on global warming potential, office paper produced from bamboo releases 98 kgCO2 eq./tonpaper compared to 56–267 kgCO2 eq./tonpaper for eucalyptus. Notwithstanding, bamboo-based office paper demands four times more land area of agricultural production than eucalyptus, but it has a positive social aspect by requiring higher amount of direct human labor. This work shows the advantages of using eucalyptus rather than bamboo in producing office paper from an emergy and land demand perspectives, while global warming can still be considered inconclusive. Future efforts should consider a quantitative and qualitative analysis of human labor availability in both systems, as well an economic analysis to support discussions towards more sustainable office paper production from different raw materials.

Sustainable application of industrial side streams as alternative fine aggregates for cement mortar

Increase in industrialization has led to the production of huge volume of side-stream materials that need safe disposal solutions. The present study proposes the use of local industrial side streams such as ferrochrome slag, phyllite dust and mine tailings as secondary raw materials for construction, mainly as fine aggregates. Four different cement mortar mixtures, with a combination of selected side streams as a sole, binary, and ternary blends were investigated. Workability, strength, and durability properties of the derived mortar mixtures were compared with mortar produced using standard sand as reference. Mortar mixtures with a ternary blend of side-stream fine aggregates resulted in a compressive strength of 68–72 MPa at 28 days, which is 30–40% higher than that of control mix. The addition of industrial side streams resulted in a denser microstructure and enhanced the mechanical properties. The durability performance of the mortar with alternative fine aggregates is comparable with those of standard sand.

Fixation of Coal Fly Ash (CFA) in the Form of Construction Blocks with Variable Combinations of Lime and FGD Gypsum

Coal fly ash (CFA) is produced on very large scales in thermal energy plants. The recycling of coal fly ash (CFA) is essential decreasing its environmental impact. In this research, a FaL-G (coal fly ash (CFA), lime, and FGD gypsum) technology is used to reuse coal fly ash (CFA) in brick-type form. First, all of the small-grained FaL-G were dried in the oven at 60and#176;C for 24 h. Three different combinations of coal fly ash (CFA), FGD gypsum, and lime were tested for block preparation. The blocks were treated with five conditions for hardening and drying, i.e., i. Sunlight, ii. Shade (room temperature), iii. Oven, iv. Presence of moisture, and v. Freezer (-16and#176;C). After complete drying, the compressive strength and flexural strength tests were applied. Over all, the sunlight treated blocks showed strong compressive strength of 5.9 MPa and flexural strength of 7.19 MPa. The blocks made through FaL-G technology are very good raw materials for construction, i.e., partition walls and decoration, as these blocks have impressive texture and plain edges. It was the first time that the variable combinations of coal fly ash (CFA), gypsum, and lime were tested through different conditions and have achieved good strength. The literature showed that little work has been carried out through FaL-G, while additional materials have also been used. The main novelty of the current research work is development of an enhanced technique for preparing building materials, stabilizing coal fly ash (CFA), and reducing its environmental hazards

Decorative and gem-quality ammonites at a quarry of raw materials for construction in the neighborhood of Artyom city, Primorye

Decorative and gem-quality ammonites at a quarry of raw materials for construction in the neighborhood of Artyom city, Primorye

Construction of pavers from drilling cuttings as an alternative for environmental management of waste

The management of drilling waste represents a problem of high economic and environmental impact for operating companies. This is due to its polluting components that, besides being dangerous for the environment, must be treated with special care. The cuttings generated during drilling which are normally impregnated with water-based and oil-based muds, represent most of this solid waste. In this work, it is proposed to treat the drilling cuts to be used as raw material for construction of paving stones that can be used as construction material in platforms and facades of buildings or houses, being an alternative of innovative and high impact disposition. For the foregoing, a determined volume of drilling cuttings from a well of a Magdalena Medio field was used as a test, performing all the usual solids control treatment, passing through shakers, desander, desilter and mud cleaner. After treating the perforation cuts, they were dried in an oven between 110 and 150 °C for 24 hours. Then the sample was allowed to cool to grind it and bring it below 45 microns; where it was finally used as material for the construction of the paving stone, to which the resistance tests established in the NTC 2017 standard were carried out. Results show that the use of some drilling cuttings in the construction industry is viable. Conversely, the comparison was made with a conventional way of managing the gravel when it was reused in the production of cobblestones, obtaining a reduction of up to 34% of the associated costs and when there are greater than 12,000 barrels of waste. Additionally, it is used to generate valuable items and avoids the disposal of waste material

Evaluation of the readiness of clay bricks with partially replaced rice husk ash

Environmentally acceptable alternatives are replaced for the raw construction materials to alleviate sustainability concerns with construction materials. Rice husk ash, an agricultural byproduct, can be substituted in the production of construction materials. In this study, the effect of adding rice husk ash from organic agricultural waste on brick quality is explored. In this study, four sets of bricks are cast with various percentages of rice husk ash, ranging from 0% to 20% with a 5% increment, and then burned in a furnace for varying durations of time. This research examines the compressive strength and water absorption of bricks containing varying concentrations of rice husk ash. According to the findings, an increase in rice husk ash reduces compressive strength and increases water absorption. The present findings reveal that a brick containing 5% rice husk ash has a higher compressibility of 4.70 N/mm2 and a decreasing compressive strength as the proportion of rice husk ash increases. The results also demonstrated an 11.65 % reduction in water absorption at a rice husk ash concentration of 5 %, and the absorption rate increases consistently up to 10 % rice husk ash before decreasing with a further increase in rice husk ash. Therefore, the technology of creating bricks by casting combinations of clay, sand, and rice husk ash is not only useful for constructing walls but also for reducing environmental pressure and promoting sustainable development.

Emission characteristics of coal gasification fine slag direct combustion and co-firing with coal

Coal gasification is an effective way to use coal cleanly and efficiently, and coal gasification fine slag is a by-product of coal gasification with high carbon content, large specific surface area, developed pore structure and large output during production. At present, combustion has become an effective way to dispose of coal gasification fine slag on a large scale, and the coal gasification fine slag after combustion treatment can be further used for construction raw materials. In this paper, the emission characteristics of gas-phase pollutants and particulate matter under different combustion temperatures (900 °C, 1100 °C, 1300 °C) and combustion atmosphere (5%, 10%, 21% O2 concentration) are studied with the drop tube furnace experimental system. By co-firing different proportions of coal gasification fine slag (10%, 20%, 30%) and raw coal, the pollutants formation law under co-firing conditions is studied. Scanning electron microscopy-energy spectroscopy (SEM-EDS) is used to characterize the apparent morphology and elemental composition of particulate samples. The measurement results of gas-phase pollutants show that the increase of furnace temperature and O2 concentration can effectively promote combustion and improve burnout characteristics, but the emission of gas-phase pollutants increases. A certain proportion (10%–30%) of coal gasification fine slag is added to the raw coal, which reduces the total emission of gas-phase pollutants (NOx and SOx). Studies on the characteristics of particulate matter formation show that co-firing with coal gasification fine slag in raw coal can effectively reduce submicron particle emission, and the lower fine particle emission is also detected at lower furnace temperature and oxygen concentration. The element analysis of particulate matter formation shows that the Fe, Si and S elements content of submicron particle generated by YL (the coal gasification fine slag generated by water slurry furnace in of Shaanxi Extended China Coal Yulin Energy Chemical Co., Ltd) sample increases significantly with the increase of furnace temperature and O2 concentration, which is the main influencing factor for the increase of submicron particle. With the increase of the mixing ratio of YL sample, the content of major elements such as Fe, K and Mg of submicron particle decreases significantly, which is an important reason why the amount of the submicron particle decreases.

Robust clay binder for earth-based concrete

The use of excavated earth is a circular and carbon neutral solution gaining growing interest. However, its high variability in properties makes it difficult to master as raw materials for construction. The objective of this paper is to highlight the key parameters allowing overcoming the influence of the variability of soil composition on the earth-based concrete properties. We show that the solid volume fraction of clay paste is the key parameter allowing predicting the fresh state properties of the clay binder, whatever the constitutive clay type, whereas the clay activity and the dry density of the material control the compressive strength of the material. These promising results, validated on sludge, pave the way to optimized mix design strategies for robust earth concrete products.

Seawater sea-sand engineered cementitious composites contribution to shear performance of beams reinforced with BFRP bars

The combination of seawater sea-sand engineered cementitious composites (SS-ECC) and fiber reinforced plastic/polymer (FRP) bars to make structural beams is promising to mitigate the shortage of raw construction materials and improve shear performance. To better understand the shear behaviors of such kind of structural form, an experimental program was conducted to figure out the effects of longitudinal reinforcement ratio, shear span ratio and stirrup ratio. A total of eleven beams reinforced by basalt FRP (BFRP) bars were tested by four-point loading. The test results showed that the stiffness and ultimate shear capacity of SS-ECC beams without stirrups are higher than that of seawater sea-sand concrete (SSC) beams with a stirrup ratio of 0.67%. SS-ECC exhibits much lower compressive strength compared with ultra-high performance concrete (UHPC), but SS-ECC beam and UHPC beam have close ultimate shear capacity. The shear load contribution of fibers is above 70% in SS-ECC beams without stirrups, and it decreases significantly because of using BFRP stirrups. Furthermore, the modified deformation-based approach is proposed to characterize the ductility index of SS-ECC beams. Based on the calculation model of ultimate shear capacity in codes, the modified calculation model considering the shear load contribution of fibers is proposed and verified.

Valorization of Dredged Sediments and Recycled Concrete Aggregates in Road Subgrade Construction

Large quantities of dredged sediments and recycled concrete materials are generated every year all over the world. The disposal of these large quantities in landfills represents serious environmental problems. Furthermore, high-quality raw materials for construction are depleting, and their use cannot be sustained. The valorization of dredged sediments and recycled concrete materials as alternative construction materials has the potential to reduce the impact of these two issues. In this context, this study aims at investigating the feasibility of using dredged sediments and recycled concrete aggregates as alternative raw material for road subgrade construction. Various mix designs were prepared using dredged sediments and recycled concrete aggregates. The mixes were then treated with quicklime and road binder as specified in the French soil treatment guide. Their physical, mechanical, and geotechnical properties confirmed the feasibility of using recycled concrete aggregates and dredged sediments up to a certain percentage in road subgrade construction. Moreover, they showed that the mixes containing 20% of dredged sediments met road subgrade minimum physical and mechanical properties, such as immediate bearing capacity, unconfined compression strength, indirect tensile strength greater, and UCSI/UCS60 ratio. Finally, leaching tests were conducted to ensure the environmental safety of the various mixes. The results showed that the mixes met the thresholds for their use in road subgrade construction. The feasibility of using dredged sediments and recycled concrete aggregates in foundations and base layers will be studied in future projects.

Experimental determination of the solid phase density of thermal power plant ash

Recycling of ash and slag waste from thermal power plants is an important environmental and economic task. The widespread use of ash in construction is mainly hindered by the high content of unburned carbon. The fine granulometric composition of the ash makes most mechanical methods of recycling and flotation ineffective, and is the most effective, environmentally friendly, and cheapest method is hydraulic separation. It allows for the recovery of about 70% of construction raw materials, in which the carbon content is reduced to regulatory commercial values, from 20% in raw ash to 5–10%. A central element of hydraulic separation research is establishing the hydraulic characteristics of the fly ash, with a special focus on determining its actual density, considering that the ash includes more than 10 different mineral components that have also undergone high-temperature transformation. Theoretical determination of the solid phase density of a multi-component mixture does not yield a reliable result. This article examines methods for determining bulk, true, and actual density, experimental approaches to their measurement, and the impact of various factors on these parameters. Correct density determination underlies the calculation of hydraulic characteristics of ash suspensions, the speed of hydraulic flows, and the efficiency of extracting individual components by way of hydroclassification and hydroseparation. The purpose of the research is to refine the methodology and experimentally determine the density of the solid phase of fly ash in its natural state and ash classified by size -240+40 µm, -40+0 µm, using the sample of ash from Pridniprovska TPP. The results of this work are significant for engineering when creating new technologies, for hydraulic devices recycling ash aimed at minimizing environmental impact and optimizing the use of technogenic resources. It was found that the density of the solid phase of ash from the ash dump of Pridniprovska TPP varies from 1.783 g/cm³ to 2.3, averaging 2.0 g/cm³. Variations in density are related to the inhomogeneity of the chemical composition, the presence of closed cavities in the particles. Keywords: fly ash, ash and slag waste.