Palm Shell Lightweight Aggregate Concrete Research Articles

Influence of seawater mixing on fresh and mechanical properties of oil palm shell lightweight aggregate concrete containing spent garnet

Abstract The rapid advancement in construction practices has led to a higher demand for natural aggregates in the production of concrete. Simultaneously, there has been an increase in pollution due to the improper disposal of industrial waste. Effective waste management has become imperative to prevent environmental harm. A sustainable solution involves incorporating waste materials such as oil palm shells (OPS) from the palm oil industry and spent garnet from shipbuilding activities into concrete production. This research aims to explore the impact of introducing spent garnet as a partial substitute for sand on the fresh and hardened properties of lightweight aggregate concrete (LWAC) made with OPS, mixed with seawater. Two sets of concrete mixes were prepared, varying the proportion of spent garnet as a partial replacement for fine aggregate, and both seawater and freshwater were used in the mixing process. Laboratory tests were conducted to evaluate workability, oven-dry density, and compressive strength of the concrete. The findings indicate that the workability decreases in freshwater but improves in both freshwater and seawater when spent garnet is added. All mixtures containing spent garnet qualify as LWAC. Notably, seawater-mixed OPS LWAC, with 10 % spent garnet, demonstrates the highest compressive strength. The use of seawater accelerates hydration, enhancing concrete strength compared to freshwater. In conclusion, incorporating spent garnet as a replacement for sand in concrete production results in environmentally friendly OPS LWAC. This approach contributes to waste reduction and minimizes reliance on landfills, promoting sustainable construction practices.

Compressive strength prediction of high-strength oil palm shell lightweight aggregate concrete using machine learning methods.

Promoting the use of agricultural wastes/byproducts in concrete production can significantly reduce environmental effects and contribute to sustainable development. Several experimental investigations on such concrete's compressive strength ([Formula: see text]) and behavior have been done. The results of 229 concrete samples made by oil palm shell ([Formula: see text]) as a lightweight aggregate ([Formula: see text]) were used to develop models for predicting the [Formula: see text] of the high-strength lightweight aggregate concrete ([Formula: see text]). To this end, gene expression programming ([Formula: see text]), adaptive neuro-fuzzy inference system ([Formula: see text]), artificial neural network ([Formula: see text]), and multiple linear regression ([Formula: see text]) are employed as machine learning ([Formula: see text]) and regression methods. The water-to-binder ([Formula: see text]) ratio, ordinary Portland cement ([Formula: see text]), fly ash ([Formula: see text]), silica fume ([Formula: see text]), fine aggregate ([Formula: see text]), natural coarse aggregate ([Formula: see text]), [Formula: see text], superplasticizer ([Formula: see text]) contents, and specimen age are among the nine input parameters used in the developed models. The results show that all [Formula: see text]-based models efficiently predict the [Formula: see text]'s [Formula: see text], which comprised [Formula: see text] agricultural wastes. According to the results, the [Formula: see text] model outperformed the [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text] models. Moreover, an uncertainty analysis through the Monte Carlo simulation (MCS) method was applied to the prediction results. The growing demand for sustainable development and the crucial role of eco-friendly concrete in the construction industry can pave the way for further application of the developed models due to their superior robustness and high accuracy in future codes of practice.

Sulphate resistance of lightweight aggregate concrete comprising sieved palm oil fuel ash as fine aggregate replacement

Oil palm shell (OPS) and palm oil fuel ash (POFA) disposal from palm oil industry causes environmental pollution. The present research investigates the compressive strength and sulphate resistance of oil palm shell lightweight aggregate concrete containing palm oil fuel ash as partial fine aggregate replacement. Sieved POFA was used as partial fine aggregate replacement from 0% up to 20% by weight of sand. Water cured specimens were tested to determine compressive strength and durability towards sulphate attack. Use of 10% POFA slightly enhances concrete strength and durability against sulphate attack via pozzolanic reaction from the fraction of fine ash present.

Predicting the uniaxial compressive strength of oil palm shell lightweight aggregate concrete using artificial intelligence‐based algorithms

AbstractBecause natural coarse aggregates were depleting rapidly, concrete industry has been trended toward substitute aggregates from industrial by‐products or waste. One of the waste materials is oil palm ash (OPS), which is widely generated in the processing of palm oil in the tropics. Concretes made with OPS to estimate the compressive strength (CS) is cost and time consuming. This study aims to propose novel hybrid models by concepts of extreme gradient boosting (XGB) model optimized with different optimization algorithms such as sine–cosine algorithm, multiverse optimization algorithm (MVO), and particle swarm optimization for predicting the uniaxial CS (UCS) of oil palm shell lightweight aggregate concrete (OPS). Also, the multivariate adaptive regression spline model is also developed to present a meaningful relationship between input and output variables. To this aim, a data set containing data samples for concrete made with OPS was gathered from the published literature. Results show that all models have acceptable performance in predicting the UCS, representing the admissible correlation between observed and predicted values and models' robustness. In the training step, the value of , the root mean square error, and the variance accounted factor for MVO–XGB are 0.9713, 1.5777, and 97.129. These values in testing phase are 0.9019, 2.6786, and 89.158. Therefore, the MVO–XGB model outperforms others, and the results demonstrate the ability of the MVO algorithm to determine the optimal value of XGB parameters.

Strength Performance of Oil Palm Shell Lightweight Aggregate Concrete

The concrete consumption that is high in the construction industry had resulted in uncontrolled aggregates exploitation. The extraction of these natural resources has raised great environment concerns that the use of waste materials as replacement of aggregates is proposed. Oil palm shell lightweight aggregate concrete (OPS LWAC) is produced by full replacement of oil palm shell (OPS) to coarse aggregate. OPS is the lightweight aggregates that potentially produce lightweight aggregate concrete (LWAC). Palm oil fuel ash (POFA) is also the byproduct of the palm oil industry that can be utilized to partially replace the fine aggregates. The objective of this study is to investigate the effect of POFA as partial fine aggregates replacement on density, compressive and tensile strength of OPS LWAC and to determine the optimum replacement percentage of fine aggregates with POFA. The control mixes were prepared with 100% OPC in the concrete while modified mixes contained various percentages of POFA, which were 5%, 10%, 15% and 20% as the replacement of fine aggregate. The specimens of cubes sizes 100 mm x 100 mm x 100 mm and cylindrical specimens with diameter of 100 mm and height of 200 mm were prepared and tested. The concrete mixtures were mixed according to the Department of Environment (DoE) method followed by the trial mixed. Mixes with 10% replacement of POFA to fine aggregate obtained the highest compressive strength and tensile splitting tensile strength which were 26.3 MPa and 2.37 MPa respectively. The property of POFA plays a role in the concrete strength determination. The higher replacement percentages resulted in lower density of OPS LWAC.

Estimation of the Uniaxial Compressive Strength of Oil Palm Shell Lightweight Aggregate Concrete Using Novel Ao‑Xgboost Model

Estimation of the Uniaxial Compressive Strength of Oil Palm Shell Lightweight Aggregate Concrete Using Novel Ao‑Xgboost Model

Mechanical properties and acid resistance of oil palm shell lightweight aggregate concrete containing coal bottom ash

Abstract Excessive use of natural river sand causes degradation of river environment scenery and water quality as well as certain flora and fauna in the area. At the same time, continues generation of by-product from palm oil industry and coal power plants namely oil palm shell and coal bottom ash calls for the utilization of these waste in material production rather than disposing it as waste. The present research investigates the mechanical properties and acid resistance of oil palm shell lightweight aggregate concrete containing coal bottom ash as partial sand replacement. Four types of concrete mixes were casted by using coal bottom ash as partial sand replacement from 0%, 10%, 20%, and 30% by weight of sand. All specimens were air cured until the testing age. The compressive strength and splitting tensile strength of concrete were tested at 7, 28 and 60 days. The resistance of specimen against acid attack was evaluated by measuring the mass loss and compressive strength after concrete cubes exposed to sulphuric acid solution. The results show that OPS lightweight aggregate concrete exhibit higher compressive and splitting tensile strength also enhanced acid resistance upon inclusion of 10% of coal bottom ash as sand replacement.

Durability properties of oil palm shell lightweight aggregate concrete containing fly ash as partial cement replacement

Environmental degradation resulting from waste disposal from coal industry and palm oil mills along with greenhouse gasses released by cement manufacturing industry needs to be resolved. Realizing that the use of free granite lightweight aggregate concrete is rewarding in terms of environmental sustainability and construction cost reduction through reduced foundation size, the present research delves further in oil palm shell (OPS) lightweight concrete research. The influence of fly ash as partial cement replacement on compressive strength, porosity and acid resistance of OPS lightweight aggregate concrete were investigated. Five types of concrete mixes were casted by replacing fly ash from 0%, 10%, 20%, 30% and 40% by weight of cement. All the cubes were subjected to air curing for 28 days. The compressive strength and porosity of concrete were conducted 28 days of curing age. The acid resistance of concretes was evaluated by measuring the mass loss of the cubes after immersed in sulphuric acid solution for 1800 h. The findings show that OPS lightweight aggregate concrete exhibit strength reduction and increment in porosity value when more fly ash is used. Concrete produced with lesser quantity of fly ash experience lower mass loss and strength drop after immersed in acidic environment.

Properties of oil palm shell lightweight aggregate concrete containing fly ash as partial cement replacement

In Malaysia, the growing palm oil business and increasing energy consumption that pushes more coals supply for power generation at power plants generates by-products. A large amount of oil palm shell from palm oil mills and fly ash from coal power plant still disposed as waste. At the same time, the expanding cement and granite industry to cater the construction industry need also causes environmental degradation that requires solution. Thus, incorporation of the industrial solid wastes as alternative mixing ingredient in production of zero granite concrete production is seen as one of the viable approach to reduce waste thrown at landfill. The present research investigates the mechanical performance of palm oil waste lightweight aggregate concrete containing fly ash as supplementary cementitious material. Five concrete mixes were prepared by varying the quantity of fly ash added that is 0%, 10%, 20%, 30% and 40% by the weight of cement. All specimens were air cured until the testing age. Then, the specimens were tested to determine compressive strength and flexural strength up to 28 days. The finding shows that integration of fly ash up to 30% produces concrete that has the potential to be used for structural application. Conclusively, approach of integrating fly ash in lightweight aggregate concrete would reduce cement consumption and fly ash disposal.

Effect of Unground Palm Oil Fuel Ash as Partial Sand Replacement on Compressive Strength of Oil Palm Shell Lightweight Concrete

Concern towards degradation of environment due to increasing use of natural sand in construction industry and dumping of solid wastes from palm oil industry namely palm oil fuel ash and oil palm shell has lead towards the development of environmental friendly concrete. The present study investigates the effect of unground palm oil fuel ash as partial sand replacement towards workability and compressive strength of oil palm shell lightweight aggregate concrete. Two types of mixes were used. Control specimen was prepared using 100% natural sand. Another type of mix were prepared by integrating 5%, 10% and 15% unground palm oil fuel ash by weight of sand. The concrete mixes workability were investigated by conducting slump test in accordance to standard. All specimens were made in form of cubes (150mm x150mm) and water cured up to 28 days. The compressive strength test was carried out in accordance to BS EN12390: 3 at 1, 4, 7 and 28 days. The finding shows that integration of 10% unground palm oil fuel ash contributes to the enhancement of oil palm shell lightweight aggregate concrete properties. Success in using unground POFA as partial sand replacement in concrete production would reduce quantity of ash disposed as waste and save the consumption of natural river sand.

Effect of fly ash content towards Sulphate resistance of oil palm shell lightweight aggregate concrete

Both oil palm shell (OPS) and fly ash are by-product generated from the industries. Disposal of these by-product as wastes cause negative impact to the environment. The use of both oil palm shell and fly ash in concrete is seen as an economical solution for making green and denser concrete. The primary aim of this research is to determine the effects of FA utilization as sand replacement in oil palm shell lightweight aggregate concrete (OPS LWAC) towards sulphate resistance. Five concrete mixes containing fly ash as sand replacement namely 0%, 10%, 20%, 30% and 40% were prepared in these experimental work. All mixes were cast in form of cubes before subjected to sulphate solution for the period of 5 months. It was found that addition of 10% fly ash as sand replacement content resulted in better sulphate resistance of OPS LWAC. The occurrence of pozzolanic reaction due to the presence of FA in concrete has consumed the vulnerable Calcium hydroxide to be secondary C-S-H gel making the concrete denser and more durable.

Compressive strength performance of OPS lightweight aggregate concrete containing coal bottom ash as partial fine aggregate replacement

Concerns regarding the negative impact towards environment due to the increasing use of natural sand in construction industry and dumping of industrial solid wastes namely coal bottom ash (CBA) and oil palm shell (OPS) has resulted in the development of environmental friendly lightweight concrete. The present study investigates the effect of coal bottom ash as partial fine aggregate replacement towards workability and compressive strength of oil palm shell lightweight aggregate concrete (OPS LWAC). The fresh and mechanical properties of this concrete containing various percentage of coal bottom ash as partial fine aggregate replacement were investigated. The result was compared to OPS LWAC with 100 % sand as a control specimen. The concrete workability investigated by conducting slump test. All specimens were cast in form of cubes and water cured until the testing age. The compressive strength test was carried out at 7 and 28 days. The finding shows that integration of coal bottom ash at suitable proportion enhances the strength of oil palm shell lightweight aggregate concrete.

Utilization of fly ash as partial sand replacement in oil palm shell lightweight aggregate concrete

Realization on the increasing demand for river sand supply in construction sector has inspired the current research to find alternative material to reduce the use of natural sand in oil palm shell lightweight aggregate concrete (OPS LWAC) production. The existence of fly ash, a by-product generated from coal power plant, which pose negative impact to the environment when it is disposed as waste, were used in this research. The effect of fly ash content as partial sand replacement towards workability and compressive strength of OPS lightweight aggregate concrete were investigated. Four concrete mixes containing various percentage of fly ash that are 0%, 10%, 20% and 30% by weight of sand were used in the experimental work. All mixes were cast in form of cubes before subjected to water curing until the testing age. Compressive strength test were conducted at 1, 3, 7 and 28 days. The finding shows that the workability of the OPS LWAC decreases when more fly ash are used as sand replacement. It was found that adding of 10% fly ash as sand replacement content resulted in better compressive strength of OPS LWAC, which is higher than the control mix.

Shear behaviour and mechanical properties of steel fibre-reinforced cement-based and geopolymer oil palm shell lightweight aggregate concrete

The shear behaviour and mechanical properties (compressive, splitting tensile and flexural strengths) as well as the flexural toughness of steel fibre-reinforced cement-based and geopolymer oil palm shell lightweight aggregate concrete (OPS LWAC) were experimentally investigated in this paper. Steel fibres were added at various volume fractions for the cement-based OPS LWAC (0%, 0.5% and 1.0%) and geopolymer OPS LWAC (0%, 0.5%). Test results showed that steel fibre improved the mechanical properties of concrete, particularly for the splitting tensile strength whereas flexural toughness enhancement with the use of steel fibres was more evident for the cement-based OPS LWAC than the geopolymer concrete. The shear resistance of OPS LWAC beams was also found to improve with the addition of steel fibres and existing prediction equations for shear capacity of steel fibre-reinforced lightweight concrete was determined to be conservative for the steel fibre-reinforced cement-based and geopolymer OPS LWAC.

STRUCTURAL PERFORMANCE OF OIL PALM SHELL LIGHTWEIGHT AGGREGATE CONCRETE WALL PANEL ON INSULATION CONCRETE CAPACITY

This paper presents of an investigation conducted the structural performance of oil palm shell lightweight aggregate concrete (OPSLAC) wall panel. Load-deflection characteristic on OPSLAC wall panel was conducted. Further, the effect of Stress-strain relationship and buckling effect on compression load was investigated. The variable selected are size of oil palm shell (OPS). Three wall panel specimens were prepared, and tests on compression load were conducted. The load-deflection result showed the changing on OPS shape used. The convex of OPS influence the bond within aggregate and cement paste. Further, the increasing of compression load is related to the formation and growth of micro cracks. As ultimate strength is approached, increased load and bulk paste micro cracks join to form continuous cracks parallel to the direction of loading on stress-stain curve. After 70% from the ultimate loading, the extent of cracking is so great that OPSLC cannot support additional load.

Short Term Investigation on Sulphate Resistance of Oil Palm Shell Lightweight Aggregate Concrete Containing Palm Oil Fuel Ash as Partial Cement Replacement

This research aims to produce an environmental friendly oil palm shell lightweight aggregate concrete containing palm oil fuel ash of good strength and durability against sulphate attack which is suitable to be applied in construction industry. This study discusses the performance of oil palm shell lightweight aggregate concrete containing palm oil fuel ash as partial cement replacement in sulphate environment. Concrete cubes produced using ranges of palm oil fuel ash from 0 to 40% were water cured for 28 days before tested for determination of compressive strength. The compressive strength test was conducted in accordance to BS EN 12390:3. Sulphate resistance test was conducted on plain specimen and mix containing 20% POFA which strength performance is the best. Both specimens were immersed in sodium sulphate solution for 45 weeks. The results indicate integration of suitable percentage of palm oil fuel ash enhances the compressive strength and sulphate resistance of oil palm shell lightweight aggregate concrete. Inclusion of this ash consumes calcium hydroxide through pozzolanic reaction generating secondary calcium silicate hydrate gel thus assisting the concrete to be denser, stronger and more resistance to sulphate attack compared to plain specimen.

Mechanical properties of oil palm shell lightweight aggregate concrete containing palm oil fuel ash as partial cement replacement

The increasing in greenhouse gas emissions, as well as solid waste disposal from the cement manufacturing industry and the Malaysian palm oil industries respectively contributes towards the undesirable 6°C Scenario envisioned by the International Energy Agency. The utilization of Palm Oil Fuel Ash (POFA) as partial cement replacement in the production of Oil Palm Shell (OPS) Lightweight Aggregate Concrete (LWAC) would significantly reduce cement consumption and amount of disposed landfill waste. In this investigation, the effect of POFA content as partial cement replacement towards the compressive strength of OPS lightweight aggregate concrete has been conducted. A total of six OPS LWAC mixtures were prepared with varying the percentages of POFA viz. 0%, 10%, 20%, 30%, 40% and 50% to determine the best replacement of POFA as partial cement replacement. The ashes were ground to enhance their pozzalanicity. The best replacement of POFA-20 was then used to investigate the mechanical properties of OPS LWAC such as compressive strength, flexural strength and modulus of elasticity. The concretes containing POFA were placed in different types of curing regimes namely water, air, sprayed and natural weather curing before subjected to compressive strength test and flexural strength test at the age of 28, 60, 180,270 and 365 days. The compressive strength was conducted in accordance with the BS EN12390-3 whilst the flexural strength test was carried out in accordance with the BS EN 12390-5. It was found that water curing is the best method amongst others. OPS LWAC with POFA exhibits the highest results of compressive strength, flexural strength and modulus of elasticity. The production of extra C-S-H gel resulting from better pozzolanic reaction for water cured OPS LWAC with POFA has contributed to the densification of the internal structure that in turn enhances the concrete strength.

Acid Resistance of Oil Palm Shell Lightweight Aggregate Concrete Containing Palm Oil Fuel Ash

Concern towards reducing waste disposed by Malaysian palm oil industry, palm oil fuel ash (POFA) and oil palm shell (OPS) that poses negative impact to the environment has initiated research on producing oil palm shell lightweight aggregate concrete (OPS LWAC) containing palm oil fuel ash. The present investigation looks into the effect of palm oil fuel ash content as partial cement replacement to compressive strength and acid resistance of oil palm shell lightweight aggregate concrete. Two types of mix, plain OPS LWAC and another one containing POFA as partial cement replacement have been used in this research. Cubes of 100 x 100 x 100 (mm) were water cured for 28 days before subjected to compressive strength test and acid resistance test. The findings indicate that suitable integration of POFA content would ensure occurrence of optimum pozzolanic reaction leading to densification of concrete internal structure which increases the compressive strength and better durability to acid attack. Integration of 20% POFA successfully assist concrete to achieve the highest compressive strength and exhibit superior resistance against acid attack compared to other mixes.

Effect of Mixing Ingredient on Compressive Strength of Oil Palm Shell Lightweight Aggregate Concrete Containing Palm Oil Fuel Ash

The increasingly generated oil palm shell (OPS) and palm oil fuel ash (POFA) which is a by-product of Malaysian palm oil mills annually, has lead towards the effort of integrating palm oil fuel ash as mineral admixture in lightweight aggregate concrete which produced using 100% oil palm shell as lightweight aggregate. This paper addresses the compressive strength of this oil palm shell lightweight aggregate concrete upon usage of different ash replacement level, water cement ratio, superplasticiser, sand and cement content. At the early state of investigation, cubes of (100x100x100mm) containing various replacement level of ash were produced and tested for it compressive strength. Then, the 20% replacement levels of POFA which give the highest compressive strength value were used for further experimental work. Experimental work to investigate the effect of water content, percentage of superplasticiser, sand content and amount of cement used were conducted using two types of mixes. Plain oil palm shell lightweight aggregate concrete (0% POFA) as reference specimen, and oil palm shell lightweight aggregate containing 20% palm oil fuel ash (20% POFA) were prepared in form of cubes. All the specimens were subjected to water curing until the testing date. The compressive strength test was conducted following the procedures in BSEN 12390 – 3 at 28 days. Integration of 20% POFA in oil palm shell lightweight aggregate concrete leads to production of a greener lightweight aggregate concrete product with optimum strength. Inclusion too much of water should be avoided as it diminishes the concrete compressive strength. Only right formulation of palm oil fuel ash, water, superplasticizer, sand and cement content would be able to produce oil palm shell lightweight aggregate concrete containing palm oil fuel ash exhibiting optimum strength.

Exploratory Study of Palm Oil Fuel Ash as Partial Cement Replacement in Oil Palm Shell Lightweight Aggregate Concrete

In Malaysia, issue of environmental pollution resulting from disposal of Palm Oil Fuel Ash (POFA) which is a by-product from palm oil mill has initiated research to incorporate this waste in Oil Palm Shell (OPS) lightweight aggregate concrete production. The current study investigates the effect of palm oil fuel ash content as partial cement replacement towards compressive strength OPS lightweight aggregate concrete. Several OPS lightweight aggregate concrete mixes were produced by replacing various percentage of POFA ranging from 10, 20, 30, 40 and 50%, respectively by weight of cement. All the mixes were cast in form of cubes and then subjected to water curing until the testing date. The compressive strength test is conducted in accordance to BSEN 12390 (2009) at 7 and 28 days. From the results, it was observed that the combination of appropriate POFA content would enhance the compressive strength of OPS lightweight aggregate concrete. Specimen produced using 20% POFA as partial cement replacement exhibit higher value of compressive strength than that of control OPS lightweight aggregate concrete. However, mixes consisting POFA up to 50% is also suitable for structural application.