Strength Of Sustainable Concrete Research Articles

Evaluation of Compressive Strength of Sustainable Concrete Using Genetic Algorithm Assisted Artificial Neural Networks

Sustainable concrete which contains fly ash and slag is increasingly used in modern construction practices. This study presents a genetic algorithm (GA) assisted artificial neural network (ANN) model for evaluating the compressive strength of sustainable concrete. 425 mixtures are used for making the prediction system. Genetic algorithm (GA) is used to generate the initial values of the weight matrix and bias of ANN. The input parameter of GA assisted ANN is water-to-binder ratio, fly ash or slag replacement ratio, sand ratio, and water contents. The output result is compressive strength. The correlation coefficients for single ANN and GA assisted ANN model are 0.88 and 0.911, respectively. GA assisted ANN model has a strong prediction ability for the strength of sustainable concrete.

Case-based reasoning approach to estimating the strength of sustainable concrete

Continuing from previous studies of sustainable concrete containing environmentally friendly materials and existing modeling approach to predicting concrete properties, this study developed an estimation methodology to predicting the strength of sustainable concrete using an advanced case-based reasoning approach. It was conducted in two steps: (i) establishment of a case database and (ii) development of an advanced case-based reasoning model. Through the experimental studies, a total of 144 observations for concrete compressive strength and tensile strength were established to develop the estimation model. As a result, the prediction accuracy of the A-CBR model (i.e., 95.214% for compressive strength and 92.448% for tensile strength) performed superior to other conventional methodologies (e.g., basic case-based reasoning and artificial neural network models). The developed methodology provides an alternative approach in predicting concrete properties and could be further extended to the future research area in durability of sustainable concrete.

Influence of Slag and Slag Cement on the Strength of Sustainable Concrete

Cement is an essential constituent for the production of concrete. Nowadays, the supplementary use of cement such as industrial by-product and agricultural waste material has become an integral part of concrete construction due to their cost effective and sustainable environmental benefits. The industrial (metallurgical) by product-Granulated Blast Furnace Slag (GBFS) contains a non-crystalline silicon dioxide with high specific surface area and high pozzolanic reactivity. The use of GBFS either in cement or concrete has been increased due to its better performance in concrete in terms of strength and durability. In this paper, a critical review on the influence of slag and slag cement on the strength of sustainable concrete has been presented. The researches carried out in the past on the use of GBFS as partial replacement of cement in mortar and concrete, basically, the strength development of GBFS blended concrete and cement are reviewed in this study. These test results confirmed that the strength of cement mortar and concrete is varied with percent of slag replacement, fineness of slag and cement used, curing temperature as well as curing method. Based on the information available in literature, slag and slag cement could be a valuable material for the production of sustainable concrete.