Gainful utilization of waste glass for production of sulphuric acid resistance concrete

Waste glass aggregates produced from mixed coloured beverage bottles was utilized in concrete. The present work inspects the performance of concrete with waste glass at different replacement stages (18%, 19%, 20%, 21%, 22%, 23% and 24%) when subjected to acidic (sulphuric acid) atmosphere. Performance of concrete was evaluated by determining transformation in mass, compressive strength and micro-structure. Beverage bottles being made of soda lime was found to be sacrificial in nature when the concrete samples were exposed to acidic environment and thus protected the strength giving products of cement hydration from damage. This was proved by the findings shown in the results of compressive strength examination when the samples were subjected to the exposure conditions. Micro-structural study which was executed to confirm the outcomes of hardened properties by conducting X-ray diffraction, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, thermo-gravimetric analysis and field emission scanning electron microscopy tests showed the hydration products were relatively less damaged in the presence of waste glass. The positive result of using waste glass was effective only up to a substitution level of 21%. Increased porosity due to higher incorporation of waste glass, greater than 21% led to the fall in performance of initial mechanical properties. However, the acid resistance of the concrete mixes with a maximum amount of waste glass (24%) is higher by 54% in terms of compressive strength at the end of 90?days exposure period. It is concluded that the best optimized performance in terms of compressive strength and acid resistance can be obtained at 21% substitution level. (C) 2019 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.