Strength, permeability and microstructure characterization of pulverized bagasse ash in cement mortars

Bagasse ash, byproduct of sugar production is considered to be an active pozzolan. However, the effective use of bagasse ash in mortar and concrete needs the controlled process of grinding to achieve the required fineness and uniformity to meet the standards of industry. This article investigates the method used for production of bagasse ash with high specific surface area and pozzolanic activity using the laboratory ball milling and pulverizer under controlled burning condition. The various properties of cement paste and mortar blended with processed bagasse ash were analyzed. The chemical and morphological characteristics were observed using various techniques like X-Ray Diffraction (XRD), Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR), X-Ray Fluorescence (XRF), Electron Dispersive Spectroscopy (EDS) and Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM). The results show that the behavior of cement pastes and mortars changed significantly up to 10% replacement level of treated bagasse ash. (C) 2019 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.