Enhancement of mechanical properties of fly ash geopolymer containing fine recycled concrete aggregate with micro carbon fiber

In this study, the micro carbon fiber (CF) was used to enhance the mechanical properties of fly ash geopolymer containing fine recycled concrete aggregate (RCA). Natural river sand was replaced with RCA at 0, 50, and 100% by volume. The CF was used as additive material by incorporating into the mixture at 0, 0.1, 0.2, and 0.3% by weight of fly ash. The results showed that the CF enhanced the mechanical properties of geopolymer containing RCA through the increased nucleation sites for geopolymerization reaction and the bridging effect of the fiber. For the mix with 100% RCA, the incorporation of 0.2% CF resulted geopolymer mortar with higher compressive and splitting tensile strengths. For the flexural strength and surface abrasion resistance, best results were obtained with the use of 50%RCA with significant improvement in both flexural strength and surface abrasion resistance. The incorporation of CF thus increases the use of recycled fine aggregate without resort to natural fine aggregate.

Automated summary

This study used micro carbon fiber (CF) to enhance the mechanical properties of fly ash geopolymer containing fine recycled concrete aggregate (RCA). The results showed that CF improved the compressive and splitting tensile strengths of geopolymer mortar, with best results obtained at 0.2% CF in mixtures containing 100% RCA. Additionally, the flexural strength and surface abrasion resistance were significantly improved with the use of 50% RCA. Incorporating CF allows for increased use of recycled fine aggregate without the need for natural fine aggregate.