Studies on concrete containing ground waste glass

The possibility of using finely ground waste glass as partial cement replacement in concrete was examined through three sets of tests: the lime-glass tests to assess the pozzolanic activity of ground glass, the compressive strength tests of concrete having 30% cement replaced by ground glass to monitor the strength development, and the mortar bar tests to study the potential expansion. The results showed that ground glass having a particle size finer than 38 mu m did exhibit a pozzolanic behavior. The compressive strength from lime-glass tests exceeded a threshold value of 4.1 MPa. The strength activity index was 91, 84, 96, and 108% at 3, 7, 28. and 90 days, respectively, exceeding 75% at all ages. The mortar bar tests demonstrated that the finely ground glass helped reduce the expansion by up to 50%. A size effect was observed; a smaller glass particle size led to a higher reactivity with lime, a higher compressive strength in concrete, and a lower expansion. Compared to fly ash concrete, concrete containing ground glass exhibited a higher strength at both early and late ages. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.