Reusing ceramic wastes in concrete

The ceramic industry is known to generate large amounts of calcined-clay wastes each year. So far a huge part is used in landfills. Reusing these wastes in concrete could be a win-win situation. For one hand by solving the ceramic industry waste problem and at the same time leading to a more sustainable concrete industry by reducing the use of non renewable resources like cement and aggregates and avoiding environmental problems related to land filled wastes. This paper examines the feasibility of using ceramic wastes in concrete. Results show that concrete with 20% cement replacement although it has a minor strength loss possess increase durability performance. Results also show that concrete mixtures with ceramic aggregates perform better than the control concrete mixtures concerning compressive strength, capillary water absorption, oxygen permeability and chloride diffusion thus leading to more durable concrete structures. (C) 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.