Optimizing Pelargonium Ash as a Partial Cement Replacement in High-Strength Self-Compacting Concrete: Mechanical and Durability Aspects

Authors

Keywords:

Pelargonium Ash, High Strength-Self Compacting Concrete, Mechanical properties, durability

Abstract

This study investigates the effects of Pelargonium Ash (PGA) as a partial cement replacement on the mechanical and durability properties of High Strength-Self Compacting Concrete (HSSCC). PGA was incorporated at 5%, 10%, 15%, and 20% replacement levels, and its influence on setting time, compressive strength, splitting tensile strength, and resistance to sulfate and chloride attacks was evaluated. The results indicate that a 5% PGA replacement is optimal, leading to slight improvements in compressive strength at early and late curing ages without compromising self-compacting properties. Higher replacement levels (10%, 15%, 20%) adversely affect mechanical performance and durability due to rapid hardening, increased water absorption, and dilution of cementitious components. The 5% PGA mix exhibited enhanced resistance to sulfate and chloride attacks, attributed to pore refinement and pozzolanic activity. However, excessive PGA content beyond 10% negatively impacts durability and mechanical properties. Adjustments in water and superplasticizer dosages are necessary at higher PGA levels to maintain workability. In conclusion, PGA can be effectively used as a sustainable partial cement replacement in HSSCC at an optimal level of 5-10%, balancing mechanical performance, durability, and environmental benefits.

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

References

[1] A. Rajasekar, K. Arunachalam, M. Kottaisamy, V. Saraswathy, Durability characteristics of Ultra High Strength Concrete with treated sugarcane bagasse ash, Construct. Build. Mater. 171 (May 2018) 350–356,

[2]. Tang, L.V.; Bulgakov, B.; Aleksandrova, O.; Larsen, O.; Pham, A.N. Effect of rice husk ash and fly ash on the compressive strength of high performance concrete. E3S Web Conf. 2018, 33, 02030.

[3] Schmidt, M.; Fehling, E.; Geisenhanslüke, C. Ultra High Performance Concrete (UHPC). In Proceedings of the International Symposium on Ultra High Performance Concrete, Kassel, Germany, 13–15 September 2004.

[4] Wang, A.; Zhang, C.; Sun, W. Fly ash effects II. The active effect of fly ash. Cem. Concr. Res. 2004, 34, 2057–2060.

[5] Bui, D.D.; Hu, J.; Stroeven, P. Particle size effect on the strength of rice husk ash blended gap-graded Portland cement concrete. Cem. Concr. Compos. 2005, 27, 357–366.

[6] Stelmakh, S.A.; Shcherban, E.M.; Beskopylny, A.; Mailyan, L.R.; Meskhi, B.; Varavka, V. Quantitative and Qualitative Aspects of Composite Action of Concrete and Dispersion-Reinforcing Fiber. Polymers 2022, 14, 682.

[7] Scrivener, K.L.; Vanderley, M.J.; Gartner, E.M. Eco-efficient cements: Potential economically viable solutions for a low-CO2 cement-based materials industry. Cem. Concr. Res. 2018, 114, 2–26.

[8] Klemm, W.; Berger, R. Accelerated curing of cementitious systems by carbon dioxide: Part I. Portland cement. Cem. Concr. Res. 1972, 2, 567–576.

[9] McDonald, L.; Glasser, F.P.; Imbabi, M.S. A New, Carbon-Negative Precipitated Calcium Carbonate Admixture (PCC-A) for Low Carbon Portland Cements. Materials 2019, 12, 554.

[10] Olivier, J.G.J.; Peters, J.A.H.W.; Janssens-Maenhout, G. Trends in Global CO2 Emissions. 2012 Report; EU Publications: The Hague, The Netherlands, 2012.

[11] Yang, H.J.; Usman, M.; Hanif, A. Suitability of Liquid Crystal Display (LCD) Glass Waste as Supplementary Cementing Material (SCM): Assessment based on strength, porosity, and durability. J. Build. Eng. 2021, 42, 102793.

[12] Huntzinger, D.N.; Eatmon, T.D. A life-cycle assessment of Portland cement manufacturing: Comparing the traditional process with alternative technologies. J. Clean. Prod. 2009, 17, 668–675.

[13] Hanif, A.; Diao, S.; Lu, Z.; Fan, T.; Li, Z. Green lightweight cementitious composite incorporating aerogels and fly ash cenospheres— Mechanical and thermal insulating properties. Constr. Build. Mater. 2016, 116, 422–430.

[14] Kim, Y.; Hanif, A.; Usman, M.; Munir, M.J.; Kazmi, S.M.S.; Kim, S. Slag waste incorporation in high early strength concrete as cement replacement: Environmental impact and influence on hydration; durability attributes. J. Clean. Prod. 2018, 172, 3056–3065.

[15] D.M. Kannan, S.H. Aboubakr, A.S. El-Dieb, M.M.R. Taha, High performance concrete incorporating ceramic waste powder as large partial replacement of Portland cement, Constr. Build. Mater. 144 (2017) 35–41.

[16]. R. Gopalakrishnan, R. Jeyalakshmi, the effects on durability and mechanical properties of multiple nano and micro additive OPC mortar exposed to combined chloride and sulfate attack, Mater. Sci. Semicond. Process. 106 (2020), 104772.

[17]. M.S. Meddah, M.A. Ismail, S. El-Gamal, H. Fitriani, Performances evaluation of binary concrete designed with silica fume and metakaolin, Constr. Build. Mater. 166 (2018) 400–412.

[18]. A. Pandey, B. Kumar, A comprehensive investigation on application of microsilica and rice straw ash in rigid pavement, Constr. Build. Mater. 252 (2020), 119053.

[19]. Q. Zhang, Y. Li, L. Xu, P. Lun, Bond strength and corrosion behavior of rebar embedded in straw ash concrete, Constr. Build. Mater. 205 (2019) 21–30.

[20]. M.S. Meddah, M.A. Ismail, S. El-Gamal, H. Fitriani, Performances evaluation of binary concrete designed with silica fume and metakaolin, Constr. Build. Mater. 166 (2018) 400–412.

[21]. A. Pandey, B. Kumar, A comprehensive investigation on application of microsilica and rice straw ash in rigid pavement, Constr. Build. Mater. 252 (2020), 119053.

[22]. M.S. Saif, M.O. El-Hariri, A.I. Sarie-Eldin, B.A. Tayeh, M.F. Farag, Impact of Ca+ content and curing condition on durability performance of metakaolin-based geopolymer mortars, Case Studies in Construction, Materials 16 (2022), e00922.

[23 ]Mechanical and durability properties of concrete incorporating silica fume and a high volume of sugarcane bagasse ash.

[24 ]Gursel, A. P., Maryman, H., & Ostertag, C., 2016. A life-cycle approach to environmental,mechanical, and durability properties of “green” concrete mixes with rice husk ash. Journal of Cleaner Production 112, 823-836.

[25]. Vargas, J., Halog, A., 2015. Effective carbon emission reductions from using upgraded fly ash in the cement industry. J. Clean. Prod. 103, 948–959.

[26]. Kannan, V., & Ganesan, K., 2014. Chloride and chemical resistance of self-compacting concrete containing rice husk ash and metakaolin. Construction and Building materials 51, 225-234.

[27] Chopra, Rafat , Kunal, Strength, permeability and microstructure of self-compacting concrete containing rice husk ash. Biosystems Engineering, Volume 130, February 2015, Pages 72-80

[28] N. Shafiq, A.A.E. Hussein, M.F. Nuruddin, H. al Mattarneh, Effects of sugarcane bagasse ash on the properties of concrete, Proc. Inst. Civ. Eng.: Eng. Sustain. 171 (3) (Aug. 2018) 123–132, https://doi.org/10.1680/jensu.15.00014.

[29] A.A.E. Hussein, N. Shafiq, M.F. Nuruddin, F.A. Memon, Compressive strength and microstructure of sugar cane bagasse ash concrete, Res. J. Appl. Sci. Eng. Technol. 7 (12) (2014) 2569–2577, https://doi.org/10.19026/rjaset.7.569.

[30] A. Tadjarodi, M. Haghverdi, V. Mohammadi, Preparation and characterization of nano-porous silica aerogel from rice husk ash by drying at atmospheric pressure, Mater. Res. Bull. 47 (9) (2012) 2584–2589.

[31] A. Serag Faried, Sahar A. Mostafa, Bassam A. Tayeh, Taher A. Tawfik, the effect of using nano rice husk ash of different burning degrees on ultra-high-performance concrete properties Construction and Building Materials 290 (2021)

[32] Ganesan, K., Rajagopal, K., Thangavel, K., 2008. Rice husk ash blended cement: assessment of optimal level of replacement for strength and permeability properties of concrete. Construct. Build. Mater. 22, 1675–1683.

[33] Taha Awadallah El-Sayed, Performance of Porous Slabs Using Recycled Ash. Polymers 2021, 13(19), 3319; Polymers | Free Full-Text | Performance of Porous Slabs Using Recycled Ash (mdpi.com)

[34] Mohamed Amin, Bassam A. Tayeh, Mohamed A. Kandil, Ibrahim Saad Agwa, Mohammad Farouk Abdelmagied, Effect of rice straw ash and palm leaf ash on the properties of ultrahigh-performance concrete, Case Studies in Construction Materials, Volume 17, 2022, e01266, ISSN 2214-5095,

[35] Șerbănoiu, A.A.; Grădinaru, C.M.; Muntean, R.; Cimpoeșu, N.; Șerbănoiu, B.V. Corn Cob Ash versus Sunflower Stalk Ash, Two Sustainable Raw Materials in an Analysis of Their Effects on the Concrete Properties. Materials 2022, 15, 868.

[36] Neha Sharma, Prashant Sharma, Arun Kumar Parashar, Incorporation of Silica Fume and Waste Corn Cob Ash in Cement and Concrete for Sustainable Environment, Materials Today: Proceedings 62 (2022) 4151–4155

[37] S.N. Chinnu, S.N. Minnu, A. Bahurudeen, R. Senthilkumar, Influence of palm oil fuel ash in concrete and a systematic comparison with widely accepted fly ash and slag: A step towards sustainable reuse of agro-waste ashes, Cleaner Materials, Volume 5, 2022, 100122, ISSN 2772-3976,

[38] A.S.M. Abdul Awal, I.A. Shehu, Mohammad Ismail,Effect of cooling regime on the residual performance of high-volume palm oil fuel ash concrete exposed to high temperatures, Construction and Building Materials, Volume 98, 2015, Pages 875-883, ISSN 0950-0618,

[39] Taha A. El-Sayed, Performance of heavy weight concrete incorporating recycled rice straw ash as radiation shielding material, Progress in Nuclear Energy, Volume 135, 2021, ISSN 0149-1970,

[40] Divya Chopra, Rafat Siddique, Kunal, Strength, permeability and microstructure of self-compacting concrete containing rice husk ash, Biosystems Engineering, Volume 130, 2015, Pages 72-80, ISSN 1537-5110,

[41] Ibrahim Saad Agwa, Omar Mohamed Omar, Bassam A. Tayeh, Bassam Abdelsalam Abdelsalam, Effects of using rice straw and cotton stalk ashes on the properties of lightweight self-compacting concrete, Construction and Building Materials, Volume 235, 2020, 117541, ISSN 0950-0618,

[42] Kumar Gedela Santhosh, Sk M. Subhani, A. Bahurudeen, Recycling of palm oil fuel ash and rice husk ash in the cleaner

Downloads

Published

25-12-2025

How to Cite

Optimizing Pelargonium Ash as a Partial Cement Replacement in High-Strength Self-Compacting Concrete: Mechanical and Durability Aspects. (2025). Advanced Multidisciplinary Engineering Journal (AMEJ), 1(1), 9-18. https://pub.scientificirg.com/index.php/AMEJ/article/view/19

Most read articles by the same author(s)

Similar Articles

You may also start an advanced similarity search for this article.