Abstract
Cellular concrete is an alternative to conventional concrete as a low-density and high-insulating building material. The eco-cellular concretes (ECCs) based on geopolymer technology have been recently introduced by the scientific community. A form of ECC was studied, in which the fluid catalytic cracking residue and the blast furnace slag were employed as precursors, the rice husk ash was utilized as an alternative silica source in the activator, and the aerating reagent was replaced with recycled aluminum foil. Field emission scanning electron microscopy, optical microscopy, and ImageJ version 1.48 software (National Institutes of Health) were employed to characterize the void distribution. Bulk density and porosity were determined by hydric tests. The results revealed that lowest densities without strength loss were obtained when the cementing matrix had a homogeneous void system: similar spacing between pores, narrow size ranges, and nonconnected pores. A relationship was established between open and closed porosity with density and thermal conductivity.
Get full access to this article
View all available purchase options and get full access to this article.
Data Availability Statement
Some or all data, models, or code that support the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.
Acknowledgments
The authors acknowledge the financial support from the Universitat Politècnica de València (UPV) through internal project GEOCELPLUS. The authors are especially grateful to Dr. Josefa L. Roselló Caselles for the recycled aluminum foil, and also to the Electronic Microscopy Service of the UPV. Thanks also go to DACSA, BP Oil, and Cementval for supplying the raw materials.
References
Akthar, F. K., and J. R. G. Evans. 2010. “High porosity () cementitious foams.” Cem. Concr. Res. 40 (2): 352–358. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cemconres.2009.10.012.
Almalkawi, A. T., T. Salem, S. Hamadna, A. G. N. D. Darsanasiri, P. Soroushian, A. Balchandra, and G. Al-Chaar. 2018. “Physio-microstructural properties of aerated cement slurry for lightweight structures.” Materials 11 (4): 597. https://doi.org/10.3390/ma11040597.
Bai, C., G. Franchin, H. Elsayed, A. Conte, and P. Colombo. 2016. “High strength metakaolin-based geopolymer foams with variable macroporous structure.” J. Eur. Ceram. Soc. 36 (16): 4243–4249. http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0955221916303612 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jeurceramsoc.2016.06.045.
Bremner, T. W., P. M. Carkner, H. Michael, and A. Litvin. 1997. “Guide for precast cellular concrete floor, roof, and wall units.” In Manual of concrete practice, 2–6. Indianapolis: American Concrete Institute.
Colangelo, F., G. Roviello, L. Ricciotti, V. Ferrandiz-Mas, F. Messina, C. Ferone, O. Tarallo, R. Cioffi, and C. R. Cheeseman. 2018. “Mechanical and thermal properties of lightweight geopolymer composites.” Cem. Concr. Compos. 86 (Feb): 266–272. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cemconcomp.2017.11.016.
Dolton, B., and C. Hannah. 2006. “Cellular concrete: Engineering and technological advancement for construction in cold climates.” In Proc., Annual General Conf. of the Canadian Society for Civil Engineering. Pointe Claire, QC, Canada: Canadian Society for Civil Engineering.
Ducman, V., and L. Korat. 2016. “Characterization of geopolymer fly-ash based foams obtained with the addition of Al powder or as foaming agents.” Mater. Charact. 113 (Mar): 207–213. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.matchar.2016.01.019.
Esmaily, H., and H. Nuranian. 2012. “Non-autoclaved high strength cellular concrete from alkali activated slag.” Constr. Build. Mater. 26 (1): 200–206. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2011.06.010.
Font, A., M. V. Borrachero, L. Soriano, J. Monzó, A. Mellado, and J. Payá. 2018. “New eco-cellular concretes: Sustainable and energy-efficient materials.” Green Chem. 20 (20): 4684–4694. https://doi.org/10.1039/C8GC02066C.
Kearsley, E. P., and P. J. Wainwright. 2001. “Porosity and permeability of foamed concrete.” Cem. Concr. Res. 31 (5): 805–812. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0008-8846(01)00490-2.
Melo, J. P., A. S. Aguilar, and F. H. Olivares. 2014. “Rheological properties of aerated cement pastes with fly ash, metakaolin and sepiolite additions.” Constr. Build. Mater. 65 (Aug): 566–573. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2014.05.034.
Nambiar, E., K. Kunhanandan, and K. Ramamurthy. 2007. “Air-void characterisation of foam concrete.” Cem. Concr. Res. 37 (2): 221–230. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cemconres.2006.10.009.
Narayanan, N., and K. Ramamurthy. 2000a. “Microstructural investigations on aerated concrete.” Cem. Concr. Res. 30 (3): 457–464. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0008-8846(00)00199-X.
Narayanan, N., and K. Ramamurthy. 2000b. “Prediction models based on gel-pore parameters for compressive strength of aerated concrete.” Concr. Sci. Eng. 2 (8): 206–212.
Narayanan, N., and K. Ramamurthy. 2000c. “Structure and properties of aerated concrete: A review.” Cem. Concr. Compos. 22 (5): 321–329. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0958-9465(00)00016-0.
Othuman, M. A., and Y. C. Wang. 2011. “Elevated-temperature thermal properties of lightweight foamed concrete.” Constr. Build. Mater. 25 (2): 705–716. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2010.07.016.
Panesar, D. K. 2013. “Cellular concrete properties and the effect of synthetic and protein foaming agents.” Constr. Build. Mater. 44 (Jul): 575–584. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2013.03.024.
Ramamurthy, K., E. K. Kunhanandan Nambiar, and G. Indu Siva Ranjani. 2009. “A classification of studies on properties of foam concrete.” Cem. Concr. Compos. 31 (6): 388–396. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cemconcomp.2009.04.006.
Stolz, J., Y. Boluk, and V. Bindiganavile. 2018. “Mechanical, thermal and acoustic properties of cellular alkali activated fly ash concrete.” Cem. Concr. Compos. 94 (Aug): 24–32. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cemconcomp.2018.08.004.
Topçu, I. B., and T. Uygunoǧlu. 2007. “Properties of autoclaved lightweight aggregate concrete.” Build. Environ. 42 (12): 4108–4116. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.buildenv.2006.11.024.
Wee, T.-H., D. S. Babu, T. Tamilselvan, and H.-S. Lim. 2006. “Air-void system of foamed concrete and its effect on mechanical properties.” ACI Mater. J. 103 (1): 45–52.
Xuan, D., P. Tang, and C. S. Poon. 2019. “MSWIBA-based cellular alkali-activated concrete incorporating waste glass powder.” Cem. Concr. Compos. 95 (Aug): 128–136. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cemconcomp.2018.10.018.
Yang, K. H., K. H. Lee, J. K. Song, and M. H. Gong. 2014. “Properties and sustainability of alkali-activated slag foamed concrete.” J. Cleaner Prod. 68: 226–233. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2013.12.068.
Zhang, Z., J. L. Provis, A. Reid, and H. Wang. 2015. “Mechanical, thermal insulation, thermal resistance and acoustic absorption properties of geopolymer foam concrete.” Cem. Concr. Compos. 62: 97–105. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cemconcomp.2015.03.013.
Information & Authors
Information
Published In
Copyright
© 2021 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Feb 15, 2020
Accepted: Sep 28, 2020
Published online: Feb 28, 2021
Published in print: May 1, 2021
Discussion open until: Jul 28, 2021
Authors
Metrics & Citations
Metrics
Citations
Download citation
If you have the appropriate software installed, you can download article citation data to the citation manager of your choice. Simply select your manager software from the list below and click Download.