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Alkali-Activated Concrete: A State of Art

A special issue of Sustainability (ISSN 2071-1050). This special issue belongs to the section "Sustainable Materials".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 December 2021) | Viewed by 2692

Special Issue Editors

Department of the Built Environment, College of Design and Engineering, National University of Singapore, Singapore 117566, Singapore
Interests: sustainable construction materials; waste management; concrete technology
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Department of Civil Engineering, College of Engineering, Al-Muthanna University, Samawah 66001, Iraq
Interests: concrete technology; structural analysis; structural stability; composites
Department of Civil Engineering, Iraq University College (IUC), Basrah 61002, Iraq
Interests: concrete durability; steel corrosion; nanomaterials

Special Issue Information

Dear colleagues,

Nowadays, alkali-activated binders-based industrial and agricultural wastes have been introduced as environmental friendly materials with high durability performance. The Special Issue on " Alkali-Activated Concrete: A State of Art " focuses on the preparation and characterization of free cement concrete incorporating waste materials that should find use in specific engineering applications, especially in the building industry. It is worth noting that millions of tons of natural, industrial and agriculture wastes such as FA, coal and oil-burning by-products, bottom ash, palm-oil fuel ash (POFA), bagasse ash (BA), used tires, dust from cement, marble and crushed stone and waste ceramic materials are dumped in landfills every year. These waste materials cause severe ecological setbacks such as air contamination and leach out of hazardous substances. Using these wastes in alkali-activated concrete is a key part of decreasing present-day waste. The alkali-activated concrete industry saves natural resources and has a positive influence on cost savings and environmental protection. The behaviour of the proposed alkali-activated concrete is influenced by the preparation method, binder chemical composition, molarity and the modulus of the alkaline activator solution. Finally, the ratio of binder to aggregates, alkaline solution to binder and curing method are considered the main factors effect on alkali-activated mix design.

This first Special Issue is considered to reflect the current state-of-the-art and new developments on the relevant topics that characterize the research field of “Alkali-Activated Concrete”. A wide range of research results on various topics that are contributing to an enhancement of the environmental footprint is expected. Collected topics, from an interdisciplinary, multiscale, synergistic, holistic, etc. viewpoint, are aimed at providing a resourceful background for readers, addressing the current state of research and innovation on the alkali-activated concrete industry. The focus will be on:

  1. Developing an understanding of the alkali-activated concrete industry;
  2. Mix design of alkali-activated concrete;
  3. Materials-based alkali-activated binders;
  4. Difference between alkali-activated, geopolymer and traditional concrete;
  5. Strength and durability performance of the proposed concrete;
  6. Development of the microstructure and properties of alkali-activated materials;
  7. Life cycle assessment of alkali-activated concrete and the environmental benefits;
  8. Lightweight alkali-activated concrete;
  9. Self-compacting alkali-activated concrete;
  10. Fibered high-strength alkali-activated concrete;
  11. Structural applications of alkali-activated concrete;
  12. Novel methods for the numerical modelling of alkali-activated concrete structures and elements.

Dr. Ghasan Fahim Huseien
Dr. Ziyad Kubba
Dr. Mohammad Ali Asaad
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Sustainability is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • sustainable building materials
  • waste management
  • high-performance concrete
  • mix design
  • binder chemical composition
  • durability
  • microstructure properties
  • life cycle assessment
  • structural applications of high-performance concrete
  • health assessment
  • artificial neural network
  • numerical modelling

Published Papers (1 paper)

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Research

27 pages, 10968 KiB  
Article
Drying Shrinkage, Sulphuric Acid and Sulphate Resistance of High-Volume Palm Oil Fuel Ash-Included Alkali-Activated Mortars
by Ghasan Fahim Huseien, Mohammad Ali Asaad, Aref A. Abadel, Sib Krishna Ghoshal, Hussein K. Hamzah, Omrane Benjeddou and Jahangir Mirza
Sustainability 2022, 14(1), 498; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/su14010498 - 04 Jan 2022
Cited by 10 | Viewed by 2241
Abstract
Nowadays, an alkali-activated binder has become an emergent sustainable construction material as an alternative to traditional cement and geopolymer binders. However, high drying shrinkage and low durability performance in aggressive environments such as sulphuric acid and sulphate are the main problems of alkali-activated [...] Read more.
Nowadays, an alkali-activated binder has become an emergent sustainable construction material as an alternative to traditional cement and geopolymer binders. However, high drying shrinkage and low durability performance in aggressive environments such as sulphuric acid and sulphate are the main problems of alkali-activated paste, mortar and concrete. Based on these factors, alkali-activated mortar (AAM) binders incorporating high-volume palm oil fuel ash (POFA), ground blast furnace slag (GBFS) and fly ash (FA) were designed to enhance their durability performance against aggressive environments. The compressive strength, drying shrinkage, loss in strength and weight, as well as the microstructures of these AAMs were evaluated after exposure to acid and sulphate solutions. Mortars made with a high volume of POFA showed an improved durability performance with reduced drying shrinkage compared to the control sample. Regarding the resistance against aggressive environments, AAMs with POFA content increasing from 0 to 70% showed a reduced loss in strength from 35 to 9% when subjected to an acid attack, respectively. Additionally, the results indicated that high-volume POFA binders with an increasing FA content as a GBFS replacement could improve the performance of the proposed mortars in terms of durability. It is asserted that POFA can significantly contribute to the cement-free industry, thus mitigating environmental problems such as carbon dioxide emission and landfill risks. Furthermore, the use of POFA can increase the lifespan of construction materials through a reduction in the deterioration resulting from shrinkage problems and aggressive environment attacks. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Alkali-Activated Concrete: A State of Art)
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