Variations in water quality and their impacts on mechanical properties and microstructure of cement-based building materials

Many developing nations have suffered from structural failures. Most researches on structural failures cite poor design, poorer material and lack of supervision. Not much attention has been paid on the water which is used in cement based building materials, namely, concrete/mortar mixing as a potential failure factor. This study analyses how water sources and mixing water composition affect concrete and mortar quality. Tap (TW), pond (PW), grey (GW) and municipal drain (DW) water were utilized to prepare the concrete/mortar, and the testing results were compared to that of the concrete/mortar material developed using tap or potable water. A one-way analysis of variance test at the 5% significance level was employed to statistically evaluate the effects of water qualities collected from various water sources on the mechanical properties of cement-based building materials produced from those sources. The results showed that the water quality parameters play a vital role on the cement based material properties. Further, the obtained results were supported by scanning electron microscopy and energy dispersive spectroscopy tests. In conclusion, the authors claim that the use of waste water in concrete/mortar is an ill-considered concept, whereas the study shows that the potential of using pond water as a sustainable alternative to tap water in the production concrete/mortar.