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On the classification of mixed construction and demolition waste aggregate by porosity and its impact on the mechanical performance of concrete

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Abstract

The properties of recycled aggregate produced from mixed (masonry and concrete) construction and demolition (C&D) waste are highly variable, and this restricts the use of such aggregate in structural concrete production. The development of classification techniques capable of reducing this variability is instrumental for quality control purposes and the production of high quality C&D aggregate. This paper investigates how the classification of C&D mixed coarse aggregate according to porosity influences the mechanical performance of concrete. Concretes using a variety of C&D aggregate porosity classes and different water/cement ratios were produced and the mechanical properties measured. For concretes produced with constant volume fractions of water, cement, natural sand and coarse aggregate from recycled mixed C&D waste, the compressive strength and Young modulus are direct exponential functions of the aggregate porosity. Sink and float technique is a simple laboratory density separation tool that facilitates the separation of cement particles with lower porosity, a difficult task when done only by visual sorting. For this experiment, separation using a 2.2 kg/dm³ suspension produced recycled aggregate (porosity less than 17%) which yielded good performance in concrete production. Industrial gravity separators may lead to the production of high quality recycled aggregate from mixed C&D waste for structural concrete applications.

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Acknowledgments

This research is supported by FINEP (Fundo Verde e Amarelo/Habitare), SINDUSCON-SP and FAPESP. SCA and VMJ acknowledge scholarships from CNPq and PMC from CAPES.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Instituto de Pesquisas Tecnológicas do Estado de São Paulo, Cidade Universitária, P.O. Box 0141, 01064-970, São Paulo, Brazil

    S. C. Angulo

  2. Department of Construction Engineering, Escola Politécnica, University of São Paulo, Av. Prof. Almeida Prado 83, 05508-900, São Paulo, Brazil

    P. M. Carrijo, A. D. Figueiredo & V. M. John

  3. Department of Mining Engineering, Escola Politécnica, University of São Paulo, Av. Prof. Mello Moraes 2373, 05508-900, São Paulo, Brazil

    A. P. Chaves

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  1. S. C. Angulo
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  2. P. M. Carrijo
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  3. A. D. Figueiredo
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  4. A. P. Chaves
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  5. V. M. John
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Correspondence to V. M. John.

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Angulo, S.C., Carrijo, P.M., Figueiredo, A.D. et al. On the classification of mixed construction and demolition waste aggregate by porosity and its impact on the mechanical performance of concrete. Mater Struct 43, 519–528 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1617/s11527-009-9508-9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1617/s11527-009-9508-9

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