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[Abstract:] In the construction industry, cement is the most widely used material. So, to achieve greater sustainability in this industry, it is imperative to improve the sustainability of this material. One way to reduce the ecological footprint of cement is to replace it, even if partially, with other more sustainable materials that can act as binders. This paper analyses the mechanical properties of more sustainable mortars containing recycled cement (RC), fly ash (FA), and magnesium oxide (MgO). Different types of binary, ternary, and quaternary mortars were used: containing recycled cement (5% and 10%), fly ash (10% and 20%), and MgO (7.5% and 15%). An experimental campaign was carried out analysing air content, density, compressive and flexural strengths, modulus of elasticity, and ultrasonic pulse velocity. The ternary mortars showed decreases between 0.4% (M-5RC10FA) and 35.3% (M-10RC15Mg) in terms of compressive strength at 365 days (compared to RM), when the theoretically expected decrease (the sum of the decreases obtained with the individual incorporation of these materials) would be between 16.6% and 41.5%, respectively. The results obtained allow for concluding that the joint use of these materials in ternary mortars improves the mechanical capacity, relative to the individual incorporation of each material in binary mortars.

[Abstract:] Rapid urbanisation causes a rise in the need for infrastructure, which in turn fuels the creation of additional concrete and further increases cement supplies. Activation of illite-based clay mineral and usage in concrete production is one of the sustainable ways to address the cement industry anthropogenic issues. This study evaluates the durability properties of water transport (water absorption, and capillary water absorption), and resistance to aggressive environments (5% solutions of hydrochloric acid, HCl; sodium sulphate, Na2SO4; and calcium chloride, CaCl2) of meta-illite calcined clay (MCC)-based high-performance concrete (HPC). For this purpose, concrete was produced with 5, 10, 15, 20, 25 and 30% MCC content in partial substitution of CEM II. Results from the water absorption tests indicate an average percentage value of 3.57%, 3.35% and 2.52% for all the observed mixes at 28, 56 and 90 days, respectively, with MCCC-10 HPC having an average best value of 2.23% across the curing ages. On all observed days, the 5 to 15% cement replacements had very close average water sorptivity value of 0.125 ± 0.001 mm/min0.5 with the control mix (0.113 ± 0.011 mm/min0.5). The aggressive environments exposure findings of the hardened MCC-based HPC specimens of 10 to 20% recorded an approximately 15% compressive strength loss in HCl, Na2SO4 and CaCl2 solutions over the 90 days of curing. In all, the HPC mixes of 5 to 15% MCC content obtained an average durability performance factor of 89%. As a result, these findings imply that MCC can replace cement in up to 15% of HPC production.

[Abstract:] Concrete is the most widely used construction material in the world; as such, the best way to promote a more sustainable construction industry is to improve the environmental performance of this material. Since cement production is the main source of the high environmental impact of concrete, due to the high calcination temperature that clinker requires, replacing this binder with recycled cement would allow for the establishment of a new concrete design with a much lower ecological footprint. This research intends to analyse the mechanical performance of mortars with recycled cement and fly ash. Mixes with two replacement ratios of recycled cement (5% and 10%) were studied separately or in combination with fly ash (10% and 20%). An exhaustive experimental programme was designed to assess the variation in air content, density, compressive and flexural strengths, modulus of elasticity, and ultrasonic pulse velocity. The results suggest that the simultaneous use of recycled cement and fly ash improves the mechanical performance of mortars relative to those with recycled cement only or fly ash only.

[Abstract:] Acceptance by the construction industry of recycled concrete as a sustainable alternative material is contingent upon a reliable assessment of its permeability to corrosive agents. This study analyses the transport mechanisms associated with chloride (Cl−), oxygen (O2) and carbon dioxide (CO2) ions in concrete with cement made with 10% or 25% ground recycled concrete (GRC) separately or in combination with 50% mixed recycled aggregate (MRA). The findings show that, irrespective of aggregate type, concrete with GRC exhibited lower resistance to ingress than conventional concrete due to its greater porosity. Nonetheless, O2 permeability was consistently below 4.5 × 10−17 m2 and CO2 penetration, under 4 mm/year0.5, indicative of concrete with high quality. Resistance to CO2 and Cl− penetration in the materials with 10% GRC was similar to the values observed in conventional concrete. On the other hand, the incorporation of 25% GRC increased the penetration of CO2 and Cl- by 106% and 38%, respectively. Further to those findings in normal carbonation environments, reinforcement passivity would be guaranteed in such recycled materials over a 100 year service life.

[Abstract:] The huge increase in production of construction and demolition waste (CDW) worldwide is leading to the valorisation of as recycled aggregates. One of the most promising alternatives is its use as a recycled aggregate in the manufacture of structural concrete, which motivates the study of the dynamic behaviour of these materials in order to ensure their suitability for use in elements subjected to dynamic loads. This work evaluated the resonant compressive fatigue behaviour of structural concretes with 25% or 50% recycled mixed aggregates, either individually or in combination with 25% recycled cement of clay-based materials both from CDW. All mixes were subjected to compressive fatigue tests using the accelerated Locati method. Regarding the fatigue limit, the results showed that for all mixes, it was between 30% and 45% of the compressive strength. In addition, a correlation was also found between the resonance frequency of the test and the deformation suffered by the specimen. This correlation enabled the estimation of the fatigue limit through a more stable parameter than the strain measured by strain gauges, namely, the resonance frequency. In addition, it was found that the resonance frequency of the test changed as the specimen damage increased. This observation enabled the estimation of the fatigue limit through a more stable parameter than the strain measured by strain gauges, namely, the resonance frequency.

[Abstract:] Increasing amounts of sustainable concretes are being used as society becomes more aware of the environment. This paper attempts to evaluate the properties of precast concrete elements formed with recycled coarse aggregate and low clinker content cement using recycled additions. To this end, six different mix proportions were characterized: a reference concrete; 2 concretes with 25%wt. and 50%wt. substitution of coarse aggregate made using mixed construction and demolition wastes; and others with recycled cement with low clinker content. The compressive strength, the elastic modulus, and the durability indicator decrease with the proportions of recycled aggregate replacing aggregate, and it is accentuated with the incorporation of recycled cement. However, all the precast elements tested show good performance with slight reduction in the mechanical properties. To confirm the appropriate behaviour of New Jersey precast barriers, a test that simulated the impact of a vehicle was carried out.

[Abstract:] This novel study was triggered by a lack in the international literature of the simultaneous use of ground recycled concrete (GRC) as a cement replacement and mixed recycled aggregate as part of the granular skeleton in recycled concrete. It explores the thermal behaviour of concrete mixes bearing 10 wt% or 25 wt% GRC as a cement replacement and 25 wt% or 50 wt% mixed recycled aggregate (MRA) sourced from construction and demolition waste (CDW). The experimental programme conducted assessed concrete’s dry density, open porosity, electrical and thermal conductivity and specific heat capacity. The findings showed that the use of 10% and 25% GRC, in conjunction with 50% MRA, reduced thermal conductivity by 7.9% to 11.8% and raised specific heat capacity by 6.0% to 9.1% relative to concrete with 100% natural aggregate (NA). A cross-property analysis revealed that improved thermal performance was linearly related to lower density and higher porosity. The results also support the conclusion that these new recycled aggregate concrete mixes are more energy-efficient construction materials than conventional concrete.

A full understanding of the characteristics of the granular skeleton comprising different percentages of conventional and recycled aggregates is requisite to the reusability of construction and demolition waste. This study analyzed the effect of partially replacing natural aggregate with recycled concrete (RCA) and mixed (RMA) aggregates on the performance of granular mixtures. Each type of aggregate was characterized physically, chemically, mineralogically, and mechanically, and the physical and mechanical properties of the mixtures were assessed. Correlations were established to predict the optimal mixture proportions. The recycled aggregates analyzed met most requirements laid down in the national legislation and complied with international recommendations. The mixtures exhibited a close linear correlation between the properties analyzed and the recycled aggregate replacement ratios. For concrete, the upper limit was 75% for RCA and RMA, and for the base and intermediate layers in medium/low traffic roads, 75% for RCA and 35% for RMA.

Dissociating economic growth from the use of natural resources is imperative to the sustainable development of the construction industry. The use of secondary raw materials by processing and managing construction and demolition waste (C&DW) is one of the major challenges to transition to a circular economy. This study assessed the effect of simultaneously using cement additioned with the ceramic (fired clay-based) fraction of C&DW and recycled mixed aggregate (RMA) in concrete manufacture by analysing fresh concrete workability, density and air content and hardened concrete compressive, flexural and splitting tensile strength. Regression and variance analyses were run on the findings to determine the effect of RMA and cement type and their interaction on the dependent variables. The percentage of RMA was observed to be the most significant determinant for concrete density and air content. Early age compressive strength was impacted by cement type, although strength in the later age materials was comparable to that of concrete manufactured with conventional cement. The combined effect of cement type and percentage of RMA appeared to have no significant effect on tensile or flexural strength. On the contrary, the differences observed in these properties were due to the separate effect of each factor. The findings showed that the use of cement containing C&DW additions and up to 50% RMA did not substantially compromise concrete performance.

El hormigón es un material poroso que puede ser atacado a lo largo de su vida de servicio por agentes físicos y químicos presentes en el medio, siendo especialmente relevante, en aquellas clases de exposición ambiental en las que existe la presencia de sulfatos, iones cloruro y dióxido de carbono que pueden penetrar en el interior del hormigón, bien en solución acuosa o en fase gaseosa, provocando el consiguiente daño. La permeabilidad al agua es considerada un índice de durabilidad que permite cuantificar la resistencia de una estructura a la penetración de agentes externos y su conocimiento es de especial relevancia, ya que el agua es uno es uno de los principales medios de transporte de estas sustancias en el interior del hormigón, además de encontrarse directamente relacionado con el ataque hielo-deshielo en los ambientes de clase de exposición H-F. En el presente trabajo de investigación se realiza un estudio comparativo del efecto que tiene la incorporación parcial (25% y 50% peso) de dos tipologías de áridos reciclados procedentes de los residuos de la construcción y demolición (hormigón y mixtos) en las propiedades permeables al agua de los nuevos hormigones reciclados diseñados. Para ello, se fabricaron probetas cilíndricas (15x30 cm y 10x20 cm) de hormigón, que posteriormente fueron curadas y sometidas a los ensayos de absorción total de agua y penetración de agua bajo presión. Los resultados obtenidos permiten concluir que la incorporación parcial de los áridos reciclados, independientemente de su naturaleza, no conllevan cambios sustanciales en los mecanismos de penetración de agua en las estructuras de hormigón reciclado.

The sustainable development policies presently in place, along with the Paris Agreement on climate change, are clear indications that economic growth must be made environmentally sustainable to ensure the transition from a linear to a circular economy. Given the large volumes of construction and demolition waste (C&DW) generated, which account for 30-35 % of the total in the European Union, this type of waste has come under particular scrutiny in today’s socio-economic context. This paper provides an overview of the types of recycled aggregate obtained in waste management plants sited in the Spanish region of Extremadura. The end products were characterized chemically, physically and mechanically to determine their compliance with the existing legal requirements on materials used in civil and building construction. The findings will serve as grounds for raising public awareness of the quality of these new aggregates, their potential use in construction and their contribution to sustainable development.