Influences of macro polypropylene fibre-reinforced lightweight concrete incorporating recycled crushed LECA aggregate

The huge amount disposal of light expanded clay aggregate (LECA) had become a serious environmental issue across the globe which represents an immediate threat to the environment. One of the potential solutions is to incorporate these wastes into construction materials, mainly concrete. These waste materials are abundant and easily available. The addition of recycled crushed LECA creates void space in the concrete which helps in decreasing the density of concrete, and reducing the dead loads needed to be sustained for buildings. In this study, different volume fraction (0, 0.15, 0.3 and 0.45%) of macro polypropylene (MPP) fibre have been used to enhance the strength properties of lightweight concrete (LWC). The combination of lightweight LECA and MPP fibre have been used to achieve compressive strength between 25 to 40 MPa with a density ranged between 1800 to 2100 kg/m3. It is found that the addition of MPP fibres at an optimum volume fraction concrete enhances the compressive strength. Hence, the findings of this research revealed that it can be used as an alternative solution for concrete industry.