Geopolymer-Based Pavement Quality Concrete with Industrial Wastes: A Sustainable Approach

Abstract

Concrete pavements are essential in developing transportation systems and constitute a significant portion of the construction industry. They are generally made of pavement-quality concrete (PQC) designed to withstand continuous vehicle traffic loads. With the rise in demand for global transportation systems, the raw materials used in PQC are getting scarcer daily. Geopolymer concrete is an alternative that is being studied in the construction industry. The present study aimed to promote the use of geopolymer concrete as a sustainable alternative to PQC with different industrial wastes like fly ash (FA) and ground granulated blast furnace slag (GGBS) to replace cement as a binder. Four different mixes with varying molarities of activator solutions were studied for their compressive strength and surface morphology at 7 and 28 days. The mix containing 50% FA, 30% GGBS and 20% ordinary Portland cement with 16M alkaline solution concentration was found to have the highest compressive strength. A life cycle analysis was also conducted to compare it to the standard PQC mix. The emissions and global warming potential with the suggested mix are significantly less than those of its counterpart.