Upcycling end-of-life bricks in high-performance one-part alkali-activated materials
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Published version
Author(s)
Type
Journal Article
Abstract
One-part alkali-activated materials (AAMs) can preserve natural resources and lower embodied carbon of the built environment by accommodating various wastes, industrial by-products, and end-of-life materials in their composition. This study investigates the feasibility of using end-of-life bricks in two physical states, powder and aggregate, to partially replace fly ash precursor and natural aggregate in AAMs, respectively. The mechanical characteristics, microstructure, water absorption, freeze-thaw and fire resistance of the modified AAMs were evaluated. The effect of adding different ratios of nano graphite platelets was also investigated. Results showed that brick-based one-part AAMs can achieve mechanical properties, pore structure, water absorption and freeze-thaw resistance comparable to fly ash-based AAM while having 65% better fire resistivity. Incorporating bricks as aggregate resulted in a maximum improvement of 17% and 27% in the AAMs' compressive and flexural strength levels, respectively, and a general enhancement in the freeze-thaw resistance with showing no reduction in compressive strength after exposure to elevated temperature. Incorporating 0.1 wt% nano-graphite further enhanced flexural strength by 30%, decreased water absorption by 18% and improved freeze-thaw resistance compared to the mix without nano-graphite. Moreover, adding up to 0.5% nano-graphite enhanced the fire resistivity of the composite, allowing it to exhibit 19% better strength performance than before exposure.
Date Issued
2023-12
Date Acceptance
2023-09-11
Citation
Developments in the Built Environment, 2023, 16, pp.1-15
ISSN
2666-1659
Publisher
Elsevier
Start Page
1
End Page
15
Journal / Book Title
Developments in the Built Environment
Volume
16
Copyright Statement
Crown Copyright © 2023 Published by Elsevier Ltd. This is an open access article under the CC BY license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
Identifier
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.dibe.2023.100231
Publication Status
Published
Article Number
100231
Date Publish Online
2023-09-14