Materials and Structures (2008) 41:1191–1201
DOI 10.1617/s11527-007-9317-y
ORIGINAL ARTICLE
Influence of fly ash as a cement addition on the hardened
properties of recycled aggregate concrete
Shi Cong Kou Æ Chi Sun Poon Æ Dixon Chan
Received: 1 May 2007 / Accepted: 24 September 2007 / Published online: 19 October 2007

RILEM 2007
Abstract The effects of the use of Class F fly ash as
a cement addition on the hardened properties of
recycled aggregate concrete were determined. In this
study, four series of concrete mixtures were prepared
with water-to-cement (w/c) ratios of 0.55, 0.50, 0.45
and 0.40. The recycled aggregate was used as 0%,
20%, 50% and 100% replacements of coarse natural
aggregate. Furthermore, fly ash was employed as 0%
and 25% addition of cement. Although the use of
recycled aggregate had a negative effect on the
mechanical properties of concrete, it was found that
the addition of fly ash was able to mitigate this
detrimental effect. Also, the addition of fly ash
reduced the drying shrinkage and enhanced the
resistance to chloride ion penetration of concrete
prepared with recycled aggregate. Moreover, it was
found that the drying shrinkage and chloride ion
penetration decreased as the compressive strength
increased. Compared with the results of our previous
study, the present study has quantified the advantages
S. C. Kou
C. S. Poon (&)
D. Chan
Department of Civil and Structural Engineering, The
Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hung Hom,
Kowloon, Hong Kong
e-mail: cecspoon@polyu.edu.hk
S. C. Kou
e-mail: cesckou@polyu.edu.hk
D. Chan
e-mail: cechancw@polyu.edu.hk
of using fly ash as an additional cementitious material
in recycled aggregate concrete over the use of fly use
as a replacement of cement.
Keywords Chloride ion penetration

Drying shrinkage
Fly ash
Mechanical properties

Recycled aggregate
1 Introduction
This paper forms part of a continuous study on the
influence of fly ash on the hardened properties of
recycled aggregate concrete. In our previous study [1],
the effects of fly ash as a cement substitution on the
hardened properties of recycled aggregate concrete
were reported. Before the curing age of 28 day, fly ash
as a replacement of cement generally decreased the
compressive strength, tensile splitting strength and
elastic modulus. However, the partial replacement of
cement by fly ash reduced the drying shrinkage and
creep and enhanced the resistance to chloride ion
penetration of recycled aggregate concrete.
The influence of using coarse recycled aggregate
as a replacement of natural aggregate have been well
documented in the literature [2–10]. The properties of
concrete prepared with recycled aggregate are gen-
erally inferior to those of conventional concrete.
Nevertheless, the drawbacks of using recycled aggre-
gate could be ameliorated by employing a lower
water-to-cement (w/c) ratio and using fly ash as a
1192 Materials and Structures (2008) 41:1191–1201

Table 1 Chemical
Materials Composition (%)
composition of cement and
fly ash LOI SiO2 Fe2O3 Al2O3 CaO MgO SO3

Cement 2.97 19.61 3.32 7.33 63.15 2.54 2.13

Fly ash 3.90 56.79 5.31 28.21 \3 5.21 0.68

mineral admixture in the mix design [1]. Although fly
ash is commonly used as a cement replacement,
Siddique [11] studied the influence of using Class F
fly ash as sand replacement (i.e. as an additional
cementitious material) on the mechanical properties
concrete. The results indicated that, when sand was
replaced by fly ash, the compressive strength, tensile
splitting strength, flexural strength and elastic mod-
ulus of concrete specimens were all higher than those
of concrete without fly ash addition. Furthermore, the
mechanical properties of concrete continued to gain
strength with age at all fly ash addition levels.
This paper, the second part of the same study,
presents the influence of fly ash, when used as an
addition of cement, on the hardened properties of
recycled aggregate concrete. Four series of concrete
mixtures were prepared with water-to-cement (w/c)
ratios of 0.55, 0.50, 0.45 and 0.40. In each series,
coarse recycled aggregate was used as 0%, 20%, 50%
and 100% replacements of coarse natural aggregate.
Furthermore, fly ash was used as a 25% by weight
addition of cement for every recycled aggregate
replacement level.
Table 2 Physical properties of cement and fly ash
Properties Materials
Cement
Density (g/cm3) 3.16
Specific surface area (cm2/g) 3519.5
2 Experimental details
2.1 Materials
2.1.1 Cement and fly ash
ASTM Type I Portland cement and ASTM Class F
low-calcium fly ash were used in the concrete
mixtures. The chemical and physical properties of
cement and fly ash are given in Tables 1 and 2,
respectively.
2.1.2 Aggregates
Natural and recycled aggregates were used as the
coarse aggregate in the concrete mixtures. In this
study, crushed granite was used as the natural
aggregate and recycled aggregate sourced from a
recycling facility in Hong Kong was used. The
nominal sizes of the natural and recycled coarse
aggregates were 20 and 10 mm and their particle size
distributions conformed to the requirements of BS
882 [12]. The physical and mechanical properties of
the coarse aggregate are shown in Table 3. River
sand was used as the fine aggregate in the concrete
mixtures.
Fly ash 2.1.3 Superplasticizer
2.31
For the concrete mixtures in Series II–IV, a sulfo-
3960
nated naphthalene formaldehyde condensate (Darex

Table 3 Properties of
Type Nominal size Density Water Strength— MIP
natural and recycled
(mm) (kg/m3) absorption (%) 10% porosity (%)
aggregates
fines
value (kN)

Natural aggregate 10 2620 1.12 159 1.62

20 2620 1.11
Recycled aggregate 10 2490 4.26 126 8.69
20 2570 3.52
Materials and Structures (2008) 41:1191–1201 1193

Super 20) of Grace Construction Products was used.
This superplasticizer was available as a dark-brown
40–42% solids aqueous solution with a density of
1,210 kg/m3.
concrete mixtures, the 10 and 20 mm coarse aggre-
gates were used in a ratio of 1:2.
2.3 Specimens casting and curing

2.2 Concrete mixtures For each concrete mixture, 100 mm cubes,

A total of four series of concrete mixtures was prepared
in the laboratory. The concrete mixtures were prepared
with water-to-cement (w/c) ratios of 0.55, 0.50, 0.45
and 0.40 in Series I, II, III and IV, respectively. In each
series, recycled aggregate was used as 0%, 20%, 50%
and 100% replacements of the natural coarse aggregate
and fly ash was incorporated as a 25% by weight
addition of cement. The absolute volume method was
adopted to design the mix proportions of the concrete
mixtures in all Series are shown in Tables 4–7. In the
70 · 70 · 285 mm prisms, and 100[ · 200 mm
cylinders were cast. The cubes and prisms were used
to determine the compressive strength and drying
shrinkage respectively. The 100[ · 200 mm cylin-
ders were used to evaluate the tensile splitting
strength, static modulus of elasticity and resistance
to chloride ion penetration of concrete.
All the specimens were cast in steel moulds and
compacted using a vibration table. Three cubes were
immediately used after demolding at 24 h to measure
the 1-day compressive strength. The rest of the

Table 4 Mix proportions of concrete mixtures in Series I (w/c = 0.55)

Notation Fly ash (%) Recycled Constituents (kg/m3) SP (l/m3)
aggregate (%)
Water Total cementitious Sand Granite Recycled
material aggregate

R0 0 0 225 410 642 1048 0 –

R20 0 20 225 410 642 840 204 –
R50 0 50 225 410 642 524 506 –
R100 0 100 225 410 642 0 1017 –
R0 F25 25 0 225 512.5 582 992 0 –
R20F25 25 20 225 512.5 582 794 193 –
R50F25 25 50 225 512.5 582 496 482 –
R100F25 25 100 225 512.5 582 0 963 –

Table 5 Mix proportions of concrete mixtures in Series II (w/c = 0.50)

Notation Fly ash (%) Recycled Constituents (kg/m3) SP (l/m3)
aggregate (%)
Water Total cementitious Sand Granite Recycled
material aggregate

R0 0 0 205 410 662 1081 0 –

R20 0 20 205 410 662 865 210 –
R50 0 50 205 410 662 541 525 –
R100 0 100 205 410 662 0 1049 –
R0F25 25 0 205 512.5 618 1009 0 1.8
R20F25 25 20 205 512.5 618 802 196 1.8
R50F25 25 50 205 512.5 618 505 489 1.8
R100F25 25 100 205 512.5 618 0 979 1.8
1194 Materials and Structures (2008) 41:1191–1201

Table 6 Mix proportions of concrete mixtures in Series III (w/c = 0.45)

Notation Fly ash (%) Recycled Constituents (kg/m3) SP (l/m3)
aggregate (%)
Water Total cementitious Sand Granite Recycled
material aggregate

R0 0 0 180 400 708 1108 0 5.6

R20 0 20 180 400 708 886 215 5.6
R50 0 50 180 400 708 554 538 5.6
R100 0 100 180 400 708 0 1075 5.6
R0F25 25 0 180 500 665 1040 0 6.8
R20F25 25 20 180 500 665 808 202 6.8
R50F25 25 50 180 500 665 520 504 6.8
R100F25 25 100 180 500 665 0 1009 6.8

Table 7 Mix proportions of concrete mixtures in Series IV (w/c = 0.40)

Notation Fly ash (%) Recycled aggregate (%) Constituents (kg/m3) SP (l/m3)
Water Total cementitious material Sand Granite Recycled aggregate

R0 0 0 160 400 729 1140 0 7.8

R20 0 20 160 400 729 912 221 7.8
R50 0 50 160 400 729 570 554 7.8
R100 0 100 160 400 729 0 1107 7.8
R0F25 25 0 160 500 685 1071 0 8.6
R20F25 25 20 160 500 685 814 208 8.6
R50F25 25 50 160 500 685 536 520 8.6
R100F25 25 100 160 500 685 0 1040 8.6

specimens were cured in a water-curing tank at 27 ± 2.4.2 Static modulus of elasticity

1C until the age of testing.
2.4 Tests
2.4.1 Compressive and tensile splitting strengths
The compressive and splitting tensile strengths of
concrete were determined using a Denison compres-
sion machine with a loading capacity of 3,000 kN.
The loading rates applied in the compressive and
splitting tensile tests were 200 and 57 kN/min,
respectively. The compressive strength was measured
at the ages of 4, 7, 28 and 90 days while the tensile
splitting strength was only measured at 90 days.
The static modulus of elasticity of concrete was
determined in accordance with ASTM C 469 [13].
This test was carried out on the concrete specimens at
the ages of 28 and 90 days.
2.4.3 Drying shrinkage
A modified British Method (BS1881, part 5: 1970) was
used for the test. After removing the concrete prisms
from the curing tank, the initial length of each
specimen was measured. The specimens were then
stored in an environmental chamber with a temperature
of 55C and a relative humidity of 95% until the next
measurements at 1, 4, 7, 28, 56, 90 and 112 days.
Materials and Structures (2008) 41:1191–1201 1195

2.4.4 Chloride ion penetrability 3.1 Compressive strength

The chloride penetrability of concrete was deter-
mined in accordance with ASTM C1202 [14] using a
50 mm thick · 100[ mm concrete disc cut from
the 100[ · 200 mm concrete cylinder. The disc
specimens were fixed between two cells containing
ionic solutions. One of the cells was filled with 0.3 M
NaOH solution and the other with 3.0% NaCl
solution whilst a 60 V DC was applied between the
two cells. The resistance of concrete to chloride ion
penetration is represented by the total charge passed
in coulombs during a test period of 6 h. In this study,
the chloride ion penetrability test was carried out on
the concrete specimens at the ages of 28 and 90 days.
3 Results and discussion
Unless otherwise specified, the results presented in
this paper are the mean values of three measurements.
The compressive strengths of the concrete mixtures
in Series I–IV are summarized in Tables 8–11. As
the recycled aggregate content increased from 0% to
100%, the compressive strength decreased accord-
ingly. The corresponding reduction in the 28-day
strength for the concrete mixtures in Series I, II, III
and IV was 22%, 20%, 23% and 19, respectively.
However, the reduction in strength can be either
compensated by a decrease in the w/c ratio or with
the use of fly ash as an additional cementitious
material as shown in Fig. 1. For example, if a
concrete strength of 66 MPa is needed, the concrete
could have a w/c ratio of 0.45 without fly ash and a
recycled aggregate content of about 6%. Alterna-
tively, the recycled aggregate content could be
increased from 6% to 33% by adding fly ash as
25% by weight of cement. If a higher recycled
aggregate content is preferred (i.e. 50%), the w/c

Table 8 Compressive strength of the concrete mixtures in Series I (w/c = 0.55)

Notation Fly ash (%) Recycled W/B Compressive strength (MPa)
aggregate (%)
1-day 4-day 7-day 28-day 90-day

R0 0 0 0.55 12.8 23.3 30.2 48.6 52.7

R20 0 20 0.55 11.9 22.4 29.1 45.3 50.8
R50 0 50 0.55 11.6 21.8 27.6 42.5 49.5
R100 0 100 0.55 10.2 18.6 24.4 38.1 45.5
R0F25 25 0 0.44 15.6 30.4 38.8 52.9 43.6a 68.8 57.9a
R20F25 25 20 0.44 14.8 29.5 37.9 50.1 42.8a 65.9 57.3a
a
R50F25 25 50 0.44 14.1 28.4 37.0 48.1 41.7 63.7 53.4a
a
R100F25 25 100 0.44 16.3 29.0 36.3 45.3 36.8 65.4 50.1a
a
Fly ash was used as a replacement of cement [1]

Table 9 Compressive strength of the concrete mixtures in Series II (w/c = 0.50)

Notation Fly ash (%) Recycled W/B Compressive strength (MPa)
aggregate (%)
1-day 4-day 7-day 28-day 90-day

R0 0 0 0.50 20.5 36.2 42.8 54.1 57.6

R20 0 20 0.50 18.5 35.5 39.2 51.7 55.8
R50 0 50 0.50 16.7 31.1 38.4 47.1 53.6
R100 0 100 0.50 13.9 23.1 31.8 43.4 50.7
R0F25 25 0 0.40 22.5 37.6 43.0 57.6 72.8
R20F25 25 20 0.40 21.0 35.4 42.2 55.8 71.4
R50F25 25 50 0.40 20.0 34.7 41.9 52.5 71.0
R100F25 25 100 0.40 16.5 33.5 39.5 51.2 71.5
1196 Materials and Structures (2008) 41:1191–1201

Table 10 Compressive strength of the concrete mixtures in Series III (w/c = 0.45)
Notation Fly ash (%) Recycled W/B Compressive strength (MPa)
aggregate (%)
1-day 4-day 7-day 28-day 90-day

R0 0 0 0.45 25.8 45.8 53.7 66.8 72.3

R20 0 20 0.45 23.6 43.2 51.2 62.4 68.0
R50 0 50 0.45 21.1 40.3 49.8 56.8 61.5
R100 0 100 0.45 15.5 26.8 36.2 52.1 57.2
R0F25 25 0 0.36 24.7 45.5 53.5 70.1 54.4a 85.2 69.0a
a
R20F25 25 20 0.36 24.1 45.1 52.0 67.3 49.7 80.2 68.7a
a
R50F25 25 50 0.36 23.2 44.9 49.7 63.4 44.3 74.4 65.2a
R100F25 25 100 0.36 21.5 42.8 47.1 61.1 39.5a 70.9 52.3a
a
Fly ash was used as a replacement of cement [1]

Table 11 Compressive strength of the concrete mixtures in Series IV (w/c = 0.40)

Notation Fly ash (%) Recycled W/B Compressive strength (MPa)
aggregate (%)
1-day 4-day 7-day 28-day 90-day

R0 0 0 0.40 30.8 49.4 57.1 72.3 78.1

R20 0 20 0.40 28.6 47.6 55.2 69.6 75.2
R50 0 50 0.40 25.3 45.1 53.3 65.3 71.6
R100 0 100 0.40 21.5 36.4 45.4 58.5 64.5
R0F25 25 0 0.32 27.4 53.3 59.3 76.7 82.1
R20F25 25 20 0.32 23.6 50.1 57.2 73.9 81.4
R50F25 25 50 0.32 22.1 48.7 54.4 70.1 80.1
R100F25 25 100 0.32 20.9 45.4 50.9 68.7 82.6

Fig. 1 28-day compressive 90

28-day compressive strength (MPa)

w/c = 0.55 w/c = 0.55 (with fly ash)

strength of concrete w/c = 0.50 w/c = 0.50 (with fly ash)
mixtures prepared with 80 w/c = 0.45 w/c = 0.45 (with fly ash)
w/c = 0.40 w/c = 0.40 (with fly ash)
different w/c ratios and
recycled aggregate 70
replacement levels
60

50

40

30
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100 110
Recycled aggregate replacement level (%)

ratio could to be reduced from 0.45 to 0.4 but no mixtures prepared without fly ash. The larger increase
additional fly ash is required. was mainly attributed to the pozzolanic reaction of
Furthermore, when fly ash was added, the gain in the fly ash particles. These results are similar to those
strength of all the concrete mixtures between 28 and of Siddique [11] who reported that, when fly ash was
90 days was greater than that of the concrete used as an addition of cement (i.e. 28% by weight of
Materials and Structures (2008) 41:1191–1201 1197

cement) in concrete, there was a 23% gain in strength
from 28 to 91 days compared to the 17% when no fly
ash was added.
Tables 8 and 10 also show the compressive
strength results of similar concrete mixes that were
prepared with fly ash used as a replacement of cement
obtained from our previous study [1]. The compar-
ison clearly demonstrates the benefits of using fly ash
as an addition over as a replacement in preparing
recycled aggregate concretes.
3.2 Tensile splitting strength
The 90-day tensile splitting strengths for the concrete
mixtures in all mix series are shown in Table 12.
Similar to the results of the compressive strength, the
tensile splitting strength decreased with an increase in
the recycled aggregate content. The 90-day tensile
strength of concrete prepared with 100% recycled
aggregates was 12%, 10%, 9% and 10% lower than
that of the conventional concrete in Series I, II, III
and IV, respectively. When fly ash was incorporated
as an additional cementitious material, the splitting
tensile strength of the concrete mixtures prepared
with 100% recycled aggregates increased by 3%, 6%,
8% and 8%, respectively, in Series I, II, III, and IV
compared to that without fly ash. The increase in the
tensile splitting strength with fly ash could be
attributed to the pozzolanic reaction of fly ash and
the possible reduction in porosity as a result of the
densification effect of the fine fly ash particles.
Similar to the discussion on compressive strength,
Table 12 also demonstrates the advantages of using
fly ash as an addition over as a replacement on
increasing the splitting tensile strength.
3.3 Modulus of elasticity
The modulus of elasticity measured at 28 and 90 days
are shown in Figs. 2 and 3, respectively. The elastic
modulus generally decreased with an increase in the
recycled aggregate content but increased with a
decrease in the w/c ratio or with an increase in the
curing age. The addition of fly ash also increased the
elastic modulus of the concrete mixtures in all mix
series. The corresponding increase of the 28-day
elastic modulus was 10%, 9%, 14% and 14% for the
concrete mixes prepared with 100% recycled aggre-
gate in Series I, II, III and IV, respectively. The
relationship between the compressive strength and
elastic modulus was established as shown in Fig. 4.
The equation suggested by ACI 363R-92 (Ec = 3300
f0.5
c + 6900) for estimating the elastic modulus in
terms of compressive strength is also shown. It is
clear that the ACI equation slightly overestimates the
elastic modulus of concrete prepared with recycled
aggregates.
3.4 Drying shrinkage
The drying shrinkage measured at 112 days is shown
in Fig. 5. It was clear that the drying shrinkage of
concrete mixtures increased with an increase in the

Table 12 90-day tensile splitting strength of the concrete mixtures in Series I–IV
Notation Fly ash (%) Recycled Tensile splitting strength (MPa)
aggregate (%)
Series I Series II Series III Series IV
(w/c = 0.55) (w/c = 0.50) (w/c = 0.45) (w/c = 0.40)

R0 0 0 3.68 3.79 3.84 4.16

R20 0 20 3.56 3.64 3.72 4.12
R50 0 50 3.43 3.58 3.67 3.97
R100 0 100 3.25 3.41 3.49 3.76
R0F25 25 0 3.77 3.42a 3.91 4.34 3.50a 4.96
a a
R20F25 25 20 3.56 3.28 3.84 4.01 3.21 4.34
R50F25 25 50 3.41 3.22a 3.75 3.83 3.16a 4.18
R100F25 25 100 3.35 2.79a 3.63 3.77 2.99a 4.05
a
Fly ash was used as a replacement of cement [1]
1198 Materials and Structures (2008) 41:1191–1201

Fig. 2 28-day static elastic 40

w/c = 0.55 w/c = 0.50 w/c = 0.45 w/c = 0.40
modulus of the concrete
35

Static elastic modulus (GPa)

mixtures
30

25

20

15

10

0
R0 R20 R50 R100 R0F25 R20F25 R50F25 R100F25
Mixtures

Fig. 3 90-day static elastic 40

w/c = 0.55 w/c = 0.50 w/c = 0.45 w/c = 0.40
modulus of the concrete
mixtures 35
Static elastic modulus (GPa)

30

25

20

15

10

0
R0 R20 R50 R100 R0F25 R20F25 R50F25 R100F25
Mixtures

40
Nevertheless, the increased drying shrinkage could be
28-day static elastic modulus (GPa)

38
36
practically ameliorated by a decrease in the w/c ratio
ACI 363R-92
34 Ec = 3300 fc(0.5)+6900 or employing fly ash as an additional cementitious
32 material. When the w/c ratio was decreased from 0.55
30 to 0.40, the drying shrinkage of the concrete prepared
28 y = 5.7754x0.4086
2
without fly ash and with 0%, 20%, 50% and 100%
26 R = 0.7207

24
recycled aggregate decreased by 20%, 21%, 19% and
22 23%, respectively. On the other hand, for concrete
20 with a w/c ratio of 0.55, the addition of fly ash
30 40 50 60 70 80 90
28-day compressive strength (MPa)
reduced the drying shrinkage of concrete prepared
with 0%, 20%, 50% and 100% recycled aggregate by
Fig. 4 Relationship between 28-day compressive strength and 14%, 13%, 10% and 7%, respectively. The results
28-day elastic modulus
indicated that reducing the w/c ratio from 0.55 to 0.40
was a more effective way to mitigate the drying
recycled aggregate content. The mortar adhered to the shrinkage compared to 25% fly ash by weight
recycled aggregate contributed to an increase in the addition of cement. Since reducing the w/c ratio or
volume of the total paste (old + new), thus increasing adding fly ash in proportioning concrete mixtures
the drying shrinkage of the resulting concrete [15]. basically increased the compressive strength of
Materials and Structures (2008) 41:1191–1201 1199

Fig. 5 Drying shrinkage of 600

w/c = 0.55 w/c = 0.50 w/c = 0.45 w/c = 0.40
the concrete mixtures at
112 days
500

Dry in g sh rin k ag e (x 1 0-6)

400

300

200

100

0
R0 R20 R50 R100 R0F25 R20F25 R50F25 R100F25
Mixtures

concrete, a negative relationship between compres- A significant increase in the resistance to chloride
sive strength and drying shrinkage is therefore ion penetration was resulted when the w/c ratio
established (Fig. 6). This relationship is in good decreased from 0.55 to 0.40. A 53% decrease in the
agreement with the findings by Howells et al. [16] total charge passed measured at 28 days was
who concluded that compressive strength is one of observed for concrete with 100% recycled aggregate
the two most influential parameters affecting the when the w/c ratio dropped from 0.55 to 0.40.
drying shrinkage of concrete. Furthermore, the addition of fly ash significantly
decreased the chloride ion penetration. The formation
of more hydration products as fly ash hydrated might
3.5 Chloride ion penetrability block the ingress path of chloride ions, thus enhanc-
ing the resistance to penetration [18]. The
The chloride ion penetrability of the concrete mix- improvement in the resistance to chloride ion pene-
tures measured at 28 and 90 days is shown in Figs. 7 tration would be further enhanced for concretes with
and 8, respectively. The resistance to chloride ion lower w/c ratios together with the addition of fly ash.
penetration improved as the curing age increased For example, for concrete with 100% recycled
from 28 to 90 days due to the increase in degree of aggregate, the reduction of w/c ratio from 0.55 to
hydration [17]. But a slight increase in chloride ion 0.40 along with the 25% addition of fly ash reduced
penetration was observed when the recycled aggre- the total charge passed from 6,905 to 1,305 Cou-
gate content increased from 0% to 100% due to the lombs, corresponding to an improvement of 81%.
porous nature of the recycled aggregates. Figure 9 shows the comparison of the total charge
passed in coulombs of the concrete mixtures prepared
100 with fly ash used as addition and a replacement of
90
cement at 28 days for concrete mixed prepared with
Compressive strength (MPa)

y = -0.1244x + 117.32
2
R = 0.5884 W/B of 0.55 and 0.45. Again it clearly shows the
80
beneficial effect of using fly ash as an addition.
70

60 y = -0.1212x + 106.25
2
R = 0.6323
50
28 day
4 Conclusions
40 90 day

30
This paper attempts to study influence of fly ash as a
50 100 150 200 250 300 350 400 450 500 550 600 cement addition on the properties of recycled aggre-
Drying shrinkage (x10-6)
gate concrete. Based on the results of the research,
Fig. 6 Relationship between strength and drying shrinkage the following conclusions can be drawn:
1200 Materials and Structures (2008) 41:1191–1201

Fig. 7 Chloride 8000

penetrability of the concrete w/c = 0.55 w/c = 0.50 w/c = 0.45 w/c = 0.40
mixtures at 28 days 7000

Total charge passed (Coulombs)

6000

5000

4000

3000

2000

1000

0
R0 R20 R50 R100 R0F25 R20F25 R50F25 R100F25
Mixtures

Fig. 8 Chloride 7000

penetrability of the concrete w/c = 0.55 w/c = 0.50 w/c = 0.45 w/c = 0.40
mixtures at 90 days 6000
Total charge passed (Coulombs)

5000

4000

3000

2000

1000

0
R0 R20 R50 R100 R0F25 R20F25 R50F25 R100F25
Mixtures

Fig. 9 Comparison of 28- 6000

day chloride ion penetration 0.55
of the concrete mixtures 0.45
5000
prepared with fly ash was
Total charge passed (Coulombs)

used as an addition (a-

RxF25) and a replacement 4000
(r-RxF25) of cement
3000

2000

1000

0
a-R0F25 a-R20F25 a-R50F25 a-R100F25 r-R0F25 r-R20F25 r-R50F25 r-R100F25
Mixtures
Materials and Structures (2008) 41:1191–1201
1. The incorporation of recycled aggregate reduced
the compressive and tensile splitting strengths of
concrete. However, the drawback could be
compensated by a combination of the use of a
lower w/c ratio and fly ash as an addition of
cement.
2. Although the use of recycled aggregate
decreased the elastic modulus, the addition of
fly ash could be used to offset this detrimental
effect.
3. ACI equation slightly overestimates the elastic
modulus of recycled aggregate concrete.
4. It was found that the use of a low w/c ratio or fly
ash as an addition of cement is a good way to
reduce the potential high drying shrinkage of
concrete prepared with recycled aggregate.
5. Drying shrinkage of recycled aggregate concrete
tended to decrease with an increase in compres-
sive strength.
6. Reducing the w/c ratio from 0.55 to 0.40 was a
more effective way to mitigate the drying
shrinkage of concrete compared to adding 25%
fly ash in the concrete mix.
7. Chloride ion penetration could be significantly
minimized with a proper mix design. Concrete,
which had a low w/c ratio and used fly ash as an
addition of cement, had much better resistance to
chloride ion penetration compared to that with
high w/c ratio and without fly ash addition.
8. The study has quantified the advantages of using
fly ash as an additional cementitious material in
recycled aggregate concrete over the use of fly
ash as a replacement of cement.
Acknowledgements The authors would like to thank the
Environment and Conservation Fund, the Woo Wheelock
Green Fund and the Hong Kong Polytechnic University for
funding support.
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