SHORT-TERM DURABILITY OF RECYCLED AGGREGATE CONCRETE

(A Case of Curing in Salty Water Media)

Efe Ewaen Ikponmwosa1, Oladipo Olasupo O1.
1
Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering University of Lagos, Akoka, Lagos, Nigeria.

Authors’ Contributions
This work was carried out under the supervision of author EEI.
Author EEI specified and supervised the laboratory works and reviewed the results of experiments. Author
EEI reviewed the literature search and gave guidelines for drafting of the manuscript.
Author OOO managed the experimental process, analyzed the results of the study and writing of the
manuscript. Author OOO carried out literature research on the study while author EEI managed all reviewers’
comments and queries. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

ABSTRACT
This research work examined the short-term durability properties of Recycled Aggregate Concrete (RAC)
compared to Natural Aggregate Concrete (NAC) when exposed to salty water media during the curing period.
Compressive strength, splitting tensile strength, and water absorption were used as indices of short-term
durability.
RAC and NAC concrete samples with 1:2:4 mix ratio and 0.5 water/cement ratio were cast into concrete
specimens which were then cured in portable water, lagoon water (about 40g/l), and brine water (100g/l) for a
period of 28days. RAC had a replacement ratio of 50% of the coarse aggregate only. The recycled aggregates
were sourced locally from University of Lagos Campus. Compressive strength and water absorption tests were
carried out on 150mm x 150mm x 150mm concrete cubes at 7, 14, 21, and 28days of curing. Splitting tensile
test was carried out on 17673.75mm2 x 300mm cylinders on the 28th day of curing.
RAC in brine yielded 81.73% of the strength of NAC in portable water on the 28th day - a least value of
17.01N/mm2 was recorded in brine as against 21.07N/mm2 of the natural control concrete and with respect to
20.0N/mm2 required in cp110. The result also showed a gentle decline of compressive strength with increased
concentration with of salty water.
There was no clear relationship between water absorption and corresponding compressive strength during the
curing period.
Splitting tensile strength for RAC and NAC were similar across curing media on the 28th day of curing.

Keywords: Short-term durability; Recycled Aggregate Concrete (RAC); Recycled Concrete Aggregate
(RCA); Natural Aggregate Concrete (NAC); Natural Aggregate (NA); compressive strength; splitting tensile
strength; water absorption, salinity.

1
1.0 INTRODUCTION

The sourcing of aggregates for new concrete construction as well as the disposal of demolished concrete
pose a negative impact on the environment.
A possible solution to this problem has been to reuse and recycle demolished concrete to produce an alternative
aggregate which replaces aggregates in Natural Aggregate Concrete (NAC) or Virgin Aggregate Concrete
(VAC) to produce Recycled Aggregate Concrete (RAC). RAC is an opportunity for reuse of construction
demolition wastes since it reduces the impact on landfills, decreases energy consumption, conserve
environmental resources, and can provide cost savings.

Concrete durability is its capacity to resist degradation and deterioration during its projected service life cycle.
The process of concrete deterioration is a complex phenomenon involving not just a single condition but a
combination of various factors as afforded by the ambient environment.

Investigations on recycled waste concrete was initiated by Glushge in Russia in 1946 (Jianzhuang and
Chuanzeng, 2006). However, most of the studies carried out were focused on the mechanical properties of the
RAC - limited work was being done to understand the durability aspects of RCA concrete as a new construction
material compared to concrete that is made with Natural Aggregates (NA). With a recent drive towards ‘green
buildings’ and environment-friendly constructions processes, the structural performance and economic aspects
of using Recycled Aggregate Concrete are being re-analyzed. Engineers are beginning to accept that many of
the problems experienced in structures made with RAC were due to lack of adequate knowledge concerning
the factors affecting the durability of RAC as a material and the inability to apply effectively, the knowledge
already gained (Suvash et al., 2013).

Coastal areas are among the most productive and valued land areas in the world where concrete utilization is
significantly high and increasing – thus RAC can be a plausible alternative to NAC in such areas. However,
use of RAC in salty coastal environments is a challenge which requires global investigation in order to provide
an accurate understanding of the complexity of the behavior of RAC in these areas since the most common
cause of failure of concrete structures in this part of the world relates to its behavior in service.

Salau et al., (2014), investigated the long term properties of concrete containing Recycled Coarse Aggregates.
They concluded from test results that the replacement of normal coarse aggregates by recycled aggregates up
to 25% had no significant effect on the compressive strength but higher levels of replacement reduced the
compressive strength. A replacement level of 100% caused a reduction of about 27% in compressive strength.

Research work by Yehia et al., (2015), posited that 50 to 100 % replacement of Natural Aggregates with
recycled aggregate decreases the compressive strength by 5 to 25 %. However, they also found that up to 30
% Natural Aggregate can be substituted with RCA without any effects on concrete strength. Most test results
recommended a replacement percentage of not more than 40% for comparable concrete strength with NAC.
2
Movassaghi (2006), experimented on RAC prisms exposed to alternate wetting and drying. The wetting cycle
consisted of submerging the samples in saturated NaCl solution. These were dried at an approximately constant
temperature (36°C) and low relative humidity (18%) in a led Chamber. They found that the distribution of
chloride in RAC at different stages is relatively fast compared to NAC and is not influenced by the age of the
concrete.

Fady (2009), experimented on samples prepared using (0%, 30%, 60%and 100%) replacement ratios of
recycled aggregate content and at W/C 0.42. These samples, after 28days curing in portable water, were
submerged for 150 days in salty water and tested by compressive strength. It was noticed that there is no clear
change in test results between 28 days block compressive strength and compressive strength of block after
150days immersion in salty water. It was expected that there would be a reduction in compressive strength of
samples that were immersed in salty water due to reaction between contaminants in recycled aggregate and
salty water salts, but this reduction did not occur due to short period of samples immersion in salty water. He
noted that this result may differ after long time of salty water immersion.

Pengjun et al., (2013), researched on the basic properties of recycled aggregate concrete when exposed to salty
water corrosion. Concrete specimens were fabricated and tested with different replacement percentages of 0%,
30%, and 60% after immersing in salty water for 4, 8, 12, and 16 months, respectively. The results showed
that higher amount of the RCA means more porosity and less compressive strength. Pengjun et al., (2013)
further opined that this research could be a guide in theoretical and numerical analysis for the design of RAC
structures.

Pengjun et al., (2013) had noted that most research works on RAC were mainly focused on the properties of
RAC in normal condition. Behavior of RAC in salty water corrosion was rarely reported.
In general, there seem to be more extensive work been done on the resistance of RAC against physical attacks
compared to chemical attacks. It can be observed that:

 Extreme situations like exposure to petrol and diesel spillage, high concentrations of salt solutions, acids
and alkalis, breading of micro-orgasms, etc., are yet to be explored separately or in combination.

 Studies were yet to cover the different stages of concrete life cycle – setting, curing, service, and eventual
failure.
One of such cases of chemical attacks, explored further in this study, is exposure of RAC to salty water during
the curing stage. Salty water consists principally of the effects of chlorides attacks.

RAC is a feasible green material in modern societies. Hence, it is of great necessity to further understand the
properties of RAC in salty water, which will enable the application of RAC in coastal environment (Pengjun
et al., 2013).

3
2.0 EXPERIMENTAL PROCEDURE
The various materials used in this project included the following: Ordinary Portland cement; Fine aggregate
(river sand); coarse Natural Aggregate (19mm granite stones); Recycled coarse aggregate (crushed rubbles);
Portable water for curing; Lagoon water for curing (40g/L); Brine water (100g/L) for curing.
The materials were obtained from various sources.
The cement used was Ordinary Portland cement (Dangote Portland Cement). This cement satisfies
international standards on cement (BS 12 Portland Cement).
Portable water was obtained from the laboratory taps. The water did not contain any sulfates, ferric, alkaline,
oils, vegetation or salt that could affect the properties of the materials or concrete in the fresh or hardened state
(Annex A, of BS 3148:1980). Also the water was colorless, tasteless, odorless and free from organic matters.
Salty sea water was obtained from the University of Lagos lagoon front. Salinity was determined by titrating
Silver Nitrate solution (AgNO3(aq)) against samples of the salty water in the presence of Potassium Chromate
(K2CrO4(aq)) as indicator which turns orange when all the silver nitrate have reacted. Average salinity obtained
was 40g/L.
100g/L brine solution was prepared by completely dissolving 6kg of dried table salt in 60L of portable water.
Fine aggregate and coarse aggregate (natural and recycled) had a maximum size of 2.35mm and 19mm
respectively.
NAC was quarry washed and crushed granite stones.
RCA was obtained from concrete rubbles obtained on University of Lagos Campus. The parent concrete was
broken up with Diesel Crusher and then hammered into aggregates sizes not greater than 19mm. The notable
physical characteristics of RCA include:
* Crushed concrete rubbles with little or no mortar adhered to surface.
* Crushed rubbles with small to thick layers (3-6mm) of mortar adhered to surface in one or more spots.
* Crushed concrete rubbles with a lump of mortar on one side and
* Particles made entirely of mortar (broken sandcrete blocks).
RCA were used as obtained – no pretreatment was done in order to mimic real life conditions and worst case
scenarios. The replacement ratio in RAC by weight was 50% of the Coarse Natural Aggregate. A mix ratio of
1:2:4 and water/cement ratio of 0.5 was adopted. In all, seventy-two cubes of concrete
(150mmx150mmx150mm) and six cylinders (17673.75mm2 x 300mm) were cured and tested for physical and
short term strength properties.
All concrete specimens were demoulded after 24hrs. Both RAC and NAC were cured concurrently in portable,
lagoon and brine waters, i.e., twenty-four cubes (twelve recycled and twelve natural), four cylinders (two
recycled and two natural) were cured in portable water; another identical set was cured in lagoon water; and a
third set was cured in brine water for 28 days.

4
3.0 RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONS
3.1 Particle Size Distribution of Aggregate
After the crushing of the parent concrete rubbles, the particles were sieved through the 25mm sieve
size and any particle retained on the sieve pan were discarded. The resulting aggregate particles were again
passed through the 4.75mm sieve size and any particle passing was also discarded. Afterwards, the particle
size distribution was done using sieve analysis. Fig. 3.1 shows the graph of the particle size distribution of the
recycled coarse aggregate and the natural aggregates (fine and coarse).
Result of analysis showed that most (99.02%) of the sand particles passed through the 5mm sieve size while
less than 2% passed through 0.07mm sieve size. Furthermore, all of the coarse Natural Aggregates and
Recycled Coarse Aggregate passed through 25mm sieve size but more than 2% of same passed through
4.75mm sieve. The results show that both the Recycled Coarse Aggregate and the coarse Natural Aggregate
are well graded. They can hardly be differentiated in terms of the particle size distribution.

Fig. 1: Particle Size Distribution Curves for Sand, Granite and Recycled Concrete Aggregate

5
3.2 Specific Gravity, Dry Density, Bulk Density, Moisture Content, Aggregate Crushing Value

Physical Property Sand Recycled Aggregate Granite

Specify Gravity 2.63 3.4 2.66
Dry Density (Kg/m3) 1098.9 - 1387.81
Bulk Density ((Kg/m3) 1180.67 1408.2 1403.77
Moisture Content (%) 4.45 0.65 0.9
Aggregate Crushing Value (%) - 24.73 24.97
Table 1: Summary of the Tests Carried Out On the Materials Used

Results as summarized in Table1 showed the following:

1. Specific gravity of natural coarse aggregates (2.66) was less than the value for coarse Recycled
Aggregates (3.4).
2. The average bulk density of RCA (1408.20 kg/m3) was slightly higher than that of natural coarse
aggregate (1403.77kg/m3).
3. Moisture content of natural coarse aggregate (crushed granite) had a value of 0.9% which was
higher than 0.65% obtained for RCA.
4. Aggregate crushing values for both coarse aggregates was similar- 24.73% for RCA and 24.97%
for coarse Natural Aggregate.

3.3 Workability
workability describes the ease of placing concrete, and is related to such factors as its cohesiveness, mobility,
compatibility and finishability. Workability depends on water content, aggregate (shape and size distribution),
cementitious content and age (level of hydration) and can be modified by adding chemical admixtures, like
super plasticizer.
Raising the water content or adding chemical admixtures increases concrete workability. Excessive water leads
to increased bleeding (surface water) and/or segregation of aggregates (when the cement and aggregates start
to separate), with the resulting concrete having reduced quality.
Slump test was used to determine the workability of wet concrete. The results of the slump tests carried out
on the wet RAC and NAC are shown on Table 3.

% Percentage Replacement Slump Value Degree of Workability

0 110 high
50 60 medium
Table 2: Showing Percentage Replacement, Slump Value and Degree of Workability

Lower slump in wet RAC can be attributed to higher capacity of RCA to absorb water. Furthermore, the
reduced slump value in the RCA concrete mixtures can be attributed to the more angular shape and roughened
surface texture of the RCA that increased the inter-particle friction in the fresh concrete.
6
3.4 Compressive Strength and Density of RAC and NAC
3.4.1 Variation of Compressive Strength with Duration of Curing

The average compressive strength of the concrete cubes with the corresponding curing age is
presented in table below. Three cubes each were cast for each NAC and RAC per curing medium and
was subjected to 28days of curing. Water/ cement ratio was 0.5.

Compressive Strength (N/mm2)

Age Of
RAC Cured
Curing NAC Cured In NAC Cured In NAC Cured In RAC Cured In RAC Cured In
In Brine
(Days) Portable Water Lagoon Water Brine Water Portable Water Lagoon Water
Water
7 11.04 10.65 9.47 9.79 10.15 8.89
14 15.35 14.15 14.98 12.03 14.50 13.02
21 18.04 18.10 16.52 17.08 16.89 15.07
28 21.07 20.03 18.56 18.99 17.56 17.01
Table 3: Showing Variation of Compressive Strength with Duration of Curing

VARIATION OF COMPRESSIVE STRENGTH WITH DURATION OF CURING

25.00
COMPRESSIVE STRENGTH OF CUBE (N/mm2)

NAC: WATER

20.00 NAC: LAGOON

NAC: BRINE

15.00 RAC: WATER

RAC: LAGOON
10.00
RAC: BRINE

Linear (NAC:
5.00 WATER)
Linear (NAC:
LAGOON)
0.00
7 14 21 28
DURATION OF CURING (DAYS)

Fig. 2:. Graph Showing Variation of Compressive Strength With Duration Of Curing

Comments:
For each schedule of curing, compressive strength of RAC tend to be lower than of NAC and tend to decrease
with increased salinity – from lagoon to brine water. Generally, however, the relationship of compressive
strength with duration of curing has a positive slope which gives room for optimization. In all, NAC in portable
water has the highest compressive strength (21.07N/mm2) while RAC in brine has the lowest strength
(17.01N/mm2). The former is slightly less than the minimum acceptable strength for structural concrete.
7
 3.4.2 Variation of Percentage Increase in Compressive Strength of RAC with Duration of Curing
Following are computations of percentage variation of compressive strength with curing age.
Percentage Increase (%)
Portable Water Lagoon Water Brine Water
Age Of Percentage Percentage Percentage Percentage Percentage Percentage Percentage Percentage Percentage
Curing Increase In Increase In Increase In Increase In Increase In Increase In Increase In Increase In Increase In
(Days) Strength Of Strength Of Strength Of Strength Of Strength Of Strength Of Strength Of Strength Of Strength Of
RAC Over RAC Over RAC Over RAC Over RAC Over RAC Over RAC Over RAC Over RAC Over
NAC NAC NAC NAC NAC NAC NAC NAC RAC
Control In Control In Control In Control In Control In Control In Control In Control In Control In
Same Portable Portable Same Portable Portable Same Portable Portable
Medium Water Water Medium Water Water Medium Water Water
7 46.48 46.48 51.56 50.67 48.17 53.43 47.89 42.19 46.80
14 57.10 57.10 63.34 72.41 68.85 76.37 70.15 61.81 68.56
21 81.08 81.08 89.94 84.32 80.17 88.92 81.17 71.52 79.33
28 90.15 90.15 100.00 87.65 83.33 92.43 91.62 80.73 89.55
Table 4. Variation of Percentage Increase in Compressive Strength of RAC with Duration of Curing

VARIATION OF PERCENTAGE INCREASE IN COMPRESSIVE STRENGTH OF RAC WITH

DURATION OF CURING
PERCENTAGE INCREASE IN
STRENGTH OF RAC OVER NAC
140.00 CONTROL IN SAME MEDIUM

PERCENTAGE INCREASE IN
COMPRESSIVE STRENGTH OF CUBE (N/mm2)

STRENGTH OF RAC OVER NAC

120.00 CONTROL IN PORTABLE WATER

PERCENTAGE INCREASE IN
STRENGTH OF RAC OVER RAC
100.00 CONTROL IN PORTABLE WATER

PERCENTAGE INCREASE IN
STRENGTH OF RAC OVER NAC
80.00 CONTROL IN SAME MEDIUM

PERCENTAGE INCREASE IN
STRENGTH OF RAC OVER NAC
60.00 CONTROL IN PORTABLE WATER

PERCENTAGE INCREASE IN
STRENGTH OF RAC OVER RAC
40.00
CONTROL IN PORTABLE WATER

PERCENTAGE INCREASE IN
STRENGTH OF RAC OVER NAC
20.00
CONTROL IN SAME MEDIUM

PERCENTAGE INCREASE IN
0.00 STRENGTH OF RAC OVER NAC
CONTROL IN PORTABLE WATER
7 14 21 28
PERCENTAGE INCREASE IN
DURATION OF CURING (DAYS) STRENGTH OF RAC OVER RAC
CONTROL IN PORTABLE WATER

Fig. 3: Graph Showing Variation of Percentage Increase in Compressive Strength Of RAC with Duration of Curing

Comments:
Percentage increase in strength increased steadily during the curing period but it trailed behind the 100%.
Percentage increase in strength was lowest for RAC in brine when compared to the NAC control in portable
water at the 28th day of curing with a figure of 80.73%.
8
3.4.3 Variation of Density with Age of Curing

Density (kg/mm3)

Age Of Curing NAC Cured NAC Cured NAC Cured RAC Cured RAC Cured RAC Cured
(Days) In Portable In Lagoon In Brine In Portable In Lagoon In Brine
Water Water Water Water Water Water

7 2.48 2.46 2.48 2.35 2.44 2.35

14 2.52 2.46 2.35 2.37 2.44 2.38

21 2.39 2.38 2.49 2.31 2.50 2.35

28 2.41 2.42 2.43 2.35 2.37 2.54

Table 5. Variation of Density with Age of Curing

VARIATION OF DENSITY WITH AGE OF CURING

4.00
NAC CURED
IN
PORTABLE
3.00 WATER
DENSITY (Kg/mm3)

NAC CURED
IN LAGOON
WATER
2.00
NAC CURED
IN BRINE
WATER

1.00 RAC CURED

IN
PORTABLE
WATER
0.00
7 14 21 28
DURATION OF CURING (DAYS)

Fig. 4: Graph Showing Variation of Density with Age of Curing

Comments:
The density of concrete specimens remained relatively constant. The lowest value recorded was 2.35% and the
highest value was 2.52% giving a range value of 0.17% which is relatively insignificant.

9
3.5 Water Absorption Test
Average Average
Age Of Water Compressive
Wet Dry
Curing Wet Weight (Kg) Dry Weight (Kg) Absorption Strength Of Cube
Weight Weight
(Days) (%) (N/mm2)
(Kg) (Kg)

Curing In Portable Water - Natural Aggregate Concrete (0%)

7.00 8.28 8.27 8.32 8.29 8.22 8.21 8.29 8.24 0.61% 11.04

14.00 7.84 8.86 8.86 8.52 7.83 8.81 8.84 8.49 0.31% 15.35

21.00 8.68 7.89 7.90 8.16 8.59 7.81 7.83 8.08 0.99% 18.04

28.00 7.94 8.49 8.12 8.18 7.93 8.48 8.10 8.17 0.16% 21.07

Curing In Portable Water - Recycled Aggregate Concrete (50%)

7.00 8.52 8.24 8.30 8.35 8.47 8.17 8.23 8.29 0.76% 9.79

14.00 8.71 8.06 8.16 8.31 8.68 8.04 8.14 8.29 0.28% 12.03

21.00 8.68 7.89 7.90 8.16 8.59 7.81 7.83 8.08 0.99% 17.08

28.00 8.26 8.20 8.14 8.20 8.22 8.18 8.12 8.17 0.33% 18.99

Curing In Lagoon Water - Natural Aggregate Concrete (0%)

7.00 8.21 8.18 8.92 8.44 8.16 8.10 8.87 8.38 0.72% 10.65

14.00 7.86 7.98 8.05 7.96 7.84 7.96 8.02 7.94 0.29% 14.15

21.00 8.56 8.65 8.21 8.47 8.49 8.58 8.15 8.41 0.79% 18.10

28.00 8.06 8.24 8.34 8.21 8.05 8.21 8.30 8.19 0.33% 20.03

Curing In Lagoon Water - Recycled Aggregate Concrete (50%)

7.00 7.84 8.01 8.15 8.00 7.80 7.97 8.03 7.93 0.84% 10.15

14.00 7.90 8.07 8.08 8.02 7.89 8.05 8.06 8.00 0.21% 14.50

21.00 7.78 7.84 7.90 7.84 7.70 7.80 7.90 7.80 0.51% 16.89

28.00 8.19 7.84 7.88 7.97 8.15 7.82 7.85 7.94 0.38% 17.56

Curing In Brine Water - Natural Aggregate Concrete (0%)

7.00 8.05 7.90 7.88 7.94 8.02 7.86 7.84 7.91 0.46% 9.47

14.00 8.38 8.08 8.32 8.26 8.25 8.07 8.29 8.20 0.69% 14.98

21.00 8.93 8.45 8.01 8.46 8.91 8.42 7.96 8.43 0.40% 16.52

28.00 8.20 7.88 8.08 8.05 8.17 7.85 8.06 8.03 0.33% 18.56

Curing In Brine Water - Recycled Aggregate Concrete (50%)

7.00 8.05 9.07 8.14 8.42 8.03 9.05 8.11 8.40 0.28% 8.89

14.00 8.06 8.14 7.94 8.05 8.03 8.00 7.94 7.99 0.71% 13.02

21.00 7.86 8.06 8.03 7.98 7.80 7.99 7.96 7.92 0.84% 15.07

28.00 8.39 8.80 8.58 8.59 8.37 8.77 8.56 8.57 0.27% 17.01

Table 6: Water Absorption Test

10
 VARIATION OF COMPRESSIVE STRENGTH WITH MOISTURE ABSORPTION

25.00
COMPRESSIVE STRENGTH OF CUBE (N/mm2)

20.00 NAC: WATER

RAC: WATER
15.00 NAC:
LAGOON
RAC: LAGOON
10.00
NAC: BRINE

RAC: BRINE
5.00

0.00
0.00% 0.20% 0.40% 0.60% 0.80% 1.00% 1.20%
WATER ABSORPTION (%)

Fig. 5. Graph Showing Variation Of Compressive Strength With Moisture Absorption

Comments:
There is no clear relationship between water absorption and corresponding compressive strength during the
curing period.

11
 3.6 Splitting Tensile Strengths on Concrete Cylinder
The average tensile strength of the cubes from the Avery universal testing machine with the corresponding
curing age, average weight is presented in table above. Two cylinders each were cast for each brand of cement
which was subjected to 28days of curing. water/ binder ratio was 0.5 for a mix of 1:2:4.

Age Of Average Density Average Tensile

Dry Weight Volume Area
Curing Dry Weight (x103 Load (KN) Load Strength
-3 3
(Kg) (x10 m ) (mm2)
(Days) (Kg) Kg/m3) (KN) (N/mm2)

Curing In Portable Water

NAC
13.46 13.50 13.48 5.30 2.54 105.00 106.00 105.50 17.67 5.97
(0%)

NAC
12.79 13.00 12.90 5.30 2.43 102.00 100.00 101.00 17.67 5.72
(50%)

Curing In Lagoon Water

NAC
13.17 13.35 13.26 5.30 2.50 110.00 110.00 110.00 17.67 6.23
(0%)

RAC
13.46 13.49 13.48 5.30 2.54 100.00 112.00 106.00 17.67 6.00
(50%)

Curing In Brine Water

NAC
13.04 13.05 13.05 5.30 2.46 102.00 100.00 101.00 17.67 5.72
(0%)

RAC
12.80 12.37 12.59 5.30 2.37 100.00 95.00 97.50 17.67 5.52
(50%)
Table 7: Splitting Tensile Strengths results On Concrete Cylinder

Comments:
There was little variation of splitting tensile strength of the cylindrical specimens despite the varied curing
medium. The maximum value of 6.23N/mm2 was recorded for NAC cured in Lagoon water while the lowest
value of 5.52N/mm2 was recorded for RAC in brine water – giving a strength range of 0.71N/mm2 which is
relatively negligible (the negligibity being: 0.12).

12
4.0 CONCLUSION & RECOMMENDATIONS

4.1 Conclusion
From the results of experimental investigations on the durability of recycled aggregate concrete the following
conclusions can be inferred:
1. Construction demolition waste can be reduced by reusing them in recycled concrete aggregate.
2. Workability of the RAC wet mix reduced due to partial replacement of granite with recycled concrete
aggregate – a result of higher water absorption by the recycled aggregate.
3. 50% RAC in brine yielded 81.73% of the strength of NAC in portable water (a least value of
K17.01N/mm2 was recorded in brine as against 21.07KN/mm2 of the natural control with respect to
20.0KN/mm2 required in CP110).
4. The result showed a gentle decline of compressive strength with increased concentration with of salty
water.
5. This decrease in strength must have been as a result of interference of the full hydrolysis of cement by
the salty water absorbed by the RCA in the recycled concrete. Research had shown that chloride ions
impede the hydrolysis of cement.
6. Density across curing media remained relatively constant during the period which suggests that the
effect on comprehensive strength is a chemical phenomenon not a physical one.
7. Tensile strength across curing media remained relatively constant during the period.
8. There was no clear relationship between water absorption and corresponding compressive strength
during the curing period.

4.2 Recommendations
The following are some recommendations:
1. Replacement ratio in Recycled Aggregate Concrete should not exceed 50%.
2. More research should be done on recycled aggregate concrete with lower replacement ratios and
exposed to same or higher concentrations of salty water.
3. Standards and codes should be developed specifically for recycled aggregate concrete from extensive
research data.
4. More research should be done on reinforced Recycled Aggregate Concrete with similar or higher
levels of exposure.

13
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