Construction and Building Materials 54 (2014) 369–377

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Construction and Building Materials

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Total shrinkage, chloride penetration, and compressive strength

of concretes that contain clear-colored rice husk ash
A.L.G. Gastaldini ⇑, M.P. da Silva, F.B. Zamberlan, C.Z. Mostardeiro Neto
Federal University of Santa Maria, Av. Roraima 1000, 97105-900 Santa Maria, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil

h i g h l i g h t s

 Clear-colored rice husk ash (RHA) does not change the color of concrete and enables its use in ready-mix concrete.
3
 Replacement of Portland cement (PC) with 5% RHA reduces the cost per m of concrete.
 Increasing the RHA content in concrete increases its total shrinkage and compressive strength.
 Greater replacement levels reduce the concrete’s total passing charge.
 The chloride penetration evaluated before and after shrinkage by sprinkling AgNO3 exhibited the opposite behavior.

a r t i c l e i n f o a b s t r a c t

Article history: This study investigated total shrinkage, which is a rarely examined property, as well as the penetration of
Received 14 August 2013 chlorides before and after shrinkage and the compressive strength of concretes containing clear-colored
Received in revised form 4 December 2013 rice husk ash substituted for 5%, 10%, 20%, and 30% of their Portland cement and subjected to wet curing
Accepted 16 December 2013
periods of 3 and 7 days. The results showed that increasing the RHA content increased the concrete’s total
Available online 19 January 2014
shrinkage and compressive strength, as well as the penetration of chlorides after shrinkage. A cost anal-
ysis of the concrete used at ready-mix concrete companies was performed. The study concluded that con-
Keywords:
cretes containing 5% RHA replacement and compressive strength levels between 35 and 55 MPa had a
Rice husk ash
Total shrinkage
lower cost/m3 than that of the reference concrete containing 100% Portland cement.
Chloride penetration Ó 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Compressive strength
Concrete

1. Introduction
The research literature has recently highlighted increased and
uncontrolled environmental pollution as being responsible for glo-
bal warming, and it has also focused on the exhaustion of natural
resources due to population growth and worldwide urbanization.
Population growth is accompanied by an increased demand for
housing and infrastructure, which require natural resources and
produce waste that increase environmental pollution. The growth
in the number of existing buildings, which are typically con-
structed from concrete due to its relatively low cost, excellent
durability, and mechanical properties when properly designed
and constructed [1], has the disadvantage of increasing the use of
Portland cement, which is responsible for substantial carbon diox-
ide emissions during its manufacturing process.
⇑ Corresponding author.
E-mail addresses: gastaldn@ct.ufsm.br, gastaldini@terra.com.br (A.L.G. Gastaldini).
To reduce the release of CO2 into the atmosphere, conserve raw
materials involved in the production process, eliminate wastes that
impact the environment, and improve the technical properties of
concrete, previous studies have demonstrated the feasibility of
replacing cement with agro-industrial sub-products. One such
example is the ash obtained from burning rice husks, as rice is
one of the most cultivated grains in the world [2–7].
Research has shown that rice husks can improve concrete’s
mechanical properties [8] and durability [9], even if they have a
dark color due to the presence of uncombusted carbon. However,
the husks require greater amounts of superplasticizer additives
when this carbon content is large [4,8].
When rice husks are burned, the resulting ash can vary in color
as a result of the combustion process, the impurities present, and
the structural transformations that occur in the material according
to variations in the burn temperature.
Another important factor contributing to the ash’s behavior is
the process by which it is ground. This process modifies the phys-
ical properties of the ash, including its specific surface area and

0950-0618/$ - see front matter Ó 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2013.12.044
370 A.L.G. Gastaldini et al. / Construction and Building Materials 54 (2014) 369–377

grain size, which are also responsible for the material’s behavior Table 1
[10,11]. Properties of cementitious materials.

Despite the large quantities of rice husks available in the world Constituent/property Portland Rice husk ash Silica
today, their dark color after burning hinders the technical commu- cement fume
nity’s acceptance of their addition to concrete. Furthermore, SiO2 (%) 19.19 93.54 94.20
achieving amorphous ash requires it to be burned in ovens with Al2O3 (%) 5.16 0.52 0.27
temperature controls, which are often unavailable. The cost is fur- Fe2O3 (%) 2.95 0.20 0.15
CaO (%) 62.64 0.79 0.61
ther increased by the grinding required to improve the RHA’s poz- MgO (%) 2.75 0.49 0.57
zolanity [12], which increases its commercial value. Reducing the SO3 (%) 2.52 0.05 0.11
material’s grain size can activate its pozzolanic properties, even Na2O (%) 0.12 0.03 0.15
when in a crystalline form [13]. K2O (%) 0.64 1.65 0.40
Graphitic carbon (%) 1.93 0.41 –
The optimal RHA replacement level to achieve maximum com-
Loss on ignition (%) 3.39 2.32 2.03
pressive strength has been calculated to be approximately 20% Specific gravity (kg/dm3) 3.13 2.11 2.20
[14,15]. However, tests that evaluated the chloride penetration BET – specific surface (m2/g) 1.14 18.89 18.83
according to ASTM C 1202 [4,15–17] (or even the electrical resis- Compressive strength (MPa)
tivity) [18] have shown that increasing the RHA replacement 1 day 14.3 – –
content in concrete improves its performance. This behavior can 3 days 33.0 – –
be explained by the decrease in the electrical conductivity of the 7 days 36.8 – –
28 days 49.2 – –
pore solution with greater replacement levels, as demonstrated
in [18]. The specimens in all of these studies (tested for compres-
sive strength, chloride penetration, and electrical resistivity) have
been stored in a humid chamber for long periods of time
[4,6,8,10,11,14,16,19] before testing (at 28 or 91 days), which does
not reflect the reality of the construction industry, where concrete
is typically cured for 3–7 days. These published works have also
used superplasticizer additives [4,5,8,14,16,20–22], which increase
the final cost of the concrete and can make its use by ready-mix
concrete companies unfeasible. It has also been reported that
increasing the RHA replacement content in concrete requires an in-
crease in the superplasticizer additive content to obtain similar
workability due to the rice husk ash’s high surface area, which also
increases costs.
It is also known that concrete cracking influences the corrosion
initiation process. Cracks are a rapid route for aggressive agents to (A) rice-husk ash
penetrate into the concrete reinforcement, and they facilitate the
reinforcement’s access to oxygen and moisture, both of which are
essential factors for corrosion initiation. Few studies have focused
on the influence of the rice husk ash content on concrete shrinkage
or chloride penetration after shrinkage.
The rice husk ash used in this study was obtained by con-
trolled burning (a process currently being patented), which gen-
erated energy for a cooperative’s activities.The surplus of this
energy was sold to a power company. The ash, which has a
low graphitic carbon content, is clear in color and is currently
being marketed to ready-mix concrete companies. The total
shrinkage and chloride penetration of concrete containing differ-
ent percentages of RHA and subjected to curing periods of 3 and
7 days were investigated using different methods. A cost analysis (B) silica fume
for concrete containing rice husk ash is presented, and a descrip-
tion of the optimal replacement content for use by concrete Fig. 1. X-ray diffraction spectra of rice husk ash (A) and silica fume (B).

plants is given.

2. Experimental program

2.1. Materials and concrete mixes

The binders used in this experiment included high-early-strength Portland ce-

ment. The rice husk ash, of low graphitic carbon content, was obtained by con-
trolled burning, which was performed at an electric power generation plant and
produced ash that was clear in color. The silica fume came from a national supplier.
The physical and chemical characteristics of the different cementitious materials Portland cement silica fume rice husk ash
are shown in Table 1. Chemical analyses indicate that RHA and SF are composed
of SiO2. Fig. 1 presents X-ray diffractograms of the rice husk ash (consists of a large Fig. 2. Colors of the cementitious materials under study.
quantity of amorphous materials) and silica fume and Fig. 2 shows the colors of the
cementitious materials.
The fine aggregate used in the experiment was a natural sand composed of The coarse aggregate consisted of crushed stone with a specific weight of 2.48 g/
quartz with a specific weight of 2.66 g/cm3, unitary mass of 1.62 g/cm3, fineness cm3, unitary mass of 1.38 g/cm3, fineness modulus of 6.92, and maximum size of
modulus of 1.85, and maximum size of 1.2 mm. 19.0 mm.
 A.L.G. Gastaldini et al. / Construction and Building Materials 54 (2014) 369–377 371

2.2. Mix proportions
Seven concrete mixes were investigated for comparison: one mix composed of
100% Portland cement, labeled REF; an additional four mixes in which 5%, 10%, 20%,
and 30% of their Portland cement was replaced by rice husk ash, labeled 5 RHA, 10
RHA, 20 RHA, and 30 RHA, respectively; and two mixes that included 5% and 10%
silica fume (SF), labeled 5SF and 10 SF, respectively. Three water-to-binder (w/b) ra-
tios were used for all mixes (0.35, 0.50, and 0.65). The amount of mortar in the
mixes made up 51% by weight of the dry materials, and a sand quantity correction
was performed to maintain the mortar content of the reference mixes containing
mineral additions due to the lower densities of these additions relative to the
cement.
The concretes contained a plasticizer additive, Centrament N2, and it was nec-
essary to use a superplasticizer (a modified carboxylic ether called Glenium) to
achieve the lowest studied w/b ratio (0.35) in all concretes and to obtain the previ-
ously established consistency of 100 ± 10 mm in the 30RHA mix with a w/b ratio of
0.50.
The casting temperature was set at 18 ± 1 °C, and the mix water was heated or
cooled based on the temperatures of the other materials [1].
The partial substitution of Portland cement by light-colored rice husk ash (low
graphitic carbon content) does not change the color of the concrete, which therefore
allows its use by pre-mixed concrete companies. Concretes with 5% RHA as a partial
substitute of Portland cement with a consistency of 100 ± 10 mm at a w/b
ratio = 0.35 can be produced using only a plasticizing additive (0.65% of the binder
mass).
The material quantities used per cubic meter of concrete are shown in Table 2.
2.3. Test procedures
2.3.1. Total shrinkage
The total shrinkage was measured according to the recommendations made by
ASTM standards C157/C157 M-06 [23] and ASTM C490-04 [24]. For each mix under
investigation, four specimens with dimensions of100 mm  100 mm  285 mm
were cast, unmolded after 24 h, and stored in a humid chamber at 23 ± 2 °C at a rel-
ative humidity greater than 95% for the curing periods of 3 and 7 days. Subse-
quently, the samples were stored in another room at 23 ± 2 °C at a relative
humidity of 50 ± 10% for air drying. Shrinkage readings were performed at 7, 14,
21, 28, 35, 56, 91, 182, and 365 days after removal from the humid chamber. These
readings were performed in an expandable comparator with a digital marker accu-
rate to 0.001 mm.
2.3.2. Chloride penetration – ASTM C 1202
The samples’ chloride-ion penetration values were measured according to
ASTM C1202 [25], using cylindrical concrete test specimens with dimensions of
95 mm  150 mm, which were cast and cut to standard sizes (95 mm  51 mm)
using a diamond saw. Two specimens of each of the seven binder mixes, each of
the water/binder ratios (0.35, 0.50, and 0.60), and each of the curing times aged
28 and 91 days were tested, and their mean values were used as representative val-
ues if the standards concerning the differences in those results were met.
Despite some criticism, the test recommended by ASTM C 1202 [26–28] has
been used by many researchers to evaluate the resistance of concrete to chloride
penetration [29,30]. The test can be useful for the comparison and selection of an
appropriate concrete [31]. The specifications based on ASTM C1202 are also com-
mon in the United States concrete construction industry [32].
The predominant penetration mechanism in this test is ionic migration because
the high voltage allows diffusion forces to be ignored [33], and absorption does not
occur when the concrete is saturated.
2.3.3. Chloride penetration after immersion in an NaCl solution
Specimens with dimensions of 100 mm  10 mm  285 mm were molded and
stored in a humid chamber for 3–7 days and then moved to another room and
stored at 23 ± 2 °C at a relative humidity of 50 ± 10% for 91 days.
After this period, the specimens were sectioned to obtain new specimens with
dimensions of 100 mm  100 mm  53 mm, which were made impermeable on four
of their six faces using three coats of polyurethane varnish, thereby allowing chloride
penetration on only the two lateral sides (which measured 100 mm  53 mm). After
this preparation, the samples were immersed in a reservoir of saline solution at a
concentration of 31.94 g NaCl per liter of distilled water, as proposed in [34].
The samples were immersed for 7, 14, 28, 56, and 91 days. After these periods, 3
samples of each w/b ratio were removed from the reservoir and rinsed with potable
water. The samples were then broken in the direction of the chloride ion penetra-
tion. A silver nitrate solution (17 g AgNO3 per liter of deionized water) was then
sprayed on the broken face to visualize the region of chloride ion penetration,
and the solution on the broken face was photographically documented after drying.
The photographs were scanned into the AutoCAD computer program so that a
scaled image could be placed, and a boundary could be traced around the penetra-
tion. This region was divided by parallel lines drawn throughout the penetration
depth and spaced at 1 mm, the lengths of which were measured with a procedure
called COTA (routine). This procedure automatically generated a Microsoft Excel
file, from which the values were obtained and transferred to another spread sheet
for statistical analysis, and the average distance of chloride ion penetration could be
determined.
The angular coefficient of the linear regression equation, called the penetration
coefficient, was used to analyze these test results, as proposed in [35] and used in
[34]. The regression equation (Eq. (1)) was obtained from the graphs of penetration
p
depth versus t, as shown in Fig. 3, corresponding to the straight trend lines drawn
between the points (penetration depths for each of the five periods) obtained for
each investigated mix. The penetration coefficients (k) were obtained from the equa-
tions, and the coefficient of determination (R2) was obtained from the trend lines.
p
y ¼ a þ k  ð tÞ ð1Þ
The use of a constant ‘‘a’’ equal to zero generates higher penetration rates and
lower determination coefficients, which makes it impossible to create a best fit line
for the test results, as has been proven in [36]. Therefore, the constant ‘‘a’’ value was
set to a value other than zero, as suggested by [34], which also reported that the
magnitude of this constant is a tool for adjusting the curve rather than an indicator
of the mixes’ properties. To differentiate the terminology, the penetration coeffi-
cient in this method (a – 0) was labeled k0 .

Table 2
Composition of the concrete mixtures, kg/m3.

Mixture w/b Binder PC RHA SF Fine agg. Coarse agg. Water P. SP.
REF 0.35 487 487 – – 633 1076 170 2.44 –
0.50 359 359 – – 739 1055 180 – –
0.65 284 284 – – 802 1043 185 – –
5RHA 0.35 487 463 24 – 618 1076 170 3.16 –
0.50 359 341 18 – 732 1055 180 – –
0.65 284 270 14 – 798 1043 185 – –
10RHA 0.35 487 438 49 – 610 1076 170 4.87 1.95
0.50 359 323 36 – 725 1055 180 1.08 –
0.65 284 256 28 – 789 1043 185 0.29 –
20RHA 0.35 487 389 98 – 591 1076 170 4.87 3.90
0.50 359 287 72 – 711 1055 180 2.51 –
0.65 284 227 57 – 778 1043 185 1.00 –
30RHA 0.35 487 340 147 – 574 1076 170 4.87 7.30
0.50 359 251 108 – 697 1055 180 3.59 1.44
0.65 284 199 85 – 767 1043 185 1.99 –
5SF 0.35 487 463 – 24 618 1076 170 2.92 –
0.50 359 341 – 18 732 1055 180 – –
0.65 284 270 – 14 798 1043 185 – –
10SF 0.35 487 438 – 49 610 1076 170 4.87 1.70
0.50 359 323 – 36 725 1055 180 0.90 –
0.65 284 256 – 28 789 1043 185 – –

P-Plasticizer chemical admixture SP – superplasticize chemical admixture

372 A.L.G. Gastaldini et al. / Construction and Building Materials 54 (2014) 369–377

800

Microstrain (10-6 mm/mm)

Curing 7 days REF
700 w/b = 0.35 5RHA
600
10RHA
500
400 20RHA

300 30RHA
200 5SF
100
10SF
0
0 7 14 21 28 35 56 91 182 365
Fig. 3. Supporting figure to determine the coefficient of chloride diffusion k by Age (days)
measuring the slope of the penetration depth over time. Here, k is equal to
800

Microstrain (10-6 mm/mm)

3.359 mm/(week)1/2 and 5.374 mm/(week)1/2 for concretes cured for 3 and 7 days Curing 7 days REF
700 w/b = 0.50
in a humid chamber, respectively. 5RHA
600
500 10RHA
400 20RHA
2.4. Compressive strength 300 30RHA
200 5SF
Axial compressive strength tests were performed according to the ABNT stan- 100
dards NBR 5738/2003 [37] and NBR 5739/2007 [38]. Four cylindrical specimens 10SF
0
(100 mm in diameter and 200 mm in height) were molded for each of the mixes, 0 7 14 21 28 35 56 91 182 365
w/b ratios, ages, and curing periods under study. Age (days)
800

Microstrain (10-6 mm/mm)

Curing 7 days
3. Results 700 w/b = 0.65
REF

600 5RHA

3.1. Shrinkage 500 10RHA

400 20RHA
Figs. 4 and 5 graph the total shrinkage results for the concrete 300 30RHA
200
mixes under investigation. These results correspond to the average 5SF
100
micro deformations (106 mm/mm) of the four specimens tested 10SF
0
for each mix, w/b ratio, and cure period under study. 0 7 14 21 28 35 56 91 182 365
It can be observed that the shrinkage values of the mixes sub- Age (days)
jected to a curing period of 3 days in a humid chamber were
slightly greater than those subjected to wet curing for 7 days. Fig. 5. Total shrinkage of concretes – seven-day curing period.

The shrinkage of all the mixes ranged from 378 to 659  106
mm/mm over 365 days for 3 days of wet curing and from 366 to
606  106 mm/mm for 7 days of wet curing. In other words, the
Microstrain (10-6 mm/mm)

800
Curing 3 days REF
700 w/b= 0.35
5RHA
shrinkage fell within the typical range of values for concrete at
600
10RHA advanced ages (200 and 800  106 mm/mm) [39]. The mixes con-
500
400 20RHA taining RHA and SF had values ranging from 366 to 533  106
300 30RHA mm/mm, which is considered low for any type of concrete [40].
200 5SF The reference mix (100% PC) displayed the highest values of to-
100 10SF tal shrinkage among all the w/b ratios and curing periods, in com-
0 parison to the other investigated mixes. This result is consistent
0 7 14 21 28 35 56 91 182 365
Age (days)
with previous studies [41–45], although the opposite result has
been observed in mortar test specimens at early ages [45].
Microstrain (10-6 mm/mm)

800
REF
An analysis of Figs. 4 and 5 makes it clear that the total shrink-
Curing 3 days
700
w/b= 0.50 5RHA
age increased with greater levels of cement replacement by RHA.
600
10RHA The mix with the lowest replacement levels, 5RHA, showed the
500
400 20RHA least shrinkage after both curing periods. The concrete cured for
300 30RHA 3 days had a 26% reduction in total shrinkage for w/b ratios of
200 5SF 0.35 and 0.65 and a 40% reduction for the w/b ratio of 0.50, where
100 10SF as the concrete cured for 7 days had reductions in total shrinkage
0 of 39%, 36%, and 21% for w/b ratios of 0.35, 0.50, and 0.65, respec-
0 7 14 21 28 35 56 91 182 365
Age (days)
tively. This behavior is consistent with reports on mixes containing
5%, 10%, and 15% rice husk ash and silica fume that were cured for
Microstrain (10-6 mm/mm)

800
Curing 3 days REF
28 days in a humid chamber and stored in an environment with
700 w/b = 0.65
5RHA
55% relative humidity at 20 °C. Such behavior has been attributed
600
500 10RHA to the increase in the number of fine pores in the mortar [46].
400 20RHA Mixes containing silica fume exhibited behavior similar to the
300 30RHA RHA mixes: increasing the replacement level resulted in greater
200 5SF shrinkage. However, the shrinkage was not significantly affected
100 10SF by the partial replacement of cement with silica fume at 365 days.
0 The shrinkage observed with increasing silica fume content was
0 7 14 21 28 35 56 91 182 365
Age (days)
less than that of the RHA mixes [26]. Mixes containing 5% and
15% silica fume [44] and 5%, 10%, and 15% of silica fume [43] have
Fig. 4. Total shrinkage of concretes – three-day curing period. experienced reduced shrinkage due to drying when greater
 A.L.G. Gastaldini et al. / Construction and Building Materials 54 (2014) 369–377
5000
Chloride penetration (C)
4000
3000
2000
1000
0
(A) 28 days - 3 days curing period
5000
Chloride penetration (C)
4000
3000
2000
1000
0 decreased with increasing curing time (3–7 days in a humid cham-
(B) 91 days - 3 days curing period
Fig. 6. Rapid chloride penetrability at 28 and 91 days (ASTM C 1202).
proportions of cement have been replaced by silica fume. The
shrinkage of high-strength concrete containing 10% rice hull ash
at 180 days has been observed to be similar to that of concrete con-
taining 10% silica fume [47].
The mix containing 5% silica fume, 5SF, exhibited similar behav-
ior to that of 5RHA. In other words, the amounts of shrinkage in
comparison to the reference mix decreased by 28%, 41%, and 23%
Fig. 7. Coefficients of chloride penetration: (A) cured for 3 or 7 days in a humid chamber and immersed in a saline solution after 91 days of air curing and (B) cured for 3 or
7 days in a humid chamber and then immediately immersed in a saline solution.
373
at w/b ratios of 0.35, 0.50, and 0.65, respectively, after 3 days,
0.35
and 39%, 37%, and 17%, respectively, after 7 days.
0.50 The mix containing 10% silica fume (10SF) exhibited behavior
0.65 similar to that of 10RHA, with shrinkage reductions of 23% and
35% for w/b ratios of 0.35 and 0.50, respectively, after 3 days and
33% and 31%, respectively, after 7 days.
The different w/b ratios under study (0.35, 0.50, and 0.65) cor-
responded to different binder contents. In other words, a lower w/b
ratio corresponded to greater binder consumption, which allowed
for the same consistency in all mixes (100 ± 10 mm). This situation
explained why no significant difference in shrinkage was found be-
tween the different w/b ratios for the same mix in several cases.
7 days curing period
Compounds containing large volumes of blast furnace slag occa-
sionally caused less shrinkage in the concretes with the highest
w/b ratios under investigation, which has been explained by the
0.35
low binder content in these concretes [48].
0.50
0.65 3.2. Chloride penetration
The rapid chloride penetration test results for the investigated
mixes are shown in Fig. 6.
Fig. 6 makes it clear that the total passing charge (in Coulombs)
ber), increasing levels of cement replacement by RHA or SF, and
increasing testing age (28–91 days). The improved performance
7 days curing period of RHA mixes has also been observed by other researchers
[41,49,50] who have stored the samples in a humid chamber until
the test period.
Past studies have observed that increasing the level of cement
replacement by RHA decreases the volume of pores larger than
50 nm and increases the volume of pores smaller than 50 nm, re-
duces the electrical conductivity of the pore solution, and conse-
quently, increases the concrete’s electrical resistivity [18,51].
Therefore, the reduction in total passing charge with increasing
replacement levels is due to the pore solution’s lower electrical
374 A.L.G. Gastaldini et al. / Construction and Building Materials 54 (2014) 369–377

conductivity, which is in agreement with reports by other investi-
gators [35,52].
The mixes containing 30% rice husk ash, 30RHA, displayed more
than a 70% reduction in total passing charge in comparison to that
of the reference mix (REF) for both curing periods and testing ages.
This behavior is consistent with that reported for the two test peri-
ods in [14], although those authors stored the specimens in a hu-
mid chamber until the testing age (28 or 91 days).
Fig. 7 presents the chloride penetration coefficients of the con-
cretes cured for 3 and 7 days in a humid chamber, air dried 91 days
of air drying in the laboratory and then immersed in saline (A), and
for concretes cured for 3 and 7 days in a humid chamber and then
immersed in saline (B). Significant chloride penetration differences
can be observed for differently cured specimens with the same w/b
ratio. The specimens that were stored in air for 91 days after the
curing period and then immersed in saline (A) exhibited higher
chloride penetration coefficients (k0 ) for the two curing periods
than those immersed in saline immediately after the curing period
(B). This behavior can be explained by the fact that shrinkage oc-
curred during the period when the concrete remained exposed to
air (A) and, hence, the concrete experienced the formation of
cracks that facilitated chloride penetration. Increasing the level of
replacement resulted, as previously stated, in greater shrinkage
water for cement hydration because the rice hull ash absorbs some
water during mixing. This absorbed water could have promoted
cement hydration at later ages, causing an increase in the mix’s
compressive strength. Furthermore, the greater strength of the
mixes containing rice husk ash could be attributed to a reduction
in the effective w/b ratio because a portion of the free water was
adsorbed and retained in the small pores.
An analysis of Fig. 8 indicates that, for a particular w/b ratio,
curing period, and test age (28 or 91 days), the highest compressive
strength values were obtained by concretes containing different
levels of cement replacement by rice husk ash. The highest values
of compressive strength for concrete manufactured with w/b ratios
of 0.35 and 0.50 at an age of 28 days, regardless of the curing
period adopted, were obtained with 30% substitution, and the
optimum compressive strength for a w/b of 0.65 was obtained at
5% substitution.
Similarly, the highest compressive strength values obtained for
concrete at 91 days for w/b ratios of 0.35, 0.50, and 0.65, regardless
of the curing period adopted, were in concretes containing RHA
replacement levels of 20%, 30%, and 20%, respectively.

Compressive strength (MPa)

and easier chloride penetration. 90
0.35 0.50 0.65
Furthermore, chloride fixing occurs primarily in the aluminate 80
70
phase of cement [31]. The C–S–H phase also possesses this capabil-
60
ity; however, there has been no consensus on the extent and mech- 50
anism of combination [53]. Partial cement substitution with RHA 40
reduces the aluminate content and, therefore, the amount of 30
20
chemically combined chloride. Combining this effect with greater
10
cracking over the same time period results in greater chloride pen- 0
etration depths. REF 5RHA 10RHA 20RHA 30RHA 5SF 10SF
Concrete containing silica fume displayed behavior that was 28 days - (3 days curing period)
Compressive strength (MPa)

similar to that of concrete containing RHA: increasing the replace- 90

ment level resulted in greater chloride penetration. The lowest 80 0.35 0.50 0.65
chloride fixing capacity has been reported in concrete containing 70
60
silica fume [54]. 50
Moreover, there was less chloride penetration in concretes 40
30
that were immediately exposed to saline after being removed
20
from the humid chamber, regardless of their cement replace- 10
ment levels with RHA or SF. In other words, the results were 0
REF 5RHA 10RHA 20RHA 30RHA 5SF 10SF
opposite to those described above. Because these concretes were
28 days - (7 days curing period)
saturated when exposed to saline, the hydration process was
Compressive strength (MPa)

continuous, with a consequent change in the pore structure, 90

which thereby increased the mixes’ compactness and hindered 80 0.35 0.50 0.65
chloride ion penetration to their interiors. However, this situa- 70
60
tion does not reflect the reality of most construction projects be-
50
cause the structure reaches equilibrium with the relative air 40
humidity after curing (3 or 7 days in most cases) and shrinks, 30
which leads to cracking. 20
10
0
3.3. Compressive strength REF 5RHA 10RHA 20RHA 30RHA 5SF 10SF
91 days - (3 days curing period)
The partial replacement of Portland cement with rice husk ash
Compressive strength (MPa)

90
at levels of 5%, 10%, 20%, and 30% generally resulted in greater 80 0.35 0.50 0.65
compressive strength than that of the reference concrete at ages 70
of 28 and 91 days, as shown in Fig. 8. This behavior has also been 60
50
observed by other researchers [4,17,19,41,50].
40
The addition of rice husk ash, which has smaller particle sizes 30
than cement, has been found to increase the compressive strength 20
due to the filler effect [11], which is responsible for the greater 10
0
compressive strength of mixes containing rice husk ash compared
REF 5RHA 10RHA 20RHA 30RHA 5SF 10SF
with that of a reference mix at the same degree of hydration.
91 days - (7 days curing period)
However, lower compressive strengths have been observed for
concretes containing rice husk ash at early ages (less than 7 days) Fig. 8. Compressive strength results at 28 and 91 days for curing periods of 3 and
[11]. This behavior can be explained by the availability of less 7 days.
 A.L.G. Gastaldini et al. / Construction and Building Materials 54 (2014) 369–377 375

In the case of the concretes made with silica fume that under-
went a curing time of 3 and 7 days, the highest compressive
strengths after 28 days for w/b ratios of 0.35 and 0.5 were obtained
with a substitution percentage of 5%. At the age of 91 days, the
highest compressive strengths were obtained with a mixture of
10% silica fume for a w/b ratio of 0.35 and 5% silica fume for w/b
ratios of 0.50 and 0.65.
Of the strengths obtained for the concretes containing 5% and
10% silica fume at an age of 28 days, only those containing rice
husk ash at a w/b ratio of 0.65 performed well after both curing
periods. However, when analyzing equal replacement levels (5%)
at an age of 28 days and a curing period of 3 days, the mix contain-
ing silica fume performed better than the mixes containing RHA
with a w/b ratio of 0.65. At this same age (28 days) and curing per-
iod of 7 days, the mixes containing 5% silica fume performed better
than the mixes containing RHA at w/b ratios of 0.50 and 0.65.
3.4. Cost analysis
Analyzing concretes with equal w/b ratios is not the best way to
evaluate the influence of a particular additive because structures
are sized for a given level of compressive strength, which should
be achieved regardless of the concrete’s composition. Therefore,
we present a cost analysis for concretes with and without rice husk
ash and silica fume by considering their performance in terms of
their compressive strength, which is a parameter that is often used
as a reference in the sizing of structures.
The cost per m3 for each mix is listed in Table 3. It is worth not-
ing that, unlike other published studies, the concretes in the pres-
ent study were produced with a plasticizer additive, using a
superplasticizer in mixes with lower w/b ratios and higher levels
of cement replacement with RHA. The concretes were also cured
for 3 and 7 days, which are the curing times most often used in
construction work.
The analyses were performed for compressive strength levels of
35 MPa, 40 MPa, 45 MPa, 50 MPa, and 55 MPa at 28 days because
this is the period typically used by the construction industry. These
values were determined from the equation fc28 = fck + 1.65.Sd (fc28
= compressive strength, average and sd = standard deviation) [55]
assuming a standard deviation of 3.0 MPa and fck values (the char-
acteristic compressive strength) of 30 MPa, 35 MPa, 40 MPa,
45 MPa, and 50 MPa.
Table 3 presents regressions equations Cs = A/Bw/b obtained
from correlations between compressive strengths (at the age of
28 days) and their respective water/binder ratios (0.35; 0.50, and
0.65) as well as the determination coefficients R2. Table 3 also pre-
sents the regression equations Cost = C/Dw/b that correlate the cost/
m3 and the water/binder ratios and their respective determination
coefficients R2.
Using these values in Table 3, it was possible to construct
Table 4, which presents the w/b ratios and cost/m3 of the investi-
gated mixes for particular compressive strength levels at 28 days.
This table indicates that the mix containing 5% RHA subjected to
curing periods of 3 and 7 days had a lower cost/m3 than the refer-
ence mix, and this difference increased with increasing compres-
sive strength. The cost/m3 of the remaining replacement levels
(10%, 20%, and 30%) was higher than that of the reference cement,
and it was higher at greater replacement levels.
Reducing the cost of a cubic meter of concrete by extending the
curing period depends on several factors, such as the type of struc-
ture, construction sequence, curing procedure, and compliance
with the relevant standards for the maximum w/b ratio when
the durability criteria are considered.
Examining the lowest strength level adopted, fc28 = 35 MPa,
with an fck of 30 MPa, or 50% greater than the minimum
20 MPa required by NBR 6118 [55], the mix containing 5% RHA
reached this value after a curing period of 3 days with a w/b
ratio = 0.63 or after a 7-day curing period with a w/b ratio of
0.67. These w/b ratios do not confer any durability conditions
to a structure [56,57].
Structures sized for fck values below 30 MPa require much high-
er w/b ratios and much lower cement consumption than that
required by the ABNT standard NBR 12655 [55], or a w/b of less
than 0.65 and a binder consumption greater than 260 kg.

Table 3
Compressive strength after 28 days for different curing times in a wet chamber and cost/m3 for w/b ratios equal to 0.35, 0.50, and 0.65.

Mixture w/b Cost (m3) US $ Compressive.strength Compressive.strength

28 day (MPa) – 3 days curing 28 day (MPa) – 7 days curing
REF 0.35 156.22 R2 = 0.99 54.0 R2 = 0.91 58.0 R2 = 0.97
0.50 120.17 C ¼ 256:55
w=b
37.3 Cs ¼ 90:219
w=b
40.0 Cs ¼ 93:313
w=b
4:30 4:911 4:475
0.65 100.85 29.0 33.3
5RHA 0.35 159.68 R2 = 0.98 56.0 R2 = 1.0 60.3 R2 = 1.0
0.50 122.13 C ¼ 264:098
w=b
43.7 Cs ¼ 101:076
w=b
47.7 Cs ¼ 110:935
w=b
4:40 5:381 5:581
0.65 102.39 33.8 36.0
10RHA 0.35 176.26 R2 = 0.97 59.3 R2 = 0.99 65.0 R2 = 0.95
0.50 125.44 C ¼ 317:01
w=b
40.5 Cs ¼ 135:539
w=b
42.0 Cs ¼ 124:935
w=b
5:76 10:852 7:370
0.65 104.24 29.0 35.7
20RHA 0.35 193.29 R2 = 0.97 61.0 R2 = 0.98 72.0 R2 = 0.97
0.50 131.15 C ¼ 367:754
w=b
40.7 Cs ¼ 137:308
w=b
43.0 Cs ¼ 178:767
w=b
6:90 10:650 14:926
0.65 108.29 30.0 32.0
30RHA 0.35 219.05 R2 = 0.98 65.7 R2 = 1.0 72.7 R2 = 1.0
0.50 145.06 C ¼ 432:767
w=b
47.0 Cs ¼ 159:961
w=b
49.2 Cs ¼ 193:170
w=b
7:7346 12:228 15:907
0.65 118.58 31.0 31.7
5SF 0.35 171.98 R2 = 0.99 54.0 R2 = 1.0 59.8 R2 = 1.0
0.50 131.58 C ¼ 286:329
w=b
44.0 Cs ¼ 84:102
w=b
50.0 Cs ¼ 103:121
w=b
4:47 3:590 4:533
0.65 109.74 36.7 38.0
10SF 0.35 200.48 R2 = 0.98=C ¼ 382:19049 53.5 R2 = 0.99 55.5 R2 = 1.0
8:940184x
0.50 144.11 C ¼ 361:708
w=b
43.5 Cs ¼ 79:490 48.3 Cs ¼ 83:360
5:76 3:183w=b 3:107w=b
0.65 118.58 37.8 39.5
376 A.L.G. Gastaldini et al. / Construction and Building Materials 54 (2014) 369–377

Table 4
W/b ratio, and cost/m3 for compressive strength values of 35 MPa, 40 MPa, 45 MPa, 50 MPa and 55 MPa at 28 days, for curing periods of 3 and 7 days.

Curing Mixture 35 MPa 40 MPa 45 MPa 50 MPa 55 MPa

3 3 3 3
w/b Cost (m ) (U$) w/b Cost (m ) (U$) w/b Cost (m ) (U$) w/b Cost (m ) (U$) w/b Cost (m3) (U$)
3d REF 0.60 106.92 0.51 121.92 0.44 135.03 0.37 149.54 0.31 163.22
7d 0.65 99.40 0.57 117.70 0.49 125.33 0.42 139.02 0.35 153.97
3d 5RHA 0.63 103.87 0.55 116.94 0.48 129.71 0.42 141.77 0.36 154.94
7d 0.67 97.89 0.59 110.21 0.53 120.45 0.46 133.61 0.41 143.88
3d 10RHA 0.57 116.85 0.51 129.80 0.46 141.67 0.42 151.95 0.38 162.98
7d 0.64 103.38 0.57 116.85 0.51 129.80 0.46 141.67 0.41 154.64
3d 20RHA 0.58 119.97 0.52 134.71 0.47 148.37 0.43 160.29 0.39 173.16
7d 0.60 115.43 0.55 127.13 0.51 137.34 0.47 148.37 0.44 157.22
3d 30RHA 0.61 124.25 0.55 140.48 0.51 152.46 0.46 168.88 0.43 179.57
7d 0.62 121.74 0.57 134.85 0.53 146.35 0.49 158.82 0.45 172.37
3d 5SF 0.69 101.88 0.58 120.13 0.49 137.46 0.41 154.96 0.33 174.68
7d 0.71 98.88 0.63 111.46 0.55 125.65 0.48 139.54 0.42 152.65
3d 10SF 0.71 104.38 0.59 128.78 0.49 153.41 0.40 179.59 0.32 206.58
7d – – 0.65 115.94 0.54 140.56 0.45 164.54 0.37 189.27

4. Conclusions
The following conclusions can be drawn from the experimental
results.
After 365 days of exposure to air in the laboratory, concretes
with a partial substitution of cement at RHA contents between
5% and 10% exhibited total shrinkage values similar to those of
concretes containing 5–10% of silica fume as a substitute for Port-
land cement.
There was a decrease in the passing charge as the curing time
and the RHA or SF contents increased. The concretes composed
with 10% SF as a partial substitution of Portland cement at
water/binder (w/b) ratios of 0.35 and 0.50 exhibited a lower pass-
ing charge than the concretes composed with 30% RHA as a partial
substitution for Portland cement.
Concretes that were exposed to a saline solution after being
stored in air for 91 days after curing (3 or 7 days in a wet chamber)
exhibited a deeper penetration of chlorides than that of concretes
that were immersed in saline immediately after curing.
At compressive strength levels between 35 MPa and 55 MPa,
concretes with 5% RHA as a partial substituent for Portland cement
had a lower cost per m3 than concrete with 100% Portland cement
that was independent of curing time. In general, the cost per m3 of
concretes with 5% RHA was also lower than that of concrete with
5% silica fume as a partial substitute for Portland cement.
Acknowledgements
The authors would like to acknowledge the following for their
support: FAPERGS and CNPq for financial support and initial
research scholarships and BASF for the materials supplied.
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