buildings
Article
Preparation of Recycled and Multi-Recycled Coarse Aggregates
Concrete with the Vibration Mixing Process
Fa Yang 1 , Yunshi Yao 1,2, *, Xinxin Wang 1 , Jin Wei 1 and Zhongxu Feng 1,2
Citation: Yang, F.; Yao, Y.; Wang, X.;
Wei, J.; Feng, Z. Preparation of
Recycled and Multi-Recycled Coarse
Aggregates Concrete with the
Vibration Mixing Process. Buildings
2022, 12, 1369. https://doi.org/
10.3390/buildings12091369
Academic Editor: Jorge de Brito
Received: 30 July 2022
Accepted: 31 August 2022
Published: 2 September 2022
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Attribution (CC BY) license (https://
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4.0/).
Buildings 2022, 12, 1369. https://doi.org/10.3390/buildings12091369
1 Key Laboratory of Highway Construction Technology and Equipment of Ministry of Education,
School of Construction Machinery, Chang’an University, Xi’an 710064, China
2 Detong Intelligent Technology Co., Ltd., Xuchang 461000, China
* Correspondence: yaoys@chd.edu.cn
Abstract: The reuse of construction and demolition waste has become vitally important because of the
requirements of environmental protection and sustainable development. The vibration mixing process
is a new technology and novel method that improves the performance of concrete by optimizing
the mixing process without changing constituents. This study discusses the 100% recycled and
multi-recycled coarse aggregates concrete using the vibration mixing process and investigates the
fresh and hardened properties. The results show that the recycled and multi-recycled concrete using
the vibration mixing process experienced obviously higher compressive strength than that of non-
vibration mixing process. At 120 days, the compressive strength of all mixtures surpassed the target
strength (40 MPa), except for the multi-recycled concrete with the non-vibration mixing process. More
importantly, the compressive strength of the recycled and multi-recycled concrete using vibration
mixing was larger than the previous-generation concrete using non-vibration mixing. Another
interesting finding was that the coefficient of variation of compressive strength using vibration
mixing was smaller and the concrete quality was better and more stable. The splitting tensile strength
of recycled and multi-recycled concrete was also investigated and discussed. In addition, the results of
t-tests show that vibration mixing has a significant influence on the compressive and splitting tensile
strength of recycled and multi-recycled concrete. It is expected that the vibration mixing process
could be a more efficient way to help the wide application of recycled and multi-recycled concrete.
Keywords: multi-recycled coarse aggregates concrete; vibration mixing process; compressive strength;
coefficient of variation; splitting tensile strength
1. Introduction
1.1. Recycled Concrete
Because of its high strength, good durability, and convenient application, etc., concrete
is widely used in construction, roads, bridges, and other fields. In China, with the acceler-
ation of urban modernization, the demand for concrete continues to grow. According to
the National Development and Reform Commission, the total production of commercial
concrete had reached 3.29 billion cubic meters in 2021, and the demand for sand and gravel
is also remarkable. The annual production of sand and gravel is about 19.7 billion tons,
accounting for about 36% of the world’s production [1]. With continuous mining, the
gravel, as a nonrenewable resource, is on the verge of being exhausted, and its price is
rising accordingly. In light of this, whether from the point of environmental protection or
production cost, it is urgent to find a sustainable development path.
In most countries, behind the huge demand for concrete, a large amount of con-
struction and demolition waste (CDW) is generated every year due to the upgrade of
infrastructure or the service life of buildings. Unfortunately, this CDW is disposed of in
landfills, which not only wastes limited land resources and pollutes the environment but
also buries the huge potential value in the CDW.
https://www.mdpi.com/journal/buildings
Buildings 2022, 12, 1369 2 of 17

Despite people gradually realizing the huge potential, the reuse of construction waste
varies from country to country. In some developed countries, such as Japan, the highest
recycling rate can reach 90% [1,2]. However, due to the internal defects of recycled aggre-
gates, most of them are used on some occasions with lower performance requirements.
On the contrary, in developing countries and underdeveloped areas, the recycling rate is
very low. In China, only 30–40% of the construction waste can be recycled [3]. Given this,
it is imminent that more comprehensive and systematic research on construction waste
recycling be carried out.
Aa lot of research has been carried out. The previous literature has studied the proper-
ties of recycled aggregates [1,4–6], and the workability [6,7], porosity [8–10], mechanical
properties [8,9,11–13], the interfacial transition zone (ITZ) [14,15], failure mechanism [16],
fatigue limit [17], long-term performance [7,9], and durability [12,18–20] of recycled coarse
aggregates concrete. Most researchers have reached the same conclusion: as the replace-
ment ratio increases, the performance of recycled concrete decreases, but there are also
different voices. The results show that when the replacement ratio is less than 30% up
to 50%, even if the performance of recycled aggregates is low, the impact on the perfor-
mance of recycled concrete is negligible. Particularly in terms of sustainability, the 50%
recycled coarse aggregates formula appears to be optimal, despite its environment-related
costs being higher than those for the reference and 100% recycled coarse aggregates con-
crete [21]. In addition, many scholars have tried to compensate for the adverse effects
of recycled aggregates on the properties of recycled concrete by secondary processing of
recycled aggregates [22], changing the mixing approach [23–25], improving the curing con-
dition [26,27], reinforcing fiber [28], and adding admixtures [29–33], etc. These meaningful
studies provide a better choice for the diverse applications of recycled concrete.
While a lot of research focuses on recycled concrete, some scholars realize that when
buildings made of recycled concrete reach the end of their service life, needing to be
transformed and upgraded, the problem of how to deal with waste recycled concrete will
also arise, which is as thorny as the current problem of recycled concrete. Therefore, there
are some preliminary attempts at studying multi-recycled concrete, which means that
recycled concrete is repeatedly recycled to produce second-generation, third-generation,
and even higher-generation recycled concrete. Some innovative results have been achieved
in this field.
Marie [34], Huda [35], and Selesa [36,37] all stated that the compressive strength of
multi-recycled concrete is slightly higher than control concrete or surpasses the target
strength. Thomas [38,39] indicated that after three recyclings, the volume of adhered
mortar is 80% of the aggregate, and demonstrates that it is only possible to recycle the
concrete a finite number of times. Abreu [40] also found that the mechanical performance
of multi-recycled coarse aggregates concrete will tend towards a final value representative
of the property’s stabilization. However, Silva’s results [41] showed that in most cases, it
was not possible to establish that three recycling cycles were enough to stabilize the proper-
ties. Zhu [42] found that the durability of recycled coarse aggregates tends to deteriorate
with increasing recycling cycles, but concrete utilizing recycled coarse aggregates can be
designed as structural concrete with a life span of at least 50 years.
From the above research, it can be seen that the study of multi-recycled concrete has
not yet reached a consistent conclusion. Meanwhile, only the performance of the multi-
recycled concrete was evaluated, and almost no one has focused on how to improve and
enhance this performance. Can the performance of multi-recycled concrete be improved
by changing the mixing process, adding admixtures, or other methods, such as using
recycled concrete? The answer does not seem to be unique. This paper will try to answer
this question.

1.2. Vibration Mixing Process

The mixing process, as the most critical step in the concrete production, has a crucial
impact on the performance of concrete. To better improve the mixing quality and the
Buildings 2022, 12, 1369 3 of 17

micro-uniformity of concrete, Feng et al. [43,44] have been devoted to research on vibration
mixing technology. Vibration mixing is a new technology and process that improves the
performance of building materials by intensifying the mixing process without changing
constituents. The new technology can make the mixture subject to high-frequency vibration
while mixing. By effectively transferring vibration energy to the mixture, the uniformity
and performance of the fresh and hardened concrete will be improved. In recent years,
there have been more and more studies on the vibration mixing process.
Xiong [45] indicated that the workability of high-strength, lightweight aggregate con-
crete (HSLWAC) can be further improved and the bond strength between lightweight ag-
gregates (LWA) and cement matrix can be enhanced by using the vibration mixing process.
Zhao [46] pointed out that the slump, compressive strength, and density of the different
concrete were improved using vibratory mixing process, which benefited from fewer
internal defects and denser structure.
According to Zheng [47], the vibratory mixing method can make the steel fiber
easier to distribute uniformly in the concrete; as a result, mechanical properties can be
improved accordingly.
Zhang [48] found that the vibration mixing process can improve the microstructure of
the interfacial transition zone (ITZ) in concrete, optimize the morphology of cement paste,
and make the porosity and pore distribution more reasonable.
It is well known that the performance deterioration of recycled concrete is caused by
the weak interfacial transition zone and unreasonable pore structure. Previous research
has proved that the vibration mixing process can improve the ITZ, promote hydration
reaction, increase the bond strength between aggregate and mortar, and optimize the void
structure in mortar, etc., thereby enhancing the performance of concrete. Therefore, it
will be meaningful to study the preparation of multi-recycled concrete with the vibration
mixing process. To the authors’ best knowledge, there has been no research to focus on the
influence of the vibration mixing process on multi-recycled aggregates concrete.

2. Research Objective
The objective of this study was to investigate the effect of the vibration mixing
process on the comprehensive performance of multi-recycled concrete produced from
100% replacement of recycled coarse aggregates. For this purpose, the non-vibration mix-
ing process, that is, conventional compulsory mixing, will also be considered. After
planning, the experimental campaign was organized into three phases.
The first phase consisted of the production of all the recycled coarse aggregates. Three
types of coarse aggregates were used in this research:
NCA: natural coarse aggregates purchased from local stone companies.
RCA1: recycled coarse aggregates. obtained from normal concrete. After curing in a
laboratory for 120 days, the normal concrete specimens were crushed with the help of a
jaw crusher, and then went through several cleaning and screening processes to generate
the aggregates.
RCA2: multi-recycled coarse aggregates. It was obtained from the first recycled
coarse aggregates concrete. Like RCA1, after cured in a laboratory for 120 days, the first
recycled coarse aggregates concrete specimens were crushed, and then went through
several cleaning and screening process to generate these aggregates.
In the second phase, to make a better comparison between normal concrete (C),
recycled concrete (RC1), and multi-recycled concrete (RC2), five different concrete mixtures
were produced:
C: C-nv (normal concrete with non-vibration mixing process), as a reference group,
was made only with NCA.
RC1: RC1-v (recycled concrete with vibration mixing process) and RC1-nv (recycled
concrete with non-vibration mixing process) were produced with 100% substitution of
NCA with RCA1.
Buildings 2022, 12, 1369 4 of 17

C: C-nv (normal concrete with non-vibration mixing process), as a reference group,

Buildings 2022, 12, 1369 was made only with NCA. 4 of 17
RC1: RC1-v (recycled concrete with vibration mixing process) and RC1-nv (recycled
concrete with non-vibration mixing process) were produced with 100% substitution of
NCA with RCA1.
RC2: RC2-v (multi-recycled
RC2: RC2-v (multi-recycled concrete
concrete with
with vibration
vibration mixing
mixing process)
process) and
and RC2-nv
RC2-nv
(multi-recycled concrete with non-vibration mixing process) were produced with 100%
(multi-recycled concrete with non-vibration mixing process) were produced with 100%
substitution of NCA with RCA2.
substitution of NCA with RCA2.
Figure 1 presents a schematic diagram of the production process of different genera-
Figure 1 presents a schematic diagram of the production process of different gener-
tions of recycled concrete.
ations of recycled concrete.

Casting 1st Crushing Casting

RCA1
NC

NCA RC1

RC2 RCA2

Casting 2nd Crushing

Figure 1. Flow diagram of the evolution process of recycled concrete.

Figure 1. Flow diagram of the evolution process of recycled concrete.

Finally,the
Finally, thelast
lastphase
phaseconsisted
consistedofoftesting
testingthe
theproperties
propertiesofofaggregates
aggregatesand
andthe
the per-
perfor-
formance of the five mixtures.
mance of the five mixtures.

3. Materials and Methods

3.
3.1.
3.1. Materials
In
In this
this research,
research, four constituents—cement,
constituents—cement, water,water, and
and fine
fine and
and coarse
coarse aggregates
aggregates
(natural
(naturalandandrecycled)—were
recycled)—wereused usedtotoproduce
produce different types
different of concrete.
types CONCH
of concrete. CONCH Portland
Port-
cement (P.O 42.5)
land cement (P.O and
42.5)the
andtap
thewater were used
tap water were in all in
used groups. The fine
all groups. Theaggregates were
fine aggregates
class
were medium natural
class medium sand sand
natural with with
a maximum
a maximumparticle size of
particle 5 mm.
size The The
of 5 mm. fine fine
aggregates
aggre-
and
gatesnatural coarse aggregates
and natural were purchased
coarse aggregates from Shaanxi
were purchased from Lishan
Shaanxi stone. Thestone.
Lishan RCA1Theand
RCA2 was obtained from previous generation concrete (cured in a laboratory
RCA1 and RCA2 was obtained from previous generation concrete (cured in a laboratory for 120 days)
with a design
for 120 strength
days) with of 40 strength
a design MPa. To of avoid the influence
40 MPa. To avoidof theadmixture
influenceinteraction
of admixtureon in-
the
results, no admixtures were used in any of the concrete.
teraction on the results, no admixtures were used in any of the concrete.

3.2. Concrete Composition

To establish a good comparison between the vibration mixing process and the non-
vibration mixing process, all the five concrete mixtures were based on the same composition,
that is, the constituents’ contents and the size distribution of aggregates were maintained.
The design compressive strength of concrete was 40 MPa at 28 days of standard curing.
Buildings 2022, 12, 1369 5 of 17

The slump was set at 80 ± 10 mm. Because of the higher water absorption of RC1 and
RC2, an extra part of water must be added to meet the design slump. Previous research
indicated that recycled coarse aggregates absorbs 70% to 90% of full potential during
the first 10 min [40,49]. As a result, the water compensation was set to 80% of the full
water adsorption in this study. Furthermore, the substitution of NCA with recycled coarse
aggregates was made by volume. The composition of all concrete mixes is presented in
Table 1.

Table 1. Composition of the concrete mixers (kg/m3 ).

Components Size (mm) NC RC1 RC2

4.75–9.5 457.6 - -
9.5–16 480.9 - -
Natural coarse aggregate
16–19 171.6 - -
19–26.5 34.32 - -
4.75–9.5 - 428.7 405.7
9.5–16 - 450.1 425.9
Recycled coarse aggregate
16–19 - 160.7 152.1
19–26.5 - 32.1 30.4
Fine aggregate 602 602 602
Cement 439 439 439
Water 215 215 215
Compensation water 0 17.6 25.6
w/c 0.49 0.53 0.55
w/ceffective 0.49 0.49 0.49

3.3. Two-Stage Mixing Approach (TSMA)

Buildings 2022, 12, 1369
To reduce the impact of recycled aggregates with high water absorption, the two-stage
mixing approach (TSMA) is adopted in this investigation. TSMA [25] divides the mixing
process into two parts and also splits the required water into two parts proportionally
which are added at different times. During the first stage of mixing, the use of half of
the required water for the aggregate to be saturated with water. In the second stage of
mixing, the remaining water is added to complete the cement-hydration process [24].
Almost all results confirm that the mechanical properties and durability of recycled coarse
aggregates concrete are found to be improved by adopting the TSMA in the published
literature [50–53]. The production of recycled fine aggregates concrete using TSMA shows
similar sorts of benefits [54]. Some studies have also modified the two-stage mixing
approach and proposed new methods, such as TSMAp1 , TSMAp2 , TSMAs , TSMAsc , and
adopting identical mortar volume method in conjunction with the TSMA [50–52]. The use
of the TSMA can develop a denser old cement mortar by filling up the old pores and cracks
and a stronger interfacial zone, and thus the approach opens up a wider scope of recycled
concrete applications. The TSMA of producing natural concrete and recycled concrete 6 of 17
is
shown in Figure 2.

Fine aggregate
60s mixing 60s mixing 30s mixing 90s mixing
½ Water Cement ½ Water Fresh concrete

Coarse aggregate

Figure 2. Mixing procedures of all the investigated mixes.

Figure 2. Mixing procedures of all the investigated mixes.

3.4. Vibration Mixer

twin-shaftvibration
A twin-shaft vibrationmixer
mixer(Figure
(Figure3)3)was
was used
used in in
thethe experiment.
experiment. It mainly
It mainly con-
consists
sists of a mixing drive device and a vibration drive device. The mixing drive
of a mixing drive device and a vibration drive device. The mixing drive device drives thedevice
drives the
mixing mixing
shaft, shaft,
mixing arm,mixing arm, and
and mixing mixing
blade blade in
to rotate to the
rotate in themode,
normal normal somode, so as
as to force
to force the mixture to circulate in the mixer. In the vibration mode, the mixing drive
device still works normally, but the vibration driving device at the other end will force
the mixing shaft to rotate eccentrically at a high speed through the eccentric structure, so
the mixing shaft will produce periodic vibration. In short, the mixing shafts rotated in the
 Figure 2. Mixing procedures of all the investigated mixes.
Figure 2. Mixing procedures of all the investigated mixes.
3.4. Vibration Mixer
3.4. Vibration Mixer
A twin-shaft vibration mixer (Figure 3) was used in the experiment. It mainly con
Buildings 2022, 12, 1369 A twin-shaft
sists of a mixing drivevibrationdevicemixer
and(Figure 3) wasdrive
a vibration used device.
in the experiment.
The mixingIt ofmainly
6drive
17 devic con
sists of a mixing drive device and a vibration drive device. The
drives the mixing shaft, mixing arm, and mixing blade to rotate in the normal mode, so a mixing drive devic
drives
to forcethe
themixing
mixtureshaft, mixing arm,
to circulate andmixer.
in the mixingInblade to rotate in
the vibration the normal
mode, mode,driv
the mixing so a
theto force
device the mixture
stilltoworks
mixture to
normally,
circulate circulate
but In
in the mixer. in the
thethe mixer.
vibration In
vibrationdriving the
mode, thevibration
device
mixing mode,
at drive
the other the
device mixing
end driv
stillwill forc
device
works
the stillshaft
normally,
mixing works
butto normally,
the vibration
rotate but thedevice
driving
eccentrically vibration thedriving
at aathigh other
speedend device at
thethe
will force
through other end
mixing
eccentric shaft will forc
structure, s
tothe
rotate
the eccentrically at a high speed through the eccentric structure, so the
mixing shaft will produce periodic vibration. In short, the mixing shafts rotated in ths
mixing shaft to rotate eccentrically at a high speed through the mixing
eccentric shaft
structure,
will produce
the mixing
normal mode,periodic
shaft
while vibration.
will produce
they Inperiodic
short, the
eccentrically mixing
vibration.
rotate shafts
in the rotated
Invibration
short, thein the normal
mixing
mode toshafts mode,
producerotated in th
vibration
while they
normal eccentrically
mode, while rotate
they in the vibration
eccentrically mode
rotate to
in produce
the vibration,
vibration modethereby
to realizing
produce vibratio
thereby realizing vibration mixing.
vibration mixing.
thereby realizing vibration mixing.

Figure 3. The twin-shaft vibration mixer.

Figure
Figure 3. The
3. The twin-shaft
twin-shaft vibration
vibration mixer.mixer.
Due to the high-frequency vibration during the mixing process, the number of co
Due
Due
lisions, to the high-frequency
to the
squeezing, high-frequency vibration
and rubbing duringduring
vibration
between the
themixing process,
the mixing
different the number
process,
constituents theofnumber
colli- whic
increases, of co
sions, squeezing,
lisions, and
squeezing, rubbing
and between
rubbing the different
between constituents
the different increases, which
constituents breaks
increases, whic
breaks the viscous connection between the mixtures, greatly reduces the internal frictio
the viscous connection between the mixtures, greatly reduces the internal friction between
breaks the
between theviscous connection
constituents, between the
and facilitates in mixtures,
changing the greatly reduces
cement the internal
particles from agglomfrictio
the constituents, and facilitates in changing the cement particles from agglomerated state
between
toerated
uniformly
the constituents,
statedistributed
to uniformly and facilitates
distributed
state (Figure state
4). With
in changing
the(Figure
the
4).content
increasing
cement
With the particles
increasing
of cement
from
content
involved in
agglom
of ce
erated
ment state
involved to uniformly
in the distributed
hydration state
reaction, the (Figure
content 4).
of With
mortar the increasing
also
the hydration reaction, the content of mortar also continues to increase, which can make continues content
to of c
increase
ment involved
which canbemake
aggregates in the hydration
fully aggregates
wrapped bybe reaction,
thefully the
wrapped
mortar, content of mortar
by theismortar,
all of which also continues
all oftowhich
very helpful to
is very
improve increas
the helpfu
which
performance
to can of
improve make
the aggregates of
concrete.
performance beconcrete.
fully wrapped by the mortar, all of which is very helpf
to improve the performance of concrete.

Vibration mixing
Vibration mixing
process
process

Figure4. 4.
Figure Schematic
Schematic diagram
diagram ofphenomenon
of the the phenomenon of cement
of cement agglomeration
agglomeration destroyed
destroyed by vibratio
by vibration
Figure 4.
mixingprocess.
mixing Schematic
process. diagram of the phenomenon of cement agglomeration destroyed by vibratio
mixing process.
In the experiment, the vibration mixing process and non-vibration mixing process can
be manually adjusted through the changeover switch.

3.5. Tests
The properties of natural and recycled aggregates were tested, including particle
density, water content, and water adsorption for 24 h according to Chinese standards [55,56].
Fresh state tests included slump [57] and air content [58]. Hardened state tests included
Buildings 2022, 12, 1369 7 of 17

compressive strength [59] at 3, 7, 14, 28, and 120 days and splitting tensile strength [60] at
28 and 120 days.
To improve the accuracy and repeatability of the experiment, each group of concrete
was produced twice. Take three samples for each strength index each time. The average of
six values was recorded as the strength of concrete. Several 100 mm cube samples were cast
to test the compressive strength and splitting tensile strength of concrete. All specimens
were cast in standard molds and compacted. All of them were removed from the molds
after 24 h and placed in a standard curing room (20 ± 2 ◦ C, RH > 95%) until the tested
ages [61].

4. Properties of Aggregates
4.1. Physical Properties
The density, water absorption, and moisture content of different coarse aggregates
are listed in Table 2. It can be seen that as the number of recycling iterations increases, the
apparent density, oven-dried density, and saturated surface dry density of the aggregates
significantly decreases, while the moisture content and water absorption increase. The
apparent density of NCA was 2739.81 kg/m3 , which was the highest among the considered
coarse aggregates. The apparent density of RCA1 and RCA2 was approximately 6.33%
and 11.35% smaller than that of NCA, respectively. The oven-dried density and saturated
surface dry density followed the same trend. This is mainly attributed to the increasing
adhered mortar.

Table 2. Properties of coarse aggregates.

Properties NCA RCA1 RCA2

Apparent density (kg/m3 ) 2739.81 2566.51 2428.80
Oven-dried density (kg/m3 ) 2735.23 2424.27 2252.74
Saturated surface dry density (kg/m3 ) 2759.30 2593.94 2486.63
Water absorption, 24 h (%) 0.97 7.80 11.20
Moisture content (%) 0.07 4.85 7.15

The water absorption value and moisture content of aggregates can indirectly reflect its
porosity. The absorption capacities of RCA1 and RCA2 were 7.80% and 11.20%, respectively,
but the absorption capacity of NCA was only 0.97%, which was much lower than any of
the recycled aggregates. The same trend can be seen in the moisture content. The moisture
content of RCA1 and RCA2 was 4.58% and 7.15%, respectively, and NCA was 0.07%, which
would be ignored. The phenomenon was mostly due to the large number of voids and
microcracks contained in the attached mortar. This is also one of the main reasons for the
deterioration of the stiffness of recycled aggregates.

4.2. The Morphology of Recycled Aggregates

The poor morphology of recycled aggregates is the key reason for the degradation of
recycled aggregates properties. Figure 5 shows several typical recycled coarse aggregates.
Figure 5a,b illustrate that the recycled aggregates has only a small amount of attached
mortar, and their morphology and size are relatively close to natural aggregates. Figure 5c,d
reveal that there are some obvious defects on the surface of the recycled aggregates, such
as cracks and large bubbles. Figure 5e shows that the volume of mortar is much larger
than natural aggregates, and the surface is very rough. Figure 5f indicates a “special
recycled coarse aggregate” composed entirely of fine aggregates and mortar. The existence
of microcracks, pores, and other damages makes the performance of the recycled aggregates
worse, which will also become the weak part of the recycled concrete. Moreover, as the
number of repetitions increases, the frequency of these poor performance aggregates is
higher in this research.
 gregates, such as cracks and large bubbles. Figure 5e shows that the volume of mortar is
much larger than natural aggregates, and the surface is very rough. Figure 5f indicates a
“special recycled coarse aggregate” composed entirely of fine aggregates and mortar. The
existence of microcracks, pores, and other damages makes the performance of the recy-
cled aggregates worse, which will also become the weak part of the recycled concrete.
Buildings 2022, 12, 1369 8 of 17
Moreover, as the number of repetitions increases, the frequency of these poor perfor-
mance aggregates is higher in this research.

Figure 5.
Figure Themorphology
5. The morphology of
of different
different types
types of
of recycled
recycled aggregates.
aggregates.

5. Results and Discussion

5. Results and Discussion
5.1. Fresh Concrete Properties
5.1. Fresh
5.1.1. Concrete Properties
Slump
5.1.1. The
Slumpvariations in slump are presented in Figure 6. It shows that the slump value of all
mixers is within theinrange
The variations slump of are presented
the target slumpin Figure
of 70–90 6.mm
It shows that the red
(between slumplinevalue
and the of
all mixers is within the range of the target slump of 70–90 mm (between
green line), except for RC1-v. Moreover, the values of RC1-nv, RC1-v, RC2-nv, and RC2-v the red line and
Buildings 2022, 12, 1369 the
were green line),
a little exceptthan
bit higher for RC1-v.
C-nv (78 Moreover, the values
mm), increasing of RC1-nv,
by 7.69%, 19.23%,RC1-v,
5.13%,RC2-nv, 9and
of 17
and 11.54%,
RC2-v were a The
respectively. littledifference
bit higherfrom
than Huda
C-nv (78[35]mm), increasing
is that a decreasedby 7.69%, 19.23%,
trend with the5.13%, and
increasing
11.54%,
numberrespectively.
of repetitionsThe wasdifference
not observed.fromInHuda [35] is that
this research, a decreased
to ensure trend with
the consistency of the
the
increasing
effective number
crete, andwater-cement
the of repetitions
ratio, aof
flow resistance wasconcrete
certain
fresh not observed.
amount of extra
will In thisThese
water
reduce. research,
was added totoensure
can also the
compensate
explain thatcon-
for
the
the higher
sistency of water
the absorption
effective of the
water-cement recycled
ratio, a aggregates,
certain amountbut when
of extra
slump of RC1-v slightly exceeds the design upper limit (red line). All of the above illus- the slump
water was was tested,
added to
this
tratespart
compensate of the
that the water
forvibration wasmixing
the higher not completely
water absorption
process absorbed
can thebyrecycled
of used
be theenhance
to recycled aggregates.
aggregates,
the Therefore,
but when
workability the
of con-
the
slump slump
crete. wasoftested,
recycledthisconcrete
part of isthea bit larger
water was than
notnatural concrete.
completely absorbed by the recycled
aggregates. Therefore, the slump of recycled concrete is a bit larger than natural concrete.
It is worth noting that—whether using the vibration mixing 5 process or not—the
Slump Air content
slump 100 value of RC1 is correspondingly higher than RC2. It is mostly due to the adhered
93
mortar and surface roughness of RCA2 being higher, which makes the absorption rate of
87 4
RCA2 faster. Therefore, 84 the amount of water 82 in the cement mortar is less and the mortar
has a80 78
greater consistency when testing the slump.
In addition, the slump value of concrete using the vibration mixing process is a little
Air content(%)

3
Slump(mm)

bit higher than that using the non-vibration mixing process, 2.7 whether RC1 or RC2. It is the
60
expected result, and also consistent with Xiong’s results [45]. The slump of RC1-v and
RC2-v is 10.71% and 6.10% higher 2.1 than that of2.2RC1-nv and RC2-nv. It could be attributed
to the40function of vibration 2
1.7 which would effectively destroy cement agglomeration and
release more cement particles to participate in the hydration reaction. As more hydration
1.3
reactions occur, the mortar content in the fresh concrete increases, so the fluidity of con-
crete 20is improved. Another reason is vibration can reduce the “internal 1 friction” of con-

0 0
C-nv RC1-nv RC1-v RC2-nv RC2-v
Different concrete
Figure 6. The slump and air content of all considered concrete (The red and cyan lines are the upper
and lower
and lower limits
limits of
of the
the slump
slump design
design value,
value,respectively).
respectively).

5.1.2. Air Content

The results of the air content are shown in Figure 6. It can be found that an increas-
ing trend with the number of repetitions in the case of the non-vibration mixing process.
The air content of RC1-nv and RC2-nv was 1.7% and 2.2%, which were significantly
Buildings 2022, 12, 1369 9 of 17

It is worth noting that—whether using the vibration mixing process or not—the slump
value of RC1 is correspondingly higher than RC2. It is mostly due to the adhered mortar
and surface roughness of RCA2 being higher, which makes the absorption rate of RCA2
faster. Therefore, the amount of water in the cement mortar is less and the mortar has a
greater consistency when testing the slump.
In addition, the slump value of concrete using the vibration mixing process is a little
bit higher than that using the non-vibration mixing process, whether RC1 or RC2. It is
the expected result, and also consistent with Xiong’s results [45]. The slump of RC1-v and
RC2-v is 10.71% and 6.10% higher than that of RC1-nv and RC2-nv. It could be attributed
to the function of vibration which would effectively destroy cement agglomeration and
release more cement particles to participate in the hydration reaction. As more hydration
reactions occur, the mortar content in the fresh concrete increases, so the fluidity of concrete
is improved. Another reason is vibration can reduce the “internal friction” of concrete, and
the flow resistance of fresh concrete will reduce. These can also explain that the slump of
RC1-v slightly exceeds the design upper limit (red line). All of the above illustrates that the
vibration mixing process can be used to enhance the workability of concrete.

5.1.2. Air Content

The results of the air content are shown in Figure 6. It can be found that an increasing
trend with the number of repetitions in the case of the non-vibration mixing process. The
air content of RC1-nv and RC2-nv was 1.7% and 2.2%, which were significantly higher than
C-nv. Correspondingly, the air content of RC2-v (2.7%) is higher than that of RC1-v (2.1%)
and also surpasses C-nv. The same result is found in the present study [35,37]. It can be
explained that the adhered mortar contains a lot of pores and microcracks. In addition, the
content of attached mortar increases from RC1 to RC2, which leads to positive growth in
the air content.
Another result is found from Figure 6 that the vibration mixing process can increase
the air content of concrete. The air content of RC1-v and RC2-v increased 23.5% and
22.7% respectively, compared to RC1-nv and RC2-nv. This phenomenon can be accounted
for the following reasons: (1) During the mixing process, a water film is formed on the
surface of the mortar to prevent gas from entering its interior, but under the action of
vibration, the water film ruptures, and gas will be more easily introduced into the mortar.
(2) Simultaneously, the high-frequency vibration can refine the bubbles entrapped into the
mixture, so that more large bubbles are dispersed into more and smaller bubbles which
can be easily and stably existing in the concrete. This fact has been proved by Koch’s
experiment [62]. The result can also explain the increase in a concrete slump with the
vibration mixing process. As the air content increases, more and smaller bubbles act as
balls in the mortar, thereby improving the fluidity of the concrete.

5.2. Hardened Concrete Mechanical Properties

5.2.1. Compressive Strength
The compressive strength of different mixtures at the age of 3, 7, 14, 28, and 120 days
are presented in Figure 7. It can be seen that the compressive strength of all types of
concrete has a similar trend with the increase of the curing age. Moreover, the growth rate
of compressive strength slows down as the curing age increases. As Figure 7 depicted,
using the vibration mixing process or not, the 100% replacement rate of multi-recycled
coarse aggregates leads to a drop in the compressive strength with the increasing number of
repetitions. The same results were obtained from other research [35,42]. More specifically,
the compressive strengths of RC1-nv and RC2-nv were 34.9 MPa and 35.7 MPa at 28 days
which was slightly lower than the C-nv (41.0 MPa). The compressive strength of RC1-v
and RC2-v were 38.9 MPa and 38.8 MPa which was 5.12% and 5.37% smaller than that of
C-nv, respectively. The compressive strength of fourfold-recycled concrete had not reached
the target value (40 MPa) at the age of 28 days. These results can be attributed to the
lower density (including apparent density, oven-dried density, and saturated surface dry
 ti-recycled coarse aggregates leads to a drop in the compressive strength with the in-
creasing number of repetitions. The same results were obtained from other research
[35,42]. More specifically, the compressive strengths of RC1-nv and RC2-nv were 34.9
MPa and 35.7 MPa at 28 days which was slightly lower than the C-nv (41.0 MPa). The
compressive strength of RC1-v and RC2-v were 38.9 MPa and 38.8 MPa which was 5.12%
Buildings 2022, 12, 1369 10 of 17
and 5.37% smaller than that of C-nv, respectively. The compressive strength of four-
fold-recycled concrete had not reached the target value (40 MPa) at the age of 28 days.
These results can be attributed to the lower density (including apparent density, ov-
density)
en-driedand more attached
density, mortarsurface
and saturated of RCA1 dryand RCA2.and
density) Furthermore, during
more attached the crushing
mortar of RCA1
process, the forced crushing method will produce some microcracks on the surface
and RCA2. Furthermore, during the crushing process, the forced crushing method or inside
will
recycled coarse aggregates (Figure 5e,f). These will have adverse effects on the strength
produce some microcracks on the surface or inside recycled coarse aggregates (Figure of
recycled concrete.
5e,f). These will have adverse effects on the strength of recycled concrete.

50

45

40
Compressive strength(MPa)

35

30 C-nv
RC1-nv
25 RC1-v
RC2-nv
20 RC2-v

15

10
0 20 40 60 80 100 120
Age(days)
Figure7.7.The
Figure Thecompressive
compressivestrength
strengthofofdifferent
differentconcrete
concreteatat3,3,7,7,14,
14,2828and
and120
120days.
days.

ToToinvestigate
investigatethe theeffect
effectononthe
themechanical
mechanicalproperties
propertiesofofrecycled
recycledconcrete
concreteusing
usingthethe
vibration mixing process, the comparison between RC1-nv
vibration mixing process, the comparison between RC1-nv and RC1-v or RC2-nv and and RC1-v or RC2-nv and
RC2-v
RC2-vwaswasmade.
made.AAclear cleartrend
trendcancanbe beseen
seenfromfromTable
Table33thatthatthe
thecompressive
compressivestrength
strengthofof
concrete
concreteusing
usingthethe
vibration
vibrationmixing
mixingprocess is higher
process than that
is higher thanof that
the non-vibration mixing
of the non-vibration
process
mixing at the ageatof
process the28age
days. The
of 28 compressive
days. strength strength
The compressive of RC1-vofand RC2-v
RC1-v andisRC2-v
11.46%is
and 8.68%
11.46% higher
and 8.68% than that of
higher RC1-nv
than that and RC2-nv,and
of RC1-nv respectively. It can be attributed
RC2-nv, respectively. It can tobetheat-
additional vibration frequency, which can effectively destroy the
tributed to the additional vibration frequency, which can effectively destroy the ag-agglomeration of cement
particles and increase
glomeration of cement theparticles
amount of andcement
increaseparticipating
the amount in the hydration
of cement reaction, which
participating in the
means the effective water-cement ratio is lower. It plays
hydration reaction, which means the effective water-cement ratio is lower. a positive role in the interfacial
It plays a
transition zone.
positive role inIntheaddition,
interfacialthetransition
high-frequencyzone. In vibration
addition, during the mixing process
the high-frequency can
vibration
break the viscous connection between the constituents of the mixture
during the mixing process can break the viscous connection between the constituents of and greatly reduce
the
thefriction
mixtureasand
well.greatly
In thisreduce
case, thetheuniformity
friction as of the In
well. mortar will be
this case, theimproved
uniformity andofthe
the
aggregates will be more easily distributed evenly and reasonably.
mortar will be improved and the aggregates will be more easily distributed evenly This is another reason
and
why the vibration
reasonably. This mixing
is another process
reasonis beneficial
why thefor strengthmixing
vibration of concrete.
process is beneficial for
strength of concrete.
Table 3. Compressive strength and coefficients of variation.

Compressive Strength
3d Cv 7d Cv 14 d Cv 28 d Cv 120 d Cv
(MPa)
C-nv 20.3 0.051 29.8 0.040 34.1 0.073 41.0 0.057 44.9 0.061
RC1-nv 15.2 0.084 26.8 0.079 31.9 0.091 34.9 0.080 40.2 0.061
RC1-v 17.1 0.073 26.3 0.086 33.0 0.087 38.9 0.071 46.7 0.051
RC2-nv 12.0 0.056 24.0 0.079 29.8 0.057 35.7 0.076 37.1 0.062
RC2-v 11.8 0.069 23.5 0.064 28.9 0.042 38.8 0.028 42.9 0.032

The mechanical properties of different mixtures under long curing age were also
investigated. At the age of 120 days, using non-vibration mixing process, the compressive
strength decreases with the number of recycling cycles, but the value of RC1-v and RC2-v
exceeds or approaches the compressive strength of C-nv and is also higher than RC1-nv
Buildings 2022, 12, 1369 11 of 17

and RC2-nv. Specifically, the strength value of RC1-v (46.7 MPa) and RC2-v (42.9 MPa) was
16.17% and 15.63% higher than that of RC1-nv and RC2-nv, respectively. The compressive
strength of all mixtures exceeds the design value 40 MPa, except for RC2-nv. The value of
RC2-nv is 37.1 MPa, which failed to achieve the target strength even at the age of 120 days.
The measured value decreases as follows: RC1-v > C-nv > RC2-v > RC1-nv > RC2-nv. The
strength value of RC1-v is the highest, even RC1-v is a bit higher than C-nv and the value
of RC2-v also exceeds RC1-nv. This may be attributed to the function of vibration during
the mixing process being able to refine the void structure. When more and smaller bubbles
are evenly distributed in the mortar, the internal stress of the concrete is effectively released,
thereby reducing the possibility of microcracks and internal defects.
To verify that the strength difference of concrete using vibration and non-vibration
mixing process is not caused by experimental error, a paired-sample t-test of the strength
was performed. The results are illustrated in the Table 4. It can be found that at the
0.05 level, the compressive strength of RC1-nv and RC1-v, RC2-nv, and RC2-v showed
significant differences, regardless of age: 28 days or 120 days. This means the vibration
mixing process has a significant positive effect on the compressive strength of recycled and
multi-recycled concrete.

Table 4. Results of paired-sample t-tests for compressive strength.

Descriptive Statistics Test Statistics

Age Concrete
N Mean SD SEM Median t Statistic DF Prob > |t|
RC1-nv 6 34.852 2.791 1.139 34.844
RC1-v 6 38.904 2.763 1.128 38.660
−4.617 5 0.0058
Difference 6 −4.052 2.150 0.878 −3.593
Overall 12 36.878 3.389 0.978 36.778
28 d
RC2-nv 6 35.782 2.724 1.112 35.804
RC2-v 6 38.777 1.100 0.449 38.593
−2.830 5 0.0367
Difference 6 −2.995 2.592 1.058 −3.810
Overall 12 37.279 2.524 0.729 37.734
RC1-nv 6 40.185 2.442 0.997 40.483
RC1-v 6 46.774 2.375 0.970 47.265
−3.972 5 0.0106
Difference 6 −6.589 4.064 1.659 −7.220
Overall 12 43.479 4.137 1.194 43.291
120 d
RC2-nv 6 37.121 2.318 0.946 37.354
RC2-v 6 42.904 1.386 0.566 42.858
−4.673 5 0.0055
Difference 6 −5.783 3.031 1.238 −6.106
Overall 12 40.012 3.527 1.018 40.605

5.2.2. Relative Variation

The relative variation in compressive strength from 28 days to 120 days is shown
in Figure 8. It can be seen that the strength growth rate of concretes under the vibration
mixing process is significantly higher than that using the non-vibration mixing process.
The values of RC1-v and RC2-v are higher than that of RC1-nv, RC2-nv respectively, and
all exceeds C-nv. The value of RC1-v is the biggest, which agrees with the compressive
strength at the age of 120 days. It is well known that as time goes by, the hydration reaction
has been going on, but the hydration rate will become slower and slower. The hydration
products are not only related to the temperature but related to the internal water content of
the concrete (this point can well explain that the relative variation of all recycled concrete
is greater than that of C-nv, except for RC2-nv). At the same time, the vibration mixing
process makes more cement particles continue to participate in the hydration reaction and
produce more hydrated calcium silicate (C-S-H) gels and calcium hydroxide (Ca(OH)2 ),
which forms a better bonding between aggregate and mortar. This is beneficial to the
growth of concrete strength from 28 days to 120 days.
 dration products are not only related to the temperature but related to the internal water
content of the concrete (this point can well explain that the relative variation of all recy-
cled concrete is greater than that of C-nv, except for RC2-nv). At the same time, the vi-
bration mixing process makes more cement particles continue to participate in the hy-
dration reaction and produce more hydrated calcium silicate (C-S-H) gels and calcium
Buildings 2022, 12, 1369 12 of 17
hydroxide (Ca(OH)2), which forms a better bonding between aggregate and mortar. This
is beneficial to the growth of concrete strength from 28 days to 120 days.

20.1
20

15.2

Relative variation(%)
15

10.6
10 9.5

5 3.9

0
C-nv RC1-nv RC1-v RC2-nv RC2-v
Different concrete
Figure8.8.The
Figure Therelative
relativevariation
variationthe
thecompressive
compressivestrength.
strength.

Inaddition,
In addition,the
therelative
relativevariation
variationof
ofRC2-nv
RC2-nvisisalmost
almostnegligible,
negligible,only
only3.9%.
3.9%.This
Thiscan
can
alsoexplain
also explainthat
thatthe
thestrength
strengthofofRC2-nv
RC2-nvdoes
doesnot
notmeet
meetthe
thedesign
designrequirement
requirementeven
evenafter
after
120days.
120 days.

5.2.3.
5.2.3.Coefficient
Coefficientof ofVariation
Variation
The
Thecoefficient
coefficient ofof variation
variation isis an
an indicator
indicatorthat
thatreflects
reflectsthe
thedegree
degreeofofdispersion
dispersionofofa set
a set
of
of data.
data. ItsIts value
value represents
represents thethe relative
relative amount
amount of standard
of standard deviation
deviation relative
relative to the
to the mean.
mean. For
For
the the compressive
compressive strength,
strength, the coefficient
the coefficient of variation
of variation reflects
reflects the uniformity
the uniformity of concrete
of concrete qual-
quality. A larger value indicates that the quality of the concrete is fluctuating
ity. A larger value indicates that the quality of the concrete is fluctuating and unstable. and unstable.
The
Thecoefficients
coefficientsof ofvariation
variation of ofcompressive
compressive strength
strength ofof RC1
RC1 and and RC2
RC2 atat 3,
3, 7,
7, 14,
14, 28,
28,
and 120 days are shown in Figure 9a,b. A valuable result can be obtained
and 120 days are shown in Figure 9a,b. A valuable result can be obtained by combining by combining the
two
the pictures.
two pictures.For recycled and multi-recycled
For recycled concrete
and multi-recycled produced
concrete producedby different mixing
by different pro-
mixing
cesses,
Buildings 2022, 12, 1369 the coefficient of variation shows different changes with the increase
processes, the coefficient of variation shows different changes with the increase of curing of curing age. 13 o
From Figure 9a, the coefficients of variation of RC1-nv and RC1-v
age. From Figure 9a, the coefficients of variation of RC1-nv and RC1-v change synchro-change synchronously,
but the value
nously, but theof RC1-v
value of is RC1-v
smaller.is And Figure
smaller. And 9bFigure
shows9b that the value
shows that theof RC2-nv
value ofisRC2-nv
larger
and fluctuates with the increase of curing age while RC2-v keeps decreasing. Especially,
is larger and fluctuates with the increase of curing age while RC2-v keeps decreasi
the coefficient ofEspecially,
variation of theRC1-v and RC2-v
coefficient is smaller
of variation thanand
of RC1-v thatRC2-v
of RC1-nv and RC2-nv
is smaller than that of RC1
after 14 days. This all proves that the quality of concrete produced by the
and RC2-nv after 14 days. This all proves that the quality of concrete vibration mixing
produced by
process is better vibration
and moremixingstable.process is better and more stable.

0.10 0.09
RC1-nv RC2-nv
RC1-v 0.08
RC2-v
0.09
Coefficient of variation(Cv)
Coefficient of variation(Cv)

0.07
0.08

0.06
0.07
0.05

0.06
0.04

0.05 0.03

0.04 0.02
3d 7d 14d 28d 120d 3d 7d 14d 28d 120d

Age Age
(a) (b)
Figure 9. The coefficient of variation under two mixing processes. (a) RC1; (b) RC2.
Figure 9. The coefficient of variation under two mixing processes. (a) RC1; (b) RC2.

5.2.4. Splitting Tensile Strength

The splitting tensile strength of all concrete at the age of 28 and 120 days are p
sented in Figure 10. It can be observed that, unlike the compressive strength, the splitt
tensile strength of concrete does not significantly decrease with the increasing numbe
 0.04

Coe

Co
0.05 0.03

0.04 0.02
3d 7d 14d 28d 120d 3d 7d 14d 28d 120d

Age Age
Buildings 2022, 12, 1369 13 of 17
(a) (b)
Figure 9. The coefficient of variation under two mixing processes. (a) RC1; (b) RC2.

5.2.4.
5.2.4. Splitting
Splitting Tensile
Tensile Strength
Strength
The
Thesplitting
splittingtensile
tensilestrength
strengthofofallallconcrete
concreteat at
thetheageage
of 28 andand
of 28 120120
days are are
days presented
pre-
in Figure 10. It can be observed that, unlike the compressive strength, the
sented in Figure 10. It can be observed that, unlike the compressive strength, the splitting splitting tensile
strength of concrete
tensile strength does not
of concrete significantly
does decrease
not significantly with the
decrease withincreasing number
the increasing of repeti-
number of
tions. On the 28th day, there is a marked increase in the splitting tensile
repetitions. On the 28th day, there is a marked increase in the splitting tensile strengths strengths from
Cfrom
to RC2. Compared
C to RC2. with with
Compared C-nvC-nv
(3.63(3.63
MPa), the the
MPa), values of RC1-nv,
values of RC1-nv,RC1-v, RC2-nv,
RC1-v, RC2-nv,and
RC2-v were increased by 4.41%, 8.82%, 7.16%, and 17.08%, respectively.
and RC2-v were increased by 4.41%, 8.82%, 7.16%, and 17.08%, respectively. This phe- This phenomenon
matches
nomenonsome studies
matches some[9,35] that[9,35]
studies indicated that the splitting
that indicated tensile strength
that the splitting of recycled
tensile strength of
concrete
recycledwas higher
concrete wasthan the natural
higher than theconcrete.
natural concrete.

5
28d 120d
Splitting tensile strength(MPa)

4.44
4.33 4.34

4.06 4.25

4
3.83
3.95
3.89
3.79

3.63

3
C-nv RC1-nv RC1-v RC2-nv RC2-v
Different concrete
Figure10.
Figure 10. The
The splitting
splitting tensile
tensile strength
strength of
of various
variousconcrete
concretemixes
mixesatat28
28and
and120
120days.
days.

When curing
When curing for the age of 120 120 days,
days, the
the splitting
splittingtensile
tensilestrength
strengthofofRC1-nv
RC1-nvand and
RC2-nv are significantly lower than that of the other three
RC2-nv are significantly lower than that of the other three concrete. However, concrete. However, it canit be
can
Buildings 2022, 12, 1369 clearly
be observed
clearly observedthatthat
the values of RC1-v
the values and RC2-v
of RC1-v and RC2-vapproach or evenorexceed
approach the refer-
even exceed 14 ofthe
17
ence concrete.
reference In addition,
concrete. the growth
In addition, the growthrates rates
of RC1-nv
of RC1-nv and RC2-nv
and RC2-nvfrom 28 days
from 28 to 120to
days
days
120 are are
days smaller.
smaller.Possible reasons
Possible are as
reasons arefollows. SinceSince
as follows. the vibration mixing
the vibration process
mixing im-
process
improving workability,
proving workability, thethe cement
cement paste
paste withwithhighhigh fluidity
fluidity is more
is more likelylikely to infiltrate
to infiltrate into
into the pores and microcracks contained in the recycled
the pores and microcracks contained in the recycled aggregates, which can make aggregates, which canupmakefor
up for defects
these these defects
(Figure(Figure 11). Moreover,
11). Moreover, the number theofnumber
collisionsof and
collisions
rollingand rolling
of the of the
aggregates
aggregates has also increased,
has also increased, making themakingcementthe cement
paste morepastefully more
warp fully warp the of
the periphery periphery
the ag-
ofgregates
the aggregates and improving
and improving the cohesiveness
the cohesiveness of concrete.
of concrete. AnotherAnother
important important
reason is reason
that
isthe
that the vibration
vibration mixingmixing
processprocess
improves improves the fluidity
the fluidity of the concrete
of the concrete (this has(this
beenhas been
proved
proved
by the by the slump
slump results),
results), which which
makes makes the concrete
the concrete more compact
more compact and increases
and increases the bond the
bond between aggregate and mortar. Therefore, it is beneficial to reduce
between aggregate and mortar. Therefore, it is beneficial to reduce the thickness of ITZ the thickness of
ITZ and form an impregnation effect [45]. All of the above have a positive
and form an impregnation effect [45]. All of the above have a positive effect on the fusion effect on the
fusion
of newofandnewoldand old mortar
mortar and the and the enhancement
enhancement of bond ofstrength.
bond strength.

(a) (b) (c)

Figure11.
Figure 11.The
Theimpregnation
impregnationeffect
effectin
inITZ
ITZunder
under the
the vibration
vibration mixing
mixing process.
process. (a)
(a) Recycled
Recycledcoarse
coarse
aggregate. (b) ITZ using non-vibration mixing process. (c) ITZ using vibration mixing process.
aggregate. (b) ITZ using non-vibration mixing process. (c) ITZ using vibration mixing process.

The paired-sample t-test of the splitting tensile strength was performed. The results
are illustrated in Table 5. At the 0.05 level, the splitting tensile strength of concrete using
vibration and non-vibration mixing process was significantly different at the age of 120
days.
Buildings 2022, 12, 1369 14 of 17

The paired-sample t-test of the splitting tensile strength was performed. The results
are illustrated in Table 5. At the 0.05 level, the splitting tensile strength of concrete us-
ing vibration and non-vibration mixing process was significantly different at the age of
120 days.

Table 5. Results of paired-sample t-test for splitting tensile strength.

Descriptive Statistics Test Statistics

Age Concrete
N Mean SD SEM Median t Statistic DF Prob > |t|
RC1-nv 6 3.832 0.148 0.061 3.817
RC1-v 6 4.345 0.204 0.083 4.348
−5.397 5 0.0030
Difference 6 −0.513 0.233 0.095 −0.552
Overall 12 4.088 0.317 0.092 4.035
120 d
RC2-nv 6 4.058 0.343 0.140 3.986
RC2-v 6 4.442 0.324 0.132 4.457
−3.532 5 0.0167
Difference 6 −0.384 0.266 0.109 −0.288
Overall 12 4.250 0.376 0.109 4.327

6. Conclusions
The following conclusions are drawn from this study:
The increasing attached mortar leads to a drop in the density of aggregates and a
significant increase in water adsorption and moisture content from NCA to RCA2.
By adding additional water, the slump of all concrete can meet the design value,
and there is no loss over regenerations. Among them, RC1-v and RC2-v are 10.71% and
6.10% higher than RC1-nv and RC2-nv, and RC1-v is the largest. The air content of fresh
concrete increased with the increasing number of repetitions. Moreover, the air content of
RC1-v and RC2-v is 23.5% and 22.7% larger than that of RC1-nv and RC2-nv, respectively.
The compressive strength of all investigated concrete has a similar trend from 3 days
to 120 days. At 28 days, the strength of multi-recycled concrete decreases as the number of
repetitions increases. Particularly, the value of RC1-v and RC2-v is 11.46% and 8.68% higher
than RC1-nv and RC2-nv, respectively. At the 120th day, the compressive strength of all
mixtures exceeds the design value 40 MPa except for RC2-nv. The compressive strength
decreases as follows: RC1-v > C-nv > RC2-v > RC1-nv > RC2-nv. Compared with the
non-vibration mixing process, the recycled concrete using the vibration mixing process has
higher compressive strength, smaller coefficient of variation, and better quality.
The splitting tensile strength is markedly increased with increasing recycling at
28 days. When curing to the age of 120 days, the values of RC1-v and RC2-v are sig-
nificantly higher than that of RC1-nv and RC2-nv, and both exceed the reference concrete.
The significance of strength differences of concrete using vibration and non-vibration
mixing process was also investigated. The results of paired-sample t-test showed that
at the 0.05 level, the vibration mixing process has a significant effect on the compressive
strength and splitting tensile strength of recycled and multi-recycled concrete. It can be
substantiated that the vibration mixing process is a more effective way to improve the
performance of recycled and multi-recycled coarse aggregates concrete.

Author Contributions: Conceptualization, F.Y. and Y.Y.; methodology, Y.Y. and J.W.; software, F.Y.;
validation, X.W. and J.W.; investigation, X.W.; resources, Z.F.; data curation, F.Y.; writing—original
draft preparation, F.Y.; writing—review and editing, F.Y. and Z.F.; supervision, Z.F. All authors have
read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.
Funding: The authors gratefully acknowledge the support of the National Natural Science Foundation
of China (51208044) and the Natural Science Foundation of Shaanxi Province, China (213025170173).
All the authors of the following references are much appreciated.
Institutional Review Board Statement: Not applicable.
Informed Consent Statement: Not applicable.
Buildings 2022, 12, 1369 15 of 17

Data Availability Statement: Not applicable.

Conflicts of Interest: The authors declare no conflict of interest.

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