Experimental and finite element analysis for the flexural behavior of notched geopolymer

beam under Monotonic load 2023

3.11. Plan for dissemination

The study's findings were presented to Jimma University Institute of Technology's Faculty of Civil
and Environmental Engineering for their postgraduate program in structural engineering, and a
copy was kept in the library for everyone who might be interested.

3.12. Properties of Materials Used

3.12.1. White soil
Around Jimma City, white soil was initially accessible. Because of observations and oral
interviews conducted around live people for this study, in particular in Murawa Village, soils have
three layers as visualized Figure 3-3. The first is loamy soil used for brick made manually, second
white soil in color and the third is black soil. In this research was used the second layer white soil.
After collecting white soil from murawa site to be drying blow in the laboratory and sieve with
90micro sieve to omit retain on the sieve as shown Figure 3-4. Specific gravity and chemical
composition were investigated as indicated Table A-1 specific gravity of white soil is 2.4.

Fineness of white soil

By Mean of 90mic as Fineness of Hydraulic Cement procedure ASTM C 184-83 by taking initial
weight of 300gm white soil and sieve by 90mic measuring retained amount and then calculating
percentage of retain.

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Figure 3-3 site visit at murawa and collection of white soil

Figure 3-4 preparation of white soil in laboratory

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 Experimental and finite element analysis for the flexural behavior of notched geopolymer
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3.12.2. Cement
Portland Pozzolana Cement (PPC) Dangote product cement with 32.5N grade was used for all
mix of normal concrete specimens’ preparation and geopolymer concrete replacement. It was
brought from one of the Jimma’s building materials shops. The Specific gravity of cement is 2.9
and normal consistency and setting time for cement were tested.

Normal and geopolymer Consistency of Hydraulic Cement ASTM ( C 187-86)

determining the amount of water required to prepare cement pastes for the initial and final time
of setting tests. By using the Vicat apparatus, mixing water only with cement (cement past) not
only for normal cement but also for geopolymer binder with the same procedure.

Figure 3-5 consistence of binder

Initial and Final Time of Setting of Cement and geopolymer binder” (ASTM C191-82)

determination of the time of Setting of cement and geopolymer binder by means of the Vicat
needle. Measure (400) g of binder, Prepare the appropriate amount of water according to the
normal consistency test calculations, then use 85% of it for the consistency test. note the duration
since the water was mixed with the cement or geopolymer bind

Allow the time of setting specimen to remain in the moist cabinet for 30 minutes after molding
without being disturbed. Determine the Penetration of the 1mm needle at this time and every (15)
minutes until a penetration of 25mm or less is obtained. To read the penetration, lower the needle
of Vicat Apparatus until it touches the surface of the cement paste. Tighten the screw and take an
initial reading. Release the set screw and allow the needle to settle for 30 seconds, and then take
the reading to determine the penetration.

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Figure 3-6 setting time of binder

3.12.3. Water
A potable water used for drinking supplied from Jimma town water supply and sewerage authority
was used for washing aggregate, mixing both normal concrete and geopolymer concrete and curing
of normal concrete.

3.12.4. Fine aggregate

Natural river sand collected from Cewaka River having maximum size of 4.75mm diameter was
used. Each physical properties of the fine aggregate required for the mix design as per the
specification was done in the laboratory. Necessary laboratory investigations were carried out in
order to ensure compliance of property of the river sand with the required standards and
specifications. Gradation, specific gravity and absorption capacity, bulk density, moisture content
and silt content were the tested parameters in order to assess the physical properties of the sand.

a) Silt content of fine aggregate

According to ASTM C117[47], the material in fine aggregates which is finer than 75μm is
generally regarded as silt. This silt in the sand for the concrete has a severe impact on the quality
of the concrete. Mainly it affects the workability of the concrete, bonding of cement and fine
aggregate sand also results in the reduction of strength and durability. Fine aggregates containing
too much percentages of silt than the allowable limits are required to be washed. According to the

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 Experimental and finite element analysis for the flexural behavior of notched geopolymer
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Ethiopian standard it is recommended to wash or reject if the silt content exceeds a value of 6%
[48].

Apparatus:

Balance – Readable and accurate to 0.1 g or 0.1% of test load.

Sieve – A 75-µm (No. 200) sieve.
Container – A pan or vessel of a size sufficient to contain the sample covered with water.
A ventilated drying oven

Procedure

1. Dry the test sample to constant mass at a temperature of 110±5Co, 1000gm

2. After being dried and being weighed, place it in a vessel and add sufficient washing
water to cover it.
3. Agitate the content of the vessel vigorously so as to separate all particles finer than 75µm
(No. 200) sieve from the coarser particles, and to bring the fine material into suspension.
4. Immediately pour the wash water over a 75-µm (No. 200) sieve. Add a second charge of
water to the sample in the container, agitate and decant as before. Repeat this operation
until the wash water is clear.
5. Return all material retained on a sieve by flushing to the washed sample and dry it to
constant mass at a temperature of 110±5Co and determine the mass to the nearest 0.1%,

Figure 3-7 silt content

b) Sieve Analysis of fine aggregate

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The actual grading requirements depend on the shape and surface characteristics of the particles.
Extending the grading of aggregate to a larger maximum size lowers the water requirement of the
mix, so that, for a specified workability and cement content, the water /cement ratio can be lowered
with a consequent increase in strength. In structural concrete of usual proportions, there is no
advantage in using aggregate with a maximum size greater than about 25 or 40mm when
compressive strength is a criterion. Particle size distribution of an aggregate is determined using
sieve analysis. Usually, the grading and grading limits are expressed in terms of percentage of
material passing through each sieve. The particle size distribution and fineness modulus (FM) of
the river sand is checked as per the requirement ASTM C 33[49]/ESC.D3.201.

Apparatus

 Balance (10kg capacity with accuracy0.1% of mass of the sample),

 Series of sieves (according to the specified standard),
 Sieve shaker,
 Brush,
 Scoop.

Procedure:

 Sampling Fine Aggregate: -The size of the test sample, after drying is 2000gm,Dry the
sample to constant mass at a temperature of 110±5℅
 Select sieves with suitable openings, nest the sieves in order of decreasing size of opening
from top to bottom and place the sample on the top sieve.
 Agitate (shake) the sieves by hand or by mechanical apparatus for a sufficient period.
Continue sieving until almost no residue passes through the sieves. Shake for a period of
15 minutes, when electrical shaker is used.
 Open the set of sieves carefully so that no loosing of material is expected.
 Weigh the amount of aggregate passing through each sieve and the amount retained on
each sieve, and record % age retained between consecutive sieves.
 Calculate the fineness modulus by adding the total percentages of material in the sample
that is coarser than each of the following sieves (cumulative percentages retained), and
dividing the sum by 100, and plot the particle size distribution curve.

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Figure 3-8 sieve analysis of fine aggregate

c) Moisture content of fine aggregate

During the concrete mix design process, an aggregate was considered to be as free from water and
never absorbing moisture from the environment. If sand was used without conducting a test for
moisture content and water absorption, the initially considered water per cement ratio will be
getting abnormal and the strength of concrete will be jeopardized. So, in order to know the required
quantity of water that is necessary to get the desired compressive strength and the workability of
fresh concrete, the tests should have to be conducted. The water to cement ratio of concrete affects
the strength and the workability of the concrete. The increase of the water to cement ratio results
in a decrease in the strength of the concrete and an increase of workability. The aggregates in
concrete are assumed to be inert materials. As a result of this property of aggregates the design
water to cement ratio of the mix changes. In order to correct these discrepancies, the moisture

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 Experimental and finite element analysis for the flexural behavior of notched geopolymer
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content of aggregates has to be determined[48] Therefore, it is important to determine both the

absorption capacity and the moisture content of the aggregate.

Apparatus

 Balance
 A ventilated oven capable of maintaining the temperature at 110±5Co
 Sample container

Procedure

1. Weigh a sample of 0.5kg fine aggregate separately (A)

2. Dry the sample thoroughly in the sample container by means of a ventilated oven for about
24hrs.
3. Remove the sample from the oven and place it in a desiccator for about an hour in order
to cool without absorbing water from the atmosphere.
4. Determine the mass of the dried sample after it has cooled sufficiently (B), i.e. oven dried
sample.
5. Calculate the moisture content as follows: M.C(%) = ((A-B)/B) × 100
Where:
M.C = moisture content in %. A = mass of original sample, B = mass of dried sample,

d) Unit weight of fine aggregate

Unit weight can be defined as the weight of a given volume of graded aggregate. It is a density
measurement and is also known as bulk density. The unit weight tests of the fine aggregate samples
were carried out according to ASTM C 29[50] and simply measured by filling a container of known
volume and weighing it. Then, dividing the aggregate weight by the volume of the container
provides the unit weight of the aggregate. The rodded bulk density of aggregates used for normal
weight concrete generally ranges from 1200 to 1760 kg/m3 (ACI 318M, 2011).

Apparatus:

o Balance

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o Tamping rod: A round, straight steel rod, 16mm in diameter and approximately 600mm in
length.
o Measure – Cylindrical metal measure preferably provided with handles.

Fill the measure one-third full and level the surface with the fingers. Rod the layer of aggregate
with 25 strokes of the tamping rod evenly distributed over the surface. Fill the measure two-thirds
full and again level and rod as above. Finally, fill the measure to overflowing and rod again in the
manner previously mentioned. Level the surface of the aggregate with the fingers or a straightedge
in such a way that any slight projections of the large pieces of the coarse aggregate approximately
balance the large voids in the surface below the top of the measures.

Figure 3-9 unit weight of sand

e) Specific Gravity and Absorption Capacity of Fine Aggregate

Specific Gravity is important for several reasons. Some deleterious particles are lighter than
water. the "good" aggregates. Tracking specific gravity can sometimes indicate a change of
material or possible contamination. Differences in specific gravity may be used to separate the

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deleterious particles from the good using a heavy media liquid. Bulk Specific Gravity (also
known as Bulk Dry Specific Gravity): The ratio of the weight in air of a unit volume of
aggregate at a stated temperature to the weight in air of an equal volume of gas-free distilled
water at the stated temperature. Absorption is the increase in mass due to water in the pores of
the material. When the pores are fully filled and there is no surface moisture, the sand will be
in a saturated surface dry condition. With this, an increase in moisture (decrease in absorption)
will affect the amount of water that will be used in a concrete mix. Thus, both parameters need
to be defined prior to mix design and subsequent steps in concrete making the specific gravity
is the ratio between the weight of the substance and that of the same volume of water.
Aggregates, however, have pores that are both permeable and impermeable; whose structure
affects water absorption, permeability, and a specific gravity of the aggregates[48]. According
to ASTM C 128-93 (Reapproved 2001)[51], standard test method the bulk specific gravity
(SSD) and the absorption capacity

3.12.5. Coarse aggregate

From one of the aggregate shops in Jimma City, coarse aggregates with a normal weight made
from crushed rock and a maximum diameter of 20 mm were transported. In this study, there are
four classes of coarse aggregate; the first class includes shop-bought coarse aggregate with a
nominal (maximum) aggregate size of 20 mm. Aggregates were washed, dried, and excess particles
from coarse aggregates were removed to ensure compliance with ASTM C33[49] specifications.
Because fines have several impurities, they reduce concrete's strength and increase the surface area
available for water absorption, altering the mix's properties.

Figure 3-10collecting and washing of coarse aggregate

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