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Lecture Notes in Civil Engineering
Kong Kian Hau

Ashok Kumar Gupta
Sandeep Chaudhary
Tanmay Gupta Editors
Recent Advances
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Kong Kian Hau · Ashok Kumar Gupta ·
Sandeep Chaudhary · Tanmay Gupta
Editors
Recent Advances
in Structural Engineering
and Construction
Management
Select Proceedings of ICSMC 2021
Editors
Kong Kian Hau Ashok Kumar Gupta
Department of Civil and Environmental Department of Civil Engineering
Engineering Jaypee University of Information
College of Design and Engineering Technology
National University of Singapore Solan, Himachal Pradesh, India
Singapore, Singapore
Tanmay Gupta
Sandeep Chaudhary Department of Civil Engineering
Department of Civil Engineering Jaypee University of Information
Indian Institute of Technology Indore Technology
Indore, Madhya Pradesh, India Solan, Himachal Pradesh, India
ISSN 2366-2557 ISSN 2366-2565 (electronic)

ISBN 978-981-19-4039-2 ISBN 978-981-19-4040-8 (eBook)
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4040-8
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Preface
With increasing global population and the determined focus on rapid economic
advancement and development in the cities of countries worldwide, in the recent and
past decades has resulted in depletion of major resources with subsequent increase in
waste generation resulting in pollution to the global environment which has become
inevitable leading to global climate change. With the awareness that we are all inter-
connected globally in our actions, a new collective effort by all stakeholders aiming
for a more balance and moderate economic advancement and development approach
with a focus on sustainability, renewable energy, reuse and recycling for a greener
global environment needs to be embarked on in all aspects of future development
with the motivation of embracing life in our global society. One significant role that
civil engineers can contribute to our world in these challenging times is to constantly
remind ourselves to adopt a mindset of sustainability in using our technical knowl-
edge and engineering expertise in materials, design and construction methodology
advancement to adopt the latest civil and structural engineering technology for the
purpose of creating a more efficient structures which are safe, structurally efficient
and yet with a low embodied carbon utilization.
With the above noble motivation, the International Conference on Structures,
Material and Construction (ICSMC 2021) was organized by the Department of Civil
Engineering of Jaypee University of Information Technology (JUIT), Waknaghat,
Solan, in the beautiful state of Himachal Pradesh at northern India in collabo-
ration with Institution of Engineers (IEI), Shimla Chapter, Indian Geotechnical
Society (IGS), Shimla Chapter, Atria Institute of Technology (AIT), Bengaluru,
The Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE), India, and Indian Green Building Council
(IGBC), Chandigarh Chapter, with aims to explore recent sustainable developments
in construction materials, structural design, construction techniques and project
management and to provide an international platform and forum for academicians,
researchers, professionals and students engaged in these fields to share and exchange
knowledge. ICSMC 2021 was indeed a huge collaborative effort with the aim of
providing a dynamic platform to share the latest structural engineering highlights
and achievements to the participants.
v
vi Preface
Despite facing a challenging global COVID-19 pandemic, ICSMC 2021 was

successfully held virtually on November 12 and 13, 2021, and features 10 keynote
papers with more than 500 high-quality research papers received for the event which
were peer reviewed out of which 100 papers were accepted for presentation in this
conference in 12 technical sessions and subsequently 79 papers are selected as chap-
ters for this book. Conference achieved its aims by providing a collaborative environ-
ment to share and expedite further ideas and advances in a broad range of civil and
structural engineering topics, current techniques in structural experimentation, finite
element and numerical modeling, sustainable materials and construction technology.
This initiative has also helped to connect and develop synergies among researchers in
various disciplines from different countries, which can facilitate the development of
joint research initiatives with wider scope and magnitude beyond that of individual
institutions or research centers. Many important recommendations were made during
the conference for field applications in line with the main conference themes.
We hope that this Series of Lecture Notes in Civil Engineering will create aware-
ness and able us to share recent technical developments among the academicians,
scientists, researchers and practitioners from various disciplines of civil engineering
and sectors about these new initiatives toward development of sustainable construc-
tion materials, structures and construction methods. The comments and suggestions
from the readers and users of this book are most welcome.
Singapore Kong Kian Hau

Solan, India Ashok Kumar Gupta
Indore, India Sandeep Chaudhary
Solan, India Tanmay Gupta
Acknowledgements
Selected research papers from 1st International Conference on Structures, Materials

and Construction (ICSMC 2021) are compiled in the present book Recent Advance-
ment in Structural Engineering and Construction Management. The book assesses
the current progress and state-of-the-art techniques in structural experimentation,
smart materials and various aspects of construction technology. This volume is an
effort to bridge the existing gap in the field of modern construction between academic
knowledge and ground reality and provide information on innovations in structural
design, new construction materials and construction techniques.
I would like to take this opportunity to extend my gratitude to all the
researchers/authors, sponsors, reviewers, sessions chairs, organizing committee
members, international and national advisory board members, students, faculty,
staff and all professionals and delegates of various premier engineering institutions,
without whose constant efforts this book could not have been written. I am indeed
grateful to all our partner institutes for representing the conference on an interna-
tional stage and supporting this conference for making it a milestone in the areas
of structural innovation and construction material and techniques. Furthermore, I
would like to express my gratitude to all the peer review committee members for
contributing their valuable input and making the reviewing process impartial and in
a timely manner. I would also like to extend my deep-felt thanks to Prof. Rajendra
Kumar Sharma, Vice-Chancellor of Jaypee University of Information Technology,
Waknaghat, Solan, for his constant support during ICSMC 2021; Dr. Kong Kian Hau
from NUS, Singapore, Prof. Sandeep Chaudhary from IIT Indore, and Prof. Ashok
Kumar Gupta from JUIT, Waknaghat, and co-editors of the proceeding book who
helped me with the drafting and reviewing process. A special thanks is extended to
Dr. Rahul Dandautiya, Dr. Pankaj Munjal, Mr. Rajesh Sahu and Mr. Pranjal Bhatia
for their constant support and aid in compilation of this volume.
vii
viii Acknowledgements
My gratitude goes to Dr. Akash Chakraborty, Ms. Priya Vyas and the team
of Springer for their unwavering support and cooperation at all the stages of the
publication of this book.
Solan, India Tanmay Gupta

Peer Review Members
Dr. Kong Kian Hau, NUS, Singapore

Prof. Ashok Kumar Gupta, JUIT, Waknaghat
Prof. Sandeep Chaudhary, IIT Indore
Dr. Tanmay Gupta, JUIT, Waknaghat
Prof. Ashish Kumar, JUIT, Waknaghat
Dr. Hazi Azamathulla, St. Augustine Trinidad and Tobago, West Indies
Dr. Geng Guoqing, NUS, Singapore
Prof. S. Arunachalam, JUET, Guna
Dr. Pankaj, NIT Nagaland
Dr. Sunita Bansal, MRIIRS, Haryana
Dr. Rahul Dandautiya, Chandigarh University
Dr. Shaik Hussain, Manipal, Jaipur
Dr. Mukund Lahoti, BITS-Pilani
Dr. Anil Dhiman, CCET, Chandigarh
Dr. Gourav Gill, JIET, Jodhpur
Dr. Vasanth Keshav, Reva University, Bangalore
Dr. Himanshu Chawla, TIET, Punjab
Dr. Rajiv Ganguly, JUIT, Waknaghat
Dr. Saurabh Rawat, JUIT, Waknaghat
Dr. Arnav Anuj Kesar, JUIT, Waknaghat
Dr. Sugandha Singh, JUIT, Waknaghat
Mr. Niraj Singh Parihar, JUIT, Waknaghat
Mr. Kaushal Kumar, JUIT, Waknaghat
Mr. Akash Bhardwaj, JUIT, Waknaghat
Mr. Rohan Singhal, JUIT, Waknaghat
Mr. Akhilesh Gandhi, JUIT, Waknaghat
Dr. Arpit Goyal, TIET, Punjab
Dr. Mahdi Abdeddaim, University of Mohamed Khider, Biskra
Dr. Ekansh Agarwal, AcSIR-CBRI
Dr. G. Beulah Gnana Ananthi, Anna University, Chennai
Dr. Rajesh Goyal, NICMAR Bhadurgarh
ix
x Peer Review Members
Dr. Souradeep Gupta, IISC, Bangalore

Dr. Shashi Narayan, NIT Uttarakhand
Dr. Pankaj Sharma, Chitkara University
Dr. Kranthi Bijaya Sathi, VIIT, Visakhapatnam
Dr. Raju Sharma, TIET, Punjab
Dr. Godas Srikar, IIT Roorkee
Dr. Aditya Kumar Tiwary, Chandigarh University
Dr. Shakeel Waseem, NIT J&K
Dr. Athiyamaan V., BMS IT&M, Bangalore
Dr. Sudhir Vummadisetti, VIIT, Visakhapatnam
Dr. Mahesh Sharma, HPU, Shimla
Contents
Crystalline Admixtures for Autonomous Healing in Concrete: The

Past, Present and Future . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
K. H. Kong and C. Q. Lye
Wind-Induced Lock-In Effects on Tall Circular Structures . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
Arunachalam Srinivasan
Influence of Skewness on Deflection Response of Horizontally
Curved RC Box-Girder Bridges . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
Tanmay Gupta
Numerical Investigation on Built-Up Cold-Formed Steel Double
Decker-I-Beams . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
G. Beulah Gnana Ananthi and M. S. Deepak
Dynamic Characteristics of Sandwich Panel with 3DGrF Core
and FGCNT-Reinforced Polymer Composite Face Sheets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
S. Swetha, P. Thamilselvi, M. P. Arunkumar, and Vinod Bhagat
Influence of Concrete Electrical Resistivity on the Polarization
Performance of an ICCP System for a Reinforced Concrete
Structure: A Numerical Study . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57
Arpit Goyal
FE Analysis of Composite Sandwich Panels with Different Shape
Stiffeners Subjected to Extreme Wind Pressure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65
Bi Zhang, Ajay Shanker, and Xuechen Ni
Numerical Modeling on Buckling Behavior of Structural Stiffened
Panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77
Shreyas Alagundi and T. Palanisamy
Construction Stage Analysis of Continuous Box Girder Bridge
Constructed via Full Staging and Balance Cantilever Method . . . . . . . . . . 89
Ankit Belwal, Shipra Thapliyal, and Vipendra Singh Jhinkwan
xi
xii Contents
Bending Deflections and Natural Frequencies of Micro/Nanobeams

Using a Third Order Single Variable Nonlocal Beam Theory . . . . . . . . . . 101
S. A. Deepak, Rajesh A. Shetty, K. Sudheer Kini,
and G. L. Dushyanthkumar
Experimental Studies on Acid Resistance of Steel Fiber-Reinforced
Self-compacting Concrete (SCC) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119
S. Vijaya Kumar, B. Dean Kumar, and B. L. P. Swami
Experimental Analysis of Ductile–Brittle Change in High-density
Polyethylene Behavior . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131
Rabiaa Elkori, Amal Lamarti, Khalid El Had, and Abdelilah Hachim
Numerical Study of an ‘I’ Plan Shape Building Under Wind
Excitation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 141
Geetam Saha and Dipesh Majumdar
Laboratory Model Study on Fly Ash Reinforced with Encased
Floating Column . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 157
S. Malik and S. M. Nawghare
Flexural Behaviour of Continuous Steel Beam Prestressed Via
Externally Unbonded Tendons: Numerical Modelling, Parametric
Study and Statistical Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 167
Abhishek Srivastava, Kumar Pallav, and Madan Chandra Maurya
Analytical Modelling Strategies for Performing Seismic Evaluation
of Open Ground Storey RC Buildings Located in Medium Seismic
Zone of India . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 179
Pramodini Naik and Satish Annigeri
A Deep Insight into the Design Methodology of T-Beam Bridge
Girders as Per the Guidelines of IRC: 112–2020 Compared
to the Conventional Method . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 197
Arka Mandal, Amiya K. Samanta, and Sudipta Ghosh
Damage Detection in T-Beam Bridges Using Transmissibility
of Vibration Signals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 211
S. Lakshmi and M. Gayathri Devi
Bending Characteristics of FG-CNT Reinforced Composite Face
Sheet Sandwich Panel with 3D Graphene Foam Core . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 223
S. Swetha, P. Thamilselvi, Vinod Bhagat, and M. P. Arunkumar
Bending Deflection Solutions of Thick Beams Using a Third-Order
Simple Single Variable Beam Theory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 233
Rajesh A. Shetty, S. A. Deepak, K. Sudheer Kini,
Contents xiii
Application of DDBD Method on Mid-Rise Open-Ground Storey

RC Frame Buildings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 247
Anurag Sharma, R. K. Tripathi, and Govardhan Bhatt
Partially and Fully Strengthening of Square RC Column Using
Various FRP Composites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 259
Tejash K. Patel, S. A. Vasanwala, Purvesh Patel, and Darshan Patel
Assessment of Response Reduction Factor for Ordinary RC
Frames by IS Code and PSPD Method . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 275
Ajay Singh Thakur and Tanmay Gupta
Analysis of Soft Storey Building with Different Types of Steel
Bracings Under Seismic Load . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 287
Akhila Lal and Mini Remanan
Evaluation of Seismic Pounding Effect on Two Regular Adjacent
RC Buildings with Three Different Alignments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 297
Eami Eldhose and Mini Remanan
Influence of Interfered Square Buildings on Wind Responses
of U-Shaped Tall Building . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 309
Shanku Mandal, Sujit Kumar Dalui, and Soumya Bhattacharjya
Design of Steel Intensive Quarantine Centre . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 321
Himanshu Chawla, Neeraj Kumar, and Aarjav Arora
Behaviour of Slab–Column Joint Under Lateral Cyclic Loading . . . . . . . 333
K. N. Suganya and S. Greeshma
Improvements in Tensile Strength Properties of Steel after Forming . . . . 351
M. S. Deepak and G. Beulah Gnana Ananthi
Behaviour of Aerated Alkali-Activated Composite Wall Panels . . . . . . . . . 361
S. Geetha, M. Selvakumar, and S. Muthu Lakshmi
Numerical Analysis of Transmission Line Tower with Connection
Beam on Pile Foundation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 375
S. Lakshmi and Pinky Merin Philip
Design of a Self-lifting Pedestrian Bridge for Flood-Prone Locations . . . 393
B. K. Mathew, S. Lakshmi, and G. Hari
Seismic Analysis and Rehabilitation of Corroded Reinforced
Concrete Building . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 411
Dheeraj Kumar Singh, Harish Chandra Arora, Vikas Prabhakar,
Shobha Ram, and Rahul Kumar
Prediction of Residual Flexural Strength of Reinforced Concrete
Beams and Slabs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 431
Chetan Garg and Harish Chandra Arora
xiv Contents
Numerical Study on Thermal Performances of Fully Encased

Composite Column . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 447
Anu Anil and C. M. Manoj
Ecological Brick Manufactured with Addition of Ceramic Waste . . . . . . . 461
Nara Cangussu, Erick Andrade, Pablo Soares, and Lino Maia
Behavioral Study of RCA Concrete—Influence of Grade of Parent
Concrete . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 471
Shakeel A. Waseem and Shahid Ul Islam
Utilization of Plastic Waste as an Alternate Binder
and Plastic-Coated Aggregate in Interlocking Paving Blocks . . . . . . . . . . . 483
V. S. Prathibha, Rahul Dandautiya, and Sayeesh S. Bhalare
Mechanical Properties of Alccofine with Low Calcium Silicate
Based High-Strength Concrete . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 493
R. Divahar, S. P. Sangeetha, P. S. Aravind Raj, and K. Naveen Kumar
Durability Characteristics of Sea Sand in Cement Mortar
for the Construction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 505
B. T. Ashwini Manjunath and Rahul Dandautiya
Appraising the Influence of Ceramic Waste Incorporation
on the Corrosion and Chemical Attack Resistance of Cement
Composites: A Review . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 513
Anjali Agrawal, T. Jothi Saravanan, K. I. Syed Ahmed Kabeer,
and Kunal Bisht
Experimental Analysis of Micro-Silica Fume and Steel Fibers
on the Strength of Concrete Mix . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 523
Manoj Kumar Poonia and Amardeep Boora
Geotechnical Characterization of Sugarcane Bagasse
Biochar-Amended Landfill Cover Soil . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 531
B. Soundara, D. Vignesh Kumar, N. Praveen, M. Ranjith,
and E. Naveen Raj
Experimental Analysis the Effect of Silica Fume on the Mechanical
Properties of Concrete Mix . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 541
Pradeep Kuhar and Amardeep Boora
Experimental Investigation on Fly Ash and Ground Granulated
Blast Furnace Slag-Based Geopolymer Corbels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 551
B. Sumanth Kumar
Parametric Experimental Studies of Durability Properties
of Concrete Incorporating Ground Granulated Blast Furnace Slag
(GGBFS) and Silica Fume . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 565
Sachin S. Raval, C. D. Modhera, and Tejash K. Patel
Contents xv
Optimization of Clinker Factor for Low-Carbon Penta-Blended

Cement Mortar via Box–Behnken Design of Response Surface
Methodology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 577
Anurag and Rajesh Kumar
Performance Analysis of Sustainable Concrete Mixes Using Waste
Slag . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 597
Sudipta Ghosh, Ipsita Mohanty, and Amiya Kumar Samanta
Cement Stabilized Mud Blocks Admixed with Bagasse Fibre,
Wheat Straw and Crumb Rubber: Physico-Mechanical
and Thermal Investigation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 609
Rajesh Kumar and Bibhakar Kumar Singh
An Overview of the Mixture Design Approaches for UHPFRC . . . . . . . . . 625
Josniya Jose, Praveen Nagarajan, and Mini Remanan
Comparison in Engineering Properties of Clay Soil Stabilized
with Recycle Aggregate, Fly Ash, Cement, and Ground-Granulated
Blast-Furnace Slag . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 639
Sudipta Kar and S. M. Nawghare
Amelioration of High Plasticity Soil Using Sisal Fiber and Granite
Dust . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 651
T. Venkateswararao
Strength Properties of Stabilized Adobe . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 665
G. Tejaswini, B. P. Annapurna, and K. S. Jagadish
Effect of Supplementary Cementitious Materials on Compressive
Strength of Engineered Cementitious Composites: A Review . . . . . . . . . . 681
S. Naveen and Govardhan Bhat
Incorporation of Waste Wood Ash and Polypropylene Fibre
on the Production of Sustainable GPC . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 693
K. Arunkumar, M. Muthukannan, A. Suresh Kumar,
A. Chithambar Ganesh, and R. Kanniga Devi
Development of Environmental-Friendly Geopolymer Concrete
Using Incinerated Biomedical Waste Ash . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 709
A. Suresh Kumar, M. Muthukannan, K. Arun Kumar,
Consolidation and Slope Stability Study of Embankment Made
of Ash Fill Supported by Hybrid Stone Columns: 3D Numerical
Investigation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 727
J. Sudheer Kumar, Saurabh Rawat, and Ashok Kumar Gupta
Investigation of Pullout Capacity of Helical Soil Nail in Clay . . . . . . . . . . . 737
Pankaj Sharma, Saurabh Rawat, and Ashok Kumar Gupta
xvi Contents
Anti-bacterial Study on ZnO-Grafted Jute Fibres for Longevity

in its Application: A Novel Approach . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 745
Sk. Aakash Hossain, Chandan Kumar Ghosh, Sahil Chauhan,
and Srija Arasavilli
Studies on Polymer-Modified Lime-Surkhi Repair Mortar
for Heritage Buildings: Physico-Mechanical and Micro-Structural
Characterization . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 759
Rajesh Kumar and Rajni Lakhani
Addition of Sea Shell Waste to Silty Sand Subgrade for Economical
Design of Flexible Pavement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 773
S. Muthu Lakshmi, S. Geetha, M. Selvakumar, V. J. Vedhanayaghi,
R. Mithun, and V. Karthickraja
Removal of Congo Red Dye from Waste Streams Using Polysulfone
Membrane Containing Bio-sorbent and Coated with Chitosan . . . . . . . . . 783
Arasavilli Srija, Sahil Chauhan, and Sk. Aakash Hossain
Recent Progress in Newer Cementitious Binders as an Alternative
to Portland Cement: Need for the 21st Century . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 797
Rajesh Kumar
Structural Performance of Ground Granulated Blast Furnace Slag
Mortar Under Impact Loading . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 813
Geethu Elsa Thomas, P. V. Indira, and A. S. Sajith
Comparative Study of Micro-Silica-Based Concrete Using IS
and DOE Methods . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 821
Parveen Berwal, Rajesh Goel, Rishav Garg, and Arun Kumar
A Feasibility Study on the Potential Usage of Engineered
Cementitious Composites in Indian Pavements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 831
Saahil Dhaka, Mukund Lahoti, and Shreyas Pranav
Comparison of Dimension Limestone Waste Coarse Aggregates
with Traditional Coarse Aggregates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 841
Mahesh Sharma, Pankaj Rawat, and Aditya Rana
Replacement of Natural Aggregate by Glass Waste in Granilite
Concrete . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 849
Nara Cangussu, Gabriel Braga, and Lino Maia
A Study on Development of Self-compacting Blended Concretes
with Various W/B Ratios . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 861
G. Sree Lakshmi Devi, C. Venkata Siva Rama Prasad,
and P. Srinvasa Rao
Tourism Sustainability in Hilly Regions—A Review for Shimla . . . . . . . . 873
Akash Bhardwaj and Ashok Kumar Gupta
Contents xvii
Air Quality Assessment During Festivities in Shimla City, India . . . . . . . . 883

Rajiv Ganguly, Divyansh Sharma, and Tanmay Gupta
Coastal Slope Failure Analysis: A Case Study on Baga Hill, Goa . . . . . . . 895
Kohima Dessai and Sumitra S. Kandolkar
Leaching and Heavy Metal-Binding Characteristics of Red
Mud-Based Construction Materials—A Review . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 909
Aman Kumar, T. Jothi Saravanan, K. I. Syed Ahmed Kabeer,
and Kunal Bisht
Forensic Investigation and Analysis of Landslide in Goa—A Case
Study . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 919
Ashwarya S. Naik and Nisha P. Naik
Assessment of Smart City Indicators from ICT Framework
in an Indian Context: A Fuzzy DEMATEL Approach . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 927
Vasanthawada Sri Ramana Saketh and Harish Puppala
Review of Time and Cost Analysis for Prefabricated Prefinished
Volumetric Construction (PPVC) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 937
Ashwin Bharat Chougule and Onkar Chothe
A Review on Non-destructive Techniques for Corrosion Monitoring
in Reinforced Concrete Structures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 951
Aishwarya Thakur and Saurav
Buffer Sizing in Construction Scheduling Using Critical Chain
Project Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 969
S. P. Sreenivas Padala, L. Divakar, and P. Vijay Kumar
3D Numerical Investigation on the Performance of the Raft
Supported by the Composite, Ordinary and Geosynthetic Encased
Columns in Clay Soils . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 979
J. Sudheer Kumar and Sudhanshu Sharma
About the Editors
Dr. Kong Kian Hau is currently Senior Lecturer with

the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering
(CEE) at the National University of Singapore (NUS).
He graduated with a bachelor’s degree with First-
Class Honours and Ph.D. in Civil Engineering from
NUS as of 1999 and 2004. He completed his M.Sc.
(course works) in Advance Reinforced Concrete Design,
Advance Prestressed Concrete Design, Advance Struc-
tural Steel Design and Dynamics Analysis and Earth-
quake Design of Buildings with overall CAP of 4.75
(out of 5) and was awarded the NUS President Grad-
uate Fellowship in 2002. His Ph.D. focuses on the
areas of structural seismic engineering and advance
finite element modeling and analysis. Since 2005, he
is also a practicing qualified engineer who special-
izes in buildings and infrastructure projects (including
bridges).
He is Chartered Engineer and International Profes-
sional Engineer (UK) with 13 years of experience as
consultant for many construction projects in Singapore
and overseas. In his postdoctoral studies (since 2003)
and acting as Principal Investigators related to Advance
Concrete Technology of Singapore Government-funded
R&D projects since 2018),he has also researched
on areas of high-strength lightweight concrete, high-
performance oil well cements, self-healing and sustain-
able concretes as repair materials. He is currently
serving as Technical Committee Member of the Civil
and Structural Engineering Division of Institute of Engi-
neers (Singapore), serving as Working Group Technical
xix
xx About the Editors
Member on SS EN 13670 “Execution of Concrete Struc-

tures” code, listed as Technical Expert Witness with
the Intellectual Property Office of Singapore (IPOS),
serving as Senior Member in RILEM’s Technical
Committee 273-RAC on “Structural Behavior and Inno-
vation of Recycled Aggregate Concrete” and serving
in ASTM Technical Committee C09 on “Concrete and
Concrete Aggregates.” As a researcher and practitioner
with combined backgrounds of concrete technology and
structural engineering, he is diligent and passionate to
create innovative sustainable concrete and greener struc-
tural engineering solutions which can benefit the Global
Community.
Dr. Ashok Kumar Gupta is currently Dean of

Academics and Research and Professor in the Depart-
ment of Civil Engineering, Jaypee University of
Information Technology, Waknaghat, Solan, Himachal
Pradesh, India. He obtained his B.E. (Civil) with honors
and M.E. (Geotechnical Engineering) from University
of Roorkee which is now Indian Institute of Technology
Roorkee. He completed his Ph.D. from Indian Insti-
tute of Technology, Delhi. His major areas of research
include testing and modeling of geotechnical materials,
finite element method and its applications to geotech-
nical engineering, continuum damage mechanics and
its application to rockfill materials modeling. He has
published 51 papers in respected international jour-
nals and co-authored 2 textbooks and 7 chapters. He
is also the editorial board member of international
journals like journal of civil, structural, environmental,
water resources and infrastructure engineering research,
international journal of civil, structural, environmental
and infrastructure engineering research and develop-
ment and many others. He is also a member of profes-
sional review boards for Journal of Geotechnical and
Geoenvironmental Engineering, ASCE, and Interna-
tional Journal of Geomechanics, ASCE, for which he
has been awarded the “Best Reviewer Award” for three
consecutive years from 2017, 2018 and 2019. He is
also the founder chairman, Indian Geotechnical Society
(IGS), Shimla Chapter (34th local chapter of IGS, inau-
gurated on 30 May 2012) and recipient of IGS-Shri. R.
N. Prasad biennial prize for the best paper on “slope
stability and land-slides.” He is a lifetime member of
About the Editors xxi
Indian Geotechnical Society, Indian Society of Rock

Mechanics and Tunneling Technology (ISRMTT) and
Indian Society of Technical Education (ISTE).
Dr. Sandeep Chaudhary is currently employed as

a professor in the discipline of Civil Engineering at
Indian Institute of Technology Indore. Before joining
IIT Indore, he served as a faculty member in different
capacities at MNIT Jaipur. He has obtained his B.E.
from MBM Engineering College, Jodhpur, M.E. from
MREC Jaipur, Ph.D. from the Indian Institute of Tech-
nology Delhi and carried out his postdoctoral research at
Kunsan National University, South Korea. His research
interests include strength, durability and microstruc-
ture of concrete, sustainable construction practices and
steel–concrete composite structures. His group carries
out both analytical and experimental studies. The exper-
imental studies range from microstructure to full- scale.
He has served on prestigious committees at the national
and international levels and is presently chairing the
Standing Committee-(Design) of the Asian Concrete
Federation. He has published more than 100 papers in
internationally reputed journals, 5 books and currently
holds 4 patents in his name. His areas of specialization
are structural analysis and design and building materials
including waste utilization.
Dr. Tanmay Gupta is engaged at present as Assis-

tant Professor in Civil Engineering Department, Jaypee
University of Information Technology, Solan (H.P.)
India. He obtained his Ph.D. from Birla Institute of
Technology and Science (BITS-Pilani), Pilani Campus,
in 2019. His B.E. Hons. (Civil Engineering) in 2011
and M.E. Hons. (Structural Engineering) in 2013 have
also been awarded from BITS-Pilani. He has published
numerous research papers in SCI and Scopus indexed
journals, international conferences of repute along with
few book chapters. He is also acting as a reviewer
of many journals of international prestige. His zeal
to resolve structural engineering challenges in a prac-
tical way imparts him with a charismatic enigma. He
also possesses experience as consultant design civil
engineer, consulting on complicated structures such as
boilers, chimneys, steam turbine gas building along
with skyscrapers constructions. Currently, he is actively
xxii About the Editors
involved in the training of Indian government offi-

cials in order to bridge the gap between the latest
academics’ standards and practices prevalent in the
professional construction world. His research interests
include Structural behavior of reinforced concrete and
composite bridges, finite element analysis of concrete
structures, analysis of special geometrical layout for
bridges, seismic behavior of concrete bridges. His
current research with various agencies of Himachal
government is focused on solving critical issues of
landslides and rehabilitation of structures post-disaster.
Crystalline Admixtures for Autonomous
Healing in Concrete: The Past, Present
and Future
K. H. Kong and C. Q. Lye
Abstract The development of chemical admixtures for concrete used marked a

significant milestone in construction industry, and they have now become an essential
component in modern concrete, due to the capability of designing desirable fresh and
hardened properties. The effects on the latter, particularly durability, is important as
it allows longer structural service life and hence lower associated environmental
impact. However, concrete is prone to crack formation which threatens its durability.
One way of dealing with this issue is to impart autonomous healing ability in concrete
through the use of crystalline admixtures for repairing or sealing microcracks fully
by the concrete itself. This paper provides a comprehensive overview on the past and
current research on the autonomous healing in concrete using crystalline admixtures,
studying the types, mechanism, performance and technology involved. The research
gap and potential limitations are discussed to support future development in this area.
Keywords Autonomous healing · Self-healing · Cracks · Crystalline admixtures ·

Sustainability
1 Introduction
Cracking in concrete is an inevitable phenomenon, which can take place at early

age when concrete is in the fresh state and throughout its service life due to various
reasons such as shrinkage, weathering and loading. The presence of cracks in concrete
facilitates transportation of fluids and gases into its core, potentially leading to the
corrosion of reinforcement in structural concrete, and thus affecting its integrity. As
continuous repairing and maintenance of concrete can be cost and labour intensive,
the development of crack treating technology in the form of self-healing has gained
much attention in the field of concrete technology.
K. H. Kong (B) · C. Q. Lye

Civil and Environmental Engineering Department, National University of Singapore, Singapore,
Singapore
e-mail: ceekkh@nus.edu.sg
© The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd. 2023 1
K. K. Hau et al. (eds.), Recent Advances in Structural Engineering and Construction
Management, Lecture Notes in Civil Engineering 277,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4040-8_1
2 K. H. Kong and C. Q. Lye
Chemical admixtures have become one of the main ingredients in the modern
concrete to enhance its properties in fresh and hardened state. Since the beginning of
the 2010s, the potential use of crystalline admixtures to recover the performance and
repair cracks in concrete in an autonomous manner has been actively studied. Based
on ACI 212.3R-10 report [1], crystalline admixtures are categorised as permeability-
reducing admixtures, which are normally used to prevent water migration in structural
concrete. Crystalline admixtures are also known to be hydrophilic, and they react
with water and cement particles in concrete to produce modified C-S–H gel and
pore-blocking precipitate in microcracks and capillaries.
This paper provides an in-depth analysis on the self-healing effect derived from
crystalline admixtures on the performance recovery and crack sealing in concrete,
mortar and paste mixes, reported by various researchers globally (mainly Europe)
since the beginning of the 2010s. The recent studies tended to focus on the autogenous
healing of fibre reinforced concrete containing crystalline admixtures [17, 18, 24].
2 Characteristics of Crystalline Admixtures
Crystalline admixtures are irregularly shaped powdered material with particle size
similar to that of cementitious materials. The density of crystalline admixtures is
within the range of 2.0–2.9, lower than that of typical Portland cement (PC) at
3.15. Table 1 compares the chemical composition between crystalline admixtures
and typical PC. Given that crystalline admixtures are commercial products with
proprietary chemical technology, their chemical composition content is expected to
vary in a wide range. Notwithstanding this, calcium oxide (CaO) and silica oxide
(SiO2 ) are the major components, making up at least 50% in the total content. Some
Table 1 Chemical composition of crystalline admixtures

Oxide Crystalline admixtures Typical Portland cement [25], %
Average, % Std. Dev, % Range, %
CaO 51.0 13.3 30.9–73.4 63
SiO2 14.4 4.0 7.6–20.3 20
Fe2 O3 2.6 0.9 1.58–4.3 3
Al2 O3 2.9 1.0 1.3–4.36 6
SO3 2.4 1.1 1.0–4.43 2
MgO 7.8 7.2 0.55–19.4 1.5
K2 O 0.44 0.33 0.15–1.22 1
Na2 O 6.41 5.57 1.2–15.22
MnO 0.097 0.072 0.06–0.241 –
LOI 21.0 9.6 8.57–36.9 2
Data from [10, 16, 17, 19, 20, 22, 26, 29, 34, 36–38, 40]
Crystalline Admixtures for Autonomous Healing in Concrete … 3
Fig. 1 Ternary plot of

crystalline admixture in
comparison with other
cements [11] (GGBS,
ground granulated blast
furnace slag; FA, fly ash; SF,
silica fume; MK,
metakaolin; C-S, copper
slag; GP, glass powder)
crystalline admixtures tend to carry high significant amount of either magnesium

oxide (MgO) or sodium oxide (Na2 O). The rest of the oxide content of crystalline
admixtures is not too different to that of PC, but their loss on ignition (LOI) content
is found to be very high.
The ternary diagram of the SiO2 , Al2 O and CaO contents of crystalline admixtures
is given in Fig. 1, along with other established cements. It can be seen that crystalline
admixtures are mainly in the region of hydraulic, suggesting that they have similar
chemical reactivity to PC. In addition, the main mineral compositions commonly
present in crystalline admixtures are alite, belite, ferrite, calcite, portlandite and
quartz, and in a few cases, gypsum is found [10, 16, 18, 26, 35]
3 Recovery of Mechanical Properties of Cracked Mixes
3.1 Compressive Strength
The recovery of compressive strength is tested by introducing cracks to

concrete/mortar specimens through either controlled crack width method [29] or
loading up to 90% of its compressive strength [36]. The specimens are then subjected
to different curing conditions (in the form of moist, air and alternate moist-air curing)
for a period of time. The recovery is determined as the percentage ratio between
strength at tested age and strength before cracking. Figure 2 presents the recovery
results of various cracked concrete/mortar specimens commonly containing less than
Fig. 2 Recovery of
compressive strength of
cracked concrete/mortar
specimens made with and
without crystalline
admixtures at different
curing conditions [6, 8, 21,
28, 29, 36]
3% crystalline admixtures by mass of cement (only one case at 16%) and the corre-
sponding reference specimens made without crystalline admixtures. Comparing the
results of mixes made with or without crystalline admixtures, there is no strong
evidence to suggests that the use of crystalline admixtures shows a clear advantage
in compressive strength recovery. However, the effect of crystalline admixtures on
the recovery is more pronounced when mixes were subjected to at least 28 days
curing than that of 7 or less days curing. Both moist curing and alternate moist-air
curing methods are found to be important to realise the recovery.
3.2 Stress/Load-Controlled Mouth Opening Displacement

Relationship
Three point bending tests are commonly used to investigate the recovery of mechan-
ical properties of self-healing concrete in terms of its stress or load (sometimes
stiffness) and controlled mouth opening displacement (CMOD) relationship. The
beam specimens are loaded to a targeted crack width then released and reloaded
after curing for self-healing to take place. In general, the results tend to fall into
two categories: either no significant recovery [7, 12, 35] or improved recovery [5,
13–15] due to the use of crystalline admixtures. In the latter category, the effect of
crystalline admixtures on recovery is more effective when specimens are exposed to
moist condition, longer curing days and having cracks width less than 100 µm.
3.3 Permeability and Absorption
The permeability and absorption of cracked concrete is one of the most commonly
used methods to evaluate its self-healing ability. However, given that crystalline
admixtures are normally used permeability-reducing admixtures, the assessment can
be favourable for their inclusion in concrete. Figure 3 shows the compilation results
for the recovery of permeability and absorption for mixes containing up to 4.5%
crystalline admixtures which are subjected to controlled crack width and exposed
to various conditions. As to be expected, mixes containing crystalline admixtures
tend to show better recovery than reference mixes, except for the absorption test
results obtained from a single study. In some cases, a full recovery (i.e. cracks are
fully sealed) is reported as seen in the water permeability tests. The exposure condi-
tions have an effect on the recovery of both cracked mixes made with and without
crystalline admixtures, where the moist environment is shown to be conducive for
self-healing (except for one case) and air exposure works the opposite. The effect of
wet-dry cycle exposure is inconclusive due to limited study, but it is expected less
effective than moist environment. It shall be mentioned that mixes containing combi-
nation of crystalline admixtures and expansive agent do not show greater recovery
improvement than crystalline admixtures containing crystalline admixtures only,
although the combination still performs better than the reference.
Fig. 3 Recovery of permeation/absorption of cracked mixes made with and without crystalline
admixtures for various exposure conditions [2, 3, 5, 12, 26, 27, 31–34, 36, 37]
4 Effect of Crystalline Admixtures on Crack Sealing
4.1 Crack Recovery
One of the main features of self-healing in concrete is the ability to seal or repair
microcracks through chemical reactions, which helps to prolong the service life of
structural concrete. Figure 4 shows the average recovery of crack width of mixes
containing up to 4% crystalline admixtures and the corresponding reference mixes
with different initial crack width and subjected to different healing conditions. The
healing period (after crack is induced) varies from 28 days to 6 months, but generally
less than 3 months.
The overall results suggest that the recovery of crack is affected by the inclu-
sion of crystalline admixtures, as well as initial crack width and healing conditions.
Comparing the results of mixes exposed to moist environment, the average recovery
of crack of mixes made without crystalline admixtures decreases as the crack width
increases, from 95% for ≤ 1 mm cracks to about 80% for 0.2–0.3 mm cracks. On the
other hand, the average recovery of crack of mixes made with crystalline admixtures
consistently fluctuates in the region close to 95% for up to 0.3 mm crack. Although
the data beyond 0.3 mm cracks for mixes exposed to moist environment during
Fig. 4 Crack recovery of mixes made with and without crystalline admixtures subjected to different
healing conditions. (Data from [4, 7, 9, 17, 20, 23, 26, 32, 34])
healing are limited, it is speculated that the cracks are not likely to be repaired fully
even when crystalline admixtures are used. As for healing conditions in the form of
dry–wet cycles and air exposure, the sample is small and the data are scattered, as
seen for both mixes made with and without crystalline admixtures. Notwithstanding
this, the general trend suggests that the crack recovery decreases as the crack width
increases for both mixes regardless of healing conditions. Lastly, the overall results
also suggest that for a given crack width, the recovery of cracks is the highest in
moist environment, followed by dry–wet cycles, and air exposure does not seem to
promote significant recovery.
4.2 Microstructural Studies
Microstructural studies allow better understanding on the mechanism involved

in self-healing process when crystalline admixtures are used. The results from
energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) analysis suggest that calcium, oxygen, carbon
and silicon are the main elements present in mixes containing crystalline admix-
tures, whilst aluminium, magnesium and potassium are found in minor amounts
[2, 5, 8, 9, 14, 15].
Based on scanning electron microscope (SEM) observations, needle-
like/acicular/fibrous crystals are known to be commonly found self-healing products
in mixes containing crystalline admixtures [2, 9, 14, 38]. In one case, the healing
products appear in a scab form with amorphous structure [8]. More specifically, C-
S–H gels [18, 26, 30]; calcium carbonate [18, 30] and calcium carbonate in aragonite
polymorphic form have been identified [12]. This is also aligned with the findings
using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), which show the presence of
calcium carbonate and C-S–H in mixes made with crystalline admixtures.
According to X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis on mixes containing crystalline
admixtures, the main phase detected is AFt, calcite, C–A–S–H, portlandite, quartz
and cement compounds [10, 17, 21]. The present of portlandite and calcite is
confirmed from thermogravimetric analysis [10, 39]. It shall be mentioned that
monocarboaluminate is detected in mixes containing crystalline admixtures, which
is thought to be the product resulting from the interaction between limestone filler
and C3 A [10].
The overall results suggest that the healing mechanisms of crystalline admixtures
mainly involved further hydration for the formation of C-S–H gels, carbonation for
the formation of calcium carbonate. Other mechanisms such as formation of highly
expansive Mg-rich hydro-carbonate and generation of portlandite have also been
suggested, which require further evaluation.
5 The Verdict on the Future of Crystalline Admixtures
The autonomous healing ability discovered in crystalline admixtures is an added

advantage in addition to its originally intended permeability-reducing feature.
However, the experimental results shown in Sects. 3 and 4 tend to suggest that
the autonomous healing ability of crystalline admixtures is more prominent when
concrete is in contact with moisture. Therefore, the use of crystalline admixtures for
water-retaining and marine structures can be beneficial for both low permeability and
self-healing ability. However, its application in indoor structures with low humidity
is unlikely to provide any significant self-healing ability due to the lack of moisture
to undergo further chemical reactivity for unhydrated cement particles in concrete.
Comparing with other autonomous healing technologies developed in the recent
years, the use of crystalline admixtures is relatively straightforward as they do
not require encapsulation, vascular systems and microbial involvement. Crystalline
admixtures can be easily specified in concrete design, and the production process
of concrete made with crystalline admixtures is similar to that of normal concrete,
simply by adding them into the concrete during production, similar to the process of
introducing superplasticiser and retarding admixture.
At present, the research on the effect of autonomous healing ability derived from
crystalline admixtures is still much in an exploratory stage. Future studies on crys-
talline admixtures may emphasise on its long-term effect on autonomous healing
with at least of one year monitoring, repeated cracking–healing cycles and upscaling
to real-life concrete applications in order to substantiate the reliability and validity
of its autonomous healing mechanisms.
6 Conclusions
This study reveals the current research knowledge on the autonomous healing ability
of crystalline admixtures, which are originally intended for use for water-proofing
feature, to provide performance recovery and crack sealing in concrete. In general, the
inclusion of crystalline admixtures for autonomous healing tends to show favourable
results. Further investigation is required to gain better understanding of the charac-
teristics of crystalline admixtures and their chemical mechanisms in order to realise
their full potential in self-healing.
The main findings of the study are given below:
• Crystalline admixtures usually have high calcium, silicon and LOI contents.
They also have similar chemical reactivity like Portland cement, suggesting that
crystalline admixtures require water for reactions.
• The mechanical and durability performance recovery of mixes containing crys-
talline admixtures are found to be dependent on the exposure conditions, in which
moist environment is the most favourable whilst the dry environment is the least
favourable.
• Similarly, crack sealing ability due to the use of crystalline admixtures is more
prominent when exposed to moist environment. Crystalline admixtures are shown
to be effective to seal microcracks with width less than 0.3 mm (service limit crack
width), which could be beneficial to protect concrete from damaging.
• The main self-healing mechanisms involved in crystalline admixtures are further
hydration of unhydrated cement particles in forming C-S–H gels and carbonation
in forming calcium carbonate.
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Wind-Induced Lock-In Effects on Tall
Circular Structures
Arunachalam Srinivasan
Abstract Vickery and Basu’s spectral method and Ruschewey’s method are widely
used for prediction of vortex induced vibrations of circular structures. The aeroe-
lastic interaction in Vickery’s method is accounted through a negative aerodynamic
damping coefficient, while in Ruschewey’s method, it is taken care by an effective
correlation length parameter. Both these parameters vary with response. The author
had previously suggested a semi-empirical method, with a closed-form solution, for
prediction of across-wind response under lock-in condition. The method was vali-
dated using experimental results from different wind tunnel and full-scale studies on
chimneys. { As√a result
} of continued research, a modified mass damping parameter
equal to ρ D2 η was suggested as a useful parameter, which enables better predic-
2m e
tion of across-wind response under lock-in condition for both RC and steel chimneys.
An equation was earlier developed for the spectrum of modal overall lift force under
non-lock-in region. Its modification under lock-in region was also suggested, using a
parameter, “fact”. In this paper, the usefulness of the above equation is validated by
considering wind tunnel test results reported by Kwok for a circular tower, located
in a sub-urban terrain. A good agreement is obtained between the predicted modes
generalized across-wind force spectral coefficients and corresponding test results by
Kwok.
Keywords Vortex shedding · Circular structures · Lock-in effects · Modeling ·

Cross-wind force spectrum coefficient · Scruton number
S. Arunachalam (B)
Wind Engineering Application Centre, Jaypee University of Engineering and Technology, Guna,
Madhya Pradesh 473226, India
e-mail: s.arunachalam@juet.ac.in
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4040-8_2
14 S. Arunachalam
1 Introduction
Vortex-induced vibrations on tall circular towers and chimneys are important since
they result in large across-wind response relative to along-wind response, particu-
larly under lock-in condition when the vortex shedding frequency coincides with
the fundamental frequency. The phenomenon is rather complex, and this has been
the subject of many researchers. Significant contributions were made by Scruton
[1], Vickery [2], Ruscheweyh [3], Melbourne and Kwok [4] among others. The
methods by Vickery and Basu [5], and by Ruscheweyh, are recommended in CICIND
model code [6] and Euro code [7]. It is generally considered that the method by
Vickery and Basu predicts better results for RC chimneys, while the method by
Ruscheweyh better predicts for steel chimneys. Vickery and Basu used the concept
of negative aerodynamic damping, originally suggested by Scruton, for evaluating the
enhanced response under the lock-in condition. In the presence of negative aerody-
namic damping, the total damping is reduced and this leads to an increased response
under lock-in condition. In other words, the effects of lock-in condition are addressed
at the response level. The influencing variables according to this method are (i) RMS
lift coefficient, (ii) correlation length, (iii) spectral band width, and (iv) Strouhal
number. The Reynolds number and turbulence intensity in the approach flow signifi-
cantly affect the magnitudes of these parameters. Based on research studies conducted
at CSIR-SERC, Chennai, the author has earlier suggested a method where using the
concept of only structural damping, similar to prediction of along-wind response,
the across-wind response can also be evaluated. For this, however, it is required
that one is able to adequately describe the spectrum of overall lift force, including
suitable modification for the effects of wind -induced motion. Based on the above
philosophy, a non-dimensional parameter “fact” has been suggested. This suitably
decreases the spectral band width of the generalized across-wind force spectrum and
accounts for an increased load correlation resulting in an enhanced response under
lock-in condition. The parameter “fact” is expectedly found to vary as a function
of across-wind response, (σ y /De ). The applicability of the method was verified with
respect to several wind tunnel and full-scale RC and steel chimney test results on
across-wind response due to vortex shedding, under lock-in region. In this paper, it
is intended (i) to briefly explain the salient features of this method, (ii) to discuss
on a closed-form equation for the generalized overall lift force spectrum, which was
earlier developed as part of the response prediction, and (iii) to validate its usefulness
by computing and comparing the across-wind force spectrum coefficient, (cfs) of a
circular tower based on wind tunnel test results reported by Kwok [4]. The predicted
values of cfs using author’s model are found to be in very good agreement with
corresponding values reported by Kwok.
Wind-Induced Lock-In Effects on Tall Circular Structures 15
2 Background
The following are some of the important aspects in the author’s model, for computing
the across-wind load spectrum and the final response in non-lock-in as well as in
lock-in regions. Due to space constraints, more details can be had from References
Arunachalam [8–10]).
(i) The across-wind load receives contributions both from lateral component of
turbulence and vortex shedding, which are uncorrelated and which correspond
to different turbulence scales. Accordingly, the RMS lift coefficients due to
lateral turbulence, C L' ,turb and due to vortex shedding, C L' ,V S can be conve-
niently separated, using the principle that variance of total lift coefficient C L'
will be equal to sum of the variances of C L' ,turb and C L' ,V S . With some correc-
tion for correlation, the modified value of C L' ,V S denoted as C L' ,V was found to
have a mean value of 0.089 (with cove = 18%) corresponding to a turbulence
intensity level of 7.5%. This was verified with test results reported by several
researchers in the literature using wind tunnel and full-scale experiments.
(ii) The RMS lift coefficient due to vortex shedding, C L' ,V S and the correlation
length, depends up on the turbulence intensity, I z . The relation between C L' ,V S
and I z is given by the following equation (I z expressed in %):
' (0.089)(3.4)
C L,VS (z) = [ ] (1)
3.4−0.12 (Iz −7.5)
It is implied that while C L' ,V S increases with I z , correlation length decreases with
Iz.
(iii) Vickery and Clark originally developed a bell-shaped function for the spec-
trum of lift force. Following on similar lines, by inclusion of above C L' ,vs (z)
in place of total RMS lift coefficient, C L' , the following empirical expression
for the spectrum of local across-wind force only due to vortex shedding is
suitably modified and is given by
⎡ ⎧ ⎞2 ⎤
[ ] 1 − ffsh
f sC L ,V S ( f ) 1 f
'2
= √ exp⎣− ⎦ (2)
C L ,V S B π f sh B
where B = band width parameter. The shedding frequency, f sh , is related to Strouhal

number as given by Eq. (3).
f sh = SVz /Dz (3)
(iv) Using the principles of random vibrations, the following expression was
derived for the spectrum of generalized lift force, only due to vortex shed-
ding. This is denoted as modal across-wind force spectral coefficient, (cfs),
16 S. Arunachalam
and is expressed in a non-dimensional form [8]:
∫H ∫H( )( )⎧ ⎞1/2
f Sm f,overall( f ) DZ 1 DZ 2 f f
= C9 .
(0.5 ρVref
2
D e H )2 De De f sh,Z 1 f sh,Z 2
0 0
C3 C4 C5 C7 C8 (z 1 z 2 )2α+β dz 1 dz 2 (4)
In the above, the terms C 3 , C 4 , C 5 , C 7 , C 8, and C 9 are given by

⎡ ⎧ ⎤ ⎡ ⎤
f ⎞2 ⎧ f ⎞2
1 1 − fsh,z1 1 1 − fsh,z2
C3 = exp⎣− ⎦; C4 = exp⎣− ⎦;
2 B 2 B
( )
c|z 1 − z 2 | 1
C5 = exp − , C7 = ,
De (3.4 − 0.12(Iz1 −7.5) )
1
C8 = and
(3.4 − 0.12 (Iz2 −7.5))
[(0.089) (3.4)]2 1 1
C9 = √ . 4α
B π H (2β+2) Z ref
The other parameters are: ρ is the mass density of air, V ref is the mean reference
velocity at height, zref ; De is the effective diameter at 5/6H; H is the height of the
chimney; B is the spectral bandwidth; I z is the turbulence intensity (in %) at height , z;
α and β are the power law exponent values of mean velocity profile and fundamental
mode shape, respectively.
(v) Use of Eq. 4 is valid for computing modal across-wind spectral coefficient,
(cfs), for any level of reduced wind velocity. However, when the wind speed
becomes equal to critical wind speed, or when the lock-in condition occurs,
the spectral band width B should be modified as (B * “fact”) and the shedding
frequency will become equal to the shedding frequency. Accordingly, the value
of cfs will be evaluated.
(vi) Consistent with the experimental observations that during lock-in condition,
there is an increased correlation of lift forces; in the author’s model, the spectral
bandwidth B is suitably decreased by a non-dimensional factor, “fact”. In other
words, the eddies are implicitly made to reorient themselves in such a way
that their frequencies become closer to the natural frequency of the structure,
thereby resulting in an increased correlation of lift forces. The parameter “fact”
is calibrated by using various test results on chimneys/cylinders available in
literature. The following empirical relation was suggested between “fact” and
normalized response, (σ y /De ):
( )
' ' σy
fact = −0.114 ln − 0.1935 (5)
De
(vii) Once the modal lift force spectrum is modified using “fact” parameter,
similar to computation of along-wind response, only with the structural
damping (without the need for negative aerodynamic damping), the across-
wind response under lock-in region can be computed. It can be shown (
that )the
σ
following equation represents the normalized across-wind response, Dye :
( ) ( )
σy 1
= P. 1 + √ (6)
De (B. ' f act ' . η)
where
[( ⎛ ⎞
) ( )2α ]
(0.089)(3.4) 6 ⎝( 1 )⎠
(π )− 4
7
P=
8 5 2m ei
ρ De2
( ) ( )⎧ ( )(2∝+β+1) ⎞
1 2β + 1 1 2
) ) (( 1− (7)
S 2α + β + 1
2 3.4 − 0.12 I5H/6 − 7.5 3
In the above Eq. (7), parameter “P” represents the response due to vortex shedding
form eddies with frequencies well away from natural ( frequency,
) f o ; η is the structural
m ei
damping ratio as a fraction of critical damping; ρ D2 is the mass ratio; S is the
e
Strouhal number; I (5H/6) is the turbulence intensity at reference height, (5H/6), and
“fact” as described earlier. Use of Eq. (7) was validated by applying it to different
test cases of steel and RC chimneys in literature [8, 9].
(viii) Vickery and Basu proposed the following mathematical equation to describe
the non-linear variation of the aerodynamic damping parameter, k a , with
(σ y /De ):
) (
ka / ka,0 = [1 − ((σ y /D)/a L )2 ] (8)
Here, k a,0 refers to the aerodynamic damping parameter corresponding to small

amplitudes of oscillations, and aL is non- dimensional RMS value of limiting oscil-
lation. The variation of k a follows a negative curvature with respect to (σ y /De ), as
can be seen from Fig. 1. The vortex shedding is idealized as a self-excited and self-
limiting phenomenon. It can be seen that “ka ” attains its maximum value when the
value of (σ y /De ) approaches zero and when the response reaches a limiting value of
0.4, ka approaches zero.
(ix) While Vickery’s model and author’s model emanate from different philoso-
phies for addressing aeroelastic interaction through modification of response
and force approaches, a common feature is that parameters, (ka /ka0 ) in
Vickery’s model and “fact” in the author’s model, play a similar role with
regard to enhancement of correlation of force/response due to vortex shedding
under lock-in condition. However, they have a contrasting behavior, in terms
18 S. Arunachalam
1 fact (author)
0.9
0.8 fact,Lupi,scaled
0.7
"fact" or (ka/ka0)
cicind model (Vickery

0.6
model)
0.5
rub lupi wt
0.4
0.3
fact,cheung,scaled
0.2
0.1
(ka/ka0),cheung,wt
0
0 0.1 0.2 0.3 0.4
σy /D
Fig. 1 Comparison of variation of “fact” and (ka/ka0 ) values with (σy /D)
of their curvature. Whereas (ka /ka0 ) shows a negative curvature, parameter,

“fact” exhibits a positive curvature when plotted against (σ y /De ), as shown in
Fig. 1. Experimental wind tunnel studies by Cheung [11] and Lupi et al. [12]
also have supported only a positive curvature between (ka /ka0 ) and (σ y /De ).
Additional details can be seen from Reference [9].
(x) For prediction of maximum amplitude of oscillations under lock-in condition,
Kwok and Melbourne were the first to propose a linearized lock-in coefficient
[4]. Recently, Lupi et al. based on wind tunnel tests, reported an amplitude
dependent behavior of the aerodynamic damping with a positive curvature and
proposed a damping modified spectral method [12]. The shape of the curve
assumed as per Eq. 8 with its negative curvature was reported to be the reason
for the overestimation of the predictions in Vickery’s model.
(xi) Scruton number is generally recognized as the most important parameter in
determining the across-wind response of a circular structure due to vortex
shedding. However, Lupi et al. have reported that it is not the only influencing
parameter [12]. The author in a recent paper has also shown that a modified
mass damping parameter (MDP) of Scruton number is more effective and
useful in capturing across-wind response under lock-in region, both for RC
and steel chimneys, in a single curve [10], as presented in Fig. 2a and b.
The parameter, ϕ, represents the modified response of (σ y /De ), including the
effects of B, S, I ref, and “fact”, which are also other important influencing
aerodynamic parameters.
Fig. 2 a Variation of chimney response, {(σ y /De ) }

with Scruton number, Sc [10], b variation of
√
chimney modified response, ϕ with MDP, ρ2mDe2 η [10]
3 Computation of Across-Wind Spectral Force

Coefficients, for a Circular Tower Model Tested
and Reported in Literature, Under Lock-In Condition,
Using Suggested Closed-Form Eq. (4)
It is intended to validate Eq. (4) discussed in earlier Section, which represents the
modal overall across-wind force spectrum coefficient, by applying it to wind tunnel
test results reported by Kwok in literature [4, 13]. The mode generalized across-wind
force spectrum of a circular tower tested in a sub-urban terrain condition was reported
in Fig. 1 of Ref. [13], by Kwok. The details of the circular tower model tested are
given in Table.1.
Although, the value of turbulence intensity at the top of the tower was stated as
equal to 7%, in Ref. [13], the turbulence intensity values at different heights are not
available. Hence, for present calculations, the turbulence intensity values given in
Table 2 were assumed, which typically represent a sub-urban terrain.
Corresponding to a reduced velocity of 6.5, which represents lock-in condition,
with a structural damping value of 0.01, from Fig. 2 of Ref. [4], the maximum
amplitude, (σ y /De ), is taken as 0.0185. This yields a value of 0.261 for the parameter,
“fact” using Eq. (5).
20 S. Arunachalam
Table 1 Details of the circular tower model tested in wind tunnel [13]
Sl. No Description Value
1 Height, m 0.54
2 Mode shape coefficient, β 1.0
3 Diameter, m 0.06
4 Power law coefficient, (sub-urban) 0.23
5 Z ref , m 0.9
6 Reduced velocity, V red 6.5
7 Spectral band width, B (=0.1 + 2*(0.093)) 0.29
8 Turbulence intensity at top of the tower 0.07
9 Strouhal number, S 0.15
10 Maximum amplitude, (σy /De ), (Fig. 2 of [4]) 0.0185
11 Structural damping, η 0.01
12 “fact” (using Eq. 5 in Sect. 2) 0.261
Table 2 Values of turbulence

Sl. No Height in model, m Turbulence intensity (%)
intensity
1 0.06 22
2 0.12 17.5
3 0.18 15
4 0.24 14
5 0.3 13
6 0.36 11.7
7 0.42 9.3
8 0.48 8.8
9 0.54 8
4 Results and Discussion
With a value of “fact” = 0.261 and by setting shedding frequency equal to natural
frequency, it is seen that Eq. (4) predicts values of across-wind spectral coefficient
(cfs), under lock-in region and these are presented in Table 3. The corresponding
cfs values using wind tunnel results reported by Kwok are also included in Table
3. It can be clearly seen that predictions by using Eq. (4) and corresponding values
based on experiments are in excellent agreement. For illustration purpose, cfs values
corresponding to “fact” = 1.0 are also computed and included in Fig. 3. A value of
“fact” = 1 implies that the reduced velocity is outside the lock-in region, and hence,
the shedding frequency will be away from the natural frequency; there will not be
any increase in pressure correlation and consequently, resulting amplitude levels will
have much less magnitude.
Table 3 Comparison of predicted and experimental cfs values

Reduced Cfs;, fact = Reduced Cfs;, Reduced cfs,
frequency 1.0, pred frequency fact = 0.261, frequency Fig. 1, Kwok
values pred values [13]
(author’s (author’s
model) model)
0.12 0.00123 0.125 1.05 E−05 0.0822 3.00 E−04
0.135 0.00205 0.13 9.29 E−05 0.1288 2.00 E−03
0.154 0.0028 0.135 5.84 E−04 0.14 5.00 E−03
0.16 0.00286 0.14 2.15 E−03 0.1524 8.00 E−03
0.18 0.00232 0.145 5.61 E−03 0.1658 5.00 E−03
0.2 0.00125 0.154 1.07 E−02 0.1755 2.00 E−03
– – 0.16 8.61 E−03 0.2672 0.0003
– – 0.18 5.03 E−05 – –
1.40E-02
acroswind force spectral coefficient
1.20E-02
1.00E-02
8.00E-03
cfs,Kwok[16]
6.00E-03 cfs,fact=1.0, pred values
sum,kwok,pred,fact=0.261
4.00E-03
2.00E-03
0.00E+00
0 0.1 0.2 0.3
reduced frequency
Fig. 3 Comparison of across-wind spectral coefficient (cfs) values based on wind tunnel results
and predictions
5 Conclusions
Vortex induced excitation is a complex aeroelastic phenomenon. For prediction of

across-wind response of tall circular structures under lock-in condition, modeling of
aeroelastic interaction is suggested through modification of aerodynamic damping
in Vickery and Basu model, while in the author’s model, it is by modification of
22 S. Arunachalam
modal across-wind lift force spectrum through a parameter, “fact”. The parameters
(ka /ka0 ) in Vickery’s model and “fact” in author’s model are similar in their functional
character with regard to increase in pressure correlation, while they differ in the
curvature of their variation with respect to normalized amplitude, (σ y /De ). Salient
features }
{ of author’s model are explained. The modified mass damping parameter,
2m e √
ρ D2
η , is found to be more effective and useful in capturing across-wind response
under lock-in region, both for RC and steel chimneys, in a single curve. An expression
for evaluating the modal across-wind force spectral coefficient, cfs, is presented. By
considering the cross spectral coefficient results of a circular tower model tested
under lock-in condition and reported by Kwok in the literature, the corresponding
predictions using the above equation are shown to be in good agreement.
References
1. Scruton, C. (1963). On the wind-excited oscillations of stacks, towers and masts. In

International Conference on Wind Effects on Buildings and Structures, Teddington, UK
(pp. 26–28).
2. Vickery, B. J. (1994). Across wind loading on reinforced concrete chimneys of circular section.
In Proceedings of Workshop on Strategies for Design and Construction of Structures to Mitigate
Damage Due to Cyclones, Structural Engineering Research Centre, Madras, India (pp 75–105).
3. Ruscheweyh, H. (1989). Codification of vortex excited vibrations. In Recent Advances in Wind
Engineering. Proceedings 2nd Asia-Pacific Symposium on Wind Engineering (pp. 362–372).
4. Kwok, K. C. S., & Melbourne, W. H. (1980). Crosswind response of structures due to displace-
ment dependent lock-in excitation. In J. E. Cermak (Ed.), Proceedings of 5th International
Conference on Wind Engineering.
5. Vickery, B. J., & Basu, R. I. (1983). Across-wind vibration of structures of circular cross
section, Parts 1 & 2. Journal of Wind Engineering and Industrial Aerodynamics, 12, 49–98.
6. CICIND Commentaries for Steel Chimney Code. (2011).
7. Eurocode-1 Actions on structures, Part-14: General actions-Wind Actions. (2010).
8. Arunachalam, S., & Lakshmanan, N. (2015). Across-wind response of tall circular chimneys
to vortex shedding. Journal of Wind Engineering and Industrial Aerodynamics, 145, 187–195.
9. Arunachalam, S., & Lakshmanan, N. (2020). Non-linear modelling of vortex induced lock-in
effects on circular chimneys. Journal of Wind Engineering and Industrial Aerodynamics, 202,
Paper No. 104201.
10. Arunachalam, S. (2020). Modified mass damping parameter for better prediction of across-wind
response of chimneys. In S. S. Shukla et al. (Ed.), Advances in geotechniques and structural
engineering, TRACE 2020, Springer Publications, New Delhi, Paper No.129.
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lent flow in high Reynolds numbers. In Eigth Australiasian Conference on Fluid Mechanics,
Newcastle.
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tions: Application to 27 full-scale chimneys. Journal of Wind Engineering and Industrial
Aerodynamics, 171, 353–365.
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Structures, 4, 256–262.
Influence of Skewness on Deflection
Response of Horizontally Curved RC
Box-Girder Bridges
Tanmay Gupta
Abstract The aim of the present paper is to study the effect of skewness on deflection
response of horizontally curved reinforced concrete (RC) box-girder bridges under
dead load (DL) and live load (LL) conditions. For a 27.4-m-long simply supported
RC box-girder bridge, to investigate the influence of skewness on horizontally curved
box-girder bridges with different radius of curvatures, the central curvature angle of
the bridge has been varied from 0° to 48° at an interval of 12°, and the skew angle
is swept from 0° to 50° at an interval of 10°. Using the three-dimensional finite
element analysis software CsiBridge, thirty models of bridges with unique skew-
curve combinations were generated and analyzed for DL as well as IRC-specified
Class-70R-tracked vehicular LL. For all the bridge geometries, vertical deflections
of the bridge along the inner and outer girders are determined for both the load cases
considered separately. The results indicate that with increase in skewness, deflection
of horizontally curved box-girder bridge along its inner and outer girders, in general,
decreases for almost all the curvature angles for DL as well as for LL cases. Moreover,
the study revealed that compared to DL deflections, LL deflections are much affected
by the skewness. Further, the study demonstrated that for the highly curved bridges
supported on highly skewed supports, deflection response reduces significantly as
compared to curved bridges, and the location of absolute maximum deflection no
longer remains at mid-span, especially for LL case.
Keywords Concrete box-girder bridges · Horizontally curved · Skew · FEM ·

Deflection shear lag · IRC vehicular loading
1 Introduction
Use of horizontally curved concrete bridges in urban interchanges and highway

systems has become increasingly popular due to their better structural performance
T. Gupta (B)
Department of Civil Engineering, Jaypee University of Information Technology, Waknaghat,
Solan 173234, India
e-mail: tanmay.gupta@juitsolan.in
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4040-8_3
24 T. Gupta
and esthetic considerations. In certain geographical situations, especially due to

constraints on availability of land in cities, it becomes necessary to provide skew
supports for horizontally curved bridges which results in a complex skew-curve
geometry of the bridge deck. The structural response of skew-curve bridges signif-
icantly differs from straight bridges due to substantial amount of additional torsion
developed in the bridge due to curvature and skewness. Owing to eccentric vehic-
ular loading and skew-curved geometry, these bridges are subjected to high torsional
moments, in addition to bending moments and shear force [1]. Compared to other
cross-sectional shapes, box-girder sections are generally preferred in such circum-
stance because of their high torsional rigidity [2]. In the simply supported bridges,
most of the deflections are caused due to self-weight of bridge; therefore, in order to
reduce the self-weight of the bridge, thin-walled box sections are preferred. Struc-
tural response of thin-walled box-girders, especially when they are subjected to high
torsional moments, is a complex phenomenon since it comprises of bending in longi-
tudinal and transverse directions, twisting, distortion, warping, and shear lag. Several
analytical and experimental techniques have been employed to understand the struc-
tural response of bridges with straight, skewed- and curved-layouts [3–11]; however,
no significant studies have been made with regards to skew-curved bridge geome-
tries. There exists interdependence between the structural response of bridge and the
vertical deflections under the girders (webs). In the elastic regime, deflections under
the girders of the box-girder may be used to distribute the loads among the girders.
Mohseni and Rashid [12] distributed the live load among the girders of multicell box-
girder bridges in proportion of deflections under the girders. Moreover, deflection is
the main serviceability parameter considered in the concrete bridges designed using
the limit state method adopted by IRC in year 2011 [13]. Thus, vertical deflection
of the bridge in elastic range is one of the important response parameter for bridge
design, enabling the designer to assess overall behavior of the bridge.
For the straight bridge geometries, deflections are generally determined using
the elementary bending theory along its centriodal axis. Moreover, in case of wide
flange box-girders, the deflections calculated using elementary bending theory are not
error free due to shear lag effect. Owing to shear lag effect, additional deflections are
produced which are not captured by elementary bending theory. Furthermore, in case
of skew-curved geometry, deflection under the girders of box-girder becomes unequal
even if the bridge is subjected to self-weight only. However, for the bridges with
small curvature (<12°) and low skewness (<15°), generally, no substantial amount
of torsional deformations is developed [14, 15], and the deflections under the girders
may be approximated same as the deflections along the central line of bridge. Thus, for
the box-girder bridges with significant curvature and skewness, it becomes necessary
to employ refined analytical methods such as finite element method (FEM) to include
the curvature, skewness, and shear lag effect in the analysis.
The aim of this paper is to study the effect of skewness on the deflection response
of the simply supported RC box-girder bridges with various curvatures via the three-
dimensional finite element analysis. In order to develop various combinations of
skewness and curvature, central curvature angle has been varied from 0° to 48° at
an interval of 12°, while the skew angle is swept from 0° to 50° at an interval of
Influence of Skewness on Deflection Response … 25
Fig. 1 Schematic diagram of a typical skew-curved bridge geometry
10° [22]. In order to capture maximum deflection due to moving live load, the IRC
Class-70R-tracked vehicle is allowed to move throughout the span at IRC-specified
minimum clearance from kerb (Fig. 1).
2 Impact of Shear Lag on Deflections in Box-Girder
Shear lag effect is an important phenomenon associated with the box-girders where
large amount of shear flow takes place through webs and leads to non-uniform longi-
tudinal stress distribution in the box-girder [16]. Moreover, due to the shear lag
effect, additional vertical deflections are induced in the box-girders, and ignorance
of these additional deflections may lead to underestimation of the deflection. Several
studies have been made in past, to study the shear lag effect in box-girder bridges,
and most of these studies focus on influence of shear lag on the non-uniform distri-
bution of longitudinal stresses along the width of the box section; however, only, few
studies have been made to examine the impact of shear lag on vertical deflection of
box-girder. In order to include the shear lag effect in deflection, Lertsima et al. [17]
performed three-dimensional finite element analysis of straight box-girders using
the shell elements and compared the deflection of box-girders of various geometrical
details. They also proposed empirical relations to calculate the deflection of straight
box-girders including the shear lag effect. Chen et al. [18] modified conjugate beam
method to calculate the deflection of straight box-girder considering the shear lag
26 T. Gupta
effect. Nevertheless, these expressions proposed by Lertsima and modified conjugate

beam method cannot be used for skew, curved, and skew-curved bridges.
In order to describe shear lag deformation of thin-walled box-girder, Zhang and
Lin [19] proposed a finite beam segment element with 8 degrees of freedom. They
also recommended simplistic shear lag warping formula by considering additional
deflection induced by shear lag effect as generalized displacements.
In the present study, in order to capture the shear lag effect in the bridge deflection,
the bridges with various geometrical profiles have been analyzed using the 3D finite
element analysis via commercially available computer software CSiBridge.
3 Description of the Bridge Geometry
The Han-Jiang bridge at Shayang, China, is used as typical layout in this study [20].
This bridge is simply supported over a span of 27.4 m (90 ft.) and consists of single
cell box section with an overall depth of 2.96 m. The thickness of top and bottom
slabs of box is 250 and 280 mm, respectively, while the thickness of webs is 360 mm.
The bridge contains kerbs of 200 mm at both sides which results in clear carriage
way width of 10.4 m. The grade of the concrete is considered as M25 and Poisson’s
ratio, and modulus of concrete is taken as 0.2 and 2.5 × 107 kN/m2 , respectively. For
the self-weight calculation, the density of concrete is used as 25 kN/m3 . In order to
study the effect of skewness on horizontally curved bridges with various degree of
curvature, the central curvature angle of the bridge has been varied from 0° to 48° at
an interval of 12°, and the skew angle is swept from 0° to 50° at an interval of 10°
(Fig. 2).
For the design of two-lane National/state highways, IRC-specified [21] standard
loading designated as IRC Class-70R vehicular loading is considered. IRC Class-70R
loading consists of two types of vehicles, namely 700 kN tracked vehicle and 1000
kN wheeled vehicle. Generally, these loadings are placed separately occupying one
lane of bridge, and maximum responses are considered in design. Moreover, these
Fig. 2 Cross-section of Han-Jiang bridge (all dimensions are in mm)

0.84m 0.84m
Total weight 700 kN
4.57m C 1.22m
7.92 m
IRC Class 70-R Tracked Vehicle 2.90m
Fig. 3 IRC Class-70R-tracked vehicle loading
bridges are checked for Class-A loading occupying both the lanes. It is generally
found that for medium span bridges, IRC Class-70R-tracked vehicle produces larger
moments and deflections compared to other two vehicles; thus, the same has been
considered in this study.
As per the IRC specifications, the effect of moving load is included in analysis in
the form of impact factor, and for the 27.4-m span concrete bridge, it was observed as
10%. According to IRC specifications, the outer wheel of tracked vehicle has been
kept at minimum clearance C equal to 1200 mm from the kerb for all the bridge
geometries considered as shown in Fig. 3.
The longitudinal critical position of IRC-tracked vehicle developing absolute
maximum moment/deflection may be determined conveniently for straight bridges,
where the wheels are placed such that the center of span coincides with the center
of gravity of the wheels; however, in case of skew-, curved- and skew-curved bridge
decks, the critical position of vehicular load cannot be determined by simple analyt-
ical approaches. To mitigate this problem, in the present study, vehicular load is
considered to run throughout the span at an average speed of 1 m/s, for which the
deflections are captured at an interval of 0.1 s [23]. Thus, at every 0.1 m interval,
deflections are gathered, and the same have been plotted along the outer and inner
girders of the box.
4 Finite Element Modeling of Bridge
In this study, the three-dimensional finite element analysis of the bridges has been
carried out using the commercially available computer package CsiBridge. For the
modeling of bridge, the isoparametric shell element with four nodes is used. The
element has six degrees of freedom at each node, that is, translation in three mutually
orthogonal directions and associated rotations about these axes. A full 3D finite
element model of a typical bridge is shown in Fig. 4. For all bridge geometries thus
modeled, two bearings have been considered on each end of bridge, located one under
each girder. The bearing at left interior support is considered as pin supported where
all the translational degrees of freedom have been constrained; however, all the three-
rotational degree of freedoms have been released at this bearing. Remaining three
28 T. Gupta
Outer
girder
Inner
girder
Fig. 4 3D FEM model of a typical skew-curved bridge model generated in CsiBridge
bearings have been restrained in vertical direction only, to simulate simply supported
support conditions [22]. In order to keep bridge’s centerline length same for all cases,
radius of curvature is varied according to central curvature angle considered for the
bridge.
5 Results and Discussions
The influence of skewness on the deflection response of a 27.4-m-long horizontally

curved simply supported box-girder bridge with various degrees of curvatures is
presented here. The box-girders bridges comprising of different degrees of skewness
and curvature were analyzed for dead load (DL) and IRC Class-70R-tracked vehicular
live loads (LL). The effect of skewness and curvature on deflection response of the
bridges is summarized below:
5.1 Variation of Deflection Due to Dead Load (δ DL )
The deflection profiles of the bridges along the outer and inner girder of box section
subjected to DL are shown in Fig. 5. It may be observed from the plots presented
in Fig. 5 that for straight bridges the deflections under the outer and inner girders
are almost equal irrespective to skewness; however, with increase in curvature, the
deflection under outer girder continuously increases, and conversely, deflections in
inner girder keep on decreasing. Moreover, for a given curvature, the deflection in
the outer as well as in inner girder decreases with increase in skewness.
Deflection profile for outer girder Deflection profile for inner girder
0.0 0.0
0 10 20 30 0 10 20 30
2.0
For α = 0°
2.0
δDL (mm)
4.0 4.0
6.0 6.0
8.0 80
0.0 0.0
0 10 20 30 0 10 20 30
1.6
For α = 12 °
2.5
δDL (mm)
3.2
5.0 4.8
7.5 6.4
10.0
0.0 0.0
0 10 20 30 0 10 20 30
2.5 2.0
For α = 24°
δDL (mm)
5.0 4.0
7.5 6.0
10.0 8.0
12.5
0.0 0.0
0 10 20 30 0 10 20 30
2.5
For α =36°
4.5
δDL (mm)
5.0
9.0
7.5
13.5 10.0
18.0
0.0 0.0
0 10 20 30 0 10 20 30
For α = 48°
5.0
δDL (mm)
9.0 0° skew
10° skew
10.0 20° skew
18.0
30° skew
40° skew
15.0
27.0 50° skew
Distance along outer girder (m) Distance along inner girder(m)
Fig. 5 Deflection profiles for outer and inner girders for DL case
The effect of skewness on absolute maximum DL deflection (δ DL, max ) in the

outer and inner girders of the bridges of different radius of curvatures is shown in
Fig. 6. It may be observed from the Fig. 6 that absolute maximum deflections in
the outer girder due to DL increases with rise in curvature for all the skew angles
considered in this study. On the other hand, absolute maximum deflections in inner
30 T. Gupta
Curvature angle Curvature angle

2.0 4.0
0° 12° 24° 36° 48° 0° 12° 24° 36° 48°
9.0
7.0
δDL,max (mm)
16.0 0° skew
10° skew
10.0 20° skew
23.0 30° skew
40° skew
Outer girder 50° skew Inner girder
30.0 13.0
Fig. 6 Influence of curvature and skewness on absolute maximum deflection for DL (δ DL, max ) in
outer and inner girders
girder decreases with increase in curvature from 0° to 12°, and for higher curvature
angles, absolute maximum deflection increases continuously with increase in curva-
ture. Further, Fig. 6 indicates that for a given curvature, absolute maximum deflection
decreases with increase in skewness. Moreover, the study shows that skewness is not
significantly reducing maximum deflection in outer as well as inner girder, where
merely about 12% reduction in maximum defection was observed while increasing
the skewness from 0° to 50° in non-curved bridges. On the other hand, curvature is
observed to be major parameter affecting the magnitude of maximum deflections. It
may be also observed from Fig. 6 that an increase in curvature from 0° to 48° for
non-skew bridges causes a whopping rise in deflection almost 3.5 times as compared
to straight non-skew bridge, while in the inner girder, this rise is merely 1.75 times.
However, for the bridge with 50° skewness in conjunction with 48° curvature, the
increase in deflection was only 2.5 times and 1.1 times, respectively, in outer and
inner girders, which highlights the merit of skew-curved bridges over the curved
bridges in controlling the deflection in bridges.
5.2 Variation of Deflection Due to Live Load (δ LL )
The variation of deflection along the outer and inner girders of box section subjected
to LL only is shown in Fig. 7. Since the live load is assumed to run at minimum
clearance from the outer kerb, the deflections in the outer girder are found larger
than those in inner girder. As observed from the plots for deflection profiles in first
column of Fig. 7, that the effect of skewness on the deflection profile for outer
girder of low curvature bridges (up to 12°) is insignificant, and it becomes noticeable
beyond 12° curvature. On the other hand, the deflection profile for inner girder is
more sensitive to skewness compared to outer girder for all the curvature angles.
Deflection profile for outer girder Deflection profile for inner girder
0.0 0.0
0 10 20 30 0 10 20 30
0.1
1.0
For α = 0°
δLL (mm)
0.2
2.0
0.3
3.0 0.4
4.0
0.0 0.0
0 10 20 30 0 10 20 30
0.2
1.0
For α = 12 °
0.3
δLL (mm)
2.0
0.5
3.0 0.6
4.0
5.0
0.0 0.0
0 10 20 3 0 10 20 30
0.3
For α = 24°
1.5
δLL (mm)
0.5
3.0 0.8
1.0
4.5
6.0
0.0 0.0
0 10 20 30 0 10 20 30
0.5
For α = 36°
2.0
δLL (mm)
1.0
4.0 1.5
2.0
6.0
8.0
0.0 0.0
0 10 20 30 0 10 20 30
1.0
3.0
For α = 48°
0° skew
δLL (mm)
2.0
10° skew
6.0
20° skew
3.0
9.0 30° skew
4.0 40° skew
12.0 50° skew
Distance along outer girder (m) Distance along inner girder(m)
Fig. 7 Deflection profiles for outer and inner girders for LL case
It is interesting to note that the location of maximum deflection, which is at center

of span for straight bridges, shifts toward right support with increase in skewness.
The shift in the position of maximum deflection is significant in small curvature
bridges, and it diminishes with increase in curvature. The shifting in the position of
maximum deflection was also seen in case of dead load, but it was very small because
32 T. Gupta
Curvature angle Curvature angle

2.0 0.0
0° 12° 24° 36° 48° 0° 12° 24° 36° 48°
4.0
0.9
δLL,max (mm)
6.0
0° skew
1.8
10° skew
8.0 20° skew
30° skew
2.7
40° skew
10.0
50° skew
Outer girder Inner girder
12.0 3.6
Fig. 8 Influence of curvature and skewness on absolute maximum deflection for LL (δ LL, max ) in
outer and inner girders
of distributed loads and therefore not clearly visible in deflection profiles shown in
Fig. 5.
The influence of skewness on the absolute maximum LL deflection (δ LL, max )
in the outer and inner girders of the bridges of different radius of curvatures is
shown in Fig. 8. It may be observed from the Fig. 8 that the absolute maximum
deflection in the outer girder increases with increase in curvature for all skewnesses
considered; however, in inner girder up to 12° curvature, the absolute maximum
deflection increases with increase in curvature for bridges having skewness up to
40°, and for higher skew angles, it decreases. Further, beyond this curvature limit
(>12°), absolute maximum deflection increases similar to outer girder. Moreover,
it may be noticed from the Fig. 8 that for a given curvature, absolute maximum
deflection decreases with increase in skewness. Moreover, maximum deflection in
the outer girder of 48° curve bridge was observed approximately 2.5 times compare
to straight bridge, while in the inner girder, the maximum deflection was found
to increase almost by eight times. However, for the bridge with 50° skewness in
conjunction with 48° curvature, the increase in deflection was only two times and 4.5
times, respectively, in outer and inner girders, which further justifies the advantages
of skew-curved bridges over the curved bridges in limiting the deflections.
6 Conclusions
This paper has demonstrated the application of three-dimensional finite element anal-
ysis in determining the effect of skewness on deflection response (including shear
lag effect) of the horizontally curved simply supported concrete box-girder bridges.
To this end, a simply supported RC box-girder of span 27.4 m was analyzed for thirty
geometrical profiles with various combinations of skewness and curvatures. The para-
metric study done upon skew/curve/skew-curve bridges reveals that designing such
complex geometry bridges require careful analysis and design process as their deflec-
tion response changes significantly from straight bridge of same length. Especially,
designing such bridges with 1D spine models neglecting the geometrical changes
occurring due to presence of skewness and or curvature can be very dangerous.
The study shows that ignorance of curvature may lead to underestimation of the
deflection in outer girder, while negligence of skewness overestimates the same. The
variation of deflection along the outer and inner girders indicated that the location
of maximum deflection significantly deviates from mid-span due to inclusion of
skewness in the bridges. Moreover, the investigations made in this paper reveal that
inclusion of skewness in the horizontally curved bridge is advantageous in control-
ling the deflection, especially in outer girder of box section. Authors recommend that
highly curved bridges should be coupled with skewness at supports to give counter-
balance to increased deflection coming through the virtue of curve effect. Also, at
planning stages of the bridge, if introducing skewness in the bridge geometry can
eliminate the need for high curvature, such configuration should be preferred.
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Numerical Investigation on Built-Up
Cold-Formed Steel Double
Decker-I-Beams
G. Beulah Gnana Ananthi and M. S. Deepak
Abstract Cold-formed steel (CFS) elements are used as members in buildings;

although steel sheets can be formed into complex shapes, it is often difficult to bent
to complex forms; hence, built-up (BU) sections are emerging as an alternative where
simple sections can be assembled into complex sections. Lipped channel ‘C’ section
is the most common available section that finds wide range of applications. This paper
presents the validation conducted on an experimental investigation reported in the
literature on back-to-back BU CFS double-channel sections subjected to bending. In
this parametric study, the behaviour and capacities of BU double-symmetric section
composed of four identical channels and resembles the shape of a double decker-I-
beam sections (DDIB) subjected to flexure is presented. The thickness of the DDIB
sections is varied from 1 to 3 mm. The lengths of DIBBs are varied from 300 to
2000 mm, and the beams experience various buckling forms under uniform bending.
Local, distortional, and lateral buckling are captured from the finite element anal-
ysis (FEA) performed using ABAQUS software. It is found that the compression
zone above the horizontal centroidal plane in cross-section is subjected to maximum
buckling phenomenon on comparison with the bottom zone.
Keywords Double decker-I-beam · Built-up · Cold-formed steel · Finite element

analysis
G. Beulah Gnana Ananthi (B)

Department of Civil Engineering, College of Engineering Guindy Campus, Anna University,
Chennai, India
e-mail: beulah28@annauniv.edu
M. S. Deepak
Department of Civil Engineering, BMS Institute of Technology and Management, Bengaluru,
India
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4040-8_4
36 G. Beulah Gnana Ananthi and M. S. Deepak
1 Introduction
Hot-rolled steel shapes and cold-formed steel shapes are the two most used types of
structural steel in building construction. C sections (also known as lipped channels),
zee sections, double-channel I beams with stiffened flanges, hat sections with and
without intermediate stiffeners, and box sections are examples of open, closed and
built-up (BU) sections. These are used in structures for eave struts, purlins and girts
and other structural components. The use of CFS has grown in popularity in the
building industry. Ananthi et al. [2–10] and Deepak et al. [11, 12] and in this insight,
new BU CFS double decker-I-beam sections (DDIB) are proposed in this study.
Glauz [13] established a generalised lateral-torsional buckling (LTB) equation for
symmetric and un-symmetric CFS-BU sections. Through a numerical study done
by Kucukler et al. [14], a stiffness reduction approach utilising the linear buckling
analysis is proposed for LTB-BU members. On the contrary, Wang and Young [15]
have reported 35 experiments on CFS-BU beams subjected to four-point bending
with various screw patterns. Under four-point bending, Roy et al. [16] conducted
studies both experimentally and numerically on CFS-BU beams with various screw
patterns. For CFS lipped channel beams subjected to LTB at extreme temperatures,
a new design strategy is proposed by Kankanamge and Mahendran [17]. Deepak
and Shanthi [18–21] examined the capacity of closed-BU homogeneous and hybrid
double-I-box beams experiencing distortional buckling and proposed a simplified
EWM equations. Wang and Young [22, 23] conducted four-point bending tests on
CFS back-to-back (BB) and face-to-face (FF) channel sections with web openings.
Flexural strength of CFS oval hollow section beams is conducted by Zhu et al. [24].
Experimenting with many parameters to estimate moment capacity and structural
behaviour of a variety of new CFS cross-sections necessitates a lot of money and time.
Numerical analysis using nonlinear finite element analysis (FEA) and commercially
accessible software tools is one of the more complete techniques to research that
incorporates several parameters. ABAQUS [25] software is utilised in the current
work for FEA.
2 Section Description
The section consists of four lipped channel sections assembled in a way that two
I section sits on one another which is shown in the Fig. 1 to form DDIB75. The
single-channel member is linked BB with the fasteners. Number of fasteners is varied
between 10, 5 and 3 numbers for different lengths and different thicknesses as shown
in Fig. 2. Length of the sections is varied between 300 to 2000 mm with 100 mm
increment. Thickness variations include 1.0, 1.2, 1.4, 2.0, 2.5 and 3.0 mm. Other
properties such as elasticity and plasticity are taken from the literature reported by
Roy et al. [16] as 200GPa and 550 MPa, respectively.
Numerical Investigation on Built-Up Cold-Formed Steel … 37
Fig. 1 Section view DDIB75 sections
Fig. 2 Longitudinal view of DDIB 75 with different screw spacing

3 Parameters Considered for the Study
Material properties:
• Yield strength (fy ) = 550 MPa; Young’s modulus (E) = 200000 MPa; Poison’s
ratio = 0.3
Member properties:
• Length of the section taken is 300–2000 mm with 100 mm increment
• Thickness of the sections includes 1.0, 1.2, 1.4, 2, 2.5 and 3.0 mm
• End condition is simply supported (hinge–roller)
4 Numerical Investigation
General
The BU-DDIB75 sections are numerically simulated using the finite element (FE)
programme using ABAQUS [25]. Finite element analysis (FEA) technique is a substi-
tute method which can be used to predict the ultimate strength and the mode of failure
mechanism similar to that of the test conducted in the laboratory. It is a comprehen-
sive way of investigating and particularly advantageous when multiple parameters are
required for the study. The modelling techniques described by Deepak and Shanthi
[18–21] for the hybrid double-I-box-girders are applied. The FE models are modelled
by considering the centre-to-centre line dimensions. The need of a balance between
precision and efficiency is emphasised.
5 Geometry and Material Properties
The material non-linearity is taken into account in the FE model by considering

‘true’ values of stresses and strains. A simplified elastic perfectly plastic stress–
strain curve is used in the parametric study. The results of the coupon tests defined
in the experimental section [16] is used.
6 Element Type, Mesh Size and Material Model
In this FE study, S4R5 which is a four-noded element with reduced hourglass inte-
gration is used in the modelling. The aspect ratio in the FE modelling is kept as
1.0 for the elements so that a very accurate outcome with minimum time period to
compute the analysis is exhibited. A distinctive FE mesh pattern is shown in Fig. 3.
Fig. 3 Typical FE mesh for

DDIB75-L3000-S10-t3
7 Load Application and Applied Boundary Conditions
The length of the beam is measured along the z axis in ABAQUS, and the cross-
section is measured along the x–y axis. Translations are represented by1, 2 and 3 in
the compass directions, whereas rotations are represented by 4, 5 and 6 in the x, y
and z directions, respectively. It is decided to use the simply supported condition. On
both ends of the beam model, a reference node of single-point constraints (SPCs) is
built as the master node. Four-point bending load is provided in the beam as similar
to the literature. Multiple point constraint is used to connect all the nodes in the
loading point in the beam to the reference point. Loading and boundary conditions
are shown in Fig. 4.
Fig. 4 DDIB75-L3000-S10-t3 boundary condition with MPC beam connector applied to the finite
element model
(a) Local buckling (DDIB75-L3000-S10-t3) (b) Distortional buckling (DDIB75-L3000-S10-t3)
Fig. 5 Contours of initial imperfection for BU75BU beams
8 Modelling of Local and Overall Geometric Imperfections
The Eigen buckling analysis is used to shape a superposition in the critical modes
of local buckling and global buckling. The magnitude of the local, distortional and
global imperfections is considered as 0.006*w*t, 1.0*t and 1/1000 of the full length
of the column, respectively, as per the endorsements of Schafer and Pekoz [26]. The
local and global buckling modes obtained from the FEA for DDIB75-L3000-S10-t3
are shown in Fig. 5.
9 Validation of the FE Model
The FE model is standardised against the test results presented by Roy et al. [16].
Three test samples are modelled by using the FE analysis. Table 1 shows the compar-
ison between the experimental ultimate moment capacity and those estimated using
finite element analysis. The cross-section chosen for the validation from the literature
is presented Fig. 6. As can be seen in Fig. 7a–b, the test and FE results are in good
agreement, both in terms of the moment capacity and the failure modes.
Table 1 Comparison of F.E results with literature results Roy et al. [16]
Specimen ID FE moment capacity MFEA Moment capacity MTest Comparison
(kNm) (kNm) [11] (MFEA /MTest )
BU75-L2000-S1900 2.01 2.17 0.92
BU75-L2000-S950 2.28 2.34 0.97
BU75-L2000-S475 2.47 2.5 0.98
Fig. 6 Chosen section for

numerical validation
10 Parametric Study
A parametric research that includes 324 CFS double decker-I-beam sections (DDIB)
is conducted using the verified finite element model. DDIB75 section is considered
where 75 denotes the web depth. The effect of screw spacing, variation in thickness
and length of the section are investigated in the parametric study. The failure modes
of DDIB75-S10-T2 section are shown in Fig. 8.
There are totally 324 models are developed and analysed in this study, and three
main parameters of beam such as length, thickness and fastener spacing are varied
to find out failure patterns, appropriate capacities, etc. In this study, three different
fastener numbers are used in all the sections in order to find out the effects of these
fasteners in the beam. The parametric study was designed in such a way that six
different thickness (1.00, 1.20, 1.40, 2.00, 2.50 and 3.00 mm) and eighteen different
lengths (varying from 300 to 2000 mm) covering stub to slender span beams were
considered. The effect of screw spacing on axial capacity was investigated. As can be
seen, three different numbers of screws were considered: 10, 5 and 3. These number
of screws include screws at the left and right ends of the beam. Figures 9, 10 and
(a) BU75-2000-950
(b) BU75-L2000-S950
Fig. 7 Validation of the back-to-back BU cold-formed steel channel sections Roy et al. [16]
(a) 300mm (b) 1000mm
(c) 1500mm (d) 2000mm
Fig. 8 Effect of length on the failure pattern on DDIB75-S10-T2

Fig. 9 Variation of moment 40

35 T-1.0 T-1.2
capacity against length for
T-1.4 T-2.0
Moment (kNm)
DDIB75-3 screws 30
T-2.5 T-3.0
25
20
15
10
5
0
0 500 1000 1500 2000 2500
Length (mm)
Fig. 10 Variation of 40
moment capacity against 35 T-1.0 T-1.2
length for DDIB75-5 screws T-1.4 T-2.0
30
Moment (kNm)
T-2.5 T-3.0
25
20
15
10
5
0
0 500 1000 1500 2000 2500
Length (mm)
11 show the ultimate moment capacity versus length for DDIB75 for 3 screws, 5
screws and 10 screws, respectively. From Figs. 9, 10 and 11, it is clear that number
of screws doesn’t really matter for section 1.0 mm thickness since all of them yields
more or less same results. It is found that flexural capacity of DDIB75 sections
on 2000 mm length increases capacity up to 6% from 10 to 3 screws for 1.0-mm-
thickness models, whereas for 3 mm thickness, percentage increases up to 16%. This
shows that as the steel weight increases dependence of fastener spacing increases
too. Flexural capacities of the sections increase tremendously if the section weight
or thickness of the beam increases. 60% increase in capacity from 1.0 to 2 mm for
Fig. 11 Variation of 40
35 T-1.0 T-1.2
moment capacity against T-1.4 T-2.0
Moment (kNm)
length for DDIB75-10 30 T-2.5 T-3.0

screws 25
20
15
10
5
0
0 500 1000 1500 2000 2500
Length (mm)
300 mm length, and there is 45% increase in capacity for 2000 mm length. From
2.0 to 3.0 mm for 300 mm length, percentage increase reduced into almost half by
32%, and for 2000 mm, it is 35%. Deflection of sections increases by 6.7% when
thickness increases from 1 to 2 mm, and from 2 to 3 mm, it is around 12%. This
shows that as the thickness increases even though strength increases deflection of the
section too increases due to increase weight. Future researchers and CFS practicing
engineers can use the FE model results reported in this paper to forecast the flexural
capacities of DDIB-CFS channel section beams. Irrespective of the span and the
spacing of longitudinal fasteners, the failure of all the BB75 beams was initiated by
local buckling for thickness up to 1.4 mm, and beyond which, the combination of
local plus flexural buckling was observed even in the case of stub section beams. All
the slender beams failed due to flexural buckling.
12 Conclusion
This paper presents numerical investigation double decker-I-beam sections

(DDIB75) placed on top of one another screw fastened built-up channel sections
under uniform bending. Total of 324 FE models are created and analysed. Length,
thickness, and screw spacing of sections are varied to find out effects of each param-
eter. Failure of section is by local buckling for smaller lengths and by lateral torsional
buckling for lengths more than 1500 mm. The following are the outcomes from this
study:
• It is found that flexural capacity of DDIB75 sections on 2000 mm length increases
capacity up to 6% from 10 to 3 screws for 1.0-mm-thickness models, whereas for
3 mm thickness, percentage increases up to 16%.
• This shows that as the steel weight increases dependence of fastener spacing
increases too.
• Flexural capacities of the sections increase tremendously if the section weight or
thickness of the beam increases 60% in capacity from 1.0 to 2 mm for 300 mm
length, and there is 45% increase in capacity for 2000 mm length. From 2.0 to
3.0 mm for 300 mm length, percentage increase reduced into almost half by 32%
and for 2000 mm its 35%.
• Deflection of sections increases by 6.7% when thickness increases from 1 to 2 mm
and from 2 to 3 mm its around 12%.
• Irrespective of the span and the spacing of longitudinal fasteners, the failure of
all the BB75 beams was initiated by local buckling for thickness up to 1.4 mm,
and beyond which, the combination of local plus flexural buckling was observed
even in the case of stub section beams. All the slender beams failed due to flexural
buckling.
• This shows that as the thickness increases even though strength increases
deflection of the section too increases due to increases weight.
• FE model results presented in this paper can be used by future researchers and
CFS practicing engineers to predict the flexural capacities of DDIB75 sections.
• For further studies, this work can be extended to study the composite action by
comparing with double BB75 sections so that it can be proved that 4-channels
beam section can carry more than twice the flexural capacity of 2-channel beam
section. This can be also studied by comparing with the available Codal provisions.
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Dynamic Characteristics of Sandwich
Panel with 3DGrF Core
and FGCNT-Reinforced Polymer
Composite Face Sheets
S. Swetha, P. Thamilselvi, M. P. Arunkumar, and Vinod Bhagat
Abstract The structure with a new material type of functionally graded carbon
nanotube reinforced polymer faces with three-dimensional graphene foam core
(CNTRPFS-3DGrFC) sandwich panel is proposed. The equivalent properties of rein-
forced carbon nanotube (CNT) polymer face sheet and 3-D graphene foam (3DGrF)
are calculated. The porosity and mass coefficient relationship are calculated from
the mechanical properties of 3DGrF. The vibration characteristics are studied for the
proposed structure by developing analytical solution considering the displacement
fields of third-order shear deformation theory (TDST) and by using Hamilton’s prin-
ciple. From the results, it is observed that for the Non varying porosity maximum
at center (NVPC) pattern the resonance frequency of CNTRPFS-3DGrFC sandwich
panel is shifted toward the right side. Also, as the porosity coefficient decreases, the
peaks are shifted rightwards.
Keywords Forced vibration · Third-order shear deformation theory · 3-D

Graphene foam · Sandwich panel
S. Swetha (B) · P. Thamilselvi

Division of Structural Engineering, Department of Civil Engineering, College of Engineering,
Anna University, Guindy 600025, India
e-mail: swetha.job23@gmail.com
M. P. Arunkumar
State Key Laboratory for Strength and Vibration of Mechanical Structures, Shaanxi Key
Laboratory of Environment and Control for Flight Vehicle, School of Aerospace Engineering,
Xi’an Jiaotong University, Xi’an 710049, People’s Republic of China
Department of Mechanical Engineering, Koneru Lakshmaiah Education Foundation,
Vaddeswaram, Guntur, Andhra Pradesh 522502, India
V. Bhagat
Department of Shipbuilding Engineering, Institute of Shipbuilding Technology, Vasco Da Goma,
Goa 403802, India
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4040-8_5
48 S. Swetha et al.
1 Introduction
The use of composite sandwich panel is proposed in a large scale in the field of build-
ings and construction mainly due to its combination of high structural rigidity to low
weight. It is being implemented as the roof claddings, external walls of the buildings
as well as insulated internal walls of the buildings and cold storages. The ease of
transportation and insulation of these ready-assembled elements makes the construc-
tion process effective and faster compared to the conventional way of construction.
In view of the reshaping of buildings the nano composites also provide higher perfor-
mance in thermal insulation, UV protection and long-lasting properties. The 3DGrF
carries the high strength along with the electrical properties of 2-D graphene sheet
[1–3]. There is a vital growth in the invention of 3DGrf structure which proves to
be efficient material for composites. Also, since these structures are subjected to
natural disturbances like wind and seismic forces, for which the study of dynamic
properties of the structure play a vital role. The dynamic study includes the natural
frequencies, damping ratios and vibration mode shapes. Also, carbon nanotubes are
used in several electro mechanical applications [4–6].
George et al. [7] noticed the change in dynamic responses due to the CNT distri-
butions. Mehar et al. [8] has investigated the thermal frequency response of multi
walled CNTs in the sandwich plate using iso-parametric finite element. The results
obtained from the numerical computations is compared with the experimental results
of the sandwich. The sandwich panel filled with epoxy core is used for experimental
modeling. In this work, CNTRPFS-3DGrFC is proposed and it is analyzed for its
dynamic characteristics.
2 Mathematical Formulation
In Fig. 1 CNTRPFS-3DGrFC panel is shown. The thickness of each of the CNT

reinforced polymer composite faces are hf and thickness of the 3DGrF is hc . The mid
plane is chosen such a way z = 0.
The displacement field and shape function for TDST is given as
∂w
u(x, y, z, t ) = u(x, y, t) − z + ψ(z)φx
∂x
∂w
v(x, y, z, t ) = v(x, y, t) − z + ψ(z)φ y
∂y
w(x, y, z, t) = w(x, y, t) (1)
The polynomial shape function is given as.
4z 2
ψ(z) = z[1 − ] (2)
3h 2
Dynamic Characteristics of Sandwich Panel … 49
The strain to the displacement field is shown in Eq. 3
∂u ∂ 2w ∂φx
εx x = − z 2 + ψ(z)
∂x ∂x ∂x
∂v ∂ 2w ∂φ y
ε yy = − z 2 + ψ(z)
∂y ∂y ∂y
[ ]
∂u ∂v ∂ w
2
∂φx ∂φ y
ϒx y = + − 2z + ψ(z) +
∂y ∂x ∂ x∂ y ∂y ∂x
∂ψ(z)
ϒx z = φx
∂z
∂ψ(z)
ϒ yz = φy (3)
∂z
The stress-strain relation for corresponding layer is given as

⎧ ⎫ ⎡ ⎤⎧ ⎫
⎨ σx x ⎬ Q 11 Q 12 0 ⎨ εx x ⎬ ⎧ ⎞ [ ]⎧ ⎞
⎣ ⎦ σ yz Q 44 0 ϒ yz
σ = Q 12 Q 22 0 ε ; = (4)
⎩ yy ⎭ ⎩ yy ⎭ σx z 0 Q 55 ϒx z
σx y 0 0 Q 66 εx y
The different grading patterns of FGCNT and 3DGrF are given in Fig. 2.
The abbreviations used for 3DGrF are, UVP refers uniformly varying porosity,
NVPC refers non uniform varying maximum at center, NVPS refers non uniform
varying porosity maximum at surface. Whereas UD refers uniformly distributed.
Also, it is visualized that FG-ΛV and FG-VΛ as a well-known FGO and FGX
grading pattern, respectively. The properties for various grading pattern for CNT
face and 3DGrF core are calculated from [9, 10], respectively.
√
v∗ = v;
2.73
(5)
Fig. 1 a 3DGrF-CNTRPFS sandwich panel. b Forces and moments acting on the sandwich panel
50 S. Swetha et al.
/
πz πz
1 − η0 [1 − cos )= 2.73
1 − cos ] (6)
h h
/
πz πz
1 − η0∗ [1 − cos ) = 2.73 1 − η∗ [1 − cos ] (7)
h h
E(z) ρ(z) 2.73
=( ) (8)
E1 ρ1
The material properties of graphene mentioned as G1 , E 1 and ρ1 refers to shear

modulus, elastic modulus and density. (η∗ , η), (η0∗ , η0 ) and (υ ∗ , υ) refers to mass
density and porosity coefficients of NVPC, NVPS and UVP, respectively. The
Hamilton’s principle is
∫t
(δU + δW + δT )dt = 0 (9)
0
where δU , δW and δT is the virtual strain, work done and kinetic energy. The virtual
strain energy can be expressed as
∫
∂δu ∂ 2 δw ∂δφx ∂δυ
δU = Nx x − Mx x + Sx x + N yy
∂x ∂x2 ∂x ∂y
∂ δw
2
∂δψ y ∂δυ
− M yy + S yy + Q yz δφ y + Q x z δφx + N x y
∂y ∂y ∂y
∂δυ ∂ 2 δw ∂δφx ∂δφ y
+ Nx y − 2Mx y + Sx y + Sx y ]dΩ (10)
∂x ∂x ∂ y ∂y ∂x
The virtual kinetic energy is given as

∫
∂ ẇ ∂ ẇ ∂δ ẇ
δT = [I0 (u̇δ u̇ + v̇δ v̇ + ẇδ ẇ − I1 ( δ u̇ + δ v̇ − u̇)
∂x ∂y ∂x
( )
∂ ẇ ∂δ ẇ ∂ ẇ ∂δ ẇ
+ v̇ + I2 + I3 (φx δ u̇ + uδφx + φ y δ v̇ + v̇φ y
∂ x ∂ ẋ ∂ y ∂ y
( )
∂δ ẇ ∂ ẇ ∂δ ẇ ∂ ẇ ( )
+ I4 φ̇x + + δ φ̇x + φ̇ y + + δ φ̇ y + I5 φ̇x δ φ̇x + φ̇ y δ φ̇ y
∂x ∂x ∂y ∂y
(11)
where as
∫− 2
hc
( )
I0 , I1 , I2, I3, I4, I5 = ρf [1, z, z 2 ψ(z), zψ(z), ψ 2 ]dz
− hc
2
∫− 2
hc
+ ρc [1, z, z 2 ψ(z), zψ(z), ψ 2 ]dz

− hc
2
∫− 2
hc
+ ρ f [1, z, z 2 ψ(z), zψ(z), ψ 2 ]dz (12)

− hc
2
where ρ f and ρ c are the equivalent density of faces and core, respectively.
The stress resultants are
) −∫ 2 −2 −2
hc hc hc
( ∫ ∫
Ni j , Mi j, Si j = (1, z, f )σifj dz + (1, z, f )σicj dz + (1, z, f )σifj dz,
− hc
2 − hc
2 − hc
2
(i j = x, y)
(13)
∫− 2 ∫− 2 ∫− 2
hc hc hc
(Q i z ) = gσifj dz + gσicj dz + gσifj dz, (i = x, y) (14)

− hc
2 − hc
2 − hc
2
From Eq. 5, we get the governing equations as
∂ Nx x ∂ Nx y ∂ ω̈
+ = I0 ü − I1 + I3 φ̈x (15)
∂x ∂y ∂x
∂ N yy ∂ Nx y ∂ ω̈
+ = I0 v̈ − I1 + I3 φ̈ y (16)
∂y ∂x ∂y
∂ 2 M yy ∂ 2 Mx x ∂ 2 Mx y
+ + 2
∂ y2 ∂x2 ∂ x∂ y
( ) ( 2 )
∂ ü ∂ v̈ ∂ ẅ ∂ 2 ẅ
= I0 ω̈ + I1 + − I2 +
∂x ∂y ∂x2 ∂ y2
( 2 )
∂ φ̈x ∂ φ̈ y
2
− I4 + (17)
∂x ∂y
..
∂ Sx x ∂ Sx y ∂ ẅ
+ − Q x z = I3 ü − I4 +I5 φ̈x (18)
∂x ∂y ∂x
52 S. Swetha et al.
..
∂ S yy ∂ Sx y ∂ ẅ
+ − Q yz = I3 v̈ − I4 +I5 φ̈ y (19)
∂y ∂x ∂y
Equations 15–19 can be written in the form of displacement functions u, v, w, φx

and φy by substituting the stress resultants in the governing equation. Further, the
solution for simply supported is
mπ nπ iωmn t
Umn = Amn cos x sin ye (20)
a b
mπ nπ iωmn t
Vmn = Bmn sin x cos ye (21)
a b
mπ nπ i ωmn t
Wmn = Cmn sin x sin ye (22)
a b
mπ nπ i ωmn t
φxmn = Dmn cos x sin ye (23)
a b
mπ nπ iωmn t
φymn = E mn sin x cos ye (24)
a b
By substituting Eqs. 20 and 24 in the governing equation, we can write the set
of equations in the matrix form as shown in Eq. 25. For free vibration response, the
natural frequencies are obtained from Eq. 25.
[K ] − ω2 [M]{Δ} = {F} (25)
where Δ, F, K and M refers unknown coefficient, load vector, stiffness and mass,
respectively. To predict displacement response, the dynamic responses are written
based on mode super position principle.
Σ
u(x, y, t) = Umn (x, y, t)Bmn (t) (26)
m,n
Σ
v(x, y, t) = Vmn (x, y, t)Bmn (t) (27)
m,n
Σ
w(x, y, t) = Wmn (x, y, t)Bmn (t) (28)
m,n
Σ
φx (x, y, t) = φxmn (x, y, t)Bmn (t) (29)
m,n
Σ
φ y (x, y, t) = φ ymn (x, y, t)Bmn (t) (30)
m,n
Fig. 2 Grading pattern, a UVP 3DGrF core with UD&UD CNT faces b NVPC 3DGrF core with
FG-VΛ CNT faces c NVPS 3DGrF core with FG-ΛV CNT faces d NVPC 3DGrF core with FG-ΛV
CNT faces e NVPS 3DGrF core with FG-VΛ CNT faces
By considering the orthogonality for modes, Bmn (t), the vibration function can
be found. The displacement response w(x, y, t) can be found from Eq. 28 and
the velocity response is obtained from differentiating Eq. 29 with respect to time.
The In-house code is developed using Mathematica a computational software. The
coefficient Amn Bmn Cmn Dmn E mn are calculated by solving Eq. 25.
3 Validation Study
Liu and Li [11] given the vibration response for 0.4 * 0.3 * 0.01 m sandwich panel
with the facing and core properties of 70 and 7 GPa. Density and Poisson’s ratio as
2700 kg/m3 and 0.3, respectively. The numerical and analytical results given by Liu
and Li [11] are validated with the present response and it is shown in Fig. 3. It is clear
from the Fig. 3 that present result matches well with the numerical and analytical
results.
The free vibration response of the sandwich panel is studied after which, the forced
vibration properties are analyzed by calculating the response by exciting at 0.7 ×
a and 0.7 × b. The sandwich panel with core to face thickness ratio of 10, CNT
volume fraction 0.11 and porosity coefficient of NVPC 0.1 is analyzed and the
vibration response is shown in Fig. 4a and b. From Fig. 4, it is observed natural
54 S. Swetha et al.
Fig. 3 Validation for

vibration response
frequency shifts toward right as it changes from NVPS to NVPC. Finally, there is
keen observation taking place in the resonance frequency of NVPCs and NVPSs
patterns. As the core is 10 times greater, the influence of faces is not significant in
the response.
Now, the analysis is repeated by changing the NVPC porosity coefficient to 0.6
and the response is shown in Fig. 5a and b. With the comparison between Figs. 4 and
5, it is noticed there is high shifting in resonance frequencies in Fig. 4 which is due to
the elevation of variance in dynamic stiffness that increases the porosity coefficient
as a whole. There is no significancy observed in the shift in frequency between FGO
and FGX pattern in Fig. 5. Further, the ratio is reduced to 2 to see the grading pattern
effect in the response and it is given in Fig. 6. From Fig. 6 it is noticed, the effect of
CNT is visible as the thickness of faces increases. Since there are high modulus on
the surfaces, it is evident that the FGX-NVPC grading pattern has shifted more. With
respect to the earlier discussion that higher natural frequency is better, it is seen that
in the lower frequencies the FGX-NVPC will not have resonance behavior compared
to other cases.
5 Conclusion
In FGCNTRPF-3DGrF sandwich panel, TSDT is used to study the forced vibration

behavior of the panel. The dynamic behavior is predicted using the Hamilton’s prin-
ciple. The study discusses the effect of graphene foam and CNT faces in sandwich
panel and the following observations are made.
• Higher resonance frequency is observed in FGX-NVPC pattern, compared to
other cases.
• The resonance frequency of UD-UVP occurs in between NVPC and NVPS case.
• As the porosity coefficient increases, there is increase in resonance frequency.
Fig. 4 Vibration response of FGNTRPF-3DGrF sandwich panel with CNT and porosity coefficient
as 0.11 and 0.1 a Displacement response b Velocity response
Fig. 5 Vibration response of FGNTRPF-3DGrF sandwich panel with CNT and porosity coefficient
as 0.11 and 0.6 a Displacement response b Velocity response
Fig. 6 Forced vibration response of FGCNTRPF-3DGrF sandwich panel with core to face sheet
thickness 2 a Displacement response b Velocity response
56 S. Swetha et al.
• For the NVPC pattern the resonance frequency shifted toward the right side. Also,
when the porosity coefficient decreases the resonance frequency is shifted toward
right.
As this paper presents the characteristics of a light weight composite sandwich
panel, the results obtained in this work can be used to design the sandwich panel for
various application where light weight structures are preferred.
References
1. Chen, Z., Ren, W., Gao, L., Liu, B., Pei, S., & Cheng, H. M. (2011). Three-dimensional
flexible and conductive interconnected graphene networks grown by chemical vapour deposi-
tion. Nature materials, 10(6), 424–428.
2. Bi, H., Yin, K., Xie, X., Zhou, Y., Wan, N., Xu, F., Banhart, F., Sun, L., & Ruoff, R. S.
(2012). Low temperature casting of graphene with high compressive strength. Advanced
Materials, 24(37), 5124–5129.
3. Ghadiri, M., & Hosseini, S. H. (2019). Nonlinear forced vibration of graphene/piezoelectric
sandwich nanoplates subjected to a mechanical shock. Journal of Sandwich Structures and
Materials, 1099636219849647.
4. Khan, A., Jain, R. K., Banerjee, P., Alamry, K. A., Ghosh, B., Inamuddin, & Asiri, A.
M. (2021). A hybrid electro-responsive SWNT/PEDOT: PSS-based membrane towards soft
actuator applications. Journal of Reinforced Plastics and Composites, 40(3-4), 87–102.
5. Safaei, B., Moradi-Dastjerdi, R., Qin, Z., Behdinan, K., & Chu, F. (2019). Determination of
thermoelastic stress wave propagation in nanocomposite sandwich plates reinforced by clusters
of carbon nanotubes. Journal of Sandwich Structures & Materials, 1099636219848282.
6. Kamarian, S., Shakeri, M., Yas, M. H., Bodaghi, M., & Pourasghar, A. (2015). Free vibration
analysis of functionally graded nanocomposite sandwich beams resting on Pasternak founda-
tion by considering the agglomeration effect of CNTs. Journal of Sandwich Structures and
Materials, 17(6), 632–665.
7. George, N., Jeyaraj, P., & Murigendrappa, S. M. (2017). Buckling and free vibration of
nonuniformly heated functionally graded carbon nanotube reinforced polymer composite plate.
International Journal of Structural Stability and Dynamics, 17(06), 1750064.
8. Mehar, K., Panda, S. K., & Sharma, N. (2020). Numerical investigation and experimental veri-
fication of thermal frequency of carbon nanotube-reinforced sandwich structure. Engineering
Structures, 211, 110444.
9. Wang, Y. Q., & Zhang, Z. Y. (2019). Bending and buckling of three-dimensional graphene
foam plates. Results in Physics, 13, 102136.
10. Shen, H. S., & Zhang, C. L. (2010). Thermal buckling and postbuckling behavior of functionally
graded carbon nanotube-reinforced composite plates. Materials and Design, 31(7), 3403–3411.
11. Liu, Y., & Li, Y. (2013). Vibration and acoustic response of rectangular sandwich plate under
thermal environment. Shock and Vibration, 20(5), 1011–1030.
Influence of Concrete Electrical
Resistivity on the Polarization
Performance of an ICCP System
for a Reinforced Concrete Structure:
A Numerical Study
Arpit Goyal
Abstract The impressed current cathodic protection (ICCP) approach is the most
effective way to prevent steel from corroding in concrete structures. The protection
achieved by the ICCP system depends on delivering required uniform current to the
steel. However, a variety of characteristics and boundary conditions, such as anode
type, chloride concentration, concrete resistivity, and geometrical layout, influence
the quantity of protection achieved. In presented paper, effect of applied current
density as well as electrical resistivity of the concrete on the polarization performance
of the system was analyzed numerically. The results revealed that these characteristics
have a significant impact on the anode performance. When the concrete electrical
resistivity is low, the current is dispersed evenly than when the concrete resistivity
is higher. In addition, the front end of the rebar always indicated a higher potential
shift than the back end of the rebar.
Keywords Numerical modeling · Corrosion · Cathodic protection · Reinforced

concrete
Nomenclature
∇ Nabla operator
∇2 Laplace operator
σ (S/m) Concrete electrolyte conductivity
I xj (A) Flow of current in the direction xj
E (V) Electrode potential
io (A/m2 ) Exchange current density
i (A/m2 ) Steel current density
E eq (V) Equilibrium potential
A. Goyal (B)
Civil Engineering Department, Thapar Institute of Engineering and Technology, Patiala 147004,
India
e-mail: arpit.goyal@thapar.edu
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4040-8_6
58 A. Goyal
η (V) Overpotential
bc (mV/dec) Cathodic Tafel slopes
ba (mV/dec) Anodic Tafel slopes
1 Introduction
Cathodic protection (CP) is the most extensively used and effective method for
preventing steel corrosion in reinforced concrete structures exposed to high chlo-
ride levels [1, 2]. Out of the two, ICCP system allows the control of the protection
current applied depending on the condition of the steel and exposed environment. In
addition, it offers higher life span, can protect high-resistive concrete, and can treat
large concrete areas [3]. The system’s success is dependent on the steel bars receiving
the needed protective current in a uniform manner [4]. However, the majority of ICCP
systems are currently designed based on engineering expertise, resulting in systems
that lack precise corrosion control parameters [5]. Furthermore, concrete geometry,
concrete properties, and exposed environment influence the degree of protection
achieved by the ICCP technique [6]. Practically, these parameters are difficult to
consider when designing an ICCP system. However, development in the numer-
ical simulations models has made it possible to consider them for an effective and
economical designing of the cathodic protection systems for RC structures.
This research focuses on developing a 2D numerical model of a beam geometry
with two layers of reinforcement and conductive coating ICCP anode applied at the
top. For the coating anode, one of the major considerations is its ability to pass
current to lower reinforcement layers. As a result, the impact of concrete electrical
resistivity and applied current density on anode performance along the depth of
reinforcement is investigated. A protoype of the model is also experimentally tested
for the verification of the model.
2 Numerical Modeling of the ICCP System
2.1 Modeling
The potential and current distribution inside the concrete geometry is modeled using
the Laplace Eq. (1) and Ohm’s law (2):
∇2 E = 0 (1)
Ix j = σ ∇ E (2)
Influence of Concrete Electrical Resistivity on the Polarization Performance … 59
The Tafel expressions generated from polarization curves are then used to describe
the iron oxidation and oxygen reduction reactions at the steel–concrete interface,
which are then fitted into Butler Volmer Equation (Eq. 3) [4]:
⎧ [ ] [ ]⎞
2.303η −2.303η
i = i exp
o
− exp (3)
ba bc
η = E − E eq (4)
∂E
=0 (5)
∂n
In addition, the sum of all currents in the system should be zero to maintain
electro-neutrality.
2.2 Geometry and Numerical Polarization
Comsol Multiphysics 5.3a, a finite element modeling (FEM) software, was used to
run the simulation. For the model, a 2D beam with dimensions shown in Fig. 1 was
considered.
Fig. 1 Geometry of the Anode

model
Top layer
350mm
Bottom Layer
120mm
60 A. Goyal
Table 1 Polarization
Parameter Value
parameters for steel
E eq versus Ag/AgCl (V) −0.200
io (A/m2 ) 4.5 e −3
ba (mV/dec) 75
bc (mV/dec) −250
All the steel bars were considered active; thus, on the steel surface, both anodic
and cathodic reactions were considered. Table 1 lists the polarization parameters
considered for the present model obtained by the method reported in author’s previous
publication [4]. The constant current (Iapp) was induced into the model from the top
surface of concrete.
2.3 Parametric Study
The macrocell current is mostly affected by concrete resistivity [7]. Moreover, the
movement of steel potential to satisfy ICCP criteria depends to appropriate protec-
tion current supplied through the anode. Thus, the two main parameters influencing
the ICCP anode performance are concrete electrical resistivity and applied current
density. Hence, influence of these parameters was studied through parametric studies.
Table 2 lists the range of the parameters used.
Lower concrete resistivities represent water-saturated conditions, and higher
resistivities represent dry conditions [4].
For the verification of the model, a similar concrete specimen was tested as the
modeled geometry. The outputs in the form of instant-off potentials were measured
and compared (Fig. 2). The numerical and experimental results agree with other.
Potential decay decreased when moving from top to bottom reinforcement. In
addition, as expected, on increasing the protection current density, potential decay
increased. However, this difference is negligible when considering the potential of
the steel/concrete.
Table 2 Range of the

Parameter Range
parametric study parameters
Concrete electrical resistivity (Ωm) 100, 500, 2000, 10,000
Applied current density (mA/m2 ) 10, 20, 30, 40, 50
Fig. 2 Potential decay at

various protection current
densities measured
numerically and
experimentally
3.1 The Effect of Electrical Resistivity in Concrete

on Polarization Performance
In present study, five different electric resistivities were considered, i.e., 100, 200,
500, 2000 and 10,000 Ωm.
Figures 3 and 4 present influence of electrical resistivity on anode performance.
Concrete resistivity plays a significant effect in current dispersion, as can be observed.
The upper steel receives more protection current, regardless of the concrete resistivity.
For a concrete resistivity of 100 Ωm, the protection current density is distributed in
the ratio of 3:1 between upper and lower steel. This ratio dropped to 49:1 when the
concrete resistivity increased to decreased to 10,000 Ωm.
Fig. 3 Mean current distribution under various concrete conductivities a Upper steel and b Lower
steel
62 A. Goyal
Fig. 4 Potential distribution under various concrete conductivities a Upper steel b Lower steel
Fig. 5 Mean current distribution under various applied currents a Upper steel b Lower steel
Furthermore, for varied concrete resistivities, a substantially greater protection

current flows into the front (arc length = 15.7 mm) of the steel compared to the back
(arc length = 0 mm). For both layers of steel, uniformity in distribution increases
on reduction in electrical resistivity. At electrical resistivity of 100 Ωm, protection
current is distributed in the ratio of 11:9 between front and back of rebar, which
increased to 3:1 for resistivity of 10,000 Ωm.
3.2 Influence of Applied Current Density on the Polarization

Performance
Figures 5 and 6 illustrate the numerical findings of the potential and current distribu-
tions under various applied currents and concrete resistivity of 20 kcm. It is evident
Fig. 6 Potential distribution under various applied currents a Upper steel b Lower steel
that regardless of the applied current, greater current flows into the top steel. The
upper layer received 80% of the entire protection current for a 10 mA/m2 applied
current, whereas the lower layer received 20%. When the protection current was
increased to 50 mA/m2 , this drops to a ratio of 9:1.
Furthermore, the current flows in a non-uniform manner. In comparison to the
back (arc length = 0 mm), a substantially stronger protective current flows into the
front (arc length = 15.7 mm) of the steel. For upper and lower steel, the difference
between potential shift at front and back varies from 20–60 and 3–9 mV for two
extreme electrical resistivities.
Furthermore, according to BS EN ISO 12696: 2016 [8], an applied current of
20 mA/m2 generates roughly 200–240 mV potential shift for upper steel, compared
to 45–50 mV for lower steel. This shows bottom reinforcement satisfied the criteria
when protection current density is increased to 50 mA/m2 .
As a conclusion of the parametric analysis, the electrical resistivity and protec-
tion current density had a significant impact on the ICCP anode performance. When
designing the ICCP system on-site experimentally, the influence of these parame-
ters cannot be considered; thus, numerical simulation can be used for an effective
designing of a CP system.
4 Conclusions
The geometry, applied protection current, and concrete resistivities all influence
the current and potential distribution along the steel bars. The results showed that
protection by the ICCP anode is non-uniform along the steel–concrete boundary.
When the electrical resistivity is low, the current flows more evenly than when the
concrete resistivity is higher. In addition, numerical simulation can be used to decide
the amount of protection current density required for successful application of ICCP
64 A. Goyal
system. As a conclusion, numerical analysis can be an effective and cost-effective

way to design a CP system.
References
1. Goyal, A., & Karade, S. R.: Efficiency of cathodic prevention to control corrosion in seawater
mixed concrete. Journal Building Pathology Rehabilitation, 2. https://doi.org/10.1007/s41024-
020-00090-2
2. Goyal, A., Sadeghi-Pouya, H., Ganjian, E., & Claisse, P. (2018). A review of corrosion and
protection of steel in concrete. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13369-018-3303-2
3. Byrne, A., Holmes, N., & Norton, B. (2016). State-of-the-art review of cathodic protection for
reinforced concrete structures. Magazine of Concrete Research, 68, 1–14. https://doi.org/10.
1680/jmacr.15.00083
4. Goyal, A., Olorunnipa, E. K., Pouya, H. S., Ganjian, E., & Olubanwo, A. O. (2020). Potential
and current distribution across different layers of reinforcement in reinforced concrete cathodic
protection system-A numerical study. Construction Building Material, 262, 120580. https://doi.
org/10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2020.120580
5. Qiao, G., Guo, B., & Ou, J.: Numerical simulation of the impressed current cathodic protec-
tion system for a reinforced concrete structure. In 2015 Fifth International Conference Instru-
ment Measurement Computing Communication Control. (pp. 836–839). https://doi.org/10.1109/
IMCCC.2015.182
6. Oleiwi, H. M., Wang, Y., Curioni, M., Chen, X., & Shabalin, I. (2018). An experimental study
of cathodic protection for chloride contaminated reinforced concrete. Materials and Structures,
51, 1–11. https://doi.org/10.1617/s11527-018-1273-1
7. Cheung, M. M. S., & Cao, C. (2013). Application of cathodic protection for controlling macrocell
corrosion in chloride contaminated RC structures. Construction and Building Materials, 45,
199–207. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2013.04.010
8. EN, B. (2016). 12696, cathodic protection of steel in concrete. British Standards Institution,
London.
9. Polder, R. B., Peelen, W. H. A., Lollini, F., Redaelli, E., & Bertolini, L. (2009). Numerical design
for cathodic protection systems for concrete. Materials and Corrosion, 60, 130–136. https://doi.
org/10.1002/maco.200805056
FE Analysis of Composite Sandwich
Panels with Different Shape Stiffeners
Subjected to Extreme Wind Pressure
Bi Zhang, Ajay Shanker, and Xuechen Ni
Abstract Hurricanes or tornadoes have always been natural wind hazards in most
southern states in the USA. The above-ground shelter is one kind of popular emer-
gency shelter for low-rise housing residents. But the authors found that upgrading
construction materials are necessary for the industry. Composite sandwich panels
are widely known for their lightweight and high performance, and the concept is
to separate the relatively stiff, strong, and thin panels by a lightweight and thick
flexible core. And stiffeners are usually used combined with composite panels. In
this paper, the authors use the FE analysis method to compare several shapes of
stiffened composite panels. Adding stiffeners to the panel complicates the analysis
of the entire system; the shapes of the stiffeners are WT shape stiffeners, I-shape
stiffened, and rectangular shape. The software package of Ansys 19.0 is used to
analyze different composite panels subjected to normal extreme storm pressure. By
comparing the deformation and equivalent stress results of different models, it can
be concluded that choosing a better stiffener model significantly improves the entire
model’s bending and buckling capabilities. Furthermore, the best shape stiffener will
be chosen for future study for designing a new storm shelter.
Keywords Stiffened panels · Composite panels · FE analysis · FRP · Wind loads
1 Introduction
The storm shelter has been popular in the USA for years since natural wind disas-
ters, hurricanes, and tornadoes nearly happen every year in more than 9 states in
the south. However, the authors found that the materials of many existing products
B. Zhang · A. Shanker (B)

Rinker School of Construction Management, College of Design Construction and Planning,
University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32603, USA
e-mail: shanker@ufl.edu
X. Ni
Department of Civil Construction and Environmental Engineering, University of Alabama,
Tuscaloosa, AL 35487, USA
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4040-8_7
66 B. Zhang et al.
still keep using traditional choices, steel, masonry, and plywood. In fact, many new
materials are becoming more and more popular in the construction industry, such
as CFRP, GFRP, Kelvar, and composite panels. Among them, the stiffened panels
have been widely used in aircraft since the second half of the last century [5], for
it is usually the main components of the airplane. As their prices continue to drop,
these high-performance materials are gradually available used in construction areas.
The growing demand for lightweight components has made composite materials
more and more popular since the 1960s [6]. Adding stiffeners to the plate is consid-
ered to strengthen the whole system. Compared to traditional stiffened steel panels,
composite materials possess a high-strength-to-weight ratio and corrosion resistance.
The lightweight components could reduce the cost of transportation, installation, and
labor.
1.1 Model Description
Stiffened panels are mainly divided into two types, such as open type and closed type
[5]. The open type has weak properties in torsion. Figure 1, it shows that different
shapes of stiffeners are usually used in the thin wall system. Usually, in the wall
system, the designers choose aluminum due to its lower density. This paper chooses
A36 steel to conduct the research considering the panel will be components of the
storm shelter, which should stand in extreme conditions for at least 8 h. For the design
requirements, the composite panel should provide stiffeners in both its longitude and
transverse directions. To simply the research method, we only add one direction
stiffener.
The stiffeners in this paper material are A36 steel and are chosen T-stiffener, I-
stiffener, and HSS-rectangular-stiffeners for comparison. These section shapes are
chosen due to their gradually wide use in today’s market. What is more, they are
lightweight, of high strength, and provide excellent temperature control. Hence, it is
widely used for portable structures and emergency shelters. Figure 2 shows a brief
view of the whole model of the rectangular channel stiffeners.
Fig. 1 Introduction of different shape stiffeners [4]

FE Analysis of Composite Sandwich Panels … 67
Fig. 2 Composite panel model with HSS-rectangular-stiffeners
1.2 Composite Sandwich Panel Properties
The composite materials have been widely used for more than 60 years. Fiber rein-
forcement materials provide high strength, stiffness, high-temperature resistance,
corrosion resistance [6, 7]. Though the analysis has been conducted many years, the
composite material’s damage capabilities and their ultimate strength are still needed
to observe case by case most of the time. Nowadays, composite structures have more
and more diverse constituent materials and fabrication methods. The fibers that are
most widely used today are carbon fiber, glass fiber, aramid fiber. Among them, the
composite sandwich structure is also prevalent due to its high in-plane and flexural
stiffness.
In this study, the fixed support sandwich panels consist of T700 carbon fiber lami-
nate sheets and an A550 structural form core. The connecting material between layers
is epoxy resin (hot/wet). Table 1 shows the T700 one-directional material properties,
and Table 2 shows the form core material properties. The stacking sequence of the
whole system shows in Table 3.
2 Theory Method
This section briefly introduces several related theoretical assumptions used to analyze
displacement for sandwich laminated plate analysis.
Table 1 T700 orthotropic material properties [3]

Orthotropic elasticity properties Value Orthotropic stress limits properties Value
Young’s modulus X (GPa) 132 Tensile stress X (MPa) 2100
Young’s modulus Y (GPa) 10.3 Tensile stress Y (MPa) 24
Young’s modulus Z (GPa) 10.3 Tensile stress Z (MPa) 65
Poisson ratio XY 0.25 Compression stress XY (MPa) −1050
Poisson ratio YY 0.38 Compression stress YZ (MPa) −132
Poisson ratio XZ 0.25 Compression stress XZ (MPa) −132
Shear modulus XY (GPa) 6.5 Shear stress XY (MPa) 75
Shear modulus YZ (GPa) 3.91 Shear stress YZ (MPa) 75
Shear modulus XZ (GPa) 6.5 Shear stress XZ (MPa) 75
68 B. Zhang et al.
Table 2 A550 structural

Orthotropic elasticity properties Value
form core
Young’s modulus (MPa) 55
Poisson ratio XY 0.3
Tensile stress X (MPa) 1.6
Tensile stress Y (MPa) 1.6
Tensile stress Z (MPa) 1.6
Compression stress X (MPa) −1.1
Compression stress Y (MPa) −1.1
Table 3 Stacking sequence

Ply No Layer Orientation Thickness
of the sandwich composite
(mm)
panel
1 T700 −45° 0.15
2 T700 45° 0.15
3 T700 90° 0.15
4 T700 −45° 0.15
5 T700 45° 0.15
6 Form Core 0° 5.0
7 T700 90° 0.15
8 T700 90° 0.15
9 T700 90° 0.15
2.1 Extreme Wind Assessment
The structural design of safe rooms should follow the guidelines of the residential
building safe room design regulations, including the FEMA 361 and FEMA-320-ICC
500. According to the safe room building code, the EF-5 tornado is equal to 250 mph
(402.3 km/h) except for FEMA’s Recommended Criteria. Therefore, the wind load
design methodology for the MWFRS described in FEA 361 is based on the ASCE
7–10 “directional procedure” with additional modifications of specific coefficients
as specified in ICC 500 [1, 2].
For a wind-force resisting system (MWFRS) low-rise building, velocity pressure
is calculated as [2].
q z = (0.00256 × K z × K zt × K d × K e × V e2 ) (1)
The wind pressure equations are also given as follows [2]:
p = g × GC p − q i × GC pi (2)
Various parameters must be selected following the specifications’ requirements

and the panel dimension properties; we got the maximum wind load at a wind speed
of 250 mph is about 8–10 kPa depending on the different size components and
facing side of the wind load. Therefore, this study sets the normal perpendicular
static pressure 10 kPa to assess the extreme wind load.
2.2 Stiffened Panel Analysis
Most composite panels serve as thin walls or structural walls in the building design,
which are subjected to axial pressure and lateral pressure simultaneously. At this time,
the displacement in-plane and out-plane loading need to study and find the ultimate
strength. Moreover, the face composite panels are stacking by different fiber layers
employing different orientations, though bonded by solid chemical glue, the whole
still has poor properties between interlayers [6]. Therefore, modeling analysis of
axial load causing buckling failure behavior is also necessary. Compared with only
plate structures, the buckling behavior of stiffened plates is more challenging to
analyze [3, 6]. In this research, we first compare the maximum displacement and
equivalent stress of the different stiffened sandwich panels and then observe the
buckling analysis of the best shape model under one side in-plane load.
2.3 FEA Software Package
The Ansys Workbench is an engineering simulation platform that uses workflow

technology to solve different modules collaboratively. Compared with other simula-
tion software, it has the most desirable feature in different sections. The mechanical
analysis of composite materials can be divided into two parts: material mechanics
and structural mechanics. According to the fineness of the mechanical model, it can
be divided into micromechanics and macro mechanics. And the Ansys ACP Mechan-
ical module can carry out related research on the structure macro mechanics. The
project schematic view shows in Fig. 3.
3 Model Analysis
The purpose of this study is to evaluate the structural strength of sandwich composite
panels with different cross-section stiffness under out-of-plane perpendicular pres-
sure and then find the most feasible stiffened plate design under extreme wind
pressure conditions. Then, bulking behavior under the in-plane ultimate strength
is performed for the selected model.
70 B. Zhang et al.
Fig. 3 Project schematic view
3.1 Out-of-Plate Perpendicular Pressure
The primary objective of this paper is to study the maximum deflection and equivalent
stress due to the static perpendicular wind pressure. In addition, we observe the
behavior of the stiffeners and plate to determine the priority shape. The wind pressure
is 10 kPa, chosen due to extreme EF-5 wind load. The model behaviors analysis of the
plate (Fig. 4), T-stiffener (Fig. 5), I-stiffener (Fig. 6), and HSS-rectangular-stiffener
(Fig. 7) is shown in figures here. Therefore, the comparison of the outcome is shown
in the following Table 4.
Fig. 4 Deformation and equivalent stress of the plate (10 kPa)

Fig. 5 Deformation and equivalent stress of the T-stiffener(10 kPa)
Fig. 6 Deformation and equivalent stress of the I-stiffener(10 kPa)
Fig. 7 Deformation and equivalent stress of the HSS-stiffener(10 kPa)
3.2 In-Plane Line Load
From Table 4, we can find that the HSS-rectangular stiffener has the slightest defor-
mation, and the I-stiffener has the lowest equivalent stress. Therefore, we can choose
them to observe and compare the bulking behavior under the in-plane ultimate
72
Table 4 Result of out-of-plate perpendicular pressure

Perpendicular pressure Deformation (mm) Equivalent stress (MPa)
Plate T-stiffener I-stiffener HSS-stiffener Plate T-stiffener I-stiffener HSS-stiffener
10 kPa 0.936 0.4514 0.3421 0.279 16.235 122.41 69.174 84.538
Safe factor (2) 1.872 0.903 0.663 0.627 0.2741 244.81 138.35 169.08
20 kPa
B. Zhang et al.
Table 5 Result of out-of-plate perpendicular pressure

I-stiffener RHS-stiffener
Properties SI (mm) US Unit(in) Properties SI (mm) US Unit (in)
Flange 0.5 mm 0.02 in Tube 0.5 mm 0.02 in
Thickness Thickness
Flange 30.0 mm 1.18 in
Width
Web 1.0 mm 0.40 in Tube 30.0 mm 1.18 in
Thickness Wideness
Web Depth 14.0 mm 0.55 in Tube Depth 15.0 mm 0.59 in
Area 44.0 mm2 0.07 in2 Area 44.0 mm2 0.07 in2
Moment of 1806.17 mm4 0.0284 in4 Moment of 1806.17 mm4 0.0284 in4
Inertia Ix Inertia Ix
Moment of 2251.17 mm4 0.0054 in4 Moment of 5296.17 mm4 0.0127 in4
Inertia Iy Inertia Iy
strength. Here, we need to know they have the same section area, flange thickness,
and Web thickness—the main difference between the types of shapes of the Webs.
The properties comparison is as follows (Table 5).
The change for this situation is only one side of fixed support, and the other side
is axial line load of 3 N/mm. Here, we can see the comparison result of two examples
FEA models (Fig. 8).
4 Conclusions
Generally speaking, sandwich composite panels and different stiffeners have been
widely used in civil engineering in recent years. Therefore, understanding the
behavior of these panels is necessary. Since this study is conducted purely using
FEA software, the material behavior can be concluded as follows.
. The Ansys Workbench 19.0 ACP modulus could set up the model of composite
materials professionally. The definition of composite materials is much more
complicated than other materials. For example, the number of layers, thickness,
direction, failure, and fatigue are obstacles to predicting properties. ACP modulus
provides a complete analysis function of composite products and seamlessly
connects to other simulation platforms.
. Comparing three stiffeners, HSS-rectangular-stiffener has the smallest out-of-
plane deformation. On the other hand, though I-stiffener has the largest moment
of inertia Ix, its deformation is larger than the HSS shape. However, the equivalent
stress performance of the I-shape is best due to its strong main axis inertia.
. The point of interest or sample points, which is the first fail part of the model,
happens at the flanges connected to the panels. Therefore, in further analysis of
74 B. Zhang et al.
Fig. 8 Buckling behavior comparison (deformation and equivalent stress)
stiffeners, the authors considered thickening the flange connected to the panels
and conducting failure analysis.
. The buckling deformation mainly happens at the edge of sandwich composite
panels; adding vertical and horizontal stiffeners may improve the structure’s
performance. Moreover, the combination of the flanges and panels can improve
the structure’s resisting strength to buckling.
. In this paper, we recommend the HSS-rectangular shape, considering the
deformation as the main criteria.
In future, we will test more kinds of composite panels and stiffeners to decrease
the weight and gain more strength. In addition, given the weak behavior of the edge of
the composite panel, we will also update the design in some detail parts. In addition,
we also need to perform debris impact Ls-Dyna simulation analysis, material failure
analysis, and so on.
References
1. ASCE (American Society of Civil Engineers). (2017). Minimum Design Loads for Buildings
and Other Structures, Standard ASCE/SEI 7–16. ASCE.
2. FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency). (2020). Safe rooms for tornadoes and
hurricanes—Guidance for community and residential safe rooms, Fourth Edition, FEMA P-361.
3. Hassan, S., Santulli, C., Yahya, M., Gang, C., & Abu, B. (2018). The potential of biomimetics
design in the development of impact-resistant material. FME Transaction, 46, 108–116. https://
doi.org/10.5937/fmet1801108H
4. Jain, H., & Upadhyay, A. (2009). Laminated composite stiffened panels: Applications and
behaviour. In Civil Engineering Conference Innovation Without Limit (CEC-09), NIT Hamirpur,
(pp. 89–96).
5. Pravallika, K., & Yugender, M. (2016). Structural Evaluation of Aircraft Stiffened Panel.
International Journal of Science and Research (IJSR), ISSA (Online): 2319–7064
6. Sudhir Sastry, Y. (2015). Buckling analysis of thin wall stiffened composite panels. Composite
Materials Science, 96, 459–471.
7. Wei Suna, Z. G. (2018). Modeling and simulating of the compressive behavior of T-stiffened
composite panels subjected to stiffener impact. Composite Structures, 186, 221–232.
8. Yujiao Bai, Z. X. (2020). Experimental and numerical analyses of stiffened composite panels
with delamination under a compressive load. Composite Materials, 54(9) 1197–1216.
Numerical Modeling on Buckling
Behavior of Structural Stiffened Panel
Shreyas Alagundi and T. Palanisamy
Abstract Stiffened panels are essential building elements in weight-sensitive struc-

tures. They have various applications in marine, aircraft, and other structures. Plate
structures can undergo buckling when subjected to axial compression loads and then
exhibit out of plane displacements. The present work aims to study the buckling
behavior of the stiffened panel. The finite element model of the stiffened panel is
developed, and buckling analysis is performed using ANSYS software. This model
is validated with the published experimental work. Once the model is validated,
total of 320 numbers of models of stiffened panels with varying plate thickness,
stiffener height, stiffener thickness, and distance between stiffeners are modeled
in ANSYS-2020, and buckling analysis is performed. An artificial neural network
model is proposed to predict the buckling load of the stiffened panel. Neural network
model is created in MATLAB software, and it is trained, tested, and validated, and
its performance is checked by statistical relations like coefficient of correlation and
mean square error. Proposed ANN model shows high accuracy in the prediction of
buckling load.
Keywords Stiffened panel · Buckling analysis · Finite element analysis (FEA) ·

Artificial neural network (ANN) · Buckling load · Numerical modeling
1 Introduction
The stiffened panel is a highly efficient structure, engineered to support a variety

of loads while retaining a defined degree of damage tolerance. The interaction of
material properties, geometric layout, and assembly process influences the function-
ality of stiffened panels [1]. Steel stiffened panels are widely used in ships, aircrafts,
and other highly loaded thin wall systems due to their ease of construction and
outstanding strength-to-weight ratio. Thin plate elements used in these structures are
S. Alagundi (B) · T. Palanisamy

Civil Engineering Department, National Institute of Technology Karnataka, Surathkal, Karnataka
575025, India
e-mail: shreyasalagundi@gmail.com
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4040-8_8
78 S. Alagundi and T. Palanisamy
subjected to in-plane shear and normal forces [2]. The equilibrium is stable if forces
are small and there will be no lateral displacements. At a certain load, deformation
pattern changes dramatically as the amplitude of these forces increases and lateral
displacements occur concurrently with in-plane deformations and stable equilibrium
becomes unstable in this situation, and the plate is said to have buckled. The critical
load is the load that causes this condition. The critical load is important because
it initiates a deflection pattern that, if increased further, quickly leads to very large
lateral deflections and finally, total plate collapse [3]. Stiffened panels can experience
a catastrophic shift in deformation as a result of increased load. Such transitions are
normally sudden and emit a lot of energy, which can cause structural damage or
fatigue if they happen repeatedly [4]. Quinn et al. [5] experimentally investigated the
stability behavior of aluminum stiffened panel and validate the performance gain of
the panel in FEA software, and this experimental work demonstrates the potential to
control plate buckling modes. They investigated the effect of the considered param-
eters on the failure mode and axial load carrying capacity in the elastic and inelastic
ranges. It is difficult to access the buckling behavior of stiffened plate with conven-
tional theoretical approach. While FEM can effectively calculate the buckling load
of a stiffened panel, it does not appear to be fast enough for calculating the buckling
load of a structure. Furthermore, the likely convergence issues present themselves at
the solution point, making the problem more complicated. As a result, the need for a
more reliable, easier, and faster method of estimating the buckling load of stiffened
panel is completely obvious; hence, the present study aims to predict the buckling
load of square aluminum stiffened panel using ANN.
1.1 Panel Stability
The governing equation of linear buckling analysis of plate is given by homogeneous

partial deferential Eq. 1, which is a homogeneous, partial differential equation. N x ,
N y , and N xy are the internal forces acting in the middle surface of the plate due to
the applied in-plane loading.

∂ 4w ∂ 4w ∂ 4w 1 ∂ 2w ∂ 2w ∂ 2w
+ 2 + = N x + 2N xy + N y (1)
∂x4 ∂ x 2∂ y2 ∂ y4 D ∂x2 ∂ x∂ y ∂ y2
For simplicity, consider a simply supported flat rectangular plate with uniform
thickness under uniform compressive loading in x direction (N y = 0 and N xy = 0).
After satisfying the boundary condition, Eq. 1 takes the form of Eq. 2. The possible
solution (Eq. 3) is obtained by setting the term in square bracket in Eq. 2 equals to
zero.
∞ ∞
2 2
n2 2
4 m 2m mπ x nπ y
Dπ 2
+ 2 − px π 2 wmn sin sin =0 (2)
m=1 n=1
a b n a b
Numerical Modeling on Buckling Behavior of Structural … 79
2
π 2a2 D m2 n2
px = + (3)
m2 n2 b2
3
where D = 12(1−νEt
2 ) , a, b, and t are width, depth, and thickness of plate. E and ν
are modulus of elasticity and Poisson’s ratio. m and n are the buckle wave form. For
square plate, a = b. Equation 3 gives all values corresponding to different values of
m and n. The smallest one will be selected from these values and that will be the
critical one and this will be obtained for n = 1. Equation 3 will take the form of
Eq. 4.
2
π2D a2
Nx = 2 m + (4)
a mb2
2 Validation of Numerical Model
The stiffened panel stability behavior of aluminum panel reported in Qunin et al. [5]
is considered for the validation of the numerical model. Qunin et al. [5] carried out an
experiment and considered a panel with three longitudinal stiffeners which resulted
in two central and two edge bays separated by stiffeners. Geometric properties can
be seen in Qunin et al. [5]. They tested the specimen in hydraulic testing machine and
reported the initial buckling load. In this validation study, test specimen is simulated
in the ANSYS(R2) 2020, and it is showed in Fig. 1a, b. Buckling analysis is carried
out, and the comparison between the computed results and results given in the Qunin
et al. [5] is shown in Fig. 1c, d. Initial buckling load reported in Qunin et al. [5] and
present simulation is 74.5 kN and 72.25 kN, respectively. The error difference 3.02%
is less than 5%, and hence, numerical model is validated, and same FEA is adopted
for the present study.
Fig. 1 Validation of numerical model stiffened panel a testing specimen, b simulated specimen in
ANSYS, c experimental buckling deformation, d Eigen value buckling analysis solution in ANSYS
3 Buckling Analysis of Stiffened Panel Using FEA
The buckling analysis of aluminum square stiffened panel (a/b = 1) is performed in

finite element software ANSYS (R2) Workbench. Material properties of the panel
are shown in Table 1. The geometric configuration of the panel is shown in Fig. 2a.
t p and ts are the thickness of the plate and stiffener, respectively. hs is the height of
the stiffener. Distance between the stiffeners is d s , and the end distance is d e .
3.1 Finite Element Analysis
Accurate modeling and buckling analysis of stiffened panel can be achieved through
use of FEA software like ANSYS. Buckling analysis is carried out in ANSYS(R2)-
2020 Workbench. Series of stiffened panels are modeled as shown in Fig. 2a, and
structural properties are assigned as mentioned in Table 1. In order to get the datasets
for developing the mathematical model to estimate the initial buckling load of square
aluminum stiffened panel, 320 stiffened plate models with varying dimensions of t p ,
t s , hs , d e , and d s are modeled and analyzed. Each model is named as Px -a-b-c. Here,
x refers to t p and a, b, c refer to t s , hs , d s , respectively. Panels of thickness 1, 2.5,
5, 7.5, and 10 mm are considered. Thickness of 1, 2, 4, and 6 mm and height of 20,
40, 60, and 80 mm are considered for stiffeners. Spacing between the stiffeners is
considered as 50, 75, 100, and 200 mm. Geometrical modeling is done in ‘ANSYS
Design Modeler’. Element type ‘Shell 181’ is assigned for model. Analysis type used
is ‘Eigen value buckling’. Figure 2b shows the meshed model of panel P1 -1-60-200.
Table 1 Material properties of stiffened panel

Material Panel Elastic Tensile yield Ultimate yield Poisson’s ratio
dimension modulus strength strength
Aluminum 440 × 440 73,700 MPa 324 MPa 471 MPa 0.33
Fig. 2 a Geometrical configurations of stiffened plate, b mesh model of panel P1-1-60-200

All panels are solved for buckling analysis, and buckling load is calculated. Figure 3
shows first 6 buckling mode shapes of stiffened panel P5 -4-40-75.
1st Mode 2nd Mode
4th Mode
3rd Mode
6th Mode
5th Mode
Fig. 3 First 6 buckling mode shapes of panel P5 -4-40-75

4 Artificial Neural Network (ANN)
Artificial neural network (ANN) is the computational modeling technique which

functions like biological neurons and exhibits the characteristics of the human brain. It
has the ability to learn from experience and generalizing from the previous examples
to solve new problems. Nowadays, ANNs are effectively used to solve the problems
in the field of civil and structural engineering. ANN consists of 3 layers; input, hidden
and output layer. Each layer consists of number of neurons, and these are connected
by weights and bias. A typical artificial neuron is shown in Fig. 4. Each input from
the input layer (x 1 , x 2 , …, x k ) gets added to the ‘weights’ (w1i , w2i , …, wki ), and then,
the ‘bias’ will be added to this sum. This value will be passed through the activation
function (g(ni)). Again, addition of weights and bias happens, and then, it gets pass
through the activation functions. In this way, neurons in the ANN get connected and
pass the information. These series of neurons connected to form a neural network.
Inputs are given in the input layer, and mathematical computations will be done by
weights and bias terms with the help of activation function. This is processed in the
hidden layer, then the output will be given by the output layer. Present study aims to
develop the ANN model to predict the buckling load of structural stiffened square
aluminum panel.
4.1 ANN Modeling
Database required for ANN modeling is prepared by FEA. Results of bucking anal-
ysis of 320 panels are used to model ANN. Input parameters are t p , t s , hs , d e , and
d s , and output parameter is buckling load (F). Dataset is normalized to improve
the training process [6]. ANN model is developed in MATLAB-2020. Methodology
adopted in ANN modeling is shown in flowchart form in Fig. 5. Total dataset is
divided into 3 sets such as training data (70%), testing data (15%), and validation
data (15%). ANN model is trained using training data, and then, validation data are
used to avoid overfitting of model.
Proposed model is tested using testing data. Proposed ANN model has 5 neurons
in input layer and single neuron in output layer since there are 5 input variables and
Fig. 4 Typical artificial neuron

Fig. 5 Methodology adopted in developing the ANN model
one output variable. Number of hidden neurons is found by trail and errors as there
is no scientific method to find out. Feedforward ANN is developed, and Levenberg–
Marquardt (LM) algorithm is used to train the ANN [7]. Activation function used in
the hidden layer and output layer is Tansig and Purelin, respectively [7, 8]. Perfor-
mance of proposed model is checked using mean square error (MSE) and coefficient
of correlation (R).
Finite element analysis is performed to find out the buckling load of stiffened struc-
tural square aluminum panel with different combinations of t p , t s , hs , d e , and d s . In
Fig. 6, buckling load of stiffened panel with different combinations of t p , t s , hs , d e ,
and d s is shown in graphical form. X-axis of Fig. 6 represents all 320 panels. If we
draw one vertical line on particular panel say 20th, then the points of intersection
of that line show the panel properties and buckling load of 20th panel. Using this
database, ANN model is developed to estimate the buckling load.
9 number of hidden neurons is found to be optimum, and hence, the proposed
ANN model is ANN-5-9-1. The developed ANN model in the MATLAB is shown in
Fig. 7. Correlation between predicted and actual data is good if R values equal to unity.
Regression plot is shown in Fig. 8. R values for normalized training, testing, validation
data, and full dataset are 0.99257, 0.99399, 0.98410, and 0.99027, respectively, and
all are very near to 1. R plot shows good agreement of predicted results with FEA.
The error in the prediction is calculated in the form of MSE.
Fig. 6 Buckling load of stiffened panel with different combinations of t p , t s , hs , and d s
Fig. 7 Developed ANN model in MATLAB
MSE near to zero shows that the error in the prediction is less, and the accuracy
in the prediction is more. MSE of training, testing, and validation dataset is 2.309 ×
10–4 , 1.232 × 10–3 , and 1.0331 × 10–3 , respectively. Error histogram is plotted in
Fig. 9a. Figure 9a shows that the most of the predictions fall near the zero error line.
Error between the normalized FEA results and predicted output is plotted in Fig. 9b.
Figure 9b shows that all most all predicted outputs are having nearly zero error.
MSE and Fig. 9 clearly show that the model has predicted the value of buckling load
with high accuracy and negligible error. Predicted values have good correlation with
the results of FEA. Error in the prediction is limited, and accuracy of the proposed
model is high. To compare predicted results with FEA results and also to recheck the
accuracy, both the results are plotted on same graph for all the panels (Fig. 10). Both
predicted and FEA results are following same pattern, and the deviation is very less.
Figure 10 reconfirms the accuracy of the proposed model. Square stiffened panels
(a/b = 1) are widely used in weight-sensitive structures like hull of a ship, fuselage,
Fig. 8 Regression plots
Fig. 9 a Error histogram, b error plot for predicted data with FEA data
and body parts of aircraft, silos, and storage tanks. Proposed model can be used to
predict the buckling load of stiffened panel used in such application.
Fig. 10 Plot of predicted and FEA results
6 Conclusions and Future Scope
• ANN model is proposed to predict the critical buckling load of stiffened panel.
Different combinations of 320 stiffened panels are modeled in ANSYS, and buck-
ling analysis is performed. Using the results of 320 dataset, ANN model is devel-
oped. R value more than 98% and MSE nearly zero shows the high accuracy of
the model. The proposed ANN model ANN-5-9-1 can be utilized to estimate the
buckling load of structural stiffened square aluminum panel.
• Present study can be continued for different aspect ratios (a/b) of panels, and ANN
models can be proposed. Other machine learning techniques can be adopted to
predict the buckling load, and optimum technique can be suggested. Nonlinear
buckling analysis can be performed, and mathematical model can be developed
to predict the ultimate buckling load of stiffened panel.
References
1. Quinn, D., Murphy, A., & Glazebrook, C. (2012). Aerospace stiffened panel initial sizing with
novel skin sub-stiffening features. International Journal of Structural Stability and Dynamics,
12(5).
2. Pouladkhan, A. R., Emadi, J., & Safamehr, M. (2011). Numerical study of buckling of thin
plates. 78.
3. Laftah, R. (2007). Buckling behaviour of stiffened plate panels using artificial neural
networks.https://doi.org/10.13140/RG.2.2.10214.22086
4. Chen, H., Xu, Y., Hu, J., & Wang, X. (2019). Optimization of lightweight sub-stiffened panels
with buckling analysis and imperfection sensitivity analysis. Proceedings of the Institution of
Mechanical Engineers, Part G: Journal of Aerospace Engineering, 233(15), 5507–5521.
5. Quinn, D., Murphy, A., McEwan, W., & Lemaitre, F. (2009). Stiffened panel stability behaviour
and performance gains with plate prismatic sub-stiffening. Thin-walled Structures, 47(12),
1457–1468.
6. Arafa, M., Alqedra, M., & An-Najjar, H. (2011). Neural network models for predicting shear
strength of reinforced normal and high-strength concrete deep beams. Journal of Applied
Sciences, 11(2), 266–274.
7. Alagundi, S., & Palanisamy, T. (2021). Prediction of joint shear strength of RC beam-column
joint subjected to seismic loading using artificial neural network. Sustainability, Agri, Food and
Environmental Research, 10, 1–11.
8. Alagundi, S., & Palanisamy, T. (2021). ANN model for joint shear strength of RC interior
Beam-Column joint. In CIGOS 2021.https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-16-7160-9_125
Construction Stage Analysis
of Continuous Box Girder Bridge
Constructed via Full Staging and Balance
Cantilever Method
Ankit Belwal, Shipra Thapliyal, and Vipendra Singh Jhinkwan
Abstract With the advancement in modern construction techniques, different

construction methods are in practice for the erection of bridges. While planning and
executing construction operations, there must be a proper consideration of effects
of the selected construction method. Including a construction stage based analysis
in the analysis phase of project takes care of such effects which may be of due
to temporary construction loads, boundary conditions, and time-dependent mate-
rial properties. The aim of this study is to analyze the prestressed continuous box
girder bridge by segmentally construction stages through full staging method and
balance cantilever method. In this study, various loading conditions including dead
load, superimposed dead load, live load, prestressing load, and temperature varia-
tion are considered, and the results obtained from the analysis have been studied
and discussed. The proposed method and computer program used, i.e., MIDAS Civil
simulate the structural behavior of prestressed concrete box girders under general
loading and throughout different construction stages. Study shows that, construc-
tion stage analysis using time-dependent material properties gives more reliable
results compared to conventional analytical methods as construction period has a
long duration and values of loads may change during the duration and after.
Keywords Balanced cantilever method · Construction stage analysis ·

Time-dependent material properties · Full staging method · Bridge analysis
A. Belwal (B) · V. S. Jhinkwan

Department of Civil Engineering, Dev Bhoomi Uttarakhand University, Dehradun, Uttarakhand
248007, India
e-mail: ankibelwal123@gmail.com
S. Thapliyal
Department of Civil Engineering, Uttaranchal University, Premnagar, Dehradun, Uttarakhand
248007, India
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4040-8_9
90 A. Belwal et al.
1 Introduction
Box girder bridges or often known as viaducts have become quite a common structure
to built specially for metro rail bridges as well as roadways. It has been widely
preferred for metro rail bridges throughout the globe because of their higher structural
strength against torsion as well as the ease of erection making their construction
process much simpler. They have been widely built or are under construction for
various metro rail projects running in India, thus the study of their structural behavior
during construction phases has a significant importance of its own.
A structure goes through different intermediary stages while under construction.
In these stages, the loads carrying capacity, mechanical, and geometrical properties
can vary widely. These stages will have a significant impact on the final design of the
structure and stress distribution in it. Therefore, performing analysis without taking
into account the process of construction may procure results that are not reliable. Due
to recent trends in construction techniques, a bridge can be erected through various
methods, in which cantilever method is one of the most preferable and logical solution
of constructing bridges having deeper and inaccessible valleys. Cantilever method
of construction can be adopted as single cantilever and double cantilever method.
The later one involves the simultaneous installation of segments on both sides of the
interim pier, thus balancing the load of segments on the pier simultaneously. This is
also why it is also commonly known as balanced cantilever method. This technique
is most preferable when there are deep valleys or wide rivers lying under the bridge
where installation of conventional shoring is quite difficult and uneconomical. Other
than cantilever method, there are also some other construction techniques which
have their own area of application such as full staging method which is a very basic
conventional way of constructing bridges using scaffolding over the full span. This
method is usually economical when the horizontal alignment of bridge is curved or
the bridge deck is wide with piers of small height.
Based on the construction method chosen, the analysis results of the structure
can vary widely. As each method has different assemblies and equipments phases
during its execution, they may have unique stress redistribution associated to them.
Furthermore, time-dependent material properties such as creep and shrinkage in case
of concrete bridges add more complexity to analysis process. Creep strains are there
in the structure from its early phase of construction to subsequently later stages. It
keeps on evolving even after the structure is built. In past, several studies have been
made related to time-dependent analysis of bridges constructed via balance cantilever
method, and some have dealt with internal stresses and moment redistribution as well
as deflection control [1, 2]. Cruz et al. [3] studied the nonlinear and time-dependent
analysis of reinforced composite steel–concrete and prestressed concrete and planar
frame structures and presented a general step by step model. Goyet [4] presented
a effective numerical procedure for nonlinear finite element analysis of segmen-
tally constructed structures considering time-dependent effects on concrete due to
creep, load history, aging. The study concluded that time have a significant impact on
concrete properties, thus such effects must be considered while designing concrete
Construction Stage Analysis of Continuous Box Girder Bridge … 91
structures. Kwak and Son [5, 6] presented a study on design moments and span
ratios in bridges that are constructed using double cantilever method and found that
for determination of variation of moments due to structural system getting altered
at different stages of construction requires a meticulous time-dependent analysis
with construction stage properly considered. Malm and Sundquist [7] also presented
the study on time-dependent analyzes of balanced cantilever bridges constructed
segmentally. Altunisik et al. [8] performed the detailed construction stage anal-
ysis of Komurhan Bridge considering time-dependent properties of concrete and
steel and found a considerable effect of such analysis in structural behavior of the
bridge. Sevket Ates [9] performed the numerical modeling of box girder bridge
constructed using balance cantilever method considering construction stages and has
found that the bending moments and deflections from construction stage analysis are
significantly large as compared to analysis done without considering construction
stages.
Thus, from literature studies, it has seen that different construction methods have
not been considered while performing construction stage analysis. Bridges are built
around the globe with different construction methods and studies that can show
structural behavior for different techniques have been rarely made. Therefore in
this paper, a study has been made on construction stage analysis of prestressed
concrete box girder bridge constructed using balance cantilever method and full
staging method. Results obtained from both the methods have been compared and
concluded. Time-dependent material properties such as compressive strength, creep,
and shrinkage have been considered in the study. Construction stages and three
dimensional bridge structure are modeled using MIDAS Civil.
2 Description of Example Bridge
A prestressed single cell box girder bridge as shown in Fig. 1 has been taken as an
example for the study. It is a three span continuous cast in place PSC box bridge
having the main span of length 130 m and two side spans of 85 m each. Thus, the
length of total bridge is 300 m. The width of the bridge is 12.7 m accommodating two
lanes. The whole structural system of the bridges constitutes of a continuous bridge
Fig. 1 Line diagram of bridge model and its dimensions

92 A. Belwal et al.
Fig. 2 Cross-sections of a deck of bridge model at pier location and mid span and b pier
deck, two intermediate piers, and two end abutments. Each intermediate pier consists
of two piers of height 40 m with 4.2 m center to center spacing. Figure 2 shows the
cross-sections of piers and the bridge deck. The bridge deck consists of a tapered
longitudinal section with varying depth such that it has maximum value of 7 m over
the piers and as minimum as 2.7 m at the abutments and mid spans. MIDAS Civil has
been used for modeling the bridge in this study. The software effectively considers
the construction stages associated with the particular method of construction and
gives reliable results.
The bridge model consists of 83 nodes and 76 beam elements. The grade of
concrete used for superstructure and substructure is M50 and M40, respectively.
Grade of steel for prestressing tendons is used as Fe440 as per Indian standard codes.
The bridge model is analyzed considering balance cantilever method and full staging
method of construction. Both the methods have their merits and demerits depending
on the various factors such as site conditions, financial budget, and availability of
equipments. In this paper, both the methods have been analyzed, and the difference
in their structural behavior due to their construction method has been studied.
3 Construction Stages
3.1 Balance Cantilever Method
In case of balance cantilever method of construction, bridge is constructed in number

of stages constituting erection of piers, pier tables, and deck segments. This method
has been preferred over other methods as it does not require any scaffolding. The
deck segments can be precast as well as cast in situ as per the requirements. For
this study, cast in place is used for segment constructions. In this method, formwork
traveler is first installed over the piers and then moved to the respective position for
casting segments. Once segment is casted, it is then moved forward and attached
to recently casted segment and carries the formwork for next segment that is to be
build. This procedure is repeated till all the required segments are casted. The weight
of formwork traveler is generally lies between 40 and 120 tons from spans ranging
from 50 to 200 m as per Hewson [10]. In this study, the weight of traveler is taken as
80 tons with an eccentricity of 2.5 m. In this method of construction, deck segments
are casted on both sides of a pier simultaneously, that is why it received a name
of balanced cantilever. The cantilever segments casted from different piers are then
joined by a key segment.
In a typical bridge construction, all piers are not constructed at the same time.
There may be a time difference in the construction of two piers because of which
the cantilevers from different piers will not be built at the same time. Thus at the
time of erection of key segment that joins these two cantilevers, they will be having
different ages. As per their ages, both the cantilevers have undergone different creep,
shrinkage, and tendon losses resulting in different deflections and stresses at the time
of constructing the key segments. Such time difference is considered while preparing
construction stages for the bridge structure, and it is taken 60 days time gap between
the erections of two intermediate piers.
In the earliest stage, piers have been constructed, and formwork and scaffold-
ings are arranged for pier table constructions. After attaining a period of maturity,
formwork traveler and other assemblies are installed in the pier tables. In the next
stage, formwork traveler is positioned to cast segments on both sides of pier. After
that, all the formwork, rebars, and ducts for post-tensioning are installed for which
7 days time period has been considered. The concrete is poured after all the arrange-
ments made and cured for 5 days to attain certain maturity before post-tensioning
and casting new segment. The length of the segment is taken as 4.75 m. All tendons
used here have 19 strands with 15.2 mm diameter, stressed with an initial stress of
1,339,199.9 kN/m2 . Then, the formwork traveler is installed in this recently casted
segment and positioned to carry formwork for new segment. This process is repeated,
and 12 segments of 4.75 m are casted one after another having construtio period of
12 days each. While casting these 12 segments, the 19 m length of bridge deck from
both abutments is also being casted simultaneously using full staging method and
then joined with the cantilever constructed from piers with the help of key segments
of 2 m length. The key segments require 30 days to be constructed. After this, at last
construction stage, the mid span cantilevers are also get joined using key segments.
And to take account of time-dependent analysis due to creep, the last stage is given
a duration of 10,000 days so as to check the long-term effect of creep strains. The
total construction period of bridge is, however, around seven months.
94 A. Belwal et al.
3.2 Full Staging Method
A full staging method involves the use of proper falsework arrangements for casting
bridge deck, piers, and other structural components. As, the length of the continuous
tendons has some limits which will therefore be handled with the construction joints.
Thus in this case, construction stages have been considered based on these construc-
tion joints. The construction joint is provided after the completion of each span. Thus,
all the three spans are constructed sequentially on their respective construction stage.
Each construction stage here includes the installation of formwork, reinforcement
fabrication, and installation of sheath ducts for tendons prestressing and casting of
concrete. Here, also the last stage is given a duration of 10,000 days so as to check
the long-term effect of creep strains.
The loads considered in both the analysis apart from their construction method-
ology’s specific loads are as follows:
(a) Self-weight: Self-weight of all the structural elements of bridge.
(b) Super imposed dead load: Superimposed dead load includes weight of crash
barriers, weight of asphalt concrete payment, safety fences, etc. The combined
value to consider such loads is taken as 33.7 KN/m in this analysis.
(c) Prestress: Tendons have been tensioned with an initial stress of 1,339,199.9
kN/m2 .
(d) Temperature: Effective bridge temperature for the bridge has been takes as
maximum of +15 °C and minimum of −10 °C. The temperature difference
in the bridge superstructure has been incorporated in the model as per IRC:
6-2017 [11].
4 Time-Dependent Properties for Concrete and Steel
Gain of compressive strength of concrete depends on several factors such as type of

cement, curing conditions, and temperature at a particular site. Compressive strength
at any time period ‘t’ may be estimated as per clause 6.4.2.2 of IRC: 112-2011 [12].
4.2 Modulus of Elasticity
Concrete’s modulus of elasticity varies with time and this variation can be given by
the following formula [12]:
0.3
f cm(t)
E cm (t) = E cm , (4.1)
f cm
where E cm (t) is the value of modulus of elasticity at age ‘t’ days and E cm is the
modulus of elasticity at 28 days. f cm (t) and f cm are the same as stated earlier.
4.3 Relaxation Loss in Steel
As per IRC:11-2011, relaxation for long terms is takes as thrice of the 1000 h value
which shall be measured at an initial stress of 70% of UTS [12]. Relaxation loss
for normal relaxation steel has been considered for tendons having 19 strands with
15.2 mm diameter.
4.4 Shrinkage and Creep
Shrinkage of concrete depends on the constituents of concrete, notional size of

member, and environment conditions such as humidity and temperature. Relative
humidity of 70% is considered for this study. The total shrinkage strain can be esti-
mated as per clause 6.4.2.6 of IRC: 112-2011 [12]. Creep in the concrete generally
depends on the stress in it, age, and duration of loading. The creep development with
time can be estimated as per clause 6.4.2.7 of IRC: 112-2011 [12].
Based on the above details, the following results have been obtained and discussed.
Figures 3 and 4 show the bending moment variation throughout the bridge deck for
the case of balance cantilever construction and full staging method of construction,
respectively, considering the effects of all the loads mentioned earlier. From the
Fig. 3 Bending moment variation in case of balance cantilever method of construction

96 A. Belwal et al.
Fig. 4 Bending moment variation in case of full staging method of construction
figures, it has clearly shown that the maximum value of bending moment is more
in case of full staging method as compared to balance cantilever method. Also the
profile of graph in case of balanced cantilever method shows the rapid fluctuation
of bending moment values due to the construction of each segment individually and
sequentially during the project duration.
Figures 5 and 6 give the shear force variation along the bridge span for both
methods of construction considered. There is not much significant difference is
observed in the maximum positive and negative values of shear force in both the
cases of construction methods, but comparatively, balance cantilever method has
lesser values of shear force considering full span length. The differences in axial
force distribution in both cases are shown by Figs. 7 and 8. From these figures, it is
quite clear that negative axial force has quite larger value in case of balance cantilever
method compared to full staging method.
Fig. 5 Shear force variation along the bridge deck in case of balance cantilever method of
construction
Fig. 6 Shear force variation along the bridge deck in case of full staging method of construction
Fig. 7 Axial force of the bridge deck in case of balance cantilever method of construction
Fig. 8 Axial force of the bridge deck in case of full staging method of construction
98 A. Belwal et al.
6 Conclusion
This study presents an investigation of the construction stage analysis of the construc-
tion of a continuous concrete box girder bridge that includes the effects of time-
dependent properties of concrete such as shrinkage, creep, and aging of concrete and
steel relaxation. Two method of construction has been considered for construction
stage analysis, and results obtained for both the methods of construction have been
presented and discussed. These results can be concluded as:
The maximum values of bending moment are more in case of full staging method
of construction of about five times of the value in case of balance cantilever method.
The negative bending moment is also more for full staging method of construction.
Such difference may have aroused due to the less efficient consideration of effect of
time-dependent properties material in case of full staging method.
The values of shear force along the full bridge span are less in the case of balance
cantilever method, but there is not much significant difference in the maximum values
of shear force of both the cases. Axial forces are more effectively distributed in case
of balance cantilever method but have maximum values greater than full staging
method.
Thus from above results, it is concluded that in case of balance cantilever method,
bridge deck is subjected to much lesser loads and moments compared to full staging
method. Thus adopting this method of construction can be a better alternative of
construction compared to full staging method as based on the analysis results, it can
be more economical. Although selection of a particular construction technique for a
project depends on several factors such as availability of resources, site conditions,
skilled manpower, etc., which may have an important role on the economical aspects
of project. Also, shear lag and effect of torsional moment have not been considered
in this study because of the limitation of elements type chosen. Considering such
factors, a further study can be made to compare these methods to obtain the most
economical method.
References
1. Ketchum, M. A. (1986). Redistribution of stresses in segmentally erected prestressed concrete

bridges UCB/SESM-86/07. Department of Civil Engineering, University of California,
Berkeley.
2. Chiu, H. I., Chern, J. C., & Chang, K. C. (1996). Long-term deflection control in cantilever
prestressed concrete bridges I: Control method. Journal of Engineering Mechanics, ASCE,
12(6), 489–494.
3. Cruz, P. J. S., Mari, A. R., & Roca, P. (1998). Nonlinear time-dependent analysis of segmentally
constructed structures. Journal of Structural Engineering, ASCE, 124(3), 278–288.
4. Somja, H., & Goyet, V. V. (2008). A new strategy for analysis of erection stages including an
efficient method for creep analysis. Engineering Structures, 30, 2871–2883. [11] Cho, T., &
Kim, T. S. Probabilistic risk assessment for the construction phases of a bridge construction
based on finite element analysis. Finite Elements in Analysis and Design
5. Kwak, H. G., & Son, J. K. (2002). Determination of design moments in bridges constructed
by balanced cantilever method. Engineering Structures, 24, 639–648.
6. Kwak, H. G., & Son, J. K. (2004). Span ratios in bridges constructed using a balanced cantilever
method. Engineering Structures, 18, 767–779.
7. Malm, R., & Sundquist, H. (2010). Time-dependent analyses of segmentally constructed
balanced cantilever bridges. Engineering Structures, 32, 1038–1045.
8. Altunisik, A. C., Bayraktar, A., Sevim, B., Adanur, S., & Domanic, A. (2010). Construc-
tion stage analyses of Kömürhan highway bridge using time dependent material properties.
Structural Engineering and Mechanics, 36(2), 207–224.
9. Ates, S. (2011). Numerical modelling of continuous concrete box girder bridges considering
construction stages. Applied Mathematical Modelling, 35, 3809–3820.
10. Hewson, N. (2003). Prestressed concrete bridges: Design and construction. Thomas Telford
Ltd.
11. IRC:6-2017: Standard specifications and code of practice for road bridge (Seventh revision).
12. IRC: 112-2011: Code of practice for concrete road bridges.
Bending Deflections and Natural
Frequencies of Micro/Nanobeams Using
a Third Order Single Variable Nonlocal
Beam Theory
S. A. Deepak, Rajesh A. Shetty, K. Sudheer Kini,

Abstract In this paper, the bending deflections and natural frequencies of

micro/nanobeams have been evaluated using a third order single variable nonlocal
beam theory. The beam theory used herein contains only one governing differen-
tial equation involving a single displacement variable. Also, governing equation of
the theory has strong similarity to that of nonlocal Euler–Bernoulli beam theory.
In this work, the beam bending and free vibration analysis of simply supported
micro/nanobeams with rectangular cross-section have been carried out. In case of
bending analysis, the deflections of the beams are evaluated by using two methods,
namely Navier’s method and by direct integration of the governing differential equa-
tion. Similarly, the free vibration analysis of rectangular cross-section has been
carried out, and the corresponding frequency characteristic equation is obtained
by using Navier’s method. The bending deflections and natural frequencies have
been evaluated for the case of beams with different thickness/length ratios and
various values of nonlocal parameters. The results for beam deflections and natural
frequencies have been presented in the tabular form as well as in the graphical form.
Results obtained by using the present beam theory are compared with those of other
beam theory results available in the literature. The results for deflection and natural
frequencies obtained herein are found to be accurate.
Keywords Bending deflection · Natural frequencies · Micro/Nanobeams ·

Nonlocal theory · Simply supported beam
S. A. Deepak
Reva University, Bengaluru, Karnataka 560064, India
R. A. Shetty (B)
Simulation Lab Pvt Ltd, Pune, Maharashtra 412101, India
e-mail: rajesh.shetty168@gmail.com
K. Sudheer Kini
A J Institute of Engineering and Technology, Mangaluru, Karnataka 575006, India
G. L. Dushyanthkumar
Vidyavardhaka College of Engineering, Mysuru, Karnataka 570002, India
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4040-8_10
102 S. A. Deepak et al.
Nomenclature
A Area of rectangular cross-section beam

a Internal characteristic length.
b Width of rectangular cross-section beam
E Young’s modulus of beam material
e0 Material constant appropriate to each material
G Shear modulus of beam material
h Height of rectangular cross-section beam
I Moment of inertia
K Nonlocal parameter
L Length of rectangular cross-section beam
Mx Bending moment
m, n Frequency mode parameters
O−x−y−z Cartesian coordinate system
x, y, z Cartesian coordinates
Qx Shear force
q(x) Intensity of a distributed lateral load
q0 Intensity of a uniformly distributed lateral load
t Time variable
u, w Displacements in u and z-directions, respectively
u b , wb Bending components of displacements u and w, respectively
u s , ws Shear components of displacements u and w, respectively
ŵ Non-dimensional maximum deflection parameter
γx y , γ yz , γzx Shear strains
∈ x , ∈ y , ∈z Normal strains
μ Poisson’s ratio of beam material
ρ Density of beam material
σ x , σ y , σz Normal stresses
τx y , τ yz , τzx Shear stresses
ωn Frequency of beam vibration
ω̂n Non-dimensional frequency parameter
1 Introduction
To cater the demands of MEMS/NEMS industries and research laboratories, it is

necessary to focus on the research on mechanics of micro/nanoscale structures. While
developing and analyzing these MEMS/NEMS systems, one will come across many
micro/nanoscale beam and plate type structures. Experimental investigation at the
micro/nanoscale is expensive, and sometimes, it is hard to design and execute the
experimentation. Hence, the research community has shown a great deal of interest in
Bending Deflections and Natural Frequencies of Micro/Nanobeams … 103
formulating the mechanical behavior of micro/scale structures theoretically. Atom-

istic models are considered to be accurate to simulate the structures theoretically.
However, this requires highly expensive simulation environment, and the process
is time consuming as complexity associated with the structures increase. To over-
come this limitation, interest was shifted toward the classical continuum mechanics
models which are found to be computationally more simple and efficient. But it
was observed that the classical continuum mechanics models unable to simulate
the small size dependent behavior of micro/nanoscale structures. Hence, the further
research was emphasized on the size dependent continuum mechanics models. These
models are, namely Eringen’s nonlocal elasticity theory [1–4], strain gradient theory
[5], couple stress theory [6, 7], and modified couple stress theory [8]. Among these
models, the nonlocal elasticity model formulated by Eringen [1–4] is widely accepted
by the research community due to its inherent mathematical simplicity.
In this regard, to carry out the analysis of micro/nanobeams, many of the clas-
sical or local beam theories have been reformulated or extended by using Eringen’s
nonlocal elasticity theory. Few of these well-known classical or local beam theories
are Euler–Bernoulli beam theory (EBT) [9], Timoshenko beam theory (TBT) [9],
Reddy beam theory (RBT) [9], and Levinson beam theory (LBT) [9]. The important
research contributions which have focused on reformulating or extending the local
beam theories into nonlocal beam theories are available in the following publica-
tions: papers on nonlocal version of EBT [10–13], TBT [14, 15], and other shear
deformation beam theories [16, 17].
Further, the important publications available in the literature on nonlocal bending
and vibration study of micro/nanobeams are Reddy [16], Aydogdu [17], Niu et al.
[19], and Thai et al. [20, 21]. Also, the free vibration study of nonlocal beams is also
reported by Xu [22], Behera and Chakraverty [23], Ruiz et al. [24], and Ke et al.
[25].
The papers on applications of nonlocal elasticity beam theories for the investiga-
tion of carbon nanotubes have been published by Reddy and Pang [27], Peddieson
et al. [28], Wang [29], Wang and Varadan [30], and Lu et al. [31]. Further, the
finite element analysis of beams based on nonlocal elasticity beam models has been
reported by Phadikar and Pradhan [32], Pradhan [33], and Alshorbagy et al. [34].
The main objective of this paper is to showcase the efficacy of a single variable
nonlocal beam theory (SVNBT) which is developed by adapting a classical or local
elasticity beam theory available in Ref. [35]. This classical elasticity beam theory is
adapted suitably to formulate SVNBT by using Eringen’s nonlocal elasticity equa-
tions. In this manuscript, SVNBT is utilized for the bending/lateral deflection and free
vibration analysis of micro/nanobeams with simply supported boundary conditions.
SVNBT is a higher-order theory which can be used for the investigation of thick as
well as thin beams. Further, beam investigation by using SVNBT is simpler due to
the strong similarities in SVNBT and EBT equations. Transverse/lateral deflections
and frequencies estimated by SVNBT are compared with the corresponding results
estimated by other nonlocal beam theories.
2 Micro/Nanobeam Formulation: Single Variable Nonlocal

Beam Theory (SVNBT)
Displacements, strains, stresses, governing equation, and boundary conditions linked

with SVNBT are presented herein. Based upon nonlocal elasticity theory proposed
by Eringen [1–4], the displacement field and strain expressions remain same as
those used in case of local elasticity beam theories. Necessary changes need to be
done while writing the stress–strain relations by making use of Eringen’s differential
constitutive equations [3]. From this step onward, the Eringen’s size dependent terms
will be embodied in the beam formulation.
Expressions for displacements: Displacement field of SVNBT consisting of axial
displacement (u) and lateral deflection (w) can be mentioned as follows [35]:
[ ]
∂wb h 3 (1 + μ) 1 ( z ) 5 ( z )3 ∂ 3 wb
u = −z − − (1)
∂x 5 4 h 3 h ∂x3
h 2 (1 + μ) ∂ 2 wb
w = wb − (2)
5 ∂x2
Equations (1) and (2) for axial displacement (u) and lateral deflection (w) contain
only one unknown displacement variable (wb ). Hence, other equations such as strains
and stresses can also be mentioned in terms of wb . So, the beam theory considered
herein can be named as a single variable theory.
Expressions for strains: Strain expressions associated with SVNBT can be
mentioned as follows [35]:
[ ]
∂ 2 wb h 3 (1 + μ) 1 ( z ) 5 ( z )3 ∂ 4 wb
∈x = −z − − (3)
∂x2 5 4 h 3 h ∂x4
[ ]
1 ( z ) 2 ∂ 3 wb
γzx = −h 2 (1 + μ) − (4)
4 h ∂x3
Expressions for bending stress (σx ) and moment (Mx ) using nonlocal consti-
tutive relations: Eringen’s differential constitutive relations can be used to obtain
expressions for bending stress (σx ) and bending moment (Mx ) in case of nonlocal
beam and plate theories. In case of one-dimensional nonlocal beam theories, one
can mention the relationship between normal stress (σx ) and normal strain (∈x ) as
follows:
∂ 2 σx
σx − (e0 a)2 = E∈x (5)
∂x2
where e0 a is the nonlocal parameter. Further, one can mention the stress–strain rela-
tionship for classical or local elasticity beam theories by setting nonlocal parameter
e0 a to zero in the above Eq. (5).
Now, multiplying by z to both sides of Eq. (5) and integrating over the beam
cross-section, one can mention
∫ ∫ ∫
∂ 2 σx
σx zdA − (e0 a)
2
z 2 dA = E z ∈x dA (6)
∂x
A A A
Noting that, definition of bending moment Mx is given by

∫
Mx = σx zdA (7)
A
Next, using Eqs. (3) and (7) in Eq. (6), one can mention the expression for bending
moment Mx of SVNBT in the following form:
∂ 2 Mx ∂ 2 wb
Mx − (e0 a)2 = −E I (8)
∂x2 ∂x2
where I is the moment of inertia of a beam with rectangular cross-section and is

defined as I = bh 3 /12.
Derivation for governing differential equation of SVNBT: In this manuscript,
governing equation of the theory is derived by utilizing the beam gross equilib-
rium equations involving applied load, bending moment, and shear force. In case of
SVNBT, one obtains two gross equilibrium equations, and those equations can be
mentioned as follows:
( )
∂ Mx ∂ 2 ∂wb
− Qx + ρ I 2 =0 (9)
∂x ∂t ∂x
∂ Qx ∂ 2w
+ q(x, t) − ρh 2 = 0 (10)
∂x ∂t
Using Eq. (9), one can mention
( )
∂ Mx ∂ 2 ∂wb
= Qx − ρ I 2 (11)
∂x ∂t ∂x
Differentiating Eq. (11) with respect to x, one obtains

( )
∂ 2 Mx ∂ Qx ∂ 2 ∂ 2 wb
= − ρ I (12)
∂x2 ∂x ∂t 2 ∂ x 2
Next from Eq. (10), we have
∂ Qx ∂ 2w
= −q(x, t) + ρ A 2 (13)
∂x ∂t
∂ Qx
Substituting for ∂x
from Eq. (13) in Eq. (12), one obtains
( )
∂ 2 Mx ∂ 2w ∂ 2 ∂ 2 wb
= −q(x, t) + ρ A − ρ I (14)
∂x2 ∂t 2 ∂t 2 ∂ x 2
Now differentiating Eq. (14) twice with respect to x and also substituting for w
from Eq. (2) in Eq. (14) in the resulting equation, one obtains
( ) [ ] ( )
∂ 4 Mx ∂ 2 q(x, t) ∂ 2 ∂ 2 wb 12(1 + μ) ∂ 2 ∂ 4 wb
=− + ρA 2 − ρI 1 +
∂x4 ∂x2 ∂t ∂x2 5 ∂t 2 ∂ x 4
(15)
Differentiating Eq. (8) twice with respect to x, one obtains
∂ 2 Mx 2 ∂ Mx
4
∂ 4 wb
− (e0 a) = −E I (16)
∂x2 ∂x4 ∂x4
Next substituting for ∂∂ xM2x and ∂∂ xM4x from Eqs. (14) and (15) in Eq. (16), one
2 4
obtains the SVNBT governing equation for the case of transverse/lateral vibrations
of a beam as follows:
[ ] ( )
∂ 4 wb ∂ 2 wb 12(1 + μ) ∂ 2 ∂ 4 wb
EI + ρA 2 − ρI 1 +
∂x4 ∂t 5 ∂t 2 ∂ x 4
[ 2 [ ] ( )]
∂ q(x, t) ∂ wb
2
12(1 + μ) ∂ 2 ∂ 4 wb
− (e0 a) −
2
+ ρA 2 − ρI 1 + = q(x, t)
∂x2 ∂t 5 ∂t 2 ∂ x 4
(17)
Differential equation for free vibrations of a beam can be obtained by setting

∂ 2 q(x,t)
∂x2
= 0 and q(x, t) = 0 in the above Eq. (17). Further, for the bending analysis
of a beam, the governing Eq. (17) can be stated as follows:
dwb d 2 q(x)
EI + (e0 a)2 = q(x) (18)
dx 4 ∂t x 2
Differential Eq. (18) has close resemblance to that of nonlocal EBT [28] equation
for the case of bending deflection analysis. Thus, using SVNBT, one can formulate
beams in a similar manner as in case of EBT.
3 Illustrative Examples: Lateral Bending and Free

Vibrations of Micro/Nanobeams
Bending deflection and free vibration study of simply supported micro/nanobeams

using SVNBT are discussed herein. The expression for beam deflection curve and
frequency characteristic equation is derived using SVNBT.
4 Bending Deflection Analysis of a Simply Supported

Rectangular Beam
Consider an isotropic beam of rectangular cross-section with simply supported ends

at x = 0 and x = L and carrying a transversely distributed lateral load q(x) over
the beam span L as shown in Fig. 1.
Using SVNBT, the boundary conditions at simply supported ends can be stated
as follows:
[ ]
h 2 (1 + μ) ∂ 2 wb
[w]x=0,L = wb − =0 (19)
5 ∂ x 2 x=0,L
[ ]
∂ 2 wb
[Mx ]x=0,L = −E I − (e0 a) q(x)
2
=0 (20)
∂x2 x=0,L
Expression for bending deflection using Navier’s method: By Navier’s method,

one can mention the solution for wb in Eq. (18) using the following Sine trigonometric
function:
∞
Σ ( nπ x )
wb = wbn sin (21)
n=1,2,3,...
L
Fig. 1 Geometry of a simply supported rectangular beam

Next, the transversely distributed load q(x) acting on the beam can also be
expressed in the following form:
∞
Σ ( nπ x )
q(x) = Q n sin (22)
n=1,2,3,...
L
where
∫ L ( nπ x )
2
Qn = q(x)sin dx (23)
L L
0
It can be noted that Eqs. (21) and (22) identically satisfy the boundary conditions
mentioned by Eqs. (19) and (20) at x = 0 and x = L. Next, substituting for wb and
q(x) from Eqs. (21) and (22) in Eq. (18), one obtains the solution for transverse/lateral
deflection w as follows:
[ ( ) ] (
nπ x )
∞
Σ λn Q n (1 + μ) nπ h 2
w= ( nπ )4 1 + sin (24)
n=1,2,3,... E I
5 L L
L
where
( nπ )2
λn = 1 + (e0 a)2
L
In case of a beam carrying a uniformly distributed load q0 , i.e., when q(x) = q0 ,
using Eq. (23), one obtains
4q0
Qn = (25)
nπ
Therefore, Eq. (24) can also be written as
[ ( ) ] (
nπ x )
∞
Σ 4Q 0 L 4 λn (1 + μ) nπ h 2
w= 1+ sin (26)
n=1,2,3,...
E I (nπ )5 5 L L
Next, the expression for maximum deflection, i.e., w at x = L/2, can be mentioned
as follows:
∞
[ ( ) ] ( )
Σ 4Q 0 L 4 λn (1 + μ) nπ h 2 nπ
[w]x=L/2 = 1+ sin (27)
n=1,2,3,...
E I (nπ ) 5 5 L 2
Expression for bending deflection by direct integration: Governing Eq. (18) can
be solved by direct integration method also. By integrating Eq. (18) four times and
using the boundary conditions given by Eqs. (19) and (20), one can mention the
solution for wb as follows:
[ ( 2 )]
q0 L 4 ( x )4 ( x )3 ( x )
2 x x
wb = −2 + − 12(e0 a) − 3 (28)
24E I L L L L4 L
Next, using the solution of wb given by Eq. (28) in Eq. (2), one obtains the solution
for total lateral deflection w as follows:
⎧( ) ( x )3 ( x ) ( )⎫
q0 L 4 ⎨ L − 2 L + L[ − 12(e0 a) L 4 − L]3 ⎬
x 4 2 x2 x
w= ( ) ( ) ( ) (29)
24E I ⎩ − 12 (1 + μ) h 2 x 2 − x − 2 (e0 a) ⎭
2
5 L L L 2 L
The expression for maximum lateral deflection, i.e., w at x = L/2 can be

mentioned as
[ ]
+ 3 (e(L0 a)
2
5
q0 L 4 )
( )2 1
2
[w]x=L/2 = 16
(30)
+ 2 (eL0 a)
2
24E I + 12
5 (1
+ μ) Lh 4 2
5 Free Vibrations Study of a Simply Supported

Rectangular Beam
For the case of free vibrations of beams, the governing equation can be obtained
by setting ∂ q(x,t)
2
∂x2
= 0 and q(x, t) = 0 in the above Eq. (17). Using SVNBT, the
boundary conditions at simply supported beam ends, i.e., at x = 0 and x = L can
be mentioned as follows:
[ ]
h 2 (1 + μ) ∂ 2 wb
[w]x=0,L = wb − =0 (31)
5 ∂ x 2 x=0,L
[ ( )]
ρ A ∂( w
2
∂ 2 wb ∂x2 )
[Mx ]x=0,L = −E I − (e0 a) 2
=0 (32)
−ρ I ∂t∂ 2 ∂∂ xw2b
2 2
∂x2
x=0,L
Next, by Navier’s method, one can write the solution for wb in Eq. (17) using the
following Sine function:
∞
Σ ( nπ x )
wb = wbn sin sin ωn t (33)
n=1,2,3,...
L
It can be seen that the assumed solution for wb given by Eq. (33) can satisfy the
boundary conditions at x = 0 and x = L mentioned by Eqs. (31) and (32). Next
substituting for wb given by Eq. (33) in the governing Eq. (17), one obtains
⎧ ( nπ )4 ⎫
⎪
⎪ ⎡ [ EI ⎤⎪⎪
⎪
⎪
⎪ ( L) ]
2 nπ 2
⎪
⎪
⎪
⎨ ρ A 1 + (e0 a) L ⎬
⎢ ( ) [ ( ) ] ⎥ wb = 0
⎪ ⎢ 2 2 ⎥ ⎪ n
(34)
⎪ −ωn2 ⎢ +ρ I nπ 1 + (e0 a)2 nπ ⎥⎪
⎪
⎪ ⎣ L
( )2 [
L ⎪
( )2 ] ⎦ ⎪
⎪
⎩ ⎪
⎭
+ ρ Ah (1+μ) nπ 1 + (e a)2 nπ
2
5 L 0 L
where
A = bh and I = bh 3
On simplification, Eq. (34) can be mentioned as

⎧ ( )2 ⎫
( ) ⎪
⎪ 1 + (e0 a)2 [ nπ ] ⎪
⎪
ρA ⎨ ( ) L ⎬
L ωn
4 2 + nπ h 2 1
+ (1+μ)
5 [ − (nπ )4 = 0 (35)
⎪ L 12 ]⎪
⎩ +(e a)2 ( nπ )2 ( nπ h )2 1 +
⎪ ⎪
EI (1+μ) ⎭
0 L L 12 5
Next, using Eq. (35),√the expression for the non-dimensional fundamental natural
frequency ω̂n = ωn L 2 ρ A/E I for the case of a simply supported beam can be
Λ (nπ )2
ωn = ⎡⎡ ( )2 ⎤ (36)
|
| 1 + (e0 a)2 nπ
|⎢ ( ) [L ] ⎥
|⎢ + nπ h 2 1 + (1+μ) ⎥
|⎣ 5 [ ]⎦
| L 12
( )2 ( nπ h )2 1 (1+μ)
+(e0 a)2 nπ
L L 12
+ 5
By neglecting the rotary inertia related terms in Eq. (17), the expression for non-
dimensional fundamental natural frequency (ω̂n ) can be stated as follows:
(nπ )2
ω̂n = ⎡[ ( )2 ] (37)
|
| 1 + (e0 a)2 nπ
| ( nπ h )2 [
L
( )2 ]
+ (1+μ)
5 L
1 + (e0 a)2 nπ
L
Numerical results for non-dimensional natural frequencies (ω̂n ) quoted in Table

2 in the next section have been obtained by using Eq. (37).
6 Numerical Results and Discussion on Results
Numerical results for beam transverse/lateral deflections and fundamental natural

frequencies obtained by using SVNBT have been presented in Tables 1 and 2.
By using the numerical values in the Tables 1 and 2, results are also presented
in the graphical form in Figs. 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7. Tables 1 and 2 also present
the results obtained by other nonlocal elasticity beam theories, namely nonlocal
Euler–Bernoulli theory (EBT) [16, 20], nonlocal Timoshenko theory (TBT) [16,
20], and nonlocal Reddy theory (RBT) [16, 20]. Non-dimensional maximum
transverse/lateral deflections (ω̂n ) used in Table 1 are defined as
100E I
ω̂n =
q0 L 4
Non-dimensional fundamental natural frequencies (ω̂n ) used in Table 2 are defined

as
Table 1 Non-dimensional lateral deflections ŵ = 100E I /q0 L 4 of a simply supported beam

carrying a uniformly distributed load
h
L K Maximum lateral deflections (ŵ)
EBT [20] TBT [20] RBT [20] SVNBTa SVNBTb % Errorc
0.01 0.0 1.3021 1.3024 1.3024 1.3024 1.3024 −0.02
0.1 1.4271 1.4274 1.4274 1.4274 1.4274 −0.02
0.2 1.5521 1.5525 1.5525 1.5525 1.5525 −0.03
0.3 1.6771 1.6775 1.6775 1.6775 1.6775 −0.02
0.4 1.8021 1.8025 1.8025 1.8025 1.8025 −0.02
0.05 0.0 1.3021 1.3102 1.3102 1.3102 1.3102 −0.62
0.1 1.4271 1.4359 1.4359 1.4359 1.4359 −0.61
0.2 1.5521 1.5615 1.5615 1.5615 1.5615 −0.60
0.3 1.6771 1.6871 1.6871 1.6871 1.6871 −0.59
0.4 1.8021 1.8128 1.8128 1.8128 1.8128 −0.59
0.10 0.0 1.3021 1.3346 1.3346 1.3346 1.3346 −2.44
0.1 1.4271 1.4622 1.4622 1.4622 1.4622 −2.40
0.2 1.5521 1.5898 1.5898 1.5898 1.5898 −2.37
0.3 1.6771 1.7173 1.7173 1.7173 1.7174 −2.34
0.4 1.8021 1.8449 1.8449 1.8449 1.8450 −2.32
(K = (e0 a)2 , L = 10 and μ = 0.3)
a Using Eq. (27) (Solution by Navier’s method)
b Using Eq. (30) (Solution by direct integration method)
( )
c %Error = Result by EBT
Result by SVNBT − 1 × 100
√
Table 2 Non-dimensional fundamental natural frequencies ω̂n = ωn L 2 ρ A/E I of a simply
supported beam
h
L K Natural frequencies (ω̂)
EBT [16] TBT [16] RBT [16] SVNBT % Errora
0.01 0.0 9.8696 9.8683 9.8683 9.8683 0.01
0.1 9.4159 9.4147 9.4147 9.4147 0.01
0.2 9.0195 9.0183 9.0183 9.0183 0.01
0.3 8.6693 8.6682 8.6682 8.6682 0.01
0.4 8.3569 8.3569 8.3569 8.3569 0.01
0.05 0.0 9.8696 9.8381 9.8381 9.8381 0.32
0.1 9.4159 9.3858 9.3858 9.3858 0.32
0.2 9.0195 8.9907 8.9907 8.9907 0.32
0.3 8.6693 8.6416 8.6416 8.6416 0.32
0.4 8.3569 8.3302 8.3302 8.3302 0.32
0.10 0.0 9.8696 9.7454 9.7454 9.7454 1.27
0.1 9.4159 9.2973 9.2974 9.2973 1.28
0.2 9.0195 8.9059 8.9060 8.9059 1.28
0.3 8.6693 8.5601 8.5602 8.5601 1.28
0.4 8.3569 8.2517 8.2517 8.2517 1.27
(K = (e0 a) , L = 10 and μ = 0.3)
2
( )
a % Error = Result by EBT
Result by SVNBT − 1 × 100
Fig. 2 Comparison of
maximum deflections (ω̂n ) of
various theories for h/L =
0.01
0.05
0.10
Fig. 5 Comparison of Λ
natural frequencies (ωn ) of

0.01

0.05

0.10
√
ω̂n = ωn L 2 ρ A/E I
For obtaining numerical results quoted in Tables 1 and 2, the following data are
used:
L = 10; μ = 0.3
where L is the micro/nanobeam length and μ is the Poisson’s ratio.
7 Discussion on Numerical Results
Referring to the numerical values for flexural deflections and frequencies mentioned
in Tables 1 and 2, the observations made can be summarized as follows:
1. With respect to non-dimensional transverse/lateral deflections (wb ) mentioned
in Table 1, the following points need to be noted:
• Lateral deflections estimated by SVNBT are in close agreement with those
estimated by TBT and RBT for all values of ratio h/L and nonlocal parameter
(e0 a). Whereas, EBT underestimates the deflections in comparison with the
corresponding results estimated by SVNBT, TBT, and RBT.
• Flexural deflection values estimated by using the nonlocal theories are higher
than those estimated by using the corresponding local/classical elasticity
theories. It can be noted that the local/classical theories cannot capture the
small size effects which are important in case of micro/nanobeams.
2. With respect to non-dimensional natural frequencies (ω̂n ) mentioned in Table
2, the following points can be noted:
• Fundamental natural frequencies estimated by using SVNBT are more or
less same as those estimated by TBT and RBT for all values of ratio h/L and
nonlocal parameter (e0 a). But the natural frequencies estimated by EBT are
not in tune with those estimated by SVNBT, TBT, and RBT.
• Frequencies estimated by nonlocal theories are lower than those estimated
by the corresponding local/classical elasticity theories. This is in tune with
the observation that flexural deflections estimated by using nonlocal theories
are higher compared to local/classical theories.
8 Conclusions
In this manuscript, a third order single variable nonlocal beam theory (SVNBT)
has been used for the static bending/flexural and free vibration investiga-
tion of micro/nanobeams with rectangular cross-section. In connection with the
micro/nanobeam investigation carried out herein, the following important obser-

vations can be noted:
1. SVNBT formulation involves only one fourth order governing differential equa-
tion linked with a single unknown displacement variable. The governing equa-
tion of SVNBT has close similarity to that of nonlocal Euler–Bernoulli beam
theory. Further, analogous to Euler–Bernoulli theory, SVNBT also incorporates
a single displacement variable for the complete beam formulation.
2. Displacement field of SVNBT gives rise to a realistic quadratic/parabolic trans-
verse shear stress distribution across the beam thickness. Hence, the formulation
of beams by using SVNBT does not require a shear correction factor/coefficient.
3. SVNBT has been utilized herein for the transverse/lateral bending and free
vibration analysis of micro/nanobeams with simply supported boundary condi-
tions. In case of beam bending analysis, the expression for deflection curve is
derived by using two methods, namely Navier’s method and direct integration
method. In case of free vibration analysis, the frequency characteristic equation
is derived by using Navier’s method.
4. The numerical values estimated for beam transverse/lateral deflections and
frequencies by using SVNBT are compared with those estimated by other
nonlocal beam theories. The SVNBT deflections and frequencies are compared
with the Euler–Bernoulli beam theory (EBT) (basic or elementary beam theory),
Timoshenko beam theory (first-order beam theory), and refined beam theory
(higher-order beam theory) results.
5. The bending deflections have been estimated for different ratios of h/L and for
different values of nonlocal parameter (K ) (Refer Table 1). For all the combi-
nations of h/L and K , the bending deflections estimated by SVNBT are more
or less same as those estimated by Timoshenko beam theory and refined beam
theory. However, Euler–Bernoulli beam theory is underestimating the deflec-
tions when compared with SVNBT, Timoshenko theory, and refined beam theory
deflections. The % error in the deflection values found to be increasing when
the ratio h/L is also increased. Further, it can also be noted that, there is no
considerable increase in the % error when value of nonlocal parameter (K ) is
changed.
6. Similarly, the values for natural frequencies have been obtained for different
ratios of h/L and for different values of nonlocal parameter (K ) (Refer Table
2). For all the combinations of h/L and K , the natural frequencies predicted by
SVNBT are more or less same as those predicted by Timoshenko beam theory
and refined beam theory. However, it can be noted that, Euler–Bernoulli beam
theory is overestimating the natural frequencies when compared with SVNBT,
Timoshenko theory, and refined beam theory frequencies. The % error in the
frequency values found to be increasing when the ratio h/L is also increased.
Further, it can also be noted that, there is no considerable increase in the % error
when the value of nonlocal parameter (K ) is changed.
In conclusion, in this manuscript, SVNBT could be utilized in a simple and accu-

rate manner for the bending deflection and free vibration study of micro/nanobeams
of rectangular cross-section.
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Experimental Studies on Acid Resistance
of Steel Fiber-Reinforced
Self-compacting Concrete (SCC)
S. Vijaya Kumar, B. Dean Kumar, and B. L. P. Swami
Abstract Experimental studies conducted on the acid resistance concerning the

durability of steel fiber self-compacting concrete (SFSCC) are presented in detail.
Durability is an important property required for concrete in the hardened state. Acid
resistance is an important feature of durability. The life and sustainability of struc-
tural concrete depend on good durability. The SCC is designed with supplementary
cementatious materials like flyash, condensed silica fume at optimum replacement
to ordinary Portland cement, and it becomes triple-blended SCC. In the present
experimental work, acid resistance studies are conducted by exposing the steel fiber-
reinforced triple-blended SCC specimens to 5% hydrochloric acid (HCL) and 5%
sulfuric acid (H2 SO4 ) solutions separately. Ordinary mild steel wires of diameter
1 mm were adopted at a limiting aspect ratio of 40. The durations were varying from
0 to 28 days. Specimens of size 100 mm × 100 mm × 100 mm were cast with various
percentages of steel fiber from 0.2% to the optimum of 0.8%. The aspect ratio of
the steel fibers is kept constant at the optimum value of 40. Specimens with basic
SCC mixes, mineral admixtures without fibers were also cast. All these specimens
were cured for the required period and tested for acid resistance. The specimens were
immersed in 5% HCL and 5% H2 SO4 solutions over periods of 0, 7, and 28 days.
Three specimens were prepared for each combination. The change occurring from
acidity to alkalinity over a while was found in the case of hydrochoric acid and
sulfuric acid solutions.
Keywords Acid resistance · Aspect ratio · Condensed silica fume · Flyash · Steel
fiber · Superplasticizer · Viscosity modifying agent
S. Vijaya Kumar (B)

Civil Engineering Department, Vasavi College of Engineering, Hyderabad, Telangana, India
e-mail: s.vijayakumar@staff.vce.ac.in
B. Dean Kumar
Civil Engineering Department, JNTUH, Hyderabad, Telangana, India
B. L. P. Swami
Civil Engineering Department, MCET, Hyderabad, Telangana, India
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4040-8_11
120 S. Vijaya Kumar et al.
1 Introduction
Self-compacting concrete (SCC) can be defined as fresh concrete which has very good
rheological properties like flowability, passing ability, and segregation resistance
under-maintained stability. Self-compacting concrete is a new innovative concrete
that does not require vibration for placing and compaction, as it can flow and fill
the formwork by its weight. Initially, this technique was adopted in Japan during the
late 90 s, when there is so much shortage of manpower in the construction industry.
Self-compacting concrete was first proposed by Okamura in 1986 [1]. Since then,
various investigations have been carried out on this type of concrete that has been
used in practical structures in Japan, mainly by large construction companies.
2 Brief Review of the Work
Barker and Hobbs [2] have examined the behavior change in Portland limestone
cement mortars when these are immersed in sulfate solutions at 5° centigrade temper-
ature. Al-Tamimi and Sonebi [3] made experimental research to inspect the acid
confrontation of self-compacting concrete (SCC) and traditional type concrete, which
were exposed up to the range of 18 weeks at a temperature of 20 °C to the solution of
sulfuric and hydrochloric acids. The study showed that the performance of SCC was
better when compared with that of CC in the solution of sulfuric acid but the damage
is somewhat extended due to susceptibility to the hydrochloric acid attack in compar-
ison with that of ordinary cement concrete. Kannan and Ganeshan [4] observed the
acid resistance behavior of the admixture self-compacting concrete and concluded
that the influence of the mineral admixtures on the acid resistance of SCC. Antonios
Kanellopoulos et al. [5] concluded that, because the products of the pozzolanic reac-
tion greatly improve the packing of the particles inside the microstructure, including
cement replacement materials improves the durability potential of the mix. Qingge
Feng et al. [6] did experimentation on the study on the pozzolanic properties of
rice husk ash by hydrochloric acid pretreatment, and the conclusion drawn on their
experimentation is the effect of pretreatment with hydrochloric acid and heating on
the pozzolanic activity of rice husk ash (RHA) is investigated. The heat evolution,
the hydration heat of cement including rice husk ash, and the pore size distributions
of the rice husk ash mortar are also investigated. Vijaya Kumar et al. [7, 8] were
investigated in 2020 regarding the influence of the admixtures on the elastic proper-
ties and also the strength of the multi-blended self-compacting concrete along with
the optimum percentage of steel fibers.
Experimental Studies on Acid Resistance of Steel Fiber-Reinforced … 121
Table 1 The physical

Test A result from the
properties of OPC
experimentation
Specific gravity 3.15
Consistency (%) 29%
Initial setting time 45 min
Final setting time 280 min
Fineness (Blaine’s) >2800 cm2 /gm 95% passing
through 90-micron sieve
Compressive strength at 35 MPa
3 days of curing
7 days of curing
28 days of curing
3 Materials Used
3.1 Ordinary Portland Cement (OPC)
OPC 53 grade, the confirmed to IS: 12269-2019 [9], was adopted. The physical
properties are shown in Table 1.
3.2 Use of Supplementary Cementing Materials
Supplementary cementing materials (SCMs) are also called mineral admixtures. The
advantages are not only enhancing the strength of the concrete at the hardened stage,
with the optimum dosage of replacement to cement. The SCM also influences the flow
properties of the concrete at the fresh stage. In the presence of moisture, these SCM
will have chemically reacted with calcium hydroxide at room temperatures to form
compounds having cementatious properties. The various SCMs are flyash (F-type),
condensed silica fume (CSF), metakaolin, and rice husk ash. In this experimentation,
flyash at 20% is replacement and CSF at 10% replacement to OPC.
3.3 Chemical Admixtures
Chemical admixtures such as high-water-reducing agents (HWRA) are used in the

SCC to get a smooth flow of the concrete even at the low water to cement ratio
in the concrete. These high-water-reducing agents are called superplasticizers (SP).
Table 2 The sieve analysis for the combined fine aggregate (70% river sand + 30% robo sand)
Sieve size Percentage of Zone-II limits Percentage retained Cumulative
passing percentage of
retained
4.75 mm 100 90–100 0 0
2.36 mm 92 75–100 8 8
1.18 mm 72 55–90 28 36
600 microns 52 35–59 48 84
300 microns 10 8–30 90 174
150 microns 6 0–10 94 268
Along with SP, viscosity modifying agent (VMA) was also added, which helps the
properties of the fresh self-compacting concrete. These chemicals were added to the
concrete during or before mixing the ingredients in the concrete. These are used to
improve the quality of concrete during mixing, transporting, placing, and curing.
In this investigation, 1.2% of SP and 0.12% of VMA were used to get better rheo-
logical properties of the SCC. GLENIUM B233 used as SP. The addition of VMA
enhances homogeneity and reduced the tendency of the highly fluid mix to segregate.
GLENIUM-2(spectrum) is used as another chemical admixture, which is called as
VMA. Both SP and VMA are from M/S BASF INDIA LTD is used for this work.
3.4 Fine Aggregate
In this experimentation, river sand related to Zone-II was used as fine aggregate,
which is as per the norms of IS-383-2016 [10]. But 30% of this sand is replaced
by robo sand. The combined grading of the aggregate is mentioned in Table 2. The
fineness modulus of the combined fine aggregate is recorded as 2.88.
Fineness modulus(FM) is 268/100 = 2.68
3.5 Coarse Aggregates
Coarse aggregate used in the experimentation for making concrete is crushed granite
aggregate conforming to the IS-383-2016 [8]. Fineness modulus (FM) is recorded
as 6.81.
Table 3 The physical properties of steel fibers

Type of fiber Density Kg/m3 Elastic modulus MPa Diameter Remarks
Mild steel 7650 2.10 × 105 1 mm The aspect ratio adopted
here is 40
3.6 Steel Fiber
Mild steel fiber of 1 mm diameter and limiting aspect ratio 40 was used in this triple-
blended steel fiber self-compacting concrete (TBSFSCC). From the experimentation,
it was noted that beyond aspect ratio 40, rheological properties were not fulfilled.
The properties of the steel fiber were given in Table 3.
3.7 Acids Used
Hydrochloride acid (HCL) and sulfuric acid (H2 SO4 ) of 5% concentration were
used for the evolution of the acid resistance for the triple-blended steel fiber self-
compacting concrete (TBSFSCC).
4 Experimentation
4.1 Mix Design for Triple-Blended SCC
Design the SCC for the M40 grade in this work. In the design of SCC by Nansu
et al. [11, 12], procedure is adopted. The fine aggregate to the total aggregate ratio
used for this M40 grade SCC is 0.63. After so many trials, this mix satisfies the
SCC requirements. The final mix for M40 grade with the quantities of the materials
adopted is shown in Table 4.
As per the American Concrete Institute [13] norms for the self-consolidating
concrete and European Federation of National Associations Representing for
Concrete (EFNARC) [14] specification, the rheological properties of the steel fiber
self-compacting concrete were found, and these values are fulfilling the norms of
the SCC as per the above codes. In this experimentation, FA at 20% and CSF at
Table 4 The mix design of SCC (M40 grade)

(C + SCM) Fine aggregate Coarse aggregate Water to (C + % of SP % of VMA
(river sand + robo SCM)
sand)
1 2.33 1.37 0.45 1 0.12
Table 5 The flow properties of SCC with various percentages of steel fibers
S. Percentages Percentage Percentage Slump V-funnel L-box Remarks
No of steel fiber of SP* of VMA** flow in passing in (H2/H1)
mm sec
1 0.0 1.0 0.10 690 3.0 0.95 The
2 0.20 1.0 0.10 680 4.0 0.94 readings
satisfy the
3 0.40 1.10 0.10 675 4.5 0.92 limits as
4 0.60 1.20 0.20 660 4.8 0.90 per
5 0.80 1.20 0.20 650 5.0 0.88 EPNARC
10% replacement to OPC are recommended for better rheological properties. The
tests as per EFNARC [14] for flowability (Slump cone), passing ability (V-funnel),
and segregation resistance (L-box) were adopted. With the addition of steel fibers
at various percentages with the limiting aspect ratio of 40, the flow properties were
studied, and these results are shown in Table 5.
5 Tests on Acid Resistance for TBSFSCC
In the present experimentation work, acid resistance studies [15] were conducted by
exposing the triple-blended steel fiber SCC specimens to 5% HCL and 5% H2 SO4
solutions separately. A total of 5 mixes are prepared. At each mix, the behavior was
studied after exposure to 0 day, 7 days, and 28 days. Specimens of size 100 mm
× 100 mm × 100 mm were cast with various percentages of steel fiber from 0.2%
to the optimum of 0.8%. The aspect ratio of the steel fibers is kept constant at the
optimum value of 40. The number of samples cast was 45 for HCL solution and
another 39 number for H2 SO4 solutions. At various exposure periods, the specimens
were taken out washed cleaned and dried, and weight was taken to find out the weight
loss. Then, the specimen was subjected to a compressive strength test to know the
residual compressive strengths. The hydrogen ion concentration (pH) values of the
solutions were also found by using the pH meter from time to time. Tables 6 and 7
give the weight loss of the TBSFSCC sample exposed to 5% HCL and 5% H2 SO4
solutions. Plats 1 and 2 indicate specimens exposed to 5% HCL and 5% H2 SO4
solutions. Plat 3 indicates the pH measuring instrument. Figures 1 and 2 show the
variation of the residual compressive strength of the specimen after exposed to 5%
HCL and 5% H2 SO4 solutions, respectively, for different days, whereas Figs. 3 and
4 represent the variation of pH value for these solutions (Plates 1, 2 and 3).
Table 6 The weight loss over a number of days of exposure to HCL solution
Mix % of steel fibers (p) % of weight loss of the specimen
Numbers of days of exposure to HCL solution
0 day 7 days 28 days
M1 0.00 0.0 1.60 4.50
M2 0.20 0.0 2.00 5.30
M3 0.40 0.0 2.20 6.90
M4 0.60 0.0 2.80 8.00
M5 0.80 0.0 3.00 12.40
Table 7 The weight loss over a number of days of exposure to H2 SO4 solution
Mix % of steel fibers (p) % of weight loss of the specimen
Numbers of days of exposure to H2 SO4 solution
0 day 7 days 28 days
M1 0.00 0.0 0.25 4.00
M2 0.20 0.0 2.00 5.90
M3 0.40 0.0 2.20 9.80
M4 0.60 0.0 2.50 14.00
M5 0.80 0.0 2.60 16.00
Plate 1 Specimens exposed

to 5% HCL
6 Future Scope of the Work
In this experimentation, triple blend techniques are used along with the steel fiber
of 1 mm diameter and aspect ratio 40. Future idea for extension of the work is by
Plate 2 Specimens exposed

to 5% H2 SO4
Plate 3 pH measuring
instrument
using the non-metallic fibers such as glass fibers, how the variation of the residual
compressive strength of the multi-blended fibrous SCC when these are exposed to
acid solutions has to be studied.
7 Conclusions
(1) The smooth flow of self-compacting concrete (SCC) should be taken to use a
smaller-sized coarse aggregate in the mix. In addition, chemical admixtures like
80
68.5 Age in
70 days
65
Compressive strength in Mpa
60.74
60
54.15 55 54 0
50.25 52
50 47.25 46
46.25 7
42.75 42
40
40
34.25 28
30
20
0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8
Percentage of steel fiber (p)
Fig. 1 Residual compressive strength of fiber-reinforced SCC after exposed to HCL
80
Compressive strength in Mpa
68.5
70
60.75 61 Age in
60 days
54.15 55.2
50.25 0
50
50 47.25 46
44.25 42.8
41.23 7
40
40 36
33 28
30
20
0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8
Fig. 2 Residual compressive strength of fiber-reinforced SCC after exposed to H2 SO4
high-range water reducers (superplasticizers) and viscosity modifying agents

are to be employed.
(2) Use of SCMs in the optimum of proportions like 20% flyash and 10% silica
fume as a replacement to OPC in the SCC mix has improved the rheological
properties.
7
6.5 Age in days
pH values of the solution
6 5.9
5 4.8 0
4 4.25
3.4 2.55 7
3 3.15
1.8 2
1.65 28
2
1.3 1.3 1.3 1.3 1.3
1
0
0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8
Percentage of steel fibers (p)
Fig. 3 pH values of fiber-reinforced SCC over number of days of exposure to HCL
7
6 5.8
pH value of the solution
4.7 Age in days

5
0
4 3.5
2.8
3 2 7
1.75 1.95
1.6 1.68
2 1.5 28
1 1.2 1.2 1.2 1.2 1.2
0
0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8
Fig. 4 pH values of fiber-reinforced SCC over number of days of exposure to H2 SO4
(3) After an exposure of 28 days to acids, the loss of weight in the case of HCL
was reduced by nearly 45%. When steel fibers were present, the loss of weight
is more.
(4) The presence of mineral admixtures prevented the loss of compressive strength
considerably. Steel fiber in the mix showed a greater loss of strength in H2 SO4
compared to HCL.
(5) The basic compressive strength of SCC (without admixtures and fibers) gets
drastically reduced with an increased period of exposure. The compressive
strength of SCC after an exposure of 28 days to HCL is reduced by nearly
40%, and with H2 SO4, this reduction is nearly 55% with mineral admixtures
(20% flyash and 10% silica fume), the respective losses are 27.5 and 30%.
(6) The pH value (hydrogen ion concentration) changes are gradually from acidity
to alkalinity over the period when SCC specimens are immersed in acid
solutions (HCL and H2 SO4 ).
(7) The pH values over various durations indicated that the mineral admixtures
in the SCC mix contributed to a more rapid change from acidity to alkalinity
overtime after the immersion of the specimens in the acid solutions. The pres-
ence of steel fibers (metallic) also contributed to the change from acidity to
alkalinity.
(8) The SCMs (20% flyash and 10% silica fume) were present in the mix, the
change occurs more rapidly because of the alkaline nature of silica which
is one of the main constituents of the SCMs. When steel fibers present, the
variation from acidity to alkalinity is more.
Acknowledgements The authors acknowledge gratefully for the help and encouragement obtained
from the Vasavi College of Engineering, Hyderabad. Special thanks to the staff of the concrete
technology laboratory for their support throughout the experimental work.
References
1. Okamura, H., & Ouchi. (1999). Self compacting concrete-development present and future. In
First International Symposium on Self Compacting Concrete (pp. 3–14).
2. Barker, A. P., & Hobbs, D. W. (1999). Performance of Portland-limestone cement in mortar
prisms immersed in sulfate solutions at 5 °C. Cement and Concrete Composites, 21, 129–137.
3. Al-Tamimi, A. K., & Sonebi, M. (2003). Assessment of self compacting concrete immersed in
acidic solutions. Journal of Materials in Civil Engineering, ASCE, 354–357.
4. Kannan, V., & Ganesan, K. (2014). Durability performance of self Compacting concrete
containing rice Husk ash and metakaolin. Thesis submitted to Anna University.
5. Kanellopoolos, A., Petrou, M. F., & Ioannov, I. (2021). Durability performance of self-
compacting concrete. Construction and Building Material, 37, 320–325.
6. Feng, Q., Yamamichi, H., Shoya, M., & Sugita, S. (2004). Study on the pozzolanic properties of
rice husk ash by hydro choric acid pretreatment. Cement and Concrete Research, 34, 521–526.
7. Vijaya Kumar, S., Dean Kumar, B., & Swami, B. L. P. (2020). Effect of metakaolin
and condensed silica fume on the rheological and structural properties of self-compacting
concrete. Civil Engineering and Architecture, 8(5), 1057–1062. https://doi.org/10.13189/cea.
2020.080532
8. Vijaya Kumar, S., Swami, B. L. P, & Dean Kumar, B. (2020). Experimental study on the
presence of mineral admixtures and steel fiber on the elastic properties of self-compacting
concrete (SCC). IOP Conference Series: Materials Science and Engineering, 983(1), 012011.
9. BIS-269-2015-Indian Standard code of practice for specifications for 33,43 and 53 grade.
OPC-Bureau of Indian Standards, Manak Bhavan, 9 Bahadur Shah Zafar Marg, New Delhi
110002.
10. BIS-383-2016-Indian Standard Coarse and fine aggregate for concrete—Specifications. Bureau
of Indian Standards, Manak Bhavan, 9 Bahadur Shah Zafar Marg, New Delhi 110002.
11. Su, N., Hsu, K. -C., & Chai, H. -W. A simple mix design for self compacting concrete. Journal
for Cement and Concrete Research, 31(12), 1799–1807. Elsevier.
12. Su, N., & Miao, B. (2003). A new method for the mix design of medium strength flowing
concrete with low cement content. Cement and Concrete Composites, 25(2), 215–222.
13. ACI-544, 1R-96 State of the art report on fiber reinforced concrete using Recron 39 fibers.
Reapproved 2002.
14. EFNARC. (2002). Specification and guidelines for self compacting concrete. Association
House, 99, Farnham, Surry GU9 7EN, U.K.
15. ASTM C 267-01. (2012). Standard test method for chemical resistance of Mortor, Grouts and
Monolithic surfacings and polymer concretes. ASTM International, 100 Barr Harbor DrivPO
Box C700, Conshohocken, United States.
Experimental Analysis of Ductile–Brittle
Change in High-density Polyethylene
Behavior
Rabiaa Elkori, Amal Lamarti, Khalid El Had, and Abdelilah Hachim
Abstract In this paper, the analysis of the effects of U- and V-type geomet-
rical defects on the mechanical behavior of high-density polyethylene was studied.
However, in the present case, a change from ductile to brittle behavior has been
noticed, the initiation of the crack is carried out at the level of stress concentration
of the V defect, and this study has the object to show the severity of these defects in
industrial fields, such as packaging, shipbuilding, and pipe industry. Experimental
static tensile tests are performed to address this issue.
Keywords Tensile tests · High-density polyethylene · U and V defects · Ductile

behavior · Mechanical behavior
1 Introduction
Polymers, especially thermoplastics, are the most used in the last few centuries,
among thermoplastics, we find high-density polyethylene which is a semi-crystalline
polymer obtained by polymerization of ethylene monomer, its general formula is (–
CH2 –CH2 –)n [4], and high-density polyethylene is very used because of its low cost.
Several studies are carried out to identify the mechanical behavior of HDPE, such as
temperature and strain rate [6], the effect of ultraviolet radiation [2], mixing HDPE
with other polymers such as polystyrene shock [5], or fatigue [1]. In the industry,
we can often find defects, such as the defects of HDPE thermal fusion weld [10]
which detected by the method of microwave scanning, which showed as a result that
the area of HDPE thermal fusion weld is different from the virgin HDPE, another
study was based on the analysis of the correlation of defects in HDPE pipes in the
R. Elkori (B)
Higher National School of Electricity and Mechanics, Laboratory of Control and Mechanical
Characterization of Materials and Structures, Hassan II University of Casablanca, Casablanca,
Morocco
e-mail: rabiaaelkori@gmail.com
A. Lamarti · K. E. Had · A. Hachim
Higher Institute of Maritimes Studied, Casablanca, Morocco
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4040-8_12
132 R. Elkori et al.
long term [9], this study shows by fractographic analysis that the large size particles
(>50 f.I.m. m) are initiated the cracks; on the other hand, the particle sizes which
have less than 20 f.I.m have a better properties in long term, the study of rupture of
HDPE pipes is done by [7] which studied the influence of the defects of type U and
V with change of temperature from 1 to 50 c0, and of speed of deformation from 1
to 150 mm/min, they are found that the effect of temperature as well as the speed
of deformation influences the geometrical continuity by mechanical machining, the
study done by [8] has combined the equivalent material concept (EMC) and strain
energy density (SED) to assess the mechanical fracture behavior of HDPE with sloped
U-notches specimens with hole in extremity under mixed load conditions, and the
results obtained from the determined criteria were in agreement with the experimental
results. The last study done by [3] is on the effect of defects, it compares experimental
and numerical results, and it finds that the results are close. In this article, a static
study of experimental tensile tests on paralepipidic specimens of HDPE with two
defects U and V, the difference of this study is that the notch depth is fixed, but by
changing the openings between each lip of the defect, the results obtained show that
the HDPE weakens in the presence of these defects.
2 Material and Method
The polymer used is high-density polyethylene of density is 0.995 g/cm3 , and the
mechanical characteristic is Young Modulus’s 1153 MPa and Poisson ration ν = 0,4.
The experimental program uses blank and notched specimens extracted from plates
of dimensions (220 mm * 300 mm * 1.10 mm) using a slicer knife, and the cuts
are made using a professional cutter to have cuts of precise size. The tensile tests
are carried out at room temperature, and humidity of 50%, with a speed of 1 mm/s,
to meet the standards, we have performed for each length of opening 3 tests. The
dimensions of the openings are 5, 10, 60, and 80 mm. The experimental setup is
composed of:
. MTS machine type “MTS Criterion” TM 40 Series (Fig. 2).
. A personal computer with a control software “MTS TEST SUITE TWE” allows
to mount the test results as stress–strain in an Excel file (Figs. 1, 3, and 4).
In this part, we will represent the results obtained experimentally in the form of
stress–strain. We will start with the characterization curve of HDPE.
(a) Mechanical Characterization of HDPE material
Figure 5 shows the average experimental results of tensile tests carried out on 3 virgin
specimens to mechanically characterize HDPE materials.
Experimental Analysis of Ductile–Brittle Change in High-density … 133
Fig. 1 Specimen used for characterization of HDPE
We notice in Fig. 5, at the beginning of the test, the deformation is linear elastic
when the material is subjected to low loading, the viscosity starts from 4 MPa, this
viscoelastic behavior allows the material to regain its initial shape if the loading is
stopped, the last part starts at 17 MPa, it is the softening where we observe a decrease
of the stress value up to the breaking stress 16,942 MPa.
(b) Mechanical behavior of HDPE under U defect
The curves in Fig. 6 represent the average stress versus strain evolution for the U-type
defect.
At the beginning, an identical linear deformation for the two observed openings up
to 7 MPa, the following part is plastic corresponds to a heterogeneous deformation of
the HDPE material which transforms the initial spherulitic structure in a progressive
way into a fibrillar structure, after the plasticity and from almost 14 MPa, the HDPE
becomes brittle, the maximum stress for the opening 5 is inferior to the opening
10 mm. But for 60 and 80 mm aperture lengths, it is possible to notice the absence of
plasticity, and the ruptures become totally fragile, the resistance of the HDPE results
in the increase of the maximum stress. The ultimate load increases with the increase
Fig. 2 Example of specimen used for U defect
in the ratio length of opening and width, and that the resistance to the tug of opening
80 mm is close to 2 times that of 5 mm.
(c) Mechanical behavior of HDPE under V defect
Figure 7 shows the average stress versus strain evolution for the V-type defect.
It is observed that the behavior of the two openings 5 and 10 is almost the same
since both evolve in an equivalent way. At the beginning, the behavior is pseudo linear,
afterward there is a plastic instability from 4 MPa due to the material striction, at
the end, there is the striction (10 MPa). For 60 and 80, we can see the critical result
with the HDPE changes the behavior to brittle. At notch level V, the material does
not have enough time to withstand and that to relax to the imposed defect, so it has
produced a high load for each increase in the opening length.
Fig. 3 Example of specimen used for V defect
(d) Comparison
In order to see the effect of one of these in relation to the other, a comparison will
be made between the results obtained by U and V (Fig. 8).
By comparison with the results obtained, it can be noted that the U notch resists
more than V, this remark is expressed at the level of the maximum stresses which
are large in relation to those of V. The concentration of the stresses at the level of the
defect V is more important for that to break abruptly, by comparison with the study
done by [3], the results obtained are reasonable and in good agreement.
Fig. 4 MTS machine used for tensile tests
Fig. 5 Characterization curve

Fig. 6 U defect results for both openings
Fig. 7 V defect results for both openings

Fig. 8 Results comparison
4 Conclusions
. An estimate of the main objective of this work is to show the importance of the
ductile-fragile transformation of HDPE in the presence of defects, the results
obtained allow us to deduce that the length of the opening and the type of defect
are important factors to know the nature of the behavior and that the increase
of the openings allows to increase the stresses of the material, and finally, the V
defect is more dangerous than the U defect. The total weakening of the HDPE
begins from 60 mm for both types of defect, and we can see that this length of
opening is the critical length for the passage to the brittle fracture. It is assumed
that the presence of defects makes the material discontinuous geometrically. This
study was carried out in order to avoid industrial breakdowns such as coupling
shears or pipes.
References
1. Berrehili, A. (2010). Comportement cyclique et tenue en fatigue sous chargement multi-

axial d’un polyéthylène expériences et critère d’endurance. l’Ecole Nationale Supérieure de
mécanique et l’aerothechnique.
2. Douminage, L. (2010). Etude du comportement du polyéthylène haute densité sous irradiation
ultraviolette ou sollicitation mécanique par spectroscopie de fluorescence. Université de La
Rochelle.
3. Elkori, R. (2020). Numerical and experimental study of the behaviour of notched HDPE. In The
3rd International Conference of Computer Science and Renewable Energies (ICCSRE’2020)
(p. 1).
4. Elkori, R. E. (2020). Numerical simulation of HDPE behavior under V-notch. In Innovations
in smart cities applications (Vol. 4, p. 2).
5. Kallel, T. K. (2003). Etude de mélanges PE/PS contribution au recyclage. L’Institut National

des Sciences Appliquées de Lyon.
6. Lamarti, A. (2017). Caractérisation mécanique, étude expérimentale et numérique des
mécanismes d’endommagemment et de la ténacité du matériau ABS. ENSEM.19.
7. Murariu, A. C. (2015). Temperature and heat effects on polyethylene behaviour in the presence
of imperfections. Thermal Science, 3.
8. Soltaninezhad, S. (2020). Investigation the fracture behavior of high-density polyethylene PE80
weakened by inclined U-notch with end hole. Structural Engineering and Mechanics, 4.
9. Wu, S. (2001). Defect analysis and high density polyethylene pipe durability. In Plastics failure
analysis and prevention (Vol. 2).
10. Zhu, X. (2013). Identification of defects in HDPE piping thermal fusion welds based on
microwave inspection and true density measurement. In Far East forum on nondestructive
evaluation/testing: New technology and application (p. 4). IEEE.
Numerical Study of an ‘I’ Plan Shape
Building Under Wind Excitation
Geetam Saha and Dipesh Majumdar
Abstract The present work focuses upon investigation of pressure developed on

different faces of an ‘I’ plan shape tall building. Numerical study was performed to
evaluate the pressure on different faces of the model for wind incidence angle of 0°,
30°, 45° and 90°. The analysis was performed using commercial code ANSYS CFX
with k-ε viscosity model, and the results obtained are compared with the results
of a square plan shape building. The faces of ‘I’ plan shape model have demon-
strated different pressure distribution as compared to the square shape model with
major difference observed in case of side faces. In order to have an understanding
on different phenomenon occurring around the building, flow pattern around the
model was also studied. For validation of the CFD package, the pressure coefficients
obtained for the side faces of the square model were compared with values prescribed
in IS 875:2015 (Part-III).
Keywords Computational fluid dynamics · Wind load · K-epsilon · Interference ·

Atmospheric boundary layer
1 Introduction
Advances in structural design and material science have resulted in construction

of building with exemplary aesthetics. Unconventional and unsymmetric structures
are always appreciated by spectators. Wind loading in such structures are quite
contrasting compared to the conventional counterparts. These structures are more
vulnerable to wind loading. Estimation of loads with higher degree of accuracy
becomes very essential. Developments in hardware and software technology along
with reliable turbulence models have made the use CFD possible for prediction of
wind effects in the atmospheric boundary layer [1].
G. Saha · D. Majumdar (B)

Department of Construction Engineering, Faculty of Engineering and Technology, Jadavpur
University, Kolkata, West Bengal 700032, India
e-mail: dipeshce@jadavpuruniversity.in
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4040-8_13
142 G. Saha and D. Majumdar
Modern discoveries in design methods, as well as lightweight construction mate-

rials and processes, are driving new generations of tall structures to become progres-
sively taller, flexible and slenderer. As a result, these high-rise buildings are more
vulnerable to lateral loads like wind. One of the key attributes that influences these
lateral loadings and responses is the buildings outside shape and orientation. Also, the
approximations of wind load for high-rise buildings are nearly impossible because
wind loads are highly dependent on the shape and plan of the building. The adverse
effect of wind loads on high-rise structures can be mitigated by varying the outside
design of the structure locally or may be globally.
Square-shaped buildings are prone to generating strong vortex-induced wind
forces. Multiple studies have been conducted on the aerodynamic properties of high-
rise buildings using computational fluid mechanics (CFD). Some of these studies
focused on the aerodynamic response of buildings to the corner modifications towards
its implementation to actual buildings in order to minimize wind-induced impacts.
Furthermore, since local pressure patterns in actual structures can be quite compli-
cated and diverse, statistical analysis may be adopted to identify key pressure patterns.
The building façade, glass windows like building components are vulnerable to
the localization of wind-induced pressure. These local pressure patterns provide
a clear picture to assess the safety of building components like building façade,
glass windows, whereas wind-induced responses provide important information for
evaluating the safety of structural members of tall buildings.
Computational wind engineering has made significant progress in last three
decades [2–5]. Validation of numerical study with wind tunnel experiments is
although always essential before on site construction. In the present study, a bit
uncommon ‘I’ plan shape building was chosen for numerical analysis for studying
the wind effects on it under different incidence angles. A square plan shape building
was also investigated for compassion of results and validation of the CFD package
with IS 875:2015 (Part-III) [6].
2 Numerical Study
In the present work, an ‘I’ plan shape building was numerically investigated using
commercial code CFX for prediction of the wind loading. The k-epsilon turbulence
model was used for turbulence modelling. The flow pattern around the building
was studied by considering it as a bluff body. Low turbulence intensity (1%) was
considered in the present study.
Numerical Study of an ‘I’ Plan Shape Building … 143
2.1 Governing Equations
Continuity Equation
∂ρ ∂ ( )
+ ρU j = 0 (1)
∂t ∂x j
Momentum Equation
[ ( )]
∂ρUi ∂ ( ) ∂ p' ∂ ∂Ui ∂Ui
+ ρUi U j = − + μe f f + + SM (2)
∂t ∂x j ∂ xi ∂x j ∂x j ∂ xI
SM Sum of body forces.

μeff Effective viscosity accounting for turbulence.
p' Modified pressure.
The k-ε model is based on eddy viscosity concept,
μe f f = μ + μt (3)
where
μt Turbulence viscosity.
The k-ε model assumes that the turbulence viscosity is linked to the turbulence
kinetic energy and dissipation via the relation.
k2
μt = Cμ ρ (4)
ε
where C μ is a constant. k and ε come directly from the differential transport equations
for turbulence kinetic energy and turbulence dissipation rate.
[( ) ]
∂(ρk) ∂ ( ) ∂ μt ∂k
+ ρkU j = μ+ + Pk + Pb − ρε − Y M + Sk (5)
∂t ∂x j ∂x j σk ∂ x j
[( ) ]
∂(ρε) ∂ ( ) ∂ μt ∂ε
+ ρεU j = μ+ + ρC1 Sε
∂t ∂x j ∂x j σε ∂ x j
ε2 ε
− ρC2 √ + C1ε C3ε Pb + Sε (6)
k + νε k
Fig. 1 Dimension of models

(in mm)
2.2 Details of Model, Domain and Meshing
In the present study, for validation of the CFD package, a square plan shape building
was chosen. Figure 1 illustrates the dimensions of both the models. For the numerical
investigation of both the models, a computational domain having 5H upwind fetch,
15H downwind fetch, 5H top clearance and 5H side clearance, where H is the height
of the model, was considered as per Franke’s recommendation [7]. Such large size
is chosen in order to provide enough space for generation of vortex on leeward side
and avoidance of backflow.
Tetrahedral elements were chosen for meshing of the entire computational domain.
Mesh was refined on the model surfaces and areas in vicinity of the models. The
buildings are modelled in a ratio of 1:300. The assumed wind velocity scale was
chosen as 1:5. The scaled down inlet velocity is chosen as 10 m/s.
2.3 Boundary Conditions and Setup
In the present study, no slip wall condition was imposed on the model walls. Free slip
condition was imposed on the domain sidewalls along with top wall. The boundary
layer wind profile is as per the power law equation as given below.
( )α
z
U (z) = U∞ (7)
z0
In the present study,

U∞ the free stream velocity is 10 m/s.
Z0 reference height is considered as 1 m.

α power law exponent is chosen at 0.133 as per terrain category II of IS 875
(Part-III).
Considering the computational domain extent, element sizes were chosen appro-
priately for different locations. Tetrahedral element was utilized for discretization.
A high-resolution grid was adopted for the model walls and the areas in vicinity of
the model for better accuracy. Comparatively, coarse mesh was used for locations far
enough from the downstream in downstream direction for reduction in computational
cost and efforts.
Figure 2 illustrates the boundary conditions and domain details. As mentioned
earlier, the inlet velocity boundary condition is imposed as per the power law. The
wind velocity near the windward side of the model is compared with boundary layer
power law. The close match is depicted by Fig. 3.
As per Franke’s recommendation, the inlet boundary is at 5H distance from the
model. Even though the boundary layer profile is generated by the power law at the
inlet boundary, it is essential to check the actual velocity profile near the model for
better results and justified comparison with literature. From Fig. 3, it is noticeable
that there is a slight difference between the simulated velocity profile and power law
Fig. 2 Boundary conditions and domain details
1.2
Fig. 3 Velocity profile
comparison Power Law
1
Present Study
0.8
Height (m)
0.6
0.4
0.2
0
0 2 4 6 8 10 12
Velocity (m/s)
Fig. 4 Square Plan Mesh
Fig. 5 I Plan Mesh
which is well within tolerance limits at the bottom of the building. This is possibly
due to dominance ground surface effects at low heights (Figs. 4 and 5).
2.4 Simulation Cases
Figure 6 illustrates all the simulation cases of square plan shape building at different
face angles. Three cases were considered 0°, 30° and 45°. Figure 7 illustrates all the 4
cases simulated for I plan shaped building. In the present work, the model orientation
in the computational domain was varied for simulating different angle of attacks.
Fig. 6 Square plan case

nomenclature
Fig. 7 I plan case

nomenclature
The present CFD package was validated with IS 875 (Part-III). The mean pressure
coefficient for windward wall was calculated from the simulation results for 0° angle
of attack. The pressure coefficient was calculated as 0.77. The pressure coefficient
obtained for sidewalls and leeward wall were −0.77 and −0.39, respectively. The
obtained results are in close vicinity of the codal provisions as per IS 875:2015
(Part-III).
In order to compare the flow pattern and loading for the square case with the ‘I’
plan shape case, illustrations of square pan shape building also presented. Figures 8, 9
and 10 present the velocity streamlines for the square plan building for wind angles
of 0, 30 and 45. In all the cases, flow separates from the edges and vortices are
generated on the leeward side. The separated flow gets stabilized and assimilates
with the undisturbed flow at a distance downstream. A local low-pressure area is
created in this vortex region. The extent of this region depends on the free stream
flow velocity and geometric parameters of the building shape.
The static pressure contour at plane passing through 0.5H is illustrated in Fig. 11.
The pressure bulb on the windward side is clearly visible. The low-pressure region
starts from the edge of the windward side. The flow separation on the sidewalls can
be controlled to an extent provided edge modifications are incorporated. The static
pressure contours at the wall faces are illustrated by Fig. 12. The highest positive
pressure is along the centre line on face A.
Fig. 8 Streamline 0°

Fig. 11 Static pressure contour (Square Plan)
Fig. 12 Static pressure at different faces
On sidewall faces C and D, the major negative pressure arises on the edges. The
pressure variation along centerline of the faces for 0 angle of attack is presented by
Fig. 13. It is visible that in all the other faces apart from the windward side, there
acts a major suction pressure on the top end. Whereas in case of face A, the pressure
acting is almost tending to zero. The authors investigated the square plan building at
other wind angles too. It was found that with change of angle of attack, the highest
positive pressure is no longer along the centerline in case of windward wall (Face
A).
0.5
0.45
0.4
0.35 A (Windward)
Height (m)
0.3
B (Leeward)
0.25
C (Side)
0.2
0.15 D (Side)
0.1
0.05
0
-30 -20 -10 0 10 20 30 40 50
Pressure (Pa)
Fig. 13 Static pressure versus height (0° SQR)
The velocity streamlines at different wind angles for I plan shaped building are
illustrated in Fig. 14 for all angle of attacks. The flow pattern for I plan shape is
quite complex in comparison to the square plan building. For I plan shape building,
there exists 2 cavities on both sides of the web. These cavities generate additional
0° 30°
45° 90°
Fig. 14 Static pressure contour (I Plan)

eddies due to flow separation. In case of 0° and 90° angle of attack, symmetrical
vortices are generated, whereas in case of 30° and 45° angle of attack, highly chaotic
flow structures appear due to interference between the different limbs of the I plan
building. This interference between the limbs results in highly disruptive pressure
distributions at the interior edges of the I plan building.
Figures 15 and 16 illustrate the pressure variation along centerline for 0° and 90°
angle of attack. Contrary to the square plan shape building case, it can be observed
that for 0° angle of attack maximum negative pressure is not at the top end for all sides
with suction pressure. Interference between the different limbs of the building is the
major reason behind this. For I plan shape building, there exists an area of negative
pressure at the top end of the windward wall which was not present in square plan
building. The probable reason behind this is the circulation at the top edge of the
windward wall because of the two cavities present behind in case of I plan building.
This effect must be taken care of from the design aspect.
For 90° angle of attack, the pressure distribution is highly varied (Face A and G) in
comparison with the 0 angle of attack case. As like the 0° angle of attack case, there
Fig. 15 Static pressure 0.5

versus height (0° I) A
0.4 B
C
D
Height (m)
0.3
E
F
0.2 G
H
I
0.1 J
K
L
0
-30 -20 -10 0 10 20 30 40 50
Pressure (Pa)
Fig. 16 Static pressure 0.5

versus height (90◦ I) contour A
0.4 B
C
D
Height (m)
0.3 E
F
0.2 G
H
I
0.1 J
K
L
0
-30 -20 -10 0 10 20 30 40 50
Pressure (Pa)
0° 30°
90° 45°
Fig. 17 Static pressure contour I plan
exists negative pressure on the windward walls. Figure 17 illustrates the fact that
there is small high-pressure region on the bottom edge of wind wall (Face A) under
0° wind angle. The pressure variation graph along centerline also supports the fact.
It can also be seen that there are sleeks of low-pressure zones on the edges of Face B,
F, H and L. It can be seen that there exists a comparatively reduce low-pressure zone
on Face C and K near the bottom edge. There exists an area of reduced low-pressure
zone near the adjacent vertex too.
Figure 17 presents the pressure contours at a plane passing through 0.5H. The
pressure bulb on the windward side presents the fact that the wind loading is very
severe under 30° and 45° wind angle. In the 30° case, there is a pressure surge zone
on Face E. In case of 45°, this similar pressure zone is distributed on both Face D
and E (Figs. 18 and 19).
A low-pressure pocket appears near Face C (Fig. 17) for 45° angle of attack. It
exists between two high-pressure zones on Face C and its adjacent vertical edges
(Fig. 20). This type of pressure distribution must be dealt carefully while designing
external non-structural members. In case of high wind velocities, this low-pressure
pocket can have serious consequences.
Fig. 18 Static pressure contour at different faces (0°)
Fig. 19 Static pressure contour (30°)
4 Conclusions
The present work focused on studying the effects of wind flow at different wind
angles on ‘I’ shape plan building. Along with that square plan building was also
studied in brief and was used for validation of the CFD package. A good agreement
was established between IS 875-2015 (Part-III) and current numerical study. The
study was conducted under different wind angles. The major outcomes of the current
are summarized below.
• The static pressure under 0° wind angle on the windward wall is noticed that static
pressure tends to negative near the top edge only in the ‘I’ plan building. From the
current study, authors believe that this is due to circulation effects at the top edge.
The presence of sidewall cavities in I plan building generates such flow structures
resulting in negative pressure at the top edge.
• A low-pressure pocket in the ‘I’ plan shape building under 45° angle of attack was
found near Face C with a pressure surge zone enclosed with the common edge in
Fig. 20 Static pressure contour (45°)
between the two. This huge local variation of pressure can dangerous under high
wind velocity. The reason behind this low-pressure envelope is the interference
of flow between the walls at the edges.
• These abrupt pressure variations must be taken into account for effective design of
non-structural members such as façade and windows. Authors believe that above
two findings will lead to effective design which will help to avoid damage to
non-structural members under high wind speed conditions.
References
1. Tamura, T. (2008). Towards practical use of LES in-wind engineering. Journal of Wind
Engineering and Industrial Aerodynamics, 96(10–11), 1451–1471.
2. Murakami, S. (1998). Overview of turbulence models applied in CWE–1997. Journal of Wind
Engineering and Industrial Aerodynamics, 74–76, 1–24, ISSN 0167-6105. https://doi.org/10.
1016/S0167-6105(98)00004-X
3. Tamura, T., Nozawa, K., & Kondo, K. (2008). AIJ guide for numerical prediction of wind loads on
buildings. Journal of Wind Engineering and Industrial Aerodynamics, 96(10–11), 1974–1984,
ISSN 0167-6105.
4. Blocken, B., & Stathopoulos, T. (2013). CFD simulation of pedestrian-level wind conditions
around buildings: Past achievements and prospects. Journal of Wind Engineering and Industrial
Aerodynamics, 121, 138–145, ISSN 0167-6105. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jweia.2013.08.008
5. Tominaga, Y., Mochida, A., Murakami, S., & Sawaki, S. (2008). Comparison of various revised
k–ε models and LES applied to flow around a high-rise building model with 1:1:2 shape placed
within the surface boundary layer. Journal of Wind Engineering and Industrial Aerodynamics,
96(4), 389–411, ISSN 0167-6105. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jweia.2008.01.004
6. IS:875 (Part 3) (2015). Code of practice for design loads (Other than earthquake for buildings
and structures), Part 3-wind loads. Bureau of Indian Standards, New Delhi (India).
7. Franke, J., Hirsch, C., Jensen, A., Krüs, H., Schatzmann, M., Westbury, P., Miles, S., Wisse, J.
and Wright, N. G. (2004). Recommendations on the use of CFD in wind engineering. In COST
Action C14: Impact of wind and storm on city life and built environment, von Karman Insitute
for Fluid Dynamics.
Laboratory Model Study on Fly Ash
Reinforced with Encased Floating
Column
S. Malik and S. M. Nawghare
Abstract The scarcity of conventional construction materials and the environmental

threats posed by unutilized industrial wastes are among the major problems the world
is facing. Thus, the current disposition worldwide is that of cost-effective, sustainable,
and environment-friendly construction. Fly ash, a solid residual waste, can be used
in large quantities as a construction material. It will not only solve the disposal
challenges posed by huge volumes of fly ash produced in coal-based power plants,
but also offer the benefit of an eco-friendly alternative to traditional materials. This
paper presents laboratory model tests performed on unreinforced fly ash bed and fly
ash bed reinforced with single encased floating column placed at center of footing.
A novel encasement of floating column was prepared using waste plastic bottles.
The effect of height of floating column on bearing capacity, settlement and surface
deformation was studied systematically in a series of model tests. It was observed
from the results that inclusion of encased floating column generally improved the
load settlement behavior and reduced surface deformation.
Keywords Construction material · Fly ash · Waste plastic bottle · Encased floating
column · Settlement
1 Introduction
In recent years, the focus on conservation of natural resources and energy has been
a major driving force behind the search of alternate cost-effective and environment-
friendly construction materials. With this aim, several industrial waste and by-
products have found potential as alternate construction materials. One such indus-
trial by-product which has shown remarkable potential as a substitute to traditional
construction materials is fly ash. Fly ash is produced from burning of pulverized coal
which is widely used in thermal power plants. About 75% of India’s total power is
S. Malik (B) · S. M. Nawghare

Department of Civil Engineering, College of Engineering Pune, Wellesley Road, Shivajinagar,
Pune, Maharashtra 411005, India
e-mail: maliks19.civil@coep.ac.in
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4040-8_14
158 S. Malik and S. M. Nawghare
sourced from coal-fired thermal power plants [1]. Studies have shown that Indian coal
has low calorific value ranging from 3000–4000 kcal/kg and ash content as high as
50% [2]. In India, the production of fly ash from 194 coal/lignite-based thermal power
plants reached 129.09 million tons with percent utilization at highest of 78.19% in
first half year 2019–2020 [3]. As per the estimate of Fly ash utilization (FAU) 2020,
utilization of fly ash in construction of roads and flyover is still below its potential,
at only 8%. Due to huge production of fly ash, large land areas are used as ash ponds
for its safe disposal, however, open lands are scarce. This is a major problem in
developing countries like India, where land to population ratio is critically low. As
a result, proposed utilization of fly ash in civil engineering applications can help to
reduce hazardous environmental effects of fly ash disposal and add value to the waste
produced from coal-based thermal power plants. Fly ash has found application as
backfill material, fill material in embankments, subbase, and base material for road
construction. The geotechnical properties of fly ash on its own are not enough to
replace the soil in civil engineering applications [4]. To enhance the properties of
fly ash, several researchers have investigated the use of materials like cement, fibers,
lime, EPS beads and geocells. Another waste product of serious concern is single use
plastic. 43% of 9.3 million tons plastic waste produced annually in India in the form
of single use packaging material and plastic bottles as per CPCB (2017)[5]. Need
of the hour is to reuse the discarded non-biodegradable plastic waste to overcome
the disposal problem and environment threat it poses. A novel method not explored
much is the use of encased columns formed using plastic bottles and embedded in
fly ash bed as alternative sustainable construction method.
2 Literature Review
Fly ash has found extensive use in slope stabilization [6], as subbase in pavements
[7]. In last few decades, several researchers have contributed significantly to research
works to convert fly ash into useful construction material. Kaniraj [8] conducted an
experimental study to investigate use of randomly oriented fiber inclusions on two
Indian fly ashes. It was observed that the inclusion of fiber increased strength of raw
fly ash and changed its brittle behavior to ductile behavior. Nawghare [4] studied the
effect of size of EPS beads on geotechnical properties of fly ash. They concluded
that fly ash reinforced with 0.6% content of EPS beads with size of 1–2 mm can be
useful for construction on weak soils. Dutta and Mandal [9] evaluated the effect of
geocell reinforced fly ash bed over soft clay using model studies. It was found owning
to higher bending stiffness of composite mattress, footing pressure for a particular
settlement increased with increase in height of geocell. Use of plastic bottles as
encasement for fly ash columns was first advocated by Dutta and Mandal [10]. Their
proposed encased end bearing fly ash column-geocell composite system in soft clay
showed promising results both in single and groups of column arrangement.
Laboratory Model Study on Fly Ash Reinforced … 159
3 Problem Definition
As per available literature, model studies in the direction of using waste plastic
bottles as cellular reinforcement and encasement for fly ash layer overlying soft clay
is available. However, performance of a fly ash bed with encased floating fly ash
columns is yet to be investigated. In the present study, an attempt has been made to
investigate the effect of length of encased fly ash floating columns in a fly ash bed.
By using waste plastic bottles to prepare the encasement for reinforcement of fly
ash, the present study justified its aim of using aforementioned waste materials in
the direction of alternative sustainable construction material.
4 Experimental Procedure
4.1 Materials
This study used two different materials: fly ash and plastic bottles. The waste plastic
bottles required for this study were collected from scrap dealers in Pune, India.
Bottles with size of 100 mm diameter and 0.5 mm wall thickness were used for
the experiment. Bottles were cut from top and bottom as per required heights and an
electric solder was used to make 6 mm perforations along its length as shown in Fig. 1.
The fly ash used in the present study was sourced locally. The basic composition of
fly ash was determined using X-ray diffraction. The major constituents in fly ash
Fig. 1 Perforations made

along the surface of bottles
using an electric solder
Fig. 2 X-ray diffraction curve of fly ash
Table 1 Properties of fly ash

Properties Values IS code
Specific gravity 2.28 IS 2720-PART-3-1980
Maximum dry density 11.77 IS 2720-PART-8-1983
(kN/m3 )
Optimum moisture content 16.17 IS 2720-PART-7-1980
(%)
Cohesion (kPa) 28.3 IS 2720-PART-13-1986
Angle of internal friction 27.54 IS 2720-PART-13-1986
were reported as silicon dioxide, aluminum oxide and iron oxide shown in Fig. 2.
It is designated as Class F fly ash in accordance with ASTM C618 (ASTM 2012).
Table 1 reports the physical properties of the fly ash.
4.2 Experimental Setup
The experimental setup consisted of a rectangular steel tank with dimensions of

150 mm length, 80 mm width and 60 mm height. A loading plate of 100 × 100 mm
placed at center was used as footing over fly ash bed. Hydraulic jack supported by
100 kN reaction frame was used to apply vertical loads on the footing. A constant
incremental load of 10 kg/cm2 was applied to the footing. To measure settlement on
application of load on footing, dial gauges of 20 mm run and 0.01 mm least count
were placed along the centerline of the footing. Figure 3 shows the schematics of the
experimental set up. Installation of single encased fly ash column is shown in Fig. 4.
The tank was filled with fly ash at optimum moisture content in 3 layers of 200 mm
each. Each layer was duly compacted with a standard proctor rammer. To arrest loss of
moisture, the tank surface was covered with polythene sheets till test was performed.
Fig. 3 Schematics of experimental setup
Fig. 4 Installation of single

floating column in fly ash
bed
4.3 Test Series
A model test was performed on an unreinforced fly ash bed to get the reference
parameters which were further used to compare the effect of changing the lengths
of the floating columns on the pressure settlement response. The fly ash bed was
reinforced with a single floating column placed at center of footing and at varying
percentage of encasement. The lengths of floating columns considered in present
study were 16, 26 and 35% of total fly ash bed.
Figure 5 shows the pressure settlement plot for unreinforced fly ash bed. As the pres-
sure was increased, the footing showed gradual settlement and cracks were developed
along the edge. The failure was reported when application of more pressure on the
hydraulic jack did not reflect on the dial gauge.
Effect of percent confinement of fly ash was studied by increasing the length of
plastic bottle encasement as floating column. Figure 6 shows the plot of pressure
settlement curves for fly ash reinforced with varying column lengths, while Fig. 7
represents a bar graph conveying variation in value of total settlement with increase
in lengths of floating columns from 16 to 35% of total fly ash bed.
It is observed with increase in percent confinement of fly ash by increasing the
length of plastic bottle encasement, the footing performance, in terms of overall
settlement improves. The footing capacity also improved due to adequate tensile
Pressure N/mm2
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7
0
5
Settlement (mm)
10
15
20
Unreinforced Fly Ash

25
Fig. 5 Pressure settlement plot for unreinforced fly ash

Pressure N/mm2
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7
0
5
Settlement (mm)
10
Unreinforced
15 Fly Ash
16%
confinement
26%
20 confinement
35%
confinement
25
Fig. 6 Pressure settlement plots for fly ash reinforced with varying lengths of floating column
50
47.14
45
Decrease in Settlement (%)
40
37.09
35
30
25 23.8
20
15
10
5
0
Column length= 16%total Column length= 26%total Column length= 35%total
height of fly ash height of fly ash height of fly ash
Arrangement of encased plastic floating fly ash column
Fig. 7 Percent decrease in settlement with increase in confinement
stiffness of plastic encasement of the columns. The overall settlement gets decreased
by 47.14% by inclusion of a single floating column with length 35% of the total fly
ash bed at the center of footing.
Figure 8 shows the crack pattern observed at failure. With increase in length
of column, propagation of failure cracks also got reduced. The encased columns
were inspected after completion of model tests Fig. 9, and it could be inferred that
the encased columns were subjected to only elastic deformation except for single
Fig. 8 Failure cracks for a unreinforced fly ash, reinforced with single column of b 16%, c 26%
and d 35% confinement length
Fig. 9 Encased plastic

column before and after test
completion
encased column of 16% confinement at center of footing which showed signs of

little plastic deformation.
6 Conclusion
From the present model studies, following conclusions are arrived at.
1. From model test on unreinforced fly ash bed, it is concluded that geotechnical
properties of fly ash are inadequate to replace role of soil under footing.
2. Proposed floating column by plastic bottle encasement enhanced the footing
performance of fly ash bed by decrease in overall settlement.
3. With increase in length of confinement, overall settlement decreases, due to
adequate tensile stiffness of plastic bottles and increase in contact with fly ash.
4. 16, 26 and 35% confinement length of a single encased column placed at center
of footing, decreased the overall settlement of fly ash by 23, 37 and 47%,
respectively.
5. Increase in length of columns, also reduce crack propagation on the surface.
The proposed study thus validates the use of fly ash and waste plastic bottles as
alternative sustainable construction materials. The fly ash reinforced with encased
floating columns can be used as an alternative layer as subbase in road construc-
tion, under walkways and footpaths. The experimental setup was subjected to
static loading. Before using the proposed systems of present study in real-world
applications, effect of dynamic loads must be incorporated.
References
1. Senapati, M. R. (2011). Fly ash from thermal power plants-waste management and overview.
Current Science, 100(12), 1791–1794.
2. Kaniraj, S. R., & Gayathri, V. (2004). Permeability and consolidation characteristics of
compacted fly ash. Journal of Energy Engineering, 1(18), 18–43. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASC
E)0733–9402(2004)130.
3. FAU (FLYASH Utilization). (2020). “9th annual international summit.” Ministry of Coal,
Ministry of Power, Ministry of Environment and Forest and Ministry of Science and
Technology, IHCL SeleQtions (Cidade de Goa)-Goa.
4. Nawghare, S. M., & Mandal, J. N., Effectiveness of Expanded Polystyrene (EPS) Beads Size
on Fly Ash Properties. International Journal of Geosynthetics and Ground Engineering.
5. Central Pollution Control Board annual report 2017.
6. Rajak T., Yadu L., & Pal S. (2019). Analysis of slope stability of fly-ash stabilized soil slope.
Geotechnical Applications, 119–126.
7. Kumar, P., & Singh, S. P. (2008). Fiber—reinforced fly ash subbases in rural roads. Journal of
Transportation Engineering, 134(4), 171–180.
8. Kaniraj, S. R., & Gayathri V. (2003). Geotechnical behavior of fly ash mixed with randomly
oriented fiber inclusions. Geotextiles and Geomembranes, 21, 123–149.
9. Dutta S., & Mandal J. N. Model studies on geocell-reinforced fly ash bed overlying soft clay.
Journal of Materials in Civil Engineering, ASCE
10. Dutta S., & Mandal J. N., Model studies on Encased fly ash column-geocell composite systems
in soft clay. Journal of Hazardous, Toxic, and Radioactive Waste ASCE
Flexural Behaviour of Continuous Steel
Beam Prestressed Via Externally
Unbonded Tendons: Numerical
Modelling, Parametric Study
and Statistical Analysis
Abhishek Srivastava, Kumar Pallav, and Madan Chandra Maurya
Abstract Prestressed steel beam has the advantages of lightweight sections; this
makes them economical and feasible solution in various practical situations.
Prestressing the steel beams using externally unbonded tendons improves their load-
carrying capacity and serviceability performance. This paper reports the flexural
behaviour of continuous steel beams strengthened by prestressed tendons under
concentrated load using finite element software, ANSYS. Mid-span deflection of
the beam is essential to decide its functionality requirement. The effect of tendon
eccentricity and prestressing force on the mid-span deflection has been analysed
in detail through parametric studies. Furthermore, a simplified model derived from
multivariable regression analysis is proposed for predicting the deflection of the
prestressed continuous steel beam. The proposed model is based on applied load, the
eccentricity of tendons and prestressing force with a high coefficient of determina-
tion (R2 > 0.99). Numerical results show 15–27% improvement in flexural capacity
in terms of reduction in mid-span deflection.
Keywords Continuous steel beam · Finite element modelling · Parametric study ·

Statistical analysis
1 Introduction
Metal bridges are dated back to 1779, but the first steel bridge was constructed in
1823, a cable suspension bridge [1]. Over time, elements of steel bridges get dilap-
idated, resulting in structural failure, causing human, economic, environmental and
A. Srivastava (B)
CSIR-Central Building Research Institute, Roorkee, India
e-mail: ashish27.srivastav@gmail.com
K. Pallav
Cape Peninsula University of Technology, Capetown, South Africa
M. C. Maurya
Madan Mohan Malaviya University of Technology, Gorakhpur, India
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4040-8_15
168 A. Srivastava et al.
social losses [2]. Therefore, careful inspection, evaluation, repairs and rehabilitation
of older steel bridges are an important and specific task for preserving the cultural
heritage and reducing the losses [3, 4]. The post-tensioning method is widely adopted
for strengthening and rehabilitating existing concrete bridge girders [5, 6]. A similar
approach can also apply to steel bridges. The prestressed steel truss-supported hanger
at Melsbroek Airport in Belgium and Livery street bridge in England are some of the
live examples. For new steel girder bridges, this technique leads to 15–20% mate-
rial saving, which reduces the overall cost and provides the solution of sustainable
structures by saving the material [7–9].
In the literature, prestressed steel beam is studied by many researchers. Bradford
[10] presents the design chart based on an analysis method for the elastic buck-
ling of prestressed steel girders. Vincenzo [11] shows the superiority of prestressed
steel structure in resistance, inexpensiveness and execution simplicity. Park et al.
[12] studied the flexural behaviour of prestressed simply supported and continuous
steel beams and reported that the inclusion of prestressing in steel I-beam increases
its ultimate load-carrying capacity. If provided with section enhancement at inner
supports, an additional 30–35% increment was noted. Belletti and Gasperi [13]
analyse the behaviour of the medium span (35–45 m) I-shaped steel beam prestressed
with external tendons design parameter: the number of deviators and amount of
prestressing force. They found that beams with bracing at the top and bottom have
better performance with respect to a beam having bracing only at flanges. Ponnada
and Vipparthy [14, 15] pointed out that prestressing techniques are more feasible for
unsymmetrical I sections than the symmetrical section. In another work, the author
presented the method for estimating the deflection of the prestressed steel beam.
Zhang [16] present the analytical solution of symmetric and antisymmetric lateral-
torsional buckling of prestressed steel girder. The prestressing tendons were placed
inside the depth of the beam itself. The author concluded that critical moments
under equal end moments could be determined by symmetric buckling. Also, the
critical prestressing force can be obtained by symmetric or antisymmetric buck-
ling, depending upon the relation between eccentricity and its threshold value. Ren
et al. [17] present a method and parametrically study the effect of prestressing force
and eccentricity of tendons on the flexural behaviour of deep single-span I-beam.
The author concluded that the tensile rigidity ratio between sub-tendons made no
changes to the increase in sub-tendons strains. Hadjipantelis et al. [18] reported that
prestressing technique enhances the moment-carrying capacity of the cold-formed
steel beams.
Most of the earlier study focuses on the analysis of simply supported prestressed
single-span I-beam. Not much literature is available on the behaviour of a continuous
prestressed steel beam, having tendons housed within the depth of the beam. For
the rational design of continuous prestressed steel beams, a good understanding of
the behaviour of continuous steel beams with external prestressing is needed. The
present study addressed this research gap and investigated the flexural behaviour of
continuous prestressed steel beams with varying tendon eccentricity (0–100 mm) and
prestressing force (0–50% of yield stress). The finite element model of the beams
Flexural Behaviour of Continuous Steel Beam Prestressed … 169
has been generated and analysed. In addition, a simplified mathematical equation is

proposed for predicting the mid-span deflection in analytical studies.
2 Numerical Investigation
2.1 Analysed Prestressed Steel Beam
The geometrical dimensions of the beam and tendons are illustrated in Fig. 1. The
beam is a two-span continuous beam with an equal span of 6 m each. The cross-
section is ISMB300 symmetrical about Y-axis conforming to IS 808:1089 [19], and
grade structural steel is E450 as per the IS 2062:2011 [20] as shown in Fig. 1. Each
steel I-beam is provided with the two prestressing tendons of diameter 25 mm, located
at a constant eccentricity of 35 mm about the Y-axis and varying eccentricity about
the X-axis on both sides. The physical and mechanical properties of the material of
beams and tendons are summarized in Table 1.
Fig. 1 Schematic diagram of studied beams
Table 1 Material property of

S No. Properties Values
the beam and tendons
1 Density 7850 kg/m3
2 Modulus of rigidity 0.769 × 105 N/mm2
3 Modulus of elasticity 2 × 105 N/mm2
4 Poisons ratio 0.3
5 Yield strength of beam 450 N/mm2
6 Yield strength of tendons 1400 N/mm2
7 Coefficient of expansion 12 × 10–6 /°C
2.2 Finite Element Modelling
Finite element analysis was carried out using the ANSYS software package. The
beam has been modelled using the 4-node shell element Shell 181, whereas the
Link180 element is employed for tendons. Shell 181 elements have six degrees
of freedom, and hence, it will precisely capture the model beam’s behaviour. The
appropriate mesh size was obtained through mesh convergence studies, and a mesh
size of 10 × 10 mm was found pertinent. Throughout the study, the mesh density
has been taken to be 10 mm.
The mechanical properties of the beam model have been defined using the elastic–
plastic model with isotropic hardening behaviour. First of all, a prestressed simply
supported beam is modelled in ANSYS, in which one end is a hinge, and the other
end is roller support. The developed FE model of the simply supported beam is
validated by the mid-span deflection results of Park et al. [12], i.e. 8.46 mm with
an error percentage of 8.74%, hence acceptable. Afterwards, the developed model is
modified to the continuous beam by incorporating roller support at the mid-span to
make a two-span prestressed continuous beam and in housing the tendon within the
web. The hinge support is modelled by restricting the translational motion about the
Y- and Z-axes, whereas translational motion about Y-axis is restricted at the other
end support for roller support.
Figure 2 shows the tendon eccentricity in different FE models of prestressed
continuous steel beams. The prestressing forces are applied as initial stresses in the
percentage of yield strength of the beam. In all the beams, tendons are placed at
the constant distance from the vertical Y-axis of the beam cross-section, and their
eccentricity with respect to X-axis varies from 0 to 100 mm in steps of 25 mm. The
connection between the tendon and plate attached with the beam was modelled as
bonded; i.e. slip loss and anchorage loss are not considered. The constant point loads
are applied at the middle of each span from the end support, as shown in Fig. 1.
2.3 Parametric Study
For investigating the flexural behaviour, beams analysed were (a) beams with constant
eccentricity and varying prestressing force and (b) beams with constant prestressing
force and varying eccentricity. Beams are labelled based on the eccentricity of the
tendon wire and prestressing force value. Beam type A is the beams with tendon
eccentricity 0 mm. Similarly, types B, C, D and E beams have tendons eccentricity
of 25, 50, 75 and 100 mm, respectively. The beams are prestressed with varying
prestressing force from 0 to 50% of beam yield strength in steps of 12.5%, as shown
in Table 2 and Fig. 3a–e.
(a) Type A (b) Type B
(c) Type C (d) Type D
(e) Type E
Fig. 2 Tendon location in different FE model of prestressed continuous steel beams
3.1 Effect of Tendon Eccentricity
The variation of mid-span deflection with varying the tendons eccentricity and
different constant prestressing forces is shown in Fig. 3a–e. It can be seen that at
a particular prestressing force, as the eccentricity of the tendons about the x-axis
increase, the mid-span deflection curve moves away from the control beam and
Table 2 Different types of

Beam type Tendon eccentricity Prestressing force (%)
beams analysed
(mm)
A – –
B0,0 0 0
B0,50 0 12.5
B0,100 0 25
B0,150 0 37.5
B0,200 0 50
C25,0 25 0
C25,50 25 12.5
C25,100 25 25
C25,150 25 37.5
C25,200 25 50
D50,0 50 0
D50,50 50 12.5
D50,100 50 25
D50,150 50 37.5
D50,200 50 50
E75,0 75 0
E75,50 75 12.5
E75,100 75 25
E75,150 75 37.5
E75,200 75 50
F100,0 100 0
F100,50 100 12.5
F100,100 100 25
F100,150 100 37.5
F100,200 100 50
tends towards lower values. This characteristic reduction in deflection is attributed

to the stress reduction caused by the opposite moment developed by prestressed
eccentric tendons. External point load generates the positive and negative moments
at the mid-span and ends, respectively. The tendons oppose these generated positive
moments at mid-span by their negative moment resulting in net reduction in stress
below the neutral axis, leading to lower deflection. At the internal supports in contin-
uous beam, negative moment generated by the prestressing force integrated with the
negative moment due to external load and causes an increase in the moment values.
(a) PF=0% (b) PF=12.5%
(c) PF=25% (d) PF=37.5%
(e) PF=50%
Fig. 3 Variation of mid-span deflection at different tendon eccentricity with constant prestressing
force
3.2 Effect of Prestressing Force
Figure 4a–e shows the variation of mid-span deflection in the continuous beam with
varying prestressing force at different constant initial tendon eccentricities. In all the
(a) e=0 mm (b) e=25mm
(c) e=50 mm (d) e=75mm
(e) e=100 mm
Fig. 4 Mid-span deflection at constant tendon eccentricity and varying prestressing force
cases, the progressive increment of prestressing force leads to a reduction in mid-

span deflection. The higher opposing moment by the tendons (for increasing values
of prestressing force) at particular eccentricity compensates the positive moment by
the applied live load. Furthermore, there is a reduction in the mid-span deflection
due to increased prestressing beam stiffness [21].
Fig. 5 Predicted mid-span deflections plotted against numerical results
4 Statistical Analysis
Multivariable regression analysis is a statistical method for estimating the relation-

ships between the variables. It includes the development of a relationship between a
dependent variable and several independent variables or predictors. In this section,
the results of the parametric study were analysed using a Microsoft Excel spread-
sheet. The developed linear regression model for predicting the mid-span deflection
(δ in mm) of a continuous prestressed steel beam is expressed as follows:
δ = 1.0238 + 0.0416(ι) − 0.0176(e) − 0.0043( f ) (1)
where e (mm) is the eccentricity of prestressing tendons, l (kN) is applied load and
f (kN) prestressing force. The coefficient of determination (R2 ) value for developed
regression equations was 0.99, suggesting higher confidence levels. To validate the
proposed model, the predicted deflection is compared with the deflection data set
obtained from numerical analysis, as shown in Fig. 5. It can be observed in Fig. 5 that
the results are closer to the similarity line, indicating the reliability of the proposed
model.
5 Discussion and Conclusion
In the present paper, the feasibility of an external post-tensioning technique in

improving the flexural capacity of the continuous steel beams has been examined
numerically. The analysis results show that the post-tensioning technique is a feasible
approach for improving the flexural capacity of the continuous steel beam bridge.
Significant reduction in mid-span deflection is observed for beams strengthened with
tendons at higher eccentricity and prestressing force. Parametric study results show
that higher eccentricity of tendons and prestressing force results in 15–27% improve-
ment in the flexural capacity of the beam. An increase in prestressing force reduces
mid-span deflection, but the effect is getting prominent at larger tendons eccentricity.
Furthermore, the simplified mathematical equation for predicting the mid-span
deflection of continuous prestressed steel beam is proposed with a high R2 value.
Overall, it can be concluded that the post-tensioning technique can be applied
for repairing and rehabilitating existing heritage steel bridges or constructing new
bridges with lighter sections and foundations. In future, the research work can
be extended to the parametric investigation of continuous beams with different
draped cable profiles, behaviour under cyclic loading, beams with unsymmetrical
cross-section, etc.
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Analytical Modelling Strategies
for Performing Seismic Evaluation
of Open Ground Storey RC Buildings
Located in Medium Seismic Zone of India
Pramodini Naik and Satish Annigeri
Abstract In this paper, authors have made an attempt to bring out the possible
limitations in the analysis, design and seismic evaluation of Open Ground Storey
(OGS) buildings in urban India and have suggested a suitable modelling strategy
to be adopted in nonlinear analysis for satisfactory performance at demand earth-
quake. Nonlinear Time History (NTH) and Nonlinear Pushover analyses (NSP) are
performed on 10-storeyed OMRF RC building located in medium seismic zone
designed as per IS codes for DBE. NTH analysis was carried out to get useful
insights on the results predicted by NSP analysis on the performance evaluation of
OGS building model studied. Peak responses in terms of base shear, roof displace-
ments and hinge status were studied for the model for each scenario. It was concluded
that NSP analysis, which is the currently preferred method for performance evalua-
tion, overestimates the base shear by 20% and underestimates the roof displacements
by 20–40%. This clearly implies that NSP analysis tends to overestimate the building
strength by 20% compared to NTH analysis in the present study. The hinge status
showed that NSP analysis predicts severe damage like CP and LS in some of the
frame elements, while it shows conservative estimate of performance levels in other
elements compared to the results obtained from NTH analysis. It is therefore impor-
tant to remember that results of NSP are conservative when that method is used
for performance analysis. It is also observed that prediction of performance levels
in NSP and NTH analyses depends on nonlinear properties of frame elements in
the structure, quantified by strength and deformation capacities, which depend on
modelling assumptions depicted in each scenario.
Keywords Pushover analysis · Performance-based design · Seismic evaluation
P. Naik (B)
Civil Engineering Department, Government Polytechnic Bicholim, Goa, India
e-mail: prakrish13@gmail.com
S. Annigeri
Department of Civil Engineering, KLE Technological University, Hubballi, India
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4040-8_16
180 P. Naik and S. Annigeri
1 Introduction
Earthquakes are one of the most destructive forces of nature, which although occurs
rarely for a short duration of time, but its effects are sometimes devastating resulting
in loss of numerous human lives. The major reason behind the loss of lives and
property is due to unpreparedness or inability of the human-made built environment
to withstand earthquake forces. Among the major human-made structures all over the
world, buildings represent a major share. Among the buildings, Open Ground Storey
(OGS) in RC buildings has become an essential feature of modern multistoreyed
buildings to facilitate vehicular parking. Such buildings constructed in India and other
parts of the world have demonstrated poor performance during past earthquakes.
For instance, Bhuj earthquake (2001) in the state of Gujarat was one of the most
devastating earthquakes witnessed by the Indian subcontinent. Performance-based
seismic evaluation (PBSE) is a step in this direction to address the safety require-
ments of OGS buildings representing major man-made residential structures all over
India and other parts of the world. Current prescriptive-based seismic design proce-
dures for RC buildings include estimation of demand, lateral load analysis and
design as per code. However, this design does not guarantee the expected perfor-
mance from the building under the action of design forces. Therefore, there is need
to use performance-based design concepts by structural engineers. In this design
approach, an assessment is done after preliminary design as to whether or not the
design meets the performance objectives or expected outcome and finally redesign
and reassessment, if required, until the designer achieves the expected outcome or
performance objectives. The evaluation or assessment is done by using Nonlinear
Static Pushover analysis or nonlinear dynamic analysis. As a simple approach, the
structural engineering community has been using Nonlinear Static Pushover (NSP)
analysis. Pushover analysis is carried out by either adopting default hinge properties
or adopting user-defined hinges (strain hardening or plastic hinge properties of frame
elements) based on FEMA-356 (2000) and ATC-40 (1996) guidelines. Performance
evaluation is governed by several factors, important among which are the lateral
stiffness of the building, seismic load distribution over the height of the building
and plastic hinge properties. In the present study, the main objective is to study the
performance of OGS building frames at demand earthquake by performing Nonlinear
Static Pushover (NSP) analysis and predict the safety levels by considering several
modelling strategies like lateral stiffness of infill walls, strain hardening proper-
ties and lateral load pattern using static and dynamic method as per IS: 1893 (part
1)-2002. The results of NSP are compared with Nonlinear Time History (NTH) anal-
yses to evaluate the seismic performance by considering the four scenarios based on
response parameters like base shear, roof displacements and hinge status at demand
earthquake and examine the suitability of NSP analyses for carrying out seismic
evaluation of OGS buildings.
Analytical Modelling Strategies for Performing Seismic Evaluation … 181
2 Literature Review
Open Ground Storey buildings constructed in India and other parts of the world have
demonstrated poor performance during past earthquakes. For instance, Bhuj earth-
quake (2001) was one of the most devastating earthquakes resulting in destruction
of built structures. Most common among the collapsed buildings were three- to ten-
storeyed OGS buildings [11]. Through analytical and experimental investigations
[7–15], it was revealed that these buildings were probably designed as bare frames
without considering the vertical stiffness irregularity caused by infills or designed
for only gravity loads. Based on the study carried out by Asteris et al. [2], the
modelling of infill walls for OGS RC building in the present study is based on simple
macro-model in which the infill wall is replaced by single-diagonal equivalent strut
without consideration of openings in infill walls to avoid complexity. The strut width
is calculated based on empirical equation available in FEMA-356. To model infill
stiffness characteristics, the properties of the brick masonry are taken from experi-
mental investigations by Kaushik et al. [15]. Brick masonry is assumed to be made
of weak mortar, and the modulus of elasticity is taken as 550 times the masonry
strength. Pushover analysis is commonly adopted for seismic evaluation of build-
ings from the past several decades. Studies have demonstrated that the simplified
pushover analysis based on ATC-40 and FEMA-356 can be applied for evaluating
performance of low-rise buildings having regular geometry provided first mode of
vibration which is dominant [10]. However, improved procedures are needed for
the assessment of strength and deformation capacities of structural elements at all
performance levels for structures with high-importance factors. To overcome the
above limitation, several studies worked towards improving NSP [9].
However, there is still ambiguity in the results of pushover analysis as the method
is dependent on several modelling assumptions. Some studies addressing the issues
of material and geometric modelling while carrying out pushover analysis have been
carried out [12]. Studies have also shown that selection of load pattern for carrying
out pushover analysis has considerable effect on prediction of seismic demands.
Studies by Inel and Ozmen [13], carrying out nonlinear analyses on frame elements,
have clearly shown that there were important differences due to use of the plastic
hinge properties based on default and user-defined hinge properties. In the present
study, the moment curvature analysis is carried out using the procedure given by Park
and Pauley [17], for beam and columns sections considering stress–strain curve for
concrete and steel as specified in IS 456 [4], and is described in Sect. 4. Based on the
compatibility equations, a computer programme using VBA in Microsoft Excel for
computing moment curvature values is developed to simplify the iterative process
involved in the analysis. Nonlinear Time History analysis provides an accurate esti-
mate of the dynamic response of the structure [8]. The seismic resistance design
codes recommend selection of at least three- or seven-ground motion records [18]
for the time history analysis purposes, which shall be compatible to the design spec-
trum. In this study, the generation of synthetic records compatible with the design
spectrum of Indian seismic code is considered for carrying out NTH analysis. The
records for this study are generated using the computer programme developed by
Kumar [16].
From the review of experimental studies on infill frames, it is seen that, for design
and seismic evaluation of such buildings using NSP, precise modelling of the building
considering lateral stiffness, strain hardening properties of frame elements and selec-
tion of proper lateral load pattern will help in achieving better performance at demand
earthquake. In the present study, the main objective is to study the performance of
OGS building frames at demand earthquake by performing NSP analysis and predict
the safety levels by considering several modelling strategies like lateral stiffness
of infill walls, strain hardening properties and lateral load pattern using static and
dynamic method as per IS: 1893 (part 1)-2002. The results of NSP are compared with
NTH analyses to evaluate the seismic performance by considering the four scenarios
based on response parameters like base shear, roof displacements and hinge status
and at demand earthquake and examine the suitability of NSP analyses for carrying
out seismic evaluation of OGS buildings.
3 Methodology
The present study is based on analytical investigations on seismic performance of

ten-storeyed three-dimensional OGS RC building models designed for gravity and
earthquake loads as per IS codes, located in seismic zone III of peninsular India
by considering three analytical geometric models for representing lateral stiffness
of the building designed for earthquake loading as per Equivalent Static Analysis
(ESA) and Response Spectrum Analysis (RSA) method as per codes. The seismic
evaluation is investigated by performing NSP and NTH analyses by considering four
scenarios. The effectiveness of each model and scenario is investigated by comparing
their seismic response for each method of analysis. The analysis is carried out using
ETABS software for nonlinear analyses [5–6].
Description of Example Building
The plan of the building is shown in Fig. 1. The building considered has G+9 storeys,
out of which the ground storey is intended for parking. The building is symmetric in
both orthogonal directions in plan to avoid torsion effect under pure lateral forces.
The details of moment resisting frame with restricted ductility (MRFRD) reinforced
concrete (RC) building designed for gravity load and earthquake load as per IS
456:2000 code provisions with Open Ground Storey and unreinforced brick masonry
infill walls in the upper storeys are presented in Table 2. The material properties
adopted for the structural members are also shown in Table 1. Three models are
analysed using ESA and RSA methods.
Model 1: this model has no walls in the first storey and 250mm thick external walls
and internal walls in the upper storeys. Stiffness of the walls is ignored; however,
masses of infill walls are included in the model. Model 2: this model has no walls in
the first storey and 250mm thick external walls and internal walls in the upper storeys.
Fig. 1 Plan of the building
Table 1 Material properties

Characteristic strength of concrete, f ck (M20) 20 N/mm2
Characteristic strength of steel, f y (Fe 415) 415 N/mm2
Modulus of elasticity of concrete, E c 22,360.7 N/mm2 [4]
Density of concrete 25 kN/m3
Poisson’s ratio of concrete 0.3 [15]
Modulus of elasticity of steel, E s 200,000 N/mm2
Modulus of elasticity of brick masonry, E m 2255 N/mm2 [15]
Density of brick masonry 20 kN/m3
Poisons ratio of brick 0.11 [15]
Stiffness of the walls is considered by modelling walls as equivalent diagonal struts,

masses of infill walls are also included in the model. Model 3: this model has walls
only in the corner bays of first storey and 250mm thick external walls and internal
walls in the upper storeys. Stiffness of the walls is considered by modelling walls
as equivalent diagonal struts, masses of infill walls are also included in the model
(Table 3).
Pushover analysis
Performance-based seismic evaluation of building models is first carried out by
pushover analysis. Four sets of analyses were carried out, namely Scenario 1—all
Table 2 Details of example

Structural members
building
Thickness of slab 0.15 m
Thickness of wall 0.25 m
Beam size 0.25 m × 0.60 m
Column size 0.50 m × 0.50 m
Geometrical details
No. of storeys 10
Storey height 3.2 m
Bottom storey height 4.5 m
Dead load intensities
Floor finishes 1.5 kN/m2
Roof finishes 2 kN/m2
Live load intensities
Floor 3 kN/m2
Roof 1.5 kN/m2
Live Load for Seismic Weight Calculation as per clause 7.3.1
and 7.3.2 of IS: 1893 (part 1)-2002
Floor 25% of LL
Roof Nil
Seismic data
Seismic zone III
Zone factor (Z) 0.16
Importance factor (I) 1
Soil type Medium soil
Damping ratio 5%
Frame type OMRF
Response reduction factor (R) 3
three models with ESA and default hinges, Scenario 2—all three models with RSA
and default hinges, Scenario 3—all three models with ESA and user-defined hinges
and Scenario 4—all three models with RSA and user-defined hinges. The loading
is monotonic, and analysis is carried out by a modified monotonic force deforma-
tion criteria and with damping approximations. The load cases for the analysis are
presented in Table 4.
Modelling for pushover analysis
The stiffness modifiers for beams and columns are based on Tables 6, 7 of FEMA-
356. The geometric nonlinearity, that is, P-delta effect is included in the analysis.
In this work, force deformation relationship to define plastic hinges for RC frame
Table 3 Load combinations

Method of analyses Partial safety factors for load
(IS: 1893 (part 1)-2002,
combinations
Clause 6.3.1.2)
Gravity analysis 1.5 (DL + LL)
Equivalent static analysis 1.2 (DL + LL ± EQX)
1.2 (DL + LL ± EQY)
1.5 (DL ± EQX)
1.5 (DL ± EQY)
0.9 DL ± 1.5 EQX
0.9 DL ± 1.5 EQY
Response spectrum analysis 1.2 (DL + LL ± SPX)
1.2 (DL + LL ± SPY)
1.5 (DL ± SPX)
1.5 (DL ± SPY)
0.9 DL ± 1.5 SPX
0.9 DL ± 1.5 SPY
Table 4 Load cases for

Pushover cases Load Controlled by Previous case
pushover analysis
1 DL + LL Forces –
2 EQX Displacements DL + LL
3 SPX Displacements DL + LL
sections of beams and columns is based on default and users-defined values. FEMA-
356 and ATC-40 guidelines provide the properties of plastic hinges for RC members.
However, it is believed that these are suggested mean values based on some severely
limiting assumptions and as such would not be applicable to all RC buildings [13].
In the present study, default hinge property assignment option available in ETABS
was used to assign nonlinear hinge properties to the frame members for Scenarios 1
and 2. In case of user-defined hinges for Scenarios 2 and 3, moment rotation values
were assigned to all members by carrying out moment curvature analysis based
on material property, section properties, axial load (for columns) and reinforcement
details at the hinge locations. In case of frames with infill walls modelled as equivalent
diagonal struts, axial compression hinges (P hinges) were assigned at midpoint of
strut elements. Computation of moment rotation relations was carried out using VBA
programme in Microsoft Excel. These values were generated based on material model
for concrete and steel as per IS 456-2000, by using equilibrium and compatibility
equations across the cross section [19]. The idealized force deformation curve (ATC-
40) was considered for plastic hinges of frame elements and stress–strain curve
developed by [15] to define axial P hinge for infills modelled as diagonal struts.
Graphical representations of the moment curvature for typical ground storey beam
and interior column section are shown in Figures 2 and 3, respectively.
300.0
Fig. 2 Moment curvature
for beam section
200.0
Moment (kN-m)
100.0
0.0
0.000 0.010 0.020 0.030 0.040
Curvature (rad/m)
250.0
Fig. 3 Moment curvature
for column section
200.0
Moment (kN-m)
150.0
100.0
50.0
0.0
0.000 0.002 0.004 0.006 0.008 0.010
Curvature (rad/m)
Seismic Evaluation by Nonlinear Time History Analysis

In this work, three artificial spectrum compatible time history records corresponding
to response spectrum of Indian seismic code are generated and used in the analyses.
The records are generated using computer programme [16]. Figures 4, 5 and 6 show
the acceleration records used in the analyses. Nonlinear Time History analysis is
performed by direct integration method on the considered models under each scenario
Fig. 4 Artificial record 1 with PGA 0.111 m/s2 at 5.69 s
separately for each of the records and values that are reported for average of the
results. The analysis is performed by using ETABs 2013 nonlinear version 13.1.1
[6].
Summary of results of seismic response parameters obtained from NSP analysis

From the NSP results, it was seen that as the lateral stiffness increases, the ultimate
roof displacements are reduced and base shear capacity increases. Among the three
models studied, Model 3 shows the highest base shear by about 2.8 times and lowest
roof displacement (60%) as observed from the capacity curves, compared to bare
frame model. 1. Bare frame model is more ductile, enabling it to withstand larger
displacements, whereas building models with infill wall stiffness exhibit brittle mode
of failure. It is also noticed that Model 2 fails before Model 3 due to soft storey effect.
Therefore, Model 3 with additional walls in the corner bays of ground storey repre-
sents best modelling strategy among the three models studied. It was also observed
that in addition to lateral stiffness, NSP results are also dependent on type of lateral
load pattern and strain hardening properties of frame elements (Scenarios 1 to 4).
From the NSP results of all the scenarios across the three models, it is seen that
ultimate roof displacements (Δu ) decrease by about 50–60 % in case of Scenarios
2 and 4 compared to Scenarios 1 and 3. This clearly indicates that ESA method
overestimates the inelastic roof displacements compared to RSA. It is also noticed
that the yield displacements are higher in Scenarios 1 and 3 compared to Scenarios
2 and 4 and lowest in Scenario 4, which indicates less damage initiation in case of
user-defined hinges compared to default hinges. Thus, it can be stated that “Sce-
nario 4” closely represents the true behaviour of the building although Scenario 1
is simplest, and hence, preferred by designers, it leads to inaccurate calculation of
ductility factor (μ). Furthermore, base shear capacity (V p ) at PP for all the models
is greater than design base shear with respect to all the four scenarios. Results of V p
at PP reveal that Scenario 4—Model 3 shows maximum V p , that is, 2.8 times V p
of Scenario 1—Model 1. Therefore, it is seen that modelling of user-defined hinges
and infill stiffness affects the performance of the building at demand earthquake. The
most commonly used “Scenario 1—Model 1” will result in inaccurate prediction of
performance levels at demand earthquake.
With reference to roof displacements at PP, it was seen that displacements are
significantly affected by type of lateral load pattern and infill stiffness. Roof displace-
ments (ΔP ) at PP for all models in Scenarios 2 and 4 are lesser by about 30% to 40%
compared to ΔP of widely used Scenario 1 approach. In case of Scenario 3, ΔP is
almost similar to that of Scenario 1. Therefore, RSA lateral load pattern and infill
stiffness are prime factors which will closely represent the actual behaviour of the
building at demand earthquake and thus will aid in better estimation of safety levels
of OGS buildings.
Furthermore, it was observed that hinge status in case of Scenario 1 is overesti-
mated compared to Scenarios 2 to 4. Hence, p0lastic hinging pattern in the frame
elements is largely affected by the lateral load pattern applied and the strain hardening
properties of frame members. Furthermore, models with user-defined hinges have
shown less damage in terms of plastic hinges compared to default hinges. Therefore,
assigning the default hinge properties for all the frame elements during NSP analysis
Table 5 Base shear comparison for the three models for each scenario for NSP and NTH analyses
Model Scenario 1 Scenario 2 Scenario 3 Scenario 4 Design
VT VP VT VP VT VP VT VP VB
1 951.52 963.6 980.8 1190 1313.9 1348 1340.7 1537 923.6

2 1652.7 2326 1775 2470 2054.2 2357 2088.8 2696 1112.07
3 2379.4 2304 2383.2 2405 2230.4 2304 2672.4 3275 1164.35
V T = Average base shear obtained from NTH analysis for three chosen records
V P = Base shear at PP, V B = Design base shear
leads to substantial inaccuracy in seismic evaluation of buildings. Therefore, it is

recommended to adopt “Scenario 4” for evaluating damage levels in OGS buildings
for NSP analysis in order to capture the hinge mechanism for deciding the safety
levels of new building and choosing of retrofit strategy for existing buildings
Inelastic Analysis: Nonlinear Time History Analysis Results Base shear
Table 5 represents the base shear of the building models analysed for each scenario
obtained by NTH analysis, NSP analysis and also shows the design base shear as per
code for each model considered. It is seen that the base shear obtained using NTH
analysis is greater than the design base shear across all the scenarios and models
studied. This clearly indicates that design base shear is underestimated as per the code
formula. It is seen that the modelling of default hinges and ESA lateral load pattern
underestimates the base shear expected in the building. It is seen that NSP which is
the currently preferred method for performance evaluation gives fairly large estimate
of base shear compared to NTH analysis. From the results summarized in Table 5,
base shear obtained at PP in NSP and that obtained in NTH analysis is compared
for Scenario 4 as it closely represents the true behaviour of the building. It is seen
that the base shear in NSP analysis is overestimated by about 1.2 times compared to
NTH analysis. This can be attributed to the monotonic lateral load applied in case of
NSP analysis as compared to reversible cyclic load in NTH analysis. Therefore, it is
important to review/revise the base shear values obtained at PP using NSP analysis
by considering 20% overestimation with reference to NTH analysis while comparing
it with the design base shear.
Roof displacements
From the results of roof displacements summarized in Table 6, it is seen that the
roof displacements obtained using default hinges (Scenario 1 and Scenario 2) are
overestimated by about 80–90% in case of Model 1 and by 70 to 80% in case of
infilled Models 2 and 3 as compared to Model 1—Scenario 4. Therefore, it is seen
that modelling strain hardening properties in frame elements as per their strength is
a critical parameter for estimation of roof displacements in NTH analysis. Hence,
assigning default hinge properties to all the frame elements leads to substantial inac-
curacy while calculating the roof drift ratios of buildings subjected to seismic forces.
Furthermore, it is also seen that the distribution of lateral forces over the height of the
Table 6 Roof displacements obtained from NTH and NSP analyses

Model Roof displacements in mm
Scenario 1 Scenario 2 Scenario 3 Scenario 4
NTH NSP NTH NSP NTH NSP NTH NSP
1 186.33 118 182.13 67 127 101 98.5 79
2 76.5 56 71.67 43 68.2 55 63.8 45
3 77.2 42 68.8 29 76.8 42 66.3 40
building also affects the roof displacements in NTH analysis. By comparing the roof
displacements in Scenarios 3 and 4 (by considering user-defined hinges), it is seen
that the RSA load pattern results in lower roof displacements compared to ESA load
pattern. By comparing the roof displacements across the method of analyses, i.e. by
NSP and NTH analyses in Scenario 4 (reference case), it is seen that NSP analysis
underestimates the roof displacements. This can be attributed to the difference in
application of lateral load pattern in both the methods; in case of NTH, the load is
cyclic and reversible which results in larger displacements compared to static forces.
Hence, ESA and RSA being fail to accurately represent the dynamic load.
Plastic hinge status
Hinge status at PP in NSP analysis helps in evaluating the safety levels in struc-
tural components and aids in deciding whether the building is safe to use after the
occurrence of an earthquake. The hinge status at PP as per NSP and NTH analyses
is compared for each model according to the Scenarios 1 to 4 and is summarized in
Tables 7, 8, 9 and 10. From the results obtained on status of plastic hinges across
Table 7 Plastic hinge status for Scenario 1

Model Damage states A-B B-IO IO-LS LS- CP CP- C C-D D-E > E Total
for NSP/NTH
1 PP 621 55 114 24 0 0 0 0 800
Record 1 0 560 240 0 0 0 0 0 800
Record 2 0 560 240 0 0 0 0 0 800
Record 3 0 560 240 0 0 0 0 0 800
2 PP 903 73 27 13 0 0 0 0 1016
Record 1 0 1092 24 0 0 0 0 0 1016
Record 2 0 1092 24 0 0 0 0 0 1016
Record 3 0 1092 24 0 0 0 0 0 1016
3 PP 953 70 0 0 0 1 0 0 1024
Record 1 0 993 0 0 31 0 0 0 1024
Record 2 0 949 12 0 63 0 0 0 1024
Record 3 0 933 24 0 67 0 0 0 1024

for NSP/NTH
1 PP 644 36 24 96 0 0 0 0 800
Record 1 0 669 131 0 0 0 0 0 800
Record 2 0 560 240 0 0 0 0 0 800
Record 3 0 560 240 0 0 0 0 0 800
2 PP 955 37 24 0 0 0 0 0 1016
Record 1 0 992 24 0 0 0 0 0 1016
Record 2 0 992 24 0 0 0 0 0 1016
Record 3 0 991 24 0 1 0 0 0 1016
3 PP 924 80 20 0 0 1 0 0 1024
Record 1 0 930 24 0 70 0 0 0 1024
Record 2 0 951 11 0 62 0 0 0 1024
Record 3 0 931 24 0 69 0 0 0 1024

for NSP/NTH
1 PP 621 179 0 0 0 0 0 0 800
Record 1 0 800 0 0 0 0 0 0 800
Record 2 0 800 0 0 0 0 0 0 800
Record 3 0 800 0 0 0 0 0 0 800
2 PP 976 40 0 0 0 0 0 0 1016
Record 1 0 800 0 0 0 0 0 0 1016
Record 2 0 800 0 0 0 0 0 0 1016
Record 3 0 800 0 0 0 0 0 0 1016
3 PP 927 97 0 0 0 1 0 0 1024
Record 1 0 957 0 0 67 0 0 0 1024
Record 2 0 962 0 0 62 0 0 0 1024
Record 3 0 1024 0 0 0 0 0 0 1024
all the models pertaining to the four scenarios studied, it is seen that, the prediction
of yielding of hinges is varying in each scenario and the models represented and
also based on type of nonlinear analyses performed. With reference to the lateral
stiffness representation across the models, it is observed that the bare frame model
1 overestimates the formation of number of plastic hinges in various performance
levels compared to infilled models in both NSP and NTH analyses. Among the three
models, Model 3 shows better performance in all the scenarios with 90–95% hinges
in the frame elements within IO level as per NTH analysis results. With respect to the

Model Damage A-B B-IO IO-LS LS- CP CP- C C-D D-E >E Total
statesfor
NSP/NTH
1 PP 666 134 0 0 0 0 0 0 800
Record 1 0 800 0 0 0 0 0 0 800
Record 2 0 800 0 0 0 0 0 0 800
Record 3 0 800 0 0 0 0 0 0 800
2 PP 976 40 0 0 0 0 0 0 1016
Record 1 0 800 0 0 0 0 0 0 1016
Record 2 0 800 0 0 0 0 0 0 1016
Record 3 0 800 0 0 0 0 0 0 1016
3 PP 953 70 0 0 0 1 0 0 1024
Record 1 0 996 0 0 28 0 0 0 1024
Record 2 0 996 0 0 28 0 0 0 1024
Record 3 0 1024 0 0 0 0 0 0 1024
type of lateral load pattern along the height of the building (ESA and RSA) and strain
hardening properties of frame elements (default and user-defined hinges), it is seen
that Scenario 4 results in IO levels for all the models in both the methods of analyses.
Since Scenario 4 models the frame elements with user-defined hinges and lateral
load pattern, as per RSA, it is close to the true behaviour of the building. It is also
observed that ESA load pattern predicts severe damage in frame elements compared
to RSA load pattern; this can be attributed to the conservative strength distribution
in frame elements as per ESA pattern which directly affects the damage initiation in
the members of the structure. From the results of Scenarios 1 and 2, it is seen that
the performance levels in both the methods, that is NSP and NTH results, predict
greater damage compared to Scenarios 3 and 4. This can be attributed to higher stain
hardening percentage in user-defined hinges. Therefore, it can be seen that assigning
default hinges to all frame elements can lead to substantial inaccuracy leading to
non-conservative prediction of safety levels of the building. Hence, modelling of
user-defined hinges with force deformation values corresponding to the strength of
the frame element as per RSA load pattern is of prime importance while carrying out
nonlinear analysis (NTH or NSP) using performance-based seismic evaluation. With
reference to the method of analyses, NSP and NTH, the results of both the analyses
show that the NSP analysis predicts severe damage like CP and LS in some of the
frame elements, while it shows conservative estimate of performance levels in other
elements compared to the results obtained from NTH analysis. In the present study,
it is observed that base shear in case of NSP analysis is overestimated by about 20%
compared to that obtained from NTH analysis. Therefore, while evaluating safety
levels as per hinge status obtained from NSP analysis, it is recommended to review
the results considering the overestimation of base shear obtained at PP.
5 Conclusions
In this study, seismic evaluation is carried out by using NSP and NTH analyses
by considering various modelling strategies, viz. stiffness representation of OGS
building, lateral load pattern for NSP and NTH, strain hardening properties of frame
elements so as to interpret effectiveness of each modelling strategy that can be adopted
for OGS building designed to resist DBE. Depending on the results of analysis,
following conclusions are made:
• Base shear predicted at demand earthquake is dependent on the height-wise distri-
bution of lateral load considered in the analysis and design of the building models.
It is concluded that ESA load pattern underestimates the base shear predicted by
NSP and NTH analyses compared to RSA. However, due to its simplicity, the
building is mostly designed using ESA method which will result in underestima-
tion of base shear and will thus affect the redesign decision based on over strength
or under strength of the building.
• Roof displacements obtained using RSA load pattern result in lower roof displace-
ments by about 35% due to distribution of lesser forces at top storey compared to
ESA across all the models as per NSP and NTH results thus affecting the predic-
tion of performance levels based on roof drift ratio. Therefore, adopting ESA load
pattern as a simple approach by the designer results in inaccurate prediction of
performance levels.
• From the results of hinge status across both the methods in all the models, it is
seen that conservative strength distribution in the frame elements in ESA pattern
tends to predict greater damage compared to RSA. Thus, ESA load pattern will
result in inaccurate calculation of performance levels based on hinge status and
thus mislead the designer while deciding the strength of the building. Therefore,
it can be concluded that although the building is designed for same base shear
in both load patterns but the way the load is distributed along the height of the
buildings gives different strength distribution in the frame elements in both the
methods, this results in conservative estimation of performance levels in case of
widely used ESA load pattern.
• It is seen that assigning default hinges to all the frame elements of the building
results in underestimation of design base shear, overestimation of roof displace-
ments as well as prediction of more damage according to formation of plastic
hinges, compared to user-defined hinges, and thus directly affects the perfor-
mance level of the building. Therefore, modelling of user-defined hinges using
moment curvature analysis as per the strength of the frame element is critical
component of performance-based seismic evaluation.
• Consideration of infill stiffness as per the infill pattern in the building is critical to
capture the true performance of the building while carrying out performance-based
design. In the example building considered, bare frame idealization leads to severe
underestimation of base shear by 10–30%, overestimation of roof displacements
by 35% and prediction of greater damage between LS to CP as per hinge status
results in both the analyses, NSP and NTH, compared to infilled Models 2 and 3.
• Prediction of damage events in various frame elements for evaluation safety levels
from the results of NSP analysis can lead to significant inaccuracy while designing
retrofit strategy for existing buildings and design of new buildings based on PBD
concepts. In the present study, it is observed that base shear in case of NSP analysis
is overestimated by about 20% compared to that obtained from NTH analysis.
Therefore, while evaluating safety levels as per hinge status obtained from NSP
analysis, it is recommended to review the results considering the overestimation
of base shear obtained at PP.
• Furthermore, modelling of infill stiffness and additional infills in the OGS,
modelling of user-defined hinges as per strength of frame elements, RSA load
pattern as depicted in Scenario 4—Model 3 will result in roof displacements
closer to the roof displacements likely to be experienced by the OGS RC build-
ings in the event of DBE and thus aid in better prediction of performance levels
of the building.
References
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1508–1517.
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part 1: General provisions for buildings, IS 1893, fifth revision. New Delhi.
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IS 456. New Delhi.
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systems, Computers and Structures Inc.
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buildings part behaviour. The Indian Concrete Journal, 78(8), 31–38.
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for seismic rehabilitation of buildings, Washington.
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ment. Engineering Structures, 23, 878–884.
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reinforced concrete buildings. Engineering Structures, 28, 1494–1502.
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buildings with open ground storey for vehicular parking. Indian Concrete Journal, 78(2),
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Bonfring International Journal of Man Machine Interface, 4, special issue, July 2011.
A Deep Insight into the Design
Methodology of T-Beam Bridge Girders
as Per the Guidelines of IRC: 112–2020
Compared to the Conventional Method
Arka Mandal, Amiya K. Samanta, and Sudipta Ghosh
Abstract This paper attempts to utilize the newer aspects of the limit state design of
T-beam bridge girders as mentioned in IRC: 112-2020 and highlights the noteworthy
improvements over the commonly used conventional methods following IS: 456-
2000. All provisions for the elastic analysis of two-way slabs under concentrated
loads are considered. Certain ambiguous cases of positioning of wheel loads as well
as partially uniformly distributed live load on slab panels based upon the guidelines
of IRC: 06-2017 have been discussed. Depending on the loading pattern, reaction
factors for the longitudinal girders are determined using Courbon’s method. Influence
line diagram for the longitudinal girder has also been discussed for the purpose of
evaluating critical design bending moment and shear force. A simple case study
illustrates the support conditions for the cross girders and the use of weighted bending
moment coefficients and bring out the key message to the designers.
Keywords Design of T-beam bridges · Longitudinal girders · Cross girders ·

Pigeaud’s curve · Courbon’s method · Newmark’s method
1 Introduction
Generally, bridges are defined as a structure that establishes continuity over an

obstacle, mainly caused due to the presence of a river or a valley. Bridges are a very
primitive structure that can be found in nature in the form of a fallen tree trunk over a
flowing river or formed by the collection of rocks and boulders. The early engineers,
or rather builders, took inspiration from these natural evidences and understood that
they can build a way through the river without intervening its course. Thus, making
a simple beam made of a tree trunk placed over rocks [1] and gradually improvising
them as per convenience. Stone arch bridges were developed because they were
more reliable, were able to sustain more loads and had a greater lifespan. Nowadays,
A. Mandal (B) · A. K. Samanta · S. Ghosh

Civil Engineering Department, National Institute of Technology Durgapur, Durgapur, West
Bengal 713209, India
e-mail: am18u10601@btech.nitdgp.ac.in
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4040-8_17
198 A. Mandal et al.
concepts of bridge engineering became more and more advanced, thus resulting in
the development of T-beam bridges, box girder bridges, arch bridges, cable stayed
bridges, truss bridges, and many more. Among all such forms of bridges, the most
common and the most widely used type of bridge is the girder bridges. Astonishingly,
these girder bridges are also found in nature in the form of small stones and aggre-
gates accumulated over fallen trees across a river. The trees act as the girders, and
the accumulated debris serve as the deck slab. Another possible source of inspiration
for the development of this girder-slab bridge system might be the roofing system of
the houses [2].
Now coming to the modern highway bridges, there are three main criteria that must
be fulfilled while designing a bridge. They are: the aesthetics, analysis and planning,
and most importantly practicality or feasibility. Talking of practicality, it includes
mainly the selection of the bridge type which further depends on a few factors namely:
type of the highway, site conditions, construction criteria, and aesthetics [3]. The
structural design of a bridge is dictated mainly by the loading conditions. The ultimate
load-carrying capacity of the bridge must be greater than the imposed loads [4]. Loads
include mainly dead loads and live loads. Dead loads comprise the self-weight of
structural elements and non-structural elements like kerbs and handrail. Live loads or
traffic loads consist mainly of pedestrian and vehicle loads. Environmental loads like
wind, earthquake, temperature, and snow are to be considered [5] depending upon
topography and the span of the bridge. Traffic loads include the Class A loading, Class
B loading, Class 70R W&T, and finally Class A-A loading as per the guidelines of
IRC 06 [6]. Generally, in the highways of India, the girder bridges used are of three
types [7]. First, the slab with longitudinal girders, second is the slab with longitudinal
girders and diaphragm, and third is the slab with longitudinal as well as transverse
girders. Among these three systems, the last one is the most efficient in terms of
stiffness and adequate load distribution mechanism.
Another noteworthy aspect in the structural design of bridges is the philosophy of
design. Previously in India, highway bridges were designed using the working stress
method or the allowable stress design as per IRC 21 [8]. The basic concept of this
method lies in the facts that the materialistic properties of the structural elements are
linear and the adequate safety is ensured by restricting the stress level induced in the
elements due to traffic loads and dead loads are much lower than the actual strength
of the member [9]. This method is very simple but has a set of drawbacks that cannot
be ensured. Some drawbacks are that the materialistic properties are not always linear
in nature under all sorts of loading, it does not provide an adequate measure for the
partial factors of safety, and the sections designed were uneconomical [10]. For this
reason, many designers switched to the guidelines given in IS 456 [11] as it follows
the limit state design. The IS: 456-2000 is not specifically meant for the design of
bridges, but still it was quite sufficient in terms of strength and serviceability. Then,
in the year of 2011, the Indian Roads Congress (IRC) introduced us with IRC: 112-
2011 [12], their code for limit state method of design, specifically meant for highway
bridges. This code contained a set of stricter guidelines as compared to IS: 456-2000.
In the year of 2020, IRC updated the code and this paper points out the fact that why
IRC: 112-2020 [13] must be followed over IS: 456-2000. This paper does contain a
A Deep Insight into the Design Methodology of T-Beam Bridge … 199
case which illustrates the critical wheel load positions and the end conditions of the
girders.
2 Research Significance
This paper depicts a case which is quite frequently encountered but is not discussed
very much. The case where the carriageway width is less than 5 m. This type of
bridges can be seen in the outskirts of urban areas, connecting small industries and
villages. IRC suggests that only a Class A vehicle can pass through the bridge and the
rest of the carriageway is loaded with an UDL of intensity 5 kg/m2 [6]. Application of
Courbon’s method for the partially distributed live load has been discussed here with
illustrative figures. Through this example, a noteworthy point is shown regarding
the design for flexure and shear that at certain times the results from IS: 456-2000
are considered to be uneconomical as compared to that of the results from IRC:
112-2020, thus helping in making larger projects more cost saving.
3 Design Methodology
Limit state refers to that system and combination of loads under which a structure
does not give satisfactory results, both in terms of serviceability and strength. There
are two types of limit states, ultimate limit state (ULS) and serviceability limit state
(SLS) [14]. ULS considers the equilibrium and failure of the constituent structural
elements, and SLS takes into consideration the limit state of crack control, defor-
mation, vibration, and fatigue. Limit state method uses a numerous partial factor of
safety format, thus ensuring the reliability at ultimate and serviceability loads by
underestimating the strength of the material and simultaneously overestimating the
intensity of loading [10].
IRC: 112-2020 suggests that all sections must be plane before and after bending,
the plane of bending must coincide with the principal axis of the element, strain
compatibility must be satisfied for both in tension and in compression, and tensile
stresses are entirely carried by the reinforcements [13]. Another important point given
regarding the effective depth of the member is that we need to consider the most unfa-
vorable depth when there is an abrupt change in depth. For instance, whenever there
is lapping of rods, there is a reduction in depth, then the previous provision is useful.
All these provisions are applicable only when the members are elongated, and the
regions of discontinuity, caused either by variation in geometry or due to extremely
high transverse loading, occur in small portions of the length of the member.
As per IRC: 112-2020, any elastic method can be used for analysis, provided the
method does not permit more than 15% moment redistribution [13]. So, the use of
Pigeaud’s moments or Wester-guard’s theory is recommended. However, ultimate
strength methods like yield like yield line theory can only be used for analysis in
case of accidental loads. In elastic method, generally Pigeaud’s moment method is

used. Pigeaud’s curves can only be used for centrally placed loads. For non-central
loads, suitable superposition techniques can be used. The slab panels are considered
to be simply supported on all four sides, and the corners are restrained from lifting
up. For panels continuous on all four sides, the positive mid span moment can be
taken as 80% of the simply supported case and the negative support moments can be
taken equal to that of the simply supported case. When the longitudinal girders are
interconnected by transverse members, like the deck slab and the cross girders, the
distribution of bending moment and shear force may be calculated using the methods
mentioned in [8] such as Courbon’s method, Hendry and Jaeger’s method, or Morice
and Little’s version of Guyon’s and Massonet’s method.
However, the most frequently used method in India is the Courbon’s method.
This method is applicable only when there is no transverse bending in the bridge,
the transverse flexural stiffness of the bridge is very high and the cross section can
only rotate leading to a linear variation of deflection across the cross section. These
conditions can be satisfied only when the ratio of span to width of the deck lies
between 2 and 4, the number of cross girders should be at least five, the cross girders
should be placed symmetrically, and the ratio of depth of the cross girder to that of the
depth of the longitudinal girder is greater than or equal to 0.75. Apparently, the cross
girders behave like a multiple span continuous beam supported on the longitudinal
girders. In reality, the restraints provided by the longitudinal girders are not exactly
the same as that of continuous beams. Due to the high stiffness value of the girders
and lack of wall or column support underneath, the cross girder behaves somewhat
in between a continuous beam and a fixed beam. For this reason, weighted moments
can be used to find the design moments. The weights (or the multiplying factors)
depend upon the geometry and rigidity of the girders.
4 Material Properties
IRC permits the highest grade of concrete and steel to be used is M90 and Fe600,
respectively [13]. For concrete, the stress strain relationship is given by the expression
⎧ [ ( )n ]
εc
f cd 1 − 1 − , 0 ≤ εc ≤ εc2
σc = εc2 (1)
f cd , εc2 ≤ εc ≤ εcu2
where ‘n’, ‘εc ’, ‘εc2 ’, and ‘εcu2 ’ are the exponent of curve, strain in concrete, strain
at reaching characteristic strength, and ultimate strain, respectively, depending upon
the grade of concrete. ‘f cd ’ is the design compressive strength of concrete. All these
values can be obtained from IRC: 112-2020. However, there are two more simplified
stress blocks are also specified, one is a bilinear curve and the other one is a rectan-
gular block. The limiting strain for concrete is 0.0035 for all grades of concrete up
Fig. 1 Bilinear stress–strain curves
to M60 grade, beyond M60 the limiting strain gradually decreases, values of which
are given in IRC: 112-2020.
For the reinforcing steel, an idealized bilinear curve restricted to a design strain of
0.87 f
90% of the ultimate strain is used. The limiting design yield strain is given by Es y
where ‘f y ’ is the design yield stress and E s is the modulus of elasticity. This value
is lesser than the one given in IS: 456-2000, and this difference plays a key role in
the design methodology. The bilinear stress diagrams for both concrete and steel are
shown in Fig. 1. ‘εc3 ’ and ‘εcu3 ’ in Fig. 1 are from IRC: 112-2020.
5.1 Sample Problem
Consider a bridge having carriageway width 5 m and effective span 10.5 m. Cantilever
footpath 1 m wide on each side and height of kerb 400 mm. Depths of deck slab,
longitudinal girders, and cross girders are 230 mm, 800 mm and 600 mm, respectively.
Weight of railing is 1.5 kN/m. Exposure condition is moderate. Grades of steel and
concrete are M25 and Fe415, respectively. Thickness of bitumen wearing coat is
100 mm. Elevation the bridge is shown in Fig. 2. All dimensions in Fig. 2 are in mm.
5.2 Two-Way Slab Panel Design
There are all total symmetrically placed five cross girders each 500 mm wide. Each
panel of the deck slab is 2670 mm by 1750 mm. Aspect ratio of slab is less than
two, hence a two-way slab. Considering a factored dead load of 7.5 kN/m2 on the
Fig. 2 Elevation of bridge
slab panel is including self-weight. Since carriageway width is less than 5.3 m, the
bridge shall be loaded with is a single lane IRC Class A loading leaving an offset of
at least 150 mm from the kerb, and rest of the carriage way is loaded with uniformly
distributed load having a value of 500 kg/m2 . Using Pigeaud’s moments, the moment
values are found out for various wheel load positions by using suitable superposition
principles [15]. Dispersed dimensions ‘u’ and ‘v’ for wheel dimensions ‘f ’ and ‘g’,
respectively, and for wearing coat thickness ‘t w ’ and panel dimensions ‘L’ and ‘B’
are given by the expressions
⎧
u = f + 2tw
(2)
v = g + 2tw
Moment coefficients ‘m1 ’ and ‘m2 ’ are determined from Pigeaud’s charts based
upon BL , Bu , Lv . The span moments ‘M 1 ’ and ‘M 2 ’ are determined using the
expressions
⎧
M1 = (m 2 + νm 1 )P
(3)
M2 = (m 1 + νm 2 )P
where ‘ν’ is the Poisson’s ratio for concrete, whose value is to be taken as 0.2 as per
IRC: 112-2020, and ‘P’ is the total load.
5.3 Cantilever Slab Design
IRC: 06-2017 suggests that a minimum gap of 150 mm should be maintained from
the kerb for a class A vehicle. In reality, there is a high chance that this clause is not
followed. So, the designer should be aware and take necessary provisions. Effective
breadth of dispersion of load is given by the expression
Table 1 Equivalent dispersed UDL for point loads

Code P (kN) a (m) b (m) beff (m) load (kN/m)
IRC:112 50 1 0.9 1.9 26.31
IS:456 50 1 0.7 1.7 29.41
beff = 1.2a + b (4)
where ‘a’ is the distance of center of gravity of the loads and ‘b’ is breadth of
concentration area. IRC: 112-2020 considers an extra provision by adding twice the
thickness of wearing coat while measuring breadth of concentration area [13]. In this
case, we are assuming a point load of 50 kN acting on the cantilever slab at a distance
of 1 m. Table 1 shows the bending moments and effective width of dispersion of load
calculated as per IRC: 112-2020 and IS: 456-2000.
From this, it is very clear that IS: 456-2000 makes the section quite uneconomical.
A similar case can be seen for simply supported one way slabs as well.
5.4 Courbon’s Method
The distribution factor for live loads is given by the expression considering the fact
that all the girders have same second moment of inertia.
[ ]
Pi 1 ne
R.F. = = 1 + Σn 2
(5)
P n i=1 di
where ‘P’ is the resultant live load, ‘Pi ’ is the load in the ‘i’th girder, ‘d i ’ is the
distance between the CL(centerline) of the deck and CL of the girder, ‘n’ is the number
of longitudinal girders, and ‘e’ is the distance between the applied resultant load and
L of the deck. Girders are named ‘A’, ‘B’, and ‘C’, respectively, from the left as
C
shown in Fig. 3.
Using the above expression, reaction factors are computed as per the arrangements
shown in Fig. 3. The results are shown in Table 2.
One thing is to be noted here that due to the position of resultants of the UDL and
the Class A vehicle, respectively, no girder will receive the maximum shares from
the two loads simultaneously.
Fig. 3 Live load position on deck
Table 2 Reaction factors for

Girder Class A UDL
live loads
A 0.65 0.06
B 0.33 0.33
C 0.02 0.61
5.5 Computation of Absolute Maximum Longitudinal

Bending Moment:
Since the bridge is only 10.5 m long, it is unable to accommodate a Class A vehicle
completely, whose overall length is 20.3 m and distance between first and last axle
is 18.5 m. So, multiple cases considering the portion of the vehicle accommodated
within the span are to be analyzed for maximum bending moment and shear force.
Bending moment in the longitudinal direction can be calculated in the conventional
method by constructing influence line diagrams. For absolute maximum bending
moment, the subset of wheels is placed in such a way that the midpoint between
center of gravity (CG) of the loads and its nearest load coincides with the CL of the
bridge. In this case, the critical load is the load nearest to the CG of the system of
loads.
However, a better approach is proposed by [16] which takes into account the dead
load as well as the impact factor simultaneously. This improved method has been
utilized in this paper to evaluate the value of maximum bending moment. Figure 4
shows the wheel load arrangement. Impact factor is calculated as per IRC: 06-2017.
The computed values are given in Table 3.
‘x̄’ and ‘x c ’ are the positions of the resultant load and the critical load, respectively,
from the first load. ‘I’, ‘R’, ‘w’, ‘m’, ‘S m ’, and ‘M’ are the impact factor [17],
resultant wheel load, intensity of dead load, modification factor, distance between
Fig. 4 Wheel load arrangement for maximum bending moment
Table 3 Results for maximum bending moment

x̄ xc I R w m Sm M
4.25 m 4.3 m 0.27 323 kN 7.5 kN/m 0.9 0.045 m 460 kNm
centerline and critical load, and resultant bending moment, respectively. Meanings
of the symbols have been preserved as in the reference paper [16].
M max ≈ 460 kNm. Therefore, factored moment is 700 kNm. Additional moments
from cantilever slab, kerb, pedestrian loads, wearing coat, and other miscellaneous
are assumed to be 700 kNm(factored). For maximum shear force, the wheel loads are
placed in such a manner that one of the support reactions is maximum. That comes
out to be 260 kN.
For the uniformly distributed live load of intensity 500 kg/m2 , factored BM and
SF are 105 kNm and 40 kN, respectively. Total moment resisted by girder ‘A’ is ≈
(0.65 × 1400) + (0.06 × 105) = 916 kNm.
Table 4 draws a comparison between the design results from IRC: 112-2020 and
IS: 456-2000 side by side.
where ‘Xu,lim ’, ‘b’, ‘d’, ‘f ck ’, ‘Z’, ‘C’, ‘M lim ’, and ‘pt,lim ’ are the limiting depth
of neutral axis of the section, width of the section, effective depth, characteristic
strength of concrete, lever arm, compressive force in concrete, limiting moment of
resistance, and limiting percentage of steel, respectively. From this table, this is quite
evident that results from IS: 456-2000 makes the section over-reinforced, which
is extremely undesirable. So, it is clear that IRC: 112-2020 gives better results by
making the section safer and at the same time more economic. The percentage of
tensile steel reinforcement ‘pt ’ can be determined from this equation
206
Table 4 Comparison of IRC: 112-2020 and IS: 456-2000

x u,lim
Code d b (mm) d (mm) f ck (MPa) Xu,lim (mm) Z (mm) C (kN) M lim (kNm) pt,lim
IRC:112 0.66 500 700 25 462 505.96 2090.55 1057.735 1.654342
IS:456 0.479 500 700 25 335.3 559.174 1517.233 848.397 1.200651
A. Mandal et al.
Table 5 Results using IRC: 112-2020

Mu pt Ast K ρ1 V rd,c V rdc,min
/
kN pt 1 pt 2 mm2 1+ 200
d kN kN
916 1 4 3500 1.53 0.01 171.5 101.5

α cw z ν1 f cd θ V rd,max Asw /s s
mm MPa MPa degrees kN mm2/mm mm
1 630 0.551613 11.167 45 970.1782 1.32 525
( p )[ f y ( pt )
]
t
Mu = 0.87 f y 1− bd2 (6)
100 f ck 100
where ‘f y ’ is the characteristic strength of steel and other symbols are already defined.
This is a quadratic equation between the applied moment ‘M u ’ and ‘pt ’, while all other
parameters are constant. Now this equation will yield two values of ‘pt ’ and there
is a possibility that both the roots of the equation are real. In this case, the selection
criteria will be based upon the limiting value, as tabulated in Table 4. Sometimes it is
observed that designers skip the limiting value of reinforcement check, because they
think that designing for a moment having a value lower than the limiting moment
capacity does the job. In this example, we have tried to incorporate this scenario.
Table 5 shows some of the calculations.
‘Mu’, ‘pt ’, ‘Ast ’, ‘ρ 1 ’, ‘V rdc ’, ‘V rdc,min ’, ‘α cw ’, ‘z’, ‘ν 1 ’, ‘f cd ’, ‘θ ’, ‘V rd,max ’, ‘Asw ’,
and ‘s’ stand for applied moment, percentage of steel, area of tensile steel, rein-
forcement ratio, shear strength of concrete without shear reinforcements, minimum
shear strength of concrete without shear reinforcements, a constant having value
equal to unity, lever arm, reduction factor, design strength of concrete, stirrup incli-
nation, design shear strength of concrete, area of stirrups, and spacing of stirrups,
respectively. IRC: 112-2020 [13] suggests that lever arm shall be taken as 90% of
the effective depth.
All these calculations are based on IRC: 112-2020, and the notations have been
preserved. Despite using a lower value of bending moment for designing the section,
we got a redundant value. To ensure that the redundant value is not taken into consid-
eration, the limiting value of ‘pt ’ should be checked, or else the structure will be
severely over-reinforced.
5.6 Cross Girder Analysis
The cross girders run orthogonal to the longitudinal girders. They provide stiffness
to the bridge deck and help in proper load distribution. As discussed earlier, the
exact end conditions for the girders are unknown and hence, we use the method of
weighted moments [18]. Depending upon the geometry and positions of the girders,
weight factors are assigned. In this case, we have given two-thirds of weights to the
fixed beam nature because of the short span, and one-thirds of the weights to the
continuous nature since there are no direct supports underneath. Figure 5 shows the
bending moment diagrams for all the four cases, of a two span continuous beam
carrying symmetrically placed point loads and UDL, and a two span fixed beam
similar loadings.
Now assigning weights to the moment coefficients show in Fig. 5. Results are
computed in Table 6.
One can change the multiplying factors as per convenience and needs. The wheel
loads have to be placed symmetrically about the centerline of the deck in order to
get the maximum bending moment. Two evaluate the bending moment coefficients,
one may use numerical methods like “Newmark’s method” as given in IS SP 6(2)
[19] instead of the conventional methods like the “three moment equations”, “slope
deflection method”, and “moment distribution method”.
In Newmark’s method, we divide the beam into equal number of elements and
apply an equivalent concentrated at each end point of the elements. The case for a
uniformly distributed load is shown in Fig. 6. This method gives an approximate
result, but for complicated loading cases, it proves to be less bulky and more efficient
as compared to other methods.
Fig. 5 Bending moment diagram for various load cases
Table 6 Weighted moment coefficients

1 2
Load type Mult. Fact 3 3 Final moments
UDL Positive 0.07WL 0.042WL 0.051WL
negative 0.125WL 0.083WL 0.097WL
Point Load Positive 0.203WL 0.125WL 0.151WL
negative 0.188WL 0.125WL 0.146WL
Fig. 6 Newmark’s method

for UDL [19]
6 Conclusions
This paper illustrates the latest aspects of the limit state design of T-beam bridge
girders as mentioned as per IRC: 112-2020 with the help of an example. It is found
that IS: 456-2000 gives rise to the section that at times may be uneconomical. Based
on this study, the following conclusions may be drawn:
• For one way slabs subjected to point loads, the applied moment is larger in case
of IS: 456-200 than that of IRC: 112-2020.
• The reaction factors for the vehicle load and the uniformly distributed live load do
not reach its highest value simultaneously for a particular end longitudinal girder.
• IRC allows a lesser limiting strain value for steel, thus lowering the depth of the
neutral axis of a section.
• Limiting value for percentage of steel must be taken into consideration while
solving quadratic equations in the form of Eq. (6).
• While computing weighted moments, it has been observed that the coefficients
for positive and negative moments are almost same for point load, whereas the
coefficient for negative moments is almost twice that of the coefficient for positive
moments for UDL.
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Damage Detection in T-Beam
Bridges Using Transmissibility
of Vibration Signals
S. Lakshmi and M. Gayathri Devi
Abstract Over the recent years, research studies across the world have focused
immensely in the field of structural health monitoring. The significance of many civil
infrastructures, like bridges and buildings, that are exposed to complex loadings and
extreme environmental conditions (Seo J et al., J Performance Construct Facilities
ASCE 30(4), 2015 [1]), makes it necessary to continuously monitor their performance
level as well as safety during daily operations. Vibration-based damage detection
methods have been among the most popular methods of structural health monitoring
(Al-Jailawi and Rahmatalla in J Civil Struct Health Monitor 8:649–659, 2018 [2])
The objective of this study is to develop a damage detection method for massive
and critical structures using transmissibility and coherence functions of the angular
velocity signals (Al-Jailawi and Rahmatalla in J Civil Structural Health Monitor
8:649–659, 2018 [2]) from the structure under vibration. A comparison between the
conventional and the proposed method is also carried out.
Keywords Structural health monitoring · Vibration-based damage detection ·

Transmissibility · Coherence · Angular velocity · Damage index
1 Introduction
A structure may be damaged when it is subjected to severe loading, as in a strong

earthquake or when its material deteriorates. Over the past decade, monitoring
the structural health of buildings and civil infrastructure has attracted considerable
interest among nations and their professionals [3]. Loss of life, properties, and the
associated impacts in all sectors of life and economy can be reduced through exer-
cising and devising better infrastructure monitoring methods [4]. The process of
structural health monitoring (SHM) involves a series of procedures that are to be
S. Lakshmi (B) · M. Gayathri Devi

Civil Engineering Department, Saintgits College of Engineering, Kottukulam Hills, Pathamuttom
PO, Kottayam, Kerala 686532, India
e-mail: lakshmi.s1820@saintgits.org
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4040-8_18
212 S. Lakshmi and M. Gayathri Devi
followed in the overall assessment of the condition of a structure. Preliminary inves-

tigations include visual inspection and minor on-site, and offsite tests which form
the initial step that provides conclusions regarding the procedures to be followed
thereafter. The secondary stage of SHM involves the detailed inspection of the struc-
ture and estimation of its damage scenario as well as expected life. Approaches to
structural health monitoring (SHM) can be classified as local or global. Global struc-
tural health monitoring conventionally involves vibration-based (acceleration-based)
methods, which identify structural damage by detecting changes to the modal prop-
erties of the structure, such as in its modal frequencies, modal damping, or mode
shapes, and are economical and convenient ways to evaluate the damage to struc-
tures [1]. Transmissibility is a vibration parameter that has shown very encouraging
results in various studies across the world. In the context of structure undergoing
vibrations as a result of external loading, transmissibility can be defined in terms of
a transformation matrix between two sets of displacements, as was first presented in
1998. It can be expressed as a relation between displacements—or any other form of
response, such as velocity or acceleration, regardless of the magnitude of the applied
loads. The only thing that matters about loads is their location. Load transmissibility
is a term that is defined as the ratio between the transmitted load (the ground reaction)
and the applied load, for harmonic excitation in SDOF structure [5]. The objective of
this term is to establish a linear transformation between two sets of loads, namely the
“known set of loads” and the “unknown set of loads”. In this study, transmissibility
in terms of the acceleration and angular velocity is used. It has been suggested that,
at a certain frequency band or at peaks of the transmissibility function that have less
sensitivity to noise and environmental effects, this function can be more effectively
used [2].
2 Literature Review
Krishnanunni et al. [4], used vibration data and static displacement measurements to
detect and quantify structural damages [4]. Al-Jailawi and Rahmatalla [2], presented
a new damage detection approach using the transmissibility and coherence func-
tions of the output angular velocity [2]. Al-Jailawi, Rahmatalla [3], developed a new
methodology to detect damage in structures based on a parameter called power spec-
tral density (PSD) of the angular velocity during vibration [3]. They carried out works
on small-scale steel beam models and proved the efficiency of the devised method.
However, the efficiency of this method in large, complex structures is to be studied.
This forms the major objective of this work. Pablo et al. [6], presented a state-of-the-
art review of the various vibration monitoring and signal processing techniques used
for structural health monitoring operations. These methods and techniques help in
collecting, processing, visualizing, and analyzing the data collected in any method of
work [7, 8]. They discussed an extensive collection of different works and summa-
rizes that every method is developed based on the specific conditions of a particular
structure that is studied [9, 10]. They also pointed out that, although a large amount
Damage Detection in T-Beam Bridges Using Transmissibility … 213
of works has been reported in SHM, it is restricted to small and academic prob-
lems alone, and monitoring complex and smart structures is challenging [6]. This is
because of the huge amount of noise in the data collected and proposes the need for
new methods that are resilient to external noises. Schallhorn and Rahmatalla [11],
introduced a new vibration-based damage detection methodology. They developed
the idea of a percent violation and two alarm severities, namely watch and warning
to indicate damage or loss of integrity [11].
3 Validation of the Work
Validation of the work is carried out to verify the results that are obtained from
this study. For this purpose, a pin-ended steel beam is used as the model. The
beam is 0.6096 m in length and a rectangular cross-section of 0.0254 m width and
0.00635 m depth [2]. Young’s modulus value of the material is 204.77 GPa, and
density is 7860 kg/m3 . The beam is modeled as a shell element in ANSYS Work-
bench 16.0. Most of the civil engineering structures are subjected to large loads acting
in short durations. These loads are called impulse loads, which produce change in
the momentum of the structure. Since the impulse load is a time-varying load, the
responses of the structure to this load also vary in time. In order to bring about this
time-varying nature of the external loading system, transient analysis is carried out.
An impulse point loading of 4.45 N/s at 0.127 m is applied on the beam from its right
support.
Transient analysis is carried out, and the acceleration values of the beam at two
response collection nodes (node 3 and node 4) are obtained for the healthy beam.
Damage is then introduced to the beam by reducing the stiffness (Young’s modulus
value) by 5% at a location 0.127 m from the left end of the beam. This is achieved
by splitting the beam at the location and providing the 5% reduced Young’s modulus
value as the property of that section.
The maximum acceleration values at node 3 and node 4 are, respectively,
0.0992 m/s2 and 0.1021 m/s2 . The corresponding values from the work of Al-Jailawi
and Rahmatalla are 0.0959 m/s2 and 0.0982 m/s2 [2]. The obtained results therefore
have a minor variation of 3.44% and 3.97%, respectively, from the corresponding
values in reference journal. The minor variation in obtained results may be due to
change in the software used. Thus, the work has been validated.
The beam model with the selected nodes 3 and 4 and the point of load application
marked is shown in Fig. 1 given below.
4 Methodology
The primary objective of this work is to determine the damage index value of a
T-beam bridge structure using changes in the transmissibility of angular velocity
Fig. 1 Validation beam model; a Nodes selected, b Load application
and to compare the same with the damage index based on the transmissibility of
acceleration. The modal parameters of acceleration and angular velocity have been
studied by Al-Jailawi, Rahmatalla in their study and have successfully proved the
efficiency of angular velocity over acceleration in the case of small-scale simple
structural elements like steel beams. However, the application and efficiency of this
method in complex structures like bridges have not been studied. In order to mitigate
this research gap, the above said parameters are used for this study.
To have an understanding of the behavior of steel structures to the proposed
damage detection method, a steel T-beam bridge of 20 m span and 7.5 m clear width
for the roadway is considered for the study from literature survey. The bridge has
three main girders and four cross girders both having a width of 300 mm and a depth
of 1600 mm from the top of the slab deck. The slab has an overall thickness of
280 mm (inclusive of 80-mm wearing coat). The main girders are spaced at 2.5 m c/c
and the cross girders at 4 m c/c. The slab deck is simply supported over the girders.
The density and Young’s modulus value of steel used is 7850 kg/m3 and 2 × 1011 Pa,
respectively.
(i) Modeling and Analysis
The bridge model for the study is created in ANSYS Workbench 16.0 software
and is shown in Fig. 1. The slab of the bridge is simply supported over the
girders. The slab is modeled as a shell element because the ratio of depth of
slab to its length is less than 0.6. This reduces the computational time and also
the complexity of the analysis. An impulse load of 10 kN/s is applied at the
midpoint of the slab deck. Transient analysis is carried out, and angular velocity
and acceleration at node 1 and node 2 are determined. Transient analysis is a
flexible dynamic analysis that can be used to find out the dynamic response of a
structure under the action of any general time-dependent loads. The mesh size
was adopted based on a trial-and-error mesh convergence study. The meshing
of model is done into square elements of 0.002 m size at which similar results
have been obtained for the consequent mesh sizes. Fine meshing is done so as
to attain greater accuracy for the results. The element size is selected based on
the size and location of the damage. The deck and the girders are meshed in the
similar manner.
The damaged bridge model is created by inducing a 10% reduction in the Young’s
modulus value of the bridge at the mid-span of the slab. The damaged area is 500 mm
× 500 mm. Two nodes are selected for collecting the response of the structure from
impact loading, at two points, 1 m away from the midpoint of the slab deck, on to
either side. The nodes 1 and 2 are labeled as B and C, respectively, in Fig. 2 given.
Transient analysis of the bridge structure in ANSYS is carried out to obtain the
angular velocity and acceleration values at the two selected nodes. The corresponding
results of the healthy and damaged bridge structure are obtained in the form of time
domain signals.
(ii) Signal Processing in MATLAB

The obtained values in the time domain are converted into frequency domain
using the signal analyzer application in MATLAB R2018a software. Power
spectral density graphs are obtained which contain significant information
about the energy of the signals. These graphs are analyzed to find the coherence
between the signals collected from the two nodes using the equation: (1) given
below;
| |
| Si j (ω)|2
γi j (ω) = (1)
Sii (ω) × S j j (ω)
Fig. 2 Undamaged model with selected nodal points and loading point
where
Yi j (ω) is the coherence between the output acceleration/angular velocity signals
at locations i and j.
Si j (ω) is the cross-spectral density between the output acceleration/angular
velocity signals at locations i and j.
Sii (ω) is the auto-spectral density of the output acceleration/angular velocity
signal at location i.
S j j (ω) is the auto-spectral density of the output acceleration/angular velocity
signal at location j.
The frequency range where the coherence function has unity value is selected as
the range of frequency for finding the transmissibility function which is given by the
equation (2):
Yi (ω)
Ti j (ω) = (2)
Y j (ω)
where
Yi (ω) is the output acceleration/angular velocity signal at location i as a function
of frequency ω
Y j (ω) is the output acceleration/angular velocity signal at location j as a function
of frequency ω
Damage index of the structure gives a relative indication of the location of any
damage in the structure. This is through comparison of the change in modal parameter
of acceleration and angular velocity of the damaged structure with the undamaged,
baseline structure. It is calculated using the equation [2]:
Ti Dj (ϕ) − Ti Bj L (ϕ)
DI = (3)
Ti Bj L (ϕ)
where
Ti Dj (ϕ) is the transmissibility value corresponding to a frequency ϕ for the
damaged structure;
Ti Bj L (ϕ) is the transmissibility value corresponding to a frequency ϕ for the
baseline (healthy) structure;
ϕ is the frequency corresponding to the maximum coherence value.
The time domain signals of angular velocity and acceleration responses from the
two nodes are converted into corresponding frequency domains in MATLAB. The
sampling frequency was taken as 100 Hz. The time domain signals and their corre-
sponding power spectral density (PSD) graphs are shown below. Power spectral
density graph represents the distribution of energy of the signals over the frequen-
cies of the signals. The PSD graph is required for selecting the angular velocity value
from the two nodes when there is maximum coherence between the signals, which
cannot be determined from the time domain signals.
Coherence between these PSD graphs of the two nodes is determined, and it was
found that coherence becomes maximum (unity) in the frequency range of 15–30 Hz.
The acceleration and angular velocity values corresponding to this frequency range
are determined for both damaged and undamaged bridge models from corresponding
PSD graphs as shown in Figs. 3, 4, 5, and 6, respectively. In Fig. 3, the acceleration
signals in their time domain and the corresponding PSD graph from the selected nodes
of the damaged structure are shown. Violet color graph represents acceleration signal
at node 1, and the green color graph represents the acceleration signal at node 2. In
Fig. 4, the acceleration signals from the undamaged structure are shown. The blue
color graph represents the acceleration signals at node 1 values, and the green color
represents the acceleration signals at node 2.
From the PSD graph, it can be seen that, maximum coherence between the accel-
eration signals from the two nodes is obtained at 15 Hz frequency and 30 Hz for
damaged and undamaged structure. The corresponding values of acceleration in the
time domain signal are 15.5 m/s2 , 19.4 m/s2 and 14.0 m/s2 and 17.3 m/s2 .
In Figs. 5 and 6, the angular velocity signals from the two nodes of the damaged
structure are shown. The time domain signal and also the PSD graph is shown. In
Fig. 5, the red color graph represents angular velocity signal at node 1, and the green
color graph represents the angular velocity at node 2. Similarly, in Fig. 6, the red color
graph represents the angular velocity value at node 1, and the orange color graph
Fig. 3 Acceleration values at the two nodes corresponding to 15 Hz frequency (damaged model)
Fig. 4 Acceleration values at the two nodes corresponding to 30 Hz frequency (undamaged model)
represents angular velocity at node 2 of the undamaged structure. From the PSD
graph, it can be seen that, maximum coherence between the angular velocity signals
from the two nodes is obtained at 15 Hz frequency for damaged and undamaged
structure. The corresponding values of angular velocity in the time domain signal
are 1.7 × 10–7 , −3 × 10–6 , and 1.9 × 10–7 , −3.4 × 10–6 .
Fig. 5 Angular velocity values at the two nodes corresponding to 15 Hz frequency (damaged
model)
Fig. 6 Angular velocity values at the two nodes corresponding to 15 Hz frequency (undamaged
model)
Table 1 Obtained values of transmissibility and damage index

Frequency Hz T a BL T aD T ω BL T ωD D.I a D.I ω
15 0.794 0.798 17.89 17.65 0.00503 0.0134
20 0.810 0.8 7.272 7.727 0.0123 0.0625
25 0.798 0.805 7.473 7.5 0.0087 0.0036
30 0.809 0.810 9.8 10.48 0.00123 0.0689
The above figures represent that, the input and output signals exhibit maximum
coherence and thereby minimum signal loss in the frequency range of 15–30 Hz.
Thus, all the signal properties can be exactly detected in this range of frequency
without the interference of noise. The transmissibility of acceleration, as well as
angular velocity, is then calculated as discussed in Sect. 4 (ii) using Eqs. 1 and 2.
The obtained transmissibility and damage index values are given in Table 1.
The damage index for the structure is then calculated as the average value of
damage indices for the four different frequency values taken in this range. The
obtained average damage index values are as follows:
Average D.I from acceleration = 0.006815.
Average D.I from angular velocity = 0.0371.
From the obtained values of average damage indices, the maximum value for
damage index is obtained when the damage index was calculated using angular
velocity. This indicates the superiority of angular velocity over acceleration by about
80% in detecting and localizing the damage which is shown in the form of a chart
given below in Fig. 7.
0.04
0.035
0.03
0.025
0.02 D.I for 5% DAMAGED
0.015 MODEL
0.01
0.005
0
Ang. Velocity Acceleration
Fig. 7 Chart showing comparison between damage indices based on transmissibility of angular
velocity and transmissibility of acceleration
6 Conclusion
Structural damage detection and health evaluation is a topic that is extensively

researched. In this study, a new damage detection method for T-beam bridge struc-
tures is proposed that utilizes the changes in the transmissibility and coherence func-
tions of angular velocity for localizing damage. A finite element model of a steel
T-beam bridge is created and analyzed in ANSYS for this purpose.
The results conclude that angular velocity is about 80% more accurate in local-
izing the damage than acceleration. Therefore, it is a better response parameter for
detecting damages in structures than the conventional parameter of acceleration. The
acceleration signals collected from the structure carry a high level of errors from the
influence of gravity and external environmental noises. The higher damage index
value for angular velocity indicates that it is less affected by the above said factors
and thus proves to be an efficient method for structural damage detection, especially
in complex structures and environments.
References
1. Seo, J., Hu, J. W., & Lee, J. (2015). Summary review of structural health monitoring applications
for highway bridges Journal of Performance of Constructed Facilities, ASCE, 30(4).
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velocity versus acceleration. Journal of Civil Structural Health Monitoring, 8, 649–659.
3. Al-Jailawi, S., & Rahmatalla, S. (2017). Damage detection in structures using angular velocity.
Journal of Civil Structural Health Monitoring, 7, 359–373.
4. Krishnanunni, C. G., Sethu, R. R., Nandan, D., Midhun, C. K., Sajith, A. S., & Ameen,
M. (2019). Sensitivity-based damage detection algorithm for structures using vibration data.
Journal of Civil Structural Health Monitoring, 9(1), 137–151.
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degree-of-freedom systems. In International conference of noise and vibration engineering
(ISMA2006). https://doi.org/10.13140/2.1.4425.3126
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health monitoring of smart structures. Archives of Computational Methods in Engineering, 23,
1–15.
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optimization through Bayesian experimental design. ASCE-ASME Journal of Risk and
Uncertainty in Engineering Systems, Part A: Civil Engineering, 4(2).
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ASCE benchmark problem: A review. Journal of Civil Structural Health Monitoring, 8, 689–
718.
9. Chan, T. H. T., Li, J., & Caprani, C. (2018). Structural identification and evaluation for SHM
applications. Journal of Civil Structural Health Monitoring, 8(5), 719–720.
10. Clemente, P. (2018). Extending the life-span of cultural heritage structures. Journal of Civil
Structural Health Monitoring, 8, 171–179.
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steel-girder bridges. Structural Health Monitoring, 14(3), 281–299.
Bending Characteristics of FG-CNT
Reinforced Composite Face Sheet
Sandwich Panel with 3D Graphene Foam
Core
S. Swetha, P. Thamilselvi, Vinod Bhagat, and M. P. Arunkumar
Abstract This paper presents the bending characteristics of the functionally graded
carbon nano-tube (FG-CNT) reinforced polymer composite face sheet sandwich
panel with three-dimensional graphene foam core (3DGrFC). Stress resultants are
calculated by integrating the stress expression over the thickness of graphene core
and FG-CNT face sheets. These stress resultants are used in principle of virtual work.
The displacement fields are given in terms of sinusoidal shear deformation theory
(SSDT). The effect of combinations of FG-CNT and porosity coefficient of 3DGrFC
on bending characteristics are analyzed. From the results, it is observed that the
deflection of FG-VΛ CNT faces with NVPC 3DGrFC has lesser deflection values
among all other cases. Furthermore, it is observed as porosity coefficient of 3DGrFC
increases the deflection of the panel also increases.
Keywords Bending analysis · Sinusoidal shear deformation theory · Nano

composites · 3D graphene foam · Sandwich panel
S. Swetha (B) · P. Thamilselvi

Division of Structural Engineering, Department of Civil Engineering, College of Engineering
Guindy, Anna University, Chennai 600025, India
e-mail: swetha.job23@gmail.com
V. Bhagat
Department of Shipbuilding Engineering, Institute of Shipbuilding Technology, Vasco Da Goma,
Goa 403802, India
M. P. Arunkumar
State Key Laboratory for Strength and, Vibration of Mechanical Structures, Shaanxi Key
Laboratory of Environment and Control for Flight Vehicle, School of Aerospace Engineering,
Xi’an Jiaotong University, Xi’an 710049, People’s Republic of China
Department of Mechanical Engineering, Koneru Lakshmaiah Education Foundation,
Vaddeswaram, Guntur, Andhra Pradesh 522502, India
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4040-8_19
224 S. Swetha et al.
1 Introduction
The sandwich panels are highly used in aerospace, mechanical, marine and civil appli-
cations for its high strength. Recently, three-dimensional graphene foam (3DGrF)
proves to be efficient in multi-field applications. Similarly, carbon nano tubes play a
vital role in the research to enhance the mechanical properties of the composites [1–
3]. In this regard, present paper proposes a sandwich model with FG-CNT faces with
3DGrF core. Zhao et al. [4] reviewed a mechanical analyses of graphene platelet.
They have discussed models for the prediction of mechanical properties of graphene
platelet composites. Duc et al. [5] analyzed the static and dynamic behaviors of the
S-FGM cylindrical panels. The study includes the effect of oblique stiffeners and
elastic foundation. Mantari et al. [6] analyzed laminated composite plate based on
the combination of exponential and trigonometric functions. They validated their
results with existing literature. Ghugal and Kulkarni [7] analyzed the bending char-
acteristics of laminated plate under mechanical and thermal loadings. Ghugal and
Sayyad [8] carried out the stress analysis of laminated plate subjected to line and
parabolic load using trigonometric shear deformation theory. In this paper, SSDT
is utilized to analyze the bending characteristics of newly proposed FG-CNT faces
with 3DGRF core sandwich panel.
2 Mathematical Formulation
Figure 1 shows the FG-CNT faces with 3DGrF core sandwich panel. The axis z = 0
is chosen as the mid surface.
The displacement field and shape function for third order shear deformation theory
is given as
a b
Fig. 1 a Sandwich panel and b forces and moments acting on the sandwich panel
Bending Characteristics of FG-CNT Reinforced Composite Face … 225
∂w0
u(x, y, z, t ) = u 0 (x, y, t) − z + ψ(z)φx
∂x
∂w0 (1)
v(x, y, z, t) = v0 (x, y, t) − z + ψ(z)φ y
∂y
w(x, y, z, t) = w0 (x, y, t)
where u, v and w are the displacement component along x-, y- and z-axes, respectively.
u 0 , v0 and w0 are the displacement component of a point in the mid plane along x-, y-
and z-axes, respectively. φx and φ y are the rotations about y- and x-axes, respectively.
The polynomial shape function for sinusoidal shear deformation theory is given
as
h (πz )
ψ(z) = sin (2)
π h
The strain to the displacement field is shown in Eq. 3
∂u 0 ∂ 2 w0 ∂φx
εx x = −z + ψ(z)
∂x ∂x 2 ∂x
∂v0 ∂ 2 w0 ∂φ y
ε yy = −z + ψ(z)
∂y ∂ y2 ∂y
[ ]
∂u 0 ∂v0 ∂ w0
2
∂φx ∂φ y
Yx y = + − 2z + ψ(z) + (3)
∂y ∂x ∂ x∂ y ∂y ∂x
∂ψ(z)
Yx z = φx
∂z
∂ψ(z)
Y yz = φy
∂z
The stress–strain relation for corresponding layer is given as

⎧ ⎫ ⎡ ⎤⎧ ⎫
⎨ σx x ⎬ C11 C12 0 ⎨ εx x ⎬ ⎧ ⎞ [ ]⎧ ⎞
⎣ ⎦ σ yz C44 0 ϒ yz
σ = C12 C22 0 ε ; = (4)
⎩ yy ⎭ ⎩ yy ⎭ σx z 0 C55 ϒx z
σx y 0 0 C66 εx y
The different grading patterns of FG-CNT and 3DGrF are given in Fig. 2.
The abbreviations used for 3DGrF are UVP refers uniformly varying porosity,
NVPC refers non uniform varying maximum at center and NVPS refers non uniform
varying porosity maximum at surface, whereas UD refers uniformly distributed.
Also, it is visualized that FG-ΛV and FG-VΛ as a well-known FGO and FGX
grading pattern, respectively.
The properties for various grading pattern for CNT face and 3DGrF core are
calculated from [9] and [10], respectively.
Fig. 2 Grading pattern, a UVP 3DGrF core with UD&UD CNT faces, b NVPC 3DGrF core with
FG-VΛ CNT faces, c NVPS 3DGrF core with FG-ΛV CNT faces, d NVPC 3DGrF core with
FG-ΛV CNT faces and e NVPS 3DGrF core with FG-VΛ CNT faces
√
v∗ = 2.73
v; (5)
/
πz πz
1 − η0 [1 − cos ) = 2.73
1 − cos (6)
h h
/
πz πz
1 − η0∗ [1 − cos ) = 2.73 1 − η∗ [1 − cos ] (7)
h h
E(z) ρ(z) 2.73
=( ) (8)
E1 ρ1
The material properties of graphene mentioned as G1 , E 1 and ρ1 refer to shear

modulus, elastic modulus and density. (η∗ , η), (η0∗ , η0 ) and (υ∗ , υ) refer to mass
density and porosity coefficients of NVPC, NVPS and UVP, respectively. The
principle of virtual work is
∫ δU dv + ∫ q(x, y)δwd A = 0 (9)
where δU is the virtual strain energy and q is the external force.

The virtual strain energy is
∂δu 0 ∂ 2 δw0 ∂δφx ∂δv0 ∂ 2 δw0

δU = ∫ N x x − Mx x + S x x + N yy − M yy
∂x ∂x2 ∂x ∂y ∂y
∂δψ y ∂δv0 ∂δv0 ∂ 2 δw0
+ S yy + Q yz δφ y + Q x z δφx + N x y + Nx y − 2Mx y
∂y ∂y ∂x ∂x ∂ y
∂δφx ∂δφ y
+ Sx y + Sx y ]dΩ (10)
∂y ∂x
where the stress resultants are given as
( ) − hc
2
f
− hc
2 − hc
2
f
Ni j , Mi j, Si j = ∫ (1, z, f )σi j dz + ∫ (1, z, f )σicj dz + ∫ (1, z, f )σi j dz,
− hc
2 − hc
2 − hc
2
(11)
(i j = x, y)
− hc
2 − hc
2 − hc
2
f f
(Q i z ) = ∫ gσi j dz + ∫ gσicj dz + ∫ gσi j dz, (i = x, y) (12)
− hc
2 − hc
2 − hc
2
From Eq. 9, we get the governing equations as
∂ Nx x ∂ Nx y
+ =0 (13)
∂x ∂y
∂ N yy ∂ Nx y
+ =0 (14)
∂y ∂x
∂ 2 Mx x ∂ 2 M yy ∂ 2 Mx y
+ +2 +q =0 (15)
∂x 2 ∂y 2 ∂ x∂ y
∂ Sx x ∂ Sx y
+ − Qxz = 0 (16)
∂x ∂y
∂ S yy ∂ Sx y
+ − Q yz = 0 (17)
∂y ∂x
Equations 13, 14, 15, 16 and 17 can be written in the form of displacement
functions u, v, w, φx and φy by substituting the stress resultants in the governing
equation. Further, the solution for simply supported condition is
mπ nπ
u 0 = Amn cos x sin y (18)
a b
mπ nπ
v0 = Bmn sin x cos y (19)
a b
mπ nπ
w0 = Cmn sin x sin y (20)
a b
mπ nπ
φx = Dmn cos x sin y (21)
a b
mπ nπ
φ y = E mn sin x cos y (22)
a b
By substituting Eqs. 18, 19, 20, 21 and 22 in the governing equation, we can write
the set of equations in the matrix form as shown in Eq. 23.
[K ]{Δ} = {F} (23)
whereas Δ and F denote the displacement and force column.
{Δ}T = {Amn Bmn Cmn Dmn E mn } (24)
{F}T = {00 − qmn 00} (25)
where the coefficient qmn defines based on the applied load.

The In-house code is developed using Mathematica a computational software. The
coefficient Amn Bmn Cmn Dmn E mn are calculated by solving Eq. 23 and from Eq. 20,
the deflection values are obtained.
Initially, the deflection (w) results obtained from the present methodology is vali-
dated with the results given in [11] for functionally graded plate. The dimensionless
deflection value for ceramic and metal plate with aspect ratio 10 is subjected to
uniform load is given as 0.4665 and 2.5327, respectively [11]. The same is validated
using the present methodology. The value obtained in present case as 0.4661 and
2.5325. In this section, the bending characteristics of FG-CNT faces with 3DGrF
core panel are analyzed. Figures 3 and 4 show the deflection values corresponding
to the CNT volume fraction of 0.17 and the porosity coefficient of graphene foam
as 0.6 and 0.1. The results are plotted by increasing the aspect ratio and length to
thick ratio of the sandwich panel. From Fig. 3, it is clear that as the aspect ratio and
length to thickness ratio increases the deflection of the sandwich panel decreases and
increases, respectively. This can be attributed to the increase and decrease in stiff-
ness of the sandwich panel as aspect ratio and length and thickness ratio increases.
In addition, it is noticed that the deflection of FG-VΛ CNT faces with NVPC 3DGrF
core has lesser deflection values among all other cases. This is due to the fact that
NVPC case has higher stiffness on the top surfaces of core, and similarly, FG-VΛ
case has high material distribution on the top surfaces of the faces. This combined
Fig. 3 Deflection values corresponding to CNT volume fraction of 0.17
Fig. 4 The porosity coefficient of graphene foam as 0.6 and 0.1

effect makes FG-VΛ CNT faces with NVPC 3DGrF core has high stiffened sand-
wich panel. Furthermore, it is observed as porosity coefficient of 3DGrF increases
the deflection of the panel also increases.
Figures 5 and 6 show the same values of Figs. 3 and 4 but in the curved plot. The
values are plotted in curved manner to view the effect of FG-CNT grading pattern
with respect to porosity coefficient of 3DGRF core. From Figs. 5 and 6, it is observed
that the aspect ratio increases the deflection decreases and length to thickness ratio
increases the deflection increases. When aspect ratio increases, the normal plane to
x-axis increases where the concentration of CNT materials increases, thus stiffness
of the sandwich panel increases, and thus deflection is reduced. Similarly, when
the panel length is increased compared to its thickness then the stiffness of the
sandwich panel is reduced, thus the deflection increases. By comparing Fig. 5a, b,
it is clear that effect of CNT grading pattern is clearly identified by obtaining the
distinguish curve among UD-UVP, FGO (FG-ΛV)-NVPC, FGO (FG-ΛV)-NVPS,
FGX (FG-VΛ)-NVPS and FGX (FG-VΛ)-NVPC cases, when porosity coefficient
Fig. 5 The effect of Aspect ratio with respect to deflection
Fig. 6 The effect of CNT grading patterns with the increase in length to thickness ratio
is high. When porosity coefficient is high, the effect of FG-CNT is visible among the
analyzed cases. Similar, effect of CNT grading pattern is identified when the values
are plotted while the length to thickness ratio is increased as shown in Fig. 6a, b.
4 Conclusions
In this paper, bending characteristics of 3DGrF core with FG-CNT reinforced

polymer composite face sheet sandwich panel are analyzed using sinusoidal shear
deformation theory. The governing equation is derived using the principle of virtual
work. The following points are observed in this work.
• Among all the cases analyzed the FG-VΛ-NVPC pattern has lesser deflection.
• The deflection of UD-UVP occurs NVPC and NVPS case.
• The deflection of NVPC 3DGrF core with FG-VΛ CNT faces has lesser deflection
values among all other cases.
• The combined effect of NVPC 3DGrF and FG-VΛ CNT makes NVPC 3DGrF
core with FG-VΛ CNT has high stiffened sandwich panel.
• The porosity coefficient increases, the influence of FG-CNT becomes predomi-
nant in the deflection curve.
As this paper presents the characteristics of a light weight composite sandwich
panel, the results obtained in this work can be used to design the sandwich panel for
various applications where light weight structures are preferred.
References
1. Chen, Z., Ren, W., Gao, L., Liu, B., Pei, S., & Cheng, H. M. (2011). Three-dimensional flex-
ible and conductive interconnected graphene networks grown by chemical vapour deposition.
Nature materials, 10(6), 424–428.
2. Bi, H., Yin, K., Xie, X., Zhou, Y., Wan, N., Xu, F., Banhart, F., Sun, L., & Ruoff, R. S. (2012).
Low temperature casting of graphene with high compressive strength. Advanced Materials,
24(37), 5124–5129.
3. Ghadiri, M., & Hosseini, S. H. (2019). Nonlinear forced vibration of graphene/piezoelectric
sandwich nanoplates subjected to a mechanical shock. Journal of Sandwich Structures &
Materials, 1099636219849647.
4. Zhao, S., Zhao, Z., Yang, Z., Ke, L., Kitipornchai, S., & Yang, J. (2020). Functionally graded
graphene reinforced composite structures: A review. Engineering Structures, 210, 110339.
5. Duc, N. D., Kim, S. E., Manh, D. T., & Nguyen, P. D. (2020). Effect of eccentrically oblique
stiffeners and temperature on the nonlinear static and dynamic response of S-FGM cylindrical
panels. Thin-Walled Structures, 146, 106438.
6. Mantari, J. L., Oktem, A. S., & Soares, C. G. (2012). A new higher order shear deformation
theory for sandwich and composite laminated plates. Composites Part B: Engineering, 43(3),
1489–1499.
7. Ghugal, Y. M., & Kulkarni, S. K. (2013). Flexural analysis of cross-ply laminated plates
subjected to nonlinear thermal and mechanical loadings. Acta Mechanica, 224(3), 675–690.
8. Ghugal, Y. M., & Sayyad, A. S. (2011). Free vibration of thick orthotropic plates using
trigonometric shear deformation theory. Latin American Journal of Solids and Structures,
8, 229–243.
9. Wang, Y. Q., & Zhang, Z. Y. (2019). Bending and buckling of three-dimensional graphene
foam plates. Results in Physics, 13, 102136.
10. Shen, H. S., & Zhang, C. L. (2010). Thermal buckling and postbuckling behavior of functionally
graded carbon nanotube-reinforced composite plates. Materials & Design, 31(7), 3403–3411.
11. Zenkour, A. M. (2006). Generalized shear deformation theory for bending analysis of
functionally graded plates. Applied Mathematical Modelling, 30(1), 67–84.
Bending Deflection Solutions of Thick
Beams Using a Third-Order Simple
Single Variable Beam Theory
Rajesh A. Shetty, S. A. Deepak, K. Sudheer Kini,

Abstract In this paper, the analytical expressions for bending/flexural deflection

curve of simply supported, cantilever, and clamped–clamped beams have been
presented which are obtained by using a third-order simple single variable beam
theory. The deflection expressions have been derived for the case of isotropic beams
with rectangular cross-section and under the action of transverse/lateral loads. The
single variable beam theory used herein contains only one differential equation
involving a single displacement variable. The governing equation of the theory
has strong similarity to that of Euler–Bernoulli beam theory. Hence, beam prob-
lems can be solved in the similar lines as in case of Euler–Bernoulli beam theory.
In this manuscript, along with the single variable beam theory transverse/lateral
deflection expressions, the expressions for transverse deflections given by two-
dimensional theory of elasticity approach, Euler–Bernoulli beam theory, Timoshenko
beam theory, and Levinson beam theory also have been presented. The expressions
for transverse/lateral deflections are written herein in such way a that one can easily
differentiate between the contributions of bending deformation and the shear defor-
mation in the transverse/lateral deflection of a beam. By referring to these deflec-
tion expressions, one can clearly understand why Euler–Bernoulli theory leads to
inaccurate deflections in case of thick/shear deformable beams. Even though the
beam transverse deflection is governed predominantly by bending deformation, the
contribution of shear deformation becomes significant as the beam thickness/length
ratio increases. The main objective of this work is to provide an accurate and deep
R. A. Shetty (B)
Simulation Lab Pvt Ltd, Pune, Maharashtra 412101, India
e-mail: rajesh.shetty168@gmail.com
S. A. Deepak
Reva University, Bengaluru, Karnataka 560064, India
K. Sudheer Kini
A J Institute of Engineering and Technology, Mangaluru, Karnataka 575006, India
G. L. Dushyanthkumar
Vidyavardhaka College of Engineering, Mysuru, Karnataka 570002, India
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4040-8_20
234 R. A. Shetty et al.
understanding about the thick/shear deformable beam transverse deflection expres-

sions involving the independent contributions of bending deformation and shear
deformation components.
Keywords Bending deflection · Thick beams · Single variable · Beam theory ·

Transverse load · Boundary conditions
1 Introduction
Euler–Bernoulli beam theory (EBT) is the basic and widely used theory for static
bending and vibration study of structural beams. EBT can be used for accurate anal-
ysis of thin or slender beams, whereas the application of EBT for solving thick/shear
deformable beams will lead to erroneous results. This can be attributed to neglecting
the shear deflection component in the EBT formulation. Thus, it is important to
consider the contribution of shear deflection along with bending/flexural deflection
in the thick/shear deformable beam formulation [1–3]. To overcome the limitation
posed by EBT in handling thick beam formulation, one can think of using refined
class of beam theories such as first-order and higher-order beam theories.
First-order beam theories can formulate thick/shear deformable beams in more
accurate manner compared to EBT. The complexity level associated with first order
theories is also acceptable. But, the main drawback linked with first order theories is
the unrealistic constant transverse shear stress prediction. To correct this prediction,
while using the first-order theories, suitable shear correction coefficients need to
be used. Difficulty in selecting correct shear coefficients is one of the challenges
linked with first-order theories [1, 2]. In the class of first-order theories, Timoshenko
beam theory (TBT) [4–7] is the well-known and widely used theory by the research
community. TBT is governed by two differential equations and two displacement
variables. Limitations linked with first-order theories motivated research community
to come out with formulation of higher-order theories.
Higher-order beam theories can model thick/shear deformable beams in an accu-
rate manner compared to EBT and first-order theories. Higher-order theory formu-
lation involves multiple differential equations and multiple number of unknown
displacement variables. Complexity level associated with higher-order theories is
considerably high compared to first-order theories. These theories can capture real-
istic quadratic/parabolic shear stresses in beam transverse/lateral direction. So, no
need of using a shear correction coefficient [1, 2]. In the class of higher-order
beam theories, Levinson beam theory (LBT) [8, 9] and Reddy beam theory (RBT)
[10] are the two widely used theories for the beam analysis. LBT and RBT are
the displacement-based theories, and both use same displacement field. Difference
between these two theories can be attributed to the mathematical approach used in
formulating the beams. LBT and RBT both involve multiple differential equations
and three displacement variables. A large number of publications are available in
literature based upon LBT and RBT [11–13].
Bending Deflection Solutions of Thick Beams Using a Third-Order … 235
Further, in 2017, a simple higher-order beam theory with only one unknown
displacement variable is proposed by Shimpi et al. [14, 15]. Objective of this
manuscript is to showcase the efficacy of simple single variable beam theory
(SSVBT) [14] through bending/flexural deflection study of thick/shear deformable
beams. SSVBT involves only one governing differential equation and uses a single
displacement variable for the complete beam mathematical formulation. Using
SSVBT, mathematical formulation of beams is closely similar to that of Euler–
Bernoulli beam theory. In this manuscript, using SSVBT, the bending/flexural deflec-
tion study of beams with simply supported, cantilever, and clamped end boundary
conditions has been discussed.
2 Beam Formulation Using Simple Single Variable Beam

Theory (SSVBT)
Simple single variable beam theory (SSVBT) [14] is a displacement-based theory,

i.e., the formulation begins with the assumption of a suitable displacement field.
Displacement field of SSVBT is based upon the assumption that axial or in-plane
and lateral/transverse displacements of beam contain two components: bending
component and shear component. Axial or in-plane displacement (u) is assumed
to be consists of u b (bending part) and u s (shear part). Likewise, lateral/transverse
displacement (w) is assumed to be consists of wb (bending part) and ws (shear part).
Accordingly, the displacement field of SSVBT can be written as follows [14].

dwb h 3 (1 + ϑ) 1 z 5 z 3 d 3 w
u = u b + u s = −z − − (1)
dx 5 4 h 3 h dx3
h 2 (1 + ϑ) d 2 wb
w = wb + ws = wb − (2)
5 dx2
Referring to Eqs. (1) and (2), one can note that the displacement field of SSVBT
contains only one unknown displacement variable, i.e., wb . Further, the strain and
stress expressions of SSVBT can also be written in terms of wb [14]. Hence, SSVBT
is termed as a single variable beam theory.
Next, the bending moment and shear force equations pertaining to SSVBT can
be written as follows [14]:
d 2 wb
Mx = −EI (3)
dx2
d 3 wb
Q x = −EI (4)
dx3
Governing Equation: In this manuscript, the governing equation of SSVBT is

derived by using beam gross equations of equilibrium. For this case, the beam gross
equilibrium equations in terms of the applied loading, bending moment, and shear
force can be written as follows [14]:
d Mx
− Qx = 0 (5)
dx
d Qx
+ q(x) = 0 (6)
dx
Next, by using Eqs. (5) and (6), one can obtain governing equation of SSVBT as
follows:
d 4 wb
EI = q(x) (7)
dx4
By solving Eq. (7), the solution for wb can be evaluated. Next, using Eq. (2), one
can find out the solution for total lateral displacement w. Further, Eq. (7) has close
resemblance to EBT governing equation [1, 2].
Boundary Conditions: Boundary conditions linked with SSVBT are discussed
herein for the beam end x = 0. For the other beam end, i.e., x = L, similar conditions
can be mentioned.
Case 1: Beam with simply supported end If beam end x = 0 is simply supported,
then conditions to be used are as follows:

h 2 (1 + ϑ) d 2 wb
[w]x=0 = wb − =0 (8)
5 d x 2 x=0

d 2 wb
and [Mx ]x=0 = −EI =0 (9)
d x 2 x=0
Case 2: Beam with free or unsupported end If beam end x = 0 is free or

unsupported, then conditions to be used are as follows:

d 2 wb
[Mx ]x=0 = −EI =0 (10)
d x 2 x=0

d 3 wb
and [Vx ]x=0 = −EI =0 (11)
d x 3 x=0
Case 3: Beam with clamped or fixed end In case of clamped ends, using SSVBT,
one can prescribe two sets boundary/end conditions: namely, Type 1 and Type 2 end
conditions.
Type 1 clamped end Using SSVBT, Type 1 clamped end conditions can be

h 2 (1 + ϑ) d 2 wb
[w]x=0 = wb − =0 (12)
5 d x 2 x=0

∂w ∂wb h 2 (1 + ϑ) d 3 wb
and = − =0 (13)
∂ x x=0 ∂x 5 d x 3 x=0
Referring to Eq. (13), one can note that this type of slope condition neither bending
nor shear rotation is allowed. Slope given by Eq. (13) fails to incorporate effects of
shear slope at the clamped end into the overall beam analysis.
Type 2 clamped end It is also possible to mention the boundary/end conditions
at a beam fixed end as those explained in a Theory of Elasticity book by Timoshenko
and Goodier [16]. Using SSVBT, Type 2 clamped end boundary conditions can be

h 2 (1 + ϑ) d 2 wb
[w]x=0 = wb − =0 (14)
5 d x 2 x=0

∂w 3(1 + ϑ) d 3 wb 3(1 + ϑ)
= −EI = [Vx ]x=0 = 0 (15)
∂ x x=0 5Ebh 3
d x x=0 5Ebh

Non-zero slope ∂w ∂ x x=0
specified by Eq. (15) can be considered as the measure
of rotation of beam cross-section at the fixed end due to shearing forces. Hence, in
this manuscript, Type 2 clamped end conditions are utilized as this can incorporate
the shear effects correctly in the beam analysis.
3 Beam Bending/Flexural Deflection Solutions Using

SSVBT
Bending/flexural deflection solutions for thick/shear deformable beams using

SSVBT are discussed herein. Solutions for simply supported, cantilever, and clamped
end beams have been presented. For the validation purpose, the SSVBT deflection
expressions are compared with those of EBT, TBT, LBT, and theory of elasticity
(two-dimensional mathematical approach) solutions. Beam bending/flexural solu-
tions obtained via theory of elasticity approach can be considered as benchmark
solutions for validation purpose.
Simply Supported Rectangular Beam Carrying a Uniformly Distributed Lateral
Load
Consider a rectangular cross-section isotropic beam having length L, width b, and
height h. The beam under consideration occupies a space,
L L b b h h
− ≤ x ≤ ,− ≤ y ≤ ,− ≤ z ≤ (16)
2 2 2 2 2 2
Fig. 1 Simply supported rectangular beam carrying a uniformly distributed lateral load
Beam is simply supported at ends x = ±L/2 and carries a uniformly distributed

lateral load of intensity q0 over the beam span L as shown in Fig. 1.
The expressions for bending/flexural deflection curve given by SSVBT and other
isotropic beam theories for the case of simply supported beams are as listed below:
Euler–Bernoulli Beam Theory [17]

q0 L 4 x 4 3 x 2 5
w= − + (17)
24EI L 2 L 16
Two-dimensional Theory of Elasticity [17]

q0 L 4 x 4 3 x 2 5 h 2
12 3ϑ x 2 1
w= − + − + −
24EI L 2 L 16 L 5 2 L 4
(18)
Timoshenko Beam Theory [17]

q0 L 4 x 4 3 x 2 5 2 h 2
x 2 1
w= − + − (1 + ϑ) − (19)
24EI L 2 L 16 k L L 4
where k = Shear coefficient is 5/6.

Levinson Beam Theory [8]

q0 L 4 x 4 3 x 2 5 12 h 2
x 2 1
w= − + − (1 + ϑ) − (20)
24EI L 2 L 16 5 L L 4
Present Beam Theory (SSVBT)


q0 L 4 x 4 3 x 2 5 12 h 2
x 2 1
w= − + − (1 + ϑ) − (21)
24EI L 2 L 16 5 L L 4
It can be observed that, in Eqs. (18, 19, 20 and 21), the first term inside the braces
represents the bending deflection and is same as that of solution of EBT given by
Eq. (17), and the second term represents the shear deflection which is significant in
case of thick/shear deformable beam analysis.
Next, the expressions for maximum lateral deflection (i.e., w at x = 0) given by
TBT, LBT, and SSVBT can be written as follows:

5q0 L 4 48 h 2
w= 1+ (1 + ϑ) (22)
384EI 25 L
The expression for maximum deflection given by theory of elasticity can be written
as follows:

5q0 L 4 48 h 2 5
w= 1+ 1+ ϑ (23)
384EI 25 L 8
It can be noted from Eqs. (22) and (23) that, SSVBT, TBT, and LBT equally
overestimate the shear deflection by 8.7% when ϑ = 0.3. This disagreement can
be attributed to the neglecting the transverse normal strain in these beam theories,
whereas the theory of elasticity formulation takes care of all the stress components.
4 Cantilever Beam Carrying a Concentrated Lateral Load

b b h h
0 ≤ x ≤ L, − ≤ y ≤ ,− ≤ z ≤ (24)
2 2 2 2
Beam is carrying a concentrated transverse/lateral load of magnitude P at the free
end, and the beam is having clamped support at end x = L as shown in Fig. 2.

P L 3 x 3 x
w= −3 +2 (25)
6EI L L
Two-dimensional Theory of Elasticity [16]

Fig. 2 Cantilever beam carrying a concentrated lateral load

P L3 x 3 x 3 h 2 x
w= −3 +2 + (1 + ϑ) 1 − (26)
6EI L L 2 L L

P L3 x 3 x 1 h 2 x
w= −3 +2 + (1 + ϑ) 1 − (27)
6EI L L k L L


P L3 x 3 x 3 h 2 x
w= −3 +2 + (1 + ϑ) 1 − (28)
6EI L L 2 L L

P L3 x 3 x 3 h 2 x
w= −3 +2 + (1 + ϑ) 1 − (29)
6EI L L 2 L L
From the above set of deflection expressions (26, 27, 28 and 29), it can be noted
that, solutions obtained from SSVBT and LBT are same as that of theory of elasticity
solution, whereas the solution obtained from TBT underestimates the shear deflec-
tion by 20%. Deflection underestimation by TBT can be attributed to lower-order
mathematical model representing the shear deflection.
Expression for maximum deflection, i.e., deflection at x = 0, obtained by using
SSVBT, LBT, and theory of elasticity are the same and is given by,

2
P L3 3 h
[w]x=0 = 1 + (1 + ϑ) (30)
3EI 4 L
Expression for maximum deflection obtained by using TBT is given by,

2
P L3 3 h
[w]x=0 = 1 + (1 + ϑ) (31)
3EI 5 L
5 Cantilever Beam Carrying a Uniformly Distributed

Lateral Load
Consider a rectangular cross-section beam having length L, width b, and height h.

The beam under consideration occupies a region,
b b h h
0 ≤ x ≤ L, − ≤ y ≤ ,− ≤ z ≤ (32)
2 2 2 2
Beam is carrying a uniformly distributed lateral load of intensity q0 over the beam
span L, and the beam is clamped at end x = L as shown in Fig. 3.
Two-Dimensional Theory of Elasticity [19]

q0 L 4 x 4 x 2 6 h 2 5 x2 5 x
w= −4 +3 + 2+ ϑ 1− + 1+ ϑ 1−
24EI L L 5 L 4 L2 2 L
(33)
Fig. 3 Cantilever beam carrying a uniformly distributed lateral load


q 0 L 4 x 4 x
w= −4 +3 (34)
24EI L L

x 4 x 2 x 2
q0 L 4 2 h
w= −4 + 3 + (1 + ϑ) 1− (35)
24EI L L k L L


x 4 x 2 x 2
q0 L 4 6 h x
w= −4 + 3 + (1 + ϑ) 3− −2 (36)
24EI L L 5 L L L

x 4 x 2 x 2
q0 L 4 6 h x
w= −4 + 3 + (1 + ϑ) 3− −2 (37)
24EI L L 5 L L L
Referring to Eqs. (33, 34, 35, 36 and 37), it can be observed that, the lateral deflec-
tion expressions given by SSVBT and LBT are the same. When maximum deflection
is evaluated, it can be observed that, TBT underestimates the shear deflection by 33%
compared to SSVBT and LBT and 38% compared to theory of elasticity solution.
Also, SSVBT and LBT underestimate the shear deflection by 5.5% compared to
theory of elasticity solution.
Expression for maximum deflection, i.e., deflection at x = 0, obtained by using
SSVBT and LBT is given by,

2
q0 L 4 6 h
[w]x=0 = 1 + (1 + ϑ) (38)
8EI 5 L
Expression for maximum deflection obtained by using TBT is given by,

2
q0 L 4 4 h
[w]x=0 = 1 + (1 + ϑ) (39)
8EI 5 L
Expression for maximum deflection given by theory of elasticity is,

2
q0 L 4 6 5 h
[w]x=0 = 1+ 1+ ϑ (40)
8EI 5 4 L
6 Clamped–Clamped Beam Carrying a Uniformly

Distributed Lateral Load

b b h h
0 ≤ x ≤ L, − ≤ y ≤ ,− ≤ z ≤ (41)
2 2 2 2
Beam is subjected to clamped supports at the ends x = 0 and x = L and carries
a uniformly distributed lateral load of intensity q0 over the beam span L as shown in
Fig. 4.
Two-Dimensional Theory of Elasticity [20]

q0 L 4 x 4 x 3 x 2 h 2
x 4 x 2

w= −2 + + 3(1 + ϑ) −
24EI L L L L L 5 L
(42)

x 3 x 2
q0 L 4 x 4
w= −2 + (43)
24EI L L L

q0 L 4 x 4 x 3 x 2 2 h 2
x x 2

w= −2 + + (1 + ϑ) −
24EI L L L k L L L
(44)
Fig. 4 Clamped–clamped beam carrying a uniformly distributed lateral load



q0 L 4 x 4 x 3 x 2 h 2
x x 2

w= −2 + + 3(1 + ϑ) −
24EI L L L L L L
(45)

q0 L 4 x 4 x 3 x 2 h 2
x 4 x 2

w= −2 + + 3(1 + ϑ) −
24EI L L L L L 5 L
(46)
Referring to Eqs. (42, 43, 44, 45 and 46), it can be noted that, the shear deflection
estimated by SSVBT is 33% greater than that estimated by TBT and is 16.7% greater
than that estimated by LBT. Also, the deflection value by SSVBT is same as that of
theory of elasticity solution.
Expression for maximum lateral deflection, i.e., deflection at x = L/2, given by
SSVBT can be written as follows:

q0 L 4 1 3 h 2
[w]x= L2 = + (1 + ϑ) (47)
8EI 16 4 L
7 Conclusions
Based upon the application of SSVBT for the bending/flexural deflection study of
thick/shear deformable beams with simply supported, cantilever, and clamped ends,
the observations made can be listed as follows:
• SSVBT can be utilized in a similar manner as EBT for the beam analysis. SSVBT
governing equation and other associated equations have strong resemblance to
those of EBT.
• SSVBT solutions are same as those of LBT solutions except in the case of
clamped–clamped beam solutions. SSVBT and LBT both are third-order beam
theories and use similar approach of utilizing gross equilibrium equations to derive
the governing equation of the theory.
• There is marginal difference in the deflection solutions predicted by SSVBT
and theory of elasticity. It is to be noted that, SSVBT formulates beam as one-
dimensional member, whereas theory of elasticity approach formulates beam as
two-dimensional member. Hence, based upon the difference in the number of
stress components considered in the beam analysis, the difference in deflection

values can be justified.
In conclusion, it can be reported that the SSVBT discussed herein, which is EBT
look like theory, could be utilized successfully for the bending/flexural study of thick
beams.
References
1. Wang, C. M., & Reddy, J. N. (2000). Shear deformable beams and plates: Relationships with
classical solutions. Elsevier Science Ltd.
2. Ghugal, Y. M., & Shimpi, R. P. (2001). A review of refined shear deformation theories for
isotropic and anisotropic laminated beams. Journal of Reinforced Plastics and Composites, 20,
255–272.
3. Han, S. M., Benaroya, H., & Wei, T. (1999). Dynamics of transversely vibrating beams using
four engineering theories. Journal of Sound and Vibration, 225, 935–988.
4. Timoshenko, S. P. (1921). On the correction for shear of the differential equation for trans-verse
vibrations of prismatic bars. Philosophical Magazine, 41, 744–746.
5. Timoshenko, S. P. (1922). On the transverse vibrations of bars of uniform cross-section.
Philosophical Magazine, 43, 125–131.
6. Cowper, G. R. (1966). The shear coefficient in Timoshenko’s beam theory. Journal of Applied
Mechanics, 33, 335–340.
7. Jensen, J. J. (1983). On the shear coefficient in Timoshenko’s beam theory. Journal of Sound
and Vibration, 87, 621–635.
8. Levinson, M. (1981). A new rectangular beam theory. Journal of Sound and Vibration, 74,
81–87.
9. Levinson, M. (1981). Further results of a new beam theory. Journal of Sound and Vibration,
77, 440–444.
10. Heyliger, P. R., & Reddy, J. N. (1988). A higher-order beam finite element for bending and
vibration problems. Journal of Sound and Vibration, 126, 309–326.
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and plates in terms of the classical theories. International Journal of Solids and Structures.,
38, 4701–4720.
12. Reddy, J. N., Wang, C. M., & Lee, K. H. (1997). Relationships between bending solutions of
classical and shear Deformation beam theories. International Journal of Solids and Structures,
34, 3373–3384.
13. Reddy, J. N. (2007). nonlocal theories for bending, buckling and vibration of beams.
International Journal of Engineering Science., 45, 288–307.
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tion theory for a rectangular beam. Proc IMechE Part C: Journal of Mechanical Engineering
Science., 231, 4576–4591.
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theory for bending of micro- and nano-scale rectangular beams. Sadhana-Academy Proceedings
in Engineering, 43, 1–13.
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Hemisphere Publishing Corporation.
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Distributors Pvt. Ltd.
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and plasticity. McGraw-Hill Book Company.
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to uniform load. Journal of Zhejiang University—Science A, 6, 779–783.
Application of DDBD Method
on Mid-Rise Open-Ground Storey RC
Frame Buildings
Anurag Sharma, R. K. Tripathi, and Govardhan Bhatt
Abstract With the rapid increase in urbanisation and scarcity of space, the need
for enhanced space for parking facilities and accommodation in buildings is in huge
demand. To achieve this demand, open-ground storey (OGS) buildings are preferred.
OGS buildings are those buildings that are constructed without masonry infill walls
in ground storey. OGS buildings have the property of sudden reduction of stiff-
ness in ground storey concerning to upper infilled storeys. Thus, OGS buildings are
highly vulnerable to earthquake hazards. In this paper, reinforced concrete special
moment-resisting frame (SMRF) buildings with and without infill walls are analysed.
Different building configurations but having the same plan area are adopted for G +
5-storied buildings representing mid-rise RC frame buildings. Direct displacement-
based design (DDBD) method is utilised for designing the SMRF buildings. Build-
ings are situated in Zone-V of the Indian region. The structural buildings are anal-
ysed for different ground motions using nonlinear time-history analysis. The selected
ground motions are scaled to meet the expected Peak Ground Acceleration (PGA) in
Zone-V regions. Outcomes are analysed in terms of fundamental period, base shear,
inter-storey drift ratio and fragility curves. The results demonstrate that the OGS
building is found to have a maximum probability of exceedance than bare and fully
infilled buildings. However, it is also observed that the RC frame buildings designed
using the DDBD approach can estimate the global behaviour with reasonable accu-
racy and the DDBD approach can be effectively used for designing open-ground
storey buildings.
Keywords OGS buildings · Direct displacement-based design · Strut modelling ·

Inter-storey drift · Fragility curves
A. Sharma (B) · R. K. Tripathi · G. Bhatt

Civil Engineering Department, National Institute of Technology Raipur, Raipur, Chhattisgarh
492010, India
e-mail: asharma.phd2017.civil@nitrr.ac.in
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4040-8_21
248 A. Sharma et al.
1 Introduction
The lack of space in this era of modernisation has motivated engineers and researchers
to go beyond conventional design structural and think of alternatives. Open-ground
storey (OGS) RC frame structures are one such alternative to traditional design prac-
tices. Construction of RC buildings without masonry infills in the ground storey can
be termed as open-ground storey (OGS) RC frame structures. In general, it is posited
that infills do not contribute to the overall structural behaviour. However, the presence
of infills can impact the dynamic behaviour and failure mechanisms of the buildings
[1, 2]. In seismic analysis, the behaviour of infill walls is portrayed using macro-
modelling method, where infill walls are modelled using equivalent compression
strut [3, 4]. But, current design philosophies are moving towards more performance-
based approaches (PBA) than traditional force-based approaches (FBA), for higher
performance of structural systems. Direct displacement-based design (DDBD) is
one such approach, where “the buildings are designed for a target displacement
selected as a function of a designed performance level” [5]. Recently, several DDBD
approaches were developed, but the main emphasis was mainly on regular frames
[6, 9]. However, in the context of DDBD methodology, OGS frames have received
comparatively less attention from researchers. Varughese et al. [10] modified the
DDBD procedure for regular frames and developed an expression for a lateral load
distribution for OGS buildings.
This study focuses on the applicability of the DDBD approach on different typo-
logical RC buildings located in the high seismic region of Indian territory. Six-storied
mid-rise RC frame buildings are analysed via nonlinear time-history (NTHA) anal-
ysis under ten strong ground motions. Target drift of 2%, which corresponds to the
life-safety limit state as per the guidelines of FEMA-356 [11], is chosen as the perfor-
mance level. This study’s major response parameters are fundamental period, base
shear, drift ratios and fragility curves.
2 Description and Design of RC Frame Buildings
This study aims to apply the DDBD procedure for the design of six-storied mid-rise
RC buildings. Three different structural configuration frames are considered, namely
as, i.e. (a) bare frame (BF)—no masonry infills in any storey; (b) fully infilled frame
(FF)—masonry infills in all the storeys and open-ground storey (OGS) frame—
masonry infills in all the storeys except ground storey. RC frames have four bays in
both X and Y directions, having an equal length of 4 m each. The height of all storeys
is kept as 3 m each. The general layout of the buildings is illustrated in Fig. 1.
All the RC frame buildings are outlined using DDBD approach adopted from
Priestley et al. [8]. To have a basic understanding of DDBD, a brief layout is
explained using Fig. 2. The DDBD method is based on the transition of multi-degree
of freedom (MDOF) system into an equivalent single degree of freedom (E-SDOF).
Application of DDBD Method on Mid-Rise Open-Ground Storey RC … 249
Fig. 1 Elevation of a BF, b FF, c OGS frames and d plan view for six-storied buildings
The (E-SDOF) system is characterised by the effective stiffness at the desired design
displacement. Equivalent viscous damping (EVD) for a specific design ductility is
estimated based on the hysteretic behaviour. Then, based on the design displacement
and EVD, the effective period can be measured. As proposed by Priestley et al. [8],
the aim of DDBD approach “is to obtain a pre-defined performance objective of a
structure for a given intensity of ground motion through determination of required
strength of structure”. Mostly, performance objectives are expressed in terms of
deformations (displacement, drifts, etc.). The details of RC sections and their rein-
forcements are tabulated in Table 1. Beam and column elements are modelled as
nonlinear elements with lumped plasticity by defining plastic hinges at both ends
of beams and columns. The cross-section of beams and columns is proportioned in
such a manner that it fulfils the strong-column weak-beam theory. The single equiv-
alent diagonal strut model is considered for modelling infill walls. The strut width is
calculated using Indian Standard IS 1893 [12], which is a modification of Mainstone
[13]. The thickness of the infill considered is 0.25 m.
Fig. 2 Fundamentals of DDBD Approach [8]
Table 1 Sections and reinforcement details

Frame Sections (m) Reinforcements Stirrups
Beam Column Beam Column Beam Column
BF 0.35 × 0.4 0.5 × 0.5 4–20 ϕ (top) 8–20 ϕ 8 mm@ 8mmϕ @
3–16 ϕ (throughout) 150 mm c/c 180 mm c/c
(bottom)
FF 0.35 × 0.4 0.6 × 0.6 4–20 ϕ (top) 8–20ϕ 8 mm@ 8mmϕ @
(bottom)
OGS 0.35 × 0.4 0.55 × 0.6 4–20 ϕ (top) 8–20ϕ 8 mm@ 8mmϕ @
(bottom)
3 Earthquake Ground Motions (GMs)
Nonlinear time-history (NTHA) analysis is conducted for different RC frames using

the finite element software SAP-2000 [14]. To perform NTHA, ten ground motions
are selected based on the past records of the region of interest [15]. GMs are
chosen from the strong motion database available in the CESMD website [16] and
summarised in Table 2. The GM records are then altered to match the target spectrum
of Indian Standard IS 1893 [12] using SeismoMatch software [17]. Figure 3 shows
the compatible response spectrum of all ten ground motions with the target spectrum
of Indian Standard [12].
Table 2 Earthquake ground motions

GMs Event Station Year PGA (g)
GM-01 Northeast—India Saitsama 1986 0.460
GM-02 Uttarkashi Tehri 1991 0.459
GM-03 Uttarkashi Barkot 1991 0.476
GM-04 Uttarkashi Purola 1991 0.461
GM-05 India-Burma Border Diphu 1995 0.488
GM-06 India-Burma Border Doloo 1997 0.509
GM-07 India-Burma Border Silchar 1997 0.537
GM-08 Chamoli Ghansali 1999 0.530
GM-09 Chamoli Joshimath 1999 0.503
GM-10 Chamoli Ukhimath 1999 0.529
1.2
Target Spectrum
NE India-Saitsama
Uttarkashi-Tehri
1
Spectrum Acceleration (Sa/g)
Uttarkashi - Barkot
Uttarkashi - Purola
India Burma Border-Diphu
0.8 India Burma Border-Doloo
India Burma Border-Silchar
Chamoli-Ghansiali
0.6 Chamoli-Joshimath
Chamoli - Ukhimath
Mean Spectrum
0.4
0.2
0
0 1 2 3 4
Time Period (sec)
Fig. 3 Spectrum compatible ground motions

In the present work, mid-rise six-storied RC frame buildings designed by the DDBD
approach are investigated. Three different construction typologies, namely bare frame
(BF), fully infilled frame (FF) and open-ground storey (OGS) frame, are examined,
and their seismic performances are compared under ten ground motions. 2% storey
drift as indicative life-safety limit for RC frame buildings is chosen from FEMA-356
[11]. Figure 4a shows the variation of base shear for the selected frames. As compared
to BF, both FF and OGS exhibit a higher value of base shear due to the presence of
masonry infills [18]. The base shear values are increased by 53 and 50.5% for FF
and OGS frames, compared to BF due to the high stiffness resulting in reduction of
fundamental periods as shown in Fig. 4b [19].
Figure 5 represents the inter-storey drift ratio (ISDR) for the selected frames.
Responses of BF, FF and OGS frames are presented in Fig. 5a–c, respectively,
whereas mean values of ISDR of all study frames are shown in Fig. 5d. It is observed
that in BF and FF, the maximum ISDR of 1.30% and 0.02% is under the GM-09 and
GM-10 (Chamoli-Ukhimath and Chamoli-Joshimath) earthquakes at the third-storey
level, whereas in OGS frames, the maximum response of 1.06% is noticed under the
GM-09 (Chamoli-Joshimath) earthquake at ground floor level. Also, it is noticed that
the BF deforms uniformly along the height of the RC building, whereas FF deforms
gradually from bottom to top floors.
In contrast, for any ground motions, the OGS frame exhibits a very high ISDR
response in ground storey as compared to upper storeys. Due to the presence of
infills in upper storeys of OGS, there is very less relative displacement in upper
storeys resulting in very less ISDR response in upper floor levels [20, 21]. This
indicates that in OGS frame, the maximum damage occurs at the ground floor levels
compared to upper floor levels. But, it can also be noticed that when designing RC
frame buildings with DDBD approach, it is apparent that all different typological
Fig. 4 a Base shear profile, b fundamental time periods

Fig. 5 Inter-storey drift ratio (ISDR): a BF, b FF, c OGS, d mean
buildings were able to satisfy the target drift of 2% for all selected ground motions
and lead to the acceptable behaviour of RC frame buildings.
Further, the fragility curves are created to determine the vulnerability of the
selected RC buildings. Fragility curves are defined as “the statistical measure when
it shows the probability of exceedance (POE) of a selected Engineering Demand
Parameter (EDP) for a selected damage level for a specific ground motion intensity
measure (IM)” [22]. In this research work, ISDR is chosen as EDP [23–25] and PGA
(g) as IM [26, 27], respectively. To carry out fragility analysis, the selected ground
motions are further scaled to the different PGA values (0.1 g–1 g) to get the maximum
performances of BF, FF and OGS frames. Figure 6 represents the fragility curves for
BF, FF and OGS frames for different damage states. As expected, a similar pattern
is observed for all three RC buildings, where the minimum variability in the curves
is for slight damage. In contrast, maximum variability is observed in the curves of
collapse damage. Moderate and extensive damages lie in between the slight and
collapse damages [28].
Fig. 6 Fragility curves: a BF, b FF, c OGS
In comparing POE for a particular damage state, the fragility curves are plotted
for all three types of buildings in Fig. 7. It can be seen in Fig. 7 that for all damage
states, POE of bare frame is lower than the OGS and FF frames, whereas the POE for
OGS building is high even at a lower PGA for all damage except collapse damage
state, proving that there is huge rotation in the ground storey columns of OGS frames
compared to upper storey columns. In other words, the non-presence of infill walls in
the ground level of OGS frames and ground storey attracts high inter-storey demands
[21]. For FF frame, the POE lies in between the OGS and bare frame. The presence
of infills in the ground storey of the FF frame makes it less vulnerable than OGS
frames.
Fig. 7 Fragility curves: a slight, b moderate, c extensive, d collapse
5 Conclusions
Based on the analytical results of the present investigation, specific findings can be
summarised as follows:
. The fundamental period of BF is highest among the three frames considered at
about 42% and 66% higher than the OGS and FF frames.
. Whereas the least period is noticed in FF at about 46% lower than OGS frame
due to infills in the ground storey, resulting in high strength and stiffness to the
FF frame.
. Base shear values for FF and OGS frames are observed to be 50–53% higher than
BF frame. Higher base shear demand results in heavier RC sections.
. The variability of POE in slight damage state is much lesser for all different frame
buildings.
. There is a significant increase in variability with the increase in damage states.
Overall, based on the NTHA of the frames considered, it can be concluded that
the DDBD procedure is significant in designing all three types of RC frames for
mid-rise RC buildings. Further, the efficacy of DDBD procedure for high-rise OGS
frames may be investigated.
References
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Partially and Fully Strengthening
of Square RC Column Using Various
FRP Composites
Tejash K. Patel, S. A. Vasanwala, Purvesh Patel, and Darshan Patel
Abstract This paper presents results an experimental on partially and fully strength-
ening of square-reinforced concrete (RC) column using CFRP and GFRP unidirec-
tional and bidirectional wrap. Under an axial load, a total of thirteen columns have
been tested. The experimental results show that the partially wrapping and fully wrap-
ping techniques enhance the stress–strain behaviour and displacement limit of the
square-reinforced concrete column. The fully wrapped square-reinforced concrete
(RC) column gives a better performance in stress–strain behaviour and displace-
ment limit than the partially wrapped system. However, partial FRP strengthening
technique is a promising and economical alternative as compared to the full FRP
strengthening technique. In addition, test results were compared with existing repre-
sentative stress models to verify the reliability and accuracy of each model. The test
results exhibit that the CNR-DT-R1 model is more reliable as compared to other
models and can provide reasonable and accurate predictions for the ultimate axial
stress of partially and fully FRP wrapped RC columns.
Keywords CFRP · GFRP · Strengthening · Square RC column · Partially and

fully wrap
1 Introduction
In an old building, the structural member must be strengthened or repair or rehabili-

tated because of the strength in the structural member’s decreases with age which will
create the structural stability issues. The old structures may not meet the requirement
of current standards or their designed usage could be structurally unsafe in future.
The enormous construction waste can be generated from the structures which can
T. K. Patel (B) · S. A. Vasanwala

Civil Engineering Department, SVNIT, Surat 395007, India
e-mail: tejash8990@gmail.com
P. Patel · D. Patel
M. E. Civil Civil Engineering Department, Marchant Institute of Technology, Mehsana, India
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4040-8_22
260 T. K. Patel et al.
be strengthened or repair. This construction waste would require a huge demand for
additional land to keep it. In addition, by doing the repairing or strengthening of an
old building can indirectly save many of the natural resources that will be used in
the new construction.
Several methods have been given in the various codal provisions for the strength-
ening of structural elements. In ACI 440-2R and CNR-DT-08 [1, 2], the guidelines
have been given for the strengthening of RC column. The repair and strengthening
of RC column are difficult, but essential [3]. Kaminski and Trapko [3] studied the
load-carrying capacity of RC columns by providing the CFRP strips and wraps as
external reinforcement. They studied the relations among the load-carrying capacity
and external reinforcement ratio (1.4–4.2%) of small models of RC columns. They
found that elements reinforced with CFRP strip longitudinal sections and additional
CFRP band wraps have been damaged because some band had separated accom-
panied by instant strip debonding with concrete cover [3]. They also found that
circulation technique could be used also for high strength concrete [4]. Campione
et al. (2004) were examined for the analytical and experimental behaviour of fibre-
reinforced polymer (CFRP) reinforced concrete columns by varying shapes. They
studied a theoretical as well as an experimental model to predict the strain capacity
and maximum strength of short compressed column externally wrapped with FRP
sheets and noticed that single strip reduced the risk of local failure in FRP due to
stress concentration, and it was a good alternative to the smoothing of sharp corners
[5–7].
Looking at the previous works of literature, this research work aims to explore the
axial stress–strain behaviour of square RC column by applying fully and partially
FRP (CFPR and GFRP) strengthening technique. In the laboratory, a total of thirteen
columns have been cast and tested. Various results were obtained such as ultimate
load, displacements and axial stress in the concrete, whereas ultimate transverse
strain in FRP wrapping. Additionally, the study has tried to verify the reliability and
accuracy of an experimental data with the theoretical models such as CNR-DT R1
[1], and Lam and Teng’s [22] model.
2 Experimental Programme
2.1 Description of Column Elements
In the experimental work, the effect of partial strengthening and full strengthening of
an axially loaded short column by using CRPF and GFRP material with unidirectional
and bidirectional wrapping, respectively, was evaluated. For that total of thirteen
different strengthening columns were prepared along with non-strengthening column
as presented in Table 1.
Partially and Fully Strengthening of Square RC Column … 261
Table 1 RC column strengthening details

Sr. No Specimen ID Type of strengthening Specimen details
B (mm) D (mm) L (mm)
1 S1 Non-strengthened 170 170 700
2 C1X Top strengthened 170 170 700
3 C2X (Series-I) 170 170 700
4 G1X 170 170 700
5 G2X 170 170 700
6 C1Y Top–bottom strengthened 170 170 700
7 C2Y (Series-II) 170 170 700
8 G1Y 170 170 700
9 G2Y 170 170 700
10 C1Z Full strengthened 170 170 700
11 C2Z (Series-III) 170 170 700
12 G1Z 170 170 700
13 G2Z 170 170 700
C = carbon fibre, G = glass fibre, 1 = unidirectional of material, 2 = bidirectional of material X
= top strengthening, Y = top–bottom strengthening, Z = full strengthening.
All RC columns were designed as per IS-456-2000 [8], and each and every column
was reinforced longitudinally with four bars of 12-mm diameter and reinforced trans-
versely with 8-mm diameter as stirrups. The concrete cover on all sides of the column
was taken as 40 mm.
2.2 Material Properties
2.2.1 Reinforcement
The ultimate tensile strength of 12 mm and 8 mm bar was obtained as 587 MPa and
576 MPa, respectively, as per IS 1786: 2008 [9].
2.2.2 Concrete
The mix design of M-25 grade of concrete was carried out as per IS 10262:2009
[10]. Table 2 exhibits the relative proportion of concrete ingredients for 1 m3 .
Table 2 Concrete mix design

Cement FA (Sand) CA (20 mm) CA (10 mm) Water
(kg/m3 ) (kg/m3 ) (kg/m3 ) (kg/m3 ) (kg/m3 )
340.2 960.2 692 446 167.7
Table 3 Different properties of different FRP and resin

FRP wraps Thickness (mm) Tensile strength Tensile E-modulus Elongation (%)
(MPa) (GPa)
CFRP 0.168 4085 230 1.62
unidirectional
GFRP 0.36 3400 72 2.3
unidirectional
CFRP 0.27 3793 234 1.6
bidirectional
GFRP 0.66 2785 73 1.96
bidirectional
Resin – 30 4500 1.5
[Sikadur-330]
2.2.3 Different FRP Material
To determine the properties of different FRP wraps, the flat coupon tensile test has
been carried out. The test procedure was followed by the recommendations specified
in the ASTM—D3039: 2008 [11]. The fibres used in this study were unidirectional
and bidirectional carbon fibre and glass fibre. A total of five flat coupons of each
FRP were tested, and the elastic modulus of the tensile strength and the mean values
of the rupture stress were determined, as shown in Table 3.
2.3 FRP Strengthening Procedure
2.3.1 Preparation of Specimen
The column formwork was made from good quality plywood to prevent movement
and bending of the formwork during the casting of the column. The M-25 grade of
concrete was used to cast all the column specimens. The specimen was water cured
up to 28 days. The average compressive strength of concrete was obtained 29.36 MPa
at 28 days.
2.3.2 Partially and Fully Strengthening of Column Elements
The RC column specimens strengthening as partially and fully were carried out as
per of ACI440.2R [1]. A smooth curvature at the corner of square columns was
provided at a radius of 20 mm to get stronger confinement of columns as shown in
Fig. 1(i). As shown in Fig. 1(i–vi), the wet lay-up technique was implemented to
the strengthening of the column in a few steps as (i) grinding of concrete surface
and corner, (ii) cleaning of the concrete surface, (iii) mixing of epoxy resin, (iv)
paint the epoxy resin on the concrete surface, (v) wrapping of FRP fabric with the
help of roller and (vi) removal of air bubbles between the concrete surface and FRP
wrapping. In addition, a hammer was often used for a knock test to detect the sound
of the hollow on the cured FRP surface. During the analysis, no hollow sound was
recorded, indicating that there is no air in the sample. Between successive layers, an
overlap of at least 100 mm is applied according to ACI 440-2R [1]. After wrapping
for 48 h at laboratory temperature, the reinforced concrete RC column was tested
under axial compression.
2.4 Test Set-up and Instruments
Figure 2 shows the test set-up and instrumentation of RC column to measure axial
compression. A loading frame with a capacity of 2500 kN has been used. To record
the axial deformation of the column, linear voltage displacement transducer (LVDTs)
with a 100 mm stroke length has been installed. Over the column surface in order to
measure the concrete strains and displacement, LVDT and strain gauge were inlaid
as shown in Fig. 2. A load-controlled actuator was used with a 2000 kN load cell
capacity. All data for a load, displacement and strain measurements of concrete and
FRP material were obtained by the data acquisition system (DAQ). The column
prototype instruments are depicted in the schematic representation of Fig. 2.
Fig. 1 RC column strengthening process

Fig. 2 Test set-up and

instruments
3 Experimental Results and Discussion
3.1 Failure Modes of Tested Specimens
3.1.1 Non-strengthen Column
The non-strengthen and strengthen RC square column elements were tested until they
arrive at their uttermost load. In the non-strengthen RC column specimens, vertical
hairline-like cracks appear from the middle part to the top part of the square column
as shown in Fig. 3(i). The first crack started at around 45–55% of the ultimate load. At
70–80% of peak load, several homogeneously spread cracks were formed all over the
column specimen as shown in Fig. 3(ii). As shown in Fig. 3(iii), after the yielding of
(i) Initial cracks formation (ii) Destruction at peak load (iii) Spalling of concrete
Fig. 3 Failure of non-strengthened RC column elements
(i) C1X (ii) C2X (iii) G1X (iv) G2X
Fig. 4 Top (h/3) strengthen square RC column
longitudinal reinforcement, the concrete cover layer is severely peeled off, resulting
in the ultimate failure of the column specimen.
3.1.2 Top Strengthen Square Column
The failure of the top (h/3) strengthened RC column element occurred due to rupture
of FRP wrap with severe core degradation. At the bottom corner of the specimen, the
cracking of the unwrapped concrete cover originated and later spread over the entire
circumference of the specimen. Subsequently, the small part (fibres) of C1X and G2X
wraps at the end of the specimens was ruptured, whereas C2X wraps breaking up
from the top of the specimen. The failure of the specimen was started due to rupture
of FRP followed by local debonding of FRP column of damages after peak load.
As shown in Fig. 4, the C1X and G2X columns exhibited a brittle failure, whereas
slowly ductile failure was observed in C2X and G1X column.
3.1.3 Top–Bottom Strengthen Square Column
The specimens C1Y, G1Y, and G2Y were cracked internally at the yield axial load
with snapping sounding. The FRPs were strained due to the cracking of the concrete
when the ultimate axial load approached. Later, the failure of the top–bottom (2 h/3)
FRP confinement occurred owing to the crushing of concrete cover. An explosive
sound was experienced during failure of the specimen. Under the higher load, the
concrete crack extended at mid-height to top and ultimately crushed in the rupture
of the CFRP and GFRP wraps at a top side. The shear failure at the mid-portion of
the concrete cover was observed in C1Y, C2Y and G1Y as shown in Fig. 5(i–iii).
Fig. 5 Top–bottom (2 h/3) strengthen square RC column
3.1.4 Full Strengthen Square Column
Failure of the full confined RC column element occurred due to the crushing of
concrete cover and rupture of FRP wrap at the top side and opposite of the overlap
wrap zone shows in Fig. 6. The failure of the specimens begins with a snap noise and
due to the cracking of the concrete during test time was seen by visual inspection.
Owing to the cracking of the concrete surface, FRPs ripples then formed on the
compression side. Under higher loads, the concrete crushed the inner side and was
finally crushed, causing the top of the FRP wrap to crack. The obviations during the
testing time of all full confined RC column crushed concrete after gradually failure
at a top side in bidirectional material and unidirectional material suddenly rupture
failure and explosive way preceded by a typical cracking sound.
(i) C1Z (ii) C2Z (iii) G1Z (iv) G2Z

Fig. 6 Full (h) strengthen square RC column
3.2 Axial Stress–Strains Responses
Column specimens are divided into three different groups for the ease of discussions.
The stress–strain response of three groups of the RC column (top, top–bottom and
full strengthened) including non-strengthened column is presented in Figs. 7, 8, 9
and 10. The strain gauge on concrete was placed in the mid-height of the column
specimen, whereas the strain gauge on FRP wrapping was placed at mid-height of
the wrapping. The axial strain of concrete was taken as positive and hoop strain of
FRP wrapping was taken as negative. The axial stress in the column was computed
by dividing the axial load to its effective c/s area (σ c = P/Aeff). After applying FRP
jacketing, column dimensions had remained in its original size. The testing of the
specimen was ended at the point of FRP rupture unless it is specified.
The better stress–strain performance of FRP wrapping is clearly observed in
Figs. 8, 9 and 10 as compared to non-strengthened column specimen as shown
Fig. 7 Stress–strains in concrete of non-strengthened square columns
Fig. 8 Stress–strains in concrete of top-strengthened square columns

Fig. 9 Stress–strains in concrete of top–bottom-strengthened square columns
Fig. 10 Stress–strains in concrete of full-strengthened square columns
in Fig. 7. In all FRP-confined concrete specimen, an approximately linear elastic

behaviour of the stress–strain curve was noted with hardening/softening response
followed by gradually decreased in stiffness. Some specimens of FRP-confined
column show a bilinear behaviour. The uniform shape of the stress–strain curve
can be seen in the top and top–bottom FRP wrapping column except for the full
strengthening column specimen.
The poor behaviour can be seen in CFRP bidirectional specimen, whereas all
other FRP specimens exhibited monotonically ascending response. It was noticed
that CFRP unidirectional material shows better performance in all types of wrapping
system. Additionally, the CFRP unidirectional material shows better performance as
compared to other wrapping materials.
The maximum strain in the top and top–bottom FRP wrapping column specimen
was observed slightly higher than concrete strain except for full wrapping column
specimen. This is probably due to the partial confinement of FRP wrapping. It was
also noted that the hoop strain has increased gradually after peak load in the top
Table 4 Test results summary

Type Specimen f’co,ave (MPa) f’cc Ecu Eh,ave f’cc/f’co Ecu /Eco Eh,ave /Ef
ID (MPa)
Control S1 29.36 26.51 0.0018 0.0008 0.90 1 –
Top C1X 29.36 31.04 0.0032 0.0019 1.06 1.77 0.123
C2X 29.36 28.14 0.0022 0.0011 0.96 1.19 0.086
G1X 29.36 29.46 0.0031 0.0017 1.00 1.67 0.089
G2X 29.36 27.12 0.0033 0.0016 0.92 1.82 0.092
Top–bottom C1Y 29.36 34.07 0.0038 0.0025 1.16 2.06 0.156
C2Y 29.36 29.17 0.0024 0.0028 0.99 1.33 0.212
G1Y 29.36 32.2 0.0042 0.0022 1.10 2.30 0.115
G2Y 29.36 32.15 0.0040 0.0024 1.10 2.18 0.137
Full C1Z 29.36 40.36 0.0049 0.0030 1.37 2.67 0.189
C2Z 29.36 33.85 0.0033 0.0028 1.15 1.80 0.213
G1Z 29.36 37.14 0.0043 0.0026 1.26 2.35 0.138
G2Z 29.36 37.4 0.0041 0.0028 1.27 2.25 0.162
and top–bottom FRP wrapping column specimen as compared to concrete strain.

This is because of the failure mechanism of the column specimen. The failure was
initiated from the concrete portion and later extended to the FRP wrapping which
prolongs the strain behaviour of FRP strain. The strain behaviour on FRP wrapping
in full-strengthened column specimen was observed all mostly same as concrete
strain behaviour. It is because of full FRP confinement on the concrete surface.
The maximum stress and strain of various concrete specimens and FRP wrapping
are given in Table 4, respectively. Table 4 also describes the normalized ultimate
axial stress (f ’cc/f ’co) and normalized ultimate axial strains (Ecu/Eco). In the FRP-
confined column specimens, the stress ratio of f ’cc/f ’co was noted in the range of
0.92–1.37, whereas strain ratio of Ecu/Eco was observed in the range of 1.19–2.67.
The percentage of stress ratio (f ’cc/f ’co) was obtained 2–17%, 10–28% and 27–52%
in top strengthening, top–bottom strengthening and full strengthening, respectively.
4 Comparison of Experimental Stress with Different Model
The design of partially and fully FRP-confined RC column has been given in the
CNR-DT 200 R1[2]. Effective confinement pressure and vertical efficiency coef-
ficient are recommended in code for partially confined FRP RC column. In order
to ensure the accuracy of the design criteria for FRP-confined concrete, it mainly
depends on the restraint model. To this end, the existing CNR-DT 200 R1 [2] restric-
tion model has been briefly described in the following sections. Some codes used
the theoretical model of Lam and Teng [12]. The experimental data were compared
with the above two models to check the precision and reliability of that.
4.1 CNR-DT 200 R1 Model of Partially FRP-Confined

Concrete
The ultimate axial stress of RC column is in CNR-DT 200 R1 [2], provided as

follows:
2
f cc fl,eff 3
= 1 + 2.6 (1)
f co f co
4.2 Lam and Teng’s Model
Several other codes propose different strengthening methods for FRP-confined

concrete. Previously, it has been noted that some codes did not provide design require-
ments for partially FRP-constrained concrete. In this study, in Lam and Teng’s model,
the vertical efficiency coefficients of some FRP-constrained concrete are correlated
to see if the model can evaluate the ultimate axial stress. In Lam and Teng’s model,
the ultimate axial stress is estimated as follows:
f cc fl
= 1 + 3.3 (2)
f co f co
where f cc = ultimate axial stresses.

f co = the unconfined concrete strength.
fl = effective confining pressure of FRP.
In partially FRP-constrained concrete, the vertical efficiency coefficient [2] is
used in combination with the Lam and Teng’s model [12]. The test results are closely
related to the theoretical predictions obtained from the Lam and Teng’s models [12].
The comparison between numerical prediction and experimental results is shown
in Figs. 11 and 12. Figure 11 shows the performance of ultimate axial stress by
comparing the CNR-DT 200 R1 [2]. After analysing Fig. 11, it has been noted
that the experimental and theoretical values are more or less the same. Similarly,
Fig. 12 shows the comparison of theoretical and experimental results of the Lam and
Teng’s model [12]. As per Fig. 12, it is clearly notifying that the predicted strength
is distributed around the experimental stresses.
Fig. 11 Ultimate axial stress of theoretical prediction (CNR-DT-R1) versus experimental results
[2]
Fig. 12 Ultimate axial stress of theoretical prediction (Lam and Teng) versus experimental results
[12]
5 Conclusions
This paper has reported the numerical and experimental test results of a total number
of thirteen types of column. The experimental stresses have predicted with a different
model like CNR-DT-R1 and Lam and Teng. As per the present study, following
conclusion can be drawn:
1. Partial top strengthening of square RC column led to increase displacement
than that of a controlled column in CFRP and GFRP wraps about 62% and
40% higher in unidirectional and about 22% and 40% higher in bidirectional,
respectively. The same values in the partially top–bottom strengthening of RC
square column are 44% and 20% higher in unidirectional and 9% and 0% higher
in bidirectional, respectively. However, improvement in the displacement of full
strengthening square RC column than the controlled column in CFRP and GFRP
wraps was recorded about 80% and 52% in unidirectional wrapping and 34%
and 30% in bidirectional wrapping, respectively. Overall, it has been noted that
full strengthening unidirectional CFRP wrapping is more effective and elastic
than other partial wrappings.
2. Partial top strengthening of square RC column led to improve the stress in CFRP
and GFRP wraps that are 14% and 10% higher in unidirectional, whereas that
value approximately is same as in a controlled column in bidirectional wrapping,
respectively. Similarly, the same values in the partially top–bottom strength-
ening of RC square column are 22% and 17% higher in unidirectional and 10%
and 17% higher in bidirectional, respectively. However, full strengthening of
square RC column led to significantly increase the stress in CFRP and GFRP
wraps that are 34% and 28% higher in unidirectional wrapping and 21% and 29%
higher in bidirectional wrapping than controlled column, respectively. Overall,
it has been noted that full strengthening unidirectional CFRP wrappings are
more effective and stronger than other partial wrappings.
3. The axial stress–strain curve of partial FRP strengthen column includes two
stages. Increasing the FRP ratio usually results in ultimate axial stress–strain.
In general, the slope and stiffness of the second phase of the stress–strain curve
increase with FRP.
4. The use of the design code CNR-DT-200 R1 and Lam and Teng’s model can
provide accurate predictions for the ultimate axial stress of a partially and fully
FRP-confined RC column. The strength formula of CNR-DT200R1 and the
ultimate axial stress obtained by the experimental are approximately equal.
Similarly, the results of the Lam and Teng’s model revolve around the ultimate
axial stress of partially and fully FRP-restrained RC columns, although it can
predict the ultimate axial stress with acceptable accuracy.
References
1. ACI 440.2R-08. (2008). Guide for the design and construction of externally bonded FRP
systems for strengthening concrete structures.440.2R-08, Farmington Hills, MI.
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systems for strengthening existing structures. Advisory Committee on Technical Recommenda-
tions for Construction. National Research Council, Rome, Italy.
3. Kamiński, M., & Trapko, T. (2006). Experimental behaviour of reinforced concrete column
models strengthened by CFRP materials. Journal of Civil Engineering and Management, 12(2),
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4. Pham, T. M., Doan, L. V., & Hadi, M. N. (2013). Strengthening square reinforced concrete
columns by circularisation and FRP confinement. Construction and Building Materials, 49,
490–499.
5. Eid, R., & Paultre, P. (2017). Compressive behavior of FRP-confined reinforced concrete
columns. Engineering Structures, 132, 518–530.
6. Campione, G., & Miraglia, N. (2003). Strength and strain capacities of concrete compression
members reinforced with FRP. Cement and Concrete Composites, 25(1), 31–41.
7. Silva, M. A. G. (2011). Behavior of square and circular columns strengthened with aramidic
or carbon fibers. Construction and Building Materials, 25(8), 3222–3228.
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reinforcement- specification. Bureau of Indian Standards, New Delhi.
10. Indian Standards 10262. (2009). Recommended Guidelines for Concrete Mix Design. Bureau
of Indian Standards; 2009, New Delhi.
11. ASTM D3039. (2008). Standard test method for tensile properties of polymer matrix composite
materials (D3039M). West Conshohocken, USA.
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Construction and Building Materials, 17(6–7), 471–489.
Assessment of Response Reduction
Factor for Ordinary RC Frames by IS
Code and PSPD Method
Ajay Singh Thakur and Tanmay Gupta
Abstract The structures are designed for a much lower force than maximum force
if the structure remains elastic, with the expectation of the building undergoing
damage in case of strong shaking, ductility will play a major factor in post-yield
behavior. Current equivalent static method in Indian Seismic code uses response
reduction factor based on building system for calculating seismic horizontal coeffi-
cient which integrates with a total weight of building to give design force as output.
The performance-based plastic design method directly accounts for the inelastic
behavior of structure, thus eliminating any post-assessment or iteration after the
initial design. Two model frames, 4 and 8 stories, are designed based on equiva-
lent static method IS 1893 Part 1 (2016) and performance-based plastic design. The
evaluation of this model is extensively done by nonlinear static pushover analysis.
By comparing the results, the incorporation of inelastic behavior shows a higher
response reduction factor concerning the factor given by the Indian Seismic code as
per different building structures.
Keywords Performance-based plastic design · Post-yield behavior
1 Introduction
Response reduction allows the structure to damage for severe earthquakes which
implies that the structure is designed for less force than expected if the structure were
to remain linearly elastic. The ratio of linear ultimate elastic force and design force
represents the response reduction factor. The response reduction factor is specified
in various international codes for obtaining design force in structures [1]. Response
reduction factor R is also known as response modification factor in ASCE 7 (2005)
A. S. Thakur · T. Gupta (B)

Jaypee University of Information Technology, Waknaghat, India
e-mail: tanmay.gupta@juitsolan.in
A. S. Thakur
e-mail: 206605@juitsolan.in
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4040-8_23
276 A. S. Thakur and T. Gupta
and behavior factor in Eurocode 8 Part 1 [2] and response reduction factor in IS
1893 Part 1 (2016) [3]. It incorporates three parameters which are the overstrength
factor, redundancy, and ductility factor [4, 5]. In India IS 1893:2016 Part 1 (2016)
[3], equivalent static lateral load method is used to substitute the dynamic effect of an
earthquake by distributing the static force linearly in the lateral direction Bourahla
[6]. The parameters are mathematically written as shown in Eq. 1
R = R S R R Rμ (1)
RS is the overstrength factor which is the ratio of apparent strength at ultimate

displacement (V u ) and design strength (V B ). RR is the redundancy factor which indi-
cates the load distribution of resisting frame members to the foundation; in case one,
vertical member fails and the moment is redistributed by other members. The lateral
stiffness and strength characteristics of each frame determine the energy distribution
during a lateral seismic event. The value of RR will be unity as per ATC 19 [7]. Rμ is
the reduction factor for ductility (μ) proposed by Fajfar [8] in which μ is expressed
as the ratio of ultimate displacement (Δu) and yield displacement (Δy) in Eq. 2.
Δu
μ= (2)
Δy
Many researchers formulated their proposals for calculating the reduction factor
for ductility Rμ [8–10]. The reduction factor is very important for a designer to
take post-yield ductility into account for severe earthquakes. The performance-based
plastic design PBPD uses the energy balance concept and allows the designer to
select global performance criteria by pre-selecting target drift and yield mechanism.
Target drift is associated with the degree and yield mechanism that deals with the
distribution of energy. This method has been developed by Leelataviwat and his
associates at the University of Michigan [11]. The energy balance concept is given by
Housner [12] and the concept was extended to prevent the structure from overturning
at extreme drift in 1960. Housner uses the difference between input energy and the
elastic strain [11, 13]. The main objective of this proposed method was to find out
the amount of absorbed plastic energy in the structure. The main components of
PSPD are (a) to determine the base shear by equating the work needed to push the
structure, monotonically up to a target drift which is expressed by an elastic and
plastic component of energy Ee and Ep to the energy required by elastoplastic single
degree of freedom to achieve the same state. Indian Seismic code indirectly defines
the ultimate drift or the performance objectives by multiplying the story drift or
permissible drift at the design level with the response reduction factor [14]. Code also
gives the guidelines for force-based design which considered structure inelasticity in
the form of seismic horizontal coefficients. In this paper, performance-based plastic
design and equivalent static load based on Indian Seismic code are compared for the
reinforced concrete structure to access the difference in response reduction factor for
frame buildings due to different approaches.
Assessment of Response Reduction Factor for Ordinary … 277
2 Base Shear Calculation in Performance-Based Plastic

Design
A predetermined target can be defined as per ATC 40 maximum inter-story drift

ratio for the different performance levels. Target drift Θma x is selected as 2%, and
yield or permissible drift is selected as per IS 1893:2016 maximum inter-story drift
Θy = 0.4%. The inelastic drift will be the difference of target and yield drift Θp
= 1.6% which is the plastic component of target drift. The inelastic drift will be
modified for pinched hysteretic behavior for the RC frame by diving the target drift
with the C2 factor. C2 factor is taken as per FEMA 440 document to determine
the target displacement with modification factor to represent the pinched hysteretic
shape, stiffness degradation, and strength deterioration FEMA 440 [15]. As IS code
does not incorporate the value of the C2 modification factor, for accounting for the
pinched behavior the use of inelastic spectral acceleration Sa inelastic is suggested
by Qammer [14]. The design base shear is calculated by equating the work done with
the assumption of elastoplastic equivalent SDOF to push the structure monotonically
up to target drift, as shown in Eq. 3.
⎛ / ⎞
−Ah + A2h + 4γ Sa2 inelastic
VB = ⎝ ⎠W (3)
2
W is the total weight of the structure.

Ah is the dimensionless parameter.
γ is the energy modification factor that depends on structural ductility factor μ
and ductility reduction factor Rμ [13, 16].
2μ − 1
γ = (4)
R μ2
Sa
Sa inelastic = (5)
Rµ
The ductility modification factor is given by many senior authors from the Univer-
sity of Michigan and their associates. The equations suggested by Fajfar [8] depend
upon the natural time of building and time corresponding to spectral acceleration
which is a function of soil type.
T
Rμ = (μ − 1) + 1 for T ≤ TC (6)
TC
Rμ = μ for T ≥ TC (7)
Fig. 1 Idealized inelastic

spectra by Newmark and
Hall (1982) for EP-SDOF
Rμ
Period (sec)
Spectra proposed by Newmark and Hall [9] can be used to relate the structural
ductility and ductility reduction factor for EP-SDOF as shown in Fig. 1.
( n )( )0.75T −0.2 ( )
Σ Wn h n θ P 8π 2
Ah = (βi − βi+1 )h i Σn (8)
i=1 i=1 Wi h i T 2g
( n )0.75T −0.2
Σ WI hi
βi = (9)
i=1
Wn h n
β i is the shear distribution factor where W i corresponds to the weight of story at

level i, W n corresponds to the weight at the top story. Height is taken as a cumulative
sum for i story’s.
3 Lateral Load Distribution

[ ( )0.75T −0.2 ]
Wn h n
Q i = βi − βi+1 Σn VB (10)
i=1 Wi h i
The base shear is distributed as per the above formulae suggested by Chao et al.
(2007).
4 Base Shear Calculation as Per IS 1893:2016
For calculating the design base shear along any principal axis of the building is given
in Eq. 11 under clause 7.6.1 of IS 1893:2016 [3].
VB = Ah W (11)
V B is the design base shear.

Ah is the horizontal seismic coefficient as per clause 6.4.2 in IS 1893:2016 the
value of the horizontal seismic coefficient is expressed in Eq. 12.
Z I Sa
Ah = (12)
2 R g
Z is the zone factor for the maximum considered earthquake and service life of
the structure in a zone.
I is termed as the important factor depending upon function use of the structure
as given in Clause 7.8.3.
Sa
g
is the average response acceleration coefficient which denotes the acceleration
response spectrum of the structure depending upon the natural period of vibration
and damping of the structure.
Design force is distributed to different floor levels in two ways: (a) vertical distri-
bution to different floors and (b) horizontal distribution to different lateral force
resisting elements. The design base shear in Eq. 11 shall be distributed along with
the height of the building as per the following expression given below.
( )
Wi h i2
Q i = VB Σn 2
(13)
i=1 Wi h i
Qi = Design lateral force at the floor i,

W i = Seismic weight of floor i,
Horizontal distribution will only take place in a building whose floor is capable of
providing rigid horizontal diaphragm action and assuming the floor to be infinitely
rigid in the horizontal plane.
5 Scope
• The main objective of this study was to provide a comparative analysis for
the response reduction factor through the equivalent static method adopted by
Indian Seismic code and performance-based plastic design for reinforced concrete
buildings.
• Performance-based plastic design methodology directly accounts for the struc-
ture inelastic behavior and eliminates the need for nonlinear static and dynamic
analysis.
• This methodology was fully developed for steel structure frames, and a compre-
hensive effort is required to extend this methodology and application in a concrete
structure.
6 Limitation
• No detailed design equation is provided to quantify the reduction in energy

dissipation for different hysteretic structures.
• Modification factor for pinch hysteretic shape, degradation is missing from Indian
Seismic code.
• Equivalent static force design does not consider the post-yield behavior of a
structure.
• The performance-based plastic design does not consider gravity loading for the
calculation of base shear.
• Different modes are not considered in plastic design.
7 The Example Buildings
The example buildings consist in Zone V having medium-stiff soil site for a residen-
tial and commercial structure having occupancy more than 200 people. The impor-
tant factor for the defined structure is 1.2 as per IS 1893:2016. Response reduction is
taken as V, but actual response reduction is assumed to be different than prescribed;
to determine the actual response reduction factor, a nonlinear static pushover anal-
ysis was carried out in SAP 2000 software. Table 1 shows the general feature of the
example structure, and Table 2 describes the frame properties used in the structure.
Plan and elevation of 8-story building are shown in Figure 2, and properties are
described in Table 3.
The parameters of performance-based plastic design are shown in Table 4, due to
the varying size of beam and column the lumped weight.
Table 1 General features of

Story 4 8
MRF example buildings
Elevation (m) 12 24
Floor to floor height (m) 3 3
No of a bay in the x-direction 3 3
No of a bay in the y-direction 3 3
Slab thickness 0.150 0.150
Bay width in x- and y-directions (m) 4 4
External wall thickness (mm) 230 230
Internal wall thickness (mm) 115 115
Openings (%) 30 30
Table 2 Frame properties

Floor (No) 4-story beam 4-story column 8-story beam 8-story column
dimension (m) dimension (m) dimension (m) dimension (m)
8 – – 0.3 × 0.4 0.5 × 0.5
7 – – 0.3 × 0.4 0.5 × 0.5
6 – – 0.3 × 0.4 0.5 × 0.5
5 – – 0.3 × 0.45 0.6 × 0.6
4 0.23 × 0.45 0.4 × 0.4 0.3 × 0.45 0.6 × 0.6
3 0.23 × 0.45 0.4 × 0.4 0.3 × 0.45 0.6 × 0.6
2 0.23 × 0.5 0.45 × 0.45 0.3 × 0.5 0.6 × 0.6
1 0.23 × 0.5 0.45 × 0.45 0.3 × 0.5 0.6 × 0.6
** All units in Table 2 are in meter. (SI unit)
Fig. 2 Plan and elevation 8 story
Table 3 Properties of
Material property Concrete M25 grade Steel Fe 415
material
Weight per unit 25 76.97
volume (kN/m3 )
Mass per unit 2.548 7.849
volume (kg/m3 )
Modulus of 2.5E + 06 2E + 08
elasticity (kN/m2 )
Characteristic 25,000 415,000 (yield)
strength (kN/m2 )
Expected yield – 456,500
strength
(kN/m2 )
Table 4 Performance-based
PBPD parameters 4 story 8 story
plastic design parameters
T (s) 0.483 0.8132
T characteristic (s) 0.55 0.55
W (kN) 4584.66 10,573.87
Z 0.36 0.36
I 1.2 1.2
S a (g) 2.5 1.672
S a inelastic 0.55 g 1.672%
Θy (%) 0.4 0.4
Θmax (%) 2 2
Θp (%) 1.6 1.6
γ 0.496 0.36
Ah 4.796 3.342
R 5 5
Rμ 4.49 5
V B (kN) 220.2383 285.9142
8 Comparative Results of IS Code and PSPD Method
The pushover method is analyzed after satisfying the gravity analysis and equating
the static and dynamic forces (Response spectrum Function 1893); all models are
satisfying the codal provision, and thereafter a new force-based load case “Gravity”
was assigned. For displacement-based design, Push- X and Push-Y load cases are
assigned with target displacement as 0.2% of total height. The performance curve
will be the same for both methods as no modification was done for the sizes of
frame members, but a difference can be noticed in the performance points of both
these methods as PBPD uses coefficient spectrum method and coefficient values are
taken from ATC 40. For LSM modified response spectrum was used for checking
performance points as shown in Fig. 3. A comparison between design base shear and
performance base shear is shown in Table 5. The reason for LSM design base shear
greater than PBPD was due to its low ductility factor.
Beam and column moments were also compared by designing beams and columns
as per PBPD by Shukla [17] in which beam moment was uniformly distributed in
comparison with IS code and ensuring strong column weak beam criteria. Base shear
results comparison can be observed in Fig. 4. The response reduction was calculated
as per guidelines given in ATC-19 [18]. The need for modification in frame members
is a prerequisite for performance-based design to achieve the target objectives which
can be summarized from the PBPD 4-story result as structure lacks ductility and
overstrength shown in Table 6.
Fig. 3 Performance point of PSPD and LSM 4 story
Table 5 Base shear comparison of LSM and PSPD method

Method 4-tory design 4-story 8-story design 8-story
base shear performance base base shear (kN) performance base
(kN) shear (kN) shear (kN)
IS code limit state V d = 494.88 V pe r = 1320.9 V min = 877 V per = 1415.57
method
Performance-based V d = 220 V per = 2964.21 V min = 285 V per = 2425.99
plastic design
Fig. 4 Performance point of PSPD and LSM 8 story
9 Discussion of Results
• Overall, the post-yield behavior in the frames was estimated by the nonlinear
static procedure for building adhering to strong column weak beam concept, as
Table 6 Response reduction factor

Cases V ma x (kN) Y max (mm) V yield (kN) Y yield (mm) Rs Rμ RR R
IS 1893 4 2688 34 1114.03 14 2.41 2.28 1 5.5
story
PBPD 4 3002 134 2964.21 75 1.01 1.78 1 1.8
story
IS 1893 8 3241 36.02 1415.57 19.828 2.28 1.815 1 4.15
story
PBPD 8 5984.98 126.21 2425.99 34 2.46 3.712 1 9.13
story
the static analysis does not consider post-yield behavior for structure and suggests
nonlinear static and dynamic procedures.
• Overstrength ratio for 4 story, performance-based plastic design was less than 2
due to the use of similar beam and column sizes for both methods, indicating an
improvement in the size of frame members for PBPD to improve its overstrength
and ductility ratio.
• In PBPD, drift control and yielding are accounted to analyze the base shear,
which can be considered a good correlation between base shear from performance-
based plastic design and equivalent static method as per IS1893:2016. It is noted
that PBPD frames have less base shear than the equivalent static method for
both 4 and 8 stories which advocates the energy balance concept for accounting
for the hysteretic behavior of structure by quantitatively using inelastic spectral
acceleration.
• It should be noted that maximum displacement for all cases is within the acceptable
limit as per global drift and yield limit. For extensive research in the story drift
and floor, displacement should be compared with time history for different ground
motions.
• For the case of 8-story structure, the response reduction factor according to IS
code shows reserved results as compared to PBPD; ductility ratio was considered
as a major factor for dissipating the energy which seems to decrease the shear
force up to 9 times holding good agreement with design base shear calculated
from PBPD method.
10 Conclusion
The following conclusion is drawn from this study:

• The performance-based plastic design does not require iteration to satisfy target
and drift limits, and the procedure for RC frames can be incorporated under
performance-based design.
• C2 factor is used for considering the degrading hysteretic behavior as per ATC
40, and the factor was modified by using the inelastic spectral acceleration as per
current seismic code to find the base shear for the RC frame.
• Due to the application of plastic hinges in beam and column, to incorporate
strength degradation both PBPD and equivalent static method incorporated with
the nonlinear static procedure include P-Delta effect to determine the final shear.
• The strong column weak beam concept is not adequate to prevent global
mechanisms when compared with PBPD.
• Response reduction of 4 and 8 stories was evaluated by performing pushover
analysis with IS code and PBPD.
• Results of 8 story satisfy the inheritance of inelastic ductility demand, and PBPD
4 story needs to be modified for achieving sufficient ductility.
• Response reduction factor for IS code was found to be around 5 as stated in code.
Maximum hinge state is between IO-LS for ground floor column with modification
in frame member size or ductility the hinges can be minimized.
References
1. Chaulagain, H., Rodrigues, H., Spacone, E., Guragain, R., Mallik, R., & Varum, H. (2014).
Response reduction factor of irregular RC buildings in Kathmandu valley. Earthquake
Engineering and Engineering Vibration, 13, 455–470. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11803-014-
0255-8
2. CEN. (2004a). European standard EN 1998–1:2004. Eurocode 8: design of structures for
earthquake resistance. Part 1: General rules, seismic actions and rules for buildings. Comite
Europeen de Normalisation, Brussels.
3. IS 1893:2016. Indian Standard criteria for earthquake resistant design of structures.
4. Ozhendekci, D., Ozhendekci, N., & Ozturk, A. (2006). The seismic response modification
factor for eccentrically braced frames, 1st ECEES, Geneva.
5. Patel, B., & Shah, D. (2010). Formulation of response reduction factor for RC framed staging
of elevated water tank using static pushover analysis. Proceeding of the World Congress on
Engineering.
6. Bourahla, N. (2015). Seismic accidental eccentricity: Origins, effects and evaluation.
7. ATC 19. (1995). Seismic response modification factors. Applied Technical Council, California
Seismic Safety Commission.
8. Fajfar, P. (1999). Capacity spectrum method based on inelastic demand spectra. Earthquake
Engineering and Structuaral Dynamic, 28, 979–993.
9. Newmark, N. M., & Hall, W. J. (1973). Seismic design criteria for nuclear reactor facilities.
Report No 46, Building Practices for Disaster Mitigation, National Bureau of Standards, U.S.
Department of Commerce.
10. Paulay, T., & Priestley, M. J. N. (1992). Seismic design of reinforced concrete and masonry
buildings. Wiley Interscience.
11. Leelataviwat, S., Goel, S., & Stojadinovic, B. (2002). Energy-based seismic design of structures
using yield mechanism and target drift. Journal of Structural Engineering-ASCE, 128. https://
doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)0733-9445(2002)128:8(1046)
12. Housner, G. W. (1956). Limit design of structures to resist earthquakes. Proceedings of World
Conference on Earthquake Engineering, 5, 1–11.
13. Lee, S.-S., & Goel, S. C. (2001). Performance-based design of steel moment frames using target
drift and yield mechanism. Research Report No. UMCEE 01-17, Dept. of Civil and Envr. Eng.,
University of Michigan.
14. Qammer, S., Dalal, S., & Dalal, P. (2018). Seismic performance evaluation of RC frames
designed by PBPD method attuned with Indian code of practice.
15. FEMA 440 Improvement in nonlinear static seismic analysis procedures. (2005). Federal
Emergency Management Agency.
16. Goel, R. K., & Chopra, A. K. (2001). A modal pushover analysis procedure to estimate
seismic demands for buildings: Theory and implementation. Report No. PEER-2001/03, Pacific
Earthquake Research Center, University of California.
17. Shukla, K. P., & Dalal, S. P. (2017). Evaluation of response reduction factor of a reinforced
cement concrete building designed by performance-based plastic design method and limit state
design method. Procedia Engineering, 173, 1854–1861. ISSN 1877-7058. https://doi.org/10.
1016/j.proeng.2016.12.235.
18. ATC. (1995a). Structural response modification factors. ATC-19 Report. Applied Technology
Council.
Analysis of Soft Storey Building
with Different Types of Steel Bracings
Under Seismic Load
Akhila Lal and Mini Remanan
Abstract Nowadays, open ground storey is preferred in multi-storeyed buildings

due to increased traffic congestions, lack of availability of space for parking, etc.
The open ground storey or soft storey buildings show a greater tendency to collapse
during an earthquake because they possess discontinuity in stiffness, as one storey
is significantly more flexible than the adjacent storey. Shear wall, steel bracings,
floor diaphragms, etc., are used to mitigate the effect of soft storey. In this study, a
seven-storeyed building is considered for the analysis. The building is modelled as
bare frame, soft storey frame, and frame with steel bracings. The bracings used here
are cross-bracing, concentric inverted V bracing and eccentric inverted V bracing to
reduce the effect of soft storey. Linear and nonlinear dynamic analyses are carried
out using ETABS 2016 software. The response of the soft storey building, i.e. storey
displacement and storey drift, is found for each type of bracing, and the most efficient
one is found. The same building model is used for both linear and nonlinear analyses.
The response of the building model is also found in various seismic zones as per IS
1893 (Part 1): 2016, and the results are compared.
Keywords Soft storey · Steel bracings · Response spectrum analysis · Time

history analysis
1 Introduction
Soft storey construction is a multi-storeyed construction technique adopted

commonly so as to provide parking space. The stiffness of the soft storeyed building
is very low. It can be also called as weak storey or open ground storey or stilt storey
building. As per IS 1893 (Part 1): 2016, a soft storey is a storey in which the lateral
stiffness is less than that in the storey above. During the time of an earthquake, the
building with soft storey configuration shows a higher tendency to collapse. This
happens because the infill walls are absent in the ground storey. The incorporation
A. Lal (B) · M. Remanan

Civil Engineering Department, National Institute of Technology, Calicut, Kerala 673601, India
e-mail: akhilalal432@gmail.com
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4040-8_24
288 A. Lal and M. Remanan
of infill walls increases the ultimate strength, and the stiffness of the structure, but
to the contrary, reduces the ductility as well as energy absorption [1, 2]. Several
lateral load resisting systems like shear wall, steel bracings, floor diaphragms and
stiffer columns can be provided to the buildings. Among these systems shear wall
configuration gives better feasibility against earthquake action [3–6]. Ganesh and
Anirudhha (2016) showed that instead of using two short walls separated by inter-
related beams, a shear wall can be used as a long structural wall which retards the
lateral displacement [7]. Mishra et al. [8] placed shear wall at different positions in a
multi-storeyed building and found that the placement of shear wall at an intermediate
position between core and periphery of the building is the best. Several studies show
that the storey drift is lesser for the frames with infill walls than the bare frame.
Providing bracings or infill wall to the soft storey reduces the time period. Even
though the infill walls are provided as non-structural elements, it adds stiffness to the
building when seismic load acts on it [9, 10]. Inclusion of cross-bracings and zipper
bracings enhances global capacity of the structure in terms of ductility, deformation
and strength [11, 12]. While constructing an open ground storey (OGS) building
the major fact to consider is the eventual collapse due to the absence of infill wall.
The beam-column joint of the ground storey alone is compelled to resist the major
percentage of base shear acting on it during such a collapse. So there is a need to
mitigate the effect of the soft storey in buildings.
2 Modelling and Analysis
For the analysis, an RCC building of G + 6 storeys is considered in the present study.
The structure is symmetrical and regular in plan as shown in Fig. 1a. The plan area
is 25 m × 25 m. The building is modelled for the following cases, and the 3D views
of each case are shown in Fig. 1b–f:
. Bare frame building (BF).
. Soft storey building (Frame 1).
. Soft storey building with cross-bracing at corners of ground storey (Frame 2).
. Soft storey building with inverted V bracing at corners of ground storey (Frame
3).
. Soft storey building with eccentric inverted V bracing at corners of ground storey
(Frame 4).
The various models for the study are generated in the ETABS 2016 software. All
the data used for the analysis is given in Table 1. The building is designed as per IS
1893 (Part 1): 2016 and is found safe for all the zones. The building frame system
belongs to ordinary moment-resisting frames (OMRF) as per IS 1893 (Part 1): 2016.
The modelling of brick masonry infill wall is carried out by equivalent diagonal
strut method as per FEMA-273 [13]. The properties of material and thickness of the
equivalent diagonal strut are similar to that of infill masonry wall. Linear dynamic
as well as nonlinear dynamic analysis of frames is carried out in this study.
Analysis of Soft Storey Building with Different … 289
(a) (b) (c)
(d) (e) (f)
Fig. 1 a Plan of the building, b Bare frame (BF), c Frame 1, d Frame 2, e Frame 3 and f Frame 4
Table 1 Data used for the

S. No Description Specification
analysis
1 Building frame system (G + 6) OMRF
2 Bay width in x- and y-directions 5m
3 Storey height at base and above 3.5 m
4 Beam size 400 mm × 400 mm
5 Column size 650 mm × 650 mm
6 Steel section ISMB 600
7 Slab thickness 125 mm
8 Infill panel Brick masonry
9 Thickness of brick wall 230 mm
10 Grade of steel Fe 415
11 Grade of concrete M30
12 Live load 3.5 kN/m2
13 Floor finish 1 kN/m2
14 Type of soil Medium (II)
15 Importance factor (I) 1
16 Response reduction factor (R) 3
17 Acceleration due to gravity (g) 9810 mm/s2
18 Response spectrum scale factor 3270
Response spectrum method was adopted to pursue the linear behaviour of the
buildings when the seismic loads act on it. This method takes into account the multiple
modes of response present in a building. Based on the model frequency and modal
mass which is available for each mode, a response is acquired from the design
spectrum. The response spectrum scale factor is I ×gR
, where g is the acceleration due
to gravity, I is the importance factor and R is the response reduction factor which
is given in Table 1. The complete quadratic combination (CQC) method of modal
combination is considered for the analysis. Load combinations are given as per IS
1893 (Part 1): 2016 [14].
The time history method of analysis is carried out in the models to study the
nonlinear behaviour of the structure using real acceleration time history records.
The time history analysis can be performed by direct integration method, which
needs greater computational efforts and provides the most reliable outcomes than
the linear analysis. For executing the nonlinear analysis, ETABS permits the user to
input the scaled records of the El-Centro earthquake. The acceleration time history
of El-Centro Imperial Valley earthquake—1940 is shown in Fig. 2.
The nonlinear hinge properties are assigned in the ETABS model. Moment hinges
(M3) are assigned to beams at its both ends, biaxial moment hinges (P-M-M) are
assigned to both ends of columns and axial hinges (P) are assigned at the middle of
steel bracings and strut. Geometric nonlinearity, i.e. P-delta and large displacement
are considered.
Analysis of all the frames is done in seismic zones II, III, IV and V. The seismic
zone factor corresponding to various seismic zones is given in Table 2.
Fig. 2 Acceleration time history of El-Centro Imperial Valley earthquake—1940
Table 2 Seismic zone factor, Z (IS 1893 (Part 1): 2016)

Seismic Zones Zone II Zone III Zone IV Zone V
Z 0.10 0.16 0.24 0.36
The storey displacement and storey drift for all the frames are found in each zone
and compared. The results obtained from the linear and nonlinear analysis done in
all frames are given.
3.1 Storey Displacement
The storey displacement plot obtained from linear analysis of all the frames in zones
II, III, IV and V is shown in Fig. 3a–d, respectively. Storey displacement increases
with increase in the height of the building in all seismic zones. The ground storey
displacement of all the frames with bracing is compared with that without bracing
(Frame 1), and the percentage reduction in the storey displacement of all frames with
bracing is found and is shown in Table 3. The minimum ground storey displacement
is shown by the frame with cross-bracing (Frame 2) in all the zones. The inclusion
of cross-bracing reduced the ground storey displacement by 53.95% in zone IV.
The least reduction in the ground storey displacement was shown by the frame with
eccentric inverted V bracing (34.17% in zone III and zone V). There is no much
(a) Zone II (b) Zone III
(c) Zone IV (d) Zone V
Fig. 3 Storey displacement plot from linear analysis: a Zone II, b Zone III, c Zone IV and d Zone
V
Table 3 Comparison of percentage reduction in the ground storey displacement of braced frames
Percentage reduction in ground storey displacement with respect to Frame 1
Zone II Zone III Zone IV Zone V
Linear Nonlinear Linear Nonlinear Linear Nonlinear Linear Nonlinear
(%) (%) (%) (%) (%) (%) (%) (%)
Frame 2 53.83 54.43 53.85 56.07 53.95 58.93 53.89 56.48
Frame 3 46.77 48.46 46.78 51.77 46.81 50.62 46.83 49.35
Frame 4 34.27 41.49 34.17 45.36 34.20 40.45 34.17 38.96
variation in the percentage reduction of storey displacements of each frame in all the
zones.
The storey displacement plot obtained from nonlinear analysis in zones II, III, IV
and V is shown in Fig. 4a–d, respectively. The soft storey frame shows maximum
ground storey displacement in all the zones. From Table 3, a 58.93% reduction
in ground storey displacement is shown by cross-braced frame in zone IV which
is obtained after nonlinear analysis. The minimum percentage reduction in ground
storey displacement is shown by frame with eccentric inverted V bracings in all four
zones.
Fig. 4 Storey displacement plot from nonlinear analysis: a Zone II, b Zone III, c Zone IV and d
Zone V
3.2 Storey Drift
Storey drift is said as the relative displacement between adjacent storeys of a structure.
The storey drift of all the frames in zones II, III, IV and V is obtained from linear
analysis and which is shown in Fig. 5a–d, respectively. The ground storey drift of all
the frames with bracing is compared with that without bracing, and the percentage
reduction in the ground storey drift of all frames with bracing is found and is shown
in Table 4. The minimum ground storey drift is shown by the frame with cross-
bracing (Frame 2) in all the zones. A 54.19% reduction in the ground storey drift is
obtained by the use of cross-bracing in zone III. A minimum percentage reduction
Fig. 5 Storey drift plot from linear analysis: a Zone II, b Zone III, c Zone IV and d Zone V
Table 4 Comparison of percentage reduction in the ground storey drift of braced frames
Percentage reduction in ground storey drift with respect to Frame 1
Zone II Zone III Zone IV Zone V
Linear Nonlinear Linear Nonlinear Linear Nonlinear Linear Nonlinear
(%) (%) (%) (%) (%) (%) (%) (%)
Frame 2 53.10 45.26 54.19 45.33 53.82 45.80 53.92 43.35
Frame 3 46.18 38.42 46.70 43.37 46.77 42.64 46.86 37.36
Frame 4 34.51 30.00 34.36 33.38 34.12 30.86 34.12 24.96
Fig. 6 Storey drift plot from nonlinear analysis: a Zone II, b Zone III, c Zone IV and d Zone V
in the ground storey drift is shown by eccentric inverted V bracing, and it is 34.12%
in zone IV and zone V. The percentage reduction in the storey drift does not show
much variation for each frame as the zone varies.
The storey drift of all the frames obtained from nonlinear analysis in zones II,
III, IV and V is shown in Fig. 6a–d, respectively. From Table 4, it is clear that
the nonlinear analysis result also shows a great reduction in ground storey drift for
frame with cross-bracings. A maximum value of 45.80% reduction is obtained for
cross-braced frame in zone IV.
4 Conclusions
. After performing linear and nonlinear analysis, the maximum reduction in storey
displacement and drift is acquired when the cross-braced frame is considered at
the ground storey in all the zones.
. There is no much variation in the percentage reduction of ground storey displace-
ment and ground storey drift for each frame as the zone varies from II to V in
linear analysis.
. In linear analysis, 53.95% reduction in the ground storey displacement and 54.19%
reduction in ground storey drift were obtained using cross-bracing. While in
nonlinear analysis, 58.93% reduction in ground storey displacement and 45.80%

reduction in ground storey drift were obtained using cross-bracing
. The percentage reduction in ground storey displacement is under estimated by
5–6%, and the percentage reduction in ground storey drift is over-estimated by
8–9% in linear analysis for each frame in all zones.
From the above observations, it can be concluded that in order to mitigate the
effect of soft storey, the most suited bracing that can be adopted is cross-bracing
compared to concentric inverted V bracing as well as eccentric inverted V bracing
in all four seismic zones.
References
1. Ali, J., & Azam, Z. (2020). Effect of Infill walls on behaviour of reinforced concrete special
moment frames under seismic sequences. Structures, 28, 766–773.
2. Romambabu, M. O., Ruban, S., & Dipti, R. S. (2016). A comparative study of seismic perfor-
mance of RC frames with masonry infills. In 11th International symposium on plasticity and
impact mechanics.
3. Phatale, S. S., & Parekar, S. R. (2019). Seismic analysis of step back building resting on sloping
ground considering different types of bracing system. International Journal for Modern Trends
in Science and Technology, 5(07).
4. Kiran, S., Ramtekkar, G. D., & Titiksh, A. (2017). Comparative study for mitigating the soft
storey effect in multistorey buildings using different structural arrangements. International
Journal of Civil Engineering and Technology, 8(3), 520–531.
5. Kiran, S., & Ramtekkar, G. D. (2017). A comparative study on nonlinear behaviour of building
frames with provision of various arrangements for mitigating the soft storey effect. International
Journal of Civil Engineering and Technology, 8(5), 509–520.
6. Lakshmi, B., & Bhavani, S. (2017). Study on concentric steel bracing at soft storey during
earthquake. International Research Journal of Engineering and Technology, 4(12).
7. Ganesh, K., & Anirudhha, B. (2016). Seismic retrofitting of building with soft storey and
floating column. International Research Journal of Engineering and Technology, 3.
8. Mishra, R. S., Kushwaha, V., & Kumar, S. (2015). A comparative study of different config-
uration of shear wall location in soft storey building subjected to seismic load. International
Research Journal of Engineering and Technology, 2(07).
9. Andre, F., Hugo, R., & Antonio, A. (2015). Modelling of masonry infill walls participation in
the seismic behaviour of RC buildings using OpenSees. International Journal for Advanced
Structural Engineering, 7, 117–127.
10. Nikhil, A., Kulkarni, P. B., & Pooja, R. (2013). Analysis of masonry infilled RC frame with and
without opening including soft storey by using equivalent diagonal strut method. International
Journal for Scientific and Research Publications, 3(9).
11. Kadid, A., & Yahiaoui, D. (2011). Seismic assessment of braced RC frames. Procedia
Engineering, 14, 2899–2905.
12. Youssef, M. A., Ghaffarzadeh, H., & Nehdi, M. (2007). Seismic performance of RC frames
with concentric internal steel bracing. Engineering Structures, 29, 1561–1568.
13. FEMA-273. (1997). NEHRP guidelines for the seismic rehabilitation of buildings. Building
Seismic Safety Council, FEMA.
14. IS 1893(Part 1): 2016 Criteria for Earthquake resistant Design of Structures. Bureau of Indian
standards, New Delhi, India.
Evaluation of Seismic Pounding Effect
on Two Regular Adjacent RC Buildings
with Three Different Alignments
Eami Eldhose and Mini Remanan
Abstract Seismic pounding refers to impacts that occur between adjacent structures
due to insufficient gap between them. Types of pounding include symmetric and
asymmetric pounding, where asymmetry occurs mainly due to mass eccentricity as
well as contact asymmetry. During pounding, two types of impacts may occur: floor-
to-floor impacts and floor-to-column impacts. The primary objective of this study is
to assess the seismic response of two adjacent regular buildings with plan eccentricity
for various pounding scenarios. In this work, two buildings with three columns at the
periphery are considered for the analysis. Nonlinear time history analysis of building
models is carried out for three cases; Case 1: longitudinal pounding where all the
three adjacent peripheral columns of the two structures are involved in pounding,
Cases 2 and 3 are asymmetric pounding involving collision between two and one
columns, respectively, from each of the adjacent structures. The study is carried out
using ETABS v18 software. The responses including the pounding force, torsional
rotation and member forces developed in the periphery as well as interiors were
evaluated. The effects of longitudinal pounding and torsional pounding are compared
for the case with no pounding.
Keywords Time history analysis · Seismic pounding · Separation gap · Rotation
1 Introduction
Increasing population and demand for land in metropolitan areas have resulted in
the construction of buildings with inadequate separation gap between them. Many
earthquake reports in such areas remarked the occurrence of pounding hazard, where
the interaction of adjacent buildings results in local damage between the structures.
The code IS 4326: 2013 has included provisions for seismic separation gap between
adjacent structures [1]. But inherent factors like high cost of land in city centres and
the small size of plots make the building separation provisions not always readily
E. Eldhose (B) · M. Remanan

Department of Civil Engineering, National Institute of Technology, Calicut, Kerala 673601, India
e-mail: eamieldho@gmail.com
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4040-8_25
298 E. Eldhose and M. Remanan
Fig. 1 Pounding damage

due to floor-to-column
pounding, during L’Aquila
Earthquake, 2009 [4]
obtainable. Also, most of the buildings in seismically active areas were constructed
before such standards were incorporated into the code.
During an earthquake, seismic pounding refers to the hammering or collisions that
occur between neighbouring structures, caused by lack of spacing in between. This
results in high-impact forces that cause both local and global damages. The impact
of these collisions is more when the adjacent structures vibrate out-of-phase due to
the differences in natural periods. Pounding scenarios are classified into two types:
floor-to-floor impacts (Type 1) and floor-to-column impacts (Type 2). The former
occurs when the colliding structures have the same floor heights, while latter takes
place when the colliding structures have different floor heights [2].
During Wenchuan Earthquake, 2008, pounding damage was reported between a
two-storey structure and adjoining three-storey structure. In spite of having separation
distance, two structures collided due to torsional vibration [3]. During L’Aquila
Earthquake, 2009, buildings of unequal heights were damaged due to pounding
(Fig. 1) [4].
During 2004, Jankowski analysed pounding between two inadequately sepa-
rated buildings with different dynamic characteristics using elastoplastic MDOF
lumped mass models and nonlinear impact elements. The results showed the effect
of pounding on the behaviour of the structures, leading to its permanent deforma-
tion [5]. Sofia Efraimiadou et al., 2013 studied the influence of pounding on regular
and irregular planar frames. Ductility of RC beams was found according to Eurocode
provisions. She found that the arrangement of colliding structures affects the ductility
demands of the beams undergoing the hit [6]. Rajaram et al., 2014 studied the char-
acteristics of pounding between adjacent single storeyed structures with mass eccen-
tricity and unequal storey levels in terms of storey displacements and impact force.
He found that the storey displacements are more when the eccentricity is large and
also the response of floor-to-column impact is significantly larger than floor-to-floor
impact [3]. Shehata E. et al., 2019 studied the influence of pounding for floor-to-floor
impact between adjacent buildings with eccentric alignment. She found that torsional
oscillations due to pounding increases the overall response of regular buildings under
earthquake excitation due to horizontal eccentric alignment [7]. D. Farahani et al.,
2019 studied seismic impact between multistorey moment frame buildings with mass
eccentricity. The study showed that the combined effect of torsional eccentricity and
pounding results in amplification of the structural displacement [8]. In 2020, P. Ambili
et al., studied the development of torsional moments in regular structures subjected to
Evaluation of Seismic Pounding Effect on Two Regular … 299
seismic pounding. She found that the effect of collision is more when the structures
are in contact (separation gap = 0) [9].
The initial studies focused on symmetric pounding of planar frames, and very less
research has been conducted on the behaviour of structures subjected to asymmetric
pounding due to mass eccentricity and contact asymmetry. The main aim of the
current study is to evaluate the seismic response of the structural members of two
adjacent regular buildings with contact asymmetry due to different cases of pounding
(floor-to-floor impacts and floor-to-column impacts).
2 Modelling of Structures
Two structures considered for the study includes structure A having five storeys and
structure B having three storeys. Both the buildings are regular in plan with 2 bays.
The buildings have a plan dimension of 6 m × 6 m and a storey height of 3 m each
(Fig. 2c). The grade of concrete and steel considered for the study are M25 and
Fe415, respectively. The weight of masonry infill wall is considered as uniformly
distributed load (UDL) on the beam. A live load of 2 kN/m2 and a roof load of 1.5
kN/m2 were applied on the floors. The RC buildings were designed for seismic loads
Gap
3m
Structure A
Structure A Structure B
y 6m Structure B
x
(a) Case 1: Three-Column pounding (b) Case 2: Two-Column pounding
B1 B2
STOREY 5
Structure A
STOREY 4 B1 B2 6m
B1 B2 B3 B4
STOREY 3
B1 B2 B3 B4
STOREY 2 Structure B
B1 B2 B3 B4
STOREY 1
C1 C2 C3 C4 C5 C6 (d) Case 3: One-Column pounding

Structure A Structure B
(c) Elevation
Fig. 2 Cases considered for the analysis

Table 1 Reinforcements of beams and columns

Storey Column Beam
Size Reinforcement (mm) Size Reinforcement (mm)
(cm) Building Building (cm) Position Building A Building B
A B Mid End Mid End
1 40 × 12# 16F 12# 16F 25 × Top 3# 12F 6# 16F 3# 12F 6# 16F
40 35 Bottom 3# 12F 4# 16F 3# 12F 4# 16F
2 40 × 12# 16F 12# 16F 25 × Top 3# 12F 6# 16F 3# 12F 6# 16F
40 35 Bottom 3# 12F 4# 16F 3# 12F 4# 16F
3 35 × 8# 12F 8# 12F 25 × Top 3# 12F 5# 16F 2# 12F 5# 16F
35 4# 16 F 4# 16 F 35 Bottom 3# 12F 4# 16F 3# 12F 4# 16F
4 35 × 8# 12F – 25 × Top 3# 12F 4# 16F – –
35 4# 16 F 35 Bottom 3# 12F 3# 16F – –
5 35 × 8# 12F – 25 × Top 2# 12F 3# 12F – –
35 4# 16 F 35 Bottom 3# 12F 3# 12F – –
as per IS 1893:2016. Figure 2 shows the reinforcements provided in the frames. All
beams are designed as doubly reinforced. The dimensions and reinforcements of all
the members in the same storey are the same and are given in Table 1 [10].
The frames are modelled by assigning concentrated plastic hinges at the ends:
columns are assigned with P-M2-M3 hinges and the beams are assigned with P-M
hinges. P-delta effect with large displacements and a Rayleigh damping of 5% propor-
tional to mass and stiffness is considered in the analysis. In most of the literatures
[11, 12], 5% damping is considered and hence that is used in the study.
3 Evaluation of Pounding
Equation of motion for MDOF structures subjected to pounding under seismic

excitation is written as:
M ü(t) + C D u̇(t) + K u(t) + F p (t) = −M Iû̈ g (1)
where M, C D and K are mass, damping and stiffness matrices and, u, u̇ and ü are
the displacement, velocity and acceleration vectors. F p (t), üg and Î are the vectors
representing the impact forces at slab levels, ground acceleration and the direction
of ground excitation, respectively [13]. Dynamic response of a structure subjected
to pounding can be obtained by solving Eq. 1 for the given structure.
Seismic pounding is evaluated using a force-based approach where impacts

between adjacent structures are simulated by using contact elements which are acti-
vated whenever the structures come in contact, and deactivated when they are sepa-
rated. This impact spring has a stiffness simulating the impact stiffness of the colliding
structures. In ETABS, GAP element is used to evaluate the structural response due
to pounding. This is a bilinear, compression-only element. The impact force, F, is
given by:
F = kδ(t), if δ(t) ≤ 0,
= 0, if δ(t) ≤ 0
δ(t) = u 1 (t) − u 2 (t) − d (2)
where k is the stiffness of the spring in N/m, δ(t) is the interpenetration depth,
u1 (t) and u2 (t) are the displacements of the two adjacent structures and d is the initial
separating distance [2, 14].
In this work, the stiffness of the impact element was found using the suggestion
provided by Anagnostopoulos (1988) by using a stiffness equal to twenty times
the lateral stiffness of the more rigid SDOF system [15]. A similar method is used
by Muhammed et al., 2016 for calculating the impact stiffness [16]. Also, further
studies show that stiffness of the impact element does not influence the torsional
responses of the structure, like storey rotation, torsional moment and shear force in
column. [14]. In this study, lateral storey stiffness of the structure is found and the
stiffness of the spring element used was taken as twenty times of this value, which
is 2,670,000 N/mm.
4 Nonlinear Analysis
Dynamic analysis of building models was carried out for three cases. Case 1: Longi-
tudinal pounding where all the adjacent peripheral columns of the two structures are
involved in pounding. This is a case of three-column pounding with zero setback
distance. Case 2: Asymmetric pounding involving pounding between two columns
each of the adjacent structures. This is a case of two-column pounding with a setback
distance of 3 m. Case 3: Asymmetric pounding involving collision between one
column each of the adjacent structures. This is a case of one-column pounding with
a setback distance of 6 m. All the cases were analysed for a separation gap of 20 mm.
The plan and elevation of these three cases of pounding are shown in Fig. 2a–d.
Nonlinear time history analysis is carried out on the models. The ground accel-
eration time history is collected from PEER strong ground motion database. The
1940 El Centro Earthquake at Imperial Valley, USA is used for the dynamic analysis
of the structural models (Fig. 2) and is applied in x-direction. Table 2 shows the
specifications of the ground motion.
Table 2 Details of El Centro

Parameter Value
ground motion considered
Magnitude 6.95 Mw
PGA 0.17184 g
PGV 8.6123 cm/s
Duration 53.76 s
Analysis is carried out for different cases of pounding [floor-to-floor impacts (Type
1) and floor-to-column impacts (Type 2)] between two adjacent buildings with plan
eccentricity. The results of Type 1 and Type 2 pounding are provided below:
5.1 Type 1: Floor-to-Floor Pounding
Torsional response. Figure 3 shows the comparison of peak rotation of all storeys
of buildings A for different levels of contact asymmetry at column C3. Due to asym-
metry in contact, significant torsional rotation is observed in the buildings, due to
pounding. It can be observed that the peak rotation increases when the setback
distance is increased. The maximum values of rotations are observed for Case 3.
Peak rotation of 0.002 radians occurs at the top storey of structure A, for Case 3. It
can be observed that no significant rotation happens for Case 1.
Shear force in columns. The column shear force in y-direction, V yy (shear force
perpendicular to ground motion) develops and increases due to torsional moment of
the building. Figure 4 shows the maximum shear force developed in the columns
facing the hit. It can be observed that the shear in the columns increases due to the
torsional rotation in the floors, and the maximum increase was observed for the case
Elevation
Fig. 3 Peak torsional rotations at all floor levels of building A, for various cases of Type 1 pounding
Shear force, Vyy in kN 10
0
0 10 20 30 40 50
-10 Case 3
Case 2
Case 1 Peripheral
-20
Without pounding column facing hit
-30
Time in seconds Structure A
Fig. 4 Maximum shear force developed for the peripheral column suffering the collision
3. Case 1 and that without pounding coincides as shown in Fig. 4, since in both
the cases the structures are not subjected to torsional impacts. The eccentric impact
influences the shear, V yy of the interior columns of the structure. Table 3 shows the
shear amplification in the peripheral columns facing the hit and interior columns with
respect to the case without pounding.
Axial force in beams. In the case of floor-to-floor pounding, the pounding force
developed between the structures gets transferred to the beams in the form of axial
loads. Figure 5 shows the peak axial forces acting on the beams at the third-storey
level of the structure A. The maximum axial load on the beam is observed for the Case
3. The developed axial force gets transferred to the adjacent beam B1. Percentage of
Table 3 Amplification of column shear in peripheral and interior columns

Type of pounding V yymax in Shear V yymax in interior Shear
peripheral amplification column (kN) amplification
column (kN)
Case 1 8.37 1 6.66 1
Case 2 20.86 2.49 13.38 2.00
Case 3 21.23 2.53 14.64 2.19
100
Axial force in kN
0
0 10 20 30 40 50
-100
Case 3
Case 2
-200 B2
Case 1
Without pounding
-300 Structure A
Time in seconds
Fig. 5 Maximum axial force developed in the beam facing hit for the structure A at the third-storey
level
Table 4 Comparison of axial force transferred from the beam facing the hit
Type of pounding Maximum axial force in Maximum axial force in % of axial force
beam B2 (kN) beam B1 (kN) transferred to B1
Case 1 90.66 22.43 24.74
Case 2 124.92 37.24 29.61
Case 3 230.98 60.81 26.32
axial force transferred from the peripheral beam facing the hit to beam B1 is shown
in Table 4.
5.2 Type 2: Floor-to-Column Pounding
The floor-to-column pounding interaction was analysed for the three different cases
of asymmetric pounding. In this case, floor level of building B collide at h/4, h/2
and 3h/4 height of the column in building A, where h is the height of the column
(Fig. 6a–c).
Shear force in columns. In the case of Type 2 (inter-storey) pounding, the third floor
or, top floor of building B impacts with the adjacent column of building A, within
its effective length. Therefore, a critical shear force develops in the column which
suffers the impact. The maximum shear forces, V xx and V yy developed in the column
when the floor of the building B collide at h/4, h/2 and 3h/4 height of the column
in building A are shown in Figs. 7 and 8, respectively. It can be seen that the shear
force, V xx developed in the peripheral columns exceed the shear capacity of 161.37
kN [9, 10]. The column shear in y-direction also increases due to torsional pounding.
(a) Contact point at h/4 above (b) Contact point at h/2 (c) Contact point at 3h/4 above
the floor of structure A above the floor of structure A the floor of structure A
Fig. 6 Different cases of floor-to-column impacts considered for the analysis

Shear capacity
of column
Without
pounding Structure A
Fig. 7 Maximum shear force (V xx ) developed in the peripheral columns of building A
Structure A
Fig. 8 Maximum shear force (V yy ) developed in the column of building A
5.3 Ductility Demand of Beams
The ductility demand of the critical beams under impact are evaluated in terms
of curvature. The moment curvature diagram for the sections was generated using
ETABS. Ultimate curvature, Fu, and yielding curvature, Fy, were calculated using the
provisions provided by EC8 [17, 18]. EC8 links the maximum tension reinforcement
in beam to the curvature ductility demand. Figure 9a, b shows the ductility demand
of beam B2 at the ends, for Type 1 and Type 2 pounding. It is evident that the
arrangement of structures and point of impact affects the ductility demands, although
the examined structure is the same for different cases considered. The maximum
increase in ductility demand was observed for the beams at third storey of structure
A. The maximum value of curvature ductility was observed for the point of impact
at 3h/4 above the floor level. On comparing with the EC8 provisions, the provided
tension reinforcements are safe enough when considering the increase in ductility
demands.
a 16.98
10.63
13.33
13.33 B2
14.19
Structure A
Without pounding
17.49 18.45 18.61 18.71
10.62 11.08 12.49 15.12
14.02 12.42 21.73 19.01
17.28 21.73 18.76 19.01
14.91 16.79 16.79 18.1
Type 2, Case 1: h/4 Type 2, Case 1: h/2 Type 2, Case 1: 3h/4

Type 1, Case 1
above floor above floor above floor
16.58 17.69 17.49 18.71
b
11.66 11.32 14.57 15.73
20.82 16.79 17.70 21.11
16.00 23.00 16.89 18.00
15.86 18.0 16.79 16.79
Type 1, Case 2 Type 2, Case 2: h/4 above Type 2, Case 2: h/2 above Type 2, Case 2: 3h/4 above
floor floor floor
18.45 17.69 16.58 17.64
10.62 13.45 16.65 17.67
14.45 15.09 19.49 24.48
15.12 19.01 18.88 18.45
15.77 14.99 18.00 16.79
Type 1, Case 3 Type 2, Case 3: h/4 above Type 2, Case 3: h/2 Type 2, Case 3: 3h/4 above
floor above floor floor
Fig. 9 a Maximum ductility demands of beams facing hit, b maximum ductility demands of beams
facing hit
6 Conclusions
The study evaluated the response of two adjacent multi-storeyed reinforced concrete
frames due to Type 1 and Type 2 pounding. Following conclusions can be derived
from the analysis results obtained.
• Pounding-induced torsional vibration increases the torsional rotation of the storeys
and induces shear force in the columns in a direction perpendicular to the direction
of ground motion (V yy ). This shear force is maximum in the peripheral columns
facing the hit and influences the column shear, V yy of the interior columns. In
the case of floor-to-floor pounding, V yy in the peripheral columns increase to a
maximum of 2.53 times and that in interior columns increase 2.19 times when
compared to the case without pounding. In the case of Type 2 pounding V yy
increased 18.1 times in comparison with case without pounding.
• In the case of floor-to-column pounding, shear forces in column, V xx is maximum
for Type 2, case 3 pounding (one-column pounding) at 3h/4 height above the floor
level. For case 3 the value of V xx increased 5.5 times than that without pounding.
For Type 2 pounding, the shear force, V xx exceeds the available shear capacity of
the column, in most of the cases. Thus, the critical pounding case is identified as
one-column pounding with a setback of 6 m for pounding at 3h/4 height above
the floor level.
• Axial force in the peripheral beams facing the hit increases for all the cases.
The developed axial force gets transferred axially and the adjacent beam B1
(Fig. 2) developed a maximum transfer of 29.61% from the beam facing the
impact. Increase in axial force increases the ductility demand in the peripheral
beams, although this increases within the safe limits.
This research studied the behaviour of regular RC frames with contact asym-
metry subjected to seismic pounding, using El Centro earthquake. The study can be
extended to investigate the influence of soil–structure interaction on the colliding
structures and also to determine the seismic risk and vulnerability of the structures
subjected to torsional pounding.
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Influence of Interfered Square Buildings
on Wind Responses of U-Shaped Tall
Building
Shanku Mandal, Sujit Kumar Dalui, and Soumya Bhattacharjya
Abstract The computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulation has been adopted in
the present study to measure the wind responses of the U-shaped tall building under
isolate and interference conditions for 0° to 360° wind flow at an interval of 15°.
The flow streamlines pattern, force coefficient and mean pressure coefficient have
been evaluated for each case which demonstrates the variation in building responses
in different conditions. The interference factor (IF) is calculated to understand the
impact of wind interference on the object building due to the four similar square
buildings in parallelogram arrangement around the U-shaped building. The validation
and the mesh refinement study are also executed to validate the numerical analysis
results. The interfered buildings obstructed the wind flow, which caused a chaotic
flow pattern. With the change in the wind flow direction, the significant variation
in force coefficient and the tremendous pressure fluctuations on the object building
faces have been observed. Due to interference, the massive increase of drag force
around 559.94% has been noted in 75° and 285° and an increase of 561.72% in lift
force is noted in 15° and 345°. The decrement in drag force and lift force of 140.81%
and 84.09% is measured in 90° and 270° flow. At face A and E maximum decrement
of 171.46% in mean pressure coefficient is observed at 15° and 345°, respectively.
Those similar faces experience a maximum increase of 44.53% at 300° and 60°,
respectively. Those critical fluctuations illustrate the requirements of interference
study in wind resistance design.
Keywords Computational fluid dynamics · Tall building · Wind responses ·

Interference factor · Wind interference · Mesh refinement study · Wind flow
direction
S. Mandal (B) · S. K. Dalui · S. Bhattacharjya

Department of Civil Engineering, Indian Institute of Engineering Science and Technology,
Shibpur, Howrah, West Bengal 711103, India
e-mail: shankumandalce@gmail.com
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4040-8_26
310 S. Mandal et al.
1 Introduction
Tall building construction is a common practice in developing cities in recent times.

This practice dissolves the residence problem of huge population and the land crisis,
but it introduces the extreme wind force and interference effects. In a few articles,
typical scenarios of wind interference were described. Thepmongkorn et al. [1] indi-
cated the influence of interfering building on wind responses of a square building.
Tang and Kwok [2] concluded that the interference effect depends on the location of
the buildings. Kim et al. [3] adopted a wind tunnel experiment to calculate the pressure
difference due to interference between two buildings. Kar and Dalui [4] considered
square shapes around an octagonal shape to measure the differences in wind effect.
Song et al. [5] presented the intra and inter building correlations between two adjacent
sky linked buildings in 0° and 90° wind angles. Yan and Li [6] considered different
locations of aerodynamic-modified two tall buildings and demonstrated the effect of
interference in wind responses. Sy et al. [7] measured the pressure and top displace-
ment of the principal building to understand the effect of wind interference. Chen
et al. [8] adopted the roof slope angle and spacing of building as two factors to calcu-
late the interference effect. Hu et al. [9] predicted the pressure variation on interfered
tall buildings adopting the machine learning technique. Liang et al. [10] assessed the
wind interference impact on nearly located buildings due to a ventilated building on
the upstream side. Grioni et al. [11] explored the interference between two circular
shapes at high Reynolds numbers. Lo et al. [12] calculated the down and upstream
interference effect between two identical structures. Liang et al. [13] presented the
bimodal pressure distribution on rectangular building facades, interfered by upfront
rectangular building. Rajora et al. [14] measure the interference across wind factors
between circular and tapered circular shapes. Pal and Raj [15] explored the wind
interference characteristics of fish and square shape models. Germi and Kalehsar
[16] studied the Strouhal number, drag, lift and pressure fluctuations of two square
buildings in various interference conditions. Li et al. [17] considered several factors
like wind speed, angle, area density and location for damage assessment of build-
ings in a group arrangement. Yin et al. [18] recommended the staggered group over
regular group arrangement for flat roof building to minimize the wind and snow load
interference. Chauhan et al. [19] assessed the wind interference effects among two
buildings of different orientations. The impact of gap distance on wind interference
of side-by-side and lateral construction arrangements has been investigated by Zhou
et al. [20].
Most of the article focuses on the interference effects on regular shape buildings
but in this article, the interference on alphabetic U shape building is discussed, which
is unique. Since the U shape is a popular layout plan for academic, residential and
commercial building construction, the influence of nearby tall buildings on the wind
effects of this building shape should be measured. The available space between the
limbs can be used for parking, commercial needs, or a play-ground, which is one
of the advantages of this geometrical layout. In this article, the responses have been
measured using computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulation. The comparison of
Influence of Interfered Square Buildings on Wind … 311
(a) (b) (c)
Fig. 1 Building model a isolated case, b interference case and c building face name
various wind characteristics between isolated and interfered U shape buildings has
been presented at 0° to 360° wind flow at an interval of 15°.
2 Details of Building Models
The different model cases for the simulation has been modelled at 1:300 scale. The
length (L), limb length (L ' ), breadth (B) and height (H) of the isolated U shape are
adopted 250 mm, 50 mm, 150 mm and 500 mm. The four square buildings of 150 mm
(S) each have been placed around the U shape in a parallelogram for interference
cases. The distance of 500 mm (D) from the U shape is considered for the interfering
square shapes (Fig. 1). θ is varying from 0° to 360° at an interval of 15°.
3 Solution Methodology
The wind flow around interference and isolated cases have been simulated on Ansys
CFX employing a CFD module. The simulation follows the modelling of the suitable
domain, selection of mesh size, implementation of boundary conditions and response
evaluation.
3.1 Computational Domain Setup
The 5H, 15H and 5H (H = 500 mm) distance is adopted from the inlet, outlet and side
boundary from extreme building for the domain (Fig. 2). The no slip is applied on
model faces. The roof and side boundaries are governed by free slip. Wind turbulence
of 1 m boundary layer height and 10 m/s inlet wind speed is produced by the k–E
turbulence model. The power law equation with 0.133 exponents is considered for
Atmospheric Boundary Layer (ABL) [4].
Fig. 2 Plan and elevation view of the domain
3.2 Mesh Generation and Mesh Refinement Study
The tetrahedral elements with fine layers of elements near building faces are used
for meshing (Fig. 3) to save the resource and time of the computation. This type of
meshing generates explicit wind behaviour near the models. The proper mesh element
size has been determined from mesh refinement study on isolate U shape model at
0° angle for isolated cases and interfered U shape model at 0° angle for interference
cases. The elements have been refined from coarse to fine in seven steps until the
along wind response of the building converges. The element numbers for isolated
case trials are 2,884,984 (MR1), 5,165,448 (MR2), 12,546,748 (MR3), 19,853,472
(MR4), 26,709,214 (MR5), 33,935,947 (MR6) and 41,093,375 (MR7). Interference
case trials element numbers are 3,237,202 (MR1), 5,591,274 (MR2), 13,062,993
(MR3), 20,637,957 (MR4), 28,233,915 (MR5), 36,725,161 (MR6) and 44,189,439
(MR7). The drag coefficient comparison (see Fig. 4) shows that the MR6 type mesh
was selected for this study since the computational error is within the acceptable
limit.
Fig. 3 Mesh type for

building models
(a) (b)
Fig. 4 Mesh refinement study at 0° angle. a Isolated case, b interference case
3.3 Validation Study
The U shape model of Gomes et al. [21] has been modelled and analysed in Ansys
CFX by following all others boundary conditions to check the validity of the anal-
ysis package. The pressure at Face D, which was extracted from the Ansys CFX
simulation, matches the trend of the pressure profile of the article (Fig. 5).
The responses of the U shape building in isolated and interference condition have
been observed at 0° to 360° at an interval of 15°. The comparison of the flow velocity,
force and pressure between both cases has been demonstrated. The interference factor
(IF) of pressure is calculated.
Fig. 5 Validation of
numerical simulation
4.1 Flow Velocity Streamline
The comparison of flow velocity streamline (Fig. 6) of isolated and interference cases
specifies that the fluctuation in streamlines is dependent on the presence of upfront
building locations and the flow angle. For isolate case at 0° angle, the symmetrical
flow is observed and backflow is noted between the limb areas. However, for interfer-
ence case, as a building is present in front of the U shape, the wake zone vortices have
been created on this location. When the flow angle changes, asymmetrical flow is
formed. The irregular flow streamline is created since the building limbs obstructed
the flow. In the interference case, the deflected flow from interfered square building
produced chaotic flow streamlines. It is also noted that the upfront corners in flow
separation points exerted high velocity.
(a) Isolate case at 0° angle (b) Interference case at 0° angle
(c) Isolate case at 30° angle (d) Interference case at 30° angle
(e) Isolate case at 60° angle (f) Interference case at 60 ° angle
(g) Isolate case at 150° angle (h) Interference case at 150° angle
Fig. 6 Comparison of flow velocity streamlines between isolate and interference case
Fig. 7 Comparison of force coefficients between isolate and interference case
4.2 Force Coefficients Variation
Figure 7 showed the graphical representation of drag and lift coefficients (C fx and
C fy ) in the form of a comparison of an isolated building and an interfering building
in different wind angles. The interfered square building in front of the U building
creates a massive drag force decrement (73.51%) at 0° and 360°. On those angles, the
wind impacted the building directly in the isolated case, whereas in the interference
case, the wake zone of the upfront square shape influences the drag force. At 15° and
345°, the drag force decreased (19.21%) but the massive increase in (561.72%) lift
force is noted in the interference case. For the interfered building, the slight lesser
drag force (17.35%, 13.82% and 1.68%) and slightly higher lift force (25.01%,
5.8% and 3.18%) is produced at 30°, 45° and 60°, respectively. Similar drag and lift
forces are observed in 330°, 315° and 300°, respectively. At 75°(285°), 90°(270°),
105°(255°) and 120°(240°), the 559.94%, 140.81%, 99.51% and 4.33% increase in
drag force is evident but the lift force decreased by 7.29%, 84.09%, 11.05% and
11.28%. The drag force decreased by 3.41%, 2.04%, 17.22% and 72.31%, whereas
16.56%, 0.04%, 82.75% and 1.48% less lift force is identified at 135°, 150°, 165°
and 180° when interfered buildings are located.
4.3 Mean Pressure Coefficients Variation
The mean pressure coefficients (C p ) of isolated and interfering cases under different
wind angles were compared graphically in Fig. 8. The different faces of U shape
have been marked in Fig. 1. The axisymmetrical position of U shape faces in both
isolate and interference cases generates a similar response on symmetric faces at 0°.
Faces E, D and H are the symmetric face of faces A, B and F. The other angles up to
180° simulate different responses. The angels beyond 180° show similar reactions
on the symmetric faces for symmetric angles in both cases. As an example, the mean
pressure values of the interference case on faces A, B, C, D, E, F, G and H at 45°
are −0.257, 0.622, 0.364, 0.370, 0.666, 0.256, −0.461 and −0.477. At 315°, similar
mean pressures are noted in faces E, D, C, B, A, H, G and F. The higher suction is
noted in face A at most angles (up to 180°) under interference case. In this case, the
large pressure drops of 82.44%, 102.66% and 95.52% have been measured on faces
Fig. 8 Comparison of mean pressure coefficient between isolate and interference case
A, B and C for 0°. However, the face F and G showed 67.91% and 39.37% rise. At
interference case, the notable pressure rises of 106.28% at face B for 90°, 85.27%
and 100.73% at face C for 75° and 90°, 90.43% and 98.36% at face D for 75° and
90°, 85.47% and 97.63% at face E for 75° and 90°, 97.26% and 94.53% at face F
for 30° and 90° and 86.76% at face G for 90° have been noticed. At 180° on face
F, G and H, the pressure variation is noted about 67.22%, 90.16% and 69.44% for
interfered buildings. Maximum suction is produced at face E for 90° and 150° on
isolate (−0.675) and interference (−0.556) case, respectively. Maximum pressure
is measured at face C for 0° and face B for 15° on isolate (0.870) and interference
(0.864) case, respectively.
Table 1 Interference factor on all the faces at different angle

Angle A B C D E F G H
0° 0.176 −0.027 0.045 −0.027 0.176 0.322 0.608 0.320
15° −0.715 1.050 0.899 0.826 1.307 0.436 0.752 0.863
30° −1.371 0.890 0.774 0.811 1.018 0.031 0.913 1.042
45° 1.623 0.923 0.746 0.793 0.937 0.806 1.011 1.176
60° 1.193 1.017 0.772 0.874 1.445 0.833 1.022 1.093
75° 1.108 −0.476 0.148 0.095 0.146 0.875 0.780 0.884
90° 0.330 −0.062 −0.008 0.016 0.024 −0.054 0.133 0.514
105° 0.829 0.832 0.852 0.823 0.780 0.892 0.342 0.944
120° 1.122 1.067 1.066 1.060 1.016 0.786 0.864 1.073
135° 1.310 1.184 1.137 1.165 1.156 0.687 0.735 0.990
150° 1.334 1.260 1.264 1.230 1.144 0.845 0.780 1.052
165° 1.056 0.856 0.843 0.853 0.943 0.639 0.797 1.097
180° 0.651 0.597 0.580 0.595 0.660 0.327 0.098 0.305
4.4 Interference Factor Variation
The interference factor (IF) is calculated to understand the impact of interfered square
building on U shape building. The IF indicates the pressure ratio (Eq. 1) of the
particular building faces. The interference and wind angle severely influence the
local pressure because it alters the wind flow.
In Table 1, the interference factor has been listed for 0° to 180°. Beyond 180°, the
IF can be determined using the approach described in section (4.3). The majority of
the faces feature a +IF. A pressure decreases on the faces owing to interference is
indicated by a value of +IF less than 1 but +IF more than 1 signifies the pressure
rise on the faces. Some faces (face A at 0° and 30°, face B at 0°, 75° and 90°, face
C at 90°, face D at 0° and face F at 90°) have -IF, which is a measure of the amount
of turbulence generated on a particular face as a result of interference build-up.
Cp , Interference = Cp , Isolate ∗ Interference Factor (I.F) (1)
5 Conclusions
The wind reactions have been observed in the primary building when it is located in
an isolate and interference pattern at 0° to 360° wind angle. Some critical facts can
be summarized as follows based on the CFD investigation of mesh refinement study,
validation study, flow velocity streamline, force, pressure and interference factor.
• When CFD simulation executed, a good mesh selection is essential since a poor
mesh selection can lead to considerable errors in the simulation. Validation is
required to ensure the findings are reliable.
• Location of interference buildings, primary and interfered building shape and
wind angle shift produce a non-homogenous pattern of flow. As a result, a wide
variety of responses have been recorded.
• This study depicts that factors like location and wind angle should be addressed
while assessing interference effect since the maximum drag force for interfer-
ence case (0.9919) and isolate case (1.0959) has been observed at 150°(210°)
and 0°(360°). However, at 60°(300°), the maximum lift force is noted for both
interference (1.0964) and isolate case (1.1325).
• Strong elements for cladding are required for structural integrity in both isolated
and interfered cases owing to the fact that pressure varies with the wind angle and
building location.
This study highlighted the importance of detailed wind interference study consid-
ering vast range of wind angles for the wind resistant high rise building construction
since interfered building can cause significant fluctuations in responses. This study
provides a vast information about the interference effect on U shape building which
was unexplored previously. Thus, this information will be extremely useful for U
shape building construction.
References
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Design of Steel Intensive Quarantine
Centre
Himanshu Chawla, Neeraj Kumar, and Aarjav Arora
Abstract In pandemic conditions, where the COVID-19 infection is increasing

exponentially, quarantine centres have become very necessary to separate and restrict
the movement of people. These structures are also helpful in similar situations like
disaster management, defence purposes and housing for poor people. Planning and
Designing of Steel Intensive Quarantine Centre’ takes on the task of designing and
analysing an economical, ecological and rapid construction solution of a modular
quarantine centre building. It facilitates a faster construction facility due to steel
construction instead of RCC, which takes almost 70–80% more time and is not
recyclable like steel. The schematic and elevation plans have been tweaked with
additional architectural features to ensure ventilation, sunlight and accessible transit
of patients. For economical structural design, the iterative method is incorporated to
find columns with the minimum size and shape to achieve ample carpet area, i.e.,
star-shaped. While designing the structures, i.e., portal frame and truss roof frame
are subjected to the same loading conditions. For resisting the lateral forces, different
types of bracings have been incorporated in plan and elevation. The construction of
a portal frame requires specialized labour to handle compound sections and connec-
tions, whereas construction of truss sections is possible by skilled labour or directly
use prefabricated truss sections with the help of unskilled labour. Compound sections
pose a significant challenge due to their unavailability and transportation difficulties.
In contrast, the sections for trusses are readily available even in the remote market.
Moreover, the construction of both structures provides rapid construction. The portal
frame costs about 16% cheaper than the steel frame due to smaller sections and
absence of compound sections. For validation of our work, we have used manual and
automated calculation to minimize the error. The structure is expandable for future
expansion by techniques such as expansion joint and satellite arrangement.
Keywords COVID-19 Quarantine Centre · Portal frame · Rapid construction ·

Steel structure · Truss
H. Chawla (B) · N. Kumar · A. Arora

Civil Engineering Department, Thapar Institute of Engineering and Technology, Patiala, Punjab
147004, India
e-mail: himanshu.chawla@thapar.edu
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4040-8_27
322 H. Chawla et al.
1 Introduction
Quarantine centres have proven to be the most effective in the battle against COVID-
19: maintaining physical distance, maintaining proper healthcare precautions and
achieving better recovery rates. These centres can be used around the world in the
form of prefabricated quarantine cabins and dedicated quarantine centres in situations
such as pandemic(s), disaster management and defence purposes. In an emergency,
we need to make these centres as constructed and ready to use in as little time
as possible. Such centres can be made with different materials, leading to varying
construction rates and costs. Out of the traditional construction materials, concrete
and steel construction provide economical structures. Steel construction features
rapid construction along with the sustainability. Moreover, these structures can be
prefabricated and hence available to transport to the required location.
Quarantine centres have their own structural and architectural requirements. The
guidelines provided by the Health Department of Government of India can be referred
to [1]. The architectural plan can be adjusted to conform to the parameters. Some of
the parameters being carpet area, room requirements, adequate ventilation, lighting
during the day, access to required emergency facilities, etc. The structural construc-
tion of steel quarantine centres can be approached in different ways: truss system
and portal frame. On the other hand, the availability and ease of construction of
these sections, the order changes to truss system and portal frame. One important
requirement of quarantine is to provide enough carpet area with sufficient spacing
for beds. For this to be accomplished, there have to be the least amount of archi-
tectural or structural obstructions such as columns and walls. This requirement can
be fulfilled by adopting roof systems that can transfer loads over larger spans and
that are easily available or can be fabricated by unskilled labour. Out of the above-
mentioned structural systems in steel construction, the truss system and portal frame
fulfil the conditions. To determine which of these systems provide better value, the
following study provides a qualitative and quantitative approach.
This approach can be classified based on: economic construction, ecolog-
ical construction, rapid construction, labour costs and requirements, portability,
robustness and energy efficiency.
The approach follows the structural analysis and design by using STAAD.Pro,
and results are verified by manual calculations while the architectural planning is
done using Autodesk Revit and schematics are drawn on AutoCAD.
2 Designing and Planning
2.1 Architectural Planning
In the planning of steel quarantine structures, elements such as sun, air, earth, water
and sky have been taken under consideration. The architectural design of quarantine
Design of Steel Intensive Quarantine Centre 323
centres is decided based upon the study on the required number of appropriate spacing
for proper physical distancing, rooms for medical staff/ administration, number and
carpet area for beds, number and carpet area for washrooms, etc. Factors such as
ventilation, temperature maintenance and proper lighting have been taken off by
providing sufficient openings and air cutters for cross-ventilation and for maintaining
room temperature, windows’ direction is arranged according to the sun diagram for
maximum indirect natural lighting during the day, respectively.
2.2 Future Expansion
The walls of the quarantine centre are made from PUF panels. The columns and
trusses can be used for expansion of the structure by constructing a new structure
beside the existing one and connecting the columns by various methods such as:
• Expansion joint: A new structure can be erected alongside three elevations of
the main building using expansion joints
• Satellite arrangement: Building is used as unit cell of the system, while the
containers are used as satellite body connected by ducts to the building. Once the
PUF panels are removed, these ducts are easy attachable to the main building. This
arrangement also helps to segregate the patients according to their health condi-
tions. This also facilitates social distancing of the patients if the main building
does not allow after a certain limit (Figs. 1, 2 and 3).
Fig. 1 Satellite arrangement Container 1

(Satellite
body)
Main
Container n Container 2
Quarantine
(Satellite (Satellite
Center (Unit
body) body)
cell)
Container 3
(Satellite
body)
Fig. 2 3D visualization of the centre
Fig. 3 Schematic plan of the structure

2.3 Structural Analysis, Design and Optimization
Analysis of structure is performed using STAAD.Pro software. Firstly, using a geom-

etry module, the geometry of the structure is drawn as per architectural plans. Then,
loads are calculated as per IS codes. The loads incorporated are dead load [2], live
load [3], wind load [4], seismic load [5] and temperature variation (with a range
of 15 °C). The seismic zone considered is Zone IV. Various load combinations are
created, as per codal provisions, to satisfy the criteria of serviceability and strength.
Supports and materials are defined and assigned to the structure. These load combi-
nations are categorized based on various failure checks: compression failure, tension
failure, flexural failure, local buckling, crippling load, torsional failure, shear failure
and deflection check. The sections are then assigned using the hit and trial method.
Finally, design parameters of IS 800:2007 are assigned to the structure for anal-
ysis. All the parameters for steel design of truss system and portal frame are given in
Tables 1 and 2. The critical sections obtained from the analysis are then verified using
Table 1 Architectural plan

Parameter Description
for the centre
Area of building 50 m × 35 m
Eves height 7m
Roof structure To be covered with colour-coated steel
Building type Sheet
Ventilation Naturally ventilated
Table 2 Parameters for

Type of load Description Magnitude of load
design of quarantine centre
Dead load Self-weight –
Roofing sheet 0.3 kN/m2
Fitting for roofing 0.1 kN/m2
sheet
Live load Roof load 0.7 kN/m2
(Inaccessible)
Temperature load – 15 °C variation
Seismic load Seismic zone 4
Zone factor 0.16
Response reduction 5
factor (Rf)
Importance factor 1.5
Rock and soil site 1
factor
Damping ratio 0.05
(a) (b)
(c) (d)
Fig. 4 a Portal frame geometrical structure, b truss system front view, c truss system 3D view and
d truss system front elevation
manual calculations. Once all the structure’s sections were passed in the analysis, a
parametric study was done to create an economical structure.
2.4 Effect of Different Roofing Systems on Weight and Cost

of Structure
In this study, roofing systems are considered as roof truss and portal frame. Both
of them were introduced into the structure and were compared based on cost-
effectiveness, rapid construction and availability of sections. The comparison of
the three in terms of weight and cost is done graphically. Different views of truss
roof are shown in Fig. 4.
2.5 Effect of Different Bracing Systems on Weight, Cost

and Base Shear
In this section, bracing of different patterns, such as cross-bracing, inverted V bracing

and single diagonal bracing at various locations, such as plans and elevations, was
introduced into the structure and analysed for their performance under lateral load-
ings and their bill of quantities was compared. The observations can be categorized
Fig. 5 Types of bracings
into two types based on requirements and priority. The two beings: performance
comparison and comparison based on weight and cost.
The base shear compared in the three kinds of bracings, applied at the three
roofing structures shows that there is a 12.04% decrease in the base shear when
single diagonal bracing and a decrease of 0.21% when inverted V bracing is used
in portal frame. The pattern changes when the three kinds of bracings are used in
a truss system. It is observed that there is a 13.25% decrease when single diagonal
bracing is used and an increase of 2.29% in base shear in the truss system.
The weights, when single, double bracings and inverted V bracings are compared
shows that there is a decrease of 0.2065% weight when inverted V bracing is used,
whereas a decrease of 12.32% in weight in the overall structure in portal frame when
single diagonal bracing is used. The pattern changes just like in base shear, and
2.29% increase due to inverted V-shaped bracing and a decrease of 13.26% when
single diagonal bracing is used.
The costs for construction are linearly proportional to the weight of the structure,
as it is multiplied by a constant factor of Rs. 60, i.e., the cost of steel/kg. The pattern
of costing is compared and is presented in the following section (Figs. 5 and 6).
2.6 Effect of Various Roofing Systems on Carpet Area
The carpet area is one of the most important architectural characteristics as it deter-
mines how much of the construction area can be utilized for storage or living. In a
situation where factors such as social distancing come into play, the carpet area must
be maximum. The factors that govern the same are dependent upon the structural
members, the area required for utility purposes, the area for storage and the area
required for social distancing and keeping adequate room for sufficient ventilation.
Other factors that are influenced by the available carpet area are temperature control,
prevention of suffocation, transversal space and easy access to entry and exit points.
The roofing systems were compared for the difference in carpet area based on the
3000
120
Weight (kN)
100
Base Shear (kN)
2000
80
60 1000
40
0
20
Double Inverted V Single
0 Bracing Diagonal
Truss System Portal Frame
Portal Frame Truss System Bracing
(a) (b)
150
Cost (lakhs Rs.)
100
50
0
Double Inverted V Single
Bracing Diagonal
Bracing
Portal Frame Truss System
(c)
Fig. 6 Comparison of a base shear, b weight-based on different bracings and c cost-based on

different bracings
area occupied by columns, and other structural members such as walls and bracings.
All of these were analysed on STAAD.Pro and schematically drawn in Autodesk
AutoCAD to compare them on their respective carpet area. Although the difference
between the areas was not significant in situations where the most important factors
are storage, maximum area for navigation or area for social distancing, carpet area
has to be maximized to fulfil the purpose of the structure. It was found out that the
truss system had the maximum area followed by the portal frame, which had the
least amount of carpet area. The comparison between the variation in carpet area and
economic design based on roofing systems is shown graphically in Fig. 7.
Fig. 7 Comparison between

carpet areas of various 1720
Carpet Area (m2)
roofing systems
1710
1700
1690
1680
Portal Frame Truss
2.7 Effect of Number of Connections on Construction Time
Connections were designed manually based on loadings. These were designed,

keeping in mind that similar sections provide an economical and rapid construction
in a steel structure.
The two roofing systems resulted in a large sum of the difference between the
number of connections required to construct. The reason for the number of connec-
tions in the truss. The number of connections between the truss and portal frame
was about 185 connections. This is because the portal frame has larger sections in
which the joints are at a much higher distance than that in trusses. It should also be
noted that the maximum joints are at the connection of purlins and rafter of the portal
frame. The construction time is linearly proportional to the number of connections
(Fig. 8).
Footings were designed on STAAD.Pro Advanced Foundation Software. The
reaction forces for the same were imported from the final analysis of the structure
in STAAD.Pro. The footings obtained were then verified using manual calculations.
Load combinations are defined to get the critical value of loads to withstand critical
conditions. Generally, similar footings are provided in day-to-day construction. On
analysis, it was concluded that although it features less construction times, this might
not result in the most economical structure. A structure with various types of footings
according to load distributions gives us the desired result along with a cost-effective
structure.
The comparison between the two roofing systems—truss system and the portal
frame—is done on the factors: structural dimensions, resistance against gravity
and seismic loads, properties of construction material, soil conditions and environ-
mental factors such as wind, temperature and rain, carpet area, rapid construction
and cost-efficiency.
Fig. 8 Number of
connections in roofing 600
systems
Numbers
400
200
0
Portal Truss
Frame
The second-order analysis and design optimization in STAAD.Pro provide for the
number and sections of the columns, connections and footings. Based on load combi-
nations and dimensions according to the architectural plan, the analysis showed a
change in the size of the cross-sections. In the case of the portal frame, the connec-
tions were observed to increase with the span. However, in the truss system, it was
observed that the size of cross-sections of members, as well as connections, increased
with the increase in dimensions of the structure.
The weight of steel required can be seen to be less in the case of the portal frame.
Consequently, the cost of steel is also less. The only aspect that gives the portal frame
its novelty is the construction of the same in tight time constraints. It is also observed
that as the span increases, the cost of fabrication and materials go up. Therefore, for a
span of 35 m [6], portal frame should be taken as a preference, if the time constraints
allow. As a result, for quarantine centres to be constructed, portal frames should be
constructed, albeit the area is remote. In such case, trusses should be constructed,
due to the availability of sections and pre-fabrication.
As a result, in the consequence of making both portal and truss systems economic
for a fair comparison, the time of construction increases for the truss system and
decreases for the portal frame. This leads to the conclusion that in emergencies,
structures such as quarantine centres, disaster management shelters, etc., economical
as well as rapid construction featuring structures can be constructed by adopting
portal frame configuration, when spans are ≥30 m.
4 Portal Frame and Truss System Comparison
4.1 Weight and Cost Analysis
The portal frame and truss system, despite being different systems, some relationships
can be observed to be similar. With the increase in height and dimensions, larger
sections are required and consequently, heavier weight. Figure 9 and 10 can be
referred to observe the same along with the cost of each configuration.
1900 120
Cost (lakhs Rs.)
1800
Weight (kN)
1700 100
1600
1500 80
1400 Portal Frame Truss System
Portal Frame Truss System
(b)
(a)
Fig. 9 a Weight comparison of roofing systems and b cost comparison of roofing systems
2200 130
Cost (lakhs Rs.)

Weight (kN)
2000 120
1800 110
1600 100
Truss System Portal Frame Truss System Portal Frame
(a) (b)
Fig. 10 a Overall weight comparison and b overall cost comparison
These observations show that it is easier and cheaper to fabricate a portal frame
than to do so in a truss system with longer spans, considering the system is econom-
ically focused. These also result in much lower weight and as a consequence, lower
total cost. Although the truss system is better to design optimized in terms of sections,
the larger sections and in the long span truss customized truss at the higher levels
result in the higher costs. It should be noted that in the case where the sections in the
truss system are smaller, it would result in the truss weighing as well as costing less,
even more so than a portal frame. Also, it can be seen that with an increase in span
greater than 30, the costs for truss system increase at a higher rate due to a larger and
higher number of sections than span less than 30, and hence, the portal frame can
be seen as a better option from the economics and feasibility perspective [7]. The
weight difference between the truss system and portal frame is calculated as 426.34
kN, and the cost difference can be calculated as Rs. 26.09 lakhs.
5 Conclusions
Based on this study, the following can be concluded:

• Bracing systems such as single diagonal, inverted V and double bracings were
compared to find the most displacement resistant, lightweight and cost-efficient
bracing system. It was concluded that the single bracings were the lightest and
hence cost-efficient, followed by the inverted V bracing and double bracing was
the heaviest. The same pattern was observed in both portal and truss systems,
where the portal frame having an overall weight lesser than the truss system. It
should also be noted that this pattern is observed when the span is greater than
and equals to 30 m and spacing is approx. 6 m. It was also observed that the base
shear was also less in the portal frame as compared to the truss system, hence
portal frame has fewer displacements.
• Carpet areas are compared according to the number of structural members that
affect the carpet areas. This is a major factor in structures such as columns, brac-
ings, etc. It was found that the truss has more carpet area, making it more suitable
for quarantine centres.
• The number of connections determines that whether the structure features rapid
construction. It was observed that the truss had a larger number of connections
than the portal frame and hence takes more time than the truss system.
• Roofing systems made from the portal frame are found to be lightweight and
hence cheaper as compared to the truss system.
It can be concluded that if the structure has to be constructed in less time and at
cheaper costs, then a portal frame should be constructed. However, if it has to be
built in remote areas, a truss system should be the way to go because skilled labour
is not required, and sections availability is more and has more carpet area.
References
1. Government of India. Guidelines for quarantine facilities COVID-19.

2. IS 875 (Part 1):1987. Code of practice for design loads (other than earthquake for buildings
and structures. (Part 1 Dead Loads—Unit Weights of Building Materials and Stored Materials).
Edition 3.1, 1997-12.
3. IS 875 (Part 2):1987. Code of practice for design loads (other than an earthquake for buildings
and structures. (Part 2 Imposed Loads). Reaffirmed 1997.
4. IS 875 (Part 3):2015. Wind loads on buildings and structures.
5. IS 1893 (Part 1):2016. Criteria for earthquake resistant design of structures (Part 1 General
provisions and buildings). Edition 6.1, 2005-01.
6. Far, H. H. H. Ali Saleh: Portal steel trusses vs. portal steel frames for long-span industrial
buildings.
7. Duggal, S. K. (2000) Design of steel structures. Tata McGraw-Hill Education.
Behaviour of Slab–Column Joint Under
Lateral Cyclic Loading
K. N. Suganya and S. Greeshma
Abstract Punching shear failure is one of the main types of failure observed in the
flat slab–column connections. In the present research work, numerical and experi-
mental investigations were carried out to study the behaviour of exterior slab–column
connection with various shear reinforcements in linear and critical patterns under
lateral cyclic loading. Four types of specimens were analysed, conventional specimen
(SC-NS), specimen with stud shear reinforcement in critical pattern (SC-SSRC),
specimen with single-loop stirrups in linear pattern (SC-SLS) and specimen with
closed-hoop stirrups in linear pattern (SC-CHS). The scaled model (1/4th scale) was
tested under axial loading at the top of the column stub, and cyclic loading is given at
the slab end. All the models with slab shear reinforcements (SC-SSRC, SC-SLS and
SC-CHS) proved to be effective in resisting punching shear failure under axial and
cyclic loading. The presence of shear reinforcements (SC-SSRC, SC-SLS and SC-
CHS) significantly increased ductility compared to that of conventional specimen
(SC-NS).
Keywords Flat plate · Punching shear · Slab–column connection · Shear

reinforcement
1 Introduction
Normally, the slabs are supported by beams, when the slab is directly supported
by the columns, which is known as the flat-plate construction. Hence, an attempt
has been made to study the effect of detailing of slab–column joint under lateral
cyclic loading. The punching failure is observed around the column, which extends
diagonally from the bottom of the slab towards the top surface as shown in Fig. 1.
K. N. Suganya (B) · S. Greeshma

Department of Civil Engineering, Anna University, Chennai, India
e-mail: knsuganya18@gmail.com
S. Greeshma
e-mail: greeshmas@annauniv.edu
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4040-8_28
334 K. N. Suganya and S. Greeshma
Fig. 1 Punching shear failure
The studies on the various literatures [3–5, 7, 11, 13, 16–20, 22] related to the
topic have revealed that the main factor which causes the failure at the plate–column
joint is the punching shear. Shear reinforcements provision at the plate–column joint
is an effective technique in resisting shear failure. From the literatures, it is observed
that the role of shear reinforcement in critical section improves the capacity of slab
from the punching shear failure.
Many of the authors have discussed interior slab–column joint with various provi-
sions of shear reinforcements with variety of loading conditions in the slab–column
connections, very little had done their investigations on exterior slab–column connec-
tions. The present work aims to study the behaviour of exterior flat slab–column
joint under lateral cyclic loading with varied shear reinforcements (in linear and crit-
ical patterns) at the connection region to determine the joint displacement ductility,
load–deflection, hysteretic loop, energy dissipation and crack pattern.
3 Modelling of the Flat Plate Building
An eight-storied reinforced concrete building 27 m × 22 m located at Chennai, India

(seismic zone III as per IS 1893 (part 1):2016) [9] on medium soil was modelled
in STAAD PRO (V8i) [26] as shown in Fig. 2. The storey height adopted was 3 m
for all storeys. The slab of dimension of 6 m × 5.5 m × 0.23 m was connected to a
column of 0.5 m × 0.5 m. The base of the structure is fully restrained. The live load
of 3 kN/m2 and floor finish of 1.0 kN/m2 are used in this analysis. The equivalent
static method is used to perform the seismic analysis as per IS 1893 (part 1): 2016
[8]. The shear forces, bending moments and axial load resulting from the critical
load combinations were taken from the analysis. Design and detailing of the slab and
the column were carried out based on the provisions given in IS 456:2000 [9], SP 34
and IS 13920:1993 [10].
Behaviour of Slab–Column Joint Under Lateral Cyclic Loading 335
(a) Elevation (b) Plan of the Building
Fig. 2 Prototype structure of the eight-storey RC building
3.1 Description of Specimens
The models incorporate various types of detailing at the joint such as (i) specimen with
no shear reinforcements (SC-NS) (ii) specimen with shear studs in critical pattern
(SC-SSRC) (iii) specimen with closed-hoop stirrups (SC-CHS) (iv) specimen with
single-loop stirrups (SC-SLS). The specimen designation is shown in Table 1 [22].
3.2 Reinforcement Detailing
The dimensions of the scaled model (1/4th scale) are shown in Fig. 3. Using Cauchy’s
similitude law, the reinforcements are also reduced to (1/16th) scale. The reinforce-
ment detailing adopted for all the types of specimens is shown in Figs. 4, 5, 6, 7, 8
and 9.
Fig. 3 Dimensions of the

test specimen
Fig. 4 Top and bottom views (SC-NS)—sectional plan and cross-sectional details
Fig. 5 Reinforcement details for SC–SSRC and SC-CHS specimen (sectional plan—top view)
Fig. 6 SC-SLS specimen (sectional plan—top view)

Fig. 7 Sectional plan bottom view SC-SSRC, SC-SLS and SC-CHS specimen
(a) SC - SSRC (b) SC - SLS (c) SC - CHS
Fig. 8 Various arrangements of shear reinforcement
(a) Conventional model (NS) (b) Non - Conventional models (SSRC, SLS and CHS)
Fig. 9 Cross-sectional view of joint model

4 Experimental Investigation
The schematic diagram for testing the slab–column joint at the laboratory is shown
in Fig. 10.
A concrete mix designed for a characteristic cube compressive strength was

30 N/mm2 as per the Indian code of practice (IS 10262–2009) and was used to
cast all six specimens. The compressive strength of concrete was determined by
casting 150 × 150 × 150 mm concrete cubes. The 28th-day compressive strength
for the concrete cubes was 37.8 N/mm2 . The high yield strength deformed bars of
Fe 415 grade steel were used for longitudinal and transverse reinforcement of the
slab and the column. High yield strength round bars are used for stirrups. Ordinary
Portland cement (53 grade) conforming to IS 12269 (2013) is used for casting the
specimen.
4.2 Test Setup
The experimental investigations were carried out at the Structural Dynamics Labo-
ratory, Structural Engineering Division, Anna University, Chennai, India. The speci-
mens were tested in a well-equipped setup. The slab–column joint (¼th scale) which
is representing on exterior joint of the lower floor of eight-storey RC building is tested
on a steel loading frame of capacity 100 tonnes. The test specimens were loaded by
a hydraulic jack of capacity 400kN on the top of the column to simulate the axial
Fig. 10 Schematic diagram of test setup

Fig. 11 Test setup in

laboratory
load. A constant load of 5 tonnes (10% of the axial capacity of the column) is applied
on the top of the column stub. The reversed cyclic loading is applied at the slab end
towards the centre (top and the bottom of the slab) with two hydraulic jacks of 10
tonnes capacity. The test setup used in the laboratory is shown in Fig. 11.
4.3 Loading Cycle and Boundary Conditions
The reverse cyclic loading was applied on top and the bottom of the slab. The sequence
of loading adopted for the model is shown in Fig. 12. The bottom of the column is
assigned with hinged support, and the top of the column is assigned with roller
support. The axial load is applied on top of the column.
5 Finite Element Modelling
5.1 Development of Numerical Model
Finite element modelling software ABAQUS (Version 6.14) [1] is employed to

develop the finite element model of the exterior slab–column joint in order to simu-
late the experimental model. The model is developed to study the behaviour of
slab–column joint under reverse cyclic loading.
Fig. 12 Sequence of loading
5.2 Description of the Model
In this study, the size of slab is 450 × 900 × 62.5 mm. The column is of size 150 ×
150 mm and was extended above and below to the required length of 750 mm. The
sizes adopted for meshing and the types of elements used are given in Table 1. The
concrete is modelled as 3D deformable homogeneous and solid extrusion element
and meshed using an eight-noded linear hexahedral element (C3D8R). The steel and
the closed-hoop stirrups are modelled as wire planar elements and meshed using a
two-noded beam element (B31). The shear stud is modelled as 3D deformable homo-
geneous four-noded tetrahedral element (C3D4-1308) solid revolution and meshed.
The steel part and concrete are bonded together using the interaction of the embedded
region. The global size of meshing used for concrete slab is 100. For all other steel
rebars its 50, for shear stud its 75 as mentioned in Table 1. The shear studs and closed-
hoop stirrups were provided for SSRC and CHS specimens as per Eurocode 2 and
Table 1 Type of elements

Parts Shape Element type Family Global seed size
Concrete 3D-solid C3D8R: eight-noded Three-dimensional 100
linear brick, stress
hexagonal
Shear stud C3D4: 1308 75
four-noded
Tetrahedral
Steel 3D-wire B31: two-noded Beam 50
Rebar linear beam
Closed-hoop stirrups
Fig. 13 Dimension of a
single shear stud
ACI codes [2, 6], and the model is shown in Fig. 13. The reinforcement detailing
was provided in Sect. 3.2 and was adopted for numerical model also and the model.
The material properties adopted for modelling steel and concrete and are provided
in Table 2. The stress–strain parameters for compression and tension were adopted
from the literature Mokhatar and Abdullah [14] as detailed in Tables 3 and 4. The
concrete damage plasticity model (CDP model) is used to study the behaviour of
slab–column joint with various shear reinforcements under reverse cyclic loading.
The characteristic compressive strength (fck) of concrete is 37.8 MPa achieved during
Table 2 Material properties

Sl. No Material Modulus of elasticity (N/mm2 ) Poisson’s ratio Density (kg/m3 )
1 Steel 200,000 0.3 7850
2 Concrete 27,386.13 0.2 2400
Table 3 Tensile stress–strain

Sl. No Stress (N/mm2 ) Cracking strain Rate
values for concrete [14]
1 3.5 0 1.5
2 1.75 0.00015 1.5
3 0.8 0.00035 1.5
4 0.25 0.0006 1.5
Sl. No Damage parameter Cracking strain
1 0 0
2 0 3.33E−05
3 0.406411 0.0001604
4 0.69638 0.0002798
Table 4 Compression
Sl. No Stress (N/mm2 ) Cracking strain Rate
stress–strain values for
concrete [14] 1 13 0 1.5
2 20 0.0007 1.5
3 24 0.001 1.5
4 37.5 0.002 1.5
5 22.5 0.0034 1.5
6 16 0.05 1.5
Sl. No Damage parameter Cracking strain
1 0 0
2 0 7.47E−05
3 0 9.89E−05
4 0 0.0001541
5 0 0.0007615
6 0.195402 0.0025576
7 0.596382 0.0056754
8 0.894865 0.0117331
Table 5 Plasticity parameters

Dilation angle Viscosity parameter Eccentricity fb0/fc0 K
38 1 1.12 1 0.666
the testing used in the numerical analysis. The plasticity parameters used for the
modelling are shown in Table 5.
5.4 CDP Model Under Cyclic Loading
Where dt is partial damage of the material, (1 − d t + wc d t )E0 is elasticity modulus

in compression. When the element is unloaded, the modulus of elasticity is changed
to (1 − d t )E 0. The crushed section loses its initial properties in compression, defined
by the parameter dc , and initial properties in tension, defined by the parameter d t as
shown in Fig. 14 [12].
5.5 Loading and Boundary Conditions
The axial load was given in accordance with that of the test model. A circular profile
is created at the centre of the slab to provide the cyclic loading as shown in Fig. 15.
Fig. 14 Stress–strain curve of CDP model (ABAQUS) [15]
Fig. 15 Loading and boundary conditions

Fig. 16 Comparison of ultimate load
6 Validation of Test Results (Comparison of Experimental

and Numerical Results)
6.1 Ultimate Load Carrying Capacity
The comparison of ultimate load carrying capacity of SC-NS, SC-SSRC, SC-SLS

and SC-CHS specimens in the positive and negative directions is given in Fig. 16.
It is observed that the numerical ultimate load is higher for the SC-SSRC specimen
compared to the experimental ultimate load. The SC-SSRC specimen exhibited high
load-carrying capacity compared to all other three specimens, and the maximum vari-
ation is 64.96% for SC-SSRC specimen than that of SC-NS specimen. The increase
in ultimate load in the SC-SSRC specimen can be certified due to the presence of
reinforcements in the critical sections, which experiences high shear and flexural
stresses due to cyclic loading.
6.2 Load–Displacement Behaviour
The comparison of load–displacement behaviour of the slab–column joint of SC-NS,

SC-SSRC, SC-SLS and SC-CHS specimens at each displacement under 13 cycles
of cyclic loading is shown in Fig. 17. Both the numerical and the experimental
loops are stable at the early stages of loading. Later on further loading, the numerical
models exhibited wider loops compared to experimental models with a low pinching,
due to the good bonding between the shear reinforcements provided at the slab–
column joints [21]. The load–displacement envelope curves for the numerical and
experimental models are shown in Fig. 18.
(a) SC - NS specimen (num) (b) SC - NS specimen (exp)
(a) SC - SSRC specimen (num) (b) SC - SSRC specimen (exp)
(a) SC - CHS specimen (num) (b) SC - CHS specimen (exp)
(a) SC - SLS specimen (num) (b) SC - SLS specimen (exp)
Fig. 17 Load displacement behaviour a Hysteresis loop [Numerical] b Hysteresis loop [Experi-
mental]
Fig. 18 Load–displacement envelope curve
6.3 Ductility and Energy Dissipation Capacity
The comparisons of the displacement ductility of the specimens are given in Table 6.
The displacement ductility is the ratio of the maximum deformation that a structure
or an element can undergo without a significant loss of initial yielding resistance to
the initial yield deformation as suggested by Park and Paulay [15]. It is observed
that the displacement ductility for numerical models is enhanced than that of the
experimental models. The comparisons of the energy dissipation of the specimens
are shown in Fig. 19. The numerical models exhibited greater values of energy
dissipation compared to experimental models.
Table 6 Comparison of displacement ductility

Specimens Yield displacement Ultimate displacement Ductility ratio
(mm) (mm)
+Ve −Ve Mean +Ve −Ve Mean
SC-NS Experimental 3.34 3.12 3.23 10.8 10.6 10.7 3.31
SC-SLS 3.87 3.62 3.745 14.2 13.32 13.76 3.67
SC-CHS 4.2 4.02 4.11 16.8 16.51 16.66 4.05
SC-SSRC 4.35 4.15 4.25 18.69 18.67 18.68 4.4
SC-NS Numerical 3.01 2.71 2.86 10.5 10.3 10.4 3.64
SC-SLS 3.8 3.7 3.75 15.4 14.2 14.8 3.95
SC-CHS 4.04 3.88 3.96 17.8 16.7 17.25 4.36
SC-SSRC 4.13 3.95 4.04 18.98 18.96 18.97 4.7
Fig. 19 Comparison of energy dissipation capacity
6.4 Crack Pattern
For the conventional specimen (SC-NS), the load is gradually increased from first
cycle (displacement 0.5 mm); thereby, the first crack was observed at the seventh cycle
(7 mm). The crack develops diagonally from the bottom of the slab and propagates
towards the slab–column joint as shown in Fig. 20. Later in the eighth cycle (8 mm)
of loading, the crack develops beside the slab–column joint and propagates towards
the top portion of the slab. By the tenth, eleventh, and twelfth cycles, the load is
reduced and the crack widens. The peak ultimate load is observed in the tenth cycle
(12 mm) for SC-SSRC, SC-SLS and SC-CHS specimens.
7 Conclusions
In this study, the exterior slab–column joint under cyclic loading is modelled and
tested to check the load carrying capacity against punching shear, which is the
major problem to be considered in the flat slab construction. The numerical and
experimental results are arrived at,
. The specimen with stud shear reinforcement (SC-SSRC), single-loop stirrups (SC-
SLS) and the closed-hoop stirrups (SC-CHS) at the slab–column joint enhanced
the punching shear resistance.
. The SC-SSRC, SC-SLS and the SC-CHS specimens exhibited comparatively
high ultimate load carrying capacity compared to the SC-NS specimen. The
maximum ultimate load carrying capacity of SC-SSRC specimen is 60.41%,
43.04% for SC-SLS specimen and 51.6% for SC-CHS specimen compared to
(a) Front view (SC - NS) (b) Side view (SC - NS)
(a) Front view (SC - SSRC) (b) Side view (SC - SSRC)
(a) Front view (SC - SLS) (b) Side view (SC - SLS)
(a) Front view (SC - CHS) (b) Side view (SC - CHS)
Fig. 20 Crack patterns of SC-NS, SC-SSRC, SC-SLS and SC-CHS specimen
the conventional specimen (SC-NS) from the numerical investigation. While the
percentage increase in ultimate load from experimental study for SC-SSRC spec-
imen is 64.96%, 36.18% for SC-SLS specimen and 45.16% for SC-CHS specimen
compared to the conventional specimen (SC-NS).
. Enhanced energy dissipation capacity of numerical models indicates the cumula-
tive energy dissipation capacity for SC-SSRC specimen is 84.79%, the SC-SLS
specimen is 35.89% and the SC-CHS specimen is 65.1% higher than the SC-NS
specimen from the experimental study.
. The displacement ductility obtained from numerical model shows that the
percentage increase for SC-SSRC specimen is 29.12% (num) higher than SC-
NS specimen, SC-SLS specimen is 8.52% (num) higher than SC-NS specimen
and for SC-CHS specimen is 19.78% (num) higher than the SC-NS specimen.
The experimental value of ductility for SC-SSRC specimen is 32.93%, SC-CHS
specimen is 22.36% and SC-SLS specimen the percentage increase is 10.88%
higher than conventional specimen SC-NS.
From the above numerical and the experimental observations, it is observed that
providing shear reinforcements at the slab–column connections exhibited a good
performance in resisting punching shear and satisfies the seismic resistance during
earthquakes such as load carrying capacity, ductility and energy dissipation.
References
1. ABAQUS/Explicit User’s Manual. (2002). Version 6.14. Hibbitt, Karlson & Sorensen, Inc.
2. ACI Committee 318. (2005). Building code requirement for structural concrete (ACI 318M-05)
and commentary. American Concrete Institute.
3. Broms, C. K. (2007). Flat plates in seismic areas: Comparison of shear reinforcement systems.
ACI Structural Journal, 104, 712–721.
4. Bu, P. (2009).Ductility of reinforced concrete flat slab-column connections. Computer–Aided
Civil and Infrastructure Engineering, 20, 184–193.
5. Bompa, D. V., & Elghazouli, A. Y. (2020). Nonlinear numerical simulation of punching shear
behavior of reinforced concrete flat slabs with shear-heads. Frontiers of Structural and Civil
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Improvements in Tensile Strength
Properties of Steel after Forming
M. S. Deepak and G. Beulah Gnana Ananthi
Abstract Original experimental investigation on steel coupons in determining the

tensile strength properties of steel sheets after cold formed into various structural
cross sections is presented in this study. TATA steel sheet products of three different
grades are considered forming into stiffened channels, namely low tensile grade,
medium tensile grade and high tensile grade. The coupons specimen pieces are
taken out from the flat portions of the formed steel channel sections. The tensile
characteristics say the yield and ultimate capacities, and the Young’s modulus of
steel is enhanced, whereas the due to cold forming into sections. The ability to
undergo large plastic deformation say the ductility is reduced due to forming.
Keywords Coupons · Cold forming · Tensile characteristics · Plastic deformation
1 Introduction
The cold-formed steel built-up sections are emerging as new structural members in
the steel construction based on their advantages and design needs. Different grades
of steel sheets are from low to high tensile strength available in the market and all are
being used in buildings. Hence, knowing the modifications in their properties after
sheets being formed into sections are essential. Research works done by Deepak and
Shanthi [1, 2] and Ananthi et al. [3] used various grades of steel in their CFS sections.
Brnic et al. [4] studied and proposed an equation to determine the uniaxial fatigue,
creep and stress–strain responses of steel 30CrNiMo8 under different temperatures.
Arrayago et al. [5] proposed a predictive equation to determine the strain hardening
parameter for stainless steel alloys. Motra et al. [6] found that using extensometer
M. S. Deepak (B)
Department of Civil Engineering, BMS Institute of Technology and Management, Bengaluru,
India
e-mail: deepakms143@gmail.com
G. B. G. Ananthi
Department of Civil Engineering, College of Engineering Guindy, Anna University, Chennai,
India
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4040-8_29
352 M. S. Deepak and G. B. G. Ananthi
in measurement of elongation of coupons under tensile testing has advantages over

strain gauge and crosshead motion measurement. Huang and Young (2014) reported
the art of testing coupons. Afshan et al. [7] proposed new predictive models to evaluate
the strength enhancements in various grades of steel and stainless steel coupons. In
this study, coupon pieces are organised and investigated according to the procedures
given in European standards EN ISO 6892-1-2019 [8]. The characteristic stress–
strain plots are obtained from the tensile tests of coupons. Strength characteristics
such as yield strength (fy ), the ultimate strength (fu ) and elastic modulus (E) are
computed from the plots. The tensile capacities obtained for the sheet cut coupons
and the section cut coupons are compared and analysed.
The stress–strain responses of multiple grades of steel commonly used and most
importantly from different portions after forming into CFS products are expected
to provide clear understanding in design optimisation. In this material testing
programme, cold-rolled steel materials exhibited a gradual forming stress–strain
response, whereas hot-rolled steel materials showed sharp yield point characteristics
to tensile loads. The yield and ultimate strength of plates increased due to press-brake
forming into sections. The ductility is reduced and the modulus of elasticity value is
enhanced due to cold press-brake forming. The significance of these experiments is,
it can be used as inputs in performing parametric studies by numerical simulation is
more reliable.
3 Material Standards
Three different grades of metal sheets are procured from TATA steel (P) Ltd. India.
At first, cold-rolled-low tensile strength (CR-LT) grade of steel sheets; secondly,
hot-rolled-medium tensile strength (HR-MT) grade of steel sheets and thirdly, hot-
rolled-high tensile strength (HR-HT) grade of steel sheets are given in Table 1.
In this research, three different grades of steel materials are used for forming the
channel sections that are in turn fabricated into built-up CFS structural members.
Two series of coupon specimens are cut precisely and extracted, and then, tensile
tests are conducted as per EN ISO 6892-1-2019 guidelines. Series-1 coupons are cut
for different regions of flat sheets before forming, and Series-2 coupons are cut from
plane portions of the formed channels. The plane portions are, namely flange, web
Improvements in Tensile Strength Properties … 353
Table 1 Product specifications and their equivalent European standards

TATA product Category As per mill Elongation As per Eurocode European
3 mm certificate standards
thick fy fu % fy fu
(MPa) (MPa) (MPa) (MPa)
CRSHEET-ICF Cold-rolled 140/220 280 35 140/180 270/330 EN
TATXXD AU03 low tensile 10,130:
2006
DC03
CR
HRC Hot-rolled 255 410 23 245 380 EN
IS2062E250Fe410 medium 10,025
WGrASME tensile Part
2:2004
S275 JO
HR COIL Hot-rolled 355 490 22 310 450 EN
DIN17100ST52.3 high tensile 10,025
SH-ECA Part
2:2004
S355 JO
and web-flange segments along their span. Large-sized coupon pieces are cut from
sheets, and proportionately, smaller size coupon pieces are cut from sections based on
requirement, obtainability from the channel surfaces, ease of extraction and available
machining facilities. The specimen dimensions are as provided in Table 2. By acid
itching process, the oil on the machined coupons is removed. The coupons are dipped
in the diluted hydrochloric acid of 1:5 for one hour and then rinsed with water. The
coupon pieces preparation is illustrated in Fig. 1. The displacement-controlled tests
(rate = 0.01 mm/s) are performed with a Zwick/RoellZ 100 kN electro-mechanical
testing machine. This procedure is particularly suitable for testing structural steel
plates having E = 200,000 N/mm2 or higher. The test set-up, recording and fracture
of a typical coupon specimen under tensile load are illustrated in Fig. 2.
Table 2 Dimensions of coupon specimens—notations as per EN ISO 6892-1-2019

Tensile Thickness, Parallel Gripped Parallel Original Total Original
Flat a0 width ends length gauge length cross-sectional
Coupons (mm) b0 width Lc length, L0 of test area of parallel
cut from (mm) b (mm) (mm) piece, length, S0
(mm) Lt (mm2 )
(mm)
Rolling 3.00 20 50 180 150 380 60
sheets
Formed 3.00 15 30 140 120 300 45
sections
b) Acid Itching
a) Positions of Coupons Cut and Extracted
Fig. 1 Coupons preparation
a) Tensile Testing Set-Up b) Fracture of a Coupon
Fig. 2 Tensile testing of coupon

Salient points found from each stress–strain plots of their respective coupons are the
yield stress (fy ), the ultimate stress (fu ) and the finest Young’s modulus of elasticity
(E). The tensile test outcomes for coupons from steel sheets before cold forming is
given in Table 3. Fracture of typical coupon pieces both before and after forming for
transverse direction is shown in Fig. 3. The stress–strain behaviour for 3.00 mm thick
sheet cut coupons cut three directions from different three grades of steel is shown
in Fig. 4. Based on the experimental observations, it is found that CR-LT steel mate-
rial (cold-rolled process) showed a gradual smooth and large elongated stress–strain
response without a precise yield point, henceforth 0.2% proof stress is considered as
the yielding stress. The HR-MT steel material (hot-rolled process) showed a sharp
stress–strain response with average elongation with a definitive and yield point.
The HR-HT steel (hot-rolled process) showed a sharp stress–strain behaviour with
medium elongation by means of a definitive and yield point. The obtained tensile
capacities of the coupons of the all the grades of steel are higher that the nominal
grade as indicated in the code provisions and also higher than the capacities provide
in the mill certificates from the manufacturer. However, the percentage elongation is
Table 3 Experimental tensile capacities of sheet cut coupons—before forming

Nomenclature Position of the Yield stress, fy Ultimate stress, Ratio, Elasticity
and coupon fu fu /fy modulus, E
Eurocode strip cut (N/mm2 ) (N/mm2 ) (GPa)
standards from sheets
(3.00 mm
thick)
Type-1 Longitudinal 222.15 320.36 1.44 210
(CR-LT)
Steel grade: Transverse 239.52 323.95 1.35 209
fy = 140 Mpa Diagonal 234.09 321.47 1.37 208
and fu =
270 Mpa
(HR-MT)
fy = 245 Mpa Diagonal 354.41 457.46 1.29 213
and fu =
380 Mpa
(HR-HT)
fy = 310 Mpa Diagonal 423.30 506.12 1.21 219
and fu =
450 Mpa
Sheet-CR-LT-3.0mm-Transverse
Flange-CR-LT-3.0mm-S1
Sheet-HR-MT-3.0mm-Transverse
Flange-HR-MT-3.0mm-S1
Flange-HR-HT-3.0mm-S1
Sheet-HR-HT-3.0mm-Transverse
Fig. 3 Fractured coupon pieces of 3.0 mm thick transverse direction cut coupons
500
400
Stress (N/mm )
2
300
CR-LT-3.0mm-Longitudinal
CR-LT-3.0mm-Transverse
200 CR-LT-3.0mm-Diagonal
HR-MT-3.0mm-Longitudinal
HR-MT-3.0mm-Transverse
HR-MT-3.0mm-Diagonal
HR-HT-3.0mm-Longitudinal
100 HR-HT-3.0mm-Transverse
HR-HT-3.0mm-Diagonal
0
0.00 0.05 0.10 0.15 0.20 0.25 0.30 0.35 0.40 0.45 0.50
Strain
Fig. 4 Stress–strain response of sheet cut coupons before forming
marginally reduced on comparison with the mill certificates, this is because of the
tempering of steel over a period of time. Based on the obtained results, it is found
that all the steel sheets satisfied the basic ductility criteria, that is, the average ratio
of ultimate strength to yield stress, fu /fy is > 1.10 as specified by EN 3.1.1 clause
3.2.2 [9]. However, it is clearly inferred from these plots that material manufac-
turing processes and the higher tensile strength have influenced on the large defor-
mation ductility capacity of the steel products. The difference in tensile properties in
different direction cut coupons from same steel sheets confirms that there is marginal
anisotropy.
Smaller size coupons are cut from the cold-formed channel sections of two lengths
and from two kinds, namely edge stiffened lipped channel sections and intermediate
stiffened plain channel sections. The short CFS channels (1250 mm) are formed by
folding the steel sheet in the transverse direction of the steel sheet. The long CFS
channels (2500 mm) are formed by folding the steel sheet in the longitudinal direction
of the steel sheet. The tensile test results for coupons cut and extracted from steel
channels after forming are given in Table 3. Typical stress–strain illustration of steel
coupons from CFS channels with 3.00 mm thick profile is shown in Fig. 5.
Table 4 Tensile test results of section cut coupons—after forming

Grade of Type of CFS Part of Yield stress Ultimate Ratio Elasticity
steel channel coupon strip fy stress modulus, E
(3.00 mm section cut from fu
thick) sections (N/mm2 ) (N/mm2 ) fu /fy (GPa)
Type-1 Lipped Flange-L 268.32 366.06 1.39 209
(CR-LT) channel Web-L 262.11 361.22 1.38 210
Flange-S 280.16 370.01 1.32 209
Web-S 272.61 363.63 1.33 211
Plain channel Flange-L 272.22 368.04 1.35 210
Flange-S 281.09 374.00 1.33 211
Mean: 1.35
(HR-MT) channel Web-L 371.66 461.05 1.24 213
Flange-S 384.52 471.92 1.23 211
Web-S 380.29 468.25 1.23 211
Flange-S 390.83 468.99 1.2 213
Mean: 1.23
(HR-HT) channel Web-L 482.66 535.12 1.11 218
Flange-S 495.72 545.29 1.10 218
Web-S 490.25 540.29 1.10 219
Flange-S 496.60 558.23 1.12 215
Mean: 1.11
*L—Long Channel Sections—2500 mm; *S—Short Channel Sections—1250 mm
600 Increase in
fu= 545.43N/mm2 Ultimate stresses
fu= 505.46N/mm2 (after forming)
fu= 467.23N/mm2
500
fu= 453.30N/mm2
fu= 368.04N/mm2
400
fu= 320.36N/mm2
Stress (N/mm )
2
Decrease in
Tensile failure or fracture of Elongation
300
coupon specimens (after forming)
Sheet-CR-LT-3.0mm-Longitudinal
200 Flange-CR-LT-3.0mm-L1
Sheet-HR-MT-3.0mm-Longitudinal
Flange-HR-MT-3.0mm-L1
Sheet-HR-HT-3.0mm-Longitudinal
100
Flange-HR-HT-3.0mm-L1
0
0.00 0.05 0.10 0.15 0.20 0.25 0.30 0.35 0.40 0.45 0.50
Strain
a) Full stress-strain curves of longitudinal direction cut coupons- L1
600
Increase in Yield stresses
(after forming)
500 fy= 489.01N/mm2

Yield stresses
(well-defined point) fy= 428.92N/mm2
400 fy= 379.13N/mm2
fy= 351.53N/mm2
Stress (N/mm )
2
300
fy= 272.22N/mm2
fy= 222.15N/mm2
0.2% proof stresses Sheet-CR-LT-3.0mm-Longitudinal
200 Flange-CR-LT-3.0mm-L1
(gradual yielding)
Sheet-HR-MT-3.0mm-Longitudinal
Flange-HR-MT-3.0mm-L1
E = Slope Sheet-HR-HT-3.0mm-Longitudinal
100
Flange-HR-HT-3.0mm-L1
0
0.00 0.01 0.02 0.03 0.04 0.05 0.06 0.07 0.08 0.09 0.10
Strain
b) Initial part of stress-strain curves- L1
Fig. 5 Comparison of stress–strain response of 3.0 mm thick longitudinal direction cut coupons-L1
Based on the results, it reveals that there is increase in the tensile capacities of
the formed sections on comparison with their basic sheet tensile strengths in all
grades of steel. In this study, at first, the CR-LT grade steel channels show about
9 and 5% increase in tensile strength after forming in longitudinal and transverse
directions, respectively. Secondly, the HR-MT grade steel channels show about 9
and 7% improvement in tensile strength after forming in longitudinal and transverse
directions, accordingly. Thirdly, the HR-HT grade steel CFS channels show about 9
and 8% improvement in tensile strength after folding in longitudinal and transverse
directions, accordingly. It is also observed that the enhancement in the tensile capacity
also depends on the amount of the forming the particular region undergoes, as it can
be seen in the results in a channel stiffened or plain the web has an average strength
improvement in comparison with the flange of the channel section which is on the
higher bound.
On observations, it is found that the ductility or the elongation ability slightly
reduces because of the folding processes and also develops internal membrane
bending stresses. The ductility of the steel materials considered in the present study,
however, did not lower than the values suggested in the Eurocode provisions. The
Young’s modulus of elasticity slightly depreciated. The yield strengths and the ulti-
mate strength of the plates are increased after press-braking the sheets into sections.
The greater the cold forming at the segments the higher is the increase in their
tensile strength. The corner regions where cold-forming is more exhibited tensile
yield capacity and elasticity modulus compared to the flanges which are higher on
comparison with the web portions of the same cold-formed channel section. On the
other hand, the material ductility of the cold-formed portions is reduced considerably.
And also, the elasticity modulus is slightly depreciated. The change in the tensile
properties is mainly, because of the cold-work forming. The gradual press-braking
method and rolling method are the two methods of forming. Secondly, stiffened
element width of the formed section. Thirdly, the radius of the bent alters the tensile
properties of the corners of the formed section.
6 Conclusions
Sequence of tensile tests are carried out to find the enhancements in the tensile char-
acteristics of three grades of steel sheet materials those are cold formed into channel
sections. Based on the results obtained through characteristic stress–strain graphs,
the subsequent conclusions are made. Similar behaviour is obtained by investigations
done by authors earlier works Deepak and Ananthi [10].
• The variation of the tensile properties of sheet cut coupons from different direc-
tions of the steel sheet demonstrates that, although steel material is assumed
to be homogeneous and isotropic, in real conditions, there is a fringe material
anisotropy. This is found to be existing in all grades of steel. As illustrated in Figs. 3
and 4, TATA Steelium products manufactured by cold-rolled process showed
gradual yielding stress–strain response. TATA Astrum products manufactured

through hot-rolled process displayed sharp yield point stress–strain response.
• The tensile properties, mainly, the yield strength and the ultimate strength are
enhanced but the Young’s yield strengths and the ultimate strength of the plates
are increased after press-braking the sheets formed into sections. The higher the
cold forming at the segments the higher is the increase in their yield strength.
• The percentage increase in tensile yield strength of the steel sheets formed into
sections considered in this research is such that, (i) for CR-LT steel grade, the
increase is 10% (0.2% proof stress), (ii) for HR-MT steel grade, the increase is
7% and (iii) for HR-HT steel grade, the increase is 9%.
• The percentage increase in ultimate strength of the steel sheets formed into
sections considered in this research is such that, (i) for CR-LT steel grade, the
increase is 7%, (ii) for HR-MT steel grade, the increase is 5% and (iii) for HR-HT
steel grade, the increase is 4%.
References
1. Deepak, M. S., & Shanthi, V. M. (2018). Section bending resistance of new hybrid double-I-box
beams. Advances in Structural Engineering, 21(11), 1676–1695.
2. Deepak, M. S., & Shanthi, V. M. (2019). Lateral-torsional buckling capacity of hybrid double-
I-box beams—A numerical approach. Advances in Structural Engineering, 22(3), 641–655.
3. Ananthi, G. B. G., Deepak, M. S., Roy, K., & Lim, J. B. (2021) Influence of intermediate stiff-
eners on the axial capacity of cold-formed steel back-to-back built-up unequal angle sections.
4. Brnic, J., Brcic, M., Krscanski, S., Lanc, D., & Chen, S. (2019). Uniaxial fatigue, creep and
stress-strain responses of steel 30CrNiMo8. Steel and Composite Structures, 31(4), 409–417.
5. Arrayago, I., Real, E., & Gardner, L. (2015). Description of stress–strain curves for stainless
steel alloys. Materials and Design, 87, 540–552.
6. Motra, H. B., Hildebrand, J., & Dimmig-Osburg, A. (2014). Assessment of strain measurement
techniques to characterise mechanical properties of structural steel. Engineering Science and
Technology, an International Journal, 17, 260–269.
7. Afshan, S., Rossi, B., & Gardner, L. (2013). Strength enhancements in cold-formed structural
sections—Part II: Predictive models. Journal of Constructional Steel Research, 83(2013), 189–
196.
8. EN ISO 6892-1:2019—Metallic materials—Tensile testing—Part 1: Method of test at room
temperature (ISO 6892-1:2019), Brussels, Belgium.
9. European Committee for Standardization (CEN) (2005). Eurocode 3: Design of steel
structures—Part 1-1: General rules and rules for buildings. EN 1993-1-1, Brussels, Belgium.
10. Deepak, M. S. & Ananthi, G. B. G. (2021). Strength enhancements in tensile properties of steel
by press brake cold forming. Construction Materials. Lecture Notes in Civil Engineering, vol
194. Springer, (pp. 29–41). https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-16-6403-8_4
Behaviour of Aerated Alkali-Activated
Composite Wall Panels
S. Geetha, M. Selvakumar, and S. Muthu Lakshmi
Abstract A sustainable construction material that reduces CO emission is the

research focus in the current scenario of the construction industry. One such material
is alkali-activated concrete which uses industrial waste material as raw material along
with alkaline activators as binders which has strength equivalent to conventional
concrete and performs much better in durability aspects. Aerated concrete is a form
of lightweight concrete that has reduced density due to isolated pores in the matrix.
This paper discusses the optimization of alkali-activated aerated concrete with steel
fibres which could be used as wall panels. Na2 SiO3 and NaOH were used as alkaline
activators with the ratio of 1.5 (alkali activator Na2 SiO3 /NaOH) = 1.5. This means
the quantity of Na2 SiO3 is 1.5 times that of NaOH). Fly ash-F and ground granulated
blast furnace slag (GGBFS) were used in as raw material. Aluminium powder of
0.1–0.5% dosages was used as an aerating agent. Steel fibres of 0.1–0.5% by volume
of raw material were used. Experimental investigations were carried out to find the
strength parameters. Statistical analysis using response surface methodology (RSM)
was used to design the experimental trials and optimize the mix for low density, low
water absorption and higher strength. The strength of the alkali-activated composite
ranged from 8 to 24 MPa, the density ranged from 920 to 1200 kg/m3 . The wall
panels were cast with the optimized mix proportion and tested in a reaction frame,
and the load vs deflection was obtained. The maximum load-carrying capacity was
220 kN, and deflection was 2.5 mm.
Keywords Alkaline activator · Strength · Aeration · Deflection · Load
1 Introduction
Portland cement is the binder that has been used in concrete. The manufacture of
cement is the major source of CO2 released into the atmosphere which is very
S. Geetha (B) · M. Selvakumar · S. Muthu Lakshmi

Civil Engineering Department, Rajalakshmi Engineering College, Chennai, Tamil Nadu 602105,
India
e-mail: geetha.s@rajalakshmi.edu.in
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4040-8_30
362 S. Geetha et al.
hazardous. An alternative to this is geopolymer concrete (GPC) that does not involve
the use of Portland cement. Instead, materials like fly ash are used that contain silicon
(Si) and aluminium (Al) which are activated by alkaline liquids in order to get the
binder. The combined effect of sodium silicate solution and sodium hydroxide solu-
tion is used to activate the aluminium and silicon content in the fly ash [1]. The
GPC remained workable for about 120 min, and also, there was no reduction in the
strength properties. Nath et al. [2] found that workability and setting time increased
with an increase in water glass and NAOH solution but its compressive strength had
decreased. On the other hand, the addition of ground granulated blast furnace slag
(GGBFS) up to 30%, increased the compressive strength of concrete to 55 Mpa but
decreased its workability and setting time. GPC which eliminates the use of cement as
construction material is a great alternative due to its low carbon footprint. Tennakoon
[3] found that ambient cured GPC gained crushing (compressive) strength quickly
during early age (<28 days) and maintained this strength afterwards. He also found
that the elastic modulus of GPC cured in room temperature is slightly higher (32–
34 GPa) than the elastic modulus of oven-cured GPC (less than 30 GPa) as previously
reported. Also, GPC with blended fly ash and slag showed longer ageing than OPC
concrete resulting in higher resistance to chloride ingress with time.
Ghafoor et al. [4] reported a crushing strength of 21.5 MPa for room temperature
cured GPC with Na2SiO3/NaOH of 1.5, NaOH concentration of 14 M and alkaline
activator/fly ash ratio of 0.5. Researchers [5, 6] have investigated GPC containing
60 to 100% fly ash (FA) and 0 to 40% GGBFS. The test results after 3rd, 7th and
28th days of ambient curing indicated that there was an increase in split tensile
strength, flexural strength and compressive strength, and the addition of GGBFS
enhances setting time and rapid strength development. In another study, Hutagi et al.
[5] developed high compressive strength (77 Mpa) when fly ash was replaced with
40% GGBFS in the GPC cured at ambient temperatures.
Biondi et al. [7] developed a coating technology for concrete substrates which
focuses on room temperature cured fly ash geopolymer coatings for concrete
substrates, and this could allow the use of geopolymer coatings for ageing concrete
infrastructure. Peiman Azarsa et al. [8] experimented with 50% fly ash and 50%
bottom ash at higher temperatures and got an increase in compressive strength
by 3.5 times when steam cured at 80 ° C followed by ambient curing for 28 days.
Ashlesh Banjara [4] in his research work has also proposed that geopolymer structural
members were subjected to an initial high temperature of 145 ° C for 24 h followed
by curing at ambient temperatures to save time and energy. Also, mortar specimens
were subjected to short-term heat application followed by curing at ambient condi-
tions and they were compatible with normal cement mortar specimens. Tung et al. [9,
10] have studied the bending (flexural) behaviour of GPC beams incorporated with
steel fibres. The GPC beams were compared with ordinary OPC beams and the GPC
beams showed greater ductility, serviceability and cracking resistance comparatively.
The load-carrying capacity of GPC beams was found to increase by increasing the
fraction of steel fibres volume up to 0.75%.
Nath et al. [11–13] found that ambient cured GPC made from Class-F fly ash,
GGBFS, calcium hydroxide (or) OPC attained higher compressive strength when
Behaviour of Aerated Alkali-Activated Composite Wall Panels 363
extra water was not added along with the alkaline liquid. The flexural strength also
increased in GPC when compared with typical OPC concrete. Nath et al. [13] studied
the fracture properties of room temperature cured GPC notched beam specimens
made from fly ash and GGBFS when undergoing a 3-point bending (TPB) test. The
addition of GGBFS in GPC increased the compressive strength and the addition
of GGBFS up to 10% of the binder increased the bending strength as well. Fly
ash-based GPC had the same fracture energy similar to conventional concrete with
OPC. Cao et al. [14] reported that addition of calcium aluminate cement in GPC
improved its workability and strength. The optimized CAC replacement ratio for
geopolymer mortar is 10% for a 28-day crushing strength. Ding et al. [15] investi-
gated fly ash/GGBFS-based GPC cured at ambient temperatures as an alternative to
Portland cement. When the fracture properties were investigated by conducting TPB
test on precut beams, the fracture energy and the ultimate load of TPB tests of fly
ash-GGBFS beams increased with an increase in alkali concentration, slag/FA ratio
and modulus of alkali activator while it decreases with the increase in liquid/binder
ratio. Geopolymer has been used as foam concrete [16, 17] for 3D concrete printable
mortar [18] as well.
The aim of this work is to optimize the mix proportion of aerated GPC with steel
fibres that are ambient cured which can be used for wall panel in precast construction.
This concrete is different from conventional concrete, and the work carried out in
this paper is beyond material characterization and is attempted for use of structural
members.
2 Materials and Methodology
Class-F fly ash procured from North Madras Thermal power plant and GGBFS
from Salem Steel Plant was used in this study, with properties as given in Table 1.
Commercially available aluminium powder Con 95 grade was used as the aerating
agent. Laboratory grade NaOH pellets and Na2 SiO3 gel were used as alkaline activa-
tors. The molarity of NaOH adopted in this study was 10 M, and the Na2 SiO3 /NaOH
ratio was 1.5 based on the author’s previous work [19]. The alkaline solution was
prepared 24 h before the casting as dissolution of NaOH would liberate heat. GGBFS
was replaced with Fly ash upto 50%, and the aluminium (Al) powder dosage used
was 0.1–0.5%. Dramix Steel fibres with diameter 0.38 mm, length 23 mm (aspect
ratio −60) having hooked ends were used as 1–5% by volume. The production of
lightweight composite involves many factors. Hence in order to reduce the number of
trials and also to get a better understanding on the influence of individual factors and
their interaction effects on the characteristics of the composite, a statistical approach
was carried out in this work. Response surface methodology of central composite
design was used with the help of Design-Expert software.
The trial runs were designed after fixing the range of each factor. The levels and
the factors used in this work are given in Table 2. The experimental work has two
phases. Response surface methodology of central composite design was used for the
Table 1 Physical and

Physical Class-F fly ash GGBFS
chemical properties of fly ash
properties
and GGBFS
Specific gravity 2.10 2.83
Fineness, (m2 /kg) 257 392
Chemical % by mass ASTM C 618 % by mass
properties (class-F)
SiO2 64.16 – 35.6
CaO 2.32 <10 42.65
Al2 O3 28.12 – 14.12
Fe2 O3 3.12 – 1.23
MgO 0.66 5 (max) –
TiO2 – – –
Na2 O 0.089 – 0.6
K2 O 0.071 – 0.8
SO3 0.46 – 4.2
MnO 0.03 –
Loss on Ignition, 0.97 – 0.8
%
SiO2 + Al2 O3 + 95.4 70 (min) 50.95
Fe2 O3
Table 2 Factors and ranges

Factors Minimum Maximum
used for experimental design
GGBS (%) 10 50
Aluminium powder (%) 0.1 0.5
Steel fibres (%) 1 5
first phase of optimizing the mix ratio. Design-Expert software was used for designing
the mix proportions. The number of trials that were carried out as per the design was
20. The first phase involved the optimization of the mix and the second phase was
casting of the wall panels and testing it in a reaction frame. For optimization, a Hobart
mixer was used to mix the fresh concrete and mechanical properties were determined
by testing for compressive, split tensile and flexural strength by using the standard
specimen sizes of 10 cm cubes, cylinders of 10 cm diameter and 20 cm height and
prism of 40 × 40 × 160 mm size. The responses were entered in the software, and
the validation of the experimental results was carried out using ANOVA analysis.
The geopolymer composite was designed to gain strength by curing at ambient

temperature. The specimens after demoulding were exposed to ambient air for
28 days to enable strength gain. Samples were tested at the end of the curing period.
Density of the composite was found to decrease with increase in Al powder dosage.
As given in Fig. 1, with 0.1% of Al powder, the density was found to be 1200 kg/m3
and when Al powder increased to 0.5%, the density got reduced to 970 kg/m3 . This
is due to the release of more H2 gas during the reaction of Al powder with the CaO
present in the raw materials. Also, the NaOH present in the alkaline solution enhances
the aeration process. Increase in GGBFS increased the density as the formation of
polymeric bonds is more when GGBFS is used. Addition of steel fibres increased the
density of the composite due to increased density of steel fibres as shown in Fig. 2.
Compressive strength was tested on a 3000 kN compression testing machine which
was loaded at 140 kg/cm2 per minute. The load at which the specimens had failed
was noted. Variation in compressive strength with Al powder dosage and GGBFS as
shown in Fig. 3 has reduced from 13 to 8 MPa with increase in Al powder dosage.
Addition of more GGBFS has improved the compressive strength from 13 to 28 MPa.
Addition of steel fibres has improved the compressive strength. The interaction effect
of steel fibres and GGBFS increased the strength from 12 to 26 MPa (Fig. 4).
The influence of steel fibres can be clearly seen in Fig. 5. The steel fibres bridge
the cracks and improve the crack resistance thereby sustaining more applied load.
With 0.1% Al powder and 5% steel fibres, the compressive strength was 17 MPa and
it drastically reduced to 12 MPa with increase in Al powder dosage. The isolated
air voids in the matrix decrease the strength of the composite by enabling the crack
propagation in spite of the bridging effect by the steel fibres.
Flexural strength was tested in a simply supported condition with central point
load. The trend of the flexural strength was same as the compressive strength. With
increase in GGBFS, the flexural strength increased from 1.45 to 3.1 MPa and it was
Fig. 1 Variation of density with Al powder and GGBFS

Fig. 2 Variation of density with fibres and Al powder
Fig. 3 Variation of compressive strength with Al powder and GGBFS
0.9 MPa with 0.5% Al powder as given in Fig. 6. The interaction effect of steel
fibres and GGBFS improved the flexural strength from 1.2 to 3 MPa as shown in
Fig. 7. Reduction in Al powder with increase in steel fibres of 5% exhibited a flexural
strength of 1.22 MPa as shown in Fig. 8.
Split tensile strength was tested on cylindrical samples. Similar to the other
strength characteristics, the same pattern of behaviour was observed in the split
tensile strength results. Increase in GGBFS improved the tensile strength from 1 to
2.8 MPa as given in Fig. 9. The interaction effect of steel fibres and GGBFS improved
Fig. 4 Variation of compressive strength with steel fibres and GGBFS
Fig. 5 Variation of compressive strength with steel fibres and Al Powder
the tensile strength from 1.2 to 2.6 MPa as shown in Fig. 10. Increase in Al powder
reduced the tensile strength from 1.7 to 1.2 MPa (Fig. 11).
The ANOVA analysis of the experimental results is given in Table. 3.
Multiple optimization was done for the range of factors considering the compo-
sition to have minimum density with maximum strength. The composition of the
Fig. 6 Variation of flexural strength with Al powder and GGBFS
Fig. 7 Variation of flexural strength with steel fibres and GGBFS
material as suggested by the software is given in Table 4. The composition was used
for further trials, and strength test was carried out for the optimized mix propor-
tion. The results were compared with the predicted results given by the software.
The observed test results were closer to the predicted test results which proves the
accuracy of the experimental work as given in Table 5.
Fig. 8 Variation of flexural strength with steel fibres and Al powder
Fig. 9 Variation of split tensile strength with Al powder and GGBFS
4 Testing of Wall Panels
Wall panels were cast using the optimized test results as given in Table 5. Initially,
the behaviour of wall panels with aerated concrete and with geogrid used as rein-
forcement in wall panels has been tested [20, 21]. The size of the wall panels cast
was 1 m in length with 0.5 m in width. The thickness was 20 cm (Fig. 12). The
Fig. 10 Variation of split tensile strength with steel fibres and GGBFS
Fig. 11 Variation of split tensile strength with steel fibres and Al powder
panels were cast and cured at ambient temperature and tested in a reaction frame of
30 tonne capacity (Fig. 13). The load was applied gradually, and the deflection was
noted as plotted in Fig. 14.
Table 3 ANOVA analysis results for the responses

Response R-squared Adj R-square Predicted Mean square F-value p value
R-square Prob > F
Density 0.9921 0.9850 0.9398 14,074.62 139.97 <0.0001
(Kg/m3 )
Compressive 0.9790 0.9601 0.8847 72.52 51.77 <0.0001
strength (MPa)
Flexural 0.9619 0.9423 0.8654 0.90 51.77 <0.0001
strength (MPa)
Split tensile 0.9812 0.9562 0.8512 0.73 51.77 <0.0001
strength (MPa)
Table 4 Optimized mix

GGBS Al powder Steel fibres
proportions
50.00 0.38 5.00
Table 5 Predicted and

Response Predicted Observed
optimized responses
Density (Kg/m3 ) 1031.5 1056.1
Compressive strength (MPa) 24.83 23.85
Flexural strength (MPa) 2.76 2.68
Split tensile strength (MPa) 2.48 2.39
5 Conclusions
The test results from this study can be summarized into the following conclusions:
• Ambient geopolymer composite with 10 M NaOH and alkaline activator with
Na2 SiO3 /NaOH) ratio 1.5 has proved to be a sustainable building material which
gains strength without any external energy.
• The density of the panels can be reduced by using Al powder which could replace
the conventional commercial aerocon blocks.
• The strength properties of geopolymer composite have proven to be more than
the conventional lightweight blocks used in the current construction practices.
• Use of steel fibres has improved both compressive strength and flexural strength
of the geopolymer composite.
• The test results with wall panels have shown that the load-carrying capacity is
sufficient enough to be used as wall panels in load-bearing structures.
Fig. 12 Casting of wall panels
Fig. 13 Testing of wall

panels
200
180
160
Load (kN) 140
120
100
80
60
40
20
0
0 1 2 3 4 5 6
Deflection (mm)
Fig. 14 Load versus deflection of wall panels
References
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2. Nath, P. (2014). School of civil and mechanical engineering study of fly ash based geopolymer
concrete cured in ambient condition.
3. Tennakoon, C. K. (2016). Assessment of properties of ambient cured geopolymer concrete for
construction applications.
4. Theses, M. (2019). Investigating the rapid curing possibility of geopolymer concrete.
5. Hutagi, A., Khadiranaikar, R. B. (2019). The effects of GGBFS on strength properties of
geopolymer concrete cured at ambient temperature. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.
1007/978-981-13-3317-0_34
6. Hutagi, A., Khadiranaikar, R. B. (2018). Factors affecting properties of high strength
geopolymer concrete cured at ambient temperature. International Journal of Microstructure
and Material Properties, 13, 277–294.
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10.3390/ma12060923
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under static and impact loads. Composite Structures, 261, 113282. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.
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Numerical Analysis of Transmission Line
Tower with Connection Beam on Pile
Foundation
S. Lakshmi and Pinky Merin Philip
Abstract The transmission line (TL) towers are the backbone of a country’s energy
supply. A TL tower with four legs is usually supported on a pile or group pile founda-
tion particularly in weak soil. Heterogeneous and sloped soil profile cause torsional
effect on the structure when subjected to heavy external loads due to wind, earth-
quakes, etc. The tower failures due to wide range of factors cause severe economic
losses. The TL tower failures may be due to superstructure collapse during heavy
wind, differential settlements, torsion failures due to instability of foundation, and
pull-out failure of deep foundation during earthquakes and cyclones. Connection
beams between the deep foundations under the tower legs provide additional shear
resistance and torsional rigidity, thus improve the structural stability. In this study,
the improved performance of TL tower with connection beam is numerically anal-
ysed. The connection beam, which contributes a coupled effect to the tower founda-
tion, resists torsion on the tower which pronounced during earthquakes and heavy
winds. Finite element analysis of the tower with connection beam on deep founda-
tion is studied using ANSYS software. The numerical study of pile foundation with
connection beams resulted an increase of 60% in the performance of the structure.
The connection beam increases the area of contact of load distribution with soil
thus improves the overturning effect of tower and efficiency of pile. Thus, the struc-
tural support provided by the connection beam contributes to the lateral resistance,
torsional resistance and thus serviceability of TL tower.
Keywords Electrical transmission line tower · Connection beam · Pile

foundation · Torsional resistance · Layered soil · Finite element analysis
S. Lakshmi (B) · P. M. Philip (B)

Civil Engineering Department, Saintgits College of Engineering (Autonomous), Kottayam, Kerala
686532, India
e-mail: lakshmi30uv@gmail.com
P. M. Philip
e-mail: pinky.merin@saintgits.org; lakshmi30uv@gmail.com
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4040-8_31
376 S. Lakshmi and P. M. Philip
1 Introduction
Despite their significant exposure to extreme winds due to huge transmission line
extension, high-voltage transmission towers have a distinct structural performance
under wind loads, as they are often constructed with very minimal safety margins [1].
Wind tunnel testing is commonly used to examine near-failure performance for trans-
mission towers under critical wind loads [2]. Because test findings are only valid for
a specific tower and set of loading conditions, they cannot accurately estimate tower
behaviour in critical onsite wind loading situations. However, it is well known that
the structural characteristics of an electrical transmission tower may be influenced
by the wind loading source [3], pointed out. As per Central Electricity Authority
(CEA) report of 3rd pilot audit of transmission tower by the audit team on 2019,
the committee investigated failures and found a total of 72 failures of transformers,
reactors, surge arrestors, coupling capacitors and disconnectors were recorded. Foun-
dation failures occur when the towers buckled from stub level, buckled from top of
1st panel level, cyclones, and high intensity wind conditions such as hurricanes,
tornadoes, and thunderstorms [4].
Foundation is the key segment to ensure sustainability and continuous service-
ability of the entire transmission system. The foundations are introduced at the four
corners of the tower structure under each leg. A connection beam on the foundation
is an effective that can enhance the structural performance of electrical transmission
line towers in weak soil with improved stability and support. The use of connec-
tion beams was more effective against upliftment of foundation [5, 6]. The use of
connection beams between the individual tower foundation components distributes
shear loads between foundations, also the connection beam eliminates differential
settlements and lateral movement [7].
The study deals with the finite element analysis of transmission line (TL) tower on
conventional pile foundation in weak soil and also pile foundation with connection
beam. Connection beams between the deep foundations under the tower legs provide
additional shear resistance and torsional rigidity, thus improve the structural stability.
The connection beam, which contributes a coupled effect to the tower foundation,
resists torsion on the tower which pronounced during earthquakes and heavy winds.
Finite element analysis of the tower with connection beam on deep foundation is
studied using ANSYS software.
Numerical Analysis of Transmission Line Tower … 377
2 Numerical Simulation
2.1 Model Description
2.1.1 Types of Numerical Models
In this research, a control model of transmission line tower with pile foundation
(TLM) is analysed along with connection beam on pile foundation of the transmission
line tower (TLCB) as shown in Table 1. Soft clay conditions, as well as bearing rock
strata, were evaluated. The finite element models of TLM and TLCB are shown in
Figs. 1 and 2.
Table 1 Types of numerical

Abbreviation Description
models
TLM Transmission line model
TLCB Transmission line connection beam
Fig. 1 Finite element model of TLM

Fig. 2 Finite element model of TLCB
2.1.2 Details of Superstructure
A 220/110 kV multi-circuit multi-voltage (MCMV) transmission lattice tower

located in southern part of India is considered for the study. The height of the tower
structure is 47 m and is structured with Indian standard angle section 90 × 90 ×
7 mm on the bracings, cross-arms, truss members, and 125 × 125 × 10 mm on
the leg portions. They also hold a three-phase electric circuit on two cross-arms
that support overhead electric lines. Elastic modulus and Poisson’s ratio are 2.01 ×
105 N/mm2 and 0.3, respectively, for the tower’s material parameters. The grade of
concrete and steel is 25 and 500 N/mm2 .The elastic modulus of concrete, E, is taken
as 25,000 N/mm2 for the analysis. A sketch of the modelled tower is provided in
Fig. 3.
2.1.3 Details of Substructure
The foundation components are installed at each of the TL tower’s four corners, and
each corner’s foundation is constituted of a pile group with three piles. The pile length
Fig. 3 Sketch of modelled

tower
and pile diameter are 34 m and 1 m, respectively. In addition, the pile-to-pile spacing
is 3 m. The depth of the pile cap is taken as 1.5 m. The pile cap dimensions are shown
in Fig. 4. An eight-node element solid 65 is used to model the soil and pile. Solid 65
is a three-dimensional isotropic element with three degrees of freedom at each node:
translations in the x, y, and z directions. It depicts elastic and plastic deformations in
soil and piles. The steel is modelled by means of solid 185, and therefore, the bond
between steel and concrete is generated by keeping interface coefficient as 0.15.The
finite element analysis of TL tower with connection beam on pile foundation in
ANSYS is carried out to evaluate the efficiency of connection beam. The modelling
of TL tower with pile foundation is the same as that of the previous analysis, and the
introduction of a connection beam allows shear stresses to be distributed between
foundations. To eliminate differential lateral movement, a connection beam is the
recommended solution. The width and depth of the connection beam are 850 and
1500 mm.
2.1.4 Details of Soil Properties
Layered soil is considered in this study. The location details and soil condition for
the tower are taken as for Kerala.
Fig. 4 Pile cap dimensions
The Young’s modulus of soil, E, is 14,000 kN/m2 and Poisson’s ratio of soil,
ν, is 0.4. The Young’s modulus of rock, E, is 1.961 × 107 kN/m2 and Poisson’s
ratio of rock, ν = 0.2, respectively. Generally, the rock is assumed to be about 33 m
below the surface so the end-bearing pile has a length of 33 m. Since the stiffness of
the rock is significantly greater than that of the top soil layers, it can be regarded a
rigid boundary for pile modelling. The top of the soil model is a free-edge with no
restraints. The bottom of soil model is a fixed edge restricting all displacements. Pile
is modelled as an end-bearing pile and the soil model is laterally confined. A coarse
mesh was adopted for the model.
2.2 Finite Element Analysis
Both the models of transmission line towers with pile foundation are analysed using
the finite element software ANSYS WORKBENCH 19.2 by performing a linear
static analysis under the following conditions: (a) self-weight of cables, isolators,
and tower; (b) mechanical tension in cables due to line deviation; and (c) wind loads
acting on cables and tower body; and (d) seismic excitations.
Loads on transmission lines can be classified as steady-state, transient, and
construction loads [3]. Loads exerted on a structure over a lengthy or continuous
period are known as steady-state loads. Vertical loads due to the structure’s dead
weight are an example of these types of loads, exposed weight of conductors, and
insulators. The cable load is calculated by the following equation as per IS 802 (part
1/sec 1): 2015. A tensile load of magnitude 16.5 kN is applied at one cross-arm of
the tower. Transient loads are loads that are applied to a structure for a short period.
Wind loads on bare or ice-covered conductors, insulators, hardware, and stringing
loads caused by the conductor hanging up within the stringing block during wire
installation are examples of these types of loads, ice loads. IS 875 (part 3): 2015 is
used to compute the wind load, wind zone is taken as zone V, and maximum wind
pressure of 1552.53 N/m2 is given. Accidental loads are the loads that do not neces-
sarily occur within the design working life, but are very strong and last for a very
short time once occur, like seismic loads. Seismic analysis is performed by using
frequency response spectrum (FRS).
Figures 5 and 6 show the deformation of pile of TLM and TLCB. The maximum
value of deformation is 3.19 and 1.21 mm. The top of the pile shows the largest
deflection. The maximum deformation of the pile cap is about 3.26 and 1.23 mm for
both the models. It is observed at the top face of the pile cap as shown in Figs. 7 and
8. The maximum deformation of the tower leg is 3.74 mm for TLM and 1.76 mm for
TLCB. It may be seen in Figs. 9 and 10 at the joint part of the tower leg. Figure 11
shows the stress in pile for the TLM model and Fig. 12 shows the stress in pile
for TLCB model. The maximum stress in the pile for TLM and TLCB models are
0.92 MPa and 0.31 MPa, respectively. The stress is maximum at the top face of the
pile. The stress contour in the pile cap for TLM and TLCB is shown in Figs. 13
and 14. The maximum value is about 0.56 MPa and 0.15 MPa, respectively, which is
concentrated at the edges of the pile cap. Figures 15 and 16 show the stress contour in
soil for both the models and the maximum values are 0.0008 and 0.001, respectively.
The maximum stress for TLM is concentrated at the pile cap portion and that of TLCB
Fig. 5 Deformation contour of pile of TLM

Fig. 6 Deformation contour of the pile of TLCB
Fig. 7 Deformation contour of pile cap of TLM
is at the edges of the soil model. Figure 17 shows the stress contour in connection
beam and the maximum is at the edges of beam and it is obtained as 0.22 MPa.
Fig. 8 Deformation contour of pile cap of TLCB
Fig. 9 Deformation contour of tower leg of TLM

Fig. 10 Deformation contour of tower leg of TLCB
Fig. 11 Stress contour in pile of TLM

Fig. 12 Stress contour in pile of TLCB
Fig. 13 Stress contour in pile cap of TLM
Results of numerical analysis clearly show that the deformation of pile and pile cap
with connection beam is reduced by about 61.9% and 62.23%, respectively, as shown
Fig. 14 Stress contour in pile cap of TLCB
Fig. 15 Stress contour in soil of TLM
in Figs. 18 and 19. Figure 20 shows the deformation of tower leg and it can be seen
that the value of deformation is reduced by 52.9% with the provision of connection
beam on pile and the stress in pile and pile cap is decreased by about 66.7% and
73.1%, respectively, as depicted in Figs. 21 and 22.
Fig. 16 Stress contour in soil of TLCB
Fig. 17 Stress contour in connection beam of TLCB
According to [4], connected pile foundations provide better performance than

unconnected foundations, with higher load carrying capacities and smaller differen-
tial settlements, and ultimate lateral load resistance increased by 56.9% and 75.5%
for 25% and 50% stiffness connection beams, respectively. In addition, differential
settlements for 25% and 50% stiffness connection beams are reduced by 88% and
Fig. 18 Pile tip deformation for TLM and TLCB
Fig. 19 Pile cap deformation for TLM and TLCB
94%, respectively. The use of a connected foundation increased resistance on the

uplift side more than on the compressive side. This suggests that for uplift founda-
tions, connecting beams would be more effective which are typically used to control
transmission tower foundation design. With increased connection beam stiffness,
both uplift displacement and settlement decreased. A tower structure’s lateral load
capacity improved in a similar way to other resistance components (Fig. 23).
Fig. 20 Tower leg deformation for TLM and TLCB
Fig. 21 Stress in pile for TLM and TLCB
4 Conclusions
This paper reports the results of the numerical simulation of TL tower with (TLCB)
and without connection beam (TLM) on pile foundation in ANSYS to evaluate the
efficiency of connection beam in deep foundation embedded in a heterogeneous clay
profile. The conclusions obtained from the numerical studies are:
• The addition of a connection beam increases the stiffness of foundation system
to about 60%.
• Connection beam increases the load carrying capacity of the foundation and reduce
lateral deflection.
Fig. 22 Stress in pile cap for TLM and TLCB
Fig. 23 Stress in soil for TLM and TLCB
• The deformation at the pile, pile cap, and tower leg of TLCB is compared to TLM
which is reduced by about 61.90%, 62.23% and 52.91%, respectively, when a
connection beam is provided
• Also, the stress in the pile and pile cap is reduced by about 66.71% and 73%.
• The pile deformation at top is obtained within the limit of allowable settlement
(As per IS 2911 (Part 1/Sec 2): 2010).
• The purpose of the connection beam is to increase the resistance of foundation and
reduce the differential settlement. Also, it increases the feasibility of the electrical
transmission line tower system. It is effective when transmission line tower struc-
tures are built in weak soil and considerable amount of differential settlements are
expected. The greater shear resistance provided by the added connecting beam is
thought to be responsible for the increased load bearing capacity of the connected
pile foundation.
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Design of a Self-lifting Pedestrian Bridge
for Flood-Prone Locations
B. K. Mathew, S. Lakshmi, and G. Hari
Abstract Global temperature has shown instantaneous and vigorous rise since past
decade with temperature rise by about 1.71°F. Its effects have also been disastrous.
Climatic change and higher floods have been visible since few years. Kerala also
got affected by massive flood since last two years. This has led to destroy of about
16,000 km PWD road, 82,000 km local road and 134 bridges. This project includes
a live project for Kottayam Municipality, i.e. a design of steel pedestrian bridge that
has to be constructed against tributary coming from Meenachil River. Previously, a
pedestrian bridge existed at this location which was washed away by the 2018 Kerala
floods. An innovative approach to enable the bridge of lifting itself when the water
level rises beyond certain limits is proposed. The design of the bridge is done using
STAAD pro. software, and the hydraulic lifting is explained numerically.
Keywords Pedestrian bridge · Steel bridge design · Self-lifting property · STAAD

pro.
1 Introduction
A footbridge (also referred to as, pedestrian flyover, or pedestrian overcrossing) may

be a bridge that is constructed for movement of pedestrians and also in some cases
cyclists, animal traffic, and horse riders, but not for vehicular traffic [1]. In some
cases, footbridges are also used to complement the landscape and for decoratively
to visually link two distinct areas. In some of the poor rural communities inside the
developing world, a footbridge could also be a community’s solely access to medical
clinics, markets and colleges, which might be inaccessible when rivers area unit is too
high to cross [1]. Damages and failures of bridges are catastrophic events and involves
large number of casualties. Environmental effects such as floods, earthquakes and
heavy winds seriously affect bridges. Floods are a major reason in the failure of
B. K. Mathew (B) · S. Lakshmi · G. Hari

Civil Engineering Department, Saintgits College of Engineering, Kottukulam Hills, Pathamuttom
PO, Kottayam, Kerala 686532, India
e-mail: mathew.bk1820@saintgits.org
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4040-8_32
394 B. K. Mathew et al.
bridges. Global warming and the subsequent rise in surface temperature indicates
that floods are expected to occur in every 1–30 years. During 2018 Kerala floods,
about 16,000 km PWD roads and 82,000 km local roads and 134 bridges have been
damaged. Bridges are designed considering all the factors but cannot be designed
based on most severe conditions. So, innovations in the structures of bridge so as
to make them safer and durable are essential. The main objective of this work is to
design a pedestrian bridge capable of lifting itself when the water level crosses a
prescribed limiting value. The objectives of this study include to propose a design
of pedestrian bridge for Kottayam Municipality (Live Project).
2 Literature Review
Sandovič & Juozapaitis presented a new structural solution for pedestrian steel
suspension bridges. It includes suspension members with bending stiffness and a
pre-stressed tie connecting the outer supports connecting the central supports [2].
Foti et al. [3] addressed the dynamic behaviour of footbridge. Two scenarios, in free
vibration and made vibration produced by a hard and fast number of pedestrians
walking on the bridge at a particular speed and frequency, are tested. In each test,
the effect on the comfort of the pedestrians, the natural frequencies of vibration, the
mode shapes and damping factors are estimated. Sause [4] studied the application of
I-shaped steel girders with tubular flanges in highway bridges to make use of their
huge torsional stiffness. They identified that for straight girder bridges, the high value
of torsional stiffness of a TFG model shows high value of lateral torsional buckling
strength. Welch et al. [5] presents design of a pedestrian bridge over Coliseum Boule-
vard for the city of Fort Wayne, Indiana. A major obstacle for pedestrians south of
the Indiana–Purdue University Fort Wayne (IPFW) campus is Coliseum Boulevard:
a main arterial has an average daily traffic (ADT) of 50,000 vehicles. From the study,
they concluded that arch type bridge is the most effective type of design suitable in
that location [5]. Ali & Swarna present design of a pedestrian overhead bridge where
the traffic exceeds more than 2500 vehicles for the elimination of conflicts between
pedestrians and motor vehicles [1]. Wang et al. studied the dynamic response of a
circular bridge pier forced simultaneously by earthquake and wave–current actions.
On the basis of diffraction wave theory, the analytic solution for the diffraction of
incident waves with uniform current on a circular pier is given. On the basis of the
radiation wave theory, the analytic solution for the hydrodynamic pressures on a
circular pier induced by combined earthquake and wave–current action is obtained
[6]. Froli et al. present a selected concept named TVTδ (Travi Vitree Tensegrity) for
lightweight long-span beam-like footbridges made from structural glass [7].
Design of a Self-lifting Pedestrian Bridge … 395
3 Methodology
The major objective of this work is to design of a pedestrian bridge and to incor-
porate self-lifting property into it. The work methodology included site visits at
Thiruvathukkal, Kottayam Municipality and Irrigation department office for pre-
design studies, data collection, topographical survey, questionnaire survey, design of
self-lifting bridge and cost estimation.
The work began with an initial visit to the site and communication with the
Municipality authorities. The proposed bridge is constructed at Kutitharaadi region of
Thiruvarppu Panchayat, Illikal, Kottayam, Kerala. The visit to the site gave sufficient
preliminary knowledge about the condition of the site and the limitations that have
to be incorporated in the design. The aerial view of the site is shown in Fig. 1.
One bank of the proposed bridge is under Kottayam Municipality, and the other
bank is under Thiruvarppu Panchayat. On communicating with the local people who
are the beneficiaries of this work, it was able to know about the necessity of a bridge
there for the public. The site actually had a wooden bridge for people’s movement,
which however got washed away in the last major flood of 2018 in Kerala. As a result,
the people on both the banks of the river are experiencing difficulties in movement.
A bridge work was actually started in the area. However, that work was initiated
without any preliminary investigations, soil testing or detailed and accurate design.
On finding out these, the work was stopped immediately, and officials involved
were also punished by the higher authorities. At present, the Kottayam Municipality
requires a complete scientific study-based design approach for the bridge and thus
contacted with the Civil Engineering Dept. of Saintgits College of Engineering.
Fig. 1 Site location

Fig. 2 Basic dimensions of the river span and depths
3.1 Basic Data Collected
The bridge site is about 42.979 m away from the nearby road. This access to the site
is around 1.65 m wide. The river, which is a subsidiary of Meenachil River, is about
23.5 m wide at the site. Figure 2 shows the dimensions of width and depth of river.
The river has a clear span of 23.5 m. The depth of river at centre is about 3 m and at
the sides is 1.2 m at the normal water level in the river. The retaining wall on both
the sides of the river is of RR masonry.
3.2 Hydrological Investigation
The recorded water levels of the tributary are as follows;

• Maximum Flood Level (MFL) = 1.3 m above ground level
• Normal Water Level (LWL) = 1 m below ground level
3.3 Topographical Survey
The preliminary site visit was followed by a detailed topographical survey. Total
station survey was conducted and the site plan of proposed bridge site prepared. The
prepared site plan is shown in Fig. 3. The width of the tributary is approximately
23 m long adjacent to which there exists narrow pathway of 2.5 m width (approx.)
in either side of the tributary. A main road way having public transportation goes
parallel to the tributary of width 4 m at a distance of 43 m from the one side of the
channel. The details are as shown in Fig. 3.
Fig. 3 Site plan prepared
3.4 Questionnaire Survey
In order to know about the public demands regarding the bridge and to assess the
necessity of a bridge, beneficiaries of the bridge were surveyed. This was also
conducted to explore pedestrian satisfaction and safety preferences. An observa-
tional survey to obtain supplementary data to quantify pedestrian behaviour was also
collected. People from all sections of the society and from all age groups were selected
for the questioning. A questionnaire survey was conducted and about 20 responses
from families in the immediate vicinity of the bridge were collected. People of both
gender and different age groups were interviewed without partiality. Of all the people
interviewed, 90% of pedestrians voted in favour for the construction of a new foot-
bridge. When asked why, they were mainly concerned with the safety of their lives
as well as their loved ones. They feared that the current setup is so dangerous that
children cross the bridge holding a stretched tied rope and possibility to get drawn
into the river is high. 8% of the target sample showed indifference. Furthermore, they
argued that the establishment of a footbridge was unnecessary as it would only require
common sense to cross the bridge carefully. 2% of the pedestrians was completely
against the construction of a footbridge. When inquired, they suggested to depend
on the two bridges on the either side of the current location which is 1.5–2 km apart.
From the above results, it is evident that the majority of the target sample prefer to
have a bridge exclusively for pedestrians, i.e. a footbridge. The graph showing the
results is shown in Fig. 4.
Fig. 4 Chart showing public opinion in survey conducted
3.5 Structural Analysis and Design
The details of structural design are as follows:

Dimensions
Span of the bridge in metres—24 m
Width of deck of the bridge—1.2 m
Height of truss—1.2 m
Dimension of slab panel—0.8 m x 1.2 m
Material Properties
Steel truss and chord members
Steel-concrete composite deck (Trapezoidal decking sheet PIL 44/130)
Load Calculation
Dead Load:
Weight of concrete = 1.92 kN/m
Weight of decking sheet = 0.08005 kN/m 3.
Floor finish = 0.4 kN/m
Therefore, total dead load = 2.40005 kN/m; Factored dead load = 3.24 kN/m
Live Load:
Pedestrian traffic load = 4.7088 kN/m; Factored live load = 7.0632 kN/m
Results Obtained from STAAD pro.
The results obtained after the analysis of the bridge in STAAD pro. is given below.
The 3D rendered image of the bridge model is shown in Fig. 5.
Fig. 5 3D rendered image of conventional pedestrian bridge
Support Reaction due to Dead and Live Load

The analysis gives the support reaction values at the four supports due to dead
load and live loads as;
i) Due to dead load = 34.612 kN
ii) Due to live load = 36 kN
Deflection of Beam
Figure 6 shows the deflection of bean. It shows a deflection of 0.028 mm which
is within the permissible limits.
Shear Force and Bending Moment of Beam

Figure 7 shows the shear force and bending moment of the beam.
Maximum Absolute Stress Values
Figure 8 shows maximum absolute stress values are seen in the support 32 and
94, and they are within the permissible limits.
Section Property of Beam
Figure 9 shows the section property of beam having the dimensions (80×40×4)
mm.
It is known that the maximum permissible deflection of a pedestrian bridge is less
than L/300. From the STAAD design, we have obtained a value 0.07 mm which is
safe. The absolute stress values obtained show that high values of stress are obtained
at the supports no. 32 and 94, and these are within the permissible limits. Utility check
was also conducted for every member, and it can be concluded that no members fail.
Fig. 6 Deflection of beam
3.6 Self-lifting Mechanism Design
Self-lifting, as the name suggest, is defined as the ability of an object to rise or

elevate itself from a lower position to a higher position without using any external
energy. Here, in our case, the pedestrian bridge is so designed capable of lifting itself
upwards when the water level is above a prescribed limiting level from the base of
the tributary. The basic principle of lifting mechanism is when the water pressure is
more than the weight of the bridge including live load and provided sufficient base
area, self-lifting property can be attained. Initial design calculations are carried out
as shown below.
Buoyant force(Uplift force) = ρw × Vsub × g
= 9.807 × Area of base of column × height of water in column assuming a

column of diameter 30 cm;
Fig. 7 Shear force and bending moment in beam
Fig. 8 Maximum absolute stress values

Fig. 9 Section property of beam
/
Buoyant force(Uplift force) = 9.807 × π 4 × 0.32 × hw × 9.81 (1)
To lift the bridge, Uplift force >Weight of the structure including live loads (2)
From analysis of the super structure of bridge in STAAD pro., it was obtained
that;
Support reaction in a single column due to dead load (DL) = 32 kN
Support reaction in a single column due to live load (LL) = 36 kN
Therefore, total load in a single column = 68–70 kN
Then, according to Eq. (2), 70 kN < Uplift force
i.e. 9.807 × π/4 × 0.32 × hw × 9.81 > 70 kN
i.e. hw > 10.239 m
The requirement of bridge to be lifted must arise when the water level in the
stream rises above 4 m. So, the bridge should begin lifting when the height of water
Fig. 10 Sectional view of the proposed lifting mechanism
in column is 4 m. The above obtained level of water required to lift the bridge can
be reduced by increasing the diameter of the column. So, when hw = 4 m Eq. (2)
becomes 9.807 × π/4 × dc2 × 4 × 9.81 > 70 kN.
dc > 48 cm
Therefore, adopt base diameter of column to be 50 cm.
The sectional view of the proposed lifting mechanism is shown in Fig. 10.
Various parts of the lifting mechanism and its functions:
Column: This is the most vital part in the lifting mechanism. The column should
be able to withstand the load coming from the bridge and transfer it to the pile cap
without undergoing buckling. So, the thickness of the column should be fixed based
on this principle. Here, we have done trial and error method and adopted a column
thickness of 4 mm of Fe 250 steel having a 30 cm dia. The column is also checked
for a lateral load which is assumed to be 5% of the total load, and it was found safe.
Base area: This is very necessary for the lifting mechanism to occur. We fix the
base area of the column such a way that enough area is available for water pressure to
act on and the lifting to occur. In our case, we have done the numerical calculations
and found out a base diameter of 50 cm is required for the lifting mechanism to
activate. Spikes: Small projections are provided at the bottom of the base plate in
order to improve water and base surface interactions. Along with that additional
length extension projecting outward of the pile cap is provided for initial trigger of
water pressure.
Hollow Chamber: A hollow chamber is provided around the area of base plate.
This hollow chamber is made up of lightweight aluminium material. The main
purpose of this chamber is to prevent water from entering the top of the base plate
and which in turn makes way to exert more pressure at the bottom of the base plate.
Locking Mechanism: The locking mechanism is the most vital part which holds
the cylindrical column from getting lifted away more than the required height. We
can fix the height up to which we want to lift the bridge. In our case, we have fixed it
to 100 cm as shown in Fig. 10. The locking mechanism is the extension of pile cap
so is proposed to be made up of reinforced concrete.
Pile Cap: This member itself doesn’t play any role on the lifting mechanism, but
the whole mechanism is resting upon this.
Design Calculations
The factors that influence the bending behaviour in real columns are lateral loads,
end eccentricity, column curvature and non-homogeneity of materials, etc. These
factors should be given due consideration. Residual stresses, variation in inelastic
stress–strain characteristics, shear strength, local buckling, shape of cross-section
and end restraints are some factors that affect the buckling resistance of columns. It
is impractical to involve all factors that affect the strength of column mathematically
in any one formula. I.S: 800-1984 recommends the use of Merchant Rankine formula;
f cc × f y
σac = 0.6 × ⌈ ⏋1/n
f ccn + f yn
Check for Thickness of Column

Assume a cylindrical table of 50 cm base dia and 4 mm thickness. Let steel be of
grade f y = 250 N/mm2 .
Slenderness ratio, λ = 1/r
√
D2 − d 2
r=
4
D = 50 cm
T = 4 mm= 0.4 cm
Therefore, d = 49.2 cm, r = 22.27 cm
λ = (3.2×103×0.65)/22.27
= 93.39
For λ = 93.39 and f y = 250 N/mm2 , qac =86.61 N/mm2
Load Capacity = qac ×area = 86.61[π/4(5002 −4922 )] > 75 kN
= 539.83 kN > 75 kN
Therefore safe.
A 4-mm-thick Fe250 steel cylindrical column is adopted.
Working of the Lifting Mechanism

Various parts of the lifting mechanism and its roles were explained in the prior
sections. Now, let us see how the lifting mechanism works. Figures 11 and 12 repre-
sent two different stages at which the setup rests. Therefore, this mechanism can be
explained under two stages.
i) When water level is less than 4 m.
ii) When water level is more than 4 m.
i) When water level < 4 m

In this stage, the water level in the tributary will be less than 4 m that is a state
there will not be sufficient water pressure to raise the column. In other words,
the water pressure in this state is not sufficient enough to push and raise the
70 kN load coming from the bridge with the provided base area. Therefore, the
whole setup remains at rest and no displacement occurs. Figure 11 shows initial
position of the lifting mechanism.
ii) When water level > 4 m
In this stage, the water level is sufficiently enough to provide required pressure
at the bottom of the base plate. At first, the pressure acts at the extended area which
provides an initial thrust, and later, the pressure acts over the whole base area; thus,
Fig. 11 Position of column when water level is less than 4 m

Fig. 12 Position of column when water level is greater than 4 m
more than enough force for uplifting is obtained. The column gets uplifted, and it
reaches a position beyond which further lifting is not possible, i.e. at the locking
mechanism. The bridge stays at the lifted up position till the water level remains
above 4 m. Figure 12 shows the position attained by the column in this stage.
3.7 Stair Mechanism
Even though the bridge is expected to get lifted up in the most severe case of flood,
the serviceability of the bridge is also considered in the lifted up position also. For
this, the stair provided to enter the foot bridge is divided into two sections.
i) The fixed steps
ii) The movable steps
The fixed steps as the name suggest are fixed at the ground itself. We are providing
a rise of 15 cm and tread of 30 cm for the steps. The movable stair portion is hinged
at the entrance of the pedestrian bridge and is resting upon a vertical support over
which it slides and increase the length when the bridge is lifted up. Figure 13 shows
the stair setup. Initially, when the bridge is at rest, the stair angle will be 23°, and
Fig. 13 Stair setup representation
when the bridge will be lifted up, the first flight of stair will have 23° inclination,
and the next flight will have 60° inclination.
3.8 Cost Estimation
The total budgeted cost and its split up for constructing a pedestrian steel truss
bridge incorporated with lifting mechanism at the proposed site is shown in Tables 1
and 2. From the tables, it can be seen that the total cost including all expenditures
and overhead costs is Rs. 992,500/- only. The whole work is divided into two, i.e.
superstructure and concrete work. The estimate for superstructure is as shown in
Table 1 Estimate for superstructure excluding concrete

Item/Description Quantity Rate (in rupees)
Steel (truss) @ 120/kg 3390 kg 406,800.00
Piers supporting bridge @120/kg 4847.11 kg 582,000.00
Hollow chamber @ 300/kg 27 kg 8,100.00
Decking sheet @ 56/kg 235 kg 13,160.00
Staircase steel LS 20,000.00
Additional labour for lifting mechanism—10% 22,500.00
Overhead—10% 10,526.00
Unforeseen 6914.00
Grand total 1,070,000.00
Rupees ten lakhs and seventy thousand only
Table 2 Estimate for concrete works

Item/Description Quantity Rate (in rupees)
Shuttering LS 12,000.00
Piling @ 3500/m 80 m 280,000.00
PCC 1:4:8 @ 6600/m3 2 m3 13,200.00
Chipping and removing pile top LS 7500.00
RCC 1:1:2 @ 15,570/m3 0.50 m3 7,7850.00
Columns for locking mechanism RCC 1:1:2 @ 13,710/m3 0.10 m3 1,371.00
Unforeseen 8144.00
Grand total 330,000.00
Three lakhs and thirty thousand rupees only
Table 1. It includes the rate of materials required that is steel, aluminium sheets,
decking sheets, labour charge for the construction, machinery cost and overhead of
10%. The labour charge is split into two as an additional skilled labour is required
for the construction of lifting mechanism.
The estimate for the concrete is as shown in Table 2. It includes the works such as
shuttering, piling, excavation, PCC, chipping and removing pile top, RCC, columns
for locking mechanism and reinforcement. The expense for machinery and labour is
calculated along with the works itself.
Total Cost estimate for the bridge is 1,070,000 + 330,000 = Rs. 1,400,000/-
The estimation is worked out for self-lifting pedestrian bridge based on standard
procedures and rates. On comparing the rates, it can be seen that self-lifting pedestrian
bridge incurs an additional cost of Rs.250,000.00 for including the lifting mechanism.
Considering slight variations and fluctuations also, it will be less than Rs.300,000.
Even though it seems that there is an additional expense, but it is not an amount
which will make large difference in the total cost. The expense for lifting mechanism
is less than or equal to 25% of the total cost of construction. By doing a benefit cost
analysis, it can be noted that no more additional repair and maintenance charges
including the construction of a new bridge are required. Also, the public importance
of the structure is high. The increase in cost is not of higher value in terms of the
serviceability and usability of the structure. Thus, the additional costs incurred are
justifiable.
4 Conclusion
Amongst all the forms of travel and commute, walking is the most significant mode,
and almost, everyone travels for at least about 5 h weekly by walking even in this age
of advanced transport modes. In a country with large population, it is common to see
more people walking on roads in both cities and rural areas. When large numbers
of such people use roads, the environment and operating vehicles need to be safe
so that pedestrians are not injured and killed. In this work, a self-lifting pedestrian
bridge is designed. Initially, the design of a conventional pedestrian bridge is carried
out. For this purpose, visited the Kottayam Municipality and Irrigation department
and obtained the data on maximum flood level (MFL) as well as the low water
level (LWL) and other data regarding the site. Topographical survey of the site was
conducted, and a site plan was developed. Hydrological investigation of the tributary
was conducted, and the details regarding the depth of water, high flood level were
obtained. Questionnaire survey was conducted, and the relevance of the bridge was
concluded; the mode of failure of the previous bridges was identified.
The design of steel pedestrian bridge was done using STAAD pro., and the
economical sections were obtained. The results obtained from STAAD such as
shear force bending moment, deflection and absolute shear are represented in the
report. The design details were submitted to the department of works in Kottayam
municipality. The self-lifting mechanism was incorporated with the steel bridge. The
principle behind this mechanism was explained. The legitimacy of this mechanism
was explained using analytical theories and numerical calculations along with picto-
rial representation. Various parts involved in the lifting mechanism were covered in
detail.
Cost estimate of this project was prepared in a view to justify its requirement in
long run and unforeseen floods to come and to prevent it from washing out. The
cost turns out to be fourteen lakhs for total construction of the bridge. Inclusion of
lifting mechanism has increased the rate of construction by 25%. But, this increase
in the rate of construction can be ruled out in the long run considering the expenses
caused for maintenance and repair of a conventional bridge which is often prone to
get washed away.
References
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pedestrian steel bridge. Procedia Engineering, 40, 411–416.
3. Foti, D., Ivorra, S., & Bru, D. (2013). Analysis of a metallic pedestrian bridge under dynamic
human loads in pre and post reinforcement phases. International Journal of Mathematical
Models and Methods in Applied Sciences, 5(7).
4. Sause, R. (2015). Innovative steel bridge girders with tubular flanges. Structure and Infrastruc-
ture Engineering, 11(4), 450–465. https://doi.org/10.1080/15732479.2014.951866
5. Welch, J. F., Alhassan, M. A., & Amaireh, L. K. (2012). Analysis and design of arch-type
pedestrian bridge for static and dynamic loads. Journal of Advanced Science and Engineering
Research, 2.
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earthquake and wave–current action. Journal of Bridge Engineering, ASCE. https://doi.org/10.
1061/(ASCE)BE.1943-5592.0001471
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bridges. Journal of Bridge Engineering, ASCE. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)BE.1943-5592.
0001514
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innovative bridge structure. Environmental Science & Technology, 43(6).
Seismic Analysis and Rehabilitation
of Corroded Reinforced Concrete
Building
Dheeraj Kumar Singh, Harish Chandra Arora, Vikas Prabhakar,

Shobha Ram, and Rahul Kumar
Abstract Corrosion of reinforcing steel is a primary cause of degradation of rein-

forced concrete (RC) structures. The process of carbonation and chloride attack
are the factors responsible for corrosion which lead to loss in the structural perfor-
mance of buildings during their service life. The time dependent corrosion process
effects the safety and serviceability and may even lead to progressive failure of struc-
tures. Corrosion leads to reduction of reinforcing bars diameter, cracks in concrete,
concrete cover expulsion, decrease in concrete and steel strength and loss of bond
between concrete and embedded steel. In multistorey concrete buildings, corrosion
is a much more serious concern with regard to their seismic performance. Hence,
steps of the accurate assessment and establishment of the existing corrosion level
of the structural elements and evaluation of the local and global seismic capacity of
existing corroded RC buildings have been a great challenge globally. In the present
study, a methodology has been adopted where based upon the non-destructive and
destructive material’s site as well as laboratory tests, revised properties have been
adopted for seismic evaluation and establishing the proper rehabilitation scheme for
the existing two-storey RC framed buildings. Obtained results for sound, corroded
and retrofitted building from linear seismic analysis and nonlinear static pushover
analysis have been compared and discussed.
Keywords Corrosion · Pushover analysis · Response spectrum analysis · RC

building
D. K. Singh (B) · R. Kumar

Department of Civil Engineering, Gautam Buddha University, Greater Noida, India
e-mail: getdks@gmail.com
H. C. Arora
CSIR-CBRI, Roorkee, India
V. Prabhakar
Faculty, Department of Civil Engineering, Gautam Buddha University, Greater Noida, India
S. Ram
Gautam Buddha University, Greater Noida, India
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4040-8_33
412 D. K. Singh et al.
1 Introduction
Chemical, physical and environmental threats that the structure may face throughout
its operation cause variations in the mechanical properties of reinforced concrete
over time. Even if they were constructed recently, many RC constructions show
evident symptoms of degradation and hidden flaws. In general, these scenarios arise
when buildings are constructed in high-risk places, or when low-level materials or
unmanaged procedures are employed.
It is stated that due to the effects of materials degradation, both demand and
capacity in structures may vary over time; therefore, modern construction of new
structures and testing of existing ones requires an accurate measurement of the
degradation rate in order to estimate the structure’s performance. In particular, in
the existing RC frameworks exposed to aggressive conditions, interest rates have
increased in the remaining safety tests and their performance over time, particularly
in the wake of the earthquake tremors.
On studying previous literature on corrosion and its effects on RC structures [1–
6] one very useful method is to evaluate seismic strength of corroded structures is
pushover analysis. Pushover analysis is mainly used for to find the seismic capacity
of existing structure and for seismic retrofitting of existing structure further it is
used in performance-based design of new building relying on ductility/redundancy
to resist earthquake force. In our present study, we will evaluate and verify the impact
of corrosion on RC building using analytical and further do pushover and response
spectrum analysis on our G+1 building in sound condition as well as in various
proposed corroded model. The seismic capacity reduction of corroded building helps
us to predict it present strength and methods that can be used for retrofitting [7] of its
structural members. The retrofitted structure is again being analysed using pushover
analysis, and then a comparison is done between its sound, corroded and retrofitted
models. Similarly, response spectrum analysis (RSA) is performed to predict the
structural response as inter-storey displacement in sound as well as corroded models
and results are compared.
The effects of corrosion on the seismic response of RC buildings are investigated
in this research paper. The results are addressed in terms of capacity curves for a
G+1 building assumed to be situated in seismic zone-4 India and is under moderate
to severe corrosive attack. Further, structural member retrofitting is being done to
improve the building’s safety so that it can last to the end of its operational life.
2 Drawings
See Figs. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, and 11.

Seismic Analysis and Rehabilitation … 413
Fig. 1 3D view of building
Fig. 2 Plinth level plan view
Fig. 3 Ground floor beams with their section properties

Fig. 4 Ground floor beams position with beam cross-sectional
Fig. 5 First floor plan view with grids and beam cross-sectional property
Fig. 6 Ground floor beams with unique name
3 Building Loading Pattern and Specification
Material—M25 concrete and Fe 415. The height of plinth level beams is 450 mm
from foundation, and height of ground floor is 4.95 m, and first floor height is 3.15 m.
Figures 1–7 show drawings and plan for G+1 buildings. Rebar of various diameter
Fig. 7 First floor beams with unique name
COLUMN SCHEDULE & REINFORCEMENT

SIZE SHAPE &REINFORCEMENT Stirrups
COL. MARK
WIDTH(MM) DEPTH(MM) FOUNDATIONTO GROUND FLOOR ROOF FIRST FLOOR ROOF Tie
C1 300 450 12 nos-20# 12 nos-20# 8#
C2 300 450 10nos-25# 4nos-25#+4 nos-20# 9 #
C3 300 450 10nos-20# 4nos-20#+4nos-16# 10 #
C4 300 450 12nos-20# 8nos-2-# 11 #
C5 300 450 10nos-25# 4nos-25#+4 nos -20# 12 #
C6 300 450 8nos-25# 4nos-25#+4 nos20# 13 #
C7 300 450 8nos-25# 8NOS-25# 14 #
C8 300 450 10nos-20# 8nos-20#+2nos -16# 15 #
C9 300 450 10nos-20# 10nos-20# 16 #
*Large dia meter are at corners ,# Represent diameter of bars in mm,Edge to edge distancr b/w bars is 25mm
Fig. 8 Bar-bending schedule for columns
SCHEDULE OF BEAM REINFORCEMENT GROUND FLOOR BEAMS
SR NO. BEAM BAEKED SIZE BOTTOM TOP STIRRUP

WIDTH(MM) DEPTH(MMb1 b2 b3 t1 t2 t3 DIA
1 B1/B1A 460 450 2-20#+2-16# 2-20#+2-16# 2-16# 2-16# 8#
2 B2/B2A/B2B 230 450 3-25# 2-20# 3-25# 2-20# 2-20# 10#
3 B3 230 450 2-20#+2-16# 2-16# 2-12# 2-20#+2-16# 2-16# 2-16# 8#
4 B4/B4C 460 450 2-20#+2-16# 2-16# 2-20#+2-16# 2-16# 2-16# 8#
5 B5 460 450 3-16# 2-12# 2-12# 3-16# 2-16# 2-16# 8#
6 B6 230 450 3-16# 2-12# 3-16# 2-12# 8#
7 B7/LB1 230 450 2-20#+1-16# 2-12# 3-16# 2-16# 8#
8 B8/B8A 230 450 3-16# 2-12# 3-16# 2-16# 2-16# 8#
9 B9 230 450 3-25# 2-20# 3-25# 2-25# 2-25# 10#
10 B10 230 450 3-25# 2-20# 3-25# 2-20# 2-16# 10#
11 B11 230 450 2-20#+1-16# 2-12# 3-20# 2-20# 2-16# 8#
12 B12 460 450 4-16# 2-16# 4-16# 2-16# 2-16# 8#
13 B13/13A 230 450 3-16# 2-16# 3-16# 8#
Fig. 9 Bar-bending schedule for ground floor beams

SCHEDULE OF BEAM REINFORCEMENT FIRST FLOOR BEAMS
SIZE BOTTOM TOP STIRRUPS

SR NO. BEAM MARK
WIDTH(MM) DEPTH(MM) b1 b2 t1 t2 t3 DIA
1 FB1 230 450 1-12#+2-16# 2-12# 3-16# 2-16# 8#
2 FB2/FB2A 230 450 3-16# 2-16# 3-16# 2-16# 2-16# 8#
3 FB3 230 450 3-16# 2-16# 3-16# 2-16# 8#
4 FB4/FB4C 230 450 3-20# 2-16# 3-20# 2-16# 2-16# 8#
5 FB5 230 450 2-20#+1-16# 2-20# 3-16# 2-20# 2-20# 8#
6 FB6 230 450 3-16# 2-16# 3-16# 2-16# 2-16# 8#
7 FB7 230 450 2-20#+1-16# 2-16# 3-16# 2-16# 2-16# 8#
8 FB8/FB8A 230 450 3-16# 2-16# 3-16# 2-16# 2-16# 8#
9 FB9/FB9A 230 450 1-12#+2-16# 2-12# 1-12#+2-16# 2-16# 8#
10 FB10 230 450 3-16# 3-16# 8#
Fig. 10 Bar-bending schedule for beams
a - Column cross-section b - Beam Cross-section
Fig. 11 Cross-section of A-Columns, B-Beams
in sound state bar-bending schedule for column is shown in Fig. 8 and for beams
in Figs. 9 and 10. Slab thickness is 150 mm with M25 concrete grade. Dead load
= 1 kN/m2 , roof live = 1.5 kN/m2 and floor live = 5 kN/m2 . Masonry wall load =
19.11 kN/m for wall height of 4.95 m and 13.38 kN for 3.15 m. Figure 11 represents
cross-section of beams and columns.
Load case for pushover analysis DL + 0.25LL as per IS 1893:2016, Target
displacement 2% of total height of building as per FEMA 440 EL given in
pushover analysis. Code used—IS1893-2016 [8], FEMA-440EL [9] and ATC-40
[10]. Building site—soil type—2, importance factor—1.5 and seismic zone—4. The
building construction was complete in 2010. Figure 10 shows cross-section of beams
and columns.
4 Analysis of Various G+1 Building Model on Etabs
The G+1 building was modelled in Etabs [11] as per specification Sects. 2 and 3.
Pushover analysis and response spectrum analysis are performed of various models
of G+1 building. The result of analysis of building in sound state will serve as
reference for comparison of degradation in building condition with increasing value
of corrosion as per various model included in this paper. Further, after retrofitting
model Sect. 4.3 of G+1 building is done on experimental corrosion model Sect. 4.2
and finally, results of pushover analysis and response spectrum values are compared
with sound building. Bond stress reduction due to corrosion is taken into account as
per IS 456:2000 code clause 26.2.1.1 [12]. Hence, in all successive corrosion model
in this paper, where concrete strength is reduced due to corrosion this decrease in
bond strength is accounted by Etabs as per IS code.
4.1 Original Sound Building Model
Initially, building was constructed using M25 grade of concrete was used in construc-
tion with Fe 415 reinforcement grade loading patterns code used and site of building
is specified in Sect. 3 and plan and drawings are present in Sect. 2.The result of
pushover analysis is shown in Fig. 12. The E+3 values denoted in y axis of Figs. 12,
14 and 16 represents 103 . The results of storey drift using response spectrum anal-
ysis is shown in Fig. 13. Red line is for displacement Y-axis, and blue line is for
displacement X-axis.
4.2 Corroded Building
On conducting experimental test on rebar which was initially Fe 415 after corrosion
represent value of Fe 300, i.e. there is decrease in yield capacity of steel of about
115 MPa. Concrete grade M15 is taken as per results of NDT test conducted on site.
Properties of Fe 300 are given in Table 1. Diameter reduction of rebar due to corrosion
is show in Table 2. ϕ0 is original diameter of bar. ϕ(t) is reduction in diameter after
time t.
The reason for such massive corrosion is presence of high content of chlorine in
the local water source which was used for concrete mix and curing. The building is in
high pollution areas; hence, CO2 content is very high in air. This leads to carbonation
attack on concrete and leads to corrosion and degradation of concrete and steel.
It was experimentally found that rate of carbonation in presence of chloride accel-
erated up the process of corrosion. Our G+1 building nearly is 10 years old. For
initiation time 2 years, the model predicted results similar to experimental results,
and hence, propagation time is 8 years. Due to this reason, we have got such high
E+3 Base Shear vs Monitored Displacement

20.0
Legend
V vs Displ
18.0
16.0
14.0
Base Shear, kN
12.0
10.0
8.0
6.0
4.0
2.0
0.0
0 20 40 60 80 100 120 140 160 180 200
Monitored Displacement, mm
Fig. 12 Pushover curve in X-axis
level of corrosion in steel and concrete. icorr value is taken 3.2 μA/cm2 [7]. Value of
α is take as eight as found by Inamullah [13].
4.2.1 Verification of Experimental Results with Analytical Models
4.2.1.1 Verification of Experimental Rebar Corrosion Values by Analytical

Model Proposed by Mark G. Stewart [14]
The verification of or experimental data of G+1 building is done so that no major
assumption for corrosion is left. Verification of rebar reduction diameter is done
with model given Berto’s [1] paper which included Mark G. Stewart rebar corrosion
model [14] and results seem to be very precise experimental data shows only 1%
more variations is there with Stewart model Table 3.
4.2.1.2 Verification of Experimental Values Observed in Reduction in Yield
Strength of Reinforcement by Corrosion with Analytical Models Proposed by
Le Cho [15]
The verification of reduction in yield strength from Fe 415 to Fe 300 due to
corrosion is also verified by Le Cho model, and corrosion percentage is 18% as per
Maximum Story Displacement
Story3
Story2
Story1
Base
0.00 0.15 0.30 0.45 0.60 0.75 0.90 1.05 1.20 1.35 1.50
Displacement, mm
Fig. 13 Storey displacement curve for RSA
Table 1 Fe 300 properties

Fe 300 properties
E 200,000 MPa Modulus of elasticity
fy 300 MPa Minimum yield strength
fu 351 MPa Minimum tensile strength
fye 330 MPa Expected yield strength
fue 385.66 MPa Expected tensile strength
A 1.17E-05 Coefficient of thermal expansion
Table 2 Reduction of rebar

Rebar’s diameter reduction
diameter due to corrosion
S. No Øo (mm) Ø(t) (mm)
1 25 21.5
2 20 17
3 16 13.5
4 12 9.5
5 10 7.5
6 8 5.5
Table 3 Mark G. Stewart corrosion model

Mark G. Stewart model
Values Units
Variables
ϕ(t) Reduction in diameter at time t mm
ϕ0 Original diameter of bar mm
Px Average value of attack penetration mm
icorr Corrosion current density 3.2 μA/cm2
k Conversion constant 0.0116 constant
t Time at which corrosion is evaluated 10 years
tin Initiation time 2 years
tp Propagation time 8 years
α Attack penetration parameter 8
Formulas
Px(mm/year) = kicorr
Px 0.29696
ϕ(t) = ϕ0−αPx
Calculations
Mark G. Stewart model
ϕ0 ϕ(t) % Reduction
25 22.62432 9.50272
20 17.62432 11.8784
16 13.62432 14.848
12 9.62432 19.797333
8 5.62432 29.696
Average diameter reduction 17%
Experimental values
ϕ0 ϕ(t) % Reduction
25 21.5 14
20 17 15
16 13.5 15.625
12 9.5 20.83333
8 6 25
Average diameter reduction 18.09%
Average difference between experimental and Mark G. Stewart 1%
model
Table 4 Le Cho yield strength reduction model

Experimental data
Original bar used Fe 415
Corroded bar properties Fe 300
Le Cho model 2009
Corroded yield strength σcy
Original yield strength σsy
Corrosion % ∆w
∆w for experimental result 18%
For uniform corrosion
σcy = (1−1.24(∆w/100))*σsy σcy 322.372
For pitting corrosion
σcy = (1−1.98(∆w/100))*σsy σcy 267.094
Average yield strength for uniform and pitting corrosion from Le model 294.733
Experimental value 300
Variation in results of experimental and analytical values 1.75%
experimental findings. Le Cho model give reduction yield strength from Fe 415 to
Fe 294.7. Which is only 1.75% less than our experimental data. Hence, results seem
to be accurate Table 4.
The result of pushover analysis is shown in Fig. 14. The results of storey drift
using response spectrum analysis are shown in Fig. 15. Red line is for displacement
Y-axis, and blue line is for displacement X-axis.
4.3 Retrofitted Model of Building with Polymer Modified

Concrete
Here, seismic analysis of building is done after rehabilitation methodology adopted

with as per Sect. 4.4. In this strategy, the cover in columns is remove in all four side
and for beams in three sides. RC beams and elements had 40 mm cove in all sides.
Rust remover, anti-rust coating and binder coating are done on beams and columns.
After its polymer modified concrete of M45 grade is filled as cover material in
beams and columns thickness of cover is same as original cover (40 mm).The result
of pushover analysis is shown in Fig. 16. The results of storey displacement using
response spectrum analysis are shown in Fig. 17. Red line is for displacement Y-axis,
and blue line is for displacement X-axis.

4.4 Rehabilitation Methodology
After corrosion analysis of building, the next important work is rehabilitation of

building to increase its lifetime. Further, corrosion prevention is also the main aim
in rehabilitation. In this project, following analogy [16] is adopted for repair and
rehabilitation.
• Complete removal of cover in columns in all four sides and three sides from beam
• Chipping of mortar from roof.
• Removal of reinforcement which is more than 20% corroded and adding new
rebar at its place.
• Applying of corrosion inhibitors.
• Applying of bonding coat polymer-cement mix to join old concrete with new
mortar.
• Applying polymer modified concrete as cover in beams and columns.
• Epoxy grouting in masonry walls and slab joints/beam-column joints.
• Concrete grading on terraces.
• Replaster and acrylic paints on exterior walls and interior walls.
The retrofitting of structural members is carried out as follows.
4.4.1 Removing Concrete Cover
Due to excessive corrosion, it is suggested to remove the concrete cover in columns

and in beams. In columns, cover from all four sides are removed and in beams, the
cover is removed from three exposed surfaces. In slabs, concrete is removed with
hammer chipping. Proper support with props should be given before removal of
concrete in beams and slabs. Surface is cleaned off all lose material with stiff wire
brush. Dust and loose particles are removed by washing it under pressure.
4.4.2 Cleaning of Reinforcement and Application Anti-corrosive

Coating
All concrete sticking to reinforcement is removed with help of manual hammer

chipping and cleaning with wire brush. After cleaning, we apply a coat of rust remover
all-round the reinforcement, rust remover was left to act for duration of 24 h. Then,
reinforcement was cleaned and rubbed with wire brush and water (with jet pressure)
to remove rust. If need is seen one more coat of rust remover can be applied.
After application of rust remover and cleaning, the reinforcement zinc primer
is applied all round on dry reinforcement surface, zinc primer is an anti-corrosive
chemical which prevents reinforcement form corrosion. After zinc primer applica-
tion, reinforcement is made to dry for 4 h and after again second layer is applied.
Reinforcement in which the mass loss due to corrosion is more than 20%, then the
bar is removed and replaced by grilling holes in concrete member and adding new
rebar with epoxy coating on it.
Further, we may apply epoxy coating on building to resist any future corrosion.
4.4.3 Applying Bonding Coat
Before application of bond coat, the concrete surface should be made clean and free
from oil, dust, dirt, etc. A bonding slurry was prepared with acrylic polymer and
cement in ratio 1:1 by volume with needed quantity of water to form lump free
creamy mixture. The mixture is placed well on concrete surface, to ensure no pin
holes are visible stiff brush is used for overlay of bonding coat. A second coat may
also be applied if needed after the first coat becomes dry. For good adhesion of
bonding concrete and polymer modified mortar, polymer modified concrete should
be applied as soon as possible.
4.4.4 Application of Polymer Modified Concrete
Polymer modified concrete of grade M45 grade is used as cover material in beams
and columns.
Maximum aggregates are 10 mm. Modulus of elasticity is 36,000 MPa. It is filled
in cover thickness of 40 mm as of original cover size of beams and columns. Beams
along three side beams as shown in Fig. 18 and in columns along all four side as
show in Fig. 19.
4.4.5 Cack Repair
Cracks in beams and columns joints/wall-beam joint, column wall joints and cracks
in masonry walls were filled with epoxy grouting admixture and butadiene rubber
polymer, and plaster is done after it.
The results of pushover analysis capacity curve are compared in form of table for
sound, corroded and retrofitted model. We can see in Table 5 that due to corrosion
there is decrease in load-carrying capacity of structure. The load-carrying capacity
decreases up to 48% from original sound state. After retrofitting, it was found that
load capacity increases up to 45% form corroded condition and it only 7% less than
Fig. 18 Polymer modified jacket beams
Fig. 19 Polymer modified jacket columns

Table 5 Pushover analysis results comparison table

S. No Building type Base shear in KN % Decrease in base shear
Capacity respect to sound building
1 Sound building 15,210
2 Corroded building 7789 48.7925%
3 Retrofitted building 14,125 7.1335%
sound condition. If structure is not rehabilitated now after some its load-carrying
capacity may fall further and building may have a sudden brittle failure causing risk
to life and safety.
Response spectrum analysis is done on all the building models, and results are
listed in Table 6 before. We can see that as the level of corrosion is significant in
corroded building, there is increase in storey displacement value due to corrosion
the lateral load-carrying capacity decreases as building becomes more fragile. The
seismic force which causes less displacement of storey in sound building now causes
more displacement in corroded buildings. After retrofitting, there can be seen that
value of storey decreases and is less than the original sound building in both direction
X-axis and Y-axis. After retrofitting, there is decrease in storey displacement in x
direction up to 2% in storey 1 and storey 2 compared to sound building.
Table 6 Response spectrum analysis results comparison table

Building type Displacement in Displacement in Difference in Difference in
X-axis (mm) Y-axis (mm) displacement in displacement in
X-axis w.r.t to X-axis w.r.t to
sound building sound building
(%) (%)
Sound building
storey 2 1.305 1.119
storey1 1.083 0.825
Corroded building
storey 2 1.5 1.414 14.94 26.36
storey1 1.245 1.042 14.95 26.30
Retrofitted building
storey 2 1.266 1.043 −2.98 −6.79
Storey 1 1.046 0.768 −3.41 −6.90
*Negative sign shows % decrease in storey displacement
6 Conclusion
This paper discusses in detail the methodology of rehabilitation of RC building.

Degradation in RC building due to corrosion is estimated by NDT test at site
for predicting the strength and condition of concrete and reinforcement. Scientific
support is provided to our field experimental data with various established corro-
sion models. Pushover analysis and response spectrum analysis are done on building
in sound condition, various corroded model and retrofitted conditions, and on its
basis a comparison on a decrease in load-carrying capacity due to corrosion is made.
Reduction in ductility and load-bearing capacity is found in corroded model as level
of corrosion is increased in proposed models. Seismic analysis of retrofitted building
shows a significant seismic response from experimental corroded model. Results of
pushover analysis and response spectrum analysis are discussed in detail in Sect. 5.
Demand and capacity ratios of beams and columns in sound and corroded state are
evaluated. Repair strategy to rehabilitate the structural members includes removal
of concrete cover from beams and columns, rust remover application, anti-corrosive
zinc primer application and then use fibre-reinforced mortar as cover material. Repair
of cracks in masonry wall and structural joints will be done by epoxy grout.
References
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under seismic excitation. Construction and building materials, 30, 803–813.
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55–64.
Prediction of Residual Flexural Strength
of Reinforced Concrete Beams and Slabs
Chetan Garg and Harish Chandra Arora
Abstract Many of the built RC structures get severely affected by corrosion of

embedded steel, the process which causes deterioration in embedded steel as well as
in surrounding concrete. This deterioration causes substantial reduction off flexural
strength of existing RC beams and slabs, if not timely intervened. Determining the
reduction of the amount of appropriate flexural strength to arrive at the residual flex-
ural strength of corrosion-damaged RC beams and slabs has been a great research
challenge, for which prediction, there are various kinds of models available in the
literature. In the present study, an effort has been made to intensely study the models
existing in the literature which have been derived based upon the research studies
conducted by different researchers to predict the residual flexural strength of the RC
beams and slabs at different levels of corrosion of embedded reinforcement. In these
research studies, the analytical variables included rebar diameter, level of corrosion,
quality and thickness of concrete cover, member dimensions, etc. The validation of
different existing models has been performed not only by the experimental data gener-
ated out of a particular research study but also with the experimental data of existing
research studies developed by other researchers. The approach of various researchers
in development of their respective model has been described. Attempts have been
made to compare the results of a few of the developed prediction models with those
from the results from a number of existing experimental results. Efforts have been
made to predict the residual strength of the beams and slabs of an existing RC-framed
structure according to the most appropriate model arrived at by the analysis of the
results outcome.
Keywords Corrosion · Flexural strength · Prediction of residual strength ·

Analytical model
C. Garg (B)
Civil Engineering Department, Gautam Buddha University, Greater Noida, GB Nagar, Uttar
Pradesh 201312, India
e-mail: chetangarg13579@gmail.com
H. C. Arora
Structural Engineering Group, CSIR-CBRI, Roorkee, Uttarakhand, India
e-mail: hcarora@cbri.res.in
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4040-8_34
432 C. Garg and H. C. Arora
1 Introduction
Corrosion of concrete embedded steel reinforcement is an extremely variable

phenomenon ranging from mild to severe depending upon the construction work-
manship and the type of the prevalent exposure condition. This is much clear by the
fact that reinforcement provided inside the concrete structures existing in the coastal
areas proximity looses their strength well before the design life of RC structures.
Most of the research works done in the Arabian Gulf show that the life of concrete
structures reduced up to 10–15 years due to the process of corrosion. There, in some
of the construction projects, it was observed that corrosion process occurred in the
steel reinforcement even before the completion of the project due to the prevalent
humid conditions. Corrosion of RC structures is not only the cause of deterioration
but, because it contributes major part of, makes it a matter of serious concern.
The good quality of concrete should have low water to cement ratio, ability to
form a passive film on the embedded reinforcement surface and high electrical resis-
tance property of concrete reducing the corrosion process. The design and mainte-
nance of structures should be done in proper format after taking into consideration
the corrosion effect of steel. One of the main reason behind the reduction of the
RC structures strength due to the process of corrosion is that the products formed
due to the corrosion which affect the concrete in the form of weakening the bond
between concrete and steel which affect the ultimate load capacity and serviceability
of concrete structures.
As the corrosion of steel reinforcement occurs, it reduces the capacity of the
structural member as the volume occupied by the corrosion products is greater than
the volume of steel reinforcement itself and thus those products create pressure over
the concrete which leads to formation of cracks as has been shown in Fig. 1. The
cracks formed further act as a catalyst for the corrosion process connecting the surface
of concrete with the surface of steel reinforcement. The corrosion cracks are also
Fig. 1 Effects of corrosion in RC structure

Prediction of Residual Flexural Strength… 433
responsible for the reduction of concrete stiffness and ultimately the tensile strength
of steel reinforcement. Hence, the corrosion process does not directly affect the
structural integrity of the member but the consequences of the corrosion compromises
it. The process of corrosion continuously reduces the cross-sectional area of the steel
reinforcement which decreases the flexural strength of the RC members.
For achieving the better performance of the reinforcement concrete member, as per
the required design and service life, the corrosion process must be halted or delayed
by proper actions taken for the protection of embedded reinforcement against air,
water and deleterious ions. In general, concrete strength increases with time in the
initial stages after construction, and in the latter stage of degradation, the strength
decreases with time. To evaluate the resistance of existing concrete structure, the
actual compressive strength must be taken into account [1].
The simulation of field conditions of corrosion in the laboratory is an approximate
process. Corrosion in the field usually results in localized corrosion in the form
of pitting. The loss of flexural strength due to this localized form of corrosion is
in significant. However, over time, pitting corrosion is likely to extend to other
areas of the bar resulting in relatively uniform corrosion along the surface of the
reinforcement.
2 Historical Development
Considerable work has been done by various researchers in the area of how corrosion
effects over the reinforcement concrete structures. There have been various analytical
models developed for the residual strength prediction after corrosion. These models
have been created by experimental programs with the help of accelerated corrosion
technique for beams, columns and slabs. There have been criticisms for adoption
of accelerated corrosion techniques instead of long-term exposures to the corro-
sive environment. The concerned researchers have given justification for adopting
accelerated corrosion techniques in their experiments. The main reason behind the
cracking of concrete is corrosion of reinforcement due to the pressure applied by
the swelled reinforcement over the concrete which leads to cracks on the concrete
surface.
It is very important to come out with most accurate analytical model which can
predict the residual strength of the corroded structure for proper maintenance strategy
of the structure. A few of researchers working in this area include Azad et al. [2, 3],
Rodriguez et al., Mahmoud E. Said, Amgad A. Hussain, Shamsad Ahmad, Mangat,
Zhao-Hui LU, Wang, G Campione, Himat Solanki, Lou Chung and Wang and Kashi.
Present study aims to make a contribution in the area of prediction of the residual
strength of corroded reinforced concrete members by suggesting most suitable analyt-
ical model developed by past researchers on the basis of analyzing the accuracy
of different models by comparing those with some of the experimental data from
researchers.
2.1 Objectives
The scope of this work included suggesting an analytical model which can accurately
predict the residual strength of the concrete elements using validation of various
models developed with the help of some experimental values presented by various
researchers.
The main objectives may be listed as below,
• To analyze the effects of corrosion of reinforcement on the residual strength of
RC structure.
• To study the combined effect of bond deterioration and mass loss on the strength
of RC structure.
• To check the accuracy of various models by comparing their results with the some
of the existing experimental data.
• To analyze various existing models accuracy with the varying factors such as
corrosion rate, corrosion current density, corrosion time and rebar diameter.
2.2 Effects of Corrosion on Flexural Strength
The moment capacities of the structural member mainly depend upon the potentiality
of the reinforcement provided inside a particular RC member. Corrosion has major
effects on the embedded steel in the form of their mass loss which in turn creates
considerable effect on the strength of the structural member. Generally, corrosion
degrades the steel reinforcement by creating the discontinuities over the steel surface.
As the degree of corrosion further increases, it continuously causes mass loss of
steel bars and additionally weakening the bond between steel and concrete. The
bond reduction disturbs the overall integrity of RC member and in the long run, the
structure may get collapsed when this bond deteriorates beyond the permissible limit.
The corrosion products are also responsible for the reduction of mechanical
strength of the structural member when it leads to form cracks over the concrete
surface due to the bursting pressure applied by the swelling of embedded steel due
to corrosion. The cracked concrete gets unable to transfer the tensile load to the
steel reinforcement properly and as a result the ultimate strength of the member gets
affected.
2.3 Innovative Aspects
Majority of the past studies for prediction of residual flexural strength of corroded
RC members concentrated on considering the effects of degradation in terms of
reducing the bar diameter appropriately. However, the effects due to the reduction of
bond between steel and concrete have been considered lately by some researchers, the
process which plays an important role in strength reduction. This study is based only
on those predicted models which have been developed by considering the effect of
reinforcement corrosion in terms of inclusion of steel to concrete bond and concrete
stiffness degradation in addition to steel area reductions. On keen observation of
the outputs from various existing residual strength prediction models, it was arrived
that a particular model shows much more deviation in the prediction when these
are compared with the test data from other experimental results. Every researcher
seems to claim his generated model accuracy but on the reservations of their validity
for those particular kind of exposure conditions and for the materials as well as
the corrosion levels they used. This observation led authors for suggesting most
appropriate analytical model on the basis of the validation of various researcher’s
experimental works in terms of accuracy of data by considering different degrees of
corrosion.
3 Analytical Methods
Analytical models are the mathematical models which are closed to form solutions
of a particular problem related to the model function. These models are quantitative
in nature and used to answer the problems which are related to them. Different
analytical models have been in use for determination of different kinds of problems.
The main objective of these models is to determine the residual flexural strength of
the corroded structural element at different corrosion levels.
Various models have been studied in present work for practical application in
determination of the residual strength of corroded RC members. All the studied
models are discussed in detail step by step along with their validation and results
output.
3.1 Said and Hussain [4]—Structural Behavior of Two-Way

Slabs with Large Corroded Area (Large Band Width)
Model Steps
Step1: Determination of development length (Ld)
( )
Ld = 0.45 ∗ k1 ∗ k2 ∗ k3 ∗ k4 ∗ f y ∗ db / f c0.5
'
where k1, k2, k3, k4, f y , f c' and d b are bond location factor, coating factor, concrete
density factor, bar size factor, yield compressive strength, compressive strength and
nominal diameter of bar, respectively.
Step 2: Determination of mass loss
Mass loss = t ∗ I ∗ M/z ∗ F
where t, I, M, z and F are time (sec), current (A), atomic weight (for iron in g/mol),
ion charge (in moles of electron) and F is Faraday constant (in C/mol), respectively.
Step 3: Determination of corroded bar diameter (D' )
D ' = D(1 − (2t ∗ W ∗ I corr/D ∗ F ∗ yst))
where I corr , D, D' and yst are current density (in mA/cm2 ), uncorroded bar diameter
(cm), corroded bar diameter and density of steel (in gm/cm3 ), respectively.
Step 4: Determination of corroded cross-section area (A' )
A's = As ∗ sq(1 − (2 ∗ t ∗ W ∗ Icorr /D ∗ F ∗ yst))
where A and A' are uncorroded and corroded cross-sectional area of bar.
Step 5: Determination of predicted slab capacity (Pp ).
when mass loss ≤ 25%
Pp 1 = (73d 1.75 (ρ f c' )D ' )/D × (1 + c/3d)
when mass loss > 25%
Pp 2 = (146d 2.75 (ρ f c' ))/(L 'c )(1 + c/3d) × (1 + c/d)
where d, p, c and Lc ' are average slab depth, flexural reinforcement ratio, side column
length and side corroded length, respectively.
3.2 Said and Hussain [5]—Effect of Bandwidth

Reinforcement Corrosion on the Response of Two-Way
Slabs (Small Band Width)
Model Steps
Step 1: Determination of the nominal flexural capacity of slab (M n )
Mn = p ∗ f y d 2 (1 − (α1 ∗ p ∗ f y )/ f c' )
where α1 = 0.85−0.0015f ' c .

where ṕ, d, f y and f ' c are reinforcement ratio, slab depth, yield stress and compressive
stress (MPa), respectively.
Step 2: Flexural capacity calculation
P(flexural) = 8(s/(a − c) − 0.172)Mn
where s, a, c, M n and P(flexural) are side dimension of slab, side dimension between
supports of the square slab, side dimension of the square column stub and nominal
flexural capacity for the slab per meter, respectively.
Note: Here, Pu /P(flexural) shows the failure mode, i.e. due to shear or flexural.
If Pu /P(flexural) > 1 (flexural failure)
else Pu /P(flexural) < 1 (shear failure)
3.3 Chung and Najm [6]—Flexural Behavior of Concrete

Slabs with Corroded Bars
Model Steps
Step 1: Mass loss (Faraday’s law)
Mass loss(g) = (it56(g))/(2 ∗ 96500)
where i and t are current (A) and time (sec).

Step 2: Determination of loss in bar diameter (%)
Bar diameter loss(%) = (3197it/(0.5d)) ∗ 100
where i, t and d are corrosion current density (A/mm2 ), corrosion time interval (days)
and bar diameter (mm).
Step 3: Compressive Force (C)
C = 1/2 ∗ (bkd f c' max)
where b, k, d and f ' c max are slab width, depth of neutral axis and maximum
compressive stress, respectively.
Step 4: Tension Force (T )
∑ ∑
T = (π/4) Db2 f y + π db lb f b
where d b , f y , l b and f b are diameter of bar, yield strength of steel and embedded
length of bar and bond strength, respectively.
π db lb f b < (π/4) Db2 f y )
Step 5: Determination of nominal moment capacity (M n )
Mn = T (d − kd/3)
3.4 Azad et al. [2]—Flexural Strength of Corroded

Reinforced Concrete Deep Beams
Model Steps
Step 1: Calculation for metal loss rate (Pr)
Pr = (W ∗ I corr)/(F ∗ yst) = Jr/yst
where W, I corr , F and yst are equivalent weight of steel (27.9 gm), corrosion current
density, Faraday’s constant (96,487 A-s) and density of steel (7.85 g/cc), respectively.
Step 2: Determination of reduced diameter of corroded bars (D' )
D ' = D(1 − (2 Pr T )/D)
Step 3: Determination of reduced corroded area of rebar (As ' )
As ' = (1 − α)2 ∗ As
where As is the uncorroded cross-sectional area of rebar and As ' is corroded cross-
sectional area of rebar (α =2PrT /D).
Step 4: Correction factor application (Cf )
C f = (14.7/(D(Icorr ∗ T )0.15 )) ≤ 1
Step 5: Residual strength calculation for corroded beams
Mres = C f Mthc
where Mres and Mthu are residual and theoretical capacities of the beams.
3.5 Azad et al. [3]—Residual Strength

of Corrosion-Damaged Reinforced Concrete Beam
(Small Scale Beams)
Model Steps
Step 1: Calculation for corrosion current density (J r )
Jr = (W/F) ∗ Icorr
where W and F are equivalent weigh to fsteel (27.925 gm) and F is Faraday constant
(96,487 A-sec orcoulomb).
Step 2: Corrosion current density calculation (I corr )
Icorr = 0.1096Jr
Step 3: Calculation for metal loss rate (Pr)
Pr = (W ∗ Icorr )/(F ∗ yst) = Jr/yst
where W, I corr , F and yst are equivalent weight of steel (27.9 gm), corrosion current
density, Faraday’s constant (96,487 A-s) and density of steel (7.85 g/cc), respectively.
Step 4: Determination of reduced diameter of corroded bars (D' )
D ' = D(1 − (2 Pr T )/D)
Step 5: Determination of reduced corroded area of rebar (As ' )
As ' = (1 − α)2 ∗ As
where As is the uncorroded cross-sectional area of rebar and As ’ is corroded cross-

sectional area of rebar (α = 2PrT /D).
Step 6: Proposed equation with correction factor (β)
β = 14.7/(D ∗ (I corrT )0.15 ) ≤ 1.0

Step 7: Residual strength calculation for corroded beams (Mres)
Mres = β Mthc
where Mres and Mthc are residual and theoretical capacities of the beams.
3.6 Ahmad [7]: Prediction of Residual Flexural Strength

of Corroded Reinforced Concrete Beams
Model Steps
Step 1: Calculation of residual strength of corroded beam (R).
R = 100 − A ∗ (Icorr T )m (D)n
where R, I corr T and D, (A, m, n) are residual flexural strength (%), degree of corrosion
(mA-days/cm2 ), rebar diameter (mm) and all constants, respectively
The best fitted equation obtained from the study is
R = 100 − 0.23 ∗ (Icorr T )1.3 (D)0.5
where A, m and n are 0.23, 1.3 and 0.5, respectively.
3.7 Mangat [8]: Effect of Under-Reinforcement

on the Flexural Strength of Corroded Beams
Model Steps
Step 1: Calculation for metal loss (for a period of time)
( )
Metal loss T ' years = R ∗ T (cm)
where R is material loss/year = 1165*i cm/year (here i is corrosion rate in

mA/cm2 )and T' is the period of corrosion after initiation.
Step 2: Reduction in bar diameter (%)
%reduction bar diameter = (2R ∗ T /φ) ∗ 100

where F is the bar diameter.

Step 3: Calculation for the maximum compressive moment of stress for the beams
(M c )
Mc = [(0.234 ∗ f cu bd 2 ) + f y' A's (d − d ' )10(−6)
where f cu , b, d, f ' y , A' s and d ' are compressive strength of concrete, breadth of
beam, effective depth to main steel, yield strength of compressive steel, area of
compression reinforcement (hanging bars) and effective depth to compressive steel.
M c is the maximum moment of stress of concrete in compression zone,
Step 4: Determination of ratio between M t(corr) and M c
( )
Mt(corr) /Mc % = α(Corr%) + β%
where ∝ is the slope of each line of best fit and β is the intercept.
Step 5: Determination of M t(corr) from the above relation
Mt(corr) = Mc α(Corr%)/100 + Mt (0)/Yc
where Y c is factor of safety of concrete (1.5) and Mt (0) is moment of resistance in

control beams (tensile zone).
4 Experimental Results
The experimental results of various researchers are reproduced in the paper prescribed
format in Table 1 for validation with the analytical models of other researchers
presented next (Table 1).
5 Analytical Results
The experimental residual strengths of corroded RC beams were compared with those
obtained from various analytical models from all of the above mentioned researchers
in the present work. Each type of analytical model demands the different variables
as per the respective model’s requirement. The ultimate aim as has been described
previously is to predict the residual flexural strength of the corroded beams and
slabs in their respective corroded stage. Finally, the most accurate model of Shamsad
Ahmed 2017 is recommended for the practical application as per the results obtained
through comparisons made. This particular model has also been recommended due
Table 1 B1, B2: [2], BT1-2–4: [3], 1, 5, 10: Shamsad Ahmad, 2T8: [8], 115, 126: [9]
Beam Diameter of tensile bars Corroded flex. strength Uncorroded flex. strength
(Mexc) kN m (Mexu) kN m
B1-1 2–16 31.50 32.20
B2-1 2–16 36.58 42.26
B3-1 2–16 37.63 58.10
BT1-2-4 10 10.68 11.64
BT1-3-4 10 10.15 11.64
BT1-2-6 10 10.46 11.64
1 10 10.67 11.64
5 10 7.82 11.64
10 12 10.54 14.79
2T8 8 22.7 –
2T8 8 18.3 –
2T10 10 19.8 –
2T10 10 12.6 –
115 2–10 11.6 –
126 4–12 29.0 –
to the reasons that (i) it considers more numbers of variables than other models, (ii)
the effect of rebar diameter and bond strength both considered for the prediction of
the empirical model using some constant in the equation, (iii) model is more valid
for a vast range of levels of corrosion and (iv) Less than 5% deviation in most of the
comparisons.
A few of the results obtained from Shamshad Ahmed 2017 model for different
corroded beams of some of the experimentally obtained studies have been given in
Table 2 and in Figs. 1, 2, 3 and 4. The results obtained from other researcher’s models
have not been shown due to the limitation of the space requirement (Fig. 5).
6 Conclusions
In the present study, a few of the literatures have been surveyed with regard to predic-
tion of flexural strength of reinforced concrete beams with the embedded corroded
reinforcement. Considering the numbers of variables and parameters involved in
corrosion process, it is understood that the prediction of the residual flexural strength
of the corroded member of the structure is a complex entity.
In the present study, various models developed by some of the researchers have
been studied for the corroded beams and slabs used for the prediction of the residual
flexural strength of corroded beams and slabs.
Table 2 Various
Beam Experimental residual Analytical residual
experimental results
strength (%) strength (%)
comparison with Shamshad
Ahmad model 1 91.71 95.42
5 67.21 70.10
10 71.30 78.66
1/10 78.04 85.30
5/12 75.39 83.27
10/12 68.63 78.31
BT1-2-4 110.22 95.42
BT1-3-4 113.41 83.81
BT1-2-6 111.51 81.96
BT1-3-6 101.67 72.31
B1-1 93.09 93.95
B2-1 79.96 70.51
B3-1 65.25 65.36
B4-1 84.30 87.30
Fig. 2 Comparison with Shamsad Ahmad data. Experimental strength blueline Empirical strength
redline
All the models considered were checked with their own experimental data and
further validated with the experimental data of other researchers.
It is recommended that the simplest (only two step analysis required) as well as
the closest results for all experimental results studies mentioned in this study have
been obtained by Shamsad Ahmad 2017 analytical model for the ranges of corrosion
levels in those studies.
Fig. 3 Comparison with Rodriguez J data. Experimental strength blueline Empirical strength
redline
Fig. 4 Comparison with Azad 2007 data. Experimental strength blueline Empirical strength redline
Fig. 5 Comparison with Azad 2010 data. Experimental strength blueline Empirical strength redline
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Numerical Study on Thermal
Performances of Fully Encased
Composite Column
Anu Anil and C. M. Manoj
Abstract Composite columns are structures comprising of concrete, steel, and rein-
forcing bars. They have several advantages over conventional columns in terms of
load carrying capacity, seismic performance, and fire resistance. In this paper, an
attempt is made to evaluate the thermal performances of fully encased composite
column using numerical method. Thermal analysis of composite columns with built-
up I and T steel sections was carried out using ISO 834 fire curves. Parametric
studies were also done to understand the role of pre-loading, grade of concrete and
cross section of composite column subjected to fire loading. Results suggest that the
shape of steel section, grade of concrete, nature of pre-loading, and cross-sectional
area of the column have significant effects on the thermal behavior of fully encased
composite columns.
Keywords Composite columns · Thermal performance · Steel-reinforced concrete

column
1 Introduction
Fully encased composite column (FECC) is a type of composite structure comprising

of formed steel, reinforcement bars, and concrete. It shows good compressive
strength, better fire resistance, stability, and better corrosion control. In the construc-
tion cycle, the pre-assembled sectional steels are transported and raised first, and
afterward, the reinforcement and formwork are put around the formed steel. At last,
concrete is filled in the formwork to shape the FEC column. Balaji et al. [2] assessed
the axial capacity of a short column under fire using 500 °C isotherm method. Para-
metric studies were also done, namely grade of concrete, thermal boundary condition,
A. Anil (B) · C. M. Manoj

Civil Engineering Department, Saintgits College of Engineering (Autonomous), Pathamuttom
686532, Kerala, India
e-mail: anuanil717@gmail.com
C. M. Manoj
e-mail: manoj.cm@saintgits.org
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4040-8_35
448 A. Anil and C. M. Manoj
type of aggregate, reinforcement distribution, and support conditions. Results showed

that axial and fire resistance decrease directly thermal boundary condition. Bikhiet
et al., [3] carried out a study to understand reduction in load carrying capacity after
exposure to fire. 15 columns were exposed to fire at 600 °C. Parametric studies were
done. Comparison of results shows first crack occurred at 80% of column failure
load while for columns exposed to fire first crack occurred at 50%. Han et al. [4]
carried out a numerical study on post-fire performance of steel-reinforced concrete
columns. Duration of fire, sectional perimeter, concrete cube strength has significant
effect on post-fire reduction coefficient. Reduction coefficient of SRC was affected
by concrete strength. Han et al., [5] studied post fire performance of entire loading
and fire exposure. FEA analysis was improved by using element changing technique.
Temperature distribution, load versus axial deformation were investigated. Results
shown post-fire peak load of column can be 26.7% lower that at normal temperature.
Jabri et al., [6] studied steel and composite connection degradation at high tempera-
tures. Moment-ratio temperature curve for different connections. Results showed test
at elevated temperature of all types produced failure modes similar to ambient type.
Li et at., [9] investigated behaviour of axially-loaded tubular columns filled with
M20 grade. Effects of various mixes, composite action between steel and concrete
core were studied. Results showed load carrying capacity of CFST increased by
32% with hollow tubular columns. Meng et al. [10] carried about study on perfor-
mance of square steel-reinforced concrete filled column exposed to non-uniform
fire from 4, 3, 2, and 1 sided. Results showed similar data between 3- and 4-sided
exposure. Load ratio non-uniform fire condition and the presence of encased steel
have significant influence on fire response of columns. SRC structures show better
fire performance compared with the pure steel structures because of the protection
of concrete to the inner-shaped steel . Tan et al. [12] carried out a study on CFSST
columns to combine the advantages of composite action seen in CFST columns. Here
the material costs can be reduced, while maintaining similar load-bearing capacity
and durability also enhances fire resistance. On basis of validated FE models, CFSST
columns under fire conditions are investigated by analysis of the temperature field,
failure modes. Finally, w.r.t fire resistance, optimum ratio of cross-sectional areas of
the inner carbon steel to outer stainless-steel tube were studied. Yang et al. [13] carried
out experimental and numerical simulation of steel beam to square (CFST) column
composite subjected to localized and global fire conditions were studied. Simulation
results were compared to the test results in terms of failure patterns, temperature
distributions, displacements, and fire resistances, and good agreement in general
was achieved. Zhang et al. [14] studied about thin-walled steel tube confined RC
stub column under axial compression exposed to fire. Results showed load ratio and
cross-sectional dimension are key elements which affect fire resistance exposed to
fire. When an embedded I-section composite section is exposed to a fire, concrete
cover which has a much lower heat conduction coefficient than steel hinders the
rise of temperature in embedded steel. Aside from acting as a protection layer to
embedded steel, the filled concrete if strengthened nominally can essentially build
the load bearing limit.
Numerical Study on Thermal Performances … 449
1.1 Objective
To study and evaluate the thermal performances of fully encased composite column
numerically using ISO 834 fire curve. Parametric study to understand the role of
pre-loading, grade of concrete, shape of steel section, and cross section of column.
2 Modeling and Analysis
FEA was performed using ANSYS Workbench 21. Columns were designed as per
EC-4. Depth of steel section was kept constant and designed to fail under same load
in-order to understand their behavior under similar thermal loading conditions. One
end of the column was fixed and the other end free. SOLID 90 element was used to
model columns. It is a higher-order version of the 3-D eight-node thermal element.
The element has 20 nodes with a single degree of freedom, temperature, at each node.
The 20-node thermal element is applicable to a three-dimensional, steady state, and
transient thermal analysis [7]. FEA was employed by sequentially coupling transient
thermal analysis results with subsequent static structural analysis [8]. Parameters like
grade of concrete, pre-loading, shape of steel section, and cross section of column
were analyzed.
2.1 Modeling of I and T Sections
Column of size 3000 × 400 × 400 mm was designed using EC 4. M30 grade concrete
with modulus of elasticity 27,386.12 N/mm2 was taken [1]. For I-section, a depth of
250 mm with flange width of 140 mm was considered. Flange thickness was 14 mm,
and thickness of web was 8 mm. For T section a depth of 250 mm and flange width
of 120 mm. Thickness of 7 mm was given for both flange and web. Yield strength of
275 N/mm2 and modulus of elasticity of 200 kN/mm2 were given for steel section
[1]. Reinforcement bars of 415 N/mm2 grade and main bars of 4 # of 16 mm ø and
lateral ties of 8 mm ø @ 250 mm c/c were designed. Density of concrete and steel
were taken as 7900 and 2400 kg/m3 [7]. Conductivity and convection coefficient of
concrete were 45 and 25 W/m2 .K and that of steel was 1.14 and 20 W/m2 .K [7].
Specific heat of 460 J/(kg K) was given for steel and 970 J/(kg K) for concrete [7].
Ambient temperature was set at 20 °C, and temperature was increased following ISO
834 standard fire curve [8]. In analysis, heat is transferred from fire to outer column
via convection and radiation and then into steel section by means of conduction [8].
3 Results
Transient thermal static structural analysis was done to determine the load carrying
capacity of both I and T sections under transient thermal loading. Column was loaded
until strain in concrete reached value of 0.0035.
3.1 FECC1 (I-Section)
Failure of FECC1 occurred at a peak load of 3941.5 kN and deformation of 4.33 mm.
Concrete reached maximum strain of 0.0035 at a deformation of 4.33 mm and
maximum strain in steel were 0.0027. Deformation and maximum principal strain
in concrete and equivalent elastic strain in steel of FECC1 are given in Fig. 1.
3.1.1 Parametric Studies
Parametric study was carried out after determining the safe load by dividing failure
load by a factor of safety of 1.5. An axial load of 2500 kN was applied to column to
carry out parametric study.
Effect of Pre-Loading
Column was pre-loaded with axial loads of 500, 1000, 1500, 2000, and 2500 kN
to understand the behavior of column under different pre-loads in transient thermal
loading.
Figure 2 shows deformation of FECC1 at different pre-loads. By increasing the
load on column maximum principal strain of concrete and equivalent elastic strain in
steel increases. Maximum principal strain and equivalent strain in column are shown
in Figs. 3 and 4.
Fig. 1 Deformation, maximum principal elastic strain and equivalent elastic strain in FECC1
Fig. 2 Deformation for the pre-loading 500 kN, 1000 kN, 1500 kN, 2000 kN , 2500 kN in FECC1
Fig. 3 Variation of maximum principal strain for the pre-loading 500 kN, 1000 kN, 1500 kN, 2000
kN ,2500 kN in FECC1
Fig. 4 Variation of equivalent elastic strain for the pre-loading 500 kN, 1000 kN, 1500 kN, 2000
kN , 2500 kN in FECC1
Fig. 5 Deformation for the concrete grades M30, M40 and M50 in FECC1
Effect of Grade of Concrete
Concrete grades of M30, M40, and M50 were studied.

Increasing the grade of concrete decreased deformation in column by 60% is
shown in Fig. 5. Maximum principal strain in concrete decreased by 24.35% when
grade of concrete increased from M30 to M50 and equivalent elastic strain in steel
decreased by 26.64%. Figures 6 and 7 show maximum principal strain in concrete
and equivalent elastic strain in steel.
Fig. 6 Variation of maximum principal elastic strain for the concrete grades M30, M40 and M50
in FECC1
Fig. 7 Variation of equivalent elastic strain for the concrete grades M30, M40 and M50 in FECC1
Fig. 8 Deformation for the FECC1 columns with cross sections 400 × 400 mm, 450 × 450 mm,
500 × 500 mm and 550 × 550 mm
Fig. 9 Variation of maximum principal strain for the column cross sections 400 × 400 mm, 450
× 450 mm, 500 ×500 mm and 550 × 550 mm in FECC1
Effect of Cross Section
FECC1 of cross-Sects. 400 × 400 mm, 450 × 450 mm, 500 × 500 mm, and 550 ×
550 mm were analyzed.
Cross section of column has an effect on thermal performance of FECC1 in case
of deformation, maximum principal strain in concrete, and equivalent elastic strain
in steel shown in Figs. 8, 9 and 10.
Fig. 10 Variation of equivalent elastic strain for the column cross sections 400 × 400 mm, 450 ×
450 mm,500 × 500 mm and 550 × 550 mm in FECC1
Fig. 11 Deformation, maximum principal elastic strain and equivalent elastic strain in FECC2
Fig. 12 Deformation for the pre-loading 500 kN, 1000 kN, 1500 kN, 2000 kN, 2500 kN in FECC2
3.2 FECC2 (T Section)
The failure of FECC2 occurred at peak load of 3977.3 kN and deformation of

7.46 mm. Concrete reached a maximum strain of 0.0035 at a deformation of 7.46 mm
and strain in steel was 0.0024. Deformation, maximum principal strain in concrete
and equivalent elastic strain in steel of FECC2 are shown in Fig. 11.
3.2.1 Parametric Study
Effect of Pre-loading
Figure 12 shows deformation of FECC2 at different pre-loads. By increasing the

load on column, maximum principal strain in concrete and equivalent elastic strain
in steel increases as shown in Figs. 13 and 14.
Fig. 13 Variation of maximum principal strain for the pre-loading 500 kN, 1000 kN, 1500 kN,
2000 kN,2500 kN in FECC2
Fig. 14 Variation of equivalent elastic strain for the pre-loading 500 kN, 1000 kN, 1500 kN, 2000
kN, 2500 kN in FECC2
Fig. 15 Deformation for the concrete grades M30, M40 and M50 in FECC2
Fig. 16 Variation of maximum principal elastic strain for the concrete grades M30, M40 and M50
in FECC2
Effect of Grade of Concrete
By increasing grade from M30 to M50 the deformation in column decreased by

57.67% shown in Fig. 15. Maximum principal strain in concrete decreased by 56.58%
and equivalent elastic strain in steel by 59% from M30 to M50 shown in Figs. 16
and 17.
Fig. 17 Variation of equivalent elastic strain for the concrete grades M30, M40 and M50 in FECC2
Fig. 18 Deformation for the FECC2columns with cross sections 400 × 400 mm, 450 × 450 mm,
500 × 500 mm and 550 × 550 mm
Fig. 19 Variation of maximum principal strain for the column cross sections 400 × 400 mm, 450
× 450 mm, 500 ×500 mm and 550 × 550 mm in FECC2
Fig. 20 Variation of equivalent elastic strain for the column cross sections 400 × 400 mm, 450 ×
450 mm, 500 × 500 mm and 550 × 550 mm in FECC2
Effect of Cross Section
Deformation, maximum principal strain, and equivalent strain are shown in Figs. 18,
19, and 20.
4 Discussions
Results presented in Fig. 21 can be used to illustrate the effect of pre-loads on thermal
behavior of FEEC1. In parametric study, FECC was subjected to constant pre-loads of
500, 1000, 1500, 2000, and 2500 kN under standard ISO 834 fire curve. As expected,
higher load levels produced larger defection in FECC. However, FECC1 is shown
better fire resistance and lower deflection values compared to FECC2 due to more
stable behavior of I-section. Deformation, maximum principal strain, and equivalent
elastic strain are shown in Fig. 21. Similarly, maximum principal strain in concrete
and equivalent elastic strain in steel increase as axial load increases. This is due to
larger applied load which weakens the exterior concrete protection and fails quickly
under elevated temperature exposing the inner steel section.
By increasing grade of concrete from M30 to M50, the deformation in FECC1
decreased by 60%. Maximum principal strain in concrete decreased by 24.35% and
equivalent elastic strain in steel by 26.64% while increasing grade from M30 to M50
shown in Fig. 22. Increasing the grade of concrete provided more tolerance to axial
load. Similar results were exhibited by FECC2. Deformation in FECC2 decreased
by 57.67% while maximum principal strain in concrete decreased by 56.58% and
equivalent elastic strain in steel by 59% is shown in Figs. 26 and 27.
Figure 23 reveals that fire resistance of FECC increases with an increase in cross-
sectional dimension of column. By increasing size from 400 × 400 mm to 550 ×
550 mm, the deformation decreased by 40% in FECC1. Principal strain in concrete
decreased by 72.65% and equivalent elastic strain in steel by 69.5%. Minimum
temperature in concrete decreased by 61.19% as shown in Fig. 24. From Fig. 25,
maximum temperature in steel decreased by 58.66% and minimum temperature by
Fig. 21 a Deformation, b Maximum principal strain, and c Equivalent strain for pre-loads (FECC1)
Fig. 22 a Deformation, b Maximum principal strain, and c Equivalent strain for grades of concrete
(FECC1)
Fig. 23 a Deformation, b Maximum principal strain, and c Equivalent strain for cross sections
(FECC1)
Fig. 24 Temperature distribution in concrete (FECC1)
Fig. 25 Temperature distribution in steel (FECC1)
61.41% when cross-sectional dimension was increased from 400 × 400 mm to 550 ×
550 mm. This is explainable as the exterior concrete cover act as thermal insulation
for inner steel section providing more resistance time. For FECC2, the maximum
principal strain in concrete decreased by 69.2%, equivalent elastic strain in steel by
Fig. 26 a Deformation, b Maximum principal strain, and c Equivalent strain for pre-loads (FECC2)
Fig. 27 a Deformation, b Maximum principal strain, and c Equivalent strain for grades of concrete
(FECC2)
Fig. 28 a Deformation, b Maximum principal strain, and c Equivalent strain for cross sections
(FECC2)
69.14% and deformation by 48.78%. Minimum temperature in concrete decreased

by 55.85%. From Fig. 27, maximum temperature in steel decreased by 62.89% and
minimum temperature by 56.68%. Figures 28 and 29 show temperature distribution
in concrete and steel for different size of cross sections of column (Fig. 30).
5 Conclusions
Transient thermal structural analysis was performed to study the thermal behavior
of FECC. Parametric studies were carried out to understand the role of pre-loading,
grade of concrete, shape of steel section, and cross section of column. From the study,
the following conclusions were drawn.
Fig. 29 Temperature distribution in concrete (FECC2)
Fig. 30 Temperature distribution in steel (FECC2)
• Shape of steel section, grade of concrete, pre-loading, and cross section of column
have significant effect on thermal behavior of FECC.
• For given ISO 834 fire loading fully encased composite columns with I and T
sections show similar thermal performance in parametric study.
• Grade of concrete have improved thermal performance of FECC.
• For I-embedded steel section increasing grade of concrete from M30 to M50
decreased deformation in column by 60 and 57.67% in T section.
• Increase in encasement dimension has improved the thermal performance of
FECC.
• For I-embedded section, increasing cross section decreased minimum temper-
ature distribution in steel by 61.41% and maximum by 58.66%. In case of
T embedded section, minimum temperature in steel decreased by 62.89% and
maximum temperature by 56.68%.
6 Scope of Future Study
• Experimental study to evaluate the role of grade of concrete, pre-loads, and cross
section of column.
• Experimental study to determine the spalling of concrete at elevated temperatures
and cracking pattern in FECC.
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of reinforced concrete short column subjected to fire. Alexandria Journal, 55, 475–486.
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Ecological Brick Manufactured
with Addition of Ceramic Waste
Nara Cangussu, Erick Andrade, Pablo Soares, and Lino Maia
Abstract The lack and reduction of extracting natural resources has become real
due to environmental legislation. As the construction industry is highly dependent
of raw materials more sustainable choices are mandatory. The cost–benefit required
alternatives. Aiming at the benefits to the environment with the reduction of clay
consumption, this work proposes an exploratory study on the production of unburned
bricks with construction and demolition ceramic waste. The construction and demo-
lition waste used was composed solely of ceramic brick remains, being crushed and
sieved until reaching the desired granulometry to start the manufacturing process.
Among three different properties, the bricks that obtained the best performance were
those that incorporate higher content of construction and demolition ceramic waste.
Keywords Brick · CDW · Ceramic waste · Construction materials · Recycling
1 Introduction
In recent years, with the evolution of the civil construction process, new methods
and construction alternatives have been used, seeking to obtain economy, durability,
and sustainability. When dealing with the current environmental situation, there is an
emphasis on the concern related to natural resources, concerns that have been growing
rapidly. Despite, the production of waste tends to increase [1]. According Çimen [2]
the necessary market mechanism to contribute material circularity or manage the
increased complexity of the construction when interacting with cross sectors is still
N. Cangussu (B) · L. Maia

CONSTRUCT-LABEST, Faculty of Engineering (FEUP), University of Porto, Rua Dr. Roberto
Frias, 4200-465 Porto, Portugal
e-mail: naracan@gmail.com
N. Cangussu · E. Andrade · P. Soares
FASA, Santo Agostinho Faculty, Montes Claros-MG, Av. Osmane Barbosa, Jk 1179-1199, Brazil
L. Maia
Faculty of Exact Sciences and Engineering, University of Madeira, Campus da Penteada,
9020-105 Funchal, Portugal
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4040-8_36
462 N. Cangussu et al.
needed. The cause of environmental impacts is related to the inadequate disposal of

industrial waste, highlighting the remains produced by the civil construction indus-
tries, which are responsible for thousands of tons produced annually and are often
discarded inappropriately, generating a serious environmental problem.
The construction and demolition waste (CDW) is composed of several types of
materials discarded during the construction, which can vary according to the stage
in which it is [3]. CDW can be composed of cement, mortar, bricks, blocks, wood,
ceramics, concrete, soil, tile, steel, plaster, etc., and has a high recycling potential
and can be reused in civil construction. The construction industry and construction-
related site activities are the main contributor to waste material, landfills and up
to 40% of urban solid wastes [2]. According to Grande [4], the use of bricks in
soil–cement brings several advantages, starting with the ease of manufacture, which
makes use of simple and more viable techniques. Among the advantages mentioned,
the most relevant is the low impact on the environment by eliminating burning and
minimizing waste/losses. In ceramic industries, a significant part of the losses in the
manufacturing of ceramic elements are not returned to the production process [5].
However, among all policies and measures to expedite CE transformation, financial
subsidies are still the most important driving factor, both at the corporate and indi-
vidual levels in the construction industry [2]. Therefore, in order to contribute to
sustainability, several studies demonstrate the feasibility of reusing ceramic waste
[3, 5–8].
Thus, this work aimed to study the use of CDW from ceramics (bricks and tiles)
for manufacturing soil–cement bricks. Their physical and mechanical characteristics
are investigated through tests of compressive strength and water absorption. This
work is an applied case study. Therefore, due to the high variability of world existing
soils, the results cannot be directly extended to other deposits of soil.
2 Material and Methods
2.1 Characterization and Preparation of Materials
The argillaceous soil used to produce the bricks, extracted from a borrow pit, under-
went a drying process exposed to air and sieving to remove any organic particles
contained in it. The cement used for these experiments was the Brazilian Portland
CP V-ARI because it is a high initial resistance cement and widely used in the manu-
facture of prefabricated materials such as masonry blocks, paving blocks, poles, and
among others.
With ceramic waste materials for manufacturing the ecological bricks were
crushed and ground, through a crusher to obtain a better uniformity of the mixture.
A percentage of lime was adopted to constitute the mix compositions for the manu-
facture of bricks. Note that the mortar that contains lime in its composition has some
advantages such as compressive strength and adherence, sufficient for laying and
Ecological Brick Manufactured with Addition of Ceramic Waste 463
coating. Lime was also used to give plasticity to the mortar, in addition to better
absorbing small movements in constructions, avoiding possible cracks. Figure 1
shows the sieving of the soil, the CDW from ceramics and the machine used for
crushing.
The granulometry test was carried out based on the NBR 7217 standard [9], and
consisted of using a series of sieves from 4 to 200 with varying sizes to determine
the ideal diameter of the aggregate to be used in making the bricks.
Once the test was started, a 1 kg sample was separated to carry out the sieving
phase. With the sieves clean and already assembled with the mesh opening in
ascending order from the base to the top, portions of the samples were placed on
the upper sieve. Then, the material was stirred for separation and classification of
the different grain sizes. The top sieve was detached from the set and, with a lid and
a fitted false bottom, was shaken with lateral and circular movements. Soon after,
the grains that passed through the sieve were separated and the same was brushed to
remove and separate the retained material. Subsequently, the next sieve was verified,
with the material passing through the upper sieve being added, all being verified in the
same way. Finally, the mass of retained material was determined. Figure 2a shows the
aggregate of ceramic material waste that have already undergone the granulometry
test.
For molding the ecological bricks, the mixture of its components (soil, cement,
lime, waste of ceramic materials and water) was carried out in order to obtain the
most homogeneous mass possible, with the aid of a hoe and a trowel (Fig. 2b).
The ecological bricks have two hollow sections that allow the passage of pipes for
electrical and hydraulic installations embedded in the masonry avoiding tears or
mending.
Three mixes were performed to produce specimens for the compressive strength
and for the water absorption tests. The variation of the CDW of ceramics and soil
portion in the three compositions are shown in Table 1, sought to produce different
bricks to identify which material would affect the compressive strength and water
absorption. The reason for 15% variation assessments in soil and CDW was to achieve
a wider range of analysis in this preliminary study.
2.2 Production of Bricks
The dough consistency test was also performed, necessary to identify the amount of
water needed to reach the ideal plasticity. The test consisted of squeezing a part of
the mass that was already moist, this should show the marks of the fingers, and when
dropped to the ground, it should dissolve [10]. Figure 2c shows the preparation of
the mixture to be subsequently humidified. The bricks manufactured have two holes
and sockets, and have an area of 10 × 20 cm and 5 cm thick. Using a manual press,
capable of manufacturing a brick by pressing, the molding and production of hollow
bricks was followed. After the mixing was carried out, the mass was moistened to be
submitted to the manual pressing process. Once the moistened material was pressed,
464
Fig. 1 Process of preparation of materials for the production of ecological bricks: a sieving soil, b ceramic waste, and c waste crushing
N. Cangussu et al.
Fig. 2 a Aggregate of waste ceramic materials passing through the sieve 16, b mixing raw materials
before molding
Table 1 Compositions used for making and testing ecological bricks (in % of mass)
Composition Soil CDW from ceramic waste Cement Lime Total
T1 50 15 20 15 100
T2 35 30 20 15 100
T3 20 45 20 15 100
it was removed and stored in a place without direct sunlight. The fabrication resulted
in nine specimens for each trace. Figure 3a and b show the press used and the brick
after pressing, respectively.
Fig. 3 Production equipment: a manual press for manufacturing ecological brick, b ecological
brick after pressing
Fig. 4 a identified and capped bricks, b pressing the brick using a hydraulic press, c cracks caused
after rupture
2.3 Compressive Strength Tests
After a period of 28 days for the complete curing of the specimens, they went through
the capping process, required by NBR 10,836 [11], which consists of regularizing
the faces with Portland cement paste or very plastic mortar with purpose to obtain
flat surfaces and evenly distribute the load during the test. A mortar composed of
cement and sand in the proportion of 1:3 was made. This was distributed with the
aid of a trowel on a plywood surface, ensuring the leveling of the coated faces. After
the hardening of the capping, the blocks were submerged in an immersion tank for
24 h to initiate the rupture of the specimens.
The compressive strength tests of the specimens were carried out using a hydraulic
press, where the material was subjected to an axial load, expressed in ton, until its
rupture. Figure 4a–c show the steps of preparation of specimens for the performance
of the compression test.
2.4 Water Absorption
For the water absorption test, a scale was needed to verify the mass of the analyzed
specimen. An electric oven that manages to maintain the temperature between 105
and 110 °C was also used in this test. The first step was to find the dry mass, taking
the bricks to the oven and after 24 h, they were weighed, obtaining the dry mass.
After checking the dry mass of the bricks, they were submerged for a period of 24 h
in an immersion tank to later check the saturated mass. It is noticed the difference
between the mass of the brick with absorption value obtained according to NBR
10,836 [11]. Figure 5a–c show, respectively, the drying and weighing processes of
the bricks to obtain the dry mass and the wet mass.
Fig. 5 a drying and b weighing processes of the bricks to obtain the dry mass and the c wet mass
3 Discussion
3.1 Particle Size Test
The particle size curve is represented in Fig. 6. After obtaining the aggregate particle
size distribution, it was suggested the fraction between sieves #1.19 and #2.00 mm
to carry out the experiment. After that, results of Cu (1) and Cc (1) have shown a
uniform granulation of the material. By this fraction of grain size distribution curve,
the material is classified as coarse sand.
3.2 Water Absorption Test
Table 2 reports the values for the water absolved at the age of 28 days. In addition to
individual values of the water absorption, NBR 10,834 [12] determines the average
absorption limit of soil–cement bricks, being 20%.
Fig. 6 Cumulative particle size distribution

Table 2 Water absorption

Composition Dry mass (g) Wet mass (g) Absorption (%)
T1 1.592 2.061 29.46
1.510 1.992 31.92
1.572 2.043 29.96
Absorption average (%) 30.44
Absorption standard deviation (%) 1.30
T2 1.672 2.132 27.51
1.674 2.138 27.72
1.648 2.119 28.58
T3 1.643 2.109 28.36
1.624 2.088 28.57
1.644 2.111 28.41
The mean values found for the executed traits T1, T2, and T3 were, respectively,
30.44%, 27.93%, and 28.44%, which are also above the stipulated by the norm and
for the standard deviation were 1.30, 0 0.57, and 0.11%.
Along with the water absorption values, NBR 10,834 [12] stipulates the minimum
strength for soil–cement bricks without structural function, being 1.7 MPa for indi-
vidual values and an average of 2.0 MPa, at 28 days of age. NBR 6136 [13] subdivides
hollow concrete blocks into four classes, considering that class A, B, and C with
compressive strength of 6, 4, and 3 MPa are considered structural. Class A blocks
are used in elements above and below ground level, while the others are only for
above-ground masonry. In the NBR 15,270–2 [14], it is stated that the compressive
strength of structural ceramic blocks must be considered from 3 MPa. With the addi-
tion of the CDW, individual compressive strength values were obtained as shown in
Table 3.
With the individual values found, it was possible to accept the brick for presenting
required compressive strength stipulated by the standard. On average, the T1, T2,
and T3 traces presented, respectively, strength values of 5.41, 5.72, and 6.75 and a
standard deviation of 0.245, 0.433, and 0.425, and they also have a resistance higher
than that required by the standard for non-structural bricks. It was also possible to
Table 3 Individual values of

Specimen T1 (MPa) T2 (MPa) T3 (MPa)
the compressive strength
1 5.5 5.8 7.1
2 5.0 6.4 6.3
3 5.6 5.9 7.2
4 5.5 5.7 6.8
5 5.6 5.0 6.2
6 5.3 5.6 6.9
Average 5.41 5.72 6.75
Standard deviation 0.245 0.433 0.425
notice that the bricks manufactured with a higher percentage of CDW of ceramic
waste presented higher strength to the others.
With the results found sustainable applications in civil construction can be thought.
Ecological bricks, using recycled material, can replace conventional ceramic bricks.
The environmental benefits range from the reduction in the exploitation of natural
deposits to the reduction of waste generated by civil construction.
4 Conclusions
From the present exploratory research about the manufacture of ecological brick with
CDW from ceramic waste, it can be concluded that the values found for compressive
strength at 28 days were satisfactory. The values found are higher than those stip-
ulated by the standards for soil–cement bricks without structural function and even
being similar to ceramic blocks and of concrete with structural functions. The water
absorption tests showed that compositions performed presented values that were not
acceptable according to NBR 10,834 [12]. Probably, the factor related to this was
the addition of lime in the mixture. Despite having several advantages, the lime also
has high water retention, which is considered a disadvantage. The manufacture and
use of soil–cement bricks with the addition of waste ceramic materials, in addition
to presenting ideal compressive strength, helps the environment due to the reuse of
CDW, which is a relevant factor for environmental issues.
Acknowledgements The authors are grateful to technical staff of Construction Technology Labora-
tory of Faculty of Santo Agostinho, at Montes Claros-MG-Brazil. This work is financially supported
by: Base Funding—UIDB/04708/2020 of the CONSTRUCT—Instituto de I&D em Estruturas e
Construções—funded by national funds through the FCT/MCTES (PIDDAC). This work is funded
by national funds through FCT—Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia, I.P., under the Scientific
Employment Stimulus—Institutional Call—CEECINST/00049/2018.
References
1. Chaves, H. D. O (2014). Diretrizes sustentáveis na Construção Civil: Avaliação do Ciclo de

Vida. Universidade Federeal do Rio de Janeiro.
2. Çimen, Ö. (2021). Construction and built environment in circular economy: A comprehensive
literature review. J Cleaner Production, 305. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2021.127180
3. Rocha Pardo, J. R. (2020). Elementos de construcción a partir de residuos de construcción y
demolición en Bogotá. Repos Tesis, 21(1), 67.
4. Grande, F. M. (2003). Fabricação de tijolos modulares de solo-cimento por prensagem manual
com e sem adição de sílica ativa. Universidade de São Paulo.
5. Correia, J. R., De Brito, J., & Pereira, A. S. (2006). Effects on concrete durability of using
recycled ceramic aggregates. Material and Structures and Constructor, 39(2), 169–177. https://
doi.org/10.1617/s11527-005-9014-7
6. de Castro, T. M., Tavares, C. R. G., Lisot, A., & Kaminata, O. T. (2015). Caracterização de blocos
cerâmicos acústicos produzidos com incorporação de lodo de lavanderia têxtil. Engenharia
Sanitaria e Ambiental, 20(1), 47–54. https://doi.org/10.1590/S1413-41522015020000088966
7. De Araújo, F., Leite, J. Y., De Araújo, A., & Ingunza, M. (2005) Caracterização de Matérias-
Primas para Reuso de Lodo de ETE em Produtos Cerâmicos. In 23 Congresso Brasileiro de
Engenharia Sanitária e Ambiental, September 2005. https://doi.org/10.13140/RG.2.1.2398.
1284
8. Pavesi, T. B., Rohden, A. B., & Garcez, M. R. (2021). Supporting circular economy through
the use of red ceramic waste as supplementary cementitious material in structural concrete.
Journal of Material Cycles and Waste Management, 23(6), 2278–2296. https://doi.org/10.1007/
s10163-021-01292-7
9. Associação Brasileira de Normas Técnicas (ABNT) (1987). NBR 7217: Agregados—Determi-
nação da composição granulométrica. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
10. Pinto, L. M. (2015). Estudo de tijolos de solo cimento com adição de resíduo de construção
civil. Universidade Federal de Santa Maria, 59
11. Associação Brasileira de Normas Técnicas (ABNT) (1994). NBR 10836: Bloco vazado de solo
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12. Associação Brasileira de Normas Técnicas (ABNT) (1993). NBR 10834: Bloco vazado de
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13. Associação Brasileira de Normas Técnicas (ABNT) (2008). NBR 6136: Bloco vazado de
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para alvenaria estrutural—Terminologia e requisitos. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
Behavioral Study of RCA
Concrete—Influence of Grade of Parent
Concrete
Shakeel A. Waseem and Shahid Ul Islam
Abstract This study investigates the influence of quality of parent concrete (PC),
from which recycled coarse aggregates (RCA) are procured, on mechanical properties
of recycled aggregate concrete (RAC) for weight replacement percentages of 50
and 100%. Normal-strength concrete (NSC), medium-strength concrete (MSC), and
high-strength concrete (HSC) are three types of PCs manufactured using natural
coarse aggregates (NCAs) with compressive strengths of 20 MPa, 40 MPa, and
60 MPa, respectively. At both the replacement levels, PC had an appreciable effect on
the properties of all the three grades of RAC studied. The properties of RAC, produced
by using RCAs procured from the high-strength PC, in general, were superior to that
of the RAC made with RCAs procured from the PC of NSC and the MSC. To validate
the experimentally acquired results, correlations between mechanical properties were
constructed. The dependence of concrete characteristics on PC and RCA replacement
levels was established using linear equations. The results of the current study reveal
high-strength PC should be preferred for making RAC.
Keywords Compressive strength · Elastic modulus · Parent concrete · Recycled

aggregate concrete · Statistical analysis
1 Introduction
Owing to rapid and expanding industrialization, concrete is being used globally at

a large scale. According to US Geological Survey [1], cement quantities produced
around the globe are of the order of 4100 million metric tons, implying yearly concrete
usage of over 27,000 million metric tons. In India, according to the Central Pollution
Control Board (CPCB), the quantity of municipal wastes generated per year is around
48 million tons of which approximately 25% comes from the construction sector [2–
4]. If carefully examined, then this waste consists of enormous amounts of materials
S. A. Waseem (B) · S. U. Islam

Civil Engineering Department, National Institute of Technology Srinagar, Hazratbal, Jammu and
Kashmir 190006, India
e-mail: shakeelahmad@nitsri.ac.in
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4040-8_37
472 S. A. Waseem and S. U. Islam
which can be recycled and reused. The waste generated from construction industry
especially the concrete waste the potential of being recycled in the form of aggregates
(coarse and fine) which can be then used in RAC production. Buck [5] was the
first to use crushed concrete waste as coarse aggregate, and found that former is
adequate for use as coarse aggregate. Later on, various researchers [6–9] employed
recycled concrete aggregates in concrete production and concluded, in general, that
the mechanical performance of concrete generally declines with an increase in the
quantity of RCAs.
In general, construction sector professionals may have reservations regarding
the influence of PC, from which RCAs are obtained, on the performance of RAC
produced by utilizing these aggregates [10]. From exhaustive experimental studies,
Wang et al. [11] found that the grade of PC has a considerable impact on the qualities
of RAC, and researchers found that RAC made from higher-strength PC has equiva-
lent strength to NSC of the same grade. Zhang and Ingham [12] observed that for the
production of low-grade RAC, the strength of PC is irrelevant. However, the manu-
facture of medium- and high-strength RAC requires a matching or better strength
of the PC. The features of PC have a significant impact on RAC’s behavior such as
physical properties of aggregates and the process adopted for the production of RCAs
[13]. When the original concrete is of lower strength, Kou and Poon [14] found that
strength of high-performance RAC produced with RCAs used in saturated surface
dry condition reduce appreciably. Ying et al. [15] observed that the properties of the
PC significantly affect the behavior of resultant RAC. Thus, a thorough appraisal of
the mechanical performance of RAC, with regard to the quality of PC, is needed.
1.1 Research Significance
The present work objects to examine the influence of quality of PC, from which RCA
particles are procured, on mechanical properties, namely compressive strength and
elastic modulus of three grades of RAC having compressive strengths of 20 MPa,
40 MPa, and 60 MPa and designated as NSRAC, MSRAC, and HSRAC, respectively,
for the RCA replacement percentages of 50 and 100%. The compressive strength and
elastic modulus of the RAC samples were measured, and comparisons were made
with PC. Furthermore, specialists in the construction sector who are considering
using RAC for concrete production may be interested in the findings of this study.
Behavioral Study of RCA Concrete—Influence of Grade … 473
Table 1 Physical properties of the aggregates

Property NCA RCA Fine aggregates
RCA-20* RCA-40 RCA-60 (FA)
Maximum size (mm) 20 20 20 20 4.75

Specific gravity 2.68 2.30 2.37 2.45 2.65
Water absorption (%) 0.64 5.90 6.35 6.80 1.6
Impact value (%) 18.01 26.5 24.0 22.50 –
Crushing value (%) 18.85 28.50 25.78 23.14 –
Residual mortar (%) – 43.72 43.67 42.89 –
*RCA-20 is the designation for RCA derived from parent concrete of 20 MPa cube strength
2 Experimental Program
2.1 Materials
Ultratech cement (43-grade) from a single source, and satisfying the requirements
of IS 8112 [16] in all three concrete grades, was utilized as a binder. River sand
meeting the requirements of zone II of IS 383 [17] was used as fine aggregate. NCAs
used in the present study were procured from a nearby crushing plant. The coarse
RCAs were created by crushing the examined PC samples, namely NCS, MSC, and
HSC, in concrete laboratory by using a jaw crusher. A selection of PC cubes and
cylinders were crushed to obtain the RCAs. The maximum nominal size of RCAs
was kept at 20 mm which conformed to the grading requirements of IS 383 grading
criteria [17]. The impact and crushing values of the aggregates were determined as
per the procedure given in IS: 2386 [18]. The properties of aggregates, both coarse
and fine, are presented in Table 1. Residual mortar attached to the RCA samples was
determined as per the test procedure proposed by Nagataki et al. [19].
2.2 Concrete Mix Proportions
The mix proportions for one cubic meter of the NACs and RACs are presented in
Tables 2 and 3, respectively. The PCs were engineered to withstand cube compres-
sive strengths of 20 MPa (NSC), 40 MPa (MSC), and 60 MPa (HSC), respectively.
The direct weight replacement method was used to make RACs. According to
earlier research, prior to mixing, RCAs need to be pre-soaked so as to minimize
the water absorption and to achieve the desirable workability. The aforesaid proce-
dure was followed for RCAs which were then drained off to achieve saturated surface
dry condition before being used. For each concrete mix, RCA weight replacement
percentages of 50 and 100% were investigated. Glenium 51, a commercially avail-
able super plasticizer, was used as a water reducing agent in MSC and HSC mixes,
Table 2 Mix proportions of NAC

Mix Designation Ingredients (kg/m3 )
Cement NCA FA Water Micro-silica Super
10 mm 20 mm plasticizer
NSC * OC20 315 464 696 774 173 0 0

MSC OC40 400 476 714 675 160 0 1.12
HSC OC60 445 476 714 630 156 45 2.25
*OC20 denotes PC having 28-day compressive strength of 20 MPa
and its dosage was adjusted so as to achieve an initial slump of 100 ± 10 mm in fresh
state. Micro-silica was used as an admixture for high-strength concrete mixes.
2.3 Casting of Samples
Conventional cubes (150 mm) and cylinders (300 × 150 mm dia.) were cast in
accordance with IS 516 [20] for all of the mixes (NAC and RAC). The ingredients
were mixed in a, 300 L capacity, standard concrete mixer. The initial step in the mixing
process was to put all the aggregates in the mixer after which the ingredients were
dry mixed for a period of 30 s to ensure that the aggregates were evenly distributed.
Initially, only, 50% water was added, followed by another 2 min of mixing. The
mixer was then turned off for several minutes to allow water to absorb into the
aggregates. After adding the cement, the mixer was turned on for 30 s after which
the remaining 50% of water was added. The cubical specimens were tested for
the compressive strength, whereas the cylindrical specimens were employed for
determining the elastic modulus. After demolding was done post 24 h, all samples
were put for curing for 28 days after which the testing was done.
2.4 Test Setup
Compression test was conducted in an automatic compression testing machine of

5000 kN capacity. The load-control mode at a rate of 5 kN/s was adopted to perform.
The peak loads measured in the tests were reported to be the compression force of
the concrete.
The procedure outlined in ASTM C 469 [21] was used for determining the elastic
modulus. The test was conducted in load-control mode at a rate of 4 kN/s. For calcu-
lating longitudinal compressive strains, the axial displacements were recorded by
taking the average of the displacements recorded by a pair of diametrically opposite
LVDTs mounted over a gauge length of 150 mm at mid-height of the cylinders.
Prior to test for modulus of elasticity, three companion specimens were tested for
Table 3 RAC mix proportions
Mix *Designation Ingredients (kg/m3 )
Cement NCA RCA FA Water Micro-Silica Super plasticizer
10 mm 20 mm 10 mm 20 mm
NSRAC 20-N-50 315 232 348 232 348 774 173 0 0
20-N-100 315 – – 464 696 774 173 0 0
40-N-50 315 232 348 232 348 774 173 0 0
40-N-100 315 – – 464 696 774 173 0 0
60-N-50 315 232 348 232 348 774 173 0 0
60-N-100 315 – – 464 696 774 173 0 0
MSRAC 20-M-50 400 238 357 238 357 675 160 0 1.15
20-M-100 400 – – 476 714 675 160 0 1.15
40-M-50 400 238 357 238 357 675 160 0 1.15
40-M-100 400 – – 476 714 675 160 0 1.15
60-M-50 400 238 357 238 357 675 160 0 1.15
Behavioral Study of RCA Concrete—Influence of Grade …
60-M-100 400 – – 476 714 675 160 0 1.15

HSRAC 20-H-50 445 238 357 238 357 630 156 45 2.30
20-H-100 445 – – 476 714 630 156 45 2.30
40-H-50 445 238 357 238 357 630 156 45 2.30
40-H-100 445 – – 476 714 630 156 45 2.30
60-H-50 445 238 357 238 357 630 156 45 2.30
(continued)
475
Table 3 (continued)
476
Mix *Designation Ingredients (kg/m3 )

Cement NCA RCA FA Water Micro-Silica Super plasticizer
10 mm 20 mm 10 mm 20 mm
60-H-100 445 – – 476 714 630 156 45 2.30
*The numbers in the first and second places are representative of the strength of PC from which RCAs were procured (20: 20 MPa, 40: 40 MPa, 60: 60 MPa); the
alphabets N (Normal-strength), M (Medium-strength), and H (High-strength) represent the grade of RAC while as the digits (50 and 100) denote the replacement
percentage of RCA (50: 50%, 100: 100%)
S. A. Waseem and S. U. Islam
compressive strength. All the specimens were loaded thrice till the applied load
reached approximately 40% of the ultimate compressive load of the companion
specimens. The first loading was used to seat the strain measuring equipment, to
check any unusual behavior, and to remove any internal voids if any. The strain was
obtained by dividing the compressive displacements by the gauge length. For each
grade of concrete, three replicate specimens were tested.
3.1 Fresh Concrete Properties
By proper addition of super-plasticizer, (Glenium 51), all the three grades of the
PC were designed to achieve a slump of 100 mm. Since RCAs were employed in a
moisture condition of saturated surface dry (SSD), there was not any loss of slump
across all the RAC concrete mixes, and initial slumps in the range of 100 ± 10 mm
were recorded.
3.2 Hardened Concrete Properties
3.2.1 Compressive Strength
Figure 1 shows the influence of strength of PC on the compressive strength of the

RAC. For the normal-strength RAC having RCA replacement percentage of 50%,
as the grade of the PC changed NSC to HSC, 13% increase in compressive strength
was observed. The corresponding values for the medium-strength recycled aggregate
concrete (MSRAC), and the high-strength recycled aggregate concrete (HSRAC)
were 9% and 13%, respectively. For the normal-strength RAC having RCA replace-
ment percentage of 100%, as the grade of the PC changed from NSC to HSC, the
compressive strength increased by 12%. The corresponding values for the MSRAC
and the HSRAC were 10% and 6%, respectively. Hence, at both replacement levels,
i.e., 50 and 100%, the strength of the PC was found to have an appreciable influence
on the compressive strength of the tested concrete mixes of this study. Figure 1 also
depicts that the compressive strength of RACs made with RCAs procured from the
PC of high-strength is greater than the RAC made with RCAs sourced from the NSC
and the MSC. It can be examined from Fig. 1 that the relative compressive strength
of RACs made with RCAs derived from high-strength PC, at 50% RCA replacement
level, is 1.08, 0.98, and 0.93 times the strength of PC (NSC, MSC, and HSC) made
with NCAs, while as at 100% replacement level, these values are 0.87, 0.84, and 0.79,
respectively. The test results are indicative that high-strength PC should be used for
production of RAC, and 50% replacement level is optimal. This relative enhancement
Compressive Strength (MPa)

30 50
45
25 40
20 35
30
15 25
20
10 15
5 10
5
0 0
Parent- Parent- Parent- Parent- Parent- Parent-
OC-20 OC-40 OC-60 OC-20 OC-40 OC-60
OC-20 22.96 OC-40 43.67
50 % RCA 21.94 20.91 24.86 50 % RCA 38.18 38.6 42.68
100 % RCA 17.32 18.43 19.35 100 % RCA 34.47 35.02 37.99
(a) (b)
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
Parent- Parent- Parent-
OC-20 OC-40 OC-60
OC-60 59.98
50 % RCA 49.24 53.61 55.75
100 % RCA 44.62 45.06 47.2
(c)
Fig. 1 Compressive strength of the RAC in relation to the compressive strength of PC a NSC, b
MSC, and c HSC
in strength is ascribed to the strong interfacial transition zones (ITZs) in RACs made
with high-strength PC sourced aggregates. The aforementioned outcomes settle well
with literature [15, 22] where in it is reported that RAC should be prepared from
parent concrete of higher grade. Similar trends were reported by Kou and Poon [14]
who concluded that RCA derived from PCs of high-strength have a potential to
replace 100% NCA for concrete production. Further, it is seen that, in general, the
compressive strength of RACs made with RCAs procured from PC of same grade is
lower than that of PC.
3.3 Modulus of Elasticity
The variation of elastic modulus of the RAC with strength of PC is shown in Fig. 2.
The following equation was used for calculating the modulus of elasticity.
30000 35000
Elastic Modulus (GPa)

25000 30000
20000 25000
20000
15000
15000
10000 10000
5000 5000
0 0
Parent- Parent- Parent- Parent- Parent- Parent-
OC-20 OC-40 0C-60 OC-20 OC-40 0C-60
OC-20 24800 OC-40 31000
RCA-50 21000 22300 23700 RCA-50 28000 29500 30700
RCA-100 18500 19600 21200 RCA-100 24200 26700 27000
OC-20 RCA-50 RCA-100 OC-40 RCA-50 RCA-100
(a) (b)
40000
35000
30000
25000
20000
15000
10000
5000
0
Parent- Parent- Parent-
OC-20 OC-40 0C-60
OC-60 36500
RCA-50 29700 30500 33200
RCA-100 27000 29400 30900
OC-60 RCA-50 RCA-100
(c)
Fig. 2 Variation of elastic modulus of RAC in relation to the compressive strength of the PC a
NSC, b MSC, and c HSC
s 2 − s1
Ec = (1)
ε2 − 0.005%
where s2 represents the stress at 40% of the ultimate stress and s1 represents the
stress at a strain of 0.005% and ε2 is the strain at s2 . For both 50% and the 100%
RCA replacement levels, as the strength of the PC increased from 20 to 60 MPa,
the short-term static modulus of elasticity of the three grades of RACs of the current
investigation increased by 10–14%. In general, the elastic modulus of RACs was
found to be lower than NACs; however, this reduction showed a decreasing trend
as the grade of PC increased from NSC to HSC. Like compressive and split tensile
strength, the elastic modulus of RACs prepared with aggregates procured from HSC
was superior to the RACs made from NSC and MSC.
3.4 Modulus of Elasticity and Compressive Strength

Correlation
Modulus of elasticity, for practical purposes, is calculated from compressive strength

using different standardized relationships. A linear equation, established using linear
regression ‘E = 1.44 × 104 + 3.4 × 102 ( f c )’, best fits experimental data in our
case. Pearson’s r is 0.95, thus signifying very strong correlation between compres-
sive strength and modulus of elasticity. The coefficient of determination R2 is 0.90,
suggesting that the predicted model accounts for 90% of the variance, indicative of
a strong relationship between compressive strength and elastic modulus.
3.5 Statistical Analysis
To study the combined effect of grade of PC and RCA replacement percentage on

the properties of concrete, multiple linear regression (MLR) was done. A linear rela-
tionship exists between dependent variables compressive strength and split tensile
strength and independent factors, as demonstrated in the scatter plot for curve
fitting. Prior to MLR, data processing was performed, and linear relationships were
established for each concrete grade studied, Eqs. 2, 3, and 4.
Normal-strength concrete (NSC),
M20: f c = 22.385 + 0.073(PC) − 6.640(RCA); R 2 = 0.844 (2)
Medium-strength concrete (MSC),
M40: f c = 39.714 + 0.1(PC) − 7.879(RCA); R 2 = 0.952 (3)
High-strength concrete (HSC),
M60: f c = 54.602 + 0.103(PC) − 12.835(RCA); R 2 = 0.965 (4)
where f c represents the predicted compressive strength of different graded concrete.

The R2 values suggest that the compressive strength may be predicted using known
independent factors, such as PC strength and RCA replacement level significant
accuracy loss. The coefficients of RCA replacement level in equations signify that
RCA replacement level has a more pronounced effect on the strength properties as
compared to the PC. Furthermore, negative RCA regression coefficients show that
increasing the RCA replacement level reduces mechanical qualities, whereas positive
PC regression coefficients have a favorable effect on the aforementioned properties.
4 Conclusions
The conclusions drawn from the current study are presented below.
1. Compared to natural aggregates, the physical properties of RCAs were inferior.
Lower the strength of PC, lower will be the quality of the RCAs when measured
in terms of the physical properties.
2. In general, the mechanical properties of RACs prepared with RCAs procured
from PC of same grade are lower than the PC. At both replacement levels, i.e.,
50 and 100%, strength of the PC significantly affected compressive strength
and elastic modulus of the NSRAC, MSRAC, and the HSRAC of the current
investigation.
3. The properties of RAC, produced by using RCAs procured from the HSC, in
general, were superior to that of the RAC made with RCAs procured from the
NSC and MSC. The results of the current study reveal high-strength PC should
be preferred for making RAC.
4. The mechanical properties were shown to have statistically significant associ-
ations, confirming the findings. Linear relationships were created for all three
grades of concrete studied to determine the dependency of concrete parameters
on PC and RCA replacement level.
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1007/s42107-018-0011-x
Utilization of Plastic Waste
as an Alternate Binder
and Plastic-Coated Aggregate
in Interlocking Paving Blocks
V. S. Prathibha, Rahul Dandautiya, and Sayeesh S. Bhalare
Abstract Plastic has become an inevitable part of our daily lives. Out of the daily
generation of about 15 million tons of plastic wastes in India, only 25% of this is
recycled because of the deficit solid waste management system. The article detailed
the experimental study carried out to determine the performance of interlocking
concrete paver blocks (ICPB) with waste plastic as a binder and plastic-coated aggre-
gate (PCA) as a replacement for coarse aggregate. Polypropylene plastic used in this
research work has a melting point of 110–140 °C which forms a thin coat over
coarse aggregate forming PCA. M-40 mix is designed as per I.S. 10262:2009 by
replacing cement with waste plastic in various proportions. The ICPB is fabricated
according to IRC SP: 63-2018 guidelines. The blocks with PCA and plastic binder
with varying percentages are tested for compressive strength after curing of 7, 14,
and 28 days. A water absorption test is also performed after 24 h of soaking in water.
A cylindrical specimen of 100 × 100 mm is cured at 7, 14, and 28 which is casted
to determine abrasion resistance or hardness of ICPB with waste plastic and tested
in a Los Angeles abrasion testing machine. Impact value, crushing value, and abra-
sion resistance value of PCA are also determined. The results of the experiments are
compared with control ICPB specimen and raw coarse aggregate showing a substan-
tial improvement in compressive strength and resistance to abrasion of ICPB with
an increase in plastic percentage and better resistance to abrasion in PCA.
Keywords Plastic waste · Plastic-coated aggregate · Interlocking concrete paver

block · Abrasion resistance
V. S. Prathibha (B) · S. S. Bhalare

Civil Engineering Department, Atria Institute of Technology, Bengaluru, Karnataka 560024, India
e-mail: prathibha.vs@atria.edu
R. Dandautiya
Department of Civil Engineering, University Institute of Engineering Chandigarh University,
Punjab, India
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4040-8_38
484 V. S. Prathibha et al.
1 Introduction
Interlocking concrete paving blocks (ICPBs) are broadly used material for pavement
where the traffic volume is low along with this; it is also used in parking spaces,
bus stops and footpaths. They are quick to install, easily repaired, highly versatile,
durable, high resistance to abrasion, inexpensive, low maintenance, and weather-
resistant, making them suitable for said purposes [1, 2]. This is a very less require-
ment of cement mortar for bonding and allows water to percolate to ground through
the uniform gaps between the blocks, which helps to recharge the groundwater.
They offer maximum floor grip, hence can be designed for anti-skidding. Mainte-
nance of these types of partnerships is easy and has a minimum cost of construction.
Plastic properties like high durability, low density, long lifespan, less affected by
chemicals, higher durability, high strength-to-weight ratio, and lower manufacturing
and use [1, 3, 4] Plastic garbage accumulation in the environment is a worldwide
concern. Numerous studies focusing exclusively on thermoplastic materials have
been conducted. The most frequently performed studies are those on polyethylene
(PE) and polypropylene (PP) bags and films [5, 6]. Recycled plastic products are
currently in their infancy. They are used in a variety of engineering applications
around the world, including road and other recycled plastic products, but they are
underutilized for paving unit production [4, 7, 8]. By assessing the compressive
strength, abrasion resistance, and water absorption capabilities of blocks manufac-
tured using recycled plastic waste and plastic-coated aggregate, this study investi-
gated the possibilities of employing plastic waste as a binding material for paving
blocks [1]. Plastics and plastic products can pollute the environment by harming and
contaminating it, and they can then be transmitted to the aquatic environment. The
disposal of waste plastic accumulated in the environment is a severe problem plastic
being non-biodegradable, which affects groundwater recharge, difficulty in recycling
[5, 9–11]. For this reason, it has been exhibited that the properties of plastics are suit-
able for the development of new concrete up to certain limits. Typically, two types
of plastic are used in concrete: plastic fibers in fiber-reinforced concrete and plastic
aggregate in place of natural aggregates (coarse or fine). However, incorporating
waste plastic into concrete has its environmental advantages due to its thermal and
mechanical properties. The study’s main aim is to reduce the impact, crushing, and
abrasion value of PCA, increase the resistance of ICPB to abrasion against vehic-
ular movement, reduce the water absorption, and increase the compressive strength
compared to convention ICPB.
2 Materials and Experimental Methods
This study uses cement, fine aggregate, coarse aggregate (i.e., plastic-coated aggre-
gate: PCA), and waste plastic as a partial replacement for cement. The prime focus is
to find out the optimum plastic content in all replacements so as to get the maximum
Utilization of Plastic Waste as an Alternate Binder … 485
compressive strength and resistance to abrasion. The raw plastic was collected from
the municipalities’ nearby garbage is utilized to make the paving blocks. These used
plastics were cut open, rinsed to eliminate pollutants, and dried in the open air until
completely dry. Waste plastic which had been processed (sachet water bags, poly-
thene bags, wrappers, etc.) was packed and delivered to the laboratory for testing.
When heated, the plastic waste possesses thermoplastic qualities, which means it may
be formed and remolded indefinitely. Its density ranges between 0.91 and 0.94 g/cm3
[5]. 43 grade ordinary Portland cement with specific gravity of 3.15 is used in the
experiment. It is partially replaced in varying percentages 4, 8, 10, and 12% with
waste plastic as a binder The fine aggregate used is Manufactured sand (M sand),
manufactured by grading the crushed stones wastes, which becomes building mate-
rial, after crushing and washing the quarry stones to the required grain sizes. M
sand is free from silt particles and other marine impurities like mica and silica,
degrading concrete quality. M sand of size between 4.75 and 0.075 mm I.S. sieve
with specific gravities of 2.67 is used as fine aggregate. Locally available coarse
aggregates were used in the study. An aggregate passing through 16 mm I.S. sieve
and retained on 10 mm I.S. sieve was sieved and tested. Raw coarse aggregate is
completely replaced (100% replacement) by plastic-coated aggregate (PCA). The
PCA is prepared by shredding the plastic to a size less than 4.75 mm and is melted at
a temperature less than 140 °C. Plastic is added in various percentages 4, 8, 10, and
12% weight of the aggregate to make PCA. The temperature is kept below 150 °C
as the literature shows that polypropylene and polyethylene plastics emit hazardous
gas [6]. This course aggregate is later mixed with the melted plastic, which forms a
thin layer around the aggregate to form PCA. There are simpler ways to turn plastic
waste directly into pellets without any mechanical size reduction. Since the plastic
becomes uniform when it melts, particle size is not an issue in this process. It is
difficult to combine all the constituents with other materials like concrete, course
aggregate or sand when it melts into a viscous lump. Because of this, it is shredded
and mixed with the course aggregate before being heated. Consequently, a good
matrix for the product is provided by the plastic uniformly mixed with the course
aggregate forming PCA [1].
2.1 Mix Design
As per I.R.C.: S.P.: 63-2018, guidelines for the use of ICB, M-40 grade, Category-A
cuboids of size 24 × 8 × 6 cm are cast. Concrete of M-40 grade is designed as
per I.S. 10262:2009 with W/C 0.38. Cement is partially replaced with waste plastic
in various proportions [12]. Developing a concrete mix for paving blocks requires
accurate estimations of aggregate water absorption. When it comes to the absorption
of aggregate, microstructure, surface characteristics, and mortar properties, all play
a role. Water content can be adjusted in accordance with absorption and current
moisture content in order to achieve the aggregate’s saturated surface dry condition.
It is a well-established fact that the fresh and hardened properties of concrete are
Table 1 ICPB mix design

S. No. Mix ID Cement (kg) Waste plastic Fine aggregate Plastic-coated W/C
(kg) (kg) aggregate (kg)
1 P0 474 0 646 1040 0.38
2 P10 450.3 23.7 646 1040 0.38
3 P20 426.6 47.4 646 1040 0.38
4 P30 402.9 71.1 646 1040 0.38
5 P40 331.8 142.2 646 1040 0.38
largely determined by the way coarse and fine aggregates are packed. Appropriate
packing of aggregates of various sizes is a critical step in the concrete mix design
procedure. Mix ID P0 is a conventional mix of concrete where no plastic waste is
used along with PCA. P10, P20, P30 and P40 are a mix where cement is replaced
with plastic waste by 10, 20, 30 and 40%, respectively, along with PCA (Table 1).
3.1 Compression Strength
Compressive strength is the ability of the material or structure to bear the loads
placed on its surface without cracking or bending. The compressive strength of
concrete is determined by a variety of factors, including the water–cement ratio,
cement strength, the quality of the concrete material used, and the level of quality
control maintained during the concrete production process. ICPB of size 24 × 8 ×
6 cm is casted with PCA and are cured for 7, 14, and 28 days. Concrete will get
the optimum strength after 28 days of curing. Compressive strength is conducted by
gradually applying load at the rate of 140 kg/cm2 per minute until the specimen fails
to take further load. According to this study, as the percentage of waste plastic content
increases, compressive strength also increases. It is primarily due to the formation
of a homogeneous solid bond between the melted plastic, cement, and aggregates.
In comparison with conventional ICPB, the overall trend shows a 40% increase in
compressive strength of ICPB incorporated with waste plastic and PCA (Fig. 1).
3.2 Abrasion Test
Abrasion resistance is a surface property that is primarily determined by the quality of

the surface layer characteristics. The abrasion resistance is influenced by the cement
content, types, and quality of material used, compaction and hardness [13].
40
Compressive strength
30 result at 7 days
N/mm2
20 Compressive strength
result at 14 days
10 Compressive strength
result at 28 days
0
P0 P10 P20 P30 P40
Mix ID
Fig. 1 Compression strength test results
According to the study, the abrasion resistance of ICPB is mainly affected by

aggregate-cement ratio, percentage of plastic replacement. With the reduction in the
cement content, abrasion value of ICPB has slightly reduced.
i. Los Angeles abrasion test
Cylindrical specimen of size 100 mm height and 150 mm diameter is casted and
cured for 7, 14, and 28 days. Abrasion resistance of the specimen is tested in Los
Angeles abrasion testing machine. Los Angeles abrasion machine is revolved
for 500 times along with the specimen. After the test, the specimen is cleaned
and the final weight is measured. Surface abrasion value can be determined by
calculating the surface weight loss of materials [14].
ii. Surface Abrasion Test
Beam of size 300 × 125 × 75 mm is used for the surface abrasion test. The
diameter of the abraded circular area is 82.5 mm, and the area is 53.5 cm2 .
Uniform load of 98 N is applied rotated at a speed of 200 rpm. Test period
was about 6 min. After the test, the specimen is cleaned and the final weight is
measured. Surface abrasion value can be determined by calculating the surface
weight loss of materials [14].
It is observed that ICPB offers high resistance to abrasion when the compressive
strength is higher. With an increase in plastic content, the abrasion resistance is
improved, though content of cement is less in the paver blocks. The conventional
ICPB shows more loss of materials after the test indicates higher wear and tear of
blocks giving average abrasion value of 2.9%. For the blocks with 12% of plastic
waste, PCA shows higher resistance to abrasion on an average of 2.0% comparatively
less loss of material indicates lower wear and tear of materials (Fig. 2).
3.5
3
Abrasion value 2.5
2 Los Angeles
abrasion test
1.5
1 Surface
0.5 Abrasion Test
0
P0 P10 P20 P30 P40
Mix Proportions
Fig. 2 Abrasion test values
3.3 Water Absorption Test
This test method serves to determine the rate of absorption of water by ICPB when
only one surface of a specimen is subject to water, by measuring the increase in
mass of a specimen resulting from the absorption of the water after 24 h of soaking.
Test results shows that the rate of absorption of water reduces with the increase in
percentage of plastic varies from 5.67 to 7.2%.
The degree of porosity of materials normally measured in terms of water absorp-
tion under a specific condition. Increased water absorption indicates poor structure
due to humidity, which reduces the bond strength [15]. Test results show that the
water absorption rate of concrete blocks containing waste plastic as a binder and
PCA reduces. The main reason for reduction in rate of water absorption is due to
strong bonging between molten plastic and aggregates (course and fine) the rate of
water absorption reduced by around 25% with the use of 40% replacement of cement
by plastic waste as a binding material (Tables 2, 3, 4, and 5).
Table 2 Water absorption test results

S. No. Mix ID Actual weight (kg) After water absorption Water absorption (%)
(kg)
1 P0 2.5 2.572 7.2
2 P10 2.43 2.501 7.1
3 P20 2.36 2.4284 6.84
4 P30 2.01 2.072 6.2
5 P40 1.92 1.9767 5.67
Table 3 Properties of waste

S. No. Particulars Result Reference
plastic
1 Melting point 140˚ [3]
2 Density 0.91 and 0.94 g/cm3
3 Tensile strength 0.20–0.40 (N/mm2)
Table 4 Properties of fine

S. No. Particulars Result
aggregate
1 Specific gravity 2.45
2 Fineness modulus 2.8
3 Water absorption 1.76
Table 5 Properties of coarse

S. No. Particulars Result
aggregate
Raw coarse Plastic-coated
aggregate aggregate (PCA)
1 Specific gravity 2.61 2.79
2 Water absorption 2.04 0.89
%
3 Flakiness index % 36.8 16.39
4 Elongation index 9.07 6.90
%
5 Crushing value % 18.67 12.45
6 Impact value % 12.89 8.67
Test results show that with the increase in plastic content abrasion resistance of
the aggregate also increases. It implies that plastic coating around the aggregate
minimizes the loss of material due to abrasion; thus, wear and tear of ICPB can also
be minimized.
4 Conclusions
The following conclusions are drawn on the basis of the current study:
• The use of plastic residues in paver block production has a productive disposal
method of plastic residues. As the content of cement is reduced, cost of ICPB
with plastic waste and PCA also reduces compared to normal ICPB. The results
obtained after a number of laboratory tests show clearly that the control ICPB
sample (without plastic) offers low compressive strength than the samples with
plastic binder and PCA.
• Specimen containing 40% plastic binder content and PCA with 12% plastic offers
higher Compressive strength is compared to the conventional ICPB. More than the
composite specimens, concrete block specimens have also absorbed more water.
• With the increase in plastic content in ICPB, water absorption also reduces. Plastic-
coated aggregate (PCA), with the coating of this plastic around the aggregate, the
loss of material due to abrasion reduces. This indicates that the aggregate when
coated with plastic content offers higher resistance against abrasion.
• The surface abrasion test differentiated the control mix from specimen incorpo-
rated with PCA and plastic binder. However, changes to test samples are necessary
to produce more abrasive form which offers greater differentiation.
• A longer test period or a larger abraded area in this test is suggested for increased
test severity and efficiency.
• The material weight loss value was also very high, and ICPB abrasion resistance
was not so effectively assessed. This is because in this test, the damage to the spec-
imen was due to impact rather than abrasion. Fewer revolutions are recommended
as a possible way to increase its capacity for this test.
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Mechanical Properties of Alccofine
with Low Calcium Silicate Based
High-Strength Concrete
R. Divahar, S. P. Sangeetha, P. S. Aravind Raj, and K. Naveen Kumar
Abstract Alternate materials in the research of high strength concrete (HSC) have
become a prominent practice all over the world in the past decades to enrich the
long-term strength, high workability, better durability, economy and environmental
factors. This study presents the mechanical characteristics of high strength concrete
(HSC) with the influence of low calcium silicate alccofine (Alccofine 1203). The
enhanced workability at the given low water cement ratio and improved pore filling
capability was observed by indulging alccofine in the HSC. It is also observed that due
to the presence of alccofine particles, the concrete gains high strength much early. The
presence of optimum dosage of alccofine in the regular HSC is anticipated to progress
the strength of concrete at early age and deliver superior durability characteristics
such as resistance against accelerated corrosion attack, sea water attack and chloride
attack. This work has its core on the investigational examination on mechanical
properties such as flexural strength, split tensile strength and compressive strength
on HSC by replacing cement with alccofine, which varied from 0 to 20% at 5%
increments for 7, 14 and 28 days and concluded with the determination of optimum
dosage of alccofine as the replacement of cement.
Keywords High strength concrete · Alccofine 1203 · Flexural · Split tensile ·

1 Introduction
The concrete materials used in the construction of infrastructure to the community.

The nature of concrete is that the cement is the only reactive part which blend the
materials and hold the materials together. Considering the load bearing capacity of
concrete, major intensity of applied load is bearded by the aggregates which occupies
75—80% of total concrete volume. Due the requirement of the various factors such as
R. Divahar (B) · S. P. Sangeetha · P. S. Aravind Raj · K. Naveen Kumar

Aarupadai Veedu Institute of Technology, Vinayaka Mission’s Research Foundation,
Kancheepuram, Tamilnadu, India
e-mail: divahar.civil@avit.ac.in
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4040-8_39
494 R. Divahar et al.
high strength, long-term strength, better durability, economic and ecological reasons,
HSC is more prevalent for the past decades all over the world and marked an important
position in the construction of special structures and huge infrastructures [1]. The
cement industries are working on the sustainable approach of productions to address
the environmental issues. The factors such as cost and intensive energy are not the
only problems in the manufacture of Portland cement, but the generation of hefty
volume of greenhouse gases adversely having impact on the environment, which has
now become the primary problem. Several methods, replacements and supplements,
were experimented with reducing the usage of Portland cement [2, 3]. By the usage of
mineral admixture, various strength and durability characters of concrete are found to
be increased. Usage of supplementary cementitious materials with mineral admixture
like alccofine added to the concrete leads to significant cost and energy saving and
noteworthy reduction in the environmental pollution [4, 5, 6].
Alccofine is a mineral admixture that can be prepared with required degree of
fineness to acquire the desired property in the concrete where it is used. Based on
the CaO content, alccofine is categorized into different types, among which more
familiar are Alccofine 1101 and Alccofine 1203. Because of the higher inbuilt CaO
content in Alccofine 1203, it reacts with both the hydration action and pozzolanic
reaction of the cement resulting in the denser pore structure and higher strength
capacity. Thus, Alccofine can assure numerous advantaged compared over the other
conventional supplementary cementitious materials used [7, 8].
Ternary Blended Concrete was incorporated with GGBS and alccofine and exper-
imented under compressive test [9]. The results showed no any significant effects in
the replacement of GGBS and alccofine in any combinations. Gayathri et al. [10]
investigated the durability characteristics of alccofine in concrete by acid resistant,
sulphate attack and chloride attack tests. The conclusion was that the durability of
concrete against the acid attacks increased at 15% replacement of alccofine. Simi-
larly, [11, 12] conducted the mechanical properties of alccofine, and they concluded
that, cement is replaced by 15% alccofine which increases compressive strength of
concrete.
Tushar Bansal et al. [13] determined the concrete properties by substituting fly-
ash and alccofine for cement in various percentage. The results showed that the
optimum compressive strength was achieved by 20% replacement of fly-ash and
alccofine by volume in OPC concrete. A concrete mix for M30 grade with 0, 5, 10
and 15% of pond-ash and alccofine was studied to characterize its flexural, split tensile
strength and compressive strength, and it was found that all the physical properties
enhanced at 10% replacement batch. But in case of durability characteristics, 20%
pond-ash replacement of fine aggregate and 10% alccofine replacement of cement
were required to minimize the percentage of water absorption with better acid and
chloride resistance. Steffy Kurian et al. [14] and Narasimha Reddy et al. [15] done
the experimentation and it was noticed that the green concrete showed improved
strength up to 20% in all the mechanical properties, when the alccofine replacement
is done. These results were predicted to be arrived owing to the high production of
C–S–H gel because of the high pozzolanic activity and larger specific surface area.
Mechanical Properties of Alccofine with Low Calcium Silicate … 495
Table 1 Physical properties

Characteristics Experimental values
determined for cement (53
grade) Soundness 1.2 mm
Initial setting time (IST) 50 min
Final setting time (FST) 320 min
Consistency 32%
Compressive strength (MPa) 29.8 at 3 days
45.6 at 7 days
56.2 at 28 days
Also, the resultant compact molecular level structure formation leads to the early
strength achievement.
High strength concrete mix of grade M50 with 0, 5, 10, 15 and 20% alccofine
replacing was cast and tested in this study. Compression, split tensile and flexural
test were carried out after 7, 14 and 28 days of moist curing.
The objective of this project is to determine the optimum percentage replacement
of alccofine for cement in concrete and to analyse the mechanical characteristics of
concrete added with alccofine by its flexural, split tensile and compressive strength.
2 Incorporated Materials and Research Methodology
2.1 Binder
In the course of present experimental investigation, in the course of experimental

investigation, the binder material used in the concrete is 53 grade OPC (IS
12269:1987). Preliminary tests were conducted for the cement used for study and
the characteristic listed in Table 1.
2.2 Fine Aggregate
River sand is used as fine aggregate in the study (Zone II), confirming IS:383:1970
having specific gravity of 2.6. The physical properties were evaluated for the sand
used for study and the characteristic listed in Table 2.

determined for fine aggregate
Fineness modulus 2.82
Density 1635 kg/m3

determined for coarse
aggregate Fineness modulus 4.9
Impact value 14.2
2.3 Coarse Aggregate
Coarse aggregate used in the study is of 20 mm size as per IS: 383:1970 with specific
gravity of 2.8. The physical properties were evaluated for the coarse aggregate used
for study and the characteristic listed in Table 3.
2.4 Water
Water is an important ingredient of concrete as it actively participates in the chemical

reactions with cement to form the hydration product, calcium–silicate–hydrate (C–
S–H) gel. The strength of the cement concrete depends mainly from the binding
action of the hydrated cement paste gel. Potable tap water available in the laboratory
with pH value of 7.0 ± 1 and confirming to the requirements of IS: 456-2000 was
used for mixing concrete and curing the specimens as well.
2.5 Chemical Admixture
Master Gelenium SKY 8233 was used as the superplasticizer which is based on new
generation modified polycarboxylate ether.
2.6 Alccofine
In the present study, Alccofine 1203, an ultrafine low calcium silicate product with
high reactivity, produced through the controlled granulation process was used. The
chemical and physical compositions of Alccofine 1203 are given in Table 4. Figure 1
Table 4 Chemical and

Chemical properties Physical properties
physical composition of
Alccofine 1203 Existing Composition Physical Outcomes
mineral (%) possessions
Sio2 35.30 Partial size distribution (in micro
metre)
MgO 6.20 D10 1.8
Al2 O3 21.40 D50 4.4
Fe2 O3 1.20 D90 8.9
SO3 0.13 Bulk density 680
(kg/m3 )
SO2 23.46 Specific gravity 2.7
CaO 33 Specific surface 12,000
area (cm2 /gm)
Fig. 1 Sample of mineral

admixture
shows the sample of mineral admixture. The particle size distribution of the materials
(cement, alccofine, fine aggregate and coarse aggregate) used is presented in Fig. 2.
The particle size distribution of the powders (cement and alccofine) was measured
by using laser diffraction method by dispersing the powder in glycerol.
3.1 Mix Proportioning:
M50 grade mix concrete confirming the standards of IS 10262:2009 codal provision
was prepared. The optimum dosage of chemical admixture to be used in concrete is
determined based on various trail mix with varying percentage of 0.25, 0.5, 0.75 and
1% of chemical admixture by the weight of cementitious material. The mix design
proportion is shown in Table 5.
100
Coarse Aggregate
90 Fine Aggregate
Cement
80
Alccofine
70
Cumulative Passing %
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
0.0001 0.001 0.01 0.1 1 10 100
Sieve Size in mm
Fig. 2 Particle size distribution the materials used
Table 5 Concrete mix proportion

Mix proportion for M50 grade of concrete
Materials Target compressive strength (MPa)
50
W/C ratio 0.35
Total cement (kg/m3 ) 435
Coarse aggregate (kg/m3 ) 1113
Fine aggregate (kg/m3 ) 742
Water (kg/m3 ) 152
Mineral admixture (kg/m3 ) 5–20%
Percentage of replacement of cementitious content—binary
blended system
Superplasticizer (kg/m3 ) 0.25%
By the weight of cementitious content in the concrete mix
3.2 Mix Preparation
The OPC, fine aggregate, coarse aggregate and Alccofine were mixed in the designed
proportion with power mixers thoroughly for 30 s in dry condition. After the dry
ingredients are mixed, water and superplasticizer were added in portions as per
design mix to form the concrete mixes. Table 6 shows details of specimens with
percentage of alccofine.
Table 6 Specimen details with percentage of Alccofine (AF)

Specimen mix ID Blending Water content Cement content Workability
material (kg/m3 ) (kg/m3 ) (mm)
AF0 Only OPC 152 435 74
AF5 OPC + 152 413.25 68
5%AF
AF10 OPC + 152 391.50 75
10%AF
AF15 OPC + 152 369.75 90
15%AF
AF20 OPC + 152 348 110
20%AF
Fig. 3 Failure mode of tested specimens
3.3 Casting and Curing of Moulds
120 concrete specimens with and without alccofine were casted (compressive
strength-45, split tensile strength-45 and flexural strength-30) and in form of stan-
dard concrete cubes as per IS456:2000. The concrete cube specimens were cured for
various periods such as of 7, 14 and 28 days in the ambient temperature of 27 ± 2 °C
in the curing tank. Figure 3 shows the failure mode of tested specimens.
3.4 Workability
In concrete technology, workability is the term which is defined as the qualities of

concrete that provides affluence of placing, compacting and finishing of concrete.
Generally, workability of fresh concrete is measured in using Slump cone test. Table
6 gives the slump characteristics of various combinations of concrete mixes prepared
in this study.
Tables 7, 8 and 9 give the average compression, tensile and flexural strength of
concrete cubes tested after curing for 7, 14 and 28 days.
Table 7 Compressive strength of specimens

Specimen mix ID Average compressive Percentage of variation Standard deviation
strength (MPa) in strength with control
7th 14th 28th mix at 28 days
(days)
AF0 32.50 45.00 52.31 – 1.84
AF5 33.43 46.40 52.78 +1% 2.15
AF10 34.93 48.17 53.53 +2.3 1.60
AF15 40.58 56.72 62.11 +18.8 1.29
AF20 32.81 48.38 50.43 −3.9 1.3
Table 8 Split tensile strength of specimens

Specimen mix ID Average split tensile Percentage of variation in Standard deviation
strength (MPa) strength with control mix at
7th 14th 28th 28 days
(days)
AF0 3.37 4.21 5.12 – 0.19
AF5 3.42 4.30 5.19 +1.6% 0.22
AF10 3.44 4.33 5.16 +2.2% 0.26
AF15 4.27 5.42 6.49 +26.70% 0.23
AF20 3.21 4.01 4.87 −4.74% 0.13
Table 9 Flexural strength of specimens

Specimen mix ID Average flexural strength Percentage of Standard deviation
(MPa) variation in strength
7th day 14th day 28th day with control mix at
28 days
(days)
AF0 3.35 4.25 5.18 – 0.13
AF5 3.45 5.02 5.82 +11% 0.59
AF10 4.50 5.54 6.13 +15% 0.44
AF15 5.15 6.21 6.45 +20% 0.52
AF20 2.92 3.63 3.94 −12% 0.53
7th Day 14th Day 28th Day
62.11
Average compressive strength (MPa)
56.72
53.53
52.31
52.78
50.43
48.38
48.17
46.4
40.58
45
34.93
33.43
32.81
32.5
AF0 AF5 AF10 AF15 AF20

SPECIMEN MIX ID
Fig. 4 Comparison of compressive strength with binary blended system
Compressive strength results of the specimens given in Table 7 and Fig. 4.

In binary blended system at 28 days, compression strength testing of concrete with
5, 10 and 15% of alccofine replacement (AF5, AF10 and AF15) gave compressive
strength 1, 2.3 and 18.8% higher than the control mix (AF0), respectively. But, 20%
replacement of alccofine mix (AF20) gave 3.9% lesser compressive strength than the
control mix (AF0). The standard deviation of cube test results for Mix AF0, AF5,
AF10, AF15 and AF20 showed a variation in compressive strength between 1.2 and
2.2 MPa is statistically significant in the variation as given in Table 7.
4.2 Split Tensile Strength
The split tensile strength test results of specimens given in Table 8 and Fig. 5.

6.49
Average split tensile strength (MPa)
5.42
5.19
5.16
5.12
4.87
4.33
4.27
4.21
4.3
4.01
3.44
3.42
3.37
3.21
SPECIMEN MIX ID
Fig. 5 Comparison of split tensile strength with binary blended system

6.45
Average flexural strength (MPa)
6.21
6.13
5.82
5.54
5.18
5.15
5.02
4.25
4.5
3.95
3.63
3.45
3.35
2.92
SPECIMEN MIX ID
Fig. 6 Comparison of flexural strength with binary blended system
In binary blended system at 28 days, split tensile testing strength of concrete with
5, 10 and 15% of alccofine replacement (AF5, AF10 and AF15) gave split tensile
strength 1.6, 2.2 and 26.70% higher than the control mix (AF0), respectively. But,
20% replacement of alccofine mix (AF20) gave 4.74% lesser split tensile strength
than the control mix (AF0). The standard deviation of cube test results for Mix AF0,
AF5, AF10, AF15 and AF20 showed a variation in split tensile strength between 0.1
and 0.3 MPa is statistically significant in the variation as given in Table 8.
4.3 Flexural Strength
The flexural strength test results of specimens given in Table 9 and Fig. 6.
In binary blended system at 28 days, flexural tensile testing strength of concrete
with 5, 10 and 15% of alccofine replacement (AF5, AF10 and AF15) gave flexural
strength 11, 15 and 20% higher than the control mix (AF0), respectively. But, 20%
replacement of alccofine mix (AF20) gave 12% lesser flexural strength than the
control mix (AF0). The standard deviation of cube test results for Mix AF0, AF5,
AF10, AF15 and AF20 showed a variation in flexural strength between 0.1 and
0.6 MPa is statistically significant in the variation as given in Table 9.
5 Parametric Analysis
5.1 Outcome of Alccofine on Compressive Strength
From the outcomes given in Table 7 and Fig. 3, binary blended system concrete
mixtures made with 15% alccofine by weight of cement exhibited higher compres-
sive strength than the conventional concrete mix. The enhancement in compres-
sive strength of binary blended system concrete was due to the increased rate of
hydration on the addition of alccofine. Concrete specimen made with 20% alccofine
replacement exhibits lower compressive strength compared to conventional concrete
sample.
5.2 Outcome of Alccofine on Split Tensile Strength
mixtures made with 15% alccofine by weight of cement exhibited higher tensile
strength than the conventional concrete mix. Concrete specimen made with 20%
alccofine replacement exhibits lower tensile strength compared to conventional
concrete sample.
5.3 Outcome of Alccofine on Modulus of Rupture
mixtures made with 15% alccofine by weight of cement exhibited higher Modulus
of Rupture than the conventional concrete mix. Concrete specimen made with 20%
alccofine replacement exhibits lower Modulus of Rupture compared to conventional
concrete sample.
6 Conclusion
The conclusions of the experimental study of binary blended cementitious system

using alccofine in high-strength concrete are discussed in this section. Based on
flexural, compressive and split tensile strength study, it was found that the optimum
percentage of cement by alccofine was 15% by the volume. The improvement in
early age flexural, compressive and split tensile strength of binary blended system
concrete was due to the accelerated hydration reaction on the addition of alccofine.
Similar information were observed at the age of 28 days. A decrease in strength on
an addition of alccofine beyond 20% is ascribed to the reason that the quantity of
alccofine units is higher than of liberated lime quantity in hydration process resulting
in ooze out that leads to decrease in pore bonding strength.
Alccofine, a higher specific surface area with early strength gaining characteristic
materials, is incorporated to enhance the workability strength and increased chemical
attack resistance by reduction of the porosity through the generation of C–S–H gel.
As the results found encouraging the utilization of alccofine, it can be pragmatic
in hefty gauge construction to compensate the environmental and economical drags
imposed by the conventional cement production and usage. Finally, from the binary
blended system resulted in considerable reduction of the cost of the concrete and
elimination of greenhouse gas emissions.
Acknowledgements The authors gratefully acknowledge the financial support from the Vinayaka
Mission’s Research Foundation-Deemed to be University, Salem, Tamilnadu, India.
References
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of M sand in high strength and high-performance concrete. Indian Journal of Science and
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emission in self compacting geopolymer concrete using sustainable construction materials.
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Durability Characteristics of Sea Sand
in Cement Mortar for the Construction
B. T. Ashwini Manjunath and Rahul Dandautiya
Abstract The utilization of river sand in construction lowers the natural resources
when the river sand is dredged from the cross section of the riverbed, which reduces
the water table and causes soil erosion. Similarly, the use of manufactured sand is a
replacement for the river sand, which is manufactured through the crushing of natural
granite stones. The advantage of using manufacturing sand reduces transportation
costs and gives good strength and durability characteristics compared to river sand.
The production of manufacturing sand causes air pollution, water pollution, which
leads to global warming. By referring to the literature, the sea sand can be used
as a replacement for river sand. The minimum replacement of sea sand gives the
acceptable compressive strength of concrete. In this research paper, we have assessed
the physicochemical properties of sea sand, referring to code IS 2386-3 (1963), and
compared them with natural sand. The cement mortar using ratio 1:6 is cast by
referring to code IS 2250 (1981) with a proportion of 0, 10, 20, 30, 40, and 100% with
river sand. The strength and durability characteristics: chlorine test and carbonation
test of mortar are determined.
Keywords Sea sand · Physiochemical properties · Chlorine test · Carbonation test
1 Introduction
With the increased use of river sand in construction over the years, we are facing
various environmental and construction challenges globally. The use of river sand
dominantly will cause the degradation of soil bed and causes soil erosion [1]. The use
of sea sand is an alternative solution in the construction industry [1]. The sand will
be obtained from quarries or alluvial rivers [2–4]. The sizes of grains range between
B. T. Ashwini Manjunath (B)

Department of Civil Engineering, Atria Institute of Technology, Bangalore, Karnataka, India
e-mail: ashwini.bt@atria.edu
R. Dandautiya
Department of Civil Engineering, Chandigarh University, Mohali, Punjab 140413, India
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4040-8_40
506 B. T. Ashwini Manjunath and R. Dandautiya
0.06 and 2.0 mm, and color varies from brown to orange. The primary function
of fine aggregate is to provide bonding, which increases the chemical and physical
properties of mortar and concrete.
• River sand is the natural sand obtained by the natural process of weathering and
stored on the bank of the river [1].
• Manufacturing sand is the artificial sand obtained by the crushing of granite stones
in a quarry. The strength and durability characteristics of M sand will satisfy the
IS 383: 1970, the production of M sand causes air and water pollution, leading to
global warming [2].
• Sea sand is formed due to the weathering of natural rocks which flow through the
river and settles at the bank of the sea or ocean; particles are further eroded from
the constant action of waves and tides. Sea sand having fine grains is rounded in
shape and light cream in color. It has less silt and clay content. The presence of
residue of seashell in sea sand gives good strength and workability in the mortar
and concrete [1–3].
2 Materials and Its Properties
2.1. OPC cement 53 grades: With reference to the (as per IS 1489: 1991(Part 1))
as given in Table 1.
2.2. River sand: With reference to the (as per IS 2386 Part III 1963) as given in
Table 2.
2.3. Sea sand is obtained from the shores of Malpe, Uttar Kannada district,
Karnataka; the properties of sea sand are compared with river sand, as per
Table 2 shown, which indicates the properties of sea sand is similar to river
sand [5, 6].
The sea sand used has 0% of silt content compared to river sand; as such, the
binding property will be reduced with effects on the strength of concrete and
mortar.
Table 1 Physical properties of cement

S. No Physical characteristics Standard values (as per IS 1489: Obtained values
1991(Part 1))
1 Normal consistency (%) 26–34 32
2 Initial setting time No less than 30 min 30 min
3 Final setting time Not greater than 600 min 600 min
4 Fineness (%) <10 5
5 Specific gravity 2.9—3.15 3.0
Durability Characteristics of Sea Sand in Cement Mortar … 507
Table 2 Properties of fine aggregates

S. No Physical Standard values (as per Obtained values
characteristics IS 2386 Part III 1963) River sand (RS) Sea sand (SS)
1 Specific gravity 2.65—2.67 2.4 2.82
2 Silt content (%) <8 4 0
3 Fineness 2.75 1.7% by weight of 0.5%
aggregate
4 Total water <3% 1.3% by weight of 1.3%
absorption aggregate
5 Bulking of sand <5 5.2 14.2
(%)
6 Grain size <4.75 mm Zone II, 90–100 mm 50—200 mm
analysis
The sea sand consists of salinity in sodium chloride NaCl in high percentage
[5–8]. Chlorides (Cl−) are soluble mineral compounds that influence the
durability of concrete.
The amount of chloride present in the sea sand is more compared to river sand
[7].
3 Experimental Methodology
The cement mortar of 1:6 is prepared, and experiments are conducted to find the new
properties.
3.1. Workability of mortar by flow table test (referring IS: 4031(Part-7):1988) [9]:
The sample of fresh mortar is mixed and poured into the mold, and the flow
table is rotated with the help of wheel, the flow is measured, and the good
mortar flow should be 25 mm.
The flow is measured in all four equispaced intervals diameter of the mortar
mass, and it is expressed as a percentage of the original base diameter. The
flow is calculated as given in the formula below (Fig. 1)

Flow = Davg −Do /Do ∗ 100
(Davg = Average base diameter; Do = Original base diameter).

3.2. Compressive strength on mortar (referring IS4031-6:1988) [9]: The sample
of fresh mortar is a cube of size 70 mm × 70 mm and is cured for seven days
and 28 days, and then, the cubes are tested for compressive strength.
3.3. Durability test on cement mortar cubes (referring to IS 516: 1959) [10]: Some
durability tests are carried to find the long-term behavior of mortar prepared
by sea sand. The tests carried are:
Fig. 1 Flow table [9]
Fig. 2 Experimental setup

for CO2 test
(1) Carbonation test with reference IS 3466 B:1988 [11]

(2) Chloride test with respect to IS 14959-2: 2001 [12] (Figs. 2, and 3).
A cement mortar cube is prepared for 1:6 ratios; the water is calculated for the normal
consistency value of 32% which depends on IS: 4031-PART 6-1988. The sea sand
is partially replaced by 0, 10, 20, 30, 40, and 100% with river sand by the weight of
cement in the mortar mix with the river sand.
Fig. 3 Sample after CO2

test
The flow table test is carried out for fresh mortar samples. The flow diameter
is measured in equispaced intervals expressed as a percentage of the original base
diameter, and the results are given as in Table 3.
The significance of the flow table test according to IS: 4031(Part-7):1988 gives
the amount of water required for the preparation of mortar cubes, which influences
the strength of masonry cement.
By the results shown in Table 3, cement mortar flow increases with the increasing
percentage of sea sand, which affects the strength of cement mortar [13].
The extent of carbon dioxide infiltration into the cement mortar indicates the
expansion cracking and weakening of the concrete.
Once the samples of cement mortar cubes are tested, the weight of samples is
taken before and after the test. As shown in Table 4, the weight of 20% replacement
sea sand is increased by 1% compared to other samples, indicating that the absorption
of carbon dioxide will be less than other samples. The significance of the chloride
test on cement mortar indicates the reduction in strength. The test results are shown
in Table 5.
An increase in the percentage of sea sand in cement mortar increases the weight
of the cement mortar cube, which indicates the deposition of chloride content. This
leads to a decrease in strength.
Table 3 Flow table readings

S. No Sea sand with river sand in Flow of mortar in mm
percentage (%)
1 Only river sand (RS)—0 20
2 10 55
3 20 65
4 30 67.5
5 40 69.2
6 Only sea sand—100 73
Table 4 Results after the

Sea sand with river Weight of sample Weight of sample
carbonation test
sand in percentage before, gm after, gm
(%)
Only river sand 824 824
(RS)—0
10 716 714
20 729 730
30 724 722
40 720 718
Only sea sand—100 710 690
Table 5 Amount of chloride

Sea sand with river sand in Weight of chlorine content in
present in mortar cubes
percentage (%) the mortar sample gm/m
Only river sand (RS)—0 1.06
10 2.94
20 3.92
30 4.9
40 5.88
Only sea sand—100 6.95
5 Conclusions
The comparison of experimental work performed with the partial replacement of sea
sand with river sand in cement mortar gives the following inferences.
1. The nature of the sea sand sample obtained from Malpe beach was very fine
(<75 µm), and other physical parameters are well below the requirement of sand
as per codal provision.
2. The compressive strength of mortar with 20% replacement with sea sand is the
same as normal mortar.
3. The fresh mortar with an increase of sea sand replacement with river sand
increases its flowability.
4. The chloride test result shows that the increase in sea sand with river sand
increases the chloride content, which leads to a higher amount of corrosiveness
in concrete.
5. In the carbonation test, the carbon dioxide increases the weight of mortar by
2% when replacing sea sand with river sand at 20 and 30% value.
6. The results indicate that the maximum allowable replacement of sea sand with
river sand is up 20%, as the higher replacement level leads to a considerable
reduction in strength and durability of mortar.
6 Future Work
In the future, the strength and durability parameters can be calculated with variable
grades of cement with other target strengths.
Acknowledgements The authors are grateful to Atria Institute of Technology, Bangalore, India,
for providing the necessary facilities to carry out this research work. All references cited in the text
have provided detailed insight about the subject matter and therefore are greatly acknowledged.
References
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Aggregate Producers Association (SEV 11), November 2012. https://publications.parliament.
uk/pa/cm201314/cmselect/cmenergy/194/194vw11.htm. Accessed on 15.07.2021.
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ties of concrete made with dredged marine sand. Construction and Building Materials, 25(11),
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15.07.2021.
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surface of sea sand on mechanical properties and durability of mortar. Results in Engineering,
6, 100–117. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rineng.2020.100117
6. Manigandan, R., Srinivasan, V., & Pazhani, K. C. (2018). A study on dredged sea sand as an
optimum replacement for fine aggregate in concrete. Asian Journal of Engineering and Applied
Technology, 7(S1), 1–6.
7. Chotaliya, S., Chaudhari, S., Chauhan, T., Parmar, J., Pal, K., & Chauhan, D. (2020). An
experimental study on different properties of sea sand and river sand. International Journal of
Engineering Science and Computing, 10(5), 25832–25835.
8. Karthikeyan, M., & Nagarajan, V. (2017). Chloride analysis of sea sand for making concrete.
National Academy Science Letters, 40(1), 29–31. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40009-016-0493-6
9. IS 2250. (1981). Compressive strength test for cement mortar cubes. Bureau of Indian
Standards, New Delhi, India.
10. IS 383. (1970). Specification for coarse and fine aggregates from natural sources for concrete.
11. IS 4031(Part-7). (1988). Methods of physical tests for hydraulic cement. Bureau of Indian
12. IS 5512. (1983). Specifications for flow table for use in hydraulic cements. Bureau of Indian
13. Deepak, W. S., & Naidu, G. T. (2015). Effect on compressive strength of concrete using sea sand
as a partial replacement for fine aggregate. International Journal of Research in Engineering
and Technology (IJRET), 4(6), 180–183. https://doi.org/10.15623/ijret.2015.0406030
14. Ashwini Manjunath, B. T., Karthick, T. R., & Lakshmi, K. (2017). Partial replacement of sea
and desert sand in place of river sand for mortar in construction. GRD Journals, 2(7), 81–85.
15. Dandautiya, R., & Singh, A. P. (2019). Utilization potential of fly ash and copper tailings in
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99, 90–101. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.wasman.2019.08.036
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17. IS 516. (1959). Indian standard code of practice-methods of test for strength of concrete. Bureau
of Indian Standards, New Delhi, India.
18. IS 14959 (Part II). (2001). Determination of water soluble and acid soluble chlorides in mortar.
19. IS 3466 (B). (1988). Specification for masonry cement. Bureau of Indian Standards, New Delhi,
India.
20. IS 14959-2. (2001). Method of test determination of water soluble. Bureau of Indian Standards,
New Delhi, India.
Appraising the Influence of Ceramic
Waste Incorporation on the Corrosion
and Chemical Attack Resistance
of Cement Composites: A Review
Anjali Agrawal, T. Jothi Saravanan, K. I. Syed Ahmed Kabeer,

and Kunal Bisht
Abstract The exploitation of waste material in the production of cementitious

composites such as mortar and concrete is featured as an emerging research area
aiming to curtail cement requirements. This article focuses on the utilisation of
ceramic waste for partial cement replacement, reviewing its influence on the corrosion
and chemical attack resistance of cementitious composites. The reviewed literature
majorly highlights an enhancement in corrosion and chemical attack resistance on
exposure to sulphate and chloride attacks for composites having up to 40% ceramic
waste. The bulk electrical resistivity test and the rapid chloride penetration test indi-
cated superior corrosion protection on incorporating high ceramic waste content.
The pozzolanic reaction and filling effect of ceramic waste favour microstructure
refinement and densification, reducing pore connectivity and improving corrosion
and chemical attack resistance. The evaluation of the feasibility of using ceramic
waste lays out a sustainable choice for achieving desirable properties while simul-
taneously recognising environmental benefits, reducing the carbon footprint of the
construction industry.
Keywords Chloride attack · Sulphate resistance · Electrical resistivity · Chemical

resistance · Rapid chloride penetration
A. Agrawal (B)
Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Politecnico di Milano, Milano, Italy
e-mail: anjali.agrawal@mail.polimi.it
T. Jothi Saravanan
School of Infrastructure, Indian Institute of Technology Bhubaneswar, Bhubaneswar, India
K. I. S. A. Kabeer
School of Architecture and Interior Design, SRM Institute of Science and Technology, Chennai,
India
K. Bisht
Department of Civil Engineering, KIET Group of Institutions, Delhi NCR, Ghaziabad, Uttar
Pradesh, India
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4040-8_41
514 A. Agrawal et al.
1 Introduction
The ceramic industry has witnessed a gradual advancement with time, characterised
by escalated production and demand globally. As a result, the worldwide annual
ceramic production has progressed to the level of about 3 billion tons [1]. The remark-
able properties displayed by ceramics with regards to durability and resistance against
degradation [2] accounts for the apparent demand. However, the downside of this
increase in production is the consequent rise in the levels of ceramic waste generated
[1, 3]. The ceramic waste produced as a percentage of the total production amounts
to about 15–30% in India [4] and Algeria [5], 10–25% in China [1, 6] and 3–7%
in Europe [7–9] and Iran [3, 10]. This waste results in environmental distress as a
significant portion of it is disposed of in landfills [11, 12]. Thus, fruitful exploitation
of this resource becomes imperative.
Furthermore, cement production contributes to around 7% of the annual global
production of carbon dioxide [13]. The swift growth of infrastructure overburdens
natural reserves, which calls for means to reduce dependency on them [14]. Thus,
the utilisation of ceramic waste in the construction sector could bring about sustain-
ability in the process through waste management and resource conservation. The
favourable addition of ceramic waste has been investigated in geopolymer compos-
ites [15], paving blocks [16] and permeable brick [17] production and as an insulation
material [18]. Secondly, concrete and mortar production constitutes another critical
domain for ceramic waste usage. Several authors have evaluated the influence of
ceramic waste incorporation as aggregate replacement in cement composites [19–
26]. The authors highlighted that this addition of ceramic waste yields comparable
performance relative to the conventional cement composites, upholding its feasibility
in such applications.
Very few literature reviews assessed the utilisation of ceramic waste in cement
composites. Ray et al. [27] reviewed the feasibility of substituting aggregate with
ceramic waste and noted the beneficial utilisation of ceramic waste, whose addition
reveals satisfactory performance. Gautam et al. [28] reviewed the employability of
ceramic waste in different concrete mixes as aggregate and cement replacement and
drew attention to the enhancement in the mechanical and durability properties of
the ceramic waste-based concrete specimens. This study, however, primarily focuses
on the utility of ceramic waste in cement composites such as cement paste, mortar
and concrete as cement replacement. The chief objective of this article is to gauge
the durability performance of cement composites containing ceramic waste (CW) in
terms of their corrosion and chemical attack resistance when subjected to aggressive
environments.
Appraising the Influence of Ceramic Waste Incorporation … 515
2 Materials and Methods
The oxide composition of the CW utilised in various studies discloses that CW

is primarily composed of silica and alumina. The CW particles chiefly have an
irregular and angular shape [29–31]. The assessment of corrosion and chemical
attack resistance of cement composites has been carried out with the aid of several
tests which evaluate the resistance to aggressive agents, resistance against chloride
and sulphate attack and electrical resistivity. The replacement ratio adopted for the
investigations were majorly up to 40%, except for the studies by Kulovaná et al. [32]
and Vejmelková et al. [33] that assessed up to 60% substitution by CW. This review
would facilitate the determination of the optimal replacement ratio for obtaining
desirable corrosion and chemical attack resistance in cement composites.
3 Durability Performance of Cement Composites

Incorporating Ceramic Waste
3.1 Resistance to Acid and Sulphate Attack
Sánchez de Rojas et al. [34] reported no remarkable deterioration of pastes on expo-

sure to sulphate. The reference paste and the paste with CW incorporation exhibited
similar weight gain. The evaluation of the resistance to such aggressive agents was
quantified in compliance with the Koch–Steinegger criteria, which advocates a corro-
sion index greater than 0.7. The corrosion index is estimated as the ratio of flexural
strength in aggressive media to that in water. The addition of CW yields superior
or comparable durability relative to the reference paste. Additionally, the authors
computed the ratio of flexural strength to compressive strength. This ratio was ascer-
tained to be higher for the paste incorporating CW, which illustrates the more rapid
increase in flexural strength than compressive strength on such additions.
The chemical resistance of concrete samples subjected to corrosion environments
of acid and sulphate demonstrated an improvement on CW addition [32, 33]. The
durability performance of specimens incorporating 20 and 60% CW surpassed the
other concrete samples [32]. Vejmelková et al. [33] noted the superior performance
of concrete specimens with up to 40% CW relative to the reference concrete. All
the CW-based concrete samples attained a coefficient of chemical resistance greater
than 0.75.
The mortar samples were subjected to Na2 SO4 for a period of 18 months to
investigate their sulphate resistance [35, 36]. The authors reported poor resistance
of the reference mortar marked by significant distortion of its surface. Moreover, the
durability against sulphate attack was also gauged by accounting for the variation in
mass and the residual compressive strength of the samples after exposure. Initially,
up to 2 months of exposure, the samples exhibited mass gain. Conversely, on further
increase in exposure, the reference mortar displayed a mass loss owing to an accel-
eration in the sulphate attack and subsequent expansion within the mortar. However,
the mortar containing CW demonstrated an increase in mass during the whole period.
The formation of gypsum was inferred as the primary cause for the marked expan-
sion, introducing cracks and causing consequent spalling of mortar. The secondary
pozzolanic reaction triggered by CW utilises Ca(OH)2 , which consequently results
in a decline in gypsum formation. Furthermore, the production of ettringite aided
with the presence of gypsum might additionally intensify the cracks for the refer-
ence sample. The mortar with CW reveals a substantially higher value of residual
compressive strength than the reference mortar.
The improved durability performance of pastes with CW is on account of the
additional C–S–H gel produced due to its pozzolanic reaction, and the physical
filling effect that leads to pore structure refinement [34–36]. The decomposition
of the hydration products imputed to the intensive sulphate attack in the reference
sample lead to the tremendous loss in compressive strength [35, 36].
3.2 Chloride Resistance
The resistance to chloride attack was appraised by the execution of the rapid chloride
penetration test (RCPT), by the determination of the apparent chloride diffusion
coefficient, by the chloride diffusion test, and by exposure to chloride. These diverse
evaluations highlight an increase in the resistance against chloride ion penetration in
the cement composites containing CW.
The RCPT revealed a remarkable improvement in the chloride penetration resis-
tance of the cement composites containing CW marked by a significant decline in
the total passed charge as shown in Fig. 1 [29–31]. The classification pertaining to
the qualitative assessment of chloride resistance was inferred as per ASTM C1202
(2017). Subsequent to 28 days of curing, the inclusion of CW greater than 20, 10 and
0% for M25, M50 and M75 mixes, respectively, yielded a low to very low chloride
ion penetration classification [30]. Likewise, the mortar samples having greater than
10% CW incorporation achieved a very low chloride ion penetration classification
[29]. All the concrete samples with CW had a very low chloride ion penetration
classification at 90 days of age.
Zito et al. [37] determined the chloride profile for the reference sample and
concrete with 24% CW inclusion subsequent to immersion in NaCl for 56 days.
The concrete with CW addition disclosed a higher level of superficial chloride ion
concentration and a lower apparent chloride diffusion coefficient than the reference
sample. Similarly, the CW-based concrete sample exhibited a substantial drop in chlo-
ride diffusivity [7, 8]. However, the SW-based concrete sample presented a similar
diffusion level as the reference concrete. The classification regarded by the authors
was proposed by Gjorv [38], where the concrete under evaluation acquired a very
high chloride resistance.
6000
L.G. Li et al. (2020) w/cm =
0.25
5000 L.G. Li et al. (2020) w/cm =
0.30
Total Charge (Coulombs)
L.G. Li et al. (2020) w/cm =

4000
0.35
L.G. Li et al. (2020) w/cm =
3000 0.40
El-Dieb and Kanaan (2018)
M25
2000
Kannan et al. (2017) M50
1000 El-Dieb and Kanaan (2018)

M50
0 El-Dieb and Kanaan (2018)

M75
0 10 20 30 40 50
Replacement Ratio (in %)
Fig. 1 RCPT total charge passed in different cement composites as reported in the literature [29–31]
The mortar containing CW demonstrated a lessened chloride penetration depth

along with a lesser increase in mass relative to the reference sample on 18 month
exposure to NaCl [35, 39]. Vejmelková et al. [33] noted the superior performance of
concrete specimens with up to 40% CW relative to the reference concrete, whereas
concrete with 60% CW underperformed on exposure to chloride. All the CW-based
concrete samples attained a coefficient of chemical resistance greater than 0.75. The
reference paste and the paste with CW incorporation exhibited similar weight gain
when subjected to chloride [34]. The addition of CW yields superior or comparable
durability relative to the reference paste.
The authors attributed the enhancement in the chloride resistance to several
factors. This phenomenal improvement is primarily designated to the densification
and refinement of the microstructure facilitated by the filling and pozzolanic effect
of CW [7, 8, 29, 30, 35, 37]. The development of the pore structure consequently
results in a decline in the entry of detrimental particles from the surrounding [35, 39].
Additionally, the lowered production of Ca(OH)2 owing to the decrease in cement
content with CW addition lowers the pore solution pH, hence improving the electrical
resistivity.
3.3 Electrical Resistivity
The bulk electrical resistivity was examined to adjudge the corrosion protection
level of the concrete in accordance with ACI 222R-01 (2009). The M25, M50 and
M75 grade concrete indicated a tremendous enhancement in the electrical resistivity
with an increasing amount of CW inclusion [30, 31]. El-Dieb and Kanaan [30]
detected a high to very high corrosion protection levels on CW addition greater than
10% at 28 days of age for M25 and M50 grade concrete specimens. However, after
90 days of curing, all the samples containing CW yielded high to very high corrosion
protection levels. On the other hand, the M75 grade concrete attained a very high
corrosion protection level for all samples with CW regardless of the curing age. This
noteworthy enhancement is ascribed to the filling and pozzolanic effect of CW. Their
collaborative influence is effectuating microstructure densification and reduction in
pore connectivity.
3.4 Carbonation
Reiterman et al. [40] and Sáez del Bosque et al. [41] investigated the mean carbon-
ation depth to quantify the extensiveness of CO2 permeation through the concrete
specimens. The authors noted a rise in the carbonation depth with an increase in CW
addition and exposure. The reduction in the amount of Ca(OH)2 arising from the
pozzolanicity of CW, and the dilution effects on higher replacement ratios weaken
the resistance against carbonation in the CW-based samples. Moreover, the inade-
quacy of the curing duration in allowing for the progression of the pozzolanic reaction
in the supplementary material might be attributed to the observed behaviour [41].
Kulovaná et al. [32] and Vejmelková et al. [33] assessed the chemical resistance
of CW-based concrete samples subjected to CO2 , which displayed a comparable
chemical resistance as the reference specimen.
4 Conclusion
The primary objective of this study is to review the influence of ceramic waste addi-
tion on the corrosion and chemical attack resistance of cement composites. The
feasibility of using ceramic waste as supplementary cementitious material is evident
from its pozzolanic activity that produces additional C–S–H gel. The incorporation of
up to 40% CW enhances the chemical resistance, chloride penetration resistance and
electrical resistivity of the composites. This enhancement is chiefly attributable to
the refinement and densification of the microstructure on account of the filling effect
and pozzolanic effect of ceramic waste. However, the resistance against carbona-
tion is lowered slightly on CW addition. Nevertheless, the long-term performance
assessment of cement composites containing CW on exposure to corrosive environ-
ments could be explored further. The usage of ceramic waste could thus facilitate the
attainment of favourable properties while simultaneously being contributory towards
sustainability.
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Experimental Analysis of Micro-Silica
Fume and Steel Fibers on the Strength
of Concrete Mix
Manoj Kumar Poonia and Amardeep Boora
Abstract This study aims to analyze the impact of micro-silica fume (MSF) and
straight stainless steel fibers (SSF) on M30 grade concrete. In the experimental proce-
dure, the weight of the cement was replaced by MSF at 0, 3, 6, 9, and 12% proportions,
and the volume of designed mix was replaced by SSF at different proportions 0, 0.7,
1.4, 2.1, and 2.8%. The ratio of length by diameter, i.e., aspect ratio of steel fiber
is kept as 80 with the diameter of steel fiber 0.50 mm. After addition of MSF and
SSF, the specimens were tested to examine their compressive strength, split-tensile
strength, and flexural strength. Also, a statically correlation analysis between the
bonding strength and mechanical properties of specimens was observed. The results
have shown the maximum coupled effect of MSF and SSF in case of MX3 mix design
which increase the mechanical properties of concrete.
Keywords Micro-silica fume · Stainless steel fibers · Compressive strength ·

Split-tensile strength · Flexural strength · Correlation
1 Introduction
Constructions in civil engineering have their own structural and durability require-
ments in this modern age. Modifications in traditional cement concrete have become
mandatory in order to satisfy the desired purpose of each structure [1]. Plain concrete
can have various weaknesses, i.e., poor tensile strength and low bond strength, permit-
ting strain at cracks and unnecessary permeability, but addition of admixtures can
overcome these deficiencies [2]. MSF is a by-product of the silicon metal smelting
process, having high contented glassy-phase SiO2 with small, spherical particles
(ca.100–500 microns) which are roughly 100 times smaller than cement particles
M. K. Poonia (B) · A. Boora

Civil Engineering Department, Jaypee University of Information Technology, Waknaghat, Solan,
Himachal Pradesh 173234, India
e-mail: ermanojpoonia@gmail.com
A. Boora
e-mail: amardeep@juitsolan.in
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4040-8_42
524 M. K. Poonia and A. Boora
[3]. Incorporation of MSF in concrete played three functions as pore size refinement
with matrix densification, reactivity with free lime, and inter-facial improvement
of cement paste aggregates [4]. Calcium hydroxide (CH) is used by silica fume to
generate the strength contributing material for C–S–H gel. The material’s behavior is
similar to Portland cement, which can improve the mechanical properties of concrete.
This can strengthen the inter-facial transition zone (ITZ) between the aggregate fiber
and the matrix, allowing for the elimination of large preferentially arranged CH
crystals and increased homogeneity [5–7]. Since the 1960s, fiber has been used to
improve the qualities of cement-based composites, i.e., mechanical properties, abra-
sion resistance, energy absorption capacity fatigue, and load-bearing capability of
concrete [8, 9]. Stress transmission capability of randomly dispersed fibers prevents
when micro-cracks are extended and propagated as a result of internal stresses in
concrete. Fibers, based on the size and quantity, carry on a certain amount of stress
that occurs in the cementitious matrix and transfer the remainder to the stable cement-
matrix portions. And about steel fiber reinforced concrete (SFRC), aspect ratio, and
fiber dosages are the most significant factors of concrete characteristics [10, 11].
The qualities of the ingredients, such as cement paste, aggregates, and fibers, as well
as their interactions and mix proportions, influence the behavior of fibrous concrete
[12]. The fibers are made up of carbon or stainless steel having tensile strength limit
of 200–600 MPa. Fibers resist cracks origin and also improve ductility of the concrete
[13]. The inclusion of silica fume to recycled aggregate concrete (RCA) including
both kinds of coarse aggregates increased the split-tensile and compressive strengths.
However, steel fibers enhanced the compressive and split-tensile strengths of RCA.
And, the authors investigated that combined use of silica fume and steel fibers had
a major impact on the compressive and split-tensile strength of all RCA, maybe
providing a superior bond of steel fibers with mortar carrying silica fume, as well
as an improved ITZ among RCA and mortar [14]. Liu [15] obtained the highest
compressive strength (CS) (52.9%) by the addition of 5% of MSF and 3% of SSF,
highest flexural strength (FS) by the addition of 30% MSF and 2% SSF, and highest
split-tensile strength (STS) by the addition of 30% MSF and 3% SSF in Ultra-High-
Performance Geo Polymer Concrete (UHGPC) compared to unmodified concrete
[15]. Findings show that using silica fume as a pozzolana material and steel fiber as
a fracture catcher significantly increase concrete’s ability to absorb kinetic energy
[16]. Ramadoss [17] investigated that combined usage of superplasticizer and supple-
mentary cementing materials (SCMs) like silica fume which is almost valuable and
widely used mineral admixture having a pozzolanic reaction and filler-effect, which
will strengthen the materials’ interface and so increasing their strength and durability
of concrete which can lead to cost-effective high-performance concrete. Fibers are
required in high-strength concrete (HSC) when the material’s inherent brittleness
makes its use difficult. Fibers in concrete are being used in a variety of infrastructure
and industrial utilizations, rigid pavements, marine constructions, and earthquake
resistant buildings [18]. In present study, the mix design quantities of cement, fine
aggregates, and coarse aggregates remain in the ratio of 1:1.45:2.64, respectively,
having constant water-to-cement (w/c) ratio as 0.44. Following the addition of MSF
and SSF, the experimental specimens were tested for their mechanical properties at 7
Experimental Analysis of Micro-silica Fume and Steel Fibers … 525
and 28 days, with results demonstrating a significant enrichment in the bond strength.
The optimal amount of MSF and SSF was determined without compromising the
essential concrete properties.
2.1 Materials
The program’s constituent materials were tested to ensure that they met Indian Stan-
dards. The materials were subjected to frequent control testing to ensure supply
homogeneity. The investigation used ordinary Portland cement with a 28 day
compressive strength of 43 MPa, a specific gravity of 3.01, and all other phys-
ical parameters were found within the range as specified to IS 269 [19], as given
in Table 1. A commercially existing MSF having specific gravity, specific area are
2.20 and 1,800,000 cm2 /gm, respectively, was used in the study. Also SSF of 0.50
mm diameter having length by diameter, i.e., aspect ratio as 80 was used. The coarse
aggregate had a maximum size of 20 mm and specific gravity of 2.87 and a natural
river fine aggregate of specific gravity 2.69 was used. Sieve analysis and other tests
were performed as per BIS IS: 383 [20], and the aggregate was found to be Zone-II
grading. Finally, the mix proportion for M30 grade which should exhibit minimum
strength 30 MPa after 28 days curing time period was designed by following the
Table 1 Properties of cement

S. No Characteristics Experimental value Specified value as per Remarks
IS: 269 [19]
1 Consistency of the 33% 26–33% Satisfactory
cement (%)
2 Specific gravity (in 3.01 3.1–3.16 Satisfactory
gm/cm3 )
3 Initial setting time (in 37 >30 Satisfactory
minutes)
4 Final setting time (in 286 <600 Satisfactory
minutes)
5 Compressive strength (N/mm2 )
(i) at 3 days 27.56 Min. 23 Satisfactory
(ii) at 7 days 40.57 Min. 33 Satisfactory
(iii) at 28 days 48.96 Min. 43 Satisfactory
6 Soundness (in mm) 1 Max.10 Satisfactory
7 Fineness of the cement 240 Min. 225 Satisfactory
(in m2 /kg)
guidelines of IS: 10262 [21], and the preparation of all concrete sample was done
with potable water.
2.2 Experimental Method
After evaluating all the ingredients of concrete and utilizing their results, mix propor-
tion for M30 grade concrete was designed by following the standards of IS 10262
[21] and preserving a constant water–cement ratio of 0.44, the details of which are
in Table 2. The required quantity of all ingredients of concrete as per mix design
was properly mixed and placed in standard molds to determine compressive strength
(CS), split-tensile strength (STS), and flexural strength (FS). Standard molds of size
(150 mm × 150 mm × 150 mm), standard cylinders of size (300 mm × 150 mm),
and prisms of size (150 mm × 150 mm × 700 mm) were used to cast the specimens
of concrete to test CS, STS, and FS. The amount of cement, fine aggregates, coarse
aggregates, MSF, SSF and water for each batch was weighted to an exactness of
1 kg individually. Cement, sand, and MSF are added to this mix in dry state. At last,
coarse aggregates were added and thoroughly mixed to get a uniform mix all over
the batch, whereas steel fibers were randomly dispersed into it. During the mixing
process, the needed amount of water was added.
The concrete was thoroughly mixed until it appeared homogeneous and of the
proper consistency. The concrete mix so prepared was tested for slump flow and
reading of slump correctly recorded. Internal surfaces of the molds were lubricated
in order to avoid the sticking of concrete. Concrete was then poured in earlier prepared
molds with controlled vibration applied to the concrete. The surface of the concrete
was leveled with the help of a trowel, and the date and batch number were carefully
marked on it. Finished specimens were left to harden and demolded after casting
for 24 h. In the meantime, they were placed in a water tank contained potable water
and were left for curing. Finally, they were tested after 7 and 28 day curing regimes.
In this operation, control concrete is denoted as M0S0 and the mixes with 3, 6, 9,
and 12% silica fume replacement with cement while 0.7, 1.4, 2.1, and 2.8% steel
fiber replacement with volume of designed mix of concrete were denoted as M1S1,
M2S2, M3S3, and M4S4, respectively.
Table 2 Details of mix proportion of concrete (kg/m3 )

Mix ID Cement MSF SSF Fine aggregate Coarse aggregate
M0S0 448.09 00 00 649.73 1182.95
M1S1 434.65 13.44 54.95 649.73 1182.95
M2S2 421.21 26.88 117.75 649.73 1182.95
M3S3 407.77 40.32 164.85 649.73 1182.95
M4S4 394.33 53.76 219.8 649.73 1182.95
3 Result Analysis and Discussion
Compressive strength is the most popular way to assess the quality of hardened
concrete. In the compressive strength test, three specimens were examined for each
curing regime, and the average of the three specimens was reported as compressive
strength. From the results obtained as per Table 3 and Fig. 1a, it is observed that
with the partial replacement of cement with silica fume and steel fibers in concrete,
the highest 7 and 28 days compressive strength obtained 33.16 and 47.95 N/mm2
which are 41.22% and 26.45%, respectively, higher over ordinary concrete. It is a
well-known fact that when water is added to cement it starts reacting with the lime
present and calcium–silicate–hydrate (C–S–H) gel is formed which is responsible for
bond strength and simultaneously compressive strength so here when adding of silica
fume in concrete due to its very fine about 100 times finer particles than cement parti-
cles provides high specific surface area reacts with free lime, i.e., calcium hydroxide
(CH) which is a by-product of the primary chemical reactions and responsible for the
pore spaces in the concrete and makes it inferior. This reaction provides additional
Table 3 Result of compressive, split-tensile, and flexural strengths

MIX Silica weight Fiber Compressive Split-tensile Flexural
portion (kg) volume strength measured strength strength
portion (%) (N/mm2 ) measured measured
(N/mm2 ) (N/mm2 )
7 day 28 day 7 day 28 day 7 day 28 day
M0S0 0.000 0 23.48 37.92 2.36 3.46 3.64 6.96
M1S1 0.333 0.7 26.04 40.78 3.01 4.89 4.94 8.31
M2S2 0.666 1.4 29.38 44.46 3.68 5.62 5.83 10.98
M3S3 0.999 2.1 33.16 47.95 4.47 6.08 7.25 12.98
M4S4 1.2 2.8 32.03 46.59 4.39 5.99 6.89 12.32
CS7 CS28 TS7 TS28 FS7 FS28

120
Increment in TS (%)
45 100
Increment in FS (%)
Increment in CS (%)
40 100
35 80
30 80
25 60 60
20 40
15 40
10 20 20
5
0 0 0
M1S1 M2S2 M3S3 M4S4 M1S1 M2S2 M3S3 M4S4 M1S1 M2S2 M3S3 M4S4
Mix type Mix type Mix type
(a) (b) (c)
Fig. 1 Variation in a compressive strength, b split-tensile strength, and c flexural strength with
different curing time period
C–S–H in the available pores due to the pozzolanic reaction. Thus, it helps enhance
compressive strength and improves the binder-matrix, making it much denser. Due to
the pozzolanic behavior of MSF, concrete becomes impenetrable and more substan-
tial as it strengthen the ITZ, whereas steel fiber increases the toughness and post-
cracking behavior of concrete as it bridges the fracture after initial cracking in the
matrix and transfers the tension across them. MSF increases the brittleness, whereas
SSF imparts ductility to concrete thus their combination provides overall increment
in concrete strengths [15, 22].
3.2 Split-Tensile Strength
From the results obtained as per Table 3 and Fig. 1b, it was observed that due to
the incorporation of MSF and SSF in concrete, the highest 7 and 28 days split-
tensile strength obtained as 4.47 and 6.08 N/mm2 which is 89.40% and 75.72%,
respectively, higher over normal ordinary concrete. This is due to the fact that the
split-tensile strength of normal concrete is much lower than its compressive strength
due to the presence of weak links within the concrete matrix and on the addition of
silica fume to concrete, there is an enhancement in cohesiveness and decrement in
porosity resulting in the better inter-facial transition zone. However, incorporation of
steel fibers bounds the cement/aggregate matrix and reduces the cracks origin. Thus,
MSF refines the pore structure and SSF binds the matrix of produced concrete and
hence improves the mechanical strength.
3.3 Flexural Strength
Like compressive and split-tensile strength, there is also improvement in the flexural
strength of concrete with the addition of silica fume in the concrete due to the particle
size of silica fume which is about 100 times finer than ordinary Portland cement as
it improves the thixotropic behavior due to ball bearing effect and enhanced fineness
modulus of concrete. Because of the high specific area of silica fume particles,
they affect water mobility, due to which segregation and bleeding of concrete are
almost eliminated. Along with the incorporation of fibers provides links in-between
binder/aggregates which enhances the ductility during sudden failure of the structure
by arresting the micro-cracks developed in concrete [1]. From the results obtained as
per Table 3 and Fig. 1c, it was found that due to the incorporation of MSF and SSF in
concrete, the highest 7 and 28 days split-tensile strength obtained as 7.25 and 12.98
N/mm2 which is 99.17% and 86.49%, respectively, higher over normal ordinary
concrete. These results demonstrate the enhancement in mechanical properties with
the addition of MSF and SSF to concrete. The enhancement in split-tensile and
flexural strength of concrete is on the higher side when compared with compressive
strength.
Table 4 Correlation of MSF and SSF with different strength properties of concrete
Compressive strength Split-tensile strength Flexural strength
7 day 28 day 7 day 28 day 7 day 28 day
MSF 0.97 0.96 0.98 0.93 0.97 0.96
SSF 0.94 0.93 0.96 0.91 0.95 0.94
4 Correlation Analysis
Pearson product correlation of MSF and SSF contents to CS, STS, and FS at curing
periods of 7 and 28 days was found to be highly positive and statistically significant
(Table 4).
Results show that incorporating micro-silica fume and stainless steel fibers in
concrete led to higher mechanical strength.
5 Conclusions
Replacement of cement by 9% of its weight by MSF with the addition of SSF

at 2.1% by volume of concrete is proved effective in enhancing the mechanical
properties of concrete. On the basis of findings the compressive strength, split-tensile
strength, and flexural strength were found to be increased by 41.22%, 89.40%, and
99.17%, respectively, in comparison with the control mixture after 7 day regime
curing period and the same trend was observed after 28 day regime curing period as
above said strengths were increased by 26.45%, 75.72%, and 86.49%, respectively,
in comparison with the strengths of control mixture. Silica fume makes the concrete
denser by improving the ITZ between aggregate particles and cement pastes and thus
the concrete will be more impermeable and durable and have better acid-resistance
capabilities. Further, stainless steel fiber reduces the brittleness of the concrete and
restrains the cracks opening in case of sudden failure as well as enhances its thermal
capabilities [23].
References
1. Dahake, A. G., & Charkha, K. S. (2016). Effect of steel fibers on strength of concrete. Journal
of Engineering, Science and Management Education, 9(I), 45–51.
2. Hasan-Nattaj, F., & Nematzadeh, M. (2017). The effect of forta-ferro and steel fibers on
mechanical properties of high-strength concrete with and without silica fume and nano-silica.
Construction and Building Materials, 137(2017), 557–572.
3. Nochaiya, T., Wongkeo, W., & Chaipanich, A. (2009). Utilization of fly ash with silica fume
and properties of Portland cement-fly ash-silica fume concrete. Fuel, 89(2010), 768–774.
4. Siddique, R. (2011). Utilization of silica fume in concrete: Review of hardened properties.

Resources, Conservation and Recycling, 55(2011), 923–932.
5. Scrivener, K. L., Crumbie, A. K., & Laugesen, P. (2004). The interfacial transition zone (ITZ)
between cement paste and aggregate in concrete. Interface Science, 12(4), 411–421.
6. Wang, X. H., Jacobsen, S., He, J. Y., Zhang, Z. L., Lee, S. F., & Lein, H. L. (2009). Application
ofnanoindentation testing to study of the interfacial transition zone in steel fiber reinforced.
Cement and Concrete Research, 39(8), 701–715.
7. Wu, Z., Khayat, K. H., & Shi. C. (2019). Changes in rheology and mechanical properties of
ultra-high performance concrete with silica fume content.https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cemconres.
2019.105786
8. Lin, W. -T., Huang, R., Lee, C. -L., & Hsu, H. -M. (2008). Effect of steel fiber on the mechanical
properties of cement-based composites containing silica fume. Journal of Marine Science and
Technology, 16(3), 214–221.
9. Uygunog˘lu, T. (2008). Investigation of microstructure and flexural behavior of steel-fiber
reinforced concrete. Materials and Structures, 41, 1441–1449.
10. Yazici, S., Inan, G., & Tabak, V. (2013). Effect of aspect ratio and volume fraction of steel fiber
on the mechanical properties of SFRC. Construction and Building Materials, 21, 1250–1253.
11. Aydin, S., & Baradan, B. (2013). The effect of fiber properties on high performance alkali-
activated slag/silica fume mortars. Composites: Part B, 45, 63–69.
12. Nematzadeh, M., & Hasan-Nattaj, F. (2017). Compressive stress-strain model for high-strength
concrete reinforced with forta-ferro and steel fibers. Journal of Materials in Civil Engineering,
29(10), 04017152.
13. Köksal, F., Altun, F., Yigit, I., & Sahin, Y. (2008). Combined effect of silica fume and steel fiber
on the mechanical properties of high strength concretes. Construction and Building Materials,
22, 1874–1880.
14. Nazarimofrad, E., Shaikh, F. U. A., & Nili, M. (2016). Effects of steel fibre and silica fume
on impact behaviour of recycled aggregate concrete. Journal of Sustainable Cement-Based
Materials. https://doi.org/10.1080/21650373.2016.1230900
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cement-specification. IS: 269, Sixth Revision, BIS, New Delhi, India.
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the compressive behavior of recycled aggregate concrete after exposure to elevated temperature.
ISSN 0950-0618.
Geotechnical Characterization
of Sugarcane Bagasse Biochar-Amended
Landfill Cover Soil
B. Soundara, D. Vignesh Kumar, N. Praveen, M. Ranjith, and E. Naveen Raj
Abstract Biochar is a solid carbonaceous material acquired from the pyrolysis of

biomass. Biochar plays a major role in the reduction of bioavailability of heavy
metals, enhancement of soil productivity, mitigation of greenhouse gases, etc. The
biochar-amended soils could be used as a landfill biocover, and the evaluation of their
geotechnical characteristics such as compressibility and shear strength is inevitable.
This paper briefs about the compaction, consolidation and shear strength charac-
teristics of biochar-amended natural soil. The sugarcane bagasse (SCB) biochar is
produced at a temperature of 350 °C and used for the study. The biochar is mixed in
different proportions 0, 5, 10 and 15% by weight of soil, and the compaction tests
were carried out to arrive at the optimum moisture content (OMC) and maximum
dry density (MDD). Then, the consolidation and direct shear tests were conducted
for samples compacted at OMC and MDD. Based on the test results, it is observed
that the MDD values are decreasing, and OMC values are increasing upon increasing
the percentage addition of biochar. The SCB biochar tends to enhance the undrained
shear strength parameters of the soil. The reduction in density, improved cohesion
and friction parameters of biochar-amended soils is suitable for the stability of landfill
cover slopes.
Keywords Sugarcane bagasse biochar · Cover · Compressibility · Shear strength ·

Landfill
1 Introduction
Bioengineered structures, namely bioengineered slopes, earthen embankment, cover

of landfill, golf courts and green turf are the major prospective application of
biochar [1–3]. The bioengineered structures showed diversified accomplishments
B. Soundara (B) · D. V. Kumar · N. Praveen · M. Ranjith · E. N. Raj

Department of Civil Engineering, Bannari Amman Institute of Technology, Erode, Tamilnadu
638401, India
e-mail: soundara@bitsathy.ac.in
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4040-8_43
532 B. Soundara et al.
and hence preferred all over the world. As bioengineered constructions are essen-
tially comprised of flora and soil, the general aspects of them are allied to the stability
aspects of slope including erosion, sustaining of water balance through evapotran-
spiration and aesthetic view. Engineered landfills prove to be the best solution for the
solid waste management. The engineered landfill housed layers of compacted wastes
with three basic components: landfill cover, leachate and gas collection systems and
liner. In addition to serve, the vegetation growth to prevent erosion, the cover has
to be checked for its hydraulic conductivity and shear strength to prevent the slope
failure.
Biochar reduces greenhouse gas emissions, enhances soil productivity and envi-
ronmental quality. The biochar can modify the physical (i.e. distribution of pore-
size, surface area, unit weight, penetrability, shear strength, water-holding ability
and compaction) and chemical (i.e. pH, cation exchange capacity (CEC), oxygen:
carbon and hydrogen: carbon ratios) properties of the soil when it is amended to it.
The stability of the biochar depends on its high aromaticity derived from its numerous
functional groups and high carbon content.
Few investigations are executed by other researches on soil erodibility and estab-
lished the comparable results for the effectiveness of biochar-amended soil in bioengi-
neered applications [4–7]. The researchers claimed that the biochar-amended fine-
grained soil showed the development of macro-aggregates and increased porosity.
Jeffery et al. 2015 [8] reported that hydraulic conductivity does not change upon
inclusion of biochar in small proportions to the soil. Certain ambiguities around
soil–water retention characteristics (SWRC) of biochar-amended soil are put forth
by certain studies [8–12]. Abel et al. [13] stated the water retention is increased upon
increasing the biochar content, whereas Jeffery et al. [8] concluded that there is no
influence of hay biochar on the SWRC of sand.
The permeability, consolidation/compaction and shearing resistance are the prin-
cipal soil properties necessary for the proposal of the operative cover of landfill
schemes. However, there is very limited or negligible study that has been put through
in India to study these geotechnical properties of biochar-amended soils. The research
aims at studying the geotechnical properties of the cover soil amended with different
dosages of biochar. Sugarcane bagasse is selected for the preparation of biochar, and
an attempt is made to optimize the biochar content based on the observed pattern of
results.
2 Materials Used
2.1 Soil
This investigation is aimed at arriving the geotechnical characterization of biochar-

amended natural soil. The natural soil was taken at a depth of 30 cm nearby the
Geotechnical Characterization of Sugarcane Bagasse Biochar … 533
Fig. 1 Particle size 100
Percentage finer, %
distribution curve for natural 80
soil
60
40
20
0
0.01 0.1 1 10
Particle size, mm

Property Indian standard (IS) Value
of natural soil used
Specific gravity IS 2720–3[15] 2.67
Grain size distribution IS 2720–4 [16] 67
(a) Coarse fraction (%) 33
(b) Fine fraction (clay and
silt) (%)
Atterberg’s limits IS 2720–5 [17] 30
(a) Liquid limit 24
(b) Plastic limit
Compaction test IS 2720–7 [18] 1.92
characteristics 11
(a) Maximum dry density
(g/cm3 )
(b) Optimum moisture
content (%)
soil mechanics laboratory of Bannari amman institute of technology, Sathyaman-

galam, Tamilnadu. The sieve analysis, Atterberg limit tests, specific gravity and light
compaction tests on soil were carried out based on Indian Standards. The grain size
distribution curve for the collected natural soil is depicted in Fig. 1. The physical
characteristics of the soil are listed in Table 1. The soil is grouped under silty sand
(SM) as per Indian Standard classification system (IS 1498 [14]).
2.2 Biochar
Sathyamangalam is surrounded by a number of sugar factories and thus producing

a huge amount of sugarcane bagasse. Hence, in this research, the sugarcane bagasse
waste is preferred as a feedstock source of biochar. The sugarcane bagasse (SCB)
wastes were collected from a nearby oil mill in Sathyamangalam. The collected SCB
wastes were dried in air and subjected to pyrolysis at 350 °C for about 120 min. The
biochar thus obtained was hand crushed and passed through a 2.0 mm size sieve to
Fig. 2 Images of the a SCB waste and b SCB biochar
neglect the influence of the size of particles. The pictures of SCB and its biochar
used for this research are shown in Fig. 2a and b.
3.1 Light Compaction Tests
The dry density water content correlation was obtained by light compaction test
conducted as per IS 2720–7 [18]. It is a laboratory procedure adopted to find the
optimum water content for the given soil type to achieve the densest thereby attaining
its maximum dry density. The tests were performed for the natural soil and biochar-
amended soil by mixing 5, 10 and 15% SCB biochar by weight of soil. A pilot study
was carried out to arrive at the amendment rate of biochar based on the observation of
a uniform mix. Beyond the 15% amendment, the segregation of biochar was observed
and hence not recommended for the study.
3.2 Direct Shear Tests
The direct shear test for natural soil with and without biochar amendment was
conducted as per IS 2720–13 [19] standard. Initially, the dry proportions of natural
soil and biochar were amended in parts of 5, 10 and 15% SCB biochar by weight of
soil. Then, water is added to the samples which relate to 95% maximum dry density
(MDD) attained from compaction curves. The natural soil and biochar-amended soil
samples were compacted in layers with 95% MDD (corresponding to each biochar
content) within a direct shear box of size 6 × 6 × 3.5 cm. The assembled samples were
sheared at a constant movement amount of 1.25 mm/min for three different normal
stresses (50, 100 and 150 kPa). The shear strength parameters were evaluated by
plotting the maximum shear stress and its conforming normal stress.
3.3 Consolidation Tests
The one-dimensional consolidation test was done to arrive at the compressibility

properties of the soil sample by using a conventional consolidation cell of 6.0 cm
diameter and 2.0 cm height. The silicone grease was applied to the inner side of
the consolidation ring to lessen the effect of sidewall friction. The consolidation
test was conducted on the compacted natural soil and biochar-amended soil with the
initial conditions as mentioned in 3.2. The sample is sandwiched between the top and
bottom porous stones to facilitate two-way drainage. The direct contact between soil
and porous stones was avoided using standard filter papers to prevent the blockage
of pores of the porous stones. A load increment ratio of 1.0 was adopted for the
application of load, and the consolidation test was performed in accordance with IS
2720–15 [20] standard.
4.1 Effect of Biochar on Compaction Characteristics
The plots of dry density versus water content of natural soil and biochar-amended
soil are shown in Fig. 3. The compaction curves are shifted below with respect to the
natural soil upon increasing the percentage addition of sugarcane bagasse biochar
(SCB BC). This implies that the values of maximum dry density (MDD) which are
arrived from the crowning point of the curves are decreasing upon increasing the
percentage addition of SCB BC. Table 2 gives the values of MDD and OMC for
biochar-amended soil. The value of MDD for natural soil is 1.92 g/cc, which in turn
is reduced to 1.748, 1.62 and 1.48 g/cc for SCB BC amended soil with 5%, 10%
and 15%, respectively. The percentage reduction of MDD varies from 8.9 to 22.9%
upon increasing the percentage addition of biochar from 5 to 15%. Other researchers
Fig. 3 Compaction curves 2

of biochar-amended soils
Maximum dry density, g/cc
1.9
Soil alone
1.8 5% SCB BC
10% SCB BC
1.7 15% SCB BC
1.6
1.5
1.4
1.3
1.2
0 10 20 30 40
Moisture Content, %
Table 2 Values of OMC and

SCB BC amendment, % OMC, % MDD, g/cc
MDD for natural soil with
different SCB BC amendment 0 11 1.92
5 15 1.748
10 21 1.62
15 24 1.48
[21, 22] also made the comparable observations. The biochar being a lightweight
material and the addition of it could reduce the density of the amended soil mass [7].
In addition, the possible increment in porosity of soil mass by the addition of biochar
could have impact on density reduction of the amended soil [23].
The value of optimum moisture content (OMC) of the soil is 11% and tend to
decrease with the biochar addition. The compaction curves shift to the right upon
the incremental addition of biochar with soil. Hence, the OMC values of biochar-
amended soils are found to be 15, 21 and 24% with SCB BC addition of 5, 10 and
15%, respectively. The similar observation was also made by other researchers [21,
24]. The biochar-amended soil exhibits increased porosity and thereby increases the
water-holding capacity and this may be attributed for the higher OMC upon addition
of biochar [24].
4.2 Effect of Biochar on Shear Strength of Soil
The shear strength assessment is vital for any slope stability aspects especially in the
case of landfill covers. The normal stress versus peak shear stress plots obtained from
direct shear tests are shown in Fig. 4. With the increase in the SCB biochar addition,
150 Soil Alone 5% SCB BC

10% SCB BC 15% SCB BC
Linear (Soil Alone) Linear (5% SCB BC)
Linear (10% SCB BC) Linear (15% SCB BC)
y = 0.6322x + 12
Shear Stress, kPa
100 y = 0.5812x + 11
y = 0.5099x + 9.3333
y = 0.45x + 8.9134
50
0
0 50 100 150 200
Normal Stress, kPa
Fig. 4 Mohr–Coulomb failure envelopes for natural soil with different SCB BC amendment
Table 3 Shear strength

SCB BC amendment % c (kPa) φ (0 )
parameters for natural soil
with different SCB BC 0 8.91 24.23
amendment 5 9.33 27.01
10 11 30.165
15 12 32.3
the plots lifted upward. This indicates the increment in shear strength parameters of
the amended soil than the natural soil. The values of cohesion (c) and angle of internal
friction (φ) arrived from the linear equations are listed in Table 3. The natural soil
possesses a cohesion value of 8.91 kPa, which in turn is increased, with the addition
of SCB biochar amendment. The percentage increase in cohesion varied from 4.7
to 34.7 with the addition of SCB BC from 5 to 15%. The higher cohesion for the
amended soil may be attributed by the functional groups present in the biochar that
assist in the greater electrostatic hold between soil and biochar and also the porous
nature of biochar resulted in higher interlocking in applied normal stress [2, 23, 25].
Similar to the cohesion value, the angle of internal friction for the SCB BC amended
soil also improved with rise in percentage addition. The angle of internal friction
for the natural soil is 24.230 , and the percentage increase of φ with the addition
of biochar varies from 11.5 to 33.3 for 5% to 15% SCB BC amended soils. This
increase could be attributed by the increased interlocking mechanism between soil
and biochar [7].
4.3 Effect of Biochar on Consolidation Characteristics of Soil
There is a need to study the consolidation behaviour of biochar-amended soil since the
compressibility affects the porosity of biochar. The coefficient of consolidation gives
the rate of consolidation of soil sample when it is exposed to an incremental pressure.
From the time versus settlement data of different pressure increments (6.25, 12.5,
25, 50 and 100 kPa), the coefficient of consolidation (C v ) is acquired using Taylor’s
square root time method. Table 4 gives the values of C v for natural soil and SCB BC
amended soil in different proportions. From the C v values, it is noted that the rate
of consolidation declines with a rise in pressure irrespective of biochar-amendment
percentage. With the increase in biochar-amendment percentage, the C v value also
increased for the same consolidation pressure. This indicates that the porous nature
of biochar facilitate a faster rate of consolidation and hence showed an improved C v
value.
Table 4 Coefficient of consolidation values for natural soil with different SCB BC amended soils
Consolidation pressure, kPa Amendment rate of SCB biochar
Natural soil 5% 10% 15%
C v (in m2 /yr)
6.25 5.01 5.89 6.5 6.9
12.5 4.89 4.92 5.3 5.5
25 4.65 4.8 5.04 5.3
50 4.14 4.5 4.95 5
100 3.89 4.05 4.6 4.8
5 Conclusions
The difference in the compaction properties, shear strength aspects and rate of consol-
idation upon amending different percentages of sugarcane bagasse (SCB) wastes has
been described in this paper. The light compaction, direct shear and consolidation
tests were performed on natural soil and soil amended with 5.0, 10 and 15% of
sugarcane bagasse biochar. From the test results, the following conclusions can be
drawn:
• The values of MDD and OMC of soil are changing upon the addition of SCB BC.
The MDD values are decreasing and OMC values are increased upon increasing
the percentage addition of biochar. About 23% drop in MDD values and 24% rise
in OMC are noted for the maximum percentage amendment, i.e. 15% SCB BC
amended soil. The decrease in the density of soil by biochar amendment favoured
the increase in the safety factors evaluated for the cover slope of landfills.
• The SCB biochar tends to enhance the undrained shear strength parameters of
the soil. About 35% increase in cohesion (c) and 33% increment in the angle
of internal friction (φ) are observed for the maximum percentage amendment,
i.e. 15% SCB BC amended soil. The effect of submergence/saturation could be
studied further.
• The increase in C v values is noted with incremental percentage addition of SCB
BC to the natural soil. About 75% increase in C v value for the consolidation
pressure of 100 kPa is observed for the maximum percentage amendment, i.e.
15% SCB BC amended soil.
The above results are obtained for SCB amended natural soil, however, the effect
of type of biochar feedstock, temperature for pyrolysis and particle size of biochar
need to be studied further.
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Experimental Analysis the Effect of Silica
Fume on the Mechanical Properties
of Concrete Mix
Pradeep Kuhar and Amardeep Boora
Abstract The exploitation of modern by-products has become a necessity rather

than their disposal due to their probable adverse effect and enlarged ecological alert-
ness. Real evidence prompts micro-silica to be mixed into concrete for durability
and strength. While doing this research, silica fume is used instead of some part of
cement in concrete as a fractional replacement. In the analysis, silica fume is used
at various percentages like 0, 4.5, 7, 9.5, and 12% by the mass of cement in M35
grade of mix proportion with water–cement ratio 0.49. The experimental specimens
were analyzed for workability, durability, and mechanical properties of the concrete,
subjected to various curing regimes. A mathematical regression model with elements
of concrete mix is used as a variable is planned and developed, which yielded excel-
lent regression coefficients for the calculation of mechanical properties at several
curing stages which further strengthens the findings of the work.
Keywords Mechanical · Compressive strength · Split tensile strength · Flexural

strength · Cement · Silica fume · Regression and correlation
1 Introduction
The use of modern by-products has proved to be a genuinely appealing choice for
disposal because of the increased ecological alertness and likely dangerous impacts.
Silica fume is one of the most popular pozzolanas and is also named as micro-
silica fume. Its reaction with concrete enhances various mechanical properties of the
concrete [1]. It is well acknowledged that different researchers have yet to arrive at
the appropriate silica fume replacement percentage for attaining the best outcomes
because there is a lot of disagreement among them [2]. Green high-performance
P. Kuhar (B) · A. Boora

Civil Engineering Department, Jaypee University of Information Technology, Himachal Pradesh,
Waknaghat, Solan 173234, India
e-mail: pradeepkuhar@gmail.com
A. Boora
e-mail: amardeep@juitsolan.in
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4040-8_44
542 P. Kuhar and A. Boora
concrete (GHPC) makes imperative to use supplementary cementing materials as

mineral admixtures in replacement of cement in concrete and a by-product of silicon
metal, i.e., silica fume is one of those mineral admixtures which develops its own
characteristics with concrete development, but it also affects the workability a lot [3,
4]. Silica fume is made up of very minute spherical particles of silicon dioxide (SiO2),
which makes concrete stronger than control concrete due to its high pozzolanic reac-
tivity in the early stages of aging [5]. Silica fume is the collected smoke produced
during the creation of metallic silicon or ferrosilicon alloys by using electric arcs or
furnaces with raw materials like coal, quartz, and woodchips. It may be light to dark
gray in color, depending upon the manufacturing, raw material, type of metal created,
and exhaust temperature. While selecting the silica fume for particular application,
careful concern is needed as the substance is divided commercially into various forms
due to the problems like dispensing consideration, transportation, and storage as its
particles are a hundred times smaller than Ordinary Portland Cement [6, 7]. From
the study carried out by Roy and Sil [8], it is observed that compressive strength,
split tensile strength, and flexural strength are increased by 19.6, 38.58, and 21.3%,
respectively, over normal control concrete with 10% silica fume replacement with
cement at a constant water–cement ratio of 0.45 using OPC 53 grade cement, and
this study also advocates that the use of silica fume concrete will be cheaper in the
construction industry than normal concrete. Due to the high pozzolanic characteris-
tics of silica fume, it not only helps in formation of C-S-H gel but also reduces the
CH crystals orientation and transition interface which ultimately enhance pore size
refinement and make dense concrete which will be more durable and have resistant
to chemical attack and have high strength as compared to normal concrete [7, 9,
10] and also lowers the permeability of the concrete [12]. In another study, [11, 15]
concluded that silica fume protects the rusting of steel embedded in concrete in struc-
tures constructed in marine area as its chloride-binding capacity enhances concrete
to resist the infiltration of chloride ions. According to [13], the mineral admixtures
including silica fume significantly increase the properties of concrete but also affect
the ease with which one can mix and place the concrete, and for this reason, concrete
has to resort to different superplasticizers to work on a necessary slump. Dybel et al.
[14] in their study concluded that as per the consistency class and element height,
silica fume replacement with cement can influence the bond stress of top and bottom
rebars to a greater extent and its value ranges from 6 to 21% for medium element,
whereas 17–35% for tall element. Imam et al. [15] in an review study state that
compressive strength of concrete containing silica fume increases between 8 and
12% replacement, while flexural and tensile strength increases up to a limit of 10–
15% replacement and also all these strengths decrease with increment in w/c ratio
with increment in silica fume replacement. In his study, Wetzel [16] concluded that
ultra-high-performance concrete (UHPC) with silica content up to 12.5% by weight
can be achieved based on alkali-activated material without any superplasticizers by
keeping good workability. There is decrement in permeability and enhancement in
compressive strength significantly as microstructure of the concrete gets homoge-
nized after the incorporation of silica fume into it and with its value fractal dimension
get decreases [17, 21]. For constant compacting effort with flexibility to vary the void
Experimental Analysis the Effect of Silica Fume … 543
ratio, it was observed that there is decrement in the void content with the presence of
silica fume in the concrete [20]. According to Xu et al. [18], the silica fume replace-
ment up to 15% enhances the mechanical properties of magnesium silicon potassium
phosphate cement (MSPPC) system as well as considerably and successfully extend
the setting time than traditional magnesium phosphate cement (MPC). The influence
of silica fume is greater in high strength concrete than in normal strength concrete,
and it can reduce maintenance and repair costs as well as enhance performance
during adverse climatic conditions [19]. In this study, the effect of silica fume on
the mechanical properties of concrete is carried out at a constant water–cement ratio
of 0.49 with different percentages of silica fume replacement experimentally with
an objective to determine the optimum amount of replacement of cement with silica
fume without compromising the requisite properties of concrete, and also the results
were analyzed statistically to reinforce the findings of the work.
2.1 Materials
The program’s constituent materials were tested to ensure that they met Indian Stan-
dards. The investigation used Ordinary Portland Cement with a 28-day compressive
strength of 43 MPa, a specific gravity of 3.01, and all other physical parameters that
conformed to IS 269 [22], as given in Table 1.
Table 1 Properties of cement

S. no Characteristics Experimental Specified value
value IS 269 [22]
1 Consistency of 33% –
cement (%)
3 Initial setting 37 > 30
time (Minutes)
4 Final setting 286 < 600
time (Minutes)
5 Compressive
strength
(N/mm2 )
(i) 3 days 27.56 > 23
(ii) 7 days 40.57 > 33
(iii) 28 days 48.96 > 43
6 Soundness (mm) 1 10
7 Fineness of 5% 10%
cement
Table 2 Chemical composition and physical properties of silica fume

Physical properties Chemical properties (%)
Sp. Gravity Sp. Area SiO2 Al2 O3 Fe2 O3 CaO MgO Na2 O K2 O LOI
(g/cm3 ) (cm2 /gm)
Silica fume 2.20 1,800,000 89.5 1.2 2 0.22 0.39 0.64 – 3
A commercially available silica fume was employed, and the properties are
presented in Table 2. The coarse aggregate has a maximum size of 20 mm and a
specific gravity of 2.87, while the fine aggregate was procured from natural river
having a specific gravity of 2.69. On the basis of the sieve analysis results and other
tests in accordance with IS 383 [23], aggregates were found to come under the
category of Zone–II aggregate.
2.2 Experimental Procedure
After evaluating all the ingredients of concrete and utilizing their results, mix propor-
tion for M35 grade concrete was designed by following the standards of IS 10262
[24] and preserving a constant water–cement ratio of 0.49, the details of which are in
Table 3. To assess compressive strength (CS), split tensile strength (TS), and flexural
strength (FS), the appropriate quantity of all concrete materials was properly mixed
and set in standard molds as per mix design. Cast iron standard molds of size (150
× 150 × 150 mm), standard cylinders of size (300 × 150 mm), and prisms of size
(150 × 150 × 700 mm) were used to test CS, TS, and FS. This mixture is dry-added
with sand, cement, and micro-silica. Finally, coarse aggregates were added and well
mixed throughout the batch to ensure a homogenous mixture. During the mixing
process, the needed amount of water was added. The concrete was thoroughly mixed
until it seemed to be homogeneous and of the proper consistency. The slump flow
of the concrete mix was checked, and the reading of slump was carefully recorded.
The interior surfaces of the molds were greased to prevent concrete from sticking.
After that, the concrete was poured into the molds that had already been created, with
the concrete being vibrated in a controlled manner. The surface of the concrete was
leveled with a trowel, and the date and batch number were appropriately marked on
Table 3 Details of mix proportion of concrete (kg/m3 )

Mix ID Cement Silica fume Fine aggregate Coarse aggregate
MX0 402.37 0 680.78 1185.08
MX1 384.26 18.11 680.78 1185.08
MX2 374.2 28.17 680.78 1185.08
MX3 364.15 38.22 680.78 1185.08
MX4 354.09 48.28 680.78 1185.08
it. After about 24 h of casting, the finished specimens were hardened and demoulded.
They were then placed in a water tank with potable water and allowed to cure for a
period of time. Finally, they were tested after 7, 14, and 28 days curing regimes.
In this operation, the normal ordinary concrete (i.e., control concrete) is denoted
as MX0, and the mixes with 4.5, 7, 9.5, and 12% silica fume replacement with cement
were denoted as MX1, MX2, MX3, and MX4, respectively.
3 Result Analysis and Discussion
3.1 Fresh State
3.1.1 Mix Character
It was observed that with the increment in the fraction of silica fume in concrete,
there is an increment in flabbiness as silica fume particles are very much finer than
cement particles, so silica fume concrete shows more cohesiveness than Ordinary
Portland Cement concrete.
3.1.2 Workability and Durability
All the mixes were prepared at a constant water–cement ratio without any use of
superplasticizer, and as per compliance of Indian standards, i.e., IS 1199 [25], poor
workmanship was observed with the increment in the fraction of silica fume from
4.5 to 12%, as compared to the normal ordinary concrete mix. Similarly, the loss of
specimen’s mass and strength due to acid attack was examined, and for the same, the
cubes were submerged in 5% dilute hydrochloric acid solution for a period of 30 days
and the same concentration was maintained throughout this time. On the basis of the
findings, it was observed that the incorporation of silica fume in concrete will result
in the reduction of loss in the overall weight after 30 days’ time period, i.e., in case
of normal concrete the loss in weight was around 5.21%, whereas 7% silica fume
incorporated concrete was showing only 2.39% of loss in weight. It was also found
that the incorporation of silica fume in concrete prevents the acid attack as loss in
compressive strength at 30 days was found about 3.68% lower for the concrete mix
having 9.5% silica fume in comparison with the normal concrete. The acid resistance
has been observed to be improved as silica fume combines with calcium hydroxide
and reducing the amount and size of pore spaces in the concrete, thus ultimately
reduces the acid assault [7, 11, 20].
3.2 Hardened State
Three specimens were analyzed for each curing regimes in compressive strength test,
and average of three specimens is reported as compressive strength. From the results
obtained as per Table 4 and Fig. 1a, it is observed that with the partial replacement
of cement with silica fume in concrete, the highest 7, 14, and 28 days compressive
strength obtained as 35.76, 38.43, and 51.23 N/mm2 which are 41.57, 33.67, and
28.14%, respectively, higher over normal ordinary concrete. It is a well-known fact
that when water is added to cement, it starts reacting with the lime present and calcium
silicate hydrate (C-S-H) gel is formed which is responsible for bond strength and
simultaneously compressive strength so here when we add silica fume in concrete
due to its very fine about 100 times finer particles than cement particles provides high
specific surface area reacts with free lime, i.e., calcium hydroxide (CH) which is a
by-product of the primary chemical reactions and responsible for the pore spaces in
the concrete and makes it inferior [10, 20]. This reaction provides additional C-S-H
in the available pores due to the pozzolanic reaction. Thus, it enhance compressive
strength and improves the matrix, making it much denser.
Table 4 Results of compressive, split tensile and flexural strength

Mix % of Compressive strength Split tensile strength Flexural strength
ID SF (N/mm2 ) (N/mm2 ) (N/mm2 )
added 7 days 14 days 28 days 7 days 14 days 28 days 7 days 14 days 28 days
MX0 0 25.26 28.75 39.98 2.15 2.61 3.58 3.81 4.66 6.59
MX1 4.5 28.47 30.91 42.84 2.34 2.93 3.77 4.27 5.26 6.85
MX2 7 32.19 35.67 47.51 2.52 3.15 4.11 4.98 5.88 7.49
MX3 9.5 35.76 38.43 51.23 2.89 3.37 4.41 5.54 6.22 8.29
MX4 12 33.32 36.04 48.56 2.68 3.21 4.22 5.15 6.09 7.99
CS7 CS14 CS28 TS7 TS14 TS28 FS7 FS14 FS28

50 40 50
Increment in FS (%)
Increment in CS (%)
Increment in TS (%)
40 40
30
30 30
20
20 20
10 10 10
0 0 0
MX1 MX2 MX3 MX4 MX1 MX2 MX3 MX4 MX1 MX2 MX3 MX4
Silica Fume (%) Silica Fume (%) Silica Fume (%)
(a) (b) (c)
Fig. 1 Variation in a compressive strength, b split tensile strength, and c flexural strength with
different silica fume content replacement with cement and at different curing time period
3.2.2 Split Tensile Strength
From the results obtained as per Table 4 and Fig. 1b, it is observed that with the
partial replacement of cement with silica fume in concrete, the highest 7, 14, and
28 days split tensile strength obtained as 2.89, 3.37, and 4.41 N/mm2 which are
34.42%, 29.19%, and 23.18%, respectively, is higher over normal ordinary concrete.
This is due to the fact that the tensile strength of normal concrete is much lower
than its compressive strength due to the presence of weak links within the concrete
matrix, and on the addition of silica fume to concrete, there is an enhancement in
cohesiveness and decrement in porosity resulting in the better interfacial transition
zone. Thus, it refines the pore structure of produced concrete and hence improves
the mechanical strength [12].
3.2.3 Flexural Strength
The addition of silica fume to concrete improves mechanical strengths, due to the
particle size of silica fume, which is around 100 times finer than standard Port-
land Cement as it improves the thixotropic behavior due to ball-bearing effect and
enhanced fineness modulus of concrete. Also due to the high specific area of silica
fume particles, they affect the mobility of water due to which segregation and bleeding
of concrete are nearly eliminated [5]. From the results obtained as per Table 4 and
Fig. 1c, it is observed that with the partial replacement of cement with silica fume in
concrete, the highest 7, 14, and 28 days split tensile strength obtained as 5.54, 6.22,
and 8.29 N/mm2 which are 45.41%, 33.48%, and 25.80%, respectively, is higher
over normal ordinary concrete.
3.2.4 Statistical Analysis
To investigate if silica fume (SF) has a significant impact on compressive strength

(CS), split tensile strength (TS), and flexural strength (FS) at curing regimes of 7, 14,
and 28 day, the obtained test results are analyzed with the mathematical regression
technique which provide the following results as represented in Table 5.
Where H1, H2, and H3 represent that there is a significant impact of SF on CS at
7, 14, and 28 days curing regime, respectively, similarly H4, H5, and H6 represent
that there is a significant impact of SF on TS at 7, 14, and 28 days curing regime,
respectively, and likewise H7, H8, and H9 represent that there is a significant impact
of SF on FS at 7, 14, and 28 days curing regime, respectively. The hypothesis tests
if SF carries as a significant impact on CS at a 7-day curing regime. The dependent
variable CS was regressed on predicting variable SF to test the hypothesis H1. SF
significantly predicted CS, F(1,3) = 14.76, p < 0.05, which indicates that the SF can
play a significant role in shaping CS (beta coefficient = 0.82, p < 0.05). These results
are showing the positive effect of SF on CS, TS, and FS. Moreover, the R2 = 0.83
depicts that the model explains 83% of the variance in CS. Similarly, the results of
Table 5 Regression analysis of silica fume with different strength properties of concrete
Hypothesis Regression Beta R2 F t-value p-value Hypothesis
weights coefficients supported
H1 SF––CS7 0.82 0.83 14.76 3.84 0.03 Yes
H2 SF––CS14 0.77 0.79 11.3 3.36 0.04 Yes
H3 SF––CS28 0.89 0.82 13.4 3.66 0.04 Yes
H4 SF––TS7 0.05 0.8 11.71 3.42 0.04 Yes
H5 SF––TS14 0.06 0.84 15.66 3.96 0.03 Yes
H6 SF––TS28 0.07 0.82 14.03 3.75 0.03 Yes
H7 SF––FS7 0.14 0.83 14.28 3.78 0.03 Yes
H8 SF––FS14 0.13 0.9 28.19 5.31 0.01 Yes
H9 SF––FS28 0.14 0.84 15.98 3.4 0.02 Yes
all hypothesis, i.e., H2, H3, H4, H5, H6, H7, H8, and H9, clearly direct the positive
affect of silica fume (SF) on compressive strength (CS), split tensile strength (TS),
and flexural strength (FS) at curing regime of 7, 14, and 28 days.
4 Conclusion
Partial substitution of cement by silica fumes in concrete may be concluded as the

increment in the hardness of the concrete. Based on an evaluation of fresh and
hardened characteristics of the mix, the optimum dosage of silica fume as a partial
substitute for cement by weight in concrete was found to be 9.5%. On the basis of the
findings of the durability test, the use of silica fume found promising in the concrete
mix as this material facilitates the better hydration of cement particles including
strong bonding among the particles which makes it denser and durable. On the basis
of the findings, the compressive strength, splitting tensile, strength, and flexural
strength were found to be increased by 41.57, 34.42, and 45.40%, respectively, in
comparison with the strength of the control mix after 7 days of curing time period;
while after 14 days of curing, there was an increment of 33.67, 29.19, and 33.48%
in the respective strengths and the similar trend was observed after 28 days of curing
as above said strengths were increased by 28.14, 23.18, and 25.80%, respectively, in
comparison with the strength of control mix. High early strength may be produced in
silica fume concrete with adequate quality control, which could be beneficial in high-
rise structures, bridges, chimneys, machine foundations, and runways, among other
structural applications, and thus, it will provide quick stage-by -stage construction
which further can prove economical for the contractors as well as owners.
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Experimental Investigation on Fly Ash
and Ground Granulated Blast Furnace
Slag-Based Geopolymer Corbels
B. Sumanth Kumar
Abstract Cement is most consumed material after water (Gagg in Engineering

Failure Analysis 40:114–140, 2014) due to the phenomenal growth in infrastructure,
etc., which leads to huge consumption of cement as a building material. In this respect,
geopolymer concrete can prove to be a decisive solution for the concrete industry
as it can replace conventional cement in concrete. It also focuses on the disposal of
industrial waste such as fly ash and ground granular blast furnace slag (GGBS) for use
as a binder due to its chemical action with catalytic alkaline activator solutions to form
inorganic molecules. Fifteen reinforced geopolymer concrete corbels with concrete
grade M40 and different percentages of secondary reinforcement were cast and tested.
Experimental shear strength test results are associated with several analytical and
design codes. The test results showed that the strength in shear for geopolymer
concrete was underestimated established on OPC concrete models. Most of analytical
models are conservative in envisaging the shear capacity of GPC corbels. However,
Hagberg (1983) and Euro Code 2 (2004) predict the best shear performance for GPC
corbels.
Keywords Geopolymer concrete corbels · Shear strength · Empirical approach ·

Shear friction · STM
1 Introduction
The amount of cement consumed will increase many times over the next decade,
as limestone being main raw material for conventional Portland cement, an severe
limestone shortage may occur in 25–50 years. Besides, huge quantities of fly ash are
being generated from thermal power plants whose disposal has become a matter of
concern. Therefore, efforts are being made to address these issues. This includes the
use of additional binders such as fly ash, granulated blast furnace slag and the progress
of binders’ substitute to Portland cement. In this aspect, geopolymer concrete being
B. S. Kumar (B)
Civil Engineering Department, Kakatiya Institute of Technology and Science, Warangal, India
e-mail: bsk109@rediffmail.com
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4040-8_45
552 B. S. Kumar
relatively lower environmental impact holds great potential as a suitable alternative

in the concrete industry.
Geopolymer concrete is prepared by alkaline initiation of silicon (Si) and
aluminum (Al) present in waste by-products such as fly ash, blast furnace and rice
husk ash to develop binders. The polymerization method results in a 3D chain with
tetrahedral bonds and a loop structure composed of Si–O–Al–O bonds, the dimen-
sion of the structure depending on Si to Al ratio. Alkalis that are normally desired
for the polymerization response include sodium hydroxide, potassium hydroxide,
sodium silicate, calcium silicate, etc. [1, 2].
The production cost of OPC concrete is higher than the production cost of higher
grades of GPC concrete. For the production cost of GPC concrete, the cost of produc-
tion is marginally higher than OPC concrete of the lower grade. The limitation for
large-scale applications is the organization of the supply chain. Consider building
with OPC, cement can be bought from local supplier. Geopolymer is a decentralized
production that takes into account local conditions, compared to cement production,
where you have a centralized production and you put your knowledge into a whole.
Study on use of geopolymer concrete to structural purpose is minimal. Currently, the
use of geopolymer concrete is mainly limited to precast concrete constructions. In
precast concrete structures, joint damage occurs in areas of well-defined planes called
shear interfaces/planes, where longitudinal shear stresses can lead to slip failure in
place of diagonal tension failure with well-defined plane, especially in structures such
as corbel and bearing shoe. Therefore, a study of the behavior and shear capacity
of geopolymer concrete corbel section at column–corbel interface is vital in this
circumstances.
The review of literature shows that in case of corbels, load transfer is mostly through
strut action rather than by simple flexure, i.e., the basic assumption of plane section
remaining plane before bending and after bending is not valid, and in order to establish
the strut action the shear span, to effective depth ratio should be preferably equal to
or less than 0.6. The nonlinear behavior of the stresses in the corbel depends on the
shear strain in the elastic range, and thus the shear strength of the interface becomes
a vital factor in the design. In conventional concrete, the ultimate strength of a corbel
is determined by its width (b), effective depth (d), reinforcement ratio (ρ), strength of
the concrete (f ck ) and the shear span to effective depth ratio (av /d). Strength decreases
with an increase in the ratio (av /d) and increases with a rise in the ratio of the main
reinforcement [3]. The investigation of data from experiments on corbels through
horizontal reinforcement stirrups takes depicted that the stirrups are as effective in
taking vertical load as the main tension reinforcement.
In the case of corbels without shear reinforcement, diagonal tension cracks are
formed and a very sudden failure mostly occurs. This type of diagonal tension failure
Experimental Investigation on Fly Ash and Ground … 553
Fig. 1 Structural action of a

column with double corbel
is generally referred as “diagonal splitting failure” [4]. In the case of corbels with hori-
zontal stirrups, additional inclined cracks may occur usually beginning as a flexure
crack at the horizontal face of the corbel and later on propagating as diagonal tension
cracks toward the column–corbel interface.
A double corbel is a structural member in which brackets are projected from
both the sides of a column. From structural point of view, double corbels are short
cantilevers whose shear span to effective depth ratio is less than 1.0. Purpose of
using double corbel for shear capacity study instead of single corbel is to reduce the
moment coming at the interface section due to the application of vertical load with
shear span and hence to ensure that the interface fails mostly in shear and not by any
other mode. However, there was no significant traces of literature on the behavior of
geopolymer concrete-reinforced corbel section (Fig. 1).
a. Materials
Fly Ash: The fly ash with specific gravity of 2.25 was used for the test which is
screened over a 90 micron IS sieve and confirming to IS: 3812 [5].
Ground Granulated Blast Furnace Slag (GGBS): The GGBS with specific gravity
2.90 was used in the test which is conformed to IS: 12,089 [6].
Alkaline Solution: NaOH solution with concentration of 8 mol/L was used. The ratio
of sodium silicate and sodium hydroxide solution was maintained as 2.5, and the
combined solution was kept for 24 h at 25 ± 2° C before being used for cast. Also,
dissolution with water of NaOH is exothermic, and this warmness can disturb the
performance of the concrete.
Water: Clean water is used for investigation in preparing alkaline solution.
554 B. S. Kumar
Table 1 Material proportion used in the GPC (per m3 )

GPC grade Materials
Coarse Fine Fly ash GGBS NaOH Sodium SP
aggregate aggregate (kg) (kg) solution silicate (kg)
(kg) (kg) 8 molarity solution
(kg) (kg)
M40 965 812 252 168 66 165 4.2
Super plasticizer: Super plasticizer is used in the experiment based on Sulfonated

Naphthalene polymers (Fosroc Conplast SP430).
Aggregates: Angular aggregate and crushed stone with nominal size of 20 mm and
specific gravity of 2.8 were used as a coarse aggregate. Fine aggregate from natural
river sand with specific gravity of 2.65 and Zone II conforming to IS: 383 [7] was
considered.
b. Mix Proportions
The proportion of the mixture for the GPC corbel sample was taken from the
procedure described by Rao et al. [8], and the amount of the mix is indicated in
Table 1 after various tests with different proportions.
iii. Cast of Double Corbel Samples
Fifteen (15) corbel samples had been cast of M40 grade of concrete. The sample
consisted of a column of length 400 mm with two symmetric corbels projecting
from its either side. Longitudinal reinforcement of diameter 10 mm and lateral ties
of diameter 6 mm have been provided and spaced equally throughout the length of the
column to ensure adequate reinforcements in compression. In the corbels, the main
tension reinforcement of diameter 10 mm comprised parallel straight bars bent from
the free end of one of the corbels passing through the longitudinal reinforcement of
column and extending up to the free end of the other symmetric corbel.
Six (6) and three (3) samples were provided with interfacial shear reinforcement
of mild steel with 0.53% (2 nos.–6 mm dia.) and 0.80% (3 nos.–6 mm dia.) in the
form of closed rings enclosing the entire sample with columns and corbels, while the
other six (6) samples did not contain any shear reinforcement across the shear plane.
Details of the corbel reinforcement using shear stirrups are displayed in Fig. 2. After
24 h, the samples were de-molded and cured at ambient temperature for 28 days
with relative humidity of 35 ± 2 °C and 75%, respectively, which are maintained.
V-grooves of 4 mm deep were prepared on each side of the corbel samples along the
shear interface prior to testing.
iv. Testing of Double Corbel Samples
The test scheme for bracket/corbel specimens is presented in Fig. 3. For ease,
bracket/corbel samples were tested in an inverted position. The brackets rested on
free plain bearing rollers resting on the support wedge struts. The ratio of shear span
to effective depth was maintained at 0.46 for all samples. The samples were loaded
Fig. 2 Reinforcement
details for column with
double corbel
Fig. 3 Test setup for column

with double corbel
556 B. S. Kumar
axially till failure which was confirmed by emergence and development of crack
at the interface of column and corbel. The typical failure in the corbel samples is
displayed in Figs. 4 and 5. From the failure loads (ultimate load), the strength in shear
was evaluated by dividing the failure load by the interfacial area. Ultimate loads and
shear capacities are given in Table 2.
Fig. 4 Failure pattern for

corbel without shear
reinforcement
Fig. 5 Failure pattern for

corbel with shear
reinforcement
Table 2 Ultimate shear force and stress along the interface for GPC Corbels
S. no Corbel Compressive Closed stirrups Max. shear Max. shear υ/f gpc
designation strength of (Ah ) force at stress
GPC Details Ah % interface (υ)
(f gpc ) (kN)
1 GCBS1-1 39.18 NA 0 142.46 6.69 0.17
2 GCBS1-2 39.18 NA 0 147.54 6.93 0.18
3 GCBS1-3 39.18 NA 0 141.65 6.65 0.17
4 GCBS1-4 40.12 NA 0 141.62 6.65 0.17
5 GCBS1-5 40.16 NA 0 139.43 6.55 0.16
6 GCBS1-6 40.24 NA 0 142.60 6.69 0.17
7 GCBS2-1 39.71 2 Nos.–6 mm 0.53 214.62 10.08 0.25
Dia
8 GCBS2-2 39.71 2 Nos.–6 mm 0.53 215.46 10.12 0.25
Dia
9 GCBS2-3 39.71 2 Nos.–6 mm 0.53 217.66 10.22 0.26
Dia
10 GCBS2-4 40.12 2 Nos.–6 mm 0.53 212.33 9.97 0.25
Dia
11 GCBS2-5 40.16 2 Nos.–6 mm 0.53 216.78 10.18 0.25
Dia
12 GCBS2-6 40.24 2 Nos.–6 mm 0.53 212.58 9.98 0.25
Dia
13 GCBS3-1 40.12 3 Nos.–6 mm 0.80 271.10 12.73 0.32
Dia
14 GCBS3-2 40.16 3 Nos.–6 mm 0.80 272.46 12.79 0.32
Dia
15 GCBS3-3 40.24 3 Nos.–6 mm 0.80 279.60 13.13 0.33
Dia
a. Failure Pattern of Unreinforced and Reinforced Samples
It had been observed that in all the samples, the first crack to form had been flexure
cracks after which the diagonal tension cracks appeared in the corbels. As the load
applied had been increased further, the diagonal tension crack developed at the begin-
ning quickly but subsequently more gradually as the ultimate load was approached.
In case of corbels without shear stirrups, one prominent diagonal crack had opened
up followed by sudden failure as the head of these crack sheared through, while
in corbels reinforced with principal tension and secondary shear reinforcements,
numerous cracks could be witnessed and failure was almost beam shear failure,
which was categorized by the opening of one or more diagonal tension cracks, while
558 B. S. Kumar
the flexure cracks endured fine followed by shear failure in the compressed zone of
the strut at the column–corbel interface.
Throughout the test, noticeable cracks were witnessed near the reentrant junction
of column bracket/corbel interface. With a rise in load, numerous inclined (shear)
cracks were observed inside the shear span and a little more from the interface. Failure
was characterized by the expansion of one or more shear cracks accompanying with
crushing concrete near the juncture of the bracket/corbel and column.
In the nonexistence of horizontal stirrups, cracking was quick and leads to wider
diagonal cracks. However, providing horizontal stirrups caused the diagonal cracks
to slowly spread toward the interface of the column–corbel. In addition, the size of
the diagonal cracks in the brackets reinforced with the stirrups was small compared
to the width in the brackets without the stirrup reinforcement. The test of the sample
was stopped at the point where the load could no longer be held. No signs of
cracking/crushing were observed in part of the column. A similar pattern of failures
has been witnessed by previous researchers [3, 4] on RC corbels.
It had also been noticed that in case of non-reinforced samples, the cracks from
the supporting areas had begun to emerge at about 65% of their ultimate capacity,
while in case of reinforced samples, these cracks have grown at about 45% of their
ultimate capacity. Hence, it may be concluded that the reinforced samples could
sustain more loads, horizontal stirrups were sufficient to prevent premature diagonal
tension failure, and permitting main reinforcement in tension to take its potential
strength before ultimate failure had been reached. The experimental study is limited
to the M40 grade and also to 0–0.83% of shear reinforcement crossing the interface
with yield strength of 250 MPa.
b. Comparison of Experimental Shear Capacity with Theoretical Capacity
The load-carrying capacity of reinforced corbels can be evaluated by several theories
like shear friction theory, truss analogy (strut and tie method), geometrical method of
force distribution and theory of plasticity. Few codes considered shear friction theory
in evaluating shear and strut and tie methodology for reinforced corbels. Numerous
investigations proposed strut and tie methodology in calculating shear capacity of
corbels. Table 3 presents the load-carrying capacity for convention concrete corbels
by different investigators/codes.
To compare the shear transfer capacity of GPC corbel with conventional concrete,
the theoretical shear capacity of the corbel section has been obtained from the
shear transfer expressions as cited in Table 3. Comparison of investigational shear
transfer of reinforced GPC corbels with the shear transfer anticipated by the design
codes/equations is cited in Table 4.
From Table 4, it may be observed that the interface shear capacity of conventional
concrete, when used for GPC, underestimates the shear capacity, and the same was
observed during experimental study on corbels on GPC. The comparison shows that
the shear strength attained using different theories and codes varies from 56 to 105%
more than the experimental shear strength of corbels with geopolymer-reinforced
concrete. In general, the shear strength obtained based on strut and tie models is less
Table 3 Load-carrying capacity for convention concrete corbels by different investigators/codes
References Shear strength expressions Remarks/notes
√
Kriz and Rath [4] Vu = ϕbd f c F1 F2 Empirical method based on the
d
investigational work
F1 = 6.5 1 − 0.5 a

1 + 0.4H
(1000ρ 3 V
F2 = 0.8H
10 V
ACI 318 [9] Friction method−shear strength−Vu = ∅μ Av f y Established through shear friction approach
Cl. 16.5 Mu Strut and tie method Ref. Ch. 23 which is
Flexural strength−Vu = a identical to PCI Handbook (2010)
A f fy
Mu = ∅μ f y Asm d − a2 , a = '
0.85 f c b
Maximum or permissible shear strength –
' '
Vu = 0.2 f c bd or 5.5bd or (3.31 + 0.08 f c )bd
CSA A23.3 [10] υu = c λ(c + μσ ) + s ρv f y cos α f Established on shear friction methodology
Cl. 11.5
Experimental Investigation on Fly Ash and Ground …
c—1; μ—monolithic concrete—1.4

λ—normal density concrete—1;
/
f c'
λ(c + μσ ) ≤ 0.25 f c' , ρvmin = 0.06 fy
/
'
υu = λk σ f c + ρv f y cos α f
/
' '
λk σ f c ≤ 0.25 f c
k—concrete placed monolithically 0.6
(continued)
559
Table 3 (continued)
560
References Shear strength expressions Remarks/notes

PCI [11] 7th edition Deriving from Fig. 5.9.4 of PCI handbook—2010 and Araújo et al. (2016) Established by strut and tie method
Cl. 5.9.4 / Shear friction method as per ACI 318
Vd = (1.7γβb f c a)2 + 6.8As f y dγ 2 βb f c − 1.7γβb f c a /2 (2014)
γ —0.75, strength reduction factor
β—for no stirrups−0.6 or 0.75
Hagberg [12] Vmax = f c cos β Established by strut and tie method
2 f c bd 2 f c bd
1− Fs tan2 β+ Fs tan β + 1 = 0
Fs = Fs1 + Fs2
Fs1 = As f y , Fs2 = Ah f y
d1 Fs1 +d2 Fs2
d= Fs
EN 1992-2 [13] Deriving from figure J 5 of Euro code 2—2004 and Araújo et al. (2016) Established on strut and tie method
Section J 3 / K1 = 1.18,
2 γ —0.75. strength reduction factor
fc fc fc fc
Vd = ( abk1 1 − + 1.6bd A s f y k 1 1 −
250 × 106 γ 250 × 106 γ

fc fc
− abk1 1 −
250 × 106 γ
B. S. Kumar
Table 4 Comparison of investigational shear strength of geopolymer-reinforced corbels with the shear strength calculated by the design codes/equations
Spec. ID f gpc Vup Reference [14] Reference [9] Reference [6] Reference [5] Reference [1] Reference [2]
N/mm2 kN Vu1 Vup / Vu1 Vu2 Vup / Vu2 Vu3 Vup / Vu3 Vu4 Vup / Vu4 Vu5 Vup / Vu5 Vu6 Vup / Vu6
kN kN kN kN kN kN
GCBS1-1 39.18 142.46 83.11 1.71 82.47 1.73 85.32 1.67 95.18 1.50 92.00 1.55 102.52 1.39
GCBS1-2 39.18 147.54 83.11 1.78 82.47 1.79 85.32 1.73 95.18 1.55 92.00 1.60 102.52 1.44
GCBS1-3 39.18 141.65 83.11 1.70 82.47 1.72 85.32 1.66 95.18 1.49 92.00 1.54 102.52 1.38
GCBS1-4 40.12 141.62 84.10 1.68 82.47 1.72 85.32 1.66 95.68 1.48 92.44 1.53 102.94 1.38
GCBS1-5 40.16 139.43 84.15 1.66 82.47 1.69 85.32 1.63 95.70 1.46 92.46 1.51 102.96 1.35
GCBS1-6 40.24 142.60 84.23 1.69 82.47 1.73 85.32 1.67 95.75 1.49 92.49 1.54 103.00 1.38
GCBS2-1 39.71 214.62 100.25 2.14 112.15 1.91 111.04 1.93 121.30 1.77 139.60 1.54 123.44 1.74
GCBS2-2 39.71 215.46 100.25 2.15 112.15 1.92 111.04 1.94 121.30 1.78 139.60 1.54 123.44 1.75
GCBS2-3 39.71 217.66 100.25 2.17 112.15 1.94 111.04 1.96 121.30 1.79 139.60 1.56 123.44 1.76
Experimental Investigation on Fly Ash and Ground …
GCBS2-4 40.12 212.33 100.77 2.11 112.15 1.89 111.04 1.91 121.50 1.75 139.95 1.52 123.58 1.72
GCBS2-5 40.16 216.78 100.82 2.15 112.15 1.93 111.04 1.95 121.52 1.78 139.99 1.55 123.59 1.75
GCBS2-6 40.24 212.58 100.92 2.11 112.15 1.90 111.04 1.91 121.56 1.75 140.06 1.52 123.62 1.72
GCBS3-1 40.12 271.10 107.36 2.53 117.15 2.31 123.90 2.19 132.10 2.05 165.45 1.64 133.90 2.02
GCBS3-2 40.16 272.46 107.41 2.54 117.15 2.33 123.90 2.20 132.12 2.06 165.49 1.65 133.91 2.03
GCBS3-3 40.24 279.60 107.52 2.60 117.15 2.39 123.90 2.26 132.16 2.12 165.58 1.69 133.93 2.09
Average 2.05 1.93 1.89 1.72 1.56 1.66
Notations:
f gpc —average compressive strength (N/mm2 ), V up —experimental shear strength. (kN),
V u —ultimate shear strength. (kN)
1. Kriz and Rath [4] 2. ACI 318–2014 [9] 3. CSA A23.3–04 [10]
4. PCI [11] 5. Hagberg [12] 6. EN 1992–1-1: [13]
561
562 B. S. Kumar
conservative than the shear strength obtained from shear friction models. Hagberg
[12] and Euro code 2 seem to give better prediction of shear capacity of GPC corbels.
5 Conclusions
The below conclusions are drawn from investigation on GPC corbels shear capacity:
• Maximum load-carrying capacity for geopolymer corbels increased as the
compressive strength increases.
• Ultimate load on the corbels has been increased by increasing closed stirrup
percentage (secondary reinforcement).
• Shear strength derived from various codes and theories undervalues the shear
capacity at the interface of reinforced GPC brackets/corbels.
References
1. Davidovits, J. (1991). Geopolymers: Inorganic polymeric new materials. Journal of Thermal

Analysis and calorimetry, 37(8), 1633–1656.
2. Fernández-Jiménez, A., García-Lodeiro, I., & Palomo, A. (2007). Durability of alkali-activated
fly ash cementitious materials. Journal of Materials Science, 42(9), 3055–3065.
3. Mattock, A. H., Chen, K. C., & Soongswang, K. (1976). The behavior of reinforced concrete
corbels. PCI Journal, 21(2), 52–77.
4. Kriz, L. B., & Raths, C. H. (1965). Connections in precast concrete structures: strength of
corbels.
5. BIS 3812. (2003). Specification for fly ash for use as pozzolana and admixture, (Bureau of
Indian Standards).
6. BIS 12089. (1999). Indian standard specifications for granulated slag for the manufacture of
Portland slag cement, (Bureau of Indian Standards).
7. BIS 383. (2016). Course and fine aggregate for concrete–Specification. (Bureau of Indian
Standards).
8. Bhupinder, S., Mohammadi, Y., & Kaushik, S. K. (2005). Design of a double corbel using the
strut-and-tie method. (pp. 21–33).
9. ACI Committee 318. (2014). Building Code Requirements for Structural Concrete (ACI 318–
14) and Commentary (ACI 318R-14). American Concrete Institute, Farmington Hills.
10. Standard, C.S.A., A23.3. (2014). Design of concrete structures (sixth edition). Canadian
Standards Association.
11. Handbook, PCI. (2010). Precast. Prestressed Concrete Institute.
12. Hagberg, T. (1983). Design of concrete brackets: on the application of the truss analogy. Journal
Proceedings, 80(1), 3–12.
13. Euro code 2. (2004). Design of concrete structures—Part 1–1: General rules and rules for
buildings. European Committee for Standardization, Avenue Marnix 17, B-1000 Brussels,
Belgium. 225 p. (with corrigendum dated of 16 January 2008).
14. Gagg, C. R. (2014). Cement and concrete as an engineering material: An historic appraisal and
case study analysis. Engineering Failure Analysis, 40, 114–140.
15. BSI, British Standard. “8110–1: .(1997). Structural use of concrete–Part 1: Code of practice
for design and construction”.
16. Rao, G. M., et al. (2016). Mix proportioning of geopolymer concrete. Cement Wapno Beton,
21(4), 274–285.
Parametric Experimental Studies
of Durability Properties of Concrete
Incorporating Ground Granulated Blast
Furnace Slag (GGBFS) and Silica Fume
Sachin S. Raval, C. D. Modhera, and Tejash K. Patel
Abstract Global warming and CO2 emissions have made sustainable development a
priority in recent decades. Different industrial sectors are rapidly evolving advanced
technologies while still grappling with waste disposal issues. Environmental pollu-
tion is caused by various sector’s waste management problems. Concrete manufac-
turing is made possible by replacing cement with various industrial wastes, and efforts
are made to mitigate environmental emissions and waste management concepts. The
use of industrial waste in concrete is being implemented nowadays to provide the
best alternative for the environment and the construction field to develop sustainable
concrete. Different percentages of industrial waste, such as ground granulated blast
furnace slag (GGBFS) up to 50% and Silica Fume up to 20%, were used in the current
study for concrete processing. After a 28-day curing cycle, hardened concrete was
tested for compressive strength, split tensile strength, and flexural strength. After
that, Exposure of MgSo4 was given to concrete to assess sulfate effect. Concrete
was also subjected to some non-destructive testing (NDT) to assess strength degra-
dation. The findings of this investigation were found to be satisfactory, indicating
that concrete with optimal waste replacement improves physical properties.
Keywords Ground granulated blast furnace slag (GGBFS) · Silica fume · Partial
replacement · MgSO4 · NDT
S. S. Raval (B) · C. D. Modhera · T. K. Patel

Civil Engineering Department, SVNIT, Surat 395007, India
e-mail: sachin.raval88@gmail.com
C. D. Modhera
e-mail: cdm@amd.svnit.ac.in
T. K. Patel
e-mail: er.tejashppatel@gmail.com
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4040-8_46
566 S. S. Raval et al.
1 Introduction
For the development of sustainable infrastructure, the construction industry is rapidly

expanding. The civil sector, which requires various types of concrete depending on
construction requirements, is to blame for global warming and climate change chal-
lenges. Climate change has several causes, and the scientific community is divided on
which ones are the most important. Some people feel that changes are a natural part of
life, whereas others believe that CO2 levels are rising due to human activities. There
are numerous evidences that the globe is experiencing a global warming problem
[1]. Approximately 960 million tons of solid waste are generated annually in India
as by-products of industrial, mining, municipal, agricultural, and other processes,
with 350 million tons of organic waste from agricultural sources, 290 million tons
of inorganic waste from the industrial and mining sectors, and 4.5 million tons of
hazardous waste. Alternative construction materials have emerged as a substitute
for traditional materials such as bricks, blocks, tiles, aggregates, ceramics, cement,
lime, soil, lumber, and paint as a result of advances in solid waste management. To
protect the environment, efforts are being undertaken to recycle various wastes and
put them to good use in value-added applications [2]. Researchers have been working
in the field of concrete technology for decades to find substitute materials that can
be used in place of ordinary Portland cement (OPC) while still meeting the power
and durability specifications of industrial by-products such as Micro silica, ground
granulated blast furnace slag, fly ash, metakaolin, rice husk ash, and others. The
experiment uses a Ternary Blended Cementitious Process based on Ordinary Port-
land Cement (OPC), GGBS, and Micro Silica to develop Ternary Blended Concrete.
The compressive strength of Ternary Blended Concrete was tested at 7–90 days
interval for Micro Silica and GGBS mixes in various combinations. Micro Silica (up
to 15%) and GGBS (up to 50%) were substituted for mix preparation, respectively
[3].
2 Experimental Work
(a) Cement
During the study, ordinary Portland cement 53 grade complying to IS 269: 2015
[4] was utilized. Stallion Energy Pvt. Ltd., Rajkot, Gujarat, India, provided
GGBFS and silica fume. Table 1 illustrates the basic components of the OPC
Cement, GGBFS, and Silica Fume employed in this investigation.
(b) Fine Aggregate

The fine aggregate locally available in Surendranagar district of Bhogavo River
was used in concrete complying to IS 383: 2016 [5]. Tables 2 and 3 illustrated
grading and different parameters of fine aggregate, respectively.
Parametric Experimental Studies of Durability … 567
Table 1 Basic component of the OPC cement, GGBFS, and Silica Fume
Sr. No Basic components OPC Cement (%) GGBFS (%) Silica fume (%)
1 Silica as SiO2 21.45 35.47 92.80
2 Aluminum oxide as Al2 O3 4.90 14.27 0.6
3 Iron oxide as Fe2 O3 3.46 2.41 0.3
4 Calcium oxide as CaO 62.78 35.89 –
5 Magnesium oxide as MgO 1.62 8.06 0.6
6 Sulfur trioxide as SO3 2.32 1.58 0.1
7 Sodium oxide as Na2 + 0.63 0.2 1.17
Potassium oxide as K2 O
Table 2 Sieve analysis of fine aggregate

Sr. no Sieve size % Passing Specification as per IS 383–2016
1 10 mm 100.0 100.00
2 4.75 mm 100.0 90–100
3 2.36 mm 93.3 75–100
4 1.18 mm 77.9 55–90
5 600 micron 48.1 35–59
6 300 micron 11.3 08–30
7 150 micron 4.2 0–10
8 < 150 micron –
Table 3 Different
Sr. no Tests Results
parameters of fine aggregate
1 Fineness modulus 2.65
3 Bulk density (kg/m3 ) 1722
4 Percentage voids 37.07
5 Silt content (%) 1.56
6 Grading zone II
7 Water absorption (%) 1.2
(c) Coarse Aggregate

The Coarse aggregate locally available in sayla taluka of Surendranagar district
was used in concrete fulfilling to IS 383: 2016 [5]. Tables 4 and 5 illustrated
grading and different parameters of coarse aggregate, respectively.
Table 4 Sieve analysis of coarse aggregate for 20 and 10 mm size

Sr. no IS: Sieve size % Passing Specification as % Passing Specification as
(20 mm) per IS 383–2016 (10 mm) per IS 383–2016
(20 mm) (10 mm)
1 80 mm 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00
2 40 mm 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00
3 20 mm 90.50 85–100 100.00 100.00
4 10 mm 0.60 0–20 85.40 85–100
5 4.75 mm 0.00 0–5 1.60 0–20
6 2.36 mm 0.00 – 0.40 0–5
7 1.18 mm 0.00 – 0.00 –
8 600 micron 0.00 – 0.00 –
9 300 micron 0.00 – 0.00 –
10 150 micron 0.00 – 0.00 –
11 < 150 micron – – – –
Table 5 Different parameters

Sr. no Tests Results (20 mm) Results (10 mm)
of coarse aggregate for 20 and
10 mm Size 1 Fineness 7.09 6.13
modulus
3 Water 0.85 0.71
absorption %
3 Bulk density 1591.11 1587
(kg/m3 )
4 Percentage 46.76 48.41
voids (%)
5 Aggregate 10.82 11.00
impact value
(%)
6 Aggregate 13.30 14.53
crushing value
(%)
7 Aggregate 14.45 13.98
flakiness index
8 Aggregate 13.11 13.23
elongation
index
Mortar
GGBFS - 10% GGBFS - 20% GGBFS - 30% GGBFS - 40% GGBFS - 50%
SF - SF - SF - SF -
SF - SF - SF - SF -
5%( 10% 15% 20%
5%( 10% 15% 20% SF - SF - SF - SF - SF - SF - SF -
SF - M13 (M1 (M1 (M1
SF - SF - SF - SF - M5) (M6) (M7) (M8) 10% 15% 20% 5%( 10% 15% 20%
5%( ) 4) 5) 6)
5%( 10% 15% 20% (M1 (M1 (M1 M17 (M1 (M1 (M2
M9) ) 8) 9) 0)
M1) (M2) (M3) (M4) 0) 1) 2)
Fig. 1 Different percentage of GGBFS and silica fume used for all mixes
(d) Concrete Mix Design

In present study M-40 grade of concrete was prepared as per IS 10262—2019
[6]. To prepare mix 10, 20, 30, 40 and 50% of GGBFS along with 5, 10, 15
and 20% of silica fume was used as partial cement replacement in mortar as
shown in following Fig. 1 denoted by mixes M1 to M20, respectively. Total
21 mixes including control mix were prepared for present study. To find out
the influence of GGBFS and Silica Fume on the compressive strength mortar,
pozzolanic strength index was evaluated for 7 and 28 days by considering
control mortar compressive strength as reference. Based on pozzolanic strength
index, optimum replacement percentage of 30% GGBFS and 5% silica fume
was observed for concrete mix preparation.
Concrete mix design for M-40 grade control mix and mix with partial replacement
with cement is as per following Table 6.
(e) MgSO4 Exposure
Solid salts do not harm concrete, although they can react with hardened cement
paste while in solution. The rate of attack is maximum when concrete is subjected
Table 6 Concrete mix design

Material PC40 PC40GSF35
for M-40 grade
Cement OPC (kg) 440 286
GGBS (kg) – 132
Silica Fume (kg) – 22
Sand (kg) 646 646
20 mm Aggregate (kg) 710 710
10 mm Aggregate (kg) 470 470
Water 176 176
Admixture (%) 0.15% 0.20%
W/C Ratio 0.4 0.4
Slump (mm) 58 79
C.F 0.97 0.86
to the pressure of sulfate-bearing water on one side. Similarly, alternating satura-

tion and drying speeds up the degradation process. When concrete is affected by
sulfate, it takes on a whitish look. Damage usually begins at the edges and corners
and progresses to racking and spalling. The inclusion of pozzolanas also results in
increased resistance to sulfate assault. In present study, magnesium sulfate solution
with 5 % v/v of water concentration is used. Specimens were immersed in magne-
sium sulfate solute after 28 days of normal curing for 28 days, 90 days, and 180 days
exposure.
(f) Non-Destructive Testing—Rebound Hammer
All specimens were subjected to a rebound hammer test, with 9 readings taken
on each of the cubes’ two faces, as stated in IS 13311 (Part 2): 1992 [7]. Test
results were obtained after 28 days water curing and then after 28, 90, and
180 days of MgSO4 exposure. As a result, the surface hardness of concrete
mixes is thought to be proportional to their compressive strength. The rebound
value is determined by the grading and is referred to as the rebound or rebound
index. The compressive strength can be determined by looking at the graph on
the hammer.
(g) Non-destructive Testing—Ultrasonic Pulse Velocity
The test entails measuring the travel time T of an ultrasonic pulse generated by an
electro acoustic transducer that is kept in contact with one surface of the concrete
mixes part under test and receives it at the other end through a similar contact sensor
surface. Ultrasonic pulse velocity tests on cubes were performed in the laboratory in
accordance with IS 13311 (Part 1): 1992 [8], accordingly concrete quality grading
based on pulse velocity was obtained. After 28 days of water curing, the test results
were obtained, followed by 28, 90 and 180 days of MgSO4 exposure.
(a) Compressive Strength

For compressive strength of M-40 concrete, 150 × 150 mm concrete cubes were
tested as stated in IS 516: 1959 [9] after 7 days and 28 days of curing. Figure 2
illustrates concrete compressive strength for 7 days and 28 days in which M-
40 control concrete specimens were signified by PC40 and concrete specimens
with 35% waste replacement (30 percent GGBFS + 5% Silica Fume) were
denoted by PC40GSF35.
Figure 1 shows compressive strength of concrete increased from 30.52 to
33.43 MPa for 7 days curing period and from 48.98 to 49.99 MPa for 28 days
curing period, respectively.
Fig. 2 Compressive strength of M-40 grade concrete for 7 and 28 days
(b) Split Tensile Strength

For split tensile strength of M-40 concrete, 150 mm diameter and 300 mm
height cylinder were casted. Cylinders were tested as stated in IS 5816: 1999
[10] after 28 days of curing. Figure 3 illustrates split tensile strength 28 days.
Figure 3 shows split tensile strength of concrete increased from 5.9 to 6.87 MPa
for 28 days curing period.
(c) Flexural Strength:

For flexural strength of M-40 concrete, 150 × 150 × 700 mm beams were
casted. Beams were tested as stated in IS 516: 1959 [9] after 28 days of curing.
Figure 4 illustrates Flexural strength 28 days.
Fig. 3 Split Tensile strength of M-40 grade concrete for 28 days

Fig. 4 Flexural strength of M-40 grade concrete for 28 days
Figure 4 shows split tensile strength of concrete increased from 6.50 to 6.76 MPa
for 28 days curing period.
(d) MgSO4 Exposure:
M-40 grade concrete cubes were tested after immersed in MgSO4 solution for 28,
90 and 180 days duration followed by 28 days water curing. Test result for same is
presented in Fig. 5.
Fig. 5 M-40 grade concrete compressive strength results for MgSO4 exposure
Fig. 6 M-40 grade concrete percentage reduction in compressive strength results for MgSO4
exposure
From Fig. 5 it was observed, compressive strength of PC40 specimens were found
decreased from 48.98 MPa for 28 days water curing to 45.78, 44.04 and 42.73 MPa
for 28, 90, and 180 days MgSO4 exposure, respectively. Compressive strength of
PC40GSF35 specimens were found decreased from 49.99 MPa for 28 days water
curing to 47.08, 45.34 and 44.47 MPa for 28, 90, and 180 days MgSO4 exposure,
respectively.
From Fig. 6 it was observed, Percentage reduction in compressive strength of PC40
specimens were found from 94.19, 90.70 and 87.24% for 28, 90, and 180 days MgSO4
exposure, respectively, compared to 100% for 28 days water curing. Percentage
Reduction in compressive strength of PC40GSF35 specimens were found from 93.47,
89.91 and 88.95% for 28, 90, and 180 days MgSO4 exposure, respectively, compared
to 100% for 28 days water curing.
From above Fig. 7 it was observed, reduction in weight of PC40 cube specimens
were found from 1.56, 2.29 and 2.85% for 28, 90, and 180 days MgSO4 exposure,
respectively, compared to 28 days water curing. Reduction in weight of PC40GSF35
cube specimens were found from 0.45, 0.68 and 0.92% for 28, 90, and 180 days
MgSO4 exposure, respectively, compared to 28 days water curing. Figure 8 shows
white crystal appearance on cubes after MgSO4 exposure.
(e) Non-destructive Testing—Rebound Hammer:
Rebound hammer test was performed on all MgSo4 exposed cube speci-
mens followed by 28 days water curing. Following Fig. 9 shows results of
compressive strength obtained from rebound hammer test.
Fig. 7 M-40 grade concrete weight loss percentage for MgSO4 exposure
Fig. 8 M-40 grade concrete weight loss percentage for MgSO4 exposure
(f) Non-destructive Testing—Ultrasonic Pulse Velocity:
Ultrasonic pulse velocity test was performed on all MgSo4 exposed cube specimens
followed by 28 days water curing. Following Fig. 10 shows results of concrete quality
according to pulse velocity.
4 Conclusions
• With addition of 30 GGBFS and 5% silica fume in concrete as partial replace-

ment with cement improved mechanical properties of concrete like compressive
Fig. 9 M-40 grade concrete results for rebound hammer test
Fig. 10 M-40 grade concrete ultrasonic pulse velocity results
strength, split tensile strength, and flexural strength for 28 days curing period
compared to control concrete.
• Reduction in compressive strength of PC40 specimens were observed between
ranges of 94.19–7.24% for different period of MgSO4 exposure compared to
28 days water curing.
• Reduction in compressive strength of PC40GSF35 specimens were observed
between ranges of 93.47–88.95% for different period of MgSO4 exposure
compared to 28 days water curing.
• Weight loss of PC40 specimens were observed between ranges 1.56–2.85% for
different period of MgSO4 exposure compared to 28 days water curing.
• Weight loss of PC40GSF35 specimens were observed between ranges 0.45–0.92%
for different period of MgSO4 exposure, respectively, compared to 28 days water
curing.
• Weight loss results of concrete PC40GSF35 indicate the higher densification and
particle packing in concrete compared to PC40 control mix.
• Surface hardness test result analysis with non-destructive test were investigated by
conducting Rebound hammer test, which gives desirable results for PC40GSF35
compared to reference mix PC40 which concluded the better surface quality of
concrete containing 35% of waste utilization as a cement replacement in concrete.
• In ultrasonic pulse velocity test, Concrete manufactured with 35% of waste utilized
namely PC40GSF35 found dense and homogeneous as per the observed test results
compared to control mix PC40 of M40 grade of concrete.
• Carbon emissions in the atmosphere caused by cement manufacturing can be
decreased to some extent by substituting industrial waste for cement in concrete
preparation, making the environment more sustainable.
References
1. Radhi, H. (2009). Evaluating the potential impact of global warming on the UAE residential
buildings-A contribution to reduce the CO2 emissions. Building and Environment, 44, 2451–
2462.
2. Pappu, A., Saxena, M., & Asolekar, S. R. (2007). Solid wastes generation in india and their
recycling potential in building materials. Building and Environment, 42, 2311–2320.
3. Reddy, S. V. B. (2016). Influence of micro silica and GGBS on compressive strength of ternary
blended concrete. 5(03), 688–695.
4. IS 269–2015 Ordinary Portland cement specification. Bureau of Indian Standards, New Delhi.
(pp. 1–10).
5. IS 383–2016 Coarse and fine aggregate for concrete—Specification. Bureau of Indian
Standards, New Delhi. (pp. 1–18).
6. IS 10262–2019 Concrete mix proportioning—Guidelines. Bureau of Indian Standards, New
Delhi. (pp. 1–43).
7. IS 13311 (Part 2)—1992 Non-destructive testing of concrete—Method of test part-2 Rebound
Hammer. Bureau of Indian Standards, New Delhi. (pp. 1–3).
8. IS 13311 (Part 1)—1992 Non-destructive testing of concrete—Method of test part-1 ultrasonic
pulse velocity. Bureau of Indian Standards, New Delhi. (pp. 1–7).
9. IS 516. (1959). Method of test for strength of concrete. Indian Standards, (pp. 1–24).
10. IS 5816. (1999). Splitting tensile strength test—Method of test. Indian Standards, (pp. 1–8).
Optimization of Clinker Factor
for Low-Carbon Penta-Blended Cement
Mortar via Box–Behnken Design
of Response Surface Methodology
Anurag and Rajesh Kumar
Abstract Utilization of calcined limestone as supplementary cementing materials

(SCMs) along with other additional SCMs (fly ash, silica fume, uncalcined lime-
stone) can effectively influence the fresh and hardened properties of low clinker
cement mortar. In this research work, response surface methodology was performed
to investigate the better mix results and reduce the number of trials. Fly ash (FA),
silica fume (SF), uncalcined limestone (UCLS), calcined limestone (CLS) and super-
plasticizer (SP) were the independent variables. Consistency, initial setting time, final
setting time, fineness and compressive strength were target functions. A five-factor
six-level Box–Behnken design (BBD) was used to optimize the clinker factor. The
independent variables were used at replacement ratio of 0%, 20%, 35% (FA); 3%,
6%, 9% (SF); 0%, 10%, 15% (UCLS); 0%, 10%, 15% (CLS); 0.5%, 1%, 1.5% (SP).
In total, 46 mixes were cast and tested after 28 days of curing. Results revealed that
the mix containing 5% FA, 5% UCLS, 15% CLS, 9% SF and 0.5% SP increased
compressive strength and consistency, which was quite better than the other mixes.
Statistical analysis revealed that R2 ranges from 0.83 to 0.99, which is desirable for
a perfect model. Finally, the clinker factor was optimized at factor of 0.66 with 34%
replacement of clinker with mineral admixtures.
Keywords Response surface methodology · SCMs · Calcined limestone ·

Multi-objective optimization
Abbreviations
FA Fly ash
Anurag
Thapar Institute of Engineering and Technology, Patiala 147004, India
R. Kumar (B)
Organic Building Materials (OBM) Group, CSIR-Central Building Research Institute, Roorkee
247667, India
e-mail: rajeshkumar@cbri.res.in
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4040-8_47
578 Anurag and R. Kumar
SF Silica fume
UCLS Uncalcined limestone powder
CLS Calcined limestone powder
OPC Ordinary Portland Cement
SP Superplasticizer
SSA Specific surface area
LOI Loss on ignition
IST Initial setting time
FST Final setting time
1 Introduction
Due to the modernization, construction industry is growing rapidly. A huge quantity

of cement is being produced by cement industries to fulfil the demand of nation.
Annual cement production in 2019 of China is 235*107 tons which is going to
increase by 5–6 times up to 2035 [1]. Cement is the second most usable thing after
water. Due to high production, nature is getting disturbed by pollution emitting from
manufacturing process of cement, mining, etc. Alternate of cement is very much
needed to investigate which can reduce the pollution and save the environment.
Supplementary cementitious materials (SCMs) are the solution for this. There are
a lot of industrial by-products that are being produced daily and dumped in open
landfill. These materials contain some cementitious properties which can not only
reduce carbon footprints but also help in enhancing the properties of cement mortar
and concrete. Mining of raw materials such as limestone is also increasing which
may result in reduction of resources in future [2]. Italy is the world’s largest producer
of limestone which produces approximately 20% of limestone. There are a number
of sites in Rajasthan where limestone cutting waste and slurry are dumped into open
lands. This makes the land uncultivated and causes the health problems for nearby
people. This cutting waste makes the soil infertile due to less porosity and water
absorption. Out of 3000–4000 mines, 10–12 MT of stone is excavated each year in
Rajasthan. Uncalcined limestone powder (low-graded limestone) which is obtained
from the cutting waste can be a better option to use as SCM in cement mortar
or concrete [3]. A lot of researchers worked on the use of stone cutting waste or
uncalcined limestone. Kumar et al. [4, 5] found that addition of 50% inert limestone
slurry significantly increased the performance factor for compressive and flexural
strength of lightweight concrete of density 1000 kg/m3 . It has been also reported
that setting time accelerates with the addition of 20% limestone but retards with the
further addition of limestone. Demirhan et al. [6] worked on limestone and concluded
that workability of mortar, incorporating limestone, increased by 3% which is due to
reduction in water demand [7], due to which consistency of cement paste increased
with the inclusion of limestone [8]. Vance et al. [9] reported that LS with particle size
of 0.7 µm and 10% replacement level significantly increased the CS at early age.
Optimization of Clinker Factor for Low-Carbon Penta-Blended Cement … 579
But as the particle size increased, CS started to decrease with the same replacement
level. Similar outcome was observed by Samchenko et al. [10], i.e. with LS (SSA of
450 m2 /kg), and the CS was increased as compared to control mortar at early ages of
2 days. With this fineness, CS increased by 16 to 20% with addition of 10 and 15%
LS, respectively.
2.1 Raw Materials
The raw materials used in this research work include FA, SF, UCLS, CLS, OPC
and standard sand. FA was carried out from Dadri thermal power plant situated at
Gautam Buddha Nagar (Uttar Pradesh). This FA can be classified as class F because
the content of SiO2 + Al2 O3 + Fe2 O3 is greater than 70% (Table 1) as per ASTM
C618 [11]. SF used was Aerosil® 200, which was obtained from Japan. It possesses a
very high fineness of 200,000 m2 /kg among all the SCMs used in the study. Limestone
(UCLS) was obtained in the form of slurry from agricultural fields of Ramganj Mandi
(Kota), Rajasthan. It was sieved through 90 µm sieve. To obtain CLS, calcination
of UCLS was done at 900 °C in a high-temperature furnace (Carbolite Gero). After
withstanding the 900 °C temperature for 1 h, quenching of CLS was done. Thus,
CLS has a high content of CaO compared to other SCMs, as shown in Table 1. The
cement used was OPC 43 grade supplied by Cement Corporation of India Limited,
conforming to IS 8112 [12]. Mortar was prepared by using ISO standard sand as
per IS 650:1991 [13]. Polycarboxylate ether-based SP (MasterGlenium® 51) was
Table 1 Chemical composition and physical properties of FA, SF, UCLS, CLS and OPC
Composition FA SF UCLS CLS OPC
SiO2 (%) 70.04 97.37 11.77 11.17 20.12
Al2 O3 (%) 14.52 – 1.39 1.17 6.23
Fe2 O3 (%) 3.38 – 0.95 1.37 4.37
TiO2 (%) 1.81 – – 0.16 –
CaO (%) 1.44 0.45 47.56 83.10 62.86
K2 O (%) 1.17 0.01 0.52 0.51 0.58
P2 O5 (%) 0.90 0.49 0.40 0.44 0.11
MgO (%) 0.28 – – 0.61 1.13
SO3 (%) 0.12 0.13 0.21 0.16 2.31
Blaine (BET) SSA (m2 /kg) 318.7 200,000 326 336 245
Apparent density (g/cm3 ) 2.23 – – – 2.98
LOI, % 6 1.53 36.56 1.1 0.87
used to improve the fresh and hardened properties of cement mortar. It reduced the
water content by 35% and possessed 40% solid content. SP was used in the ratio of
0.5, 1 and 1.5 (wt%) of the binder. Chemical composition of each raw material was
obtained by the XRF test which is given in Table 1. Also, 14 and 28 days strengths
of CLS mortar were obtained as 2.9 and 9.46 MPa, respectively, i.e. 65 and 238%
more than that of class A lime, given in IS 712:1984 [14]. This shows that low-grade
limestone developed hydraulic properties after thermal treatment.
2.2 Mix Proportions
Mix proportion of mortar was finalized by Design Expert® v 11.0.0, Stat-Ease Inc.,
USA, software. There are five input variables and six target outputs. So, there would
be 35 (i.e. 243) possible trials to perform the experiments without using Design
Expert. But this software reduced these numerous trials to 46 which are given below
in Table 2. Along with this, a control mortar (OPC 100%) was also prepared to
compare the properties.
2.3 Testing Methods
Various tests were performed on the cement paste and cement mortar. Fineness of
all mixes in powder form was determined, and fresh properties were determined
by the cement paste incorporating SCMs and SP with different replacement levels.
Hardened properties of binder:mortar (1:3) were determined by compressive and
flexural strength test. Along with this, statistical modelling was done by using Design
Expert® v 11.0.0, Stat-Ease Inc., USA.
2.3.1 Fineness
The fineness of 46 mixes was determined by using automatic Blaine apparatus in

terms of SSA. Samples were weighed according to their percentage replacements and
mixed properly in dry form. The weighed sample was filled into the permeability
cell by placing the filter paper under and over the bed. Plunger was fitted, and a
permeability cell was placed on conical socket. SSA was obtained after running the
apparatus. Figure 1 shows the automatic Blaine apparatus.
2.3.2 Consistency
Consistency of the fresh paste was tested according to IS 4031:1988 (Part IV) by
the Vicat apparatus. Dry mixture was prepared as per Table 2, water (about 25%
Table 2 Mix proportion of mortar by design expert™

Runs Coded values Decoded values (weight %)
FA SF UCLS CLS SP OPC (%) FA SF UCLS CLS SP
(X1) (X2) (X3) (X4) (X5)
R1 0 0 −1 1 0 54 20 6 5 15 1
R2 0 1 0 −1 0 56 20 9 10 5 1
R3 −1 1 0 0 0 66 5 9 10 10 1
R4 0 0 −1 −1 0 64 20 6 5 5 1
R5 1 0 0 0 −1 39 35 6 10 10 0.5
R6 0 1 0 1 0 46 20 9 10 15 1
R7 0 −1 0 0 −1 57 20 3 10 10 0.5
R8 0 0 0 1 1 49 20 6 10 15 1.5
R9 1 0 0 1 0 34 35 6 10 15 1
R10 0 0 0 0 0 54 20 6 10 10 1
R11 0 0 0 0 0 54 20 6 10 10 1
R12 0 0 0 −1 1 59 20 6 10 5 1.5
R13 0 −1 0 1 0 52 20 3 10 15 1
R14 0 0 1 0 −1 49 20 6 15 10 0.5
R15 −1 0 −1 0 0 74 5 6 5 10 1
R16 0 0 −1 0 1 59 20 6 5 10 1.5
R17 1 0 −1 0 0 44 35 6 5 10 1
R18 0 1 −1 0 0 56 20 9 5 10 1
R19 0 0 0 0 0 54 20 6 10 10 1
R20 −1 0 1 0 0 64 5 6 15 10 1
R21 1 0 0 −1 0 44 35 6 10 5 1
R22 0 0 0 0 0 54 20 6 10 10 1
R23 1 0 0 0 1 39 35 6 10 10 1.5
R24 0 0 1 −1 0 54 20 6 15 5 1
R25 0 0 1 0 1 49 20 6 15 10 1.5
R26 0 0 −1 0 −1 59 20 6 5 10 0.5
R27 0 0 0 0 0 54 20 6 10 10 1
R28 0 0 0 1 −1 49 20 6 10 15 0.5
R29 0 0 1 1 0 44 20 6 15 15 1
R30 1 1 0 0 0 36 35 9 10 10 1
R31 −1 0 0 −1 0 74 5 6 10 5 1
R32 −1 0 0 0 −1 69 5 6 10 10 0.5
R33 0 1 1 0 0 46 20 9 15 10 1
R34 −1 0 0 0 1 69 5 6 10 10 1.5
(continued)
Table 2 (continued)
Runs Coded values Decoded values (weight %)
FA SF UCLS CLS SP OPC (%) FA SF UCLS CLS SP
(X1) (X2) (X3) (X4) (X5)
R35 0 0 0 −1 −1 59 20 6 10 5 0.5
R36 0 −1 0 0 1 57 20 3 10 10 1.5
R37 0 1 0 0 −1 51 20 9 10 10 0.5
R38 0 1 0 0 1 51 20 9 10 10 1.5
R39 1 0 1 0 0 34 35 6 15 10 1
R40 0 −1 0 −1 0 62 20 3 10 5 1
R41 0 −1 −1 0 0 62 20 3 5 10 1
R42 1 −1 0 0 0 42 35 3 10 10 1
R43 −1 0 0 1 0 64 5 6 10 15 1
R44 0 0 0 0 0 54 20 6 10 10 1
R45 0 −1 1 0 0 52 20 3 15 10 1
R46 −1 −1 0 0 0 72 5 3 10 10 1
Fig. 1 Automatic Blaine

apparatus
Fig. 2 Automatic Vicat apparatus
of weight of binder) is added and mixed for trial for 3 to 5 min, and plunger was
dropped freely after touching the top of the mould. This procedure was repeated with
different content of water until the plunger fails to penetrate 5 to 7 m from bottom
of the mould. The water content at which this condition gets satisfied was noted as
the standard consistency of that mix.
2.3.3 Setting Time
Initial and final setting time were calculated by the automatic Vicat apparatus
(Vicamatic 63-L2700/X) as per IS 4031: Part V [15]. Automatic Vicat apparatus
is connected with a thermostatic water unit which supplies temperature-controlled
water to the water bath. Mixture of 400 gm was prepared and poured in the mould
which was fitted in the pot. This pot was filled with water up to top and adjusted
on the turntable as shown in Fig. 2. After knowing the value of consistency, water
required to add for setting time was decided with 0.85P, where P is the consistency
of that mix.
Compressive strength after 28 days was determined by 1000 kN Shimadzu universal

testing machine, as per IS 4031: Part VI [16]. Six cubes (70.6 × 70.6 × 70.6 mm3 )
conforming to IS:10,080–1982 [17] were cast for each mix to test the compressive
strength. Mixture was prepared in Digi mortar mixer as shown in Fig. 3, and mixing
Fig. 3 Mixing of mortar by

Digi mortar mixer
time was kept between 3 and 4 min. After pouring into moulds, they were covered by
poly cover so that the water may not get evaporated and may be kept at a temperature
of 25 ± 2 °C. After 24 h, moulds were demoulded and cubes were put in the curing
tank until the day of testing. On the day of testing, three cubes were taken out from
curing tank before 1 h of testing and cleaned by a cloth. Three specimens were tested
for each mix, and average value was recorded.
2.4 Experimental Design and Analytical Techniques
RSM technique was used to reduce the number of trials and to optimize the target
for particular variables. Nowadays, this technic is rapidly using in construction areas
where there are a lot of mixtures with more variables.

k
k
k
k
Ypredicted = β0 + βi X i + βii X i2 + βi j X i X j + (1)
i=1 i=1 i=1 j>1
where Y predicted is the predicted response, viz. Y 1 (SSA), Y 2 (consistency), Y 3 (IST),

Y 4 (FST), Y 5 (compressive strength 28 days); X i and X j are independent variables;
β0 is regression coefficient for intercept; βi , βii , βi j are regression coefficients for
linear, quadratic and interaction terms, respectively; k is the number of independent

variables (=5); is the error.
Forty-six mixes were designed using Box–Behnken design (BBD) method, and
the number of mixes (M) was predicted by using Eq. (2)
M = K2 + K + Cp (2)
where K and C p are factor number and replicate number of central points, respectively
[18].
There were five input factors and six targets. Input variables were represented
by X1 (FA content), X2 (SF content), X3 (UCLS content), X4 (CLS content) and
X5 (SP dosage). The dosage of input variables was adjusted based on previous
literature survey. A lot of research has been done on FA and SF. Based on that
survey, these replacement levels were obtained. Also, some researchers observed
that UCLS (up to 15% or nearby) can enhance the properties [6, 7, 9]. Based on
these, same replacements were adopted for CLS. The contents of the variables were
fixed at 5, 20, 35% (wt%) for FA; 3, 6, 9% (wt%) for SF; 5, 10, 15% (wt%) for UCLS
and CLS both; 0.5, 1, 1.5% (wt%) for SP. The coded and decoded values for these
input variables are presented in Table 2.
3 Experimental Results and Statistical Analysis
3.1 Analysis of Fresh and Hardened Properties of Cement

Mortar
The results of fresh as well as hardened properties of cement mortar are represented
in Table 3. Ranges of results for composite cement lie between 262 and 375 m2 /kg
for fineness, 30 to 65% for consistency, 20 to 91 min for IST and 373 to 496 min for
FST.
Y 1 = 314.3 + 1.12∗ A + 3.45∗ B + 10.06∗ C + 30.64∗ D

+ 3.71∗ AB−15.94∗ BC−13.09∗ BD−2.55∗ CD−3.18∗ A2
+ 6.68∗ B 2 −6.50∗ C 2 + 15.23∗ D 2 (3)
Y 2 = 44.675−2.83∗ B + 12.70∗ D−4.30∗ E (4)
Y 3 = 35.83 + 13.62∗ A + 2.68∗ B + 9.81∗ D−20.75∗ AB

−8.25∗ AE + 12.75∗ BC + 20.5∗ BE−6.25∗ DE + 16.31∗ A2
+ 6.39∗ B 2 + 17.56∗ E 2 (5)
Table 3 Experimental results of blended cement powder, paste and mortar with additives
Run SSA (m2 /kg) Consistency (%) IST (min.) FST (min.) Compressive strength
(28 days)
Y1 Y2 Y3 Y4 Y5
Control 245 28.33 78 285 48.96
R1 313.23 48.33 15 480 46.88
R2 347.07 64.30 20 410 30.10
R3 357.13 65.00 32 408 45.30
R4 376.40 46.67 30 345 42.24
R5 322.37 53.33 40 460 22.26
R6 360.31 60.67 24 420 37.88
R7 280.04 37.67 34 381 32.34
R8 341.43 38.33 40 420 34.42
R9 302.41 48.30 111 496 25.14
R10 314.96 45.00 30 440 42.88
R11 313.23 47.33 35 437 42.56
R12 311.19 37.67 47 432 58.76
R13 303.50 31.67 11 413 30.18
R14 348.60 52.00 22 419 35.63
R15 339.40 42.00 23 361 71.80
R16 296.18 40.67 37 432 68.35
R17 334.10 47.67 97 438 50.67
R18 371.08 63.30 61 442 44.31
R19 314.35 43.00 27 445 41.79
R20 317.50 40.00 58 459 63.54
R21 294.98 42.67 85 465 40.38
R22 315.04 45.00 34 435 41.78
R23 292.57 38.33 84 479 60.54
R24 291.27 38.00 78 460 49.74
R25 291.51 38.00 80 463 74.41
R26 287.52 51.33 74 450 52.74
R27 314.21 44.67 32 444 42.31
R28 320.13 46.00 70 465 37.46
R29 344.03 32.00 60 448 35.32
R30 358.68 40.67 50 460 30.74
R31 292.61 37.33 48 443 41.60
R32 297.57 52.50 38 470 51.38
R33 357.83 51.33 82 392 44.06
(continued)
Table 3 (continued)
Run SSA (m2 /kg) Consistency (%) IST (min.) FST (min.) Compressive strength
(28 days)
R34 295.94 48.50 71 412 54.26
R35 345.95 44.67 79 429 59.38
R36 337.48 30.67 53 403 62.18
R37 354.38 56.20 80 432 50.12
R38 353.92 52.61 87 470 48.44
R39 325.36 40.33 44 414 47.42
R40 280.03 30.00 23 387 61.88
R41 282.04 33.67 28 380 78.98
R42 310.09 36.33 51 409 50.64
R43 313.19 47.33 37 420 54.58
R44 314.21 41.50 28 446 43.04
R45 323.21 33.67 39 360 60.64
R46 301.63 31.50 27 430 66.88
Y 4 = 441.16 + 13.68∗ A + 12.31∗ C + 14.62∗ D−33.5∗ AB

+ 20∗ AC + 14.5∗ AD + 19.25∗ AE−37.25∗ BC
+ 15.5∗ BE + 6.27∗ A2 −10.39∗ B 2 −26.31∗ D 2 + 7.10∗ E 2 (6)
Y 5 = 42.39 − 8.62∗ A − 2.67∗ B − 2.98∗ C − 6.99∗ D

+ 11.20∗ E − 1.80∗ AB − 8.71∗ AC − 2.97∗ AD + 8.57∗ AE − 4.16∗ BC
+ 1.34∗ BD + 3.84∗ BE + 11.47∗ CD − 8∗ CE
− 7.39∗ DE + 2.89∗ A2 + 9.80979∗ B 2 − 5.95∗ C 2 + 3.73∗ D 2 + 5.31∗ E 2 (7)
The above equations show the relationship of input variables with the response.
There are first-order terms represented as A, B, C, D, E; second-order terms (A2 , B2 ,
C 2 , D2 , E 2 ); interaction terms (AB, BC, CD, DE, BE, DE, BD). The effect of these
input variables in terms of order is shown by their coefficients. Positive coefficient
shows the increasing effect, and negative coefficient shows the decreasing effect.
ANOVA in Table 4 predicts that model was significant as p-value of each response
is under 0.0001 which satisfies the condition p < 0.0001 [19]. Values greater than
0.1000 indicate the model terms are not significant. If there are many insignificant
model terms, model reduction may improve your model. For a model to be best fit,
it is required that lack of fit should not be significant [20], which in our case satisfies
this condition also. The lack of fits was 0.0657, 0.0582, 0.0530, 0.0638 and 0.0546
for responses Y1, Y2, Y3, Y4 and Y5, respectively.
Above Table 5 shows that for responses Y1, Y2, Y3, Y4 and Y5, the contrast
between adjusted R2 and predicted R2 was 0.0028, 0.0391, 0.104, 0.101 and 0.007
Table 4 ANOVA for responses Y1 to Y6 to perform regression analysis

Response Source Sum of Degrees of Mean F-value p-value
squares freedom square
Y1 Model 26,440.6 20 1322.03 912.55 0.0001 Significant
Residual 36.22 25 1.45
Lack of fit 34.08 20 1.70 3.98 0.0657 Not
significant
Pure error 2.14 5 0.4280
Total 26,476.8 45
Y2 Model 3019.71 5 603.94 40.64 0.0001 Significant
Residual 594.41 40 14.86
Lack of fit 574.66 35 16.42 4.16 0.0582 Not
significant
Pure error 19.75 5 3.95
Total 3614.12 45
Residual 764.46 25 30.58
Lack of fit 723.63 20 36.18 4.43 0.0530 Not
significant
Pure error 40.83 5 8.17
Total 15,171.5 45
Residual 1764.8 25 70.6
Lack of fit 1661.9 20 83.10 4.04 0.0638 Not
significant
Pure error 102.8 5 20.57
Total 35,849.3 45
Y5 Model 7693.90 20 384.70 364.20 0.0001 Significant
Residual 26.41 25 1.06
Lack of fit 24.98 20 1.25 4.37 0.0546 Not
significant
Pure error 1.43 5 0.28
Total 7720.31 45
Table 5 Statistical parameters from ANOVA

Response C.V. % R2 Adjusted R2 Predicted R2 Adequate precision
Y1 0.3794 0.9986 0.9975 0.9947 141.14
Y2 8.63 0.8355 0.8150 0.7759 24.43
Y3 11.18 0.9496 0.9093 0.8053 18.40
Y4 1.94 0.9508 0.9114 0.8104 20.28
Y5 2.15 0.9966 0.9938 0.9868 82.87
which was below 0.20. In this way, it was demonstrated that the predicted R2 was
in sensible concurrence with adjusted R2 [21]. The predicted R2 of all responses
is in reasonable agreement with the adjusted R2 , i.e. the difference is less than
0.2. Adequate precision measures the signal-to-noise ratio. A ratio greater than 4
is desirable. All ratios are adequate signal.
3.2 Response Surface Plots
Figure 4a shows the 3D response surface and contour plot for fineness (Y1). It was
observed that by increasing the content of A, B, C and D into cement, fineness
of composite cement increases. The 3D surface for response Y1 shows the clear
curvature for FA ranging from 5 to 35% and UCLS from 5 to 15%. Maximum
fineness was achieved at SF content of 9%, CLS content of 15%, UCLS content of
15% and FA content of 35%. With increasing of these contents, fineness increased
due to high SSA of all these input variables as compared to cement. Contour plot
shown in Fig. 4b depicts that by keeping FA and UCLS at 5% level, increasing the
SF and CLS resulted in the increase in consistency. In contradiction to this, increase
in SP level reduced the consistency of paste. Thus, high consistency can be achieved
when dosage of SF is 9%, CLS is 15%, FA is 5%, UCLS is 5%, and SP is 0.5%.
Figure 5a shows the 3D response surface and contour plot for response Y3 (IST).
It was observed that by increasing the content of A and C into cement, IST increases.
Maximum retardation in IST is achieved by using 35% FA, 5% UCLS, 15% CLS,
6% SF and 0.5% SP. IST gets retarded by about 30% after adding these contents into
cement. And if acceleration in setting time is required, then content of these input
variables changes to 5% for FA, 5% for UCLS, 10% for CLS, 3% for SF and 1% for
SP. Similar results were obtained with Y4 (FST) as shown in Fig. 5b.
It can be investigated from Fig. 6 that with the addition of 5% FA, 5% UCLS, 15%
CLS, 9% SF and 0.5% SP into cement, 28 days compressive strength was increased.
Rao [22] reported that compressive strength was increased by replacing cement with
17.5% to 22.5% SF. This was attributed to the fact that SF, due to its fine particle
size, helps in reduction of large pores, which enhances strength [23]. Reduction in
compressive strength was seen when content of input parameter D reduces to its
lowest value and content of parameters A and B increased to their highest value, i.e.
35 and 15%, respectively.
3.3 Optimization Process
Based on RSM and approach of desirability, optimization was done by setting the
range of output responses according to target and desirability and maintaining the
desired range of input parameters as shown in Table 6. The main target of this
research was to maximum utilization of UCLS (low-grade limestone waste) as a
Fig. 4 Response surface and contour plots for a fineness and b standard consistency
replacement of cement. And by this utilization, enhancement in physico-mechanical

properties was the aim of study. The goal was to minimize the fineness (lower limit:
300 m2 /kg and upper limit: 500 m2 /kg), minimization of consistency (lower limit:
30% and upper limit: 36%), minimization of IST (lower limit: 30 min. and upper limit:
120 min.), minimization of FST (lower limit: 200 min. and upper limit: 600 min.)
and maximization of 28 days compressive strength (lower limit: 43 MPa and upper
limit of 65 MPa). After implementation of optimization process, 100 solutions were
obtained. Figure 7 revealed that minimum desirability was obtained when UCLS was
15%, FA was 5%, CLS was 5%, SF was 3%, and SP was 1%. However, maximum
Fig. 5 Response surface and contour plots for a IST and b FST
desirability of 0.927 was obtained when FA was 35%, UCLS was 15%, CLS was
5%, SF was 3%, and SP was 1%.
Figure 8 shows the graphical overlay. Experiments were performed to check the
experimental value with the optimized value, and it was observed that all the exper-
imental values lie in the range as per optimization. Table 7 shows the optimized
results along with experimental values. And in addition to this, it was predicted that
the errors in experimental value and optimized value were less than 7 which is best
because for a model to be best fit, error should not be more than 10% [24–26].
Fig. 6 Response surface and

contour plot for 28 days
compressive strength
Table 6 Optimization of input parameters and responses

Input parameters and responses Target Lower limit Upper limit Importance
FA, % Maximize 5 35 3
UCLS, % Maximize 5 15 3
CLS, % In range 5 15 3
SF, % Minimize 3 9 5
SP, % In range 0.5 1.5 3
Fineness (m2 /kg) Minimize 300 500 5
Consistency (%) Minimize 30 36 5
IST (min.) Minimize 30 120 5
FST (min.) Minimize 200 600 5
CS 28d (MPa) Maximize 43 65 5
Fig. 7 Response and contour plot of desirability
4 Conclusions
BBD was used to study the optimization of mixes. The influence of input parameters
on the responses was analysed experimentally as well as statistically by Design
Expert and ANOVA.
1. R2 value of all the responses lies between 0.83 and 0.99 which is required for
a model to be best fit.
2. The maximum desirability was obtained as 0.927 which is perfect. Also, the
error for all the responses was less than 10%.
3. The optimized value for input parameters is 35% FA, 15% UCLS, 5% CLS,
3% SF and 1% SP which can enhance all the properties.
Fig. 8 Graphical overlay

plot for regions of feasibility
factor
Table 7 Experimental verification of the data obtained by optimization

Response Y1 Y2 Y3 Y4 Y5
Unit m2 /kg % min min MPa
Optimized value 299.99 29.08 22.50 367.02 66.68
Experimental value 305.46 30.67 21.85 344.00 67.48
Error (%) 1.79 5.18 2.97 6.69 1.18
4. Addition of 5% FA, 5% UCLS, 15% CLS, 9% SF and 0.5% SP resulted in

higher compressive strength.
5. The clinker factor was optimized as 0.66 with 34% replacement of clinker with
mineral admixtures.
6. For all the responses, models were significant and lack of fit was not significant
which is desirable.
7. Addition of SF and CLS at high replacement level helps in increasing the
setting time as well as fineness due to their particle nature.
8. FA, if used as partial replacement of cement, reduces the strength up to 28 days.
So, only less content of FA was participated among other SCMs in enhancing
the properties.
9. CLS increases the consistency which is due to decomposition of CaCO3 which
forms a porous structure.
10. Addition of SP increased all the properties of cement mortar except consis-
tency. SP reduces the water content, and hence, the consistency reduces.
Credit authorship contribution statement

Anurag: Experiments, results, writing—review and editing, methodology; Rajesh
Kumar: Funding acquisition, conceptualization, application of statistical techniques,
creation of models.
Declaration of Competing Interest

The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal
relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.
Acknowledgements The authors are thankful to Director, CSIR-Central Building Research Insti-
tute, Roorkee (Uttarakhand), for granting permission to publish this research work. We are grateful
to ‘The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, New Delhi, Government of
India’ for the sustained financial support to the project (File Number: 19-45/2018/RE; Project No.:
GAP0090).
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Performance Analysis of Sustainable
Concrete Mixes Using Waste Slag
Sudipta Ghosh, Ipsita Mohanty, and Amiya Kumar Samanta
Abstract Ferrochrome and steel slag are massive by-products of the steel industry.
The crucial learning from this investigation is that these slags can be an alternate
material for aggregates, which can reduce negative impacts on the environment.
This document intends to study experimentally the fresh and hardened properties of
concrete prepared by using different combinations among fine aggregate, steel slag,
and ferrochrome slag. 50% of fine aggregate is kept constant, and rest is considered
with few combinations between steel slag and ferrochrome slag. Percentages of steel
slag are taken in a range decreasing from 50 to 0% at an interval of 10% along
with a combination with ferrochrome slag increasing from 0 to 50% at an interval
of 10%. It is observed that a combination of 30% steel slag and 20% ferrochrome
slag gives the ideal value of compressive and split tensile strength. 50% alternation
of fine aggregate by steel slag only provides the best value of flexural strength.
Keywords Sustainable concrete · Steel slag · Ferrochrome slag · Compressive

strength · Flexural strength · Split tensile strength
1 Introduction
The world is becoming denser in terms of population with the days going. For this
reason, a huge number of natural materials are habitually consumed as construction
is necessary. The growing emphasis on concrete production increases the demand
for natural fine aggregate which causes deficiency and worth of natural sand [1].
Sustainability is one of the principal focal points in the twenty-first century, and
thereupon, the utilization of relevant sustainable ingredients has been investigated
for their productive, environmental, and social advantages [2]. Due to the deficiency
S. Ghosh (B) · A. K. Samanta

Department of Civil Engineering, NIT Durgapur, Durgapur, West Bengal 713209, India
e-mail: sg.19ce1102@phd.nitdgp.ac.in
I. Mohanty
School of Civil Engineering, KIIT Deemed to be University, Bhubaneswar, Odisha 751024, India
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4040-8_48
598 S. Ghosh et al.
of natural sources of sand, alternative and suitable materials are required to look
for the construction industries so that natural materials can be replaced successfully
and can put a stop to the environmental harms. The huge amount of industrialization
has an output of gathering massive sum of waste products or manufacturing wastes
which cause danger to the atmosphere in terms of air, water, and soil pollution [3].
So, one of the ways to retain the environment pure, clean, and reduce damage is to
utilize these wastes in various modes. Development of various methods to utilize
industrial wastes like copper slag, steel slag, ferrochrome slag, ground granulated
blast furnace slag, fly ash, etc., has been accepted in construction works [4, 5].
Steel slag and ferrochrome slag are two by-products from steel and ferrochromium
industries, respectively [6, 7]. This huge amount of waste product needs to utilize
technically and economically so that the environment remains pure and clean. Nearly,
half of the waste products have already been started to reuse for pavement work in
developing countries like the USA, Japan, France, China, Germany, and many others.
But a perfect treatment is necessary to use it in concrete as cementitious material and
natural aggregate [8]. After the proper treatment, utilization of these types of waste
slags in construction work can answer the unending troubles like deficiency, cost of
normal aggregate, and also many environmental defilements [9].
2 Experimental Details
2.1 Materials
2.1.1 Cement (C)
Ordinary Portland Cement (OPC) of 53 grade conforming the specifications with

IS 12269:2013 [10] is considered in this experimental study. Dry sieving is used to
determine the fineness of cement. Consistency and initial and final setting time of
cement have been performed, and the test results in Table 1 show the prominence of
cement satisfying the necessities.
Table 1 Physical properties of OPC

Specifications
Fineness Consistency Specific Initial setting Final setting
(m2 /kg) (%) gravity time (min.) time (min.)
Experimental 310 28 3.15 100 170
results
Limits in IS 225 (min.) 27–32 3.01–3.15 30 (min.) 600 (max.)
12269:2013
Performance Analysis of Sustainable Concrete Mixes … 599
2.1.2 Fine Aggregate
Fine Aggregate (FA)
Local river sand, which is conducted as fine aggregate, confirms grading zone III and
desired requirements for the experimental study as per the stipulations of IS 383:2016
[11]. Uniformity coefficient and coefficient of curvature of the fine aggregate are
shown in Eqs. (1) and (2), respectively.
D60
CU = = 2.62 (1)
D10
D302
CC = = 1.09 (2)
D60 × D10
where C U = uniformity coefficient (should be > 1), C C = coefficient of curvature

(should be close to 1), and D60/ D30/ D10 = particle size at which 60/30/10% of
the particles are finer and 40/70/90% of the particles are coarser, respectively.
Steel Slag (SS)
Steel slag is found to be a wastage from steel industries, produced by melting iron ore
in electric arc furnace at 1600–3200 °C. Magnesium and lime are added as refluxing
agent with the ore to trim down the refractory expenditure and increase the value of
heat transfer. In this present study, steel slag is collected from Sree Rengaraj Ispat
Industries Pvt. Ltd., Tamil Nadu, India.
Ferrochrome Slag (FS)
Ferrochrome slag is a wastage from iron-chromium industries, produced by melting

the ore in electric arc furnace at 1600–2800 °C. Quartzite, dolomite, bauxite, lime,
corundum, and olivine are added as refluxing agents during the purification of pure
steel. In this present study, ferrochrome slag is collected from Balasore Ferro Alloy
Ltd., Balasore, Odisha, India.
2.1.3 Coarse Aggregate (CA)
Trampled granite aggregates of 20 and 12.5 mm size are considered as coarse aggre-
gate. Sieve analysis of aggregates validates to the stipulations of IS 383–1970. Based
on sieve analysis, the best combination between 40% of 12.5 mm passing—6.25 mm
retained and 60% of 20 mm passing—12.5 mm retained coarse aggregates is adopted
for this experiment.
600 S. Ghosh et al.
Fig. 1 Sieve analysis of raw materials
Table 2 Physical properties of fine and coarse aggregate

Aggregate type Properties
Shape Color Density Specific Water absorption
(kg/m3 ) gravity (%)
Steel slag Highly angular Brown 1680 3.42 2.44
Ferrochrome Angular Dark gray 1850 2.72 0.42
slag
Table 3 Physical properties of steel slag and ferrochrome slag

Aggregate type Properties
Fineness modulus Specific gravity Density (kg/m3 ) Water absorption
(%)
Fine aggregate 2.47 2.65 1580 0.85
Coarse aggregate 6.2 2.7 1580 0.40
• Sieve analysis of cement, fine aggregate, steel slag, ferrochrome slag, and coarse
aggregate is shown in Fig. 1
• Physical properties of both fine and coarse aggregates are proposed in Table 2.
Table 3 is cataloged with the physical properties of both steel slag and ferrochrome
slag.
2.1.4 Water
Clean portable from Structural Engineering Laboratory has been taken for the use of
mixing and curing process of the concrete samples. Properties of portable water are
presented in Table 4.
Table 4 Properties of water

Properties
pH TDS (ppm) Density (gm/cm3 ) Specific gravity
Results 6.67 436 0.99832 0.99562
Table 5 Mix proportion of concrete (kg/m3 )

Materials C FA SS FS CA Water
Mmix codes
NC 419 651 0 0 1155 210
FA50SS50FS00 419 325.5 325.5 0 1155 210
FA50SS40FS10 419 325.5 260.4 65.1 1155 210
FA50SS30FS20 419 325.5 195.3 130.2 1155 210
FA50SS20FS30 419 325.5 130.2 195.3 1155 210
FA50SS10FS40 419 325.5 65.1 260.4 1155 210
FA50SS00FS50 419 325.5 0 325.5 1155 210
2.2 Mix Design
The design mix proportion among cement, fine aggregate, and coarse aggregate in the
concrete mixture is calculated by following the procedure from IS 10262:2019 [12]
with the considerations from IS 456:2000 [13]. M30 grade of concrete is considered
for this experimental study. The design mix ratio is 1:1.55:2.76 (C: FA: CA) with
water–cement ratio of 0.47. 20 mm size of aggregates is taken as maximum size of
aggregate. No superplasticizer is used. Quantity of materials for this experimental
study is given in Table 5.
2.3 Mix Combination
In this study, amount of cement, coarse aggregate, and 50% of fine aggregate is taken
as fixed. Rest 50% of fine aggregate is substituted by few combinations between steel
slag and ferrochrome slag which is shown in Fig. 2.
2.4 Size, Mixing, and Nomenclature of Concrete Specimens
Using the design mix mentioned above, the specimens are prepared. Details of the
specimens are stated below.
602 S. Ghosh et al.
Fig. 2 Percentages of materials considered in concrete with specimen code
Forty-two cubes, 42 cylinders, and 42 prisms are separately prepared for total
seven types of mixtures including reference concrete mix. Three samples for each
7 days and 28 days are considered for the calculation of average strength. Cubes,
prisms, and cylinders having size of 150 × 150 × 150 mm, 100 × 100 × 500 mm,
and 150(dia) × 300(length) mm are considered for the compression, flexural, and
split tensile test, respectively.
Standard test specimens are prepared with crumpled granite by means of coarse
aggregate along with river sand by means of fine aggregate to compare with other
specimens. Consequent experiment samples are prepared with coarse aggregate, and
50% of fine aggregate and rest of the fine aggregate are substituted by steel slag
and ferrochrome slag by few weight combinations. Water–cement ratio is taken as
invariable at 0.47 all through the experimental study.
In this experiment, NC indicates the normal concrete which is used for the
reference one. Rest of the specimens are coded by FAxxSSyyFSzz, where FA,
SS, and FS decode fine aggregate, steel slag, and ferrochrome slag; xx, yy, and
zz are corresponding percentages used, respectively, in this experiment. Example:
FA50SS10FS40 indicates 50% amount of fine aggregate, 10% amount of steel slag,
and 40% amount of ferrochrome slag.
2.5 Test Details
As per IS 1199:1959 [14], slump test is performed to verify the degree of workability
of newly made concrete. Slump cone having a diameter of 200 mm at base, 100 mm
at top opening, and height of 300 mm has been adopted for the slump test. After
that, fresh concrete is poured into the cube, cylinder, and prism molds into three
layers followed by 25 times of tamping on each layer. Specimens are taken out from
the molds after 24 h from the placing of concrete. Then the samples are kept at
submerged condition in water. Specimens are taken out from the water and kept at
room temperature for drying. As per IS 516:1956 [15], cubes and prisms are crushed
for compression and flexural test of concrete, respectively, following a curing period
of 7 and 28 days. Similarly, split tension test is performed by crushing cylinder
following a curing period of 7 and 28 days as per the regulations of IS 5816:1999
[16]. Every time a mean value of three samples is performed for the final answer.
Optimum percentage replacement for every test is also found.
3 Experimental Results and Discussion
3.1 Fresh Concrete Property
3.1.1 Slump Test
Slump value of normal concrete is 95 mm. But as the substitution percentage of

ferrochrome slag is enlarged, the value of slump is decreasing. Slump value was
similar to normal concrete when only steel slag replaced the fine aggregate by
50%. Then gradually slump value is decreasing as the replacement percentage of
ferrochrome slag is increasing. Like this way, slump value decreased up to 15 mm
when fine aggregate is alternated by ferrochrome slag only through 50%. Slump value
is similar when percentages of SS and FS are 20–30 and 30–20. Figure 3 shows the
slump values and slump difference with respect to normal mix.
Fig. 3 Slump value of

concrete
604 S. Ghosh et al.
Fig. 4 a Compressive strength of concrete and b compressive strength ratio
3.2 Hardened Properties of Concrete
The normal concrete shows compressive strength of 30.42 and 38.16 N/mm2 after
completing the curing period of 7 and 28 days correspondingly. While likened to
typical concrete, development of compressive strength occurs for each time as soon
as the fine aggregate is alternated by the combination of steel slag and ferrochrome
slag. In major cases concrete improvements 65–70% of target strength at the age
of 7 days. 24 and 20% increments of compressive strength are noticed at 7 and
28 days, respectively, equated with ordinary concrete for the sample where only
steel slag replaces 50% of fine aggregate. The specimen FA50SS40FS10 shows 4
and 5% increments at 7 and 28 days of curing period correspondingly. Almost 15%
increment occurs at both 7 and 28 days for the specimen coded FA50SS30FS20. For
the sample coded with FA50SS20FS30 shows almost 12% increment at both 7 and
28 days of curing. This may be due to the utilization of similar amount of steel slag
and ferrochrome slag in both the concretes and showing almost similar impact on
compressive strength of concrete. The samples coded by FA50SS10FS40 provide a
compressive strength of 35.7 and 43.71 MPa at 7 days and 28 days correspondingly. It
has been seen that the concrete provides 31.24 and 39.79 MPa compressive strength
at 7 and 28 days, respectively, when only ferrochrome slag replaces 50% of fine
aggregate in concrete that means very little increment takes place when half of the
fine aggregate is substituted by ferrochrome slag only. Figure 4a and b shows the
compressive strength values and strength ratios of concrete specimens with respect
to NC, respectively, at 7 and 28 days. 50% replacement of fine aggregate by steel
slag only provides the optimum compressive strength among all.
3.2.2 Split Tensile Strength
Splitting tensile strength of normal concrete is 3.48 and 3.86 N/mm2 at 7 and 28 days,
respectively. It is noticed that splitting tensile strength of concrete is slightly lower
Fig. 5 a Split tensile strength of concrete and b split tensile strength ratio
at earlier days, but it reaches higher at later age. The split tensile strength for
50% replaced specimen by steel slag is 3.61 N/mm2 and 3.99 N/mm2 at 7 and
28 days correspondingly. But for the specimen FA50SS40FS10, the splitting tensile
strength at both 7 and 28 days goes low by 8.9 and 14.25%, respectively. At 7 days,
strength is equal to normal concrete for the sample coded with FA50SS30FS20,
but it increases 17.61% at 28 days. Similarly, the splitting tensile strength for the
specimens coded with FA50SS20FS30, FA50SS10FS40, and FA50SS00FS50 goes
down by 5, 8.3 and 7.7%, but the strength increases by 12.95, 1.3, and 14.76%
at 28 days adequately. Figure 5a and b displays the split tensile strength values and
strength ratios of concrete samples with respect to NC, respectively, at 7 and 28 days.
FA50SS50FS00 and FA50SS30FS20 samples show best split tensile strength at 7
and 28 days, respectively.
3.2.3 Flexural Strength
Normal concrete exhibits the flexural strength of 7.98 and 10.23 N/mm2 at 7 and
28 days, respectively. In maximum cases, flexural strength decreases at both 7 and
28 days while likened to standard concrete. The result of flexural strength at 7 days
shows a decrement of 5–15 and 15–30% at 28 days. From the study, it has been
seen that only 50% substitution of fine aggregate by steel slag gives an increment
in strength about 12.78 and 15.64% at 7 and 28 days correspondingly. The flexural
strength of the sample coded with FA50SS40FS10 goes down to 6.7 and 7.2 N/mm2
at 7 days and 28 days correspondingly which is the most decrement among all
the samples. The sample which is coded by FA50SS30FS30 gives a stress of 7.52
and 8.75 N/mm2 after a medicinal stage of 7 days and 28 days, respectively. The
specimen coded with FA50SS20FS30 gives almost same stress like normal concrete
at 7 days but shows a decrement of 18.87% at 28 days. Flexural strength of those
specimens coded with FA50SS10FS40 shows a decrement of 5.65 and 19% after
the curing period of 7 days and 28 days correspondingly. The specimen of which
only ferrochrome slag is replacing the fine aggregate by 50% provides a stress of
7.28 and 8.22 N/mm2 at 7 and 28 days correspondingly. The above study concludes
that the combination of steel slag and ferrochromium slag does not give optimum
result in flexural strength of unreinforced concrete beams. Figure 6a and b provides
606 S. Ghosh et al.
Fig. 6 a Flexural strength of concrete and b flexural strength ratio
the flexural strength values and strength ratios of concrete specimens with respect to
NC, respectively, at 7 and 28 days. FA50SS50FA50 sample shows optimum flexural
strength than all other concrete specimens.
3.2.4 Weight of Specimen
Concrete samples having higher percentage of steel slag are showing similar weight
like NC. Sometime comparatively lesser weight is noticed when higher quantity of
steel slag is incorporated in the samples. Weights of both cubes and cylinders are
getting increased as the amount of ferrochrome slag increases. Almost 3% weight
is getting increased per sample while compared to NC. This variation of weight in
the samples incorporating more ferrochrome slag is because of the higher density
of ferrochrome slag than both natural sand and steel slag. So, the concrete which
is prepared by partial or full replacement of fine aggregate by steel slag only may
be termed as lightweight concrete. Variations of weight of the concrete samples in
comparison with NC are presented in Fig. 7.
Fig. 7 Variation of weight of the concrete specimens

4 Conclusions
The subsequent terminations are drawn from the experimental study described
completely in this report.
• Unit weight of the specimens incorporating higher amount of steel slag is lesser
than the specimen incorporating higher amount of ferrochrome slag.
• Workability declines with the decrease in percentage of steel slag or increase in
percentage of ferrochrome slag.
• The concrete has provided better results in compressive strength either when
only steel slag or combined steel slag and ferrochrome slag is replacing the fine
aggregate. But higher percentage replacement of fine aggregate by ferrochrome
slag has slightly poor effect on compressive strength.
• Fine aggregate replacement by steel slag only gives better performance in flexural
strength. Rest of the samples have not justified with flexural strength.
• Split tensile strength at early stage does not have enough significance on the
replacement ratios. But at 28 days, all the samples provided better result than
normal one. Specimens with 20–30% replacement by both the slag provided best
result at 28 days.
References
1. Devi, V. S., & Gnanavel, B. K. (2014). Properties of concrete manufactured using steel slag.
Procedia Engineering, 97, 95–104. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.proeng.2014.12.229
2. Coppola, L., Buoso, A., Coffetti, D., Kara, P., & Lorenzi, S. (2016). Electric arc furnace
granulated slag for sustainable concrete. Construction and Building Materials, 123, 115–119.
3. Chunlin, L., Kunpeng, Z., & Depeng, C. (2011). Possibility of concrete prepared with steel
slag as fine and coarse aggregates: A preliminary study. Procedia Engineering, 24, 412–416.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.proeng.2011.11.2667
4. Dash, M. K., Patro, S. K., & Rath, A. K. (2016). Sustainable use of industrial-waste as partial
replacement of fine aggregate for preparation of concrete—A review. International Journal of
Sustainable Built Environment, 5, 484–516. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijsbe.2016.04.006
5. Dash, M. K., & Patro, S. K. (2018). Effects of water cooled ferrochrome slag as fine aggregate
on the properties of concrete. Construction and Building Materials, 177, 457–466. https://doi.
org/10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2018.05.079
6. Panda, C. R., Mishra, K. K., Panda, K. C., Nayak, B. D., & Nayak, B. B. (2013). Environmental
and technical assessment of ferrochrome slag as concrete aggregate material. Construction and
7. Netinger, I., Bjegovic, D., & Vrhovac, G. (2011). Utilisation of steel slag as an aggregate
in concrete. Materials and structures, 44, 1565–1575. https://doi.org/10.1617/s11527-011-
9719-8
8. Grubesa, I. N., Rukavina, M. J., & Mladenovic, A. (2016). Impact of high temperature
on residual properties of concrete with steel slag aggregate. Journal of Materials in Civil
Engineering, 6, 1–13. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)MT.1943-5533.0001515
608 S. Ghosh et al.
9. Tarawneh, S. A., Gharaibeh, E. S., & Saraireh, F. M. (2014). Effect of using steel slag aggregate
on mechanical properties of concrete. American Journal of Applied Sciences, 5, 700–706.
https://doi.org/10.3844/ajassp.2014.700.706
10. IS 12269. (2013). Ordinary Portland Cement, 53 Grade—Specification. Bureau of Indian
Standard, New Delhi, India.
11. IS 383. (2016). Specifications for Coarse and Fine Aggregates for Concrete. Bureau of Indian
12. IS 10262. (2019). Concrete Mix Proportioning—Guidelines. Bureau of Indian Standard, New
Delhi, India.
13. IS 456. (2000). Specification for Plain and Reinforced Concrete Code of Practice. Bureau of
Indian Standard, New Delhi, India.
14. IS 1199. (1959). Methods of Sampling and Analysis of Concrete. Bureau of Indian Standard,
New Delhi, India.
15. IS 516. (1959). Methods of Tests for Strength of Concrete. Bureau of Indian Standard, New
Delhi, India.
16. IS 5816. (1999). Splitting Tensile Strength of Concrete—Method of Test. Bureau of Indian
Cement Stabilized Mud Blocks Admixed
with Bagasse Fibre, Wheat Straw
and Crumb Rubber: Physico-Mechanical
and Thermal Investigation
Rajesh Kumar and Bibhakar Kumar Singh
Abstract Use of mud in building construction is not just to provide shelters, but work
also as a heat insulating medium. The goal of this experiment was to develop cement
stabilized mud composites (masonry blocks: 400 × 200 × 200 mm and tiles: 300 ×
300 × 25 mm) using cohesion less soil with wheat straw, crumb rubber, bagasse, and
water. Soil used was poor in plasticity as per IS: 2115–1980. As a result, the soil was
initially stabilized by adding up to 10% cement. The water binder (w/b) ratios for
each mix proportion were optimized after cement was added. By replacing and/or
adding straw, crumb rubber, and bagasse fibre, a total of 15 mix-proportions were
developed. To determine physico-mechanical and thermal properties, four numbers
of cubes were cast for each mix. Three cubes were utilized to calculate compressive
strength (CS), whilst one cube was used to calculate green-dry density. Mud phuska
tiles were cast to determine thermal conductivity of the mud composites. To determine
drying shrinkage; prism bar of size 250 × 25 × 25 mm were cast. Moist curing were
adopted till 28 days. Desirable CS (2.65 MPa), dry density (1020 kg/m3 ) and k-
value (0.252 W/m.K) was achieved for mix proportion developed by adding 7.5%
wheat straw (by wt. of cement + soil), 10% cement (by weight of less cohesive soil)
along with 10% addition of crumb rubber (by wt. of soil and cement). Also, the
model houses (L × B × H = 430 × 510 × 330 mm) were developed for testing the
heat insulation properties of mud composites. For comparison, another conventional
brick-concrete model house was constructed using conventional burnt clay brick and
concrete roof, and then the average temperature was monitored for seven days. It
was inferred that house with cement stabilized mud phuska composites (masonary
blocks and tiles) was cooler than the traditional brick-concrete model house.
Keywords Cement stabilized mud composites · Plasticity Index · Compressive

strength · Thermal conductivity · Crumb rubber
R. Kumar (B)
Organic Building Materials (OBM) Group, CSIR—Central Building Research Institute, Roorkee,
Uttarakhand 247 667, India
B. K. Singh
Birla Institute of Technology, Mesra, Ranchi, Jharkhand 835215, India
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4040-8_49
610 R. Kumar and B. K. Singh
1 Introduction
Currently, as a result of industrial, mining, municipal, agricultural, and other enter-

prises, India creates approximately 960 million tonnes of solid garbage per year.
Because of advancements in solid waste management, alternative construction mate-
rials have arisen as a substitute for traditional materials such as bricks, ceramics,
cement, lime, soil, and paint. Agriculture wastes, such as wheat straw and husk,
vegetable, and jute fibre, timber mill waste, and other agricultural wastes, provide
good thermal insulation when combined with cement. Many people in India employ
traditional methods to provide thermal comfort inside their homes. In India, the
brickbat coba and mud phuska techniques are widely employed by citizens and have
been for many years. Agriculture wastes, such as wheat straw, can be used as fibrous
materials in the mud phuska process.
Mud huts are home to one-third of the world’s population. Use of mud in building
construction is not just to provide shelters, but also work as a heat insulating medium.
Mud is an adaptable construction material that has been utilized to create some of
the world’s most amazing architectural marvels. Sun dried mud and straw bricks are
widely used in India to build traditional rural cottages. The use of mud as a primary
building material is both advantageous and cost-effective. Due to the scarcity and
expensive cost of traditional building materials such as brick, cement, and steel,
switching to mud is the only method to address the country’s severe housing crisis,
which is expected to reach 85 million units by 2030. A few studies are available
regarding the determination of CS on stabilized soil blocks/bricks with fibres and
binders [1, 2]. Houben and Guillaud [3] recommended the CS of minimum 2 MPa
for cement stabilized blocks. A few studies have been conducted regarding water
absorption test [4, 5]. Villamizar et al. [6] recorded a slight reduction by 0.64%,
in water absorption with fibres. The flexural strength tests on soil blocks showed a
very similar trend of outcome on CS. The binders showed generally a rising flexural
strength with increased concentration of fibres up to the desirable limit. According
to Ashour et al. [7], the thermal efficiency of mud composites was improved as
the fibre content increases. According to Singh et al. [8], soil treated with 18%
waste tyre shred (size: 425 µm to 600 µm) had CS of 1.75 kg/cm2 . According
to Rajasekar and Srinivasan [9], CS values increased up to 0.41 MPa when soil
contained 8% shredded rubber tyre. The effects of granular rubber on cement soil
matrix erosion resistance were examined by Wang et al. [10], and noted that granular
rubber effectively enhanced cement soil matrix erosion resistance.
Crop and farm animals wastes are examples of agriculture waste. These wastes
do not constitute a big concern in growing economies, because the majority of them
are utilized as raw construction materials. Several studies have revealed that some
agricultural wastes contain silica and, when mixed with cement, produce excellent
outcomes. Every year, India generates massive amounts of agricultural waste. The
Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) estimates that roughly 500 MT
of agricultural leftovers are generated annually in the country [11]. Waste from
agricultural industry come in a variety of forms, but the three most commonly utilized
Cement Stabilized Mud Blocks Admixed with Bagasse Fibre, … 611
in civil engineering applications are coconut waste, rice husk ash, and sugar cane
waste. Numerous studies have shown that coconut shells can be used as a substitute
for traditional aggregate in building.
Because traditional mud phuska treatment options (Bunker fill roofs, Arch or vault
roofs, and so on) involve a significant amount of time, resources, and professional
labour. In addition, due to the shrinkage issue, many cracks appear upon drying,
resulting in poor performance of mud phuska composites. As a result, the suggested
research study includes two major components: the development of precast mud
phuska composite roof tiles using different wastes, and corrective solutions to solve
shrinkages in traditional clay-based mud phuska procedures.
In the presented study, apart from the soil and cement; different kind of waste mate-
rials, i.e. wheat straw, bagasse fibre and crumb rubber dry powder, were chosen on
the basis of their intrinsic properties and were assumed that those raw materials
will be providing some value addition in the developed end product, i.e. stabilized
mud blocks and tiles. Wheat straw fibre was used to improve strength properties
of mud composites. Bagasse fibre was used as an alternative fibrous material as
replacement of wheat straw. Crumb rubber powder was used to improve thermal
insulation properties as thermal conductivity of the developed material decreases
by using crumb rubber. Thus, as shown in Fig. 1, all the collected waste materials
(a) Cohesion less soil (b) Wheat straw (c) Baggase fibre
(d) Rubber tyre (left) and Footwear waste (right) (e) Crumb rubber powder
Fig. 1 Primary raw materials for casting [13]

from different sources (soil, wheat straw, bagasse fibre and crumb rubber powder, i.e.
recycled rubber from footwear waste and truck scrap tires), was characterized before
developing the mix design to achieve adequate strength as well as good thermal insu-
lation. The physical properties of the crumb rubber were determined in the form of
Volatility, Sieving, Diameter (µm), Moisture Content (%) as 0.33% (Reference value:
≤ 1.0), 99.37% (Reference value: ≥ 98.0), 365 µm (Reference value: 250 µm), and
0.47%, (Reference value: ≤ 1.0), respectively. Properties of both agriculture wastes
are depicted in Table 1.
The soil utilized was stabilized using the plasticity index (PI) as recommended
by IS: 2115 [12], which specifies a PI range of up to 10–15%. As a result, the soil
was initially stabilized by introducing ordinary Portland cement (OPC)-43 Grade
cement in amounts ranging from 5 to 10%. Following the addition of cement, the
water binder ratios for each mix proportion were optimized using the flow table test.
Particle size distribution (PSD) of less cohesive soil was determined as shown in
Fig. 2. The diameters of the particles at 10, 50 and 90% cumulative percentage (D10 ,
D50 , and D90 ) were found to be 0.01, 0.2 and 0.6 mm, respectively.
Table 1 Parameters of wheat straw and bagasse fibres

Agriculture Fibre form Average Average Specific Field Water
wastes Length, Diameter, weight moisture absorption
(mm) (mm) (g/cm3 ) content (%) (%)
Wheat straw Single 15 4 0.12 8.24 134
Bagasse Single 150 1.2 0.62 14.93 198
fibres
Fig. 2 Particle size distribution (PSD) for local soil sample [13]
Plasticity index (PI) value of soil was determined from Eq. 1 [9]. Plastic limit of
the soil sample was determined by making thread of 3 mm (Fig. 3). In our case the
plastic limit (PL) of soil is not possible to find, because the less clay content in the
soil. Therefore, OPC as a binder in different proportion (5, 7.5 and 10%), was used
to stabilize the soil as shown in Fig. 4.
PI = Liquid limit (LL) − PL (1)
After examining different soil/cement ratios, it was discovered that 10% cement
was sufficient to stabilize soil samples, and the plastic limit was determined to be
14% [13]. Liquid limit test after adding 5–10% OPC in soil was carried out. A graph
between penetrations in mm (x axis) and moisture content in percentage (y-axis) was
drawn to determine liquid limit (Fig. 5).
Liquid limit for the soil mix with 10% cement, was obtained as 24% [13]. PI value
was calculated as 10%, from Eq. 1. Similarly for other replacement level of cement
with soil, the PI values were determined. It was observed that for OPC content of 5
Fig. 3 Determination of PL
of soil without binder
Fig. 4 Determination of PL
of soil with 5–10% OPC
Depth of penetration (d, mm)

Water content (w, %)
Fig. 5 Digital Cone Penetrometer to determine LL after addition of 10% cement
and 7.5%; PI values were observed as 6.88 and 8.90%, respectively. Hence, target to
achieve desirable PI was achieved by adding 10% OPC in cohesion less soil.
3 Casting of Specimen
The mix design for mud phuska tile was created by aiming for a low k-value (less
than 0.30 W/m.K) and higher CS (2.36–2.42 MPa). After conducting mix design
trials, it was discovered that wastes (wheat straw/ bagasse/ crumb rubber) were used
as a 5.88% replacement for cement and soil binder in the development of cement
stabilized mud composites for mixes A, B, C, and D. Wheat straw and crumb rubber
(7.5 and 10% of soil and cement, respectively) and 10% cement (by weight of less
cohesive soil) were used to create a stabilized mud composite of mix GA , as indicated
in Table 2. After weighing all the raw material in required proportion, mixes were
prepared after determining the flow value using flow table test [14]. Flow table test
Table 2 Mixes for developing mud phuska specimens at three w/b ratios
Mix designation Raw materials w/b ratios
A/Mix 1 90% Soil + 10% Ordinary Portland cement + Water* 0.21, 0.28, 0.35
B/Mix 2 84.71% Soil + 9.41% Ordinary Portland cement + 5.88% 0.55, 0.80, 1.10
Wheat straw + Water*
C/Mix 3 84.71% Soil + 9.41% Ordinary Portland cement + 5.88% 0.53, 0.80, 1.10
Bagasse + Water*
D/Mix 4 84.71% Soil + 9.41% Ordinary Portland cement + 5.88% 0.23, 0.34, 0.38
Crumb rubber + Water*
GA /Mix 5 90% Soil + 10% Ordinary Portland cement + 7.5% Wheat 0.45, 0.66, 0.68
straw + 10% Crumb rubber + Water*
* Water content was determined using w/b ratios
Fig. 6 Flow value with for different mix proportion
was conducted to determine the w/b ratio of each fresh mix of cement, soil and water
after getting acceptable flow value, i.e. 30, 100 and 150 (Fig. 6).
By replacing and adding wheat straw, crumb rubber, and bagasse, a total of 15
mix-proportions (five mixes with three w/b ratios each) were developed (Table 2).
After preparing different mix designs, next step was to cast the cubes of size 50
× 50 × 50 mm (Fig. 7). A standard vibrating table was used for casting of the cubes.
For different w/b ratio, 4 numbers of cubes were cast using vibrating table and five
design mix were prepared as, A, B, C, D, GA . For determining thermal conductivity
(k-value) of mud phuska tiles, two tiles of size 300 × 300 × 50mm were cast using
same mix proportion which showed good characteristics after being poured into the
mould (Fig. 8). The mixing of mud phuska composites was done, as shown in Figs. 7
and 8. After demoulding, moist curing were adopted (Fig. 9).
(a) Mixing of soil by hand (b) Compaction on vibration table (c) Cubes and prisms
Fig. 7 Casting of cubes

(a) Mixing of soil by feet (b) Casting of Mud tiles
(c) Compact the materials (d) End product
Fig. 8 Casting of mud phuska tiles
Fig. 9 Specimens under

moist curing
Test set-ups
In the experimental study, mud phuska composite was used to develop the masonry
blocks. Hence, it is necessary to check the CS to meet the requirement as per IS:
2115. CS after 7 and 28 days, was determined using 100 T Universal testing machine
(UTM) (Fig. 10).
Thermal performance of composite mud phuska tiles was determined by guarded
hot plate method [15]. Figure 11 depicts a typical schematic of two slab guarded hot
Fig. 10 Testing of cubes under UTM
Fig. 11 Guarded hot plate method
plate technique setup for steady state thermal conductivity measurement.

Preparation of model house
As shown in Figs. 12 and 13, two model houses were constructed using conventional
brick-concrete and stabilized mud composite to check the effect of mud phuska on
the thermal comfort. The ratio of the area of a covered floor (Built up Area) to the
Fig. 12 Conventional model house made up of brick and concrete slab

Fig. 13 Model house made of mud composite
area of the plot (land) on which a building stands is known as the Floor Space Index
(FSI); were taken as 1.33.
The purpose of constructing model house was to investigate and analyse the
difference between the conventional model house and mud composite house in terms
of thermal comfort. For this experiment, the average temperature of outside and inside
of house was measured.
The k-value, CS, and drying shrinkage of specimens were determined after curing
them for 7 and 28 days. After determining CS of all the specimens, it was clear that
the sample having less water binder ratio showed more CS. Also, the sample in which
more water was added, its density was towards lower side and strength was less as
compared to other specimens. Maximum CS from all different mix proportion was
selected and the graph between CS and their respective mix number was plotted as
shown in Fig. 14. After analysis the above graph, it is cleared that mix 4, in which
crumb rubber were used showed good results. But to get better k-value; the use
of wheat straw (Bhusa) were also necessary. Hence, mix 5 (GA ) was selected for
making mud phuska tiles. For Mix A; maximum CS was observed as 15.89 MPa at
w/b ratio of 0.28. Whilst for optimized mix GA ; dry density was obtained as 850–
880 kg/m3 which was within the desirable range of dry density for improved thermal
performance. The k-value was noted as 0.408 W/m.K, due to higher dry density of
the specimen as compared to control mix. Whilst it was discovered that the sample
containing crumb rubber has a suitable k-value of 0.29 W/m.K. With a dry density
of 1020 kg/m3 , the mix proportion GA; has the requisite CS (2.65 MPa), flexural
strength (1.858 MPa), and k-value (0.252 W/m.K).
The shrinkage was measured as shown in Table 3 by ‘Length comparator’. Drying
shrinkage was measured as 0.071% at average relative humidity (RH) of 40%. Due
to the restraint imposed by wheat straw fibre, drying shrinkage was decreased.
Finally it was inferred that Mix GA was the optimized mix which was developed
by adding 7.5% wheat straw (by wt. of cement + soil), 10% cement (by weight of less
cohesive soil) along with 10% addition of crumb rubber (by wt. of soil and cement).
Compressive strength (MPa)
Mix designation
Fig. 14 Compressive strength with different mix
Table 3 Variation in length

Sr. No Reading* at Mud-phuska mix GA
of finally selected mix of mud
phuska Specimen 1 Specimen 2
1 Immediately 2.826 mm 1.540 mm
2 2 days 2.689 mm 1.379 mm
3 4 days 2.671 mm 1.354 mm
4 6 days 2.643 mm 1.341 mm
5 8 days 2.619 mm 1.330 mm
6 10 days 2.616 mm 1.324 mm
Difference in length(∆L) 0.210 mm 0.216 mm
Drying Shrinkage 0.070 % 0.072 %
The optimal mix percentage was designed with the goal of using less cementitious
binder and getting the most out of agro-industrial waste. Mud phuska tiles with the
qualities listed in Table 4; were made with the same mix proportion.
Table 4 Properties of mud

Properties Observed values Reference values
phuska tile
Length*Width* 300 × 300 × 50 300 × 300 × 50 mm
Height, mm
Density, kg/m3 1020 900–1100
Thermal conductivity, 0.252 ≤ 0.30
W/m.K
Flexural strength, 1.858 ≥ 1.50
MPa
Drying shrinkage, % 0.071 ≤ 0.08- 0.10
Fig. 15 Model house using

brick
Model house results

Two model houses were made using conventional bricks and stabilized mud
composite blocks. As mud blocks were stabilized using OPC-43. Therefore, 90 days
of optimum time were provided so that all the exothermic reaction caused by different
phases of cement, were almost completed. Temperature data was collected for 7 days
(from 1 to 8 PM) after the construction of both model dwellings. Data was collected
using electronic thermo-humidity metre installed inside as well as outside as shown
in Fig. 15. After collecting the data for each day; average temperature at each clock
time (from 1 to 8 PM) were calculated. For example- equation to calculate average
temperature at n PM for all the seven days will be as follows-
(T)Avg. @ n PM = (T1st day + T2nd day + T3rd day + T4th day + T5th day
+ T6th day + T7th day )@ n PM / 7 (2)
Here, n is clock time for each day (n = 1, 2, 3 …. 8).

After determining the average temperature for conventional and mud block house;
the results were compared to examine how employing mud composite instead of
traditional brick affected the outcome (Fig. 16).
Figure 17 shows that a traditional brick building gets hotter during the day, with the
temperature inside the house being 2–5 degree C higher than the outside temperature.
Whilst the temperature outside steadily drops in the evening, the temperature inside
the house remains hot and takes time to cool down. Figure 17 further shows that
using mud phuska as a thermal insulating medium cools the house by 4 to 6 degrees
C when compared to a traditional brick-built model.
Fig. 16 Model house using

mud phuska tiles
Fig. 17 Temperature graph of a model house constructed of brick and mud phuska over time
5 Conclusions
After casting cubes from different mix proportion having three different water binder
ratios; it was observed that the cubes that were made of mix GA found to fulfil
the requirements of CS as well as thermal conductivity (k –value). Based on the
experimental work and analysis of result, following were the conclusions-
1. The plasticity index of collected cohesion less soil was not in the range of
10–15% as per IS 2115, for mud phuska soil. Hence, for achieving the same
requirements, stabilization of soil was carried out by adding 10% cement into
it.
2. With a dry density of 1020 kg/m3 , the mix proportion GA has the acceptable CS
(2.65 MPa), flexural strength (1.858 MPa), and k-value (0.252 W/m.K).
3. The crumb rubber added tiles sample has a k-value of 0.29 W/m.K, which is
good, however the samples are little heavier.
4. Mix C was prepared by adding bagasse into soil, which showed good thermal
resistance, but CS was not up to the mark.
After analysis of the result of this experimental work, there is some future scope
in the work which is as follows:
1. Different polymers/ chemicals may be used for providing better binding between
agricultural waste and soil.
2. Other materials such as plastic fibre, polystyrene, may be used with agricultural
waste for providing better results.
3. Bagasse ash can be used in the soil mix, as bagasse ash contains high value of
silica which affect the strength of soil cubes.
Acknowledgements The financial supports from Council of Scientific and Industrial Research
(CSIR), New Delhi’ (Project No. RSP-4051 (OLP-0393)) regarding CSIR-800 project, is gratefully
acknowledged.
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ment. Abstracts of International Conferences and Meetings, 1(3), 28. https://doi.org/10.5281/
zenodo.5052003
15. IS 3346. (1980). Method of the determination of thermal conductivity of thermal insulation
materials (Two Slab Guarded Hot Plate Method). Bureau of Indian Standards, New Delhi,
India.
An Overview of the Mixture Design
Approaches for UHPFRC
Josniya Jose, Praveen Nagarajan, and Mini Remanan
Abstract In the present scenario, increased construction demands have escalated

the need for materials with better performances and strength properties. With the
substantial increase in attainable properties, mixture proportioning has become more
complex over recent years with the inclusion of very fine powders and fibers. Mix
design problems involved more dimensions and variables which forbade researchers
to restrict themselves to most commonly considered design aspects. Recent devel-
opment in high performance concrete, namely, Ultra-High Performance Fiber Rein-
forced Concrete (UHPFRC) is a promising alternative to meet all such stipulations.
UHPFRC comprises several mineral additives and fibers with superplasticizer aided
very low water-cement ratio, exhibiting superior strength and durability characteris-
tics at hardened stage. Strength of this cement-based composite mainly depends on its
particle packing, pore structure, aggregate quality as well as aggregate-matrix-fiber
interfaces. However, inadequate design specifications and standards have limited its
widespread usage. Most often in literature, UHPFRC mixtures are given without any
theoretical background or detailed explanations, though the performance of concrete
is very much influenced by the degree and type of packing of its constituents. This
paper outlines various multi-component particle packing techniques employed for
the mixture design of UHPFRC. These methods aid in achieving a densely compacted
matrix with improved microstructure and strength properties. Following part of the
paper reviews various mix optimizations done in view of sustainability as well as
high packing density.
Keywords Mixture design · UHPFRC · Particle packing models · Mix

optimization · Sustainability
J. Jose (B) · P. Nagarajan · M. Remanan

National Institute of Technology, Calicut, India
e-mail: josniyaj@gmail.com
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4040-8_50
626 J. Jose et al.
1 Introduction
Beginning with the history of Roman roads, the development of modern concrete
took place in the nineteenth century. Since then, it has been extensively used in all
fields of construction till date. The advancement in construction industry necessitated
materials with outstanding properties and diverse applications. The introduction of
superplasticizers in the 1980’s favored the usage of low water-to-binder ratios up to
0.3. The application of fine particles with optimal distribution of their grain sizes,
high performance materials with compressive strengths up to 280 MPa was achieved.
Steel fibers in the late 1980’s helped in improving the ductility of matrix. Two exam-
ples of this type include the Compact Reinforced Concrete (CRC) and Slurry Infil-
trated Fiber Concrete (SIFCON). Following the development of Reactive Powder
Concrete (RPC) by Richard et al. in 1993, the term Ultra-High Performance Concrete
(UHPC) was introduced by De Larrard in the year 1994 [1, 2]. This novel cement-
based composite, namely, the Ultra-High Performance Fiber Reinforced Concrete
(UHPFRC) has allured many engineers and researchers in the mid-1990s owing to
its excellent performance characteristics with respect to durability as well as strength
properties [3, 4]. UHPFRC is a blend of high performance concrete matrix composed
of high cement content, fine powders (GGBS, silica fume, fly ash, etc.) and fine
aggregates along with ductile fibers [5]. The main components of UHPFRC matrix
are shown in Fig. 1. Lower water/cement ratio (<0.25) aided with high range water
reducers and a very dense microstructure resulted in achieving a high compres-
sive strength (>150 MPa), tensile capacity (in the range of 8 MPa), toughness and
decreased porosity compared to conventional concrete (Fig. 2) [1, 3, 6, 7].
Fig. 1 Constituents of
UHPFRC mix
An Overview of the Mixture Design Approaches for UHPFRC 627
Fig. 2 a Conventional concrete and b UHPFRC matrices
The enhanced behavior of this novel composite enables the construction of slender
sections compared to conventional concrete [8]. UHPC is well suited for bridge decks,
girders, piers, blast protection elements, precast components and repair and strength-
ening solutions [9–14]. Worldwide UHPC applications have been reported in several
countries including United States, New Zealand, Australia, etc. [15]. The first engi-
neering application of UHPC was seen at Sherbrooke in Quebec, Canada (Fig. 3)
employing the construction of a precast, prestressed pedestrian bridge in 1997 [1,
16]. The very first UHPC road bridge was built in France in 2001 employing π-
shaped UHPFRC beams with in situ joints. Curved UHPFRC panel system was
applied to a building in Victoria, Canada (Fig. 4) utilizing its ability to form radi-
ally curved skeleton. This novel composite was also used in constructing highway
bridges, facade systems, perforated panels, etc. [3]. Some of the commercially avail-
able UHPFRC mixes are Ductal marketed by Lafarge Inc. and Bouygues, Dura by
Fig. 3 Sherbrooke footbridge, Canada. https://structurae.net/

628 J. Jose et al.
Fig. 4 The Atrium, Canada. https://precast.org/
the Dura Technology Sdn. Bhd., Malaysia, Beton Special Industrial (BSI) developed
by Swiss company Sika Corporation and French Contractor Eiffage Group in 1996,
Cemtec, etc. [17, 18].
Regardless of the vast and varied advantages, the design procedures are still
lacking to fully exploit the potential of UHPC. It is worthwhile to achieve an optimum
performance out of the UHPFRC mix design, in unison with higher compressive
strength, tensile strain hardening and low permeability [6]. Inclusion of multi-
components makes the mixture design more complicated making it essential to
consider a whole lot of factors such as the packing density, particle size distribu-
tions, filling and loosening effects, sufficient workability, and so on [19, 20]. In fact,
high packing density can be deemed as the key to obtain ultra-high performance
cementitious materials [4]. In literature, most of the UHPC mixtures are provided
without much theoretical explanation. Several nations have developed their own
standards like the French interim recommendations, Japanese recommendations by
JSCE, Emerging Technology Report (ETR) by ACI 239-C, to name a few [21–24].
However, a widely employed design norm for UHPC is still lacking, hindering its
widespread usance.
This paper highlights some of the notable factors to be considered for the mixture
design of UHPFRC, mixture design techniques, along with a key emphasis on bring
about sustainability in use of raw materials through mix optimization studies in
literature.
2 Design Principles Involved in the Production of UHPFRC

Mix
(i) Particle packing of material components

The matrix of UHPFRC should consist of a wide range of material classes,
thereby every void gets filled in subsequently [25]. The raw materials should
be sufficiently closed packed in order to achieve maximum packing density.

This helps in reducing the entrapped air which is one of the main factors
in attaining sufficient workability for a given water-cement ratio in concrete
[26]. Compressive strength-porosity relationships for cement-based materials
include [1]:
Ryshkevitch’s equation : σ = σ 0 · exp(−B P) (1)

P0
Schiller’s equation : σ = D ln (2)
P
where σ is the compressive strength at porosity P; σ0 is the compressive

strength at porosity equals 0; P0 is the porosity when strength equals 0; B and
D are experimental constants. Equations (1) and (2) are suitable for low and
high porosity systems correspondingly. It is evident that lower the porosity,
higher will be the strength. A densely packed structure requires lower binder
content [27]. The employment of adequate particle packing models or ideal
curves help in obtaining a close packing of raw materials which will be dealt
in the later sections [25].
(ii) Water/binder ratio
A reduction in water/cement ratio (w/c) will sufficiently lower the capillary
porosity and thereby increase the strength of hardened concrete [26, 28]. A
lower ratio (<0.25) assures a rational balance between fresh and hardened
properties in concrete [27]. In case of UHPFRC, high range water reducers
specifically carboxylate-based superplasticizers will serve the purpose of
lowering the water/binder ratio (w/b) as much as 0.20 or below for a given
workability. Usually w/b for a typical UHPFRC mix ranges between 0.15–0.23
[10].
(iii) Matrix homogeneity
Homogeneity is established by the elimination of coarse aggregates from
the UHPC matrix [29]. The mean size of particle is generally below 2 mm.
However, literature has reported higher size inclusions on account of economic
efficiency [10, 30, 31]. Larger aggregates can contribute to the micro cracks
as a result of internal stresses developed in the interfacial transition zone
due to the mismatch of mechanical and thermal properties between paste and
aggregates [1]. Aggregate size is proportional to the size of cracks. Fine fillers
can therefore be utilized to improve homogeneity apart from limiting micro
cracks.
(iv) Ductility
Toughness of a material is its ability to withstand fracture. Energy absorption
capacity of brittle concrete matrix can be improved with addition of ductile
fibers. Upon loading, the transfer of load takes place through the fiber-matrix
630 J. Jose et al.
interface. The fibers effectively bridge across cracks and controls their prop-
agation. In addition to toughness, they help in imparting impact resistance to
the UHPC matrix [1, 32]. Most commonly used fibers are steel and carbon
fibers. Apart from steel, polypropylene, glass, basalt fibers, etc. were also
employed either wholly or in combination with other types of fibers [33, 34].
3 Design Approaches for the Production of UHPC Mix
UHPC mixture composes of several material components that hydrates to a highly

complex material in its hardened state. The presence of multiple constituents, on top
of many viable combinations and relative proportioning makes it difficult to predict
the behavior of this category of concrete [35]. Hence, it is crucial to determine a
reasonable balance between the fraction of raw materials and mechanical properties
of UHPFRC. As previously mentioned, a good and durable concrete is produced as
a result of proper particle selection and optimum packing of its constituents. Most of
the mixture proportioning methods make use of an ideal gradation curve or particle
packing models to serve this purpose [36].
(i) Particle packing models
These are analytical models wherein the geometry of the particle constituents,
their packing density and particle size distribution, gives the theoretical
packing density of the mixture [37]. The particle interactions are determined
from mathematical equations. These models can be discrete or continuous. In
case of UHPC, multi-component discrete mixture models as well as contin-
uous models are utilized, the latter being widely employed. Mixture optimiza-
tion follows a trial procedure in which different packing density combinations
are worked out until a maximum packing density is attained [37].
One of the earliest models was proposed by Larrard et al. known as the
Linear Packing Density Model (LPDM) which was further developed into the
Solid Suspension Model (SSM) in 1994 [2]. SSM included the concept of
virtual packing density that overcame the linear character of LPDM. Virtual
packing density is the highest possible density when each particle with its
original shape is placed one after the other in succession. Further improve-
ments lead to the Compressible Packing Model (CPM) [20] which included the
compaction effort represented in terms of a compaction index. The compaction
index takes into account the deviation between actual and virtual packing
densities. One such work that applies CPM to produce UHPFRC (compressive
strength > 150 MPa) was reported by Arora et al. [10]. The relation between
packing density of the mixture F and compaction index K is expressed in
Eq. (3). For well packed dense mixtures value of K equals 9.
n
y i /β i
κ= (3)
1
i=1
− γ1
i
where yi gives the individual aggregate volume fraction for dominant class
i, βi is the residual packing density pertaining to the aggregate class i, is the
virtual packing density when the class is isolated and completely packed and
determined using the dry rodded unit weight test, γi is the virtual packing
density calculated from the following equation;
βi
γi = i−1
1 − j =1 1 − β i + bi j β i 1 − 1/β j y j − nj =i+1 1 − a i j β i /β j y j
(4)
where ai j and bi j accounts for the loosening effect exerted by fine grains
and wall effects exerted by coarser particles, respectively. Residual packing
density is the virtual packing density when the class is isolated and completely
packed. Nevertheless, all the aforementioned models are related to packing
fraction of individual constituents and their combined fractions. This makes
it difficult to incorporate very fine particles or their packing fractions [38].
(ii) Optimization curves
Optimization curves used are based on continuously graded mixes which
offer an integral particle size distribution facilitating the inclusion of very
fine components at a relatively less effort. Continuous approach assumes the
presence of all possible particle sizes without the absence of any class of
materials [36]. Fuller curve proposed by Fuller and Thompson in 1907 is still
practiced for design calculations [39]. A simple equation (Eq. 5) was used to
describe the Fuller’s ideal curve;
n
d
P( D) = 100 (5)
D
where P(D) = fraction of total solids smaller than size d, d is the particle
size, D is the maximum particle size and n = 0.5. It was pointed out that
continuous grading improves the hardened properties of concrete. This curve
was further refined by Andreasen and Andersen in 1930 for ideal packing [36,
38]. Tiniest particle size was considered to be infinitesimally in this model.
Funk and Dinger [40] modified this ideology considering a finite size for the
smallest particle referred to as the modified A&A model. Colloidal particles
(< 0.1 μm) contribute to the flowability or rheology of concrete mixes which
necessitates the minimum particle size [41]. Equations (6) and (7) represents
the Andreasen model and modified A&A model, respectively.
q
d
P( D) = 100 (6)
D
632 J. Jose et al.
q
(d − d 0 )
P( D) = 100 (7)
( D − d0)
where d0 is the minimum particle size of the distribution, q is the distribution

modulus that gives the proportion of fine and coarse particles in the mixture.
Coarse mixtures have q values > 0.5. Whereas, lower values of q < 0.5 repre-
sents a fine mixture. Optimal packing can be accomplished with a q value in the
range of 0–0.28 [42]. Optimization algorithm based on Least Square Method
(LSM) as presented in Eq. (8), is used to obtain an optimum fit between the
composed and target mixtures by adjusting individual material proportions.
The best mix composition is the one in which the sum of squares of residuals
(RSSs), i.e., the deviation between the composed and target mix curves, at
defined particle sizes is minimum. Several reported works have successfully
produced high strength UHPFRC mixes employing the modified A&A model
[8, 30, 38, 43–45].

n
RSS = [ P mi x ( D i ) − P t ar ( D i )]2 → mi n (8)
i=1
Fixed optimization curves are comparatively simple as it requires only a

smaller number of parameters. Commercial computer programs, for example,
EMMA provided by Elkem, are easily available, but the particle characteristics
like shape are not accounted for. On the other hand, a single distribution
modulus is used to characterize the entire particle size distribution which
can result in variations in grain sizes, as in practice, the theoretically densest
packings might not often lead to the densest mixes [41].
(iii) Statistical methods based on wet packing density
Besides empirical methods, efforts focused on packing density in wet conditions
were also conducted to develop UHPC mixture [35, 46, 47]. Lubrication and floc-
culation effect from the addition of water and dispersion caused by HRWRs pose
significant effects in the case of packing of fine particles (<100 μm). D-optimal design
is used to establish the relation between the proportion of raw materials and their
packing density making use of the ideal packing curves. D-optimal design converts
the mixture design into a mathematical model in which the response is taken as
the packing density and the individual material dosages as variables. Thereafter, the
maximum packing density serves as an index to assess the packing model, wherein
the optimal content of each component is determined. Statistical design software
such as Design-Expert can be made use of for this purpose. Analysis of Variance
(ANOVA) test can be then used to verify the adequacy of the developed model.
Studies showed that UHPC with compressive strengths > 150 MPa, comprising of
cement content around 650 kg/m3 and slump flow above 195 mm could be made
possible with numerical optimization [35]. An attempt combining Artificial Neural
Network (ANN) and D-optimal design study was also performed to achieve high
packing density under wet condition [48].
4 Sustainable UHPFRC
Globally, 4.1 billion metric tons of cement is produced annually [49]. Every ton emits
up to 622 kg of carbon dioxide which comes around 7% of worldwide emissions
[50]. Sustainability accomplished by means of optimizations, cement replacement
with industrial by-products, etc. can be considered as a solution to reduce such
environmental impacts to a great extent.
Despite the numerous advantages of UHPFRC, the normal mixes demand higher
content of cement (650–1100 kg/m3 ). Commercial mixes are about 20 times more
expensive compared to conventional concrete. Owing to lower w/c, a considerable
portion of cement is left unhydrated that could be replaced by cost efficient or even
recycled materials [51]. Inactive fillers such as limestone powder could be used to
replace 69% by weight of cement to produce UHPC with ultra-low cement content
(280 kg/m3 ) without much reduction in its properties. Hardened mix exhibited a
compressive strength of 104 MPa due to the irregular morphological characteristics
and water absorption of the used filler, reduced autogenous shrinkage stabilized after
0.3 day as well as cracking risk [52]. Moreover, it has been found that the particle
packing of the mixture skeleton will be lightly affected, as the size distributions of
fly ash, Ground Granulated Blast furnace Slag (GGBS) and limestone powder are
comparable to that of cement particles. Past studies have reported comparatively
superior mechanical properties for GGBS incorporated UHPC [53]. About 40% of
cement by volume could be profitably replaced with GGBS, a by-product from iron
industry, with elevated curing and 20% by volume with standard water curing. This
variation is due to the improved hydration reaction and bond strength between matrix
and fiber in case of temperature curing. The increase in energy absorption further
increases the fracture energy up to 60% compared to normal UHPC mixes. Besides,
high volume of GGBS in mixes imparts denser microstructure due to the additional
CSH gel formation [43]. Apart from conventional fine aggregates, coarse aggregates
up to maximum nominal size of 6.25 mm were successfully incorporated to produce
economical UHPFRC. Compressive strengths in excess of 150 MPa was achieved
with a packing density of 0.696 comprising of 60% coarse aggregates, fresh state
slump flow > 350 mm. Mixtures were thus produced with 40% cost reduction on an
average compared to proprietary UHPC mixtures [10]. Recycled materials like red
mud or rock dust were used as replacements for cement and quartz sand, respectively
[54, 55]. Besides, efficient fiber application can also be considered to produce a
sustainable UHPFRC mixture. Studies show maximum wet packing density up to a
fiber content of 2% by volume in order to attain a dense matrix structure [56].
634 J. Jose et al.
5 Conclusions
Ultra-High Performance Fiber Reinforced Concrete belongs to an advanced class

of materials with superior mechanical as well as durability characteristics. From
concrete repair to slender infrastructures, it has a wide range of applications. Key
factors responsible for the production of UHPFRC include the optimum packing
of its individual components, elimination of mixture heterogeneity, lower water-to-
binder ratio and fiber enhanced ductility. Several methods such as multi-component
particle packing models, ideal curves, are employed for the production of these
mixes. Optimization curves are preferred to packing models in regard of their suit-
ability in incorporating very fine particle sizes in the mixture. The modified A&A
model is extensively used to make optimum UHPFRC mixes till date. An integra-
tion of the concept of wet packing density to this model can significantly yield
higher quality mixes. However, UHPC mixtures demand proper selection of its raw
materials, quality and construction procedures. Nonetheless, sustainability should
be of interest as it is one of the pressing issues dealt by the construction sector. The
production of UHPC could be made efficient by switching to cement or aggregate
replacements, low energy mixing and curing, etc. It is to be noted that the careful
selection of mineral admixtures and aggregates as cement and sand replacements
allows the development of an eco-friendly concrete with relatively smaller environ-
mental impact. Enhanced properties augmented with viable manufacturing solutions
can make UHPFRC a powerful construction material.
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ldmat.2020.121698
Comparison in Engineering Properties
of Clay Soil Stabilized with Recycle
Aggregate, Fly Ash, Cement,
and Ground-Granulated Blast-Furnace
Slag
Sudipta Kar and S. M. Nawghare
Abstract In this study, effectiveness of using chemical stabilizers that are Class
F fly ash, cement and ground-granulated blast furnace slag to stabilize the clayey
soil with different combinations and proportions are investigated. Along with this
suitability of recycled aggregates is also taken into consideration. Using recycled
aggregates and replaced with soil is one way to minimiz concrete wastes. This study
includes two soil samples, first clay and when clay gets replaced by 50% recycled
aggregates. Two stabilizer blends were undertaken Class F fly ash + cement and Class
F Fly ash + GGBS in both the soil samples to study their performance. Specimens
prepared were subjected to Standard Proctor test and Unconfined Compression test.
Test results indicate that with increase in fly ash + cement content, increases the OMC
and decreases dry density, while with increase in fly ash + GGBS content, decreases
the OMC and increases dry density. As the % binder increases, fly ash + cement
shows much rise in UCS value as compared to fly ash + GGBS. Maximum UCS
value was obtained in fly ash + cement with 20% binder content in 50% clay–50%
RA soil mixture at 28th day.
Keywords Soil stabilization · Standard proctor test · Unconfined compressive

strength · Ground granulated blast furnace slag · Recycled aggregates
1 Introduction
Expansion of clayey soil is a worldwide problem; as a result, it causes extensive

damages to structures. The reason behind this is the high-plasticity characteristics of
clayey soil. They show swelling and shrinkage behavior when exposed to any envi-
ronmental or seasonal variation. Soil undergoes substantial volume change through
S. Kar (B)
Geotechnical Engineering, College of Engineering, Pune, Maharashtra, India
e-mail: karsd19.civil@coep.ac.in
S. M. Nawghare
Department of Civil Engineering, College of Engineering, Pune, Maharashtra, India
e-mail: smn.civil@coep.ac.in
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4040-8_51
640 S. Kar and S. M. Nawghare
this cyclic process of shrinkage and swelling and thus lose bearing capacity of soil
[1]. As a result, the overlying structures, like pavements, are severely get damaged.
In such cases, soil stabilization is adopted. Soil stabilization is a technique used to
treat, change, and enhance the engineering properties of soil like strength, density,
and stability [2].
Tavakol et al. [3] shown that recycled aggregates can be used to replace soil
by 50% as it increases the UCS and CBR value of the soil mixture because of the
improvement in soil-aggregate interaction. Recycled aggregate (RA) is the product of
construction and pavement demolition waste. RA particles contain reclaimed aggre-
gates, reclaimed mortar, or both. Recycled aggregates have property to increase the
absorption capacity, to decrease the specific gravity, and to change plasticity char-
acteristics. RA, with concrete mixtures, reduces particle strength and abrasion resis-
tance [4]. These low qualities minimize the use of RA and increase the C&D waste to
the environment. Many researchers showed the use of class C fly ash with cement in
stabilizing soil properties; limited studies have been done on Class F fly because of
its slow self-cementing and pozzolanic properties. Arora and Aydilek [5] showed that
Class F fly ash amended soils can be used as highway base materials. Samantasinghar
and Singh [6] showed that Class F fly ash-GGBS geopolymer-stabilized soil results
in excellent stability against alternate wetting and drying cycle. Ground-granulated
blast furnace slag (GGBS) is a by-product of steel industry and better replacement of
cement. Replacement levels for GGBS mostly in between 40 and 50%. GGBS used
alone shows a slow hydration rate, results in low early strength; therefore, chemical
activator is required for GGBS hydration [7]. Mostly used activator is PC and lime
for GGBS. Stabilization of soil using cement is one of the common method [8].
From the studies made it is reported that combination of mechanical compaction and
chemical stabilization by cement/clay can be a best stabilization method.
Based on the above mentioned studies, here, low plasticity clay with and without
50% recycled aggregates were subjected to three common stabilizers Class F fly
ash, cement, and GGBS in combination. The objective of the study is to enhance
compaction characteristics, compressive strength of the low plastic clay. Moreover
the study in the change of performance of MDD, OMC and UCS between clay and
when clay gets replaced by 50% recycled aggregates is estimated. Comparison of
chemical stabilizers blends that are Class F fly ash + Cement and Class F fly ash +
GGBS in improving engineering properties of soil samples were studied.
2 Materials
(i) Clay Soil
The soil used in this study is clay. The soil studied was collected from the Thane
construction site, Mumbai, Maharashtra. According to USCS and AASHTO system,
the soil was classified as low plastic clay soil (A-7-5). Properties of the soil used
were shown in Table 1.
Comparison in Engineering Properties of Clay Soil Stabilized … 641
Table 1 Properties of clay

Properties Calculated value IS Code
soil
Specific gravity 2.82 IS 2720{Part-3}-1980
Liquid limit 45.55% IS 2720{Part-5}-1985
Plastic limit 37.82% IS 2720{Part-5}-1985
Plasticity index 7.73 IS 2720{Part-5}-1985
Shrinkage limit 9.10% IS 2720{Part-6}-1978
OMC 23.42% IS 2720{Part-7}-1980
Dry density 17.87 kN/m3 IS 2720{Part-7}-1980
Free swell index 40.8% IS 2720{Part-40}-1977
Table 2 Specific gravity (IS 2720 Part-3) and chemical properties of stabilizers used
Materials Specific gravity CaO (%) SiO2 (%) Al2 O3 (%) Fe2 O3 (%)
Cement 3.18 64.5 12.8 10.7 2.4
GGBS 2.94 36.6 32.2 11.8 0.50
Fly ash 2.23 1.78 44.7 22.7 22.8
(ii) Recycled Aggregates

Recycled aggregates samples were collected from the demolition of pavements,
Thane, Mumbai. Recycled aggregates were mostly gravel-sized aggregate and
retained in sieve No. 4 is more than 50%. Specific gravity and water absorption
of aggregates were found to be 1.72 and 4.68%, respectively.
(iii) Chemical Stabilizers
The study includes Class F fly ash in dry form, grayish in color collected from
Thane, Maharashtra. Besides this, GGBS and PC were used as a stabilizer. GGBS
was collected from Steel Plant, Bhilai, Chhattisgarh. It was slightly in coarse form
and converted into powder form by rammering action before using it. Since Class F
fly ash and GGBS show low self-cementing properties, PC here acts as an activator
also (Table 2).
3 Binder and Sample Preparation
A total of 18 soil–stabilizer batches were prepared to evaluate the performance of the

mixture. Out of which, one was untreated clay, and another was untreated 50% clay–
50% RA. For each % of stabilizers blend, three samples were prepared. For example:
For 10% of fly ash + GGBS blend, three samples were prepared for 7 days, 14 days,
and 28 days, respectively. A summary of batches is given in Table 3.
First tests were performed on untreated clay soil, and its OMC, dry density, and
UCS values were calculated. Then, clay sample was treated with fly ash + cement
Table 3 Mixture design and

Soil sample Treatment Binder Test
stabilizer dosage used
content (%)
for 1:1
Clay Untreated 0% STC, UCS at
Class F fly ash 8, 12, 16, 7, 14, and
+ cement 20% 28 days
Class F fly ash 8, 12, 16,
+ GGBS 20%
50% clay + Untreated 0% STC, UCS at
50% RA Class F fly ash 8, 12, 16, 7, 14, and
+ cement 20% 28 days
Class F fly ash 8, 12, 16,
+ GGBS 20%
and fly ash + GGBS blends with 8, 12, 16, and 20%. Similarly, tests were done
when clay then gets replaced by 50% of recycled aggregates. Their comparison
was studied with the help of the Standard Proctor test, Unconfined Compression
Strength, and California Bearing Ratio results. Binder content 8, 12, 16, and 20%
were used in Class F fly ash + cement blend and Class F Fly ash + GGBS for easy
and effective comparison purposes. But in actual, the requirement of Class F Fly ash
is comparatively more than cement and than GGBS for stabilizing soil properties.
Since it has low cementing capabilities.
4 Testing Program and Procedures
To find out improvement in mechanical strength of the clay treated with stabilizers
and to check the increase with time, laboratory tests that are Standard Proctor test
and Unconfined Compressive Strength test (UCS) were taken into consideration.
(i) Standard Proctor Test (ASTM D1557)
For conducting SPT on soil specimens and on oven-dried soil sample, sample was
taken about 3kg. Desired percentage of stabilizers was added. For clayey soil water
addition started from 8% and increases until OMC was found out. In a large tray,
oven-dry soil was mixed with each combination of stabilizers with the help of hands
at a dry state. Soil sample mixtures were filled into the standard Proctor mold of
volume 1000 cc in three layers. Each layer is compacted with 25 blows. The weight
of mold with soil is calculated for density, and water content was measured. Then,
graph between water content and density was plotted; hence, optimum moisture
content and dry density for soil with different stabilizers were calculated.
(ii) Unconfined Compression Strength Test (ASTM D1633)
Each mixture for soil specimens was prepared and cured by following the procedures
mentioned in ASTM D1632 and performed according to ASTM D1633. With the
estimated initial stabilizer content, samples were prepared at desired optimum mois-
ture and dry density. Using known volume of the UCS molds, i.e., 1000 cc, samples
were made by controlling the sample mass to achieve desire dry density and optimum
moisture content. All specimens were compacted at their OMC in three layers with
25 no. of blows in each layer. According to ASTM D1632, UCS specimen with stan-
dard size should have height and diameter of 142 mm and 71 mm, respectively. UCS
tests were conducted with a constant strain loading rate of 1.25 mm/min. During the
test, before sample failure, the maximum load carried by the specimen was calculated
as UCS. Then, the remaining soil specimens were cured in plastic bags to prevent
moisture loss. Specimens were immediately tested once the desired age of curing
has been reached (7, 14, and 28 days).
(i) Standard Proctor Compaction Test
Initially, SPT of untreated soil and 50% clay–50% recycled aggregates are evaluated.
Then, SPT on different combination of stabilizers was performed, and results are
given in Fig. 1.
In the case of 50% clay–50% RA, desirable results are obtained, i.e., OMC gets
lowered, and dry density increases. This is because the addition of RA to soil
20.5
20 Clay
19.5 50%CLAY+50
Dry Density (KN/m3)
%RA
19
18.5
18
17.5
17
10 15 20 25 30
OMC (%)
Fig. 1 OMC and MDD of clay and 50% clay–50% recycled aggregates
attributed to the improved soil-aggregate interface. Also, RA particles’ presence

contributes to fines RA particles that densified the mixture (increase dry density) and
reduce the water demand to fill up the voids (decrease OMC).
Figures 2 and 3 represent that OMC rises with an increase in Class F fly ash +
cement binder percentage, while decrement in dry density observed. This rise in OMC
is because cement’s water demand is more than fly ash, and extra water is required for
higher fineness subsequently enhanced hydration. Also, fly ash’s pozzolanic reaction
contributes to increasing the moisture content and decreases in dry density of Class
F fly ass + cement binder due to the compaction characteristics that depend on grain
size and specific gravity of the soil and stabilizers. Stabilizers coat the soils and
form large aggregates. Therefore, the fine-grained soils tend to decrease the soil’s
CLAY SOIL
18
17 4%FA+4%C
16 6%FA+6%C
15 8%FA+8%C
Dry Density (KN/m3)
14 10%FA+10%C
13
12
11
10
9
8
15 20 OMC (%) 25 30 35
CLAY SOIL
20
19
18
Dry Density (KN/m3)
17
16
4%FA+4%G
15
6%FA+6%G
14 8%FA+8%G
13 10%FA+10%G
12
8 13 OMC (%) 18 23
Fig. 2 OMC and MDD relationship in the clay soil of both fly ash + cement and fly ash +
GGBS-based stabilized soils
50%CLAY+50%RA SOIL
18
17
16
Dry Density (KN/m3)
15
14
13
12 4%FA+4%C
11 6%FA+6%C
10 8%FA+8%C
9 10%FA+10%C
8
18 20 22 24 26 28 30
OMC (%)
50%CLAY+50%RA SOIL
21
20
19
Dry Density (KN/m3)
18
17
16
4%FA+4%G
15
6%FA+6%G
14
8%FA+8%G
13
10%FA+10%G
12
10 12 14 16 18 20 22
OMC (%)
Fig. 3 OMC and MDD relationship in 50% clay–50% RA of fly ash + cement and fly ash +
GGBS-based stabilized soils
dry density until the stabilizer (tends to increase the dry density after 10% of cement)
compensates for the larger spaces.
While contrary results were observed in Class F fly ash + GGBS binder, i.e.,
decrement in OMC and rise in dry density increases with an increase in Class F fly
ash + GGBS binder percentage shown in Tables 6 and 7. This decrease in OMC is
because, with the increase in percent binder, the void spaces get filled up by granular
particles produced by the binder, and the binder changes the texture, grade, and
specific gravity of mixes, and fines product formed from these binders densified the
soil tends to increased MDD.
(ii) Unconfined Compressive Strength Test
Firstly, the UCS of untreated clay was calculated and found out to be 196 kPa.
Then, 50% RA was added to the clay, and UCS was observed to be 207 kPa. It
shows that much increase was not observed in UCS after the addition of RA. This
is because of increased in heterogeneity of the resulting composite mixture; hence,
weak bonds occur between RA-clay particles. Results of UCS of remaining soil
stabilized mixtures are shown below.
Class F Fly Ash + Cement-Stabilized Soil

Figures 2 and 3 show the unconfined compressive strength of fly ash + cement-
stabilized soils at 7, 14, and 28 days and for 10%, 15%, and 20%. Generally, the
compressive strength of any mixture increases with the increase in age and stabi-
lizer content. Highest compressive strength obtained was 810 kPa at 28 days with
20% FA + cement blend for clay. At 28 days, maximum compressive strength was
observed at 10% fly ash + 10% cement in 50% clay + 50% RA is 1205 kPa, which
is approximately 1.5 times higher than 810 kPa of mix 10% fly ash + 10% cement
in clay and 6.2 times more than untreated clay (196 kPa).
Class F Fly Ash + GGBS-Stabilized Soil

Similar results are obtained when fly ash + GGBS were used. Highest compressive
strength obtained was 740 kPa at 28 days with 20% FA + cement blend in Clay. At
28 days, maximum compressive strength of 10% fly ash + 10% GGBS is 950 kPa,
which is appro. 2.6 times higher than 740 kPa of mix 10% fly ash + 10% GGBS in
clay and about 2.85 times from untreated 50% clay + 50% RA.
Initially, the UCS of untreated clay was calculated and found out to be 202 kPa.
Then, 50% RA was added to the clay, and UCS was observed to be 232 kPa. It
shows that much increase was not observed in UCS after the addition of RA. This is
because of the decreased in homogeneity of the resulting composite mixture; hence,
bond becomes weak between RA + clay particles. Results of UCS of remaining soil
stabilized mixtures are shown below.
Class F Fly Ash + Cement-Stabilized Soil

Figures 4 and 5 show the unconfined compressive strength of fly ash + cement-
stabilized soils at 7, 14, and 28 days and for 8%, 12%, 16%, and 20%. Mostly, the
compressive strength of any mixture increases with the increase in age and stabilizer
content. At 28 days, maximum compressive strength was observed at 10% fly ash +
10% cement in 50% clay + 50% RA is 1006 kPa, which is approximately 1.1 times
higher than 912 kPa of mix 10% fly ash + 10% cement in clay and 5 times more
than untreated clay (202 kPa).
Class F Fly Ash + GGBS Stabilized Soil

Similar results are obtained when fly ash + GGBS were used. At 28 days, the
maximum compressive strength of 10% fly ash + 10% GGBS is 806 kPa in 50%
clay–50% RA mix, which is appro. 1.12 times higher than 724 kPa of mix 10% fly
1000
800
UCS(kPa)
600
400
200
0
0% 4%FA + 4%C 6%FA + 6%C 8%FA + 8%C 10%FA + 10%C
Stabilizer Content (%)
7days 14days 28days
Fig. 4 UCS results in clay when FA + C is used
1200
1000
UCS(kPa)
800
600
400
200
0
0% 4%FA + 4%C 6%FA + 6%C 8%FA + 8%C 10%FA + 10%C

7days 14days 28days
Fig. 5 UCS results in 50% clay + 50% RA when FA + C is used
ash + 10% GGBS in clay and about 2.48 times from untreated 50% clay + 50%
(232 kPa). Thus, maximum compressive strength and CBR value in RA + clay and in
clay at 28th day, for fly ash + cement is more than Fly ash + GGBS because presence
of Portland cement more benefit the mixture by forming cementitious products as
compared to GGBS. Also, curing improves the compressive strength; therefore, for
same %, binder content UCS at 28 days is higher than at 7 days (Figs. 6 and 7).
6 Conclusions
. The presence of recycled aggregates and the fines of binder tends the soil to be
denser; thus, dry density rises, whereas OMC falls down because the void space
gets occupied by the fines present, so the need for water gets reduced.
. UCS results show that the addition of recycled aggregates alone does not show
much improvement in the strength of clay.
. Maximum UCS value obtained is 1006 kPa with 20% fly + cement blend in 50%
RA–50% clay mix while 806 kPa with 20% fly + GGBS blend in 50% RA–50%
800
700
600
500
UCS(kPa)
400
300
200
100
0
0% 4%FA + 4%G 6%FA + 6%G 8%FA + 8%G 10%FA + 10%G
7days 14days 28days
Fig. 6 UCS results in Clay when FA + G is used
900
800
700
600
500
UCS(kPa)
400
300
200
100
0
0% 4%FA + 4%G 6%FA + 6%G 8%FA + 8%G 10%FA + 10%G
7days 14days 28days
Fig.7 UCS results in 50% Clay + 50 % RA when FA + G is used
clay. Therefore, 50% clay–50% RA with 20% fly ash + cement was found out to
be most effective in stabilizing the soil properties.
. This is because Portland cement benefits the mixture more by forming cemen-
titious products as compared to GGBS. Also, fly ash in the mixture continues
to strengthen because of slow pozzolanic hydration, which shows longer-term
strength formation, favorable for fly ash with Portland cement mix.
. RA + soil mixtures improve soil-aggregate interface by increasing internal
resistance; hence, stabilized soil with 50% clay–50% RA shows improvement
in compressive strength and density characteristics compared to stabilized soil
mixture in clay.
. Stabilization potential of a mixture depends on the type, amount, and combination
of stabilizers used.
References
1. Mokhtari, M., & Dehghani, M. (2012). Swell-shrink behavior of expansive soils, damage and
control. Electronic Journal of Geotechnical Engineering, 17, 2673–2682.
2. Yoder & Witczak (1975) Structural design of concrete block pavements. Journal of Trans-
portation Engineering, 116(5), 615–635
3. Tavakol, M., Kulesza, S., Jones, C., & Hossain, M. (2020). Effect of low-quality recycled
concrete aggregate on stabilized clay properties. Journal of Materials in Civil Engineering,
32(8), 04020196.
4. Verian, K. P., Whiting, N. M., Olek, J., Jain, J., & Snyder, M. B. (2013). Using recycled concrete
as aggregate in concrete pavements to reduce materials cost. Federal Highway Administration.
5. Arora, S., & Aydilek, A. H. (2005). Class F fly-ash-amended soils as highway base materials.
Journal of Materials in Civil Engineering, 17, 640–649.
6. Samantasinghar, S., & Singh, S.P. (2021). Strength and durability of granular soil stabilized
with FA-GGBD geopolymer. Journal of Materials in Engineering, 33(6), 06021003.
7. Song, S., Sohn, D., Jennings, H. M., & Mason, T. O. (2000). Hydration of alkali-activated
ground granulated blast furnace slag. Journal of Materials Science, 35(1), 249–257.
8. Chittoori, B. C. S., Puppala, A. J., & Pedarla, A. (2018). Addressing clay mineralogy effects
on performance of chemically stabilized expansive. Journal of Materials in Civil Engineering,
32(7), 04020177.
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and contents of GGBS, MgO, lime and PC. Journal of Materials in Civil Engineering, 26,
267–274.
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with fly ash. Journal of Geotechnical and Geoenvironmental Engineering, 137, 819–833.
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and cement kiln dust. Journal of Materials in Civil Engineering, 23(9), 1320–1327.
Amelioration of High Plasticity Soil
Using Sisal Fiber and Granite Dust
T. Venkateswararao
Abstract Research has now established that the natural fibers are resilient and envi-
ronmentally sustainable reinforcement agents. There are a few studies to understand
the extent to which stone waste can act as a stabilizing agent in soils with high
plasticity. Granite powder has proven to be effective stabilizing material. However,
in certain soils, despite adding granite powder, the CBR values are not met as per
Indian standards code. In order to address this problem, this study aims to evaluate
the addition of sisal fiber, a natural and environmentally viable material as a rein-
forcement material. The hypothesis of the study is that addition of sisal fiber will
result in the moisture content being lowered and an increase in the dry density, CBR
value in tandem with the requirements of I.S. codes.
Keywords Compaction · CBR · Consistency limits · Flexible pavement design
1 Introduction
During pavement construction and maintenance, one of the key issues faced by
highway engineers working on highly plastic soils is their inability to handle higher
loads of heavy vehicles. The California bearing ratio values (the metric of resilience
of the soil against load) of black cotton soil obtained in a laboratory are typically
in the range of 2–4%. Though low values of California bearing ratio of subsoils
are desirable, they result in an increase in the thickness of the pavement. Due to
this, there is a possibility of soil mass being subjected to vertical movements. This
is caused by wetting and drying and results in settlement of subsoil, heavy depres-
sion, cracking, and unevenness. All these consequences are undesirable situations.
In these situations, the pavement construction necessarily requires a stabilization
process. Construction of highways requires massive quantities of construction mate-
rials, and as a result, highway agencies are often involved in recycling or reusing
T. Venkateswararao (B)
Civil Engineering Department, Vasireddy Venkatadri Institute of Technology, Nambur, Andhra
e-mail: venkateswararaothumati@gmail.com
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4040-8_52
652 T. Venkateswararao
waste materials. For the construction industry, quarries and aggregate crushers are
the primary sources of raw materials. In order to ensure optimal utilization of natural
resources, the fine dust created in the quarrying activities is being reused in highway
construction. Granite powder is one such waste material used in the study area.
2 Literature
Soil strength is always a critical factor in pavement subgrade selection. It depends on

some of the local factors: water table in that region, impact of capillarity, permeability
of the soil, and moisture variation. Due to these local conditions, the subgrade soil
will have a temporal variation in strength and stiffness. More than 50% of the total
cost of pavement construction is incurred in pavement structural integrity. Hence, the
choice of construction materials and reinforcement materials becomes very impor-
tant for economic viability [1]. In problematic soils like marine clay, addition of
quarry dust can lead to improvement in shear resistance. This can be attributed to the
increase in CBR value [2]. It is suggested that quarry dust has high shear strength
and an angle of friction of up to 44°, making it ideal for geotechnical applications
[3]. Along with the above research, it was also proven that 47% of quarry dust when
added to high plasticity silt soil increases its ability to achieve maximum dry density
as specified by RDA specifications. However, the addition of quarry dust alone to
high plasticity silty soil does not work well [4]. To improve the compaction properties
of expansive soils, 15% dolerite dust or granite dust can be added. Despite this fact,
increasing the amount of rock dust used will have a negative impact on the plasticity
of expansive soils [5]. In this study, it was found that the optimum percentages of
fly ash and stone dust for improving expansive soil properties are 25% and 30%,
respectively. It was discovered through research that stone dust performs better than
fly ash [6]. Other research papers have established that combining these materials
do not necessarily enhance the desirable engineering properties of the soil, i.e., CBR
[7]. Keeping the above results in view and the strength requirements of the subbase
layer of road construction by The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways, natural
fibers were considered [8]. The soil treated with bamboo fiber had a CBR value of
1.2% higher than soil treated without it. This was not enough to meet the standards
of I.S. code, even after altering the length and diameter of the bamboo fiber [9]. Even
though coir waste is considered a good alternative, further research is required before
implementing this technique in the field [10]. All the above factors explain the ratio-
nale behind choosing dust as a stabilizing material and sisal fiber as a reinforcement
to improve road performance on high plasticity soils.
The aim of this paper is to investigate the compaction and CBR parameters of
quarry dust samples and sisal fiber to reduce the thickness of the pavement. Various
proportions of quarry dust and sisal fiber were mixed with soil to study the effects
on soil properties and pavement thickness. It is expected to be helpful in restricting
the motion of top pavement layers caused by the seasonal changes in subgrade soils.
Amelioration of High Plasticity Soil Using Sisal Fiber and … 653
Table 1 Properties of expansive soil

S.No. Property Value
2 Grain size distribution
Sand (%) 8
Silt (%) 32
Clay (%) 60
3 Compaction properties
Maximum dry density (kN/m3 ) 14.20
O.M.C. (%) 27.8
4 Atterberg limits
Liquid limit (%) 72
Plastic limit (%) 34.04
Plasticity index (%) 37.96
Shrinkage limit (%) 15
I.S. classification CH
5 Differential free swell (%) 100
6 Soaked CBR (compacted to MDD at (OMC)) (%) 3.14
Thus, this paper seeks to establish how incorporating the sisal fiber below the gran-
ular subbase reduces thickness of the pavement while enhancing the engineering
properties like CBR value as per I.S. codes.
3 Materials Used
The site of study is located near Uppalapadu area, Guntur District, Andhra Pradesh,
India. The primary laboratory tests were conducted as per I.S. code provisions, and
the details are presented in Table1. The soil was identified to have highly compressible
material with high plasticity.
4 Granite Dust
Granite dust was sourced from the Perecherla area of Guntur District, Andhra
Pradesh, India. The grain size distribution analysis [11] results showed that the soil
consists of sand particles to the extent of 92.8%, and silt content was 7.2%. The
physical properties of GD are presented in Table 2 and grain size distribution curve
presented in Fig. 1.
Table 2 Properties of quarry

S.No. Property Value
dust
2 Liquid limit (%) NP
Plastic limit (%) NP
Plasticity index (%) NP
3 Grain size distribution
Sand (%) 92.8
Silt (%) 7.2
4 OMC (%) 10.56
MDD (kN/m3 ) 16.78
5 CBR soaked (%) 8.16
Coarse Medium Fine SILT/CLAY

GRAVEL
SAND SAND SAND
100
90
80
70
60
% fines
50
40
30
20
10
0
10 1 0.1 0.01
Particle Diameter(mm)
Fig. 1 Grain size distribution curve
Sisal Fiber The sample was sourced from Mangalagiri, Guntur District. Researchers
have suggested that sisal fiber length considerations are 152,025 mm [12]. In this
study, the fiber material length has considered as 1.5 cm. The physical and chemical
properties of sisal fiber used are presented in Table 3 and Fig. 2a and b.
Table 3 Physical and

Chemical composition of Physical properties of sisal
chemical properties of sisal
sisal
fiber
Lignin >11% Diameter (mm) 0.015–0.002
Cellulose >65% Tensile strength 511–700
(MPa)
Hemi-cellulose >22.5% Density (g/m3 ) 1.5
Fat and wax >0.3% Breaking 2.5%
elongation%
Water soluble >1.2% Young’s modulus 9.4–22
GPa
Courtesy Gupta and Srivastava [13]
Fig. 2 a, b Sisal fiber and 1.5-cm-length pieces
5.1 Atterberg’s Limits
Consistency experimental tests are arranged in the laboratory as per I.S. codal provi-
sions of IS: 2720 (Part 5)-1985. The Indian Road Congress (IRC) recommendations,
for sustainability of the subgrade soil, the plasticity index should be less than 6. The
objective of experimenting with the various percentages of sisal fiber is to find the
optimum percentage at which we can have a lower PI value as per the IRC recom-
mendations [14]. Thus, the first set of observations in the study was regarding the
liquid limit (LL) and plasticity index (PI). In that context, the following observation
was made:
. In this study, the virgin clay of liquid limit value has greater than 70%, and plas-
ticity index is 37.96%. Thus, as per IRC standards, it is unsuitable for embankment
and subgrade construction [1].
. To stabilize this soil, granite dust is added incrementally. It is observed that, as the
percentage of GD is increased from 0 to 30%, the liquid limit of soil is diminished.
The fall in the value of PI with the % of GD is shown in the same figure, i.e.,
Fig. 3. It is to be noted that the PI value is still at 9.49%, much below the IRC
recommendation of less than 6 [1].
. It is for this reason, we wanted to deploy sisal fiber as a reinforcing material to
further bring down the value of PI. Thus, the % of sisal fiber at which we obtain
the optimum PI value was to be determined. Sisal fiber as a percentage of the
subgrade is incrementally added. The observations made with an interval of 0.5%
on the x axis and corresponding PI value on the Y axis are graphically documented
below in Fig. 4.
80
72 67.56
70 62.4 Plasticity Index
Liquid Limit
Moisture Content %
60 53.6
50 43.58
39.43
40 33
30 37.96
34.72
20 30.95
24.53
10 17.21 14.18
0 9.49
0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35
Granite Dust %
Fig. 3 Variation of LL, PI with different percentages of granite dust
45
39.43 37.45 Plasticity Index
40 Liquid Limit
33.24
Moisture Content %
35
30
27.4
25
20
15
10 14.18
12.74
5 9.67
0 5.4
0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1 1.2 1.4 1.6
Sisal Fiber %
Fig. 4 Variation of LL, PI with different percentages of granite dust and sisal fiber
. As seen, we can notice that upon addition of 1.5% of sisal fiber to the pavement,
we have obtained our optimal PI of <6 as recommended by the Indian Road
Congress.
5.2 Compaction and CBR Characteristics of Soil
Optimum moisture content and maximum dry density parameters were resolute
according to I.S. heavy compaction test (IS: 2720 (Part-7)-1980). Soil specimen
was considered passing through 4.75-mm sieve and water content added to soil with
different percentages and mix thoroughly by manual or motorized mixer, until reaches
to its uniform mixing. The uniform mixing material shifted to @@compacted mold
into 5 layers of 25 blows either manual process or automatic compactor. The process
is continued until the weight is reduced.
Regarding CBR test IS: 2720 (Part l6)-1979, the OMC water content of soil has
been added and hand-mixed until its uniformity. The mold is compacted in five layers
and each layer having 55 blows until reaches to top surface, the excess soil cut with
the help of a cutter. The compacted mold with material shifted to loading instrument.
The following observation was made.
. Along with the PI of the soil, strength of road pavements on weak subgrade soil
is decided by the soil properties, namely optimum moisture content (OMC) and
maximum dry density (MDD).
. Thus, it is also important to ensure OMC and MDD are maintained within the
limits as required by IRC [15].
. Also, the California bearing ratio test is penetration test meant for the evaluation
of subgrade strength of roads and pavements. The results obtained by these tests
are used with the empirical curves to determine the thickness of pavement and its
component layers. A low CBR value is undesirable as it increases the thickness
of the pavement [1].
This study aims to study how sisal fiber can act as a reinforcement by main-
taining soil compaction parameters in line with IRC recommendations. The optimum
percentages of fly ash and stone dust for improving expansive soil properties are 25%
and 30%, respectively. It was discovered through research that stone dust performs
better than fly ash [6]. Figure 5 tries to portray how the GD% impacted OMC and
MDD. As observed, the peak was attained at 25%, and thereafter, it reduced. Later,
upon addition of sisal fiber to the tune of 1% of the material, OMC value reduces
and thereafter increases as shown in Fig. 6.
The last parameter to be considered is the CBR value for reducing the pavement
thickness. The CBR value has suggested [4] that less than 15% suitable for highway
construction, it is similar range as specified by IRC code to maintain ideal condition
of subgrade soil [1]. Figure 7 it was observed that upon adding GD to the tune of 25%,
the CBR value has reached till 14.6%, short of the IRC recommendation [1] suggested
30
27.8 25.63
MDD (Kn/m3)
Compaction Parameters
25 21.2 OMC %
18.92 17.94 18.2
20 17.25
14.83 16.4 17.3
14.21
15
14.32 13.2
10 12.34
0
0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35
Granite Dust %
Fig. 5 Variation of OMC, MDD with different percentages of granite dust
20
18.44 18.62
19 18.2
18
Compaction Parameters
16.59
17
MDD (Kn/m3)
16
OMC %
15
14 13.2 13.74
12.89
13
12.15
12
11
10
0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1 1.2 1.4 1.6
Sisal Fiber %
Fig. 6 Variation of OMC, MDD with different percentages of granite dust and sisal fiber
[16]. Further to improve the CBR value, sisal fiber is added as reinforcement material
to satisfy code recommendations for low volume roads.
The CBR value after the sisal fiber addition is also documented as shown in Fig. 8.
As observed, addition of sisal fiber to the tune of 1% in soil subgrade enhances the
CBR value to meet the IRC recommendation along with MDD and OMC. After
blending, the soil with 25% of stone dust CBR value has enhanced by 353% and
25% of stone dust, and 1% of sisal fiber California bearing ratio value has enhanced
by 770% compared to California bearing ratio value of virgin soil (Tables 4 and 5).
16 14.36
14 12.23
12 10.38
Soaked CBR %
10
7.56
8 6.85 Soaked CBR %
6
3.94
4 3.17
2
0
0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35
Granite Dust %
Fig. 7 Variation of soaked CBR with different percentages of granite dust
30 27.57
25 22.97
18.82
20
Soaked CBR %
14.36
15 Soaked CBR %
10
0
0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1 1.2 1.4 1.6
Sisal Fiber%
Fig. 8 Variation of soaked CBR with different percentages of granite dust and sisal fiber
6 Effect of Fiber Reinforcement on Pavement Thickness
The thickness of pavement details is considered as per IRC 37-2012. The traffic value
of 20 msa is considered from the traffic survey data in Table 6.
From the above traffic data in this region, the total Annual Average Daily Traffic
is 550 vehicles per day. The design period is 15 years for rural roads and their single-
lane roads. The annual growth rate is 6%. As per codal provisions, traffic values of
pavement thickness are at 20 msa. As seen in Table 6, the actual thickness required
for existing soil minimum pavement thickness is 780 mm for traffic value of 20 msa
[17, 18]. This required thickness decreases with increasing fiber content and granite
660
Table 4 Geotechnical properties of unstabilized clay and granite dust-stabilized clay compared with IRC
Possible application Geotechnical IRC High 5% granite 10% 15% 20% 25% 30%
properties of soil specification plastic dust granite granite granite granite granite
clay dust dust dust dust dust
Subgrade and earthen MDD (kN/m3 ) >16.5 14.21 14.83 16.4 17.3 17.94 18.2 17.25
shoulders/verges/backfill Liquid limit (%) <25 72 67.56 62.4 53.6 43.58 39.43 33
Plasticity index <6 37.96 34.72 30.95 24.53 17.21 14.18 9.49
CBR% 15 3.17 3.94 6.85 7.56 10.38 14.36 12.23
T. Venkateswararao
Table 5 Comparative analysis of soil compaction parameters after the addition of sisal fiber
Possible application Geotechnical IRC High 25% 25% 25%
properties of specification plastic GD + GD + GD +
soil clay 0.5% 1% SF 1.5%
SF SF
Subgrade and earthen MDD at >16.5 18.2 18.62 18.44 18.2
shoulders/verges/backfill (kN/m3 )
Liquid limit <25 39.43 37.45 33.24 25
(%)
Plasticity <6 14.18 12.74 9.67 5.43
index
CBR % >15 14.36 22.97 27.57 18.82
Table 6 Traffic survey data

Type of vehicle Number of vehicles
Full size trucks 257
Trailer and jugads 100
Cars and jeeps 97
Motor vehicles 219
College busses 90
Total vehicles 763
dust. The best possible value of 500 mm was made possible with 1% fiber. The details
are presented in Tables 7 and 8.
Table 7 Variation of flexible

GD (%) CBR (%) 20 msa
pavement thickness using
granite dust Thickness (mm) Reduction (%)
0 3.17 780 –
5 3.94 733 6.03
10 6.85 615 21.15
15 7.56 590 24.36
20 10.35 565 27.56
25 14.36 552 29.23
30 12.23 561 28.08
Table 8 Variation of flexible

Fiber content % CBR (%) Thickness Percentage
pavement thickness in
reduction (mm)
addition to various fiber
percentages 0.5 22.97 518 33.59
1 27.57 500 35.90
1.5 18.82 534 31.54
7 Conclusions
. Addition of sisal fiber to a soil subgrade stabilized by granite dust will reduce the
pavement thickness, without compromising on the recommendations laid down
by the Indian Road Congress with respect to CBR, PI, OMC, and MDD values.
8 Limitations
. This study was focused on laboratory testing, and also, it is confined to low-volume
traffic roads, further study to allow field tests.
. Present study was done only one aspect ratio, and further it is extended by changing
different aspect ratios.
. At 1%, optimum sisal fiber shows 9.49% of plasticity index but as IRC code
suggested that PI value <6 maintained.
References
1. IRC SP 20. (2002). Rural Road Manual. Indian Road Congress Special Publication 20, New
Delhi, India.
2. Soosan, T. G., Sridharan, A., Jose, B. T., & Abraham, B. M. (2005). Utilization of quarry dust
to improve the geotechnical properties of soils in highway construction. Geotechnical Testing
Journal, ASTM International, 28, 391–400. https://doi.org/10.1520/GTJ11768
3. Soosan, T. G., Sridharan, A., Jose, B. T., & Abraham, B. M. (2006). Shear strength studies on
soil-quarrydust mixtures. Geotechnical and Geological Engineering 1163–1179. https://doi.
org/10.1007/s10706-005-1216-9
4. Priyankara, N. H., Wijesooriya, R. M. S. D., Jayasinghe, S. N., Wickramasinghe, W. R. M. B.
E., & Yapa, S. T. A. J. (2009). Suitability of quarry dust in geotechnical applications to improve
engineering properties, engineer. Journal of the Institution of Engineers 07–13. https://doi.org/
10.4038/engineer.v42i3.7046
5. Igwe, O., & Adepehin, E. J. (2017). Alternative approach to clay stabilization using granite
and dolerite dusts. Geotechnical and Geological Engineering. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10706-
017-0200-5
6. Ramadas, T. L., Kumar, N. D., & Aparna, G. (2010). Swelling and strength characteristics of
expansive soil treated with stone dust and fly ash. In Indian Geotechnical Conference—2010,
GEO Trendz (pp. 16–18), December.
7. Soosan, T. G., Jose, B. T., & Abraham, B. M. (2001). Use of quarry dust in embankment
and highway construction. In Proceedings of Indian Geo-Technical Conference (pp. 274–277),
December, Indore.
8. Satyanarayana, R. (2013). Performance of crusher dust in high plastic gravel soils as road
construction material. IOSR, 10(3), 01–05. https://doi.org/10.9790/1684-1030105
9. BrahmaChary, T. K., & Rokonuzzaman, Md. (2018). Investigation of random inclusion of
bamboo fiber on ordinary soil and its effect CBR value geo-engineering. https://doi.org/10.
1186/s40703-018-0079-x
10. Balan, K. (2014). Laboratory investigation in the improvement of subgrade characteristics
of expansive soil stabilized with coir waste. Transportation Research Procedia, 17(2016),
558–566.
11. IS: 2720 (Part 4)-1985. Determination of Grain Size Distribution Curve of Soil.
12. Mohajerani, A., Hui, S.-Q., Mirzababaei, M., Arulrajah, A., Horpibulsuk, S., Abdul Kadir, A.,
Rahman, Md. T., & Maghool, F. (2019). Amazing types, properties, and applications of fibres
in construction materials. Materials, 12(16), 2513. https://doi.org/10.3390/ma12162513
13. Gupta MK, Srivastava RK (2016) Mechanical properties of hybrid fibres reinforced polymer
composite: a review. Polym Plast Technol Eng 55:626–642
14. IS: 2720 (Part 5)-1985. Determination of Liquid and Plastic Limit.
15. IS: 2720 (Part 7)-1980. Determination of Water Content-Dry Density Relation Using
Compaction.
16. IS: 2720 (Part l6)-1979. Laboratory Determination of CBR.
17. IRC: 37-2012. Tentative Guidelines for the Design of Flexible Pavements. Indian Roads
Congress, New Delhi.
18. IRC: 37-2001. Guidelines for the Design of Flexible Pavements. Indian Roads congress, New
Delhi.
Strength Properties of Stabilized Adobe
G. Tejaswini, B. P. Annapurna, and K. S. Jagadish
Abstract Stabilized adobe is the building material made from the soil with adequate
moisture content to meet the density and compressive strength criteria. The clay
content of earth matters much in the cohesion and adhesion properties of blocks.
This paper presents the results of an experimental investigation in characterizing the
properties of soil stabilized adobe, adopting the pugging method. Different stabi-
lizers, viz., cement and lime in different percentages of clay content are added to the
soil. The strength properties like density, compressive strength, water absorption, and
initial rate of absorption (IRA) are discussed. The influence of the different percent-
ages of clay content and different types of stabilizers on the strength properties of
blocks are examined. From the study, it is observed that as the water increases density
decreases. Amongst the stabilizers cement shows higher density and compressive
strength compared to lime and a combination of cement and lime. Soil containing
10% clay shows higher compressive strength than soil with 15% clay. Water absorp-
tion is higher in the soil with lime alone as stabilizers than in the soil with cement
alone and a combination of cement and lime as stabilizers. IRA value of soil stabilized
with lime as a stabilizer is less compared to the stabilizers, cement and combination
of cement and lime.
Keywords Stabilized adobe · Pugging · Stabilizers
1 Introduction
In the hierarchy of human needs, shelter occupies the second most important place,
next to food. Construction is thus one of the necessities for the survival of civilization,
and that is why the search for stronger and more durable building materials dates
G. Tejaswini (B) · B. P. Annapurna

Department of Civil Engineering, UVCE, Bangalore University, Bangalore, India
e-mail: tejas8083dvg@gmail.com
K. S. Jagadish
Department of Civil Engineering, IISC, Bangalore, India
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4040-8_53
666 G. Tejaswini et al.
back to the very early times. Even today, when the list of building materials to be
chosen from has become very extensive. The urge to develop new and better materials
for use in the construction of a variety of structures for wide-ranging functions and
to give economic service under different performances conditions continues to be a
great challenge to researchers as in the past.
Soil has been the most widely known and abundantly available material. The use
of mud has its own advantage of locally availability and ease of processing, making
it one of the most energy-efficient building materials, cost-effective and reliable
material. Adobe in general means a sundried mud brick. Adobe brick building is
an ancient technique, which is partially modified in terms of economic, social and
technical.
In this research, an attempt is made to prepare adobes using locally available
soil in the nearby region. As blocks made with only soil cannot withstand shrinkage
and wet compressive strength issues, hence it is stabilized with lime and cement in
varying proportions. In the present study, pugged method is adopted. Pugged blocks
have shown good compressive strength and are cost-effective compared to pressed
blocks [1]. The variation in properties like compressive strengths (wet strength and
dry strength) and durability tests are to be studied.
2 Characterization of Materials
2.1 Soil
For the present research work, the soil has been procured from JP Nagar, Bangalore
in a single lot as shown in Fig. 1. Some basic procedures were adopted before storing
soil like preparation of soil, breaking up soil and screening. As per Indian standard
specifications, the following are some basic tests, which were conducted and results
are tabulated in Table 1.
2.2 M-Sand
In construction practises, M-Sand is the most commonly used fine aggregate. In the
present paper, M-Sand is used in the place of fine aggregate conforming to Zone-II as
shown in Fig. 2. It is economical and eco-friendly. The Manufactured Sand (M-Sand)
has similar chemical characteristics and strength as that of river sand. The specific
gravity of M-Sand is 2.6 and water absorption is 0.8%.
Strength Properties of Stabilized Adobe 667
Fig. 1 Procured soil
Table 1 Physical characteristics of soil

Sl. No. Parameters tested Test results
2 Liquid limit (%) 41
3 Plastic limit (%) 20.33
4 Shrinkage limit (%) 13.4
5 Plasticity index (%) 20.67
6 Free swell ratio 1.25
7 Sand content (%) 43
8 Silt content (%) 37.42
9 Clay content (%) 19.58
10 IS classification of soil Inorganic clay of low to medium plasticity (CL)
Fig. 2 M-sand
Fig. 3 Cement
2.3 Cement
In the present study, OPC-53-grade cement was used, shown in Fig. 3. The specific
gravity of cement is 3.1 and consistency 31%. The higher the grade of cement, greater
the strength achieved.
2.4 Lime
Calcium oxide and/or calcium hydroxide are the inorganic minerals which are by-
products of calcium. Lime is made up of calcium consisting of calcium oxide and/or
calcium hydroxide. Figure 4 represents procured lime which was slaked as per the
procedure given in IS 1635-1992 and was stored airtight in bins.
Fig. 4 Lime
3 Modification of Soil
Modification of soil refers to changing of characteristics of soil by addition of soil

amendments which strengthen physical and chemical properties to improve worka-
bility, bearing capacity and also reducing the plasticity index (PI) and shrink-swell
potential. In the present study, the procured soil was modified by adding M-Sand.
According to IS1725 (2013) [2], a good soil proportion for preparation of stabilized
mud block production should have 0-10% gravel, 50-80% sand, 10-40% silt and
5-18% clay. In the procured soil, the clay content was 19.58%. By adding M-Sand
to the procured soil the clay content was reduced to 15% and 10%. In the present
paper, experiments were conducted on these two types of soils and their suitability
with stabilizers for making stabilized adobe.
4 Stabilization of Soil
Change in physical properties of soil by the addition of stabilizers is known as stabi-

lization of soil. The addition of stabilizers enhances the geotechnical properties of
soil by providing long term strength. Stabilized soil improves shrink/swell potential
and harmful effects of freeze/thaw cycles and reduces the permeability. In the stabi-
lization technique, the stabilizers commonly used are cement, lime, rice husk ash, fly
ash, etc. The reaction between soil particles and stabilizers form permanent bonds
between them.
In the present paper, cement and lime were used as stabilizers to improve the
strength properties of modified soil.
4.1 Significance of Cement in Stabilization of Soil
Cement is one of the main chemical agents, which is providing tough competition
with other chemical agents in improving the geotechnical properties of soil. By the
hardening of portland cement, there is improvement in engineering properties of
cement-treated soils. The reaction between cement and clay particle of soil are not
understood fully.
The primary and secondary cementitious matter are formed by the overall cement-
clay interaction. By the hardening process of primary products, a high strength
“aggregate” is formed and in this it contains lower calcium content. The additional
cementitious matter is produced by secondary processes which improve the strength
and stability of soil cement. By the secondary process, there is interparticle bond
strength. The maximum dry density of soil is increased because of addition of cement
treatment this is reported in Kezdi [3]. The plasticity index reduces with respect to
increase in cement content which in turn increases the plastic limit and reduces the
liquid limit of the soil. By the stabilization of soil with cement, there is a reduction in
swelling and shrinkage, increase in elastic modulus, strength and resistance against
the effect of freeze, thaw and moisture. Brittle behaviour is seen in the cement-treated
soils compared to non-treated soils [4, 5].
4.2 Significance of Lime in Stabilization of Soil
From the carbonate sedimentary rock, limestone is obtained. Minerals like calcite
and aragonite are the crystal forms of calcium carbonate (CaCO3 ). To obtain lime,
limestone is broken down at elevated temperatures [6]. To the lime, adequate quantity
of water is added or sprinkled, by this, exothermic reaction occurs. In this, calcium
oxide is converted into calcium hydroxide, and this process is known as slaking of
lime. By physico-chemical and micro-analyses (XRD, SEM and EDAX) changes in
the ionic exchange (Ca+2 , Mg+2 , Na+ and K+ ), mineralogy and microstructure can
be observed. By the addition of lime to soil, there is strong cation exchange reaction
at early stages by that variation in concentration of Ca+2 and also formation of
cementitious compounds with curing periods occurs. As the curing period increases,
the concentration of Ca+2 increases. Based on curing period, lime treated soil shows
changes in the mineralogy and microstructure and enhances solubility of cementitious
compounds. This process leads to changes in ionic concentration [7, 8].
By the formation of cementitious compounds, there is an improvement in the
strength up to 28 days and marginal up to 1 year. By stabilizing the soil clay particle
with hydrated lime, permanent strong cementitious bonds are formed [9, 10]. The
role of lime in the stabilized soil is it increases its optimum water content, shrinkage
limit and strength and also reduce the swelling potential, liquid limit, plasticity index
and maximum dry density of the soil [3, 11].
5 Process of Making Stabilized Adobe
The soil procured from the site is cleaned initially by removing deleterious materials,
breaking up lumps present in the soil and screening of soil by 4 mm sieve. Percent of
clay content present in the soil is found out by conducting a hydrometer test. Then
the soil is modified by adding the requisite amount of M-Sand to reduce the clay
content from 19.58% to 10% and 15%. To this modified soil, required proportion of
stabilizers like cement alone, lime alone and the combination of cement and lime
are added to improve the strength of the soil, which is called stabilized soil, the mix
proportions are tabulated in Table 2. The quantity of stabilizer to be added to the soil
is as per the literature review [12] is half the percentage of clay content present in
the soil. The dry materials are mixed thoroughly until a uniform mix is obtained.
In the present study, to have a comparison between the performance of soil
containing 15% and 10% clay, the percentage of stabilizer is kept constant. Then
Table 2 Mix proportion of

Sl. No. Notations Composition of clay and stabilizer
stabilized adobe
1 C15 A C15 -15% clay + A-8% cement
2 C15 B C15 -15% clay + B-8% lime
3 C15 C C15 -15% clay + C-6% cement + 3% lime
4 C10 A C10 -10% clay + A-8% cement
5 C10 B C10 -10% clay + B-8% lime
6 C10 C C10 -10% clay + C-6% cement + 3% lime
Fig. 5 Soil block mould
water is added to the dry mix so that the whole mixture is thoroughly saturated. By
trial and error, the amount of water content to get a saturated mix is found out and
it is 20%. The amount of water for the soil with stabilizer-lime requires more water
than the soil with cement as a stabilizer. However, in the present study for all types of
stabilized adobe water content of 20% is kept constant. The mixture is now pugged
manually for about 15 min to achieve plasticity of the soil. For moulding purposes,
Basu et al. [13], introduced a new type of mould made of mild steel which is used
in the present study as shown in Fig. 5. The mould dimension used is 230 mm ×
190 mm × 100 mm. Stabilized soil is mixed thoroughly and the mixed soil is taken
by hand made into a ball and dashed into the mould by a height of 0.5 m which makes
self-compaction of soil and excess topsoil is removed. Demoulding will be done on
a level surface which is as shown in Fig. 6. After demoulding, the stabilized adobe
blocks are cured under wet gunny bags for 28 days, 90 days and 180 days.
The test results of dry density, wet compressive strength and water absorption of
stabilized soil adobe for different mix proportions of stabilizers for a different curing
Fig. 6 Casted blocks with different percentages of stabilizers and percentage of clay content
period of only 28 days, 90 days and 180 days have been presented in this section.
However, the dry compressive strength and initial rate of absorption of stabilized
soil adobe for different mix proportions of stabilizers are discussed for 28 days of
curing. Graph 1-graph 5, represents the stabilized adobe test results of dry density,
compressive strengths (wet and dry), water absorption and initial rate of absorption
concerning different percentages of clay and stabilizers.
6.1 Dry Density of Stabilized Adobe
Ability of soil to function for structural support, water and solute movement and soil
aeration are the factors which depens on dry density. By compaction, dry density
increases which in turn restrict to root growth and poor movement of air and water
through the soil. In Graph 1, the dry density of stabilized adobe for different percent-
ages of clay, stabilizers and ageing has been presented. The stabilized soil adobe
with 15% clay for 28 days of curing shows a higher dry density of 1.86 g/cc with
cement as a stabilizer, lime as a stabilizer shows the least dry density of 1.71 g/cc
and a combination of cement and lime as a stabilizer shows 1.85 g/cc. Similarly, for
10% clay content stabilized adobe, the cement alone as a stabilizer shows a higher
dry density of 1.92 g/cc and lime alone shows the least dry density of 1.84 g/cc,
whereas a combination of cement and lime exhibits a dry density of 1.87 g/cc.
From the graph, it has been observed that as the age of curing increased, dry
density of stabilized adobe for different percentages of clay and stabilizers reduces.
Stabilized adobe with 15% clay content, the rate of reduction of dry density from
28 days to 180 days with cement alone as a stabilizer is 1.86 g/cc to 1.76 g/cc, lime
alone as a stabilizer is 1.71 g/cc to 1.63 g/cc and combination of cement and lime
as a stabilizer is 1.85 g/cc to 1.70 g/cc, respectively. Similarly, stabilized adobe with
10% clay content the rate of reduction of dry density from 28 days to 180 days with
cement alone as a stabilizer is 1.92 g/cc to 1.78 g/cc, lime alone as a stabilizer is
C15A C15B C15C C10A C10B C10C
1.95 1.92
1.9 1.86 1.87 1.87 1.86
1.85 1.84
1.85 1.8
1.78
Dry density, g/cc
1.8 1.77 1.76

1.75
1.75 1.71 1.72
1.69 1.7 1.69
1.7
1.65 1.63
1.6
1.55
1.5
1.45
28D 90D 180D
Curing Periods, days
Graph 1 Dry density of soil stabilized adobe for different curing periods
1.84 g/cc to 1.69 g/cc and combination of cement and lime as a stabilizer is 1.87 g/cc
to 1.8 g/cc.
Stabilized adobe with 15% and 10% clay content, 10% clay content shows higher
density values irrespective of the type of stabilizers.
6.2 Compressive Strength of Stabilized Adobe
Determination of compressive strength of stabilized adobe is done by using compres-

sion testing machine under standard conditions. As per the procedure mentioned in
IS 3495(part-1) [14] the compressive strength of stabilized adobe is studied for both
wet and dry compressive strength for various stabilizers and different percentage clay
of content. Wet compressive strength was evaluated for a period of 28 days, 90 days
and 180 days and dry compressive strength for 28 days.
6.2.1 Wet Compressive Strength
From Graph 2, it can be noticed that as the curing period increases, there is an increase
in wet compressive strength.
Irrespective of a curing period of 28 days, 90 days and 180 days wet compressive
strength of stabilized adobe increases with a decrease in the percentage of clay
content irrespective of stabilizers. The wet compressive strength of stabilized adobe,
irrespective of the percentage of clay content, is higher in the case of cement as a
stabilizer and least in the case of lime as a stabilizer, whereas the soil stabilized adobe
with combination of cement and lime as a stabilizer shows wet compressive strength
in between cemen alonet and lime alone as stabilizers.
5
4.42
Wet Compressive Strength, N/sq mm
4.5 4.12 4.27 4.27

4.05 3.88 3.99
4 3.81 3.654 3.737
3.585
3.5 3.28 3.2
3 2.822
2.36
2.5
2
1.5 1.296
0.839
1
0.458
0.5
0
28D 90D 180D
Curing periods, days
Graph 2 Wet compressive strength of soil stabilized adobe for different curing periods
For 28 days of curing, soil stabilized adobe with 10% clay content compared to
15% clay content, 10% clay content with cement alone, lime alone and a combination
of cement and lime as a stabilizer shows an increase in wet compressive strength by
5.92%, 80.59% and 10.13%, respectively. The percentage decrease in wet compres-
sive strength of soil stabilized adobe with lime and combination of cement and lime
as stabilizers compared to cement as a stabilizer is 87.97% and 13.91% for 15% clay
content and 41.72% and 9.77% for 10% clay content, respectively.
For 90 days curing period of soil stabilized adobe with cement alone, lime alone
and a combination of cement and lime as a stabilizer, with 10% clay content compared
to 15% clay content, wet compressive strength increases by 3.64%, 70.26% and
4.06%, respectively. The percentage decrease in wet compressive strength stabilized
adobe with lime and combination of cement and lime as a stabilizer compared to
cement alone as a stabilizer are 79.63% and 13.91% for 15% clay content and 33.9%
and 12.48% for 10% clay content, respectively.
For 180 days curing period of soil stabilized adobe with cement alone, lime
alone and a combination of cement and lime as a stabilizer, with 10% clay content
compared to 15% clay content, wet compressive strength increases by 3.39%, 59.5%
and 2.75%, respectively. The percentage decrease in wet compressive strength of
stabilized adobe with lime and combination of cement alone and lime alone as a
stabilizer compared to cement as a stabilizer is 69.64% and 9.13% for 15% clay
content and 27.6% and 9.72% for 10% clay content, respectively.
Rate of Gain Wet Compressive Strength
Table 3 presents the percentage increase in wet compressive strength values

concerning 28 days of curing strength, and the following discussions are made.
The rate of gain of wet compressive strength of stabilized adobe with 15% clay
content for a curing period of 28 days to 90 days with cement alone, lime alone
Table 3 Percentage increase in strength values with respect to 28 days of curing strength
Mix proportion Wet compressive strength, Percentage increase in wet
N/mm2 compressive strength
Curing periods, days Curing periods, days
28 90 180 28–90 90–180 28–180
C15A 3.81 4.12 4.27 7.53 6.33 10.78
C15B 0.458 0.839 1.296 45.42 63.48 64.67
C15C 3.28 3.585 3.88 8.51 13.69 15.47
C10A 4.05 4.27 4.42 5.16 6.11 8.38
C10B 2.36 2.822 3.2 16.38 21.27 26.25
C10C 3.654 3.737 3.99 2.23 11.42 8.43
and combination of cement and lime as a stabilizer, is 7.52%, 45.4% and 8.5%,
respectively, and stabilized adobe with 10% clay content are 5.15%, 16.37% and
2.22%, respectively.
content for a curing period of 28 days to 180 days with cement alone, lime alone and
combination of cement and lime as a stabilizer, are10.77%, 64.66% and 15.46%,
respectively, and stabilized adobe with 10% clay content are 8.37%, 26.25% and
8.42%, respectively.
content for a curing period of 90 days to 180 days with cement, lime and combination
of cement and lime as a stabilizer, is 6.32%, 63.47% and 13.68%, respectively, and
stabilized adobe with 10% clay content is 6.10%, 21.26% and 11.41%, respectively.
The soil with cement as a stabilizer, up to 28 days, there is a significant increase
in strength, but at later ages increase in strength is not much compared to lime, and
the combination of lime and cement may be because of its early gain of strength due
to the hydration process. From Table 3, lime and combination of lime and cement
shows a significant rate of increase in strength from 28 days to 180 days compared
to cement. It is evident from the literature [10] that lime shows long term strength
gain. Amongst 15% and 10% clay content soil stabilized adobe, 10% clay content
shows the highest wet compressive strength.
6.2.2 Dry Compressive Strength
From Graph 3, it has been observed that the variation of dry compressive strength
of soil stabilized adobe for both 10% and 15% clay content with different stabilizers
is very much similar to wet compressive strength for a curing period of 28 days.
However, the magnitude of dry compressive strength is two times higher than wet
compressive strength. The dry compressive strength increases with a decrease in
the percentage of clay content irrespective of stabilizers. With cement alone, lime
alone and a combination of cement and lime as a stabilizer, the stabilized adobe
Dry compressive Strength, N/mm2 9 8.01

8 7.55
7
5.72
6
5 4.57
4.17
4 C15
3 2.29 C10
2
1
0
A B C
Diferent types of stabilizer
Graph 3 Dry compressive strength of soil stabilized adobe for different types of stabilizer
with 10% clay content compared to 15% clay content, the dry compressive strength
increases by 5.74%, 45.08% and 12.93%, respectively. The dry compressive strength
of stabilized adobe irrespective of the percentage of clay content is higher in the case
of cement as a stabilizer and least in the case of lime as a stabilizer, whereas the
combination of cement and lime as a stabilizer shows dry compressive strength in
between cement alone and lime alone as a stabilizer. The percentage decrease in dry
compressive strength of stabilized adobe with lime and combination of cement and
lime as a stabilizer compared to cement as stabilizer decreases by 69.6% and 24.23%
for 15% clay content and 47.9% and 17.97% for 10% clay content.
6.3 Water Absorption
According to IS 3495-(part 2) water absorption test is carried out by immersing

soil stabilized adobe in water for 24 h. Presence of voids and its importance can be
studied by the absorption capacity of the stabilized adobe. By the action of compres-
sion force on the volume of soil is subjected to reduction in the presence of voids.
The compaction of soil reduces the porosity of the soils so that less water can pene-
trate [15]. From the bar chart Graph 4, the water absorption in 15% clay content soil
stabilized adobe, amongst stabilizers, lime shows higher water absorption of 12.37%,
cement shows least value of 10.24% and combination of cement and lime as a stabi-
lizer of 10.95%. Similarly, the water absorption in 10% clay content soil stabilized
adobe, lime as a stabilizer shows higher water absorption of 12.93%, cement shows
least value of 10.77% and combination of cement and lime as a stabilizer of 12.09%.
The reduction in water absorption has been observed in both series C15 and C10
from 28 days to 180 days. The maximum water absorption of all combinations are
within the prescribed limit of 18% as per IS 1725 (2013).
14 12.93
12.37 12.09 11.725 11.341
12 10.9510.77
10.24 10.3 10.53 10.38
Water Absorption, %
9.67 9.54 9.29

10 8.67 8.26 8.22
8 7.109
6
4
2
0
28D 90D 180D
Curing Periods, days
Graph 4 Water absorption of soil stabilized adobe for different curing periods
6.4 Initial Rate of Absorption (IRA)
The initial rate of absorption (IRA) test is conducted according to code ASTM C-67
[16]. Here, it is noticed that IRA decreases with a decrease in the percentage of clay
content irrespective of stabilizers. With cement alone, lime alone and a combination
of cement and lime as a stabilizer, the IRA of the stabilized adobe with 10% clay
content compared to 15% clay content reduces by 4.86%, 18% and 13.2%, respec-
tively. The IRA of stabilized adobe irrespective of the percentage of clay content is
higher in the case of cement as a stabilizer and least in the case of lime as a stabilizer,
whereas IRA of a combination of cement alone and lime alone as a stabilizer shows
IRA in between cement and lime alone as a stabilizer. The percentage decrease
in IRA for lime and combination of cement and lime as a stabilizer compared to
cement as a stabilizer are 41.7% and 20.71% for 15% clay content and 49.9% and
27.71% for 10% clay content. Lime is an effective stabilizing agent for clay maybe
because of this reason lime and a combination of lime and cement shows lesser IRA
value compared to cement. The IRA values obtained for all stabilizers and different
percentages of clay content are within the recommended range of 0.5–1.5 kg/m2 /min
as per code ASTM C-67 [16].
7 Conclusions
From the experimental study and obtained results, the following conclusions of soil
stabilized adobe are drawn
1. The dry density and water absorption value of soil stabilizes adobe decreases
where as wet compressive and dry compressive strength of soil stabilized adobe
increase with increase in curing period (28 days–180 days) irrespective of
stabilizer and percentage of clay content of soil stabilized adobe.
1.6 1.44 1.37

1.4
1.141
1.2
IRA, kg/sqm/min
0.99
1 0.839
0.8 0.686
C15
0.6
0.4 C10
0.2
0
A B C
Diferent types of stabilizers
Graph 5 Initial rate of absorption of soil stabilized adobe for 28 days of curing
2. The rate of increase of wet compressive strength of stabilized adobe with an

increase in curing period is very much higher in the presence of lime as a
stabilizer compared to cement as a stabilizer.
3. Compared to 15% clay content, 10% clay content stabilized adobe shows higher
dry density, wet compressive and dry compressive strength, this may be due to
the presence of higher percentage of sand.
4. The dry compressive strength of soil stabilized adobes for different stabilizers
and different percentage clay content are two times higher than wet compressive
strength.
5. The water absorption value has decreased as the curing period increased for
different stabilizers and different percentages of clay content.
6. Compared to cement and a combination of cement and lime as stabilizers, the
stabilized adobe with lime as a stabilizer shows higher water absorption.
7. For all different stabilizers and different percentages of clay content stabilized
adobe, the obtained water absorption values are within the codal limit of 18%.
8. For both 15% and 10% clay content of soil stabilized adobe with different
stabilizers, the IRA values are less than the recommended value of IS code.
References
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Pvt. Ltd.
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(artificial pozzolan) on the swelling potential of an expansive soil from Oman. Building and
Environment, 40(5), 681–687.
5. Jones, L. D., & Jefferson, I. (2012). Expansive soils (pp. 413–441). ICE Publishing.
6. Chittoori, B. C. S. (2008). Clay mineralogy effects on the long-term performance of chemically

treated expansive clays (Doctoral dissertation, The University of Texas at Arlington).
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micro-mechanistic perspective. Indian Geotechnical Journal.
8. Croft, J. B. (1967). The influence of soil mineralogical composition on cement stabilization.
Geotechnique, 17(2), 119–135.
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223–237.
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cement in the long-term strength of compressed stabilized earth blocks. International Journal
of Sustainable Built Environment.
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stabilized with lime and fly ash.
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Ltd.
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Construction Technologies. ASTRA and Karnataka State Council for Science and Technology,
IISC, Bangaluru.
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compressive strength. Bureau of Indian Standards, New Delhi.
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blocks. Courrier du Savoir, N°02, 61–66, June 2002. Université Mohamed Khider, Biskra,
Algérie.
16. ASTM C67. Procedure for testing brick and structural clay.
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absorption. Bureau of Indian Standards, New Delhi.
Effect of Supplementary Cementitious
Materials on Compressive Strength
of Engineered Cementitious Composites:
A Review
S. Naveen and Govardhan Bhat
Abstract Engineered Cementitious Composites (ECCs) have a wide range of appli-

cations, and compressive strength (CS) is a key aspect of their design, in addition
to tensile strength. Supplementary cementitious materials (SCMs) such as fly ash
(FL), slag (SL), silica fume (SI), and rice husk ash (RI) play an important role in the
development of the CS through the packing effect. The proper use of SCMs to create
a sustainable environment is the only option for reducing CO2 emissions from ECC
production. The water to binder (or) water to the cementitious material ratio (W/B)
is also an important consideration for CS. The ECC CS, which includes SCMs, is
reviewed in this paper. The following observations were made as a result of this
approach. SCMs have a substantial impact on the ECC CS performance. The CS has
an impact on the geometry of the specimen. High W/B causes a significant change
in ECC CS.
Keywords Engineered Cementitious Composites (ECC) · Compressive strength

(CS) · Supplementary cementitious materials (SCMs) · Sustainable environment ·
Water to binder ratio (W/B) · Geometry
1 Introduction
Early versions of Engineered Cementitious Composites (ECC) contain considerably

higher cement content (2–3 times higher), compared with normal concrete. Due to
the lack of coarse aggregate in the ECC design, a high amount of cement was needed.
Shrinkage, hydration heat, and cost are all increased when the cement content is high
[1]. Furthermore, such a mix will result in higher carbon and energy footprint. The
environmental effect can be reduced by using SCMs in ECC [2]. SCMs have become a
S. Naveen (B) · G. Bhat

Civil Engineering Department, National Institute of Technology, Raipur, Raipur, Chhattisgarh
492010, India
e-mail: snaveen.phd2019.ce@nitrr.ac.in
G. Bhat
e-mail: gov.ce@nitrr.ac.in
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4040-8_54
682 S. Naveen and G. Bhat
common component in ECC manufacture, with a large volume of SCMs, accounting

for more than 50% (weight) of binder [3, 4]. Many researchers have been effective
in disseminating information regarding the benefits of using SCMs. There are only
a few SCMs considered in this summary. This paper intends to review the effect of
chosen SCMs, including FL, SL, SI, and RI on CS of ECC, to provide a database
of current information on the beneficial utilization of industrial and agricultural by-
products as ECC components. This review only looks at the CS of ECC that uses the
above-mentioned SCMs to partially replace Ordinary Portland Cement (OPC).
2 The Novelty of the Study
The CS of ECC is very essential, because it has a directly proportional relation with
flexural strength, first cracking load, and peak load, respectively. SCMs, W/B, and
other factors influence the ECC CS. As a result, the focus of this review paper is on
the effect of various SCMs and W/B on ECC CS.
2.1 Limitations
Most of the researchers used conventional materials, namely FL, SL, and SI for
attaining mechanical property (CS) of ECC. The effect of locally available SCMs
and combinations of materials need to be investigated.
3 Supplementary Cementitious Materials (SCMs)
SCMs are utilized in the manufacture of ECC for a variety of reasons. ECC has a
higher OPC concentration because of the lack of coarse aggregate [3, 4]. In typical
ECC combinations, the cement content can range from 600 to 1200 kg/m3 [5].
Furthermore, it is harmful to the environment, as the cement industry accounts for
8% of world CO2 emissions [6]. Many studies in the literature addressed this issue,
with SCMs such as FL, SL, SI, and RI replacing a major amount of cement in ECC
to reduce carbon and energy footprint.
(a) Fly ash (FL)
FL is a waste product of pulverized coal being burned in an electricity gener-
ating facility, and it is classified as pozzolanic cement materials [7]. ECC has
incorporated FL as a key component. For example, the most studied M45-ECC
employs 1.2 times the amount of FL found in standard OPC [8]. High-volume
fly ash ECC (HVFL-ECC) is defined as a cementitious composite that contains
more than 50% [9]. Due to a substantial amount of FL, the HVFL-early-age
ECC’s strength reduces [10]. HVFL-ECC promotes environmental greenness
while cutting material costs; the high concentrations of FL improve worka-
bility and durability while drying shrinkage is minimized [11]. FL possesses
Effect of Supplementary Cementitious Materials on Compressive … 683
a pozzolanic activity, which allows it to form secondary calcium–silicate–

hydrate (C–S–H) gels from cement-based fly ash products by interacting with
Ca (OH)2 during cement hydration, resulting in increased density and strength
[12].
(b) Slag (SL)
Slag, also known as ground granulated blast furnace slag (GGBFS), is
a self-cementing SCM produced by the iron and steel industry. The chem-
ical composition, fineness, and alkali concentration of SL have an impact on
its cementitious capabilities [13]. Because of the lower cement demand, the
usage of SL is particularly advantageous from an economic and environmental
aspects. This minimizes the amount of carbon dioxide produced by the cement
manufacturing process [14]. In ECC, SL can be utilized to replace cement. As
a result, CO2 emissions from cement products can be lowered. In this regard,
replacing cement clinker with SL can help to improve the sustainability of
building construction [15].
(c) Silica fume (SI)
In the silicon and ferrosilicon industries, SI is a by-product of the smelting
process [16]. SI, also known as micro silica, appears to be the best performing
siliceous product among SCMs [17]. Partially replacing cement with SI mini-
mizes not only cement use but also pollution in the environment [18]. Because
amorphous silicon dioxide is the major component of SI, it exhibits stronger
pozzolanic activity than other SCMs (FL and SL) [19]. SI reacts with calcium
hydroxide to form hydrated calcium silicate (C–S–H) in cement-based compos-
ites, resulting in a denser microstructure and increased strength [20]. In addi-
tion, adding SI to HVFL-ECC changes the interfacial transition zone and
reduces the sorptivity, permeability, and porosity [11].
(d) Rice husk ash (RI)
RI is a type of agricultural waste; that is produced by burning rice husk to
protect the outer cover. It is made up of non-crystalline silicon dioxide (SiO2 )
and has a large specific surface area, making it pozzolanic reactive.
4 Mechanical Property (CS) of ECC
The graph is plotted based on the data points obtained to describe the effect of
the SCMs (FL, SL, SI, and RI) on the ECC’s 28 days CS. Table 1 represents the
equivalent apparent strength of cube specimens measuring 50 × 50 × 50 mm, based
on the corresponding factors [21]. The summary of the literature is presented in Table
2. The reasoning for an increase of CS with SCM is given in Table 3.
(a) Effect of fly ash on CS
The CS results ECC from various authors summarized in Fig. 1, decreased
with an increasing amount of FL. C–S–H gel formations would be delayed
as a result of FL’s slower pozzolanic reactions in the early stages and the
concentration of Ca(OH)2 would rise, lowering the strength [12]. Al-Najjar
Fig. 1 Correlation on ECC CS with FL as a cement replacement [3, 22–29]
et al. [10] concluded that packets of unreacted FL particles were more evident
in HVFL specimens that lead to lower strength.
(b) Effect of slag on CS

From Table 1, it is clear that the combination of SL + FL gives less strength
than the composite produced with only FL. Slag has a higher effect on CS of
ECC as compared with FL on an individual basis. The presence of SL improves
matrix strength. The Portland cement hydration process activates SL particles,
with calcium hydroxide forming as the primary activator. Reduced porosity in
the matrix results in increased matrix strength and toughness when using SL
hydration products [22].
(c) Effect of FL + SL on CS
Use of SI improves the CS of ECC but, it will affect with the higher
W/B, clearly observed from Table 1. SI was introduced to enhance the fiber-
matrix interface, according to Zhou et al. [34]. Furthermore, adding SI to
HVFL cementitious composites raises the early CS while also modifying the
interfacial transition zone and lowers porosity [5]. FL improved the CS and
permeability of composites, but it was not as effective as SI because unhy-
drated FL grains resulted in a looser pore structure and decreased permeability.
Combining combination FL and SI improved the CS [17].
(d) Effect of RI on CS
From the summary of results shown in Table 1, it is concluded that the higher
CS of ECC is achieved with a combination of SCMs than ECC produced with
only FL and SL.
(e) Effect of W/B on CS
Table 1 shows that the authors chose a minimum and maximum W/B of
0.17–0.35. W/B, as expected, is the most effective parameter on the CS fluctu-
ation of ECC. Even though a little reduction in W/B resulted in a considerable
increase in CS [3]. Water that is not consumed by hydration reaction will even-
tually leave in the cementitious materials as it hardens, resulting in small gaps
that would diminish its final strength [30].
(f) Effect of the geometry of the specimen on CS
Because of the size effect, the CS reduced marginally with increasing size
[31]. The change in CS is dependent on the geometries of the specimens.
It is vital to notice that when the specimen size decreases, the CS variation
rises [35]. The size effect is stronger for cubes than cylinders, according to
Yi et al. [36] and Aslani [37]. When end-frictional confinement is removed
or a specimen with a high aspect ratio is utilized, the CS of ultra-high ductile
cementitious composites (UHDCC) becomes independent of specimen size
and shape, according to Yu et al. [38].
5 Improvement in CS of ECC
Depending on the composition, the CS of ECC is normally in the range of 30–80 MPa
[39]. Ranade [40] has developed the greatest CS (205 MPa) in recent years. Huang
et al. [33] developed ultra-high-strength ECC with a CS of more than 210 MPa.
5.1 Recommendation for Selection of SCMs on CS of ECC
• The chemical characteristics of SCMs such as CaO, SiO2 , Al2 O3 , Fe2 O3 , MgO,
etc., and others are the primary determinants of ECC selection and strength.
• For achieving the CS of ECC of 30 to 80 MPa, FL and SL are the greatest options.
• For ultra-high-strength ECC (205–210 MPa), SI with a combination of additional
SCMs such as FL, SL, and RI are the best choices.
6 Conclusions
• An attempt is made in this paper to review the effect of SCMs on the CS of ECC.
• According to the findings of the study, the SCMs have a considerable effect on the
ECC’s CS. As a result, extra care must be taken when selecting the SCMs to be
Table 1 Type of SCMs and source of data points (class-F FL; sand = silica sand; 2% volume of
fiber)
S. No. Reference Type of fibersa W/B Sand/Binder % of cement Equivalent CS
ratio (S/B) replacement at 28 days
with FL (MPa)a
1 [22] PVA 0.25 0.36 50 69.8
2 [23] PVA 0.25 0.36 55 47.3
3 [24] PVA 0.25 0.34 55 52.5
4 [22] PVA 0.25 0.36 60 64.5
5 [23] PVA 0.25 0.36 62 42.7
6 [23] PVA 0.25 0.36 67 30.8
7 [24] PVA 0.25 0.36 69 45.0
8 [25] PVA 0.25 0.36 70 43.0
9 [22] PVA 0.25 0.36 70 53.7
10 [23] PVA 0.25 0.36 71 34.5
11 [23] PVA 0.25 0.36 74 31.7
12 [23] PVA 0.25 0.36 76 23.9
13 [23] PVA 0.25 0.36 78 21.5
14 [22] PVA 0.25 0.36 80 37.6
15 [23] PVA 0.25 0.36 85 19.2
16 [26] PVA 0.26 0.36 81 17
17 [27] PVA 0.27 0.36 55 45.2
18 [28] PVA 0.27 0.36 55 62.5
19 [29] PVA 0.27 0.36 55 62.5
20 [27] PVA 0.27 0.36 69 32.6
21 [28] PVA 0.27 0.36 69 54.1
22 [29] PVA 0.27 0.36 69 54.1
23 [3] PVA 0.27 0.36 69 35.1
% of cement
replacement
with SL
24 [22] PVA 0.25 0.36 50 80.64
25 [22] PVA 0.25 0.36 60 69.89
26 [22] PVA 0.25 0.36 70 67.52
27 [22] PVA 0.25 0.36 80 64.51
% of cement
replacement
with FL + SL
28 [22] PVA 0.25 0.36 60 + 10 51.61
29 [22] PVA 0.25 0.36 50 + 20 53.76
(continued)
Table 1 (continued)
S. No. Reference Type of fibersa W/B Sand/Binder % of cement Equivalent CS
ratio (S/B) replacement at 28 days
with FL (MPa)a
30 [22] PVA 0.25 0.36 40 + 30 59.13
% of cement
replacement
with FL + SI
31 [22] PVA 0.25 0.36 65 + 5 59.18
32 [22] PVA 0.25 0.36 60 + 10 64.51
% of cement
replacement
with FL + SI
33 [11] PVA 0.175 0.2 80 + 2 62.2
34 [11] PVA 0.2 0.2 80 + 2 55.6
35 [11] PVA 0.22 0.2 80 + 2 47.2
36 [11] PVA 0.3 0.2 80 + 2 23.3
37 [11] PVA 0.35 0.2 80 + 2 14.2
% of cement
replacement
with FL
38 [10] PVA 0.27 0.2 44 62
39 [10] PVA 0.27 0.2 55 51
40 [10] PVA 0.27 0.2 69 40
% of cement
replacement
with FL + RI
+ SI
41 [6] PE 0.20 0.30 40 + 0 + 9.09 82.06
42 [6] PE 0.20 0.30 31 + 8.7 + 98.08
9.23
43 [6] PE 0.20 0.30 21 + 17.2 + 108.7
9.42
a Cubespecimens with equivalent apparent strength (50 × 50 × 50 mm)
PE polyethylene (or) PVA polyvinyl alcohol
used in the production of ECC, and it is critical to determine the optimal amount
of W/B and kind of SCMs to achieve a high CS.
• The change in CS of ECC is also dependent on the geometry of the specimen.
• Previous research has shown that using SCMs as a cement alternative in ECC
reduces carbon and energy footprints, promoting a more sustainable environment.
• This would contribute to a more comprehensive body of knowledge about the
effect of SCMs on ECC’s CS.
Table 2 Summary related to SCMs from various authors

Authors/Reference Summary related to SCMs
Sahamaran et al. [3] SCMs type greatly affect the self-healing capacity of ECC
Advancement in pozzolanic and hydration reaction depends on the
specific surface area of FL and SL particles
Class C and F FL have similar strength at an early age
Zhang et al. [4] Lower strength development due to a 20% higher W/B
Yu et al. [5] ECC with FL perform much better in terms of embodied energy and
embodied carbon per unit strength or strain
Zhang et al. [6] Higher CS with pozzolanic action and particle packing
Al-Najjar et al. [10] Due to a substantial amount of FL, the HVFL-early-age ECC’s
strength reduces
Yu and Leung [11] Discussed FL selection and CS of HVFL-ECC
Developed ECC with ultra-high-volume FL
Kumar and Ranade [13] Utilized SL instead of FL to produce ECC
The CS is reduced with an increase in SL/cement ratio
Zhu et al. [22] FL and SL combination increases the CS
ECC with SL has a much stronger matrix than ECC with FL
Yang et al. [23] No significant strength gain is found in HVFL-ECC (28–90 days)
Very low W/B will lead to lower strength in the case of HVFL-ECC
Reduces the free drying shrinkage
An increase in FL reduces the CS of ECC
Booya et al. [24] SL-based ECC has higher drying shrinkage than FL-based ECC
SL improved the CS of ECC
Zhu et al. [25] SL increases the CS of ECC, especially at an early age
Yang et al. [30] Compressive strength increases with the decrease of W/B (0.37–0.25)
Yu et al. [31] The CS of ECC with SL and SI achieved as greater than 100 MPa
Chung et al. [32] The cubic specimen exhibits higher strength than the cylindrical
specimen
Established co-relation between CS and elastic modulus, for both
specimens
Huang et al. [33] Ultra-high strength ECC with CS over 201 MPa developed with SL
and SF
Table 3 Observations on CS of ECC with SCMs from various authors

SCMs Reasons for high CS
FL • Class F FL and low heat of hydration
SL • Pozzolanic activity increases the density and strength of ECC
SI • Stronger pozzolanic activity than other SCMs (FL and SL)
• Higher silica content
• Changes the interfacial transition zone and reduces the porosity, speeds up the
hydration of cement particles
RI • A larger specific surface area, making it pozzolanic reactive, leads to high CS of ECC
• Higher silica content
• Most of the researchers used conventional materials, namely FL, SL, and SI for
attaining mechanical property (CS) of ECC. The effect of locally available SCMs
and combinations of materials need to be investigated in the future.
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Incorporation of Waste Wood Ash
and Polypropylene Fibre
on the Production of Sustainable GPC
K. Arunkumar, M. Muthukannan, A. Suresh Kumar,

Abstract Geopolymer is an excellent binder material that belongs to the innovation

of cement less concrete technology in the construction industry. The utilization of
wastes in concrete has been growing well with incorporating in geopolymer concrete.
Waste wood ash is the most spectacular waste material procured from all hotels.
This study altered the fly ash with waste wood ash by varying the replacement
percentages from 0 to 100% at 10% increment. The mechanical characterization
was found to optimize the molarity of the alkaline activator, the solution to binder
ratio, and the wood ash/fly ash ratio. The polypropylene fibre was added by 0–2%
of volume fraction to improve the property of geopolymer in brittleness and crack
resistance. In addition, the effects of adding polypropylene fibre on the mechanical
properties of GPC were investigated. The research findings revealed the enhancement
in compressive and tensile strength with 30% waste wood ash replacement. Further,
the mechanical characters of GPC such as compressive strength, tensile strength,
and flexural strengths were enhanced by 61%, 11%, and 12%, respectively, with
the incorporation of 1% of polypropylene fibre. The research hypothesis focused on
finding an alternate for fly ash, reducing alkaline activators quantity, and improving
strength with PP fibre addition.
Keywords Geopolymer concrete · Waste wood ash · Polypropylene fibre ·

Sustainable GPC · Fly ash
K. Arunkumar (B)
Department of Civil Engineering, Mangalam College of Engineering, Kerala, India
e-mail: arunapcivil@gmail.com
A. Suresh Kumar · A. Chithambar Ganesh
Sree Vidya Nikethan Engineering College, Tirupati, India
M. Muthukannan · R. Kanniga Devi
Kalasalingam Academy of Research and Education, Krishnankoil, Tamil Nadu, India
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4040-8_55
694 K. Arunkumar et al.
1 Introduction
Greenhouse gas emission was the most severe issue worldwide, and cement produc-
tion was the major source of GHG emission, accounting for 7% of total emissions
[1]. The utilization of cement was the second-largest source used every day, next
to water consumption [2]. In addition, cement is the second most significant green-
house gas emission factor [3]. According to some estimates, the greenhouse gas
emissions by the cement industry could account for 10–15% of total global emis-
sions by 2020 [4]. The environmental impact of cement manufacturing and the
damage of the ozone layer offer an effective target for researchers who are working
to develop and employ environmentally friendly building materials [4]. Geopolymer
is an eco-friendly alternative to cement in construction that is more durable than
normal OPC [5]. Concerning mechanical and durability characteristics, the func-
tionality of geopolymer concrete is superior to conventional Portland cement [6].
The geopolymer can be produced with various aluminosilicate source materials such
as fly ash, ground granulated blast furnace slag, metakaolin, rice husk ash, pulver-
ized fly ash, palm oil fuel ash, and wood ash [7]. The geopolymer made from fly
ash was the primary focus of the majority of the researchers [8, 9]. The construction
industry has seen an increase in the use of fly ash and an increase in the demand for
fly ash [10]. It is necessary to develop an alternative solution to combat the problem
outlined above. The quantity of alkaline solution utilization in geopolymer helps to
boost the mechanical strength. Increasing the molarity of an alkaline solution causes
the strength characteristics such as compressive strength and split tensile strength
to increase [11, 12]. Increasing the molarity of the solution of sodium hydroxide
(commonly known as lye) from 4 to 18 M will increase the flexural strength [13].
A high concentration of NaOH, on the other hand, can cause the geopolymerization
process to be disrupted [14]. Therefore, it is critical to maintaining a strict limit on
the amount of alkaline solution consumed to attain later age strength development.
When dealing with alternate aluminosilicate source material issues and reducing
the need for the alkaline solution, the source material which can solve the prob-
lems was needed as alternate binders [15]. Based on this, wood ash contains both
a kind of aluminium and silicate (known as aluminosilicate) and a potassium oxide
(known as K2 O), which aids in decreasing the amount of a strongly alkaline solution
requirement used in this research.
Many people believe that there are problems with its brittleness and lack of energy
absorption ability of geopolymer [16]. Low modulus fibres will be introduced to
improve brittleness and crack resistance characteristics [17]. Polypropylene has a
positive effect on environmental pollution, shrinkage, and brittleness, as demon-
strated in fly ash-based geopolymer concrete with which it is combined [18, 19].
Polypropylene fibres used in the geopolymer concrete were helped to minimize
cracks and increase the behaviour of the concrete against crack propagation [20].
Hence, with the addition of PP fibre, the strength properties of geopolymer concrete
are improved [21]. Thus, this study will examine the optimization of wood ash with
fly ash, alkaline solution molarity, and solution–binder ratio. Additionally, the effects
Incorporation of Waste Wood Ash and Polypropylene Fibre … 695
of adding polypropylene fibre to wood ash/fly ash-based geopolymer concrete will

be investigated.
This study uses a waste by-product procured from the thermal power plant station
as a primary binder material. The calcium oxide classifies the fly ash as a Class-F
type [22]. The major chemical compositions present in the fly ash are 8.64% calcium
oxide, 32.48% aluminium oxide, 36.32% silicon dioxide, 0.87% of potassium oxide,
and 1.89% iron oxide. The wood ash used in this study is produced by incinerating
the wood wastes collected from timber industries in the bakery burner chamber [23].
The incineration temperature was maintained by 800 °C [10]. Figure 1 shows the
chemical compositions as determined by energy-dispersive X-ray diffraction. The
major chemical compositions present in the wood ash are 3.78% calcium oxide,
21.48% aluminium oxide, 46.42% silicon dioxide, 14.32% potassium oxide, and
2.49% iron oxide. The material characteristics of FA and WA were found as follows:
specific gravity 2.3 and 1.7, fineness 6 and 9%, consistency 38 and 59%, initial
setting time 18 and 2.30 h, and final setting time 36 and 3 h. The study employs
sodium-based alkaline solutions such as sodium silicate and sodium hydroxide, with
a specific gravity of 1.60 and 1.47. Fine aggregate has an aggregate particle size
of less than 1.18 mm and a fineness modulus of 2.42. The coarse aggregate has
Fig. 1 Chemical composition analysis of fly ash and waste wood ash by EDX
an aggregate particle size of 10 mm, and a fineness modulus of 7.6 was used. The
specific gravity of fine and coarse aggregate was found as 2.62 and 2.91. Further,
this study incorporates polypropylene fibres with a length of 20 mm and a diameter
of 0.1 mm. Wood ash is substituted by 0–100% for fly ash with an increase of 10%
[18]. The proportion of polypropylene fibre addition is varied by 0.5, 1, 1.5, and 2%
volume.
3 Mix Proportioning
Based on the modified guidelines for geopolymer concrete developed in accordance

with Indian standards [24], the proportions of the mix were determined. With an
alkaline binder ratio of 0.61, the mix design is computed as 1:1.05:1.57 [18]. Table 1
contains the quantity of materials obtained using the above mix design. Optimization
of wood ash/fly ash ratio was done by substituting the wood ash with fly ash by 0, 10,
20, 30, 40, 50, 60, 70, 80, 90, and 100% [25]. For optimizing the ratio of the binders,
the molarity of sodium hydroxide and activator solution to binder ratio was fixed
constant as 13 M and 0.61 [26]. After optimizing the ratio of fly ash and wood ash,
optimization of NaOH molarity and alkaline solution to binder ratio was carried out.
Optimization of NaOH molarity was done by varying the molarity by 8, 9, 10, 11,
12, 13, and 14 M. For optimizing the NaOH molarity, the constant activator solution
to binder ratio (A/B ratio) of 0.61 and optimized fly ash/wood ash binder ratio were
considered. Optimization of the alkaline solution to binder ratio (A/B ratio) was done
by varying the ratio by 0.45, 0.5, 0.55, 0.6, and 0.61. For optimization of the alkaline
solution to binder ratio (A/B ratio), the optimized fly ash/wood ash binder ratio and
optimized NaOH molarity were taken. Table 1 illustrates the quantity of material
according to optimization.
After obtaining the optimized values of fly ash/wood ash binder ratio, NaOH
molarity, and activator to binder ratio, the polypropylene fibre was added by 0, 0.25,
0.5, 0.75, and 1% volume fractions [27]. The quantity of polypropylene fibres for
geopolymer concrete mixes is given in Table 2. The quantity of other materials was
the same as given in Table 1.
The standard mixing procedure was followed to obtain the homogenous mix. The
mix of binder materials, fine, and coarse aggregate was thoroughly mixed in the dry
state for 5 min. The prepared sodium hydroxide and silicate solution were added to the
mix and further mixed for 3 min. Then the geopolymer concrete was poured into the
required steel moulds and left rest for 24 h. The moulded specimens were demoulded
and kept in the laboratory for curing specimens in ambient curing conditions. The
room temperature was controlled by 26 ± 2 °C with a relative humidity of ±5 [10].
Table 1 Material quantity for GPC specimens

MIX ID % of % of Fly Wood NaOH Na2 SiO3 Fine Coarse
FA WA ash ash aggregate aggregate
GWA0 100 0 550 0 70.71 176.79 667 994
GWA10 90 10 495 32.1 67.77 169.43 667 994
GWA20 80 20 440 64.2 64.83 162.06 667 994
GWA30 70 30 385 96.3 61.88 154.70 667 994
GWA40 60 40 330 128.4 58.94 147.34 667 994
GWA50 50 50 275 160.5 55.99 139.98 667 994
GWA60 40 60 220 192.6 53.05 132.62 667 994
GWA70 30 70 165 224.7 50.10 125.26 667 994
GWA80 20 80 110 256.8 47.16 117.90 667 994
GWA90 10 90 55 288.9 44.22 110.54 667 994
GWA100 0 100 0 321 41.27 103.18 667 994
NaOH molarity optimization
GWA30-8 M 70 30 385 96.3 95.86 239.64 667 994
GWA30-9 M 70 30 385 96.3 95.86 239.64 667 994
GWA30-10 M 70 30 385 96.3 95.86 239.64 667 994
GWA30-11 M 70 30 385 96.3 95.86 239.64 667 994
GWA30-12 M 70 30 385 96.3 95.86 239.64 667 994
GWA30-13 M 70 30 385 96.3 95.86 239.64 667 994
GWA30-14 M 70 30 385 96.3 95.86 239.64 667 994
A/B ratio optimization
GWA30-0.4 70 30 385 96.3 95.86 239.64 667 994
GWA30-0.45 70 30 385 96.3 86.43 216.07 667 994
GWA30-0.5 70 30 385 96.3 78.57 196.43 667 994
GWA30-0.55 70 30 385 96.3 70.71 176.79 667 994
GWA30-0.61 70 30 385 96.3 62.86 157.14 667 994
Table 2 Quantity of
Mix ID Fibre content
polypropylene fibres
GC 0
0.5 PFRG 2.41
1 PFRG 4.81
1.5 PFRG 7.22
2 PFRG 9.63
In this research, optimization of binder materials, NaOH molarity, and alkaline to

binder ratio was done with the testing of compressive and tensile strength as per
ASTM-C109/C109M-02 [28] and ASTM-C496 [29]. For all the optimization, a total
of 188 specimens were cast. This study also discovered the effect of polypropy-
lene on the mechanical characteristics of optimized geopolymer concrete, such
as compressive, flexural, and tensile strengths. ASTM-C109/C109M [28], ASTM-
C496, and ASTM-C293 [30] standards were used to evaluate mechanical proper-
ties of polypropylene fibre-reinforced geopolymer concrete (PFRG). To calculate
compressive strength, a total of 15 cubical specimens measuring 100 mm × 100 mm
× 100 mm were cast. The compressive strength was determined using the Universal
Testing Machine. The tensile strength testing was done with 15 cylinders, each
measuring 100 mm × 200 mm. The prism specimens of 15 numbers were tested
to determine the flexural strength in which each specimen measured 500 mm long,
100 mm wide, and 100 mm high.
5 Result and Discussion
5.1 Influence of Waste Wood Ash on Geopolymer Concrete
Fly ash was substituted with waste wood ash by various percentages from 0 to
100%. The waste wood ash optimization was done by fixing the molarity of NaOH
and alkaline to binder ratio as 13 M and 0.61, which was calculated by modified mix
design guidelines. This research experimented with the influence of waste wood ash
on the compressive and flexural strength of geopolymer concrete. Figure 2 illustrates
the effect of waste wood ash on the compressive strength of GPC. The findings
revealed that 30% addition of waste wood ash performed better in all age compressive
characteristics [25]. The picture showed that the compressive strength in all ages of
GPC was gradually increased by adding waste wood ash up to 30% [27]. The addition
of waste wood ash exceeds 30% resulted in a gradual reduction in strength [18].
Meanwhile, the optimum mix GWA 30 attained a maximum compressive strength
of 22.87 MPa, 27.73 MPa, and 37.92 MPa, respectively, at the 3, 7, and 28 days of
concrete ages. The strength increment of the optimum mix was 16% than the control
mix.
Similarly, the influence of waste wood ash on the tensile strength of GPC is
presented in Fig. 3. The research results indicated that 30% addition of waste wood
ash performed better in all age tensile characteristics. The results showed that the
tensile strength in all ages of GPC was gradually increased by adding waste wood
ash up to 30%. The addition of waste wood ash exceeds 30% resulted in a gradual
reduction in tensile strength [25]. Meanwhile, the optimum mix GWA 30 attained
maximum tensile strength of 3.83 MPa, 4.26 MPa, and 4.48 MPa, respectively, at the
Fig. 2 Influence of waste wood ash on compressive strength
Fig. 3 Influence of waste wood ash on tensile strength
3, 7, and 28 days of concrete ages. The strength increment of the optimum mix was
5.4% than the control mix. The strength attainment of the mix GWA30 was due to
the quantity of calcium oxide present in the mix. The previous studies [31, 32] stated
that the amount of calcium in the binder material disrupts the geopolymer reaction.
In this study, the mix with 30% replacement of wood ash attained maximum strength
due to the less calcium content.
5.2 Influence of NaOH Molarity on Geopolymer Concrete
After finding the optimum replacement of waste wood ash percentage in GPC, the
NaOH molarity optimization was done. Optimization of NaOH molarity was done
by varying the molarity by 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, and 14 M. For optimization of
NaOH molarity, the constant activator solution to binder ratio of 0.61 and optimized
fly ash/wood ash binder ratio was considered. The influence of NaOH molarity on
compressive and flexural strength of geopolymer concrete was found in this research.
Figures 4 and 5 illustrated the influence of various NaOH molarities on 3, 7, and
28 days of compressive strength and tensile strength of GPC. Generally, in GPC,
the strength was increased by increasing the molarity of NaOH up to 13 M [33].
The findings also inferred that the strength increment was achieved by increasing the
molarity of NaOH from 8 to 13 M [34].
Strength reduction was noticed by exceeding the NaOH molarity over 13 M [7].
However, considering the cost overview of alkaline solutions and source material
available in future perspectives, there was a need to reduce the quantities of alka-
line solutions and alternates for alkaline activators [35]. The mix with 10 M NaOH
resulted in 34.51 MPa of compressive strength, which reached the characteristic
compressive strength of the GPC mix (M30). Meanwhile, the same mix attained
3.92 MPa of tensile strength. Hence, this research found that 10 M of NaOH could
achieve 100% strength after 28 days of curing. The chosen molarity could reduce
alkaline activators quantity when the concrete quantity was high.
Fig. 4 Influence of NaOH molarity on compressive strength

Fig. 5 Influence of NaOH molarity on tensile strength
5.3 Influence of A/B Ratio on Geopolymer Concrete
After obtaining the optimum replacement percentage of waste wood ash and NaOH
molarity, the alkaline activator to binder ratio (A/B ratio) was optimized. Optimiza-
tion of the alkaline solution to binder ratio was done by varying the ratio by 0.45,
0.5, 0.55, 0.6, and 0.61.
The influence of each A/B ratio on the compressive and tensile strength of GPC is
shown in Figs. 6 and 7. This research measured compressive and tensile strength at
3, 7, and 28 days of curing. The findings showed that the strength was increased with
increasing the A/B ratio. Based on the mix design, the A/B ratio was 0.61, and its
performance was maximum in all strength characters compared to other ratios [26].
However, the importance of reducing the usage of alkaline solution on GPC was
mentioned earlier in this study. The mix with a 0.45 ratio attained the compressive
strength of 32.98 MPa which reached the characteristic compressive strength of GPC
mix M30. Meanwhile, the same mix gained 4.31 MPa of tensile strength. Hence, this
research found that an A/B ratio of 0.45 could be enough to achieve 100% strength
after 28 days of curing. Hence, this study found that a 0.45 ratio could help in reducing
the quantity of alkaline solution.
5.4 Influence of Polypropylene Fibre
This research focused on finding the influence of polypropylene fibre addition on the
mechanical characters of low calcium-based GPC. The optimization of polypropy-
lene fibre incorporation was done by varying the percentage by 0, 0.25, 0.5, 0.75, and
Fig. 6 Influence of A/B ratio on compressive strength
Fig. 7 Influence of A/B ratio on tensile strength
1% volume fractions. The strength characteristics of polypropylene fibre-reinforced

low calcium-based geopolymer concrete were measured on 3, 7, and 28 days of
concrete ages. Figure 8 represents the influence of PP fibre on the compressive
strength of polypropylene fibre-reinforced low calcium-based geopolymer concrete.
Incorporating 0.5% PP fibre enhanced the compressive strength to 39.5 MPa from the
control mix strength of 33 MPa. Meanwhile, 1% PP fibre incorporation enhanced the
compressive strength to 42.9 MPa. The optimum mix with 1% PP fibre attained the
Fig. 8 Compressive strength of PP fibre-reinforced low calcium-based GPC
maximum compressive strength in all concrete ages [21]. The maximum compres-
sive strength of 24.49, 29.95, and 42.9 Mpa was achieved by incorporating 1% of PP
fibre at 3, 7, and 28 days. The rate of increment was also maximum with the optimum
mix. The compressive strength at 3, 7, and 28 days of concrete ages was enhanced
by 61%, 47%, and 22%, respectively. The increment in compressive strength by the
addition of 1% PP fibre was due to the highest degree of compressibility of PP fibre,
and the result findings were correlated with the previous studies.
Figure 9 represents the influence of PP fibre on the tensile strength of polypropy-
lene fibre-reinforced low calcium-based geopolymer concrete. Incorporating 0.5%
PP fibre enhanced the tensile strength to 3.46 MPa from the control mix strength
of 3.28 MPa. Meanwhile, 1% PP fibre incorporation enhanced the tensile strength
to 3.69 MPa. The optimum mix with 1% PP fibre attained the maximum tensile
strength in all concrete ages [26]. The maximum tensile strength of 2.65, 3.08, and
3.69 Mpa was achieved by incorporating 1% of PP fibre at 3, 7, and 28 days. The
rate of increment was also maximum with the optimum mix. At 3, 7, and 28 days of
concrete ages, the tensile strength was enhanced by 10, 9.5, and 11%.
The influence of PP fibre on the flexural strength of polypropylene fibre-reinforced
low calcium-based geopolymer concrete is illustrated in Fig. 10. Incorporating 0.5%
PP fibre enhanced the flexural strength to 3.38 MPa from the control mix strength
of 3.28 MPa. Meanwhile, 1% PP fibre incorporation enhanced the flexural strength
to 3.58 MPa. The optimum mix with 1% PP fibre attained the maximum flexural
strength in all concrete ages [17]. The maximum flexural strength of 3.58, 4.28, and
4.8 Mpa was achieved by incorporating 1% of PP fibre at 3, 7, and 28 days. The
rate of increment was also maximum with the optimum mix. At 3, 7, and 28 days of
concrete ages, the flexural strength was enhanced by 8, 10.75, and 12%.
Fig. 9 Tensile strength of PP fibre-reinforced low calcium-based GPC
Fig. 10 Flexural strength of PP fibre-reinforced low calcium-based GPC
6 Conclusion
The study focused on finding an alternative for fly ash substitution with wood ash in
the geopolymer concrete. The study also investigated the influence of waste wood
ash, NaOH molarity, and alkaline to binder ratio. The optimization of the percentage
of waste wood ash replacement, NaOH molarity, and alkaline to binder ratio was
done in this research. In addition, the study found the influence of polypropylene
fibre incorporation on the mechanical features of polypropylene fibre-reinforced low

calcium geopolymer concrete. From the findings, the conclusion was given by the
following.
• The 30% addition of waste wood ash performed better in all age compressive char-
acteristics. The compressive strength in all ages of GPC was gradually increased
by adding waste wood ash up to 30%. The addition of waste wood ash exceeds
30 per cent resulted in a gradual reduction in compressive and flexural strengths.
• The strength increment was achieved by increasing the molarity of NaOH from
8 to 13 M. Strength reduction was noticed by exceeding the NaOH molarity
over 13 M. The mix with 10 M NaOH resulted in 34.51 MPa of compressive
strength, which reached the characteristic compressive strength of the GPC mix
(M30). Meanwhile, the same mix attained 3.92 MPa of tensile strength. Hence,
this research found that 10 M of NaOH could achieve 100 per cent strength after
28 days of curing.
• The mix with a 0.45 ratio attained the compressive strength of 32.98 MPa which
reached the characteristic compressive strength of GPC mix M30. Meanwhile, the
same mix gained 4.31 MPa of tensile strength. Hence, this research found that an
A/B ratio of 0.45 could be enough to achieve 100 per cent strength after 28 days
of curing and reduce the quantity of alkaline solution.
• Incorporation of polypropylene fibre up to 1% resulted in enhancing the mechan-
ical characters of GPC. The optimum percentage of PP fibre addition was 1 per
cent which increased the compressive, tensile, and flexural strength by 61%, 11%,
and 12%, respectively. Meanwhile, the strength reduction which was noticed with
the fibre incorporation exceeds 1%.
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Development of Environmental-Friendly
Geopolymer Concrete Using Incinerated
Biomedical Waste Ash
A. Suresh Kumar, M. Muthukannan, K. Arun Kumar,

Abstract To minimize the environmental pollution, a research was performed

to evaluate the influence of utilizing Incinerated Biomedical Waste Ash (IBWA)
for Ground Granulated Blast Furnace Slag (GGBS) in geopolymer concrete. In
geopolymer concrete, the IBWA is partly replaced for GGBS by 0%, 5%, 10%, 15%,
20%, 25%, 30%, 35%, 40%, 45%, and 50%, respectively. The primary objective of
this research is to analyse the fresh and mechanical characteristics of geopolymer
concrete combined with GGBS and IBWA. The findings were compared between
groups that did not include any IBWA and material containing IBWA content. Results
indicated that the 30% IBWA replacement level provided the greatest compressive
strength at seven as well as twenty-eight days, with 35.3 N/mm2 and 48.5 N/mm2 ,
respectively. Addition of IBWA resulted in unfavourable effects when the content
was higher than the recommended 30%. The results of the microstructure investi-
gation also suggest a compact and dense geopolymer concrete micrograph at 30%
IBWA, which may be attributed to the coexistence of geopolymerization products
with additional calcium-based hydration products, according to the researchers. After
the testing was completed, it was revealed that the presence of IBWA might be partly
substituted as a raw material for geopolymer concrete, which would result in a cost
reduction for the product. There is a possibility that this study will impact the use of
hazardous IBWA as a construction material.
Keywords Eco-friendly concrete · GPC · IBWA · Fresh characteristics ·

Microstructural analysis
A. Suresh Kumar (B) · K. Arun Kumar · A. Chithambar Ganesh

Sree Vidya Nikethan Engineering College, Tirupati, India
e-mail: sureshalmighty@gmail.com
M. Muthukannan · R. Kanniga Devi
Kalasalingam Academy of Research and Education, Krishnankoil, Tamil Nadu, India
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4040-8_56
710 A. Suresh Kumar et al.
1 Introduction
A medical waste [1] is defined as “any solid waste created in the diagnosis, treat-
ment, or vaccination of humans or animals, in research relevant thereto, or in the
development or testing of”. Due to the growing volume and inadequacy of manage-
ment systems, the management of medical waste and the identification for suitable
management systems are becoming significant worldwide issues across the globe.
According to the Central Pollution Control Board (2017), 559,084.5 kg of biomed-
ical waste is produced in India per day. Incineration facilities have a waste handling
capacity of about 15.01 lakhs MTA (million tonnes per annum). As an example,
the quantity of waste generated by biomedical operations each year totals 27.30 lakh
metric tonnes, which is much greater than the quantity that can be processed at incin-
erator facilities [2] currently, the majority of biological waste is handled primarily via
the use of incineration [3]. After the incineration process, pathogens are eliminated
to 90%, while the volume decreases to 75% [4]. The incineration process involves
the burning of biomedical waste that has been collected in the presence of adequate
oxygen. When the temperature is raised over 850 °C during the incineration process,
trash is transformed into ash and hazardous gases. Following incineration, the ash
is often transferred to a variety of disposal locations. IBWA has significant concen-
trations of hazardous metals, inorganic and organic complexes, as well as other
contaminants. Because toxic metals and inorganic compounds do not decompose
during the incineration process, they have been frequently releasing into the atmo-
sphere when ash is deposited into landfilling without being adequately treated. As a
result of this leaching, groundwater and the environment can become contaminated
[5]. A significant problem is the depletion of toxicants from IBWA into underground
water, which is essential for evaluating the danger of biomedical waste on human
health as well as the environment [6, 7]. For instance, lead has been discovered in
IBWA as well as it is linked to brain damage in children [8]. Lead is regarded to be
a toxic element because of its ability to induce cerebral impairment.
The most frequent use of waste and end products generated by human or industrial
operations would be to identify alternate methods for exploiting these wastes and by-
products to preserve air, soil, and water resources even while reducing or eliminating
the need for landfilling. The recycling and reuse of waste products and end products
were indeed two different methods of minimizing the negative impacts of these wastes
and by-products. A similar study and manufacturing effort are underway in many
nations today. These compounds are utilized as raw materials for other products,
such as additives for construction materials.
As a dependable waste treatment technique, cement stabilization in construction
materials has subsequently become a popular way of minimizing environmental
pollution and reusing leftover materials. The purpose of this study is to demonstrate
how Incinerated Biomedical Waste Ash may be used as a partial replacement for
Ground Granulated Blast Furnace Slag in geopolymer concrete. Furthermore, the
goal of the above study is to develop a novel binder for the formulation of GPC.
The effective use of IBWA may lower the construction expense while also lowering
Development of Environmental-Friendly Geopolymer … 711
the risk of environmental contamination. The study aims to investigate a novel type
of GPC which utilizes GGBS as a source aluminosilicate material and IBWA as a
slight replacement for GGBS in some instances. Up to 28 days after application,
the influence of IBWA on the microstructure, fresh characteristics, and mechanical
characteristics of the sample has been evaluated.
2.1 Materials Characterization
2.1.1 Aluminosilicate Source Materials
In this research, both GGBS and IBWA may be utilized as aluminosilicate materials in
this study. GGBS was acquired from a nearby steel factory, and that it had pozzolanic
as well as adhesion characteristics inside an alkaline condition [9]. Because of the
inclusion of Ground Granulated Blast Furnace Slag, the overall voids of the cured
GPC were decreased [10]. To activate the GGBS, less sodium silicate solution is
required, resulting in a reduced environmental effect [11]. In addition, the specific
gravity, standard consistency, initial setting time, and final setting time of GGBFS
are all 36%, 26 min, and 3 h, respectively. Incinerated Biomedical Waste Ash has
a spherical particle and a rough surface [12], which improves workability while
also lowering water consumption requirements. Geopolymers’ pozzolanic activity
was also enhanced as a result of this treatment. IBWA particles are typically 10–
600 microns in diameter, with a mean particle size of 300 microns, and they help
maintain the integrity of the geopolymer matrix [13]. Ramky Energy and Environ-
ment Ltd. provided the IBWA for this project. One of the aluminosilicate materials
utilized was obtained from Kariapatti in Virudhunagar. The specific gravity of IBWA
is 2.64, and the standard consistency, initial setting time, and ultimate setting time of
IBWA are 34%, 45 min, and 5 h and 20 min, respectively. According to X-ray fluores-
cence spectrometry, the elemental composition of GGBS and IBWA had been deter-
mined, and the results are given in Table 1. Figure 1a–d illustrates the SEM picture
of IBWA and GGBS and its EDX and XRD results. For up to 28 days, the effects of
IBWA on microstructural, fresh characteristics, and mechanical characteristics were
studied.
2.1.2 Fine and Coarse Aggregates
Fine and coarse aggregates were produced from locally available manufacturing
sand (M-sand) and crushed granite, respectively. According to IS 383-1970, the fine
aggregate passed the sieve analysis test and was classified as zone II of the fine
aggregate (Reaffirmed in 1997). It possessed 2.61 specific gravity, 1728 kg/m3 bulk
712
Table 1 Chemical properties of GGBS and IBWA

Oxides SiO2 Al2 O3 Fe2 O3 CaO MgO K2 O NaO2 TiO2 PbO Mn2 O3 SO3 CdO CrO ZnO BaO
GGBS 33.48 13.62 0.35 41.8 6.18 0.32 0.18 0.92 – 0.44 2.74 – – – –
IBWA 38.52 23.26 1.85 23.2 3.21 5.08 – – 2.05 2.58 – 0.05 0.08 0.08 0.04
A. Suresh Kumar et al.
Fig. 1 Microstructural characteristics of GGBS and IBWA
density, and 2.76 fineness modulus. Sized 10 mm coarse aggregates had a specific
gravity—2.64, bulk density—1587 kg/m3 , and fineness modulus—7.03.
2.1.3 Alkaline Solution
As alkaline activators for geopolymerization, a mixture of economically accessible

98% clear sodium hydroxide (flakes type) and sodium silicate (liquid gel type) has
been used in conjunction with one another. A solution of sodium hydroxide (NaOH)
flakes has been developed in this experiment through dissolving them in water and
producing a sodium hydroxide solution. Making a standard one-molar (1 M) NaOH
solution seems to be as simple as soaking 0.04 kg of sodium hydroxide flake in 1 lit
of water and diluting the solution. For the current investigation, various geopolymer
specimens were treated with 13 M NaOH. In terms of chemical composition, sodium
silicate consisted of 14.7% Na2 O, 22.9% SiO2 , and 54.9% water, and all expressed
as a percentage of mass.
2.2 Specimen Preparation
Detailed information on the geopolymer concrete mix design and mixing propor-
tions may be found in Tables 2 and 3. The aluminosilicate material GGBS is
partially replaced by IBWA in varying percentages ranging from 0 to 50% at
5% intervals, with the resulting mix designations being IGPC5, IGPC10, IGPC15,
IGPC20, IGPC25, IGPC30, IGPC35, IGPC40, IGPC45, and IGPC50. GGBS-IBWA-
oriented geopolymer concrete has been shown to be very successful for enhancing
Table 2 Mix design for geopolymer concrete mix

Mix OPC GGBS M-Sand Coarse aggregate Alkaline–solution binder ratio
GPC – 1 1.16 2.01 0.61
Table 3 Mix proportions for IBWA mixes

Mix id % of GGBS % of IBWA Mix proportion (kg/m3 )
GGBS IBWA M-Sand Coarse aggregate
GGPC 100 0 500 0 580.4 1003.45
IGPC5 95 5 475 25 579.53 1001.94
IGPC10 90 10 450 50 578.65 1000.43
IGPC15 85 15 425 75 577.78 998.92
IGPC20 80 20 400 100 576.91 997.41
IGPC25 75 25 375 125 576.03 995.9
IGPC30 70 30 350 150 575.16 994.39
IGPC35 65 35 325 175 574.28 992.88
IGPC40 60 40 300 200 573.41 991.37
IGPC45 55 45 275 225 572.54 989.86
IGPC50 50 50 250 250 571.66 988.35
the mechanical characteristics of the concrete [14]. It was decided that the alka-
line liquid to aluminosilicate source material ratio should be fixed at 0.61. While
attempting to produce alkaline solution, the proportion of sodium silicate solution
to sodium hydroxide solution was set as 2.5. Control specimens (GGPC) were cast
of sodium hydroxide at a dosage of 13 molarity. A greater concentration (measured
in molar equivalents) of sodium hydroxide solution results in an enhanced compres-
sive strength of geopolymer concrete owing to a more efficient geopolymerization
process [15]. This occurs due to the reality that the silica and alumina contained
in GGBS-IBWA dissolve more quickly in a highly concentrated sodium hydroxide
solution [16]. When water has been combined with sodium hydroxide, a signifi-
cant amount of heat energy was produced, which created practical difficulties in
producing new geopolymer concrete. As a result, the molarity of NaOH was main-
tained at 13 M throughout all mixes, resulting in a safest preparation phase as well as
working surroundings throughout the production of new geopolymer concrete. The
efflorescence would be reduced if the molarity and quantity of alkaline solution were
reduced [17].
The alkaline activator was created in the first step by combining equal parts sodium
silicate and sodium hydroxide solutions in a 2.5:1 ratio. The steps outlined above
should be performed 30 min before the exact blending of the concrete begins. The
GGBS, IBWA, and aggregates have been initially dry-mixed inside a pan mixer
before being combined. Alkaline activator solutions were prepared and decided to
add the well-mixed dry ingredients, with blending continuing in about 5 min, in order
to make fresh geopolymer concrete. Before casting, the interior surfaces of the mould
have been layered of lubricating oil to avoid adherence between the concrete samples
and mould walls. The moulds have been packed in three stages, with each layer being
thoroughly compressed and maintained in an ambient environment throughout the
process. Hardened geopolymer concrete samples have been removed out of the mould
upon 1 day of casting and allowed to cure in an ambient environment at a temperature
of 30 ± 2 °C and relative humidity of 65 ± 5%.
The compressive strength of geopolymer concrete cube samples with 150 mm ×
150 mm × 150 mm dimensions was tested. Splitting tensile strength tests have been
conducted on cylinders with a 150 mm diameter and a 300 mm height, made of steel.
Prisms with 500 mm × 100 mm × 100 mm dimensions have been cast to evaluate
flexural strength.
2.3 Test Methods
Workability and setting time experiments were used to evaluate the fresh charac-
teristics of geopolymer. The slump test [18] has been used to evaluate workability
for freshly mixed geopolymer concrete. The Vicat apparatus [19] has been utilized
for evaluating the setting time of geopolymer concrete. In compliance with BIS
516–1959 [20], 150 mm cubes have been made for each of the eleven distinct substi-
tutions as well as the cubes have been evaluated for seven and 28 days of curing,
respectively. Throughout compression testing, a progressive pressure of 4.5 kN/s
was applied constantly until the cube collapsed as well as no higher force could be
sustained at any point during the test. Each replacement broken sample was subjected
to SEM and EDS examination after 28 days, and the results were published. At 7
and 28 days, split tensile tests were conducted on cylindrical samples of 150 mm
dia. and 300 mm height that had been produced with eleven different replacements.
The tests were carried out in compliance with BIS:5816–1999 [21] for seven and
28 days, respectively. Samples have been evaluated by utilizing universal testing
equipment to a load-bearing capability of 1000 kN that had been using to deter-
mine their strength. During the experiment, the progressive loading was provided
without the use of shocks and was progressively elevated with the speed of 1.2 to
2.4 N/(mm2 /min) over the course of a few minutes. According to BIS 516–1959 (flex-
ural strength test), a 500 mm × 100 mm × 100 mm size prism has been constructed
to each of eleven various replacements and evaluated at seven and twenty-eight days
after curing. A progressive load implemented at 4.5 kN/s constantly until the beam
collapsed was used in the three-point loading test until the beam collapsed.
3.1 Fresh Characteristics
Figure 2 depicts workability for freshly mixed geopolymer concrete after curing. The
slump values of the GGBS-IBWA-based geopolymer concrete ranged between 40
and 61 mm, while the slump values of the control geopolymer concrete, GGPC, were
35 mm. According to the findings of the slump tests, it was discovered that workability
of GPC improved when IBWA has been introduced. The most significant slump
values were found in the IGPC40, IGPC45, and IGPC50 mixtures in the geopolymer
concrete tests. The inclusion of IBWA content in IGPC40, IGPC45, and IGPC50
resulted in an improvement in the workability of these compounds [22].
The initial and final setting times of geopolymer concrete are shown in Fig. 2.
In general, fly ash depended geopolymers possess a prolonged setting time under
ambient curing settings owing to the slower rate of chemical reactions [23]. In
contrast, GGBS-based geopolymers have a relatively rapid setting time at ambient
temperature curing circumstances. Initial and final setting times of the GGPC mix
have been determined to be 26 min and 165 min, respectively, according to the
results. However, initial and final setting times of IGPC5, IGPC10, IGPC15, IGPC20,
IGPC25, IGPC30, IGPC35, IGPC40, IGPC45, and IGPC50 concrete mixes were in
the range of 28–48 min and 180–355 min, respectively, compared to the other concrete
mixes. Owing to the retardation impact of aluminium and silica contents in IBWA
[24], the setting time of all IBWA-GGBS-based geopolymer concretes increased
with time [25, 26]. Some researchers speculate that this retardation is caused by
the production of reaction product that covers the GGBS particles existing in the
IBWA-GGBS-based geopolymer, thus slowing down the reaction [27].
Fig. 2 Impact of IBWA in fresh characteristics on GGBS-based GPC

3.2 Microstructural Examination
Geopolymer concrete samples have been investigated utilizing a scanning elec-

tron microscope (SEM) to detect as well as confirm the microstructure of the
geopolymer gels in the samples. Figure 3a–c depicts morphologies of the geopolymer
gel substrates for the GGPC, IGPC30, and IGPC50 mixtures. According to the results,
the geopolymer gels exhibited a larger number of visible fractures and lower densi-
ties when compared to specimens with 50% IBWA substitution compared to the
reference paste. This low mechanical interlocking occurs at the functionality among
the soft particle surface of the Incinerated Biomedical Waste Ash and the matrix,
which results in a reduction in the densification of the matrix [28]. In addition, when
the IBWA replacement levels are raised, the quantity of unreacted calcium particles
in the concrete becomes more abundant. While the IBWA replacement geopolymer
concrete has very few cracks than that of the reference paste, the reference paste
exhibits more cracks.
The samples are primarily sodium based, with a small amount of calcium. Sodium
aluminosilicate hydrate (N-A-S-H) and calcium aluminosilicate hydrate (C-A-S-H)
Fig. 3 SEM–EDS image of IBWA-GGBS-based geopolymer concrete for GGPC, IGPC30, and
IGPC50
gels are formed due to this reaction. Depending on the silicon/aluminium atomic
ratio, Davidovits [29] categorized geopolymer structures resulting from polyconden-
sation as poly-sialate, poly-sialate-siloxo, and poly-sialate-disiloxo kinds. Further-
more, EDS analysis reveals that a silicon/aluminium proportion of IBWA30 is 3.80,
which is inside the 3.5–4.0 range previously suggested by prior studies for excellent
strength growth [30, 31].
The silicon/aluminium ratio established by SEM–EDS examination increases as
IBWA levels increase, which is consistent with the results reported from the mixed
percentage calculations. Same findings were found by Vasquez et al. [32] in a study
on geopolymers depending upon the alkali activated of concrete destruction. They
found a similar tendency in the results.
3.3 Mechanical Characteristics
Effect of IBWA on Compressive Strength

Compressive strength of concrete is the most significant characteristic to consider
when evaluating its strength. It is a crucial parameter to consider when correlating it
with other mechanical qualities [25]. In Fig. 4, the change in compressive strength on
GPC cube samples aged seven and twenty-eight days after ambient curing. Owing to
the poor geopolymerization reaction process occurring at room temperatures during
early stages (3 days), the strength was low at this time. With increasing curing time,
Fig. 4 Impact of IBWA in compressive strength on GGBS-oriented GPC

a steady rise in compressive strength was seen, and GGPC exhibited the lowest
compressive strength of all the materials tested. After the IGPC30, the following
series illustrated the sequence of compressive strength observed throughout the
research IGPC25 > IGPC35 > IGPC20 > IGPC15 > IGPC40 > IGPC10 > IGPC5 >
IGPC45 > IGPC50 > GGPC.
Compared to the control sample (GGPC) for 7 as well as 28 days, the IGPC30
for 7 days exhibited an improvement of 20.37% in compressive strength, while
IGPC30 for twenty-eight days showed an improvement of 30.42% in compressive
strength in comparison with a control specimen. All of the IBWA-incorporated spec-
imens were cured for a varied number of days, but all showed a similar improve-
ment in strength. When the compressive strength has been evaluated upon curing for
twenty-eight days, the increase in compressive strength was generally substantial.
In comparison with control GGPC, the % increment of compressive strength for
IGPC5, IGPC10, IGPC15, IGPC20, IGPC25, IGPC30, IGPC35, IGPC40, IGPC45,
and IGPC50 was found to be 9.03%, 12.65%, 15.06%, 19.88%, 24.70%, 30.42%,
21.08%, 13.86%, 7.23%, and 0.9%, respectively.
Various GPCs are now being developed with increasing amounts of Al2 O3 and
SiO2 that further increase both the phases of geopolymerization and the quantity of gel
generated by the geopolymer concrete [sodium aluminosilicate hydrate (N-A-S-H),
calcium aluminosilicate hydrate (C-A-S-H), and calcium silicate hydrate (C-S-H)].
This combination of elements attributed to an enhancement in the overall strength
of geopolymer concrete [33–52]. When Portland cement is hydrated, it produces
CSH and CASH, which are both useful materials. However, since N-A-S-H is a
geopolymer paste, it increases the initial age strength of the atmospheric geopolymer
concrete, which is advantageous [27, 53–59]. Because of the high calcium concen-
tration in GPC, its strength tends to deteriorate if IBWA replacement exceeds 30%
of total GPC strength (the development of a sufficient CSH gel is limited to a bare
minimum quantity).
When the alkali-silica reaction (ASR) on GPC samples is taken into consideration,
the trend of increasing compressive strength may be reversed [26]. On the other hand,
many experiments into the influence of the ASR on GPC have shown that it is less
susceptible to the reaction [60]. The creation of complexity structures changed the
compaction and morphological characteristics of the geopolymer microstructure, as
well as microstructure itself [61]. Incorporating GGBS into a composite enhanced
its compressive strength owing to gap filler effects, the development of a lesser order
homogenous microstructure, and the synthesis of double product from the coupling of
densely polymers units of geopolymer and calcium silicate hydrate (C-S-H), although
the calcium oxide in GGBFS is not known to help with the formation of strength
in geopolymer concretes, at less temperature. One pretty noteworthy observation
was that a greater concentration of sodium hydroxide inhibits polymerization of
aluminosilicate gel inside the geopolymer structures [62], which was a fascinating
finding.
Impact of IBWA on Splitting Tensile Strength

“It seems to be an easy experiment for discovering the splitting tensile strength
on concrete, split into two pieces. This mechanical property is associated with the
initiation and propagation of cracks, as well as shear and anchoring of reinforcing
steel in concrete”.
Figure 5 shows a splitting tensile strength on GPC cylinder samples for seven and
twenty-eight days after being cured under ambient conditions. The splitting tensile
strength of GGPC was 3.30 N/mm2 at 28 days of curing in ambient temperature,
whereas the splitting tensile strength of IGPC5, IGPC10, IGPC15, IGPC20, IGPC25,
IGPC30, IGPC35, IGPC40, IGPC45, and IGPC50 achieved the strength of 3.53, 3.63,
3.69, 3.81, 3.93, 4.08, 3.84, 3.66, 3.48, and 3.32 N/mm2 , respectively, increased by
6.97%, 10.00%, 11.81%, 15.45%, 19.09%, 23.64%, 16.36%, 10.91%, and 5.4%,
respectively. Since the calcium concentration in the binder is so high, the long-
term strength affects adversely, and the setting time rises. This further implies a
decreased percentage of polymer formation in the mixes at longer periods. In the
tensile strength tests, the results indicated clearly that IBWA might be used as a
novel alternative material for GPC. Based on previous trends, we expect that these
events will follow similar patterns [50–52, 63–65].
Impact of IBWA on Flexural Strength
In this research, flexural strength for geopolymer concrete prism samples has been
evaluated at 7 and 28 days of atmospheric curing condition. The findings are being
depicted in Fig. 6. After twenty-eight days of evaluation, the flexural strength of
GGPC was 4.98 N/mm2 , while the flexural strength of IGPC5, IGPC10, IGPC15,
Fig. 5 Effect of IBWA in splitting tensile strength on GGBS-based geopolymer concrete

Fig. 6 Impact of IBWA in flexural strength of GGBS-based geopolymer concrete
IGPC20, IGPC25, IGPC30, IGPC35, IGPC40, IGPC45, and IGPC50 was 5.792,
5.984, 6.494, 6.766, 7.432, 8.227, 7.236, 6.426, 5.696, and 5.021 respectively. The
percentage increment by all the geopolymer concrete specimens incorporated by
IBWA was 16.31, 20.16, 29.8, 35.86, 49.64, 65.20, 45.30, 29.04, 14.38, and 0.9%
when compared with the control mix GGPC. The experimental findings revealed
that flexural strength was significantly higher when compared to the splitting tensile
strength of all samples. This result corroborated the size effect concept, which was
previously demonstrated [66]. When all GPC specimens were tested, it was observed
that the flexural strength readings obtained were roughly 15% of the compressive
strength achieved. When compared to conventional concrete, flexural strength seems
to be 10–12% of compressive strength, this was a significant improvement [26],
which was used in the experiment. The addition of IBWA to prisms such as the
IGPC5, IGPC10, IGPC15, IGPC20, IGPC25, IGPC30, IGPC35, IGPC40, IGPC45,
and IGPC50 enhanced the compressive strength and flexural strength of prisms. In a
different experimental study [44–49, 67], researchers observed outcomes that were
similar to these. Additionally, a significant improvement in both the compressive and
flexural strength for the geopolymer concrete has been seen owing to an enhancement
in reaction products created by the geopolymer matrices [68].
4 Conclusion
GGBS-IBWA-based geopolymer concrete was studied experimentally for its impact

on the fresh and mechanical characteristics, and the mentioned findings have been
drawn as an outcome of this research. All mixes incorporated by IBWA for GGBS in
GPC showed a significant enhancement in workability as well as a longer setting
time as compared to those that did not include IBWA. All geopolymer concrete spec-
imens incorporated with IBWA were improved the mechanical characteristics which
including compressive strength, splitting tensile strength, and flexural strength in
concordance with the ambient curing. The geopolymer concrete samples containing
30% IBWA (IGPC30) demonstrated greater compressive, splitting tensile, and also
flexural strength when exposed with ambient curing for various periods than the
control specimens (GGPC).
In 28 days, the maximum compressive strength obtained by IGPC30 specimen
was 43.3 N/mm2 , the highest splitting tensile strength of 4.08 N/mm2 was achieved,
and the higher flexural strength of 8.227 MPa was attained for IGPC30 specimens.
SEM and EDS studies revealed that sodium aluminosilicate hydrate (N-A-S-H) and
calcium aluminosilicate hydrate (C-A-S-H) were produced in addition to gels of
calcium silicate hydrate (C-S-H) throughout all mixes incorporated with IBWA which
were enhanced when compared to GGPC.
Further durability testing for an extensive duration of time may be performed out
to assist in the implementation of IBWA in environmentally friendly concrete in the
near future.
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Consolidation and Slope Stability Study
of Embankment Made of Ash Fill
Supported by Hybrid Stone Columns: 3D
Numerical Investigation
J. Sudheer Kumar, Saurabh Rawat, and Ashok Kumar Gupta
Abstract The consolidation and slope stability analysis of the ash fill dykes and
embankments in the vicinity of thermal power stations (TPS) is still posing a chal-
lenge to the TPS management and governments. An attempt was made to study the
ash fill dykes supported by the hybrid stone columns using 3D numerical analysis.
This paper deals with studies conducted on the ash fill dyke (embankment) that the
slope angle is 2 h:1v, underneath slow consolidated and highly compressible soils.
Four cases were investigated, firstly simple ash dyke under the compressible strat-
ified layers (clay and ash fill). The remaining three cases are the dykes supported
by the conventional stone columns (CSCs), vertically encased stone columns (VEG)
and hybrid confined stone columns (HC). The dissipate pore water pressure, the
degree of consolidation and settlement with the effect of time were calculated. The
embankments supported by the CSC, VEG and HC cases are displaying promising
results. Slope stability analysis was conducted on four cases, under long-term steady-
state seepage condition factor of safety determined. The embankment rested on
the soil modified/ reinforced with the granular columns without and with encase-
ment the factor of safety improved by 60%. This hybrid lateral confinement using
the high tensile stiffness geotextile could be recommended for strengthening the
ash dykes/embankment rested on the highly compressible, slow consolidation and
high water table regions to enhance the better engineering properties and stable
constructions.
Keywords Stone columns · Degree of consolidation · Slope stability · Hybrid

confined columns · FEM
J. Sudheer Kumar (B) · S. Rawat · A. K. Gupta

Department of Civil Engineering, Jaypee University of Information Technology, Solan, H.P, India
e-mail: sudhir.jala@davietjal.org
S. Rawat
e-mail: saurabh.rawat@juit.ac.in
A. K. Gupta
e-mail: ashok.gupta@juit.ac.in
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4040-8_57
728 J. Sudheer Kumar et al.
1 Introduction and Literature Study
Granular columns without and with encasement give the promised support to the
geotechnical structures like embankments and retaining structures resting on the
soft cohesive soils. They can control the total vertical displacement and enhance the
higher load-carrying capacity. The available previous literature shows that experi-
mental and various software programme studies on granular columns contain natural
stones of 2–70 mm in size in cohesive soils, and lateral support is >15 kPa. Naderi
et al. [1] worked in clay soil slopes (45°) strengthened with ordinary stone columns,
presenting that bearing capacity improvement. Ghazavi et al. [2] studied the ordi-
nary and geosynthetic vertical encasement and horizontal discs within the stone
columns. Ordinary and encased columns had shown adequate capacity against the
earthquake loads [3] in fine sandy soils. Earthen embankment supported the encased
stone column, whilst varying the height of the embankment verified the settlement
and bearing capacity of the embankment [4]. The available research shown on a
floating stone column, group action and pattern of the stone columns arranged, it
is evident that most of the studies carried on clay soils and evaluated the bearing
capacity and settlement of composite ground [5–10]. However, soils like marine
clay, solid waste and industrial ash fills are having undrained shear strength that is
much lower than the 15 kPa, and the huge amount of ground occupied these mate-
rials; they are low in bearing capacity and higher compressibility. Alkhorshid et al.
[11] studies had shown that stone columns encased with geosynthetics accelerate the
consolidation rate by reducing the settlement of embankments on soft clays. Bosle
et al. [12] conducted an experimental study on marine clay under vacuum preloading
with prefabricated vertical drains, presented the results shown that the addition of
vacuum pressure tends to increase the horizontal coefficient of consolidation leads to
shortening the preloading time by 15–63%. The ordinary and encased stone columns
can effectively dissipate excess pore water pressure, hence accelerating the degree of
consolidation thereby improving the engineering properties of the composite ground
[13–16].
Previous researchers conducted on clay soil improved with the OSC and GESC
cases; very less amount of work was carried on ash fills strengthened with the stone
columns. The present study investigated on hybrid confinement of the column in
addition to OSC and GESC. A considerable amount of work was not available in the
literature on embankments slopes strengthen with the stone columns. In the present
study, embankments slope is studied with the CSC, VEG and HC. The excess pore
water pressure, degree of consolidation and factor of safety parameters are studied
with embankments rested on soil reinforced with CSC, VEG and HC.
Consolidation studies carried on evaluating the generation and removal of pore
water pressure with time, U (degree of consolidation) versus time duration and
vertical displacement with time. Secondly, a study was conducted on slope stability
of the embankment in terms of the factor of safety. The embankment builds on the
soil which is highly compressible and slow in dissipation of pore water pressure and
Consolidation and Slope Stability Study of Embankment Made … 729
verifies the influence of conventional stone column (CSC), vertical encased stone
columns (VEG), hybrid encased stone columns (HSC) on the above parameter.
2 Materials and Methodology
In the parametric study, the three types of layers of material are used. The ash fill
is sandwiched between the clay and sandy soils. The top layer used a sand blanket,
and the bottom layer is the clay of 1.5 m thickness. The properties of the material
are presented in Table 1.
3 Numerical Methodology
Axisymmetric 3D modelling with FEM analysis (Plaxis) is carried out for the consol-
idation studies embankment without and with support of OSCs, GESCs and HSC.
The boundary conditions are vertical displacements are allowed in, and lateral move-
ments are restrained. The granular column was modelled using the Mohr–Coulomb
(MH) model. The MH model is needed to give five stiffness soil parameters: angle
of friction (ϕ), cohesion (c), volume dilation angle (ψ), modulus of elasticity (E) and
Poisson’s ratio (υ) as shown in Table 1. The ash fill was also modelled as the Mohr–
Coulomb model. The geosynthetic was modelled as an elastic membrane element.
The encased material was assumed to be linear elastic material, with an assumed
Poisson’s ratio of 0.3, and its design tensile stiffness (J) values ranged from 2000
kN/m. The schematic representation of embankment without and with support of
various stone columns (OSC, GESC and HSCs) is shown in Fig. 1a, b. The two-
phase system followed for construction of embankment loading (phase 1 and phase
2) each phase of 1.5 m height, with the 26° slope.
The numerical domain zone of the model was fixed based on the trial calcula-
tions. The boundaries of the soil model were fixed in the x, y and z-direction till the
displacement, and stresses are insignificantly effect due to the boundary conditions.
The prescribed displacement is fixed in z-direction (uz = 0.01 m); the displacement
in x and y direction is free (ux = uz = free). Top surface is free, and bottom is fully
fixed (ux = uy = uz = 0). The finite element method-based programme allows for the
complete modelling of all major model components. The groundwater flow boundary
condition opened horizontal direction, at top and bottom in the case of embankment
consolidation analysis with the CSC, VEG and HC.
730
Table 1 Engineering and hydraulic properties of materials

Soil layer Soil properties Soil parameters Elastic properties Hydraulic properties Model
γ dry (kN/m3 ) γ sat (kN/m3 ) C (kPa) φ (0) ψ (dilation angle) E (kPa) ν kh(m/day)
Clay 16 19 1.1 24 – 3000 0.3 4.7 × 10–3 SS
Peat 9 11 0 25 – 1 × 10–2 SS
Sand 18 19 0 34 4 35,000 0.25 6 MH
Embankment 17 18 0 32 – 25,000 0.2 4 MH
Natural stone 19 19 0 44 14 40,000 0.15 10 MH
Encased material 2000 Linear- Elastic
SS Soft soil, MH Mohr coulomb
J. Sudheer Kumar et al.
Fig. 1 3D view of the mesh generation of the embankment a without stone columns b with stone
columns
4 Numerical Data Interpretation: Results and Analysis
4.1 Influence of Stone Columns on the Removal of Excess

Pore Water Pressure
The embankment is constructed on soil layers below the embankment with clay at
the top, peat and sand which are having hydraulic conductivity values are in 5.52 ×
10−5 , 11.57 × 10–5 and 0.0125 cm/s. In the first stage of loading, the excess pore
pressure increases linearly up to a value of 27 kPa. During the consolidation time,
the excess pore water pressure dissipates in 140 days. During the second stage of
loading, the excess pore pressure is generated (as shown in Fig. 3a) and reaches
linearly to a value of 32 kPa. The excess pore pressure dissipates in 92 days taking
a total time of more than 200 days for both stages as shown in Fig. 2.
The provision of the granular column in the layered soil offers the drainage path for
the pore water to escape thereby its settlement. In the first stage of loading with CSC,
VEG and HC, the amount of pore water dissipated is 6, 5 and 5.5 times, respectively,
compared to the embankment without column. During the consolidation time, the
excess pore water pressure dissipates significantly in less than 20 days. During the
second stage of loading, the excess pore pressure is developed (as shown in Fig. 3b)
35
Pexcess pressure (kPa)
30 OSC
25 No column
20 GESC
15
HSC
10
5
0
0 20 40 60 80 100 120 140 160 180 200 220 240 260
Time duration (days)
Fig. 2 Pore water pressure generated during two-stage construction and consolidation with CSC
(OSC), VEG (gesc) and HC
(a) (b )
a. Embankment support with no column (PWP can be observed from contours)

b. Embankment supported with columns
Fig. 3 Three-dimensional view of the embankment strengthened with OSC and GESC stone
columns
and reaches linearly to a value of 10 kPa. The total time taken to remove excess pore
water pressure with the granular columns is less than 70 days. The embankments
rested on soil reinforced with the granular columns are effective in dissipating the
excess pore water pressure.
4.2 Effect of the Stone Column on the Degree

of Consolidation
The degree of consolidation (U%) is the important parameter to evaluate the amount
of consolidation is taken place. In this section, Fig. 4 shows to achieve the degree
Time duration (days)

0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 55 60 65 70 75 80 85 90 95 100
0
10
OSC
20
No column
30
40 VEG
U%
50 HSC
60
70
80
90
100
Fig. 4 Influence of CSC, VEG and HC on the U% (degree of consolidation) with duration
Time (hours)
0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 55 60 65 70 75
0
10
20
30 OSC
40 VEG
U%
50
HSC
60
70
80
90
100
Fig. 5 Efficacy of CSC, VEG and HC granular columns in improving the low consolidation soil
of consolidation 90%; it took approximately 90 days in the embankment rested on

layered soil before modification.
The embankment was constructed in two stages loading and rested on soft-layered
soils modified with the CSC, VEG and HC presented in Fig. 5. It is evident from
Fig. 5 the slow consolidation soil created a drainage path to increase the removal
rate of excess pore water pressure. A conventional stone column is taken 53 h to get
90% consolidation. In the case of VEG and HC, it is 37 and 57 h.
The total vertical displacement was measured at the central node of the model
that is just below the embankment. At two stages of the loading along with the
dissipation of excess pore water and degree of consolidation, the amount of total
vertical displacement with time is calculated. The results are presented in Fig. 6.
The central vertical displacement in case of embankment rested on the soil before
modification it is undergone 1.4 m in 220 days, but in case of embankment constructed
in soil reinforced with the CSC, VEG and HC it took less than 60 days. These granular
columns offer a higher level of resistance to deform and at the same time, it creates a
drainage path to dissipate the excess pore water pressure. The granular columns have
a higher amount of elastic modulus (due to filled stones and higher tensile stiffness
encasement) compared to the original ground.
5 The Factor of Safety of Embankment Slopes
The ash fill embankment was constructed with the slope angle of 2 horizontal: 1
vertical. And the stability of the slope is analysed using the three-dimensional finite
element method (Plaxis 3D). The stability of slope measured in factor of safety
parameter. More trials were made to calculate the factor of safety with the various
Times (days)
0 20 40 60 80 100 120 140 160 180 200 220 240 260 280
0.0
0.2
Vertical displacement (m)
No column
0.4
CSC
0.6
0.8 GESC
1.0
HSC
1.2
1.4
1.6
Fig. 6 Effect of settlement with the time duration that embankment rested on soil reinforced with
CSC, GESC and HC
slopes. It is an important parameter for any slope stability analysis. In this section,
a total of eight cases were studied to check the stability of the 2H: 1 V slope. The
embankment was constructed on the soil before being modified and after reinforced
with the CSC, VEG and HC at two stages of loading. The diameter and length of
the columns remain the same as it is in the other previous cases that are 0.8 m
length is 5 m; the encasement tensile stiffness is used to construct the granular
column is 2000 kN/m. The conventional stone columns (CSCs) without encasement
provided, VEG case columns are vertically encased with the geotextile of stiffness
is 2000 kN/m, and hybrid confined stone column in addition to vertical encasement
horizontal geotextile circular discs are provided. The factors of safety are calculated
after the stage two construction followed by the consolidation analysis. Steady-state
seepage condition develops whilst staging one and stage two constructions. From
Fig. 7, the factor of safety is presented in all the cases. The FOSs are one in case of
the column has been constructed on the soil before modification.
The embankment rested on soil reinforced with the CSC, VEG and HC the factor
of safety increases from 1.2, 1.54 and 1.62, respectively. The reason for increasing
the global factor of safety may be slip circles pass through and cut the column which
is a high modulus of elasticity of stone aggregates (coloured slip circles as shown the
Fig. 8). The CSC, GESC, HSCs are having a high modulus of elasticity, vertically
encased with geotextile and hybrid system of the encasement. The encased material
stiffness modulus (EA) is 2000 kN/m2 that was used by previous researchers [2, 7,
8].
2.0
1.5
FOS
1.0
Without column
OSC
0.5 GESC
HSC
0.0
0.00 0.10 0.20 0.30 0.40 0.50
Deformation (m)
Fig. 7 Effect of the factor of safety on embankment rests on soil reinforced with CSC, VEG and
HC
Fig. 8 Zone of slip circles in global factor of safety calculations
6 Conclusions
The embankment constructed with the ash fills resting on the layered soils without
and with modification has been studied. The layered soft soil that is highly compress-
ible and slow in consolidation can be improved with the conventional, encased and
especially hybrid confined stone columns. The excess amount of pore water pressure
develops due to embankment loading, and it is linearly increased up to a value of
27 kPa. And when it allows consolidation, it takes 200 days without any drainage
paths with 32 kPa excess pore water pressure. The provision of the granular column
in the layered soil offers the drainage path for the pore water to escape and accelerate
the consolidation. It is evident from this study that CSC, VEG and HC the amount of
pore water dissipated is 6, 5 and 5.5 times, respectively, compared to the embankment
without column. The total time taken to remove excess pore water pressure with the
granular columns is less than 70 days. To achieve the degree of consolidation of
90%, it took approximately 90 days in the case of embankment rested on layered soil
before modification; in the case of the modified ground, it is obtained as 57 h. The
total displacement occurs during the loading stage in case of embankment rested
on the soil before modification is 1.4 m in 220 days, but in case of embankment
constructed in soil reinforced with the CSC, VEG and HC, it took less than 60 days.
The granular columns offer a higher level of resistance against deformation, and at
the same time, it creates a drainage path to dissipate the excess pore water pressure.
The granular column has a high elastic modulus compared to the original ground.
The FOSs are calculated as one in case of the column has been constructed on the soil
before modification. But, in the case of embankment constructed on soil modified
with the CSC, VEG and HC, it is increasing from 1.2, 1.54 and 1.6, respectively.
References
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slope reinforced with stone columns. Arabian Journal for Science and Engineering.
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geosynthetic reinforced stone columns. Geotextiles and Geomembranes, 46, 312–318.
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ordinary stone columns. Geotextiles and Geomembranes, 46, 40–51.
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on ordinary and encased stone column. International Journal of Geomechanics.
5. Ali, K., Shahu, J. T., & Sharma, K. G. (2014). Model tests on single and groups of stone columns
with different geosynthetic reinforcement arrangements. Geosynthetics International, 21(2),
103–118.
6. Dash, S. K., & Bora, M. C. (2013). Influence of geosynthetic encasement on the performance
of stone columns floating in soft clay. Canadian Geotechnical Journal, 50, 754–765.
7. Murugesan, S., & Rajagopal, K. (2010). Studies on the behaviour of single and group of
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129–139.
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stone columns. Geotextiles and Geomembranes, 38, 26–36.
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columns. Geotextiles and Geomembranes, 27(3), 167–175.
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and FEM analysis. Journal of Geotechnical & Geoenvironmental Engineering ASCE, 133(4),
405–415.
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Rock Mechanics and Geotechnical Engineering. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jrmge.2021.03.004
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Investigation of Pullout Capacity
of Helical Soil Nail in Clay
Pankaj Sharma , Saurabh Rawat , and Ashok Kumar Gupta
Abstract This paper examines the ultimate bond strength of horizontally installed
helical soil nails in clayey soil with varying geometry of model soil nails using the
analytical model. The ultimate pullout strength of helical nail is determined using the
analytical model in clayey soil. The assessment of ultimate bond capacity of model
helical soil nails is determined with varying embedded depth ratios (Z/D). This paper
also inspects pullout capacity for the single and multi-helical plates. From test results,
it is found that as the embedded ratio (Z/Dh ) increases the pullout resistance also
increases.
Keywords Helical soil nail · Analytical techniques · Single and multi-helical
1 Introduction
The helical soil nail (HN) technique is the latest improved technique of soil nailing,
which is apt in almost all types of soil. The technique is used to reinforce the
soil mass to ultimately increase the overall shear strength of soil [1–5]. From the
design perspective, pullout load is considered as the most predominant factor to
access internal and global stability. Various researchers have investigated the different
parameters of helical soil nails like nail type, shaft-surface type, installation length
under different overburden pressure, different embedment length, etc. [1–9].
P. Sharma (B)
Department of Civil Engineering, Chitkara University School of Engineering and Technology,
Solan, Himachal Pradesh, India
e-mail: pankaj.sharma@chitkarauniversity.edu.in
S. Rawat · A. K. Gupta
Department of Civil Engineering, Jaypee University of Information Technology, Solan, Himachal
e-mail: saurabh.rawat@juit.ac.in
A. K. Gupta
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4040-8_58
738 P. Sharma et al.
From the literature survey, it is found that all the available study on helical soil nail
was on cohesionless soil only, as per best of authors not even single study was found
of clay soil [1–11]. Keeping this gap in mind, the objectives of the present study
were framed. In the current investigation, to better understand the behavior of helical
soil nails in clayey soil with varying embedded depth (Z)&S/D ratio an analytical
study was conducted. To conduct the laboratory study on clayey soil is quite difficult
hence, efforts have been made to examine the pullout strength of helical soil nail in
clay soil using analytical study.
2 Mathematical Model
The analytical model was used for the estimation of load–displacement behavior of
the helical soil-nailed, which is adopted from Sharma et al. [11]. The second-order
differential equation has been suggested by Sharma et al. [11] for assessment of
load–displacement (for pre-peak stage) behavior which is modified after [12, 13] in
Eq. (1). The equation is based on the hyperbolic model:
Pre-peak stage
[ ]2
∂ 2 F(x) 4K F(x) dF(x)
= + π D τ
h ult (1)
∂x2 π 2 E Dh3 τult
2 d(x)
where
F(x) applied load on nail at x distance;
K value depends upon surcharge pressure (σ );
τult is ultimate shear stress;
E is elasticity modulus;
Dh is the diameter of helix;
Using boundary conditions, the second-order differential equations can be solved.
During the pullout test, the boundary conditions are given as in Eqs. 2 and 3
F(x = 0) = F0 (2)
F(x = L) = 0 (3)
where L has overall nail length;

and F0 = Initial pullout load.
The maximum shear stress (τ ult ) is the ratio of τ p to fr , further which is the ratio
of max. shear strength to ultimate shear stress [11–14]
τp
fr = (4)
τult
Investigation of Pullout Capacity of Helical Soil Nail in Clay 739
τ p to maximum shear strength

fr failure ratio.
Post-Peak Stage
The residual factor can be calculated using Eq. (5)
τp − τ
f = (5)
τ p − τr
τ p is maximum interfaces strength;

τ r is residual interface strength;
τ is initial strength.
Variation in residual factor with displacement in the post-peak stage can be given
by Eq. (6)
f = 0.97 ln[u(x)] − 3.12 (6)
where u(x) = displacement.

The details of modeling have already been reported in Sharma et al. [11].
The geotechnical properties of clay are adopted from Azzam and Basha [14] in the
analytical model in the current practice. The geotechnical properties of clay adopted
in the study are presented in Table 1. The geometric configuration of helical soil nails
is adopted from Sharma et al. [15–17] as presented in Table 2.
Table 1 Geotechnical
Properties Value
properties of clay [14]
“Specific gravity” 2.65
Content (%) (Sand: Silt: Clay) 0:12:88
“Liquid limit (%)” 45
“Plastic limit (%)” 22
“Shrinkage limit (%)” 16
Plasticity index (%) 23
UCS (kPa) 120
USCS classification CL
Table 2 “Helical soil nails configurations” [15–17]

S. No Sample name Shaft diameter Number of Helical diameter, Pitch length
(mm) helices (Dh ) (mm) (mm)
1 S1 16 1 64 30
2 S2 16 2 64 and 90 30
3 S3 16 3 64, 90, and 96 30
The investigation has been carried out by means of Hermite Interpolation in Wolfram
Mathematica 9.0.
5 Load–Displacement Behavior
Evident from Fig. 1, as the displacement increase, the pullout capacity also start
increases and achieving the peak value it becomes constant or start decreasing. Also,
clear that with an increase in the overburden pressure, the pullout resistance also
increases in clayey soil. The load–displacement trend shows the post-peak shear
strength fall slightly to sample S2 under with different surcharge pressure. A similar
type of observation has been recorded to different types of nail specimens in clay
soil. The load–displacement or (bond resistance) behavior undergoes elastic and
strain-softening phases. In the elastic phase, displacement is directly propositional
to resisting force, while in the strain-softening phase, there is a decrease in pullout
12
10
Pullout Force(kN)
4
5kPa (Predicted)
2 25kPa (Predicted)
50kPa (Predicted)
0
0 20 40 60 80
Pullout Displacement (mm)
Fig. 1 Load–displacement of helical soil nail (S2) in clayey soil

14
12
Pullout Load (kN) 10
4
Z/Dh= 7.8 to 14.06, Dh = 64mm
2 Z/Dh = 5.55 to 10, Dh =90 mm

Z/Dh=5.2 to 9.37, Dh=96 mm
0
5 7 9 11 13 15
Embedment Ratio (Z/Dh)
Fig. 2 Variation of pullout force with embedment ratio (Z/Dh )
force with displacement. The peak load is called as ultimate pullout capacity of soil
nails [18]. Corresponding to the peak load, the peak shear strength or stress can
be estimated for design consideration. Also, it is found that as HN changes as of
single to multiple the pullout capacity starts increasing due to an increase in bearing
resistance.
6 Influence of Embedded Depth Ratio (Z/Dh )
Embedded depth ratio is the ratio of embedded depth (Height of top surface of the
soil from nail shaft) to the helical diameter. Evident from Fig. 2, as the Z/Dh ratio
is directly proportional to the pullout resistant force. This shows that as installation
depth increases the pullout resistance increases proportionally due to increases in
overburden pressure on the nail shaft. Also, clear that the bigger helix offers a higher
pullout capacity at a smaller Z/Dh ratio. Thus, evident that the pullout resistance of
HN in clay soil depends upon Z/Dh ratio and surcharge pressure.
7 Conclusion
A logical approach to evaluate the nail pullout of HN in clay soil was developed.
Based on this investigation, following conclusions are drawn:
1. The load–displacement or (bond resistance) behavior undergoes elastic and
strain-softening phases. In the elastic phase, displacement is directly proposi-
tional to resisting force, while in the strain-softening phase, there is a decrease
in pullout force with displacement.
2. Evident that as the embedded depth ratio (Z/Dh ) increases the pullout capacity
also increases. Because more the installation length more will be the bond
strength due to increases in overburden pressure resulting increases in overall
resistance. Also, clear that the bigger helix offers higher pullout capacity at a
smaller Z/Dh ratio.
References
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hollow and solid shaft helical nail in frictional soil. Acta Geotechnica. https://doi.org/10.1007/
s11440-020-01069-6.
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s40098-018-0343-1.
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Mechanics and Foundation Division, 89(1), 115–143.
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277–292. https://doi.org/10.12989/gae.2014.6.3.277.
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https://doi.org/10.1080/17486025.2021.1903088.
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shaft helical soil nail by displacement controlled pullout testing. Geotechnical and Geological
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Anti-bacterial Study on ZnO-Grafted
Jute Fibres for Longevity in its
Application: A Novel Approach
Sk. Aakash Hossain , Chandan Kumar Ghosh, Sahil Chauhan ,

and Srija Arasavilli
Abstract Jute (Corchorus olitorious) fibres are often used as an effective rein-
forcement in various civil engineering applications. However, for being biodegrad-
able its longevity decreases sharply, thereby limiting its usage. An anti-microbial
coating, however, may reduce such problems to a considerable extent. In the present
study, hydrothermally synthesised ZnO nanorod-grafted microbe-resistant jute fibres
were prepared to demonstrate its anti-bacterial effect. The ZnO-grafted jute fibres
showed excellent anti-bacterial activity against Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus
aureus strains (under both light and dark condition). Under light, the fibres showed
a maximum activity of 99.19% for E. coli and 99.30% for S. aureus on the 14th day
with 0.5 gm ZnO-grafted jute. Under dark condition, the fibres showed an activity of
99.39% for E. coli and 100% for S. aureus on the 14th day with 0.5 gm ZnO-grafted
jute. The slight enhancement of the rate of anti-bacterial activity under light condi-
tion (for E. coli) may have been due to a thinner peptidoglycan layer in comparison
with S. aureus (gram-positive) aiding in an enhanced cell rupture by excess photo
generated electrons. The release of reactive oxygen species (R.O.S.) both in light
and dark condition might have aided to the rupture of the bacterial membrane by
modifying its permeability, thereby destroying the microbial cells due to oxidative
stress. Thus, ZnO-grafted jute demonstrated a cheap, easy-to-make and efficient
anti-microbial reinforcement alternative for various civil engineering applications
that utilises natural plant fibres, by enhancing its longevity by reducing bio-fouling
due to microbial degradation.
Keywords ZnO nanorod grafting · Jute fibres · Anti-microbial activity ·

Mathematical modelling · Longevity · Peptidoglycan layer
Sk. A. Hossain (B) · C. K. Ghosh

School of Materials Science and Nanotechnology, Jadavpur University, Kolkata 700032, India
e-mail: aakash.lp93@gmail.com
S. Chauhan · S. Arasavilli
National Institute of Foundry and Forge Technology, Ranchi, Jharkhand 834003, India
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4040-8_59
746 Sk. A. Hossain et al.
1 Introduction
Plant fibres as an additive have been vastly applied in construction materials for
improved durability. In this context, fibres, e.g. coconut husk [1], sugarcane [2],
sisal [3], bamboo [4], jute [5], etc., have gained considerable importance owing
to their binding ability, fibre toughness, low cost and durability, thereby working
as a reinforcing agent in mortars practically. The natural fibre-reinforced concrete
composites have shown to enhance compressive strength [6], tensile strength [7],
post-cracking strength [8] and fatigue strength [9] in comparison with conventional
sand-based concrete. The successful improvements of such mechanical properties
were achieved because of the durability of natural fibres under harsh environment and
can be further improved with the help of rich mixes, external admixtures and approved
paints. The mechanical properties were also improved by the use of an optimum
fibre content [6] and casting pressure while making cement composite. Among the
different fibres, jute is one of the most abundantly available and cost-efficient fibre in
India. Jute has excellent fibre density, stiffness index, Young’s modulus, modulus of
torsional rigidity and breaking elongation and also provides good resistance against
severe environmental condition. These mechanical properties can be enhanced by
alkali treatment [10].
Zinc oxide has eventually gained prominence as an anti-bacterial [11], anti-fungal
[12] reagent which is cost effective and easy to prepare. Agua et al. [13] reported
that a uniform and dense adsorption of ZnO nanoparticles had been achieved by the
combination of in situ and sol–gel method both on the surface and on the inside of
cotton fibres. These ZnO nanoparticle-treated cotton fabrics showed anti-bacterial
activity against methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus ATCC 33591, Staphylo-
coccus epidermidis ATCC 1228, S. aureus RN 4220 and Propionibacterium acnes
ATCC 6919. The test results concluded that the involvement of H2 O2 as a reactive
oxygen species was the cause of anti-bacterial effect. The anti-bacterial effect of ZnO
nanoparticles was also reported in the work of Tiwari et al. [14]. In this work, the ZnO
nanoparticles were used against carbapenem resistant Acinetobacter baumannii. The
mechanism proposed in this work involves the production of reactive oxygen species
that causes peroxidation of the membrane lipid, leakage of reducing sugars, DNA and
proteins and reduces the viability of cell. Here, the ZnO nanoparticles were prepared
by chemical method and green method where the nanoparticles created by the former
method showed a better anti-bacterial activity than the later. The anti-bacterial activity
of ZnO nanoparticles in dark condition was reported by Joe et al. [15]. In this work, it
was noted that the anti-bacterial activity of the ZnO nanoparticles in the dark was not
due to the generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) but due to the attachment of
ZnO nanoparticles on the bacterial cell wall and the local dissolution of the attached
ZnO, thus increasing the concentration of Zn+2 ions in the bacterial cytoplasm. Anti-
bacterial activities of hydrothermally grown ZnO nanorods have been reported by
Tam et al. [16]. In this work, nanorods, nanoparticles and powder form of ZnO have
been used against Escherichia coli and Bacillus atrophaeus. The results obtained
from the anti-bacterial studies showed that the nanorods, nanoparticles and powder
Anti-bacterial Study on ZnO-Grafted Jute Fibres … 747
exhibited better efficacy against B. atrophaeus than E. coli. The reason behind such
difference of anti-bacterial activity was found to be due to the difference of the cell
wall structure between E. coli and B. atrophaeus. The cell wall structure of E. coli
is complex in comparison with that of B. atrophaeus causing better anti-bacterial
activity in gram-positive bacteria than in gram-negative bacteria.
Therefore, in the present study, ZnO nanorod-grafted jute fibres were prepared
via mild, environmentally friendly chemical synthesis approach. The as-prepared
fibres were exposed to E. coli and S. aureus bacterial strains for a period of 14 days
under dark and light conditions to study the anti-microbial performance of the fibres.
A mathematical model has been put forward to relate the effect of microbial expo-
sure time, photo-exposure and ZnO loading on the anti-microbial efficiency of the
fibres. These fibres are expected to improve concrete longevity and other relevant
civil engineering applications by reducing microbial attack in comparison with other
conventionally available fibre reinforcement.
2 Experimental
2.1 In situ Synthesis of ZnO Nanorods on Jute Fibres
ZnO nanorods were grafted on the jute fibres with mild hydrothermal approach.
Sodium hydroxide pellets (NaOH), zinc acetate dihydrate [Zn(CH3 COO)2 .2H2 O],
zinc nitrate hexahydrate [Zn(NO3 )2 .6H2 O] and hexamethylenetetraamine [HMTA]
were purchased from Sigma-Aldrich, Co., USA. Triton X-100 (a non-ionic deter-
gent) and Stearic acid [CH3 (CH2 )16 COOH] were procured from Loba Chemie, and
raw jute (Corchorus olitorious) was obtained from the cultivation field. Escherichia
coli (ATCC K88) and S. aureus (ATCC 29737) were cultured in the laboratory. All
chemicals were used without further purification. In a typical synthesis process, 6 cm
of raw jute weighing 0.1 gm was thoroughly washed and mounted to a glass substrate.
This jute sample was then immersed in a solution of 2 gm/L of NaOH and 1 ml of
Triton X-100 in aqueous medium and heated in the hot air oven for 1 h at 95 °C.
It was subsequently washed with de-ionised (DI) water (resistivity ~18 MΩ cm−1 ),
and the pH was adjusted to ~7 and dried in the oven at 60 °C for 1 h. Next, 2 mM
NaOH and 1.5 mM Zn(CH3 COO)2 .2H2 O were dissolved each in 50 mL of DI water
(in separate beakers) to obtain clear solutions. Then, the NaOH solution was added
drop-wise to the Zn(CH3 COO)2 .2H2 O solution under vigorous stirring at 70 °C until
a white precipitate starts to appear. The alkali-treated jute was then immersed in the
so-prepared solution at 120 °C for 4 h in the precipitate and dried at 60 °C for 1 h.
After seeding, 1.5 mM Zn(NO3 )2 .6H2 O and 1.5 mM HMTA were dissolved in 60 mL
DI water to obtain a clear solution. The seeded jute substrate was immersed in the
solution, and the whole system was transformed to a Teflon-lined steel autoclave at
95 °C for 5 h. The system was left to cool naturally, and then, the ZnO-treated jute
sample was then treated with an aqueous solution of 1.5 mM CH3 (CH2 )16 COOH for
3 h to induce hydrophobicity and dried in the oven at 100 °C for 1 h to obtain the
ZnO nanorod-grafted jute fibres.
2.2 Characterisation of ZnO-Grafted Jute Fibres
The crystal structure of the as-synthesised ZnO coated on jute fibres was verified by
powder X-ray diffraction (Ultima III Diffractometer, Cu K α = 0.154 nm, Rigaku,
Japan) where the measurements were carried out in the range between 10 and 80°. The
Field Emission Scanning Electron Microscopy (FESEM, Hitachi S 4800) was used
to study the ZnO-grafted jute surface. The Fourier Transfer Infrared Spectroscopy
(FTIR) (Shimadzu IR Prestige Japan) revealed the different surface chemical bonds
within the range of 450–4500 cm−1 while the thermal analysis (TG–DTA) was carried
out (50º–500 °C) on (NETZSCH STA 449 C) in order to examine thermal stability of
the as-prepared composite reinforcement within the range of. Anti-bacterial test was
evaluated from optical density (OD), measured UV–Vis spectrophotometer (Agilent
UV–Vis, Cary 60) at wavelength ~600 nm.
2.3 Preparation of the Bacterial Cultures
Nutrient broth and nutrient agar were purchased from Sigma-Aldrich, Co., USA.
Escherichia coli (ATCC K88) and S. aureus (ATCC 29737) were cultured in the
laboratory. The as-per mentioned bacterial strains were selected to evaluate the
anti-microbial activity of the ZnO-grafted jute as representative examples of gram-
negative and gram-positive bacteria, respectively. Both bacteria strains were incu-
bated at 37 °C in nutrient broth. Then, 100 µl of each culture was then taken and
re-occulated into fresh nutrient broth solution. Then, these cultures were allowed to
grow until the optical density (OD) reached a value of 0.6 which is the initial value.
Calculation of percentage of degradation of microbial cells

(O.D.)initial − (O.D.)final
= × 100
(O.D.)initial
2.4 Preparation of ZnO-Grafted Jute for Optical Density Test
The OD of the bacterial solution was measured at a wavelength of 600 nm under

UV–Vis spectroscopy. The grafted jute fibres were cut off into varying weights (i.e.
0.1–0.5 gm) from a respective stock sample. A loop full bacterial culture was taken
into the test tubes containing sterile nutrient broth in which the ZnO-grafted jute
fibres were kept completely immersed. This arrangement was done for both light
and dark condition to check the effect of optical irradiation on the anti-microbial
activity of the fibres under different time durations (1, 2, 3, 5, 7, 14 days).
3.1 Structural and Functional Group Analysis

of ZnO-Grafted Jute
The analysis of the crystalline structure of ZnO-grafted jute has been illustrated
(Fig. 1a). The two peaks observed at 16.46° and 22.74° are the characteristic peaks
of cellulose and lignin, respectively [17]. The other faint characteristic peaks are
observed at 31.77º, 34.64º and 36.6º with crystal plane (100), (002) and (101), respec-
tively (JCPDS, File No. PDF # 790207). All the peaks correspond to the hexagonal
wurtzite structure of the ZnO nanoparticles. The absence of any other phase gives the
evidence of phase purity of the sample. The equi-millimolar concentration of HMTA
and Zn(NO3 )2 .6H2 O is necessary to produce ZnO nanorods. The HMTA governs the
direction of the growth, and it also causes the tapering of the nanorod [17, 18].
The crystalline size (~42 nm) of the nanorods was determined by the Debye–
Scherrer equation, d = (0.9λ)/(βcosθ ), where d, λ, β and θ represent the crystal size
in nm, wavelength of the incident X-ray in nm, full width half maxima in radians
and angle of incidence of the X-ray in degrees.
Figure 1b illustrates the absorbance peaks at 450, 477, 491, 500 and 613 cm−1 .
These peaks correspond to the stretching of the ZnO nanoparticles in tetrahedral co-
ordination [19, 20]. Absorption occurring at 1631 cm−1 in the sample indicates ZnO
bond stretching and deformation vibration [21]. There are peaks around the regions of
Fig. 1 a XRD pattern ZnO-grafted jute fibres. b FTIR plot of ZnO-grafted jute fibres
3200–3600 cm−1 which attribute to the vibration of the –OH stretching. Peaks in the
range between 2800 and 3600 cm−1 signify the lignocellulosic bonds, and the peak at
2891 cm−1 corresponds to the –CH stretching and vibration of methyl and methylene
groups present in lignin and hemicellulose. The peak at 1451 cm−1 corresponds to the
–CH3 asymmetric in plane deformation in lignin. Peaks between 1300 and 1400 cm−1
corresponding to hemicellulose were not very prominent because it had dissolved
due to the treatment of jute in the alkali solution and this absence of hemicellulose
may cause the loss of lignin. The removal of hemicellulose and lignin from jute due
to the alkali treatment had released the OH groups from cellulose due to which the
ZnO nanorods are bonded to the jute fibres [17]. During the growth step, the Zn+2
ions from Zn(NO3 )2 .6H2 O reacts with the OH− ions produced by HMTA to form
Zn(OH)4 –2 which produces ZnO nanoparticles due to its dehydration. The HMTA
hinders the binding of the Zn+2 ions in the ‘a’ and ‘b’ axes as they are the non-polar
facets and allows the Zn+2 ions to bind in the c axis which is the polar facet of the ZnO
nanorods. In this context, it may be stated that the rod shape appears from difference
of the free surface energies of a, b directions and that of c direction [17].
3.2 Morphological Analysis of ZnO-Grafted Jute Fibres
In the figures given (Fig. 2a and b), the hexagonal structures of the nanorods can be
seen clearly. The length of the rods was found to be between 2.5 and 6 µm, while
diameter was measured to be between 400 and 900 nm. In certain sections of the
jute fibre, there were some cracks which were developed by the scouring treatment.
This had happened because the alkali reacted with the hemicellulose and dissolved
it eventually creating fine cracks [17].
Structurally, the hemicellulose and lignin form the matrix for the cellulose and
the cellulose acts as a unit crystal which is the reinforcing agent in the jute fibre. It
forms the long filaments individually and binds with the matrix. Due to the alkali
treatment, the surface of the jute favoured the growth of the nanorods and it is also
Fig. 2 a and b FESEM images of the ZnO-grafted fibres

done to clean the fibres and to remove any contaminants [17]. Careful analyses of
synthesised samples reveal that the length and diameter of the nanorods significantly
dependent on parameters such as precursor chemicals and deposition time.
3.3 Analysis of Thermal Properties
The thermogravimetric curve in Fig. 3a shows that initially there is a loss of mass
observed at 100 °C due to the evaporation of the water present in the jute fibre.
However, minor fibre degradation around 150 °C is attributed to the sensitivity of the
jute fibres to the basic pH of the ZnO nano-seed solution [17]. Naturally, jute fibres
are hydrophilic and bio degradable but in this case the in situ grown ZnO nanorods
act as water repellents and they form a thermally protective layer around the jute
surface for which there is an improvement in the cellulose degradation from 200
to 220 °C. The treated jute first showed a major thermal degradation at 250 °C for
hemicellulose degradation. The second degradation is observed to have taken place
at 300–350 °C due to cellulose, and the third degradation occurs at 420–500 °C due to
lignin [22]. For hydrophobic treatment with stearic acid, there has been no change as
observed. This means that the hydrophobic treatment did not cause any decrement on
the protective layer made by ZnO nanorods. Fig. 3b represents a differential thermal
analysis plot. The objective of the test is to chemically identify the composition of
the material by observing the thermal behaviour of the sample when it is subjected
to heating.
Fig. 3 a TGA and b DTA plots of ZnO-grafted jute fibre

3.4 Anti-bacterial Mechanism of ZnO in Jute Fibre
With the increase in the amount of ZnO-grafted jute and the increase in number
of days, there was a decrement to more than tenfolds in the optical density of the
bacterial culture at 600 nm, which shows the strong anti-bacterial activity in both
light and dark condition (Fig. 4).
In case of bacteria, as per stated by Samanta et al. [23] when ZnO is activated in the
presence of light (UV–Vis. region), then it generates ROS such as OH−* , H2 O2 and
O2 −* . Such ROS oxidises the microbial membrane causing membrane leakage and
ultimately cell death. The generation of reactive oxygen species is caused due to the
photo-induced charge carriers which interact with the water and oxygen molecules
present on the surface of the ZnO crystallites [24, 25]. The rate of anti-bacterial
activity also depends on the structural or chemical composition of the bacterial cell
wall [13, 26]. The hydroxyl radicals (OH−* ) are the main scavengers playing a domi-
nant role during anti-bacterial mechanism [27]. In the present work, the ZnO-grafted
jute have also exhibited mention worthy anti-bacterial effect against the chosen gram-
positive and gram-negative micro-organisms in the dark condition as well where the
Fig. 4 Semi log bacterial growth curves a E. coli in light condition b E. coli in dark condition c S.
aureus in light condition d S. aureus in dark condition
bacterial cell wall of gram-positive bacteria (S. aureus) is more sensitive towards
the anti-bacterial agent than that of gram-negative (E. coli) bacteria. The S. aureus
have cells that are surrounded by thick layers of peptidoglycan consisting of teichoic
and lipoteichoic acids. But the E. coli being a gram-negative bacterium has struc-
turally and chemically complicated cell membrane where there is an outer layer
of lipopolysaccharide that covers the thin peptidoglycan layer and the cytoplasmic
membrane beneath and this outer layer acts as protective barrier that resists external
anti-bacterial agents from destroying its cells [13, 16]. The generation of ROS in the
dark is a novel mechanism. It takes place due to the singly ionised oxygen vacancy
which means an oxygen vacancy with one electron in its excited state. An electron
basically comes from the surface of the ZnO crystal to react with atmospheric oxygen
producing superoxide anion (O2 −* ). This superoxide anion then reacts with water to
produce hydroperoxyl radical (HO2 * ) which recombines with itself to give H2 O2 and
this H2 O2 will again react with O2 −* to form OH−* radical and OH− ion where the
former acts as a dominant scavenger [28]. The slight increase of the anti-bacterial
activity in the dark condition for the micro-organisms is that the protein–lipid–protein
or the phospholipid bilayer in the peptidoglycan acts as a photoresist. This layer
can polymerize in the presence of light, thereby becoming impermeable towards the
photo-induced ROS and resisting oxidative stress. So, the rate of bacterial cell degra-
dation decreases. Conversely, in the dark condition this phospholipid bilayer might
relax and allow the penetration of the generated ROS into the cells. On the contrary,
there is a theory which do not relate to the formation of ROS in the dark but rather
support the phenomenon where the ZnO nanoparticles are attached on the microbial
membrane and rupturing the membrane due to the local dissolution of the Zn+2 ions
from the nanoparticles [15]. However, further research is required in this regard.
3.4.1 Mathematical Model Relating the Effect of the Weight

of ZnO-Grafted Jute and Time on OD
This is a novel approach to explain the anti-bacterial phenomenon that has been
performed with ZnO hexagonal nanorod-grafted jute fibres against the selected
micro-organisms. The mathematical modelling helps us to understand the variation
of the optical density of the bacterial solution under the influence of the weight of
ZnO-grafted jute, exposure time (in days) studied both in light and dark condition.
The performance of the ZnO-grafted jute fibres (as shown in Fig. 5a), tested
against E. coli under dark condition, was found to be best fitted (R2 = 0.849) with
the following equation:
z = z 0 + AW + Bt + w0 W 2 + βt 2
where z is the O.D. of the bacterial solution in which the ZnO-grafted jute was
immersed, z0 is the O.D. of the control solution (bacteria and broth), W and w0 are
the weights of the ZnO-grafted jute and the threshold weight of the grafted jute,
respectively, β is the weight constant in grams, t is the time in days, and A and B are
Fig. 5 Variation of O.D. with the change in weight of ZnO-grafted jute and exposure time a E.
coli in dark condition b E. coli in light condition c S. aureus in dark condition d S. aureus in light
condition
dimensionless constants of proportionality. All the constants have the same meaning
in the other equations. The values of A, B, w0 and β were calculated as −0.08101, −
0.02156, −0.09088 gm and 9.073 × 10–4 gm, respectively. From the values, it may
be assumed that the O.D. will decrease due to the increase of the weight of ZnO-
grafted jute and also with the increase of time (due to negative A, B, w0 ). However,
with the increase of time there will be a slight increase in the O.D. (as predicted from
a positive β). But its magnitude is negligible in comparison with the effect of A, B
and w0 on the overall O.D.
In contrast to dark condition, performance of the ZnO-grafted jute, tested against
E. coli in the presence of light, reveals different characteristics (as shown in Fig. 5b).
Briefly, best fitting (R2 = 0.920) was obtained with following equation:
⎧ ( )⎞ ⎧ ( )⎞
W −w0 W −w0 t−t0
−e{ ( t−tτ 0 )}
− β − − β + τ
−e −e
z = z 0 + B.e + C.e + A.e
where the values of A, B, C, w0 , β, t 0 and τ were calculated as 2.760, −2.851, −

2.599, −0.743 gm, 0.541 gm, −1.585 days and 1.714 day, respectively. τ is the time
constant (in days), and C is a dimensionless constant. From the values, it may be
assumed that the O.D. decreases with the increase of the weight of the ZnO-grafted
jute and also with the increase of the number of days (negative B, C and positive β,
τ ). However, the O.D tends to increase slightly at first when the weight of jute is
low at the beginning of each day of observation. The first exponential value of the
negative index increases (as predicted from a negative w0 ) at a low weight of jute
and also during the low number of days (as predicted from a negative t 0 ). When this
increased value is placed as the negative index over the second exponential, then its
value ultimately decreases which causes a marginal increase in O.D. Another reason
behind the enhancement of O.D. is due to positive value of A, but their magnitudes
are negligible in comparison with the effect of B, C, β and τ on the overall O.D.
The experimental data of the anti-bacterial performance of ZnO-grafted jute fibre,
tested against S. aureus under dark, are represented in Fig. 5c. In this case, best fitting
(R2 = 0.919) was obtained with the following equation:
( ) ( )
− wW − βt
z = z 0 + B.e 0 .e
where the values of B, w0 and β were calculated as 0.228, 0.182 gm and 3.791 gm,
respectively. From the values, it can be assumed that the O.D. decreases with the
increase of the weight of ZnO-grafted jute and also with the increase of the number
of days (positive w0 and β). However, in this case as well there will be a slight
increase in O.D. due to the increase in the number of days where the weight of the
jute will be low at first (as predicted from a positive B). However, its magnitude is
very less in comparison with the effect of w0 and β on the overall O.D.
Analyses of anti-bacterial performance of ZnO-grafted jute fibre against S. aureus
under light irradiation (as shown in Fig. 5d) reveal best fitting (R2 = 0.948) with the
equation below:
( ) ( )
− wW − βt
z = z 0 + B.e 0 .e
where the values of B, w0 and β were calculated as 0.612, 0.222 gm and 1.362 gm,
respectively. From the values, it may be similarly assumed that the O.D. decreases
with the increase in the weight of ZnO-grafted jute and also due to the increase in the
number of days (due to positive w0 and β). However similarly, there will be a slight
increase in the O.D. with the increase in the number of days due to the small weight
of the ZnO-grafted jute at first (as predicted from a positive B). But its magnitude is
very less in comparison with the effect of w0 and β on the overall O.D.
4 Conclusion
This study investigates the effect of ZnO nanorod-grafted jute fibres on the compres-
sive strength of mortar mixes. Jute being an organic substance gets attacked frequently
by bacteria and other microbes for which the ZnO nanorods were grafted on the
surface of jute. The results obtained from general characterisations have revealed a
hexagonal wurtzite structure of the ZnO nanorods with diameter ranging between 400
and 900 nm and length between 2.5 and 6 µm. The grafted jute fibres showed promi-
nent activity against both S. aureus and E. coli. The optical density decreased with
the gradual increase of the weight of the treated jute fibres under a day-dependent
study with maximum decrease on the 14th day with 0.5 gm of grafted jute. The
gram-positive bacteria (S. aureus) showed slightly better sensitivity towards the anti-
bacterial reinforced ZnO-grafted jute fibres both during light and dark condition. The
mathematical models used showed good agreement to the experimental results further
proving the anti-bacterial activity. Henceforth, such treated fibres can be useful in
construction purposes which are exposed to severe condition of alternate wetting and
drying where microbial growth takes place.
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Studies on Polymer-Modified
Lime-Surkhi Repair Mortar for Heritage
Buildings: Physico-Mechanical
and Micro-Structural Characterization
Rajesh Kumar and Rajni Lakhani
Abstract Lime-surkhi repair mortars modified with water soluble polymer, i.e.
Hydroxypropyl methylcellulose (HPMC) admixture and Polypropylene (PP) fibre,
were developed and further studied to obtain repair mortars for heritage restoration
application. As water permeability of lime-surkhi mortar was closely related to the
strength and durability of heritage structures. Therefore, the objective of this paper
was to examine the relationship between microstructural and mechanical properties
of lime-surkhi mortars in order to optimize their properties for a more efficient use in
heritage buildings. In this study, for determining the lime-surkhi-HPMC interaction
with PP fibre, the samples of different mix proportion was prepared by incorporating
HPMC ranging from 0 to 2.0% and PP fibre from 0 to 1.0%. Then water perme-
ability, mechanical and micro-structural properties were investigated. The test result
showed that 28 days compressive strength of mix with 2% HPMC and 0.5% PP fibre
provided the desirable strength of 4.20 MPa with desirable flow value of 122 mm. The
various instrumental techniques such as thermo-gravimetric analysis (TGA), scan-
ning electron microscope (SEM) and X-ray diffraction analysis (XRD) were used to
evaluate the effect of adding surkhi in lime repair mortar. The results showed that
the compressive strength was increased and water permeability was reduced after
the addition of surkhi into the repair mortar. Furthermore, the results indicated that
as compared to the reference repair mortar; the microstructure of repair mortar was
quite improved with PP fibre content of 0.5 weight%, which imparted lower water
absorption and higher mechanical strength.
Keywords Lime-surkhi repair mortar · Heritage buildings · Water soluble

polymers · Polypropylene fibre · Water permeability
R. Kumar (B) · R. Lakhani

Uttarakhand 247667, India
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4040-8_60
760 R. Kumar and R. Lakhani
1 Introduction
Over 15,000 historical structures exist in India, of which the ASI has designated 3570
as national monuments, a similar number has been designated by state governments
as state notable monuments and the remainder is preserved by non-profit organiza-
tions such as Wakf boards and trusts. The majority of heritage buildings in India
have deteriorated, and the main cause of this deterioration is climatic factors. The
majority of the time, degradation begins with the bedding and jointing mortars. The
main ingredients of historic mortars are lime, fine aggregate, and some pozzolanic
additives like molasses, egg white, coconut oil, some pulses, milk, etc. which are
added sometimes with a view to improve the quality of repair mortars. Stone, mortar,
concrete, steel, wood, etc., are the common materials used in heritage buildings. In
most of the ancient temples/buildings, basic structures were built by using stone,
jointing mortars, etc. Mostly, these mortars are based on lime and gypsum along
with additives. Additives are used to improve the properties of repair mortar. Due
to vagaries of weather, mortar loses their basic properties and becomes the weakest
link in the structure.
Due to deforestation and industrialization, environment is polluting day by day.
These pollutants react with the jointing and bedding mortars and convert them into
wet and fragments of deteriorated mortar with little or no cohesive, compressive
and adhesive strength. Before taking up any restoration activities, it is essential to
assess the present status of the material used in buildings. In assessing present status,
following steps should be considered. (1) Diagnosis of disease, (2) surrounding
environment and (3) causes and phenomenon of decay. Mortars of sufficient porosity
and excessive strength which form dangerous by-products in their setting reactions
are frequently used in contact with old masonry and even near important works of
arts [1]. To understand the behaviour of the repair mortars/materials from present
day point of view; history of technologies of ancient mortars, their characterization
and modification are the need of the hour. Nowadays with the industrialization,
the environment is also changing which causes early deterioration of the jointing
materials/repair mortars. This may be due to interaction of ancient mortar (mainly
consists of lime and sand along with some additives) with the pollutants. Those are
acidic in nature and deteriorates early. Although some polymer modified mortars are
being used nowadays. But, so far no systematic studies have been made.
Therefore some R&D efforts to restore the heritage monuments/structures;
different binder materials, i.e. gypsum, hydraulic lime, cement, polymeric materials,
etc., were being used in previous restoration interventions. Petrozzi et al. [2] proposed
repair work on Santisma, a 100-year-old adobe church, and identified various diffi-
culties, including fissures in the corners of the walls and across the back wall. Strips
of galvanized welded-wire fabric were employed to control wall cracks and were tied
against the walls. Othman et al. [3] provided a case study in a hospital facility and
examined numerous concerns including ceiling leaks and watermarks, black staining
in walls and dampness and roof gutter corrosion. Cohen [4] proposed rehabilitation
work on a historic building and identified several drawbacks in the building such as
Studies on Polymer-Modified Lime-Surkhi Repair Mortar … 761
two facades in the front side were collapsed, vegetative growth at rear side of the
building, etc. Tumialan et al. [5] attempted to do a case study on a historic structure,
but they encountered into various problems, including a collapsed column and exten-
sive fissures that caused crushing failure. Garg et al. [6] proposed the development of
methodology for database generation of heritage buildings. Case studies from a wide
spectrum of heritage buildings covering temples, museums, cities, caves, etc., have
been undertaken. Lakhani [7] and Lakhani and Singh [8] developed polymeric repair
materials for restoration of heritage structures. A research of a styrene-acrylate modi-
fied epoxy system was presented by Lakhani and Tomar [9]. Various formulations
have been developed and analysed with respect to their mechanical, morphological
and thermal properties to investigate the structure property relationship in order to
study the influence of styrene-acrylate copolymer alteration.
In the presented work, studies on the modification of plain lime-surkhi mortar
by incorporating water dispersible polymer, i.e. Hydroxypropyl methylcellulose
(HPMC) admixture along with Polypropylene (PP) fibre, was done to develop
repair materials, which were self-cured and have substantial improvement in prop-
erties. Different mechanical properties such as—compressive and flexural strength
test along with lime reactivity test were conducted. Apart from these tests, few
advanced instrumental studies such as Thermogravimetry/Differential Thermal
Analysis (TG/DTA), XRD and SEM micrograph studies were also conducted on
the optimized specimens. Permeability test on mortar samples was also performed
to determine the coefficient of permeability. To determine the adhesive strength of
prepared modified lime mortar specimen, adhesion test was conducted.
To develop compatible repair materials (for patching, filling the cracks) of sand
stone masonry as substrate, mixes for lime-induced surkhi binder weremade. Before
the development of repair materials (RM), a few basic characterization was done.
Chemical and physical properties of hydrated lime are given Tables 1 and 2.
Soundness test of lime mortar was done according to IS-6932 (Part IX) [10] using
Le-Chatelier apparatus. After conducting the test; the soundness value of mortar
was obtained as 1.3 mm which was within desirable range (less than 5 mm) as per
specified in IS: 712 [11]. Surkhi of Grade 1 with fineness of 320 m2 /kg was used in
this study. Particle size distribution (PSD) curve of lime and surkhi is shown in Fig. 1.
Table 1 Chemical composition of hydrated lime

Chemical Calcium Silicon Magnesium Sulphur Sodium Potassium Loss of
compounds oxide dioxide oxide (MgO) trioxide oxide oxide ignition
(CaO) (SiO2 ) (SO3 ) (Na2 O) (K2 O) (LOI)
Value (%) 68.53 10.03 3.29 1.37 0.09 0.05 25.25

Physical properties Values
of hydrated lime
Density (kg/dm3 ) 2.1
Compacted volumetric weight (kg/dm3 ) 0.592
Material finer than 45 and 75 μm (%) 29 and 89
Blaine specific surface area (cm2 /g) 19.46
100
90
80
70
60
% Passing
50
40
30
20
10
0 Sieve size (microns)
1 10 100
% pass (S1) at 30 min % pass (S2) at 60 min % passing (L)
Fig. 1 Particle size distribution curve of lime and surkhi after 30 and 60 min grinding
X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy (XRF) data of lime-surkhi blend were conducted

in order to determine the oxide composition (Table 3).
The mineralogical composition of surkhi/brick dust was determined by XRD
analysis and is shown in Fig. 2. It was inferred that the brick dust contains quartz,
calcite, orthoclase, gehlenite and albite. For this study, cellulose derivative such
as Hydroxypropyl methylcellulose (HPMC) from Loba Chemie was used. Typical
properties of HPMC are given in Table 4.
Table 3 XRF data of surkhi

Constituents 50% surkhi + 50% lime Surkhi
and lime
Norm. (%) 506.64 682.66
SiO2 (%) 16.69 61.90
Al2 O3 (%) 5.31 15.28
CaO (%) 68.56 4.88
MgO (%) 4.18 2.53
Fe2 O3 (%) 2.82 5.05
K2 O (%) 1.42 4.12
Fig. 2 XRD pattern of surkhi
Table 4 Typical properties

Constituents Quantity
of HPMC
Methoxy content/%OCH3 28–30%
Hydroxypropoxyl content/%POOH 7–12%
Apparent viscosity (2% w/w) 4–6 cps
Loss on drying 10%
pH value 6.5
Appearance White powder
The physical and chemical properties of PP fibre used in this study are given in
Table 5.
After characterization of all the raw materials; the lime reactivity test on the lime
mortar specimens were also done, as per IS-1727 [12]. The fresh state properties of
lime and lime-surkhi mortar such as consistency and setting time was determined as
per IS 4031 (IV, V) [13, 14] and the results are given, in Table 6.
For determining the lime-surkhi-HPMC interaction with PP fibre, the mix propor-
tions are given in Table 7. The addition of HPMC was done ranging from 0 to 2.0%.
The addition of PP fibre was from 0 to 1.0%. Water binder (w/b) ratios were in the
range of 0.48–0.72. The w/b ratios for all the mixes were determined using flow table
as discussed below. To maintain good workability for all the polymer modified lime-
surkhi repair mortar mixtures; workability was maintained as approximately 125 ±
15 mm. Further for experimental analysis, lime-surkhi mortar samples of required
dimension were prepared as discussed in subsequent sections.
Table 5 Properties of PP
Properties Values
fibre
Colour White
Form Monofilament fibre
Reaction with water Hydrophobic
Tensile strength (MPa) 450–560
Thermal conductivity (W/mK) 0.12 (low)
Fibre length (mm) 12 mm
Acid/alkali resistance Excellent
Absorption None
Table 6 Consistency and

Materials Consistency (%) Setting time
setting time of
lime/lime-surkhi mortar IST FST
Lime 68 2 h 40 min 26 h
Lime + surkhi 50 2 h 10 min 24 h 30 min
(1:2.5)
Lime + surkhi 50 1 h 50 min 24 h 10 min
(1:3)
Table 7 Mix design of lime-surkhi mortar

Mix No. Lime Surkhi Sand HPMC (%) PP (%) w/b ratio Flow value (mm)
1 1 0 3 0 0 0.70 120
2 1 0 3 1 0 0.68 122
3 1 0 3 2 0 0.66 124
4 1 0 3 2 0.5 0.69 118
5 1 0 3 2 1.0 0.72 114
6 1 0 2.5 1 0 0.50 122
7 1 0 2.5 2 0 0.52 125
8 1 0 2.5 2 0.5 0.52 120
9 1 0 2.5 2 1.0 0.54 118
10 1 2.5 9 1 0 0.49 121
11 1 2.5 9 2 0 0.48 120
12 1 2.5 9 2 0.5 0.48 117
13 1 2.5 9 2 1.0 0.50 115
14 1 3 12 0 0 0.70 122
15 1 3 12 1 0 0.68 122
16 1 3 12 2 0 0.66 123
17 1 3 12 2 0.5 0.69 122
18 1 3 12 2 1.0 0.71 121
Fig. 3 Flow table test of lime-surkhi mortar
2.1 Specimen Preparation
For preparing lime-surkhi repair mortar, the polymer powder was dissolved in hot
water at 90 rpm and kept for 2 h to form a clear solution. Then, all the raw materials
such as surkhi, lime and PP fibre were mixed together in a standard laboratory
planetary mixer. The paste of each mix proportion was filled in the cube mould,
in two layers and cast in the moulds after finishing the top surface using standard
vibrating table.
2.2 Flow Table
The flow of lime-surkhi repair mortar was measured according to ASTM C1437 [15].
The test was conducted to determine the consistency of mortar shown in Fig. 3. The
flow reading of lime mortar lies between 114 and 125 mm given in Table 7.
3 Experimental Techniques
14 and 28 days compressive and flexural strength of lime mortar samples; modified
with and without surkhi, HPMC and PP were determined. Compressive strength test
was carried out on 50 mm cube for the study while the flexural strength test was carried
out on 200 × 50 × 50 mm prism. The scanning electron microscopy (SEM) inves-
tigation (model LEO 438 VP, Carl Zeiss AG, Germany) at operating voltage of 15–
20 kV was carried out on hydrated paste samples after 28 days. This was performed
on the finally dried state and ground sample to (≤45 μm). The step was carried
out at a voltage 20–60 kV with an intensity 2–80 mA and2θ range was 5–80°. For
further identifying the solid phases in binder pastes, thermo-gravimetry/differential
thermo-gravimetry analysis (TG/DTG) was conducted using a PerkinElmer thermo-
gravimetric analyser at a heating rate of 10 °C min−1 up to 900 °C under nitrogen
atmosphere as a medium. XRD analysis was used to distinguish crystalline phases in
binder paste. This was performed on unmodified lime mix, and also on mix modified
repair mix with HPMC and PP fibre. The samples were in dried state a ground to
(≤45 μm). Coefficient of permeability of the lime and lime-surkhi mortar mixes
taken at 28 days was also determined. The repair mortars adhesion test was carried
out with a layer thickness of 5 mm after 28 days.
(a) Lime reactivity test

It was inferred from Table 8 that after addition of surkhi as mineral admix-
ture; lime reactivity parameter was 1.84 MPa which was 162% more as
compared to lime mortar, i.e. control specimen (0.7 MPa). The reactivity of
lime was triggered after addition of surkhi as mineral admixtures. As surkhi is
considered as amorphous in nature. Therefore, calcium hydroxide reacted with
glass phases of silica and alumina. And thus, formation of stronger binder paste
or secondary C–S–H was observed which increased the compressive strength
about 1.62 times.
(b) Compressive and flexural strength

Compressive strength (CS) of lime-surkhi repair mortar at time interval 7
and 28 days were determined (Fig. 4). The compressive and flexural strength
test was carried out on 50 mm cube and 200 × 50 × 50 mm prism, respectively
and results are shown in Fig. 5.
Table 8 Lime reactivity of

Materials Lime reactivity after 8 days (MPa)
surkhi
Lime 0.7
Lime-surkhi 1.84
Fig. 4 Compressive strength test on lime mortar samples

4.5
3.5
Compressive strength (MPa)
2.5
1.5
0.5
0
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18
C.S. 14 d C.S. 28 d
1.2
F.S. 14 d F.S. 28 d
1
Flexural Strength (MPa)
0.8
0.6
0.4
0.2
0
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18
Mix Numbers
Fig. 5 Compressive (above) and flexural strength (below) of lime-surkhi mortar after 14 and 28 days
of curing
As observed in the relevant past literatures, 28 days compressive strength for repair
materials (RMs) should be lie in the range of 2.5–4.5 MPa. The test result showed
that 28 days compressive strength of mix 17 provided the desirable strength of
4.20 MPa with desirable flow value of 120 mm (Table 7 and Fig. 5). Mix 17
provided maximum strength with addition of 2% HPMC polymer and 0.5% PP
fibre. This was mainly due to the presence of natural pozzolana such as surkhi.
Thus, the final optimized repair material mix based on CS and FV was selected
as-Mix17. As shown in Fig. 5, 28 days flexural strength of the same mix was
observed as 0.98 MPa.
(c) Thermo-gravimetric analysis

During TG/DTG analysis, the removal of absorbed water is directly
connected to the loss of mass up to 120 °C [16]. Water chemically linked
to the aqueous phase (such as C–S–H) is entirely responsible for mass loss in
the temperature range of 200–600 °C. The decomposition of carbonates is the
primary cause of mass loss over 600 °C. As shown in Fig. 6, lime-surkhi mortar
(Mix 17) had the lowest amount of Ca(OH)2 after 28 days in comparison with
lime mortar mixture (Mix 1).
(d) XRD studies of lime-surkhi mortar

The mortar’s XRD patterns revealed that it was mostly made up of calcite,
silica and portlandite. Calcite was derived from carbonated lime [17], while
quartz was from brick powders. From the XRD studies (Fig. 7), it can be
concluded that pozzolanic reaction between calcium hydroxide and surkhi
took place.
(e) Microscopic studies
Fig. 6 TGA curves of (Lime Lime mortar

mortar) Mix 1 and Lime +
surkhi + 2%HPMC (Mix 17) Lime-surkhi mortar
at 28 days of hydration
Fig. 7 XRD graph of lime mortar (Mix 1) and lime-surkhi mortar (Mix 17) at 28 days
SEM micrographs (Fig. 8) showed that the matrix was more compacted and
dense for mix 17 (i.e. lime-surkhi mortar sample) as compared to mix 1 (i.e.
lime mortar/control sample). It was due to amorphous nature of surkhi which
content reactive phases of glass. The incorporation of surkhi as pozzolanic
material, triggered the formation of calcium silicate hydrate and calcium alumi-
nate hydrate which are generally considered as major binder phases in this kind
of systems. The formation of these two cementitious phases caused decrement
in the porosity as shown in Fig. 8. Due to the same reason, 14 and 28 days—
mechanical strength of lime-surkhi mortar was higher for mix 17 as compared
to mix 1, as shown in Fig. 5.
(f) Permeability test

Table 9 depicts the coefficient of permeability of the lime and lime-surkhi
mortar mixes taken at 28 days. It was revealed that lime-surkhi mortar was less
porous than the lime control mortar, indicating that the coefficient of perme-
ability in lime-surkhi mortar incessantly diminishes with enhancement of surkhi
content. The apparent cause was that the pozzolanic material, i.e. surkhi tends
to absorb the vacant space in the pore composition and significantly cuts down
the permeability of the mortar as in case of Mix 17. This can be diminishing
the porosity of the mortar and the pores at a subsequent stage. There was an
optimum fibre dosage beyond which water permeability in lime-surkhi mortar
registers an increase. Test set-up is shown in Fig. 9.
(g) Adhesion test
Poor microstructure Denser microstructure
Entrapped
voids
Fig. 8 SEM micrograph of lime mortar (Mix 1) and lime-surkhi mortar (Mix 17) after 28 days of
hydration
Table 9 Permeability test of

Permeability Values K (m/s)
lime-surkhi mortar
Lime mortar (Mix 1) 1.15E−05
Lime-surkhi fibre mortar (Mix 17) 6.60E−06
Fig. 9 Specimens of lime-surkhi mortar for permeability test and permeability test chamber
As shown in Fig. 10, the results demonstrated that lime mortar showed
negligible stress on sandstone due to non-compatibility. The lime-surkhi-
polypropylene fibre mortar (Mix 17) provided adequate hardness and stress
to improve the adhesion due to pozzolana. From the results, it can also be
concluded that the addition of surkhi and HPMC increases the adhesion to the
sandstone (Fig. 10).
LM- Lime mortar (Mix 1)

LSM- Lime-surkhi mortar (Mix 14)
LSPM-Lime-surkhi-HPMC- PP fibre(Mix 17)
Fig. 10 Adhesive stress of lime mortar (Mix 1) and lime-surkhi mortar (Mix 14 and 17) after
28 days
5 Conclusions
The following conclusions can be formed based on the findings of experimental

studies:
• The optimized mix was prepared with lime: surkhi: sand as 1:3:12 and HPMC
(%) and PP fibre content of 2 and 0.5% at w/b ratio of 0.69.
• There was an optimum fibre dosage, i.e. 0.5% beyond which permeability in
lime-surkhi mortar registers an increase.
• 28 days compressive strength of mix with 2% HPMC and 0.5% PP fibre; provided
desirable compressive strength of 4.20 MPa with desirable flow value of 122 mm.
• The coefficient of permeability in lime-surkhi mortar was 42.60% less as
compared to lime mortar specimen.
• Due to amorphous nature of surkhi, microstructure of lime-surkhi mortar was
more dense and compact as compared to lime mortar.
Thus, advances in science and technology can provide intriguing and innovative
solutions in the conservation of National importance-monuments and heritage build-
ings. However the amount of resources devoted to scientific research is fairly limited.
Besides there are still significant gaps in the understanding of nature of conserva-
tion problems and their remedial measures. Research on the conservation problem
elucidates some of the scientific and technical challenges in their conservation.
Acknowledgements The authors are grateful to the Director of the CSIR-Central Building
Research Institute in Roorkee, Uttarakhand, for allowing them to publish this research. We are
grateful to ‘Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), New Delhi, Government of
India’ for the sustained financial support to the project (Project No.: HCP-0018-Task 6B).
References
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problems and building defects. Procedia—Social and Behavioral Sciences, 170, 27–36.
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5. Tumialan, J. G., Micelli, F., & Nanni, A. (2001). Strengthening of masonry structures with
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conservation of heritage buildings (CSIR-CBRI Annual Report: 1997–98).
7. Lakhani, R. (2002). Methodology for the conservation of monuments and heritage build-
ings (material issues). Presented in Strategy and Methodology for Conservation of Heritage
Buildings and Monuments organized by CBRI Roorkee, April 4–5.
8. Lakhani, R., & Singh, A. (2009). Polymeric repair materials for building applications. Rajni
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Pant Nagar on November 10–12.
9. Lakhani, R., & Tomar, P. (2013). Studies on the polymer blend for repair applications. New
Building Materials & Construction World, 19(8), 144–147.
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Bureau of Indian Standards.
11. IS-712. (1984). Specification for building limes. Bureau of Indian Standards.
12. IS-1727. (1967). Methods of test for pozzolanic materials. Bureau of Indian Standards.
13. IS-4031 (Part 4). (1988). Methods of physical tests for hydraulic cement: Determination of
consistency of standard cement paste. Bureau of Indian Standards.
14. IS-4031 (Part 5). (1988). Methods of physical tests for hydraulic cement: Determination of
initial and final setting times. Bureau of Indian Standards.
15. ASTM C1437. (2020). Standard test method for flow of hydraulic cement mortar. ASTM-
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lightweight concrete: Microstructure, statistical modeling, multi-attribute optimization through
derringer’s desirability function, and life cycle assessment. Journal of Cleaner Production, 307,
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Addition of Sea Shell Waste to Silty Sand
Subgrade for Economical Design
of Flexible Pavement
S. Muthu Lakshmi, S. Geetha, M. Selvakumar, V. J. Vedhanayaghi,

R. Mithun, and V. Karthickraja
Abstract Huge quantities of sea shell wastes (SSW) are generated from fishery
industry which are generally dumped in open landfills or oceans and sea resulting
in ecological degradation. These SSW are mostly made of calcium carbonate and
take long period to decompose thus leading to environmental pollution along sea
coasts and at dumping sites. In this project, experimental study was carried out
to determine the effect of SSW on the strength characteristics of locally available
in-situ soil, classified as Silty Sand (SM) based on its index properties. Crushed
sea shells (CSS) of size 4.75 mm to 75 µ were added in quantities of 10–40%
with SM soil to determine their outcome on unconfined compressive strength (UCS)
and on California Bearing Ratio (CBR) value of soil. Based on the experimental
investigation, for SM with 35% CSS, maximum UCS of 100.2 kPa, peak unsoaked
and soaked CBR strength of 12.9% and 6.88%, respectively were attained. Thickness
of flexible pavement was calculated by CBR method, and it was observed that for
SM with 35% CSS, percentage decrease in flexible pavement thickness of 48.1% and
52.8% was calculated with respect to unsoaked and soaked CBR values, respectively,
thus resulting in an economical construction.
Keywords Sea shell waste · Silty Sand · Unconfined compressive strength · CBR
strength · Flexible pavement
1 Introduction
Enormous amounts of sea shell wastes (SSW) are produced by fishery industry which
are disposed off along sea shore or are dumped in landfills [1–6]. SSW are hard shells
S. Muthu Lakshmi (B) · S. Geetha · M. Selvakumar · V. J. Vedhanayaghi

Faculty, Department of Civil Engineering, Rajalakshmi Engineering College, Thandalam,
Chennai, Tamil Nadu 602105, India
e-mail: muthulakshmi.s@rajalakshmi.edu.in
R. Mithun · V. Karthickraja
Department of Civil Engineering, Rajalakshmi Engineering College, Thandalam, Chennai, Tamil
Nadu 602105, India
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4040-8_61
774 S. Muthu Lakshmi et al.
whose main constituent is calcium carbonate which takes long time to decompose
thus causing litter and mess, in and around the dumping sites. Seashell contains 90%
calcium carbonate and remaining 10% consists of dust and impurities [7]. As per
Mo et al. [8], SSW is an inert material due to the high calcium oxide content. As per
Afolayan et al. [9], sea shell powder (SSP) has least pozzolanic activity compared to
other wastes but has high CaO and thus is an excellent modifier and stabilizer. XRD
analysis of calcined oyster shell waste revealed main constituent as calcium oxide,
whereas raw oyster shell waste exhibited the main constituent as calcium carbonate
[2].
Recently lot of research is carried out, in utilising different wastes generated
from diverse industries, as an additive or replacement to various man made materials
and natural resources used in the construction industry. Wastes like fly ash, quarry
waste, slag, silica fume, etc., are utilized as replacement to cement, as an alternative
to aggregates in concrete and also applied in soil stabilization techniques. Bisanal
and Badiger [10] suggested that different subgrade materials like expansive clay
to granular materials can be treated by stabilizing the soil. As per Mounika et al.
[11], utilizing SSP as admixtures is more effective compared to other stabilizing
agents. Few researchers have utilized SSW to enhance the geotechnical properties
and strength of black cotton soil [4, 12, 13].
Utilizing the wastes from different industries in construction either in its natural
form or in recycled form will reduce the amount of wastes which otherwise would
have ended in landfills thus decreasing the burden on the environment leading to
sustainable construction [4, 9, 14]. Life and maintenance of flexible pavement depend
on the strength of subgrade soil present at the site. If the subgrade is strong showing
higher CBR strength, then the thickness of flexible pavement is reduced thus resulting
in an economical construction and leading to conservation of natural resources [9,
15–18]. In the current work, an effort is made to use SSW in crushed form as an
additive to enhance the strength properties of locally available in-situ soil and to
determine the optimum quantity of crushed sea shells (CSS) to be mixed with soil
for which peak strength gain was observed. SSW are by-products of mariculture or
fish farming industry. Huge quantities of SSW generated from fishery industry are
generally dumped in available landfills in segregated form, whereas the SSW gener-
ated from local fish markets and household garbage may be needed to be separated
from other harmful waste materials before utilizing them as an additive to improve
the strength characteristics of soil. Soft flesh or organic matter may be sticking to
the hard shells which will get decomposed over a period of time. Thus after washing
the sea shells with clean water and drying them under sun, they can be utilized as
an additive with the locally available soil to improve their strength characteristics.
Based on the index properties of in-situ soil, it was classified as Silty Sand (SM).
CSS were added in percentages of 10–40% to SM, to determine the gain in shear
strength and California Bearing Ratio (CBR) strength when compared with virgin
SM soil. Based on CBR values of different mixes, thickness of flexible pavement was
calculated by CBR method assuming medium traffic and tyre pressure of 9 kg/cm2 .
Addition of Sea Shell Waste to Silty Sand Subgrade … 775
2 Experimental Results
Soil employed in the experimental work was collected in disturbed condition from
Bramadesam in Thiruvannamalai district of Tamil Nadu. Basic index properties of
soil were found out as per the Indian Standard to categorize the kind of soil [19–23].
Table 1 gives the results of the index properties of the disturbed soil sample.
Based on the index properties, soil was classified as Silty Sand (SM) as per ISCS.
Standard proctor compaction test gave MDD of 2.02 gm/cc at OMC of 13.06%.
Based on this values, soil specimen for unconfined compressive strength (UCS) tests
and CBR tests were prepared at relative compaction of 97% with light compaction
using dynamic loading.
SSW utilized in the experimental study were collected from Kancheepuram
District of Tamil Nadu. They were washed and cleaned with portable water to remove
the salinity of seawater, then dried under sun and crushed to the size of fine aggre-
gates (4.75 mm to 75 µ) before utilizing them in the lab work. Table 2 gives the
properties of CSS waste. Figure 1 shows the disturbed soil and SSW utilized in the
experimental work.
(i) UCS Test
UCS tests were carried out as per Indian Standard on virgin SM soil/control
specimen (CS) and on SM with varying percentages of CSS [24]. CSS were
added in quantities of 10, 15, 20, 25, 30, 35 and 40% by weight of soil. UCS thus
Table 1 Basic
Index properties Results
index properties of disturbed
soil sample Specific gravity 2.63
Wet sieve analysis
Gravel (%) 1.2%
Sand (%) 55%
Silt and clay (%) 43.8%
D10 (mm) 0.03
D30 (mm) 0.05
D60 (mm) 0.43
Cu 13.87
Cc 0.17
Liquid limit 45.63%
Plastic limit 27.74%
Plasticity index 17.89%
Indian standard soil classification system SM (Silty sand)
(ISCS)
Standard proctor compaction test
Optimum moisture content (OMC) 13.06%
Maximum dry density (MDD) 2.02 gm/cc
Table 2 Basic properties of

Engineering properties Results
crushed SSW
Moisture content (%) 0
Water absorption (%) 0
Particle size (mm) 4.75 mm–0.075 mm
Percentage fines (less than 75 µ) 0.8%
Fig. 1 a SSW and b Silty Sand (SM)
obtained were then compared with that of CS to determine the improvement in

shear strength. Figure 2 shows the stress–strain curves of UCS test.
As the quantity of CSS mixed with SM increased, it was observed that soil failed
at higher stress values but at lower strain, indicating that brittle failure occurred with
increase in SSW as compared to ductile failure observed for CS. This may be due
to the fact that addition of SSW to soil interferes with the bonding between the
120
100
Stress (kPa)
80
60
40
20
0
0 0.05 0.1 0.15 0.2 0.25 0.3 0.35 0.4
Strain
CS Soil + 10% CSS Soil + 15% CSS Soil + 20% CSS
Soil + 25% CSS Soil + 30% CSS Soil + 35% CSS Soil + 40% CSS
Fig. 2 Stress–strain curves of UCS test conducted on SM with varying quantity of CSS
120
100.2
100
77.27 78.4 83.01 80.42
80
UCS (kPa)
63.21
60 47.65
44.29
40
20
0
CS Soil +10% Soil +15% Soil +20% Soil +25% Soil +30% Soil +35% Soil +40%
CSS CSS CSS CSS CSS CSS CSS
Soil Specimen
Fig. 3 UCS of SM soil with varying percentage of CSS
soil grains thus leading to brittle failure. Figure 3 shows UCS of SM with varying
percentage of CSS.
Peak UCS of 100.2 kPa was achieved for SM with 35% CSS and the improvement
in UCS of 2.26 times that of CS was obtained, thus indicating that 35% CSS is the
optimal amount to be added to SM. Addition of SSW to soil improved the shear
strength of soil and this increase in UCS may be attributed to the improved resistance
offered by the soil grains along with CSS to the applied axial load. In future studies
associated to application of SSW in soil, enhancement of soil strength over a long
period of time due to the reaction occurring between calcium, silica and alumina
to produce cementitious products like calcium silicate hydrates (CSH) and calcium
aluminate hydrates (CAH) can be investigated further and also the improvement in
shear strength of soil by triaxial shear test carried under different drainage conditions
can also be studied in detail.
(ii) Thickness of Flexible Pavement based on Unsoaked CBR Strength
Unsoaked CBR tests were conducted as per Indian Standard on CS and on
SM with varying percentages of CSS [25]. CSS was varied from 10 to 40% by
weight of soil. Unsoaked CBR values thus obtained were compared with that
of CS to determine the increase in CBR value and also the thickness of flexible
pavement was evaluated based on the CBR method. Figure 4 shows the load
penetration curves obtained from unsoaked CBR tests.
As the quantity of CSS was increased, resistance of soil to plunger penetration was
also observed to increase. Load penetration curves for soil with 25–40% CSS showed
higher resistance to plunger penetration in comparison to soil with 0–20% CSS thus
indicating that addition of SSW to soil improved soil strength to large extent. Table
3 gives the increase in unsoaked CBR value of soil with variable quantities of CSS
and also the thickness of flexible pavement calculated based on CBR method which
are represented in Fig. 5.
Maximum unsoaked CBR value of 12.9% was observed for soil with 35% CSS
and improvement in CBR value of 3 times that of CS was obtained. As per Nujid [26],
unsoaked CBR increased with Cockel Shell Powder (CSP) content and this increase
450
400
350
300
Load (kg)
250
200
150
100
50
0
0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14
Penetration (mm)
Fig. 4 Load penetration curves of unsoaked CBR test
Table 3 Unsoaked CBR strength of SM with variable quantities of CSS

Soil sample Unsoaked CBR (%) Improvement in unsoaked Flexible pavement
CBR w.r.t. CS thickness (mm)
CS 4.30 – 389.5
Soil + 10% CSS 4.73 1.1 369.6
Soil + 15% CSS 4.73 1.1 369.6
Soil + 20% CSS 5.59 1.3 336.7
Soil + 25% CSS 10.32 2.4 234.0
Soil + 30% CSS 11.18 2.6 222.4
Soil + 35% CSS 12.90 3 202.3
Soil + 40% CSS 12.47 2.9 207.0
389.5 369.6 369.6

336.7
400 234 222.4 202.3 207
200
4.3 4.73 4.73 5.59 10.32 11.18 12.9 12.47
0
CS Soil + Soil + Soil + Soil + Soil + Soil + Soil +
10% CSS 15% CSS 20% CSS 25% CSS 30% CSS 35% CSS 40% CSS
Soil Specimen
Unsoaked CBR (%) Pavement Thickness (mm)
Fig. 5 Unsoaked CBR strength of SM with varying quantity of CSS and corresponding thickness
of flexible pavement
is owing to an interaction between soil grains and CSP which contains calcium
carbonate and calcium oxide whose chemical composition is similar to cement addi-
tives. For soil with 35% CSS, thickness of flexible pavement by CBR method worked
out to be 202.3 mm as compared to a thickness of 389.5 mm calculated for CS.
Percentage decrease in flexible pavement thickness of 48.1% was obtained thus
leading to an economical pavement construction.
(iii) Thickness of Flexible Pavement based on Soaked CBR Strength
Soaked CBR test was carried out as per Indian Standard on CS and on SM
with varying quantities of CSS [25]. Soil sample for CBR tests was prepared
using dynamic loading and was soaked in water for a period of 4 days. After
4 days soaking, CBR strength of different soil specimens was obtained and
compared with that of CS to determine the improvement in soaked CBR value
and also the thickness of flexible pavement was evaluated based on CBR
method. Generally, soaked CBR values are used to design flexible pavement
so that the soil strength under worst possible condition of soaking under water
for a period of 4 days is considered to design the pavement. Figure 6 shows
the load penetration curves obtained from soaked CBR tests.
SM with 30–40% CSS showed much higher resistance to plunger penetration in
comparison to SM with 0–25% CSS, thus indicating improved soil strength with
large amounts of SSW. Table 4 gives the increase in soaked CBR value of SM with
variable quantities of CSS and also the thickness of flexible pavement calculated
based on CBR method which are represented in Fig. 7.
Maximum soaked CBR value of 6.88% was observed for soil with 35% CSS
and improvement in soaked CBR strength of 4 times that of CS was observed, as
compared to an increase in unsoaked CBR value of 3 times that of CS. Addition of
SSW to SM had more positive outcome on soaked CBR strength compared to that of
unsoaked CBR strength thus indicating that SSW reduced the effect of soaking on
180
160
140
120
Load (kg)
100
80
60
40
20
0
0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14
Penetration (mm)
Fig. 6 Load penetration curves of soaked CBR test

Table 4 Soaked CBR strength of SM with variable quantities of CSS

Soil sample Soaked CBR (%) Improvement in soaked Flexible pavement thickness
CBR w.r.t. CS (mm)
CS 1.72 633.1
Soil + 10% CSS 4.30 2.5 389.5
Soil + 15% CSS 4.30 2.5 389.5
Soil + 20% CSS 4.73 2.75 369.6
Soil + 25% CSS 5.16 3 352.1
Soil + 30% CSS 6.02 3.5 322.8
Soil + 35% CSS 6.88 4 299.0
Soil + 40% CSS 6.45 3.75 310.3
633.1
800
389.5 389.5 369.6 352.1
600 322.8 299 310.3
400
200 1.72 4.3 4.3 4.73 5.16 6.02 6.88 6.45
0
CS Soil + Soil + Soil + Soil + Soil + Soil + Soil +
10% CSS 15% CSS 20% CSS 25% CSS 30% CSS 35% CSS 40% CSS
Soil Specimen
Soaked CBR (%) Pavement Thickness (mm)
Fig. 7 Soaked CBR value of SM with variable quantity of CSS and corresponding thickness of
flexible pavement
strength of soil. As per Patel and Mishra [7], increase in CBR is due to the gradual
formation of cementitious compounds. For soil with 35% CSS, thickness of flexible
pavement by CBR method worked out to be 299 mm as compared to a thickness
of 633.1 mm calculated for CS and percentage decrease in pavement thickness of
52.8% was obtained. So ideal percentage of CSS to be mixed with SM soil is 35% for
which peak CBR value was attained and minimum thickness of flexible pavement was
calculated. As per Etim et al. [17], oyster shell ash was suggested for strengthening
lateritic subgrade soil of road pavements, shoulders and pedestrian walkway in light
traffic roads. Utilizing SSW as an additive with SM subgrade soil in the construction
of flexible pavement resulted in reduction of overall thickness of flexible pavement
thus leading to decrease in thickness of base course and sub-base course layers of
flexible pavement. This will reduce the quantity of crushed aggregates, gravel, soil,
etc. which are the conventional construction materials used in subgrade, sub-base
course and base course layers in flexible pavements. This in turn will reduce the
material costs involved in the construction of flexible pavements and also lead to the
conservation of construction materials like stones, gravel, soil, etc., which are non-
renewable natural resources. Thus, utilizing SSW as an additive with SM subgrade
soil will result in a cost-effective and sustainable construction. In further studies, an
effort can be made to study the suitability of utilizing SSW as an aggregate in base
course and sub-base course layers of flexible pavement.
3 Conclusion
. Peak UCS of 100.2 kPa was achieved for SM with 35% CSS waste and
improvement in UCS of 2.26 times that of CS was obtained.
. Peak unsoaked CBR value of 12.9% was observed and improvement in CBR
value of 3 times that of CS was attained for SM with 35% CSS. Thickness of
flexible pavement based on unsoaked CBR value was found to be 202.3 mm and
percentage decrease in pavement thickness with respect to CS was 48.1%.
. Maximum soaked CBR strength of 6.88% was obtained and improvement in
soaked CBR value of 4 times that of CS was achieved for soil with 35% CSS.
Thickness of flexible pavement based on soaked CBR strength was calculated as
299 mm and the percentage decrease in pavement thickness with respect to CS
was 52.8%.
. Thus, optimal quantity of crushed SSW to be mixed with SM was found to be
35% for which peak UCS and CBR value was attained, and minimum thickness
of flexible pavement was calculated thus leading to a cost-effective pavement
construction.
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Removal of Congo Red Dye from Waste
Streams Using Polysulfone Membrane
Containing Bio-sorbent and Coated
with Chitosan
Arasavilli Srija , Sahil Chauhan , and Sk. Aakash Hossain
Abstract Industrial effluents containing dyes are difficult to biodegrade due to their
complex molecular structure and synthetic origin. This study removes Congo red
dye (CRD) using polysulfone (PSF)-based flat sheet membrane by phase in version
technique. PSF 18% is coated with different amounts of chitosan solution (0.1, 0.25,
0.5, and 1%) and loaded with Jamun leaf ash as bio-sorbent (0.1, 0.2, 0.4, 0.6, and
0.8 g). Chitosan and Jamun leaf ash both are easily available, eco-friendly, and low-
cost materials. Chitosan acts as hydrophilic additive material towards improving
the antifouling properties and performance of PSF membranes. The removal effi-
ciency of CRD is measured using a dead-end filtration setup. PSF 18% coated
with 0.25% chitosan showed 98% removal efficiency with 89 l/hm2 flow rate. PSF
18% without chitosan coating showed 91% efficiency at 0.6 gm bio-sorbent loading.
PSF 18% coated with 0.25% chitosan and bio-sorbent 0.2, 0.4, and 0.6 g showed
100% removal efficiency with 57.32 l/hm2 flow rate. Electrostatic attraction occurred
between chitosan (cation) and CRD molecules (anion). Therefore, with increased
chitosan coating (%wt), percentage rejection increased, and the flux decreased.
Keywords Polysulfone membrane · Chitosan · Congo red dye · Jamun leaf ash ·
Flux · Dead-end filtration
1 Introduction
Dyes are substances that impart colour when applied to a substrate [1]. Dyes are
widely used in textile dyeing, food processing, colour photography, paper printing,
A. Srija (B) · S. Chauhan · Sk. Aakash Hossain

National Institute of Foundry and Forge Technology, Ranchi, Jharkhand 834003, India
e-mail: srijaarasavilli@gmail.com
S. Chauhan
e-mail: sahilchauhan.ee.nifft@gmail.com
Sk. Aakash Hossain
School of Materials Science and Nanotechnology, Jadavpur University, Kolkata 700032, India
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4040-8_62
784 A. Srija et al.
7% Textile industry
8%
Dyeing industry
10%
54%
Paper and pulp
industry
21% Tannery and paint
industry
Dye manufacturing
industry
Fig. 1 Major industries that are releasing the dyes into the ecosystem, figure reproduced from [3]
pharmaceutical, and cosmetics [2–4]. Among these industries, the major indus-
tries that are releasing dyes into the ecosystem are shown in Fig. 1, they are dye
manufacturing industry, paper and pulp industry, dyeing industry, tannery and paint
industry, and textile industry [3]. Annually, the textile industry generates more than
700,000 tons of dyes and 100,000 synthetic commercial dyes [5, 6]. The release
of dyes into the environment without adequate treatment is unacceptable due to its
carcinogenic, toxic effects on human health and the environment [3, 6]. The occur-
rences of dyes, even at low concentrations, are quite visible and cause harm to marine
life by reducing the photosynthetic activity [5]. Some of the effects caused by dyes
on human health are respiratory problems, skin irritation, sneezing, itchy or blocked
noses, and sore eyes [2].
Congo red dye (C32H22N6Na2O6S2) is the first direct dye synthesized in 1883
by Paul Bottiger [7]. It has drawn special attention due to its low cost and excellent
adhesion properties. These properties of CRD are responsible for its extensive usage
in the textile industry. But, the main disadvantage of this dye is its high stability and
resistance to biological degradation [5, 8]. CRD is in powdered form with brownish-
red colour and is soluble in water [7]. It is anionic due to the presence of SO3. It is a
highly toxic, teratogenic, and carcinogenic dye [7, 8]. It causes anorexia, weakness,
gastrointestinal irritation, and lung cancer [2, 7].
Removal of Congo Red Dye from Waste Streams … 785
2 Dye Removal Technologies
There are three main dye removal methods: they are physical, chemical, and biolog-
ical. Among these techniques, the removal of dye by the physical method is the
most commonly used. Physical processes for dye removal from wastewater include
ion exchange, adsorption, and membrane filtration (microfiltration, ultrafiltration,
nanofiltration, and reverse osmosis) [3, 5, 6, 8, 9]. The advantages of this method
are its simplicity and high efficiency. In addition to these advantages, this technique
needs a very less amount of chemicals when compared to the biological and chem-
ical dye removal techniques [10]. Chemical processes include advanced oxidation
processes (AOPs), ultraviolet irradiation, coagulation–flocculation, electrochemical
treatments, oxidation, and ozonation. Most of the chemical dye removal methods are
costly when compared to biological and physical methods. These methods are also
commercially undesirable because they need a specific type of equipment and high
energy. Another unacceptable characteristic of this technique is the production of
toxic secondary pollutants, causing an extra disposal problem [10]. Some traditional
biological dye removal techniques are enzyme degradation, adsorption by microbes,
fungal cultures, algal degradation, microbial cultures, and mixed and pure culture [3,
5, 6, 8, 9]. The biological process combines the aerobic and anaerobic processes. This
process is economical, but this treatment alone is not sufficient to remove dyes from
wastewater completely [10]. A hybrid treatment technology that combines several
treatments is used to gain the most economical and efficient water quality. Examples
of hybrid treatments are membrane bioreactor and photocatalytic membrane reactor
[3]. Among all the technologies available, membrane technology is one of the phys-
ical processes which is the most suitable and promising technology for dye removal
[8].
2.1 Membrane Technology
Membrane technology includes microfiltration (MF), reverse osmosis (RO), electro-

dialysis (ED), and ultrafiltration (UF) [11]. Polysulfone, polyethylene, polypropy-
lene, and polyvinyl fluoride are polymer materials used to prepare membranes. These
membranes are placed in membrane modules such as stirred cell module, plate frame,
spiral wound, tubular, and capillary modules. These modules are operated in either
dead-end or cross-flow filtration mode to remove dyes effectively [11]. Recently,
polymers and composites made of polymers are being extensively used as adsor-
bents in both water and wastewater treatments. Some of the properties like reusability,
selectivity, and good stability make membrane technology as one of the best treat-
ment technologies for water purification [12]. In this report, polysulphone membrane
containing bio-sorbent (Jamun leaf ash) is coated with chitosan and operated under
dead-end filtration mode to remove Congo red dye. Coating the membrane with
786 A. Srija et al.
chitosan increases the hydrophilic property of the membrane. Integration of bio-

sorbents and membrane technology has led to various advances in the design of the
membrane. Integration of bio-sorbents resulted in an increase in the pore size of
membranes, thereby improving the membrane’s hydrophilicity, flux, and lifetime.
These composite membranes not only act as physical barriers for the movement
of solute molecules but also reacts with the molecules. Bio-sorbents that remove
the pollutants with low molecular weight are promising due to abundant sorption
sites, high porosity, fast adsorption kinetics, and high surface area. However, due to
their size, bio-sorbents as adsorbents require post-treatment to completely separate
them from the aqueous solution, increasing application costs. It is challenging to use
bio-sorbents for the removal of macromolecules. To overcome these drawbacks of
using bio-sorbents in water treatment, bio-sorbents are embedding polymer matrices
forming a composite membrane that will act as a barrier to contaminants and possess
synergistic effects [13]. The incorporation of nanoparticles such as Al2O3, ZrO2,
SiO2, TiO2, and zinc oxide (ZnO) improves the mechanical strength of membranes
and membrane porosity, which has a positive impact on membrane permeate flux
[14].
Jamun leaf ash (Syzygium cumini) is rich in calcium. The adsorbent mainly
consists of calcium hydroxide, calcium carbonate, and calcium oxide. The adsorption
process of fluoride by Jamun leaf ash was spontaneous, feasible, and exothermic. It
is a low-cost bio-sorbent [15]. Removal of Congo red dye is achieved by membrane
prepared from Jamun leaf ash. Polysulfone (PSF) is one of the most extensively used
polymers for the preparation of filtration membranes due to its excellent thermal,
chemical, and mechanical strength. It can also resist a wide range of pH and temper-
ature. Besides this, PSF has an added advantage of a good film development prop-
erty. But the only drawback of PSF membranes is that it exhibits a tendency of high
adsorption and deposition of foulant on membrane surfaces and within the pores of
the membrane [7].
Chitosan is made up of shells of crabs and shrimps. It is eco-friendly, easily
available, and has high hydrophilic properties. It also has high contents of OH and
amino functional groups that make chitosan a high adsorption material in water and
wastewater treatment. The derivatives of chitosan are used in many industries due to
their antimicrobial, eco-friendly, biocompatible, and antioxidant properties. Chitosan
is a polysaccharide of N-acetyl-D-glucosamine and glucosamine linked by β (1 →
4) glycosidic bonds produced by the deacetylation of chitin. Chitin is one of the most
common biopolymers. This linear polymer contains two OH groups and one amino
group in each repeating monomer, giving it a high affinity for the adsorption of dyes
[8]. Due to the excellent properties such as biodegradability, nontoxicity, low cost,
amino, and OH functional groups, chitosan is widely used as a common adsorbent
for the removal of dyes from wastewater. Chitosan is in different forms, i.e. beads,
flakes, nanoparticles, and powders [8].
The overall objectives of this work are to remove the Congo red dye from
wastewater using a polysulfone membrane containing bio-sorbent (Jamun leaf ash)
dip-coated in chitosan solution. This work also includes the casting polysulfone
membrane both with and without bio-sorbents, dip coating the membrane with
chitosan solution, calculation of flux and rejection % of Congo red dye, calculation
of porosity, and pore radius of the membrane.
3 Literature Review
The adsorption of Congo red dye by ZnO–Ze showed that with an increase in the
amount of adsorbent, the number of adsorption sites increased, which increased the
adsorption capacity. At 0.05 g adsorbent dosage, maximum adsorption is observed
[16]. More adsorbent results in unsaturated adsorption and agglomeration, making
activated carbon unavailable for adsorption. The reason behind agglomeration is
that adsorption is based on reaction points rather than reaction percentages [17]. At
temperatures 25 and 75 °C, the adsorption efficiency of CRD is 64.8 and 85.2% for
cabbage waste powder. At higher temperatures, the collision of CRD molecules is
more elevated. Adsorption sites increase because of increased pores. Effect of particle
size is explained as smaller the particle size; larger is the surface area. So, it increases
adsorption sites [18]. CRD molecules were removed by using PSF/Lantana Camara
mixed matrix membrane. L. camara is a natural, low-cost invasive plant. PSF/L.
Camara mixed matrix membrane gave 99.5% rejection efficiency [19]. Removal
of CRD from wastes streams using a membrane made of economical, eco-friendly,
and easily available eggshells. Acidic pH 4.5 shows electrostatic attraction between
CRD and eggshell membrane [20]. Increasing the initial dye concentration leads to
a decrease in the removal efficiency of the dye after a particular saturation concen-
tration, maxi adsorption capacity of 142 mg/g at 300 mg/l when ZnO–Ze is the
absorbent [16]. Polysulfone membrane casts with different caramel compositions,
a natural additive to make PSF hydrophilic and enhance the flux. This membrane
is placed in a dead-end cell filtration set up with a pressure of 1 bar and 300 rpm
to calculate flux and efficiency. The maximum efficiency is observed to be 91.25%
[7]. CRD is removed using PSF/PV A membranes incorporated with silica and ZnO
nanoparticles. The mechanism followed was the dead-end filtration technique with
pressure 0.5 bar, adsorption, and rejection mechanism [13]. The CRD rejection effi-
ciencies are 76% and 90% in p polysulfone membrane cast with 250 mg caramel
and 0 mg caramel, respectively. The water contact angle in membrane with 250 mg
and 0 mg caramel is 67.1º and 76.3º, respectively. The lower contact angle indi-
cated high hydrophilicity [7]. The water contact angle is a direct index of surface
hydrophilicity [5]. 77.8% fluoride removal efficiency was observed using Jammu (S.
cumini) leaf ash. Jammu leaf is a natural, low-cost adsorbent that mainly contains
calcium carbonate, calcium oxides/hydroxide [15]. Effect of initial concentration of
CRD and adsorption of CRD increases till saturation point after that it will decrease
[9]. The effect of contact time on CRD removal is that adsorption is faster at the
beginning and slows down gradually as the unoccupied sites decrease and reach
equilibrium [18]. Similar works for the removal of congo red dye from wastewaters
have been investigated and the major observations can be seen from Table 1.
788 A. Srija et al.
Table 1 Removal of Congo red dye from wastewaters

S. No. Materials Initial Efficiency Observations Reference
conc. (%)
(g L−1 )
1 ZnO, Zeolite 1 90 Max removal of 90% [16]
observed in ZnO–Ze at
dose—0.05 g, pH—3,
time—20 min and dye
concentration—300 mg/l
Langmuir isotherm (R2 =
0.9995) second-order
kinetics (R2 = 0.999) high
reusability
2 PSF/PVA, ZnO, 1 53.5 Less fouling, ZnO [13]
SiO2 nanoparticles better than
SiO2 nanoparticles for
CRD removal, high
hydrophilicity
3 Polysulfone, 0.05 90 Water uptake—126%, [7]
caramel flux—350 l/hrm2
Fouling reduced from 91
to 56%, contact angle
67.1º, natural additive,
dead-end filtration,
thermal and mechanical
strength, ethanol gave
100% recovery
4 Chromolaena 1 Co − 92 PES + 20% C. odorata at [23]
odorata stems, Co + PES − pH 2, time 270 min
PES 84 efficiency 99.5%,
PES − 24 Freundlich isotherm,
second-order kinetics R2
= 0.998, low cost,
eco-friendly material
5 Egg shells 1 98% Cheap and readily [20]
available material,
Langmuir isotherm
(0.999), second-order
kinetics (0.9697), maxi
adsorption at pH—4.5
dosage—7.5 mg/l, density
and moisture content of
membrane 0.38 g/cm3 and
11.63%
(continued)
Table 1 (continued)
S. No. Materials Initial Efficiency Observations Reference
conc. (%)
(g L−1 )
6 Activated carbon 0.2 94.7% The specific surface area [17]
of AC 1329 m2 /g,
second-order kinetics (R2
= 0.99), acidic condition
best (pH—2), temp =
30 °C
7 Polysulfone, L. 0.1 99.5% Natural and low-cost [19]
Carama plant, high hydrophilicity,
the contact angle is 44.2º,
and the zero-point charge
is at pH 4.5–5.5,
permeability increased by
91%
8 Surfactant 1 99.9% Time to reach equilibrium [9]
modified zeolite is 240 min by SMZ,
particles, natural adsorption 99.91% at
zeolite 140 g/l dosage,
pseudo-second-order
kinetics and Langmuir
isotherm R2 = 0.99
SMZ—Surfactant modified particles, Co—Chromolaena odorata steam, PSF—Polysulfone, PES—
Polyethersulfone, PVA—Polyvinyl alcohol, AC—Activated carbon
4 Experimental
4.1 Materials
Congo red dye powder is used to prepare feed solution; N-methyl-2-pyrrolidone

(NMP) is used to prepare different polymeric matrices; glutaraldehyde is used as a
cross-linking agent; chitosan flakes, which have high film-forming ability, are used
for membrane coating; Jamun leaf ash is used as bio-sorbent; acetic acid used as
a solvent; polysulfone crystals and polypropylene sheets are used for membrane
preparation.
4.2 Preparation of Feed Solution
The initial concentration of Congo red dye is taken as 20 mg L−1 . So, for preparation
of 20 mg L−1 solution, 0.02 gm of Congo red powder is added in 1 l deionized water
and stirred for 5 min still powder gets dissolved in water.
790 A. Srija et al.
4.3 Polysulfone Solution Preparation
7.2 gm of PSF crystals were added in 40 ml N-methyl-2-pyrrolidone to prepare an

18% polysulfone membrane. This solution is placed on a magnetic stirrer for 24 h,
till crystals dissolve in the NMP. Here, NMP acts as the solvent. In a similar way,
12, 14, 16, and 20% polysulfone membranes were prepared.
4.4 Membrane Casting process
A flat sheet membrane is prepared using a membrane casting machine. The steps
involved in the membrane casting process are as follows. Firstly, the machine surface
should be clean and should not have any water droplets. Then, place the glass sheet
on the machine surface. On the glass surface, polypropylene sheet is placed, and
N-methyl-2-pyrrolidone is added uniformly on the polypropylene sheet. The dial is
adjusted to set the thickness of the membrane to 250 μm. Pour the prepared PSF
solution on the sheet and switch on the machine. The arm of the machine will move
from one end to another. Then, remove the sheet with glass and place it in a water
bath for 1 h. Now, the PSF solution, which is in a liquid state, turns into a solid film.
This process is called phase inversion. Then, the membrane is removed from the
glass sheet and placed in water for 24 h. The prepared membrane is cut into a circle
of 2 cm radius, placed in water, and then stored in the refrigerator.
4.5 Preparation of Membrane Containing Bio-sorbent
Jamun leaf ash is used as a bio-sorbent. This was added to the PSF solution and stirred
for 24 h. The solution is made into a membrane using a membrane casting machine
and the phase inversion technique. Jamun leaf ash is obtained from BIT Mesra, and
its preparation is provided by Poonam Tirkey et al., Optimization of fluoride removal
from aqueous solution using Jamun (S. cumini) leaf ash. The synthesis procedure
of Jamun leaf ash is followed from Poonam Tirkey et al. and the as-synthesized
material is obtained from BIT Mesra[15]. The following steps are used to prepare
bio-sorbent. Jamun leaves were under senescence and fell from the tree naturally,
which were collected and washed 2–3 times with tap water then with double distilled
water. Then, they are dried under the sun for 3–4 days and dried in a hot air oven
at 70 °C for 24 h. The dried leaves are crushed and grounded into fine particles
of 200 μm size. Then, the fine powder is converted to ash by heating in a muffle
furnace for 1 h at 500 °C in the presence of air and sieved to get ash particles size
≤106 μm. 1 g dried leaf gives 0.07 g of ash. This adsorbent is an inexpensive and
readily available waste material [15].
4.6 Membrane Casted by Loading Bio-sorbents (0.1, 0.2, 0.4,

0.6, 0.8 g)
About 18% polysulfone membrane with 0.1 g bio-sorbents was prepared by adding
7.2 gm of PSF crystals in 40 ml N-methyl-2-pyrrolidone. Then, 0.1 g bio-sorbent
(Jamun leaf ash) is added to the solution and then placed on a magnetic stirrer for
24 h till crystals dissolve in the NMP. The adsorbent has an apparent density of
0.54 g cm−3 , total porosity of 53.42%, bulk density of 0.25 g cm−3 , and a specific
surface area of 34.3 m2 g−1 . The pore size is from 2 to 44.3 nm, thus based on the
percentage distribution of pore sizes, the nature of the adsorbent was mesoporous.
In a (1:5) aqueous suspension, the pH value of the adsorbent is 9.1, showing that the
adsorbent is in alkaline nature [15]. Jamun leaf is an easily available and in expensive
waste material that provides an effective and simple option for removing CRD from
wastewater.
4.7 Membrane Coating With Chitosan
The coating is done by chitosan and glutaraldehyde solutions.

Chitosan solution (0.1, 0.25, 0.5, 1%): About 0.1% solution prepared by adding
0.1 gm chitosan flakes and 2 gm acetic acid in 100 ml deionized water and place
the solution on magnetic stirrer till chitosan flakes is solve (24 h). Glutaraldehyde
solutions: Take 25 ml solution and make it into 250 ml and shake. Then, the membrane
is placed in chitosan solution for 3 min and glutaraldehyde solutions for 1 h and then
dried for 24 h.
4.8 Low-Pressure Stirred Cell (LPSC)
Low-pressure stirred cell apparatus is used to study the separation characteristics

of the membrane. It operates on dead-end filtration mode. Pressure applied should
be less than 6 bar. It is made up of SS316, which is corrosion-resistant. The PSF
membrane is placed in LPSC, and Congo red dye solution is filled from the top of
the apparatus using a funnel. Then, the setup is kept on a magnetic stirrer base for
cross-flow velocity. A sufficient amount of pressure is applied to a membrane to over-
come osmotic pressure and to generate the permeate. The permeate is collected from
permeate port. Low-pressure stirred cell works on a dead-end filtration mechanism.
792 A. Srija et al.
5 Results and discussion
5.1 Calculation of Flux
Permeate is collected for every 10 min and volume should be noted. Flux can be
measured using volume and time. Flux (J) is defined as the ratio of permeate flow
and the total membrane surface area.
Q
J= (1)
A
A is membrane surface area (Radius of membrane = 2 cm), Q is the permeate flow
rate.
Corresponding to typical wavelength of light, colorimeter is effectively utilized
to determine the absorbance of a particular solution. Beer–Lambert law has been
commonly applied for finding the concentration of known analyte in a given solution.
Consequently, law indicates that concentration of an analyte is directly proportional
thickness of cuvette and the observed absorbance. Using colorimeter, we can find
the concentration of feed and permeate at adsorption wavelength range 500–550 nm,
from which we can find reduction (%). The absorbance of Congo red dye is 0.46 for
CRD = 20 mg/l and wavelength (λ) is 500–550 nm, λpeak = 540 nm.
CF − CP
Reduction(%) = × 100 (2)
CF
CF is the concentration of the feed stock and CP is the concentration of the permeate.
The water flux of PSF 12%, 14%, 16%, 18%, and 20% is 315.9, 159.2, 94.5, 66.7,
and 39.9%, respectively. The average flux of 18% PSF membranes with chitosan
coating of 0.25%, 0.5%, and 1% is 88.77, 77.4, and 44.9 l/hm2 , respectively. The
average % reduction of 18% PSF membranes with chitosan coating of 0.25%, 0.5%,
and 1% is 97.826%, 97.826%, and 100%, respectively. The average flux of 18% PSF
membranes without chitosan coating and with 0, 0.2, 0.4, 0.6, and 0.8 g bio-sorbent
loadings is 184.4, 135.7, 209.6, 232, and 152.8 l/hm2 , respectively. The average %
reduction of 18% PSF membranes without chitosan coating and with 0, 0.2, 0.4, 0.6,
and 0.8 g bio-sorbent loadings is 97%, 91%, 70.33%, 64.3%, and 81%, respectively.
The average flux of 18% PSF membranes with 0.25% chitosan coating and with
0.2, 0.4, 0.6, and 0.8 g bio-sorbent loadings is 52.5, 57.32, 57.32, and 47.32 l/hm2 ,
respectively. The average % reduction of 18% PSF membranes with 0.25% chitosan
coating and with 0.2, 0.4, 0.6, and 0.8 g bio-sorbent loadings is 100%, 100%, 100%,
and 73.9%, respectively.
Electrostatic attraction occurred between chitosan (cation) and CRD molecules
(anion). Therefore, with increased chitosan coating (%wt), percentage rejection
increased, and the flux decreased.
5.2 Membrane Porosity
Dry–wet weight method is used to determine the membrane porosity. To get the
wet weight of the membrane, the membranes are soaked in water overnight, and
then, their weight is measured using an analytical balance. For obtaining the dry
weight of the membrane, the membrane samples are dried at room temperature and
then weighed again using analytical balance. Digital Vernier Callipers is used to
measure the thickness of the membrane. The membrane porosity is calculated using
the thickness of the membrane in the below equation [21].
Ms − Md
Pr = × 100 (3)
ρ AT
Pr = porosity, T = thickness of membrane, ρ = density of water, Ms = saturated

membrane weight, A = Surface area of membrane, and Md = dry membrane weight.
The porosity of 12%, 14%, 16%, and 20% PSF membrane is 37, 49.3, 52, and
57%, respectively. The porosity of 18% PSF membrane with 0.1, 0.2, 0.4, 0.6, and
0.8 g is 34.17, 20.57, 27.4, 36.3, and 26.7%, respectively.
5.3 Mean Pore Size Using Guerout–Elford-Ferry Equation
The pore size of the prepared membranes is calculated using porosity values obtained
from Eq. (3) and other parameters (flow rate, membrane thickness, membrane surface
area, and pressure) [22].
The average pore size is estimated using the Guerout–Elford–Ferry equation,
given below:
/
(2.9 − 1.75ε) × 8ηl Q
r= (4)
ε× A×P
r—mean pore radius, ε—porosity, Q—Permeate flow, i.e. (volume of the

permeate/unit time), η is the water viscosity, A—effective area of the membrane,
l—thickness of the membrane, and P—pressure [22].
The pore radius of 12%, 14%, 16% and 20% PSF membrane are 0.612, 0.610,
0.748, and 0.614 μm, respectively.
The pore radius of 18% PSF membrane with 0.1, 0.2, 0.4, 0.6, and 0.8 g are 0.604,
1.942, 0.581, 0.606, and 0.607 μm, respectively.
794 A. Srija et al.
6 Conclusion
Polysulfone coated with 0.25% chitosan solution showed good results. An increase in
bio-sorbent loading showed increased flux and a decrease in % rejection in PSF 18%
without coating. Increase in bio-sorbent loading showed almost similar values of flux
and % rejection for 0.2, 0.4, 0.6 g bio-sorbent loaded PSF 18% membrane with 0.25%
chitosan coating. Polysulfone membrane 18% coated with chitosan 0.25% and bio-
sorbent 0.2, 0.4, 0.6 gm shows 100% removal efficiency and flow rate 57.32 l/hm2
for Congo red dye. Polysulfone membrane 18% coated with chitosan 0.25% shows
98% removal efficiency, and flow rate is 89 l/hm2 for Congo red dye. Polysulfone
membrane 18% without chitosan coating showed 91% rejection at 0.6 gm bio-sorbent
loading. Both chitosan and Jamun leaf ash are easily available, eco-friendly, and
low-cost materials.
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red from water
Recent Progress in Newer Cementitious
Binders as an Alternative to Portland
Cement: Need for the 21st Century
Rajesh Kumar
Abstract This article reviews about different kind of newer alternative cements to
ordinary Portland cement (OPC), which can reduce energy requirements and green-
house gas emission. Some of these novel binders can be produced using low-grade
industrial waste materials and fuels. The practical feasibility of these alternative
binders can only be justified after comprehensive investigation of different physico-
mechanical, microstructural, and durability attributes. In the presented study, nine
prominent alternative cementitious binder systems, i.e., calcium sulfoaluminate–
belite (CSAB) cement, alkali-activated cement (AAC), reactive belite-rich Portland
cement (RBPC), magnesium oxides-based (MgO) cement, Belite–ye’elimite–Ferrite
(BYF) cement, carbonatable calcium silicate cements (CCSC), limestone calcined
clay cement (LC3 ), calcium sulfoaluminate (CSA) cement and calcium hydro silicate-
based cement (Celitement), are discussed along with the raw materials required for
synthesis, phases formed, required sintering temperature, etc. Along with the above,
their current position has been depicted as compared to conventional OPC binder
system. It was inferred that all the newer cementitious binders can be developed
using industrial wastes such as—low grade limestone/clay, fly ash, and slags with
attainment of the desirable physico-mechanical and durability properties along with
cost and energy reduction by 25–55%. Development of the above alternative binder
also leads to the reduction of greenhouse gases (GHGs) by 15–50%.
Keywords Calcium sulfoaluminate–belite cement · Reactive belite-rich Portland

cement · Geopolymer · Calcium sulfoaluminate cement / Low carbon cement
R. Kumar (B)
Uttarakhand 247 667, India
Department of Civil Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology Delhi, Delhi 110 016, India
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4040-8_63
798 R. Kumar
1 Introduction
Globally, concrete is the second most widely used man-made materials after water.
The major causes of wider adoptability of concrete are superior strength, long-term
durability, and fire resistance at lower cost as compared to another similar kind of
binder materials. For the production of concrete, major resources are natural aggre-
gates, i.e., sand, stone, and water. Nevertheless, to bind fine and coarse aggregates as
a heterogeneous mix, an essential ingredient is OPC, which reacts in the presence of
water. Worldwide, about two billion tons (BT) per year of cement is being produced
by cement industries. However, the manufacturing process of OPC emits a very large
amount of carbon dioxide (CO2 ) which covers almost 7% of the total greenhouse
gas emission.
Generally, OPC is the most widely used binder material. One ton of OPC clinker
is produced by taking 1.7 T of limestone, sand, clay, and iron slag. But, the increasing
cost and scarcity of pure mineral materials have signaled the cement industries to
explore newer cementitious binders. It is now being emphasized to use different
kinds of cements based on their effect on workability, physico-mechanical, and
durability properties. The major chemical compositions of OPC are CaO, Al2 O3 ,
Fe2 O3 , and SiO2 , which are replaced with newer chemical oxides, and thus form new
cementitious phases (apart from C3 S, C2 S, C3 A, and C4 AF) during newer cement
production.
2 New Generation Binders
i. Calcium Sulfoaluminate–Belite (CSAB) Cement
CSAB cement is produced by sintering fly ash, gypsum, and limestone at temperature
of about 1200–1250 °C which is less than the conventional sintering temperature for
OPC (1450 °C). After sintering, CSAB cement makes three phases, i.e., Ye’elimite
phase (C4 A3 Š) (35–70%), dicalcium silicate (β-C2 S) (< 30%) phase, and “ferrite"
phase (10–30%). Ye’elimite phase contributes to early age strength development (in
place of Alite), while β-C2 S phase provides long-term strength. As compared to OPC,
the developed CSAB cement saves energy up to 25% with reduction of limestone
quantity and CO2 by 60 and 20%, respectively. CSAB clinker is more friable and
softer than that of OPC clinker, which decreases the grinding energy. Due to the above
advantages, CSAB cements are being produced in China for more than 35 years.
Now a days, the industrial wastes such as Al-rich sludge, aluminum anodization
sludge, bottom ash, Class C, and F-fly ash, coal combustion residuals, desulfurization
gypsum, flue gas desulfurization sludge, fluidized bed combustion (CFBC) ash, and
high-alumina fly ash were being utilized as primary raw materials to synthesis the
CSAB cement. Limestone, gypsum (7%), low calcium fly ash, and phosphogypsum
were used as raw material for CSAB cement [1]. These materials were heated at
1250 °C for 30 min, and after sintering, it was found that mainly two major phases
Recent Progress in Newer Cementitious Binders … 799
Fig. 1 CS of mortar cube specimens [3]
were formed, i.e., C2 S and C4 A3 S phases. Adolfsson et al. [2] sintered limestone,
GGBS, basic oxygen/electric arc furnace slag, argon oxygen decarburisation, and
ladle slag, at 1200 °C for approximately 30 min. After sintering; clinker phases,
i.e., sulphoaluminate, C4 A3 S, etc., were formed. Jewell et al. [3] used limestone,
bauxite, fluidized bed combustion (CFBC) ash and fly ash. These raw materials were
heated at a temperature of 1250 °C. It was noticed that for CSAB cement, at w/c
ratio of 0.48, compressive strength (CS) at 56 days was 40.1 MPa (Fig. 1), while,
for OPC, CS at 56 days was 42.6 MPa at w/c ratio of 0.43. Chen and Juenger [4]
heated limestone, bauxite, desulfurization sludge, class C fly ash, coal combustion
residuals at temperature of 1250 °C for 12 h. It was found that at w/c ratio of 0.45,
CS at 28 days for CSAB (fineness of 324 m2 /kg) and OPC (fineness of 403 m2 /kg)
was 46.2 and 44.5 MPa, respectively (Fig. 2).
Ma et al. [5] developed CSAB cement by sintering limestone, high-alumina fly
ash, desulfurization gypsum (15%) at a temperature of 1250 °C for 30–150 mints.
It was noticed that CSAB cement (fineness of 357 m2 /kg) showed 28 days CS of
50.8 MPa at w/c ratio of 0.38, while 28 days CS for OPC cement was 53.2 MPa
at w/c ratio of 0.50 (Fig. 3). Da Costa et al. [6] manufactured CSAB cement at a
temperature of 1250 °C for 30 min, by using limestone, bauxite, SiO2 , gypsum,
aluminum anodizing sludge (AAS). Figure 4 depicted the observed results. It was
noticed that eco-clinkers produced (CSAB-Bx/AAS and CSAB-AAS) showed higher
CS after 28 days as compared to control CSAB cement (CSAB-Ref.).
Da Costa et al. [7] produced CSAB cement using limestone, bauxite, aluminum
anodization sludge at temperature range of 1250–1350 °C. It was depicted that
optimum sintering temperature was about 1250 °C to avoid decomposition of phases
with sulfur compound and their related SO2 emissions. Rungchet et al. [8] used
hydrated lime, Class-F fly ash, Al-rich sludge, and desulfurization gypsum to produce
CSAB cement at temperature of 1150 °C with soaking time of 1 h. It was noticed
that OPC and CSAB paste developed CS of 60.5 and 41.5 MPa at w/c ratio of 0.45
800 R. Kumar
Fig. 2 CS of PC and MS/MC/MF kind of CSAB cement [4]
Fig. 3 CS of high belite

sulfoaluminate cement
(HBSC) (gypsum: 15%) and
OPC [5]
Fig. 4 CS of CSAB clinker

pastes after 28 days [6]
and 0.80, respectively. In another study by Shen et al. [9], CS of CSAB paste was
reported as 38.5 MPa at w/c ratio of 0.50. In the study, CSAB cement was developed
by giving secondary heat treatment to primary raw materials such as—limestone,
bauxite, phosphogypsum, at 1100–1200 °C for 1 h. El-Alfi and Gado [10] used
kaolin (25%), gypsum (20%), marble sludge waste (55%) to develop CSAB cement
at temperature of 1200 °C for 1 h. The 28 days CS of CSAB cement paste was
observed as 36.0 MPa at a w/c ratio of 0.50. In the similar manner, Rungchet et al.
[11] produced CSAB cement by using hydrated lime, Al-rich sludge and desulfur-
ization gypsum, Class-F fly ash and bottom ash. The heating was done for 1 h. at
temperature of 1050 °C. It was noticed that CSAB cement paste developed 28 days
CS of 41.0–43.5 MPa.
ii. Alkali-Activated Cement (AAC)
AAC or popularly known as geopolymer cement is low carbon cementitious binder
which contains higher amount of aluminosilicates phase. Aluminosilicates phase
consists higher amount of amorphous content which gets activated in alkaline
medium and forms 3-D polymeric structures. After gaining maturity, AAC develop
superior load-bearing ability and excellent durability/environmental performance
as compared to conventional OPC ((Li et al. [12]; Shi et al. [13]). To develop
AAC, different kinds of industrial by-products/supplementary cementitious mate-
rial (SCMs) can be used along with alkaline solution and silicates (Li et al. [12]).
The chemical activation of fly ash, in presence of alkali, is depicted in Fig. 5.
The descriptive model/steps for alkali activation is shown in Fig. 6.
In the long term, AAC binders showed better durability and good modulus
of resilience as compared to conventional OPC (Naqi and Jang [14]). However,
the cost of production (per m3 ) of AAC material is calculated as 25–30% higher
than that of OPC binder. Therefore, due to cost constraint, AAC materials are not
commonly used cementitious binder in the building infrastructure. Based on compo-
sition of primary raw materials, majorly, five kinds of AAC are available, i.e., slag-
based/pozzolan/lime-pozzolan-slag/calcium aluminate blended/Portland blended—
AA cements (Shi et al. [13]). During the development of AAC binder, most sensitive
parameter is curing temperature as it affects the activation energy of AAC binder
matrix. It was found that due to increased rate of reaction with the increment in
curing temperature from 40 to 95 °C, CS was developed more quickly (Khale and
Fig. 5 Alkali activation of fly ash (Shi et al. [13])

802 R. Kumar
Fig. 6 Steps for alkali activation of aluminosilicates (Shi et al. [13])
Chaudhary [15]. Jang et al. [16] found that AAC showed the ability to immobilize
heavy metals in stabilized products with desirable CS.
iii. Reactive Belite-rich Portland Cement (RBPC)
RBPC, also known as high belite cement (HBC), is often considered as family
of OPC binder and contains more than 40% of belite content and less than 35%
of alite content. RBPC contains lower alite to belite ratio (Gartner and Sui [17]).
As C3 S synthesis requires more consumption of specific energy and CO2 emission
than the synthesis of C2 S Phase. Therefore, the production of RBPC requires lesser
specific energy, and 10% lower contribution to greenhouse gas (Scrivener et al. [18]).
The lime saturation factor (LSF) decreases from 100 to 75%, which reduces energy
requirement by 12% and reduction in CO2 emission by 6% (Figs. 7 and 8). To develop
RBPC, similar kind of raw materials is used (with less limestone) as that for OPC,
but clinkering temperature is maintained at 1350 °C, i.e., 100 °C lower than OPC.
Therefore, low-grade kiln fuels can also be used. To form reactive belite in the clinker,
0.5–1.0% SO3 is often added. RPBC showed similar 28 days CS as that of OPC and
even higher at later ages (Sui [19]). RBPC depicted lower heat of hydration (HOH)
as compared to OPC as cumulative HOH of belite was measured as half that of alite
(Taylor [20]). In China, HBC cements are used in number of construction projects
for over 15 years.
Fig. 7 Heat energy versus

LSF (%) [18]
Fig. 8 CO2 released versus

LSF (%) [18]
iv. Magnesium Oxides-based (MgO) Cement

Eco cement, as reactive MgO cements (RMC), has been manufactured first in
Tasmania. MgO cements are found in two chemical forms, i.e., magnesium carbonate
and magnesium silicate. When hydration of MgO cements take place, then magne-
sium carbonate based MgO cement forms magnesium hydroxide (also known as
brucite), while magnesium silicate-based MgO cement form magnesium silicate
hydrates. Further, brucite can form magnesium carbonate, after carbonation process.
MgO is produced after heating (pyro-processing) magnesium carbonate at dissoci-
ation temperature of about 800–1000 °C, which can be recarbonated further as per
the anticipated theory. The carbon emission was noted less for magnesium silicate
cements because no chemical bound CO2 was emitted when silicates were heated
(Lawrence [21]). The main binding phases formed were 2Mg(OH)2 ·MgCl2 ·4H2 O,
3 Mg(OH)2 .MgCl2 .8H2 O, and 9Mg(OH)2 .MgCl2 .H2 O (Maravelaki-kalaitzaki and
Moraitou [22]). Hay and Celik [23] concluded that RMC can be used as CO2
sequestration material and can show comparable CS as compared to OPC.
v. Belite–Ye’elimite–Ferrite (BYF) Cement
BYF cement is also known as Belite–calcium sulfoaluminate ferrite (BCSAF)
cement, which contains three phases, i.e., C2 S, Ye’elimite/calcium sulfoaluminate
(C4 A3 S) and ferrite/calcium alumino-ferrite/brownmillerite (C4 AF). Out of these
three phases, C2 S and C4 A3 S phases are considered as major phases (Naqi and Jang
804 R. Kumar
[14]). The most reactive phase is considered as belite, followed by Ye’elimite and
ferrite. This is an intermediate technology which falls between traditional OPC tech-
nology and CSA cement technology (Gartner and Sui [17]). Dienemann et al. [24]
observed that belite and ferrite phases can be replaced with “ternesite” (C5 S2 $, sulfate
spurrite) phase. The following reactions during the hydration of BYF cement were
noted (Gartner [25]).
When AH3 is available-
C2 S + AH3 + 5H → C2 ASH8 (strätlingite) (1)
At later ages-
C2 (A, F) + C2 S + C2 ASH8 → 2C3 (A, F)SH4 (katoite) (2)
2C2 S + 7H → C3 S2 H6 + CH (3)
2C2 S.CS + 7H → C3 S2 H6 + CH + CS (4)
BYF cement was made to reduce the production cost of CSA cement with lower
carbon footprint as compared to OPC (Gartner [26]). The BYF cementitious binders
are expansive than OPC. Because all the raw materials need for the manufacturing of
OPC are available near OPC plant. However, BYF cements require extra aluminum
rich material, which is transported from distant sites. Therefore, the cost of production
of BYF cement increases. However, less energy is required to produce per unit of
BYF clinker (www.aether-cement.eu [27]).
vi. Carbonatable Calcium Silicate Cements (CCSC)
Calcium silicate (Ca2 O4 Si) clinkers can be produced using low-lime Ca2 O4 Si
minerals like wollastonite (CaSiO3 , CS). These types of clinkers required lime up to
40%, while OPC requires CaO content up to 70%, which results decrement of CO2
emission by 30% (Atakan et al. [28]). CCSC requires low clinkering temperature,
i.e., 1200 °C which is 250 °C lesser than that is required for OPC manufacturing.
Therefore, this kind of cement consumes less amount of fuels, and thus lower green-
house gas emission. The produced cement clinker is hydrated in CO2 gas environment
at controlled temperature and relative humidity (RH). The CCSC cement develops
higher CS even at 24 h of curing irrespective to OPC which develops desirable CS
at 28 days. CCSC consumes less water because it captures water which is evapo-
rated during curing process (Gartner and Sui [17]). This kind of special concrete can
be used only for cement products without reinforcement due to the typical curing
procedure adopted (Scrivener et al. [18]; Gartner and Sui [17]), which lowers down
the pH of concrete mass up to 9.0.
vii. Limestone Calcined Clay Cement (LC3 )
As shown in Fig. 10, the LC3 is a recently developed low carbon cement that is
synergically developed by intergrinding limestone (15%) and calcined clay (30%)
with kaolinite content ranging from 40 to 70%, OPC clinker (50%) and gypsum (5%).
The developed cementitious binder have about 50% low clinker factors and showed
similar CS than that of conventional OPC binder (https://www.lc3.ch/the-material/
[29]). Apart from the hardened properties, the durability properties of LC3 cement
have found superior in chloride and sulfate exposure condition as compared to OPC.
Mishra et al. [30] performed the hydration study at curing temperatures of 27 and
50 °C; for OPC, composite cement (CC), LC3 –5%G and LC3 –8%G cementitious
binders. As shown in Fig. 9, it was found that for CC, LC3 –5%G, and LC3 –8%G
binders, HOH after 24 h., was insignificantly increased at 50 °C than that at 27 °C. It
was found that DoH of LC3 binder at 50 °C was less as compared to that that at 27 °C
from 7 day onward (Fig. 10). However, at curing temperature of 27 °C, DoH for OPC
and LC3 binders was almost same at 28 days. At 28 days and curing temperature
of 50 °C, DoH for OPC was 78%, while lowest DoH was observed for CC binders
(67%).
Mishra et al. [30] did the quantification of hydration products for OPC, CC,
LC3 (LC3 –5%G and LC3 –8%G) cementitious binders, at curing temperatures of
27 and 50 °C (Fig. 11). It was concluded that at 50 °C, carboaluminate phases
(hemicarboaluminate (Hc) and monocarboaluminate (Mc)) were not observed for
LC3 –5%G and LC3 –8%G systems. For LC3 –5%G binder, Aft content was reduced
with time due to its conversion into “alumina, ferric oxide, monosulfate” phase (Afm).
Mishra et al. [30] showed the effect of higher curing temperature on the porosity of
OPC, CC, LC3 (LC3 –5%G and LC3 –8%G) pastes hydrated up to 28 days, as shown
in Fig. 12. It was concluded that overall porosity and the pore entry diameter was
increased with high curing temperature of 50 °C. For OPC and CC mixes, the pore
Fig. 9 HOH of composite cement [30]

806 R. Kumar
Fig. 10 DoH of different

binders cured at 27 and
50 °C [30]
Fig. 11 XRD of LC3 cured

at 27o C and 50o C at 28 days
[30]
Fig. 12 Porosity graph at 28

days [30]
entry diameter was largely increased. The overall porosity for LC3 –5%G was higher
than other mixes, while LC3 –8%G mix has comparable porosity with the OPC and
CC binder mixes due to increased formation of Aft phase.
Pillai et al. [31] confirmed that the carbon footprint of LC3 concrete was lower
than that of OPC concrete with same 28 days CS. Nguyen et al. [32] concluded
that additional calcium-rich phases in LC3 cement delayed the ASR gel formation.
Yang et al. [33] performed the numerical simulation for chloride diffusion in LC3
binder system and concluded that LC3 concretes contain more pore tortuosities even
at higher water-binder ratio, than fly ash concretes. Mishra et al. [30] conducted
the quantitative backscattered image analysis for LC3 (LC3 –5%G and LC3 –8%G)
binders at different curing temperatures. A clear ring of hydration product (probably,
C–A–S–H) was observed around the grains of LC3 –5%G specimens (Fig. 13). It
was further analyzed through experimentation that intermixing of other hydration
products with C–A–S–H was higher in LC3 systems at higher curing temperature.
Through BSE-EDX analysis, it was concluded that for LC3 specimens at high curing
temperature of 50 °C, there was a significant increase in the Al/Si ratio due to increase
in quantities of Aft and carboaluminate phases.
Life cycle analysis reveals that LC3 production can reduce carbon footprint up
to 30% due to lower clinker factor and save up to 50% limestone as compared to
conventional OPC. Thus, the replacement of OPC clinker with limestone/limestone
slurry and clay in LC3 blends will curtail not only the production cost but also
greenhouse gas/non-renewable energy impact.
viii. Calcium Sulfoaluminate (CSA) Cement
CSA cements were produced by China in late 1970s. Initially, this kind of cements
was used to manufacture self-stressed concrete pipes (Habert [34]). CSA contains
higher alumina content and produced by sintering bauxite, limestone, and gypsum
in rotary kiln (Phair [35]). CSA cements contain 30% belite, 35–70% Ye’elimite and
gypsum as major phases (Chatterjee [36]). The following reaction takes place during
hydration of CSA cements (Older [37]):
Without calcium hydroxide (CH):
Fig. 13 SEM-BSE images of LC3–5%G cured at 27 °C (left) and 50 °C (right) at 28 days [30]
808 R. Kumar
2C4 A3 S + 2CSH2 + 36H → C6 AS3 H32 + 2AH3 (5)
With calcium hydroxide (CH):
C4 A3 S + 8CSH2 + 6CH + 74H → 3C6 AS3 H32 (6)
During the production of CSA cements, thermal energy reduces up to 25% along
with the reduction of CO2 emissions by 20%, as compared to OPC. Different kinds
of industrial byproducts can also be utilized in the production of CSA cements
(Ambroise and Pera [38]). Thus, CSA cements can be considered as sustainable
solution for future cement industries.
ix. Calcium Hydrosilicate Based Cement (Celitement)
Celitement binders were developed by the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT)
and considered as a newer cementitious binder. The raw materials used are similar
as that for OPC which is carbonates (limestone with 70% CaCO3 fraction) and
silicates (GGBS, fly ash, etc.) (Naqi and Jang [14]). The CaO/SiO2 ratios were
maintained in-between 1 and 2 (Stemmermann et al. [39]). To develop Celitement
binder, two stage processes are adopted. In the first stage, all the raw materials are
treated hydrothermally (150–200 °C) which produces α−C2 SH. In the second stage,
produced α−C2 SH is blended together with silicate compounds which produces
amorphous calcium hydrosilicates (Schneider et al. [40]). Stemmermann et al. [41]
observed that Celitement binder containing mortar developed CS of 80 MPa at
28 days. However, the production process, to develop Celitement binder, is little
bit complex as compared to OPC binder (Scrivener et al. [18]). Use of this kind of
cement can reduce the carbon footprint up to 50%.
3 Comparison With OPC
Overall, it can be inferred that most critical parameter while developing or synthesis
of any binder are—selection of desirable raw material, raw material proportion,
clinkering temperature, fluxing agent (to reduce the sintering time and temperature)
along with CO2 reduction potential to meet sustainable development goals. Such
as, for synthesis of OPC, only, calcareous (e.g., limestone, chalk etc.) and argilla-
ceous (e.g., clay, shale etc.) raw materials are required. But, for special cementitious
binders, as per the requirement of their physico-mechanical attributes, some other
kind of raw feed kiln materials are also required. Such as, for CSAB development,
gypsum is required in higher amount by 20% as compared to OPC. Fly ash can be
used as conventional primary raw materials for CSAB development. While, during
OPC manufacturing, fly ash is only be used as replacement of clay. Apart from the
above, CSAB synthesis takes place at temperature of 1200–1250 °C which is 200–
250 °C less as compared to OPC. Early age strength development takes place due to
Ye’elimite phase in case of CSAB cement, while the same is caused by Alite phase
in OPC cement. In comparison to OPC, process and manufacturing of CSAB cement

save energy up to 25%, along with reduction of limestone quantity and CO2 by about
60 and 20%, respectively.
However, the development of AAC cement does not require sintering process
and thus not an energy-intensive process as compared to OPC. In AAC cement, only,
aluminosilicates are used as binder phases. Therefore, different kind of SCMs such as
fly ash and slags can be used with alkaline solution and silicates. Typically, strength
inversion takes place after increasing the curing temperature from 40 to 80 °C, while,
in case of AAC cement, rapid development of CS takes place when curing temperature
increases from 40 to 95 °C [15]. Similarly, RBPC/HBC binder can be developed with
15–20% lower amount of limestone and less sintering temperature as compared to
OPC. By doing so, energy requirement reduces by 10–15% with CO2 reduction of
6–10% [18]. Synthesis of MgO cement takes place at temperature of 800–1000 °C,
i.e., 400–450 °C lower as compared to OPC. Strength development of MgO takes
place with carbonation curing unlike OPC for which water curing is required for
28 days [21]. BYF cement contains belite as most reactive phase, while C3 A is
considered as highly reactive phase for OPC cement [14]. CCSC binder develops at
lower clinker temperature, i.e., at 1200 °C and requires lower lime contain up to 40%
which is 30% lower than that of OPC. Apart from these parameters, CCSC cement
formation requires less energy/fuels as compared to OPC. However, in case of LC3
binder, typically, 50% of clinker is being used which is about 45% less as compared
to OPC. Therefore, due to less consumption of limestone for production of LC3 ,
CO2 reduces by about 30%. In the similar way, CSA and Celitement cement reduce
carbon footprint by 20 and 50%, respectively, as compared to OPC.
4 Conclusions
The presented review has discussed about the new cementitious binders as an alter-
native to OPC. Nine alternative cements have been discussed in details regarding
their production process, required raw materials for synthesis, sintering temperature
along with environment impact. Based on detailed literature review, few conclusions
are as follows:
1. Some of the binders such as CSA cement and MgO cement can replace
conventional OPC clinker.
2. The conventional raw materials and fuels, used to produce OPC clinkers, can
be replaced fully or partly to develop newer cements.
3. CSAB cement can save energy up to 25% with reduction of limestone quantity
and CO2 by 60 and 20%, respectively.
4. Compressive strength of alkali-activated slag-based cement has been found
comparatively higher than OPC and also increased when curing temperature
was increased from 40 to 95 °C.
810 R. Kumar
5. RPBC binder showed similar 28 days CS as that of OPC and even higher at later
ages.
6. 24 h CS of CCSC was 10–12% higher as compared to OPC binder.
7. Production of LC3 can reduce carbon emissions up to 30% due to lower clinker
factor and thus save up to 50% limestone than that of OPC.
Concerning the above, there is need to established cement standards and prac-
tical guidelines also, before the production of some of newer cementitious binders.
Ultimately, to meet out the sustainability goals in cement production, the suitable
techno-economic, strategic planning vision from industry owners are much needed
in the current scenario.
Acknowledgements The author is thankful to the Director, CSIR-Central Building Research Insti-
tute (CBRI), Roorkee (U.K.) for granting permission to publish this review work. The author is
grateful to ‘The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, New Delhi, Govern-
ment of India’ for the sustained financial support to the project (File Number: 19-45/2018/RE;
Project No.: GAP0090).
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Structural Performance of Ground
Granulated Blast Furnace Slag Mortar
Under Impact Loading
Geethu Elsa Thomas, P. V. Indira, and A. S. Sajith
Abstract Ground granulated blast furnace slag, can be effectively utilized as a partial
replacing material with cement while making mortar or concrete. Impact strength
acts as a critical part in structures like bridges, harbors, structures at the danger of
blast loading or natural disasters and so on. In this paper, the influence of GGBS on
the impact strength of cement mortar mix has been studied with varying percentages
(10, 20, 30, 40, 50, 60 and 70%). From experimental results, it is evident that 50%
replacement of GGBS with cement gives maximum impact strength. Also, it is found
that the addition of GGBS enhances the damage tolerance of mortar significantly. This
work also includes microstructural analysis to study the nature of bonding between
the GGBS molecules and the cement mortar using scanning electron microscopy
(SEM).An attempt is made to explain the reason for the improved impact strength
based on microstructural studies.
Keywords Impact strength · GGBS · Damage tolerance · Microstructural analysis
1 Introduction
Ground granulated blast furnace slag (GGBS), a waste product containing silicates
and aluminosilicates, can be effectively used as a partial replacement to ordinary
Portland cement (OPC) [1]. This replacement will indirectly help reduce the carbon
dioxide produced during cement production [2], and hence, utilization of GGBS is a
sustainable practice for construction. Structures may be subjected to loads that can
cause sudden impact like falling or hitting of heavy loads, blast loads, loads due
to natural calamities, etc. These are known as impact loads, and studies show that
the raw material used in construction can effectively help in reducing impact loads
[3]. Limited literature is available on the impact resistance of GGBS mortar. In this
study, the effect of replacing GGBS up to 70% with OPC on the impact resistance
G. E. Thomas (B) · P. V. Indira · A. S. Sajith

Department of Civil Engineering, National Institute of Technology, Calicut, Kozhikode, Kerala
673601, India
e-mail: geethu_p180132ce@nitc.ac.in
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4040-8_64
814 G. E. Thomas et al.
of mortar is investigated. The drop weight method [4], which is the least complex
strategy normally practiced, is utilized for finding the impact strength of mortar in
this study.
2 Materials Used
OPC grade 53 conforming to IS 12269:2013 [5] was used in the study. GGBS,
containing 34.68% CaO, 33.11% SiO2 , 21.95% Al2 O3 , 9.50%MgO,1.28% Fe2 O3
and 0.10% SO3 (specified by the manufacturer) was used in this study. The specific
gravity of GGBS is 2.91 with a specific surface area of 400m2 / kg and particle size
of 97.1 microns. M-sand was used as fine aggregate, which conforms to guidelines
provided by IS 383–1970 (Reaffirmed 2002) [6]. It was found that M-sand used
comes under grading zone II with a specific gravity of 2.68 and fineness modulus
of 2.81. A Naphthalene-based superplasticizer was used to impart workability to the
mix. Potable water was utilized in this experimental study.
3 Mix Proportions
Guidelines for preparing mortar were according to IS: 2250–1981(reaffirmed 2000)

[7]. Proportioning was done using trial and error method depending on the parame-
ters, namely amount and properties of binding materials, concentration of superplas-
ticizer and flow value. A mix proportion of 1:1.5 was taken for the study (1 cement:1.5
fine aggregate), which is approximately equal to M20 grade, that can be convention-
ally used as per the recommendation of IS 456–2000 [8] and IS 10262–2009 [9]. A
water–cement ratio of 0.35 and superplasticizer content of 0.5% of the binder were
taken. In this investigation, the cement was replaced with 20, 30, 40, 50, 60 and 70%
GGBS on a mass for mass basis. For this entire experimental investigation, the mixes
were denoted as per Table 1. The amount of fine aggregates, water–cement ratio and
superplasticizer were kept constant in all the mixes. For each mix, three samples
Table 1 Notations for

Mix Notation
various proportions of mix
100% OPC OPC
80% OPC and 20% GGBS G20
60%OPC and 40% GGBS G40
Structural Performance of Ground Granulated Blast Furnace Slag … 815
Table 2 Hardened properties

Mix Compressive Flexural Split tensile
of OPC and GGBS mortar
strength (N/mm2 ) strength(N/mm2 ) strength (N/mm2 )
OPC 50.87 5.63 2.56
G20 51.23 6.73 2.50
G30 50.25 6.89 2.54
G40 49.31 7.00 2.9
G50 50.91 7.23 3.5
G60 44.87 4.82 2.56
G70 41.03 3.80 2.06
were cast and cured in water for 28 days, and the results taken in this study were the
average values from three samples.
4 Hardened Properties
A study on hardened properties was done to understand better the mechanical

behavior of mortar after the inclusion of GGBS. Table 2 gives the details of the
test results. The results of 28th day compressive strength test show that the addition
of GGBS up to 50% provides strength almost equal to OPC mix. Also, in general,
there is a significant improvement in flexural strength and split tensile strength with
the addition of GGBS up to 50% and reduced thereafter.
5 Impact Resistance Test
(i) Specimen details

100 mm diameter and 50 mm height cylindrical specimens (as shown in Fig. 1)
after a curing period of 28 days were taken for the drop weight impact test.
Fig. 1 Test specimens

(ii) Test setup

The impact test was performed by the drop weight method in accordance
with ACI Committee 544–98 [3].A steel ball with a 4 kg mass was released
repeatedly from a height of 457 mm, which hits the specimen’s top surface.
The steel ball drop creates an impact load on the specimen, releasing impact
energy of 17.93 J/hit. The quantity of blows that cause apparent first break
was indicated, and failure blows were estimated when the total spreading of
cracks happened [10]. The test arrangement utilized for determining impact
resistance is displayed in Fig. 2.
(iii) Impact strength

Impact energy is a measure of the work done to fracture a test specimen. At
the point when the steel ball impacts the specimen, the specimen will absorb
energy until it yields [11]. According to [3], "Impact energy can be determined
using the equation:
Fig. 2 Impact test setup

Table 3 Impact energy of

Mix Impact resistance test
OPC and GGBS mortar
No. of blows at No. of blows at Impact energy (J)
first crack failure
OPC 18 120 21,519
G20 20 130 23,312
G30 16 135 24,209
G40 25 136 24,388
G50 24 142 25,464
G60 15 63 11,297
G70 19 56 10,042
E = N×m×g×h (1)
where ‘N’ is the number of blows that cause the failure of the specimen, ‘m’
is the weight of the steel ball, ‘h’ is the freely falling height of ball and ‘g’
is the acceleration due to gravity.” Impact energy calculated for the various
mixes is displayed in Table 3.
Highest impact energy is for G50 mix, which is 18.33% more than that of the
OPC mix. G60 and G70 mix were having a low impact energy compared to other
mixes. G60 mix has 47.49% lower impact energy and G70 mix has 53.33% lower
impact energy than the OPC mix. This can be clarified by the presence of unreacted
GGBS, going about as a filler material in the matrix, bringing about lower strength
[12]. Fig. 3 shows the variation of impact energy due to the addition of GGBS.
(iv) Microstructural study

SEM images (as per ASTM C1723 [13]) of OPC mortar mix and G50 mortar
mix are shown in Fig. 4. Table 4 explains the various labels used in the SEM
image. Smooth surfaces were observed in G50 mix and this is expected to be
due to the fineness of GGBS. Less number of pores were observed in G50 mix
than the OPC mix. It is observed that the hydration reaction of GGBS is poor
compared to that of cement. The particle size for GGBS grains is less than
that of cement and gets occupied in the space between the cement particles,
lessening frictional forces and resulting in a less porous matrix [12]. Hence,
G50 mix has a denser microstructure compared to OPC mix, resulting more
impact energy than OPC mix. Some unreacted/ partially reacted particles were
observed in both the mixes. Air voids are also visible in case of OPC mix.
(v) Failure modes and crack patterns
The failure patterns of the tested disks (rear surface) are shown in Fig. 5. A brittle
failure was identified on the surface of the specimen, which breaks into two halves.
Fig. 3 Impact energy variation
Fig. 4 SEM image for OPC mix and G50 mix
Table 4 Label and its

Label Description
description
A Pores
B Unreacted or partially reacted slag
C Smooth surfaces
D Air voids
Fig. 5 Failure crack patterns
6 Conclusions
This study is an experimental investigation on the impact resistance of GGBS mortar.

This research also focuses on low-cost sustainable construction practices. From the
test results, the following conclusions are made:
. The inclusion of GGBS in mortar improves the mechanical properties signifi-
cantly.
. The inclusion of GGBS up to 50% improves the impact energy by 18.33% when
compared to OPC mortar.
. SEM analysis shows that G50 mix has a less porous structure and has more smooth
surfaces, indicating a denser microstructure.
. The study on the hardened properties indicates that G50 mix can be taken as the
optimum mix.
Future scope
Studies on the impact resistance of GGBS mortar show that GGBS can be effectively
utilized as a raw material on structures like railway sleepers, crash barriers, fencing
post, kerbs, etc., which are mostly subjected to impact loading. Hence, this study
can be expanded to real-life structures for a better understanding of the performance
under impact loading. Also, investigations related to the durability of GGBS mortar
in extreme conditions and its corrosion resistance can be studied [13].
Acknowledgements The authors would like to thank the National Institute of Technology, Calicut,
and DST-SAIF, Cochin for supporting the work.
References
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5. IS 12269–2013. (2009). Ordinary portland cement, 53 grade -specification, 1st revision, Bureau
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natural sources for concrete, 9th reprint, Bureau of Indian Standards, New Delhi.
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mortars, 5th revision, Bureau of Indian Standards, New Delhi.
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performance of the fiber reinforced concrete. Materials, 9, 704.
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13. ASTM C1723–16, Standard guide for examination of hardened concrete using scanning
electron microscopy.
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Geopolymer Concrete. In IOP Conference Series: Materials Science and Engineering (Vol.
936, No. 1, p. 012008). IOP Publishing.
Comparative Study
of Micro-Silica-Based Concrete Using IS
and DOE Methods
Parveen Berwal, Rajesh Goel, Rishav Garg, and Arun Kumar
Abstract There is abundance use of high-performance concrete (HPC) in construc-

tion industry for marine and important structures. To get this type of concrete,
different types of admixtures are added to increase the strength, durability and worka-
bility of concrete. For designing HPC, various types of admixtures are available in the
market like fly ash, rice husk ash, alccofine, micro-silica, etc. These admixtures can be
used up to a limit at which it gives maximum strength and beyond that limit strength
of concrete decreases. The present experimental work is investigated on replacement
of micro-silica with cement for 0, 7.5 and 10% with addition of super plasticizer. The
concrete mix of M50 high-performance concrete is used in this experimental work.
Two design mix specifications, i.e., Indian Standard (IS) and Department of Envi-
ronment (DOE) British methods, are adopted for this work. Comparison of these two
is carried out for compressive strength of concrete. With 7.5% replacement, there is
7.587% increase in strength by Indian Standard (IS) method and 7.602% increase in
strength with the Department of Environment (DOE) method. DOE method shows
1.657% more strength than IS method after 28 days with 7.5% replacement level;
cost of DOE method is more than IS method, but strength of both methods is almost
same; DOE method has only 1.657% more compressive strength than IS method. The
study reflects that Indian Standard (IS) method is more economical than Department
of Environment (DOE) method.
Keywords Micro-silica · Compressive strength · Admixture · IS method · DOE

method
P. Berwal (B) · R. Garg · A. Kumar

Department of Civil Engineering, Galgotias College of Engineering and Technology, Greater
Noida, India
e-mail: parveen.berwal@galgotiacollege.edu
R. Goel
Department of Civil Engineering, NICMAR, Bahadurgarh, India
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4040-8_65
822 P. Berwal et al.
1 Introduction
The concrete is a widely used construction material than any other type of construc-
tion material [1]. It is more popular because of its durability, strength and economical
and can be easily manufactured at site. We can conveniently form it into desired shape
and size. It is a mixture of cement (binder), fine aggregate, coarse aggregate and water
[2]. The binder material binds the aggregates with use of water and gives a plastic
material. When water is added to make concrete, chemical reactions take place which
is called hydration of cement [3]. By that reaction cement binds the aggregate and
gets hardened with the passing of time. Due to molding property of concrete, we
can build multi-story buildings, dams, bridges, with ease in any type of environment
like aggressive, polluted and industrial, whereas other construction materials are not
economical and durable [4]. Conventional cement concrete is designed on the basis
of compressive strength. Concrete is to be designed for properties like workability,
durability and strength. These properties of concrete depend on basic properties of
materials used for making concrete.
As there are advancement and new discoveries in civil engineering, different
types of new materials are used while designing of concrete [5]. A high-performance
concrete is also designed by adding admixtures in concrete. HPC is a concrete which
possess high workability, high strength, high density, low permeability and resistance
to chemical attack [6]. It has more workability with less water–cement ratio. High-
strength concrete and high-performance concrete are different from each other [7].
A high-performance concrete is more workable without any segregation or bleeding
while transporting and placing. So, it is easily placed in highly reinforced structural
members with less effort while placing. It gives high early strength so formwork
can be early removed for next use and also require less curing [8]. For designing
high-performance concrete, we use admixtures, which may be mineral/pozzolanic
admixtures or chemical admixtures. Mineral admixtures are fly ash, rice husk ash,
micro-silica or silica fume, surkhi, metakaolin and alccofine [9]. These materials are
by-product or waste materials that are used as cementitious materials. The chem-
ical admixtures are used like plasticizers, superplasticizers, retarders, accelerators
according to requirement.
HPC has been designed by low water–cement ratio, so it gave high strength. But
low w/c ratio affects the workability of concrete. For making concrete more workable,
superplasticizers are used that makes concrete more workable with less w/c ratio
[10]. Researchers have described HPC as with high strength and low permeability.
For high strength and low permeability, concrete should have low volume of pores.
For this, silica fume is used in concrete [11]. They also describe characteristics of
HPC which are as follow: early age strength, density, toughness, heat of hydration,
ease of placement and compaction without segregation and durability. Micro-silica
improves the fine strength of concrete because it has more specific surface area and
very fine particles. These fine particles fill the voids that are not filled by cement
particles. So, micro-silica makes the concrete denser, impermeable and increases
strength [12].
Comparative Study of Micro-Silica-Based Concrete … 823
For designing of concrete, a design process is required. This design process is

given by mix design. Mix design: It is the process of selection of suitable materials and
suitable amount of each material to produce concrete of minimum required strength,
workability and durability in economical way [13]. Good designing of concrete
has two objectives—first, it should give minimum strength as per requirement of
project, and second, it should be in economical limits. These all parameters depend
on quality and quantity of aggregates, cement, water and other special ingredients
[14]. The quality of ingredients and ratio during concrete making gives strength and
durability. This study is based upon comparison of two design processes for obtaining
mix design and determining the cost effectiveness of the method.
1.1 Materials and Methods
For designing of high-performance concrete cement, fine aggregate, coarse aggre-

gate, micro-silica and superplasticizer are required. Ordinary Portland Cement (OPC)
43 grade was used for experimental work. Different tests were carried out on cement
before use for work. These tests included consistency, fineness, initial and final setting
time and compressive strength test. Specific gravity of cement was 3.15. Locally
available crushed sand passed through 4.75 mm IS sieve was used in designing of
HPC. It fulfilled the properties of fine aggregates as per IS 383-1970 which comes
under Zone II. The coarse aggregate used in experimental work was obtained as
available in local market. Coarse aggregate of sizes 10 and 20 mm was used and
the particle was retained on a 20 mm sieve and passed on a 40 mm sieve was used
separately and the particle passing from a 12.5 mm sieve and retained on a 10 mm
sieve is used separately. Compressive strength of concrete mixes was checked after 7
days and 28 days. Water absorption for coarse and fine aggregates was also corrected
for each mix [15]. Figure 1 shows the OPC used in the present study, Fig. 2 shows
the Micro Silica used in the present study, and Fig. 3 shows the Coarse aggregate
used in the present study. Table 1 shows the requirements of materials as per IS
method and Table 2 shows the Mix designation used in the present study as per IS
code 10262-2009.
Fig. 1 OPC
Fig. 2 Micro-silica
Fig. 3 Coarse aggregate
Table 1 Requirement of materials as per IS method

Material Amount Water absorption Extra water Required water Corrected
(kg/m3 ) (%) required (kg/m3 ) weight of
(kg/m3 ) material
(kg/m3 )
Cement 500 500
Micro-0% 0 0
Silica 5% 37.50 37.50
Silica 10% 50 50
Water 175 175 189.04
F.A 772.63 1.2% 9.27 763.36
C.A 20 mm 713.34 0.40% 2.85 14.04 710.49
C.A 10 mm 384.14 0.50% 1.92 16.10 382.18
Admixture 10 10
Table 2 Mix designation used for IS: 10,262–2009 method

Mix designation Weight of MS Cement (Kg) C.A 20 mm (Kg) C.A 10 mm (Kg) FA(kg)
MX0 0 17 24.15 12.99 25.95
MX1 1.27 17 24.15 12.99 25.95
MX2 1.70 17 24.15 12.99 25.95
An experimental work is carried out on high-performance concrete. High-

performance concrete (HPC) is designed by Indian Standard (IS) code method and
Department of Environment (DOE) method. Micro-silica with 0, 7.5 and 10% is used
in concrete as mineral admixture for both methods. Results obtained from both stan-
dards are compared with each other. Consistency of cement increases as we increase
the percentage replacement of micro-silica. Initial setting time of cement decreases
rapidly, and final setting time does not show much variation (almost constant) indi-
cating the early participation of micro-silica in hydration reaction (Figs. 4, 5 and
6).
Compressive strength of specimen cubes is determined by testing them on
compression testing machine. It is tested for 7 days and 28 days for both IS method
and DOE method. Firstly, 7 and 28 days strength of IS method is discussed, and then,
by DOE method, 7 and 28 days strength values are shown.
30.5
30
Consistency of Cement %
29.5
29
28.5
28
27.5 Consistency
27
26.5
26
0% 7.50% 10%
Micro Silica Replacement %
Fig. 4 Consistency analysis
Fig. 5 Initial setting time of 250

Initial Setting Time (Minutes)
cement
200
150
Initial setting
100 time
50
0
0% 7.50% 10%
Fig. 6 Final setting time of 350
final Setting Time ( Minutes)

cement 300
250
200 Final setting
150 time
100
50
0
0% 7.50% 10%
Fig. 7 Compressive strength 70

Compressiev Strength ( N/mm2)
analysis by IS method
60
7 days
50 Compressive
40 strength
30
28 days
20 Compressive
strength
10
0
0% 7.50% 10%
2.1 Compressive Strength by IS Method
Compressive strength of concrete is tested after 7 days and 28 days. Concrete mix
with 0%, 7.5% and 10% cement replacement with micro-silica is compared. After 7
days, 7.5% replacement gives 7.311% increment in strength, and 10% replacement
shows 9.787% increment. For 28 days compressive strength, 7.5% replacement gives
7.587% and 10% replacement of micro-silica gives 1.555% increment of strength.
In 7 days strength, 10% cement replacement with micro-silica shows maximum
strength, whereas after 28 days, 7.5% replacement of cement with micro-silica gives
maximum strength (Fig. 7).
2.2 Compressive Strength by DOE Method
Compressive strength of concrete is also tested with DOE design method. Same
replacement levels as IS method of cement with micro-silica are used for this method.
Seven and 28 days compressive strength is tested. For 7 days compressive strength,
Fig. 8 Compressive strength 70
Compressive Strength (N/mm2)

analysis by DOE method 60
7 days
50 Compressive
40 strength
30 28 days
Compressive
20
strength
10
0
0% 7.50% 10%
Micro Silica replacement %
7.5% replacement shows 5.563% and 10% replacement level of cement with micro-
silica gives 7.540% more strength as compared with 0% replacement of cement with
micro-silica. For 28 days compressive strength with DOE method, 7.5% replacement
level shows 7.602% increment in compressive strength of concrete, whereas 10%
replacement shows 3.560% increase in compressive strength of concrete. In this
method also, for 7 days strength, 10% replacement of cement with micro-silica
shows highest strength, but after 28 days 7. Five percentage replacement level shows
maximum strength (Fig. 8).
2.3 Comparison of 7 Days Strength
Here, we compare the compressive strength of IS and DOE method after 7 days
compressive strength. DOE method slightly gives more strength than IS method
for all replacement levels. For 0% replacement, DOE method has 2.59% more
strength than IS method. For 7.5 and 10% replacement level, it has 0.92 and 0.494%
more compressive strength than IS method. For both methods, after 7 days, 10%
replacement level shows maximum strength (Fig. 9).
2.4 Comparison of 28 Days Strength
In 28 days compressive strength comparison, both methods show maximum strength

at 7.5% replacement level. DOE method shows more strengths than IS method. At
0% replacement, DOE method has 1.643% more strength than IS method. For 7.5 and
10%, DOE method shows 1.657 and 3.649% more strength, respectively (Fig. 10).
48

Fig. 9 Compressive strength
comparison at 7 days by IS 47 Compressive
and DOE methods 46 strength at 7
45 days by IS
method
44 Compressive
43 strength at 7
42 daysby DOE
41 method
40
0% 7.50% 10%
Micro Silica replacement %
Fig. 10 Compressive 63
strength comparison at 28 62
days 61 Compressive
60 strength at 28
days by IS method
59
58
Compressive
57 strength at 28
56 days by DOE
55 method
54
0% 7.50% 10%
3 Conclusion
Micro-silica replacement in conventional concrete is recently used nowadays. It is a

waste material and used in concrete at place of cement. It has cementitious property
and hundred time finer particles than cement. Micro-silica particles fill the voids
of cement particles that make concrete less permeable than conventional concrete.
Due to filling of voids with micro-silica particles, the strength of concrete mix also
increases. The present study is investigated on behavior of micro-silica dosage to
concrete mix with use of super plasticizer. In this study, we also compare the two
design mixes, IS code design mix and DOE design mix, and found the following
results:
1. In 7 days compressive strength, for 7.5% replacement, there is 7.311% increase
in strength by IS method and 5.563% as per DOE method.
2. In 28 days compressive strength, for 7.5% replacement, there is 7.857% increase
in strength by IS method and 7.602% increase in strength with DOE method.
3. In 7 days compressive strength, for 10% replacement, there is 9.787% increase
4. In 28 days compressive strength, for 10% replacement, there is 1.555% increase

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A Feasibility Study on the Potential
Usage of Engineered Cementitious
Composites in Indian Pavements
Saahil Dhaka, Mukund Lahoti, and Shreyas Pranav
Abstract The global concrete consumption has been rising at over 2.8% per annum,
reaching as high as 4.08 billion metric tons in FY-2021 alone. A significant chunk
of this is being used in pavement construction to eventually reduce the usage of
traditionally utilized asphalt and RCC in pavements and to improve environmental
impact, pavement performance, and life. This study addresses the potential of using
engineered cementitious composites (ECC) in comparison with traditional materials
like RCC. The scope of this paper includes an in-depth analysis of material prop-
erties, economic benefit, and the lifecycle assessment of ECC, in comparison with
RCC and an another alternative fiber-reinforced concrete (FRC). The framework thus
established to analyze the feasibility of ECC in the Indian context is based upon the
use case of FRC as discussed subsequently in the form of a case study. A similar basis
has been utilized to discuss a case study on an M45 ECC mix. A similar skeleton
approach can be followed to comprehend and analyze the cases of ECC usage in
any alternative geography or climatic condition by choosing a mix suitable to the
respective location, material availability, and logistics. It is found that ECC offers
a 30% reduction in total lifecycle costs as compared to conventional concrete if a
50-year analysis period is considered.
Keywords Engineered cementitious composites · Fiber-reinforced concrete · Life

cycle assessment · Pavement · Concrete
1 Introduction
Concrete is the most widely used anthropogenic construction material. Its composi-
tion involves cement, aggregates, sand, and additives such as plasticizers, retarders,
accelerants, among others. In concrete, the highest CO2 -emitting component is the
cement, and cutting-edge research and development are focusing on finding a suit-
able replacement to mitigate the adverse environmental damage. One such material
S. Dhaka · M. Lahoti (B) · S. Pranav

Department of Civil Engineering, Birla Institute of Technology and Science, Pilani 333031, India
e-mail: mukund.lahoti@pilani.bits-pilani.ac.in
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4040-8_66
832 S. Dhaka et al.
is fly ash, a cementitious material that can be used in appropriate proportion to

manufacture concrete. Similarly, fine aggregates can also be replaced with indus-
trial waste materials like sawdust, mining, and construction and demolition wastes.
Collectively when these materials are used proportionally in proper quantities, the
severity of impact on nature can be diminished considerably.
The second crucial aspect of engineered structures is the reinforcement. Tradition-
ally, steel besides other metals has been widely used. The emerging trends in research
suggest the substitution partial/major of this component with engineered fibers. Engi-
neered cementitious composites or ECC are composites with highly ductile fibers
as reinforcement. ECC composites have myriad material properties that pave the
way for cost-sensitive and eco-friendly construction and offer considerable room for
tailoring the mix.
Material properties such as cracking, thermal behavior, strain-hardening as well as
tensile strain capacities can be specifically calibrated for custom use. This report aims
to discuss the use of ECC in flexural pavements and is based upon the usage of FRC in
the same. An emphasis on cost, fiber footprint, and cracking behavior is given as well.
As stated by Li [1], cracks due to environmental action, i.e., freezing and thawing and
loading conditions, allow for penetration of malicious foreign substances that can
substantially damage the reinforcing steel and the surrounding concrete. This issue
can be resolved with ECC because of its slow Griffith cracking and strain-hardening
behavior, which can cause a delay in the spread of the crack. An example of ECC
used as a bridge deck link slab in Southern Michigan is shown in Fig. 1 [2].
For the Indian context, a suitable mix for pavement construction has been chosen
to analyze the material, physical, and feasibility aspects of construction to establish
correlation in the use case of ECC. The suggestions made regarding ECC for long-
term developments include operation and maintenance and replacement aspects,
which were dissected while establishing cost and safety analysis. The framework
thus established enables the reader to explore the idea of green and sustainable
construction practices.
Fig. 1 Use of ECC as a

bridge pavement link slab in
Michigan, USA [2]
A Feasibility Study on the Potential Usage of Engineered Cementitious Composites … 833
2 Case Study: Existing Usage of FRC
FRC or fiber-reinforced concrete is composites that utilize steel or polymer fibers

as the primary reinforcement. IRC: SP:46 “Steel Fiber Reinforced Concrete for
Pavements,” guidelines were published in 1997 for the usage of FRC in India. In IRC:
SP:46–2013 [3], polymer-based fibers have been introduced, and guidelines for their
usage in flexural pavements have been provided. PSFRC or polymeric structural FRC
has been incorporated in crucial bridge decks and highway pavements, a tincture
of the huge potential they carry. The fiber content for these construction ranges
between 0.5 and 1.5% by volume, about 4.5–14 kg/m3 for polypropylene fibers as
per the IRC report. The predominant role played by FRC is controlled cracking,
improved flexural toughness, and fatigue endurance under flexure. An example of a
steel fiber-reinforced concrete pavement is shown in Fig. 2 [4].
According to the report [5], “The state of the art—practice of fiber-reinforced
concrete,” FRC mixtures will have over 2 million cycles at 65–90% of static flexural
strength for non-reversed loading and only slightly less for reversed loading. The IRC
guidelines also state that the usage of 32 µm polypropylene fibers at about 1.5 kg/m3
in high strength concrete prevents explosive spalling in case of a fire when compared
to the standard regular pavements.
The comparison of cost between FRC and composites, without fibers as primary
reinforcement, depicts that the FRC has a greater initial investment. These extra
costs can be neglected, when looking at the significant number of benefits in terms
of postcrack behavior, which prevents excessive maintenance of the structure, and
is an essential safety parameter. Microfibers with finer diameters ranging 8–32 µm
provide a higher specific surface area that helps in the reduction of plastic shrinkage
cracking, which is specifically suitable for the Indian situation due to the hot and
humid weather conditions.
Since ECC provides better material properties for pavements which have been
discussed subsequently, an obvious question arises, whether ECC replaces FRC due
to significantly lower maintenance costs, lower environmental impact, and material
availability in the Indian context as well. The feasibility of FRC has been established
in the above analysis, but the switch to ECC requires a low critical fiber fraction
(fiber/volume) to make the transition practical. The critical fiber fraction needs to be
Fig. 2 Example of a
pavement made of steel
fiber-reinforced concrete [4]
834 S. Dhaka et al.
low enough to reduce cost and at the same time above the threshold for FRC such
that the composite follows strain-hardening behavior instead of tension-softening in
FRC.
3 Material Properties: A Comparison Between ECC

and FRC
The predominant factor in ECC properties is the microstructure tailoring that allows
for optimization of the material strength parameters as well as cost and safety. ECC
allows suitable flexibility for flexural pavements if the fiber volume is kept low enough
with a suitable matrix. ECC thus provides flexible preprocessing before setting and
resultant high composite ductility when completely charged.
4 Cracking and Safety
The fundamental difference between ECC and FRC is the strain-hardening behavior
in the former as compared to the tension-softening in the latter. Steady-state crack
analysis [6] is based on a spring model to analyze the crack, where the nonlinear
springs are considered to be holding opposite ends of the crack. Hence, when the
fiber-matrix interface turns too strong, the springs rupture, and when the interface
strength is low, the fiber pulls out. The complementary energy is the difference
between the load and the fiber-matrix energy, and if this energy is low, then the mix
shows a typical Griffiths crack.
The analysis of Griffiths crack has been widely studied. It reveals that in FRC,
tension-softening follows the crack tip, as the crack propagates itself, and hence, the
failure of composite occurs at a lower load-carrying capacity. As this process repeats,
a multiple cracking behavior is observed and the clear disadvantage is that it does not
provide sufficient warning before the complete structural failure of the composite.
The complementary energy criteria and the stress–strain curve thus play a significant
role in deciding whether the composite will display FRC-like tension-softening or
the desired ECC strain-hardening behavior.
Strain-hardening of ECC is observed when the complementary energy is consid-
erable. In this case, the crack remains flat as it propagates [1], and another crack
is formed at a different site in the same matrix. Thus, the tensile load-carrying
capacity is maintained, and failure is prevented until further cracking. To obtain
this behavior from the composite microstructure, tailoring is required considering
energy and stress–strain curve parameters. The governing parameter here becomes
the critical fiber volume fraction. A fiber volume greater than prescribed by this frac-
tion allows for strain-hardening behavior. This fraction is primarily dependent on the
fiber-matrix properties and their interaction. The major drawback that can be stated
here is the large amounts of fiber required to design suitable ECC composites for
flexural pavements, which significantly increases the cost of design. Hence, a lower
critical fiber fraction is cost-efficient and desirable.
5 Strength and Performance
A key feature of ECC is the very high ductility which prevents structural failure
caused by fracture cracking. The compressive strength in the context of RCC or even
FRC is the governing parameter while deciding structural strength. The compressive
strength is hence almost synonymous with material strength. In the case of ECC
composites, however, the cracking behavior is not that of tensile fracture, and there-
fore, the structural strength is derived from the toughness and ductile nature of ECC.
According to the observations by Lim and Li [7], over 35% structural strength of
ECC composites can be attributed to their ultra-ductile nature.
The second significant advantage of RCC/ECC structural elements over traditional
R/C is the shear capacity of ECC. Similar to strain-hardening in the case of tensile
cracking, ECC develops multiple aligned cracks due to its ductile nature. This feature
can provide a significant advantage for the Indian flexural pavements where the
mixing of traffic and overloading of vehicles causes frequent shear failures.
ECC elements are suitable for structural elements such as road pavements where
load concentrations are frequent. This feature is attributed to the high damage toler-
ance of ECC, which has been demonstrated time and again [8]. The fact that ECC
has high ductility and a tensile strain-carrying capacity makes it suitable for elastic
recovery and prevents permanent deformation in the material. When used along with
steel reinforcements, ECC fibers are compatible in deformation with the matrix. Thus,
the load is smoothly transmitted at the interface of the two, and inelastic deformation
is avoided. In the case of RCC elements, stress is driven away from the crack site,
due to the inability of the interface to transfer stress effectively leading to permanent
deformation.
The above discussion shows the benefits of using ECC in structural elements with
higher tensile load and cyclic loading conditions. The discussion also sheds light on
the long-term durability of ECC attributed to its material properties and fiber-matrix
compatibility. The lower crack width of ECC of around 60 µm [9] allows for lesser
penetration of sulfates and chlorides, further enhancing the durability of the material
and longevity of the functionality offered. The following section analyzes a particular
mix with a future use case in Indian roads. The mix portrays the above-mentioned
material and safety properties and its suitability for Indian conditions.
836 S. Dhaka et al.
6 Case Study: Mix Chosen for Indian Conditions
The aforementioned analysis of the material properties and requirements of ECC

advocates a use case for the same in flexural pavements. As per the experimentations
done by Zhou and Qian [1], ECC can be customized to exhibit properties of suitable
tensile strain resistance properties. The standard M45 ECC mix [10] which had been
used as a benchmark in their studies suits the purpose of this report and satisfies
the requirement of Indian roads as well. The mix follows the following ratios of
Portland cement, silica sand, fly ash, water/powder ratio, superplasticizer, and PVA
(by volume), respectively: M45: 1: 0.8: 1.2:0.2: 0.013: 0.002.
The ductility of the said mix is in the 3–7% range suitable for roads. The compres-
sive strength studies show that this mix exceeds the required 20–40 N/mm2 for
familiar Indian roads. The composite follows a metal-like cracking behavior, after
the advent of the first crack, exhibiting tensile hardening, whereas asphalt pavements
tend to fracture soon after the first crack. The significant advantage here is the fiber–
matrix interactions, which play an essential role while determining strain-hardening.
In this case, polyvinyl alcohol fibers are chosen as the fiber for reinforcement, due to
the pull-out resistance in a cement-based matrix, due to their slip-hardening nature.
On Indian roads and highway decks, the primary issue arises when vehicular traffic
mixes with slower commercial and freight traffic. This leads to increased braking at
higher speeds, often damaging the surface layer of the pavement by traffic movement,
and the increased load of commercial traffic is then able to fracture the pavement. In
the case of ECC that utilizes PVA fiber, the tensile stress is bored by the fiber after
the first crack in the pavement, thus enabling the composite to withstand increasing
loads. The composite is also able to exhibit multiple cracking behaviors after the
onset of cracking due to the fiber slip-hardening behavior.
Another predominant advantage of this mix is the cost consideration. Silica sand
and fly ash are readily available raw materials in India and have been historically
used in glass, ceramics, and steel industries, respectively. The following discussion
on the use case of FRC in India and the existing code includes a cost–benefit analysis
highlighting the capital benefits of the chosen mix.
7 Case Study: Discussion on Existing Code for FRC
In the 2013 Indian Road Congress, future application of fiber-reinforced concrete

was suggested in pavements as well as for other structural applications. The key
highlight of the guidelines was the first step in discussing suitable fiber dosage in
pavements. Table 3 of IRC: SP:46–2013 [3] suggests fiber dosing in kg/m3 versus
in percentage terms for steel and propylene fibers. A simple factor of molecular
weight when multiplied to values for polypropylene can be used to obtain PVA fiber
requirements for the chosen mix. The second practical aspect discussed in the code
is that of handling the fibers (workability), as well as mix proportioning. Appropriate
discussion on the use of plasticizer to increase workability as well as control slump

has been discussed which can directly be followed for ECC as well.
The second half of the report discusses the aspects of design while using fiber-
based concrete and is based on IRC-15 [11] and IRC-58 [12]. The primary parameter
chosen is the modulus of subgrade reaction (k-value) and based upon this input,
the layer interaction as well as life span, etc., of the pavement can be calculated.
The subgrade properties are also represented by the k-value and are also critical in
determining the separation membrane. The membrane is used to de-bond the base
from the sub-base to the top layer to contract. This allows for the accounting of the
additional stress due to temperature and shrinkage between the layers.
The yield line analysis approach is used for the design and check of the ultimate
moment capacity of the pavement. The benefit of this approach is that it considers
ultimate strength and not only the first crack strength which suits the strain-hardening
behavior of ECC as well. The ultimate moment is determined in the laboratory
before design, using Meyerhoff’s analysis, Losberg’s yield line analysis, or numerical
analysis. Since these techniques are also suitable for ECC, a similar analysis can be
carried out. The IRC: SP:46–2013 [3] thus provides an appropriate framework to
design ECC-based flexural pavements. These guidelines, combined with the suitable
properties in the previous section, make a rather strong case for the use of ECC
in flexural pavements in India. But instead of making any suggestions, we have
established a solid framework, with the ultimate choice resting on the engineer to do
the analysis and take the desired call.
8 Cost–Benefit Analysis and Challenges in Adoption
The economic aspects of the usage of materials in pavements become a pivotal factor
in the case of developing countries often overshadowing the environmental, health,
and safety aspects. The following analysis has been done, keeping in mind the most
updated and standard raw material cost in India. The mix design is the same as the
M45 mix [13] discussed in the previous section, and the costs taken are the latest
market rates in the Indian subcontinent for accurate comparison. The following table,
Table 1, represents the cost calculations about the chosen mix with PVA-based fibers
for optimum cracking behavior. The costs have been obtained from the Indiamart
Web site.
Based on the above-mentioned ECC mix, the cost of ECC for one cubic meter
was calculated. The average lifespan of an RCC structure is approximately 25 years,
whereas that of an ECC-based structure is around 50 years [14]. For this analysis,
calculations have been done for both 25 and 50 years assuming the RCC structures
will be repaired only after 25 years.
The cost per liter of the ECC mix under consideration was calculated above in
Table 1 and then used to obtain the cost for a one-meter cube of the mix to be
compared with RCC. The maintenance cost was added to this by assuming a yearly
depreciation factor. For ECC, this maintenance cost [14] was directly considered
838 S. Dhaka et al.
Table 1 Cost–benefit analysis for ECC and FRC

Material Ratio by Quantity Specific Volume Cost Total
weight (kg) gravity (L) per kg cost
for M45 mix we(kg/L)
OPC 1 1 3.15 0.3174 | 8.001 | 8.00
Micro-silica sand 0.8 0.8 2.25 0.3556 | 5.002 |4.01
Fly ash 1.2 1.2 1.9 0.6315 | 1.003 |1.19
Superplasticizer 0.013 0.01 1.15 0.0087 | 105.004 |1.05
PVA fiber 2% by 0.0076 1.19 0.00634 | 450.005 |3.40
volume of
OPC
Water 0.2 0.2 1 0.2 0
Table 2 Life cycle

Total volume of ECC mix (L) 1.52
assessment of ECC and FRC
Total weight of ECC mix (Kg) 3.22
Cost of ECC mix INR/L | 11.61
Cost of ECC mix in INR/cubic meter | 11,611.84
Cost of same grade RCC in INR/cubic meter | 6,200.006
The maintenance cost of RCC/cubic meter YOY | 291.54
The maintenance cost of ECC/cubic meter YOY | 60.64
Total life cycle cost of RCC/cubic meter | 13,488.50
(25 years)
Total life cycle cost of ECC/cubic meter | 13,127.84
(25 years)
Total life cycle cost after repair (50 years) of | 20,077.00
RCC/m3
Total life cycle cost after repair (50 years) of | 14,643.84
ECC/m3
for 50 years and added to the initial cost, whereas for RCC, it was considered for
25 years and then doubled. The depreciating factor for concrete was taken to be the
10-year inflation in India to understand the economic hike in raw material prices.
The life cycle analysis for the ECC pavement is presented in Table 2.
1 https://www.indiamart.com/proddetail/opc-53-43-ppc-src-cement-packaging-type-bag-loose-
packaging-size-50-kgs-in-bag-21391060130.html.
2 https://www.indiamart.com/proddetail/micro-silica-sand-12958026648.html.
3 indiamart.com/proddetail/fly-ash-22455527148.html?pos=2&kwd=fly%20ash&tags=A||||7918.6953|Price|proxy.
4 https://www.indiamart.com/proddetail/white-pc-based-admixture-superplasticizer-packaging-
type-can-barrel-packaging-size-50-kg-6931636197.html.
5 https://www.indiamart.com/proddetail/pva-fiber-13544890888.html.
6 https://www.indiamart.com/proddetail/m45-ready-mix-concrete-22173303512.html?pos=4&kwd=m45%20concr
The discussion so far, as it is clear from Table 2, makes a strong case for adopting
ECC, if chosen so post-analysis. There is a 30.5% reduction in the total life cycle
costs if a 50-year time period is considered. Still, many real-life challenges are asso-
ciated with policy changes required to accept ECC as a potential partial replacement
of concrete. The primary is the safety stigma related to the use of ECC. The poli-
cymakers are often of the opinion that traditional building techniques are safer. The
tenders are drafted based on a short-sighted approach and ignorance of the long-term
sustainability goals. Thus, subsidies are also not provided to contractors willing to
switch to green construction.
The second most important reason for ECC adoption is the unprecedented levels of
pollution in developing economies. The steel industry and construction around Delhi
NCR have caused the worst air quality in the world in the national capital of India.
The usage of ECC promotes the use of fly ash which is the waste product of energy
generation plants. The ECC mix chosen for this study provides good workability
and can be made in batching plants outside city limits. The use of plasticizers also
reduces water demand. The third important aspect is the safety of ECC as compared
to traditional RCC, which can prevent multiple accidents.
The policymakers need to fund more research into the development of green
composites for sustainable construction practices to meet the demand of developing
India as well as meet the United Nations Sustainable Development goals and charters
of the Paris Agreement. This manuscript highlights one aspect and material of green
building that can be relevant to the construction of roads in the Indian subcontinent
and other countries with similar geographic and economic conditions.
9 Conclusions
The results of the cost–benefit analysis, as well as life cycle assessment, demonstrate
that when considering a 50-year lifespan of flexural pavements usage of ECC makes
a strong environmental and economic case. The analysis has been done for the Indian
subcontinent and takes into account the weather, design, and safety requirements as
well as existing code and policy. It is clear that long-term use of oil-based PVA fibers
in ECC decreases the cost by 30.5% based on the availability of such fibers in the
region along with other raw materials. A similar analysis can also be done with other
fibers and aggregates based on the availability in the chosen location, and similar
results can be obtained by varying the significance of each component. The inherent
nature of this study is to establish a framework through which the feasibility and use
case of such materials can be established and can be modified according to the needs
of the geographic region under consideration.
Acknowledgements The authors would like to thank the support for this research project from
Birla Institute of Technology and Science, Pilani, Pilani Campus, India.
840 S. Dhaka et al.
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structor.org/concrete/fiber-reinforced-concrete-in-pavements/4781/. Last Accessed 22 October
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Comparison of Dimension Limestone
Waste Coarse Aggregates
with Traditional Coarse Aggregates
Mahesh Sharma, Pankaj Rawat, and Aditya Rana
Abstract Concrete production is extensive nowadays for various engineering appli-

cations, and it has been estimated that approximately 26.8 billion tons of concrete are
produced annually. To overcome the deterioration of natural resources and sustain-
able environment once need to find an alternative sources to produce sustainable
concrete. The present work emphasizes on curtailing the disposal-related pollution
from mining of dimension limestone waste which can act as replacement of coarse
aggregates in concrete mixes. Concrete mixes with different types of coarse aggre-
gates like dimension limestone waste, sandstone, basalt, and quartz are prepared at
three different water cement ratio that are 0.35, 0.45, and 0.55. The properties like
compressive strength, chloride penetration, water permeability, and abrasion resis-
tance are evaluated for all concrete mixes. The experimental results indicate that
dimension limestone waste shows higher strength and higher abrasion resistance
than the sandstone aggregates at 0.45 and 0.55 w/c suggesting that its utility can
be used for high as well as low strength concretes. Also, the dimension limestone
waste coarse aggregates shows more durability than sandstone aggregates when water
permeability properties and chloride penetration test results were compared.
Keywords Dimension limestone waste · Mining · Sustainable concrete ·

Durability
M. Sharma
Department of Civil Engineering, Himachal Pradesh University Institute of Technology, Shimla,
P. Rawat (B)
Department of Civil Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology, Roorkee, Uttrakhand 247667,
India
e-mail: prawat@ce.iitr.ac.in
A. Rana
CSIR-Central Institute of Mining and Fuel Research, Dhanbad, Jharkhand 826015, India
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4040-8_67
842 M. Sharma et al.
1 Introduction
Concrete is considered as an important component in construction and building

industry. Due to industrialization and urbanization, the demand of concrete is
increased for various construction activities. To overcome the demand and judicially
usage of coarse aggregates various researcher studied the use of alternative sources
like steelscrap, fly ash, copper slag, and biomass bottom ash rather than going for
conventional coarse aggregates [1–5]. Some of the researchers also investigated that
lime stone powder produced from dimension lime stone industry could be used as
coarse aggregates to produce sustainable concrete. The research considering dimen-
sion limestone as coarse aggregates is limited in context of durability and mechanical
properties.
Rana et al. [6] studied the utilization of dimension stone waste (DSW) and
confirmed that the workability of concrete remains same when dimensional lime
waste (DLW) coarse aggregates was used as cement or coarse aggregate. Elçi et al.
[7] evaluated the chemical properties of concrete containing DLW as coarse aggre-
gates. The concluded results by their studies suggested that it could be used as a
normal concrete with strength less than 42 MPa. Kumar et al. [8] studied the proper-
ties of concrete containing sandstone waste as coarse aggregates. They compared the
properties of sandstone concrete with control concrete in terms of sulfate attack resis-
tance, compressive strength, and flexural strength. The results obtained for sandstone
concrete were lower than of control concrete. Binici et al. [9] studied the properties of
concrete having marble and granite waste as coarse aggregates. The result from their
studies incorporates the increase in the workability, hardened properties, and dura-
bility performance of concrete when compared with the conventional concrete. Due
to limited study in durability and mechanical properties of DLW concrete, the present
study aims to evaluate the compressive, abrasive resistance, chloride penetration, and
water permeation properties of DLW concrete. The conventional concrete (basalt,
sanstone, and quartz) and DLW concrete properties are compared, and it was found
that as DLW concrete could be used for high and low strength concretes. Also, usage
of DLW coarse aggregates could be a great help in curtailing the disposal related
pollution from lime stone mining operation and to produce sustainable concrete.
2 Experimental Details and Materials
The materials used in the sample preparation were Ordinary Portland Cement grade
53. Specific gravity of cement was 3.15 and it acts as a binder for all coarse aggregates.
Coarse aggregates were taken in a fixed proportion from the sieves of 16–12.5 mm:
12.5–10 mm: 10–4.75 mm: 4.75–2.36 mm: 0.40: 0.10: 0.40: 0.10 to achieve a similar
gradation. The different coarse aggregates used in the present study are provided in
Fig. 1, and the physical properties of different aggregates used in this concrete are
shown in Table 1. Polycarboxylate ether-based superplasticizer was used in all mixes
Comparison of Dimension Limestone Waste Coarse Aggregates … 843
Fig. 1 Different coarse aggregates used in concrete mixes
Table 1 Physical properties of different coarse aggregates used in concrete

Physical property Types of coarse aggregates
DLW Basalt Quartz Sandstone
Specific gravity 2.70 2.72 2.70 2.67
Crushing value 25.85% 14.62% 17.33% 24.93%
Impact value 22.50% 15.92% 17.68% 21.62%
Load required for 10% fines 24.35 t 32.30 t 26.73 t 24.42 t
Water absorption 0.36% 0.17% 0.40% 0.40%
Surface moisture content 0.08% 0.03% 0.08% 0.08%
Elongation and Flakiness Index 28.15% 22.80% 23.35% 23.30%
Angularity Number 6 5 5 6
to produce a workable concrete. River sand with size (0–5 mm) was used as fine
aggregate.
3 Details of Mixtures and Specimens
During the formation of concrete mixes, a total of 12 concrete mixtures were formed,
and the behavior of conventionally produced concrete using coarse aggregates (basalt,
quartz, and sandstone) was compared with DLW concrete at three w/c (0.35, 0.45,
and 0.55). The representation of the mixes has been given by three capital alphabets
followed by a numeric value. More detailed explanation of mixes in terms of symbol
representation and mix proportion are shown in Tables 2 and 3.
Table 2 Symbols and their

Water cement ratio
representation at different
water cement ratio (w/c) Symbol 0.35 0.45 0.55
C-concrete mix CQA1 CQA2 CQA3
QA-quartz
C-concrete mix CBA1 CBA2 CBA3
BA-basalt
C-concrete mix CSA1 CSA2 CSA3
SA-sandstone
C-concrete mix CKA1 CKA2 CKA3
KA-DLW
Table 3 Mix proportion of different concrete ingredients (kg/m3 )

Mix W/C Water Cement River sand Coarse aggregate (16 mm) SP
CBA1 0.35 137.19 391.96 439.24 1278.26 5.40
CQA1 0.35 137.19 391.96 439.24 1278.26 5.40
CSA1 0.35 137.19 391.96 439.24 1278.26 5.40
CKA1 0.35 137.19 391.96 439.24 1278.26 5.40
CBA2 0.35 137.19 391.96 439.24 1278.26 3.90
CQA2 0.45 176.38 391.96 439.24 1278.26 3.90
CSA2 0.45 176.38 391.96 439.24 1278.26 3.90
CKA2 0.45 176.38 391.96 439.24 1278.26 3.90
CBA3 0.45 176.38 391.96 439.24 1278.26 1.10
CQA3 0.45 176.38 391.96 439.24 1278.26 1.10
CSA3 0.55 215.58 391.96 439.24 1278.26 1.10
CKA3 0.55 215.58 391.96 439.24 1278.26 1.10
As per IS 516:1959 [10], the standard cubes of size 100 × 100 × 100 mm were
tested for compressive strength at intervals of 7, 28, and 90 days. A constant loading
rate of 140 kg/cm2 /min up to the failure was applied on all specimens. The compres-
sive strength was expressed as an average load of three specimens, and all the loads
recorded were in MPa. Figure 2 depicts the compressive strength of all coarse aggre-
gates at (0.35, 0.45, and 0.55) w/c. From Fig. 2, the recorded compressive strength
of basalt aggregate concrete was slightly greater than that of quartz aggregates at
all w/c after 7, 28, and 90 days. Also, the compressive strength evaluated for DLW
concrete was more than sandstone concrete as w/c ratio changes from 0.45 to 0.55.
Fig. 2 Compressive strength of concrete mixes at 7, 28, and 90 days a 0.35 w/c, b 0.45 w/c, c 0.55
w/c
Compressive strength results from the present study were in order basalt > quartz >
DLW > sandstone for both 0.45 and 0.55 w/c.
4.2 Abrasion Resistance
The code provision by IS 9284:1979 [11] was used to calculate the resistance to
abrasion of a concrete specimen of 100 × 100 × 100 mm sizes. The results from
the abrasion resistance for all coarse aggregates at different w/c are presented in
Fig. 3. From Fig. 3, it was found that the depth of wear is maximum in the case of
DLW concrete when compared to all other concretes. But initially, from compres-
sion tests, we have found that compressive strength of DLW concrete was higher
than sandstone concrete at 0.45–0.55 w/c. However, its abrasion resistance was less
than the sandstone concrete at 0.45 and 0.55 w/c. This was because hardness and
abrasive resistance of aggregates also governs the abrasion resistance apart from the
compressive strength. From Fig. 3, it was observed that the resistance to abrasion for
concrete specimens was in the order basalt concrete < quartz concrete < sandstone
concrete < DLW concrete at all w/c. The maximum wear in DLW concrete at all
Fig. 3 Depth of wear during

abrasion test of concrete
specimens
water content was less than 3.5 mm, and thus it can be used for an application of
tiling and flooring.
4.3 Water Permeability
The codal provision DIN: 1048-1991 (part-5) [12] was used to calculate the perme-
ability of standard cubes of 150 × 150 × 150 mm sizes. The standard concrete cubes
were cured in water for 28 days before testing, and the cured specimens were taken
to oven where they remain there for 14 days at a maintained temperature of 60° . After
oven drying, the specimens were subjected to a constant water pressure of 500 kPa
for 3 days. After three days, the samples were cut into two halves and water penetra-
tion was evaluated along the length of the specimen. The resulted water permeation
depth was taken as an average of three individual results.
Water permeability being a durability parameter, and it depends on aggregate size
and their water content. The variation in the permeability of concretes at all w/c was
in the order sandstone > DLW > quartz > basalt as mentioned in Fig. 4. DLW concrete
shows better resistance to water penetration when compared to sandstone in terms
Fig. 4 Water permeability

of concrete mixes at different
w/c ratio
Fig. 5 Chloride penetration

in concrete specimens at
different w/c ratio
of water permeability as presented in Fig. 4. From the previous studies conducted

by researchers Torgal and Gomes [13] concluded that mortar-aggregate interface
containing dense porous spaces shows lesser amount of permeability. Basalt being
having a denser motor interface show less permeation to water, whereas sandstone
shows higher water permeation due to porous mortar-aggregate interface.
4.4 Chloride Penetration
Chloride penetration test was done on the samples by recommending the earlier
studies carried out by authors Aldea et al. [14], and Wee et al. [15]. In the present
study, we have utilized the change in color technique to identify the penetration of
free chlorides ions. The chemical reaction between AgNO3 and sodium chloride
gives the white color (AgCL) which indicates the presence of chloride over the split
surface of concrete cubes. In the present study, to estimate the mean depth of color
change, three measurements were made at an interval of 20 mm along all the four
sides.
The results from Fig. 5, indicate basalt being having a dense and narrower cement
aggregate interface shows maximum resistance to chloride ion penetration. At all w/c
ratio the order of chloride penetration is in the order basalt concrete < quartz concrete
< DLW < sandstone. DLW concrete shows better resistance to chloride penetration
when compared with sandstone concrete at all w/c ratios. Thus, DLW concrete could
be preferred over sandstone in the areas where chloride ions can affect the durability
of concrete.
5 Conclusions
. Basalt coarse aggregates showed superior strength among all other coarse aggre-
gates at all w/c ratio. DLW concrete also demonstrated higher strength at w/c
0.45–0.55 when compared with sandstone concrete. The strengths results from
the present study suggested that DLW coarse aggregates could be a possible
alternative over sandstone coarse aggregates in terms of compressive strength.
. Conventional coarse aggregates like basalt and quartz demonstrated better resis-
tance to water permeation. The results obtained for DLW coarse aggregate even
showed better resistance to water permeation and chloride penetration when it
was compared with sandstone coarse aggregates.
. DLW coarse aggregates could be suggested as an alternative over conventional
coarse aggregates like sandstone. Also, waste disposal from limestone mining
could be curtailed by effectively using DLW coarse aggregates in producing
sustainable concrete.
References
1. Mavroulidou, M. (2017). Mechanical properties and durability of concrete with water cooled
copper slag aggregate. Waste and Biomass Valorization, 8, 1841–1854.
2. Morone, M., Costa, G., Georgakopoulos, E., Manovic, V., Stendardo, S., & Baciocchi,
R. (2017). Granulation-carbonation treatment of alkali activated steel slag for secondary
aggregates production. Waste and Biomass Valorization, 8, 1381–1391.
3. Agrela, F., Beltran, M. G., Cabrera, M., Lopez, M., Rosales, J., & Ayuso, J. (2017). Properties
of recycled concrete manufacturing with all-in recycled aggregates and processed biomass
bottom ash. Waste and Biomass Valorization, 0, 1–13.
4. Gonzalez-Corominas, A., Etxeberria, M., & Poon, C. (2017). Influence of the quality of recycled
aggregates on the mechanical and durability properties of high performance concrete. Waste
and Biomass Valorization, 8, 1421–1432.
5. Pitarch, A. M., Reig, L., Tomás, A. E., & López, F. J. (2017). Effect of tiles, bricks and
ceramic sanitary-ware recycled aggregates on structural concrete properties. Waste and Biomass
Valorization, 0, 0.
6. Rana, A., Kalla, P., Verma, H. K., & Mohnot, J. K. (2016). Recycling of dimensional stone
waste in concrete: A review. Journal of Cleaner Production, 135, 312–331.
7. Elçi, H., Türk, N., & İşintek, İ. (2015). Limestone dimension stone quarry waste properties for
concrete in Western Turkey. Arabian Journal of Geosciences, 8, 8951–8961.
8. Kumar, S., Gupta, R. C., & Shrivastava, S. (2017). Long term studies on the utilisation of quartz
sandstone wastes in cement concrete. Journal of Cleaner Production, 143, 634–642.
9. Binici, H., Shah, T., Aksogan, O., & Kaplan, H. (2008). Durability of concrete made with
granite and marble as recycle aggregates. Journal of Materials Processing Technology, 208,
299–308.
10. BIS: Method of tests for strength of concrete (1959).
11. BIS: Method of test for abrasion resistance of concrete (1979).
12. DIN 1048: German standard for determination of permeability of concrete (1991).
13. Torgal, F., & Castro-Gomes, J. P. (2006). Influence of physical and geometrical properties
of granite and limestone aggregates on the durability of a C20/25 strength class concrete.
14. Aldea, C. M., Young, F., Wang, K., & Shah, S. P. (2000). Effects of curing conditions on
properties of concrete using slag replacement. Cement and Concrete Research, 30, 465–472.
15. Wee, T. H., Suryavanshi, A. K., & Tin, S. S. (2000). Evaluation of rapid chloride permeability
test (RCPT) results for concrete containing mineral admixtures. ACI Material Journal, 97,
221–232.
Replacement of Natural Aggregate
by Glass Waste in Granilite Concrete
Nara Cangussu, Gabriel Braga, and Lino Maia
Abstract The study of polished concrete floors is relevant when related to technical
and durability requirements, since its use is very common in places with large exten-
sions. In this exploratory work, it was proposed the comparison between the granolith
floor and the floor produced with glass waste to replace the natural aggregate in order
to verify the performance of the specimens, in addition to seeking a purpose for the
glass, which is barely reused by society. Analyzes were carried out: visual of the
specimens; strength to hard body impact; the tensile strength in bending; compres-
sive strength; and hard body impact strength test. Visual analysis identified more
intense shine and larger amounts of holes on the surface of the specimens in which
the glass was used. In the hard body impact resistance test, the specimens produced
with the glass presented superior results when compared to the reference specimens.
In the flexural tensile strength test, the specimens produced with the glass (4.3 MPa)
presented lower results than the reference specimens (8.0 MPa); nevertheless, both
specimens showed satisfactory results. In the compressive strength test, the results
obtained in both specimens (13.8 MPa and 18.4 MPa, respectively) were below the
minimum required for industrial floors (20 MPa). The hard body impact strength test
demonstrated the opposite: the specimens produced with the glass presented higher
value (30 cm) than the specimens made with the granite (26 cm).
Keywords Recycling · Floors · Glass waste · Strength
N. Cangussu (B) · L. Maia

CONSTRUCT-LABEST, Faculty of Engineering (FEUP), University of Porto, Rua Dr. Roberto
Frias, 4200-465 Porto, Portugal
e-mail: naracan@gmail.com
N. Cangussu · G. Braga
Center of Exact and Technological Sciences, Civil Engineering Course, State University of Montes
Claros (UNIMONTES), Campus Prof. Darcy Ribeiro, Montes Claros, MG 39401-089, Brazil
L. Maia
Faculty of Exact Sciences and Engineering, University of Madeira, Campus da Penteada,
9020-105 Funchal, Portugal
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4040-8_68
1 Introduction
According to Brazilian Micro and Small Business Support Service [1], the waste
generated by human activity is superior to nature’s ability to adapt and absorb the
impacts caused by them. Thus, it is necessary to use waste reuse techniques. Further-
more, the practice of recycling brings numerous benefits to society, such as increased
employment and income generation, reduced extraction of natural resources and
reduced space used to deposit the generated waste [1]. The impact of using ground
glass powder as either a cement replacement material or as an aggregate replacement
material on the fresh and mechanical properties of Portland cement concrete were
investigated [2–8].
National Confederation of the Chemical Industry [9] highlights that glass is one of
the materials that are easier to recycle, becoming 100% recyclable. However, despite
having properties that make it highly recyclable, the recycling rate of glass in Brazil
is approximately 18%, that is, it is a material little reused in society, which brings
consequences such as irregular disposal [9].
The Article 1 of Law No. 5.177, of September 6, 2019, of the Municipality of
Montes Claros-MG (Brazil) [10] states that the collection, storage and final desti-
nation of non-returnable glass bottles, long-neck model, by resellers, suppliers or
manufacturers are mandatory. In addition, companies and industries that buy this
waste are located in other states, such as São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro, impacting
the cost of transport and making the process unfeasible.
Knowing that glass has a great recyclable potential and is a little used material and
given the financial impossibility of transporting it to reuse points, this paper seeks
to analyze the application of glass waste as an aggregate in polished concrete floor
boards, seeking an alternative to the final disposal of this material. The analyzes were
carried out comparing the results between specimens of floors manufactured with
recycled glass and specimens produced with natural aggregate, based on adapted
technical regulations, since there are no standards in Brazil that regulate polished
concrete floors.
Granolith, a concrete coating that has granite and marble as the commonly used
natural aggregates, has its main application in floors that need good strength and
high durability, as it is frequently used in places that demand an intense flow of
people [11].
For the comparison between specimens produced with natural aggregate (grano-
lith) and recycled glass, tests were performed on impact strength of hard body, flex-
ural tensile strength and compressive strength, in addition to visual analysis of the
specimens.
Replacement of Natural Aggregate by Glass Waste in Granilite … 851
(a) Obtaining the materials

The granite used in the production of the specimens was supplied by a company
specialized in the manufacture of polished floors in the city of Montes Claros/MG.
The glass was supplied by the company Viva Verde Recycling, which specializes in
the processing of civil construction waste for reuse. The glass is crushed and then
subjected to vibration and washed in order to remove impurities.
A visual particle size comparison was performed between the aggregates,
according to Fig. 1. It is noticeable that both the natural aggregate, in the lower left
corner of the image, and the recycled glass, in the lower right corner of the image,
have similar grain dimensions. Furthermore, when compared to gravel #1—in the
upper part of the image—which has a maximum characteristic dimension (MCD)
equal to 19 mm, they present smaller grain dimensions. Figure 1 shows gravel #1
used for size reference only.
(b) Production of specimens
For molding the specimens, wooden molds were produced. Plywood sheets was used
as a base and slats as dividers, in addition to nails for fixing the pieces. The slats
were cut using a portable circular electric saw.
The specimens were produced in specific dimensions and quantities according to
the tests performed, as shown in Table 1. For the flexural and compressive tensile
strength tests, a total of six specimens, with dimensions of 4 × 4 × 16 cm, were
produced. For the hard body impact strength test, a total of ten specimens, with
dimensions 20 × 20 × 1.5 cm, were produced. For the visual analysis test, among
Fig. 1 Particle size

comparison of aggregates
Table 1 Quantities and dimensions of specimens according to tests

Essay Specimen produced with Specimen produced Specimen size (cm)
natural aggregate with glass residue
Tensile strength in 3 3 4 × 4 × 16
bending and
compression
Hard body impact 5 5 20 × 20 × 1.5
resistance
Visual analysis 1 1 20 × 20 × 1.5
those manufactured to carry out the hard body impact resistance test, two specimens
were selected.
For the production of the concrete used in the specimens, the mix 1:1.6
(cement:aggregate–by mass) was adopted, commonly used by the makers of grano-
lith flooring in the city of Montes Claros/MG. In addition, a water/cement ratio of
0.45 was used, also applied by local companies.
The preparation of the concrete took place manually, and then, the molding of the
specimens was carried out. The densification was carried out using a socket, with 60
blows being applied to the specimens with dimensions 4 × 4 × 16 cm and 30 blows
to the specimens with dimensions 20 × 20 × 1.5 cm. The deformation was carried
out after 24 h, and the specimens were submitted to cure, submerged in water for
28 days.
After the curing process, the specimens were polished. Initially, the pieces were
submitted to polishing using a circular grinding wheel attached to a manual sander
to remove imperfections on the surfaces, leaving them flat. After that, a roughing
sandpaper P36 was used and then a roughing sandpaper P60 to finish the polishing
of the specimens. After polishing, the specimens were washed with water to remove
dirt and, after drying, two layers of acrylic resin were applied to the surface of the
specimens.
(c) Visual analysis of specimens
A visual comparison was proposed between two specimens with dimensions 20 ×
20 × 1.5 cm, one being produced with natural aggregate and the other using recycled
glass as aggregate. After completion, the specimens with the greatest apparent defects
were selected and observed, seeking to identify differences between the surfaces of
the pieces, such as gloss and undulations or irregularities.
(d) Hard body impact resistance
The hard body impact resistance of the specimen was obtained according to proce-
dures similar to those proposed in the standard [12], in which it was necessary to find
the drop height (cm) of a steel ball to cause cracking and rupture of the specimens.
The specimens were placed on a sand mattress with the polished face facing up,
and then, the 1 kg steel ball with a diameter of 6 cm was dropped at an initial height
of 20 cm, with 5 cm being added, if necessary, up to break the sample (Fig. 2a).
Fig. 2 Tests procedures
(e) Tensile strength in bending and compression

The flexural and compressive tensile strengths of the specimens were obtained
according to procedures similar to those proposed in Ref. [13] (Fig. 2b and Fig. 2c).
To determine the tensile strength in bending, a force at constant velocity was applied
transversely to the center of the upper face of the sample until its rupture.
After the break, the flexural tensile strength was calculated according to Eq. (1)
1.5F f L
Rf = (1)
403
where
R f is the tensile strength in bending, expressed in MPa;
F f is the load applied to the center of the prism, expressed in N;
L is the distance between the supports, expressed in millimeters mm.
To determine the axial compressive strength, the halves of the specimens used
in the flexural tensile strength test were used, and they were subjected to a force at
constant speed, until the specimens rupture.
After breaking, the compressive strength was calculated according to Eq. 2
Fc
Rc = (2)
A
where
Rc is the compressive strength, expressed in MPa;
Fc is the maximum load applied, expressed in N;
A is the area of the top face of the specimens, expressed in square millimeters
mm2 .
Figure 2a illustrates the test procedures described in section (d) Hard body impact
resistance. Figure 2b demonstrates the placement of the specimen in the press for the
test described in section (e) Tensile strength in bending. With the two halves shown
in Fig. 2c, it was possible to submit to the compression test described in this same
section.
(a) Visual analysis of specimens

The specimens chosen to perform the visual analysis were those with the greatest
apparent imperfections among those produced for the hard body impact strength test,
as they are the worst situations.
The specimens were analyzed in order to verify the irregularities on their surfaces,
where the two specimens had small holes on the upper face in the places marked in
Fig. 2. The specimen produced with the granite (Fig. 2a) presented lower number
of orifices and with smaller dimensions when compared to that made with glass
(Fig. 2b). The same was investigated by [14], which detected the presence of cracks
and surface irregularities in specimens with the glass aggregate during the compara-
tive analysis of scanning electron microscopy between specimens produced with the
glass and with natural aggregate.
During polishing, the specimens manufactured with the glass waste presented
greater difficulty in the process when compared to the reference specimens, because,
when coming into contact with the sander, the glass grains detached from the surface,
causing small holes.
Then, the gloss on the surfaces of the specimens was compared. It was noticeable,
according to Figs. 3 and 4, that the specimen with the glass had a more intense
shine than the specimen with granite. The application of the resin provided a greater
expression of shine on the surfaces, especially when under the action of natural light
(Fig. 4).
(b) Hard body impact strength test
The breaking heights of the specimens obtained in the hard body impact strength test
are expressed in Table 2.
Fig. 3 a Specimen with natural aggregate; b Specimens with glass waste aggregate
Fig. 4 Shine on the surface

of the specimens with natural
light
Table 2 Hard body impact

Aggregate used Specimen Height of fall (cm)
strength test
Glass 1 25
2 30
3 35
4 30
5 30
Average breaking height: 30
Granite 1 25
2 30
3 25
4 25
5 25
Average breaking height: 26
Based on the results found, 80% of the specimens used as reference presented
rupture in the second contact with the sphere, loose at a height of 25 cm, while 80%
of the specimens produced with recycled glass resisted the impact of the sphere loose
at that same height. The specimens produced with the glass presented a satisfactory
result, since the average rupture height found was 30 cm, which was higher than the
average height of 26 cm obtained in the specimens made with the granite, used as
references.
(c) Test of tensile strength in flexion and compression

The results obtained in the flexural tensile strength test in the specimens produced
using the granite are presented in Table 3. The flexural tensile strength of each spec-
imen was calculated. Then, the mean strength of the three specimens was calculated
and it was found that the maximum absolute deviation found (5.5 MPa) extrapo-
lated the limit allowed by standard, of 0.3 MPa. Thus, a new average strength was
calculated, disregarding specimen 1 (outlier), whose strength was farther from the
initial average strength. An average strength of 8.0 MPa was found, and it was veri-
fied that the maximum absolute deviation met the requirements established in the
aforementioned standard.
For specimens with glass waste, the results are shown in Table 4. The maximum
absolute deviation found after the calculation of the average strength of the three
specimens was 1.4 MPa, being necessary to perform the calculation of a new strength,
disregarding specimen 2 (outlier), which obtained the most discrepant result. A new
mean resistance of 4.3 MPa was found and it was verified that the new maximum
absolute deviation was met.
It can be seen in Tables 3 and 4 that the average strength of the specimens produced
with the glass was lower than that found in the reference specimens. Despite this,
the [15] presents that the minimum strength for industrial floors is 4.2 MPa [15],
Table 3 Flexural tensile

Specimen Distance between Burst load Tensile strength in
strength test on specimens
supports F f (N) bending
with natural aggregate
L (mm) R f (MPa)
1 120 5 782 16.3
2 120 2 842 8.0
3 120 2 842 8.0
1st Average strength 10.8
1st Maximum Absolute Deviation 5.5
2nd Average strength 8.0
Table 4 Flexural tensile

Specimen Distance between Burst load Tensile strength in
strength test on specimens
supports F f (N) bending
with the glass aggregate
L (mm) R f (MPa)
1 120 1 470 4.1
2 120 2 254 6.3
3 120 1 568 4.4
1st Medium strength 4.9
2nd Medium strength 4.3
Table 5 Compressive strength test on specimens with natural aggregate

Specimen Length of top face (mm) Top face area Burst load Compressive strength
A (mm2 ) Fc (N) Rc (MPa)
1 80 3 200 48 020 15.0
2 80 3 200 57 330 17.9
3 75 3 000 55 076 18.4
4 85 3 400 101 626 29.9
5 85 3 400 64 190 18.9
6 75 3 000 54,684 18.2
2nd Maximum Absolute Deviation 2.7
3rd Medium strength 18.4
therefore, it is possible to affirm that the results obtained in the tests of both specimens
were satisfactory.
Table 5 presents the results of the compressive strength test on the specimens used
as reference. The length of the upper face of each specimen was measured, and the
identified value was multiplied by the width, 40 mm, and the area of the section to be
submitted to loading was found, making it possible to determine the individual and
average compressive strengths of the specimens. The maximum absolute deviation
identified, 10.2 MPa, was higher than that allowed by the norm, 0.5 MPa. Therefore,
a new average strength was calculated, disregarding the specimen with the most
discrepant strength, specimen 4, and it was verified that the new maximum absolute
deviation, 2.7 MPa, was also greater than the allowed one. Thus, a new calculation
procedure was performed, disregarding specimen 1, when a new average strength of
18.4 MPa was found. It was then verified that the new maximum absolute deviation
was acceptable for the compressive strength test.
For specimens produced with glass, the results of the compressive strength test are
presented in Table 6. The calculation procedures of individual and average strengths
and maximum absolute deviations were the same used to determine the results of
Table 5. The average to final compressive strength found, which obtained maximum
absolute deviation with a value of less than 0.5 MPa, was 13.8 MPa.
Analyzing Tables 5 and 6, it can be seen that the average compressive strength of
the specimens produced with the granite, to the specimens produced with the glass.
For high-performance industrial floors, the minimum compressive strength is 30 MPa
[15]. However, the compressive strength most used for the production of concrete
floors is 20 MPa [16], a value that is close to the result obtained in the specimens
with natural aggregate.
After performing the tests of tensile strength in bending and compression, it
was possible to notice, in the specimens produced with the glass waste, a greater
Table 6 Compressive strength test on specimens with the glass aggregate

Specimen Length of top face Top face area Burst load Compressive strength
(mm) A (mm2 ) Fc (N) Rc (MPa)
1 75 3 000 98 882 33.0
2 85 3 400 45 864 13.5
3 65 2 600 36 750 14.1
4 95 3800 53 900 14.2
5 65 2 600 35 182 13.5
6 95 3 800 46 256 12.2
2nd Maximum Absolute Deviation 1.3
3rd Medium strength 13.8
fragmentation and a smaller adhesion between the aggregate and the paste when
compared to the reference specimens. The same was observed for Pereira [17], which
identified that the glass aggregate, because it has a smooth surface, did not obtain a
satisfactory bond with the cement paste, causing slippage rupture of the aggregate
and resulting in lower compressive strength.
However, some works were found that the addition of glass powders decreased
alkali–silica reaction expansions of the modified cementitious materials when mixed
with reactive sands and enhanced resistance to chloride permeability and electrical
resistivity of cementitious materials [4].
With the results found, practical applications can be attributed to the material. Its
use is not restricted to indoor floors in environments, but it can be used to manufacture
sinks, countertops and ornaments.
4 Conclusions
• Regarding the visual aspect of the specimens, those produced with the glass
residue showed a more intense shine when compared to the reference specimens,
enhancing the aesthetics of the piece, however, it presented a higher number of
imperfections on the surfaces.
• The results found in the hard body impact strength test were satisfactory. This is
because the reference specimens had an average rupture height of 26 cm, while
the specimens manufactured with the glass aggregate had a higher average rupture
height, this being 30 cm.
• In the flexural tensile strength test, the results were satisfactory, since the average
strength found in the specimens with the glass aggregate of 4.3 MPa and the
average strength of the reference specimens of 8.0 MPa were higher than the
minimum allowed for floors high performance, 4.2 MPa.
• The inferior performance of the specimens produced with the glass in the tests of
tensile strength in bending and compression may be related to the lower adhesion
between aggregate and paste and allied to the greater number of cracks identified
on the surface in the visual analysis test.
Therefore, it is concluded that the use of recycled glass in the production of

concrete for application on floors can be an alternative for the final disposal of this
material, given the importance of these solutions for the environment.
5 Limitation of Study
Analyzes are still needed to assess durability parameters, as well as to find results
that present resistance values higher than those obtained.
Acknowledgements This work is financially supported by: Base Funding—UIDB/04708/2020 of

the CONSTRUCT—Instituto de I&D em Estruturas e Construções—funded by national funds
through the FCT/MCTES (PIDDAC). This work is funded by national funds through FCT—
Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia, I.P., under the Scientific Employment Stimulus—Institu-
tional Call—CEECINST/00049/2018.
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A Study on Development
of Self-compacting Blended Concretes
with Various W/B Ratios
G. Sree Lakshmi Devi, C. Venkata Siva Rama Prasad, and P. Srinvasa Rao
Abstract In the building industry, pozzolanic additives in concrete are often used.
Blended cements are a particularly appealing efficiency option since including these
additives not only helps to reduce the amount of energy required in clinker manufac-
turing while also lowering GHG emissions, but it also has a favourable impact on CO2
emissions during sintering. However, incorporating these industrial by-products into
concrete can serve to minimize Portland cement use, etc. Blending of supplemental
cementitious materials such as FA, MS, BFS, GGBS and MK as partial replacement
to cement has shown good results with respect to strength and durability. In the part
of investigation, several blended SCC mixes with varying percentages of micro-silica
GGBS and fly ash were developed based on flow properties and predicted strength; 13
binary, ternary and quaternary blended SCC mixes are chosen. Quaternary blended
SCC mixes containing 40% cement, 25% FA, 25% GGBS and 10% MS with w/b 0.40
and 0.30 ratios achieved consistency, strength and durability in terms of resistance
to weathering, chemical attacks, permeability, etc., with respect to SCC of similar
w/b ratios. Quaternary blended SCC mixes outperform binary and ternary blended
SCC mixes in terms of performance.
Keywords Self-compacting blended concretes · Mineral admixtures ·

Environmental concerns · Global warming
G. Sree Lakshmi Devi

Department of Civil Engineering Vignana, Bharathi Institute of Technology, Ghatkesar(M),
Hyderabad, Telangana 501301, India
C. Venkata Siva Rama Prasad (B)
Department of Civil Engineering, St. Peter’s Engineering College (Autonomous), Dhulapally,
Maisammaguda, Medchal(Dist), Hyderabad, Telangana 500100, India
e-mail: cvsrprasad90@gmail.com
P. Srinvasa Rao
Department of Civil Engineering, JNT University Hyderabad, Kukatpally, Hyderabad, Telangana
500085, India
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4040-8_69
862 G. Sree Lakshmi Devi et al.
1 Introduction
The usage of mixed cements is becoming especially pervasive throughout the

universe. Nevertheless, the cements employed globally as well as the demands of
national standard specifications, vary [1, 2]. Similar insights have really been estab-
lished across several civilizations attributable to variances in criteria, which all rely
on ecological parameters, construction project raw material availability, etc. [3, 4].
Multiple characteristics of concrete were enhanced by the inclusion of admixtures.
The use of a massive amount of single admixture may give negative impact on
mechanical, durability properties [5, 6]. Because of its minuscule pore diameter,
silica fume is apt to deplete the requisite moisture. The addition of 50% slag will
offer good protection against ASR [7, 8]. Such act can lead to lower corrosion protec-
tion. The consequence of including fly ash is how it diminishes the rapid strength
rate and curing time period [9]. The use of ternary mixes permits the influence of a
single admixtures to mitigate for the fundamental inadequacies [10], i.e., when we
consider silica fume mixed with GGBS prevents water requirement on the concrete
surface. Similarly, employing tertiary blends adding or replacing cement with the
bulk of blended cements renders the structure stronger with respect to ordinary mixes
[11, 12].
2 Experimental Study
In this paper, the synergistic effect of the blended cements on fresh and hardened
properties was explored systematically. Characteristic strength of various blended
concretes was found and compared with conventional mixes on fresh properties
and hardened properties for low water-binder ratios, i.e., 0.40 and 0.30. The use of
appropriately proportioned GGBS and micro-silica in fly ash blended SCC highlights
the utility of their synergistic effect in improving the rheological properties, strength
and durability characteristics of fly ash-based SCC with w/b 0.40 and 0.30 ratios.
A total of 12 combinations were casted for a 0.30 w/b ratio, and the compressive
strength of all these 12 combinations has been compared to standard concrete for
28, 90 and 180 days. Mix proportions were done based on Nan Su mix design
method. Materials such as binder, fine and coarse aggregate, water, SP and VMA
doses required for 1 cu m are taken for all 12 proportions with w/b 0.40 and 0.30
ratio. Final volumes have been assumed for the SCC mixes after n number of trials
on quantities measured using the Nan Su design mix and subject to satisfaction of
EFNARC. Tables 1, 2 and 3 represent flow properties and various mix proportions
of self-compacting blended concrete mixes for w/b ratio 0.30 and 0.40. Depending
on final material quantities, max. proportions with combinations in binary, ternary
and quaternary blended mixes that achieve flow and required strength properties are
determined by several laboratory mixes for all grades considered for study (Figs. 1,
2, 3, 4, 5 and 6) (Table 4).
A Study on Development of Self-compacting Blended Concretes … 863
Table 1 Workability of self-compacting blended concrete mixes for w/b ratio 0.30 and 0.40
No w/b ratio Mix Slump T50 cm L-box V-funnel U-box
1 0.30 Ordinary 680 3.5 0.83 7.2 28
2 Binary 690 3.3 0.85 7.2 27
3 Ternary 700 3.2 0.86 7.3 26
4 Quaternary 710 3.0 0.88 7.3 25
5 0.40 Ordinary 700 3.2 0.85 6.5 22
6 Binary 710 3.0 0.87 6.4 21
7 Ternary 720 2.7 0.90 6.3 20
8 Quaternary 740 2.5 0.92 6.3 20
Table 2 Various self-compacting blended concrete (SCBC) mixes made with w/b 0.40 ratio
No Mix OPC Fly ash GGBS Silica Fine Agg Coarse Water Super VMA
Agg plasticizer
kg/m3 Lts
1 M0 420 0 0 0 991 840 170 5.04 0.61
2 M11 210 210 0 0
3 M12 210 0 210 0
4 M21 315 84 0 21
5 M22 294 84 0 42
6 M23 210 105 105 0
7 M24 273 0 126 21
8 M25 252 0 36 42
9 M31 168 105 105 42
10 M32 105 105 168 42
11 M33 63 105 210 42
12 M34 105 168 105 42
13 M35 63 210 105 42
Based on the strength results, more research was done on the durability
qualities of quaternary mixed concretes. Five quaternary blended mix propor-
tions were researched for this purpose, with M31 mix being equiva-
lent to control concrete; further durability properties were carried on M31
mix. In this work, durability properties were inspected by performing
carbonation, sorptivity and water permeability tests on control and M31
mix for 0.3 and 0.4 ratios. When only one face of a concrete spec-
imen is exposed to water, this test technique determines the permeation of mois-
ture by concrete to measure the increase in density of a specimen as a time—depen-
dent as shown in Table 5, Figure 5 shows the sorptivity coefficients of quaternary
blended SCC specimens and test setup is shown in Figs. 7 and 8. SCC without
Table 3 Various self-compacting blended concrete (SCBC) mixes made with w/b 0.30 ratio
No Mix OPC Fly ash GGBS Silica Fine Agg Coarse Water Super VMA
Agg plasticizer
kg/m3 Lts
1 M0 614 0 0 0 884 749 177 7.36 0.42
2 M11 307 307 0 0
3 M12 307 0 307 0
4 M21 461 123 0 31
5 M22 430 123 0 62
6 M23 307 154 154 0
7 M24 400 0 184 31
8 M25 369 0 184 62
9 M31 246 154 153 62
10 M32 154 154 246 62
11 M33 92 154 307 62
12 M34 154 246 154 62
13 M35 92 307 154 62
mineral admixtures and quaternary self-blended compacting concrete (QSBCC) have

no carbonation effect at 90 days. As a result, the carbonation depth is negligible for
0.3 and 0.4 w/b ratios for both types of concrete mixtures, as shown in (Figs. 9 and
10).
Table 6 shows the water permeability values of SCC and QSBCC for w/b ratios
of 0.4 and 0.3, respectively. Figure 11 demonstrates the specimen test configura-
tion. Figure 5 shows the variation of coefficient of water permeability for quater-
nary blended SCC mixes after 90 days of curing. The higher the water permeability
values, more the permeable the concrete is. Increased permeability causes increased
sulphates and sodium attacks on concrete, which has an impact on the reinforce-
ment bars in the concrete structure. As a result, lower permeability ratings suggest
more durable concrete which shows lower coefficient of permeability values when
compared to SCC with QSBCC for both w/b ratios [13–16].
Table 4 gives the overall compressive strength and percentage variation of blended
self-compacting concrete at 7 and 28 days. It can be seen from Table 4 that addition
of blended cements in concrete improves the mechanical properties of concrete. In
ternary mix, M25 had performed well compared to all ternary mixes, i.e., from M21
to M25. Tables 5 and 6 give the sorptivity and permeability values of control and SCC
mixes for both water-binder ratios. It is seen that mix M31 made with quaternary
Fig. 1 Shows flow

properties of self-compacting
blended concrete
Fig. 2 Shows flow

properties of self-compacting
blended concrete
Fig. 3 Shows curing and

testing of self-compacting
blended concrete
Fig. 4 Shows curing and

testing of self-compacting
blended concrete
Fig. 5 Sorptivity coefficients of quaternary blended SCC specimens

Fig. 6 Variation of coefficient of water permeability for quaternary blended SCC mixes at 90 days
age
mixes with self-compacting concrete showed better results among all the quaternary
mixes. M31 exhibited lower sorptivity values and permeability values with respect to
control mixes. Overall, M31 quaternary mixes exhibited more strength and durability
compared with other quaternary mixes of different w/b ratios.
4 Conclusions
• The final results can be made validated with experimental effort throughout this
paper as well as the interpretation of test results.
• The fresh concrete properties of self-compacting blended concrete with and
without mineral admixtures satisfied in account with EFNARC.
• The compressive strength of self-compacting binary blended concrete of w/b 0.3
and 0.4 is increased by 15 and 23%, self-compacting ternary blended concrete by
13 and 18%, self-compacting quaternary blended concrete of w/b 0.3 and 0.4 by
14 and 20% from 7 to 28 days.
• In terms of compressive strength, the mix ratio of 50% OPC + 50% performed best
for w/p ratios 0.4 and 0.3 examined among the self-compacting binary blended
concrete mix combinations.
• In terms of compressive strength, the mix ratio of 60% OPC + 30% GGBS
with 10% MS performed best for w/b ratios 0.4 and 0.3 examined among the
self-compacting ternary blended concrete mix combinations.
• In terms of compressive strength, the mix ratio of 40% OPC + 25% FA + 25%
GGBS with 10% MS performed best for w/b ratios 0.4 and 0.3 examined among
the self-compacting quaternary blended concrete mix combinations.
Table 4 Compressive strength and percentage variation of blended self-compacting concrete at 7

and 28 days
No w/b ratio Mix Compressive strength % increase with respect to 7 days
(N/mm2 )
7 days 28 days
1 0.3 M0 59.65 68.48 14.80
2 M11 51.53 59.34 15.15
3 M12 55.76 63.94 14.67
4 M21 62.38 70.74 23.25
5 M22 55.95 63.56 22.58
6 M23 52.10 58.86 22.67
7 M24 61.82 70.29 13.40
8 M25 62.81 70.80 13.60
9 M31 58.46 67.16 12.98
10 M32 56.29 64.02 13.70
11 M33 52.02 57.53 12.72
12 M34 56.30 64.86 17.89
13 M35 52.27 58.09 18.13
14 0.4 M0 41.36 50.98 17.29
15 M11 35.16 43.10 17.73
16 M12 37.89 46.48 17.69
17 M21 46.60 54.94 14.88
18 M22 42.36 50.04 13.73
19 M23 38.12 44.71 13.59
20 M24 46.65 54.92 15.20
21 M25 47.52 55.93 14.13
22 M31 40.83 48.73 19.34
23 M32 37.86 45.83 21.05
24 M33 35.99 42.89 19.17
25 M34 38.35 46.35 20.86
26 M35 35.62 43.51 21.15
Table 5 Capillary absorption

w/b ratio Concrete type Sorptivity value
values of SCC and QBSCC
(mm/(min)2 )
28 days 90 days
0.4 SCC-1 0.091 0.074
QBSCC-1 0.083 0.060
0.3 SCC-2 0.096 0.069
QBSCC-2 0.086 0.059
Fig. 7 Sorptivity test
Fig. 8 Specimen weight

before testing
• No carbonation effect was observed for quaternary mixes with rest to control mixes
at 90 days of curing in portable water, and less water permeability was observed in
quaternary mixes made with various mineral admixtures with different w/b ratios.
• When compared to SCC, quaternary self-blended compacting concrete exhibits
lower sorptivity values. Sorptivity values are lower in quaternary mixes with a
lower water-binder ratio.
• On the whole, all self-compacting blended concrete mixes with water–powder
ratio of 0.30 outperformed those with 0.4 w/b in terms of strength.
Fig. 9 Phenolphthalein
solution causes a colour shift
Fig. 10 Arrangement of
water permeability test
Table 6 Water permeability

Concrete type w/b ratio Average coefficient of
of SCC and QBSCC with w/b
permeability
ratio 0.40 and 0.30
in (cm/sec) × 10–10
28 days 90 days
SCC-1 0.4 3.79 3.19
SCC-2 0.3 3.10 2.59
QBSCC-1 0.4 3.01 2.64
QBSCC-2 0.3 2.52 2.14
• The strengthened interaction between both the hydrated filler particles and
grain particles might reflect the higher efficiency of self-compacting ternary and
quaternary blended concretes. It, in fact, is attributed to the interaction between
subsequent pozzolonic action and micro-silica particle refinement.
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Tourism Sustainability in Hilly
Regions—A Review for Shimla
Akash Bhardwaj and Ashok Kumar Gupta
Abstract Hill towns are popular attraction for tourism destinations recent trends.
These are famous for the natural environmental beauty and also for their distinctive
cultural traditions. Current trends in tourism show they are focussed towards the
increase in volume of tourists, thus bringing changes to mountain environment which
are fragile and venerable to irreversible damaging effects. Shimla is a popular and one
of the most attractive hill stations for tourists. But there are certain elements which are
responsible for degradation of the beautiful place and effecting the environment of the
city. Unplanned tourism development leads to overburden on available resources and
deteriorating natural environment. There is a need of sustainable approach balancing
both the growth of tourism and conservation of environmental and cultural asset. The
motive and objective of this paper is to review need of tourism trend in Shimla and
focus on environmental deterioration. There is a need of sustainable tourism approach
by identifying the major issues and finding a sustainable tourism development that
enhances the sustainability in the hill town.
Keywords Sustainable tourism · Hill town · Shimla · Eco-tourism
1 Introduction
In the present era, the tourism has crossed certain boundaries and jumped from local
to domestic travel and also showing the increasing trends in international flows.
Tourism may be defined as movement of people roaming from one place to other
place where they can stay, have eatables and enjoy the natural environment and
A. Bhardwaj (B)
Assistant Professor, Department of Civil Engineering, Jaypee University of Information
Technology, Waknaghat, HP 173234, India
e-mail: akash.bhardwaj@juit.ac.in
A. K. Gupta
Dean (Academics and Research), Jaypee University of Information Technology, Waknaghat, HP
173234, India
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4040-8_70
874 A. Bhardwaj and A. K. Gupta
recreational facilities. The WTO defines tourists as people who travel and stay in
destinations outside their usual/daily environment for more than 24 h and but not
more than a year for business purpose or any other purposes. Tourism is the sum
totally of relationship phenomenon arising from travel and stay of people provided
that they do not establish a permanent residence and should not connect with any
remunerated activity (Hunziker et al. 1942). International Association of Scientific
Experts (1981) defines tourism as in terms of particular set of activities selected by
choice of people and undertaken outside their home [1]
Sustainable tourism may be defined as the tourism which takes care of its current
scenario and upcoming future economic, any environmental and social impacts,
depicting the important needs of the visitors, the industries, the environment, and host
communities. The aim of sustainable tourism is to boost the facilities and benefits of
tourism and at the same time to reduce all negative impacts caused due to tourism
at various destinations. Protection of the natural environment, various wildlife and
natural resources while developing and managing the tourism activity is a sustainable
approach [2].
Tourism plays a very important role in economy of any country. In India, the
global tourism accounts for 6.8% in Gross Domestic Product in year 2019 and 8%
of the total employment across the country. Because of its economic advantages,
there has been a boost in tourist activities in India. One of the greatest stories of
our times is tourism growth but since few recent years, there are some warnings
like deterioration of the environment, overcrowding, bottlenecks in transportation
facilities and increase in hostility of residents. In 2019, the number of estimated
international tourist arrivals reached approximately 1.46 billion (UNWTO) [3]. Also
in 2019, more than 2.3 billion domestic tourist visits have been recorded across India.
(Statista Research Department, April 19, 2019). The graph has shown in Figs. 1 and
2 which shows the growth in international and domestic tourism, respectively.
Fig. 1 Source United Nations World Tourism Organization, 2019

Tourism Sustainability in Hilly Regions—A Review for Shimla 875
Fig. 2 Source Statista Research Department, 2019
In India, hill towns give numerous opportunities of tourism growth. A number

of tourists get attracted towards the mountainous destinations due to their environ-
mental conditions, unique landscapes, scenic beauties, social/local culture, heritage,
religious buildings and history, along with opportunities to enjoy natural snow-based
adventures and activities. This paper gives a review on sustainable tourism one of
the most famous hill destinations in India, Shimla.
2 About Shimla
In India, during British rule ‘Shyamala’ village (now Shimla) is identified as the
‘Summer Capital’ in early nineteenth century [4]. Due to sweltering heat in the
Indian plains, Britishers found this hill town suitable as this place gives them a feel of
‘English Climate and Atmosphere’. Since then, the town has witnessed a significant
transformation on account of development and urbanization and has grown as a
city. The British named it as ‘Queen of Hills’ and in 1864 considered as capital
for summers of the Britishers (CDP Shimla 2006) [5]. Since that time, the city has
evolved and developed as one of major administrative and tourism town. City gives
an experience similar to a European town which makes this place uniquely different
from other hill stations [6]. Today, Shimla is recognized as capital city of Himachal
Pradesh and is also a major city for administrative works other than tourism.
The geographical location of Shimla lies at 30' 6' N latitude and 77°11' E longitude
and is at the height of about 2397.59 m above mean sea level [7]. The tourist season
in Shimla can be categorized into summer and winter, summer starts from March
Fig. 3 Source https://en.climate-data.org/asia/india/himachal-pradesh/shimla-3891
to June and winter extends from September up to January. Many visitors plan their
travel during late December, as they can celebrate Christmas and New Year season
in Shimla blanketed in snow. The average value of temperatures in Shimla is shown
in Fig. 3. The periphery of Shimla extends along several hills connecting spurs
and ridges. The city extends over an area of 22 km2 on 7 hills, namely the Ridge,
Elysium Hill, Summer Hill, Jakhu Pleasant Hill, Prospect Hill, Observatory Hill,
and Annandale. From administrative point of view, city is divided into 25 wards [8].
Figure 3 shows the ward map of city including various tourist destinations (Fig. 4)
[8].
In Shimla, 80% of the urban area remains undeveloped as it lies in the dense
forest areas. Expansion of the infrastructure for tourist is restricted as it is totally
dependent on land availability which is not available easily in hilly towns. Also, the
steep slopes across the city make it difficult to connect various tourist destinations.
The ‘Mall’ is the core attraction of the city which includes restaurants, shops, recre-
ational/entertainment activities, colonial and heritage buildings. On Ridge, there
is an oldest church in India which was constructed in 1857. The ‘Mall Road’ of
Shimla stretches actually about a 6 km road, starting from Boileauganj near Vice
Regal Lodge (IIAS, that connects Cecil Hotel, Peter Hoff, Railway Administrative
Building, SBI, Gorton Castle Building, Telegraph Building, Town Hall, Chalet Day
School Building, Clarkes Hotel, Gaiety Theatre, Oak Over with Post Office and at
the end connects at Chota (small) Shimla (Cart Road). On the west side of the ridge,
there is Lakkar Bazaar (i.e. wooden market selling wooden products), at centre it has
Christ church and Town Library at its East and Town Hall at south [9].
Famous tourist attractions include The Ridge: a large open space in the centre,
Lakkar Bazaar, Jakhoo Hill which is about 2.5 km: at height of 2455 m, this is the
highest peak of the city and having an old popular Hanuman temple, St. Michael
Fig. 4 Source Rukhsana N. Badar et al.: Assessing tourism sustainability in hill towns
Cathedral, State Museum, IIAS (formerly known as Viceregal Lodge), The Glen,
Annandale (Surrounded by a thick deodar forest), Prospect Hill And Kamna Devi
Temple, Sankat Mochan, Tara Devi, Mashobra about 12 km: at height of 2149 m,
with beautiful and attractive suburb surrounded by the thick and dense forests.
Since early 1990s to present, the tourist flow in Shimla has recorded a boost to 1.25
million which is resulting in alarming warnings for city’s natural environment and
cultural heritage. Also, it shows a large flow during weekends from the surrounding
adjacent areas and states as well as international tourists. This has caused a serious
issue for the authorities to save the natural integrity and cultural resources of the
queen of hills. Thus, a sustainable approach is must at this stage to counter the
deterioration of the beautiful place.
3 Methodology
Cernat and Gourdon in 2021 suggested a tool, namely Sustainable Tourism Bench-
marking Tool that can be used to assess the sustainability of a tourism destination
[10]. It is one of the comprehensive assessing tools which rest on 3 pillars relating
to sustainability [11]. These are environment, social and economic parameters and
can be utilized in various scales. Thus, in current studies it has been used as eval-
uation tool for activities relating to tourism. It is relevant for Indian context, and
the framework gives the seven dimensions of sustainability in tourism. It provides a
tool to compare various destinations within the same city or ward. The seven dimen-
sions comprise the following: (1) Tourism Assets; (2) Tourism-related Linkages;
(3) Tourism-related Leakages; (4) Tourism Activities; (5) Social and Environmental
Sustainability; 6) Infrastructures; and (7) Attractiveness [10]. This tool is used by
several researchers and tourism planners for assessing the sustainability of a tourist
spots.
The Mall Road in Shimla provides an ideal environment to study pedestrian
behaviour and activities [12]. The concept of POSS (Pedestrian Only Shopping
Street) can be applied on Mall Road for studies [13]. Pedestrian malls are the reflec-
tion of ‘liveable street’. For any tourist destination, POSS can hold a special attraction.
For assessing a pedestrian street, physical, psychological and mental route qualities
are considered [14]. The physical qualities include distance, capacity and physical
atmosphere; the psychological qualities include motivation, activities and percep-
tion of pedestrian safety; and mental qualities include subjective identification of
landmarks, way-finding, navigating, not getting lost, etc [15]. These all qualities are
used to find the major indicators that can contribute to sustainable tourism concept.
Further data can be analysed using SPSS [13].
4 Finding and Discussion
Mountainous destinations like Shimla give the tourist an opportunity to experience

natural hilly environment, various entertainment activities and adventures, and a
wonderful climate as compared to heat in Indian plains. Since most of the tourist
arrives from big metro cities with all kinds of pollution, Shimla gives them an expe-
rience like heaven with its cool and calm fresh air and dark blue clear sky. It provides
them a short break from their daily routine life and refreshes them. In a study, it was
found that about 90% of visitors are domestic and rest 10% are foreigners. In various
Eco tourist activities, nature photography is most liked, followed by sightseeing and
trekking, respectively [16].
For the most attractive destination of Shimla, ‘The Mall’, it was found in a
research study that it is the most visited destination by the tourists. The access to
the Mall is mostly through the Lift. For the Mall road, the preferred time for the
tourists is in evening and they can enjoy the shopping street with various entertain-
ment/recreational activities along with witnessing the beauty of city lights at night
[13]. The most identified landmark is Christ church, and most tourists enjoy leisure
walking and shopping.
But in recent years, the tourism in Shimla has grown rapidly which is causing
adverse effect on the traditional tourism and natural climate of the city. The average
value of temperature in summers is increasing, and also the overcrowding of tourist
in the city makes it more polluted and congested [17]. For monitoring the air pollu-
tants in the city due to rapid growth in tourism, traffic and building activities which
are result of boost in tourism in past decade, H.P. State Pollution Control Board has
set up two stations to record the amount of air pollutants like SO2 (Sulphur dioxide),
NO2 (Nitrogen dioxide) and Respirable Suspended Particulate Matter (RSPM) [18].
One is within the city core at Taka Bench and other at Inter State Bus Terminus [17].
Also, H.P. Tourism Department has put up some policy and guidelines to support the
sustainable tourism. Sustainable tourism is one of the approaches which is becoming
popular in recent times around the globe, but has an effective practical value of appli-
cation in some of the developing countries like India where the needs of impoverished
communities may conflict directly with the need to capitalize for the rapid increase
in tourism.
5 Conclusion
It has been observed that the tourism and environment are interlinked with each
other and moved forward for need of new concepts such as alternative tourism, eco-
tourism and sustainable tourism. Haphazard increase in tourism flow and vehicle
congestion in tourism can damage the attractiveness of the beautiful hill destinations
on which the economy of tourism depends. The inflow of the large floating population
towards city in a particular time duration of the year causes a great burden on existing
infrastructures and available depleting resources of the city. The main issues and
conditions we are facing in Shimla are decrement in greenery of the city, increase
in air pollutants, traffic congestions resulting in inconvenience and noise pollution,
number of increasing hotels and restaurants resulting in scarcity of water resources in
city and corruption [19]. The impacts are evident in the changing weather pattern of
the city. Snowfall is becoming scarce with each passing year, and average temperature
is increasing in summers.
This review suggests that there is a need of research to study the major indica-
tors and sub-indicators which would help to evaluate the tourism performance of
Shimla and suitable measures should be found out to make it sustainable. Shimla
is a rich tourist asset which gives a major contribution to economy and employ-
ment for the locals by tourism. The city has a fragile hilly environment which is
prone to natural calamities and natural disasters. Unplanned and haphazard growth
can lead to unstoppable environmental and social damage. Sustainable concept of
eco-tourism provides the essential balance between tourism activities and environ-
mental protection in eco-sensitive regions like Shimla. Also, the present policies and
guidelines of the Government can be modified to give more feasible results. Pedes-
trianism should be seen as a key to sustaining pollution-free physical environment,
facilitating individual health benefits through encouraging walking, and contribute to
social welfare by attracting people to common pedestrian streets for ‘real’ social inter-
actions. Effective techniques for controlling the traffic and limiting the visitor flows
should be encouraged. Sustainable and eco-friendly means of travel and tourism such
as walking or cycling should be encouraged. These solutions will focus on initia-
tives, transport management solutions and marketing information which supports
sustainable tourism in Shimla.
References
1. Saraswati, A. K., & Ram, P. (2017). Hill tourism and sustainable development of the desti-
nations: A situation analysis of kumaon region of Uttarakhand. International Journal of
Marketing & Financial Management, 5(1), 70–84.
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plans formulation and implementation (URDPFI) guidelines (Vol. 1). GOI MOUD.
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Journal of Sustainable Tourism, 19(3), 281–300.
4. Batra, A. Himalayan ecotourism in Shimla. http://www.journal.au.edu/abac_journal/2001/
sep01/article3.pdf.
5. ACNielsen ORG-MARG. (2012). Tourism survey for the State of Himachal Pradesh. (April
2011–March 2012). GOI Ministry of Tourism.
6. Eco Tourism Society of Himachal Pradesh. (2018). About Himachal.
7. Bansal, A. (2010). Tourism an engine of growth and development of Himachal Pradesh—A
case study of HPTDC Ltd. PhD Thesis, Institute of Management Studies Himachal Pradesh
University, Shimla.
8. Badar, R. N., & Bahadure, S. P. (2020). Assessing tourism sustainability in hill towns: Case
study of Shimla, India. Journal of Mountain Science.
9. Sustainable Tourism: A Case Study of Shimla; IJMRR/ July 2013/Volume 3/Issue 7/Article
No-5/3067-3072 ISSN: 2249-7196.
10. Cernat, L., & Gourdon, J. (2012). Paths to success: Benchmarking cross-country sustainable
tourism. Tourism Management, 33, 1044–1056.
11. Batta, R. N. (2006). Evaluating ecotourism in mountain areas: A study of three Himalayan
destinations. International Review for Environmental Strategies, 6(1), 41–62.
12. Wood, M. E. (2002). Ecotourism: Principles, practices and policies for sustainability. UNEP.
13. Sonia, K. (2014). Walking the walk: An evaluation of pedestrian tourism on the ‘Mall Road’
Shimla. International Journal of Hospitality & Tourism Systems, 7(1).
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Air Quality Assessment During
Festivities in Shimla City, India
Rajiv Ganguly, Divyansh Sharma, and Tanmay Gupta
Abstract The short-term impact of Diwali festival on ambient air quality was eval-
uated in Shimla, Himachal Pradesh (India) by observing trends of ambient concen-
trations of air pollutants—particulate matter (dia less than 10µ-PM10 ) and oxides of
nitrogen (NO2 ) measured at two urban sites for the year 2016. Concentrations of all
the measured pollutants started increasing on the day prior to the festival of Diwali,
peaked on festival day, and then dropped on the following day. Concentration of air
pollutants during the festival time was also compared with the normal day concentra-
tion to assess the impact of emissions generated from pyrotechnic display as well as
the increased economic activity. PM10 concentrations exceeded the National Ambient
Air Quality Standards (NAAQS), reaching 107.22 µg/m3 at Monitoring Site II while,
were within prescribed limits at the Monitoring Site I. However, concentrations of
PM10 , when compared with the WHO guidelines (50 µg/m3 ), were found to show
almost 2 times rise in concentrations. At the same time, concentrations of NO2 were
found to be in accordance with the prescribed standards. Air Quality Index as adopted
by CPCB was also used to evaluate the change in city’s ambient during the celebra-
tory period which showed that overall quality of air over the city varied between
“satisfactory” to “moderate”. In summation, this paper presents an overview of the
impact of increased anthropogenic activities during festival period on the air quality
of the city which could affect the health the people living in the city.
Keywords Air quality · Air Quality Index · Diwali · Fireworks · PM10 · NO2 ·
Shimla
R. Ganguly (B)
Department of Civil Engineering, Harcourt Butler Technical University, Nawabganj, Kanpur,
Uttar Pradesh 208002, India
e-mail: rganguly@hbtu.ac.in
D. Sharma · T. Gupta
Civil Engineering Department, Jaypee University of Information Technology, Waknaghat, Solan,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4040-8_71
884 R. Ganguly et al.
1 Introduction
Fireworks are the low pyrotechnic devices which have been linked with traditional
and cultural celebrations and are also used for entertainment purposes. Fireworks
use ranges from local events like celebrating weddings and birthdays up to major
public and nationwide events and celebrations. Pyrotechnic displays have been used
in different countries like India, Spain, and China for celebrations of festivals like
Deepawali, Lass Fallas, Lantern festival, and New Year celebration. These all belong
to likewise category and are reported to be major sources of anthropogenic aerosols
all over the world [1–4].
The celebration of Diwali which is also called the festival of lights takes place
in India, every autumn (Oct/Nov) with a great passion and enthusiasm. Originally,
celebrated with lighting of lamps and candles and bursting of fire crackers has become
essential part of the festival since last few centuries. Extensive pyrotechnic display
during Diwali has been known to influence the air quality [2, 5, 6]. Firecrackers are
made of chemical components like arsenic, charcoal, strontium nitrate, manganese,
aluminum, sulfur, powder of iron dust, sodium oxalate, barium nitrate, and strontium
nitrate [7, 8]. When burnt, these fire crackers emit various gaseous pollutants and
particulates and toxic metals in an amount which can significantly deteriorate the
ambient air quality.
Fireworks aggravate the level of air pollutants and cause short-term degrada-
tion of air quality posing threat to human health and environment. Short-term air
quality degradation considerably affects the human health by having deep rooted
and adverse effects [9–13]. Trace elements like cadmium, nickel, lead, etc., released
can exacerbate several health effects like hematological or carcinogenic effects on
exposed population as well as can also cause damage to human nervous system [7].
In India, cases of respiratory diseases, asthma, and bronchitis escalate during the
Diwali festival [14, 15]. Firecrackers often give rise to serious accidents and causal-
ities. Kumar et al. [16], Puri [17], Tandon et al. [18] have reported the injuries that
have occurred due to burning and bursting of firecrackers.
Stable meteorological conditions around the period of pyrotechnic display can
also aid in worsening the quality of air of a locality [3, 8, 15]. Moreover, Diwali
celebrations start in late evening and the night time. Thus, unfavorable meteorolog-
ical conditions during that period (low wind speed, lower boundary layer height,
etc.) intensify the accumulation of emitted pollutants near the surface of earth [14].
Further, effect of fireworks can also be observed in meteorological parameters such
as visibility, air temperature, etc. Saha et al. [2] has displayed the effects of firework
on meteorological parameters.
The city of Shimla is a hill station located in north India and is one of the most
famous locations, favored by both domestic and international tourists. Being the
principal commercial, cultural and educational center of the State, Shimla has been
severely affected by the urbanization. This has resulted in rise in number of temporary
and permanent vehicles on roads of insufficient width which are the major cause in
degradation of air quality of the city [19, 20]. Diwali is celebrated in the city of Shimla
Air Quality Assessment During Festivities in Shimla City, India 885
along with the rest of India with same enthusiasm. Firecrackers are burnt during the
festival period mainly on the day of celebration. The data published regarding the
analysis of the ambient air quality of Shimla city is limited [20]. Therefore, this
research provides basic insights on how festivities can alter the air quality scenario
of the place. The main objective of this study is to highlight the short-term effects
of air pollutants like PM10 and NO2 during the Diwali festival over the Shimla city
for the year 2016. Thus, this study is an effort to assess the supplementary burden
on air quality due to fireworks that take place during Diwali festival. We at last have
also suggested some measures which can be considered for reducing the effect of
the fireworks on air quality for the city.
2.1 Station Locations
India is a growing economy which is developing with rapid globalization and indus-
trialization. Perhaps, it also has domains which depend on tourism and culture and
remain untouched by industrial developments. Shimla is one such city. Being capital
of Himachal Pradesh, Shimla (Fig. 1) is also one of the famous tourist spots. It is
located at 2130 m above the sea level with a population of 170,000 as per census 2011.
The city predominantly experiences cool winters and moderately warm summers.
Fig. 1 Map of the study location—Shimla city

Shimla city has two monitoring stations, one at Tekka Bench, the Ridge (Moni-
toring Station I) and other at the old Inter-State bus terminal (ISBT) (Monitoring
Station II). These monitoring stations have been installed by Himachal Pradesh
Pollution Control Board (HPPCB) under the National Ambient Monitoring Program
(NAMP) which is supervised by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB).
Figure 2 shows the location of installed monitoring stations within the study area of
Shimla.
The equipment installed for monitoring air pollutants at stations I and II has been
shown, respectively, Fig. 3a and b. Monitoring Station I which has been categorized
as a background station is located on the Ridge. This is primarily the commercial
cum business hub of the city and has been categorized as the background station by
NAMP since, the station barely experiences any traffic pollution. No vehicles are
allowed to pass through the section except for the ambulances and VIP vehicles.
Fig. 2 Monitoring stations installed within Shimla city
Fig. 3 a and b Monitoring equipment at Monitoring Site I (Background Site) and Monitoring Site
II (Urban Site)
Hence, this monitoring station experience limited anthropogenic emissions and thus
is suitably represented as a background station.
Another monitoring station, described as Monitoring Station II, is situated at the
old ISBT and has been designated as an urban station. This location is a commercial
plus residential area and encounters high traffic flows throughout the day with vehi-
cles moving in an uncontrolled manner, which makes it suitable to be categorized as
an urban monitoring location.
2.2 Monitoring Program
The monitoring campaign carried out at both the monitoring sites complies to the
guidelines as specified by CPCB. The detailed discussion on monitoring process has
already been described in earlier literature [19, 20]. To summarize, we use modified
Jacobs and Hochheiser method to determine the NOx concentrations and Respirable
Dust Sampler to measure PM10 . Modified Jacobs and Hochheiser method include
the measurement of ambient NO2 in which portion of ambient air is passed through a
solution mixture of sodium hydroxide and sodium arsenite to collect of NO2 . Further,
we react the nitrite ion concentration generated with phosphoric acid, sulfanil-
amide, and N-(1-naphthyl)—ethylenediamine di-hydrochloride (NEDA) solution to
generate a stable dye whose absorbance is then determined using a spectrophotometer
(540 nm).PM10 is determined using a Respirable Dust Sampler (RDS) with a cyclonic
connector with an average flow of 1.1 m3 /min. We collect the particulate matter is
on a filter paper and determine the mass of collect PM in the laboratory which is
divided by the volume of air sampled and being reported in ppm units.
2.3 Monitored Data and Analysis
The data for daily concentrations of PM10 and NO2 was obtained from HPPCB for the
October and November months of 2016. HPPCB maintains the monitoring stations
as per the guidelines set by CPCB. CPCB has stated a criterion in NAAQS manual
while formulating the annual standards of air pollutants for industrial, residential,
and sensitive areas, which makes a minimum of 104 measurements to necessary
in a year, taken twice a week at 24-h daily intervals. HPPCB has measured the
concentrations of air pollutants for 138 days in the study year for which have been
used in determining annual concentrations conforming to the prescribed guidelines
of CPCB. Hence, no QA/QC checks were conducted on the data obtained from the
concerned authority.
Air Quality Index (AQI) was determined to assess the variation in ambient air
quality during Diwali festival. AQI is a tool which has been used for effective dissem-
ination of information to people about the quality of air surrounding their locality.
AQI provides a definite number which expresses the measured air quality pertaining
to its impact on health of human beings [21, 22].
AQI calculation as per CPCB is based on “linear segmented principle.” (National
Air Quality Index, CPCB report):

IHI − ILO
Ip = Cp − CLO + ILO
CHI − CLO
where
I p = the AQI for pollutant p, I HI = the sub-index value corresponding to C HI , I LO
= the sub-index value corresponding to C LO , C p = the actual ambient concentration
of pollutant p, C HI = the concentration breakpoint given in Table 1 that is ≥ C p , and
C LO = the concentration breakpoint given in Table 1 that is ≤ C p ,
The AQI is determined for all of the measured pollutants, and the maximum value
calculated is considered to be the overall AQI. Table 2 gives the health impacts
associated with the different AQI ranges.
For the preliminary analysis, we also observed the daily mean concentrations of
sulfur dioxide for the city and discovered that concentrations of SO2 have been below
10 µg/m3 , which are well within the defined standards of 80 µg/m3 . Thus, there is
almost negligible effect of SO2 pollutant on air quality of the Shimla city. Low levels
of SO2 can be justified by the nonexistence of any industries and manufacturing
units in vicinity of the city. Moreover, several reforms like restricting sulfur content
in diesel, replacement of conventional domestic fuels with unconventional ones like
LPG, etc., have also contributed in limiting SO2 levels [19]. Therefore, analysis of
SO2 concentrations has not been further reported in this paper.
Table1 AQI category, sub-index, and breakpoint pollutant concentrations as per CPCB [23]
AQI category, pollutants, and health breakpoints
AQI PM10 PM2.5 NO2 O3 CO SO2 NH3 Pb
Category 24-h 24-h 24-h 8-h 8-h 24-h 24-h 24-h
(Range) (mg/m3 )
Good 0–50 0–30 0–40 0–50 0–1.0 0–40 0–200 0–0.5
(0–50)
Satisfactory 51–100 31–60 41–80 51–100 1.1–2.0 41–80 201–400 0.5–1.0
(51–100)
Moderately 101–250 61–90 81–180 101–168 2.1–10.0 81–380 401–800 1.1–2.0
Polluted
(101–200)
Poor 251–350 91–120 181–280 169–208 10–17 381–800 801–1200 2.1–3.0
(201–300)
Very Poor 351–430 121–250 281–400 209–748a 17–34 801–1600 1200–1800 3.1–3.5
(301–400)
Severe 430+ 250+ 400+ 748+a 34+ 1600+ 1800+ 3.5+
(401–500)
a One hourly monitoring (for mathematical calculations only)
Table 2 Associated health impacts of AQI limits

AQI Associated health impacts
Good (0–50) Minimal impact
Satisfactory (51–100) May cause minor breathing discomfort to sensitive people
Moderately polluted (101–200) May cause breathing discomfort to people with lung disease
such as asthma, discomfort to people with heart disease,
children, and older adults
Poor (201–300) May cause breathing discomfort to people on prolonged
exposure and discomfort to people with heart disease
Very poor (301–400) May cause respiratory illness to the people on prolonged
exposure. Effect may be more pronounced in people with
lung and heart diseases
Severe (401–500) May cause respiratory impact even on healthy people and
serious health impacts on people with lung/heart disease. The
health impacts may be experienced even during light physical
activity
Our study reports the short-term variations in ambient air quality during the festival
period over Shimla city. The 24-hourly average concentrations of air pollutants, viz.
PM10 and NO2 were measured and analyzed for the day of Diwali festival, one day
before and one day after the festival over the city during the year 2016 (Table 3).
The similar analysis was carried out on a day, week before, and after the respective
festival days. These days were treated as normal days in order to compare the results
of the Diwali days.
Figures 4 and 5 display a comparison among the 24-hourly concentrations of
particulate (PM10 ) and gaseous pollutant (NO2 ) over Shimla city for the year 2016
during the Diwali festival (Pre-Diwali, Diwali, and Post-Diwali) and a normal day
(7th November 2016). This is evident from the Figs. 4 and 5 that influence of emis-
sions from pyrotechnic activities is visible on the day before Diwali, reaches peak
on Diwali and again starts decreasing toward the next day. The stable atmospheric
conditions during the festival also allow the pollutants to be accumulated in the
ambient air within the boundary layer [24]. Average concentrations at Monitoring
Station II are higher compared to Monitoring Station I reason being least influence of
anthropogenic activities at latter. While, Monitoring Station II is a commercial cum
residential area which due to space constraints often encounters traffic congestion
Table 3 Dates of present

Time of study Date
study during Diwali festival
Pre-Diwali 29th October 2016
Diwali 30th October 2016
Post-Diwali 31st October 2016
Fig. 4 a Concentrations of PM10 at M.S. I and b concentrations of PM10 at M.S. II
Fig. 5 a Concentrations of NO2 at M.S. I and b concentrations of NO2 at M.S. II
and chokes like situations leading to degradation in air quality of the region. But,
during the Diwali time, quality of ambient air gets exacerbated at both the monitoring
sites due to impact of burning of firecrackers.
It has been observed that PM10 was the most hazardous pollutant which showed
almost two-fold increase on Diwali day when compared to normal day. Figure 4a
and b shows the variation in particulate matter concentrations at the two monitoring
stations. Bursting of firecrackers aggravated the concentrations of PM10 at monitoring
station I, while emissions from burning of firecrackers got added to the vehicular
pollution which combined exacerbated the quality of air at monitoring station II.
While NO2 levels varied between 1.4 and 2 times on festival day as compared to a
normal day over the two monitoring stations.
Concentrations of air pollutants were analyzed in contrast to the available stan-
dards as per CPCB and WHO. On the day of Diwali, concentrations of PM10 at Moni-
toring Station II exceeds 24 hourly standards as prescribed by CPCB (100 µg/m3 ),
while is almost 2 times greater than the WHO guidelines (50 µg/m3 ). Further, concen-
trations of PM10 are observed higher than WHO guidelines for Pre-Diwali and Post-
Diwali days while, normal day concentration is slightly exceeding the WHO guide-
lines. Effect of fireworks on quality of air is particularly obvious in Fig. 5a, which
shows the significant increase in NO2 concentrations at Monitoring Station I on the
day of festival as compared to Pre-Diwali and Post-Diwali days as well as compared
to a normal day. Although, concentration levels of NO2 are well within the prescribed
limits as per CPCB, but it shows two-fold increase on Diwali day as compared to a
normal day.
To corroborate the above results, we calculated the index values for the air pollu-
tants and determined the Air Quality Index for both the monitoring stations to find the
alteration in quality of air during the festival of Diwali. Table 4 gives that quality of
air got degraded during the festival period, with significant amount of deterioration
conspicuous at Monitoring Station II where AQI was categorized as “moderately
polluted”. This site gets severely affected by vehicular pollution and firework emis-
sions further worsened the situation during the festival time. Even on the normal day,
quality of air at Monitoring Station II was satisfactory which shows the influence
of vehicles on the surrounding air. While Monitoring Station I, the background site
which depicts the natural ambient air quality of Shimla city, was also affected by the
emissions from the pyrotechnic activities during the Diwali day showing the change
in AQI from “good” to “satisfactory”.
The analysis performed highlights the short-term degradation in air quality of
the city which can significantly affect the human health. The hike in daily concen-
trations during festive time can be attributed to the festival activities as well as the
increase in vehicular activities in and around the city. Shimla is an old commercial
center and people travel from the areas in vicinity of Shimla as well as from far
off places for trade as well as shopping during the festival time. Moreover, festival
of Diwali is celebrated in evening and night time when stable meteorology persists
(lower boundary layer height and calm wind speed conditions) in atmosphere, which
suppresses the dispersion of pollutants.
Therefore, celebrations of any festival which involve pyrotechnic display needs
to be addressed and proper strategies need to be formulated to control and check the
emissions and ultimately the dispersion of the pollutants from these activities. The
Table 4 AQI for diwali days

Monitoring station Pre-diwali Diwali Post-diwali Normal day
Monitoring station I 39 66 49 39
Monitoring station II 72 105 60 51
direct prohibition and ban on firecrackers cannot be a solution as this is a big industry
and will have negative impacts on livelihood of people as well as economic loss to
the country. However, low emission firecrackers should be developed and provided
as an alternate to the conventional firecrackers, with low to moderate degree usage
during festivals. Special provisions should be made for the firecracker activities in
large open spaces in local areas or wards, away from residential areas reducing the
risk of housefires and also proper dispersion of the emissions generated. This will
also reduce the effect of short-term degradation on the vulnerable population having
diseases such as asthma which are at higher risk.
4 Conclusions
• Short-term analysis of air pollutants over the Shimla city during the festivities
reveals the variation in ambient air quality of the city. Effects of emissions due
to pyrotechnic display was significantly evident in increase in concentrations of
PM10 and NO2 .
• Concentrations PM10 were relatively on the dangerous levels on the day of Diwali
showing almost two-fold increase as compared to the normal day.
• Highest concentrations were noted at the Monitoring Station II where combined
effect of firecracker emissions and the vehicular pollution was observed.
• The short-term subjection to these pollutants above the prescribed standards and
guidelines can increase the tendency of acute health effects.
• This study showed that burning of firecrackers is a strong source of air pollution
which can deteriorate the quality of air, and it is clearly evident from the calculated
AQI as well. Therefore, we strongly suggest use of fireworks be reduced.
Acknowledgements The authors are grateful to the Chairman of HPPCB and other members from
HPPCB who provided the relevant data regarding the analysis. We also acknowledge Regional head
of IMD, Mr. Manmohan Singh and Scientist, Mr. Ramesh Chand for providing the meteorological
data. This work has been done as a part of MTech project of Divyansh Sharma at Jaypee University of
Information Technology, Waknaghat. Therefore, we would also like to thank the Head of Department
of Civil Engineering, Prof. Ashok Kumar Gupta.
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Coastal Slope Failure Analysis: A Case
Study on Baga Hill, Goa
Kohima Dessai and Sumitra S. Kandolkar
Abstract In India, around 40,000 km2 , which forms 12.6% of the land is prone to
landslides, this includes coastal landslides occurring along India’s coastline. Steep
slopes, type of soil, and heavy rainfall are some of the most critical factors causing
landslides, particularly in coastal areas, which affect human activities and landscape
changes. Increasing rate of urbanization has led to faster construction activity without
any following the boundaries of danger indicated by geotechnical investigation have
led to frequent failures of coastal slopes and slopes in general. Goa is a coastal state
with a 105 km long coastline. Hence, there is a need to investigate such coastal slopes
and evaluate parameters that affect their stability by doing numerical analysis. Our
study is based on one such coastal slope, located along the northern coast of Goa
at Baga, known as Baga hill. Our study analyses the Baga hill slope for its stability
using LEM-based software, GeoStudio-SLOPE/W, determine factor of safety, and
suggest suitable remedies to stabilize the slope with the latest cost-effective methods.
Analysis showed significant difference in FOS of slope with and without retaining
wall. The results of the analysis indicate that the slope of the resulting profile if
reduced after erosion control measures, then the factor of safety of the slope increases.
Controlling erosion using flatter slopes by introducing retaining wall helps to improve
the stability of coastal slopes along with number of other associated measures.
Keywords Coastal slope · Stability · Limit equillibrium method · SLOPE/W
1 Introduction
The failure of soil mass beneath a slope is known as a ‘slide’ [1]. It includes outward
and downward movement of soil mass, which participates in failure. Assessment and
analysis of slopes are two essential steps of slope stability in geotechnical engineering
because the result in slope failures can be catastrophic, which may include loss of life
and property. Erosion activities due to watercourse combined with climate factors
K. Dessai (B) · S. S. Kandolkar

Department of Civil Engineering, Goa Engineering College, Farmagudi, Goa 403401, India
e-mail: Kohimadessai10@gmail.com
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4040-8_72
896 K. Dessai and S. S. Kandolkar
are the primary sources of slope deformations [2]. The root causes of instability and
parameters which lead to failure in slopes are the gravitational force, erosion at the
surface due to surface runoff, forces due to seepage. Slide failure may occur without
any warning suddenly or may occur slowly without any deceptive provocation. The
foremost necessity for the analysis and design of slopes is the assurance of safety
and consistency during service life. Limit equilibrium method is mainly used for
carrying out deterministic slope stability analysis [3]. This method provides a critical
or minimum factor of safety and resulting failure surface, and also other failure
surfaces with their factor of safety. The different limit equilibrium methods are the
Bishop method, Janbu method, and Morgenstern-price method [4, 5].
The most common cause of landslides being the moisture factor and inadequate
drainage facility along the slopes and large deformations [6]. The soil displays
solid-like behaviour and undergoes small deformation, and it also displays fluid-
like behaviour and undergoes large deformation. Such a behaviour mostly affects the
poorly consolidated granular soils and weathered materials [7]. There is an immense
amount of research done on landslides in geotechnical engineering, like landslides
due to heavy rainfall [8–10], weak soil strength, construction of infrastructures
without proper study, and cutting of hills [11]. This study attempts to understand
the primary and common causes of slope failures in coastal zones and understands a
sustainable and reliable method for their strengthening. To stabilize the steep slopes,
preventive measures of benching and reinforcement of soil nailing are suggested,
and planting along the slope with proper drainage facilities strengthens the slope
[12, 13]. The slope can be rendered safe by changing the angle of from steep slope
to a gentler slope and grass bonding together with soil. Effective drainage system
reduces the chances of building up pore water pressure and saturation of subsoil can
be minimized, and gravity retaining walls are provided to resist the downward forces
of the soil mass [10, 14].
2 Site Description
The Baga hill is located 18 km away from Panjim, capital city of Goa in Bardez taluka
of North Goa district, Goa state, India. It is located at 1100 m ground elevation, and the
geographic coordinates of the site are 15°33' 43.26'' N 73°44' 47.02'' E. The average
rainfall received is about 2700 mm per year, with the highest rainfall occurring in
July, with an average of 868 mm. Baga hill is surrounded by Baga beach, Bagjuna
beach, and Baga river on three sides and the collapsed slope along with approach
road on the entrance side (north), which takes it to Xavier’s retreat house located at
the top of the hill. Figure 1 shows the study area map and map of Goa, encircling
area of slope failure. The height of the slope is 42 m from sea level. As Baga is a
tourism spot, the development around the Baga hill is increasing day by day.
Coastal Slope Failure Analysis: A Case Study on Baga Hill, Goa 897
Fig. 1 Study area map. Source Google Earth
3 Methodology
3.1 Site Study
India is a tropical country; therefore, it is susceptible to a wide range of natural

calamities, including slope instability and landslides triggered by rainfall. The study
is based on the slope failure at the Baga hill during the monsoon in August 2020.
There were three consecutive landslides in August, posing a danger for Xavier’s
retreat house located atop the hill [15, 16]. The retaining wall of height 3 m along
the approach road going to retreat house built to support the slope has collapsed at
some parts and has started sinking and tilting in remaining parts of the retaining
wall as shown in Fig. 2a, b. The retaining wall was built just two years ago with the
approach road. Gullies were formed in some parts of the slope, indicating the water
path during monsoon season.
Contour lines are lines joining points of equal elevation above the sea level, making
it easy for a visual representation of mountains and slope steepness. The outline of
contour lines is significant information that allows us to categorize landscapes on
map such as valleys and peaks. Circular shapes are peaks, whereas V-shapes are
ridges. Slope steepness is represented by how contour lines are close to each other.
The contour map of Baga hill is shown in Fig. 3.
The contour map shows the peak region of the Baga hill. The contour lines are
also very close to each other which indicates that Baga hill has a very steep slope.
Fig. 2 The landslide zone with a retaining wall intact b collapsed part of retaining wall. Picture
courtesy: Dessai K
Fig. 3 Contour map of study area

Fig. 4 Baga hill slope profile
3.2 Slope Profile
The slope profile is a two-dimensional cross-sectional view of the hillslope, repre-

senting the topography of the slope. The slope profile is created from visual investiga-
tion of the study site and from Google earth source. Figure 4 shows the cross-sectional
profile of the slope. The slope is 42 m high with a slope gradient, 2.63H:1V. Baga
hill is surrounded by Baga beach on three sides and the approach road on one side,
leading to the hill’s top. The retaining wall of height 3 m and length 35 m constructed
to stabilize the slope has been collapsed due to landslide in ‘slope A’ during monsoon.
The trees along this slope were displaced and uprooted, which increased the erosion
activity. The retaining wall on the left of the approach road is undamaged and stable,
but the trees along this slope B are inclined, indicating a very slow deformation of
the study slope.
3.3 Soil Characterization
The identification soil colour, having a thorough knowledge of the site and surround-
ings and procuring the soil sample from the affected site, is vital steps for geotech-
nical analysis. Based on this, we can ascertain the various factors responsible for the
problem. The soil characterization was done based on the various tests carried out
on the soil samples procured from the site. The results of the tests are presented in
Table 1.
Table 1 Properties of soil

Soil properties Results obtained
Moisture content (%) 5.20
Liquid limit (%) 37.50
Plasticity index 10.77
Cohesion (Kpa) 30
Friction angle (°) 10
Optimum moisture content (%) 18.00
Maximum dry density (kN/m3 ) 23.90
Percentage of fines (%) 65.10
Permeabilty (cm/s) 4.33 × 10–4
Based on the laboratory test results, the soil is classified as MI as per plasticity
chart (IS soil classification system) [17]. The specific gravity is on the lower side
due to the presence of organic matter in the soil. The soil has poor drainage the soil
in the Baga, Goa, region is classified as fine-grained silt with poor drainage.
4 Stability Analysis of Baga Hill
For stability analysis, the limit equilibrium method (LEM) is the most widespread
because of the ease and versatility. In LEM, the shear strength along the potential
failure plane is reduced by FoS such that mass within the failure plane and free surface
is in equilibrium. The numerical methods, such as the C-phi reduction method of
FEM, usually yield unique failure surface and are time-consuming. However, LEM
can determine two or more slip circles with accurate results. Hence, LEM provides
a better tool for slope stability analysis.
4.1 Input Parameters
In the present study, the slope has been analysed using LEM-based software
GeoStudio-SLOPE/W (2018). For FoS calculation, the Morgenstern-price (MP)
method is adopted because of its improved performance in stability design as it
considers both force and moment equilibrium acting on individual slices.
The general input parameters, as used for the slope, were sued to search and refine
the circular critical slip surface (CSS) in SLOPE/W. The entry and exit option were
used to identify the critical surface. The Mohr–Coulomb soil model together with
Table 2 Input parameters

Mohr–Coulomb Units Value
γ unsat kN/m2 15
γ sat kN/m2 19
Young’s modulus, E ref kN/m2 15,000
Poisson’s ratio, ν – 0.35
Cohesion, C ref kN/m2 30
Friction angle, Φ [°] 10
half-sine function for interslice forces was selected. They computed the FOS from
critical slip surface.
The input slope geometry parameters were obtained from field visits and Google
earth, and the soil parameters were determined from laboratory tests conducted on
soil sample (Table 1). The height of the slope was calculated from Google earth.
The various input parameters used in the analysis are cohesion, friction, and unit
weight with values 30 kPa, 10° and 15KN/m3 , respectively, for soil in its natural
moisture state obtained from laboratory tests conducted on soil sample. The stability
analysis of Baga hill is divided into two sections; the first part consists of analysing
the complete Baga hill slope, and the second section consists of stability analysis of
a part of Baga hill (slope A), as shown in Fig. 4 (Table 2).
The unsaturated and saturated unit weight were determined from laboratory tests
done on actual soil sample collected from the site. The mean values of young’s
modulus and Poisson’s ratio were considered for type of silty soil referring to
soil mechanics and foundation book [18]. Cohesion and friction angle were also
determined from the direct shear test. The shear strength parameters of the soil are
very important in calculation of soil slope stability. The accuracy of shear strength
parameters directly affects the reliability of the slope stability calculation results.
The homogenous soil properties are considered for the entire slope. The slope has
been analysed for the stability of the entire Baga hill and a part of Baga hill slope,
which had undergone failure using the Morgenstern-price (MP) method.
4.2 Modelling and Analysis
Stability analysis of the Baga hill is done in two parts firstly, the entire Baga hill is
considered for the analysis and FOS is determined taking into account the ground-
water level. After the analysis of entire Baga hill, only failed portion of the slope is
considered for the analysis. Also, analysis considering the different slope angles is
done to check the effect of slope angle on slope stability.
Stability analysis of Baga hill is done in following steps:
(1) Analysis of entire Baga hill
(2) Analysis of failed portion of the slope
(a) Existing condition without retaining wall

(b) With retaining wall
(3) Analysis of failed portion of slope with varying slope angles
(a) Slope angle 13°
(b) Slope angle 19°
(c) Slope angle 25°
4.3 Output Parameters
The output of the SLOPE/W analysis is factor of safety, defined as ratio of shear
strength to shear stress, required for equilibrium. If FOS is less than 1.0 (theoreti-
cally), the slope is unstable. Also, critical slip surface can be determined from the
results. The slip surfaces obtained can be shallow or deep depending on which stabi-
lization methods can be suggested. Some factors affecting the FOS are geometry of
the slope, soil properties, and slope angle. The output of the analysis shows how the
slope would collapse if maximum driving forces (to get minimum FOS) were acting
on the slope. The red portion indicates the critical failure zone and green portion
indicates the safety zone of the slope.
5.1 Analysis Entire Baga Hill
The results of stability analysis are represented in the form of FoS. The total height
of Baga hill is 42 m and length 112 m with a slope angle of approximately 23°. Since
this hill is a coastal slope, the ground water level was considered at 4 m. Figure 5
shows the slope analysis result of the entire Baga hill. The figure green indicates the
failure zone, red indicates critical failure zone which might collapse in near future.
The FOS of the slope analysis for the entire hill gives a FOS = 0.807, which
is less than the permissible values of 1.5, hence, the slope may be adjudged as a
vulnerable. The lower FoS may be due to the lower strength parameter obtained and
water present at the site. The steep slope angle is also the factor that influences the
FoS of the slope. The slip surface is found to originate at the slope crest near the
slope face and propagates just above the toe to intersect the slope face which can be
categorized as a slope failure.
Fig. 5 Stability analysis of entire Baga hill
5.2 Analysis of Failed Portion of Baga Slope
In 2013, a landslide had occurred at the Baga hill, where a part of slope had collapsed,
making the hill vulnerable to landslides and slope failures. Hence, stability analysis
was done for failed portion of the slope (slope A) as shown in Fig. 4. The slope
height is 20 m, length 57 m, and angle 23°. First, slope analysis was done without
any remedial measures and was checked for its stability. The factor of safety obtained
was 1.337; hence, it was unstable. Figure 6a shows the stability analysis for the failed
portion without any remedial measure. The failure surface originates at the slope face
and continues well below the toe of the slope to mark a deep failure surface.
After the slope failure, which occurred in 2013, a protective measure cantilever
retaining wall with nominal reinforcement of height 3 m and length 35 m was
constructed to stabilize the slope. But this solution shifted the slip circle a little higher
than the retaining wall and increased factor of safety to 1.569, which was greater than
the permissible FoS of 1.5, but despite this protective measure, there was another
recurring failure in August 2020. Difference in shift of critical slip surface can be
made from Fig. 6a, b. Figure 6b shows the stability analysis with protective measure
of retaining wall of height 3 m. The slip surface can be categorized under shallow
slip surface as the failure surface is concentrated near the slope face.
Fig. 6 Stability analysis of failed portion of the slope a existing condition b with retaining wall
5.3 Effect of Slope Angle on Slope Stability
Analysis using different slope angles was done to check the effect of slope angles on
slope stability. The failed portion of Baga slope was analysed using slope angles 13°,
19°, and 25° and homogenous soil properties used earlier in Sect. 4.1. The factor of
safety obtained for the slope with angle 13°, 19°, and 25° are 2.76, 1.8, and 1.33,
respectively. The factor of safety decreases with increase in steepness of the slope.
Hence, we can conclude that geometry and slope angle play crucial role in stability
of the slope. Figure 7a, b, and c shows the analysis output of the slopes with varying
slope angle.
5.4 Interpretation of Problem
Based on the study, following conditions may have led to the failure of the slope:
1. Drainage system: The slope under study was not provided with a proper drainage
facility other than the weep holes. As there was no proper path for drainage, the
weep holes of the retaining wall got blocked from residual matter, thus exerting
water pressure on the retaining wall, which may have to the failure of slope and
the retaining wall.
2. Preliminary design of retaining wall: The retaining wall built to support the
slope had an inadequate design, and the actual design calculations showed that
the retaining wall was unsafe for stability, sinking, and overturning.
3. Rainfall: In 2020, Goa recorded the highest rainfall of 4120 mm. The slope
failure occurred in August 2020; during this period, there was a continuous
downpour. So, rainfall could be one of the results which would have led to slope
failure.
4. Soil type: From test results, we can conclude that soil has low strength param-
eters and poor drainage conditions. Hence, the type of soil may have also
contributed to the slope failure.
5. Geometry: The slope under study is 42 m high from sea level with a steep angle
of 23°. The steep slopes with a range of 15°-20° are more likely to undergo
failure than the flat slopes. The slope gradient controls the shear forces acting
on the slope, and therefore, steeper slopes are more prone to failure.
6. Topography: The topographic parameters such as elevation, profile curvature,
plan curvature, and slope aspect are considered as the main causes of landslides.
The area under study is at a higher altitude with varying topography. The higher
the elevation of the slope the more is the probability of slope failure.
7. Presence of surface runoff and groundwater: During the rainy season, the surface
runoff seeps into the soil, and as our study area consists of soil with poor drainage
conditions, more water pressure is exerted. The gully trenches on the slope
indicated the gully erosion and drainage path perpendicular to the retaining wall.
Hence, this could have led to slope failure along with the failure of retaining
wall. As the study area is surrounded by beaches on three sides, the groundwater
level during monsoon rises, affecting slope stability, making it more vulnerable
to failure.
Fig. 7 a Analysis for gentle slope (13°), b analysis for medium slope (19°), c analysis for steep
slope (25°)
6 Preventive Measures
The attempt behind the failed slope study is to propose site-specific remedial
measures for prolonging stabilization of Baga hill. The important triggering factors
of slope failure at Baga hill are listed in Sect. 5.1.
Behind every traditional retaining wall, there must be a vertical drainage layer
consisting of granular soils that act as a flow path permitting water to flow from
backfill material to the underdrain system. Due to the continuous flow of water from
backfill to weep holes of the retaining wall, the vertical drainage layer gets clogged
from the backfill, and this drainage becomes of no use. Thus, it must be protected
by a geotextile filter to allow a smooth drainage path without any blocks [16]. This
technique can be used behind the retaining wall at the study slope to provide a proper
drainage path and reduce water pressure exerted on the retaining wall.
Also, geosynthetics, along with vegetation, can be used for erosion control. Non-
degradable three-dimensional products know as turf reinforcement mat (TRM) are
used for erosion control [19]. Turf reinforcement is a method by which vegetation’s
natural ability to protect soil from erosion is improved through the application of
geosynthetic materials. A flexible three-dimensional medium holds seeds and soil,
accelerates seed germination, stimulates seedling development, and, most signifi-
cantly, permanently anchors the vegetation matting to the soil surface. In fact, these
methods are capable of surviving high velocity flows without erosion; thus, they are
most suitable where heavy runoff or channel scouring is expected. The turf reinforce-
ment techniques have gained popularity due to their high resistance to water flow on
steep slopes. Hence, this technique can be used in the stabilization of Baga hill.
7 Conclusion
The study was organized to understand the recurring nature of Baga hill slope failure
and its relationship with geotechnical and physical entities. Based on the study, the
following inferences can be drawn.
1. Baga hill slope failure is shallow and is characterized by a semi-circular failure
surface and gully erosion of the slope. Field evidence indicates that there was a
moderate amount the soil displacement. Furthermore, from the laboratory tests,
it was found that the soil sample of the hill was silty soil with 3% clay content,
which enhanced the water carrying capacity.
2. The slope has been analysed using the limit equilibrium-based software
GeoStudio 2018. The analysis shows that the entire Baga hill vulnerable to land-
slides. Also, the stability analysis of failed slope shows that before construction
of the retaining wall, the slope was unstable with FoS 1.337. Analysis of failed
slope after construction of retaining wall indicated that FoS had been increased,
but the slope is still unstable with FoS of 1.569.
3. Based on the study, various conditions were discovered, which would have led to
the slope’s failure, such as poor drainage facility, incessant rainfall over a period
of time, geometry and soil condition of slope, topography, and groundwater.
4. Based on slope and soil conditions that led to the slope failure, some preventive
measures were proposed to stabilize the slope, which includes providing well
designed filters surrounding the weep holes behind retaining wall to reduce the
water pressure and vegetation mat to prevent soil erosion along the slope.
References
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Indian geotechnical conference-2010, GEO trendz.
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element method. International Research Journal of Engineering and Technology (IRJET), 06,
756–761.
4. Duncan, J. M., Wright, S. G., & Brandon, T. L. (2014). Soil strength and slope stability. John
Wiley and Sons.
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6. Longxiao, G., Guangqi, C., Shilin, G., Sun, H., & Krisadawat, C. (2021). Analysis of rainfall-
induced landslide using the extended DDA by incorporating matric suction. Computers and
Geotechnics, 135, 1–11.
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landslides of the flow-type. Journal of Geotechnical and Geoenvironmental Engineering,
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hill slopes: Numerical approach, Geo-Congress 2020, February 25–28, ASCE.
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(pp. 1–17).
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failure along NH-5, Himachal Himalaya, India. Natural Hazards, 1–24.
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2006.
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16. Navhind Times. (2020). Heavy rains causes landslide at Xavier Retreat house, Baga, Calangute.
17. Jain, A. K., & Punmia, B. C. (1973). Soil mechanics and foundations. Laxmi Publications.
18. Budhu, M. (2011). Soil mechanics and foundations. John Wiley & Sons.
19. Babu, G. S. (2005). An introduction to soil reinforcement and Geosynthetics. Orient Blackswan.
Leaching and Heavy Metal-Binding
Characteristics of Red Mud-Based
Construction Materials—A Review
Aman Kumar, T. Jothi Saravanan, K. I. Syed Ahmed Kabeer,
and Kunal Bisht
Abstract The production of Ordinary Portland Cement (OPC) extensively used in

construction causes significant environmental damage. With an ongoing attempt at
replacing OPC by using numerous waste materials, there is a need to understand
the environmental impact of using these contemporary construction materials. It is
imperative to appraise heavy metals’ discharge to the soil and the aquatic environ-
ment in this domain. Red mud (RM) is one such hazardous waste material utilized
to prepare the alkali-activated binders and geopolymers. This paper presents a crit-
ical review of RM-based construction materials’ leaching and heavy metal-binding
characteristics. The RM particles have a strong capability to absorb pollutants owing
to their smaller particle size, large porosity, and large specific surface area. The
leaching of heavy metals observed in the geopolymer samples reduced significantly
when compared to their corresponding source materials, which helped solidify the
heavy metals, serving as a promising material for constructing green buildings.
Keywords Aluminium · Red mud · Geopolymer · Alkali-activated binders · Toxic

metals · Global warming
1 Introduction
The production of Portland Cement is one of the major reasons for the increase in
the carbon footprint in the atmosphere, as it forms many civil engineering appli-
cations. These phenomena consequently lead to unpropitious environmental issues
A. Kumar (B) · T. Jothi Saravanan

School of Infrastructure, Indian Institute of Technology Bhubaneswar, Bhubaneswar, India
e-mail: ak59@iitbbs.ac.in
K. I. Syed Ahmed Kabeer
School of Architecture and Interior Design, SRM Institute of Science and Technology, Chennai,
India
K. Bisht
Department of Civil Engineering, KIET Group of Institutions, Delhi, NCR, India
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4040-8_73
910 A. Kumar et al.
such as climate change and global warming, which have stimulated the use of several
industrial waste products to produce geopolymer materials to mitigate OPC usage
in construction and building materials. Moreover, the increasing quantity of waste
produced by the industries, some even radioactive and toxic, can lead to grave envi-
ronmental issues when not properly disposed of, highlighting the need to shift to
novel methods for reusing and recycling such waste materials [1–4]. Over the past few
years, using these waste materials in the construction industry has manifested good
results, mainly by recycling (i.e. applying construction materials after processing)
and reusing the components [5, 6].
One such waste material is red mud (RM), which is generated as a by-product
in the extraction of alumina utilizing Bayer’s process. The annual production of
alumina globally accounts for around 58 million tonnes, of which 2.7 million tonnes
are produced in India [7]. The disposal of RM is currently done by dry stacking, waste
lakes, and storage in huge ponds or landfills (refer to Fig. 1). Many environmental
issues are concomitant with the disposal of RM, some of which are its significant
pH value that ranges from 10.5 to 12.5, the uncertainty of storage, vast areas of land
consumed, and seepage of alkali into groundwater [7]. Moreover, the high salinity
and alkalinity, inadequacy of plant nutrients, and a dearth of organic matter in the RM
impede plant growth. The vegetation is also affected by the generation of alkaline
dust, which contaminates the air (dry disposal), ascribed to the high fineness of RM
particles [8]. Heavy metals were discerned in RM, which seeps through and degrades
groundwater and soil quality, making them unsuitable for drinking and cultivation,
respectively [9].
There has been rigorous research and development on utilizing RM as a base
material for a variety of different geopolymer and alkali-activated material-based
applications. Metallic oxides are abundant in RM, especially iron. RM particles
have good particle dispersion and superior stability in solution, implying their coag-
ulation is less likely. Some characteristics of RM are even congruous to those of
porous materials, like the properties relating to mechanical, physical, and thermal
fields, such as the low density of RM. These characteristics of RM make it a viable
Fig. 1 RM disposal by NALCO, a resulting in the formation of a lake and b dry disposal [5]
Leaching and Heavy Metal-Binding Characteristics of Red … 911
material for its application in different domains. The most widely followed three
approaches for utilizing RM are, for the recovery of precious metals, its utilization
as building and construction material and environmental protection (soil rehabili-
tation from potentially harmful elements, wastewater, and harmful gases) [8]. As
these geopolymers are made using RM, they have a high Na in them, making the
efflorescence of these construction materials an important concern. This paper crit-
ically reviews the leaching and heavy metal-binding characteristics of RM-based
construction materials by analysing the studies conducted on the subject previously.
2 Materials Used and Experimental Methodology
This study analyses results of the leaching and heavy metal-binding characteristics
from research articles aiming towards the utilization of RM infusion with fly ash
(FA), ground granulated blast furnace slag (GGBFS), and silica fume (SF) for the
preparation of the construction materials using various techniques. In the reported
studies, many parameters were varied, and its effect on the leaching and binding
properties of heavy metals was observed. Li et al. [10] investigated the effect of RM’s
addition to a quantity of 80% in the mix constituting RM and FA. The influence
of pretreatments like calcination and pulverization provided to the RM was also
examined. Hu et al. [11] analysed the impact of alkali thermal activation. Similar
to the studies conducted on the RM-FA geopolymers, the impact of the quantity of
RM incorporated in the geopolymer based on RM-GGBS was also reviewed. Zhang
et al. [12] analysed the influence of using different RM gradations by integrating
five different sizes of RM in the prepared geopolymers. The efflorescence in the
alkali-activated binders (AAB) was examined by Jung et al. [13]. Also, Ye et al. [14]
examined the leaching in one-part geopolymer prepared by amalgamation of silica
fume (SF) and alkali thermal-activated RM.
Various authors used several different procedures and methodologies to examine
the leaching and heavy metal-binding characteristics. The toxicity leaching proce-
dures (TCLP) were implemented by Li et al. [10], Kumar and Kumar [15], and Kim
et al. [16]. Li et al. [10] performed chemical speciation of the geopolymer sample
according to the modern BCR method. Spectral scanning was performed by Chen
et al. [17] to examine the extent of heavy metals adsorption on the geopolymer
surface. The results of all these tests are discussed briefly in the next section.
912 A. Kumar et al.
3 Discussion
3.1 Leaching Test
TCLP was used to measure the leaching of heavy metals from the red mud-
based construction materials [10, 15, 16]. All three studies reported a heavy
metal leaching concentration lower than the United States Environmental Protec-
tion Agency (USEPA). Moreover, the samples discerned much lower leaching of
heavy metals as compared to the source materials. This decline implied that solid-
ifying the heavy metals in the sample was assisted by forming hydration products
[10]. Moreover, the municipal solid waste incineration fly ash (MSWIFA)-RM-based
geopolymer had a lower chlorine concentration than that present in MSWIFA, which
was another reason for the decrease according to previous studies in the heavy metal
leaching [10].
Li et al. [10] used MSWIFA and RM to synthesize the geopolymer. The increase
in MSWIFA led to a rise in the binder strength owing to the higher pH of MSWIFA
than the RM, which increased the alkalinity of the system. The dissolution of the
aluminosilicates was enhanced with the increase in the alkalinity of the system. More-
over, the polymerization reaction was also accelerated. Additionally, the formation
of complex hydration products of calcium ions aided the strength of the binder and
provided the ability to solidify heavy metals.
Furthermore, the MSWIFA and geopolymer sample was subjected to chemical
speciation according to the modern Community Bureau of Reference (BCR) method.
It was seen that MSWIFA had heavy metal ions in weak acid-soluble and reducible
fractions, which made them more prone to be dissolved out with acid rain, causing a
severe threat to the environment. In contrast, heavy metals in the geopolymer were in
the oxidizable and residual fractions, which are more stable. Based on this behaviour,
it was concluded that the heavy metals and the hydration products exhibited inter-
action, like the formation of ettringite and several double-layered hydroxides of
calcium aluminium/ferric hydrates. Moreover, the red mud-based geopolymer mate-
rial’s special encapsulation effect was discerned by the chemical speciation transfor-
mations of Pb, Zn, Cr, and Cu. Hence, the RM geopolymer mixture was speculated
to be a safe alternative to cement composites [10].
Alkali leaching test was exercised by Hu et al. [18] to evaluate the activity of SiO2
and Al2 O3 in RM. The dissolution efficiency of the corresponding two compounds
was calculated using the content of Al2 O3 and SiO2 in the leachate and raw RM as
per the Chinese standard YS/T 575-2007. The dissolution efficiencies of SiO2 and
Al2 O3 were first evaluated subjected to a variation in the calcination temperature of
the thermal pretreated RM (as shown in Fig. 2). The dissolution efficiencies of both
SiO2 and Al2 O3 rose with an increase in the temperature and depicted a peak at 800 °C.
It was comparatively lower for SiO2 as Si was mainly present in quartz, thermally
stable during the pretreatment. The significant increase in the dissolution of Al2 O3
in the alkaline solution from 200 to 400 °C was due to the disintegration of gibbsite
which gives out active Al2 O3 . At higher temperatures, the decomposition of sodalite
Dissolution efficiency 12 SiO2 Al2O3 25
Dissolution efficiency
SiO2 Al2O3
10 20
8
(wt%)
15
(wt%)
6
4 10
2 5
0
0
200
300
400
500
600
700
800
900
1000
0 2.5 5 7.5
Calcination Temperature (oC) Na2O (wt%)
Fig. 2 (Left) Effect of varying calcination temperatures on the dissolution efficiencies of SiO2 and
Al2 O3 in the alkaline solution of the thermal pretreated RM. (Right) Effect of varying Na2 O dosages
on the dissolution efficiencies of SiO2 and Al2 O3 in the alkaline solution of the RM pretreated by
alkali thermal activation, calcined at 800 °C [18]
and chantalite contributed to the development of fourfold or fivefold coordinated

Al, which improved its dissolution efficiency. Decomposition of sodalite at 900 °C
consequently led to nepheline formation, which got more pronounced at 1000 °C.
Secondly, the influence of varying dosages of Na2 O in the alkali thermal pretreated
RM, calcined at 800 °C was studied. The rise in the quantity of Na2 O added was
reported to bring about a change in the dissolution efficiency of SiO2 and Al2 O3
(refer to Fig. 2). When the addition of Na2 O rose to 5% by wt., a nepheline phase was
observed that was better soluble in an alkaline environment, consequently enhancing
the dissolution efficiency. With the further addition of Na2 O to 7.5 wt.%, the forma-
tion of peralkaline aluminosilicate was detected, contributing to forming an alkaline
environment. Albeit the addition of Na2 O increases the dissolution efficiency, excess
alkali impedes the workability of the geopolymer [18].
In a different study, Zhang et al. [19] examined the leaching behaviour of
aluminium from the prepared geopolymers immersed in deionized water and
sulphuric acid. This study was conducted on cylindrical and powder forms of the
specimens kept at room temperature and 80 °C. The leaching of Al in the powder
samples was faster than their cylindrical counterparts. Also, it was observed that
when cured at 23 °C, the leaching behaviour of Al in samples immersed in both
deionized water and sulphuric acid was not so different irrespective of the form of
the sample. Meanwhile, the samples cured at 80 °C did not show any clear trend in
the leaching behaviour of Al in the two leachants utilized. Notably, the maximum
concentration of leached Al was higher in the powder samples soaked in sulphuric
acid than in deionized water when cured at 80 °C. Howbeit, the maximum concen-
tration of leached Al in the cylindrical samples cured at 80 °C was less influenced
by the leachants used. The leaching of all the heavy metals in the samples was much
lower than the limits prescribed by USEPA. Additionally, it was observed that the
prepared geopolymer discerned a more desirable immobilization of As than the other
heavy metals.
The effect of particle fractions in the red mud-based grouts was studied by Zhang
et al. [12]. It incorporated RM of varying particle fraction (bulk RM, 39 µm, 63 µm,
914 A. Kumar et al.
104 µm, 268 µm, and 392 µm) and slag in a per cent composition by mass of 6:4. It
was reported that with the increase in the size of the RM particles, the compressive
strength initially got reduced, after which it subsequently rose. The specimen with
the bulk particle size of RM had higher compressive strength than particles finer than
268 µm and 104 µm. This was because the leaching of Al3+ and Si4+ was compara-
tively easier for finer particles in the bulk particle distribution, so the geopolymer gel
formation was promoted. The higher strength of samples with coarser particles like
RM-392 (particles finer than 392 µm) and RM-268 (particles finer than 268 µm)
was ascribed to the presence of higher aluminosilicate contents, which subsequently
led to more geopolymer gel formation that enhanced the mechanical strength.
There was a fluctuation in the pH of the leaching solutions of the geopolymer
synthesized by Ye et al. [20] making use of RM and SF, ranging from 11.2 to 13.2.
This variation was due to the disintegration of sodium aluminosilicates in thermal-
activated RM. The author reported a reduction in the pH value with a rise in the
quantity of SF, which was due to the consumption of OH− ions by the SF dissolved
in the alkaline environment in the aqueous phase of the binders. The decrement in
pH got more pronounced with the increase in SF addition as the curing age extended
from 3 to 7 days. There was a further decline in the pH following a curing age of
28 days for binders having 15–30% weight of SF. Albeit, the binders having 0–10%
weight of SF discerned a higher pH at 28 days than that at 3 days and 7 days. This rise
in pH should result from depolymerization or re-dissolution of the aluminosilicate
gels with a small SiO2 /Al2 O3 molar ratio. The different observations made by the
authors are summarized in Table 1.
Table 1 Observations made by different authors

Observations References
Heavy metals concentration initially present in MSWIFA was reduced when Li et al. [10]
used in the RM geopolymer. Heavy metals in the geopolymer were in the
oxidizable and residual fractions
Dissolution efficiencies of SiO2 and Al2 O3 discerned an increase with the Hu et al. [18]
rise in calcination temperature of the thermal pretreated RM and depicted a
peak at 800 °C. The incorporation of Na2 O increased the dissolution
efficiency, but excess alkali impeded the workability of the geopolymer
When cured at 23 °C, the leaching behaviour of Al in samples immersed in Zhang et al. [19]
both deionized water and sulphuric acid was not so different irrespective of
the form of the sample. The prepared geopolymer discerned a more desirable
immobilization of As than the other heavy metals
The leaching of Al3+ and Si4+ was comparatively easier for finer particles in Zhang et al. [12]
the bulk particle distribution, so the geopolymer gel formation was promoted
The pH of the leaching solutions of the geopolymer declined with a rise in the Ye et al. [20]
amount of SF. The decline in pH enhanced with the increase in SF addition as
the curing age extended from 3 to 7 days
3.2 Role in Efflorescence
Kang and Kwon [21] measured the leaching of Na+ and Ca2+ in the samples with no
RM content before and after the efflorescence test, while Jung et al. [13] measured
the amount of Na+ and Ca2+ leached before the first test and after completing the fifth
test to investigate the main mechanism of efflorescence. The results of the leaching
tests are shown in Figs. 3 and 4. As the RM was rich in Na2 O, thus a rise in the
quantity of RM increased the leaching of Na+ from the samples, although there was
a decrease in the leached Na+ content after the fifth efflorescence test compared with
the leaching before the first test (refer to Fig. 3). The formation of efflorescence in
OPC-based concrete was dominated by free CaO or Ca(OH)2 , resulting from Ca’s
hydration in the geopolymer. Owing to the lower content of CaO present in RM, it
was observed that the leaching of Ca2+ decreased with an increase in the quantity
of RM (refer to Fig. 4). However, even though the Na+ content was less than Ca2+
content in the binder based on OPC, the formation of Na2 CO3 .H2 O dominated the
100
Before (1) Before (2) After 1 After 5
Extent of Na+ leaching
80
60
(mg/L)
40
20
0
OPC0 OPC10 OPC20 OPC30 AAS0 AAS10 AAS20 AAS30
Fig. 3 Extent of Na+ leaching in the samples. (Before (1): leaching test before the efflorescence
test done by Kang and Kwon [21]; before (2): leaching test before the efflorescence test done by
Hyeok-Jung et al. [13]; after 1: leaching test after first efflorescence test; after 5: leaching test after
fifth efflorescence test)
400
Before (1) Before (2) After 1 After 5
leaching (mg/L)
Extent of Ca2+
300
200
100
0
OPC0 OPC10 OPC20 OPC30 AAS0 AAS10 AAS20 AAS30
Fig. 4 Extent of Ca2+ leaching in the samples. (Before (1): leaching test before the efflorescence
test done by Kang and Kwon [21]; before (2): leaching test before the efflorescence test done by
Hyeok-Jung et al. [13]; after 1: leaching test after first efflorescence test; after 5: leaching test after
fifth efflorescence test)
916 A. Kumar et al.
efflorescence. Moreover, the amount of Ca2+ leached decreased only slightly after the
fifth test compared to that before the first test, and this decrease was lesser than that
of Na+ . This implied that the generation of efflorescence was primarily influenced
by the amount of Na+ and was less effected by the quantity of Ca2+ present in the
geopolymer.
3.3 Heavy Metals’ Adsorption by the Binder Surface
The adsorption capacity of the geopolymers to adsorb the heavy metal ions was
compared with that of the Portland Cement (PC) by Chen et al. [17]. Consequently, the
adsorption capacity for heavy metal ions was maximum for RM-based geopolymer
pervious concrete followed by GBFS-based geopolymer pervious concrete and the
least for the PC pervious concrete. The author asserted that it was mainly the C–
S–H gel present in PC that adsorbed the heavy metal ions, while in RM-GBFS-
based binder, the geopolymeric gel/C–S–H gel/RM was primarily responsible for
adsorption and that in GBFS-based binder it occurred on geopolymeric gel/C–S–H
gel. The adsorption of different heavy metals (Pb, Cd, Cu, and Cr) by the RM-GBFS-
based geopolymer was examined in depth and followed the order Pb2+ > Cd2+ > Cu2+
> Cr3+ . This property of the RM-GBFS-based binder inferred that it can be utilized
for the design of pervious concrete which could function as a potential water purifier.
The target void ratio in work done by Chen et al. [17] was fixed to be 25 v/v%.
However, all the samples had a total void ratio greater than the target void ratio that
was attributed to the coarse surface of the aggregates and due to the compaction
process. The contact time and the contact area had a considerable impact on the
adsorption efficiency of an adsorbent, which was governed by the permeability and
the total void ratio. The paste to aggregate ratio and the aggregate gradation were the
two main attributes influencing the permeability and the void ratio of the pervious
concrete. Both the paste to aggregate ratio and the aggregate gradation were main-
tained so that the strength of concrete and the adsorption of heavy metals were not
affected by the total void ratio. Additionally, the quantity of gels was higher in PC.
Thus, the geopolymer samples discerned a higher heavy metal ion absorption capa-
bility. The RM particles have a strong capability to absorb pollutants owing to their
smaller particle size, large specific surface area, and large porosity. Thus, the binder
or the pervious concrete had an enhanced adsorption capacity for the heavy metal
ions, increasing the RM content.
4 Conclusions
. As seen from the leaching tests, the dissolution efficiencies of both Al2 O3 and
SiO2 increased with a rise in temperature (peak at 800 °C), leading to a better
formation of the geopolymer gel, which resulted in higher strength.
. However, efflorescence tests depicted that the generation of efflorescence in the

geopolymer was primarily influenced by the amount of Na+ . Hence, in order to
control the efflorescence formation in the geopolymers and acquire an optimum
strength, there is a need to find the right amount of alkali activator (NaOH/Na2 O)
to be added.
. The geopolymer and AAB samples synthesized by utilizing RM ascertained good
adsorption of heavy metals resulting from the complex hydration products formed.
Consequently, heavy metals such as As, Pb, Cd, Cu, and Cr were more stable in
the prepared geopolymers than the respective source materials, hence manifesting
the positive influence of geopolymers on the environment.
. Further, this encapsulation effect of the geopolymer can be used in several civil
engineering applications, such as its use as a water purifier by the pervious
geopolymer concrete for the effective use of RM.
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properties of cement mortar prepared with waste granite powder as secondary aggregate. In
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3. Putrevu, M., Thiyagarajan, J. S., Pasla, D., Kabeer, K. I. S. A., & Bisht, K. (2021). Valorization
of red mud waste for cleaner production of construction materials. Journal of Hazardous, Toxic,
and Radioactive Waste, 25, 1–16. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)HZ.2153-5515.0000629.
4. Singh, Y., Vyas, A. K., & Kabeer, K. I. S. A. (2017). Compressive strength evaluation of mortars
containing ISF slag and marble powder. Materials Today Proceedings, 4, 9635–9639. https://
doi.org/10.1016/j.matpr.2017.06.239
5. Kumar, A., Saravanan, T. J., Bisht, K., & Ahmed, K. I. S. (2021). A review on the utilization
of red mud for the production of geopolymer and alkali activated concrete. Construction and
Building Materials, 302, 124170. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2021.124170
6. Putrevu, M., Jothi Saravanan, T., Bisht, K., Kabeer, K. I. S. A. (2021). Change in fresh and rheo-
logical properties of mortar and concrete prepared using red mud—A review. IOP Conference
Series Earth Environmental Science, 795, 012005. https://doi.org/10.1088/1755-1315/795/1/
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utilization of red mud for its better waste management. Archives Environmental Science, 6,
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Forensic Investigation and Analysis
of Landslide in Goa—A Case Study
Ashwarya S. Naik and Nisha P. Naik
Abstract Landslides are a global problem faced by most of the countries. Landslides
are frequently seen in the state of Goa, India. Landslides have a large impact and cause
huge loss of human life and property and may cause disruption in communication
routes, which can eventually have an impact on economy. It is not thoughtful to
oversee the effects caused due to landslides, and thus, it becomes mandatory to
design the slope to avoid their occurrences in the near future. Many development
works are taking place in Goa which include building projects on hill tops and
extensions of highways. This leads to uneven cutting of slopes. Another main reason
for occurrence of landslides is rainfall. Annual rainfall in Goa is about 3000 mm.
Major proportion of landslides are rainfall induced. In the present paper, a case study
of a landslide which occurred behind Sri Sai Baba temple in Borim, Goa, is presented.
Forensic investigation is carried out to understand the type of soil, and its modeling
and analysis are done using MIDAS GTS NX software. The results obtained are then
cross verified using GEO-STUDIO software.
Keywords Landslides · Rainfall · MIDAS · Seepage · Pore water
1 Introduction
In the tropical and subtropical areas, we find a number of slopes which are quite stable
but suddenly fail during monsoon season. Thus, studying the factors which trigger
landslides becomes very important. Many researchers in their study concluded that
stability of saturated soil slopes is not the same as that of unsaturated slopes. For
rainfall-induced landslides, an extensive study of infiltration in unsaturated soil is of
prime importance. Rainfall-induced landslide are due to the development of negative
pore water pressure. This negative pore water pressure decreases shear strength of
soil to a large extent leading to a landslide. Knowledge of soil water characteristic
A. S. Naik (B) · N. P. Naik

Civil Engineering Department, Goa College of Engineering, Farmagudi, Ponda, Goa 403401,
India
e-mail: naikashwarya1997@gmail.com
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4040-8_74
920 A. S. Naik and N. P. Naik
curve (SWCC) and forensic investigation helps in better understanding of the same.
On August 11, 2018 in Borim, Ponda, in the state of Goa behind Sri Sai Baba temple,
a landslide has occurred. In the present paper, same landslide is been studied, and
the reason for its failure is explained on the concepts of unsaturated soil mechanics.
2 Literature Review
Ering et al. [1] worked on forensic analysis of the Malin landslides in Pune, India. The
main reason for its occurrence is heavy rainfall. In the present study, back analysis
and numerical methods were been used to understand the failure criteria. It enables
one to understand the slope failure caused due to a reduction in suction strength at
the interface of rock and local soil. The back analysis is carried out using the bishop’s
method of slices. To validate the results obtained from numerical methods, software
analysis was done and it was concluded that there is a considerable decrease in soil
strength due to rainfall. Leong and Rahardjo [2] worked on a review of soil–water
characteristic curve equations. In this analysis, all the popular equations for the soil–
water characteristic curve have been studied closely and were then been described
using a generic equation. From the study, it was concluded that the Van Genuchten
equation gave the best results as only three unknown parameters were been used in the
analysis. Thus, the Van Genuchten equation is used for the soil–water characteristic
curve. When soil is completely saturated, all pores are filled with water. But in the
case of unsaturated soils, negative water pressure is generated which will influence
the volume of water stored in the soil mass. Soil matrix suction keeps on changing
with place and time in the unsaturated soil mass. Thus, the use of the soil–water
characteristic curve (SWCC) becomes handy. SWCC is a graphical representation of
matric suction (ua – uw ) and volumetric water content (θ w ). It helps in determining
the hydraulic conductivity and mechanical behavior of unsaturated soil mass and
also predicts the water storage capacity of the soil. Matric suction affects both, i.e.,
the shear strength and permeability of unsaturated soils. Thus, the use of SWCC
curves is very important in the case of rainfall-induced landslides. Van Genuchten
[3] proposed Eq. 1 to determine the SWCC.
θs − θr
θ (u a − u w ) = θr + { }m (1)
1 + [α ∗ (u a − u w )]n n
where θ(u a −u w ) is volumetric water content expressed in function of matric suction,

θ r is residual volumetric water content, θ s is saturated volumetric water content, α,
nn and m are fitting parameters. Masrouri et al. [4] worked on hydraulic constitutive
functions of unsaturated soils. In their paper, it was clearly stated that other than going
for any assumptions, it is always better to go along with the empirical expressions.
Laboratory methods were been used for the measurement of hydraulic conductivity
of saturated soils, and a plot was generated between water hydraulic conductivity
Forensic Investigation and Analysis of Landslide … 921
and its corresponding saturation. The study indicated that a good knowledge of soil
fabrics is important to understand the hydro-mechanical behavior of swelling soils.
Thus, taking into account the complexity of the research, it was concluded that it
is difficult to verify a model for water movement in swelling and cracking soils. In
saturated soils, shear strength is described using two independent stress state variables
as proposed by Fredlund et al. [5]. The two-stress state functions used are matrix
suction (μa − μw ) and normal stress (σ − μa ). The above-mentioned variables are
represented in Eq. 2.
(2)
where τ f —shear stress, c' —cohesion, σ n —normal stress, Ҩ ' —the angle of
internal friction and Ҩ b —angle indicating increase in shear strength relative to matrix
suction. As per Fredlund and Rahardjo [6], the value of Ҩ b is determined experi-
mentally and usually varies between Ҩ ' and Ҩ ' /2. Thus, from Eq. 2, it is clear that
unsaturated soils have more shear strength compared to saturated. In the case of unsat-
urated soil, three factors contribute to increasing the shear strength, i.e., cohesion,
friction angle and matrix suction. Due to heavy rainfall, decrease in shear strength
parameters is seen which is represented in Eq. 3.
(3)
where c—total cohesion of the soil. Vanapalli et al. [7] came up with a nonlinear
shear strength equation. It was seen that the use of the nonlinear shear strength
equation gives a better representation of stress state in unsaturated soil mass as it
involves normalization of volumetric water content as seen in Eq. 4.
(4)
3 Site Description
Location and Topography: Sri Sai Baba temple is located in Ponda taluka, North
district in the state of Goa, India. The site is located at an elevation of 36 m and is
about 11.7 km from the Margao city. Figure 1a shows the location and the affected
area. The geographic coordinates of the location are: latitude 15°21' 37'' and longitude
74°00' 00'' . Initially, the area was densely covered by deciduous forest. With the use
of time-lapse feature available in GOOGLE EARTH PRO software, a satellite image
of Sri Sai Baba temple in year 2002 was obtained. Figure 1b shows the aerial view
of the site in the year 2002. With the use of the same software, profile of the slope is
generated and shown in Fig. 2. Results of forensic investigation carried out on site
are shown in Table 1.
Fig. 1 a Site location in the year 2021, b site location in the year 2002. Source GOOGLE EARTH
PRO software
Fig. 2 Profile view of the site. Source GOOGLE EARTH PRO software
Table 1 Forensic
Parameters Results
investigation results
Moisture content (%) 28
Dry density (g/cc) 1.85
Liquid limit (%) 31.1
Plasticity index (PI) 16
Soil classification Silty clay with intermediate plasticity
Cohesion (kN/m2 ) 15
Friction angle (°) 16.5
Rainfall Data: The rainfall data is collected from Climate Hazard Group InfraRed
Precipitation with Station Data (CHIRPS) daily. Figure 3 shows the rainfall data of
Borim village from July 17 to August 24, 2018. It can be seen in Fig. 3, that during
previous few days, i.e., between July 20 and August 9, the antecedent rainfall was
nothing extraordinary. However, the rainfall record on August 11, i.e., after 504 h
showed high amount of rainfall (128 mm).
Fig. 3 Rainfall pattern at the time of landslide. Source CHIRS portal
4 Method of Analysis of Landslide in Borim, Goa
In this study, strength parameters present before rainfall are denoted as pre-slide
strength parameters and at the time of failure are denoted as failure strength param-
eters. From the forensic investigation carried out on the site, the value of plasticity
index obtained is 16 with cohesion equal to 15 kN/m2 and friction angle 16.5°.
These are post-slide shear strength parameters. These values can be used to deter-
mine the remaining two unknown strength parameters, i.e., pre-slide and at failure
state. Duncan and Stark [8] gave a Table 2 using which friction angle of the slope can
be determined provided the PI value of the soil is known. In case of Borim site, PI
value of soil is 16, thus we can clearly see from Table 2 that friction angle will take
values in the range 25° to 35°. In the present analysis, the assumed value of friction
angle is 25°.
In MIDAS GTS NX software, using geometry command the slope profile is drawn.
Then, material, property and boundary conditions were assigned. Using seepage
consolidation analysis tab, initial water table, saturated water level and surface flux
were assigned. Then, using the stage set command, the slope was modeled in different
stages of steady state, stress and transient stage. Then, run analysis command was
used to perform the analysis. Using the output file, the results generated were noted
down. A similar procedure is followed in GEO-STUDIO software. Trial and error
method was used in order to find out the factor of safety. In case of failure state, the
Table 2 Typical values of Ҩ

Plasticity index Friction angle (Ҩ )
at different values of
plasticity index 0–10 30–40
10–20 25–35
20–40 20–30
40–80 15–25
Source Duncan and Stark [8]
factor of safety is less than 1. From Duncan and Stark table, the value of friction
angle was fixed. Thus, only unknown was the value of cohesion at the time of failure.
Similar procedure is adopted in case when the slope is under pre-slide condition. Only
difference was, at the time of pre-slide the factor of safety is more than 1.5, rest all
remains the same.
MIDAS GTS NX software programmed with finite element method gave factor of
safety 1.54 as seen in Fig. 4a, for the numerical combination of cohesion equal to
18 kN/m2 and friction angle 25°. Similar approach is used to determine the factor
of safety at failure state. At failure state the factor of safety is equal to or less than
1. MIDAS GTS NX software programmed with finite element method gave factor of
safety 1.09 as shown in Fig. 4b for the numerical combination of cohesion equal to
2.5 kN/m2 and friction angle 25°.
To cross verify the results obtained from finite element method, the slope was
then analyzed using GEO-STUDIO software. The material model used for this anal-
ysis is Mohr–Coulomb. The factor of safety generated in pre-slide state using limit
equilibrium method of analysis is equal to 1.62 and in case of failure state is 1.063 as
seen in Fig. 5a, b, respectively. The strength parameters used in this analysis are kept
Fig. 4 a Pre-slide factor of safety = 1.54, b factor of safety at failure = 1.09
Fig. 5 a Pre-slide factor of safety = 1.62, b factor of safety at failure = 1.063

Table 3 Shear strength

Strength parameters Pre-slide Failure state Post-slide
parameters obtained from the
analysis Cohesion (kPa) 18 2.5 15
Friction angle (°) 25 25 16.5
same as that of finite element method. Table 3 shows the shear strength parameters.
In the present study, heavy and continuous rainfall were one of the major causes for
the landslide. Due to which there was increase in saturation level, which, ultimately
decreased the matrix suction value of the soil, which is clearly seen from the shear
strength parameters, i.e., for the same friction angle, the cohesion value of the soil
is decreased by a considerable amount. Matrix suction has the same effect as that of
confining pressure, thus friction angles are kept same. Using Eq. 4, the soil matrix
suction value is calculated. It is found that soil matrix suction is decreased from
38.6 kPa to 5.36 kPa. Thus, understanding matric suction can help in rainfall-induced
slope stability to a very large extent as it enables one to understand the problems
associated with infiltrations in slope stability.
6 Conclusion
Landslide that occurred behind Sri Sai Baba temple in the month of August 2018 has
been investigated in this paper. It was found that failure of slope was due to heavy
and continuous rainfall which led to increase in pore water pressure and affected
the matric suction strength of the soil to a great extent. Geotechnical investigation at
the site, post failure indicates soil to be silty clay having PI equal to 16. The slope
was modeled by suing MIDAS GTS NX software by using Mohr–Coulomb material
model. The rainfall was included in the model by using seepage/consolidation anal-
ysis and surface flux options. Back analysis of the failed slope was carried out, and
the shear strength parameters at the time of failure and pre-failure state were found
out. The back analysis results were cross verified using GEO-STUDIO software. Soil
matrix suction is decreased from 38.6 kPa to 5.36 kPa. Thus, decrease in soil matric
suction is reported as the root cause of failure. Hence, concepts of unsaturated soil
mechanics should necessarily be considered in stability analysis of rainfall-induced
landslides. Secondly, the use of MIDAS GTS NX software helps the user to induce
site like condition and makes the problem more realistic. User-friendly interface
makes the modeling simpler and quicker. The results generated in MIDAS GTS NX
are more reliable compared to any other software as it uses finite element method
of analysis. GEO-STUDIO is programmed with limit equilibrium method, thus the
results generated are not too precise.
References
1. Ering, P., Kulkarni, R., Kolekar, Y., Dasaka, S. M., & Babu, G. S. (2015). Forensic analysis of
Malin landslide in India. In IOP conference series: earth and environmental science (Vol. 26,
No. 1, p. 012040). IOP Publishing.
2. Leong, E. C., & Rahardjo, H. (1997). Review of soil-water characteristic curve equations. Journal
of Geotechnical and Geoenvironmental Engineering, 123(12), 1106–1117.
3. Van Genuchten, M. T. (1980). A closed-form equation for predicting the hydraulic conductivity
of unsaturated soil. Soil Science Society of America Journal, 44(5), 892–898.
4. Masrouri, F., Bicalho, K. V., & Kawai, K. (2008). Laboratory hydraulic testing in unsaturated
soils. Geotechnical and Geological Engineering, 26(6), 691–704.
5. Fredlund, D. G., Morgenstern, N. R., & Widger, R. A. (1978). The shear strength of unsaturated
soils. Canadian Geotechnical Journal, 15(3), 313–321.
6. Fredlund, D. G., & Rahardjo, H. (1993). An overview of unsaturated soil behaviour. In
Geotechnical Special Publication, 1–1.
7. Vanapalli, S. K., Fredlund, D. G., Pufhal, D. E., & Clifton, A. W. (1996). Model for the prediction
of shear strength with respect to soil suction. Canadian Geotechnical Journal, 33(3), 379–392.
8. Duncan, J. M., & Stark, T. D. (1992). Soil strengths from back analysis of slope failures. In
Proceedings of of speciality conference on stability and performance of slopes and embankments,
II, ASCE (Vol. 1, pp 890–904).
Assessment of Smart City Indicators
from ICT Framework in an Indian
Context: A Fuzzy DEMATEL Approach
Vasanthawada Sri Ramana Saketh and Harish Puppala
Abstract The smart city mission was launched in the year 2015 with the objective
to retrofit the existing cities by improving the core infrastructure. It is expected that
this mission drives economic growth and enhances the quality of life. Being a new
initiative with no standard definition of a smart city, it is challenging to plan develop-
mental activities. In this regard, the Ministry of Urban Development has prepared a
general architecture of ICT standards containing two dimensions, i.e., performance
indicators, and leading indicators. Performance indicators contain three first-level
indicators and thirteen second-level indicators, while the leading indicators contain
four and seven, respectively. Few of these indicators are interdependent, which infers
that improving one indicator will significantly impact others. Studying this interde-
pendency would help in the transition of an existing city into a smart city. Therefore,
this study is built on the theory of the Fuzzy-DEMATEL technique, which is used
to determine the significance of each first-level indicator and to assess their nature,
i.e., cause and effect. Findings demonstrate that improving causal variables such as
citizen beneficial services, efficient governance, intelligent facility, and cybersecurity
consequently improves liveable environment, information resources, and innovation
which are the effect variables. The outcomes of this study may be helpful to propose
the thrust areas for research in building smart cities.
Keywords Smart city indicators · ICT framework · Fuzzy DEMATEL · Ministry

of Urban Development
1 Introduction
Rapid rural-to-urban migration across the globe is exerting immense pressure on

urban infrastructure systems. This is due to the notion that urban areas provide
better economic, social, healthcare, and business opportunities. A key driver for
expanding cities is the rise in population which creates inequalities for accessing
V. S. R. Saketh · H. Puppala (B)

Department of Civil Engineering, SoET, BML Munjal University, Gurgaon 122413, India
e-mail: harish.puppala@bmu.edu.in
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4040-8_75
928 V. S. R. Saketh and H. Puppala
Fig. 1 The architecture of ICT indicators1
basic needs.2 The growing footprint of urban areas leads to a decrease in biodiver-
sity. These changes in the urban dynamics disturb the synergy with the environ-
ment resulting in higher land surface temperature and deteriorating air quality [1,
2]. It is estimated that two-thirds of the world’s population (7 billion) live in urban
areas by 2050.3 Hyderabad, Chennai, Vijayawada, and Bengaluru are experiencing
increased urban growth due to the economic presence of different sectors. A study
by Oxford Economics4 in the year 2018 shows that all top ten fastest growing cities
are from India. This unprecedented rise shows the potential capacity of Indian cities
as future trade, business, and technological hubs, which may be associated with
serious concerns in the lines of sustainability. Improper planning and policies may
bring formidable pressure on infrastructure to meet the needs of a growing popula-
tion. Maintaining and improving the current transportation, education, environment,
and social infrastructure requires tenable solutions which can be implemented at the
earliest possible moment. Many researchers believe that a smart city can cater to the
needs of a growing city and help stakeholders manage urban infrastructure.
Building a smart city involves a data-centric approach that aids as a direct connec-
tion between communities and stakeholders. Growing economies need to execute
intricate frameworks from different areas of interest with minimal time and resource
complexities. Smart city helps in the efficient implementation of envisioned ideas
using Information communication technology (ICT), Internet of Things (IoT), and
1 https://bis.gov.in/other/USR_ICT_FSI_V_1_0.pdf.
2 https://www.zurich.com/en/knowledge/topics/global-risks/the-risks-of-rapid-urbanization-in-
developing-countries.
3 https://ourworldindata.org/urbanization#what-share-of-people-will-live-in-urban-areas-in-the-
future.
4 https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2018/12/all-of-the-world-s-top-10-cities-with-the-fastest-gro
wing-economies-will-be-in-india/.
Assessment of Smart City Indicators from ICT Framework in an … 929
big data [3, 4]. ICT and IoT frameworks are adopted for data acquisition, analysis,
and monitoring. Though there is no universally accepted definition of smart city, [5,
6] the key dimensions involved are (i) smart economy (ii) smart mobility (iii) smart
citizens (iv) smart environment (v) smart living (vi) smart economy [7, 8].
The Ministry of Urban Development launched India’s Smart City mission in 2015
to improve quality of life and develop sustainable cities. For effective implementa-
tion, the general architecture of ICT standards containing multiple indicators has been
developed. This initiative aims to retrofit and transform 100 existing Indian cities into
smart cities. As the envisioned program is in its nascent stage, concerned stakeholders
need to prioritize their focus on specific areas for improving the pace of develop-
ment. Since governments have limited workforce and funds to implement a project,
investing time and funds in every focus area to develop a city is not reasonable.
Therefore, it is imperative to categorize the indicators for achieving the mission with
minimal resources. Multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) techniques are used
for prioritizing available alternatives under complex situations. Numerous methods
such as analytical hierarchy process (AHP), decision-making trial and evaluation
laboratory (DEMATEL), technique for order of preference by similarity to ideal solu-
tion (TOPSIS), and data envelopment analysis (DEA) have been used to prioritize
smart city indicators [9]. Researchers have used AHP and Fuzzy-MCDM approaches
to understand critical indicators for urban mobility [10, 11]. AHP-TOPSIS based
approach has been implemented to understand the resilience of smart cities in China,
where it is found that high-infrastructure and economy-based cities have higher
resilience [12]. Smart living has been identified as an essential criterion over smart
governance in an analytical network process (ANP) based study [13]. Financial
growth and energy have been identified as key indicators in a Fuzzy AHP DEA
analysis, and these are believed to improve quality of life [14]. A comparative study
based on Boyd Cohen Smart City Wheel approach shows that Shanghai dominated
Ahmedabad due to better planning and development [15]. Conclusively, it is evident
that stakeholders need to prioritize their focus areas for efficient development. Hence,
researchers need to study cause-and-effect factors by consulting experts. The devel-
oping 100 smart cities in India will be a hub for social, technological, and economic
importance, with ICT and IoT supporting the core infrastructure. Considering the
growing importance, this study uses ICT Framework’s Indicators to devise signifi-
cance and analyze the nature of indicators using a Fuzzy-DEMATEL approach. The
following sections elaborate on the methodology and elude the findings.
2 Methodology
Though numerous indicators have been mentioned in the literature, the current study
focuses on the Indian context with relevance to the ICT Framework. The indicators
for this study have been chosen from the pre-standardization study report of the ICT
framework for smart infrastructure developed by the Bureau of Indian Standards
(BIS). The chosen indicators as shown in Fig. 1 are from “ISO/IEC 30146—Smart
Fig. 2 Methodology adopted for analyzing causal and effect indicators
City ICT Indicators” section which are related to ICT adoption and usage in smart
cities. In this study, seven first-level indicators (criteria), as presented in Fig. 1, are
analyzed using a Fuzzy-DEMATEL approach. Figure 2 illustrates the methodology
adopted to determine the significance and to classify the indicator into cause-and-
effect groups.
As evident from Fig. 2, the study starts with a questionnaire survey to understand
the perception of the expert panel toward the relationship of indicators from the ICT
framework. Responses have been recorded on a scale of 0–4, where 0 is the lowest and
4 being the highest. Using the collected responses, defuzzified direct relation matrix
is constructed. Finally, the interdependency between each of the first-level indicators
is determined. In view of novice users, the mathematical background underlined in
Fuzzy DEMATEL is presented in the next section.
3 Analysis, Results, and Discussions
3.1 Step 1: Collecting Responses and Construction of Fuzzy

Direct Relation Matrix
Understanding the perception of the expert panel is essential in devising interde-

pendency between indicators. A questionnaire survey is floated among 25 experts
Table 1 Fuzzy linguistic

Assigned score Linguistic score Equivalent fuzzy
approach used in the study
trapezoidal weight
[16]
0 NI (no influence) (0, 0, α, α + 0.1)
1 VLI (very low (α, α + 0.1, α + 0.2, α
influence) + 0.3)
2 LI (low influence) (α + 0.2, α + 0.3, α +
0.4, α + 0.5)
3 HI (high (α + 0.4, α + 0.5, α +
influence) 0.6, α + 0.7)
4 VHI (very high (α + 0.6, α + 0.7, α +
influence) 0.8, α + 0.9)
Note α = 0.1
to understand the linkage between the indicators. Perception on the influence of

one parameter on the other is collected from 14 experts comprising researchers,
academicians, and industry experts. Weight for each indicator has been assigned
using a linguistic scale adopted from literature [16]. Table 1 presents the equivalent
fuzzy trapezoidal weight corresponding to each linguistic score. The linguistic score
is subsequently converted into equivalent fuzzy trapezoidal weight considering the
total respondent’s size. This data is used for further analysis.
3.2 Step 2: Defuzzification of Fuzzy Direct Assessment

Matrix
The response received from the expert panel (fuzzy direct assessment matrix) needs
to be converted into a crisp number (fuzzy direct relation matrix) for interpreting
their opinion. Hence, equivalent fuzzy trapezoidal weights are defuzzified as shown
in Table 2 using bisection of the area method where the net equivalent response is
obtained by calculating an average of obtained response.
Table 2 Defuzzified direct relation matrix

0.08 0.85 0.72 0.78 0.52 0.78 0.78
0.85 0.08 0.72 0.65 0.65 0.72 0.78
0.58 0.65 0.08 0.72 0.39 0.33 0.52
0.85 0.72 0.65 0.08 0.52 0.72 0.78
0.52 0.58 0.39 0.52 0.08 0.65 0.58
0.78 0.72 0.33 0.72 0.65 0.08 0.65
0.78 0.65 0.52 0.78 0.58 0.65 0.08
Table 3 Normalized initial direction relation matrix

0.017 0.189 0.159 0.174 0.115 0.174 0.174
0.189 0.017 0.159 0.144 0.144 0.159 0.174
0.129 0.144 0.017 0.159 0.087 0.074 0.115
0.189 0.159 0.144 0.017 0.115 0.159 0.174
0.115 0.129 0.087 0.115 0.017 0.144 0.129
0.174 0.159 0.074 0.159 0.144 0.017 0.144
0.174 0.144 0.115 0.174 0.129 0.144 0.017
3.3 Step 3: Compute Normalized Initial Direct Relation

Matrix
Normalized direct relation matrix is computed using Eqs. (1) and (2). The computed
matrix is shown in Table 3.

1 1
q = min max nj=1 |ai j | max i=1
n
|ai j | (1)
D=q×Z (2)
where Z is the fuzzy number, D is the direct relation matrix.
3.4 Step 4: Compute Total-Relation Matrix
The total-relation matrix is computed using Eq. (3), where I is the identity matrix, and
T is the total-relation matrix. The attributes of the total relation-matrix are obtained
using Eq. (3) and are shown in Table 4.
T = D(I − D)−1 (3)
Table 4 Total-relation matrix

1.298 1.387 1.152 1.376 1.104 1.301 1.364
1.420 1.218 1.133 1.331 1.109 1.269 1.342
1.082 1.051 0.780 1.062 0.833 0.938 1.019
1.396 1.319 1.102 1.194 1.066 1.247 1.319
1.076 1.044 0.847 1.032 0.774 1.001 1.036
1.294 1.231 0.973 1.230 1.019 1.043 1.211
1.318 1.244 1.026 1.266 1.026 1.177 1.120
3.5 Step 5: Understanding Cause-and-Effect Phenomenon
The cause-and-effect phenomenon is examined using the sum of all rows (SR) and
columns (SC) of the total-relation matrix using Eqs. (4) and (5) as shown in Table 5.
Here, SR represents the effect of one indicator (i) on the other (j). On the contrary, SC
represents the effect of indicator (j) on (i). The strength of each indicator is examined
using (SR + SC) and (SR − SC). When (SR − SC) has a positive value, the indicator
can be attributed as a causal variable, whereas if (SR − SC) has a negative value, the
indicator is the effect variable.
⎧ ⎫
⎨ n ⎬
SR = ti j (4)
⎩ ⎭
j=1
n×1

n
SC = ti j (5)
i=1 n×1
From the analysis, it is evident that efficient governance has a higher influence as
a causal factor, followed by intelligent facility, citizen beneficial services, and cyber
security. Efficient governance (0.32) includes public safety initiatives which in the
current context, are based on the smart security infrastructure. For instance, in the
event of a disaster, transmitting live footage to security officials and sensors placed in
and around the city will help in better assessment of the on-ground situation for rapid
action. Crimes are inevitable in society, but it needs to be tackled efficiently with
newer and improved technology which includes strategic deployment of security
personnel with a real-time assignment of checkpoints such that every part of the city
is secured.
Intelligent facility (0.15) is related to the physical infrastructure for data trans-
mission. Allocation of sensors across the city should be supplemented with a well-
established network infrastructure capable of transmitting huge chunks of data gener-
ated at high volume and speed. Newer and advanced machine to machine (M2M)
and IoT protocols should be implemented for faster communication between two
Table 5 Interdependency between first-level indicators from ICT framework

Smart city indicator SR SC SR + SC SR − C Influence
Citizen beneficial services 8.98 8.88 17.86 0.09 Cause
Efficient governance 8.82 8.49 17.31 0.32 Cause
Livable environment 6.76 7.01 13.77 −0.24 Effect
Intelligent facility 8.64 8.48 17.13 0.15 Cause
Information resource 6.80 6.92 13.73 −0.11 Effect
Cyber security 8.00 7.97 15.97 0.02 Cause
Innovation 8.17 8.41 16.58 −0.23 Effect
entities. Access to newer cellular technologies such as 5G will significantly improve

the communication system. BharatNet is a digital initiative led by the Ministry of
Communication and Information Technology, which is envisaged to provide scalable
network infrastructure to households through optical fiber cables with speeds from
10 to 20 Mbps. The current ambitious project is aimed to increase digital penetration
and provide e-governance facilities to rural India.
Citizen beneficial services (0.09) such as e-governance are digital interactions that
provide stakeholders with a great opportunity to reach citizens and contra wise. These
systems help in better administration and grievance addressal. Improved communi-
cation between parties will eliminate middlemen and improving the overall effi-
ciency and workflow. With information transferring over the cloud, it is important
to secure cyberspace. In the current information age, cyberwarfare is dangerous
and causes proportionate damage as conventional warfare. The study strongly
believes that emphasizing on public safety, developing robust network infrastructure,
improving communication between stakeholders, and protecting digital infrastruc-
ture will greatly help in creating a livable environment and protecting the shared
data.
4 Conclusions
The current study uses a Fuzzy-DEMATEL approach for prioritizing ICT indi-
cators for smart city from the pre-standardization report published by BIS. This
study provides an overview of the inter-relationship between smart city indicators
pertaining to the ICT framework. The ICT framework published by BIS limits its
scope to India as every country has its demands to fulfill. Results show that efficient
governance, intelligent facility, citizen beneficial services, and cybersecurity can
directly affect livable environment, information resource, and innovation. The current
study limits by understanding first-level indicators. However, a similar approach
can be extended to second-level indicators which could provide deeper insights in
understanding smart cities. These findings will help concerned government agencies,
industries, and stakeholders to build a sustainable smart city efficiently with optimum
time and financial considerations.
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04.041
Review of Time and Cost Analysis
for Prefabricated Prefinished Volumetric
Construction (PPVC)
Ashwin Bharat Chougule and Onkar Chothe
Abstract The growing demand for infrastructure due to rising urban population
demands faster and cheaper methods of construction. Modern methods of construc-
tion like PPVC can be a boon due to its advantages in these regards. Although this
technology can be dated back to world war-II and has higher potential, there is rela-
tively low utilization in the contemporary world. So this study gives a brief overview
of the technological phases—designing, manufacturing, transportation and installa-
tion and the additional advantages to time and cost saving. The relevant case studies
over literature are reviewed to understand the potential of this technology and its
current state of the art.
Keywords Prefabricated prefinished volumetric construction (PPVC) ·

Three-dimensional (3D) volumetric construction · Modular construction · Just in
Time (JIT) · Time and cost analysis
1 Introduction
Infrastructure development has been one of the primary focuses of the world
economies as it serves societal needs through the construction of buildings, roads,
industrial and healthcare infrastructures for shelter, networking, transport, employ-
ment and medical facilities for the society. This continuously engaging and diversified
construction industry contributes nearly 13% of global GDP [1]. Over the period
of time, this economically dominant industry has victoriously completed various
megaprojects but the annual rise in the productivity rate for the last 20 years is just 1%
due to issues of cost and time overrun and skilled labour shortages. In such a scenario,
COVID-19 pandemic has further abated the evolution of this industry [2]. Modern
methods of construction (MMC) can be adopted to tackle some of these issues and
boost productivity. One of the advanced strategies is shifting most of the on-site
A. B. Chougule (B) · O. Chothe

National Institute of Construction Management and Research, Farmagudi (Ponda), Goa 403401,
India
e-mail: ar.ashwinchougule@gmail.com
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4040-8_76
938 A. B. Chougule and O. Chothe
construction activities to paralleled off-site mode of manufacturing [3]. Prefabri-

cated prefinished volumetric construction (PPVC) is one of the three-dimensional
(3D) volumetric precast modular construction technology in which standardized
modules are manufactured off-site under controlled conditions and then transported
to the site for installation in ‘Lego’ format to form a building. About 85–90% of the
total work including fixtures, fittings and finishes are completed before transporting
the modules on-site for installation [4]. This process will intensify ‘manufacturing’ of
building rather than ‘construction’. Adaption of PPVC technology will thus reshape
the ‘construction industry’ into ‘manufacturing industry’ [5].
Although construction of buildings has a long-standing history, the manufacturing
of the buildings started with 2D precast elements such as walls, panels and slabs and
then evolved to 3D volumetric construction. The destruction due to World War-II
led to a greater demand for housing. As a faster and efficient solution, prefabrica-
tion of houses was chosen over the conventional method and approximately 1.56
lakh prefabricated houses were constructed under the Housing (Temporary Accom-
modation) Act 1944 in the United Kingdom [6]. In India, prefabrication of houses
started with the set-up of the Hindustan Housing Factory in 1950 to overcome the
housing crisis which emerged due to flooding of the migrants from West Pakistan
(Bangladesh) [7]. In order to promote this advanced technology for increasing the
construction productivity, the building construction authority (BCA) of Singapore
Government had created a roadmap in 2010 [8, 9]. The BCA planned to construct at
least 35% of public residential projects using PPVC technology. Design for Manu-
facturing and Assembly (DfMA) is another concept which promotes the off-site
construction methods with safer working conditions on the site and minimal envi-
ronmental impact [10]. PPVC is a revolutionary technology that substantially follows
and supports this guideline.
In India, the conventional methods have not progressed at the required rate to meet
the rising housing demand for the metropolitan cities resulting in the development
of slums with unhygienic living conditions in a number of places. Annually, there
is a demand for 6 lakhs houses in top eight metro cities in India but only 2 lakhs
houses are being constructed [11]. Apart from this, by 2030, the urban population
of India will rise by 6% that is from 34 to 40%. This increase in population will
generate demand of 2.5 crores houses requiring approximately 10,000 houses to be
constructed per day. At present, modular construction contributes merely 1% of the
Indian real estate market [12]. This suggests a huge potential for this technology in
India to boost up productivity while having advantage over time and cost. This paper
gives a brief review of the PPVC technology and its advantage over the conventional
method of construction. Also, it will give a brief understanding of the scope of the
PPVC technology and capabilities based on a few existing case studies.
Review of Time and Cost Analysis for Prefabricated Prefinished … 939
2 PPVC Technology Types and Process
In general, the PPVC technology consists of two types of modules based on the
material of the module: concrete and steel. Concrete modules consist of the load
bearing walls which transfer the gravity loads to the ground whereas in steel modules,
the loads are transferred through the columns and beams which form the edges
of modules. The weight of the concrete PPVC module ranges between 20 and 35
tons which is heavier compared to the steel module which has weight between 15
and 20 tons [13]. The steel modules are installed at a faster rate and have more
flexibility in terms of architecture compared to the concrete modules. The width and
the height of the module should not be greater than 3.4 and 4.5 m, respectively, due
to transportation restrictions.
The construction process in PPVC technology is relatively organized and sorted
compared to the conventional RCC method. Designing, manufacturing, transporta-
tion and installation are the major stages involved in the construction process of the
PPVC technology as shown in Fig. 1 [12].
The designing stage consists of three parts, i.e. architectural planning, structural
design and mechanical, electrical and plumbing (MEP) design. At first, the archi-
tectural plan should be modularized on the basis of the optimum solution for the
maximum number of repetitive sizes with the same type of modules at the time of
the project. Due to the modular characteristics, this technology can be utilized in resi-
dential, institutional, hotels, hostels and dormitories projects. The PPVC modules
should cover at least 65% of the total floor area of the building except parking and roof
[15]. The structural design for the substructure is similar to the conventional method.
However, the superstructure is mostly composed of the combination of modules that
should be joined together generally at the four corners. External plate connection,
long bolts connection at the beam end and vertical reinforcements connection are
the three types of joining techniques commonly practiced [16, 17]. The vertical and
horizontal connections between the modules should be robust enough to sustain the
earthquake. Early coordination of MEP design and proper access should be provided
to these services for future maintenance.
In the manufacturing stage, the 3D modules are produced in an industry as shown
in Fig. 2a by considering the architectural design and following the structural require-
ments. They are then integrated with the MEP services. The overall quality of the
module is inspected prior to the transportation. Based on the quality, slope gradients,
number and radii of turns of the road, the transportation plan is created. The PPVC
modules are stacked on low-bed trailers for transportation with proper protection as
shown in Fig. 2b. They are then transported to the site based on ‘Just in Time’ (JIT)
principle for installation according to the scheduled plan. The installation is carried
Designing Manufacturing Transportation Installation
Fig. 1 PPVC modular construction process [12]

a b c
Fig. 2 Phases of PPVC technology a manufacturing of a module, b transportation and c installation

[14]
out with the help of cranes having lifting capacities of 25–40 tons as shown in Fig. 2c.
Special attention is given to the vertical and horizontal alignments during stacking
the modules on one another. Once all the modules are installed, the building is fully
finished with final touch ups and the final quality inspection is done [18].
3 Comparative Advantage Over the Conventional Method
Figure 3 shows the timelines of a typical 24 month project based on the conventional
technology and the stage-wise time saving if the modular technology is adopted. In
the modular technology, the overall time for the designing stage can be reduced up
to 15% compared to the conventional method by application of standardized module
designs that are readily available in the form of modular libraries [2]. The foundation
Fig. 3 Project construction schedule, conventional/traditional versus 3D volumetric (PPVC) [2]

generally (substructure) takes the same time in both the methods. Off-site manufac-
turing of modules (superstructure) and construction of foundations become simulta-
neous activities in modular technology [19, 20]. As the modules are manufactured
mechanically in a controlled environment, the productivity is higher compared to the
conventional on-site construction. The on-site installation activity stays parallel with
the manufacturing of the next set of modules, and it can reduce the time by 50%.
Installation of six modules (270 m2 ) per day is possible using just five labourers.
Ultimately, 20–50% saving in time can be practically achieved. Shorter construction
schedules minimize the construction cost, and at the same time, the developers can
start earning early as the project stages go on completing.
The modular construction cost is divided into the preconstruction phase, construc-
tion phase and enablers of construction which individually have certain activities.
The stage and activity-wise cost saving for modular technology is shown in Fig. 4
[2]. It does not include initial investment cost for factory set-up and life cycle cost.
The design cost may rise due to redesigning activity if the initial design is based on
the conventional method. Lesser number of stakeholders minimizes the site prelim-
inaries which can save costs up to 5%. The materials are directly procured in bulk
quantities with optimized transportation that can reduce the material cost. 80% of
on-site labour activities are moved to off-site mode, and hence, there is increase in
off-site labour cost and relatively larger decrease in on-site labour cost. Design for
manufacturing minimizes the errors and controls the quality, thus reducing redesign
cost. Optimized project schedule time reduces the finance of the project. The cost
of factory operation for the manufacturing of modules is 5–15% of total project
cost. Thus, the overall construction cost can be reduced in order of 20% in modular
construction. The overall cost varies depending on the cost driving factors such as
Fig. 4 Project cost savings for 3D volumetric (PPVC) [2]

number of types of modules and transportation distance of modules [21]. In India,

the construction cost for the conventional method is Rs. 1100–1150/ft2 whereas for
the modular technology is around Rs. 800–850/ft2 . [12].
The successful execution of modular projects depends on the decisions made in
the early stage of the project [22]. The early involvement of stakeholders having
good working collaboration helps in better coordination for planning, designing and
execution. Appropriate project schedule and use of software like building information
modelling (BIM) help to monitor and control the project.
4 General Advantages and Limitations
In addition to the higher pace of construction, the accuracy and precision of the
modules are higher as the modules are manufactured mechanically in a controlled
environment [23]. Off-site construction allows for constant inspection of modules for
better quality control and defect proofing. The modules can be connected internally
with the help of large openings; hence, large size flexible spaces are possible using
PPVC technology. The PPVC building can be shifted to other locations as it is easy
to dismantle and assemble the modules [12, 21]. Most labour intensive activities
are executed mechanically, and hence, a lesser number of both skilled and unskilled
labourers are required [23]. Lesser man hours working off-site increases the safety of
labourers significantly [24]. The optimized planning for manufacturing of modules
in bulk quantity under control conditions results in efficient use of materials [23].
Up to 40% lesser material wastage can be achieved compared to the conventional
method [6]. Also, the off-site manufacturing of modules in factories significantly
reduces the on-site noise pollution by 30–50% and CO2 emission by 35% [6, 25].
Better thermal quality and green construction features reduce environmental impacts
by 30–70%, efficient energy use by 55%, water by 30% and raw material by 40%
compared to the conventional method [6, 21, 26].
The advantages are accompanied by certain practical limitations. The modules
have size limits because of restrictions in transportation due to width of road
and height under bridge [23]. The complex organic forms are challenging to be
constructed using PPVC technology. Initial capital is required for machinery and
factory set-up resulting in high cost investment [12]. Delay in procurement, manu-
facturing and especially transportation may result in cost and time overrun [12].
Lack of accuracy and precision can cause problems during installation. Improper
handling during transportation and installation may damage the modules. This can
cause problems while fixing the modules to the substructure and reduce the overall
instability of the structure [27].
5 Comparative Studies on Conventional and PPVC
A number of studies have performed the feasibility checks and the time and cost
comparative analysis of some projects to understand the relative advantages or disad-
vantages of PPVC and conventional technologies. Also, some projects have actually
implemented PPVC as a construction method. This section gives a brief overview of
some of such studies and projects.
5.1 Indian Case Studies
5.1.1 Tata New Haven, Boisar-II, Mumbai
The five storey residential building constructed in 2016 for the Tata New Haven
Project was the first ever demonstration of the concrete PPVC (3D monolithic volu-
metric shear wall) technology in India [28]. The 20 apartments of this building were
manufactured and installed in just 33 days. These modules were manufactured using
3D moulds with the variation in dimensional accuracy of ±5 mm. The modules
were casted in one go so that the number of joints is less and as a result, hardly any
leakages were observed. These 3D modules generally have a class-A fair face finish
which allows painting directly without the requirement of grinding and plastering.
Compared to the conventional method, concrete PPVC was observed to be 80%
faster, requiring 50% lesser material and labour cost, 90% reduction in wastage and
50% stronger. In order to minimize the transportation cost, the off-site manufacturing
of modules can be done by establishing a temporary manufacturing plant adjacent
to the site.
5.1.2 Light House Projects (LHPs), Ranchi, Jharkhand
This Light House Projects (LHPs) are a demonstration of 3D volumetric precast

concrete construction system (PPVC) which is shortlisted under the Global Housing
Technology Challenge—India (GHTC-India), initiated by Ministry of Housing and
Urban Affairs, Government of India (MoHUA) [29]. The project consists of seven
blocks of G + 8 storey residential building. There are a total of 1008 apartments.
The carpet area of each apartment is approximately 325/ft2 (30.27 m2 ), and the
approximate project duration is 12 months [30].
5.2 International Case Studies
5.2.1 Waiea Tower, Ward Village, Kakaako, Honolulu
The 36 storey Waiea Tower was constructed by using conventional RCC technique
during June, 2014 to December, 2016. This building has two towers—the East Tower
and the West Tower connected through the central core. The complex exterior facade
of the East Tower is in the shapes of waves and inspired by fishing net design as
shown in Fig. 5a.
A study [32] was conducted to check whether the prefabricated modular tech-
nology can be a feasible option over the conventional for the renovation of the East
Tower of the building and to assess the potential of modular technology in construc-
tion of the curved complex form. The aspects of quality, time and cost of construction
were analysed for both the technologies for the same floor plan having equal area
without compromising the complex design criteria. This study was restricted only
for the East Tower of the building and that too above podium level.
The East Tower was modularized by dividing the overall structure into four
isolated components as shown in Fig. 5b. The standardized rectangular component
in the centre of size 41’X152’ is surrounded by foyer and facade components on
the longer side and lanai component on the shorter side. The length of the central
rectangular part was further divided into two equal grids of 20' 6'' each, and the width
was divided into the alternative grid of 14’ and 16’ resp. On similar lines, the facade,
foyer and lanai components were modularized. The total number of modules that
can be used for the building is as shown in Table 1.
As shown in Fig. 5c, for the structural stability of the building, a number of
columns were provided from the foundation to the plinth level with intervals of
length of two modules for transferring the loads. The structural framework at the
a b c
Fig. 5 a Waiea Tower [31], b four isolated components [32] and c structural model [32]
Table 1 Number and types

Component Types of modules Number of modules
of modules of components
Rectangular 16 476
Facade 10 34
Foyer 6 72
Lanai 1 34
Total 33 616
plinth level consists of transfer beams and diagonal bracings which acts as a firm
base and supports the superstructure. The superstructure is formed by stacking the
modules up to the 32nd floor and is supported by three vertical frames emerging
from the plinth to the top floor.
The overall scheduled time for the conventional RCC method of Waiea Tower
is 19 months as shown in Fig. 6. This schedule was divided according to the time
required for the following activities. The foundation and excavation takes 1/3rd time
of the schedule, superstructure takes 2/3rd of time, and closing out takes 1/5th of
the overall scheduled time. In prefabricated modular technique, the on-site substruc-
ture (foundation and excavation) construction and off-site superstructure (modules)
manufacturing are carried out simultaneously hence, the overall project time is
reduced by 30–50% as per the Modular Building Institute. In this scenario, mean
Fig. 6 Comparison of modular constr. schedule versus conventional constr. schedule of Waiea
Tower [32]
40% time reduction is considered. Hence, the overall project can be completed in
just 11½ months with a total 7½ months of time saving.
The overall construction cost of the project depends on the overhead, labour and
material cost. The construction cost for conventional RCC construction was 303
million USD. In the prefabricated modular method, this reduces drastically by 11–
19% compared to the conventional method resulting in the cost saving from 33.3 to
57.5 million USD. This case study thus illustrates the feasibility and advantages of
the modularization process of the tower and gives the overview of estimated cost and
time savings.
5.2.2 The Atlantic Yards B2, Brooklyn, New York
By 2015, the Atlantic Yards B2 was going to be the first ever 32 storeys volumetric
modular building in the world having 322 feet height [3, 33, 34]. This idea was
evolved based on the developer’s commitment of providing affordable housing as
per the scheduled time in circumstances of economic turbulence with rising construc-
tion cost. Implementation started in 2012 with a new approach in method of modular
technology and set-up for minimizing the construction. The overall project was
completed using approximately 60% of prefabrication applications in approximately
4 years that is in 2016. The tower is divided into three distinguished masses by stag-
gering the exterior facade and defined with the help of distinct grooves. This building
consists of approximately 363 apartments having a total floor area of 3.5 lakh ft2 .
The substructure of the building is constructed by conventional RCC method, while
the superstructure of the building is composed of 930 steel modules of 4.2 m × 15 m
× 10.5 m maximum dimension. Out of these 930 modules 225 were typical with
weights varying from 7 to 24 tons. These modules were manufactured in Brooklyn
Navy Yard located at 4.03 km (2.5 miles) distance away from the site. This applica-
tion of modular technology was expected to cost 20% lesser and 20 months of time
reduction compared to the conventional method.
5.2.3 Student Housing Building, Wolverhampton, England
The student housing building constructed using modular technology consists of three
blocks with varying heights ranging from 8 to 25 floors. This project was started in
July 2008 and completed by August 2009 in just 59 weeks. The total floor area of this
building is 2.23 lakh ft2 , out of which 79% was built using modular technology [15].
The service core of the building is constructed with reinforced concrete surrounded
by the modules. There are a total of 824 modules with an average size of 225/ft2 .
The weight of these modules varies from 10 to 25 tons. It was observed that out of
the total project cost, 36% cost was for manufacturing and 9% was for installation
and transportation while the remaining 55% cost was for the rest of the structure
[25]. Compared to the conventional method, this project was completed in half the
time, with 80% improvement in productivity rate and 70% reduction in material
wastage. Apart from this, the modular method was environmentally friendly and
energy efficient [35].
5.2.4 The Clement Canopy, Singapore
The clement canopy has two towers of 40 storeys which were both constructed in
just 36 months starting from June 2016 till May 2019 [36, 37]. Construction cost of
the project is S$149 million. There are 505 apartment units with a total floor area of
50,200 m2 . The six-sided 1866 number of concrete PPVC modules was used in this
tower. Each of the modules weighs around 26–31 tons. Ever one floor was completed
in just a 7 days cycle with an installation rate of 10–12 modules per day.
5.2.5 Avenue South Residence, Singapore
The Avenue south residency which was started in July, 2019, has two towers of 56
storeys each will be the tallest building constructed by 2026 on its completion [38].
There are 1074 apartment units with a total floor area of 9.1 lakh ft2 .
6 Conclusion
The modern method of construction—PPVC has proven to be a speedy and time

saving construction technique which has the capacity to reduce the overall construc-
tion cost and improve the productivity rate when the project is planned suitably.
PPVC achieves this by parallel off-site manufacturing of modules and transporta-
tion which is also accompanied by a number of advantages like safety and eco-
friendliness. The time and cost wise break-ups show that individual contributions
can be addressed to improve the overall productivity. The various studies and real-
life projects suggest the capability of the technology to suitably cater for a variety
of infrastructure requirements. This technology can be used specifically for the high
and ever growing demands of housing for common people.
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A Review on Non-destructive Techniques
for Corrosion Monitoring in Reinforced
Concrete Structures
Aishwarya Thakur and Saurav
Abstract Corroded steel rebar inserted in reinforced concrete (RC) structures reduce
durability and working life of structure and causing early failure, which is very
expensive in terms of maintenance and inspection of structures that are deterio-
rating. Therefore, monitoring rebar corrosion is essential to prevent structural fail-
ures due to premature corrosion. Many researchers have discovered that the main
reason of damage in steel reinforcement is corrosion. The reason responsible for
corrosion in steel-reinforced structures is the surrounding environment and some
physical properties. The most important end-of-service life indicator is the develop-
ment of corrosion cracks. The initiation of corrosion in steel reinforcement started
long before the formation of crack seen in the concrete surface area, and this initi-
ation cannot be detected visually. So, with the help of a non-destructive test, we
can determine corrosion before the formation of a crack. This paper presents an
additional study of NDT for corrosion investigation. The methods discussed in this
paper for corrosion assessment are acoustic emission, fiber optic method, ultrasonic
pulse velocity, and open-circuit potential; summarizing its advantages, limitation,
and appropriateness for use in the field. For other researchers, this will be useful
in getting the basics for corrosion monitoring, different methods, and equipment.
In addition, further research and development of commercial tools for the accurate
determination of corrosion status in existing structures will be helpful. This paper
demonstrates that an acoustic emission sensor can detect corrosion early in a struc-
ture. The AE is capable of sensing corrosion in real time, so it can act as an efficient
NDT method. Compared to other NDT methods, this method has an advantage.
Keywords Fiber optics · Concrete · Steel · Acoustic emission · Sensor
A. Thakur (B) · Saurav

Civil Engineering Department, Jaypee University of Information Technology, Solan, HP, India
e-mail: 206602@juitsolan.in
Saurav
e-mail: saurav@juit.ac.in
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4040-8_77
952 A. Thakur and Saurav
1 Introduction
Degradation of reinforced concrete structures due to severe environmental circum-

stances leads to degrading the performance of reinforced concrete structures. The
main concern for researchers and engineers is early structural degradation before their
predictable service life. The structures of the degradation rate depend on the condi-
tions of exposure and the amount of maintenance [1, 2]. Most reinforced concrete
structures degrade due to corrosion, resulting from chemical or electrochemical
actions, which is primarily caused by chlorides ingress and carbonation depth. In
Fig. 1, corrosion is shown as an electrochemical degradation of a material caused by
its environment [3]. Metal corrosion occurs when e-atoms on the metal surface are
transferred to an appropriate e-acceptor [4–7]. Aluminum alloy corrosion, pitting
corrosion, oxidation of steel and stainless steel in chloride-containing media, and
deterioration of concrete reinforcing bars in chlorides or sulfates are well docu-
mented forms of corrosion. Because corrosion deterioration is uncertain over time,
it should be modeled as a time-dependent probabilistic process. So, an aging infras-
tructure such as aircraft, ships, weapon systems, tanks, bridges, pipelines, machinery,
and processing plants is a cause for concern in terms of total cost of ownership, but
also of safety and reliability. For the United States of America (US) alone, corro-
sion costs are estimated at $300 billion; for aircraft systems alone, they are as high
as $13 billion, with about $3 billion attributable to corrosion costs associated with
military aircraft systems. In most cases, corrosion reactions start slowly, begin with
some difficulty after a developmental period, or barriers are present to limit corro-
sion processes over time. These materials offer us the opportunity to slow down the
kinetics of the production process and make sure they last longer so that they benefit
us. If the knowledge base is available to monitor and predict corrosion trends accu-
rately, then this period can be extended; provided appropriate control measures can
be implemented. The corrosion problem cannot be solved without corrosion sensors,
which must be developed and use. It is one of the advantages of non-destructive
sensors over conventional ones, as they are smaller, lighter, have multiplexing capa-
bilities, are easier to install, and are non-destructive. They are also economical [8].
Fig. 1 Electrochemical
corrosion [3]
A Review on Non-destructive Techniques for Corrosion Monitoring … 953
In the 1970s, Elsener and Böhni [9] investigate the evaluating corrosion in RC struc-
tures measuring through corrosion potential using non-destructive electrochemical
technique.
In particular, over the past two decades and in the early 1990s, the measurements
of corrosion rate, chloride content, resistivity, and galvanic current were followed. At
the beginning of the 1990’s, Schiessl and Raupach [10] proposed a sensor using on
measuring of the galvanic current in macro-cells. This paper review and summarize
the present state-of-the-art and in recent year major achievements in the field of
non-destructive test to control corrosion in RC structures in early time.
2 NDT Test to Detect Corrosion
Several methods have recently been applied to control the corrosion RC struc-
tures. Some modern methods such as of acoustic emissions, open-circuit poten-
tial (OCP) measurements, ultrasonic pulse frequency method, galvanic monitoring
probe, potentio-dynamic, embeddable corrosion monitoring sensor, infrared electro-
chemical thermograph, polarization resistance, and the fiber optics method which
summarizes its merits, demerits, and suitability for use in the field [11–16]. The
basic concepts and methods of corrosion monitoring, as well as the equipment and
methods, will be useful to other. Corrosion rates of reinforcing steel in concrete
can be determined using non-destructive techniques. In this paper, non-destructive
method such as optical fiber detection, acoustic emission, ultrasonic pulse rate, and
open-circuit potential measurements to monitor corrosion was discussed.
2.1 Optical Sensing Methods
In 1978, Hill et al. [11] found that optical fibers made from Germany-doped fused
silica glass are photosensitive, so exposing them to certain wavelengths of light,
specially 244 nm, increases their refractive index of glass. As shown in Fig. 2, optical
fibers consist of a core, a jacket, and a jacket or damper [17]. The core is generally
made of glass and consists of a cylindrical rod made of a dielectric material. The
fiber core is the primary path for light [12]. A dielectric material composed of a
refractive index is used for the cladding layer. Compared to the core material, the
cladding material has a lower refractive index. The cladding is usually made of
plastic or glass. Protecting an optical fiber from physical damage is done with a
buffer layer or coat of plastic material. The theory of “total internal reflection” is
based on the principle of light conduction in a fiber. Critical angle of incidence
is considered to be the angle at which total internal reflection occurs. As can be
seen from Fig. 3, when the angle of incidence exceeds the critical angle, the light is
completely reflected from the glass medium. Often used for on-site health monitoring
and controlling civil infrastructures, it has proven extremely useful. The use of optical
Fig. 2 Basic structure of

optical fiber [17]
Fig. 3 Total internal

reflections in an optical fiber
[17]
fibers for non-destructive assessment allows for the detection of minute changes in
structural conditions without requiring the use of a destructive technique. As long
as the fibers are integrated fully into the concrete elements, they will be able to
monitor the beginning and progress of various degradation caused by mechanical
or environmental factors. Using fiber optic sensing, we can sense parameters like
strain, temperature, and other parameters by observing the physical properties of
light traveling along fibers.
There are several advantages to using sensors against destructive devices; however,
they have not been widely adopted in civil engineering Numerous advantages are
available with this sensor, such as its high accuracy, small size, high sensitivity, and
light weight, ease of installation, multiplexing capabilities, and durability, among
many others [18]. A fiber optic sensor is ideal for detecting corrosion in hidden
and difficult-to-access areas [11]. There are two types of fiber optic sensors: point
sensors and distributed sensors based on their sensing length [19]. For reinforced
concrete, fiber Bragg gratings (FBGs) and long period fiber gratings (LPFGs) are
useful sensors for point corrosion. Using the FBG attached to polished steel rods,
strain changes were measured due to corrosion. An FBG temperature sensor, which
Fig. 4 Schematic diagram of a LPFG sensor [20]
consists of a FBG and carbon fiber strands, was mounted on the reinforcing bars
during concrete pouring.
As corrosion products have a lower thermal conductivity than intact steel, the
thermal conductivity of corrosion products was monitored through the change in
temperature. It is important to note however that concrete moisture and adhesion
between sensor and steel will affect the sensitivity and accuracy of the test data.
RC structures also have limitations when monitored using the FBG method. Only,
localized corrosion inspection is possible with this method in RC structures. This
problem can be solved by developing distributed and long-gauge FBG techniques.
Another type of sensor, long-period fiber optic networks (LPFG), is widely used
to monitor corrosion that can be indirectly related to corrosion. When the coating
material corrodes, the resonant wavelength of the LPFG varies, and this variation in
wavelength is used to estimate corrosion mass loss. The photorefractive effect allows
an LPFG to be fabricated on a periodic basis by modifying the refractive index of the
fiber core [20]. In the cladding, LPFG couples forward spreading light with resonant
decay to transfer wavelengths. A change in the wavelength or depth of the resonant
dip occurs when the LPFG responds to changes in temperature, stress, and external
refractive indexes. As shown in Fig. 4, the LPFG sensor is shown schematically.
Chen et al. [20] investigated LPFG sensors with an outer Fe–C alloy film and
an inner silver layer. Point corrosion sensors have shown great promise in previous
research. To monitor largescale structures, a large number of point sensors are neces-
sary because corrosion conditions vary from structure to structure. Due to their
detailed results, distributed fiber optic sensors are beneficial in this regard. By using
fiber optics as a sensor, thousands of continuous sensor points can be created along
with the fiber. This is called optic fiber-distributed sensing utilizing a distributed fiber
optic sensor (DOFS). A fiber optic system provides the ability to measure strain and
temperature distributions using the pulse pump Brillouin optical time domain anal-
ysis (PPP-BOTDA) technique. A distributed sensor works by generating acoustic
waves by electrostriction when light waves travel through an optical fiber, periodi-
cally altering the refractive index of the fiber in response. The Brillouin optical time
domain analysis (BOTDA) consists of launching a continuous probe wave and a
pump pulse to both ends of an optical fiber and then observing them propagating in
the opposite direction. As a result of a Brillouin gain, the signal-to-noise ratio for the
fiber is increased whenever the difference between two waves matches the Brillouin
frequency. This frequency is a function of strain and temperature of fibers, making it
a useful tool for measuring these measurements [21]. By comparison, PPP-BOTDA
stimulates the phonon with a long duration pulse before a short-duration pulse unlike
traditional BOTDA. It is recommended that the pre-pump pulse duration is larger
than the phonon duration (~10 ns). High spatial resolution (2 cm) is implemented
using a narrow pulse (0.2 ns) because the pulse width affects the spatial resolution.
The Brillouin frequency change (Δ νB) is related to changes in strain and temperature
according to a linear equation at room temperature:
Δ ϑ B = Cε Δ ε + C T Δ (1)
In the following equation, C T is the temperature sensitivity coefficient; C ε is

the strain sensitivity coefficient; Δ T and Δ ε are temperature variations and the
deformation coefficients. The experiments in this study were conducted at constant
ambient temperatures. Accordingly, Brillouin frequency changes occur because of
changes in deformation. The sensitivity coefficients of uncoated telecom-grade fused
silica fiber were investigated as distributed sensors at various temperatures and strains
up to 800 °C by Bao and Chen [21–23]. Researchers have been attracted to fiber optic
sensors over the years because of their clear advantages. Thus, SHM has already
assessed the suitability of fiber optic systems for various laboratory experiments as
well as field applications.
2.2 Acoustic Emission (AE)
In non-destructive testing, components or materials are examined without affecting

future usefulness and function, for the purpose of locating, detecting, measuring
and evaluating faults, as well as for evaluating composition, properties, integrity,
and durability (American Society for Testing and Materials [24]. Acoustic emission
(AE) refers to the process of creating transient elastic waves, generally between
20 kHz and 1 MHz, to occur as a result of energy released rapidly from localized
sources. In deformation or damage, solid materials emit acoustic waves. An easier
way to understand AE is when a material is damaged and sound waves are produced;
however, there may also be other types of waves involved besides sound waves. The
elastic wave was detected by a sensor placed on the concrete surface [17, 25]. A
diagram of the AE principle is shown in Fig. 5.
Since AE techniques are able to detect corrosion at an early stage, the ability
to prevent damage to RC structural elements can be taken advantage of before the
damage becomes severe and functionality is lost due to corrosion of steel. The clas-
sical or waveform parameter method is used to analyze AE data. Monitoring corro-
sion in reinforced concrete structures can be done using this method following the
steps presented below. Identification of the AE waveform is helpful in characterizing
the AE source. In Fig. 6, we present a simplified representation of an AE signal
and several parameters that are commonly used to relate the signal to a waveform.
Table 1 summarizes the parameters of AE and its contribution to providing infor-
mation about the origin event. Similarly, Jones and Friesel [26] investigated that
Fig. 5 Principle of acoustic

emission [17]
Fig. 6 AE waveform’s
parameters [17]
AE activity during pitting and transgranular type 304 SS stress corrosion cracking
(TGSCC) correlates with pitting corrosion and not with TGSCC, dislocation motion
or formation of gas bubbles. Structural health monitoring (SHM) is widely used in
civil engineering, particularly for corrosion control [24, 25]. In several studies, AE
has been shown to be a useful tool for detecting stress corrosion cracks (SCCs), corro-
sion fatigue, and other failure mechanisms [27–29]. Di Benedetti et al. [30] used the
acoustic emission monitoring method to detect the onset of corrosion in small-scale
RC samples subjected to accelerated corrosion. Many practices and publications
have deal with monitoring corrosion using AE sensors, and almost, all have come
to the same conclusion that such sensors can detect corrosion effectively. Studies
have examined the correlation between AE and different types of corrosion, such
as uniform and pitting corrosion, stress corrosion, crevice corrosion, and abrasion
corrosion [24].
Table 1 Parameters of AE and their applications in source events information [17]

Variables Parameters Explanation
Time domain Amplitude Maximum peak value of the signal waveform
Threshold It specifies the amplitude threshold above which
signals are recorded
Duration Duration between signal start and end
Rise-time Time from the beginning of the first signal to the
peak amplitude
Energy Waveforms for AE voltage signals below the
envelopes
Counts AE signal reaches threshold a certain number of
times
Hit Detecting an AE signal
Event The number of hits is an event of local material
change
Freq. domain Frequency spectrum The nature of the source event
Time-freq. domain Spectrogram The distribution of energy from the sources over
time
2.3 Ultra-Sonic Pulse Velocity (UPV) Method
UPV testing is an NDT method used to detect concrete and steel corrosion in chloride
and oxide environments by measuring sound speed through concrete [14, 15]. It
can also be used to verify concrete uniformity, detect cracks and voids in concrete,
assess the quality of concrete (by comparing the results with concrete from a similar
mix), detect concrete deterioration and condition, and determine a concrete crack’s
depth. Electroacoustic transducers create longitudinal vibrations that are maintained
in contact with concrete surfaces. When the generated pulse is transmitted from the
transducer to concrete utilizing a liquid coupling material such as cellulose paste and
grease, it is subjected to several reflected waves at the boundary of the various phases
in concrete. Concrete develops and propagates a complex system of longitudinal and
shear waves [23]. A second transducer converts the longitudinal waves to electrical
signals after they are received by initial transducers. Electronic timing circuits are
capable of measuring transit time T of pulses [15]. Using the equation below, we can
calculate the longitudinal pulse velocity (in km/s or m/s):
L
V = (2)
T
where
v = longitudinal pulse velocity,
L = path length,
T = the time taken for the pulse to travel that distance.

Electrical pulse generator, amplifier, transducer pair, and electronic timer are
the key components of the equipment. Transducers transmit pulses, and receiving
transducers receive them. The following characteristics of equipment must be present
[15]. This system can measure the transit times of paths from approximately 100 mm
up to the maximum thickness that needs to be inspected with an accuracy of +
1%. In ceramics, concrete, wood, and stone, this technique can replace destructive
testing because it is non-destructive and can be applied, wherever destructive testing
wouldn’t be desirable. The main importance of this method is to find general changes
in situation, like weak concrete areas in a generally sound structure [13]. A UPV test
was conducted on each layer where reinforced steel bars were present and not present.
All non-accelerated concrete was found to have negligible UPV test results, while
showing significant damage at an accelerated corrosion rate of over than 8 mm per
year [31]. The UPV method plays a significant role in structural engineering for
determining material properties, such as the presence of corrosion in steel and the
strength of concrete. Figure 7 shows the principle of UPV method. It has been found
that the waves propagate along steel reinforcement and are sensitive to interface
conditions between concrete and steel reinforcement [17, 32]. Wave attenuation and
UPV decrease as a result of corrosion cracks in the sensor steel. Several studies
have shown that amplitude attenuation correlates well with corrosion damage. The
UPV could also be used to describe how steel corrosion occurs. Corrosion damage
increases with increasing peak value of UPV wave, causing its relative change to rise
before falling. Steel corrosion produces a state of delamination where they increase
during the corrosion process, which results from increased corrosion products. A
larger hole in the steel is created as the corrosion of the reinforced concrete increases.
It would result in a large reflection in the energy of the first wave and a reduction in
Fig. 7 Principle of
ultrasonic pulse velocity [32]
the energy of the forward transmission wave. The peak value of the first wave then
slowly decreased [33]. UPV cannot always be used to test sound concrete. When
cracks are filled with water, it is ineffective to investigate crack depth. On very rough
surfaces, performance is also often low.
2.4 Measurement of Open Circuit Potential (OCP)
The concrete within the RC structure acts as an electrolyte, and the steel develops
a potential that is dependent on nearby concrete characteristics. A OCP measure-
ment is the result of measuring the potential (in V or mV) that exists between the
steel reinforcement, in contact with the concrete surface, and a reference electrode
(copper/copper sulfates cell) [34]. Figure 8 shows the principle of the OCP method.
Copper/copper sulfate (CSE), saturated calomel (SCE), and activated titanium are
examples of reference electrodes. The OCP gives data on the potential level and
probability of corrosion in RC structures. Methodology is often difficult to inter-
pret because the measurements depend on the condition of the reinforced concrete
structure. Potential readings can be affected by moisture levels and chloride concen-
tration and give an invalid result. When the moisture content changes (i.e., when the
concrete surface is wet), potential values change negatively [16]. Potential gradients
and local potentials remain unchanged; only, differences have been observed in the
magnitude of potential gradients. Generally, concrete has a low resistance in struc-
tures with high chloride concentrations. According to ASTM C876-15 [35], in Table
2, the OCP values are used to quantify the probability of steel corrosion. Concrete
with a steel potential of less than 276 mV has a 90% chance of corrosion compare
to SCE.
OCP measurements are often difficult to interpret because they are dependent on
RCS conditions (e.g., humidity levels and Cl− amounts). This can affect readings
and lead to inaccurate results [36]. In the OCP, corrosion probability is reported as
either high or low, but corrosion rate is not given. In non-destructive testing (NDT),
Fig. 8 Schematic representation of OCP measurement

Table 2 Corrosion risk based

Values of OCP State of corrosion
on OCP values [35]
SCE versus mV CSE versus mV
Less than −426 Less than −500 Severe
Less than −276 Less than −350 High
−126 to −275 −350 to −200 Intermediate
> −125 > −200 Low
the OCP method provides information on corrosion probability by detecting anode

and cathode sites. Several authors examined the test’s effectiveness and obtained
useful results. OCP values cannot be used to determine corrosion degree but can
only indicate corrosion probability.
2.5 Linear Polarization Resistance (LPR) Method
The most popular of the electrochemical techniques is the linear polarization resis-
tance (LPR) method. Electrical connections to the reinforcing steel can be made
using this technique fairly quickly and non-intrusively by only locally damaging
the concrete [37]. As a consequence, accuracy is essential for LPR measurements.
On a conventional LPR test, perturbations are applied to the concrete surface via
an auxiliary electrode Fig. 9. Steel surfaces directly beneath an auxiliary electrode
are assumed to be polarized. A substantial amount of evidence suggests, however,
that the current flowing from the auxiliary electrode may not be confined but may in
fact spread lateral over larger expanses of steel. The corrosion current density can be
measured incorrectly if this occurs, leading to an inaccurate estimate of the condition
Fig. 9 Polarization resistance measurements in linear mode [38]

of the structure being examined. The corrosion current density is calculated when the
steel surface area is not polarized. An arrangement that uses an auxiliary guard ring
electrode around the inner auxiliary electrode overcomes the problem of constricting
the current to a predetermined area [38].
A small current step Δ I is used as the perturbative signal in the article, and the
resulting potential is measured via Δ E. From that equation, we can calculate the
polarization resistance of the steel, Rp .
Δ E
RP = (3)
Δ I
From this, I corr can be calculated
B
Icorr = (4)
RP
where Stern–Geary constant is B. To determine icorr , the surface area, A, of polarized

steel needs to be measured accurately known:
Icorr
i corr = (5)
A
The principle of LPR is measured by using the outer guard ring electrode, which
maintains a current barrier during measurement. It is necessary to place two sensor
electrodes between the inner and outer auxiliary electrodes in order to select an
appropriate level for the confinement current. A current confinement is selected
to maintain the potential difference between the sensor electrodes during the LPR
measurement. The guard ring technique is shown in Fig. 10. A significant increase
in the polarization area was observed with the increasing thickness of the cover. A
Fig. 10 Test setup for guard rings [38]

Fig. 11 Sensor embedded in new construction for linear polarization [37]
Table 3 Comparison of
Corrosion current (I corr ) Rebar condition
corrosion current with rebar
(μA/cm2 )
condition [38]
I corr < 0.1 Condition of passiveness
I corr 0.1–0.5 Corrosion is low to moderate
I corr 0.5–1.0 Corrosion between moderate and
high
I corr > 1.0 Corrosion is high
linear polarization sensor embedded in new construction is shown in Fig. 11. As a

working electrode, a mild steel half-cell can be used, enhanced with one or more
stainless steel auxiliary electrodes to provide a measurement [39]. In the case of
embedded mild steel working electrodes, the corrosion rate of surrounding mild
steel should be accurately represented if the electrodes are embedded in the same
cover, and the consolidation is performed properly [41]. Table 3 shows the broad
corrosion criteria developed from laboratory and field investigations using the sensor-
controlled guard ring device. As compare to other methods, this technique requires
a short measurement time and causes only minor perturbations that do not affect
existing electrochemical processes.
3 Comparison of NDT Methods
In Table 4, we compared the different NDT methods and discussed their specific
equipment’s advantages and limitations.
Table 4 Comparison between NDT methods

S. NDT test Use of Evaluation Specific Advantages Limitations
No principles of equipment
corrosion
1 Optical In corroded Bragg Fiber optical Small in Using this
sensing reinforced wavelength sensor, physical size method, only,
method [17] structures, the (λB) Bragg meter, and suitable localized steel
fiber Bragg and to embed in corrosion
grating workstation structures inspections are
measures the possible in
amount of reinforced
fiber concrete
deformation structures
when steel
reinforcement
cross-sections
increase
2 Acoustic Loading a AE Preamplifier, Monitoring The costs of
emission, material parameters transducer, the behavior equipment are
(AE) method beyond its filter, and of the current high. The
[24] elastic limit amplifier, structure method
releases etc. under load. It requires means
kinetic is also for complex
energy, called capable of electronic
the AE detecting equipment and
method faults and loading the
identifying structure
the possible
sources of
faults
3 Ultrasonic The voltage Pulse Transducer’s Excellent to Because the
pulse pulses are velocity oscillator determine the method only
velocity, generated and (V) and amplifier uniformity requires spot
(UPV) converted to and quality measurements,
method [14] mechanical of concrete. it takes a long
energy waves Large areas time
by the and thick
transmitting members can
transducer. be quickly
Using a inspected
receiving
transducer, a
known
distance
between the
sample and
the transducer
is measured
(continued)
Table 4 (continued)
S. NDT test Use of Evaluation Specific Advantages Limitations
No principles of equipment
corrosion
4 Open-circuit Electrical Potential Voltmeter, Results are This takes time
potential, potential (mV or V) and working presented in and must be
(OCP) values (in mV level electrode the form of turned off for
measurement or V) are single values several hours
[34] determined and not during the
between the equipotential inspection
reference contours and
electrode and thus provide
steel an indication
reinforcement of the state of
the steel
4 Conclusion
In the future, the development of intelligent structures and materials will play a
significant role in all disciplines of engineering. The utilization of non-destructive
test will be one of the best techniques used to monitor the structure and can improve
the durability and safety of the structure. Steel reinforcement in concrete structures
is prone to corrosion, resulting in significant loss of time and money. In this article,
various NDT methods to the control of steel reinforcement corrosion were examined.
There are four main NDT methods for corrosion monitoring, fiber optic detection,
acoustic emission, ultrasonic pulse rate, and open-loop potential measurements. In
this present study, we observe the following conclusion from the methods discussed
above.
In RC structures, AE monitoring at an early stage is more efficient than other
methods.
1. At beginning stage, the initial numbers of accumulated AE impact can detect
corrosion. If cumulative acoustic emission effect is significant rises, it is
consistent with the development of corrosiveness.
2. Other parameters of AE are the initiation of cracking in steel bar due to corrosion
show the sudden increment in cumulative signal strength (CSS) and absolute
energy (ABS).
3. The FBG method also has limitations when it comes to monitoring corrosion in
RC structures. Only, localized steel corrosion inspection in RC structures can
be performed by the method.
4. Ultrasonic pulse velocity method is very time-consuming as it requires surface
preparation for analyses. The skill required to analyze results, such as changes
in moisture and reinforcement of metal, can influence the results.
5. Open-potential circuit measurement method is time taken and must be turned
off for several hours during the inspection.
As an outcome, these abilities make AE a strong testing method to detect corrosion

in steel structure in real time and became an effective NDT test method. Also, this
method is superior to other non-destructive methods. To take the full advantage
of existing methods and devices, more researches may be needed, and the future
performance of AE looks promising for detection of corrosion.
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Buffer Sizing in Construction Scheduling
Using Critical Chain Project
Management
S. P. Sreenivas Padala, L. Divakar, and P. Vijay Kumar
Abstract Proper scheduling is essential for timely completion of a construction

project. Inaccurate estimate of duration leads to project delays. Currently, critical
path method (CPM) is widely used for project scheduling. However, CPM leads to
ineffective scheduling due to over estimation of durations. Past studies especially
from manufacturing sector revealed that critical chain project management (CCPM)
is potential technique for accurate scheduling of any project. CCPM utilizes different
buffers—resource, feeding and project to estimate the accurate duration. Buffers help
to estimate realistic activity duration. Therefore, objective of the study is to develop
a framework for scheduling projects using CCPM. The framework aids in estimating
different buffer sizes. A residential building project case study was chosen to imple-
ment the proposed framework. The analysis indicated that no optimum resource
buffer can be found for all construction projects. Each project is unique and can
have different resource consumptions and performances. Further, findings revealed
resource buffers can aid to minimize the duration of construction projects.
Keywords Buffer sizing · Critical chain project management · Critical path ·

Fever charts · Stimulation
1 Introduction
Construction projects are becoming complex and difficult to handle. There are
numerous troubles in planning, scheduling and controlling of the project due to
many uncertainties evolving during execution phase [1]. Scheduling is a main factor
for project success. Due to lack of proper scheduling, contractors witnessed delays
and cost overruns. To improve the scheduling approach, critical path method (CPM)
has been introduced. Due to lack of some limitations in CPM, critical chain project
management (CCPM) was introduced in product manufacturing sector. In CCPM,
S. P. Sreenivas Padala (B) · L. Divakar · P. Vijay Kumar

Department of Civil Engineering, M. S. Ramaiah University of Applied Sciences, Pennya campus,
Bangalore, Karnataka 560058, India
e-mail: sreenivasiit@gmail.com
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4040-8_78
970 S. P. Sreenivas Padala et al.
scheduling is done based on buffers [3]. Buffer management is essential for opti-
mizing resources. Uncertainty is an intrinsic characteristic of project management.
Changes are inevitable in the construction project. To consider all possible changes
in the schedule, buffers are essential. Critical path, critical chain and buffers are a part
of project scheduling. In CCPM, time buffers which are non-work schedule tasks are
added to the baseline schedule and re-estimate the planned activity durations [4, 5].
CCPM has its focus on resource, whereas CPM has its focus on task. However, there
is lack of structured methodology to integrate different type of buffers into construc-
tion schedule. Therefore, objective of the study is to apply the CCPM principles
to construction schedule to minimize duration. Root square mean method (RSEM)
is used for buffer sizing. A case study of high rise residential complex of G + 10
building is selected to investigate the CCPM principles in construction projects.
2 Background Study
The primary role of buffer management is to simplify the schedule monitoring during
the execution phase. Also, buffer management plays its role as a tool that ensures that
direction of the critical path is unchanged by adding buffers and provides methods for
planning actions at the most needed time [6]. The recovery action plan is somewhat
different as it requires the division of the buffer into three equal phases. CCPM
monitors the project level by making the efficient calculation of buffer consumption.
The initial suggestion to efficiently monitor the buffers with respect to the color zones
are now replaced with an advanced fever chart [7, 8]. Fever chart helps improve the
monitoring of buffer consumption. The buffers are added to keep the project on track,
and they are introduced to manage delays and cost overruns in the particular project
[9–11]. Buffers are essential to manage changes in the construction projects [12].
Literature review revealed that there is lack of structured methodology to consider
buffers in construction scheduling. Thus, there is need for development of buffer
management framework for scheduling projects systematically.
3 Proposed Solution Methodology
A methodology is proposed as shown in Fig. 1 to calculate the buffer size of construc-

tion schedule which involves scheduling, monitoring and simulation of project
activity durations under different uncertainties. Three type of buffers are consid-
ered in CCPM [6] as shown in Fig. 2: Project buffer—This kind of buffer where
safety times are included and is also known as traditional project scheduling. The
same time is added to the time when the project is about to end in order to safe
guard the completion date. Feeding buffer—This kind of buffers are created to the
CCPM in case there is any delay during the project completion (displayed at the end
of non-critical paths). Resource buffer—among other buffers, this buffer does not
Buffer Sizing in Construction Scheduling Using … 971
Fig. 1 Proposed methodology for buffer management in construction schedule
have project parameters such as time, cost or resources. Basically, this buffer can let
resource know when to be equipped with critical chain activity.
For buffer sizing, RSEM is utilized. In RSEM, sum of squared differences between
aggressive and low risk duration is considered. For each activity, buffers are deter-
mined by taking square root of differences along the chain. Aggressive duration is
given as 2/3 * safe duration. Once buffers are quantified, the reduced duration of
the project are determined for different uncertainties as shown in Fig. 1. In the next
Fig. 2 Type of buffers in construction schedule
section, a detailed illustration of the proposed buffer sizing framework is illustrated

using housing construction project.
4 Case Study
A housing complex as shown in Fig. 3 for central government employee’s welfare

housing organization located in Avadi, Chennai, was considered for investigating
CCPM principles. The scheduling of G + 10 building was carried using MS project
Fig. 3 Floor plan of G + 10 building

Fig. 4 Schedule of the project without resource leveling
2016 software as shown in Fig. 4 which involves the following procedures for CCPM
calculation. (1) collection of data from site, (2) preparation of the schedule for the 223
activities using critical path method, (3) estimation of 50%-time duration for CCPM
method, (4) prioritizing the task and leveling resource dependencies, (5) identification
of critical chain, (6) buffer prediction and allocation to the activities using RSEM
method and (7) determining new duration. After scheduling the activities, many
resources were over-allocated, leading to increased duration. Tables 1 and 2 present
the consumption details of feeding and project buffer.
After tracking the project, a fever chart is plotted as shown in Fig. 5 which shows
the project is on track or will be delayed due to excessive consumptions of buffer as
the project progresses forward. As a progress is monitored through fever chart, which
is very easy to understand. It can be easy for the management to take actions from
time to time to protect. Fever chart plotted for buffer consumed and critical chain
completed. The curve obtained for this project is present in green which symbolizes
no action to be taken. It also shows the buffers given for the project is ideally placed
and by reducing the duration of the project without any effect.
Once durations are determined, goodness of fit tests should be applied to verify
the durations for statistically significance. As shown in Fig. 6, different tests are
performed using EasyFit software to verify whether random numbers are generated
Table 1 Tracking of feeding buffer 1

S. No Status after FB consumed % Feeding chain Actual duration Project %
rescheduling complete (%)
1 8/11/21 0 0 304 30.83
2 15/11/21 40% 65 311 31.5
3 21/11/21 74.2% 82 317 31.73
Table 2 Tracking of project buffer

PB consumed PB available % PB consumed Project duration Percentage project
completed days duration completed %
0 131.5 0 67 7.6
5 131.5 3.8 112 12.8
12 131.5 9 167.5 19
35 131.5 26 243.25 27.83
56 131.5 42.5 321.5 36.78
65 131.5 49.4 478.5 54.74
78 131.5 59.31 582.5 66.64
85 131.5 64.6 667.42 76.36
112 131.5 85 776.125 88.80
125 131.5 95.05 826.5 94.56
Fig. 5 Fever chart for project buffer
from expected distributions. Table 3 presents type of distributions which describes

the buffer data for different uncertainties and buffer consumptions.
Next, 100 simulation iterations were performed for the chosen case study with
respect to three type of uncertainties. Also, resource buffers with different sizes are
utilized for performing simulations. As shown in Fig. 7, for 0.1 uncertainty, project
durations under 30 and 50% resource buffers are same. Whereas, projects with no and
10% resource buffer can found more difference. A graph is plotted for the simulation
runs and the project duration for resource buffer of different ranges as shown in
Fig. 7. Table 4 presents reduced duration under uncertainty 0.1.
Fig. 6 Goodness of fit test
Table 3 Fitted statistical distributions

S. No Uncertainty level No buffer 10% buffer 30% buffer 50% buffer
1 0.1 uncertainty Lognormal Right skewed Lognormal Lognormal
2 0.3 uncertainty Right skewed Lognormal Right skewed Right skewed
3 0.5 uncertainty Lognormal Lognormal Lognormal lognormal
In uncertainty 0.1 and resource buffer-50%, project duration is unchanged. Uncer-

tainty 0.3 has significant effect on resource buffers and project duration median as
compared to uncertainty 0.1. A graph is plotted for the 100 simulation runs as shown
in Fig. 8. The project duration for all three resource buffers and for 0.3 uncertainty are
determined. Table 5 presents reduced duration under uncertainty 0.3. Similarly, 0.5
uncertainty also explored to check whether project duration can be reduced further.
Figure 9 shows the output of simulations runs for different resource buffer sizes.
Table 6 shows details of reduced duration under 0.5 uncertainty.
Fig. 7 Cumulative median values of project under 0.1 uncertainty
Table 4 Reduction on project duration—0.1 uncertainty

Completion RB
variation No 10% 30% 50%
Project 100% 100% 100% 100%
completed—within
stipulated time
Project – 60% sooner than no 34% sooner than 0% sooner than 30%
completed—earlier RB 10% RB RB
than stipulated time


Completion variation RB
No 10% 30% 50%
Project 100% 100% 100% 100%
completed—within
stipulated time
Project – 82% sooner than no 66% sooner than 36% sooner than
completed—earlier RB 10% RB 30% RB

Completion variation RB
No 10% 30% 50%
Project 100% 100% 100% 100%
completed—within
stipulated time
Project – 74% sooner than no 65% sooner than 47% sooner than
completed—earlier RB 10% RB 30% RB
5 Conclusion
The case study revealed that CCPM methodology has potential to minimize project
duration by managing buffers systematically. The buffers are utilized only during
end of the activity. RSEM is popular technique for buffer sizing. It aids engineers
to minimize project durations with different buffer sizes. For three type of buffer
sizes—no RB, RB-30% and RB-50%, the confidence intervals for 0.1 uncertainty are
found to be 842–849, 836–844, 832–844 and 832–844, respectively. The confidence
intervals for 0.3 uncertainty are found to be 853–883, 844–877, 830–861, 830–859
for three buffer sizes, respectively. Further, confidence intervals for 0.3 uncertainty
are found to be 880–918, 870–906, 853–891 and 847–889. The confidence interval
duration for 0.1 uncertainty is appeared with reduced durations, hence its evident
that with increased uncertainty, duration of the project increases.
References
1. Araszkiewicz, & Krystyna. (2017). Application of critical chain management in construction

projects schedules in a multi-project environment: A case study, 33–41. Poland.
2. Kannan, J., & Chitra. (2017). Critical chain over critical path in construction projects.
International Journal of Engineering and Management, 7(1), 338–344.
3. Tenera, A., & Machando, V. C. (2007). Critical chain project management: A new approach
for time buffer sizing. In International Research Conference, Portugal.
4. Ma, G., Wang, A., Li, N., & Gu, L. (2014). Improved critical chain project management
framework for scheduling construction projects. American Society of Civil Engineers.
5. Shurrab. (2015). Traditional critical chain method versus critical chain project management:
A comparative view. International Journal of Economics and Management Sciences, 4(9).
6. Russell, M. M., Howell, G., & Simon. (2013). Application of time buffers to construction
project task durations. Journal of Construction Engineering and Management, 139(10).
7. Oke, A., & Aigbavboa, C. (2017). Influences of time buffer usage in the construction industry.
University of Johannesburg.
8. Bhan, M. A., & Waghmare, A. P. (2017). Monitoring of construction project through buffer
management. International Journal of Engineering Sciences and Research Technology, 140–
151.
9. Geekie, A. & Steyn, H. (2008). Buffer sizing for the critical chain project management method.
South African Journal of Industrial Engineering, 19(1), 73–88.
10. Izmailov, A., Kozhemiakin, & Korneva, D. (2016). Project management using the buffer of
time and resources, 189–197. Turkey.
11. Patel, K. B., Anand, D., Sapariya, & Lodha, P. P. (2015). Feasibility study for planning a flyover
bridge over railway crossing at Vijalpore road. International Journal of Advance Engineering
and Research Development, 2(1). ISSN 2348-6406.
12. Padala, S. P. S., Maheswari, J. U., & Hirani, H. (2020). Identification and classification of
changes causes and effects in construction projects. International Journal of Construction
Management. https://doi.org/10.1080/15623599.2020.1827186
3D Numerical Investigation
on the Performance of the Raft
Supported by the Composite, Ordinary
and Geosynthetic Encased Columns
in Clay Soils
J. Sudheer Kumar and Sudhanshu Sharma
Abstract Reducing the total, differential settlement and increasing adequate bearing
capacity are the two basic requirements for the construction of high-rise buildings,
bridges, nuclear power reactors and offshore rigs on soft soil. They cover an immense
area all along the coastal zones in India and other parts of the world. This coastline
contains marine soft silt and cohesive soils and a higher level of the water table.
These areas’ major structure foundations are built on a piled-raft foundation. Stone
columns (SC) are very widely used for widespread loads, circular tanks, embank-
ments and fills. The combination of piles with SCs may give an effective solution
to resist the total and differential settlements. The performances of raft supported
by the composite system of the pile—SCs are investigated using three-dimensional
analyses. Effects of material properties of SCs, the tensile strength of geotextile,
area replacement ratio and raft thickness have been examined. Results show that
strengthening the soft clay soil with SCs and geosynthetic encased stone columns
(GESC) were effective in enhancing the bearing capacity of the raft and reducing the
total and differential settlement of the composite column supported raft foundation.
Keywords Pile-raft foundation · OSC · GESC · Load-carrying capacity · A tensile

strength of encased material
1 Introduction
In the view of ever-increasing development of infrastructure, high-rise building

demands are increases and a huge shortage of space. They are forced to build the
structures on weak or loose soil. The coastline contains marine silt and soft cohesive
soils. In these areas, major structure foundations are built on a piled-raft foundation.
The piled-raft foundations are also utilized when the soil underneath a structure is
weak and the superstructure loads require to be transmitted to deeper depths. It is
J. Sudheer Kumar (B) · S. Sharma

Department of Civil Engineering, DAV Institute of Engineering Technology, Jalandhar, Punjab,
India
e-mail: sudhir.jala@davietjal.org
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4040-8_79
980 J. Sudheer Kumar and S. Sharma
stable in long term and controls the total and differential settlement of the structures.
It can provide sufficient bearing strength and durability.
Strengthening soft soil with the stone column is one of the ground improvement
techniques. Stone column (SC) and its surrounding soil generally act as a composite
material, and the stiffness of this composite system is much higher than the soft soil
alone. Geosynthetic wrapped with stone column (GESC) is the main function of
the radial restraining strengthening to the granular column. The idea of composite
piled-raft foundation includes piles, OSC, GESC and combined all of them to support
various heavy loaded structures.
2 Background
Piled-raft foundation is one of the effective methods for complex and high-rise
buildings. Several researchers have reported settlement behaviour, as vertical load
subjected by piled raft for different pile length, configurations, spacing and positions.
Differential settlement of the raft increases as the length of the pile is reduced from
25 to 15 m [1–5]. The maximum value of the load factor is 1.4 times compared with
encasing the stone columns. They increase the bearing capacity of the stone column
by 40% [6]. The influence of raft thickness and pile configuration on the account of
vertical load subjected to pile raft placed in the sand with 3D finite element simu-
lation. They found that irrespective of the length and spacing of the pile, it carries
40–60% of the total vertical load [7]. They showed that by increasing the diameter
of the pile from 0.5, 0.75 and 1 m, the maximum settlement decreased 5.95 and
10% [2]. The response of stone columns underneath the pile-raft foundation by FEM
analysis, published on the influence of slenderness ratio, area replacement ratio, and
properties of stone column, calculated the load sharing ratio by the piles and SC’s up
to 30% and 40%, respectively [11]. Presented the results of 3D numerical modelling
of piled-raft foundation. They found that while increasing the soil cohesion and the
angle of shearing resistance, settlement of the raft decreases [12]. Numerical and
analytical analysis of pile-raft foundations in layered soils under complex loads [9].
Several researchers studied the embankment supported by modelled SC’s under the
condition of axis-symmetric. And found that while increasing the modular ratio,
the maximum settlement decreases and reduces the rate of change of settlement
with an increase in modular ratio beyond 30 [4]. Investigated the bearing capacity
of vertical geosynthetic encased stone columns, reported that increasing the length
and strength of vertical reinforcing encasement, the ultimate capacity and stiffness
of stone columns also increases [5]. 3D finite element analyses were performed to
compare the performance of GECs with conventional granular columns. They also
observed that the maximum value of lateral displacement of a GEC is much less
than that of a conventional granular column for the same vertical settlement [8].
Conducted various laboratory model tests on OSC’s and GESC’s for both single and
groups and found that the GESC’s exhibited a stiffer response whereas the OSC’s
showed significant strain-softening behaviour [10].
3D Numerical Investigation on the Performance of the Raft … 981
3 Problem and Research Gaps
The above-stated studies disclose that the pile-supported raft foundation shows
greater performance in a reduction in settlement and increase the bearing capacity
of the soil. However, they are very expensive and the limitation of that is pore
water pressure develops (no free flow and construction difficulties when river flow is
found below the foundations). A considerable amount of work was not conducted on
composite foundation systems with stone columns (without and with encasement)
with the combination of piles-supported raft foundations. The novelty of the present
study is investigating the effect of pile-supported raft foundations on OSC and GESC.
Hence, they may reduce the cost, reduce the excess pore water pressure (free flow)
while the foundation is remaining intact. 3D FEM (Plaxis programme) has been used
to investigate various cases.
4 Objectives of the Study and Material
Referred to Table 1 cases a, b, c and d shows the schematic representation of the

problem analysed by using Plaxis 3D programme. Case a shows that the raft supported
by stone columns consists of 4.8 m wide (B) and 1 m thick square raft, with nine
numbers of connected OSC’s to the raft of varying slenderness ratio. Similarly, case b
shows the fixed size of the raft supported by nine numbers of GESC. Case c shows raft
supported by nine numbers of uniformly connected floating piles of 0.5 m diameter
distributed in a square pattern underneath the raft. Case d is the composite pattern
of OSC-piles, GESC-piles and OSC-GESC. Total twenty-six cases were performed;
each case consists of five subcases with a varying diameter of 0.7, 0.8, 0.9, 1 and
1.2 m. In all the cases, the diameter of the rigid pile consider is 0.5 m diameter.
The spacing between the columns is constant and symmetric. For analysis
purposes, author(s) consider the one-fourth of the site was modelled as shown in
Fig. 1. The one-fourth configuration consisted of nine numbers of various columns
as OSC’s, GESC’s and composite (five OSC’s with four piles and five GESC’s with
four piles and five OSC’s with four GESC). The tensile strength of geosynthetic
assumed and remaining properties are tabulated in Table 2. The stiffness values were
varied from 300 to 10,000 kN/m (Khabbazian et. al. 2010). The study focused on the
performance of rafts supported by pile, OSC’s and GESC’s.
Displacement
Settlement Ratio (%) = × 100 (1)
Raftthickness
Table 1 Schematic diagrams of raft supported by composite columns improved soft clay soil
Cases Cross-section (Elevation) Plan
Case a
Case b
Case c
Case d (i)
Case d (ii)
Case d (iii)
Fig. 1 Schematic diagram of parametric study (consider one-fourth of the total width)
Table 2 Material properties used in the analysis [5, 7, 8, 10–12]

Test parameter Pile and raft (Linear Geogrid Clay (Undrained) Stone aggregate
elastic) (Drained)
Eref (Modulus of 30.00e6 – 5000 40,000
elasticity) kN/m2
Tensile strength – 4500 – –
(kN/m)
µ (Poisson’s ratio) 0.2 – 0.33 0.3
Φ (Angle of 34° – 30° 44°
internal friction)
ψ (psi) 40 – 0 14°
C (kPa) – – 15 0
ϒ bulk (kN/m3 ) 25 – 17 20
Kx (m/day) – – 0.0100 1
Ky (m/day) – – 0.0100 1
5 FEM Modelling
Numerical Modelling
The FEM-based programme allows for the complete modelling of all major model
components. The horizontal parameters were extended to 10 B (B is the width of
the square raft) to the edge of the raft and be treated as horizontally constrained
but vertically sliding. To stimulate the state of floating piles, bottom parameters
were set at a depth of 2.5 L p (L p is the length of the pile) from the head of piles.
In the numerical model, upright boundaries of the model were fixed in the lateral
movements and allowed to precede in-plane only. Moreover, bottom boundaries
were fixed against motions in all directions while the surface of the ground was
free to move in every direction. The elastic-perfectly plastic Mohr–Coulomb soil
constitutive model parameters are modulus of elasticity (E) and Poisson’s ratio (ν)
for the elasticity of soil; frictional angle (ϕ) and the cohesive strength (c) for plasticity
of soil and dilatancy angle (ψ) in linear-elastic-perfectly plastic. The same model
was considered for clay and stone columns.
Fig. 2 Boundary of a model with a raft, vertical load, OSC and GESC
The soil represents a continuum, which was discretized by using 15-noded wedge
elements (Brinkgreve et al. 2016). GESC and raft both were discretized with elements
of a six-noded triangle; piles were created as embedded beams, comprised of 10-
noded (the middles of the edges and the nodes in the corners) tetrahedral elements
with rotational degrees of freedom at each node with an average element mesh size
of 0.89. The linearly elastic model considered for rafts and piles, and materials are
concrete.
The parameters have been designed for the model geometry as the multiplicators
of column diameter D, and the entire geometry can be frame worked as the function of
column diameter D. The final refinement zone of mesh and the geometry of the model
is presented in Fig. 2. At the bottom of the model in all the directions, displacements
were fully fixed on the model boundaries and were limited to vertical directions on
the side planes.
6 Assumptions
It is a parametric study assumed that spacing between the vertical columns and diam-
eter of the columns. The calculated results of stresses and displacements distribution
do not change appearance with the further expansion of the concerned domain. The
size of elements in the zones of the high-stress gradient should be as small as possible,
while the size of elements around the domain boundary could be larger.
7 Limitation
Plaxis 3D is automatic mesh generation based on geometry and constitutive model

parameters. It is discretized continuum; it is not allowed to change the size of the
aggregates used in the stone columns. The shear strength in the interface (between
the soil and structure) is related to the shear strength of the surrounding soil by using
an interface strength reduction factor that may be not accurate.
To determine the load-settlement ratio behaviour on soil nodal points, soil elements,
top of the soil model corresponding to the top of the raft and columns are subjected to
a series of vertical and horizontal displacements by applying a uniformly distributed
load.
From Fig. 3, it is evident that clayey soil with raft alone undergoes larger defor-
mations under smaller vertical load. However, piles of dia. 0.5 m provided beneath
the raft carried 6900 kN load and raft alone carried 4254 kN for the same value of
settlement ratio at 12%.
The load-settlement ratio plot (Fig. 4) shows a load-carrying capacity of raft
alone and various diameters of OSC’s. Providing ordinary stone columns of various
diameters beneath the raft carries more loads than the raft alone. The load carried
5200 kN by 0.7 m dia., 5250 kN by 0.8 m dia., 5398 kN by 0.9 m dia., 5500 kN by
1 m dia. and 6407 kN by 1.2 m dia. of OSC. The deformed shape of the raft under
the vertical load as shown in Fig. 5 with a maximum lateral settlement of 33.25 mm.
Load (kN)
0 1000 2000 3000 4000 5000 6000 7000 8000
0
Settlement Ratio , (%)
2
Raft with piles
4
6
Raft alone
8
10
12
Fig. 3 Performance of raft lone and with piles on a load-carrying capacity of compressible clay
soils
Load kN
0 500 1000 1500 2000 2500 3000 3500 4000 4500 5000 5500 6000
0
Raft alone
2
0.7m Ø OSC
4
0.8m Ø OSC
6
0.9m Ø OSC
8
1m osc
10
1.2m Ø OSC
12
Fig. 4 Performance of raft lone and with ordinary stone columns in compressible clay soils
Fig. 5 Influence of diameter of the OSC on lateral displacement [dia. 0.7–29.11 mm, 0.8–30.72 mm,
0.9–32.93 mm and 1–33.25 mm]
Load (kN)
0 1000 2000 3000 4000 5000 6000 7000 8000 9000 10000
0 GESC 0.7m Ø
2 GESC 0.8m Ø
4
GESC 0.9m Ø
6
GESC 1m Ø
8
GESC 1.2m Ø
10
12 Raft alone
Fig. 6 Performance of raft lone and with GESC on a load-carrying capacity of compressible clay
soils
The load-settlement ratio plot Fig. 6 shows a load-carrying capacity of raft alone
and various diameters of GESC’s. Providing GESC of various diameters beneath the
raft carries more loads than the raft alone. The load carried 5300 kN by 0.7 m dia.,
5400 kN by 0.8 m dia., 5657 kN by 0.9 m dia., 8136 kN by 1 m dia. and 10044 kN
by 1.2 m dia. of GESC’s. The raft deformed mesh under the vertical load presented
in Fig. 7 with maximum horizontal deformation is 31.87 mm.
Composition of piled-raft foundation with varying slenderness ratios of OSC’s
and GESC’s gave satisfactory results in the case of load-carrying capacity. Figure 8
shows that in the composite system of columns with OSC’s and GESC’s the load-
carrying capacity increased marginally. In addition to OSC’s of dia. 1.2 m with piles
and other cases of GESC’s of dia. 1.2 m with piles carry a maximum load of 8154
and 8556 kN for the same value of settlement ratio at 12%.
Fig. 7 Effect of GESC on lateral displacement [dia. 0.7–27.51 mm, 0.8–28.47 mm, 0.9–30.61 mm,
1–31.87 mm]
Load (kN)
0 1000 2000 3000 4000 5000 6000 7000 8000 9000
0
Raft only
GESC-P 0.7m Ø
2 GESC-P 0.8m Ø
GESC-P 0.9m Ø
GESC-P 1m Ø
4
GESC-P 1.2m Ø
GESC-OSC 0.7m Ø
6 GESC-OSC 0.8m Ø
GESC-OSC 0.9m Ø
GESC-OSC 1m Ø
8 GESC-OSC 1.2m Ø
OSC-P 0.7m Ø
10 OSC-P 0.8m Ø
OSC-P 0.9m Ø
OSC-P 1m Ø
12 OSC-P 1.2m Ø
Fig. 8 Performance of piled-raft foundation with varying settlement ratio of OSC and GESC on a
load-carrying capacity of compressible clay soil (P-Piles)
9 Conclusions
• The performance of the raft with nine rigid piles of diameter 0.5 m in the soft clay
soil gave better results than the raft alone. Piled-raft foundation carried 6900 kN,
and raft alone carried 4254 kN at the same settlement ratio of 12%. It is maybe due
to rigid piles monolithically connected to the raft, and the load transfer mechanism
will be effective.
• The geosynthetic encased stone columns of diameter 1.2 m carried the maximum
load of 10,044 kN, and the ordinary stone column of dia. 1.2 m carried a load of
6407 kN of the same settlement ratio at 12%. Due to the high tensile strength
encased material restrain the column fill material lateral movement, thereby
increasing the vertical load.
• The composition of various columns beneath the raft also gave more significant
results like GESC’s of dia. 1.2 m with piles of dia. 0.5 m carried a load of 8556
kN, OSC’s of dia. 1.2 m with piles of dia. 0.5 m carried 8154 kN and OSC’s with
GESC’s of dia. 1.2 m carried 6592 kN of the same settlement ratio at 12%.
• The lateral displacement can be restricted with the help of high tensile strength
encased material as it was able to decrease the maximum radial displacement by
5.81% for 0.7 m dia. of columns, 8.01% for 0.8 m dia. of columns, 7.57% for
0.9 m dia. of columns and 4.43% for 1 m dia. of columns when compared to
ordinary stone columns.
References
1. Banerjee, R., Bandyopadhyay, S., Sengupta, A., & Reddy, G. R. (2020). Settlement behaviour
of a piled raft subjected to vertical loadings in multilayered soil. International Journal of
Geomechanics and Geoengineering. https://doi.org/10.1080/17486025.2020.1739754
2. Beygi, M., Keshavarz, A., Abbaspour, M., & Vali, R. (2020). 3D numerical study of the piled
raft behaviour due to groundwater level changes in the frictional soil. International Journal of
Geotechnical Engineering, 14(6), 665–672.
3. Brinkgreve, R. B. J., & Swolfs, W. M. (2016). PLAXIS 3D foundation. Finite element code for
soil and rock analysis. User’s Manual.
4. Das, A. K., & Deb, K. (2017). Modeling of stone column-supported embankment under axi-
symmetric condition. Geotechnical and Geological Engineering, 35(2), 707–730.
5. Ghazavi, M., & Afshar, N. J. (2013). Bearing capacity of geosynthetic encased stone columns.
Geotextiles and Geomembranes, 38, 26–36.
6. Hataf, N., Nabipour, N., & Sadr, A. (2020). Experimental and numerical study on the bearing
capacity of encased stone columns. International Journal of Geo-Engineering, 11, 4.
7. Halder, P., & Manna, B. (2020). Performance evaluation of piled rafts in sand based on a
load-sharing mechanism using finite element model. International Journal of Geotechnical
Engineering.
8. Khabbazian, Kaliakin, & Meehan. (2010). Numerical study of the effect of geosynthetic
encasement on the behaviour of granular columns. Geosynthetics International, 17(3),
132–143.
9. Mu, L., Maosong Huang, M., & Lian, K. (2014). Analysis of pile-raft foundations under
complex loads in layered soils. International Journal for Numerical and Analytical Methods
in Geomechanics, 38(3), 256–280.
10. Murugesan, S., & Rajagopal, K. (2010) Studies on the behaviour of single and group of geosyn-
thetic encased stone columns. Journal of Geotechnical and Geoenvironmental Engineering,
136(1), 129–139.
11. Samanta, M., & Bhowmik, R. (2019). 3D numerical analysis of piled raft foundation in stone
column improved soft soil. International Journal of Geotechnical Engineering, 13(5), 474–483.
12. Sinha, A., & Hanna, A. M. (2017). 3D numerical model for piled raft foundation. International
Journal of Geomechanics, 17(2), 04016055.

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Lecture Notes in Civil Engineering

Kong Kian Hau

To submit a proposal or request further information, please contact the appropriate

ISSN 2366-2557 ISSN 2366-2565 (electronic)

Despite facing a challenging global COVID-19 pandemic, ICSMC 2021 was

Singapore Kong Kian Hau

Selected research papers from 1st International Conference on Structures, Materials

Solan, India Tanmay Gupta

Dr. Kong Kian Hau, NUS, Singapore

Dr. Souradeep Gupta, IISC, Bangalore

Crystalline Admixtures for Autonomous Healing in Concrete: The

Bending Deflections and Natural Frequencies of Micro/Nanobeams

Application of DDBD Method on Mid-Rise Open-Ground Storey

Numerical Study on Thermal Performances of Fully Encased

Optimization of Clinker Factor for Low-Carbon Penta-Blended

Anti-bacterial Study on ZnO-Grafted Jute Fibres for Longevity

Air Quality Assessment During Festivities in Shimla City, India . . . . . . . . 883

Dr. Kong Kian Hau is currently Senior Lecturer with

Member on SS EN 13670 “Execution of Concrete Struc-

Dr. Ashok Kumar Gupta is currently Dean of

Indian Geotechnical Society, Indian Society of Rock

Dr. Sandeep Chaudhary is currently employed as

Dr. Tanmay Gupta is engaged at present as Assis-

involved in the training of Indian government offi-

K. H. Kong and C. Q. Lye

Abstract The development of chemical admixtures for concrete used marked a

Keywords Autonomous healing · Self-healing · Cracks · Crystalline admixtures ·

Cracking in concrete is an inevitable phenomenon, which can take place at early

K. H. Kong (B) · C. Q. Lye

2 Characteristics of Crystalline Admixtures

Table 1 Chemical composition of crystalline admixtures

Fig. 1 Ternary plot of

crystalline admixtures tend to carry high significant amount of either magnesium

3 Recovery of Mechanical Properties of Cracked Mixes

3.1 Compressive Strength

The recovery of compressive strength is tested by introducing cracks to

3.2 Stress/Load-Controlled Mouth Opening Displacement

3.3 Permeability and Absorption

4 Effect of Crystalline Admixtures on Crack Sealing

4.1 Crack Recovery

4.2 Microstructural Studies

Microstructural studies allow better understanding on the mechanism involved

5 The Verdict on the Future of Crystalline Admixtures

The autonomous healing ability discovered in crystalline admixtures is an added

Keywords Vortex shedding · Circular structures · Lock-in effects · Modeling ·

where B = band width parameter. The shedding frequency, f sh , is related to Strouhal

f sh = SVz /Dz (3)

and is expressed in a non-dimensional form [8]:

In the above, the terms C 3 , C 4 , C 5 , C 7 , C 8, and C 9 are given by

Here, k a,0 refers to the aerodynamic damping parameter corresponding to small

cicind model (Vickery

of their curvature. Whereas (ka /ka0 ) shows a negative curvature, parameter,

Fig. 2 a Variation of chimney response, {(σ y /De ) }

3 Computation of Across-Wind Spectral Force

Table 2 Values of turbulence

4 Results and Discussion

Table 3 Comparison of predicted and experimental cfs values

6.00E-03 cfs,fact=1.0, pred values

Vortex induced excitation is a complex aeroelastic phenomenon. For prediction of

1. Scruton, C. (1963). On the wind-excited oscillations of stacks, towers and masts. In

Keywords Concrete box-girder bridges · Horizontally curved · Skew · FEM ·

Use of horizontally curved concrete bridges in urban interchanges and highway

and esthetic considerations. In certain geographical situations, especially due to

Fig. 1 Schematic diagram of a typical skew-curved bridge geometry