Recycled Materials as Resource in Concrete for Sustainability

Though concrete offers several benefits like strength, versatility in shape, and cost-effectiveness yet stands far from the point of Sustainability. The natural ingredients are getting exhausted and hence alternative materials have picked up these places and thereby point towards replacement of natural materials by secondary materials.The present study orients towards the use of recycled aggregates for M40 grade concrete that is obtained from construction and demolition waste both coarse and fine as a complete replacement to natural coarse and fine aggregates. The concrete specimens are tested for 7, 28 days normally. This results in understanding the performance of recycled concrete mix. The same may be compared to conventional mix for finding of compressive strength. The normal mix observed has attained nearly 98% of the target strength while the recycled mix was 86% at 28 days of curing, which indicates the secondary materials can provide a replacement for the natural aggregates. Also, in the concrete cement is replaced by fly ash in regular percentages - 20, 40, and 60% and with recycled materials indicates results of better performance in strength at 20 and 40% in both normal and recycle mix than at 60%. Fly ash is considered a good alternative for an eco-friendly environment.