Mechanical and durability properties of high-performance mortar containing binary mixes of cenosphere and waste glass powder under different curing regimes

Abstract

The construction industry is rapidly expanding due to urbanization and the growing economy. The consumption of Ordinary Portland Cement (OPC) has enormously increased due to massive concrete demand. The rapidly growing demand for concrete production has increased environmental pollution immensely, and cement solely accounts for 8% of the world's carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions. So, it is a dare need of this era to use supplementary cementitious materials (SCMs) which are less carbon dioxide emitters in replacement of cement to reduce the environmental impact and to promote sustainable construction. In this respect, this study is based on the applicability of cenosphere (CS) and waste glass powder (WGP) communally as a cement replacement of 0%–20% with an increment level of 5% to prepare high-performance mortars. The combined effect of CS-WGP in the high-performance mortar is examined at two curing conditions (water and dry) and curing temperatures (20 °C and 80 °C). Several tests are conducted such as workability/fluidity, water absorption, compressive strength, acid attack, flexural strength, fire resistance, packing density, and drying shrinkage to evaluate the rheological, mechanical, and durability properties of CS-WGP based mortars. Results indicated that water curing at elevated temperature (80 °C) is efficient than other curing conditions and temperatures. Moreover, it is also found that the applicability of CS has increased the rheological, mechanical, and durability properties. It is concluded that a 10% replacement of CS and WGP showed appreciable results against all mentioned properties.