A study was undertaken to produce lightweight aggregate concrete using artificial lightweight aggregate (Lytag) made from sintered fly ash. Cement or fly ash-based geopolymer was utilized as binder material, and its effect on the properties (compressive strength, water absorption, and thermal conductivity) of lightweight aggregate concrete was investigated. Two mixes were designed (using the absolute volumes method) and produced at a density of around 1350 kg/m3 as cement lightweight aggregate concrete and geopolymer lightweight aggregate concrete. Fly ash and an alkaline solution (sodium hydroxide and sodium silicate) were used to produce the geopolymer paste. The results indicated that the compressive strength, water absorption, and thermal conductivity of lightweight aggregate concrete made with geopolymer paste were better than those made with cement paste. An increase in compressive strength by about 49% and a decrease in water absorption and thermal conductivity by about 36% and 25%, respectively, were noticed in fly ash-based geopolymer lightweight mix compared to cement lightweight concrete mix.
This study investigates the strength performance and microstructural changes of a sandy gypseous soil improved with fly ash-based geopolymer, for shallow and deep applications. Different proportions of geopolymer were added to a natural gypseous soil having a gypsum content of 30% to 40% with different water contents. The fly ash was activated using sodium hydroxide with molar concentrations 8 and 12 molar and sodium silicate. The ratios of the fly ash to the activator were 1 and 2. Specimens were cured for different ages at 30°C. To simulate the field conditions, a number of specimens were immersed in a salt-saturated solution. Materials performance was evaluated at the macro level by performing unconfined compression test and at micro level by performing scanning electron microscopy test. The study showed that an increase in the molar concentration of sodium hydroxide and of the binder ratio improved material’s strength particularly at lower water contents of the soil. Increasing the binder content to about 30% improved the strength by enhancing the bonding between the soil particles. On the other hand, immersing the samples in the salt solution led, in most cases, to breakdown of the geopolymer network, as confirmed by the SEM images. It was concluded that the fly ash geopolymer-soil mixtures under investigation can provide as high as 8 MPa uniaxial strength under no sulfate attack. However, under sulfate attack condition, this strength can decrease to as low as 0.5 MPa. Even under the worst case, the later strength can be just enough to support shallow foundations rested on a saturated gypseous soil.
This study is conducted to investigate the strength and stiffness of clayey soil stabilized with fly ash-based geopolymer for unpaved roads. Two sodium hydroxide concentrations of 6 and 8M and two alkali solution ratios of NaOH:Na2SiO3= 1 and 1.5 were considered. Other factors such as fly ash replacement ratio (by mass), curing period, and curing temperature were held constant at 15%, 48 hours, and 65 C, respectively. The unconfined compressive strength (UCS) and ultrasonic pulse velocity (UPV) tests were performed to evaluate the mixtures. Outcomes of this study revealed that the strength of the clayey soil could be increased by up to 94%. Additionally, increasing sodium silicate content in the alkali solution increased the solution's activity and yielded higher strength and stiffness. This study confirms the effectiveness of the geopolymer binder for the improvement of soil strength and stiffness.
This study examined the efficacy of Fly Ash Type F-based geopolymer binders in enhancing the impermeability of clayey soils. A clayey soil of the CL type was stabilized using geopolymer mixtures composed of fly ash activated by two different alkaline systems: (1) sodium silicate combined with lime and (2) sodium bicarbonate combined with lime. The FA binders were added at dosages of 10%, 20%, and 30% by weight of dry soil, and FA/AA was 0.2, 0.4, and 0.6. Standard falling head permeability tests were performed to evaluate the efficacy of the therapies. The experimen results indicated a marked improvement in reducing soil permeability with both alkaline activator systems. The greatest reduction was observed at a 30% replacement ratio when the sodium silicate–lime mixture was used. Beyond this level, a slight increase in permeability was recorded, which can be attributed to the excessive alkalinity of the mixture and the potential formation of microcracks. On the other hand, the sodium bicarbonate–lime system showed a consistent trend, where higher replacement levels continued to lower permeability. Overall, the study highlights that fly ash–based geopolymers, when properly optimized in terms of activator type and dosage, provide an effective and sustainable approach for improving the impermeability of clayey soils, particularly in hydraulic and geotechnical engineering applications
Organic soils are problematic soil for various engineering applications due to their high compressibility and low shear strength which need to be improved. For many soil improvement techniques, using waste materials, such as fly ash (FA), is a practical and sustainable process. In this research, FA and geopolymer were used e used to reduce organic soil's compressibility. A one-dimensional consolidation test was performed to evaluate the organic soil's consolidation and compressibility properties. The geopolymer was prepared using 20% FA and of sodium hydroxide ratio and sodium silicate alkali solutions. The geopolymer specimens were first cured for 2 hours at 45 and 65 oC, then cured for further 28 days at room temperature. The consolidation test results showed that FA-based geopolymer is effective in stabilizing organic soils due to the observed improvement in the compressibility, consolidation, and permeability characteristics. The compression index decreased by 98.16%, and the permeability decreased by 95%.