Engineering, durability, and sustainability properties analysis of high-volume, PCC ash-based concrete

This study aims to analyze the engineering properties and durability of binary blended concrete incorporating pulverized coal combustion ash (PCC ash) produced in local areas and assesses the sustainability. For this, tests and evaluations were carried out under conditions in which the unit binder weight and unit water weight were fixed at 330 and 175 kg/m³, respectively, while the replacement ratio of PCC ash increased from 0% to 70% at 10% intervals. The results showed that the replacement ratio of PCC ash should be less than 38.9% in order to secure the target compressive strength (f_ck = 24 MPa) at the age of 28 days in field application. The durability test found that as the replacement ratio of PCC ash increased, the carbonation depth and relative dynamic elastic modulus increased, while the chloride penetration depth decreased. However, the weight-loss ratio remained similar. It was also found that the optimum PCC ash replacement ratio, which satisfies four durability parameters and can ensure the target compressive strength (f_ck = 24 MPa) in the case of mix proportion conditions set in this study, ranges from 20.0% to 38.9%. The sustainability assessment results showed that as the replacement ratio of PCC ash increased, the global warming potential (GWP), ozone layer depletion potential (ODP), acidification potential (AP), eutrophication potential (EP), photochemical ozone creation potential (POCP) and abiotic depletion potential (ADP) decreased. Therefore, it was proven that the replacement of PCC ash instead of ordinary Portland cement (OPC) under the same concrete mix proportions is effective at reducing environmental impacts.