Geopolymer Concrete’s Untapped Potential

A BLDTEC5 Research Study

Presented to the Faculty of the School of Design of Design and Arts
De La Salle College of Saint Benilde

By Partial Fulfillment of the

Requirement for the Degree in
Bachelor of Science in Architecture

by

EPILEPSIA, David
PADILLA, Nicanor IV

February 19, 2020

PADILLA, Nicanor IV
EPILEPSA, David
========================================================================
I. PROPOSED PROJECT

a) Background of the Study

The name Geopolymer was formed by a French professor Davidovits in 1978 to

represent a broad range of materials characterized by a network of inorganic molecules.
Geopolymers depend on thermally activated natural materials like Meta kaolinite or
industrial byproducts like fly ash or slag to provide sources of silicon and aluminum.
These silicon and aluminum are dissolved in an alkaline solution and subsequently
polymerizes into molecular chains and become the binder.

b) Statement of the Problem

The geopolymer concrete, while ecologically-friendly, is difficult to make due to

the chemicals being harmful to humans (eg. Sodium Hydroxide can burn human tissue),
and process in combining said-ingredients requiring special care. As such, the
geopolymer concrete is likely sold as a pre-mixture ingredient due to the dangers found
in those chemicals.

c) Research Question

Question 1: WHAT ARE THE DIFFERENCES OF PORTLAND CEMENT AND

GEOPOLYMER WHEN MIXED WITH WATER AND AFFECTED BY HEAT?

Question 2: ARE THERE LONG TERM BENEFITS FROM THE USE OF

GEOPOLYMER CONCRETE?

Question 3: DO THE MECHANICAL PROPERTIES OF GEOPOLYMER CONCRETE

MAKE IT A SUCCESSOR OF STANDARD CONCRETE?

Question 4: ARE THERE NUMEROUS APPLICATIONS FOR THE USE OF

GEOPOLYMER CONCRETE?

Question 5: WHAT ARE THE CURRENT LIMITATIONS OR WEAKNESS OF

GEOPOLYMER?

d) Scope and Limitation

 Since concrete is the most abundantly used material in the world, second only to
water. The manufacturing of concrete involves first blasting rocks such as limestone
from quarries, then transporting the rocks to mills to be further crushed and treated
under high temperature. It consumes intensive energy processes that accounts for about
5 percent of the world's carbon dioxide.
While both geopolymer concrete and standard concrete blocks function as
economical building materials, there are significant distinctions between the two
materials. In terms of the longevity factor, geopolymer concrete requires little need for
repair; cutting down the amount of money needed in fixing concrete-based
infrastructures. There’s also the factor in greater resistance to fire and corrosion, high
tensile and compressive strength, and a lesser shrinkage found in geopolymer concrete
(Fitzgerald, 2018).
Concerning why geopolymer concrete was selected in this research, the material
is described to reduce the amount of greenhouse gases being emitted from five to eight
percent.

e) Significance of the Study

This paper discusses the uses of Geoploymer. Also deals with the properties of
Geoplymer and possible components to mix with it to upgrade the strength, durability,
etc. It is understood that geopolymer that if geopolymer concrete is enhanced, more
amount of industrial wastes can be utilized in the construction field with the reduction in
the usage of OPC which will also contribute to reduce global warming.

II. Review of Related Literature

WHAT ARE THE DIFFERENCE OF PORTLAND CEMENT AND GEOPOLYMER

WHEN MIXED WITH WATER AND AFFECTED BY HEAT?

Water is present only to facilitate workability and does not become a part of the resulting
geopolymer structure. In other words, water is not involved in the chemical reaction and instead
is expelled during curing and subsequent drying. This is in contrast to the hydration reactions
that occur when portland cement is mixed with water, which produce the primary hydration
products calcium silicate hydrate and calcium hydroxide. The difference has significant impact
on the mechanical and chemical properties of the geopolymer concrete and also renders it more
resistant to heat, water ingress, alkali-aggregate reactivity and other types of chemical attacks.
(Davidovits 2008; Lloyd and Rangan 2009)

Lloyd, N., and V. Rangan. 2009. “Geopolymer Concrete—Sustainable Cementless Concrete.”

ACI Special Publication SP-261, 10th ACI International Conference on Recent Advances in
Concrete Technology and Sustainability Issues. American Concrete Institute, Farmington Hills,
MI.

Davidovits, J. 2008. Geopolymer Chemistry and Applications. Institut Géopolymère, Saint-

Quentin, France.

ARE THERE LONG TERM BENEFITS FROM THE USE OF GEOPOLYMER

CONCRETE?

Due to the contents such as fly ash used to make geopolymer concrete (GPC), the
benefits are economical and environmental. Considering the cost of the material contents
needed to make geopolymer concrete, it is considered to be cheaper than regular cement by
about 10 - 25%. As for the environmental benefit, not only will the carbon footprint be reduced,
but the hectares of land being used for waste dumping can be saved (Kumar, 2015).

Kumar, Y. 2015. “Geopolymer Concrete: Leading the World Towards a Sustainable Future”. M.
Tech Structural Engineering, Department of Civil Engineering, NIT Kurukshetra, Haryana India-
136119.

DO THE MECHANICAL PROPERTIES OF GEOPOLYMER CONCRETE MAKE IT A

SUCCESSOR OF STANDARD CONCRETE?

According to Engineer Gopal Mishra, geopolymer concrete has a compressive

strength up to 70 MPa. Based on a reference to James Aldred And John Day, when
applied after 24 hours, the starting compressive strength is about 50 MPA up to 60 to 70
MPa after 28 days.

Mishra, G. “Geopolymer Concrete – Properties, Composition and Applications.”

ARE THERE NUMEROUS APPLICATIONS FOR THE USE OF GEOPOLYMER

CONCRETE?

There are widespread applications of geopolymer concrete in transportation infrastructure,

although the technology is rapidly advancing in Europe and Australia. One North American
geopolymer application is a blended portland geopolymer cement known as Pyrament (patented
in 1984), variations of which continue to be successfully used for rapid pavement repair. Other
portland-geopolymer cement systems may soon emerge. In addition to Pyrament, the U.S.
military is using geopolymer pavement coatings designed to resist the heat generated by
vertical takeoff and landing aircraft. In the short term, there is potential for geopolymer
applications for bridges, such as precast structural elements and decks as well as structural
retrofits using geopolymer-fiber composites. (Hambling 2009).
Hambling, D. 2009. “Cool Under Pressure: Geopolymers
Offer Diverse Structural Benefits.” Defense Technology
International, September/October 2009. Defense
Technology International, Washington, DC.

WHAT ARE THE CURRENT LIMITATIONS OR WEAKNESS OF GEOPOLYMER?

The polymerization reaction is very sensitive to temperature and usually requires that
the geopolymer concrete be cured at elevated temperature under a strictly controlled
temperature regime. In many respects, these facts may limit the practical use of
geopolymer concrete in the transportation infrastructure to precast applications.
(Hardjito et al. 2004; Tempest et al. 2009; Lloyd and Rangan 2009)

Creation of Geopolymer Concrete

(Akabari, etc., 2015)

Methodology

Volcanic ash is formed during volcanic eruptions, and is considered as natural pozzolan, a
standard specification for ‘Fly Ash and Raw or Calcinated Natural Pozzolan for Use as a Mineral
Admixture in Portland Cement Concrete’ (Siddique, 2012). It can be suitably used in cement,
mortar, and concrete. In this study, a coal fly ash sample collected from volcanic eruptions
within the Philippines was used in a chemical process known as geopolymerisation in order to
produce a new binder. The developed geopolymer binder could be able to competently
substitute the OPC binder in regular concrete application. An experiment was conducted to
enhance parameters of the geopolymerisation process affecting the strength of the final
cementless concrete product. Mortar and concrete samples were made to compare the strength
of ordinary concrete with the geopolymer.
III. Presentation and Analysis of Data
 Notes:
● Sodium Silicate is made through heating up 6 grams of crushed silica gel beads
diluted with 4-8 grams of Sodium Hydroxide diluted in water.
● Sodium Hydroxide (Lye) is found in drain cleaners, soap, etc.

IV. Conclusion and Recommendation

From what can be gathered concerning this project, geopolymer concrete is

complex in terms of the handling process, along with its materials have prerequisite
procedures in making them (eg. sodium silicate). While the baking process would lead to
the bricks to be made, the length of the mixture being heat-cured can affect the
endurance of not cracking.

SOURCES:
[1] Paul, A. (2016, October 20). 10 Advantages of concrete. Retrieved from
https://civildigital.com/10-advantages-concrete-construction-material-concrete/

[2] Fitzgerald, J. (2018, September 14). What is Geopolymer Concrete? Retrieved from
https://hipages.com.au/article/geopolymer_concrete

[3] Sivakumar and Srinivasan (2013). Geopolymer Binders: A Need for Future Concrete
Construction. Retrieved from
https://www.hindawi.com/journals/isrn/2013/509185/

[4] Mohajerani, A., Suter, D., Jeffrey-Bailey, T. et al. Recycling waste materials in
geopolymer concrete. Clean Techn Environ Policy 21, 493–515 (2019).
https://doi.org/10.1007/s10098-018-01660-2

[5] Arif, Hassan, and Shariq. (2019). Geopolymer concrete: A review of some recent
developments. Retrieved from
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0950061815002834

[6] Akabari, H., Mensah-Biney, R., and Simms, J. (2015, May 5-7). Production of
Geopolymer Binder from Coal Fly Ash to Make Cement-less Concrete. Retrieved from
http://www.flyash.info/2015/066-akbari-2015.pdf?
fbclid=IwAR0Kh3KQOAQPEJYi0sR3nVRWpvXsBT50ihwqvoT7-Ohti5cygtULrjFUWuU

[7] Siddique, R. (2012). Resources, conservation, and recycling (Vol. 66). Amsterdam:
Elsevier Science. doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.resconrec.2012.06.010
[8] Lloyd, N., and V. Rangan (2009). “Geopolymer Concrete—Sustainable Cementless
Concrete.” ACI Special Publication SP-261, 10th ACI International Conference on
Recent Advances in Concrete Technology and Sustainability Issues. American Concrete
Institute, Farmington Hills, MI. Davidovits, J. 2008. Geopolymer Chemistry and
Applications. Institut Géopolymère, Saint-Quentin, France. Retrieved from
https://espace.curtin.edu.au/bitstream/handle/20.500.11937/39436/171498_171498.pdf?
sequence=2&isAllowed=y

[9] Kumar, Y. (2015). “Geopolymer Concrete: Leading the World Towards a Sustainable
Future”. M. Tech Structural Engineering, Department of Civil Engineering, NIT
Kurukshetra, Haryana India-136119. Retrieved from
https://www.ijert.org/research/geopolymer-concrete-leading-the-world-towards-a-
sustainable-future-IJERTV4IS090433.pdf

[10] Mishra, G. “Geopolymer Concrete – Properties, Composition and

Applications.” Retrieved from https://theconstructor.org/concrete/geopolymer-concrete-
ecofriendly-construction-material/9430/