The International journal of analytical and experimental modal analysis ISSN NO:0886-9367

Experimental Study On Partial Replacement Of

Cement By Banana Leaves Ash
Bajrang Dhage#1, Vijay Rathi*2,Pramod Kolase#3
#1
PG Student, Department of Civil Engineering, Pravara Rural Engineering College, Loni, Maharashtra, India
#2
Assistant Professor, Department of Civil Engineering, Pravara Rural Engineering College, Loni, Maharashtra, India
#3
Assistant Professor, Department of Civil Engineering, Pravara Rural Engineering College, Loni, Maharashtra, India

1
bdhage83@gmail.com
2
vijay.rathi@pravara.in
3
pramodkolase@gmail.com

Abstract— In India the production of waste materials from agriculture is increasing day by day. Agricultural wastes are
biologically decomposite in the open exposure. The use of local materials in construction of buildings is one of the potential
ways to support sustainable development in both urban and rural areas. This work determine the optimum temperature
and strength of concrete to produce good cementitious material by using banana leaf ash. Agriculture waste material can
help to increase the strength of concrete. The Banana Leaf is easily available, it is cheap and environmental friendly . In
addition, natural fiber ash has an excellent potential to improve the performance of concrete. The world is now
concentrating on alternative material sources that are less harm full to the environment. The Banana Leaf Ash and Banana
Fiber are agricultural waste. The Banana Leaf Ash (BLA) has potential to replace one of the construction material which is
cement. Also, many researches has been carried out to use different types of waste in concrete to produce a much
economical and sustainable product. In this study concrete mixed with Banana Leaf Ash is used in the proportions of 20%,
30%, 40% and 50%. The design carried out for mix proportion of M30. The test specimens, Cubes of size (150 X 150 X 150)
mm, beams of size 150 mm diameter and 750 mm height will be cast. Compressive strength test, flexural strength test, Split
Tensile Test, Durability test are conducted at 28th days and 56 days.
Keywords— Structural Audit, NDT Methods, Non Destructive Testing.

I. INTRODUCTION
Concrete is most widely used as a construction material due to its good compressive strength & durability. It is
material which is used more than any other man-made material on the earth for construction work. The main factor which
determines the strength of concrete is the amount of cement used and water/cement ratio in the mix. Depending upon nature of
work the cement, fine aggregate, coarse aggregate & water are mixed in specific proportions to produce concrete. Plain concrete
needs suitable atmosphere by providing moisture for a minimum period of 28 days for good hydration & to attend desired
strength. We know that for hydration process curing is must for the concrete. Any lack of curing will badly affect the strength &
durability of concrete The use of alternative material in the construction is increasing day by day. The project deals with the
comparative study of properties of concrete by using Banana Leaves Ash as material in the concrete mix. The ash produced
from various types of agricultural waste can be used effectively as a partial replacement of cement. Some researchers evaluated
the presence of pozzolanic activity in the deriving ash of Banana Leaves.
Banana leaf ash is an agricultural waste that as potential to replace one of the construction material which is cement.
Because it contains a pozzolanic reaction that usually occurs in Portland cement. This ash as a potential to improve the
performance of the concrete.
II. Literature Review

Gopi Raju, and N. Bhagya Sree In this project, the Bagasse ash has been chemically and physically characterized, and
partially replaced in the ratio of 0%, 5%, 10%, 15% and 25% by the weight of cement in concrete. Ordinary Portland cement
was replaced by ground bagasse ash at different percentage ratios. The compressive strengths of different mortars with bagasse
ash addition were also investigated. M40 concrete mixes with bagasse ash replacements of 0%, 5%, 10%, 15%, 20% and 25%
of the Ordinary Portland cement. Wet concrete tests like slump cone test, as well as hardened concrete test like compressive
strength, split tensile strength and flexural strength are investigated along with durability studies at the age of 7days, 28 days
and 90 days were carried out. It was observed that the compressive strength of SCBA 5% and SCBA 10% at the age of 28 days

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has reached its target mean strength; however the compressive strength was increased by 2.04% and 6.55% when compared
with normal mix[1].

S.Sakthivel et.al. investigate concrete property by using Banana Leaf Ash and Banana Fiber. The BLA is used in cement to
replace about 0%, 2%, 4%, and 6%. In that experiment BF is added as a additional material for about 0.2%. To determine the
strength of the concrete to produce good cementitious material by using BLA and to increase the tensile strength BF is added.
Banana fiber to the conventional mix by 0.2% increases the tensile strength of the concrete[2].

Sk .Musthafa el.al. studied properties of concrete by partial replacement of cement in concrete by banana leaves ash and glass
fiber . The BLA used in the concrete to 15% to the cement and Glass Fiber is taken to 1.5% of cement . The mix grade taken are
M30 , M35 , M40 and the strength properties of concrete are calculated such as Compression , Split Tensile , and Flexural
strength by casting cubes , cylinders and beams respectively. Partial replacement of cement with BLA & Glass Fibre changes
the Compressive , Flexural & Split tensile strength of concrete . By using 15% of BLA & 1.5% of Glass Fibre we can increase
the Compressive , Flexural & Split tensile strength of concrete . By using above combination of partial replacement we can
reduce cost of concrete and increase the strength of concrete . So , the combination of the two materials can be used to get good
strength properties in low cost[3] .

Priyanka Selvi focused on adding additional materials or replacing the existing material to improve the strength and bearing
capacity of the concrete while simultaneously reducing the cost and weight. These days fibres are gaining increasing attention
due to the abundant availability of these fibres. Mix design was calculated for M20 concrete and tests for physical properties
such as compressive strength, split tensile strength and flexural strength were performed. Banana fibres are added as
reinforcement mainly to improve the compressive strength, tensile strength and crack resistance. GBFS has been noted to
increase compressive strength and also reduces the cost in concrete preparation due to replacement of cement. The
investigations considered GBFS at different proportions with 10% increment at each stage[4].

Ramya M et. Al. (2019)[25] states an alternate method of using waste materials as SCM in powder form increases the strength
parameters of concrete. Combination of waste Banana Leaf Powder (BLP) and Cattle Bone Powder (CBP), when used as SCM
increases the strength of concrete and mortar. Banana leaf Powder serves as an alternate binding material whereas Cattle Bone
Powder, rich in calcium content improves the binding property of cementitious substances with aggregates thereby improves the
bond strength between cement phase and aggregate phase[5].

Mir Firasath Ali et.al. studies the utilization of banana trunk fiber to reinforce the strength and applications of concrete. They
observed that addition of banana fibers significantly improved many of the engineering properties of the concrete notably
compressive strength, tensile strength and flexural strength. The flexibility to resist cracking and spalling were also enhanced.
Thus it acts as a natural admixture giving additional properties to the ordinary cement concrete. During this context different
percentages of banana fibers 0%, 0.5%, 1%, 1.5%, having 50mm length were used. M30 concrete and ordinary portland cement
of grade 43 was used. The banana fiber reinforced concrete is tested for compressive strength, splitting tensile strength, flexural
strength at different ages[6].

Ayyappa R A et.al. designed experimental program to study the properties like strength and workability of concrete by casting
the cube of size 150 mm x 150mm x 150 mm and cylinder of size 30 cm height and 15 cm diameter by using M20 grade. This
experimental study consists of testing compressive strength of three cubes and split tensile strength of three cylinders of
conventional concrete and the comparative cubes and cylinders are made by using different proportions of coconut shells (i.e.,
2%, 4%, and 6%) replacement in coarse aggregate and replacement of eggshell powder (i.e., 5%, 10%, and 15%) in place of
cement at optimum strength obtained by proportions of coconut shells replaced in coarse aggregate[7].

III. OBJECTIVES
This study aims to evaluate the feasibility of BLA as an alternative material for partial replacement of cement.
 To investigate the use of BLA in concrete mixes to improve the performance of concrete in construction.
 To determine the best proportion of BLA in concrete mix.
 To evaluate the workability of the concrete with BLA as compared to normal mix of concrete.
 To compare the compressive, flexural & split tensile strength of 20%, 30%,40% and 50% BLA replacement with cement.
 To compare economy of concrete mix by using BLA and normal concrete.

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IV. METHODOLOGY

A. Material Used:
1. Cement:
Ordinary Portland Cement (OPC) of 53 grades cement is used for this experimental investigation throughout. Table I shows
properties of cement.
TABLE I: PROPERTIES OF CEMENT
Sr. No. Description of Test Result
1 Fineness of cement 2.73%
2 Standard consistency of cement 32%
3 Setting time of cement: (IS 12269-1987)
a) Initial setting time 60 min
b) Final setting time 490 min
4 Soundness test of cement (with Le-Chatelier’s mould) 2 mm
5 Compressive Strength of Cement
3 days 21 N/mm2
7 days 37 N/mm2

2. Fine Aggregate (Sand) :

Concrete is an assemblage of individual pieces of aggregate bound together by cementing material, its properties are
based primarily on the quality of cement paste. This strength is dependant also on the bond between the cement paste and
aggregate. If either the strength of the paste or the bond between the paste and aggregate is low, a concrete of poor quality will
be obtained irrespective of strength of the aggregate, for making strong concrete, strong aggregate is an essential requirement.
By and large naturally available mineral aggregate are strong enough for making normal strength concrete. Locally available
sand, from “PRAVARA RIVER”, is used as fine aggregate.

TABLE II: PROPERTIES OF FINE AGGREGATE

Sr. No. Description of Test Result
1. Fineness Modulus 2.66
2. Silt content 8%
3. Specific Gravity 2.60
4. Surface moisture 3%

TABLE III: SIEVE ANALYSIS OF FINE AGGREGATE

Sr. Sieve Size Weight Retained Cumulative wt Cumulative % % Wt.
No. (gms) Retained (gms) Retained Passing

1 10 mm 0 0 0 100
2 4.75 mm 141.6 9.44 9.44 85.95
3 2.36 mm 69.2 4.61 14.05 68.46
4 1.18 mm 262.4 17.49 31.54 43

5 600μ 233.3 15.55 47.07 52.93

6 300μ 369.6 24.64 74.71 28.29
7 150μ 313.4 20.89 92.6 7.4
Sum =266.4

Fineness modulus = sum of cumulative % of mass retained on the sieve / 100

= 266.4/ 100
= 2.66%
Fine aggregate confirms to grading zone I (IS 383-1970).
Fineness modulus= 2.66%

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TABLE IV: IS LIMITS FOR FINE AGGREGATES FOR ZONE I AND ZONE II
I.S. Sieve % Passing by Weight for
Designation
Grading zone Grading zone
I II
10mm 100 100
4.75mm 90-100 90-100
2.36mm 60-95 75-100
1.18mm 30-70 55-90
600 μ 15-34 35-59
300 μ 5-20 8-30
150 μ 0-10 0-10

3. Coarse Aggregate:
The nominal maximum size of coarse aggregate should as large as possible within the specified limits but in no case
greater than one fourth of the minimum thickness of the member, provided that the concrete can be placed without difficulty so
as to surround all reinforcement thoroughly and fill the corners of the form. Locally available crushed stone with size varying
from 12.5mm to 20mm aggregates are used.
TABLE V: PROPERTIES OF COARSE AGGREGATE
Sr. No. Description of Test Result
1. Fineness Modulus of coarse aggregates 4.28%
2. Specific Gravity 2.62
3. Surface moisture 2.02%

TABLE VI: SIEVE ANALYSIS OF COARSE AGGREGATE

Sr. No. Sieve Size Weight Retained Cumulative wt Cumulative %
(gms) Retained (gms) Retained
1 20.0 2484 49.68 49.68
2 16.0 1584 31.68 81.36
3 12.5 826 16.52 97.88
4 10.0 102 2.04 99.99
5 6.3 20 0.08 100
6 4.75 4 00 00
7 Residue 00 00 00

Fineness modulus = sum of cumulative % of mass retained on the sieve / 100

=428.91/ 100
= 4.28%
Results: 20.0 mm size aggregate is Very Coarse.

4. Banana Leaves Ash:

The banana leaves with stem used for the study or obtain from the local banana farms from kolhar, district
Ahmednagar. The leaves available in this process are dried for a period of 25 days , after which the dried banana leaves are
combusted in a control environment and residual ash of the leaves with stem is collected. The ash is when sieved through 90
micron sieve for getting a fine powder of banana leaves ash. . This ash used in our study for replacing cement partially with
proportions of 20%, 30%, 40% and 50%. The chemical properties of banana leaves ash are given in table VII.
TABLE VII: CHEMICAL PROPERTIES OF BLA
Parameters Composition of banana leaf ash(%)
Silicon Dioxide(SiO2) 47.8
Iron Oxide(Fe2O3) 1.4
Aluminium Oxide(Al2O3) 2.6
Sodium Oxide(Na2O) 0.21
Loss if ignition 5.06

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V. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

Tests on Materials :
For concrete mix design there are no of test are conducted on cement sand and Aggregate. Test such as standard consistency of
cement, final and initial setting time of cement, soundness of cement, specific gravity of Fine and course aggregate,
finenessmodules, silt content and moisture content of fine and course aggregate .

1. Test on cement:
By using normal cement and cement with BLA the consistency, initial setting time and final setting time of cement is found.
Standard consistency of cement by using normal cement is achieved at 32% and by using BLA is achieved at 28%. Initial and
final setting time of cement by using BLA is reduced.

TABLE VIII : PROPERTIES OF CEMENT USING NORMALCEMENT AND CEMENT WITH BLA

Test carried Normal Concrete with BLA

concrete
Standard consistency of 32% 28%
cement
Initial setting time 60 min 53 min
Final setting time 490 min 467 min

2. Test on Fresh Concrete: Slump Cosne Test

Slump cone test was conducted for investigation of workability of fresh concrete by using normal cement and cement with BLA
for M30 grade of concrete and w/c ratio 0.50.

TABLE IX: SLUMP VALUES AND WORKABILITY OF

CONCRETE

Trial w/c ratio Slump Remarks

Value(mm)

Trial 1 0.4 30 Low

Trial 2 0.45 50 Medium

Trial 3 0.5 120 High

Fig. 1 : Slump by using BLA

4.2.3 Test on Hard Concrete

1. Compressive Strength Test:
Especially for concrete compressive strength is an important parameter to determine the performance of material
during service conditions. The effect of BLA on compressive strength of concrete for various mixtures is given in Table X and
demonstrated in Fig. 2 . From the result we can conclude that the compressive strength of cubes casted with BLA replacement
is decreased.

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TABLE X: RESULT OF COMPRESSIVE STRENGTH TEST

Fig. 2 Comparison of compressive strength for 28 and 56 days

2. Split Tensile Test: Splitting tensile strength is used to determine the tensile strength of concrete in an indirect way. The
effect of BLA on splitting tensile strength of concrete for various mixtures is given in Table XI and is demonstrated in Fig.3.
From result we can conclude that the specimens casted with 30% replacement show an split tensile strength. But replacement
ratio increased then split tensile strength decreased.

TABLEXI: RESULT OF COMPRESSIVE STRENGTH TEST

Fig 3:Comparison of Split Tensile Test for 28 and 56 days

3. Flexural Strength Test:
Flexural strength test is one measure of the tensile strength of concrete. It is a measure of an unreinforced concrete beam or slab
to resist failure in bending. The effect of BLA replacement on flexural strength of concrete for various mixtures is given in
Table XII and demonstrated in Fig. 4.

TABLE XII: RESULT OF FLEXURAL STRENGTH TEST

Fig. 4: Comparison of Flexural Strength for 28 and 56 days

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Results shows that, the specimens casted with magnetic water shows an 30% BLA replacement gives good flexural strength
but if repacemen ratio increased flexural strength decresed for it.

4. Durability Test Result:

 Acid Attacks -HCl
 The test were conducted after 28 days 56 days.
 From the experimental result it is found that the percentage decrease in Compressive Strength was observed as 0.124%,
0.05%, 0.126% and 0.228 %for HCl. W.r.t. the percentage of BLA.
 The percentage decrease in weights was observed as 0.120%, 0.119%, 0.118% and 0.118% for HCl and 0.484%, 0.480%,
0.356 and 0.832 for H2SO4 w.r.t. the percentage of BLA.
 From result it is observed that HCl is less loss in compressive strength and weight.

TABLE XIII : COMPARISON OF COMPRESSIVE STRENGTH FOR HCL ATTACK

BLA Fcu Decrease in % loss in Loss in weight % loss in
Fcu Fcu weight
20 32.05 32.01 0.124 8.29 0.120
30 36.05 36.03 0.050 8.35 0.119
40 31.61 31.57 0.126 8.44 0.118
50 30.72 30.65 0.228 8.47 0.118

Fig. 5: Result of Durability test: Acid Attacks- HCl and Sulphate attack - MgSO4

 Sulphate attack - MgSO4

 The test were conducted after 28 days 56 days.

 From the experimental result it is found that the percentage decrease in Compressive Strength was observed as 0.06%,
0.08%, 0.06% and 0.06% for MgSO4 w.r.t the percentage of banana leaf ash.
 The percentage decrease in weights was observed as 0.12%,0.119%, 0.237% and 0.118% MgSO 4and 0.060%, 0.239%,
0.177% and 0.023% for Na2SO4w.r.t the percentage of banana leaf ash.
 From result it is observed that banana leaf ash concrete is sulphate resisting concrete.

TABLE XIV: COMPARISON OF COMPRESSIVE STRENGTH FOR MGSO4

BLA Fcu Decrease % loss in Loss in % loss in
in Fcu Fcu weight weight
20 32.05 32.03 0.06 8.29 0.120
30 36.05 36.03 0.08 8.35 0.119
40 31.63 31.57 0.06 8.44 0.237
50 30.66 30.65 0.06 8.47 0.118

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VI. CONCLUSIONS
1. Partial replacement of cement with BLA changes the Compressive, Flexural & Split tensile strength of concrete.
2. As the percentage of BLA increases in the concrete the compressive strength decreased as compare to normal cement.
3. The Split Tensile strength increases for 20% and 30% replacement & slightly decrease for 40 % and 50%
replacement..
4. The Split Tensile strength increases for 20% and 30% replacement & slightly decrease for 40 % and 50%
replacement..
5. The Flexural strength good for 30% replacement & slightly decrease for 40 % and 50% replacement..
6. By using above combination of partial replacement we can reduce cost of concrete and increase the strength of
concrete .
7. So , the combination of the two materials can be used to get good strength properties in low cost .
8. From the above graphs we can conclude that the Flexural & Split tensile strength increases at 30% replacement of
cement with BLA.
9. The optimum percentage of cement for partial replacement with BLA is 30%.

REFERENCES

1. A. Gopi Raju, N. Bhagya Sree, “Study on Sugar Cane Bagasse Ash as Partial Replacement of Cement for High Strength
Concrete”, IJSRD - International Journal for Scientific Research & Development, vol. 6(11), 2019, pp. 183-187.
2. S. Sakthivel, R. Parameswari , M. Gomathmi , S. Sangeetha, “Experimental investigation on concrete with banana fiber and
partial replacement of cement by banana leaf ash”, International Research Journal of Engineering and Technology, vol-
06(03) ,2019, pp. 3914-3919.
3. Sk .Musthafa , Sk. MahaboobBasha ,S. Bhavani ,P. Anudeep ,P.Chakravarthy ,Sk.NagoorVali , “Experimental Study On
Partial Replacement Of Cement By Banana Leaves Ash And Glass Fiber”, International Journal of Research in Advent
Technology, Special Issue, 2019, pp. 650-655.
4. Priyanka Selvi, “Comparative Study of GBFS & Banana Fibre Reinforced Concrete with Normal Concrete”, International
Research Journal of Engineering and Technology (IRJET) , vol. 6(11), 2019, pp. 2351-2354.
5. Ramya M, Mercy Shanthi R, Suji D, “Strength Evaluation of Sustainable Concrete with Partial Replacement of Cement by
Combination of Banana Leaf Powder and Cattle Bone Powder”, International Journal of Innovative Technology and
Exploring Engineering, vol. 8(6S4), 2019, pp. 884-886.
6. Mir Firasath Ali, Syed Haseeb Ali , Mohammed Tanveer Ahmed , Shaik Khaja Patel, “Study on Strength Parameters of
Concrete by adding Banana Fibers”, International Research Journal of Engineering and Technology (IRJET) , vol. 7(3),
2020, pp. 4401-4404.
7. Ayyappa R A, Sandeep Reddy B, G. Swamy Yadav, Dara SwethaSudarshan, “Partial Replacement of Cement and Coarse
Aggregate by Egg Shell Powder and Coconut Shells”, International Journal of Innovative Technology and Exploring
Engineering (IJITEE), vol.9(4),2020, pp. 1242-1246.

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