State of the Art paper on Fly Ash Geopolymer Concrete

The Geopolymer Group at Curtin University of Technology, Australia, Prof. Vijay Rangan, has released a new paper for free download, available in the Library. It is paper # 19.

The title is:
State of the Art: Fly Ash-Based Geopolymer Concrete,
Construction Material for Sustainable Development

by Djwantoro Hardjito, Steenie E. Wallah, Dody M.J. Sumajouw, and B.Vijaya Rangan

Invited Paper, Concrete World: Engineering & Materials, American Concrete Institute, India Chapter, Mumbai, India, December 9-12, 2004.

Abstract:
Portland cement production is under critical review due to high amount of carbon dioxide gas released to the atmosphere. In recent years, attempts to increase the utilisation of fly ash to partially replace the use of Portland cement in concrete are gathering momentum. Most of this by-product material is currently dumped in landfills, thus creating a threat to the environment. Geopolymer concrete is a ‘new’ material that does not need the presence of Portland cement as a binder. Instead, the source of materials such as fly ash, that are rich in Silicon (Si) and Aluminium (Al), are activated by alkaline liquids to produce the binder. Hence, concrete with no cement. This paper presents the state-of-the-art information on fly ash-based geopolymer concrete. The paper covers the material and the mixture proportions, the manufacturing processes, the fresh and hardened state characteristics, the influence of various parameters on the fresh and hardened state concrete, the stress-strain behaviour, and the utilisation of the material in structural members.