Performance of Low-Quality Concrete as Recycled Aggregate

Abstract

Since cement production is one of the most expensive and CO2-productive processes in making concrete, our project seeks to minimize the consumption of new cement. Furthermore, we sought to recycle concrete on-site in accordance with the principle of embodied energy (the concept that a completed structure holds in it a certain amount of energy that was required to construct it, energy which is dispersed and lost if the building is demolished or severely modified). By using recycled materials for the largest bulk component of cement, we thus greatly reduce the input of energy in producing cast concrete. The usage of recycled concrete aggregate (RCA) is not a new phenomenon, but it has not been studied in the context of low-cost disaster reconstruction efforts.