INFLUENCE OF BIOMASS AGGREGATE ON STRENGTH OF FOAM CONCRETE

Light weight concrete was initially used for nonstructural purposes but now due to advancement of new materials such as recycled biomass aggregates this concrete can be used for structural purposes as well. In past, different materials have been used in making foam concrete but this work utilized particularly recycled biomass aggregate as a filler. This research is aimed to study the effect of biomass aggregates on strength of concrete. The biomass aggregate was crushed into fine aggregate of size lesser than 2mm. A total of 72 foam concrete cubes of size 100mmx100mmx100mm were cast for this research. The foam concrete cubes were air-cured in outdoor environment and in the concrete curing chamber for 28, 56 and 91 days. The foam concrete achieved highest compressive strength by using biomass aggregate at 91 days of air curing as compared to normal sand at indoor environment. The study is a new step towards utilization of recycled material. The possible utilization of such material would reduce the consumption of natural resources and also reduces the carbon footprint from the industries