Title:
Low-Embodied Carbon Concrete Enabled by Aggregate and Concrete Optimization
Author(s):
Moini
Publication:
Web Session
Volume:
Issue:
Appears on pages(s):
Keywords:
DOI:
Date:
11/3/2024
Abstract:
Concrete production accounts for 8-9% of global anthropogenic CO2 emissions and 2-3% of energy demand. This study exhibits how optimizing aggregate gradation and packing can reduce cement use and associated carbon footprint by presenting theoretical particle packing criteria for enhancing binary and ternary aggregate blends from ready-mix plants. The optimization considers the experimental and theoretical (Modified Toufar model) aggregates packing degree (PD) and the overall gradation considering power curves (PC), alongside metrics like workability and coarseness factors, to evaluate the global warming potential and properties of the optimized concrete blends, compared against reference conventional ready mixtures (without optimized gradation). A good agreement between the theoretical PD obtained from the Modified Toufar model and experimental PD was found. These optimized mixtures showed lower compressive strength and reduced workability, attributed to a higher water-to-binder (w/b) ratio. Despite these drawbacks, the optimized mixtures meet the normal 28-day strength criteria of concrete, proving their adequacy for many applications. Furthermore, the mixtures with optimized aggregate exhibited a 25.17% decrease in global warming potential (GWP) over the non-optimized counterparts, thereby providing a facile approach to reducing cement consumption without losing performance.