DURABILITY PERFORMANCE OF CONCRETE WITH DIMENSION LIMESTONE WASTE AS FINE AGGREGATES REPLACEMENT

Abstract

Quarrying and production of dimension limestone produced a considerable amount of solid and slurry waste. Because of its great potential to be used as an alternative material in concrete, these dimension limestone waste (DLW) have been the interest of many researchers. Several studies focus its investigation on the effect of DLW addition on concrete particularly on its mechanical properties. Although review of related literatures suggested the used of DLW in concrete because of its positive effect on concrete’s mechanical properties, there remains doubt on its acceptability due to the lack of studies regarding its durability performance. Thus, this study aimed to assess the durability performance of concrete made with DLW as a fine aggregate replacement. The investigation included test for sorptivity and resistance to sulfate attack using specimens with DLW replacements of level of 0%, 20%, 40% and 60%. Sorptivity test reveals that incorporation of up to 60% of DLW as sand replacement reduces the permeability of concrete. In terms of sulfate resistance, it was found that the addition of DLW reduces length expansion and mass change due to sulfate attack. Furthermore, change in compressive strength test showed that after 15 weeks of sodium sulfate immersion, DLW concrete exhibited a less than 25% reduction in compressive strength. Based on the findings of this study, it has been concluded that replacement of sand by DLW can result to concrete having comparable durability performance.