Characterization of sand concretes based on dune sand in the Béchar region of Algeria

Abstract

Due to the abundance of sand and sand dunes that surround us in the southern regions of the Algerian Sahara, known as dry zones, and despite the beauty of the sand dunes and their beautiful view, they have become a threat to the vegetation around us with the desertification of agricultural lands. We must therefore find a new formula to eliminate the excess sand. We decided to study sand exploitation in the field of civil and urban engineering. Our program includes the study of its physical, chemical and mechanical properties. The study looked at five different sand areas, using sand in sand concrete. The experimental program carries out a series of compression tests on specimens (16×32 cm3). The results show that particle size and formulation improved by admixtures and silica fume have a direct effect on the mechanical behavior of dune sand concrete. To this end the study gave encouraging results concerning compressive strength. All that remains is to add some improvers such as adjuvants such as super plasticizers and silica fume to reduce the quantity of water and increase the compressive strength.