Investigating the potential of waste polyethylene in concrete

Abstract

It is significant to use recycled waste plastic bags in concrete to solve the issue of the disposal of leftover polyethylene in the environment. This research incorporated the plastic bags’ polyethylene into concrete and evaluated the mechanical properties of concrete, to reduce cracking to some extent and increase the tensile & flexural strengths and deformation capacity. Six mixtures were used with varying percentages of waste plastic bags (i.e., 0%, 0.3%, 0.6%, 0.9%, 1.2%, and 1.5%). The sorptivity test was conducted following ASTM C1585 and the volume of permeable voids test was according to the ASTM C642 requirements. The pullout strength of the steel rebar in a concrete cylinder was also determined. With waste polyethylene, it was noted that the flexural strength increased, pull-out bond strength declined and initial sorptivity increased. This decline in the volume of permeable voids was due to the heterogeneity of the mixture which leads to the low density of the mixture due to waste plastic bags. Experiments proved that substituting plastic bags for fine aggregates in concrete, increases flexural and split tensile strengths while decreasing compressive and pullout strength.

Potential of Waste Material as Coarse Aggregates for Lightweight Concrete Production: A Sustainable Approach

“…This can limit its use in structures that require high compressive strength, such as bridge piers or foundation walls. However, advances in concrete technology have resulted in the development of high-strength lightweight aggregate concrete, which can overcome this limitation to some extent [56][57][58] [59]. Another challenge associated with the use of lightweight aggregate concrete is its higher cost compared to traditional concrete.…”

“…Using the proper ratios and mixing for the aggregate improves strength and mechanical properties [55]. Aggregate, which takes up between 60 and 75 percent of the total volume of concrete, is one of the most practical applications for FCS in the concrete mix [56]. In order to assess if FCS can replace fine or coarse aggregate in concrete, many investigations have been carried out.…”