Physical-Mechanical and Durability Properties of Concrete with Lightweight Artificial Aggregate Produced by Controlled Self-Burning of Waste Coal Tailings

Abstract

The goal of this research focusing on the burning of coal tailings to produce a lightweight artificial aggregate is to compare the physical-mechanical and durability properties of concrete containing this new type of artificial aggregate with those of the reference concrete. The following parameters are measured on all the samples: compressive strength, volume mass, the static modulus of elasticity in compression, the frost resistance of this new type of concrete, and the resistance to CO2. All the concretes tested with the new artificial aggregate exceeded the characteristic strength values in all the strength classes monitored. The volume mass of the concrete with the new artificial aggregate is tens of percentages lower than that of the conventional reference concrete. The frost resistance of the concrete tested was reliably proven by the non-destructive resonance method. It was also found that at the lower strength classes of concrete, carbonation occurred earlier, but there was no obvious direct relation to the porosity of the new artificial aggregate. The tests performed showed that it is possible to produce high - quality concrete using a new lightweight artificial aggregate produced from coal tailings