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Recyclable Materials in Concrete Technology: Research Progress and Application

A special issue of Applied Sciences (ISSN 2076-3417). This special issue belongs to the section "Civil Engineering".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (20 October 2022) | Viewed by 19484

Special Issue Editors


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Guest Editor
Departamento de Tecnología de la Edificación, Escuela Técnica Superior de Edificación, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, 28040 Madrid, Spain
Interests: reinforced concrete; concrete; mechanical properties; concrete structures; building; structural analysis; concrete technologies; concrete durability

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Guest Editor
Departamento de Tecnología de la Edificación, Escuela Técnica Superior de Edificación, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, 28040 Madrid, Spain
Interests: reinforced concrete; concrete; compressive strength; construction materials; concrete durability; concrete technologies; sustainable construction

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Guest Editor
Department of Geological and Mining Engineering, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, Rios Rosas 21, 28003 Madrid, Spain
Interests: materials processing; material characterization; microstructure; mechanical properties; metals; heat treatment; corrosion

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The Special Issue on "Recyclable Materials in Concrete Technology: Research Progress and Application" focuses on the use of Recyclable Materials in Concrete Technology.

This special issue aims to gather works related to the use of recyclable materials in the composition of concrete. Contributions related to research work and applications of these materials are welcome.

The works may contain investigations related to the mechanical properties, the behavior of the concrete in a fresh state, the durability, the thermal and acoustic properties, the economic evaluations, the ease of execution or the repair and reinforcement of the elements built with this material.

Prof. Dr. Alfonso Cobo
Prof. Dr. María Isabel Prieto Barrio
Prof. Dr. José Manuel Ruiz Román
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Applied Sciences is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • concrete
  • recycled materials
  • circular economy
  • sustainability
  • properties of concrete with recycled materials

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Published Papers (6 papers)

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Research

16 pages, 1993 KiB  
Article
Are Green Buildings an Indicator of Sustainable Development?
by Antonio Marotta, César Porras-Amores and Antonio Rodríguez Sánchez
Appl. Sci. 2023, 13(5), 3005; https://doi.org/10.3390/app13053005 - 26 Feb 2023
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 2580
Abstract
The world’s population keeps growing together with the construction rate of buildings that need to reduce their environmental footprint in order to mitigate global warming. This paper analyses if the spread of green buildings can be used as an indicator of broader sustainable [...] Read more.
The world’s population keeps growing together with the construction rate of buildings that need to reduce their environmental footprint in order to mitigate global warming. This paper analyses if the spread of green buildings can be used as an indicator of broader sustainable development. The study is carried out with data taken from Eurostat Database and green buildings directories for 27 EU countries in the 10-year period spanning from 2010 to 2019. The relationship between the indicators is examined through simple linear regressions, and the results confirm the Environmental Kuznets Curve hypothesis: in developed countries, a growing economy (more GDP) is related to an environmental improvement (fewer GHG emissions). In addition, this study proves that the variance of green buildings expresses with a consistent probability the variance of GDP per capita (p-value = 0.0004 and R2 = 0.8475) and the variance of GHG emissions (p-value = 0.0002 and R2 = 0.8825), meaning that green buildings are indeed an indicator of sustainable development. This is due to the upfront cost required to implement advanced construction technologies that ultimately cut GHG emissions during the building lifecycle. This also points out that policy makers should encourage green building implementation through tax relieves and grants. Full article
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13 pages, 3900 KiB  
Article
Recycling of Macro-Synthetic Fiber-Reinforced Concrete and Properties of New Concretes with Recycled Aggregate and Recovered Fibers
by Guanzhi Liu, Nikola Tošić and Albert de la Fuente
Appl. Sci. 2023, 13(4), 2029; https://doi.org/10.3390/app13042029 - 4 Feb 2023
Cited by 8 | Viewed by 1955
Abstract
The study aims to investigate the feasibility of using recycled aggregate (RA) and recovered fibers (RFs) obtained from recycling polypropylene fiber-reinforced concrete (PPFRC) in new concrete production. The mechanical properties were compared between a parent PPFRC, polypropylene fiber-reinforced recycled aggregate concrete (PPRAC), and [...] Read more.
The study aims to investigate the feasibility of using recycled aggregate (RA) and recovered fibers (RFs) obtained from recycling polypropylene fiber-reinforced concrete (PPFRC) in new concrete production. The mechanical properties were compared between a parent PPFRC, polypropylene fiber-reinforced recycled aggregate concrete (PPRAC), and recovered polypropylene fiber concrete (Re-PPRFC). All concretes were designed to have the same compressive strength and slump. The parent concrete was produced with 3 and 9 kg/m3 of polypropylene fibers. After recycling, the RA and RF were collected, and new concretes with RA and RF, PPRAC and Re-PPRFC, respectively, were produced with the same fiber content as the parent concretes. Both the compressive and flexural tensile strength (pre- and post-cracking) were characterized and the stress–strain relations derived accordingly. The results obtained for the different concretes were compared, proving that the RA and RF obtained by PPFRC recycling can benefit the design-oriented properties (workability and mechanical performance) of new concretes. Full article
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12 pages, 4685 KiB  
Article
Recycling Waste Paver Blocks in the Manufacture of New Concrete Paver Blocks and Building Bricks
by Jeonghyun Kim and Namho Kim
Appl. Sci. 2022, 12(21), 10970; https://doi.org/10.3390/app122110970 - 29 Oct 2022
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 5599
Abstract
This study investigates the feasibility of recycling various waste paving blocks as raw materials for concrete. The recycling rate of waste blocks in Korea remains around 11%. Therefore, three types of waste paving blocks, i.e., recycled clay-, granite-, and concrete block, were used [...] Read more.
This study investigates the feasibility of recycling various waste paving blocks as raw materials for concrete. The recycling rate of waste blocks in Korea remains around 11%. Therefore, three types of waste paving blocks, i.e., recycled clay-, granite-, and concrete block, were used as partial replacements for sand in a concrete mixture at 10%, 20%, and 30% replacement ratios. According to the Korean standards for concrete pavers and building bricks, compressive strength, flexural strength, and water absorption tests were conducted. In addition, UPV and unit weight tests were performed. The results showed that the performance of concrete mixtures decreased with the increasing replacement ratio of waste clay and concrete, while the addition of waste granite improved the properties of the mixtures. All the prepared concrete mixtures met the requirements specified in the standards, demonstrating that concrete incorporating waste blocks can be used as paving blocks and building bricks under limited conditions. Full article
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14 pages, 3179 KiB  
Article
Comparison of the Mechanical Behavior of Concrete Containing Recycled CFRP Fibers and Polypropylene Fibers
by María Isabel Prieto, María de las Nieves González, Alfonso Cobo and David Alonso
Appl. Sci. 2021, 11(21), 10226; https://doi.org/10.3390/app112110226 - 1 Nov 2021
Cited by 7 | Viewed by 1936
Abstract
The incorporation of natural or recycled fibers in concrete represents a field for improvement in this structural material and a step towards sustainability. The objective of this research is to determine whether the addition of recycled carbon fibers (CFRP), which have been hardened [...] Read more.
The incorporation of natural or recycled fibers in concrete represents a field for improvement in this structural material and a step towards sustainability. The objective of this research is to determine whether the addition of recycled carbon fibers (CFRP), which have been hardened using epoxy resin, improves the behavior of concrete and whether its performance is comparable to that achieved by adding polypropylene fibers, which would result in a viable recycling alternative for this type of fiber. In order to explore this objective, 120 specimens were produced, on which compression, flexural, and impact tests were performed, and into which recycled CFRP fibers or polypropylene fibers were incorporated. By comparing the results obtained, it may be concluded that the addition of fibers substantially improves the ductility of the concrete and reduces the spalling effect when compared to concretes without added fibers. The concretes containing recycled CFRP fibers in quantities of 3 kg/m3 and 6 kg/m3 obtain better flexural and impact behaviors than concretes featuring the same amounts of polypropylene fibers, making this recycling alternative viable for CFRP fibers as well as reducing the amount of energy and raw materials that would be used to manufacture the fibers. Full article
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15 pages, 1403 KiB  
Article
Assessing the Energy Efficiency Potential of Recycled Materials with Construction and Demolition Waste: A Spanish Case Study
by César Porras-Amores, Patricia Martin Garcia, Paola Villoria Sáez, Mercedes del Rio Merino and Veronica Vitielo
Appl. Sci. 2021, 11(17), 7809; https://doi.org/10.3390/app11177809 - 25 Aug 2021
Cited by 9 | Viewed by 3585
Abstract
Buildings are responsible for 40% of the overall final energy consumption in the European Union. On the other hand, the construction, energy, and industry sectors generate around 50% of the waste produced in Europe, out of which a third part is construction and [...] Read more.
Buildings are responsible for 40% of the overall final energy consumption in the European Union. On the other hand, the construction, energy, and industry sectors generate around 50% of the waste produced in Europe, out of which a third part is construction and demolition waste (CDW). In recent years, many research works have been carried out to analyze the viability of incorporating waste, especially CDW, as a substitute for traditional raw materials with great environmental impact. However, most of the studies found cover only the mechanical characterization of the compound, and there are very few that analyze these materials in specific building applications. This research work evaluates the energy efficiency potential of recycled materials with CDW. After an exhaustive analysis of the main existing recycled materials, an energetic evaluation of several construction solutions is carried out, as well as a comparison with traditional solutions. The findings show that the incorporation of recycled materials in several building construction elements is a success, since it not only reduces the consumption of raw materials, but also reduces the energy consumption of the building. Energy savings using recycled materials can range from 8% in a warm region (such as Seville) up to 13% in cold regions (such as Soria), which are greater in heating than in cooling. Full article
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18 pages, 3496 KiB  
Article
Experimental Study with Cement Mortars Made with Recycled Concrete Aggregate and Reinforced with Aramid Fibers
by Alberto Morón, Daniel Ferrández, Pablo Saiz and Carlos Morón
Appl. Sci. 2021, 11(17), 7791; https://doi.org/10.3390/app11177791 - 24 Aug 2021
Cited by 15 | Viewed by 2658
Abstract
The reuse of construction and demolition waste is a necessary way to achieve greater sustainability in building, introducing the criteria of the so-called circular economy in the design of the production process of new construction materials. This research focuses on analyzing the properties [...] Read more.
The reuse of construction and demolition waste is a necessary way to achieve greater sustainability in building, introducing the criteria of the so-called circular economy in the design of the production process of new construction materials. This research focuses on analyzing the properties of mortars made with recycled aggregates from concrete waste and reinforced with aramid fibers. For this purpose, an experimental campaign was carried out, including chemical, physical, mechanical and durability tests, performing a statistical analysis to discuss the different properties analyzed. The results show how the incorporation of aramid fibers in the matrix of cement mortars made with recycled concrete aggregate improves their technical performance and mechanical resistance, thus increasing their application possibilities and achieving similar results in some properties to those obtained with traditional mortars made with natural aggregate. Full article
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