Formulation and performance of flash metakaolin geopolymer concretes

• A performance study of flash metakaolin-based geopolymer concretes is proposed.
• All consistency classes of Portland cement are achievable for geopolymer concrete.
• Geopolymer masonry units can be manufactured in an industrial precast plant.
• The GP strength is more related to its formulation that it’s aggregates content.
• Performance similar to cement were obtained despite a greater porosity.

This study evaluates flash metakaolin geopolymer as an effective binder to replace Portland cement in concrete. A study conducted on the workability of fresh geopolymer concretes has revealed that several applications can be targeted, from fluid to dry concretes: reinforced beam or masonry units directly manufactured in industrial precast plant. Compressive strength of geopolymer concretes showed that these materials could have better mechanical properties than Portland cement concretes, despite a larger porosity. The amount of aggregates (in the range 71–83%) seemed to have a negligible effect on the performance of geopolymer concrete, probably due to the absence of ITZ at the binder-aggregate interface.

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