Durability studies on eco-friendly concrete mixes incorporating steel slag as coarse aggregates

The present study discusses the durability performance of alkali activated concrete mixes containing steel slag as coarse aggregates. Steel slag aggregates, a waste product obtained from iron and steel industry are incorporated as coarse aggregates in alkali activated slag concrete (AASC) and alkali activated slag fly ash concrete (AASFC) by replacing traditional natural aggregates. The mix design for AASC and AASFC mixes are optimised to obtain sufficient strength for structural purposes and then steel slag coarse aggregates are incorporated at different replacement levels (0%, 50% and 100% by volume of total coarse aggregate content). Durability properties such as long term ageing performance, water absorption, volume of permeable voids, resistance to sulphuric acid attack and resistance to magnesium sulphate attack are studied in detail and compared with conventional Ordinary Portland Cement Concrete (OPCC). The ecological and economical analysis of concrete mixes is also carried out. It was found that the AASC and AASFC mixes displayed better durability performance as compared to OPCC. The inclusion of steel slag aggregates slightly reduced the durability performance of AASC and AASFC mixes. The AASC and AASFC with steel slag aggregates displayed lower energy requirement and lower production cost as compared to OPCC, thus proving it to be eco-friendly.