Use of calcium carbide residue and bagasse ash mixtures as a new cementitious material in concrete

Calcium carbide residue (CCR) is a by-product of the acetylene gas production and bagasse ash (BA) is a by-product obtained from the burning of bagasse for electricity generation in the sugar industry. The mixture between CCR contains a high proportion of calcium hydroxide, while BA is a pozzolanic material, can produce a pozzolanic reaction, resulting in the products similar to those obtained from the cement hydration process. Thus, it is possible to use a mixture of CCR and BA as a cementitious material to substitute for Portland cement in concrete. The results indicated that concrete made with CCR and BA mixtures and containing 90 kg/m3 of Portland cement gave the compressive strength of 32.7 MPa at 28 days. These results suggested that the use of ground CCR and ground BA mixtures as a binder could reduce Portland cement consumption by up to 70% compared to conventional concrete that requires 300 kg/m3 of Portland cement to achieve the same compressive strength. In addition, the mechanical properties of the alternative concrete including compressive strength, splitting tensile strength, and elastic modulus were similar to that of conventional concrete.

► CCR–BA mixture can be used as a new cementitious material in concrete.
► CCR–BA concrete had mechanical properties in a manner similar to plain concrete.
► CCR–BA mixture can reduce cement consumption by 70% compared to plain concrete.
► Concrete made with CCR–BA mixture can reduce concrete cost and environmental problem.