An Experimental Study on the Performance of Fly Ash Construction Blocks Containing Waste Materials

Abstract

The rapid increase in solid waste generation, driven by industrialization and human newlineactivities, poses critical challenges to environmental sustainability, public health, and newlineeffective resource management. Solid waste includes a wide range of materials, from newlinehousehold refuse to industrial by-products, and its accumulation has become a pressing newlineissue globally. In response, this study explored the potential use of waste materials newlinespecifically ceramic waste powder (CWP), micro silica (MS), and waste tyre rubber newline(WTR) as alternatives to traditional construction materials like sand and cement in newlinethe production of fly ash bricks. The study aimed to not only reduce waste but also to newlineassess the feasibility of these materials in improving the physical properties of the newlinebricks. Various investigations were carried out to evaluate key properties such as newlinecompressive strength, water absorption, porosity, thermal conductivity, efflorescence, newlineand microstructure. By incorporating waste materials into fly ash blocks, the study newlinesought to contribute to sustainable building practices while addressing the growing newlineissue of waste management. The study explored the use of ceramic waste powder newline(CWP), micro silica (MS), and waste tyre rubber (WTR) as alternatives to sand and newlinecement in fly ash block production. Results showed that blocks with 40% sand newlinereplacement using CWP had the highest compressive strength among sand replacement newlinesamples, while 20% CWP in cement replacement also yielded strong results. Adding newlinemicro silica further enhanced strength, with MSS-4 performing best. While 10% WTR newlineimproved compressive strength in some sand replacement samples, increasing WTR newlinecontent in cement replacement led to reduced strength. Overall, blocks with ceramic newlinewaste outperformed those with tyre rubber in strength, and met Indian standard newlinestrength requirement newline