Calcined Clays as Alternative Supplementary Cementitious Material and Precursor for Geopolymer Binders in Transportation Infrastructure

The use of fly ash in concrete has become a common practice in the US. On the other hand, fly ash has been also used as a key ingredient for geopolymers recently introduced as an ecofriendly and sustainable alternative to ordinary Portland cement (OPC) in concrete. However, the decline in coal-fired power generation and stricter environmental regulations have led to a scarcity of high-quality fly ash in the US and consequently an increase in its price. Calcined clays (CCs) are a promising alternative to fly ash due to their wide local availability. They are rich sources of alumino-silicate species needed for both pozzolanic reaction that takes during the curing of OPC and the geopolymerization reaction. Preliminary results from a previously funded Tran-SET project (20CLSU07) show that several readily available CCs in Region 6 are potentially useful as SCMs in concrete. While preliminary results are promising, further characterization of the CCs and their comprehensive evaluation in concrete is required to develop the necessary engineering knowledge for their use in the field. As a response to the expected shortage of fly ash, the main objective of this project is to evaluate calcined clays (CCs) as a much-needed alternative source for the future of concrete materials for the transportation infrastructure in Region 6. Going beyond the use of CCs as alternative SCMs, the present projects also aims to evaluate the feasibility of using CCs as a precursor for the synthesis of geopolymer binders, which could be used for the production of cost-effective and environmentally friendly geopolymer concrete for the transportation infrastructure in Region 6.

• Supplemental Notes:
  • 22CLSU13

Language

• English

Project

• Status: Active
• Funding: $46948
• Contract Numbers:

  69A3551747106

• Sponsor Organizations:

  Office of the Assistant Secretary for Research and Technology

  University Transportation Centers Program
  Department of Transportation
  Washington, DC  United States  20590
• Managing Organizations:

  Transportation Consortium of South-Central States (Tran-SET)

  Louisiana State University
  Baton Rouge, LA  United States  70803
• Project Managers:

  Mousa, Momen

• Performing Organizations:

  Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge

  P.O. Box 94245, Capitol Station
  Baton Rouge, LA  United States  70803

  Texas A&M University, College Station

  318 Jack K. Williams Administration Building
  College Station, TX  United States  77843
• Principal Investigators:

  Noorvand, Hassan

  Radovic, Miladin

• Start Date: 20220401
• Expected Completion Date: 0
• Actual Completion Date: 0
• USDOT Program: University Transportation Centers Program

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Alternatives analysis; Calcined aggregates; Cement; Clay; Concrete; Fly ash; Geopolymer concrete; Infrastructure; Sustainable development
• Subject Areas: Bridges and other structures; Environment; Highways; Materials; Pavements;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01844771
• Record Type: Research project
• Source Agency: Transportation Consortium of South-Central States (Tran-SET)
• Contract Numbers: 69A3551747106
• Files: UTC, RIP
• Created Date: May 6 2022 11:36AM