Bio-waste Materials as Supplementary Cementitious Materials for Coastal Concrete Applications

In the U.S., coal fly ash is by far the most used supplementary cementitious material (SCM). Despite being used every day, the supply of coal fly ash in the U.S. has become a matter of concern because we are blending different coals that produce less amount of Class F fly ash – a type of fly ash that is preferred by the concrete industry. Therefore, it is critical to identify and evaluate alternative SCMs that can offer concrete equivalent or better strength and durability characteristics to Class F fly ash. This is especially critical in coastal areas where concrete durability remains a challenge. One area that is being overlooked by the concrete industry for alternative SCMs is bio-waste materials, which include agricultural waste, eggshells, burnt oyster shell, etc. In this project, the feasibility of using two bio-waste materials, sugarcane bagasse ashes and ground waste eggshells, as alternative SCMs in portland cement concrete for coastal applications is investigated.