Title: Application of silica fume, pumice and nylon to identify the characteristics of LWC after critical infrastructure analysis

Authors: C. Anish; R. Venkata Krishnaiah; K. Vijaya Bhaskar Raju

Addresses: Department of Civil Engineering, Bharath Institute of Higher Education and Research, Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India ' Department of Civil Engineering, Bharath Institute of Higher Education and Research, Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India ' Department of Civil Engineering, Bharath Institute of Higher Education and Research, Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India

Abstract: Finding lucrative building designs has been the major problem the construction industry has been experiencing lately. This issue can be fixed by dramatically lowering the structural part's self-weight and sizing it down. Lightweight concrete (LWC) is the sole material that can be used to achieve this. In earlier tests, various lightweight aggregates were utilised to lower the density. The primary benefits of LWC columns are that they do not require a reinforced cage or forms because their steel tubes can be used just as well as scaffolding and are fireproof. Based on the numerous research projects undertaken, it can be concluded that circular poles should be favoured over a square LWC to boost stability and satisfy various design needs. This study defines LWC while considering strength component development. Thus, this experiment examines silica fume and pumice stone as entire substitutions. After moulding samples with the desired mix ratio, compression, tensile, and bending capacities are assessed. This specially designed LWC mix of M30 grade concrete has 0.6 to 0.7 times the strength of regular concrete, according to tests. The strength measures dramatically increased by adding 20% silica fume and 1.5% nylon fibre.

Keywords: critical infrastructure; lightweight concrete; LWC; pumice; silica fume; nylon fibre; waste rubber powder; mechanical properties; thermal properties.

DOI: 10.1504/IJCIS.2025.143950

International Journal of Critical Infrastructures, 2025 Vol.21 No.1, pp.70 - 86

Received: 29 May 2023
Accepted: 22 Jul 2023
Published online: 15 Jan 2025 *

Full-text access for editors Full-text access for subscribers Purchase this article Comment on this article