Geo-polymer Concrete Using “Copper Slag” as Fine Aggregate

By using industrial leftovers, Geopolymer concrete offers a sustainable substitute for traditional Portland cement concrete, lowering landfill waste and carbon emissions.The mechanical behavior of GPC concrete subjected to ambient curing which is made using different amounts of copper slag (CS) as a -partial replacement for natural ‘fine aggregate and “ground granulated ‘blast furnace slag” (GGBFS) as the only binder, is assessed in this study. With CS replacement levels ranging from 0% to 40% (named GPCS1 to GPCS5), experimental mixes were created using an alkaline activator consisting of “sodium silicate & “sodium hydroxide” (14M). Performance assessment included fresh-state workability Slump flow test measurement between 73mm to 65mm.and the compaction factor measure between 0.9mm to 0.76mm and hardened-state mechanical behavior (compressive & split tensile strength) at 7 and 28 days. The results indicates that Average Compressive Strength after 7days is 10.45 MPa and 28days is 30.42 MPa is recorded. The ‘Split Tensile strength’ test upto 30%of GPCS4 Mix strength increases like 2.13Mpa for 7 days and 2.90Mpa for 28 days. After that strength slightly decrease for GPSC5 mix with 40% of replacement This Study concludes that beyond optimal replacement Copper slag in tensile strength concrete the strength decreases. The ‘Copper slag & GGBFS is used in geopolymer concrete contributes to waste utilization and promotes sustainable construction practices.