Case Studies in Construction Materials (Dec 2023)
Preparation and performance of sugarcane bagasse ash pavement repair mortars
Abstract
Pavement rehabilitation is typically required to ensure the service life of the road and the safety of road traffic. Due to various environmental and loading factors, pavements can present degradation or failures along their length, such as cracks, fissures, deformations, and disintegration of the wearing course. One way to reapair these defects is by using sealant materials. The objective of this research is to design mortars with sugarcane bagasse ash as a substitute for sand for the repair of cracks in pavements. Compression, tensile, shrinkage, fluidity and adherence tests were carried out on mortar samples that varied their dosage with 0 %, 50 % and 75 % ash content as a substitute for sand. These tests allowed for the evaluation of the physical and mechanical properties of the samples, determining compressive strength values of 16.65 MPa, adhesion of 0.52 MPa, among others. The control mix 5 with a 50 % replacement of ash by sand (M5–50 %), obtained the best results under the criteria of each of the tests performed. This article also evaluates the environmental impact of construction materials using the established procedures, finding that considering sugarcane bagasse ash as waste, using recycled polypropylene fibers, and incorporating zeolite for carbon capture can reduce the carbon footprint of concrete by up to 50 % compared to baseline mixes.
