Performance of Self-Compacting High-Performance Concrete Produced with Waste Materials after Exposure to Elevated Temperature

Abstract

Incorporating waste and recycled materials in concrete has not just a sustainable benefit, but also gives a higher resistance to special circumstances that face concrete structures, such as fire, which causes serious damages to concrete. The present study experimentally investigated the impact of incorporating recycled coarse aggregate (RCA) and two unprocessed waste powder materials on the residual mechanical properties of self-compacting high-performance concrete (SCHPC) after exposure to elevated temperature. Fifteen mixtures of SCHPC (540 specimens) have been produced by replacing the cement mass by up to 30% of each waste fly ash (WFA) and waste perlite powder (WPP) in addition to replacing the coarse natural aggregate (NA) by up to 50% of RCA. Using RCA up to 50% enhanced the residual mechanical properties of SCHPC after exposure to the elevated temperature due to the strong aggregate–mortar contact zone and the similarity of thermal expansion between them. The fire resistance of SCHPC has been enhanced by replacing the cement up to 15% of WPP; meanwhile, WFA did not affect the fire resistance of SCHPC significantly.