| The use of fly ash and bottom ash with long fiber reinforced concrete is fairly limited, especially in the United States. The limited use of fiber reinforced concrete composite in the construction of sidewalks and driveways is limited due to the lack of technical data to convince the engineering community that the mix can be used without jeopardizing long term performance and the structural integrity of the mix.; The execution of the project was divided into two distinct phases. Phase I of the investigation consisted of laboratory tests on seven different mixtures containing different percentage of long Max Ten Fiber (2.25 in), Portland cement, natural coarse and fine aggregates, and coal combustion products (CCP), namely fly ash and bottom ash. The goal was to identify suitable mixes that had the potential of performing satisfactorily in actual field conditions. Bottom ash was used as a partial replacement of natural fine aggregate, and fly ash was used to partially replace the Portland cement. A number of laboratory and field tests were performed to determine stiffness, strength, and durability characteristics of the concrete composites. Tests on cylindrical and beam-shaped samples included compression, splitting tension, flexure, elastic modulus, freezing and thawing, swelling, shrinking and sulfate attack.; The reduction of cost of concrete and promotion of the use of waste materials by replacing a portion of the Portland cement with fly ash and the fine aggregate with bottom ash and the addition of fiber to increase the energy absorption capacity and toughness of the concrete mixes by incorporating fibers in the concrete mixes were clearly observed from this research investigation. Also, the research demonstrated the effect of the environmental conditions on the strength, stiffness, and durability characteristics of the selected seven different mixes. The results of this study showed that the use of the new design mixes investigated can lower the unit cost of sidewalk and driveway construction by using less expensive substitute materials and demonstrated the used of fiber reinforced concrete with fly ash, bottom ash in the construction material. As a consequence, a successful demonstration of the used of fly ash and bottom ash with long fiber reinforcement in sidewalks and driveways was of joint benefit to the relevant industries and to the citizens of Illinois. |
