Study on Partial Replacement of Cement Using Pertile Powder and Chalk Powder with Sugarcane Fiber in Concrete

Abstract

Concrete is a vital part of the construction industry. The expansion in population has placed a massive want for more and more infrastructure and it keeps growing. The result of this demand is that the increase in production of cement. This has in turn led to exploitation of natural resources in addition as emission of pollutants that cause damage to our environment. As a result, waste management has become an enormous problem for our environment. Chalk is the most popular material it is used is a fine whitish colored powder composed of calcium carbonate (CaCO3), a form of limestone and is obtained by fine grinding of limestone. Chalk powder can used as partial replacement of cement because of the fact it has some of the binding properties. Volcanic glass is the source of the lightweight, porous material known as perlite powder. It is produced by heating raw perlite ore quickly to a temperature of around 1600°F (870°C), which causes the ore to expand and produce a large number of small bubbles. Perlite\'s characteristic lightweight and porous structure are attributed to these bubbles. Sugarcane fiber, also known as bagasse fiber, is the fibrous residue left after extracting juice from sugarcane stalks. It is a natural, biodegradable material rich in cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin. In concrete technology, sugarcane fiber is gaining attention as a sustainable additive that can improve certain mechanical properties of concrete. The research work here deals with the partial replacement of cement with CP and PP together with addition of sugarcane fiber. After mixing, casting and curing the characteristic strength of this new concrete are compared with standard concrete of M35 grade. The experimental investigations are administered for compressive strength, split tensile and flexural strength for curing period of 7, 14, 28 days. Workability gets reduced at higher replacement of materials and the experimental results shows test are satisfactory up that the combined replacement percentage of 14%, which has 7% CP and 7% PP, and 0.6% SCF the values of compressive strength, flexural strength and split tensile strength were higher compared to alternative replacement percentages.

Introduction

Concrete is the second most consumed material globally, with aggregates making up 70–80% of its volume. However, excessive use of natural aggregates has led to resource scarcity and environmental damage. To address this, sustainable alternatives like industrial and agricultural waste (e.g., perlite powder, chalk powder, and sugarcane fiber) are being considered as partial replacements in concrete.

Alternative Materials:

• Perlite Powder: A lightweight, porous volcanic glass that enhances concrete’s insulation, reduces density, and improves workability.

• Chalk Powder: Acts as an inert filler, improves mix workability, and can partially replace cement to reduce environmental impact and cost.

• Sugarcane Fiber (Bagasse): A biodegradable, fibrous by-product from sugar production, which improves tensile and flexural strength but requires treatment due to high water absorption.

Literature Review Findings:

• Chalk powder enhances workability and strength up to certain replacement levels.

• Treated sugarcane fiber performs better in terms of durability and mechanical properties than untreated fiber.

• Perlite improves fire resistance and strength at optimal replacement levels (e.g., 20%), but excessive use (e.g., 30%) can reduce strength.

• Studies support using perlite as a partial cement or aggregate substitute to improve sustainability.

Materials Used:

• Cement: OPC 43 grade.

• Aggregates: Coarse (10mm & 20mm), and fine (river sand).

• Additives: Perlite, chalk powder, and sugarcane fiber, with detailed chemical composition and physical properties provided.

Methodology:

1. Mixing: Can be manual or mechanical, ensuring uniformity.

2. Curing: Specimens are cured in water for 7, 14, and 28 days before testing.

3. Workability Test: Conducted using a slump test to evaluate consistency.

Conclusion

Sugarcane fiber acted as a reinforcement and hence acted as resistance to the cracks, thus increasing the flexural strength. By replacing theperlite and chalk powder with the cement & Sugarcane fiber strengths get increased, also the replacement can be taken into consideration up to certain percentage workability factors gets enhanced as well. In case of compressive strength, flexural strength, tensile strengththe optimum percentage that was noticed, was at at 14% perlite and chalk powder with the replacement of cement & 0.6% Sugarcane fiber addition in the concrete mix was used.

References

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Copyright

Copyright © 2025 Asif Ullah Khanji, Sourabh Lalotra. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.