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Rice Husk Ash-Based Geopolymer Binder: Compressive Strength, Optimize Composition, FTIR Spectroscopy,
Mohd Salahuddin Mohd Basri1,2,3, Faizal Mustapha4, Norkhairunnisa Mazlan4,5
1Department of Process and Food Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM), Serdang 43400, Malaysia.
Polymers
|December 28, 2021
Summary
This study optimizes rice husk ash (RHA)-based geopolymer binders for construction, finding that the RHA/activated alkaline solution ratio and NaOH concentration significantly impact compressive strength. Optimal formulations achieve high strength and desirable fire-retardant properties.
Area of Science:
- Materials Science
- Civil Engineering
- Geopolymer Chemistry
Background:
- Insulation materials often have poor mechanical properties despite good fire-retardant characteristics.
- Limited research exists on the correlation between fire-retardant and compressive strength in rice husk ash (RHA)-based geopolymer binders (GB).
- Previous studies often employed less efficient one-factor-at-a-time (OFAT) approaches.
Purpose of the Study:
- To determine the effect of material behavior (brittle vs. ductile) on compressive strength properties.
- To identify the optimum material formulation for RHA-based GB satisfying both compressive strength and fire-retardant properties.
- To analyze the significant effects of RHA/activated alkaline solution (AA) ratio and sodium hydroxide (NaOH) concentration on compressive strength using statistical methods.
Main Methods:
- Response Surface Methodology (RSM) was used to design and analyze experiments.
- Compressive strength and fire-retardant tests were conducted.
- Microstructure analysis was performed using Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM).
Main Results:
- The RHA/AA ratio (p < 0.000) and NaOH concentration (p < 0.024) were highly significant factors affecting compressive strength.
- High compressive strength (>28 MPa) was achieved with RHA/AA ratios of 0.7-0.8 and NaOH concentrations of 12-14 M.
- Optimum compressive strength (~47 MPa) was reached at an RHA/AA ratio of 0.85 and 14 M NaOH. Brittle samples exhibited higher compressive strength and geopolymerization.
- Water content significantly impacted fire-retardant properties, with semi-ductile GB showing the best performance.
Conclusions:
- The RHA/AA ratio and NaOH concentration are critical for optimizing compressive strength in RHA-based geopolymer binders.
- RHA is a promising aluminosilicate source for developing geopolymer binders with balanced mechanical and fire-retardant properties.
- Material behavior (brittle/ductile) and water content influence both compressive strength and fire-retardant characteristics.
Keywords:
bindercompressive strengthfire-retardantgeopolymermechanical propertiesoptimizationresponse surface methodology (RSM)rice husk ashstress-strain curveultimate stressMore Related Videos
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