Fatigue analysis of ambient-cured geopolymer concrete for high-traffic pavements

The building sector is growing at a rapid rate, leading to an increased demand for construction materials. Concrete made with Ordinary Portland Cement (OPC) has long been the preferred choice due to its excellent bonding properties and versatility as demanded by construction process. However, the manufacturing of Ordinary Portland Cement (OPC) leads to negative impacts on the environment, with the cement sector responsible for around 5-8% of global CO₂ emissions. In addition, the manufacture of OPC necessitates significant amounts of natural raw materials and energy. Contrastingly, using geopolymers promises to save substantial amounts of energy and reduce CO₂ emissions. This potential has sparked growing interest in the application of geopolymers within transportation infrastructure. For pavements, the workability requirement is less, and hence, geopolymer concrete (GPC) is a viable option, but fatigue-resistance of GPC is not seen reported in literatures. This article evaluates the properties of geopolymer concrete with low-calcium fly ash partially replaced with ground granular blast furnace slag (GGBS) with 8 M NaOH alkaline solution and cured under ambient atmospheric conditions to evaluate its usage in pavements and develop an environmentally sustainable and durable GPC capable of withstanding heavy traffic. The study involves adjusting the pavement quality concrete (PQC) mix design; evaluating the mechanical characteristics, abrasion resistance, and shrinkage strain of the GPC; and analyzing its microstructure. Additionally, the study compares the fatigue life of GPC to that of PQC using various Weibull distribution approaches. The results showed that GPC4 (70% Fly ash and 30% GGBS) mix achieved best results at 28 days, with a compressive strength of 45.68 MPa, split tensile strength of 3.76 MPa, and flexural strength of 4.62 MPa. Also, shrinkage strains were nearly 31% lesser than PQC at 90 days. In addition, developing GPC needs 27% lesser embodied energy than PQC. Fatigue analysis prove that ambient cured fly ash-GGBS based geopolymer concrete with 8 M NaOH exhibits less stress development than PQC at medium loads, even though it is brittle. Thus, the study proves that it is suitable as a material for pavements to resist medium-loaded traffic-resisting pavements.