Effects of Using Seawater and Recycled Coarse Aggregates on Plain Concrete Characteristics

Abstract

Using seawater and/or recycled coarse aggregates (RCA) for concrete mixing is deemed advantageous from a sustainability perspective. This paper reports on the results of an experimental study on fresh and hardened properties of concrete mixed with seawater and RCA. Three concrete mixtures were investigated, namely, Mix A (traditional concrete), Mix B (concrete made with seawater), and Mix C (concrete made with seawater and RCA). It was concluded that the use of seawater and/or RCA had a notable effect on fresh concrete properties. Mix B concrete showed a slightly lower strength performance than that of Mix A (<15%), whereas the strength of Mix C concrete had a significant drop (~30%) compared to the reference (Mix A). The permeability performance of hardened concrete for Mixes A and B was similar, whereas Mix C concrete showed 60% increase in water absorption and 100% increase in chloride permeability as compared to Mix A.