摘要
Due to growing consumption of Portland cement and high levels of CO_(2) emissions in its production process,this study examined the use of Brazilian RHS(rice husk silica)obtained by FBC(fluidized bed combustion)as an alternative material in concrete production;the principal cause is the inappropriate disposal of carbonized or in natura rice husk in southern Brazil.To analyze its feasibility,concretes made with several types of cements were examined combined with RHS,and also concretes with different strength classes employing a slag-based binder featuring a smaller amount of clinker in its composition.Mechanical and scanning electron microscopy assays were carried out to verify formation of C-S-H and calcium hydroxide in the cement pastes.This study concludes that replacing 10%of Portland cement(CEMIII/A)by 3%of RHS can result in a cost reduction of around 5%and allows a reduction of 4%in CO_(2)eq levels.In this way,RHS from renewable sources can be a highly impactful sustainable alternative in civil engineering work,allowing the concrete industry to produce environmentally-sound concrete mixtures with lower CO_(2) emissions.
