Prediction of Geopolymer Concrete Compressive Strength Using Convolutional Neural Networks

Geopolymer concrete emerges as a promising avenue for sustainable development and offers an effective solution to environmental problems.Its attributes as a non-toxic,low-carbon,and economical substitute for conventional cement concrete,coupled with its elevated compressive strength and reduced shrinkage properties,position it as a pivotal material for diverse applications spanning from architectural structures to transportation infrastructure.In this context,this study sets out the task of using machine learning(ML)algorithms to increase the accuracy and interpretability of predicting the compressive strength of geopolymer concrete in the civil engineering field.To achieve this goal,a new approach using convolutional neural networks(CNNs)has been adopted.This study focuses on creating a comprehensive dataset consisting of compositional and strength parameters of 162 geopolymer concrete mixes,all containing Class F fly ash.The selection of optimal input parameters is guided by two distinct criteria.The first criterion leverages insights garnered from previous research on the influence of individual features on compressive strength.The second criterion scrutinizes the impact of these features within the model’s predictive framework.Key to enhancing the CNN model’s performance is the meticulous determination of the optimal hyperparameters.Through a systematic trial-and-error process,the study ascertains the ideal number of epochs for data division and the optimal value of k for k-fold cross-validation—a technique vital to the model’s robustness.The model’s predictive prowess is rigorously assessed via a suite of performance metrics and comprehensive score analyses.Furthermore,the model’s adaptability is gauged by integrating a secondary dataset into its predictive framework,facilitating a comparative evaluation against conventional prediction methods.To unravel the intricacies of the CNN model’s learning trajectory,a loss plot is deployed to elucidate its learning rate.The study culminates in compelling findings that underscore the CNN model’s accurate prediction of geopolymer concrete compressive strength.To maximize the dataset’s potential,the application of bivariate plots unveils nuanced trends and interactions among variables,fortifying the consistency with earlier research.Evidenced by promising prediction accuracy,the study’s outcomes hold significant promise in guiding the development of innovative geopolymer concrete formulations,thereby reinforcing its role as an eco-conscious and robust construction material.The findings prove that the CNN model accurately estimated geopolymer concrete’s compressive strength.The results show that the prediction accuracy is promising and can be used for the development of new geopolymer concrete mixes.The outcomes not only underscore the significance of leveraging technology for sustainable construction practices but also pave the way for innovation and efficiency in the field of civil engineering.

Effect of silica fume on the fresh and hardened properties of fly ash-based self-compacting geopolymer concrete

The effect of silica fume on the fresh and hardened properties of fly ash-based self-compacting geopolymer concrete （SCGC） was investigated in this paper. The work focused on the concrete mixes with a fixed water-to-geopolymer solid （W/Gs） ratio of 0.33 by mass and a constant total binder content of 400 kg/m3. The mass fractions of silica fume that replaced fly ash in this research were 0wt%, 5wt%, 10wt%, and 15wt%. The workability-related fresh properties of SCGC were assessed through slump flow, V-funnel, and L-box test methods. Hardened concrete tests were limited to compressive, splitting tensile and flexural strengths, all of which were measured at the age of 1, 7, and 28 d after 48-h oven curing. The results indicate that the addition of silica fume as a partial replacement of fly ash results in the loss of workability; nevertheless, the mechanical properties of hardened SCGC are significantly improved by incorporating silica fume, especially up to 10wt%. Applying this percentage of silica fume results in 4.3% reduction in the slump flow; however, it increases the compressive strength by 6.9%, tensile strength by 12.8% and flexural strength by 11.5%.

Properties of Chemically Synthesized Nano-geopolymer Cement based Self-Compacting Geopolymer Concrete(SCGC)

The physical and mechanical properties of self-compacting geopolymer concrete(SCGC) using chemically synthesized nano-geopolymer cement was investigated. Nano-geopolymer cement was synthesized using nano-silica, alkali activator, and sodium aluminate in the laboratory. Subsequently, nine nanogeopolymer cement sbased SCGC mixes with varying nano-geopolymer cement content, alkali activator content, coarse aggregate(CA) content, and curing temperature were produced. The workability-related fresh properties were assessed through slump flow diameter and slump flow rate measurements. Mechanical performances were evaluated through compressive strength, splitting tensile strength, and modulus of elasticity measurements. In addition, rapid chloride penetration test, water absorption, and porosity tests were also performed. It was assessed that all mix design parameters influenced the fresh and hardened properties of SCGC mixes. Based on test results, it was deduced that nano-geopolymer cement SCGC performed fairly well. All the SCGC mixes achieved the 28-day compressive strength in the range of 60-80 MPa. Additionally, all mixes attained 60% of their 28-day strength during the first three days of elevated temperature curing. FTIR and SEM analyses were performed to evaluate the degree of polymerization and the microstructure respectively for SCGC mixes.

Preparation and properties of geopolymer-lightweight aggregate refractory concrete

Geopolymer-lightweight aggregate refractory concrete (GLARC) was prepared with geopolymer and lightweight aggregate. The mechanical property and heat-resistance (950 ℃) of GLARC were investigated. The effects of size of aggregate and mass ratio of geopolymer to aggregate on mechanical and thermal properties were also studied. The results show that the highest compressive strength of the heated refractory concrete is 43.3 MPa,and the strength loss is only 42%. The mechanical property and heat-resistance are influenced by the thickness of geopolymer covered with aggregate,which can be expressed as the quantity of geopolymer on per surface area of aggregate. In order to show the relationship between the thickness of geopolymer covered with aggregate and the thermal property of concrete,equal thickness model is presented,which provides a reference for the mix design of GLARC. For the haydite sand with size of 1.18-4.75 mm,the best amount of geopolymer per surface area of aggregate should be in the range of 0.300-0.500 mg/mm2.

Utilization of Concrete Waste Aggregates Using Geopolymer Cement

Reuse of concrete waste, especially in large quantity, can save not only material but also cost for its disposal. This paper presents experiment results on the use of fine and coarse aggregates from concrete waste in geopolymer mortars and concretes. Geopolymeric cement is an inorganic compounds of aluminosilicates synthesized from precursors with high content of silica and alumina activated by alkali silicate solutions. Geopolymer in this experiment was synthesized from fly ash as the precursor and sodium silicate solution as the activator. Hardening of geopolymers was performed by heating the casted paste in an oven at -60~Cfor 3 to 36 hours. Compressive strength of geopolymer pastes and mortars using either fresh or waste fine aggregates were in the range of 19-26 MPa. Hardening time of 3 hours at 60~C followed by leaving the test pieces at room temperature for 7 day before testing results in similar strength to that of mortars cured for 36 hours at 60~C followed by leaving the samples at room temperature for 3 days. It suggests that optimum strength can be achieved by combination of heating time and rest period before testing, i.e the specimens age. Applying mix design with a target strength of 40 MPa, conventional Portland cement concretes using fresh aggregates reached 70% of its target strength at day-7. Compressive strength of geopolymer concretes with waste aggregates was -25 MPa at day-3 while geopolymer concretes with fresh aggregates achieved -39 MPa at day-3. It can be concluded that geopolymer concretes can achieve the target strength in only 3 days. However, the expected reinforcing effect of coarse aggregates in concrete was ineffective if waste coarse aggregates were used as the strength of the concretes did not increase significantly from that of the mortars. On the other hand, waste fine aggregates can be reused for making geopolymer mortars having the same strength as the geopolymer mortars using fresh aggregates.

Water Permeability in Fly Ash-Based Geopolymer Concrete

This research investigated the water permeability coefficient of fly ash-based geopolymer concrete. The effect of sodium hydroxide （Na（OH）） concentrations and Si/AI ratios on water permeability and compressive strength of geopolymer concretes were studied. The geopolymer concrete were prepared from Mae Moh fly ash with sodium silicate （Na2SiO3） and sodium hydroxide （Na（OH）） solutions. In the first group, concentration of Na（OH） was varied at 8, 10, 12, and 14 molar and the Si/AI ratio was kept constant at 1.98. In the second group, a concentration of Na（OH） was kept constant at 14 molar and the Si/AI ratio was varied at 2.2, 2.4, 2.6, and 2.8. The hardened concretes were air-cured in laboratory. The compressive strength and water permeability were tested at the age of 28 and 60 days. The results showed that compressive strengths of geopolymer concrete significantly increased with the increase of a concentration of Na（OH） and Si/AI ratio. The water permeability coefficients increase with the decrease of compressive strength. In addition, the high reduction of water permeability coefficients with time was found in geopolymer concrete with lower Na（OH） concentration than that higher Na（OH） concentration.

The Impact of Marine Water on Different Types of Coarse Aggregate of Geopolymer Concrete

This research studies the impact of different types of coarse aggregate on the behavior of geopolymer concrete based on both fly ash (FA) and ground granulated blast furnace slag (GGBFS) in different marine environments. Aiming to solve the problems caused by the construction and demolition waste and the depletion of natural aggregates, in the present study coarse recycled aggregates is used to produce new green concrete with a fly ash-slag based geopolymer. By this examination, the research seeks to improve the quality and productivity of concrete used in construction and hydraulic projects. For this research, four mixtures containing different types of coarse aggregate in two different water environments were used. The utilized mixtures contained natural aggregate concrete (NAC) such as basalt and crushed marble. Also, recycled coarse aggregate concrete (RAC), which totally replaced natural aggregate, was presented in this paper such as crushed concrete and crushed ceramic. For this study, in the sieve analysis;specific and unit weights, was recorded. Furthermore, the mechanical properties were determined, using a compressive test that was conducted on the 7th, 28th, 56th and 90th days at different water environments;potable water (PW) and sea water (SW). Durability test was also performed for total absorption measurement. Results indicated that geopolymer concrete exhibits better strength in marine environments than in those of potable water. Results also showed that crushed marble (CMA) exhibits higher compressive strength and durability.

UTILIZATION OF FLY ASH AND CONCRETE RESIDUE IN THE PRODUCTION OF GEOPOLYMER BRICKS

This study presents the development of geopolymer bricks synthetized from industrial waste,including fly ash mixed with concrete residue containing aluminosilicate compound.The above two ingredients are mixed according to five ratios:100:0,95:5,90:10,85:15,and 80:20.The mixture’s physico-mechanical properties,in terms of water absorption and the compressive strength of the geopolymer bricks,are investigated according to the TIS 168-2546 standard.Scanning electron microscopy(SEM)and X-ray diffraction(XRD)analyses are used to investigate the microstructure and the elemental and phase composition of the brick specimens.The results indicate that the combination of fly ash and concrete residue represents a suitable approach to brick production,as required by the TIS 168–2546 standard.

Experimental investigation of engineered geopolymer composite for structural strengthening against blast loads

The recent increase in blast/bombing incidents all over the world has pushed the development of effective strengthening approaches to enhance the blast resistance of existing civil infrastructures.Engineered geopolymer composite(EGC)is a promising material featured by eco-friendly,fast-setting and strain-hardening characteristics for emergent strengthening and construction.However,the fiber optimization for preparing EGC and its protective effect on structural elements under blast scenarios are uncertain.In this study,laboratory tests were firstly conducted to evaluate the effects of fiber types on the properties of EGC in terms of workability,dry shrinkage,and mechanical properties in compression,tension and flexure.The experimental results showed that EGC containing PE fiber exhibited suitable workability,acceptable dry shrinkage and superior mechanical properties compared with other types of fibers.After that,a series of field tests were carried out to evaluate the effectiveness of EGC retrofitting layer on the enhancement of blast performance of typical elements.The tests include autoclaved aerated concrete(AAC)masonry walls subjected to vented gas explosion,reinforced AAC panels subjected to TNT explosion and plain concrete slabs subjected to contact explosion.It was found that EGC could effectively enhance the blast resistance of structural elements in different scenarios.For AAC masonry walls and panels,with the existence of EGC,the integrity of specimens could be maintained,and their deflections and damage were significantly reduced.For plain concrete slabs,the EGC overlay could reduce the diameter and depth of the crater and spallation of specimens.

Macro-mechanics and Microstructure of Nanomaterial-modified Geopolymer Concrete: A Comprehensive Review

We have described in detail the effects of nano-SiO_(2),nano-CaCO_(3),carbon nanotubes,and nano-Al_(2)O_(3) on geopolymer concrete from the perspectives of macro mechanics and microstructure.The existing research results show that the mechanism of nano-materials on geopolymer concrete mainly includes the filling effect,nucleation effect,and bridging effect,the appropriate amount of nano-materials can be used as fillers to reduce the porosity of geopolymer concrete,and can also react with Ca(OH)2 to produce C-S-H gel,thereby improving the mechanical properties of geopolymer concrete.The optimum content of nano-SiO_(2) is between 1.0%and 2.0%.The optimum content of nano-CaCO_(3) is between 2.0%and 3.0%.The optimum content of carbon nanotubes is between 0.1%and 0.2%.The optimum content of nano-Al_(2)O_(3) is between 1.0%and 2.0%.The main problems existing in the research and application of nanomaterial-modified geopolymer concrete are summarized,which lays a foundation for the further application of nanomaterial in geopolymer concrete.

Concrete Based on Fly Ash Alumosilicate Polymers

Concretes on the basis of the alumosilicate polymer can be prepared by alkali activation （NaOH, sodium water glass） of waste brown coal fly ash. The preparation is possible： （1） by using a short-term heating of the concrete mix （to 80 ℃）; or （2） by allowing the mix to harden spontaneously at a temperature of 20 ℃. The concretes prepared by short-time heating attain high strength values after their preparation; the values are comparable to those characterizing concretes obtained on the basis of Portland cement. The strength development of concretes hardening at 20 ℃ is substantially less steep but, nevertheless, the strength attained after about 60 days is practically identical with that of the concretes exposed to a short-time heating. The shrinkage of concretes prepared by short-time heating is very small as compared with the concretes allowed to harden spontaneously; the shrinkage of latter concretes is larger than that of the concretes on the basis of Portland cement. The concretes on the basis of alumosilicate polymer exhibit much better resistance to the corrosive action of the environment as compared with those prepared on the basis of Portland cement.

Effective Contribution of Brazilian Rice Husk Silica(RHS)as Eco-Friendly Silica in Concrete Plants

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.

Machine learning based models for predicting compressive strength of geopolymer concrete

Recently,great attention has been paid to geopolymer concrete due to its advantageous mechanical and environmentally friendly properties.Much effort has been made in experimental studies to advance the understanding of geopolymer concrete,in which compressive strength is one of the most important properties.To facilitate engineering work on the material,an efficient predicting model is needed.In this study,three machine learning(ML)-based models,namely deep neural network(DNN),K-nearest neighbors(KNN),and support vector machines(SVM),are developed for forecasting the compressive strength of the geopolymer concrete.A total of 375 experimental samples are collected from the literature to build a database for the development of the predicting models.A careful procedure for data preprocessing is implemented,by which outliers are examined and removed from the database and input variables are standardized before feeding to the fitting process.The standard K-fold cross-validation approach is applied for evaluating the performance of the models so that overfitting status is well managed,thus the generalizability of the models is ensured.The effectiveness of the models is assessed via statistical metrics including root mean squared error(RMSE),mean absolute error(MAE),correlation coefficient(R),and the recently proposed performance index(PI).The basic mean square error(MSE)is used as the loss function to be minimized during the model fitting process.The three ML-based models are successfully developed for estimating the compressive strength,for which good correlations between the predicted and the true values are obtained for DNN,KNN,and SVM.The numerical results suggest that the DNN model generally outperforms the other two models.

煤矸石在土木工程材料中的应用研究进展

煤矸石作为煤基固废系列的重要成员,其资源化利用一直是煤基固废的热点研究方向。多年来,在研究人员和工程技术人员的共同努力下,我国煤矸石资源化利用技术水平与利用效率均得到大幅提升,在多个领域(能源、化工、土木工程)成功实现了煤矸石“由废变宝”的转化过程。特别地,土木工程材料领域兼具“大体量”特点和“多元固废协同处置”等技术优势,成为大宗消纳煤矸石的中坚领域。本文综述了煤矸石作为胶凝材料/辅助胶凝材料和骨料在水泥混凝土、地质聚合物、道路工程及地下工程等方向的最新研究进展,总结并对比了煤矸石用作不同组分时的技术要点、难点及对应的质量控制措施和改性增强手段等。然而,矸石建材化的同时也容易导致矸石内部的“有价资源”未得到充分利用;矸石构筑物的长期耐久性和环境影响监测等工作也亟待补充。综上,受煤矸石理化性质、矸石资源化利用技术水平、经验及政策扶持力度等区域化差异因素的影响,煤矸石原料在用于多类型建材制品的生产过程中依然缺少因地制宜、明确且规范的分类管理和分级处置方法,“多领域技术-规范-政策”的逐步发展、完善和有机结合是今后建立高效有序的矸石建材市场及产业链的关键所在。

Influence of surface cracking,anchor head profile,and anchor head size on cast-in headed anchors in geopolymer concrete

In this study,the concrete cone capacity,concrete cone angle,and load–displacement response of cast-in headed anchors in geopolymer concrete are explored using numerical analyses.The concrete damaged plasticity(CDP)model in ABAQUS is used to simulate the behavior of concrete substrates.The tensile behavior of anchors in geopolymer concrete is compared with that in normal concrete as well as that predicted by the linear fracture mechanics(LFM)and concrete capacity design(CCD)models.The results show that the capacity of the anchors in geopolymer concrete is 30%–40%lower than that in normal concrete.The results also indicate that the CCD model overestimates the capacity of the anchors in geopolymer concrete,whereas the LFM model provides a much more conservative prediction.The extent of the difference between the predictions by the numerical analysis and those of the above prediction models depends on the effective embedment depth of the anchor and the anchor head size.The influence of concrete surface cracking on the capacity of the anchor is shown to depend on the location of the crack and the effective embedment depth.The influence of the anchor head profile on the tensile capacity of the anchors is found to be insignificant.

Assessment and prediction of the mechanical properties of ternary geopolymer concrete

This paper utilized granulated blast furnace slag(GBFS),fly ash(FA),and zeolite powder(ZP)as the binders of ternary geopolymer concrete(TGC)activated with sodium silicate solution.The effects of alkali content(AC)and alkaline activator modulus(AAM)on the compressive strength,flexural tensile strength and elastic modulus of TGC were tested and the SEM micrographs were investigated.The experimental results were then compared with the predictions based on models of mechanical properties,and the amended models of TGC were proposed taking account of the effects of AC and AAM.The results indicated that increasing AC and reducing AAM which were in the specific ranges(5%to 7%and 1.1 to 1.5,respectively)had positive effects on the mechanical properties of TGC.In addition,the flexural tensile strength of TGC was 27.7%higher than that of OPC at the same compressive strength,while the elastic modulus of TGC was 25.8%lower than that of OPC.Appropriate prediction models with the R2 of 0.945 and 0.987 for predicting flexural tensile strength and elastic modulus using compressive strength,respectively,were proposed.Fitting models,considering the effects of AC and AAM,were also proposed to predict the mechanical properties of TGC.

Development of mix design method based on statistical analysis of different factors for geopolymer concrete

The present study proposes the mix design method of Fly Ash(FA)based geopolymer concrete using Response Surface Methodology(RSM).In this method,different factors,including binder content,alkali/binder ratio,NS/NH ratio(sodium silicate/sodium hydroxide),NH molarity,and water/solids ratio were considered for the mix design of geopolymer concrete.The 2D contour plots were used to setup the mix design method to achieve the target compressive strength.The proposed mix design method of geopolymer concrete is divided into three categories based on curing regime,specifically one ambient curing(25°C)and two heat curing(60 and 90°C).The proposed mix design method of geopolymer concrete was validated through experimentation of M30,M50,and M70 concrete mixes at all curing regimes.The observed experimental compressive strength results validate the mix design method by more than 90%of their target strength.Furthermore,the current study concluded that the required compressive strength can be achieved by varying any factor in the mix design.In addition,the factor analysis revealed that the NS/NH ratio significantly affects the compressive strength of geopolymer concrete.

State of the art review on the production and bond behaviour of reinforced geopolymer concrete

Geopolymer is produced through the polymerization of active aluminosilicate material with an alkaline activator,leading to the formation of a green,inorganic polymer binder.Geopolymer concrete(GPC)has become a promising low-carbon alternative to traditional Portland cement-based concrete(OPC).GPC-bonded reinforcing bars offer a promising alternative for concrete structures,boasting excellent geopolymer binder/reinforcement bonding and superior corrosion and high-temperature resistance compared to Portland cement.However,due to differences in the production process of GPC,there are distinct engineering property variations,including bonding characteristics.This literature review provides an examination of the manufacturing procedures of GPC,encompassing source materials,mix design,curing regimes,and other factors directly influencing concrete properties.Additionally,it delves into the bond mechanism,bond tests,and corresponding results that represent the bond characteristics.The main conclusions are that GPC generally has superior mechanical properties and bond performance compared to ordinary Portland cement concrete(OPC).However,proper standardization is needed for its production and performance tests to limit the contradictory results in the lab and on site.

基于数字图像相关的地聚物混凝土轨枕的力学性能分析

随着混凝土轨枕在我国的广泛应用,混凝土的生产带来大量的能源消耗和碳排放。地聚物作为一种新型低碳材料,能在节能减碳的同时消耗矿渣和粉煤灰等固废。目前,针对地聚物应用于铁路轨枕的相关研究,如混合使用水泥与粉煤灰、矿渣的地聚物混凝土轨枕及其裂缝扩展特性的研究还比较有限。本文设计2种配合比的地聚物混凝土并制造成轨枕,使用数字图像相关(Digital Image Correlation)技术,在轨下截面的三点弯曲实验下分析2种配合比下轨枕挠度、裂缝扩展特性及裂缝宽度发展规律。研究结果表明,2种配合比地聚物混凝土轨枕的抗弯承载力均高于普通混凝土轨枕。相比于普通混凝土轨枕,地聚物混凝土轨枕在较低的静荷载作用下挠度较大,但随着荷载的增加轨枕挠度的增长速度较慢,刚度损失较小,弹性阶段延续的荷载区间更长,这种特征在配合比为Geo50的地聚物混凝土轨枕上更为显著。2种配合比的轨枕微裂纹萌生的荷载相近,分别为130 kN和120 kN。在较低荷载下2种轨枕裂缝扩展相差不大,在较高荷载下配合比为Geo100的地聚物轨枕的裂缝发展加快,裂缝宽度值和增长速度都大于Geo50。配合比为Geo100的地聚物混凝土轨枕主要表现为受弯正截面破坏,配合比为Geo50的地聚物混凝土轨枕主要表现为受剪斜拉破坏。掺入部分水泥代替矿渣和粉煤灰的地聚物能使所制成轨枕在较高的荷载下保持更高刚度和更缓慢的裂缝扩展速度,该方案有助于推动地聚物应用于混凝土轨枕,促进铁路双碳战略贯彻与实施。

低温作用下钢纤维地聚合物混凝土力学性能研究

为研究低温作用下钢纤维地聚合物混凝土(SFGPC)力学性能的变化规律,利用自制低温环境试验装置研究不同温度(-30、-20、-10、0、20℃)、不同钢纤维体积掺量(0%、0.5%、1.0%、1.5%)对地聚合物混凝土破坏特征及抗压、抗折强度的响应规律,并借助扫描电子显微镜(SEM)对SFGPC进行微观结构分析,同时应用响应面法(RSM)构建SFGPC力学性能关系模型,提供一种可行的抗压、抗折强度预测方法。结果表明:-30℃下,当钢纤维掺量为1.5%时,SFGPC抗压、抗折强度分别为59.8、6.6 MPa,与-30℃下钢纤维掺量为0%时相比分别提升75%、65%,与20℃下钢纤维掺量为1.5%时相比分别提升41%、144%;随着钢纤维掺量增加,SFGPC内部黏结性与吸附能力增强,力学性能提高;利用RSM得到SFGPC抗压、抗折强度的预测模型,预测值与试验值的相对误差分别小于5.7%、8.0%。