Utilization of Glass Powder and Silica Fume in Sugarcane Bagasse Ash-Based Geopolymer for Soil Stabilization
Seyed Javad Ramezani, Mohammad Mohsen Toufigh, Vahid Toufigh
Abstract
Geopolymers are considered a suitable alternative to portland cement due to their appropriate mechanical properties, the capacity of by-product/waste consumption, and significant contribution to reducing environmental pollution. This study aims to assess the impact of geopolymers based on sugarcane bagasse ash (SCBA) with glass powder (GP) and silica fume (SF) on the mechanical and microstructure properties of poor-graded sandy soils. The geopolymer specimens were prepared with different alkali-activators (NaOH and KOH) and cured for 7, 28, and 91 days to evaluate the effect of activator type and curing period on geopolymerization. The mechanical properties were determined by performing unconfined compressive strength (UCS) test, while scanning electron microscope (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) were used to evaluate microstructure properties. The results revealed that increasing the SCBA content in the mix significantly improved the UCS and geopolymer gel formation. Also, GP and SF addition improved the UCS of SCBA-based geopolymer specimens. Moreover, toxicity characteristic leaching procedure (TCLP) results illustrate that SCBA-based geopolymer has good environmental performance. Thus, this study has the potential to develop a new eco-friendly geopolymer by using large-volume discarded SCBA and GP for soil stabilization.