5th International Conference on Applied

Engineering and Natural Sciences

July 10-12, 2023 : Konya, Turkey

All Sciences Proceedings © 2023 Published by All Sciences Proceedings https://www.icaens.com/

http://as-proceeding.com/

The effect of finely ground dune sand on the properties of self-compacting

concrete
Rachid RABEHI1,2, *, Mohamed AMIEUR 1 and Mohamed RABEHI 2
1
National School of Built and Ground Work Engineering, ENSTP, Alger, Algeria
2
Laboratory (LDMM), Civil Engineering Department, University of Djelfa, Algeria.
*
(rachid.rabehi@univ-djelfa.dz)

Abstract – Self-compacting concrete (SCC) is a unique concrete that has been developed over the past
thirty years. They have the distinct characteristic of being very fluid. SCC differs from conventional
vibrated concrete (CVC) in that it is incredibly fluid and doesn't require vibration. In order to reduce the
amount of cement required by the increase in paste volume required to allow the concrete to flow, self-
compacting concretes require a large volume of mineral input. The main goal of this research was to
ascertain how replacing cement with crushed dune sand (Sd) affected the SCC's physical and mechanical
characteristics. The outcomes show that using crushed dune sand in self-compacting concrete produces
interesting outcomes in terms of water absorption and compressive strength.

Keywords – Self-Compacting Concrete, Crushed Dune Sand, Water Absorption, Compressive Strength.

I. INTRODUCTION Algeria is one of these countries. However, this

Undoubtedly, the most frequently used material industry now faces two a priori contradictory
in all of construction is concrete, with its variety of requirements: cutting costs while simultaneously
types. Among the most important of these types is raising quality. It is crucial to utilize and
self-compacting concrete, and the beginning of its valorization the natural resources in our area [4–6].
use was from the end of 1988 until now [1–3]. The availability of local resources, specifically
It is characterized as fluid concrete; It is placed the sand from the dunes, which make up a sizable
under the influence of its own weight without the portion of Algeria's territory (more than 60% of the
contribution of any vibrations [1–3]. Concrete is a country), allows for their exploitation and
synthetic material created by combining a binder commercialization in the construction and public
(typically cement), water, aggregates (usually sand works industries.
and gravel), and possibly an adjuvant. This This article investigates the beneficial effects of
concrete is prone to cracking, which can be using crushed dune sand as a cement additive on
brought on by a variety of things, including the behavior of SCC in fresh and hardened states.
chemical reactions, mechanical stresses, or
II. MATERIALS AND METHOD
shrinkage. Adding steel fibers is one remedy for
preventing these cracks. Steel fibers in concrete II.1 MATERIALS USED
limit the growth of cracks while also offering a We used organic and regional materials that were
more effective solution to the issue of concrete's readily available All of the concrete was made with
brittleness, increasing its durability and resistance. the same raw materials. Table 1 lists the
The construction industry and various public components used, and Table 2 provides a summary
works, such as bridges and roads, have developed of the physical-mechanical traits of the gravel and
quickly in recent years in the world as a whole, and sand.
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 consolidation while basing our compositions on
those recommended in the specialized literature.
Table 1. Materials used. Choosing the component proportions for 1 m3 of
concrete requires having comparable data for the
Materials used Nature following parameters [9]:
Cement Por tland
-

With Crushed dune Sand:

Sand (0/4) Allu vial -

Gravel (G) + Cement (C) + Water (E) + Crushed

Gravel (8/15) and (3/8) Limestone
dune Sand + Air (A) +Sand (S) = 1000 liters.
Water Potable water
Sup erplasticizer
Water reducer
- -

MEDAPLAST SP-30-

Table 2. Sand and gravel's physical-mechanical characteristics.

Size range
Properties
0/4 3/8 8 / 16
Apparent volume mass (g/cm3) 1,57 1,38 1,37
Absolute density mass (g/cm3) 2,59 2,67 2,67
Porosity e (%) 41,00 46,50 49,8
Degree of absorption (%) 0,33 0,24 0,097
Coefficient Los Angeles (%) - 23.2 23,7
Fig. 1. Granulometric curves of gravel and sand.
Fineness modulus 2,3 - -
Sand equivalent (%) 90 - -
To be able to compare the performances, the
capillary water absorption, and the compressive
II.2 CRUSHED DUNE SAND USED strength of the CVC and the SCC studied with
In our work, well-ground sand was used to be crushed dune sand and the same material, we set a
fine and have diameters not greater than 80 few parameters for all the SCC tested.
micrometers. Table 3 summarizes all the
characteristics of the sand used. ♦ ratio Gravel/Sand = 1;
♦ ratio W/L (Water/Cement) = 0.50;
Table 3. Crushed dune Sand used. ♦ cement C= 400 kg /m3;
Absolute Apparent ♦ 20 % Crushed dune Sand;
Addition Color
density density
Remarks ♦ 3.00 % of s superplas ticizer.
-

mass mass Conventional vibrated concrete and two SCCs

(g/cm3) (g/cm3)
Finely The dune
were created. Table 4 lists the various
ground Gray is finely compositions of concrete. The SCC was
2,769 1,31 established in accordance with the most recent
dune sand clear crushed
(Sd) intended recommendations [10].
III. FORMULATION OF SELF- Table 4. Composition of the all concrete
COMPACTING CONCRETE Concrete
Composition
Conventional vibrated concrete (CVC) is made (CVC) (SCC) (SCC)Sd
using the Dreux-Gorisse method; however, self- Cement (kg/m3) 400.00 400.00 320.00
consolidating concrete cannot be made using this Sand dune (kg/m3) - - 80.00
method because it does not account for the super-
Sand 0/5 (kg/m3) 607.81 855.77 851.81
plasticizer or additions, which are crucial
components of SCC [8]. The vast majority of SCC Gravel 3/8 (kg/m3) 184.09 295.26 293.88
formulas are currently developed empirically. Gravel 8/16 (kg/m3) 1030.26 590.49 587.75
Therefore, the formulation is based on knowledge Water (kg/m3) 200.00 200.00 200.00
that has recently been discovered. By adhering to Sp (kg/m3) 12.00 12.00 12.00
the rules, we were able to guarantee self- W/(C or L) (kg/m3) 0.50 0.50 0.50
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IV. OVERALL RESULTS AND DISCUSSION After sixty minutes, the amount of water
IV.1. CHARACTERISTICS IN A FRESH STATE absorbed per unit area is retained as a measure of
the volume of the most voluminous capillaries in
The characteristic tests on freshly mixed concrete
the skin area [11, 12], which are the most effective.
were carried out right after mixing. The
recommendations [10] suggest using the slump test
for spreading, the box in L for flow, and the sieve
for stability. They are used to calculate material
fluidity and static and dynamic segregation. The
characteristics of the various types of concrete
tested in their fresh state are summarized in Table
5 for convenience.
Table 5. Summary table of the test results in a fresh state.
Concrete (CV C) (SCC) (SCC)Sd
-
Fig. 2. Test of concrete's capillaries' ability to absorb water.

Spreading out (cm) - 66.8 67.9

L-box (%) - 80.94 86.54 Abi is the absorption of water after sixty minutes
Weight of milt П (%) - 7,64 7.05 of suctions (1 h) ((kg/(m2.h0.5)), and the rate of gain
Subsidence (cm) 7,46 - - for all of the concretes is shown in Table 6 and
shown in Figure 3.
It is observed that the characteristics of the SCC
𝐴𝑏𝑖 −𝐴𝑏𝑖
and SCCSd in their fresh states are acceptable. Abi = | 𝑗 (𝑤𝑖𝑡ℎ𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑐𝑢𝑟𝑒) 𝑗 (𝑐𝑢𝑟𝑒)
| (2)
𝐴𝑏𝑖
𝑗 (𝑤𝑖𝑡ℎ𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑐𝑢𝑟𝑒)
IV.2. CHARACTERISTICS IN A HARDENED STATE
Cubic test tubes (101010) cm3 were used to Table 6. Initial water absorption coefficients (Abi)
create the formulations for all the concretes under Type of Concrete
Age Curing
investigation. We perform the subsequent actions: (CV C) (SCC) (SCC)Sd
-

The samples were kept in two different curing Air 2,77 2,66 2,01
28
regimes: in water for 28 days, and in the open air Water 1,75 1,76 1,50
days
under laboratory conditions. Rate in Abi (%) 37,05 34,08 25,00
Air 2,67 2,56 1,75
IV.2.1. TEST OF ABSORPTION 60
Water 1,58 1,58 1,20
days
The term "absorption of water" describes how Rate in Abi (%) 41,01 38,20 31,43
liquid moves through a porous substance as a result Air 2,33 2,03 1,70
of surface stresses in the capillaries. The amount of 90
Water 1,49 1,50 1,25
days
water that will be absorbed by capillary increase Rate in Abi (%) 36,16 26,31 26,47
inside the no-slump concrete depends on its open
porosity and porous networks. Using concrete test 3,5 Air curing Water curing
OC OC
tubes that have been submerged in water without
Absorption of initial water, Abi (Kg/m2)

SCC SCC
SCCSd SCCSd
pressure for 28, 60, and 90 days, this test is 3,0

intended to determine how quickly those test tubes

absorb water through capillary suctions. Prior to 2,5

taking the sorptivity readings, the samples will be

packaged in the drying oven at a temperature of 2,0

about 105 °C until they reach a constant mass. The

concrete test tubes are weighed to determine their 1,5
masses both prior (Mcon1) to and following (Mcon2)
an hour of water absorption, i.e [7]: 1,0
20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90
0.5
Abi = [(Mcon2-Mcon1) /Su (ti) ] (1) Age (days)

Fig. 3. Absorption of initial water (Abi) of the various

Su: surface of the base (10x10) cm2; concretes
ti: time (1 hour).
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 Figure 3 shows the results of the (Abi) of all the and conventional vibrated concrete. The main
concretes. Note that absorption decreases with age. results are:
We note that by substituting part of the cement ▪ The self-compacting concrete made with
with finely ground dune sand, we obtain less Abi cement alone and the other made with cement
compared to SCC without addition. This means and 20% crushed dune sand has characteristics
that SCCsd are less porous, and their transport that comply with civil engineering standards.
properties are improved compared to SCCs. This is
▪ In particular, by enhancing the SCC's sieve
explained, on the one hand, by a reduction in the
porous network; the greater compactness provided stability, fluidity, and lowering the risk of
by crushed dune sand and its great fineness provide segregation, crushed dune sand can be
a physical filling effect (filler effect) [13]. For advantageous.
conventional vibrated concrete, the initial water ▪ Age has no effect on the compressive strength
absorption Abi is relatively higher than that of other of tested self-compacting concretes; it actually
self-compacting concretes. increases. Compared to (SCC), this resistance is
higher for (SCC)Sd. SCC has even lower
IV.2.2. UNIAXIAL COMPRESSION TEST
compressive strength than regular concrete.
The compression test is carried out in accordance
with the regulations (NF P 18-406) [15]. It consists ▪ You can get a more uniform and compact
of exposing the concrete test tube to axial granular skeleton by using dunesand. The
compression. It is necessary to constantly refill introduction of additions alters the open
until the test tube breaks. Figure 4 shows the porosity, which in turn affects the SCC's
results of the direct compression tests at all ages. mechanical and physical properties.
55
Concrete
(CVC) (SCC) (SCC)Sd
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50

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