Strength of Concrete Using Partial Addition of Residual Wood Ash with Respect to Cement

Abstract

Wood ash is a residue from the artisanal brick burning process that is produced in the poorest areas of Peru. It is a major problem because there is no management of this type of solid waste and it contaminates large sectors of the population. In this sense, it is important to use sustainable natural elements such as wood ashes that can contribute to the performance of concrete. For this reason, the objective of this research was to evaluate the influence of the incorporation of wood ash on the mechanical properties of concrete, with incorporations of 8%, 12% and 16%, as a function of the weight of cement, for which cylindrical specimens and beams were prepared. The results with respect to slump and unit weight were considerably reduced below their standard samples, unlike the temperature, which had increases that ranged between 3°C. On the other hand, the combined mixture of 8% wood ash resulted in the highest compressive strength, reaching 308,73 kg/cm2 which represents an increase of 9,04% with respect to the standard sample, while the flexural strength was 45,32 kg/cm2 representing an increase of 5,96% with reference to the standard sample. It is concluded that the addition of wood ash significantly improves the mechanical properties of concrete with an optimum dosage of 8%, the result contributes to make it technically feasible as an addition in the elaboration of sustainable concrete in civil construction.