Geopolymer concrete: Properties, durability and applications: Review

Abstract

Concrete is one of the most reliable, durable, and desired construction materials. It became the second most used material after water in the world. Many studies and investigations reported that the amount of CO2 released into the atmosphere is nearly 1 ton in the production of 1 ton of cement, which contributes to 5-7 % of total CO2 emissions worldwide. Geopolymer concrete (GPC) is a new development in the world of concrete, which does not need to use cement. The most used materials in geopolymer are by-products such as fly ash, ground granulated blast furnace slag, silica fume, etc. Industrial waste materials are a great problem for human health, environment, and scarcity of land, therefore, reusing them in GPC manufacturing can be seen as a great advantage. Fortunately, most of the recent research concludes that most by-products exhibit similar or better durability, mechanical and physical properties when compared to ordinary concrete. Therefore, GPC became a good sustainable engineering material with many advantages over conventional concrete, such as high early strength, excellent resistance to chemical attacks and steel reinforcement corrosion, elimination of water curing, low cost, etc. This paper reviews the process of geopolymer concrete, constituents, types, properties, durability, and particular applications.