Development of Cellular Lightweight Concrete using Municipal Plastic Waste

Abstract

Nowadays, the recycling of municipal plastic waste is one of the most important actions to minimize their impacts on the environment. In this research, the feasibility of recycling municipal plastic waste as a mixture of cellular lightweight concrete was studied. The plastic waste was granulated and mixed with 30% by weight of    fine aggregate. The water to binder ratio was 0.4, and the foaming agent obtained from the water was mixed at a ratio of 1:40. The density of fresh concrete was controlled at 900, 1,000, 1,100, 1,200, and 1,300 kg/m³. The results showed that the dry density was slightly different from the control density. The compressive strength tends to increase as the density increases, while the water absorption tends to decrease. At 28 days, the compressive strength for densities of 900-1300 kg/m³ was 10.5, 14.0, 18.1, 23.4, and 28.0 kg/m², respectively.