Hormigones con agregados cerámicos: caracterización del hormigón resultante de utilizar el desecho de la industria cerámica de la ciudad de Cuenca como agregado grueso

Abstract

The present investigation determines the effects of totally substituting concrete coarse aggregate (natural gravel) by gravel obtained from ceramic industry waste in the city of Cuenca, Ecuador. The name of this waste is “chamota” and it comes from formed and burned pieces that are broken when crockery is being elaborated. “Chamota” without enamel will be used in this study. Effects in mechanical resistance, density, and absorption of concrete are investigated. To accomplish these objectives, compressive strength, traction strength, water absorption by total immersion, and density are determined. The results show that for ceramic concrete elaborated with ceramic aggregate completely obtained of trituration, density reduced by 12%, compressive strength (f’c) reduced by 70%, and flexion strength (MR) reduced by 44% when compared to traditional concrete. MR/f’c ratio is 0.29 for ceramic concrete whereas for traditional concrete is 0.17. For ceramic concrete elaborated without fine aggregate density reduced by 10%, and compressive strength reduced by 58%. Hence, due to the low resistance values obtained in the ceramic concrete and its high permeability, it is concluded that its use as structural concrete is not viable.