A multi-site study of a new cement composite brick with partial cement substitutes and waste materials

Abstract The building industry is a major contributor to climate change since it emits massive amounts of greenhouse gases. As a result of this research, a cement composite brick with partial cement substitutes and waste material was developed. This novel building material holds a lot of promise for partly solving this problem. The fresh formula mixture and hardened concrete were tested for physical, mechanical, and thermal properties to ensure that the assumptions were true. In this study, 20 recipes that led to the composition of mentioned brick were presented as well as its final recipe. The results of the fresh mixture were assessed in terms of initial and final setting time, pH, and air content. The compressive strength of the brick developed with the modified formula increased by 22% compared to the reference sample. Also, higher mechanical values were obtained for the splitting strength and flexural strength, which increased by 14% and 32%, respectively, compared to plain concrete. The results of the SEM images showed an even distribution of the fibers in the composite matrix and a crack-free structure. Moreover, the results of the image analysis confirmed the failure character consistent with traditional concretes in the case of compression and the lack of split into two independent samples in the case of bending. Therefore, the new composite brick has great potential to be used as a primary replacement for traditional concrete masonry in civil engineering projects.