Advances in Green Binder Systems

There is a growing interest all over the world to develop and implement environmentally friendly binding materials for concrete applications. The emphasis of the research and construction community is on finding sustainable alternatives for ordinary portland cement to reduce the overall environmental and energetic impact of cement production. The use of high volumes of fly ash and slag are already accepted means of cement reduction for sustainable concretes; however, the dramatic increase in the consumption of concrete requires novel and sustainable binder systems. Recent research results is to provide an introduction into several areas of active work on green binder systems. The papers in this collection deal with a wide variety of topics that are of significant interest and impact, including the chemistry of geopolymerization of fly ash, mixture proportioning of concretes containing fly ash alone as the binder, methods to improve the reactivity of fly ash through nanomodification or the use of fine limestone, and phosphate-based cements. Also, novel methods of the use of waste glass powder and rice husk ash as cementing materials are detailed. These paper are a useful addition to the library for any researcher, materials producer, or end user interested in alternative and sustainable binding materials for concrete.

This collection consists of 8 papers that were presented at a technical session sponsored by ACI Committees 130. 232, and 236 at the ACI Convention in Dallas, TX, in March 2012.