Effective methodology of sustainability assessment of concrete mixtures

Abstract

Sustainability approach is a key conceptual principle to be considered in cement and concrete production all around the world. This study aims to enhance the methodology of a versatile effective sustainability assessment in a simple manner. The feasibility of proposed methodology is demonstrated on selected field application related to reinforced concrete bridge deck slabs where strength and durability are of prime interest. Various high-performance concrete (HPC) mixtures suitable for effective utilization in science and practice are selected as an example of the sustainability evaluation. The focus is paid to a complex sustainability assessment considering major important indicators: performance, durability, eco-costs and concrete mixtures costs and they are combined efficiently into one complex indicator applied at the early stage of design process. The enhancement in the form of such a general approach allows the consideration of these indicators and its normalization with the reference values is proposed. The results of experimental investigation on twenty-four various HPC mixtures are utilized to demonstrate the feasibility of proposed approach considering concrete's compressive strength and its resistance against chloride-induced corrosion to serve as both performance and durability indicator. The results indicate the sustainability level of concrete mixtures and demonstrate the optimum possible choice of concrete mixtures with best performance/eco-costs/durability and economy trade off in the view of sustainability assessment.