Recycled Aggregate Concrete Performance

Recycled aggregate concrete is produced by crushing demolished or waste concrete and using the resulting fragments as a partial or full substitute for virgin stone and gravel in new mixes. Researchers study how this substitution affects the mechanical behavior of the resulting material—its compressive strength, stiffness, and resistance to cracking—alongside longer-term durability concerns such as water absorption, carbonation, and resistance to freeze-thaw cycles, which tend to be more problematic in recycled aggregates due to residual mortar attached to the particles. The field matters because construction and demolition waste accounts for a substantial share of global solid waste, and diverting it back into structural applications could reduce both landfill pressure and the extraction of primary raw materials. Active questions include how to reliably predict performance when the source concrete varies in quality and age, and whether targeted treatments—such as surface carbonation or polymer coatings of the aggregate—can close the durability gap with conventional concrete well enough for widespread structural use.

Works

46,660

Total citations

586,556

Keywords

Recycled AggregateConcrete PropertiesConstruction Waste ManagementDurability PerformanceMechanical BehaviorSustainability in Construction