Strength analysis of structural concrete blocks with five mixture materials

The structural system based on masonry walls is widely used in Mexico. Concrete block, one of its main components, exhibits significant variability in the material properties due to the frequent use of locally available resources for its production. Therefore, analyzing the physical properties of these blocks is essential. In this study, laboratory experiments were conducted considering five proposed mix designs. The water-cement ratios evaluated were 0.32 and 0.75, while the cement-toaggregate ratios were 0.129, 0.135, and 0.159. The results indicate that both parameters significantly influence the compressive strength of the blocks, with higher strengths observed at lower water-cement ratios. Furthermore, the majority of the measured strengths exceeded the target value of 80 kg/cm².