Enhancing mechanical and durability properties of cement and alkali-activated concrete through sintering techniques

Concrete, being a primary construction material, has significant environmental impacts due to the production of Portland cement, prompting a search for more sustainable alternatives like AAC. Sintering, a process that compacts and solidifies materials through heat and pressure, has been explored to enhance concrete properties. This study investigates the effects of sintering techniques on the properties of both Cement Concrete (CC) and Alkali Activated Concrete (AAC). This research involved preparing concrete specimens of different grades (M20, M25, M30) under various sintering conditions. The study evaluated different mechanical tests like compressive strength, split tensile strength along with various NDT tests like rebound hammer test, ultrasonic pulse velocity. In addition to that, various durability tests like sorptivity, rapid chloride permeability tests were also performed. Moreover, microstructural characteristics were conducted with optical microscope and amount of pore of all the samples were determined. Results indicate that sintering significantly improves the mechanical and durability characteristics of both CC and AAC, with AAC generally exhibiting superior performance. Moreover, relationships between compressive strength and porosity were determined for both CC and ACC. Thus, present study highlights the potential of sintering techniques to enhance concrete's mechanical properties and durability, providing a promising approach to developing more sustainable and high-performance construction materials.