EFFECT OF POLYPROPYLENE FIBRE ON THE STRENGTH OF CONCRETE INCORPORATING RICE HUSK ASH

The increase in Carbon Dioxide (CO2) gas emissions during the production of cement have increased the necessity for the development of eco-friendly sustainable concrete using alternative binders. This research was conducted to study the strength behaviour in terms of compressive and flexural strength of concrete incorporating rice husk ash (RHA) as a supplementary cementitious material. RHA is a potential alternative binder due to its pozzolanic nature but it can partially replace cement to a certain amount, beyond it, the strength decreases making the concrete less viable. Therefore, to strengthen RHA-based eco-friendly concrete, Polypropylene (PP) fibres were used to reinforce concrete. Based on the results, it was observed that 5% RHA achieved higher strength than the control sample, however, a further increase in RHA content resulted in a significant decrease in strength. Concrete with 10% RHA which showed reduced strength was reinforced with PP fibres which resulted in a gain in strength.