Effect of Natural Organic Materials as Admixture on Properties of Concrete

Objectives: To study the influence of natural organic materials (i.e. gram-flour, ghee and triphala) as admixture on the durability of concrete. A new method was proposed with 70% loading of average compressive strength to know the durability of concrete under practical conditions. Methods/Statistical Analysis: Use of chemical admixtures in concrete is a common practice in modern construction. Although chemical admixtures improve properties of concrete but also create leaching problem. The paper presents, the various experiments performed to identify the influence of natural organic materials as admixture on durability of concrete. Electrical resistivity, ultrasonic pulse velocity (UPV) and carbonation tests were performed on hardened concrete for 0.4 and 0.45 w/c ratios. Findings: Based on the above results it was found that addition of gram flour provided better durability in terms of electrical resistivity, UPV and carbonation for both the w/c ratios over normal concrete. Even under 70% loading, better durability results were noticed for concrete with gram flour. Although for concrete with ghee and triphala poor results were noticed. Most of the previous work were performed on cement and lime mortar. The present work is performed on the concrete with use of advanced equipment. Application/Improvements: Utilisation of waste food grain causing environmental problems in concrete as admixture in place of chemical admixtures. Research shall discourage use of chemical admixtures in concrete as they are responsible for environmental pollution.