International Journal of Engineering Trends and Technology (IJETT) – Volume3 Issue 6 Number2–Dec 2012
EXPERIMENTAL STUDY ON PARTIAL REPLACEMENT OF CEMENT BY
BENTONITE IN PAVERBLOCK
J. Chamundeeswari
Department of Civil Engineering
Bharath University, Selaiyur, Chennai-73.
ABSTRACT
Cement concrete continuous to be pre-eminent construction materials for use in any type of civil
engineering applications. Performance of any civil engineering structures in terms of their
strength and stability has with stood the test of time but the life span of the structures has become
a matter of concern. This is on account of the environment becoming chemically ever more
aggressive. The atmosphere is found increasingly laden with higher percentage sulphur dioxide
& carbon dioxide. Due to the production of cement which is one of the ingredient in the
preparation of Concrete, equal amount of Carbon-di-oxide evolves which is the important reason
for ozone depletion. In order to replace the cement which is the main ingredient in concrete, lots
of innovative materials are compared to the composition of cement .In this project, cement is
partially replaced by bentonite. It includes the composition of cement. The specimens are tested
for 7 days and 28 days strength and their behavior are studied under compression as per the
method recommended by the Indian standards. In this paper ,the study and the replacement of
cement by Bentonite to find out the strength parameters of concrete specimen .The replacement
includes of 10%,20%,30%,40%,50%.Finally the optimum percentage is arrived.
KEYWARDS: Bentonite, cement, optimum percentage
INTRODUCTION
In this paper, an attempt has made to overcome this problem by the limited use of
Bentonite powder in place of Cement.
Bentonite is a clay generated frequently from the alteration of volcanic ash, consisting
predominantly of smectite minerals, usually montmorillonite.Bentonite presents strong colloidal
properties and its volume increases several times when coming into contact with water, creating
a gelatinous and viscous fluid The special properties of bentonite (hydration, swelling, water
absorption, viscosity, thixotropy) make it a valuable material for a wide range of uses and
applications. Bentonite deposits are normally exploited by quarrying. Extracted bentonite is
distinctly solid, even with a moisture content of approximately 30%. The material is initially
crushed and, if necessary, activated with the addition of soda ash (Na2CO3). Bentonite is
subsequently dried (air and/or forced drying) to reach a moisture content of approximately 15%.
According to the final application, bentonite is either sieved (granular form) or milled (into
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International Journal of Engineering Trends and Technology (IJETT) – Volume3 Issue 6 Number2–Dec 2012
powder and super fine powder form). For special applications, bentonite is purified by removing
the associated gangue minerals, or treated with acids to produce acid-activated bentonite
(bleaching earths), or treated with organics to produce organoclays.The following are the types
of bentonite

Sodium bentonite,Calcium bentonite andPotassium bentonite
LABORATORY TEST
Concrete is an artificial material which is made up of cement, fine aggregate, coarse aggregate
and water. In this paper, an attempt has been made to replace cement by Bentonite.Hence the
properties of material have been arrived by conducting laboratory tests and the results.
Cement
53 grade cement is used for the experimental study. Compressive Strength 53 Mpa, Specific
Gravity3.15, Initial Setting Time 30 min, Final Setting time 570 min.
Fine aggregate
A concrete with better quality can be made with sand consisting of rounded grains rather than
angular grains. The sand used belongs to the Zone 3. Fineness modulus 3.24, Specific Gravity
2.58, Size Passing through 4.75mm sieve, Water absorption ratio 1%.
Coarse Aggregate
Aggregate must be clean and free from impurities. The coarse aggregate used in this study is of
the size 10mm. Fineness modulus 4, Specific Gravity 2.69, Size Passing through 12 mm and
retaining in 10mm sieve, Water absorption ratio 0.50%.
Water
As per IS-456,2000 the minimum pH value of water is 6.Locally available potable water with pH
value of 7.35 was used in present work Water is an important in gradient of concrete as it
actively participates in chemical reactions with cement. Clean portable water conforming to IS
456-2000 was used for the preparation of concrete mixture.
Water cement ratio (W/C)
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International Journal of Engineering Trends and Technology (IJETT) – Volume3 Issue 6 Number2–Dec 2012
The ratio of cement by weight is termed as “water-cement ratio” and the strength and
quality of concrete primarily depends upon this ratio.
Slump Cone Test
Table .4 Slump Cone Test
W/C Ratio
% of Water
Volume of water in
Slump in mm
ml
0.35
35
1050
20
0.35
35
1050
18
0.35
35
1050
20
Bentonite
Bentonite is available in powder and solution form,which can replaces cementupto 50% of
cement used in the concerte.
Table.5 Properties Of Bentonite
Chemical composition
Titanium Oxide TiO2
01.25
Ferric Oxide Fe2O3
10.91
Silica SiO2
54.26
Aluminum Al2O3
18.34
PhysicalCharacteristics
Specific Gravity
2.4
pH
8 to 8.8
Bulk Density gms / cc
0.6
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International Journal of Engineering Trends and Technology (IJETT) – Volume3 Issue 6 Number2–Dec 2012
Concrete Mix Detail
Table .6 Mix Proportion in kg/ m3
Cement
Fine aggregate
578.57 kg
384.67 kg
Mix Proportion of M50 Grade Concrete
Coarse aggregate
1140.78 kg
Water – Cement ratio
0.35
Proportioning of concrete mixture consists of determination of the respective
ingredients necessary to produce concrete having adequate workability, strength and durability
for the particular strength and for various exposure conditions. The mixture proportions for the
controlled concrete of M50 grade was arrived from the trial mixes as per Indian Standard (IS
10262 – 1982) specifications and found to be 1:0.65:1.95 (W/C = 0.35). This Mixture was used
throughout the study.
The concrete mix design was proposed to achieve the compressive strength of50MPa
after 28 days curing.
Fig.1 Casted Specimen
Fig.2 compression test for specimen
RESULTS
In this study, an attempt has been made to evaluate the mechanical properties such as
compressive strength with and without bentonite. The compressive strength of the cubes after
replacing the cement by 10%, 20%, 30%,40%,50% with Bentonite is studied after 28 days.
Compressive Strength of Concrete
The compressive strength of concrete with and without bentonite is studied. Tests are
conducted and the results are as follows
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International Journal of Engineering Trends and Technology (IJETT) – Volume3 Issue 6 Number2–Dec 2012
Table.7. compressive test result
SAMPLE
7DAYS
COMPRESSIVE 28 DAYS COMPREESIVE
C₁₀₀ B₀
STRENGTH (N/MM2)
38.020
C₉₀ B₁₀
36.750
53.955
C₈₀ B₂₀
31.860
47.370
C₇₀B₃₀
23.570
41.847
C₆₀ B₄₀
18.690
30.589
C₅₀B₅₀
14.230
24.003
STRENGTH(N/MM2)
56.929
Fig.3.7thday compressive strength
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International Journal of Engineering Trends and Technology (IJETT) – Volume3 Issue 6 Number2–Dec 2012
Fig.4.4 28th day compressive strength
Fig.4.5 comparison of 7th and 28th day compressive strength
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International Journal of Engineering Trends and Technology (IJETT) – Volume3 Issue 6 Number2–Dec 2012
CONCLUSION
From this experiment, we conclude that, by the usage of bentonite powder, we can increase the
compressive strength and decrease the cement content in concrete up to 30%. As the cement
content in the concrete is reduced, the usage of cement wills also decreases thereby the ozone
layer depletion by emission of carbon-di-oxide from the cement factory will also reduce and the
environment will also kept clean. Replacing the amount of cement used by bentonite powder
decreases the total expenses of cement by 50%
REFERENCE
1. Utilization of Pakistani bentonite as partial replacement of cement in concrete
Construction and Building Materials, Volume 30, May 2012, Pages 237-242
Shazim Ali Memon, Rao Arsalan, Sardar Khan, Tommy Yiu Lo
2. Effects of supplementary cementing materials on the properties of cement and concrete
Cement and Concrete Research, Volume 32, Issue 10, October 2002, Pages 1551-1558 Ş.
Targan, A. Olgun, Y. Erdogan, V. Sevinc
3. Methods of Tests for strength of Concrete IS: 516 – 1959, 15th reprint August 1993,
Bureau of Indian Standards, New Delhi.
4. Interaction
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bentonite
with
supercritically
carbonated
concrete
Applied Clay Science, Volume 42, Issues 3–4, January 2009, Pages 488-496
F.J. Huertas, A. Hidalgo, M.L. Rozalén, S. Pellicione, C. Domingo, C.A. GarcíaGonzález, C. Andrade, C. Alonso
5. Pakistani bentonite in mortars and concrete as low cost construction material
Applied Clay Science, Volume 45, Issue 4, August 2009, Pages 220-226
J. Mirza, M. Riaz, A. Naseer, F. Rehman, A.N. Khan, Q. Ali
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