INVESTIGATION OF THE EFFECTS OF COMBINING CASSAVA PEEL ASH AND NANO-SILICA AS PARTIAL CEMENT REPLACEMENT ON CONCRETE STRENGTH

ABSTRACT The effort to reducing carbon dioxide (CO2) emission, the rising cost of housing and construction materials, especially cement in developing countries in the world including Nigeria as a major concern has gained significant attention for achieving sustainability in construction industry. Portland cement generates a considerable proportion of carbon-dioxide in its production process. Therefore, remedial measures are required to reduce this huge amount of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions that cause a malignant effect on the natural environment. This study focuses on investigating of the effect of combining cassava peel ash (CPA) and Nano-silica particles as partial cement replacement in concrete production. It aims to produce and characterize cassava peel ash (CPA) and Nano-silica, determine the workability of fresh concrete containing the combination of CPA, and Nano-silica at varying percentages (CPA-0, 5, 10 & 15%; Ns- 0.5% &1%) and evaluate the compressive strength and water absorption of hardened concrete containing the combination of CPA, and Nano-silica. The test results showed that the incorporation of CPA and Nano-silica had an impact on the properties of concrete. The replacement of CPA and Nano-silica in cement help to mitigate the environmental impact associated with cement production and contribute to lower greenhouse gas emission, and reduce the cost of cement production which promotes more environmentally friendly environment.