Physical and mechanical properties of cement mortar made with brick waste

LME Laboratory, University of Medea, Medea, Algeria

Abstract

The development of new building materials is a current problem where researchers are trying to find the right materials for each region and returning cheapest countries. Recycling and recovery of waste are now considered as a promising solution to meet the deficit between production and consumption and protecting the environment. This work focused on the study of the effect of brick waste in the production of cement mortar with substitution rates ranging from 5-30% by weight of cement and to compare its performance with fresh and hardened state with ordinary mortar considered as control mortar. Compressive and tensile strengths up to 28 days of age were compared with those of controlled mortar. Water absorption was also measured at 28 days of age. The test results indicate the beneficial effect of brick waste powder on performance of cement mortar with an optimum of 15% of cement weight substitution.