Physiochemical characterisation of Malaysian white aggregate for use in sustainable concrete structure

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to investigate the feasibility of using white aggregate as a construction raw material by determining its physiochemical properties, as well as its surface morphology. The results of a laboratory experimental programme aimed at establishing chemical and mineralogical characteristics of aggregate and its likely influence on concrete performance are reported in this paper. UV visible spectroscopy (UV-vis), X-ray fluorescence (ED-XRF) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) analyses were used for chemical and mineralogical characterisation, respectively. Surface morphology was determined by using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) instrument. It was observed that Malaysian white aggregate contains large amount of silt materials (about 9%). It also contains high amount of SiO3 (62.5%) and K2O (6.94%) compared with other natural aggregates. The surface morphology analysis clearly revealed the existence of palygorskite and smectite materials in the studied aggregate.