Eco epo-seal, versatile ancillary construction material: pathway to circularity in Industry 5.0

Climate change is real and evident post to the industrial revolution. Sustainable resource utilization in industrial sectors including infrastructure and building sector shall address the shared challenges. Concept of circular construction materials can be a game changer and catchment to industrial sustainability. The objective of the study is to develop Eco epo-seal, ancillary construction material without incorporating conventional materials. Discarded mine waste (DMW), Industrial by-products Porous Fine Aggregate Like (PFAL) and Iron and Steel Waste (ISW), epoxy was employed in the preparation. A total of 36 compositions were attempted by varying DMW (7-27%), PFAL (37-81%), ISW (0-12%) and epoxy (10-30%). The Eco epo-seal was tested for consistency, density, water absorption (WA) (Normal- N, Long term -LT, Long term alkaline- LA), porosity, compressive strength (CS) (N, LT, LA), Flexural strength (FS) and Ultrasonic pulse velocity (UPV). Performance of the Eco epo-seal was reported as density (1065.2 Kg/m3 (B1) to 1763 Kg/m3 (W3)), WA (0.23 % (W1- N) to 68.07% (B3- LA)), porosity (0.0037 (Z3) to 0.479 (A2)), CS (2.36 MPa (A3- N) to 39.44 MPa (W1- LA)), FS (0.41 MPa (Q2)-15.64 MPa (W1)) and UPV (0.8 Km/s (B3) to 2.58 Km/s (W1)). Among the raw materials of Eco epo-seal, epoxy content greatly influences the performance in normal medium. In comparison of performance of Eco epo-seal in LT condition and LA environment over normal medium, enhanced performance is observed with higher epoxy content and deteriorates for lower epoxy content. Multiple linear regression using principal component analysis was employed to model the performance. Porosity, WA and CS of Eco epo-seal varies linearly and FS follows a nonlinear trend. Eco epo-seal is a versatile composite suitable for various civil engineering and building applications, circular approach adopted is a one-step solution to prevailing waste management issues and places construction industry as a forerunner in cleaner practices of Industry 5.0.