August 2014 Volume 07 No 04 ISSN 0974-5904

INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL
OF EARTH SCIENCES AND ENGINEERING
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C Sivapragasam Xiang Lian Zhou K. Bheemalingeswara
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Assam University SDM College of Engg. and Tech. Adhiyamaan college of Engineering
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Nandipati Subba Rao M Suresh Gandhi Debadatta Swain
Andhra University, Visakhapatnam University of Madras, National Remote Sensing Centre
Andhra Pradesh, INDIA Tamil Nadu, INDIA Hyderabad, INDIA
H K Sahoo R N Tiwari B M Ravindra
Utkal University, Bhubaneswar Govt. P G Science College, Rewa Dept. of Mines & Geology, Govt. of
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M V Ramana N Rajeshwara Rao R Baskaran
CSIR NIO University of Madras Tamil University, Thanjavur
Goa, INDIA Tamil Nadu, INDIA Tamil Nadu, INDIA
Salih Muhammad Awadh Sonali Pati Nuh Bilgin
College of Science Eastern Academy of Science and Istanbul Technical University
University of Baghdad, IRAQ Technology, Bhubaneswar, INDIA Maslak, ISTANBUL
Naveed Ahmad Raj Reddy Kallu Manish Kumar
University of Engg. & Technology, University of Nevada Tezpur University
Peshawar, PAKISTAN 1665 N Virginia St, RENO Sonitpur, Assam, INDIA
Raju Sarkar Jaya Kumar Seelam Safdar Ali Shirazi
Delhi Technological University National Institute of Oceanography Dona University of the Punjab,
Delhi, INDIA Paula, Goa, INDIA Quaid-i-Azam Campus, PAKISTAN
C N V Satyanarayana Reddy S M Hussain Glenn T Thong
Andhra University University of Madras Nagaland University
Visakhapatnam, INDIA Tamil Nadu, INDIA Meriema, Kohima, INDIA
T J Renuka Prasad Deva Pratap Samir Kumar Bera
Bangalore University National Institute of Technology Birbal sahni institute of palaeobotany,
Karnataka, INDIA Warangal, INDIA Lucknow, INDIA
Mohammed Sharif A M Vasumathi Vladimir Vigdergauz
Jamia University K.L.N. College of Inf. Tech. ICEMR, Russian Academy of Sciences
New Delhi, INDIA Pottapalayam, Tamil Nadu, INDIA Moscow, RUSSIA
C J Kumanan B R Manjunatha Ranjith Pathegama Gamage
Bharathidasan University Mangalore University Monash University, Clayton
Tamil Nadu, INDIA Karnataka, INDIA AUSTRALIA
Ch. S. N. Murthy K. Subramanian Linhua Sun
NITK- Surathkal Coimbatore Institute of Technology Suzhou University
Karnataka, INDIA Tamil Nadu, INDIA CHINA
Jitendra Virmani Deepak T J M S Ravikumar
Jaypee Uni. of Information Tech. INTI International University Noorul Islam University
Himachal Pradesh, INDIA Kaula Lumpur, MALAYSIA Kanyakumari, INDIA
 INDEX

Volume 07 August 2014 No.04

RESEARCH PAPERS

Compatibility of Modified Ligno Naphthalene Melamine Sulphonate Based 530-536

Superplasticizer with Site Blended Portland Pozzolana Cements
By JANARDHANA MAGANTI and SANKAR RAVI PRAKASH D
Effect of Water/ Geopolymer Solids Ratio on Strength and Workability 537-541
Characteristics of F-Type Geopolymer Concrete
By KOLLI RAMUJEE and M POTHA RAJU
Mechanical Characteristics of High Strength Self Compacting Fiber Reinforced 542-545
Concrete Incorporating Quartz Filler & Hybrid Fibers
By B NARENDRA KUMAR and P SRINIVASA RAO
Mechanical Properties of Self Curing Concrete Using Polyethylene Glycol and Fly 546-551
Ash as Partial Replacement for Cement
By D ANNAPURNA and N VENKATA RAMANA
Short-Term Durability Test on Compressive Behavior of Concrete Cylinders 552-556
Confined With FRP Composites under Various Environmental Conditions
By MURUGAN M, NATARAJAN C and MUTHUKKUMARAN K
Investigation of Flexural Behaviour of Geopolymer concrete Using Recycled Coarse 557-564
Aggregate
By V BHIKSHMA, T NAVEEN KUMAR and V VINAY KUMAR
Alternative Mortar with Pond Ash as Replacement for Fine Aggregate 565-568
By MEGHASHREE M and G A SATISH
An Experimental Study on Strength Development of Concrete using Rice Husk Ash 569-574
and Silpozz
By K C PANDA and S D PRUSTY
Bio-Inspired Solutions for Durable Concrete 575-581
By V SRINIVASA REDDY, M V SESHAGIRI RAO and C H SASIKALA
582-587
Effect of Glass Fiber on Mechanical Properties of Vibrated Concrete and Self
Compacting Concrete
By M L VARA PRASAD, P RATHISH KUMAR and L RAMA PRASAD REDDY
Effect of PACKING FACTOR on Workability and Mechanical Properties of High 588-594
Strength Self Compacting Concrete (M70 GRADE) with GGBS and MICRO SILICA
as Filler Material
By V MALLIKARJUNA REDDY and M V SESHAGIRI RAO
Flexural Behavior of Reinforced Geopolymer Concrete Beams 595-602
By SHANKAR H SANNI and R B KHADIRANAIKAR
Influence of Fly Ash as Fine Aggregate Replacement Material on Mechanical 603-607
Properties of Concrete
By K. C. PANDA, S.S. SAMANTARAY and M. MISHRA
Influence of Fly Ash on Mechanical Properties of Rubberised Concrete 608-613
By M. MISHRA and K.C. PANDA
Light Weight Aggregate Concrete Replacing Conventional Aggregate with LECA 614-618
By SHANKAR H. SANNI and SADASHIVA S. KEMBHAVI
Mechanical Properties of Concrete Containing Metakaolin and Flyash 619-623
By K.L.RADHIKA and P.ANURADHA
Studies on Stress - Strain Behaviour of SCC with Ggbs and RHA 624-628
By M.SWAROOPA RANI, M.V SESHAGIRI RAO and B.KRISHNA RAO
A Review on Soil Structure Interaction of Building Frames Supported by 629-633
Foundations
By VENKATA KOTESWARA RAO P, P. HARI KRISHNA and T.D.GUNNESWARA RAO
Analysis of Earth Reinforcement Elements Using Finite Element Method 634-638
By K.SURESH
Application of Image Analysis for Studying the Shrinkage Characteristics of Fine- 639-643
grained Soils
By UDAY K V and SINGH D N
Collapse Potential of Laterite Soils 644-649
By UDAY K V
Dynamic Analysis of RCC Cantilever Retaining Wall with Different Parameters 650-654
By P. R. JAGTAP, S. M. PORE1 and VIPUL PRAKASH
Dynamic Analysis to Study Soil-Pile Interaction Effects 655-658
By PALLAVI RAVISHANKAR and NEELIMA SATYAM
Experimental Study of the Behavior of Interfaces between Gravel Soils and Concrete 659-664
Surfaces
By MURUGAN M, NATARAJAN C and MUTHUKKUMARAN K
A Study on the Effect of Fiber Orientation on Simply Supported Laminated Plates 665-672
By B D V CHANDRA MOHAN RAO and N V RAMANA RAO
Effects of Openings in Shear Wall on Seismic Response of Frame-Shear Wall 673-680
Structures
By M. JYOTHI and MD. FAROOQ
Finite Element Analysis of High Strength Concrete Beams Under Shear Loading 681-687
without Web Reinforcement
By SUDHEER REDDY. L., RAMANA RAO .N.V and GUNNESWARA RAO T.D
Integrated Shape and Topology Optimization of Cylindrical Shells 688-694
By A MALLIKA and N V RAMANA RAO
Analysis for Motorbike Accident on Helmet Wearing in Selected Stretches of 695-703
Hyderabad City – A Case Study
By A.RAMESH and M. KUMAR
Comparative Study on Strength Characteristics of Soil Stabilized Pavement by Using Fly ash 704-708
and Geotextiles
By V.GAJENDRA and N.DARGA KUMAR
Goods Travel Demand Estimation 709-713
By N.L.PAVAN KUMAR and C.S.R.K.PRASAD
Performance of Lane Based Traffic Flow at Ambedkar ‘Y’ Junction Using Micro 714-719
Simulation Technique
By T.ARJUN KUMAR, A.RAMESH and K.PUNYA MURTHY
PRT Systems 720-723
By SAI SUMAN POOJARI and UDAY K V
Inverse Modeling to Quantify Soil-Water and Solute Movement Parameters 724-728
By P. N. SINGH
Multi - Electrode Resistivity Survey for Charecterisation of Hard Rocks in Kudliar 729-732
Watershed, Medak District, AP.
By A. SHRAVAN KUMAR and DR. K. RAMAMOHAN REDDY
Rainfall - Runoff Modeling Using Digital Elevation Model of an Ungauged Basin 733-740
By B. N. MALLESWARA RAO and N.V. UMAMAHESH
Study of Characteristics of Waves over Seawalls Using Roughness Elements 741-745
By D. SWETHA and K. RAM MOHAN REDDY
Earthquakes-Oceans-Tsunamis-Coastal Zone Management 746-753
By D. VENKAT REDDY
Health Monitoring Techniques of Civil Structures – A Review 754-757
By SUYOG H, KARTHIK KUMAR H G and KUMAR P
North-Eastern Seismic Status and Mitigation Requirements 758-763
By TH. KIRANBALA DEVI, SUPRIYA THOUDAM and S. KIRAN DEVI
Stratigraphic Status of the Koderma Mica Belt vis-a-vis the Tectonic Evolution of 764-774
Amphibolites of the Chotanagpur Region
By VIKASH KUMAR
Zero Waste Management & Treatment Technologies for Brewery Effluents- A Case 775-779
Study of M/s. United Breweries Limited, Srikakulam, A.P, India.
By SATISH VALLURI, DR. K. RAMAMOHAN REDDY and DR. RAJANI GANTA
Evaluation of Lateral Load Distribution in Nonlinear Static Procedures for RCC 780-785
Building
By SRIKANTH DEVI, K.RAMA MOHANA RAO, REFAAT TALEB ISMAIL
Axial Pullout of Inclined Inextensible Reinforcement in Reinforced Soil Wall II 786-793
By P.V.S.N PAVAN KUMAR, M. R. MADHAV and M. KUMAR
Development of New Construction Materials for Structural Use 794-802
By V. RAMAKRISHNAN
Durability of Basalt Fibres in Concrete 803-810
By INDUBHUSHAN PATNAIKUNI, HIMABINDU MYADARABOINA and DAVID LAW
Geopolymer Concrete Applications 811-815
By B. VIJAYA RANGAN
Global Warming and Sustainability Issues as Related to Concrete Technology 816-820
By V.M. MALHOTRA
Integrated Highway Infrastructure Management System 821-824
By T. F. FWA
Urban Storm Water Management Trapped By Manmade and Natural Changes 825-840
By ING. W.F. GEIGER
 Preface
The research scenario of Civil Engineering is tremendously changing with latest trends
emerging in all the streams. Though rapid and fascinating changes are registered in all the fields
of Civil Engineering, it has become imperative to adapt ourselves to the various activities of
sustainable development. Studies on improving concrete properties, Search for New and
Alternative Materials, Rehabilitation of existing structures, Structural Optimization, Computer
Aided Analysis and Design using Finite Element Analysis are becoming more and more
important to ensure durability and life expectancy of a structure. Climate changes and their
impact on changing water levels, economy and future as a whole, need to be focused. Growing
global warming and effects of urbanization on the environment need to be addressed. To have
the realistic design in terms of safety one can design the structure by considering the soil-
structure interaction. Extensive soil studies are necessary to keep the structure stand erect.
Liquefaction, cracking and shrinking of soils require extensive studies using latest techniques
like image processing, Numerical modeling etc. Moreover, urbanization demands well planned
transportation needs. Aesthetics of fly-overs, bridges, fast track techniques are today’s trends.
In this Context, Department of Civil Engineering, VNR Vignana Jyothi Institute of
Engineering & Technology, Hyderabad has organized a three day International Conference on
“Emerging Trends in Civil Engineering” to provide a forum for exchanging the views and
experiences in various fields of Civil Engineering in collaboration with Cafet Innova Technical
Society and TEQIP-II.
The Conference focused on bringing together the researchers, professionals and scientists
from R&D and educational institutions across the globe to share their views and bring forward
the apt recommendations in all the fields of Civil Engineering. It aimed to bring together the
expertise in Structural Engineering, Water Resources Engineering, Geotechnical Engineering,
Transportation Engineering and multi-disciplinary branches. The present state of art and
emerging trends in Civil Engineering were included as the themes of the Conference.
The conference received totally 87 technical papers from various streams including
keynote papers. Among 87 papers 52 papers are peer reviewed and accepted for publication in
the special issue of International Journal of Earth sciences and Engineering (IJEE).
Editors wish to express their thanks to Management of Vignana Jyothi, and Principal,
VNR VJIET for their constant encouragement and guidance. Special acknowledgements to
student volunteers who have done a meticulous job. We are thankful to Prof. D Venkat Reddy
(Editor-in-Chief), Dr. Raju Aedla (Ediotr) and Er. Hafeez Basha (Managing Editor) of IJEE,
publishing by Cafet Innova Technical Society for collaborating with us to bring a special issue.
We graciously acknowledge and sincerely thank to the TEQIP - II for sanctioning the
funds to the Conference without which conducting the conference would not have been possible.
Thanks are also due to the Patrons, Sponsors and Co-sponsors for their support. Thanks are due
to the authors who have contributed technical papers, to the delegates, exhibitors and advertisers
for their participation and making the conference a grand success.
It is expected that this special issue will help researchers, practitioners, policy makers,
academicians, social scientists in civil engineering and allied fields directly or indirectly.

Dr. B. N. Malleswara Rao

Dr. A. Mallika
 Indexed in
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Abstract Services-USA, Geo-Ref Information Services-USA,
List B of Scientific Journals, Poland,
Directory of Research Journals
www.cafetinnova.org August 2014, P.P. 530-536
ISSN 0974-5904, Volume 07, No. 04

Compatibility of Modified Ligno Naphthalene Melamine Sulphonate

Based Superplasticizer with Site Blended Portland Pozzolana
Cements
JANARDHANA MAGANTI AND SANKAR RAVI PRAKASH D
JNTUH College of Engineering Hyderabad, Hyderabad, India

Abstract: Concrete remains the most widely used man made construction material due to its versatility. The ready
mix concrete can be pumped easily to different heights. Superplasticizers have become essential ingredients for
pumping of concrete. Superplasticizers are sensitive to interaction effects among aluminates, sulfates, and alkali ions
present in the solution phase at the beginning of the hydration of cements. Some superplasticizers may show higher
fluidizing effect on some types of cements than other types of cements. Further the problems like bleeding,
segregation, retardation, acceleration of concrete and reduction in compressive strength of concrete will arise due to
incompatibility of super plasticizers with cements. In the present days, usage of blended Portland Pozzolana
Cements (fly ash based) (PPC) has been increased considerably due to less heat of hydration, improved workability,
durability and greater resistance to the attack of aggressive waters than ordinary Portland cements. The main aim of
this study is to know the compatibility of „Modified Ligno Naphthalene Melamine Sulphonate based (blended) super
plasticizer‟ with the normal grades of cement. Three different brands of OPC A, B and C are used separately in
concretes along with a Modified Ligno Naphthalene Melamine Sulphonate based (blended) super plasticizer to
achieve high workability in the fresh state. Compressive strength tests at 3 days, 7 days and 28 days ages with
normal (conventional) curing and predicting 28 days compressive strength by resorting to accelerated curing and
tests for setting times of concrete (for initial and final setting times of concrete by penetrometer) were conducted.
The dosage of superplasticizer (percentage weight of cement) and the setting behavior were varied with brand of
cement though the cement type, the chemical admixture were same inspite of no change in water cement ratio and
initial slump. It was observed that the dosage of super plasticizer beyond certain limits, led to reduction in
compressive strength and delay in setting times of concrete. Hence, a strong case is made for studying the
compatibility between the superplasticizer and cement before selecting a suitable superplasticizer, especially when
high workability, slump retention and early strength are required.
Keywords: Pumpable concrete, Slump retention, Setting time, Super plasticizers and Compatibility.

1. Introduction: combination of components. In the construction

The most widely used construction material is concrete,
commonly made by mixing Portland cement with sand,
crushed rock and water. In many countries the ratio of
concrete consumption to steel consumption exceeds ten
to one. The rate at which concrete is used is much
higher than it was 40 years ago. It is estimated that the
present consumption of concrete in the world is of the
order of 11 billion metric tones every year.
The strength, durability and other characteristics of
concrete depend upon the properties of ingredients. To
obtain concrete with certain desired performance
characteristics, the selection of combination of materials
cement, aggregates, water and admixtures is the first
step. The next step is a process called mixture
proportioning, which means achieving the right
industry, pumpable and workable concrete play a vital
role especially where concrete is produced away from
the actual job site, e.g. ready mixed concrete produced
at a batching plant. To achieve high workability in the
fresh state and to have considerable „slump retention‟
after half an hour to one hour, a fourth ingredient apart
from cement, aggregates and water, namely a
superplasticizer is introduced in the concrete.
Superplasticizers are chemical admixtures, which are
used in concrete to specifically alter the flow behavior
and the mechanical properties of concrete. The
superplasticizing admixture reduces water/cement ratio
without affecting the setting characteristics of the
concrete. They consist of the naphthalene or melamine
sulphonates usually condensed with the presence of
formaldehyde. Their use is rapidly growing in India.

#SPL02070401 Copyright ©2014 CAFET-INNOVA TECHNICAL SOCIETY. All rights reserved.

Proceedings of 3-Day International Conference on Emerging Trends in Civil Engineering (ICETE-2014,)
6th–8th January, 2014
 531 J ANARDHANA M AGANTI AND SANKAR R AVI P RAKASH D
Dhir and Yap (1983) described the first stage of a wide-
ranging investigation into superplasticized high
workability concrete. A ranking order of the
superplasticizers used was obtained, together with
proposals on the flow and segregation behaviour in
response to variations in cement content and sand
grading. Aitcin et al., (1994) discussed the nature of
superplasticizers, how they work and why they do not
work occasionally when added to the fresh concrete.
They reported that the introduction of superplasticisers
in concrete involves a new chemical component in a
complex hydraulic binder system that already contains
several added chemicals. Collepardi (1998) stated that
the placing characteristics of concrete can be enhanced
by using plasticizing and superplasticizing admixtures
without any change in the water cement ratio with
respect to the plain mixture. Ramachandran et al.,
(1998) stated that all chemical and mineral admixtures
when incorporated into concrete affect its properties in
fresh state. The superplasticisers are no exception; on
the contrary, their effect is much more dramatic, and the
properties of fresh concrete affected include bleeding,
segregation, setting time, slump and air content. The
type of Portland cement and superplasticizers used play
a significant role in slump and air retention of fresh
concrete. Hanehara and Yamada (1998) studied the
interaction between cement and the chemical admixture
types, lignin sulfonate, naphthalene sulfonate, melamine
sulfonate, amino sulfonate, and polycarboxylate,
together with the working factors and mechanisms, and
discussed from the view point of cement hydration.
They described the mechanism of the interaction
problem between commercially available types of
cement and admixtures. They suggested that when new
admixtures are developed, an interaction problem must
be anticipated and addressed. Jiang et al (1999) studied
the effect of soluble alkalis on cement and
superplasticizer compatibility.
The impact that soluble alkalis have on the
compatibility of cement and polynaphthalene sulfonate
superplasticizer during the first few minutes of
hydration has been studied. Rixom and Jiang et al
(2000) used the mini-slump and slump tests and found
that three low-alkali Portland cement were incompatible
with a PNS superplasticizer in terms of fluidity loss in
cement pastes and concretes having low W/C ratios
(0.30 to 0.35). Abel and Hover (2000) introduced a
simple test for monitoring setting behaviour of concrete
in the field. In the proposed test, a penetrometer probe
was fabricated with a contact area approximately equal
to the contract area under an adult sized work boot.
Setting is monitored by measuring the pressure required
to embed the probe into the concrete surface to a depth
of 6 mm. Aitcin et al., (2001) identified incompatibility
between cement and superplasticizers The combination
International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering
ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 530-536
display raid slump loss (say 150 mm to 20 mm) in few
minutes), unacceptable bleeding, reaches the
segregation limit retards setting properties to
unacceptable limit or give problem to demould i.e.,
edges breaking off or fail to gain acceptable initial and
28 days strength. Agarwal et al., (2000) have studied the
incompatibility between cement and chemical
admixtures. They reported that the specifications calling
for the use of admixtures in concrete often results in
strange occurrences, i.e., rapid set, retardation,
accelerated stiffening etc.
They presented the observations of a study on the effect
of different superplasticizers with respect to the setting
behaviour and compressive strength behaviour and
compressive strength. Mageea and Alexander (2001)
proposed a simple test method capable of assessing the
relative effectiveness of plasticising chemical
admixtures. Using a hydrometer, the test measures the
relative ability of different admixtures to disperse the
individual particles of Portland cement/ silica fume
binder combinations. Nkinamubanzi and Aitcin. (2004)
studied the robustness of combinations of cements and
superplasticizers. Tests done with various cements and
different families of superplasticizers showed that
although a combination of cement a superplasticizer
could be compatible, it is not necessarily robust.
Sometimes a little variation in the dosage of the
admixture could lead to detrimental side effects, such as
segregation, excessive set retardation, or excess air
content in the concrete. Papayianni et al (2004)
conducted tests to measure workability, slump loss, air
content, as well as strength development to reach a
conclusion about superplasticizers performance with the
use of two kinds of aggregate: one natural (river) and
one crushed limestone. Apart from this, it seems that the
quantity of fines in a mixture influences the
performance of superplasticizers. Janardhana et al.
(2004) have reported on the effect of the combination of
superplasticiser and retarder on the setting times of OPC
concrete.
2. Experimental Program:
Three different brands of Ordinary Portland cements
(53grade) of three different brands, fine aggregates
(river sand), coarse aggregate (10mm, 20mm crushed
stone aggregates), Fly Ash and 'Modified lingo
Naphthalene Malamine Sulphonate' based
Superplasticizer were chosen for compatibility study.
The cement in the concrete was replaced by an
equivalent amount as that of factory blended Portland
pozzolona cements (PPC). The results obtained from the
concrete using site-blended are compared with that of
concrete made using factory manufactured Portland
pozzolona cements, as reported by Laxmi Narasaiah
(2010). Properties of superplasticisers used in the
present study and that used by Laxmi Narasaiah (2010)
 Compatibility of Modified Ligno Naphthalene Melamine Sulphonate Based
532
Superplasticizer with Site Blended Portland Pozzolana Cements

are shown in the Tables 1 and 2 respectively. Properties Table2: Properties of super plasticizer (supplied by the
of cements used in the present study and that used by manufacturer) for factory blended samples C1, C2 and
Laxmi Narasaiah (2010) are shown in the Table 3. C3 brand cements.
Table1: Properties of superplasticizer (supplied by the S.
Property Value
manufacturer) for A, B and C brand cements. No
S. 1 Specific gravity (kg/liter.) 1.19 to 1.23
Property Value
No 2 Chloride content Nil
1 Specific gravity (kg/liter.) 1.16 3 Air entrainment Less than 1%
2 Chloride content Nil 4 Recommended dosage 0.5-2.0%
3 Air entrainment Less than 1% 5 PH value Not mentioned
4 Recommended dosage 0.6-1.5%
5 PH value 8.0 approx

Table3: Physical properties of cements

Specified limits as
Factory manufactured
S. No Property Site blended Samples per IS 12269 -
Samples
1987
Cement Cement Cement Cement Cement Cement
A B C C1 C2 C3
1 Fineness (%) 4.32 1.02 5.0 2.00 1.43 2.80
2 Specific gravity 3.0 3.07 3.0 2.65 2.95 2.69
Consistency of cement
3 32 32 31 29 31 31
(%)
Initial setting time
4 30 30 30 45 45 40 30 minimum
(minutes)
Final setting time
5 170 109 180 165 110 185 600 maximum
(minutes)
3days compressive
6 19.80 18.70 19.10 19.40 18.90 19.40 16 minimum
strength (MPa)
7days compressive
7 25.20 24.65 26.90 24.90 24.40 24.80 22 minimum
strength (MPa)
28days compressive
8 41.15 39.30 41.60 39.50 38.40 39.40 33 minimum
strength (MPa)
2.1. Concrete Mixture Proportions: obtained for both site blended PPCs and factory blended
PPCs are shown in the Tables 4 and 5 for the 25 MPa
The Concrete mix design is being carried out as per the
guidelines laid down in IS 10262 (1982). Site blended grade and 40 MPa grade concretes. The quantity of
Portland pozzolona cements (flyash based) are prepared flyash replaced for site blended cements is equal to that
of percentage of flyash in the factory blended cements,
by replacing three brands of ordinary portland cement
as mentioned by the manufacturers. It is observed from
with flyash by 28%, 25% and 24% (by weight of
the Tables 4 and 5 that there is variation in the concrete
ordinary portland cement) and are designated as A, B
mix proportions, though the quantity of flash is same in
and C respectively. Fine aggregate confirming to zone II
and graded coarse aggregates of 20 mm and 10 mm size both the site blended cements and factory blended
are chosen for the concrete. Concrete mix proportions cements.

Table4: Concrete Mix Proportions for M25 grade concrete

Site blended PPC Factory belnded PPC
S. No Material
Cement A Cement B Cement C Cement C1 Cement C2 Cement C3
28 days target
1 compressive strength 33.25 33.25 33.25 33.745 33.745 33.745
(N/mm2 )

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 533 J ANARDHANA M AGANTI AND SANKAR R AVI P RAKASH D

2 Cement (kg/ m3) 252 262.5 266 350 350 350

3
3 Fly-Ash (kg/ m ) 98 87.5 84 98 87.5 84
Water at w/c of 0.45
4 157.5 157.5 157.5 157.50 157.50 157.50
(liters/ m3)
FA at 40% of total
5 aggregates 762.30 765.173 759.946 715.28 729.2 717.3
(kg/ m3)
CA1(20 mm) at 50% of
6 coarse aggregates 596.74 598.96 594.87 553.03 563.78 554.6
(kg/ m3)
CA2 (10 mm) at 50%
7 of coarse aggregates 568.99 571.12 567.21 548.88 559.56 550.45
(kg/ m3)
8 Entrapped air (%) 2 2 2 2 2 2
Total quantity of
9 2435.53 2442.753 2429.526 2324.35 2359 2329.85
materials (kg/ m3)
Super plasticizer
10 1.00 0.80 1.20 1.20 1.20 1.20
dosage (%)
11 Initial slump (mm) 150 150 150 150 160 155
Mix proportion 1: (2.178+ 1 : (2.186+ 1: (2.171+ 1 : (2.043+ 1 : (2.08+ 1 : (2.05+
12 [Cement: 1.705) : 1.711) : 1.699) : 1.580) : 1.611) : 1.584) :
(20mm+10mm): Sand] 1.625 1.632 1.621 1.568 1.599 1.573
Table5: Concrete Mix proportions for M40 grade concrete
Site blended site cement Factory blended PPC
S. No Material Cement Cement Cement Cement
Cement B Cement C
A C1 C2 C3
28 days target compressive
1 48.25 48.25 48.25 50.89 50.89 50.89
strength (N/mm2 )
2 Cement (kg/ m3) 288 300 304 400 400 400
3 Fly-Ash (kg/ m3) 112 100 96 112 100 96
Water at w/c of 0.45 (liters/
4 140 140 140 140 140 140
m3)
FA at 40% of total
5 668.00 671.00 665.00 624.63 638.54 626.70
aggregates (kg/ m3)
CA1(20 mm) at 50% of
6 coarse aggregates 647.31 664.900 644.920 597.93 611.24 599.90
(kg/ m3)
CA2 (10 mm) at 50% of
7 coarse aggregates 617.12 633.992 614.940 593.45 606.66 595.40
(kg/ m3)
8 Entrapped air (%) 2 2 2 2 2 2
Total quantity of materials
9 2472.43 2509.892 2464.86 2356.01 2396.44 2362.00
(kg/ m3)
Super plasticizer dosage
10 1.20 1.20 1.20 1.60 1.80 1.40
(%)
11 Initial slump (mm) 150 150 150 155 150 160
Mix proportion 1 :(1.67+ 1 : (1.678+ 1 : (1.663+ 1 : (1.561+ 1 : (1.596+ 1:(1.566 +
12 [Cement : (20mm+10mm) : 1.618) : 1.662) : 1.612) : 1.494) : 1.528) : 1.500) :
Sand ] 1.543 1.585 1.537 1.483 1.526 1.489
3. Dicussion of Test Results: The trial mixes without adding super plasticizer (SP) are
prepared for M25 and M40 grade concretes with
3.1. Slump Retention:

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 Compatibility of Modified Ligno Naphthalene Melamine Sulphonate Based
534
Superplasticizer with Site Blended Portland Pozzolana Cements

Ordinary Portland Cement and Site blended Portland
Pozzolana Cement respectively. The objective of this is
to know the initial slump of the mixes. The initial slump
of all the trial mixes without addition of super
plasticizer is zero for concrete made with both Ordinary
Portland Cement and Site blended Portland Pozzolana
Cement.
Table6: Dosage of Super plasticizer
The trial mixes with adding super plasticizer (SP) are
prepared for M25 and M40 grade concretes with
Ordinary Portland Cement and Site blended Portland
Pozzolana Cement respectively. The objective of this is
to ascertain the required dosage of super plasticizer for
obtaining the required range of initial slump 150 to
160 mm of the mixes and slump retention 50 to 75 mm
with elapsed time of one hour. The required dosage of
SP is shown in the Table 6.

Dosage (%) of superplasticizer (SP)

Design Compressive
Brand of
Strength of Concrete Factory Blended
Cement Ordinary Portland Site Blended Portland
(MPa) Portland Pozzolana
Cement Pozzolana Cement
Cement
M25 1.0 1.2 1.2
A
M40 1.2 1.2 1.6
M25 0.8 1.2 1.2
B
M40 1.2 1.1 1.8
M25 1.2 1.2 0.8
C
M40 1.2 1.3 1.4
Table7: Slump Retention Test Results for Site Samples B and C cements.

Factory Blended Portland

Ordinary Portland Cement Site Blended Portland Pozzolana Cement
Compres Pozzolana Cement*
sive
Brand Dosage
Strength slump observed slump observed slump observed
of Dosage of Fly-
of (mm) (mm) (mm)
Cement of Ash (By
Concrete
After cement % After- After-
(MPa) After 60 After 30 After 60
Initial 30 in % weight of Initial Initial 30 60
minutes minutes minutes
minutes cement) minutes minutes
M25 150 95 70 72 28 150 85 55 150 90 60
A
M40 155 95 60 72 28 150 95 65 155 100 65
M25 160 95 65 75 25 155 90 60 160 100 70
B
M40 160 85 55 75 25 150 95 55 150 95 60
M25 155 90 75 76 24 150 85 60 155 100 70
C
M40 150 85 55 76 24 160 95 65 160 95 65
It is observed from the Table (with super plasticizer + may be attributed to relatively hogher fineness of the
Fly-Ash) that the required initial slump of 150 to 160 cement C when compared to the cements A and B.
mm has been achieved with addition of super plasticizer
3.2. Compressive Strength of Cement Concrete:
even though the initial slump of cement concrete
without addition of super plasticizer is zero in all the Compressive strengths obtained for 25 MPa concrete
trial mixes. It is observed that the concrete with cement (with super plasticizer), are shown in the Tables 8 and 9.
C required higher dosage of super plasticizer than that Similar is the trend for 40 MPa concrete
of required for concretes with cement A and B. This
Table8: Compresive Strength of M25 grade concretes with Site blended Portland pozzolana cements
Compressive strength (MPa)
S. No Age of concrete ( days )
Cement A Cement B Cement C
1 3 21.62 20.87 18.32

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 535 J ANARDHANA M AGANTI AND SANKAR R AVI P RAKASH D

2 7 32.18 28.69 30.59

3 28 42.98 43.41 43.59
Predicted 28 days compressive strength
4 43.73 41.67 35.88
through accelerated curing
5 28 days target compressive strength 33.25 33.25 33.25
Table9: Compresive Strength of M25 grade concretes with factory blended Portland pozzolana cements
Compressive strength (MPa)
S. No Age of concrete ( days )
Cement C1 Cement C2 Cement C3
1 3 18.91 16.45 17.24
2 7 27.65 26.35 23.48
3 28 37.63 36.67 35.78
Predicted 28 days compressive strength
4 39.37 39.36 36.06
through accelerated curing
5 28 days target compressive strength 33.745 33.745 33.745
Setting Times of Cement Concrete: Fig1: Evaluation of setting times for M25 concrete with
Site Blended and Factory Blended PPCs
The initial and final setting times of concrete are
defined as follows as per IS 8142 (1976). Initial Setting
Time: the elapsed time required for the mortar to reach
a penetration resistance of 3.43 N/mm2. Final Setting
Time: the elapsed time required for the mortar to reach a
penetration resistance of 26.97 N/mm2. It should be
noted that Mehta (1997) and Neville (1997) have stated
that the setting times of concrete do not coincide with
the setting time of the corresponding cements.
Evaluation of settings times of concrete is shown in the
Figs 1 and 2. It is understood from the figures that
setting times of concrete vary considerably from one
brand of cement to another though all other parameters
are kept constant. It is also to be noted that there is Fig2: Evaluation of setting times for M40 concrete with
variation in the setting times of concrete with site Site Blended and Factory Blended PPCs
blended and factory blended PPCs though the quantity 4. Conclusions:
of fly ash content present in them is the same. The
Following are the conclusions drawn from the
initial and final Setting times of site blended PPC are
experimental results: The compatibility of three brands
higher than that of Factory blended PPC with super
of Ordinary Portland pozzolona cements partially
plasticizer. It is noted that, initial and final setting times
replaced with flyash, with „Modified Ligno Naphthalene
of cement concrete with cement B are lowest of among
Melamine Sulphonate based (blended) super plasticizer‟
all the cement concretes for both grades of M25 and
has been studied. It has been illustrated that the proper
M40.
selection of superplasticiser and cement is necessary to
understand the behavior of the concrete.
It was observed that the different brands of cement will
behave differently even if the chemical admixture and
the method of concrete mix design are kept constant.
Hence, it is required to know the interaction of the super
plasticizer with the cement, even if they are of similar
kind, and trial concrete mixes have to be studied in a
laboratory before actually using them at site.
Reference
[1] Agarwal S.K.; Masood I; and Malhotra S.K. (2000)
“Compatibility of superplasticizers with different

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ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 530-536
 Compatibility of Modified Ligno Naphthalene Melamine Sulphonate Based
Superplasticizer with Site Blended Portland Pozzolana Cements
cements”. Construction and Building Materials,
V.14, pp.253-259.
[2] Bouzoubaa .N; M.H.Zhang M.H.; and Malhotra
V.M. (2000) “Laboratory produced high volume fly
ash blended cements Compressive strength and
resistance to the chloride-ion penetration of
concrete” Cement and Concrete Research, V.30,
pp.1037-1046.
[3] IS 1199 (1959), Methods of Sampling and Analysis
of Concrete, Bureau of Indian Standards, New
Delhi, India.
[4] IS 516 (1959), Methods of Tests for strength of
Concrete, Bureau of Indian Standards, New Delhi,
India.
[5] IS 8142 (1976), Methods for Test for determining
setting time of Concrete by Penetration Resistance,
Bureau of Indian Standards, New Delhi, India.
[6] IS 10262 (1982), Recommended guidelines for
Concrete Mix design, Bureau of Indian Standards,
New Delhi, India.
[7] IS 9103 (1999), Concrete Admixtures-
Specification, Bureau of Indian Standards, New
Delhi, India.
[8] IS 456 (2000), Plain and Reinforced Concrete,
Bureau of Indian Standards, New Delhi, India.
[9] IS 4926 (2003), Ready mixed Concrete-Code of
practice, Bureau of Indian Standards, New Delhi,
India.
[10] IS 2386(Part-I) (1963), Methods for test for
aggregates for concrete, Bureau of Indian
Standards, New Delhi, India.
[11] IS 2386(Part-III) (1963), Methods for test for
aggregates for concrete, Bureau of Indian
Standards, New Delhi, India. .
[12] IS 2386(Part-IV) (1963), Methods for test for
aggregates for concrete, Bureau of Indian
Standards, New Delhi, India.
[13] IS 383 (1970), Specification for Coarse and Fine
aggregates from natural sources for concrete,
Bureau of Indian Standards, New Delhi, India.
[14] IS 9013 (1978), Method of making, curing and
determining compressive strength of accelerated
cured concrete test specimens, Bureau of Indian
Standards, New Delhi, India.
[15] IS 10086 (1982), Moulds for tests of cement and
concrete, Bureau of Indian Standards, New Delhi,
India.
[16] IS 1489(Part-I)- (1991), Specifications for Portland
Pozzzolona cement fly ash based, Bureau of Indian
Standards, New Delhi, India.
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536
[17] Jayasree C.; Ravindra Gettu (2008), “Site study of
the flow behavior of super plasticized cement
paste”, Materials and Structures, V41, pp.1581-
1593.
[18] Janardhana M., Seshagiri Rao M.V., Prashanth
Kumar. R and Chakravarthy P.S. (2004), “Effect of
combination of admixtures on the setting times of
concrete”, Proceedings of ICFRC, International
Conference on Fiber composites, High Performance
Concretes and Smart Materials, 8-10 January 2004,
Chennai, pp.767-775.
[19] Kumar Mehta .P. Paulo J.M. Monteiro.;
CONCRETE Microstructure, Properties and
Materials (2008).
[20] Magee B.J.; Alexander M.G. (2000) “Simple test
method to assess the relative effectiveness of
plasticizing chemical admixture”, Cement and
Concrete Research, V.30, pp.303-307.
[21] Portland - Cement Concrete Rheology and
workability: Final report, US Department of
Transportation, publication no FHwA-RD-00.025,
2001, pp.1700.
[22] Ramachandran V.S., “Concrete Admixtures Hand
book: properties, science and technology”, (Edition
2), Noyes publications, 1995, pp.1112.
[23] Ramachandran V.S., Malhotra V.M., Jolicoeur C.,
and Spiratos N., “Super plasticizers: properties and
application in concrete”, Materials Technology
Laboratory, CANMET, Ottawa, Canada, 1998,
pp.401.
[24] Shunsuke Hanehara; Kazuo Yamada (1999)
“Interaction between cement and chemical
admixture from the point of cement hydration,
absorption behavior of admixture, and paste
rheology”, Cement and Concrete Research, V.29,
pp.1159-1165.
[25] Shetty M.S., “Concrete technology: Theory and
Practice”, (First Revised Edition, S. Chand &
Company Ltd, New Delhi, 2005, pp.624.
[26] Shivasundaram.V, Carette.G.G and Malhotra.V.M.
1990. Long term strength development of high
volume fly ash concrete. Cement and Concrete
Composites.
[27] U.Laxmi Narasaiah (2010) thesis on “Compatibility
of Sulphonated Modified Melamine Formaldehyde
Condensates and Naphthalene based (Blended)
Super plasticizer with Portland Pozzolana
Cements”.
 Indexed in
Scopus Compendex and Geobase Elsevier, Chemical
Abstract Services-USA, Geo-Ref Information Services-USA,
List B of Scientific Journals, Poland,
Directory of Research Journals
www.cafetinnova.org August 2014, P.P. 537-541
ISSN 0974-5904, Volume 07, No. 04

Effect of Water/ Geopolymer Solids Ratio on Strength and

Workability Characteristics of F-Type Geopolymer Concrete
KOLLI RAMUJEE1 AND M POTHA RAJU2
1
VNR Vignana Jyothi Institute of Engineering & Tahnology,Bachupally, Hyderabad-500090, India.
2
Department of Civil Engineering, GITAM University, Rushikonda, Visakhapatnam-530045, India
Email: ramujee_k@vnrvjiet.in

Abstract : Portland Cement is reported to be a highly intensive energy material next only to Aluminium and steel,
Incontrast Geopolymer concrete do not have any Portland cement can be considered as low Embodied energy which
utilize the Industrial waste for producing the binding system in concrete. Therefore, GPCs gaining popularity in the
world of concrete as eco - friendly material of construction. In the present Experimental investigation the class-F Fly
ash which is rich in silica and Alumina activated by highly alkaline liquids to produce the binder system which binds
the aggregates in concrete was used. The parameters such as activated liquid to fly ash ratio by mass, curing
temperature, curing time, sodium silicate to sodium hydroxide were maintained constant based on the past literature.
Sodium silicate and sodium hydroxide were used as alkaline activators. The results show that the workability of
Geopolymer concrete increases but compressive strength decreases with increase in water to Geopolymer solids
ratio.
Keywords: Geopolymers; class-F fly ash; Alkaline activators; Strength, Water/Geopolymer solids ratio.

1. Introduction: concretes containing alkali-aluminosilicate gel as the

binder has been shown to have high compressive
In the last 20 years, the increased need to design and
strengths, and resistance to fire, and chemical attack
formulate green materials significantly contributed to
[10–13]. The starting material and activating agent type
develop innovative researches on environmentally
and concentration are the most important parameters
friendly substitutes for Portland cement along with ways
that influence the properties of the alkali-activated end
of reusing the industrial waste and by-products such as
product [14, 15]. The production of cement-free binders
Fly ash, GGBS and metakaoline etc. The new silico-
requires a starting material containing aluminum and
aluminate inorganic polymers, named geopolymers by
silicon species that are soluble in highly alkaline
Davidovits in 1979[1], have emerged as components of
solutions. Previous studies have shown that the amount
a new class of low-energy materials characterized by
of vitreous silica and alumina present in the starting
highly desirable chemical and mechanical properties.
material plays a significant role in activation reactions
Such materials are now of great interest for a wide range
and the properties of the reaction product [10, 16]. The
of applications in several different sectors of
presence of calcium oxide in the source material also
Engineering [2]. In the field of civil Engineering,
influences the properties, especially because of the
geopolymer –based materials are also referred as
formation of more than one reaction product [17].
“Alkali-activated cements obtainable starting from raw
Sodium hydroxide and sodium silicate are the more
materials with low CaO content. Alkali - activated
commonly used alkaline activating agents [18–20] even
cement (predominantly used for binders containing
though few studies have also been carried out with
large amounts of calcium such as slags), geopolymer
potassium hydroxide or sodium carbonate as the
[3–6], inorganic polymer [7], hydroceramic, or low
activating agent [13, 21]. In the present investigation,
temperature aluminosilicate glass [8]. They are
Geopolymer concrete is manufactured using source
sometimes called polysialates also because of the
materials that are rich in silica and alumina. While the
polymeric silicon–oxygen–aluminum framework [9]. In
cement-based concrete utilizes the formation of
general, concretes made using alkali activation of the
calcium-silica hydrates (CSHs) for matrix formation and
starting aluminosilicate material do not contain Portland
strength, geopolymers involve the chemical reaction of
cement at all, and hence they are referred to generically
as cement-free binder concretes in this study. The

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Proceedings of 3-Day International Conference on Emerging Trends in Civil Engineering (ICETE-2014,)
6th–8th January, 2014
 Effect of Water/ Geopolymer Solids Ratio on Strength and Workability
538
Characteristics of F-Type Geopolymer Concrete

alumino-silicate oxides with alkali polysilicates yielding on workability and strength, hence six water to
polymeric Si–O–Al bonds. geopolymer solids ratios 0.16, 0.25, 0.28, 0.31, 0.35 &
0.40 are considered changing the quantities of water for
2. Materials and Mixture Proportions:
fixed Geopolymer solids (Sum of mass of fly ash, mass
2.1. Materials Used: of NaoH solids and Mass of sodium silicate soilds) i.e
Experimental work is designed to study the effect of 390.57 Kg/m3.Table 5 shows the materials required for
water to geopolymer solids ratio on workability and different water to geopolymer solids ratio by changing
compressive strength of geopolymer concrete for the quantiy of water.
constant solution to fly ash ratio of 0.50. In the present Table1: Chemical composition of flyash (%mass)
experimental work class-F i.e low calcium fly ash
obtained from coal based thermal power plant at Oxides Percentage
Ramagundam, Andhrapradesh used as a source material. SiO2 60.54
The chemical composition of fly ash shall confirm to Al203 26.20
requirements as per IS: 3812:2003. The manufacture of Fe2O3 5.87
geopolymer concrete is carried out using the usual CaO 1.91
concrete technology methods. The role and influence of MgO 0.38
aggregates are considered to be same as in the Portland K2O+Na2O 1.02
cement concrete. The mass of combined aggregates may SO3 0.23
be taken to be between 75% and 80% of the mass of the Loss on ignition 2.0
Geopolymer concrete. Sodium-based activators were Table2: Properties of Aggregates
chosen because they were cheaper than Potassium-based
activators. The sodium hydroxide was used, in flake or Fine Coarse
Property
pellet form. It is recommended that the alkaline liquid is Aggregate Aggregate
prepared by mixing both the solutions together at least Specific gravity
24 hours prior to use. The mass of NaOH solids in a 2.78
Water 2.63
solution varied depending on the concentration of the 0.50%
absorption 1%
solution expressed in terms of Molarity, M. Usually the 7.21
Fineness 2.40
concentration of sodium hydroxide solution (NaOH) 1675
modulus 1570
liquid measured in terms of Molarity (M), in the range Crushed
Bulk density River
of 8 to 16 M. For the present work the concentration is granite
Kg/m3 sand
limited to 8M concentration. The mass of water is the stone
Source
major component in both the alkaline solutions.
2.2 Specimen preparation:
The primary difference between geopolymer concrete
and Portland cement concrete is the binder. The silicon The sodium hydroxide flakes were dissolved in tap
and aluminium oxides in the low –calcium fly ash reacts water to make a solution with a desired concentration at
with the alkaline liquid to form the geopolymer paste least one day prior to use. The fly ash and the
that binds the loose coarse and fine aggregates and other aggregates were first mixed together in a 80 litre pan
unreacted materials to form the geopolymer concrete. mixer for about three minutes. The sodium hydroxide
As in the case of Portland cement concrete the coarse and the sodium silicate solutions were mixed together
and fine aggregates occupy about 75% to 80% of the and then added to the dry materials and mixed for about
mass of Geopolymer concrete. This component of four minutes then the extra water was added to the mix.
Geopolymer concrete mixtures can be designed using After mixing, the slump of the fresh geopolymer
the tools currently available for Portland cement concrete was determined in accordance with slump test
concrete. The compressive strength and workability of [27]. After determination of slump, the fresh concrete
geopolymer concrete are influenced by the proportions was cast into the mould. The specimens were
and properties of the constituent materials that make the compacted with three layers placing and tamping using
geopolymer paste. a rod. This was followed by an additional vibration of
10 seconds using a vibrating table.
2.2. Mixture Proportions:
The mix proportions for Geopolymer concretes were
selected based on the trial mixes carried out by the
author in the laboratory [21] [22]. The details of
properties of materials (table 1to 4) and the mix
proportions for GPC (shown in table .5). As the study
was limited to effect of water to geopolymer solids ratio

International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering

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 539 KOLLI R AMUJEE AND M P OTHA R AJU

Table3: Properties of Sodium silicate solution Table4: Properties of Sodium hydroxide (NaOH)
Property Value
Property Value
Specific gravity 1.6
Molar mass (gr/mol) 122.06 Molar mass
Na2O ( by mass) 14.70% 40 gr/mol
Appearance
SiO2 ( by mass) 29.40% White solid
Density
Weight of solids (by mass) 44.1% 2.1gr/cc
Melting point
Water ( by mass) 55.90% 3180C
Boiling point
Weight ratio (SiO2 to Na2O) 2.00 13900C
Amount of heat liberated
Molar ratio 2.06 266 cal/gr
hen dissolved in water
Table5: Details of Mixtures for Different Water to Geopolymer solids (GPS) ratio
Coarse Fine Extra
Fly ash NaOH Na2SiO3 Water/ Total Quantity of
aggregate aggregate Water added
(Kg/m3) (Kg/m3) (Kg/m3) GPS ratio water (Kg/m3)
(Kg/m3) (Kg/m3) (Kg/m3)
327 1248 672 54.33 108.67 0.16 --- 99.43
327 1248 672 54.33 108.67 0.25 --- 99.43
327 1248 672 54.33 108.67 0.28 10.00 109.43
327 1248 672 54.33 108.67 0.31 22.00 121.43
327 1248 672 54.33 108.67 0.35 37.27 136.70
327 1248 672 54.33 108.67 0.40 56.79 156.22
2.3. Curing Regime: The Total mass of water is the sum of water contained
Usually three curing regimes namely Heat curing, in sodium silicate solution, mass of water present in
Steam curing and Ambient curing are adopted for NaOH solution and the mass of extra water if any
added.
making Geopolymer concrete specimens. In the present
study heat curing was selected and the specimens were The water in the Geopolymer concrete mix does not
wrapped with thin vinyl sheet to avoid loss of water due take part in the chemical reaction [18].On contrary, in
to evaporation. All the specimens were then transferred Ordinary Portland cement concrete, water in the mix
to an oven set at a temperature of 60°C and stored for 24 chemically reacts with the cement to produce a paste
hours. After curing, the specimens were allowed to cool that binds the aggregates. The chemical reaction that
in air, demoulded and kept in open until the day of occurs in Geopolymers produces water that is
testing. eventually expelled from the binder. It has been
observed that the additional water content in the
2.4. Workability and Compressive strength tests:
geopolymer concrete mix affected the properties of
The workability tests i.e slump test and compaction concrete in fresh state as well as in hardened state.
factor tests have been performed [27] and the results are
shown in table.N0.6. The compressive strength test was Table No. 6: Results of workability and Compressive
performed under 200Tonnes capacity compression strength
testing machine by applying the load at uniform rate. Mix ID Workability Compressive strength (MPa)
and the sodium silicate solutions were mixed together
and then added to the dry materials and mixed for about Slump(mm) C.F @3days @7days @28days
four minutes then the extra water was added to the in GPS-0.16 ---- ---- --- --- ---
the mix. The mass of geopolymer solids is the sum of
the mass of flyash, mass of NaOH solids present in the GPS-0.25 --- 0.76 37.2 40.5 42.4
solution and Mass of solids in sodium silicate solution
GPS-0.28 50 0.89 29.4 32.5 34.2
3.0 Results and Discussions:
GPS-0.31 100 0.92 26.6 28.8 30.4
3.1 Workability of Geopolymer Concrete Mix:
GPS-0.35 175 0.95 21.2 24.6 27.8
Water to geopolymer solids ratio by mass is very
important in the design of Geopolymer concrete mix GPS-0.40 212 0.98 16.5 18.2 21.2

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 Effect of Water/ Geopolymer Solids Ratio on Strength and Workability
Characteristics of F-Type Geopolymer Concrete
Fig1: Effect of Geopolymer solids ratio on the slump of
Geoolymer concrete
Fig:1 shows the effect of Geopolyme rsolids ratio on
workability in terms of slump of F-type geopolymer
concrete by varying the quantity of water content.It was
observed that the slump increases with increase in water
to Geopolymer solids ratio by maintaining the other
parameters constant. At water to geopolymer solids
ratioof 0.16 the mix was very dry and the lumps of
aggregates holding the flyash were formed and the mix
was absolutely no more workable. At water to
geopolymer solids ratio of 0.25 even mix was dry and
the workability is zero and the water present in the
alkaline activators which is 99.43 kg/m3 not sufficient
to make the concrete workable. At Water to GPS ratio
of 0.28, the concrete was cohesive and viscous and very
low workability of slump value 50mm was recorded.
Similarly at water to geopolymer solids ratio of 0.31 and
0.35 the geopolymer concrete mix was workable and
mix was cohesive and viscous . At the ratio of 0.40, the
mix causes the seggregation and the slurry was
seperated from the rest of the mix due to presence of
excess water.
Fig2: Effect of Geopolymer solids ration on
compressive strength of Geopolymer concrete at
different ages.
3.2. Compressive Strength of Geopolymer Concrete:
International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering
ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 537-541
540
Fig.2 shows the effect of water to geopolymer solids
ratio on compressive strength of geopolymer concrete
specimens. It was observed that the Compressive
strength of geopolymer concrete decreases with increase
in water to geopolymer solids ratio at all ages. At water
to geopolymer ratio of 0.16 the mix was very dry and
not able to compact properly results in no strength. At
the ratio of 0.25 even though slump is absolutely zero,
the compressive strength was achieved when compared
to all other ratios, but mix was not workable. at 0.28 and
0.31GPS ratios, the mix was workable but the
compressive strength decreases which was analogous to
Ordinary Portland cement concrete as the water cement
ratio increases , the compressive strength decreases. At
water to geopolymer solids ratio of 0.40, because of
more water present in the specimens after 24hrs of oven
curing the specimens surface are wet in condition which
indicates that the water present in the mix is more than
the required.
4.0 Conclusions:
The following specific conclusions can be drawn from
the present experimental investigation.
1) The Geopolymer concrete behaves similar to
Ordinary Portland cement concrete, as the water to
geopolymer solids ratio increases, the workability
increases and Compressive strength decreases
which is similar to as the water cement ratio
increases compressive strength decreases in OPC
concrete.
2) The high early strength can be achieved in case of
GPC which may be attributed to the accelerated
curing at 600c (I,e oven curing) which accelerate
the process of Geopolymerization. There is no
much improvement in the compressive strength at 7
days and 28 days when compared to 3 days
strength.
3) Addition of water Extra water causes the increase
of H2O to Na2O ratio which decreases the
compressive strength as the mixture contained more
water and become more workable.
Reference
[1] Davidovits J (1991). Geopolymers: inorganic
polymeric new materials. J Thermal Anal, Vol .37,
pp. 633–56
[2] Palomo A, de la Fuente JIL. Alkali-activated
cementitious materials: alternative matrices Res
003; Vol.33, pp.281–8.
[3] Van Deventer JSJ, rovis JL, Duxson P, Lukey GC
(2007).Reaction mechanism in geopolymeric
conversion of inorganic waste to useful products.
JHazard mater 2007; 139: 506–13.
[4] Yunsheng Z, Wei S, Qianli C, Lin C. Synthesis and
heavy metal immobilization behaviour of slag
geopolymer. J Hazard Mater 2007; 143:206–13.
 541 KOLLI R AMUJEE AND M P OTHA R AJU
[5] Sun W, Zhang YS, Lin W, Liu ZY (2004). In situ
monitoring of the hydration process of K-PS
geopolymer cement with ESEM. Cement and
Concrete Research.Vol.34, pp.935–40.
[6] Wang H, Li H, Yan F (2005). Synthesis and
Mechanical properties of metakaolinite based
geopolymer. Coll Surf A: Physicochemical Eng
Aspects; 268:1–6.
[7] Sofi M, van Deventer JSJ, Mendis PA, Lukey GC.
Engineering properties of inorganic polymer
concretes (IPCs). Cem Concr Res 2007; 37:251–7.
[8] Rahier H, Van mele S, Wastiels J. Low-temperature
synthesized aluminosilicate glasses. Part II.
Rheological transformations during low-
temperature cure and high-temperature properties
of a model compound. J Mater Science 1996;
vol.31: pp.80–5.
[9] Alvarez-Ayuso E, Querol X, Plana F, Alastuey A,
Moreno N, Izquierdo M, Environmental, physical
and structural characterization of geopolymer
matrixes synthesized from coal (co-combustion fly
ashes. J Hazard Mater 2008; 154:175–83.
[10] Duxson P, Provis JL, Luckey GC, Mallicoat SW,
Kriven WM, van Deventer JSJ understanding the
relationship between geopolymer composition,
microstructure and mechanical properties. J Coll
surf A: Physiochem Eng Aspects 2005; 269:47–58.
[11] Bakharev T. Resistance of geopolymer materials to
acid attack. Cem Concr Res 2005; 35:658–70.
[12] Bakharev T. Durability of geopolymer materials in
sodium and magnesium sulfate solutions. Cem
Concr Res 2005; 35:1233–46.
[13] Kong DLY, Sanjayan JG. Damage behavior of
geopolymer composites exposed to Elevated
temperatures. Cem Concr Compos 2008; 30: 986–
91.
[14] Criado M, Fernandez Jimenez A, de la Torre A,
Aranda MAG, Palomo A. An XRD study of the
effect of SiO2/ Na2O ratio on the alkali activation of
fly ash. Cem Concr Res 2007; 37:671–9.
[15] Van Jaarsveld JGS, van Deventer JSJ, Lukey G.
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The characterization of source materials in fly ash-
based geopolymers. Mater Lett 2003; 57:1272–80.
[16] Silva PD, Crenstil KS, Sirivivatnanon V. Kinetics
of geopolymerization: role of Al2O3 and SiO2.
Cem Concr Res 2007; 37:512–8.
[17] Temuujin J, van Riessen A, Williams R. Influence
of calcium compounds on the mechanical
properties of fly ash geopolymer pastes. J Hazard
Mater 2009.
[18] Hardjito D, Rangan BV. Development and
properties of low-calcium fly ash based
Geopolymer concrete. Curtin research report.
[19] Yang KH, Song JK, Ashour AF, Lee ET. Properties
of cementless mortars activated by sodium silicate.
Constr Build Mater 2009; 22: 1981–1989.
[20] Sathonsaowaphak A, Chindaprasirt P, Pimraksa K.
Workability and strength of lignite bottom ash
geopolymer mortar. J Hazard Mater 2009.
[21] Kolli Ramujee, Potharaju M, Development of mix
design for low calcium based geopolymer concrete
in ordinary, standard & highstrength grades, Indian
concrete institute Journal, vol 14, issue no 2, 29-34.
[22] Kolli Ramujee, Potharaju M, Development of Low
calcium fly ash based Geopolymer concrete,
International Journal of Engineering and
Technology, vol 6, No 1, pp 1-4.
[23] Neville, A.M., Properties of Concrete, Fourth and
Final ed, Pearson Education, Longman Group
Essex, England, 2000.
[24] IS-2386-1963, “Method of test for Aggregate
concrete, Bureau of Indian Standards, New Delhi.
[25] IS: 383-1970, “Specification for coarse and fine
aggregates from the natural sources for concrete”,
Bureau of Indian Standards, New Delhi.
[26] IS: 4031 – 1988, “Method for physical tests for
hydrated cement”, Bureau of Indian Standards,
New Delhi.
[27] IS: 516-1959 (Reaffirmed 1999) edition 1.2 (1991-
07), “Method of test for strength of Concrete”,
Amendment No.2, Reprint 1993, Bureau of Indian
Standards, New Delhi 2002.
 Indexed in
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Abstract Services-USA, Geo-Ref Information Services-USA,
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ISSN 0974-5904, Volume 07, No. 04

Mechanical Characteristics of High Strength Self Compacting Fiber

Reinforced Concrete Incorporating Quartz Filler & Hybrid Fibers
B NARENDRA KUMAR1 AND P SRINIVASA RAO2
1
Department of Civil Engineering, VNR VJIET, Hyderabad, India
2
Department of Civil Engineering, JNTU College of Engineering, Hyderabad, India
Email: narendrakumar_b@vnrvjiet.in, srinivasa.pt@gmail.com

Abstract: In this paper, a study is made on the behavior of ultra-high strength self-compacting fiber reinforced
concrete by using pozzolanic materials, mineral and chemical admixtures. In today’s world, there is a huge demand
for infrastructure in less space and with high altitudes. For such heavy structures, the space between the reinforcing
bars is very less. To overcome these problems high strength self-compacting fiber reinforced concrete (HSSCFRC)
is developed. The HSSCFRC is developed from the combination of self-compacting concrete (SCC) and steel fiber.
To pump concrete for higher altitudes and compact itself SCC properties are used. To build heavy structures in less
space high strength is required. So the M80 to M100 grade of concrete are developed. To obtain high strength the
water –powder ratio is drastically reduced and the chemicals admixtures are used. The finer filler particles also
increase strength like quartz powder. Since the quartz is inert material it does not react with other materials but due
amorphous silica present in quartz react with waste material in concrete (calcium hydroxide) to form gel. The gel
formed holds the aggregate and therefore good bond is formed. In this paper the HSSCFRC is developed by using
quartz powder as partial pozzolanic material and quartz sand as fine aggregate. This paper revealed that quartz sand
and quartz gives more strength. The fibers used increases the tensile nature of the concrete. The test result for
acceptance characteristics for self-compacting concrete such as slump flow, V-funnel, and L-box are performed. The
strength characteristics like compressive strength, split tensile strength and flexural strength are examined for 7days,
28 days and 90 days.
Keywords: UHPSCFRC, pozzolanic admixture, super plasticizer, viscosity modifying admixtures, quartz powder.

1. Materials: Table1: Properties of Coarse Aggregate

1.1. Cement:
Ordinary Portland cement of 53 grades available in local
market is used in the investigation. The cement used has
been tested for various proportions as per IS 4031-1988
and found to be confirming to various specifications of
IS 12269-1987. The specific gravity was 3.1 and
fineness was 2800 cm2/gm.
1.2. Coarse aggregate: 1.3. Fine aggregate:
The aggregate of size greater than 4.75mm is considered Quartz has a hardness of 7 on the Mohr’s scale the size
as coarse aggregate. For any concrete mix, the
of quartz sand is 0.3 to 0.8 mm and Quartz powder is in
maximum size of the aggregate depends on the order of 0-10µm. The specific gravity of Quartz sand is
particular application and is generally 4.75-20mm. 2.46 and Quartz powder is 2.635.

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Proceedings of 3-Day International Conference on Emerging Trends in Civil Engineering (ICETE-2014,)
6th–8th January, 2014
 543 B NARENDRA KUMAR AND P SRINIVASA R AO

Table2: Properties of Quartz Sand (Fine Aggregate)

1.6. Fibers:
1.6.1. Hooked end steel fibers:
Table3: Physical Properties of Quartz powder Length 30mm, dia 0.5mm.

Figure1: Steel Fibers

1.4. Chemical admixtures:
Super plasticizer namely Glenium B233 and VMA 1.6.2. Cem –fil anti crack glass fibers
namely Glenium stream 2 are used. Glenium B233 is a Length 6mm, diameter 14µm
high performance concrete super plasticizer based on
modified polycarboxylic either.
The normal dosage of Glenium B233 is between 0.5 to
2 % of powder content (Cementations material). Dosage
outside this range is permissible subject to trail mixes.
Glenium Stream 2 is batched on the total of fines below
0.1 mm and is recommended between 0.5 – 1 liter/cum.
Other dosages may be recommended in special cases
according to specific job site conditions.
Table4: Typical properties of Glenium B233

Figure2: Glass Fibers

Advantages:
 High integrity during mixing
 Low-Tex strand
 Easy incorporation
 high performance with low dosage
 Excellent workability
1.5. Micro silica: Gives good mechanical performance to GRC elements
The Micro Silica used in the investigation was procured Safe and easy to handle
from the local market. 2. Effect of quartz powder ratio on strength and flow
Table5: Typical Oxide Composition of Micro Silica characteristics of SCC:

International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering

ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 542-545
 Mechanical Characteristics of High Strength Self Compacting Fiber Reinforced
Concrete Incorporating Quartz Filler & Hybrid Fibers
Table6: Mix Proportions
Table7: Flow Proportions
Table8: Strength Properties
3. Graphs:
Chart1: Compressive Strength
Chart2: Split Tensile Strength
International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering
ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 542-545
544
Chart3: Flexural Strength
4. Conclusion:
Based on the experimental studies carried the following
conclusions can be drawn:
As the quantity of quartz powder increases the mix
becomes denser, which enhances the flow properties of
SCC.
The optimum quantity of quartz powder is 30% of
cement content. In this mix the flow properties are
satisfied as per EFNARC.
It is observed that when the quantity of quartz powder
exceeds 30 % volume of the cement content the mix is
sticky in nature so the fresh properties are affected.
Addition of hybrid fibers has improved integrity during
mixing.
The complete replacement of river sand with quartz
sand gives more strength and prevents the segregation.
For every 5% increase of quartz powder increases 5% of
the compressive strength at 28 days and 90 days.
A paste with high viscosity is formed by adding 30% of
quartz powder by weight of cement to avoid segregation
and bleeding even though the density of coarse
aggregate is high.
The paste prepared by increasing quartz powder has
much importance because the SCC mix should spread
homogenous through narrow spacing between
congested reinforced bars of structural elements.
Reference
[1] Ravichandran, K. Suguna and P.N. Ragunath,
Strength Modelling of High-Strength Concrete
with Hybrid Fibre (combination of steel and
polyolefin fibres) Reinforcement. American
Journal of Applied Sciences: 219-223, 2009 ISSN
1546-9239.
[2] Abhishek.S Shetji and C. Vipulanandan, “Flow
properties of self-compacting concrete with time”,
CIGMAT-2004 conference and exhibition.
[3] D. Whiting, G.W. Seegebrecht, and S. Tayabji,
“Effect of Degree of Consolidation on Some
 545 B NARENDRA KUMAR AND P SRINIVASA R AO
Important Properties of concrete,” Consolidation
of Concrete, SP-96, 1987.
[4] EFNARC, “Specifications and guidelines for self-
compacting concrete”,www.efnarc.org
[5] Hajime Okamura and Masahiro Ouchi “Self
Compacting Concrete” by; Journal of advanced
Concrete Technology, Vol 1, No.1, 5-15, April
2003
[6] IS 456-2000, Indian Standard Plain and Reinforced
Concrete-Code of Practice, 4th revision, 1st
Reprint, September 2000.
[7] Jianxin Ma and Jorg Dietz by “Ultra High
Performance Self Compacting Concrete” ACI
363R-92, Re-approved 1997. “State-of-the-Art
Report on High-Strength Concrete”, ACI, Detroit,
USA.
[8] Khayat,K.H: and Aitcin, P.C., “Use of Self-
Consolidating Concrete in Canada”. Proc.
International Workshop on Self-Compacting
Concrete”, 23-26 Aug, 1998, Japan, pp 11-22.
[9] Murthi P; Siva Kumar V “Studies on the
Relationship between Compressive Strength and
Splitting Tensile Strength of Ternary Blended
Concrete”, Volume 89, February 18, 2009. Journal
of the Institution of Engineers (India).
[10] Mehta and Burrows (2001), “High Performance
Concrete” E&FN SPON, New-York.1998. khayat,
K.H., “Workability, Testing, and Performance of
self-Consolidating Concrete”, ACI Material
Journal, Vol.96, No.3, may-June 1999, pp 346-
353.
[11] M. V. Seshagiri Rao “Self Compacting High
Performance Concrete”, JNTUCE, Hyderabad
[12] P. Srinivasa Rao, Seshadri sekhar T “Strength
properties of glass fibre self-compacted concrete”.
Journal of Institution of Engineers, vol 88, Feb,
2008, pp61-65.
[13] R.Bornemann, and Schmidt, M., “the role of
powders in concrete”, Proceedings of 6Th
International symposium on the utilization of High
strength/High performance concrete, Vol. 2,
Leipzig, June 2002, pp 863-872.
[14] S.Girish, B.S.Putte Gowda, Jagadish Vengala and
R.V. Ranganth. “Influence of different Super
Plasticizers on the properties of SCC”
International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering
ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 542-545
[15] S.Subramanian and Chattopadyay.D ‘Experiments
for Mix Proportions of Self Compacting Concrete’,
The Indian Concrete Journal, January 2002, pp.13-
20
[16] Su, N.; Hsu, K-C.: and Chai, H=W., “A simple
mix design method for self-compacting concrete,”
Cement and Concrete Research 31 (2001) 1799-
1807.
[17] S.P. Pandey, A.K. Singh, R.L.Sharma, A.K.Tiwari.
“Studies on high-performance blended/
multiblended cements and their Durability
characteristics”. Cement and concrete research 33
(2003) Pg 1433-1436.
[18] “Self-Compacting Concrete”, the Indian Concrete
Journal, Vol.78, No.6 June 2002.
[19] T. Suresh Babu, M.V. Seshagiri Rao and D. Rama
Seshu Mechanical properties and stress- strain
behaviour of Self compacting concrete with and
without glass fibres Asian Journal of Civil
Engineering VOL. 9, NO. 5 (2008) Pg 457-472
[20] Vaishali. G.Ghorpade et al., “To study the High
Performance concrete” International Journal of
Engineering Science and Technology (IJEST)
Feb2011.
[21] I.S. 12269-1989 Specifications for 53 grade
Ordinary Portland Cement.
[22] I.S. 383-1970 Specification for Coarse and Fine
Aggregate from Natural Sources for concrete.
[23] 23) I.S. 456-2000 Indian Standard plain
Reinforced concrete code of practice.
[24] I.S. 10262-1982 “Recommended Guidelines for
concrete Mix Design”, Indian Standards.
[25] M.S. Shetty “Advanced Concrete Technology
“Revised Edition, S.Chand & Co. LTD., New
Delhi, 2006
[26] B.Narendra Kumar, P.Sinivasa Rao “study on
hardened properties of ultra-high strength self-
compacting fiber reinforced concrete” IJCEA
ISSN NO.2249-426x, Volume 3, number 2(2013)
[27] B.Narendra Kumar, P.Sinivasa Rao “Effect of W/P
Ratio on High Strength Self Compacting Fiber
Reinforced Concrete” ICI-IWC 2013 Page 460.
[28] B.Narendra Kumar, P.Sinivasa Rao “Development
of Ultra High Strength Self Compacting Fiber
Reinforced Concrete with Quartz sand & Quartz
powder” NUiCONE- 2013 Page 53.
 Indexed in
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ISSN 0974-5904, Volume 07, No. 04

Mechanical Properties of Self Curing Concrete Using Polyethylene

Glycol and Fly Ash as Partial Replacement for Cement
D. ANNAPURNA AND N. VENKATA RAMANA
Osmania University, Hyderabad, Telangana State, INDIA
Email: annapurna_ouce@yahoo.com, nvr9736@gmail.com

Abstract: Today concrete is the most popular construction material because of naturally available ingredients and
its most affordability to built to desired shape. The most important aspect in usage of concrete is the development of
desired strength which crucially depends on hydration of cement mortar. Due to depletion of ground water table the
availability of water is posing several problems to construction activities. Also in the areas where the water is
chemically not in the range of ph value specified for usage in concrete, the unit cost of concrete increases adversely.
Studies are made using Light weight aggregate, Super Absorbent Polymers (SAP), Poly Ethylene Glycol (PEG 400)
for internal curing of concrete. Light weight aggregate can negatively impact strength and can lead to variability in
performance. The additional cost incurred in using polyethelene glycol can be reduced by usage of fly ash as partial
replacement for cement in order to reduce the unit cost. Also it was observed that the fly ash reduces heat of
hydration and increases the resistance of concrete to adverse exposure conditions. In the present study the optimum
partial replacement of fly ash for M 20 and M40 grades were studied using polyethylene glycol at 0.5% and 1%
dosages. The fly ash replacement levels were chosen from 0%, 10%, 20%, 30% and 40%. It is observed that though
higher compressive strengths at 28 days attained at replacement level of 10% but the strengths observed at
replacement level of 20%( i.e. 10.9% higher than target mean strength for M20 concrete at 1.00% PEG dosage and
4.66% higher than target mean strength for M40 concrete at 0.5% PEG dosage) can be considered in view of
economy and durability of concrete in the long run. At the same replacement level the split tensile strength was
observed to be 7.05% lesser than conventional concrete for M20 grade at 1.00 % PEG dosage and 2.95% lower than
conventional concrete for M40 grade at 0.5% PEG dosage. The modulus of rupture for M20 & M40 concrete was
3.10% & 2.55% lower than conventional concrete at 1.00% & 0.5% PEG dosages respectively.
Keywords: Self Curing Concrete, PEG 400, Optimum replacement of Fly Ash, Fly ash concrete, Internal curing.

1. Introduction: When the mineral admixtures react completely in a

1.1. General:
Curing means maintaining a satisfactory moisture
content and temperature in concrete in order to achieve
the desired strength and hardness. Conventional curing
procedures of water ponding are not effective in the
case of autogenous shrinkage. External curing might be
difficult to apply to some surfaces. Without adequate
water and due to insufficient hydration, concrete tends
to be weak. Properly cured concrete has better durability
and better surface hardness and is less permeable. Self
or internal curing can be used as a means to see water
intended for hydration is fully utilised either by
providing additional internal water reservoirs or by
chemically altering the evaporation phenomena by
reducing vapour pressure.
1.2 Need for self–curing:
blended cement system, their demand for curing water
(external or internal) can be much greater than that in a
conventional ordinary Portland cement concrete. When
this water is not readily available, due to depercolation
of the capillary porosity, for example, significant
autogenous deformation and (early-age) cracking may
result.
Due to the chemical shrinkage occurring during cement
hydration, empty pores are created within the cement
paste, leading to a reduction in its internal relative
humidity and also to shrinkage which may cause early-
age cracking. This situation is intensified in HPC
(compared to conventional concrete) due to its generally
higher cement content, reduced water/cement (w/ c)
ratio and the pozzolanic mineral admixtures (fly ash,
silica fume).
1.3. Advantages of self/internal curing:

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Proceedings of 3-Day International Conference on Emerging Trends in Civil Engineering (ICETE-2014,)
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 547 D. ANNAPURNA AND N. VENKATA R AMANA

 Internal curing (IC) makes the water intended for replacement of cement using fly ash for self-curing
hydration is fully utilised either by providing concrete using Polyethylene Glycol (PEG 400).
internal water reservoirs or by keeping the vapour
2. Experimental programme:
pressure low thereby reducing evaporation.
 Increases mortar strength, early age strength The experimental program was designed to investigate
sufficient to withstand strain that can cause cracking the strength of self-curing concrete by adding poly
(12 to 72 hours) and eliminates largely autogenous ethylene glycol PEG400 @ 0.0%, 0.5%, 1.00% for M40
shrinkage. grade and 0.00%, 0.5%, 1.00%for M20 grade plain
 Reduces permeability, Protects reinforcing steel concretes. The water cement ratios used were 0.38 and
hence provides greater durability. 0.52. Prof Jayeshkumar Pitroda et al. [10] studied for
 Lower turnaround time, lower maintenance, and M30, M40, M50 concretes and the water cement ratio
improved rheology. required to be employed to attain same 28 days strength
with different fly ash replacement levels. For M 40
1.4. Potential materials for IC: Concrete the water cement ratio arrived was 0.34 with
The following materials can provide internal water 28 days strength slightly less than target mean strength
reservoirs: (47.85 Mpa<48.25Mpa) for 35% replacement level. It
 Lightweight Aggregate (natural and synthetic, was taken as guidance in this study and 0.33 was chosen
expanded shale), as water cement ratio. For M20 concrete it was chosen
 LWS Sand (Water absorption =17 %) as 0.5. The specimens were casted without self-curing
agent and with self-curing agent at 0.5% and 1.00% to
 LWA 19mm Coarse (Water absorption = 20%)
make a comparative study. The fly ash replacement was
 Super-absorbent Polymers (SAP) (60-300 mm size)
varied between 10% to 40% for partial replacement of
 SRA (Shrinkage Reducing Admixture) (propylene
cement. The optimum replacement for cement by fly
glycol type i.e. polyethylene-glycol)
ash was studied and the constituents of the mixes
 Wood powder executed were shown below. (It was found that 1% of
1.5. Poly ethylene glycol: PEG 400 by weight was optimum for M20 grade while
0.5% was optimum for M40 grade (M.V. Jagannadha
Polyethylene glycol is a condensation polymer of Kumar et al.) [9]).
ethylene oxide and water with the general formula
H(OCH2CH2)nOH, where n is the average number of 3. Materials:
repeating oxyethylene groups typically from 4 to about The different materials used in this project were
180. The abbreviation (PEG) is termed in combination Cement, Fine aggregate, Coarse aggregate, Poly
with a numeric suffix which indicates the average ethylene glycol-400, Fly ash type F, Super plasticizer
molecular weights. One common feature of PEG (CONPLAST SP-430)
appears to be the water-soluble nature. Polyethylene
glycol is non-toxic, odourless, neutral, lubricating, non- 3.1. Properties of Polyethylene Glycol:
volatile and non-irritating and is used in a variety of Properties of Polyethylene Glycol (PEG 400) are shown
pharmaceuticals. Continuous evaporation of moisture in Table 1.
takes place from an exposed surface due to the
difference in chemical potentials (free energy) between Table1: Properties of Polyethylene Glycol-400
the vapour and liquid phases. The polymers added in the Trade name POLYMEG-400PH
mix mainly form hydrogen bonds with water molecules
Synonyms Macrogol-400 ; PEG-400
and reduce the chemical potential of the molecules
Chemical formula HO ( CH2CH2O )nH
which in turn reduces the vapour pressure, thus reducing
Chemical Polymer of Ethylene oxide
the rate of evaporation from the surface.
Form Liquid
1.6. Need and objective of the present study: Colour Colourless
Odour Characteristic
The usage of shrinkage reducing admixtures such as Boiling point °C >250
Polyethylene glycol increases the unit cost of concrete. Flash point °C > 245
The usage of fly ash as partial replacement for cement Specific gravity@20°C 1.13
helps in reducing this unit cost. Also it was observed Viscosity @ 98.9°C,cst 6.9 -8.0
that the fly ash reduces heat of hydration and increases pH ( 5% aq.sol) 4.5 –7.5
the resistance of concrete to adverse exposure soluble in water and insoluble
Solubility
conditions. Hence to economise the unit cost the present in aliphatic hydrocarbon
study aims at determining the optimum partial Ignition temperature °C ~ 380

International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering

ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp.546-551
 Mechanical Properties of Self Curing Concrete Using Polyethylene Glycol and
548
Fly Ash as Partial Replacement for Cement

3.2 Constituents of mix:

The M20 and M40 grades of concrete are designed and the material required per cubic meter of concrete is shown in
Table 2
Table2: Constituents of the Mixes M20 & M40 Per Cum
Fine Coarse
Mix Super
S. W/C Cement Fly Ash Aggre- Aggre- Water PEG
Mix Mix Type designati Plasticiz
No Ratio in Kg in Kg gate in gate in in Lit 400
on er
Kg Kg
0.5% &
1 Plain Concrete M1 0.52 352 0 712 1146 183 0
1.00%
Mix with Fly 0.5% &
M2 0.5 352 712 1165 176 0
Ash replacement 1.00%
0.5% &
10% 0.5 316.8 35.2 712 1165 176 0
1.00%
M20
0.5% &
2 20% 0.5 281.6 70.4 712 1165 176 0
1.00%
0.5% &
30% 0.5 246.4 105.6 712 1165 176 0
1.00%
0.5% &
40% 0.5 211.2 140.8 712 1165 176 0
1.00%
0.5% &
1 Plain Concrete M3 0.38 442 0 702 1110 168 0.60%
1.00%
Mix with Fly 0.5% &
M4 0.33 442 706 1164 146 0.80%
Ash replacement 1.00%
0.5% &
10% 0.33 397.8 44.2 706 1164 146 0.80%
1.00%
M40
0.5% &
2 20% 0.33 353.6 88.4 706 1164 146 0.80%
1.00%
0.5% &
30% 0.33 309.4 132.6 706 1164 146 0.80%
1.00%
0.5% &
40% 0.33 265.2 176.8 706 1164 146 0.80%
1.00%
3.3 Mix notation: 4. Results & discussion:
The notation followed for the different mixes is 4.1. Slump and compaction factor:
presented in Table 3.
It was observed that the workability was increased with
Table3: Mix notation the increase in PEG % for both plain concrete and fly
ash replaced concrete for both M20 & M40. Though the
Mix
S. No Description water cement ratio was reduced for the fly ash replaced
notation
concrete mix the workability was on par with the
M 20 mix with w/c ratio of 0.52 normal mix with relatively lower water cement ratio.
1 M1 and with self-curing agent PEG This can be attributed to the replacement of fly ash
400 from 0 to 1.00% which enhances the workability.
M 20 mix with w/c ratio of 0.50,
and partial replacement of fly ash 4.2. Compressive strength:
2 M2 ranging from 10% to 40% and 4.2.1. Compressive strength at 7 days:
self-curing agent PEG 400 from
0 to 1.00% The results of the compressive strength at 7 days are
M 40 mix with w/c ratio of 0.38 presented in graphical form in the Figure 1.
3 M3 and with self-curing agent PEG
400 from 0 to 1.00 %
M 40 mix with w/c ratio of 0.33,
and partial replacement of fly ash
4 M4 ranging from 10% to 40% and
with self-curing agent PEG 400
from 0 to 1.00 %

International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering

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 549 D. ANNAPURNA AND N. VENKATA R AMANA

Figure2: Compressive strength of M 20 & M40

Figure1: Compressive strength of M 20 & M 40
concrete at 7 days
4.2.2. Compressive strength at 28 days:
The results of the compressive strength at 28 days are
presented in graphical form in the Figure 2. The
compresive strength at 28 days for plain self cured
concrete was optimum at 1.00% PEG dosage i.e 35.59
Mpa for M20 grade concrete. With the replacement of
fly ash the optimum value was obtained at 10%
replacement with normally cured concrete i.e 34.5 Mpa
and the value obtained under self cured condition was
optimum at 1.00 % PEG dosage i.e. 33.8 Mpa. For M40
grade concrete the compresive strength at 28 days for
plain self cured concrete was optimum at 0.50% PEG
dosage i.e 55.89 Mpa. For fly ash replaced concrete the
optimum value was obtained at 10% replacement with
normally cured concrete i.e 54.55 Mpa and the value
obtained under self cured condition was optimum at
0.50 % PEG dosage i.e. 54.13 Mpa. (Figure 2)
concrete at 28 days
With the increase of fly ash the compressive strengths
noticed to be decreased both at 7 days and 28 day for
both M20 &M40 concretes for both normal concrete
and self cured concretes. Increase in compressive
strength with addition of PEG i.e self cured concretes
was obtained with plain concrete, but in case of Fly ash
replaced concrete decrease in compressive strength than
normally cured concrete was noticed.
At 10% replacement for M20 concrete the compressive
strength at 0.5& 1.00% PEG dosages was reduced to
90% & 98 % of concrete cured under normal
conditions.At 40% replacement for M20 concrete the
compressive strength at 0.5& 1.00% PEG dosages was
reduced to 74% & 75 % of concrete cured under normal
conditions. Similar trend was noticed in M40 concrete
also. The negative effect on stregth due to addition of
Fly ash was marginal upto 20% replacement and
thereafter the stregths obtained under normally cured
condition were comparatively on higher side. The
strength gaining noticed under normally cured
conditions were observed to be more than that under
self cured condition. It may be either due to the process
of strength gaining due to formation of C-S-H gel under
pozzolonic action of fly ash is seems to be hampered to

International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering

ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp.546-551
 Mechanical Properties of Self Curing Concrete Using Polyethylene Glycol and
550
Fly Ash as Partial Replacement for Cement

a significant extent under self cured conditions or the
process of self curing due to formation of bonding with
Hydrogen and reducing vapour pressure of water
thereby reducing evaporation was not taking place
because of certain other chemical constituents present in
the fly ash. It shows that PEG is not much effective at
higher replacement levels of fly ash.
Though higher strengths were noticed at 10% fly ash
replacement for both M20 & M40 self cured concretes
the strength obtained at 20% replacement level can be
considered as the strength obtained at 0.5% PEG dosage
was 4.66% higher than the target mean strength for M
40 Concrete and in case of M20 grade concrete at
1.00% PEG dosage the strength obtained was 10.9 %
higher than target mean strength. The difference for
low PEG dosage for M40 concrete could be that
quantity of PEG added more than 0.5% would not be
effective for increase in strength and contributes to
higher water cement ratio resulting in lower strength.
Hence Fly ash replacement level of 20% for self cured
concrete can be considered in view of economy and
durability in the long run.
4.3. Split tensile strength:
The results of the split tensile strength at 7 days are
presented in graphical form in Figure 3.
curing with PEG dosage of 1.00% and upto 2.82% for
plain concrete for M40 grade in self curing with PEG
dosage of 0.5%. In case of fly ash replaced concrete
with the increase in fly ash the split tensile strength was
decreased in self cured concrete when compared to
normally cured concrete. The decrease in split tensile
strength of self cured concrete with fly ash replacement
level of 20% for PEG dosage of 1.00% for M20
concrete was 7.05%, where as for M40 concrete the
decrease in stregth noticed was 2.95% at PEG dosage of
0.50%. (Figure 3.)
4.4. Modulus of Rupture:
The results of the Modulusof rupture at 28 days are
presented in graphical form in Figure 4. The Modulus of
rupture was found to increase upto 5.10% for plain
concrete for M20 grade in self curing with PEG dosage
of 1.00% and upto 2.97% for plain concrete for M40
grade in self curing with PEG dosage of 0.5%. In case
of fly ash replaced concrete with the increase in fly ash
the Modulus of rupture was decreased in self cured
concrete when compared to normally cured concrete.
The decrease in Modulus of rupture of self cured
concrete with fly ash replacement level of 20% for PEG
dosage of 1.00% for M20 concrete was 3.10%, where
as for M40 concrete the decrease in stregth noticed was
2.55% at PEG dosage of 0.50%.

Figure3: Split tensile strength of M 20 & M40 concrete

at 28 days
Figure4: Modulus of rupture of M20 Concrete at 28
The split tensile strength was found to increase
days
upto2.67% for plain concrete for M20 grade in self

International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering

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 551 D. ANNAPURNA AND N. VENKATA R AMANA

Conclusion: [9] M V. Jagannadha Kumar, M. Srikanth,. K.

Jagannadha Rao “Strength Characteristics Of Self-
1. The workability was increased with the increase in
Curing Concrete”, ISSN: 2319 - 1163 Volume: 1
PEG dosage in plain and fly ash replaced
Issue: 1 IJRET | SEP 2012
concrete.
[10] Jayeshkumar Pitroda, Dr. L.B.Zala and, Dr. F.S.
2. The compressive strength, split tensile strength and
Umrigar, “Experimental Investigations on Partial
modulus of rupture in plain concrete for M20
replacement of Cement with Fly Ash in Design
grade was found to be optimum at 1.00% PEG
Mix Concrete, “International Journal of Advanced
dosage and for M40 concrete it was optimum at
Engineering Technology, E-ISSN: 0976-3945,
0.5% PEG dosage. It is observed that 20%
IJAET/Vol.III/Issue IV/Oct-Dec 2012/126-129.
replacement is economical and durable as the
[11] C.Marthong, T.P.Agrawal, “Effect of Fly Ash
compressive strength observed is higher than target
Additive on Concrete Properties”, International
mean strength for both M20 & M40 concretes at
Journal of Engineering Research and Applications
0.5% and 1.00% PEG dosages.
(IJERA) ISSN: 2248- 9622, Vol. 2, Issue4, July-
3. Considering the cost of curing, and replacement of
August 2012, pp.1986-1991.
fly ash upto 20% will meet the additional cost
incurred for self curing of concrete with PEG 400
and is economical and recommended for
sustainable environment.
Reference
[1] Klieger P., “Early High Strength Concrete for
Prestressing”, Proceedings World Conference on
Prestressed Concrete, San Francisco, CA, July
1957, A5-1 to A5-14.
[2] Weber, S. and Reinhardt, H.W., “A New
Generation of High Performance Concrete:
Concrete with Autogenous Curing,” Advanced
Cement Based Materials, Vol. 6, No.2, August
1997, pp 59-68.
[3] Lura P., “Autogenous deformation and internal
curing of concrete” Ph.D Thesis, Delft university,
Delft, The Netherlands, 2003.
[4] M.R. Geiker, D.P. Bentz, and O.M. Jensen, “High-
Performance Structural Lightweight Concrete”,
American Concrete Institute Special Publication
218, John P. Ries and Thomas A. Holm, eds., pp.
143-148, 2004.
[5] A.S. El-Dieb, “Self curing concrete, water
retention, Hydration and moisture transport,
Science Direct, Construction and building
materials”, PNos: 1282-1287, May 2005.
[6] Dale P Bentz, Pietri Kura and John W. Roberts,
“Mix proportioning for internal curing” Concrete
international, P: 35-40, Feb 2005.
[7] JoAnn Browning, David Darwin, Diane Reynolds,
and Benjamin Pendergrass,” Lightweight
Aggregate as Internal Curing Agent to Limit
Concrete Shrinkage”, Title no. 108-M68, ACI
Materials Journal, PP:638-644, November-
December 2011
[8] Garje Rajesh Kumar, “Self Curing Concrete”,
International RILEM Conference on Advances in
Construction Materials Through Science and
Engineering, RILEM Publications SARL,
2011,Pages: 116 – 123

International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering

ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp.546-551
 Indexed in
Scopus Compendex and Geobase Elsevier, Chemical
Abstract Services-USA, Geo-Ref Information Services-USA,
List B of Scientific Journals, Poland,
Directory of Research Journals
www.cafetinnova.org August 2014, P.P.552-556
ISSN 0974-5904, Volume 07, No. 04

Short-Term Durability Test on Compressive Behavior of Concrete

Cylinders Confined With FRP Composites under Various
Environmental Conditions
MURUGAN M, NATARAJAN C AND MUTHUKKUMARAN K
National Institute of Technology, Trichy – 620 015
Email: muruganme@yahoo.co.in, nataraj@nitt.edu, kmk@nitt.edu

Abstract: This study concentrated on the durability evaluation of the concrete cylinder specimens strengthened with
GFRP and CFRP laminates. Two types of durability exposure tests were carried out. First, the specimens were
exposed to natural outdoor weather. Second, the specimens were immersed in tap water. The parameters varied in
this investigation were wrapping materials (which include glass and carbon fibre reinforced polymers), orientation
of fibres (along the length and circumference of the specimens) and exposure conditions (natural outdoor weather
and tap water immersion). The experimental result shows that the specimens wrapped with carbon fibre reinforced
polymers have higher compressive strength than the specimens wrapped with glass fibre reinforced polymers. A
significant increasing trend of compressive strength from 1 to 3 months for both the exposure conditions (natural
outdoor weather and tap water immersion) was noted. This was attributed mainly to the post curing effects.
Keywords: CFRP, GFRP, epoxy, compressive strength.

1. Introduction: environmental conditions which include natural outdoor

and tap water exposure on the compressive behavior of
Traditional retrofitting techniques that use steel and
concrete specimens confined with FRP composites.
cementitious materials do not always offer the most
Triantafillou and Antonopoulos (2000) tested the
appropriate solutions. Whereas, retrofitting with FRP
concrete split tensile members strengthened in shear
may provide a more economical and technically
with FRP. Experimental results show that FRP
superior alternative to the traditional techniques in many
strengthening improves the shear capacity of split
situations. FRP composite materials possess superior
tensile members. Nishizaki and Meiarashi (2001)
mechanical properties, it includes corrosion resistance,
studied the long-term deterioration of GFRP in water
impact resistance, excellent durability, high strength-to-
and moist environment. Experimental results shows that
weight ratio, light in weight, versatility, ease of
cracks emerged on the surface of the GFRP specimens
installation, electromagnetic neutrality, excellent fatigue
and that the weight of the specimens decreased during
behavior, fire resistance, creep, stiffness and geometry
the deterioration test. The bending strengths of the
than traditional reinforcing materials such as steel and
GFRP specimens dropped compared to initial bending
cementitious materials, and can result in less labour-
strength values. Lamanna et al. (2004) carried out an
intensive and less equipment intensive retrofitting work.
experimental work on split tensile strengthening of
The aim of this research was to assess the exposure of
reinforced concrete specimens by mechanically
two environments (natural outdoor weather and tap
attaching fibre-reinforced polymer strips. It has been
water) on the compressive behavior of concrete
observed that mechanically attached FRP strips showed
cylinders confined with FRP composites. In this paper,
a greater ductility than the specimen strengthened with a
durability is defined as the ability of concrete cylinders
bonded FRP strip. Sen and Mullins (2007) studied the
confined with FRP composite materials to retain its
application of FRP composites for underwater piles
original physical, chemical and mechanical properties
repair. They suggested that the bi-directional material
when exposed to natural outdoor weather and immersed
should be preferred over uni-directional material and
in tap water. The effect of the two environments on the
carbon fibre over glass fibre. Bousselham and Chaallal
compressive strength of FRP confined concrete
(2008b) conducted an experimental study on shear
cylinders was also determined. Several studies have
resistance of concrete specimens strengthened in shear
been undertaken to investigate the effects of various
with externally bonded FRP. Test results indicate that

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Proceedings of 3-Day International Conference on Emerging Trends in Civil Engineering (ICETE-2014,)
6th–8th January, 2014
 553 MURUGAN M, N ATARAJAN C AND M UTHUKKUMARAN K
the shear resistance of concrete specimens increases
when specimens strengthened in shear with externally
bonded FRP. Sangeetha and Sumathi (2010)
investigated the behavior of Glass fibre wrapped
concrete columns under uniaxial compression. The
study concluded that confinement increased the strength
of the concrete columns loaded axially. El-Hacha et al.
(2010) studied the effect of severe environmental
exposures on CFRP wrapped concrete columns. The
CFRP wrapping of concrete cylinders showed
significant improvement in terms of strength, stiffness,
and ductility under severe environmental exposures in
comparison to the unwrapped cylinders. Rao et al.
(2012) conducted experimental investigation on the
strength degradation of GFRP laminates under
environmental impact. From the investigation it was
observed that there was a remarkable reduction in
mechanical strength (young’s and flexural modulus) in
GFRP composite laminates which were subjected to
different environmental conditions.
2. Materials and Methods:
2.1. Material Properties:
The characteristic compressive strength of concrete used
for the study was 30 MPa. The mix ratio adopted was 1:
1.204: 2.755: 0.385 (cement: Fine aggregate: Coarse
aggregate: Water). The compressive strength of
concrete cubes after 28 days water curing was 41.44
MPa.
2.2. Preparation and casting of specimens:
The specimens were prepared by casting them in steel
moulds with a size of 150 mm diameter and 300 mm in
length. The interior of the steel mould was applied a
liberal coat of lubricating oil to prevent concrete from
adhering to the mould. The designed concrete mix was
filled into the moulds in layers. Adequate compaction
was carried out using table vibrator to avoid honey
combing. After one day of casting, specimens were
demoulded and immersed in water for curing.
2.3. Properties of fibre reinforced polymers:
Glass and carbon fibre reinforced polymers were used in
the study. Properties of GFRP and CFRP materials are
given in the Table 1.
Table1: Properties of FRP materials
CFRP GFRP
Properties
Unidirectional Unidirectional Bidirectional
Weight of
200 920 750
fibre (g/m2)
Fibre
thickness 0.3 0.90 0.6
(mm)
International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering
ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 552-556
Nominal
thickness
0.5 1.5 1
per layer
(mm)
Primary
fibre tensile
strength
3500 3400 3400
(N/mm2)
Tensile
Modulus 285000 73000 73000
(N/mm2)
2.4. Wrapping with FRP:
The cured specimens were prepared for wrapping with
FRPs. The surfaces of the specimens were ground with
an emery sheet to remove loose and deleterious material
from the surface. Then, FRP wrapping was done by the
epoxy adhesive. The wrapped surfaces were gently
pressed with a rubber roller to ensure proper adhesion
between the layers and proper distribution of resin.
3. Experimental investigation:
The present paper investigates the mechanical durability
of concrete cylinders confined with FRP composites
subjected to various environmental conditions which
include natural outdoor weather and water exposure by
performing compression test. The variation of
compressive properties was considered for exposure
periods ranging from 1 to 3 months. The test was
performed in accordance with IS 516:1959. A standard
test cylinder of 300 mm length and 150 mm diameter
was placed vertically between the loading surfaces of
compression testing machine. The compression load
was applied vertically and uniformly until the failure of
the cylinder. Experimental investigation has been
conducted on 90 specimens. Three specimens were
tested for each test and the average of three values was
taken for further study. FRP wrapped concrete cylinders
exposed to natural outdoor weather and water
immersions are shown in Fig.1 and 2. Compressive
failure of FRP wrapped concrete cylinders are shown in
Fig.3 and 4.
Fig1: FRP wrapped concrete cylinders exposed to
natural outdoor weather
 Geochemical Short-Term Durability Test on Compressive Behavior of Concrete
554
Cylinders Confined With FRP Composites under Various Environmental Conditions

Fig2: FRP wrapped concrete cylinders immersed in

water
Fig4: Failure of unidirectional CFRP wrapped
cylinders along the circumference
4. Experimental results and discussion:
28 days cured specimens were wrapped with glass and
carbon fibre reinforced polymers. Unidirectional glass
and carbon fibre reinforced polymers were wrapped
along the length and circumference of the specimens. In
addition to this bidirectional glass fibre reinforced
polymers also used for this study. FRP confined
concrete cylinders subjected to various environmental
conditions which include natural outdoor weather and
water exposure to study the effect of environmental
conditions on the compressive strength. Table 2 shows
Fig3: Failure of unidirectional GFRP wrapped the results of tested specimens.
cylinders along the circumference
Table2: Results of tested specimens
Compressive strength of concrete cylinders (N/mm2)
Exposure condition
Specimen descriptions Exposed to water
Unexposed Exposed to natural
immersion
concrete outdoor weather (months)
(months)
cylinders
1 3 1 3
Unconfined concrete cylinders 34.94 35.48 36.64 36.26 37.98
Concrete cylinders confined with
unidirectional GFRP mat along 48.07 48.68 49.36 49.32 50.68
the circumference
Concrete cylinders confined with
unidirectional GFRP mat along 42.70 43.52 44.66 44.16 45.67
the length
Concrete cylinders confined with
46.23 47.08 48.32 47.48 49.04
bidirectional GFRP mat
Concrete cylinders confined with
unidirectional CFRP mat along 57.51 58.28 59.18 58.96 60.23
the circumference
Concrete cylinders confined with
unidirectional CFRP mat along 44.74 45.36 46.42 45.88 47.25
the length

International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering

ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 552-556
 555 MURUGAN M, N ATARAJAN C AND M UTHUKKUMARAN K

4.1. Effect of FRP wrapping materials:

To determine the effect of FRP wrapping materials on
the compressive strength of concrete, the specimens
were wrapped with glass and carbon fibre reinforced
polymers. The experimental results shows that the
specimens wrapped with carbon fibre reinforced
polymers has higher compressive strength than the
specimens wrapped with glass fibre reinforced
polymers. This was due to the high tensile strength of
carbon fibres than glass fibres. Fig. 5 shows the
variation of compressive strength of concrete cylinders
confined with glass and carbon fibre reinforced
polymers. Fig6: Compressive strength concrete cylinders confined
 The percentage increase in compressive strength of with FRPs along the circumference and length.
specimens (after 28 days curing) wrapped with
unidirectional GFRP and CFRP mat were 22.21 and 4.3. Effect of natural outdoor weather:
28.05 % for wrapping along the length of the To determine the effect of natural outdoor weather on
specimens and 37.58 and 64.60 % for wrapping the compressive strength of FRP wrapped concrete
along the circumference of the specimens cylinders, the FRP wrapped concrete cylinders were
respectively (Ref.Fig.5). exposed to natural outdoor weather for periods ranging
from 1 to 3 months. A significant increasing trend of
compressive strength for natural outdoor weather
condition from 1 to 3 months was noted. This was
attributed mainly to the post curing effects of concrete
and epoxy polymer. The variation of the average
compressive strength after conditioning to natural
outdoor weather is illustrated in Fig 7. The percentage
increase in average compressive strength of FRP
confined concrete cylinders exposed to natural outdoor
weather from 1 to 3 months were 1.551 and 3.691 %
when compared with unexposed FRP confined concrete
cylinders.
Fig5: Compressive strength of concrete cylinders
confined with GFRP and CFRP mats.
4.2. Effect of fibre orientation:
To determine the effect of fibre orientation on the
compressive strength of concrete specimens, the
specimens were wrapped with unidirectional fibres
along the circumference and length of the specimens.
The experimental result shows that the orientation of the
fibres along the circumference of the specimen has
higher compressive strength than the orientation of the
fibre along the length of the specimen for both CFRP
and GFRP wrapping. This was due to the high tensile Fig7: Average compressive strength of concrete
strength of fibres along its length. Fig. 6 shows the cylinders after conditioning to natural outdoor weather
variation of compressive strength of concrete cylinders
confined with FRPs along the length and circumference 4.4. Effect of water immersion:
of the cylinders. To determine the effect of water exposure on the
 The percentage increase in compressive strength of compressive strength of FRP wrapped concrete
specimens (after 28 days curing) wrapped along the cylinders, the FRP wrapped concrete cylinders were
length and circumference of the specimens were exposed to water immersion for periods ranging from 1
22.21 and 37.58 % for unidirectional GFRP to 3 months. The water immersed FRP wrapped
wrapping and 28.05 and 64.60 % for unidirectional concrete cylinders for 1 to 3 months also revealed
CFRP wrapping respectively (Ref.Fig.6). increase in compressive strength. This was also

International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering

ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 552-556
 Geochemical Short-Term Durability Test on Compressive Behavior of Concrete
Cylinders Confined With FRP Composites under Various Environmental Conditions
attributed to the post curing effects of concrete and
epoxy polymer. The variation of the average
compressive strength after conditioning to water
exposure is illustrated in Fig. 8.
 The percentage increase in average compressive
strength of FRP confined concrete cylinders
immersed in water from 1 to 3 months were 2.758
and 5.761 % when compared with unexposed FRP
confined concrete cylinders.
Fig8: Average compressive strength of concrete
cylinders after conditioning to water immersion
5. Conclusions:
The present study used 90 concrete cylinders, wrapped
with unidirectional and bidirectional FRPs. Based on the
experimental results, the following Conclusions are
made.
 Orientation of the fibres along the circumference of
the specimens has higher compressive strength than
the orientation of the fibres along the length of the
specimens for both CFRP and GFRP wrapping.
 Specimens wrapped with carbon fibre reinforced
polymers have higher compressive strength than the
specimens wrapped with glass fibre reinforced
polymers.
 A significant increasing trend of compressive
strength for natural outdoor weather condition from
1 to 3 months was noted. This was attributed
mainly to the post curing effects of concrete and
epoxy polymer.
International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering
ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 552-556
556
 The water immersed FRP wrapped concrete
cylinders for 1 to 3 months also revealed increase in
compressive strength. This was also attributed to
the post curing effects of concrete and epoxy
polymer.
6. Acknowledgements:
The authors wish to thank Fosroc Chemicals (India) Pvt.
Ltd., for supply of fibre composites and epoxy used in
this work.
7. Reference:
[1] Triantafillou, T. C., and Antonopoulos, C.P. (2000).
“Design of concrete split tensile members
strengthened in shear with FRP.” Journal of
Composites for Construction, 04(04), 198-205.
[2] Nishizaki, I., and Meiarashi, S. (2001). “Long-
Term Deterioration of GFRP in Water and Moist
Environment.” Journal of Composites for
Construction, 06(01), 21-27.
[3] Lamanna, A. J., Bank, L.C., and Scott, D. W.
(2004). “Split tensile strengthening of reinforced
concrete Specimens by mechanically attaching
fibre-reinforced polymer strips.” Journal of
Composites for Construction, 08(03), 203-210.
[4] Sen, R., and Mullins, G. (2007). “Application of
FRP composites for underwater piles repair.”
Journal of Composites, 38, 751-758.
[5] Bousselham, A., and Chaallal, O. (2008).
“Mechanisms of shear resistance of concrete
Specimens strengthened in shear with externally
bonded FRP.” Journal of Composites for
Construction, 12(05), 499-512.
[6] Sangeetha, P., and Sumathi, R. (2010). “Behaviour
of glass fibre wrapped concrete columns under
uniaxial compression.” International Journal of
Advanced Engineering Technology, 01(01), 74-83.
[7] El-Hacha, R., Green, M. F., and Wight, G. R.
(2010). “Effect of severe environmental exposures
on CFRP wrapped concrete columns.” Journal of
Composites for Construction, 14(01), 83-93.
[8] Rao, P. S., Husain, M. M., and Ravishankar, D. V.
(2012). “An investigation on strength degradation
of GFRP laminates under environmental impact.”
International Journal of Composite Materials,
02(04), 48-52.
 Indexed in
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Abstract Services-USA, Geo-Ref Information Services-USA,
List B of Scientific Journals, Poland,
Directory of Research Journals
www.cafetinnova.org August 2014, P.P.557-564
ISSN 0974-5904, Volume 07, No. 04

Investigation of Flexural Behavior of Geopolymer concrete Using

Recycled Coarse Aggregate
V BHIKSHMA, T NAVEEN KUMAR AND V VINAY KUMAR
Department of Civil Engineering, University College of Engineering, Osmania University, Hyderabad 500 007,
India
Email: v.bhikshma@yahoo.co.in

Abstract: Recycle coarse aggregate (RCA) is the main components of old concrete and for many reasons there is a
need to re-use them. It is better to re-use the waste aggregates as recycled aggregates in structural concrete, instead
disposed as waste material. This in turn causes environmental related problems. Geo-polymer concrete is concrete
which does not utilize Portland cement. The discovery of geo-polymers is a breakthrough which provides a cleaner
and environmentally-friendly alternative to ordinary Portland cement (OPC). In the manufacture of geo-polymer
concrete, fly ash and alkaline solutions such as sodium hydroxide (NaOH) and sodium silicate (Na 2OSiO2) and
potassium hydroxide (KOH) are used to make the binder necessary to manufacture the concrete. The experimental
work is carried out on fly ash based geo-polymer concrete using five different replacement ratios of recycled coarse
aggregate to natural coarse aggregate viz., 0%, 25%, 50%, 75% and 100%. To determine mechanical properties of
recycled coarse aggregate based geo-polymer concrete, two different moralities 12M, 16M of sodium hydroxide
with constant alkaline liquid to fly ash ratio of 0.5 were selected. Total of 30 cubes of 150mm x 150mmx 150mm
and 20 RCC beams 150 mm x 230 mm x 1500 mm specimens were caste and tested at age of 28days under ambient
curing condition. The test results gives cube compressive strength ranging from 36 MPa to 27 MPa, 45 MPa to 36
MPa for 12M,16M respectively. Similarly, range of moment carrying capacity of the RCC beams were obtained is
27 kNm to 24 kNm, 31 kNm to 28 kNm respectively for different replacement ratios of recycled coarse aggregate as
stated above.
Key Words: Fly ash, Geo-polymer concrete, Recycled coarse aggregate, Alkaline liquid, ambient curing,
mechanical properties.

1. Introduction: Portland Cement (OPC). Geopolymer is a new breed of

fly ash which is an end product in thermal power plant.
The enormous increase in the greenhouse effect causes
Geopolymer concrete is a revolutionary substitute to
ecological imbalance contributing to global warming
conventional ordinary Portland cement concrete with lot
which is at alarming rate. Firstly, reduce the
of advantages. Several studies have been carried out to
environmental problem second reduce the utilization of
reduce the use of Portland cement in concrete to address
natural resources. The cement industry is responsible for
the global warming issues. These include the utilization
about 6% of all CO2 emissions, because the production
of supplementary cementing materials such as fly ash,
of one ton of Portland cement emits approximately one
silica fume, granulated blast furnace slag, rice-husk ash
ton of CO2 into the atmosphere. In order to overcome
and metakaolin, and the development of alternative
the greenhouse effect caused by the manufacturing of
binders to Portland cement. Nowadays, Portland cement
the ordinary Portland cement an immediate need arise to
(PC) concrete is the most popular and widely used
find a suitable substitute for ordinary Portland cement.
building materials, due to its availability of the raw
First, reduce the environmental problem second reduce
materials over the world, its ease for preparing and
the utilization of natural resources. By the production
fabricating in all sorts of conceivable shapes.
and use of Recycled Aggregate, these advantages
include that lower environmental pollution, reduction in 2. Need of the work
valuable landfill space, and savings in natural aggregate To find alternative binder systems for making concrete
resource.The discovery of geopolymers is a with the byproduct materials like fly ash and demolition
breakthrough which provides a cleaner and waste recycled coarse aggregate which helps in the
environmentally-friendlier alternative to Ordinary reduction of CO2 emission. Geopolymers is a

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Proceedings of 3-Day International Conference on Emerging Trends in Civil Engineering (ICETE-2014,)
6th–8th January, 2014
 Investigation of Flexural Behavior of Geopolymer concrete Using
Recycled Coarse Aggregate
breakthrough which provides a cleaner and
environmentally - friendlier concrete alternative to
Ordinary Portland Cement (OPC), in this study the
flexural behavior of reinforced geopolymer concrete
using recycled coarse aggregate is studied which is
consideredas an alternative to the RCC structural
members, with varying proportions of RCA 0%, 25%,
50%, 75% and 100% using 12 and 16M alkaline
solution. Cast specimens were cured and tested for 28
days curing under ambient curing condition.
3. Aims and objectives
 To evaluate characteristic compressive strength
offly ash based geopolymer concrete by replacing
natural coarse aggregate with varying proportions
of recycled coarse aggregate.
 To study the flexural behavior of reinforced
Geopolimer concrete beams.
4. Scope of present investigation work
The experimental work is to conduct short-term tests on
the effect of recycled coarse aggregate on fly ash based
geopolymer concrete using five different proportions
0%, 25%, 50%,75% and 100% of recycled coarse
aggregate replacing natural coarse aggregate with two
different molar of sodium hydroxide (NaOH) solutions
which are 12M, 16M. In this experimental work only
one source of dry fly ash was considered from a local
power station nearby Ramagundam thermal power
station. Analytical methods available for Portland
cement concrete were used to predict the test results.
5. Literature review
Mehta P.K[1]"If we can replace just half the new
concrete that will be needed over the next 10 years with
geopolymers, it would be a reduction of almost a billion
tonnes of extra CO2 each year at a time of global
demand for reducing emissions". Hendriks, et al[2]the
reason large amounts of CO2 are released during the
manufacturing of cement is due in part to the immense
heat that is required.. Huntzinger, et al[3] uses life-cycle
analysis (LCA) to evaluate the environmental impacts
and therefore the „global warming factor‟ of the
manufacture of Portland cement and three other
technologies.”Davidovits, [4] Davidovits first proposed
that concrete could be made with a hydraulic binder,
where in which the silicon and aluminium from the
inclusive fly ash would react with an alkaline liquid..
Palomo, et al [5] concluded that the type of alkaline
liquid plays an important role in the polymerisation
process. Reactions occur at a high rate when the alkaline
liquid contains soluble silicate, either sodium or
potassium silicate, compared to the use of only alkaline
hydroxides. Cheng, et al[6] reported the only
information available to date on the quantitative
measure of the setting time of geopolymer material
International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering
ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 557-564
558
using the Vicatneedle. Djwantoro, et al[7]Higher
concentration(in terms of molar) of sodium hydroxide
solution results in a higher compressive strength of geo
polymer concrete. the addition of high range water
reducing admixture, up to approximately 2% of fly ash
by mass, improved the workability of fresh geopolymer
concrete with very little effect on compressive strength
of geopolymer concrete. Hardjito, et al[8] concluded
that it was favourable to mix the sodium hydroxide and
sodium silicate solution at least one day prior to adding
it to the dry materials. Gourley, et al[9] have reported
the details of geopolymer precast concrete products on a
commercial scale. The products included sewer pipes,
railway sleepers, and wall panels. Reinforced
geopolymer concrete sewer pipes with diameters in the
range from 375 mm to 1800 mm have been
manufactured using the facilities currently available to
make similar pipes using Portland cement concrete.
Vijai. K, et al [10] the experiments were conducted on
fly ash based geopolymer concrete by varying the types
of curing namely ambient curing and hot curing.
Khairulniza Ahmad Anuar, [11] Malaysian is one of the
develop countries that need to face environmental
pollution. Have many ways to reduce environmental
pollution that causes by production of Portland cement
and cause by the increasing of waste
material. Geopolymer concrete incorporating with
recycle concrete aggregate (RCA) is one of the method.
6. Experimental Programme
6.1 Materials of Geopolymer Concrete
Fly ash particles are typically spherical, finer than
Portland cement and lime, ranging in diameter from less
than 1micron to not more than 150 microns. The types
and relative amount of incombustible matter in the coal
determines the chemical composition of the fly ash
presented. Fly ash used in this study was dry fly ash
procured from the Ramagundam thermal project. One
batch of fly ash was obtained during the period of this
study. The sample of the batch was sent to Indian
Institute of Chemical Technology at Taranakaand the
chemical composition of fly ash has been found out, and
the chemical analysis report of the fly ash is given in
Table1.
6.2 Fine Aggregate. Locally available natural sand was
used specific gravity, fineness modulus and water
absorption were found to be 2.65, 3.59 and 0.1%
respectively. Sand was confirming to zone III as per IS
383:1970.
6.3 Natural Coarse Aggregate (NCA)
In the present study, locally available coarse aggregates
of maximum size 20mm, 10 mm course aggregate were
used specific gravity, fineness modulus and water
absorption were found to be 2.65, 7.07 and 0.25%
 559 V B HIKSHMA, T NAVEEN KUMAR AND V V INAY KUMAR

respectively. The test results for different properties on
coarse aggregate are presented in Table 2.
6.4 Recycled Coarse Aggregate (RCA)
In the present study, Recycled coarse aggregates of
maximum size 20mm, 10mm course aggregate were
used specific gravity, fineness modulus and water
absorption were found to be 2.84, 7.5 and 0.83%
respectively. The test results for different properties on
Recycled coarse aggregate are presented. Recycled
aggregates are aggregates derived from the processing
of materials previously used in a product and/or in
construction. Examples include recycled concrete from
construction and demolition waste material (C&D),
reclaimed aggregate from tested cubes and cylinders
from concrete lab.
6.5 Alkaline Liquid
The alkaline solutions for all mixes produced during the
project work were prepared by combining the sodium
hydroxide solution to sodium silicate gradually. This
mixture was then stirred moderately for a few minutes
and then sealed in the buckets with lids until addition to
the concrete mix. This process took place immediately
prior to beginning production of the concrete; the ratio
of sodium silicate to sodium hydroxide was kept
consistent at 2.5 upon recommendation from Hardjito
and Rangan (2005). The mixing process is presented in
figures 1-3.
solids in a solution varied depending on the
concentration of the solution expressed in terms of
molar, M. For instance, NaOH solution with a
concentration of 8M consisted of 8x40 = 320 grams of
NaOH solids (in flake form) per liter of the solution,
where 40 is the molecular weight of NaOH. The mass of
NaOH solids was measured as 262 grams per kg of
NaOH solution of 8M concentration. Similarly, the
mass of NaOH solids per kg of the solution for other
concentrations were measured as, 12M: 361 grams and
16M: 444 grams. Note that the mass of NaOH solids
was only a fraction of the mass of the NaOH solution,
and water is the major component.
6.7 Sodium Silicate
A commercially available sodium silicate was obtained
from a local chemical supplier. The grade of material
used was with a SiO2/Na2O ratio of 2.0.the solution
was in the form of a heavy syrup. The sample of the
batch was sent for testing at Indian Institute of Chemical
Technology at Taranaka and the chemical composition
of sodium silicate has been found out, and the chemical
analysis report of the sodium silicate is given in Table 3.
6.8 Reinforcing Bars
In this only two sizes i.e., 8mm and 12mm of high yield
stress deformed steel bars of Fe 415 were used as the
longitudinal and transverse reinforcement as per IS 456
– 2000 considering M30 grade of concrete for balanced
section are presented in Table 4.Mix proportions of the
concrete are presented in appendix.

Figure1: Sodium Silicate and Sodium Hydroxide

Flakes
6.6 Sodium Hydroxide
A sodium hydroxide solution was utilized in all mixes
as a constituent in the alkaline reactor. The product was
obtained from a local supplier in the form of pellets with
a purity of 98%. The solution was prepared by
dissolving the pellets into distilled water at specified
concentration in molars, M, for the concrete. In the
laboratory research carried out, the solution was
prepared with a concentration of approximately 12M
and 16M by dissolving the sodium hydroxide solids into
distilled water. Figure 2: Sodium Hydroxide flakes + water + sodium
silicate = Alkaline Solution.
The sodium hydroxide (NaOH) solution was prepared
by dissolving the flakes in water. The mass of NaOH

International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering

ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 557-564
 Investigation of Flexural Behavior of Geopolymer concrete Using
560
Recycled Coarse Aggregate

Table2: Physical Properties of Coarse Aggregate

Natural Recycled
Property
aggregate aggregate
Specific gravity 2.65 2.84
Fineness
7.07 7.04
modulus
Bulk Density
a) Loose 1498kg/m3 1489kg/m3
b) Compacted 1710kg/m3 1711kg/m3
Figure 3: Addition of alkaline solution to the dry mix Aggregate
17.3% 16.8%
impact value
Water absorption 0.25% 0.826%
Crushing
22 21
strength
Table 3: Chemical Properties of Sodium SilicateSolutin

Characteristic (%) Results % by Mass

Sodium as oxide Na2O 10.42
Figure 4: Beams left outside in sun for ambient curing. Suspended solids 0.75
Table1: Chemical Properties of Fly Ash. Silica Dioxide as SiO2 18.92
Characteristic (%) Results % by Mass Total solids 41.03
Loss on ignition 1.90 pH of solution 10.2
Silica, Sio2 52.16
Alumina , Al2O3 36.16 Ratio of SiO2&Na2O 1.04
Iron , Fe2O3 4.23 Baume 52
Calcium, CaO 4.67 Specific gravity 2.96
Magnesium , MgO Nil
Phosphorous, P 0.45
Titanium dioxide, TiO2 1.96
Manganese, Mn 0.85
Sodium, Na2O 1.73
Potassium, K2O 3.09
Sulpahate, SO4 2.75

Table4: Reinforcement Details of Beam Specimens.

Beam designation No of beams Reinforcing bars Spacing
12M 1 2 2- 8mm + 4-12mm 2L-8mm stirrups @ 210 mm c/c
12M 2 2 2- 8mm + 4-12mm 2L-8mm stirrups @ 210 mm c/c
12M 3 2 2- 8mm + 4-12mm 2L-8mm stirrups @ 210 mm c/c
12M 4 2 2- 8mm + 4-12mm 2L-8mm stirrups @ 210 mm c/c
12M 5 2 2- 8mm + 4-12mm 2L-8mm stirrups @ 210 mm c/c
16M 1 2 2- 8mm + 4-12mm 2L-8mm stirrups @ 210 mm c/c
16M 2 2 2- 8mm + 4-12mm 2L-8mm stirrups @ 210 mm c/c
16M 3 2 2- 8mm + 4-12mm 2L-8mm stirrups @ 210 mm c/c
16M 4 2 2- 8mm + 4-12mm 2L-8mm stirrups @ 210 mm c/c
16M 5 2 2- 8mm + 4-12mm 2L-8mm stirrups @ 210 mm c/c

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 561 V B HIKSHMA, T NAVEEN KUMAR AND V V INAY KUMAR

Table5: Slump Values for 12M and16Mgeopolymer Compressive strength of the concrete is the key property
concrete samples. of concrete .Compressive strength of concrete is taken
as a basis for evaluating various other properties of the
12M Slump (mm) 16M Slump (mm) concrete and is presented in Table 7.Thus, cube
12M-1 55 16M-1 47 compressive strength of concrete mixes was determined
at 28days age is carried out to verify target strength
12M-2 51 16M-2 42 .average results of compressive strength test for 2
12M-3 47 16M-3 40 molarities of concrete 12M and 16M i.e., for different
proportions of NCA and RCA keeping the chemical
12M-4 33 16M-4 36 ratio constant at 0.5.The compressive strength for 12M-
12M-5 28 16M-5 21 1(0% - RCA) mix was been cured around 400 to 450 C
for 28 days in ambient curing condition was 36 MPa
Table6: Compaction Factor Values for 12M which was considered 100% replacement of RCA 12M-
and16Mgeopolymer concrete samples. 2 the reduction in the strength was 10 %, for 12M the
reduction in the strength was 14 %, for 12M-4 the
Compaction Compaction reduction in the strength 18 % and for 12M-5 the
12M 16M
factor factor reduction in the strength was 26 %.The compressive
12M-1 0.90 16M-1 0.91 strength for 16M-1 mix after cured at 400 to 450 C for
12M-2 0.89 16M-2 0.90 28 days in ambient curing condition was 46 MPa which
12M-3 0.87 16M-3 0.88 was considered 100% and compare to different
12M-4 0.85 16M-4 0.86 proportions RCA for 16M-2 the reduction in the
12M-5 0.84 16M-5 0.84 strength was 5 %, for 16M-3 the reduction in the
strength was10 %, for 16M-4 the reduction in the
7. Test results and discussions strength was 16 % and for 16M-5the reduction in the
strength was 20 %. Ready to test the beams are
7.1 Workability
presented in figure 4.
The workability of geopolymer concrete depends upon
the fly ash and the molar concentration of the alkaline 7.4 Crack Patterns and Failure Mode
liquid solution.From the previous literature it is found As expected, flexure crack initiated in the pure bending
that an additional upto 20%extra water can be added zone. As the load increased, existing cracks propagated
apart from design procedure. The addition of super and new cracks developed along the span. In the case of
plasticizer with extra water was due to low workability beams of balanced section some of the flexural cracks in
as recycled coarse aggregate has high water absorption the shear span turned into inclined cracks due to the
capacity. In 12M an additional4 liter of water including effect of shear force. The width and the spacing of
one liter super plasticizer and in 16M an additional of 7 cracks varied along the span. In all the crack patterns
liters of waterincluding one liter super plasticizer were observed for reinforced geopolymer concrete beams
added for workability apart from mix design. The values were similar to those reported in the literature for
of workability are given in Table 5 and 6. reinforced Portland cement concrete beams. The cracks
at the mid-span open widely near failure near peak load,
7.2 Compaction Factor Test
the beams deflected significantly, thus indicating that
The compaction factor test values of concrete for 12M the tensile steel must have yielded at failure. The final
& 16M with different proportions of RCA replacing failure of the beams occurred when the concrete is in the
NCA has decreased as the rate of replacement of NCA compression zone, crushed, accompanied by buckling of
with RCA increased. the compressive steel bars. Ultimate load and flexural
7.3 Compressive Strength of Geopolymer Concrete failures are presented in Table 8-10.

Table7: Comparison of Compressive Strength of Geopolymer Concrete.

Compressive 12M avg Compressive 16M avg
S. No 12M 16M
strength MPa % strength MPa %
1 12M-1 (0%RCA) 35.99 100 16M-1 (0%RCA) 45.48 100
2 12M-2 (25%RCA) 32.5 90.3 16M-2 (25%RCA) 43.55 95.75
3 12M-3 (50%RCA) 31.25 86.82 16M-3 (50%RCA) 41.08 90.32
4 12M-4 (75%RCA) 29.56 82.13 16M-4 (75%RCA) 38.5 84.65
5 12M-5 (100%RCA) 26.8 74.46 16M-5 (100%RCA) 36.4 80.17

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 Investigation of Flexural Behavior of Geopolymer concrete Using
562
Recycled Coarse Aggregate

Table8: Load Carrying Capacity of Geopolymer Concrete Beams in kN

S. No Molarities Sample Max load in kN Average load in kN
1 1 134.50
12M -1 (0%RCA) 132.00
2 2 129.53
3 1 125.62
12M -2 (25%RCA) 128.50
4 2 130.86
5 1 123.,74
12M -3 (50%RCA) 126.40
6 2 129.46
7 1 123.62
12M -4 (75%RCA) 125.50
8 2 127.43
9 1 120.78
12M -5(100%RCA) 123.26
10 2 125.74
11 1 159.40
16M -1 (0%RCA) 154.43
12 2 149.46
13 1 156.54
16M -2 (25%RCA) 152.38
14 2 148.60
15 1 152.60
16M -3 (50%RCA) 149.46
16 2 145.60
17 1 147.50
16M -4 (75%RCA) 146.41
18 2 145.60
19 1 136.60
16M -5 (100%RCA) 139.70
20 2 142.80
Table9: Test Results of 12M Beams at Ultimate Load, Ultimate Deflection, Ultimate Moment and Ultimate
Curvature
Type of Beam Ultimate Load Ultimate Ultimate Ultimate Curvature,
RCA
(kN) Deflection Moment (kNm) (1x10-4)
12M-1 0% 132.46 10.94 26.9 331.51
12M-2 25% 128.48 9.46 25.69 286.66
12M-3 50% 126.49 9.14 25.29 276.96
12M-4 75% 125.49 8.21 25.09 266.36
12M-5 100% 123.50 7.96 24.07 248.78
Table10: Test Results of 16M Beams at Ultimate Load, Ultimate Deflection, Ultimate Moment and Ultimate
Curvature
Ultimate Load Ultimate Ultimate Moment Ultimate Curvature,
Type of Beam RCA
(kN) Deflection (kNm) (1x10-4)
16M-1 0% 154.43 13.74 30.87 416.36
16M-2 25% 152.38 12.78 30.47 387.27
16M-3 50% 149.46 11.23 29.89 340.30
16M-4 75% 146.41 10.96 28.09 322.12
16M-5 100% 140 10.46 27.88 316.96

8. Conclusions 100% natural coarse aggregate based geopolymer

concrete.
 The results of compressive strength indicated 26%
less for 12M and 20% less for 16M compared to

International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering

ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 557-564
 563 V B HIKSHMA, T NAVEEN KUMAR AND V V INAY KUMAR

 A maximum of 7% reduction in 12M and 10% [6] Cheng, T. W. and J. P. Chiu (2003). "Fire-resistant
reduction in 16M for ultimate load is obtained for Geopolymer Produced by Granulated Blast Furnace
100% RCA beams compared Natural Coarse Slag." Minerals Engineering 16(3): 205-210.
Aggregate Beams (NCAB). [7] Djwantroe, Hardjito E S. E. Wallah, B. V. Rangan
 The deflection results revealed 28% reduction in “Fly ash-based geopolymer concrete: study of
12M and 24% reduction in 16M for 100% RCA slender reinforced Columns” Springer Science
compared to NCAB. Business Media, LLC 2006, J Mater Sci (2007)
 The curvature of specimens with 100% RCA 42:3124–3130.
reduced by 25% in 12M and 24% in 16M compared [8] Hardjito, D. and B. V. Rangan. (2005)
to NCAB. “Development and properties of low‐calcium fly
ash‐based geopolymer concrete.” Research Report
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[2] Hendriks et al. (2003) “methods of reducing “Developments in Geopolymer Precast Concrete”.
greenhouse gas emission”. Paper presented at the International Workshop on
[3] Huntzinger, N Thomas D. Eatmon (2009) “A life- Geopolymersand Geopolymer Concrete, Perth,
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with alternative technologies”. “Properties of glass fibers reinforced geopolymer
[4] Davidovits, J. (1999). “Chemistry of Geopolymer concrete components” asian journal.
Systems, Teminology.” Geopolymer ‟99 [11] Khairulniza Ahmad Anuar (2011) “Strength
International Conference, France. charecteristics of geopolymer concrete containing
[5] Palomo, A., M. W. Grutzeck, M.T. Blanco (1999). recycled coarse aggregate” International Journal of
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APPENDIX
Mix Design process
1. Mix design process is illustrated for the concrete mix designed for the trial mix with Chemical ratio 0.5 and
molarity of 12
1. Assume normal density of the concrete 2400 kg/m3
2. Take mass of combined aggregate (72%) of mass concrete 1728 kg/m3
3. Mass of fly ash and alkaline liquid (2400-1728) 672 kg
4. Take Alkaline liquid to fly ash ratio 0.50
Molarity of NaOH 12
5. Mass of fly ash 672/(1+0.50) 448 kg
6. Mass of alkaline liquid (552-424.6) 224 kg
7. Taking ratio of Sodium silicate (Na2O SiO2) to NaOH as 2.5
Mass of NaOH 224/ (1+2.5) 64 kg
Mass of sodium silicate (224-64) 160 kg
Water in the sodium silicate is 55.90%therefore (160X0.559) 89.4 kg
Solids in sodium silicate (160-89.4) 70.6 kg
Solids in NaOH 36.1% (64X36.1) 23.10 kg
Water in the NaOH solution is (64-23.10) 30 kg
Total mass of water (89.4+40.90) 130.3 kg
Mass of geopolymer solids (448+70.6+23.10) 541.7 kg
2. Mix design process is illustrated for the concrete mix designed for the trial mix with Chemical ratio 0.5 and
molarity of 16
1. Assume normal density of the concrete 2400 kg/m3
2. Take mass of combined aggregate (72%) of mass concrete 1728 kg/m3
3. Mass of fly ash and alkaline liquid (2400-1728) 672 kg
4. Take Alkaline liquid to fly ash ratio 0.50
Molarity of NaOH 16

International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering

ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 557-564
 Investigation of Flexural Behavior of Geopolymer concrete Using
564
Recycled Coarse Aggregate

5. Mass of fly ash 672/(1+0.50) 448 kg

6. Mass of alkaline liquid (552-424.6) 224 kg
7. Taking ratio of Sodium silicate (Na2O SiO2) to NaOH as 2.5
Mass of NaOH 224/ (1+2.5) 64 kg
Mass of sodium silicate (224-64) 160 kg
Water in the sodium silicate is 55.90%therefore (160X0.559) 89.4 kg
Solids in sodium silicate (160-89.4) 70.6 kg
Solids in NaOH 44.4% (64X44.4) 28.42 kg
Water in the NaOH solution is (64-28.42) 35.58 kg
Total mass of water (89.4+35.58) 125 kg
Mass of geopolymer solids (448+70.6+28.42) 547 kg

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ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 557-564
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ISSN 0974-5904, Volume 07, No. 04

Alternative Mortar with Pond Ash as Replacement for Fine

Aggregate
MEGHASHREE M AND G A SATISH
1
Dayananda Sagar College of Engineering, Bangalore, Karnataka, India
2
Bangalore Institute of Technology, Bangalore, Karnataka, India
Email: megha.shree@yahoo.co.in

Abstract: This work studies the potential of using Pond ash from Raichur Thermal Power Station, Raichur Dist.
Karnataka, as a replacement for sand in masonry mortar. Keeping in view of sand becoming scarce and pond ash
accumulation posing environment problem, a study on finding an alternative material to replace sand with pond ash
is carried out. This not only solves the ash disposal problem but also gives an alternative building material to sand.
In the present work sand is replaced by pond ash in mortar ratio of 1:6. Material properties, mortar properties were
investigated.
Keywords: (Times New Roman – 10 Font-Bold-Italic): Pond ash, Shear Strength, Mortar.

1. Introduction: RTPS is located on right banks of River Krishna at

Shakthinagar, Devarsugur [at 16˚21’18˝N and
India’s population, second in the world. Rising
77˚20’31”E latitudes] off 18Km from Raichur district of
population and changes in lifestyles consistent with
Karnataka state in India. The plant is located adjacent to
rapid economic growth have accelerated the energy
Raichur Hyderabad highway [SH 13]. It is connected
demand by leaps and bounds. But the power production
both by railway and road way. This plant is operated by
through hydro-electric projects and through nuclear
Karnataka Power Transmission Corporation Limited.
power projects is not keeping pace with the demand.
This was the first Thermal Power plant set up in
Thermal Power Plants is only the ray of hope. Fossil
Karnataka and it accounts for 40% of total electricity
fuels are the main source of energy in Thermal power
produced in Karnataka. The station has been accredited
plants. India has about 70 thermal power plants and 70
with ISO 14001 - 2004 for environmental protection
% of them burn coal to generate power. Various Indian
management. The graph shows that 24% of the plant
collieries supply the coal, which is known to have a
area is utilized for disposal of Pond ash at RTPS. This
very high ash content of almost 40 to 45 per cent. India's
power plant is coal fired. Coal is supplied mainly from
thermal power plants produce an estimated 100 million
the Singarani colleries from Andhra Pradesh District.
tonnes of fly ash per annum. India is the third-largest
The daily requirement of coal in the power plant is
producer of coal. According to the National Thermal
about 2400 metric tonnes. The plant has 7 units of
Power Corporation, coal is used for approximately
210Mw capacity each and 1 unit of 250Mw capacity.
62.3% of India’s electric power generation. Presently,
The annual power generation is about 10000 million
about 200 Million Tonnes of coal is consumed yearly in
units.
the power sector.
Electricity is generated by heating water by combustion
According to the 1st half year report of 2011-12 (April
of pulverized coal in boilers at high temperatures and
11 to September 11) the fly ash generation in country
the steam runs the generator producing electricity.
was 66.49 million tonne of ash of which 54.53% is
Consequently burning of coal generates coal ash. This
utilized for various applications. The bulk quantities of
ash is broadly classified into three categories. Fly ash;
ash generation are a matter of serious concern not only
Bottom ash; Pond ash. The major portion of the ash
because of issues associated with its disposal and
comes out along with the flue gases and is collected
utilization, but also because of its threat to public health
through electro static precipitator or filter bags or other
and ecology.
means in dry form before allowing the exhaust gases
1.1. Raichur Thermal Power Station [RTPS]: through escape the chimney, this part of ash is generally
known as Fly ash. This has found lot of applications in

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 Alternative Mortar with Pond Ash as Replacement for Fine Aggregate
566

production of Concrete, Portland Pozzolana Cement, present work is collected from RTPS by digging 3ft
Mortar, fly ash bricks and building blocks. depth and then samples are collected.
2. Objectives of the present study:
Utilization of pond ash for construction in large
quantities will be one of the steps in reducing
environmental impact on surroundings of power plant.
In order to use pond ash as a raw material in
construction industry, several attempts are made. One
among them is to develop a masonry mortar by
replacing sand completely with pond ash in cement
mortar. Pond ash is mixed with cement and sand in 1:6
proportion fresh and hardened properties of pond ash
mortar is tested as per IS standards.
3. Materials used in experimental investigation:
A Part of ash falls down at the bottom of the boiler and
is known as bottom ash. Being a coarse ash, it is an 3.1 Cement
excellent substitute of soil for geotechnical applications Ordinary Portland cement of 43 grade conforming to IS
such as filling or reclamation of low lying areas, 8112:1989 is used in the study. The standard
construction of dykes, road and fly over embankments consistency obtained was 31%. The initial and final
etc. The un-utilised Fly ash and bottom ash are mixed setting time was 57min and 410minutes respectively.
together with water to form slurry and taken to lagoons Specific gravity of cement was found to be 3.137.
known as ash ponds for deposition. The ash deposited in
the ash pond is known as pond ash. The ash deposited 3.2 Sand
within about 100 meters of ash slurry discharge point in River sand was used to prepare control specimens. Sand
the pond is coarser ash as compared to the ash deposited was tested for grain size analysis, fineness modulus and
within about 100 mtrs. of water overflow discharge they were zoned. The experimental results showed that
point in the ash pond. The ash deposited in between the sand belonged to Zone II. The range of fineness
these two areas is of medium particle size. Further, modulus was between 2.19 to 2.78. Specific gravity of
during the process of settling of ash in the pond, natural sand was found to be 2.6.
segregation process takes places. Coarser ash settles
3.3 Pond Ash
down first and the final particle in the top layer. With
the general practice intermittent filling of ash ponds, This is the proposed alternate material for sand. As we
repetitive layers of about 1 meter thickness get replace sand with pond ash we study the characteristics
developed with segregated particles. It is used as filling of pond ash is expected to be near to that of the
material in embankment and road construction. characteristics of sand. Therefore we compare the
results of pond ash to the code of reference of Sand.
RTPS generates about 1.5 million tonnes of fly ash
Specific Gravity of Pond Ash is found to be 2.14
annually which causes environmental problems. 20% of
the ash produced is wet bottom ash which is let into the 3.3.1 Grain Size Analysis:
ash bund. Though considered safer than fly-ash, bottom Table1: Grain Size Analysis of Pond ash
ash has also been found to contain heavy metals which
can be dangerous to public health. The fly-ash which IS
Cumulative Cumulative Cumulative
gets generated during the burning of coal disperses into sieves
% passing % passing % passing
the air and hence pollutes the atmosphere. This gets Sizes
deposited on the surrounding land, thereby making the 4.75mm 91.8 93.8 92.4
land infertile. The fly-ash may also cause breathing 2.36mm 86.4 88.8 88.6
problems for humans. RTPS has taken steps to ensure
1.18mm 79.1 81.8 79.1
that fly-ash gets precipitated out of the air by using
electrostatic elements in the furnaces, but about 2% of 600mic 73 78.2 75
fly-ash gets into the atmosphere. The bottom ash is 300mic 13.6 54 51.3
disposed of by converting it into a wet slurry and 150mic 2.5 26 24.3
dumping it into vacant tracts of land of about 908 acres
of land located in North side of the plant. This area is Pan ∑F= 2.536 ∑F= 1.5 ∑F= 1.91
known as ash-ponds. The ash pond is almost 50% filled We see that the Pond ash sample tested has an even
up with pond ash to a depth of 15ft. Pond ash for distribution of grains. The Sample belongs to Zone III.

International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering

ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 565-568
 567 MEGHASHREE M AND G A S ATISH

Further on conducting of the chemical analysis on pond 2 C:S:PA 1 : 3 :3 1.4 111.33%

ash by M/S Ramco Research and development Centre,
3 C:S:PA 1 : 0 :6 2.7 113.58%
Chennai it was found that the pond ash contains 63.24%
silica, which is the main constituent of sand. It also Table 4: Compressive Strength of Mortar
contains alumina, and iron oxide. These are inert
materials. It do not adversely affect chemically on the 28 Days
Proportion w/c Flow
properties of mortar. Loss of ignition of 3.70% shows Compressive
C : S : PA ratio %
the presence of unburnt coal particles present in the Strength
pond ash. Chemical analysis results are tabulated in 1:6:0 1.2 114.48 7.88
table 2. 1:3:3 1.4 111.33 6.66
Table2: Chemical Analysis of Pond ash 1:0:6 2.7 115.58 4.55
Parameters Result 6. Discussion:
Loss on ignition ( @ 1000˚ C ) 3.70 We notice here that the pond ash sample obtained from
Silicon Dioxide ( SiO2 ) 63.24 raichur thermal power station satisfies the physical
requirements necessary for the material to be an
Aluminium Oxide ( Al2O3) 21.10
replacement for fine aggregate in mortar.
Iron Oxide ( FeO3) 5.46  The physical properties of sand and pond ash
Calcium Oxide ( CaO ) 2.54 satisfy the requirements of IS : 383 - 1970 and IS
Magnesium Oxide ( MgO ) 0.82 2116:1980
 Requirement of flow of mortar to bind brick units is
Alkalies as Na2O 1.25
between 110 to 115 %. The flow results of mortar
Titanium Dioxide ( TiO2 ) 0.86 with pond ash and cement sand mortar are
Manganese Oxide ( Mn2O3) 0.09 comparable with flow test results of cement mortar.
Insoluble Residue 89.22 The flow results are between 110% and 115%. The
mortar can be used for construction of brick
Sulphuric anhydride ( SO3) Traces (<0.1) masonry.
4. Properties of Mortars (CUBE Size OF 70.6 ± 2  The pond ash mortar takes more quantity of water.
MM): This may be due to the high carbon content present
in pond ash.
Flow test was conducted according to the procedure laid  Table 1 of IS 1905-1987 lists different grades of
down in IS 2386(part 6):1963 using the standard flow mortar and minimum compressive strengths at 28
table. The obtained results are tabulated in table 3. days. The range of compressive strength in this
Using this water cement ratio mortar cubes of different table is between 0.5 to 7.5 MPa for different
ratios of cement sand and pond ash were prepared, proportions of mortar. The compressive strength of
cured and tested for 7days, 28 days compressive pond ash based mortar is between 4.08 and 6.83
strength. The obtained values are tabulated in table 3. N/mm2 which satisfy the compressive strength
5. Mortars: requirement as suggested in Table 1, IS 1905-1987,
 The mortar prepared using pond ash showed that
In this work, cement sand mortar is mixed in
the water cement ratio increased with increase in
proportions of 1:6 and tested for fresh and hardened
the content of pond ash.
properties. Sand is replaced with pond ash for the
proportions 1:6 by 25%, 50%, 75% and 100% by  The strength of mortar reduced with the increase in
volume and tested for fresh and hardened properties. the content of pond ash.
The water cement ratio the mortar is kept such that the 7. Acknowledgment:
flow is between 110 – 115 %.Ordinary Portland cement
I gratefully acknowledge the help extended by my guide
of 43 grade was used for the preparation of mortars,
G. A. Satish, Assistant Professor, Dr. M. U. Aswath,
conforming to IS : 8112 - 1989. Natural river sand
Professor & M.Tech coordinator, Dr. A G Nataraj,
having a fineness modulus of 2.67 was used for the
Professor and Head of Department and all the staff of
mortars.
Civil Engineering, Bangalore Institute of Techonology.
Table 3: Mortar Flow test Am also thankful for Dayananda Sagar Institutions for
Flow in
encouraging me to come out with this paper.
Sl. No. Ratio W/C ratio
Percentage
1 C:S:PA 1 : 6 :0 1.2 114.48%

International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering

ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 565-568
 Alternative Mortar with Pond Ash as Replacement for Fine Aggregate
568

Reference and Technologies”-New Age International, New

Delhi & Bangalore
[1] J.D. Bapat, S.S. Sabnis, C.V. Hazaree, and A.D.
[8] IS 1077 (1992), “Common Burnt Clay Building
Deshchowgule, “The Eco friendly Concrete with
Bricks – Specification” Bureau of Indian Standards,
High Volume of Lagoon Ash”, Journal of Materials
New Delhi.
in Civil Engineering, Vol. 18, No. 3, June 1,
[9] IS 1905 (1987), “Code of Practice for Structural
2006.ASCE.
Use of Unreinforced masonry” (3rd revision) Bureau
[2] Mohd Syahrul Hisyam bin Mohd Sani,
of Indian Standards, New Delhi, 1987.
Fadhluhartini bt Muftah, Zulkifli Muda “The
[10] IS 2386 (Part 1-1963), “Methods of Test for
Properties of Special Concrete Using Washed
Aggregates for Concrete, Part 6: Measuring Mortar
Bottom Ash (WBA) as Partial Sand Replacement’
making Properties of Fine Aggregrate”, Bureau of
International Journal of Sustainable Construction
Indian Standards, New Delhi.
Engineering & Technology Vol 1, No 2, December
[11] IS 2250 (1981),” Code of Practice for Preparation
2010
and use of Masonry Mortars”, Bureau of Indian
[3] Ashis Kumar Bera, Ambarish Ghosh, and
standards, New Delhi.
Amalendu Ghosh “Compaction Characteristics of
[12] IS 8112 (1989),”Ordinary Portland Cement, 43
Pond Ash” Journal of Materials in Civil
Grade Specification”, Bureau of Indian standards,
Engineering, Vol. 19, No. 4, April 1, 2007. ASCE
New Delhi.
[4] Lee Bong Chun, Kim Jin Sung, Kim Tae Sang,
[13] IS 383 (1970), “Specification for Coarse and Fine
Chae Seong Tae “A Study on The Fundamental
Aggregates from Natural Sources for Concrete”
Properties of Concrete Incorporating Pond ash in
Bureau of Indian Standards, New Delhi.
Korea” The 3rd ACF International Conference-
[14] IS 4031 (Part 5-1996), “Methods of Physical Tests
ACF/VCA 2008
for Hydraulic Cement - Part 5: Determination of
[5] Ratchayut Kasemchaisiri and Somnuk
Initial and Final Setting Times” Bureau of Indian
Tangtermsirikul “Properties of Self-Compacting
Standards, New Delhi.
Concrete in Corporating Bottom Ash as a Partial
[15] IS 4031 (Part 4-1996), “Methods of Physical Tests
Replacement of Fine Aggregate”, science asia 2008
for Hydraulic Cement - Part 4: Determination of
[6] Hendry. A.W (1998), “Structural masonry” second
Consistency of Standard Cement Paste”, Bureau of
edition, Macmillan Press Ltd. 1998
Indian Standards, New Delhi.
[7] Jagadish K S, Venkatarama Reddy B V and
[16] IS 4031 (Part 7-1996), “Methods of Physical Tests
Nanjunda Rao K S, “Alternative Building Materials
for Hydraulic Cement -Part 7:-Determination of

International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering

ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 565-568
 Indexed in
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ISSN 0974-5904, Volume 07, No. 04

An Experimental Study on Strength Development of Concrete using

Rice Husk Ash and Silpozz
K C PANDA AND S D PRUSTY
Dept. of Civil Engineering, ITER, Siksha ‘O’ Anusandhan University, Bhubaneswar, Odisha, India
Email: kishoriit@gmail.com, s.dipty102@gmail.com

Abstract: This paper presents the results of a study undertaken to investigate the high strength development of
concrete using Silpozz and Rice Husk Ash (RHA). The total percentage of supplementary cementitious material
substituted in this study was 20%. Six different mixes were used such as conventional concrete with 100% cement,
80% cement with 20% RHA, 80% cement with 20% silpozz, 80% cement with 5% RHA and 15% silpozz, 80%
cement with 10% RHA and 10% silpozz, and 80% cement with 15% RHA and 5% silpozz. The effects of replacing
cement by RHA and silpozz on the compressive strength, split tensile strength and flexural strength were evaluated.
Concrete mixtures containing different percentage of silpozz and RHA were prepared with water to binder ratio of
0.375. New generation polycarboxylate base water reducing admixture i.e. Cera Hyperplast XR-W40 was used in
this study. The test results indicate that using RHA and Silpozz increases the strength rapidly.
Keywords: Rice husk ash (RHA), silpozz, compressive strength, flexural strength, split tensile strength.

1. Introduction: compressive strength up to 91 days of concretes with

RHA, in which residual RHA from a rice paddy milling
Technologies change perceptions. In the last two
industry in Uruguay and RHA produced by controlled
decades concrete has no longer remained a material just
incineration from the USA was used for comparison.
consisting of cement, sand, aggregate and water, but it
Two different replacement percentages of cement by
has become an engineering custom-tailored material
RHA, 10% and 20%, and three different water/
with several new constituents to meet many varied
cementitious material ratios (0.50, 0.40 and 0.32), were
requirements of the construction industry. The use of
used. Johari et al. (2011)5 studied the influence of
supplementary cementitious materials such as fly ash
supplementary cementitious materials, namely SF,
(FA), ground granulated blast-furnace slag (GGBS),
metakaolin, FA and GGBS, on the engineering
silica fume (SF) and rice husk ash (RHA) as part of
properties of HSC. There are very few works have been
binders for concrete has been increasing throughout the
carried out using the combination of both SF and RHA
world, particularly in the production of high strength
in HPC and HSC. In the present study silpozz and RHA
concrete (HSC) and high performance concrete (HPC).
is used. Silpozz is used as a replacement material of SF.
This is due to the potential ability of these materials to
This paper presents the results of an investigation on the
enhance the properties and performance of concrete
high strength development of concrete using two
through their filler effect as well as pozzolanic reaction.
different supplementary cementitious materials such as
Some of the researchers have been carried out a work on
silpozz and RHA and with new generation
HSC and HPC using these materials. Hassan et al.
polycarboxylate base water reducing admixture i.e Cera
(2000) 1 presented a laboratory study on the influence of
Hyperplast XR-W40 was used in this study. The test
two mineral admixtures, SF and FA on the properties of
results indicate that using RHA and Silpozz increases
super plasticised high performance concrete. Mazloom
the strength rapidly.
et al. (2004) 2 studied the effects of mineral and
chemical admixtures namely FA, GGBS, SF and super 2. Experimental program
plasticisers on the porosity, pore size distribution and 2.1 Materials used and properties:
compressive strength development of HSC in seawater
curing condition exposed to tidal zone. Jaturapitakkul et The cement used for the present work is Ordinary
al. (2004) 3 presented a method of improving coarse FA Portland Cement (OPC) 43 grade, RAMCO cement 6.
in order to replace condensed SF in making HSC. The sand was supplied from „Trisulia‟, situated on the
Sensale (2006)4 studied on the development of river base of Kathajodi and its tributary Kuakhia,

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Proceedings of 3-Day International Conference on Emerging Trends in Civil Engineering (ICETE-2014,)
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 An Experimental Study on Strength Development of Concrete using Rice
570
Husk Ash and Silpozz

Odisha. Sand is used as fine aggregate which is passing husk. This husk is used as fuel in the rice mills to
through IS 4.75 mm sieve. The Natural Coarse generate steam for the parboiling process. This husk
aggregate which is passing through IS 20 mm sieve, was contains about 75% organic volatile matter and the
used in the present study 7. It was supplied by the
balance 25% of the weight of this husk is converted into
crusher at Tapanga, near Khurda, Odisha. The
ash during the firing process, is known as RHA. This
properties of fine aggregate and coarse aggregate are
RHA in turn contains around 85%-90% amorphous
presented in the Table 1. The mineral admixture such as
silica. When blended with cement makes it most eco-
silpozz and RHA supplied by N. K. Enterprises, friendly versatile supplementary cementing material to
Singhania House, Jharsuguda, Odisha was used in this concrete. The RHA sample used in the present study is
study to enhance the high strength characteristics of
shown in Figure 2. The chemical composition of silpozz
concrete.
and RHA is presented in Table 2. The physical
Table1. Properties of fine and coarse aggregates properties of silpozz and RHA are presented in Table 3.
Fine Coarse
Characteristics
aggregate aggregate
Abrasion value (%) - 27.02
Bulk density (kg/m3) 1568 1418
Crushing value (%) - 28.70
3.48
Fineness modulus 7.95
(Zone1)
Impact value (%) - 24.00
Specific gravity 2.63 2.84
Water absorption Figure1: Silpozz samples
0.30 0.10
(%)
2.1.1. Silpozz:
Silpozz is a very good super-pozzolan. Silpozz-
microsilica/amorphous silica, with silica content of
above 90% having particle size of 25 microns mostly
silpozz can be used as an admixture in a big way to
make special concrete mixes. There is a growing
demand for fine amorphous silica in the production of
special cement and concrete mixes. Silpozz is a carbon
neutral green product. Silpozz is used in place of silica
silpozz can be used as an admixture in a big way to
make special concrete mixes. There is a growing
demand for fine amorphous silica in the production of Figure2: Rice Husk Ash samples
special cement and concrete mixes. Silpozz is a carbon
neutral green product. Silpozz is used in place of silica 2.1.3. High end super plasticizer
fumes or micro silica at a much lower cost, without In this study CERA HYPERPLAST XR-W40, high end
compromising on the quality aspect. Adding silpozz to super plasticisers are used for the production of high
the concrete mix even in low replacement will strength and high performance concrete. The super
dramatically enhance the workability, strength and plasticiser was supplied by Cera-Chem Private Ltd.,
impermeability of concrete mixes, while making the Superior Construction Chemicals, An ISO 9001: 2008
concrete durable to chemical attacks, abrasion and Certified Company, 6, Park Street, Kilpauk Garden
reinforcement corrosion, increasing the compressive Colony, Chennai-600010, India. The property of super
strength by 10%-20%. The silpozz sample used in the plasticisers is new generation polycarboxylate base
present study is shown in Figure 1. water reducing admixture helps in the production of
2.1.2. Rice husk ash: self-compacting concretes, retains slump for extended
periods of time, aids in cement savings and ensures high
Rice milling generates a byproduct know as husk. This early and ultimate strength. Such type of super
surrounds the paddy grain. During milling of paddy plasticisers is used for concrete containing large
about 78% of weight is received as rice, broken rice and amounts of supplementary cementitious materials such
bran. Rest 22% of the weight of paddy is received as

International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering

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 571 K. C. P ANDA AND S. D. P RUSTY

as FA, GGBS, and SF. Ideal for self-leveling and higher required doses of super plasticiser was added to get a
grade concretes. good workable concrete mix. In this study, total six
Table2. Chemical composition of silpozz and RHA mixes are prepared. M1 indicate concrete mix with w/b
ratio 0.375. S0R0 indicate 0% silpozz and 0% RHA,
Chemical Chemical S0R20 indicate 0% of silpozz and 20% RHA, S5R15
Oxides
composition of composition indicate 5% silpozz and 15% RHA, S10R10 indicate
(%)
silpozz of RHA 10% silpozz and 10% RHA, S15R5 indicate 15%
SiO2 88.18 88.64 silpozz and 5% RHA, and S20R0 indicate 20% silpozz
Al2O3 1.61 1.23 and 0% RHA. The detail mix proportion along with
Fe2O3 0.56 1.19 their identification is designated according to their
Carbon 2.67 2.33 replacement as given in Table 4. The detail mix
CaO 1.59 1.09 proportions are presented in Table 5.
MgO 1.63 1.76 Table3. Physical properties of silpozz and RHA
K2O 1.67 1.98
Others 2.09 1.78 Physical Physical
Moisture 0.79 1.87 Characteristics properties properties
of silpozz of RHA
3. Details of concrete mix: 0.58
Bulk Density 0.23grams/cc
A concrete mixture of M30 was designed as per grams/cc
standard specification IS: 10262-1982 8 to achieve target LOI < 6.0% < 6.0%
mean strength 39.9 MPa. The other five concrete Solid-Non Solid-Non
Physical state
mixtures were made by replacing 20% of cement with Hazardous Hazardous
different combination percentage of silpozz and RHA Appearance Powder Powder
by mass to improve the strength performance of Colour Grey Grey Black
concrete. The w/b selected for this study is 0.375 with Odor Odorless Odorless
Table4. Details of concrete mix proportion along with identification
w/b Super
Concrete mix proportion Mix Identity
ratio Plasticisers (%)
M1 Concrete mix with 100% cement + 0% silpozz + 0% RHA 0.375 - M1S0R0
M1 Concrete mix with 80% cement + 0% silpozz + 20% RHA 0.375 0.30 M1S0R20
M1 Concrete mix with 80% cement + 5% silpozz + 15% RHA 0.375 0.25 M1S5R15
M1 Concrete mix with 80% cement + 10% silpozz + 10%RHA 0.375 0.25 M1S10R10
M1 Concrete mix with 80% cement + 15% silpozz + 5% RHA 0.375 0.20 M1S15R5
M1 Concrete mix with 80% cement + 20% silpozz + 0% RHA 0.375 0.25 M1S20R0
Table5. Details of mix quantity per m3 of concrete
Mix quantity of different constituents per m3 of concrete
Mix
Cement Sand Silpozz RHA Super Water
Identity NCA (kg)
(kg) (kg) (kg) (kg) Plasticiser (kg) (kg)
M1S0R0 511.00 527.00 1209.27 - - 0 191.60
M1S0R20 408.80 527.00 1209.27 0 102.20 1.533 191.60
M1S5R15 408.80 527.00 1209.27 25.55 76.65 1.277 191.60
M1S10R10 408.80 527.00 1209.27 51.10 51.10 1.277 191.60
M1S15R5 408.80 527.00 1209.27 76.65 25.55 1.022 191.60
M1S20R0 408.80 527.00 1209.27 102.20 0 1.277 191.60
4. Casting and testing of specimen: workable condition. Workability of fresh concrete was
measured by slump test immediately after mixing. The
The required amount of all dry materials such as coarse
slump value was lying in between 36 mm to 46 mm.
aggregate, fine aggregate, cement, silpozz and RHA
The test specimens were cast in steel mould and
were weighed (by mass) and placed in the concrete
compacted by using table vibrator and demoulded after
mixer and it was thoroughly mixed in dry condition for
one minute. The specified water of required amount for 24 hours. Thereafter the specimen cured for 7, 28 and
respective mix is then added during mixing. Super 90 days in a curing chamber under water. The specimen
was removed from water after the specified curing time
plasticiser is than added to bring it to the proper

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ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 569-574
 An Experimental Study on Strength Development of Concrete using Rice
572
Husk Ash and Silpozz

and wipe out excess water from the surface. Than and 10% of RHA, gives maximum strength as compared
compressive strength is measured from cube specimens, to other mixes.
flexural strength is measured from prism specimens and
split tensile strength is measured from cylindrical
specimens.
5. Results and discussions:
The characteristics of the hardened concrete are
obtained by testing the specimens at the specified time
that is 7, 28 and 90 days. A set of three concrete
specimens were cast and tested for each mix proportion
after specified time. The compressive strength, flexural
strength and split tensile strength test are conducted to
know the hardened concrete properties of the specimen.
5.1. Compressive strength
The summary of compressive strength test results of
concrete mix having w/b ratio 0.375 are presented in a Figure 3: Compressive strength versus age
Table 6. The compressive strength versus age in days
for various concrete mixes is shown in Figure 3 and
compressive strength for various concrete mixes type is
shown in Figure 4.
Table6. The summary of compressive strength results
7 days 28 days 90 days
Mix comp. comp. comp.
Identification strength strength strength
(MPa) (MPa) (MPa)
M1S0R0 42.30 56.25 65.88
M1S0R20 43.36 58.50 67.40
M1S5R15 47.50 60.60 68.45
M1S10R10 53.80 64.35 72.35
M1S15R5 46.85 58.35 67.48
Figure 4: Compressive strength versus concrete mix
M1S20R0 43.58 57.60 66.55
5.2. Split tensile strength:
It is observed from the Table 6 that the compressive
A set of three concrete cylinders were cast and tested
strength of control specimen M1S0R0 after 7, 28 and 90
each after 7, 28 and 90 days for each mix proportion to
days are 42.30 MPa, 56.25 MPa and 65.88 MPa
determine the split tensile strength. The summary of
respectively, whereas the compressive strength of
split tensile strength results of concrete specimen having
M1S10R10 is 53.80 MPa, 64.35 MPa and 72.35 MPa
w/b ratio 0.375 are presented in a Table 7. The split
respectively. This result shows that M1S10R10
tensile strength versus age in days for various concrete
achieved higher compressive strength than other mixes.
mixes is shown in Figure 5 and the split tensile strength
It is also observed that at early age the enhancement of
for various concrete mixes type is shown in Figure 6. It
strength with respect to control specimen is higher as
is observed from the results that the maximum split
compared with the later age strength. The early age
tensile strength is observed in M1S10R10 specimen as
enhancement of strength is due to the combination of
compared to control specimen M1S0R0. The Table 7
high end superplasticiser, silpozz and RHA. It is
shows that percentage increase in strength w.r.t control
observed from Figures that, as curing period increases
specimen is higher at early age as compared to the later
the compressive strength of concrete increases. The
age. It is also observed from Figures 5-6 that, as age of
compressive strength of all concrete mixes prepared by
curing increases the split tensile strength of concrete
the addition of different percentage of silpozz and RHA
increases in all mixes. The rate of increment of strength
is higher as compared with the control mix. The rate of
is more from 7 to 28 days as compared with 28 to 90
increment of compressive strength at early age (7-28
days.
days) is more as compared to the later age (28-90 days)
strength. The cement replacement with 10% of silpozz

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ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 569-574
 573 K. C. P ANDA AND S. D. P RUSTY

Table7. The summary of split tensile strength results for 7, 28 and 90 days are 5.12, 6.78 and 7.23
respectively whereas for control specimen M1S0R0 it is
7 days 28 days 90 days
4.7, 6.25 and 6.8 respectively. This represents the
split split split
Mix specimen M1S10R10 gives maximum flexural strength
tensile tensile tensile
Identification than other specimen. The percentage change in strength
strength strength strength
w.r.t control specimen shows that at early age, strength
(MPa) (MPa) (MPa)
is more than later age. It is observed from Figures 7-8
M1S0R0 3.41 4.35 4.85 that, as age of curing increases, the flexural strength of
M1S0R20 3.48 4.47 4.98 concrete increases in all types of concrete mix. The rate
M1S5R15 3.58 4.55 5.10 of increment of strength is more from 7 to 28 days as
M1S10R10 3.79 4.68 5.22 compared with 28 to 90 days.
M1S15R5 3.64 4.62 5.15 Table8. The summary of flexural strength results
M1S20R0 3.52 4.52 5.05 7 days 28 days 90 days
Mix flexural flexural flexural
Identification strength strength strength
(MPa) (MPa) (MPa)
M1S0R0 4.70 6.25 6.80
M1S0R20 4.80 6.38 6.95
M1S5R15 4.95 6.55 7.10
M1S10R10 5.12 6.78 7.23
M1S15R5 4.98 6.58 7.18
M1S20R0 4.88 6.45 7.03

Figure 5: Split tensile strength versus age

Figure7: Flexural strength versus age

Figure 6: Split tensile strength versus concrete mix

5.3. Flexural Strength:
A set of three concrete prisms were cast and tested each
after 7, 28 and 90 days for each mix proportion to
determine the flexural strength. The summary of
flexural strength results of concrete specimen having
w/b ratio 0.375 are presented in a Table 8. The flexural
strength versus age in days for various concrete mixes is
shown in Figure 7 and flexural strength for various
concrete mixes type is shown in Figure 8. The results
show that the flexural strength for specimen M1S10R10 Figure 8: Flexural strength versus concrete mix

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ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 569-574
 An Experimental Study on Strength Development of Concrete using Rice
Husk Ash and Silpozz
6. Concluding remarks:
 As age of curing increases, compressive strength,
flexural strength and split tensile strength of
concrete increases.
 The effect of silpozz and RHA enhance the
compressive strength, flexural and split tensile
strength of concrete at all ages.
 The strength enhancement of concrete mix prepared
with combination of cement, silpozz and RHA is
higher as compared to the concrete mix prepared
with combination of cement and silpozz or cement
and RHA.
 The enhancement of strength at early age is higher
as compared to the later age due to the combination
of silpozz and super plasticiser.
 At all age of curing, the strength of all concrete
mixtures prepared with the different combination of
silpozz and RHA is higher as compared with
control specimen.
 For water-binder ratio 0.375, the concrete mixture
containing 80% cement, 10% silpozz and 10%
RHA gives maximum compressive strength,
flexural strength and split tensile strength.
Reference
[1] Hassan K E, Cabrera J G, and Maliche R S (2000),
The effect of mineral admixtures on the properties
of high-performance concrete, Cement & Concrete
Composites, Vol. 22, pp. 267-271.
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574
[2] Mazloom M, Ramezanianpour A A and Brooks J J,
(2004), “Effect of silica fume on mechanical
properties of high-strength concrete”, Cement and
Concrete Composites, Vol. 26, pp. 347-357.
[3] Jaturapitakkul C, Kiattikomol V, and Leekeeratikul
T, (2004), “Use of ground coarse fly ash as a
replacement of condensed silica fume in producing
high-strength concrete”, Cement and Concrete
Research, Vol. 34, pp. 549–555.
[4] Sensale G R D, (2006), “Strength development of
concrete with rice husk ash”, Cement & Concrete
Composites, Vol. 28, pp. 158-160.
[5] Johari M A M, Brooks J J, Kabir S and Rivard P,
(2011), “Influence of supplementary cementitious
materials on engineering properties of high strength
concrete”, Construction and Building Materials,
Vol. 25, pp. 2639–2648.
[6] IS: 8112 (1989), Indian Standard Specifications for
43-grade Portland cement, Bureau of Indian
Standards, Manak Bavan, 9 Bahadur Shah Zafar
Marg, New Delhi 110002.
[7] IS: 383 (1970), “Indian Standard Specification for
Coarse and Fine Aggregates from Natural Sources
for Concrete (Second Revision)” Bureau of Indian
Standards, Manak Bavan, 9 Bahadur Shah Zafar
Marg, New Delhi 110002.
[8] IS: 10262 (1982), Recommended Guidelines for
Concrete Mix Design, Bureau of Indian Standards,
Manak Bavan, 9 Bahadur Shah Zafar Marg, New
Delhi 110002.
 Indexed in
Scopus Compendex and Geobase Elsevier, Chemical
Abstract Services-USA, Geo-Ref Information Services-USA,
List B of Scientific Journals, Poland,
Directory of Research Journals
www.cafetinnova.org August 2014, P.P.575-581
ISSN 0974-5904, Volume 07, No. 04

Bio-Inspired Solutions for Durable Concrete

V SRINIVASA REDDY, M V SESHAGIRI RAO AND C H SASIKALA
Department of Civil Engineering, GRIET, Hyderabad, India
Department of Civil Engineering, JNTUH College of Engineering, Hyderabad, India
Centre for Environment, JNTU, Hyderabad, India
Email: vempada@gmail.com, rao_vs_meduri@yahoo.com, sasi49@yahoo.com

Abstract: Unlike man-made materials, natural materials can interact with the surrounding environment, protect
themselves from it, and heal autonomously when damage occurs. Inspired by such properties of natural materials,
research on the development of innovative and novel bacterial concrete is underway and few research findings on its
durability characteristics were presented in this paper. The notion of self-healing concrete that can repair itself
without human intervention seems to be the stuff of science fiction till now but research conducted at JNTU
Hyderabad on bacteria incorporated concrete realizes the potential of this new field of bio-inspired self-repair
innovation to extend the lifetime and safety of concrete structures, reduces demand for expensive conventional crack
repair methods, and allows self-remediation in human inaccessible locations. Bacterial concrete has self-healing
component in the form of bacterium Bacillus subtilis JC3 and nutrients that will heal the damage to restore the
integrity of the concrete structure. This emerging technology provided a benefit by extending the periods at which
maintenance had to be carried out, and reducing the damage it sustained, extending the life of the concrete structure.
Developing a bio-based concrete that would work reliably in potentially extreme conditions and remain stable over
the life of the material was also a challenge. In the present investigations, artificially cracked cubes are immersed in
bacteria mediated nutrient suspension for 7 days to study the mechanism of bio-remediation. The cubes were
examined for the variation in their compressive strength and inferred that compressive strength showed increase.
Our results showed that the durability properties of bacterial concrete enhanced enormously in terms of
permeability, porosity, resistance to acid attack, chloride ion penetration.
Keywords: bacterial concrete, bio mineralization, MICP, Bacillus subtilis JC3, durability.

1. Introduction: The transport of aggressive gases and/or liquids into

concrete depends on its permeation characteristics. As
For crack repair, a variety of techniques are available
the permeation of concrete decreases, its durability
but traditional repair systems i.e., synthetic polymers
performance, in terms of physicochemical degradation,
have a number of disadvantageous aspects such as
increases. In concrete, it is generally not the porosity but
different thermal expansion coefficient than concrete
the pore structure that is essential in establishing the
and also pose environmental and health hazards.
permeability. In addition to that, micro cracks in the
Therefore, bacteriogenic calcium carbonate
matrix may contribute significantly to the permeability.
precipitation has been proposed as an alternative and
Figure. 1 shows the difference between porosity and
environmental friendly method to enhance the
permeability schematically, and it indicates that the
performance of concrete1. Several of these repairing
connectivity of the pore system is a prerequisite for
systems are organic coatings consisting of volatile
permeability (i.e. an open pore system). A material can
organic compounds. The air polluting effect of these
be porous and still perform tight as long as the pores are
compounds during manufacturing and coating has lead
not interconnected (i.e. closed pore system).
to the development of new formulations such as
Several bacteria have the ability to precipitate calcium
inorganic coating materials made up of calcium-silicate
carbonate. These bacteria can be found in soil, sand,
compounds, which exhibit a composition similar to
natural minerals etc. Jonkers et al. used Bacillus cohnii
cement. Concrete is a composite material with coarse
bacteria to precipitate CaCO3 [1].
and fine aggregates embedded in a cement paste matrix.
As such, the aggregate and the cement paste as well as Bacillus pasteurii have been used by Santhosh et al.,
the interfacial zone between them affect the mechanical Day et al., Bang et al. and Ramakrishnan et al.[2] ,
behavior and permeability, thus durability of concrete. while Dick et al.[3] used Bacillus lentus and Bacillus

#SPL02070409 Copyright ©2014 CAFET-INNOVA TECHNICAL SOCIETY. All rights reserved.

Proceedings of 3-Day International Conference on Emerging Trends in Civil Engineering (ICETE-2014,)
6th–8th January, 2014
 Bio-Inspired Solutions for Durable Concrete
sphaericus. In the present study the enhanced
performance potential of bacteria B.subtilis is reported.
De Muynck et al. found that the influence of the
calcium source is limited to the morphology of the
crystals. By means of SEM observations, they proved
that the presence of chloride ions resulted in
rhombohedral crystals, while the presence of acetate
ions resulted in spherical crystals [4].
Figure1. Schematic diagram to distinguish porosity and
permeability (EuroLightCon, 1998)
Bacteria-based self-healing sustainable concrete which
can extend its service life is our focus of research.
Calcite precipitation due to microbial chemical process
by specific alkali resistant microorganisms can act as a
self-healing agent when induced into concrete. This
mechanism is of great interest for repair in concrete
structures without human intervention [5]. The research
findings shows that a new type of alkaliphilic aerobic
microorganism belonging to Bacillus species, which
when added to concrete enhances the strength and
durability characteristics of concrete structures
significantly due to growth of filler material called
calcite(CaCO3) within the pores of the cement–sand
matrix leading to pore refinement and enhanced
concrete microstructure [6]. This paper presents the
research findings to suggest the potential use of the
microbial calcite precipitation process in remediation of
the surface cracks and subsurface of porous media.
2. Chemistry of biogenic activity by Bacillus Subtilis
JC3
Calcium chloride was used for precipitation of calcium
carbonate, while culture medium consisting of Peptone:
5 g/lit., NaCl: 5 g/lit., Yeast extract: 3 g/lit. and beef
extract was used for cultivation of microorganisms.
B.subtilis cell can attract Ca ions (Ca2+), which react
with carbonate ions CO32- originating from peptone
during oxidative deamination of amino acids.
Simultaneously, ammonia ions NH4+ increase pH value
in surrounding medium which improves calcite
precipitation efficiency. Precipitation of calcium
carbonate crystals occurs by heterogeneous nucleation
on the bacterial cell wall once super-saturation is
International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering
ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 575-580
576
achieved. The microbial precipitation of CaCO3 is
determined by several factors including: the
concentration of dissolved inorganic carbon, the pH, the
concentration of calcium ions and the presence of
nucleation sites [7]. The first three factors are provided
by the metabolism of the bacteria while the cell wall of
the bacteria will act as a nucleation site [8]. This
B.subtilis strain was chosen because of its greatest
potential for precipitation of calcium carbonate, even
under extreme conditions, as well as its lack of
pathogenicity and a very negative zeta-potential [9][10].
The chemical equations involved in microbial activity
are:
Ca2+ + B.subtilis Cell → B.subtilis Cell- Ca2+
CH3CH(NH2)COOH (Peptone) + ½O2 ---------> C2H2
+ H2CO3 + NH3
H2CO3 ----------> H+ + HCO3-
NH3 + H2O --------> NH4+ + OH-
B.subtilis Cell- Ca2+ + CO32- → B.subtilis Cell CaCO3
3. Experimental Investigations
3.1. Compressive Strength
To study the effect of biomineralization, due to Bacillus
subtilis JC3 on the compressive strength of concrete
treated with 1x 105 cells/ml bacteria spore suspension,
Cubes of size 100 x 100 x 100 mm are cast and tested
for compressive strength as per IS 516:1959.
3.2. Water Absorption
The water absorption test was conducted as per ASTMC
642 (82) in order to determine the increase in resistance
towards water penetration in concrete. The cube
specimens of 100x100mm were prepared both with and
without bacteria. After28 days curing, the specimens
were oven dried at 105°C in oven, establishing a mass
equilibrium of less than 0.5% between two
measurements at 24 h intervals. Then the specimens
were immersed in water at approximately 21°C for 48 h
and saturated mass after immersion was calculated.
Then the specimens were placed in suitable receptacle,
covered with tap water and were boiled for 5 h, further
the saturated mass after boiling was calculated. The
specimens were suspended by a wire and the apparent
mass in water was calculated. The ratio of the difference
between the mass of saturated surface dry specimen and
the mass of the oven dried specimen to the volume of
the specimen (1000 ml) gives the permeable voids in
percentage.
Volume of permeable voids %= (C-A)/(C-D) x 100
Where A is the mass of the oven dried sample in air
(gm) C is the mass of sample after immersion and
boiling (gm) and D is the apparent mass of sample in
water after immersion and boiling (gm).
 577 V SRINIVASA REDDY, M V S ESHAGIRI R AO AND CH S ASIKALA
The oven dried cubes after attaining constant weight,
were then immersed in water and the weight gain was
measured at regular intervals until a constant weight
was reached. The absorption at 30 min (initial surface
absorption) and final absorption was determined. The
final absorption in all cases was determined at 96 hrs.
The absorption characteristics indirectly represent the
volume of pores and their connectivity.
3.3. Sorptivity Test as per ASTM C1585
Sorptivity is a measure of the capillary forces exerted by
the pore structure causing fluids to be drawn in to the
body of the material. It provides a relative measure that
combines pore size diameter and number of pores. The
samples (100 x 50 mm size cylindrical specimens) are
preconditioned to a certain moisture condition, either by
drying the sample for 7 days in a 50°C oven. The sides
of the concrete sample are sealed, typically with
electrician’s tape or by sealant while the suction face
and the face opposite it were left unsealed. The initial
mass of the sample is taken and at time 0, is immersed
to a depth of 5-10 mm in the water. The procedure was
repeated, consecutively, at various times such as 15
min, 30 min, 1 hr, 2 hr, 4 hr, 6 hr, 24 hr, 48 hr and 72 hr
until the last reading. The gain in mass per unit area
over the density of water (I) is plotted versus the square
root of the elapsed time (√t). The slope of the line of
best fit of these points (ignoring the origin) is reported
as the sorptivity (k). For one dimensional flow, it can be
stated that:
I = k x √t
Where k is sorptivity coefficient and I = W/(A x d)
W = the amount of water absorbed in kg; A= the cross-
section of the specimen that was in contact with water
(m2); d= density of the medium in which the specimen
was dipped (1000 kg/m3 in case medium is water). The
rate of water absorption, sorptivity (k), is the slope of I-
√t graph (m / min1/2 or kg/ m2 / √ min). Because of small
initial surface tension and buoyancy effects, the
relationship between cumulative water absorption
(kg/m2) and square root of exposure time (t 0.5) shows
deviation from linearity during first few minutes. Thus,
for the calculation of sorptivity coefficient, only the
section of the curves for exposure period from 15 min to
72 hrs, where the curves were consistently linear, was
used for the calculation of Sorptivity. While volume of
permeable voids (VPV) is a measure of voids,
Sorptivity gives a measure of nominal pore radius and
number of pores.
3.4. Brenauer-Emmett-Teller’s (BET) Nitrogen (N2)
Nitrogen Adsorption Method
BET nitrogen adsorption method is used to determine
the volume, size and surface area of pores. Porosity
characteristics of Concrete including total volume of
International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering
ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 575-581
pores in concrete matrix, volume of micropores, pore
size distribution and specific surface area. This test
confirms the modification in pore size distribution due
to the addition of microorganisms. The porosity and
pore size distribution as measured by BET Nitrogen
Adsorption Method are reported graphically as shown in
Fig 7.
3.5. Thermo gravimetric Analysis
A sample of the repair material was removed from the
crack by means of a needle. This material was used for
thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). About ±30 mg of
the repair material was brought in a sample cup.
Subsequently the cup was placed in the TGA apparatus.
During the analysis, the crack repair material was
exposed to temperatures ranging from 20°C to 900°C at
a rate of 10 °C/min in an inert argon atmosphere.
Through performance of the TGA analysis, the presence
of CaCO3 in the repair material is determined. When
CaCO3 crystals are present in the repair material, they
will decompose into CaO and CO2 upon heating. As
CaCO3 decomposes between the temperature ranges of
500-800 °C a decrease in weight, caused by the release
of CO2, is expected around that temperature interval for
the samples treated with bacteria. As it can be seen in
Fig 7, at about 100 -200 °C the water in the specimens
evaporates, leading to a decrease in weight. Between
500 and 800 °C another decrease in weight is observed
due to the decomposition of CaCO3. For the without
bacteria specimens the weight loss is rather small while
for with bacteria specimens a strong decrease in weight
is observed. These results provide evidence that
particularly in the case of concrete specimens with
bacteria, CaCO3 crystals are formed. In other graph, the
percentage change in weight / °C is shown versus the
temperature to indicate the points at which the weight
loss is most apparent. For concrete specimens without
bacteria only a small amount of CaCO3 is decomposed
at the temperature of 591 °C. This decrease in weight
may possibly be attributed to chemical precipitation of
CaCO3. For concrete specimens with bacteria, the
observed peaks are more distinct. XRD analysis was
performed to find out which type of material was
formed besides CaCO3. It was shown that the crystalline
materials present in the mortar matrix were calcite,
vaterite and aragonite. All these are crystalline forms of
CaCO3 from which calcite is the most stable form.
Aragonite and vaterite undergo transitions to calcite at
455 °C and between 350 and 400 °C respectively.
Consequently about 600 °C the reactant CaCO3 would
normally be the calcite.
4. Test Results and Discussion
Test results of various investigations carried out on
bacteria incorporated concrete are presented below:
 Bio-Inspired Solutions for Durable Concrete
578

Table1. Effect of Bacillus subtilis JC3 cell concentration on Compressive Strength (MPa)
Average Compressive Strength (MPa) ± S.D
Cell concentration/ml % Increase % Increase % Increase
of mixing water 7 days relative to14 days relative to28 days relative to
control control control
Nil (control) 37.32 ± 0.42 - 44.1±0.66 51.81±0.10 -
104 41.68±0.52 11.68 45.23±0.85 2.56 58.02±0.72 11.99
105 45.02±0.22 20.63 49.21±0.91 11.59 61.79±0.68 16.15
106 43.09±0.36 15.46 47.69±0.32 8.14 57.21±0.49 10.42
107 40.11±0.58 7.48 45.97±0.44 4.24 54.66±0.89 5.51
An alkaliphilic aerobic soil microorganism Bacillus Figure2. Strength development of a Normal concrete
subtilis JC3 is incorporated at different cell and Bacterial concrete
concentrations with the mixing water. Different cell
concentrations were derived from the bacterial growth
culture by serial dilution method. The study showed that
a 16 % increase in 28 day compressive strength of
cement mortar was achieved with the addition of about
105 cell/ml of mixing water as shown in Table 1. The
strength improvement is due to growth of filler material
within the pores of the cement–sand matrix as shown in
Fig 2. The modification in pore size distribution and
total pore volume of cement–sand mortar due to such
growth is also noted.

Figure3. Schematic drawing of Sorptivity Test setup

Table2: (a) Water Absorption studies on Specimens of age 28 days

Water Absorption % at 30 min
Grade of Concrete Controlled Concrete Bacterial Concrete
(without microorganism) (105 cells/ml of microorganisms)
Ordinary grade concrete (M20) 3.17 1.76
Standard grade concrete (M40) 2.64 1.14
High Strength grade Concrete (M60) 1.94 0.78
(b) Acceptance Criteria for absorption
Absorption (%) at 30 minutes Absorption rating Concrete quality
< 3.0 low good
3.0 to 5.0 average average
> 5.0 high poor

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ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 575-580
 579 V SRINIVASA REDDY, M V S ESHAGIRI R AO AND CH S ASIKALA

(c) Water Absorption Capacity (WAC) (%) and Volume of permeable voids (VPV) (%)
Controlled Concrete Bacterial Concrete
M20 M40 M60 M80 M20 M40 M60 M80
Water Absorption Capacity (WAC) (%) 5.62 2.79 1.93 1.52 2.79 1.19 0.77 0.38
Volume of permeable voids (VPV) (%) 12 6 4 3 6 3 2 1
It was observed that with the inclusion of bacteria, water
absorption capacity of concrete decreased. Maximum
reduction in water absorption was observed with 10 5
cells/ml for bacterial concrete specimens as shown in
Table 2 a-c. The deposition of a layer of calcium
carbonate on the surface and inside pores of the
concrete specimens resulted in a decrease of water
absorption and permeability as shown in Fig 4 and 5.
Once the pores are sealed, reduction in water ingress is
observed. This bacterial action deposition can seal the
pores, voids and micro cracks, where other sealants are
unable to work through. Concrete specimens treated Figure 4 Water Absorption Capacity (WAC) (%)
with bacteria and nutrients showed significantly less
water absorption compared to untreated specimens
indicating that about 65% of this decrease was
attributable to the presence of biological matter, which
physically hindered the movement of water as shown in
Fig 6. This improvement is probably due to deposition
on the microorganism cell surfaces and within the pores
of cement–sand matrix, which plug the pores within the
mortar. As a consequence, the carbonation rate
decreased by about 25–30%

Figure 5. Volume of permeable voids (VPV) (%).

0.009

M20 Controlled
0.008 M40 Controlled
M60 Controlled
M80 Controlled
0.007 M20 Bacterial
M40 Bacterial
M60 Bacterial
0.006
M80 Bacterial

0.005
I x 10 -3 m

0.004 1

0.003

0.002

0.001

0
0.00 10.00 20.00 30.00 40.00 50.00 60.00 70.00
t0.5 min

Figure 6 Plot between I- √t to calculate sorptivity coefficient (k)

A significant decrease in porosity and average pore mineral plugging was also evaluated by means of
diameter was observed in bacterial concrete by the ultrasonic transmission measurements and visual
addition of bacteria as compared to the control concrete examination. The presence of CaCO3 in the concrete is
as shown in Fig 7. Efficiency of this bacteriogenic determined TGA analysis. The CaCO3 crystals present

International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering

ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 575-581
 Bio-Inspired Solutions for Durable Concrete
580

will decompose into CaO and CO2 upon heating CO2, is expected around that temperature interval for the
(CaCO3 → CaO + CO2). As CaCO3 decomposes samples treated with bacteria. A clear difference in
between the temperature ranges of 500–700°C a weight loss can be observed between the samples
significant decrease in weight, caused by the release of treated with and without bacteria as shown in Fig 8.

1.20E-02

1.00E-02
Cumulative Pore Volume (cc/g)

M20 Controlled
M40 Controlled
8.00E-03
M60 Controlled
M80 Controlled
6.00E-03

4.00E-03

2.00E-03

0.00E+00
0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35
Pore Diameter (nm)

Figure7. Pore volume versus Pore Diameter

105
without bacteria
with bacteria
100

95
Weight %

90

85

80

75
0 100 200 300 400 500 600 700 800 900 1000
o
Temperature C

expulsion of hydratation of the decomposition of CaCO3 decomposition of

evaporable water hydrate calcium Ca(OH) 2 Disintegrates hydrate calcium
silicate silicate

0.4

without bacteria
with bacteria

0.3
Change in Weight (%/ oC)

0.2

0.1

0
0 100 200 300 400 500 600 700 800 900 1000
o
Temperature C

Figure8. TGA Results showing weight loss and Change in weight loss per oC

International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering

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 581 V SRINIVASA REDDY, M V S ESHAGIRI R AO AND CH S ASIKALA

5. Conclusions International Conference on Fracture, Turin, Italy,

2001.
In bacterial concrete, induction of microorganisms
[2] S.K. Ramachandran, V. Ramakrishnan, S.S. Bang,
inside the concrete has enormous effect on the porosity
”Remediation of concrete using micro-organisms”,
within the cement matrix paste, on the particle size
ACI Materials journal 98 (2001) 3–9.
distribution of the crystalline phases and on the presence
[3] P. Ghosh, S. Mandal, B.D. Chattopadhyay, S. Pal,
of in-homogeneities within the hydrated paste due to
“Use of microorganism to improve the strength of
mineral precipitation. Calcite mineral precipitation
cement mortar”, Cement and Concrete Research
results in less capillary porosity in the hardened paste
35 (10) (2005) 1980–1983.
and hence a greater strength. This reduced capillary
[4] J. Dick, W. De Windt, B. De Graef, H. Saveyn, P.
porosity also favours the formation of fine-textured
Van der Meeren, N. De Belie, W. Verstraete, “Bio-
hydration products with optimized particle size
deposition of a calcium carbonate layer on
distribution of the cementitious materials in order to
degraded limestone by Bacillus species”,
increase the potential packing density. So bacteria
Biodegradation V17 (4) (2006) 357–367.
incorporated concrete has increased packing density and
[5] V.S. Whiffin, “Microbial CaCO3 precipitation for
reduced capillary porosity. The calcite crystals formed
the production of biocement”, School of Biological
will glue together the hydrated particles which reduce
Sciences and Biotechnology, Murdoch University,
the interstitial porosity between them.
Perth, 2004, p. 155.
Furthermore the effect of mineral precipitation [6] J. Morse (Ed.), “The Kinetics of Calcium
homogenously in bacterial concrete leads to a reduction Carbonate Dissolution and Precipitation”,
in inhomogeneities within the paste and hence improved Mineralogical Society of America, 1983.
paste strength. The strength of the paste will be limited [7] Ramakrishnan V. “Performance characteristics of
by the flaws that form the weakest link, be the bacterial concrete - a smart biomaterial”. In:
inhomogeneities or capillary pores. In order to improve Proceedings of the First International Conference
the strength of the paste as a whole, all such flaws must on Recent Advances in Concrete Technology,
be minimized. Therefore bacterial concrete is a new Washington, DC; 2007. p. 67–78.
approach to enhance the strength and durability of the [8] Muynck DW, Cox K, Belie N, Verstraete W.
concrete economically. “Bacterial carbonate precipitation as an alternative
surface treatment for concrete”. Constr Build
From the investigation, it has been revealed that
Mater 2008; 22:875–85.
bacterial concrete has better resistance against strength
[9] Nemati M, Voordouw G. “Modification of porous
deterioration for all curing conditions and curing ages.
media permeability using calcium carbonate
From the above, it is clear that the presence of a layer of
produced enzymatically in situ.” Enzyme
carbonate crystals on the surface has the potential to
Microbiol Technol 2003; 33: 635–642.
improve the resistance of cementitious materials
[10] Pacheco-Torgal F, Labrincha JA. “Biotech
towards degradation processes. The use of bacteria in
cementitious materials: some aspects of an
concrete mix also needs further research efforts. Several
innovative approach for concrete with enhanced
issues still need to be addressed in this field:
durability”. Constr Build Mater 2013; 40: 1136–
(a) Which calcite producing bacteria are more efficient 41.
in highly alkaline environment?
(b) Which is the most eco-efficient encapsulation
method?
(c) Will biologically deposited calcite endure the test of
time?
(d) Can biomineralization be made cost-efficient?
(e) What are the environmental implications related to
the use of corn steep liquor as a nutrient source?
(f) Are there any health implications involved in the use
of bacteria?
(g) What is the life cycle analysis of biotech concrete?
Reference
[1] S.K. Ramakrishnan, R.K. Panchalan, S.S. Bang,
“Improvement of concrete durability by bacterial
mineral precipitation”, Proceedings of 11th

International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering

ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 575-581
 Indexed in
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Abstract Services-USA, Geo-Ref Information Services-USA,
List B of Scientific Journals, Poland,
Directory of Research Journals
www.cafetinnova.org August 2014, P.P.582-587
ISSN 0974-5904, Volume 07, No. 04

Effect of Glass Fiber on Mechanical Properties of Vibrated

Concrete and Self Compacting Concrete
M L VARA PRASAD1, P RATHISH KUMAR2 AND L RAMA PRASAD REDDY3
1
I & CAD Department, Irrigation Circle, Kurnool, Andhra Pradesh, India
2
Department of Civil Engineering, NIT, Warangal, Andhra Pradesh, India
3
Department of Civil Engineering, Andhra University, Vizag, Andhra Pradesh, India
Email: prasadsmlv@gmail.com

Abstract: Performance of civil engineering structures to a great extent depends on the characteristics of the
materials used for their construction. Innovation in construction is highly linked with development of advanced
construction materials. Fibre reinforced concrete can offer a convenient, practical and economical method for
overcoming micro-cracks and similar type of deficiencies. Conventional concrete used in building and civil
engineering applications requires compaction to achieve strength, durability and homogeneity. The typical method
of compaction, vibration, generates delays and additional costs in projects and moreover is a serious health hazard in
and around construction sites. Self-Compacting Concrete or Self Consolidating Concrete (SCC) is a highly flowable,
stable concrete which flows readily into place, filling formwork without any consolidation and without undergoing
any significant segregation. In the present work, Fiber Reinforced Vibrated Concrete (FRVC) and Fiber Reinforced
Self-Compacting Concrete (FRSCC) were developed independently. A relationship is developed between the tensile
strength and compressive strength, flexural strength and compressive strength of FRVC and FRSCC for M40 Grades
of Concrete. The values of Compression, Split, Flexure and Modulus of Elasticity of VC and SCC with and without
glass fiber were also compared with the Indian Standard Codal Provisions.
Key words: Vibrated Concrete, Self Compacting Concrete, Glass Fiber, M40 Grade of Concrete, Mechanical
Properties, Relationships.

1. Introduction: Concrete made with Portland cement has certain

characteristics and it is relatively strong in compression
Self-compacting concrete was first developed by
but weak in tension and tends to be brittle. The
Professor Hajime Okamura [1] in Japan during the
weakness in tension can be overcome by the use of
1980s, and it can be produced by a number of
conventional rod reinforcement and to some extent by
approaches. In 1998, the Japanese Society of Civil
the inclusion of a sufficient volume of certain fibers.
Engineering (JSCE), organized along with international
Fiber is a small piece of reinforcing material possessing
organization RILEM, the first international workshop
certain characteristic properties. They can be circular or
on SCC [2]. Self-Compacting Concrete (SCC) is
flat. The use of fiber reinforced concretes (FRC) has
considered as a concrete which can be placed and
increased in building structures because the reinforced
compacted under its self-weight with little or no
fibers in concrete may improve the toughness, flexural
vibration effort, and which is at the same time, cohesive
strength, tensile strength, impact strength as well as the
enough to be handled without segregation or bleeding. It
failure mode of the concrete [5]. The properties of fibers
is used to facilitate and ensure proper filling and good
that are usually of interest are fiber concentration, fiber
structural performance of restricted areas and heavily
geometry, fiber orientation, and fiber distribution.
reinforced structural members [3]. Self-Compacting
Concrete is brittle under tensile loading and the
Concrete (SCC) has gained wide use for placement in
mechanical properties of concrete may be improved by
congested reinforced concrete structures with difficult
randomly oriented short discrete fibers which prevent or
casting conditions [4]. For such applications, the fresh
control initiation and propagation or coalescence of
concrete must possess high fluidity and good
cracks.
cohesiveness.
1.1 Fiber Reinforced Concrete

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6th–8th January, 2014
 583 M L V ARA P RASAD P RATHISH KUMAR AND L R AMA P RASAD REDDY

Table1. Properties of Glass Fiber

S No Trade Name CEM FIL anti crack high dispersion Glass fibers
1. Number of fibers 212 million / kg
2. Aspect Ratio 857:1
3. Typical addition rate 0.6 to 1.0 kg/m3 of concrete
4. Tensile Strength 1700 Map
5. Modulus of Elasticity 73 Gpa
6. Corrosion resistance Excellent
7. Specific gravity 2.6
8. Density 26 KN/m3
9. Filament diameter 14 microns
10. Filament length 12 mm
1.2 Glass Fiber with T50 was selected as the first priority test method
for the filling ability of SCC. The V-funnel (Fig 2) or
The glass fiber used shall be CEM FIL anti crack high -
quality Alkali – Resistant glass fiber which is designed Orimet tests are recommended as second priority
to reinforce cementations and other alkaline matrix. alternatives to the T50 measurement. The passing ability
of fresh SCC can be tested by L-box (Fig 3). The basic
Fibers used are of 14micron diameter and length of 12
properties of SCC and GFRSCC for M40 grade
mm which results the aspect ratio of 857:1.
concretes developed are shown in Table 2. The fresh
2.0 Research Significance properties of SCC and GFRSCC are suggestive of
An effort has been made in the present investigation to confirmation with the EFNARC Specifications [6].
appreciate the utility self - compacting concrete mix
proportions. The Fly ash available locally was used as a
partial replacement for cement in optimum dosages for
improving the strength and workability properties of
concretes. The present work compares the mechanical
properties of Vibrated and Self-Compacting Concrete
with and without glass fiber and suggests a
mathematical relationship between split, compression
and flexural, compression studies. The present work
provides very useful information for the practical use of
fibrous concretes.
2.1 Basic Properties of Self-Compacting Concrete
Fresh SCC must possess the key properties including Fig.1 Slump Flow
filling ability, passing ability and resistance to
segregation at required levels. The filling ability is the
ability of the SCC to flow into all spaces within the
formwork under its own weight. Passing ability is the
ability of the SCC to flow through tight openings
such as spaces between steel reinforcing bars, under
its own weight. Passing ability is required to guarantee a
homogenous distribution of the components of SCC in
the vicinity of obstacles. The resistance to segregation is
the resistance of the components of SCC to migration or
separation and remains uniform throughout the process
of transport and placing.
2.2Tests on Self-Compacting Concrete
Fig.2 V-Funnel
The slump flow equipment (Fig 1) is currently widely
used in concrete practice, and the method is very simple
and straightforward. Thus the slump flow combined

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ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 582-587
 Effect of Glass Fiber on Mechanical Properties of Vibrated Concrete and
584
Self-Compacting Concrete

Fig.3 L-Box
Table2. Basic Properties of Self-Compacting Concrete for M40 Grade
S. No Method Unit SCC GFRSCC EFNARC limit
1. slump flow by Abrams cone mm 710 675 650-800
2. T50cmslump flow sec 4.12 4.61 2-5
3. V-funnel sec 5.79 10.50 6 - 12
4. Time increase, V-funnel at T5minutes sec 2 2.5 0-3
5. J-ring mm 7 9 0-10
6. L-box(h2/h1) 0.85 0.80 0.8 – 1.0
3. Experimental Program The Fly ash available locally was used as a partial
replacement for cement and Conplast SP337
An experimental program was designed to develop
superplastisizer, in optimum dosages for improving the
Vibrated concrete and Self-Compacting Concrete with
strength and workability properties of concretes. The
and without Glass Fiber for M40 grade of concrete. The
strength properties of self- compacting concrete and mixes were designed as per ACI mix design [9] for
vibrated concrete with and without Glass Fiber were normal vibrated concrete (VC) and Nansu method of
mix design [10] for Self-Compacting Concrete (SCC).
studied. Cubes, cylinders and prisms of standard
The details of the mix proportions are as shown in
dimensions were cast and tested. The compressive
Table.3.
strength, Split tensile strength flexural strength and
modulus of elasticity of Self- Compacting Concrete 3.2Casting of specimens
(SCC) and Vibrated Concrete (VC) with and without
The program consisting of casting and testing of 12
Glass Fiber were determined and an inter relationship is
cubes, 12 cylinders, 12 prisms and additional 12
proposed between split tensile strength & compressive
cylinders(for Modulus of Elasticity) of each. Of these
strength and flexural strength & compressive strength of 12 specimens 6 corresponds to VC and 6 corresponds to
VC and SCC with and without Glass Fiber. SCC. Of these 6, 3 each correspond to with fiber and
3.1Materials used without fiber in each of these concretes. Of these 3
specimens 150 x 150 mm cubes, 100 x 100 x 400 prism
The materials used throughout the experimentation are
same for both SCC and VC. Ordinary Portland cement specimens for flexure, 150mm diameter and 300 mm
of 53 grade (compressive strength not less than 53 height specimens for split tension and Modulus of
Elasticity were employed. Both VC & SCC with and
N/mm2) was used in the study. The cement was selected
without glass fiber specimens were cast at the same time
as per IS-12269 [7]. Fine aggregate was standard river
under identical temperature conditions and all the
sand procured locally and was confirming to zone-II as
specimens were demoulded after 24 hours of air drying
per IS-2386 [8]. Crushed granite was used as coarse
aggregate. The aggregate was passed through standard and kept in water for 28 days for water curing.
sieves of 20mm and retained on 4.75mm sieve. The 3.3 Testing of Specimens
Glass Fiber (GF) is Cem-Fil Anti Crack and its Specific
At the end of 28 days curing the specimens capped
gravity is 2.6, length of the fiber is close to 12 mm, and
using plaster of paris if required to ensure plane testing
the Specific surface area is 105 m2 /kg. The optimum surface. Tinius-Olsen testing machine (TOTM) of
dosage of Glass fiber was arrived as 1 Kg/m3 of capacity 2000KN was used for testing the specimens
concrete based on the fresh and hardened properties.

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 585 M L V ARA P RASAD P RATHISH KUMAR AND L R AMA P RASAD REDDY

under standard load rate control. While testing, determined using compressometer setup and tested
precautions were taken to ensure axial loading. For under TOTM. All the above tests were done as per IS
flexural strength standard three point loading was Codal Provisions [11].
adopted. The modulus of elasticity of concrete was
Table3. Mix Proportions
Super- Viscosity
Concrete Cement Fly ash Powder Sand Aggregate Water
Plasticizer Modifying
Type (Kg) (Kg) (Kg) (Kg) (Kg) (Lit)
(Lit) Agent (Lit)
(1) (2) (3) (4) =(2+3) (5) (6) (7)
(8) (9)
M40 (VC) 437.57 77.22 514.79 753.79 940.90 187.04 5.15 -
M40
437.57 102.96 540.53 753.79 940.90 187.04 5.40 -
(FRVC)
M40
417.39 131.00 464.91 908.28 800.40 200.02 14.60 0.42
(SCC)
M40
417.39 166.00 583.39 908.28 800.40 200.02 16.00 0.50
(FRSCC)
4. Interpretation and Discussion of Test Results additions has shown pronounced increase of split tensile
The results obtained from the detailed experimental strength of self-compacting concrete.
program conducted on VC and SCC without and with 4.3 Effect of Fibers addition on Flexural Strength of
fiber are discussed and presented in the next paragraphs. VC and SCC
Table 4 shows the details of various mechanical
Table 4 & Fig 9 show the details of flexural strength for
properties viz., compressive strength, split strength and no fiber and fiber additions. There is an increase in
flexural strength for vibrated concrete and self- flexural strength of fibrous concretes as compared to no
compacting concretes with and without glass fiber. The
f
optimum fiber content utilized throughout the fiber concretes. The values are close to 0.7 ck as
experimentation was based on initial strength and flow given by IS code for the relationship between flexural
studies. strength sqrt (fck) for normal concrete. The value of
4.1 Compressive Strength of Fiber Reinforced VC fck
flexural strength to is more with glass fibrous
and SCC concretes. From Fig 8, it can be concluded from this
The mechanical properties of concrete cast without and study that the fibers improve the flexural strength as
with Fibers additions are shown in Table 4. Addition of high as 9.72% in FRVC concrete and it is 11.11 % in
fibers has definitely increased the compressive strength, the case of FRSCC. At this stage it may be concluded
though marginally. The variation of compressive that the bending behaviour is greatly improved with
strength with fiber additions and the percentage increase glass fiber additions in self-compacting concrete.
in strength with fiber addition is plotted in Fig 7. It can 4.4 Effect of Fibers addition on Modulus of Elasticity
be noted that the percentage increase is marginal. It is of VC and SCC
3.56 % in Vibrated Glass Fiber reinforce concrete while
it is 4.15 % in Glass Fiber Reinforced Self-Compacting The brittle behavior of self-compacting concrete is
Concrete. It can hence be concluded at this stage that known. The fiber addition in such concretes may
fiber additions do not increase the compressive strength modify the stress-strain behaviour of concrete. Using a
much. compressometer setup and under compression the
stress-strain values are evaluated and curves were drawn
4.2 Influence of Fibers on Split Tensile Strength of for the initial elastic portions. The Modulus of Elasticity
VC and SCC (E) was calculated, following the specifications as laid
The tensile strength of SCC is relatively much lower by IS Code 516-1999[11]. Table 5 shows the details of
than its compressive strength because, it can be the values of modulus of elasticity for VC and SCC
developed more quickly with crack propagation. Hence, without and with fiber respectively. It may be concluded
it is important to improve the tensile strength of such a that the addition of fiber in general increased the value
concrete. The variation of split tensile strength with of E of self-compacting concrete. These values were
fiber additions is shown in Table 4. It can be noted that close to 5000*√fck in case of no fiber concrete & higher
the percentage increase is 8.54% in GFVC and 13.07% in case of fibrous concretes.
in GFRSCC (Fig 8). It can be inferred that the fiber

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 Effect of Glass Fiber on Mechanical Properties of Vibrated Concrete and
586
Self-Compacting Concrete

Fig.4 Test on Cube Specimen Fig.5 Split Tensile Test on Specimen

Fig.6 Flexure Test on Specimen

Table4. 28 days strength results of M40 grade concrete
Grade Compressive Split Tensile Flexural Modulus
Split/ Flexure/
of Strength Strength Strength of Elasticity
sqrt(Comp) sqrt(fck)
Concrete (Mpa) (MPa) (Mpa) (Mpa)
M40 WF GF WF GF WF GF WF GF WF GF WF GF
VC 53.06 54.95 5.15 5.59 4.32 4.74 0.71 0.75 0.68 0.75 33525 30297
SCC 52.19 54.46 4.82 5.45 4.03 4.48 0.68 0.74 0.65 0.72 35594 32034
WF: Without Fiber; GF: Glass Fiber

Fig.7 Test on Cube Specimen Fig.8 Split Tensile Test on Specimen

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 587 M L V ARA P RASAD P RATHISH KUMAR AND L R AMA P RASAD REDDY
Fig.9 Flexure Test on Specimen
5. Conclusions
Glass Fiber Reinforced Self-compacting Concrete is
considered to have number of special benefits compared
with vibrated concrete due to its high performance and
durability properties. In order to evaluate the
applicability of SCC in Construction industry,
experimental investigations are carried out and
compared with the normal vibrated concrete. After a
detailed experimental investigation the following
conclusions are drawn
1. The strength properties of SCC are comparable
with normal vibrated concrete and glass fiber effect
is more in case of SCC when compared with VC
Strength increase.
2. With the use of SCC, there is a general decrease in
strength values of concretes, but this decrease over
come by adding glass fiber and we are able to
achieve durable concrete with the use of waste
byproducts as mineral admixtures.
3. The relationship between compressive strength and
split tensile strength and flexural and characteristic
compressive strength for without and with fiber is
suggested.
4. The modulus of elasticity increased slightly with
fiber addition. It is more in case of GFRSCC.
5. FRSCC developed with glass fibers has very good
applications for initiating and propagation of
cracks. The fibrous specimens failed only by
splitting of the fiber and there was no debonding of
fibers noticed in any of the specimens.
International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering
ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 582-587
Acknowledgement: I would like to express my deep
sense of gratitude to Associate Professor P.Rathish
Kumar, Dept of Civil Engineering., NIT, Warangal for
their invaluable guidance during the experimental work.
Reference
[1] H.Okamura and M.Ouchi “Self-Compacting to
achieve durable concrete structures”, Journal of
Advanced Concrete Technology, Vol.1, No.1, April
2003, pp 5-15.
[2] Mustafa Sahmaran and I. Ozgur Yaman “Hybrid
fiber reinforced self-compacting concrete with a
high-volume coarse fly ash”, Elsevier Science
Publishers, 30 June 2005, PP 109-126.
[3] H.J.H. Brouwers and H.J. Radix “Theoretical and
experimental study of Self-Compacting Concrete”,
Cement & Concrete Research, 9 June 2005, PP
2116 – 2136.
[4] P.L. Domone “Self - Compacting Concrete: An
analysis of 11 years of case studies”, Cement &
Concrete Composites, 1 December 2005, PP 197-
208.
[5] M.L.V.Prasad and P.Rathish Kumar, Comparative
Study of Glass and Polypropylene Fiber Reinforced
Self Compacting Concrete(FRSCC), National
Conference on Emerging Trends in Civil
Engineering for Infrastructure Development(ETC-
ID 2008),Raipur, February 15,16th-2008.
[6] Specifications and Guidelines for Self-Compacting
Concrete, February 2002, EFNARC, Association
House, 99 West Street, Farnham, UK.
[7] Indian Standard Code IS: 12269, Specifications for
53 Grade Ordinary Portland Cement.
[8] Indian Standard Code IS: 2386, Methods of test for
Aggregates for Concrete, reprinted 1997.
[9] ACI Method of Mix Design. 211.1-91: Standard
Practice for Selecting Proportions for Normal,
Heavyweight and Mass Concrete (Reapproved
2002).
[10] Nan su et.al. “A simple mix design method for self-
compacting concrete”, Cement and Concrete
Research, 6 June 2001, PP 1799 – 1807.
[11] IS: 516–1956 (Reaffirmed 1999), Indian Standard
Methods of Tests for Strength of Concrete.
 Indexed in
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ISSN 0974-5904, Volume 07, No. 04

Effect of PACKING FACTOR on Workability and Mechanical

Properties of High Strength Self Compacting Concrete (M70
GRADE) with GGBS and MICRO SILICA as Filler Material
V MALLIKARJUNA REDDY1 AND M V SESHAGIRI RAO2
1
Department of Civil Engineering, Gokaraju Rangaraju Institute of Engineering and Technology, Hyderabad,
Andhra Pradesh, India
2
Department of Civil Engineering, JNTUH College of Engineering, Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh, India
Email: evmreddyin@yahoo.co.in, rao_vs_meduri@yahoo.com

Abstract: This paper presents the results of an experimental research on the workability and mechanical properties
of self-compacting concrete. The work focused on concrete mixes having Packing Factors of 1.10, 1.11, 1.12, 1.13
and 1.14 for a Water Cement ratio of 0.25. The Concrete mixes contains different proportions of GGBS, Super
plasticizers, Water binder ratios, Coarse aggregate, Fine aggregate and constant proportions of water cement ratios,
Cement, Micro Silica and VMA, for different Packing Factors. The percentage of Micro Silica added is 7% for all
mixes. The mix proportions are obtained on the basis of NAN-SU mix design. All the mixes contain Cement of 574
kg/m3 but with different total binder content. The workability tests utilized in this research were the Slump flow, V-
funnel, L-box and U-box, which can be used to evaluate the filling ability, segregation resistance and passing ability
of self-compacting concrete. Based upon the experimental results, it is observed that when Packing Factor is less
than 1.10 the mix requires more binders there by affecting the workability, whereas when Packing Factor is more
than 1.14 the required strengths and workability are not achieved.
Keywords: Self-Compacting Concrete, Packing Factor (PF), Workability, GGBS, Micro silica, Super plasticizer and
VMA.

1. Introduction: and grading, Fine Aggregate to Coarse Aggregate

ratio(FA/CA), packing factor, kind and dosage of super
Self-compacting concrete having advanced viscosity
plasticizers, and the fineness of cement. The main
and workability properties can easily fill the moulds
factors on self-compacting concrete are the water and
without the necessity of using vibrators. High volume of
super plasticizer contents of the mix since by simply
mineral powder is a necessity for a proper self-
adding them the inter particle lubrication is increased.
compacting concrete design[ 1,2,3]. For this purpose,
mineral admixtures such as limestone powder, fly ash, In this research mix design used is based on NAN-SU
micro silica, rice husk ash and blast furnace slag can be method [9]. His design is based on packing factor (PF)
used[4,5]. In this study, the effects of Packing Factor on of aggregate. In this research W/C and FA/CA used are
fresh and hardened properties of self -compacting 0.25 and 52/48 for different Packing Factors.
concrete have been investigated. Proportions of Coarse aggregate, Fine aggregate,
GGBS, Super plasticizers and water binder ratios are
It is worth noting that extensive investigations on the
different and proportions of Cement, Micro Silica and
workability of self-compacting concrete have been
VMA are constant for different Packing Factors. The
made recently. Kayat et al. reported that the L-box, U-
percentages of Micro Silica and VMA added are 7%
box, and J-ring tests can be used to evaluate the passing
and 0.3% for all mixes.
ability of self-compacting concrete and to a certain
extent, the deformability and resistance to segregation. 2. Materials and mix proportions:
When combined with the slump flow test, the L-box test
This part of the paper presents the specifications of the
is very suitable for the quality control of on-site Self-
mixes used for obtaining the workability, compressive
compacting concrete [6,7,8]. It is apparent that
strength, split tensile strength and flexural strength of
workability depends on a number of interacting factors
self-compacting concrete. Ordinary Portland cement
such as water content, aggregate type, size of aggregate

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Proceedings of 3-Day International Conference on Emerging Trends in Civil Engineering (ICETE-2014,)
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 589 V MALLIKARJUNA REDDY AND M V SESHAGIRI R AO

(OPC 53 grade), GGBS and Micro silica were used as were GLENIUM B233 (a new generation based on
cementitious materials. Natural river sand and crushed modified poly carboxylic ether) as super plasticizer and
gravel with a nominal maximum size of 10 mm were Glenium Stream-2 as VMA.
used as the aggregates[10]. Chemical admixtures used
Table1: Mix proportions of concrete containing different Packing Factors
Concrete Mixes
M3 M4 M5
M1 P.F=1.10 M2 P.F=1.11
Mix Components P.F=1.12 P.F=1.13 P.F=1.14
Qty. Qty. Qty. Qty. Qty.
(kg/m3) (kg/m3) (kg/m3) (kg/m3) (kg/m3)
Cement 574 574 574 574 574
GGS 54.20 45.57 36.73 28.00 19.27
Micro Silica 40.18 40.18 40.18 40.18 40.18
Fine aggregate 829.40 836.94 844.48 852.20 859.56
Coarse aggregate 790.94 798.13 805.32 812.52 819.71
Water 151.85 149.34 146.83 144.32 141.81
Super Plasticisers 11.31 11.15 10.99 10.84 10.68
VMA 1.722 1.722 1.722 1.722 1.722
3. Workability and compressive strength: strength, split tensile strength, flexural strength and
workability are discussed for different Packing Factors.
The strict definition of workability is the amount of
Packing Factor is defined as the ratio of mass of
useful internal work necessary to produce full
aggregate of tightly packed state in SCC to that of
compaction. The useful internal work is a physical
loosely packed state. The workability tests performed in
property of concrete and is the work or energy required
this research were as per EFNARC. The tests done were
to overcome the internal friction between the individual
Slump flow, V-funnel, L-box and U-box.
particles of the mixture. Because of the very high
workability of self-compacting concrete, it needs no 4.1. Experimental Results:
external vibration and can spread into place, fill the
The results of workability tests on self-compacting
framework and encapsulate reinforcement without any
concrete are shown in Table 2. The results of
bleeding or segregation. In other words, to ensure that
compressive strength, split tensile strength and flexural
reinforcement can be encapsulated and that the
strength are shown in Table 3
framework can be filled completely, a favourable
workability is essential for self-compacting concrete. 4.2. Fresh and hardened state properties of Self-
Moreover, aggregate particles in self-compacting compacting concrete:
concrete are required to have uniform distribution in the
It is observed that the Slump Flow (SF) decreases as the
specimen and the minimum segregation risk should be
Packing Factor (PF) increases. When PF increases from
maintained during the process of transportation and
1.10 to 1.14(3.6%), slump flow increases from 680mm
placement.
to 650mm(4.41%) which is shown in Fig.1.
Because the strength of concrete is adversely and
It is observed that the T500, V-funnel, T5 and U-box
significantly affected by the presence of voids in the
values are increasing as the PF increases. When PF
compacted mass, it is vital to achieve a maximum
increases from 1.10 to 1.14(3.64%), T500 time
possible density. This requires a sufficient workability
increases from 2.66 sec to 4.62 sec (73.68%),V-funnel
or virtually full compaction. It is obvious that the
time increases from 6.93sec to 11.78sec (68.54%), T5
presence of voids in concrete reduces the density and
time increases from 11.65sec to 14.94sec(28.24%) and
greatly reduces the strength, which means the presence
U-box value increases from 5mm to 12mm (140.00%).
of 5 percent of voids can lower the strength by as much
It is observed that workability decreases as the PF
as 30%. This research compares the compressive
increases which are shown in Figs. 2, 3, 4 and 6
strength, split tensile strength and flexural strength of
respectively.
self-compacting concrete mixtures for different Packing
Factors. It is observed that the L-box value decreases as the PF
increase. When PF increases from 1.10 to 1.14(3.6%),
4. Results and Discussion:
L-box ratio decreases from 0.98 to 0.94(5.15%). It is
In this part of the paper, the experimental results of self- observed that flow ability decreases as the PF increases
compacting concrete mixes related to compressive which is shown in Fig.5.

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 Effect of PACKING FACTOR on Workability and Mechanical Properties of High
590
Strength Self Compacting Concrete (M70 GRADE) with GGBS and MICRO SILICA
as Filler Material
It is observed that the Compressive strength decreases Flexural strength decreases at higher rate for 28days
as the PF increases. When PF increases from 1.10 to strength when compared to 7days strength.
1.14(3.6%), 7days Compressive strength decreases from The relation between the strengths and Packing Factors
61.37MPa to 51.13MPa (16.68%) whereas 28days are as given below.
Compressive strength decreases from 84.03MPa to
fck = -76 ( ) + 167.88
81.12MPa (3.46%) which is shown in Fig.7.
ft = -19.1( ) + 25.55
It is observed that the Split tensile strength decreases as fcr = -36.7 ( ) + 47.316
the PF increases. When PF increases from 1.10 to
1.14(3.6%), 7days Split tensile strength decreases from The relation between the flow values and Packing
3.896MPa to 3.12MPa (19.92%) whereas 28days Split Factors are as given below.
tensile strength decreases from 4.54MPa to 3.81MPa S.F in mm = -700 ( ) + 1447.6
(16.08%) which is shown in Fig.8. T500 in sec = 43.8 ( ) -45.168
It is observed that the Flexural strength decreases as the V-funnel in sec = 118.3 ( ) -122.7
PF increases. When PF increases from 1.10 to T5 in sec = 84.3 ( ) -81.154
1.14(3.6%), 7days Flexural strength decreases from L-box ratio = -1.3 ( ) + 2.402
5.99MPa to 5.02MPa (16.19%) whereas 28days U-box ratio = 180 ( ) -193.4
Flexural strength decreases from 6.89MPa to 5.56MPa The relation between Compressive strength and Flexural
(19.30%) which is shown in Fig.9. strength is as given below. (Figure 10)
It is observed that the Compressive strength and Split fcr = 0.4693 ( fck ) – 32.628
tensile strength decreases at higher rate for 7days
The relation between Compressive strength and Split
strength when compared to 28days strength, whereas the
tensile strength is as given below. (Figure 11)
ft = 0.2401 ( fck ) – 15.715
Table 2: Workability of the concrete mixes for different Packing Factors.
Concrete Mixes
Workability
Tests M1 M2 M3 M4 M5
P.F=1.10 P.F=1.11 P.F=1.12 P.F=1.13 P.F=1.14
Slump flow (mm) 680x680 668x668 662x662 658x658 650x650
T 500(sec) 2.66 3.77 4.16 4.23 4.62
V-funnel(sec) 6.93 8.86 10.4 10.99 11.78
V-funnel
11.65 12.17 13.53 14.02 14.94
T5 min (sec)
L-box(h2/h1) 0.97 0.96 0.95 0.93 0.92
U-box (mm) 5 6 8 10 12
Table 3: Development of compressive strength, split tensile strength and flexural strength with age for different
Packing Factors
Compressive strength Split tensile strength Flexural strength
Concrete Mix (N/mm2 ) (N/mm2 ) (N/mm2 )
7days 28days 7days 28days 7days 28days
M1 P.F=1.10 61.37 84.03 3.896 4.54 5.99 6.89
M2 P.F=1.11 59.74 83.91 3.78 4.37 5.81 6.72
M3 P.F=1.12 54.21 82.62 3.396 4.15 5.32 6.18
M4 P.F=1.13 52.01 82.13 3.237 3.92 5.14 5.71
M5 P.F=1.14 51.13 81.12 3.12 3.81 5.02 5.56

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591 V MALLIKARJUNA REDDY AND M V SESHAGIRI R AO

685
Slump Flow in mm 680 680
675
670 668
665
660 662
658
655
650 650
645
1.095 1.1 1.105 1.11 1.115 1.12 1.125 1.13 1.135 1.14 1.145
Packing Factor

Figure 1: Packing Factor Vs slump flow

5 4.62
4.16 4.23
3.77
4
T50 in sec

2.66
3

0
1.095 1.1 1.105 1.11 1.115 1.12 1.125 1.13 1.135 1.14 1.145
Packing Factor

Figure 2: Packing Factor Vs T500

14 11.78
10.4 10.99
12
V-Funnel in sec

8.86
10
6.93
8
6
4
2
0
1.095 1.1 1.105 1.11 1.115 1.12 1.125 1.13 1.135 1.14 1.145
Packing Factor

Figure 3: Packing Factor Vs V-funnel

20 14.02 14.94
12.17 13.53
15 11.65
T5 in sec

10
5
0
1.095 1.1 1.105 1.11 1.115 1.12 1.125 1.13 1.135 1.14 1.145
Packing Factor

Figure 4: Packing Factor Vs T5

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 Effect of PACKING FACTOR on Workability and Mechanical Properties of High
592
Strength Self Compacting Concrete (M70 GRADE) with GGBS and MICRO SILICA
as Filler Material

0.98
L-Box Ratio 0.97 0.97
0.96 0.96
0.95 0.95
0.94
0.93 0.93
0.92 0.92
0.91
1.095 1.1 1.105 1.11 1.115 1.12 1.125 1.13 1.135 1.14 1.145
Packing Factor

Figure 5: Packing Factor Vs L-Box Ratio

Figure 6: Packing Factor Vs U-Box

Figure 7: Packing Factor Vs Compressive strength

5 4.54 4.37 4.15

Split Tensile Strength in

3.92 3.81
4
3 3.896 3.78
3.396
MPa

3.237 3.12
2 Split tensile strength(28days)
1 Split tensile strength(7days)

0
1.09 1.1 1.11 1.12 1.13 1.14 1.15
Packing Factor

Figure 8: Packing Factor Vs Split tensile strength

International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering

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 593 V MALLIKARJUNA REDDY AND M V SESHAGIRI R AO

Figure 9: Packing Factor Vs Flexural strength

Figure 10: Compressive strength Vs Flexural Strength

Figure 11: Compressive strength Vs Split Tensile Strength

5. Conclusions:
From the results presented in this paper using self-
compacting concrete with different Packing Factors for
constant water cement ratio, the main conclusions are
 Required minimum slump is achieved for a Packing
Factor of 1.14 with minimum strength for M70
grade high strength self-compacting concrete.
 Maximum strengths are achieved for a Packing
Factor of 1.10 with optimum slump for M70 grade
high strength self-compacting concrete.
 These values are obtained for a Water Cement ratio
of 0.25 with addition of 7% micro silica.
 It is observed that when Packing Factor is less than
1.10 the mix requires more binders there by
affecting the workability. Whereas when Packing
Factor is more than 1.14 the required strengths and
workability are not achieved.
 There is an increase in Compressive strength with
decrease in Packing Factor.
 All the workability factors for SCC are improved
with decrease in Packing Factor from 1.14 to 1.10.
Reference
[1] Okamura, H. and Ouchi, M. “Self-compacting
concrete”. Journal of advanced concrete
technology, 2003, Vol.1, No.1, pp 5-15.
[2] Okamura, H. and Ouchi, M. “Self-compacting
concrete: development, present use and future,”
Proceedings of the First International RILEM
Symposium, 1999, 3-14.

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ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 588-594
 Effect of PACKING FACTOR on Workability and Mechanical Properties of High
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Strength Self Compacting Concrete (M70 GRADE) with GGBS and MICRO SILICA
as Filler Material
[3] Collepardi. M., “Self –compacting concrete: What [7] Hemant Sood, Khitoliya R.K. and Pathak .S., “
is new? “ Proceedings of the seventh Incorporating European Standards for testing self-
CANMET/ACI Conference on Superplasticisers compacting concrete in Indian conditions”.
and other chemical admixtures in concrete, Berlin International Journal of Recent Trends in
(Germany), 2003, pp. 1-16. Engineering May 2009, Vol.1, No.6, pp 41-45.
[4] Ravindra Krishna M. “Strength and durability [8] Buia, V.K., Montgomeryb, D., Hinczak, I. and
behavior of super plasticized high strength concrete Turner, K. “Rapid testing method for segregation
using combination of mineral admixtures”, PhD resistance of self-compacting concrete,” Cement
thesis of JNTUH, 2005. and Concrete Research, Vol.32, 2002, pp 1489-
[5] Khatri, R.P. and Sirivivatnanon, V. “Effect of 1496.
different supplementary cementitious materials on [9] Nan Su, Kung –Chung Hsub and His-Wen Chai. “A
mechanical properties of high performance simple mix design method for self-compacting
concrete,” Cement and Concrete Research, 25, 1, concrete”. Cement and Concrete Research, 2001,
1995, 209-220. Vol.31, pp 1799-1807.
[6] Khayat K.H, Assad J and Daczkoj “Comparison of [10] S. Venkateswara Rao, M. V. Seshagiri Rao and P.
field oriented test methods to assess dynamic Ratihish Kumar. “Effect of size of aggregate and
stability of Self Compacting Concrete”, ACI fines on standard and high strength self-compacting
Materials Journal, 101, 2, 2004, 168-176. concrete”, Applied science research, 6(5): 433-442,
2010.

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ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 588-594
 Indexed in
Scopus Compendex and Geobase Elsevier, Chemical
Abstract Services-USA, Geo-Ref Information Services-USA,
List B of Scientific Journals, Poland,
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www.cafetinnova.org August 2014, P.P.595-602
ISSN 0974-5904, Volume 07, No. 04

Flexural Behaviour of Reinforced Geopolymer Concrete Beams

SHANKAR H SANNI AND R B KHADIRANAIKAR
Department of Civil Engineering, Basaveshwar Engineering College, Bagalkot, Karnataka, India
Email: shsanni@gmail.com, dr.rbknaikar@gmail.com

Abstract: This paper presents the experimental investigation done on flexural behavior of reinforced geopolymer
concrete. The molarity used for the preparation of geoploymer specimens was 12. The grades choosen for the
investigation were M-30, M-40 and M-50. The alkaline solution used for present study was the combination of
sodium silicate and sodium hydroxide solution with the ratio of 2.50. The test specimens were 150x150x150 mm
cubes and 150x150x2000mm reinforced beams cured at room temperature. The percentage of reinforcement was
varied in the range of 0.55, 1.1 and 1.65 for all the 3 mixes designed. The results revealed that the workable flow of
geopolymer concrete was in the range of 85 to 145mm and was dependent on the ratio by mass of sodium silicate
and sodium hydroxide solution. The freshly prepared geopolymer mixes were cohesive and their workability
increased with the increase in the ratio of alkaline solution. The failure patterns of the beam specimen were found
almost similar to that of conventional RCC beam. At early stages, flexural crack occurred in the central portion of
the beam and gradually spread towards the support. The geopolymer concrete do not have Portland cement, they can
be considered as less energy intensive. Since it utilizes the industrial wastes such as fly ash for producing the
binding system, they can be considered as eco-friendly materials.
Keywords: geopolymer concrete, fly ash, molarity, sodium silicate, sodium hydroxide.

1. Introduction: potassium silicate. The mixture can be cured at room

In the context of increased awareness regarding the ill-
effects of the over exploitation of natural resources, eco-
friendly technologies are to be developed for effective
management of these resources. Construction industry is
one of the major users of the natural resources like
cement, sand, rocks, clays and other soils. The ever
increasing unit cost of the usual ingredients of concrete
have forced the construction engineer to think of ways
and means of reducing the unit const of its production.
At the same time, increased industrial activity in the
core sectors like energy, steel and transportation has
been responsible for the production of large amounts
like fly ash, blast furnace slag, silica fume and quarry
dust with consequent disposal problem [1].
The geopolymer technology was first introduced by
Davidovits in 1978. His work considerably shows that
the adoption of the geopolymer technology could reduce
the CO2 emission caused due to cement industries.
Davidovits proposed that an alkaline liquid could be
used to react with aluminosilicate in a source material of
geological origin or in by-product materials such as fly
ash to make a binder [2]. Geopolymer is synthesized by
mixing aluminosilicate-reactive material with strong
alkaline solutions, such as sodium hydroxide (NaOH),
potassium hydroxide (KOH), sodium silicate or
temperature or temperature cured [3]. Fly ash is the
most common source material for making geopolymers.
Normally, good high-strength geopolymers can be made
from class F fly ash [4]. Alkaline activating solution is
important for dissolving of Si and Al atoms to form
geopolymer precursors and finally alumino-silicate
material. The most commonly used alkaline activators
are NaOH and KOH [5-9].
1.1. Geopolymerization
Geopolymerisation is a very complex multiphase
exothermic process, involving a series of dissolution-
reorientation-solidification reactions. High alkaline
solutions are used to induce the silicon and aluminium
atoms in the source material to dissolve and form
geopolymer gel. The gel formation (or polymerization)
process, may be assisted by application of heat,
followed by drying. The reaction steps in
geopolymerization are complex, because they usually
occur simultaneously. The reaction occurs in three main
steps: dissolution, polymerization and crystallization of
aluminosilicate. Dissolution is initiated by the
hydrolytic attack of alkali metal cations on the
aluminosilicate structure of the solids. The hydrolysis is
then followed by the dissolution of Al and Si precursors
into solution, in which the Al and Si precursors

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Proceedings of 3-Day International Conference on Emerging Trends in Civil Engineering (ICETE-2014,)
6th–8th January, 2014
 Flexural Behaviour of Reinforced Geopolymer Concrete Beams
reorganizes to form chains, which finally grow to
become nuclei. Immediately after the inititations of the
dissolution process, polycondensation (polymerization)
occurs simultaneously with dissolution leading to the
formation of geopolymer gel.
1.2 Experimental Investigations
Materials:
The following materials have been used in the
experimental study [12]
a) Fly Ash (Class F) collected form Raichur Thermal
power plant having specific gravity 2.00.
b) Ground granulated blast furnace slag collected from
JSW Steel Ltd., Vidyanagar, Toranagallu, Bellary
having specific gravity 2.90.
c) Fine aggregate: Sand confirming to Zone –III of IS:
383-1970 [13] having specific gravity 2.51 and
fineness modulus of 2.70.
d) Coarse aggregate: Crushed granite metal
confirming to IS: 383-1970 [13] having specific
gravity 2.70 and fineness modulus of 5.85.
e) Water : Clean Potable water for mixing
f) Alkaline liquids: Specific gravity of
i) Sodium Hydroxide (NaOH) = 1.16
ii) Sodium Silicate (Na2SiO3) = 1.57
Tests were conducted on specimen of standard size as
per IS: 516-1959 [14]. Details of tests conducted and
specimens used are given in Table 1.
2. Mix design of geopolymer concrete
In the design of geopolymer concrete mix, coarse and
fine aggregates together were taken as 77% of entire
mixture by mass. This value is similar to that used in
OPC concrete in which it will be in the range of 75 to
80% of the entire mixture by mass. Fine aggregate was
taken as 30% of the total aggregates. The density of
geopolymer concrete is taken similar to that of OPC as
2400 kg/m3 [10]. The details of mix design and its
proportions for different grades of GPC are given in
Table 2.
2.1 ALKALINE SOLUTION
In geopolymerization, alkaline solution plays an
important role. The most common alkaline solution used
in geopolymerization is a combination of sodium
hydroxide (NaOH) or potassium hydroxide (KOH) and
sodium silicate (Na2SiO3) or potassium silicate
(K2SiO3). In this study, a combination of sodium
hydroxide and sodium silicate was choosen as the
alkaline liquid. Sodium based solutions were choosen
because they are cheaper than Potassium based
solutions. Generally sodium hydroxide and sodium
silicate are readily available in market in the form of
pellets and gel (liquid). The pellets of NaOH are
dissolved in one liter of water for the required
International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering
ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 595-602
596
concentration. When sodium hydroxide and sodium
silicate solutions mixed together polymerization will
take place liberating large amount of heat, which
indicates that the alkaline liquid must be used after 24
hours as binding agent.
2.2 Mixing, Casting, Compaction and Curing of
geopolymer concrete
GPC can be manufactured by adopting the conventional
techniques used in the manufacture of Portland cement
concrete. In the laboratory, the fly ash and the
aggregates were first mixed together dry on pan for
about three minutes. The liquid component of the
mixture is then added to the dry materials and the
mixing continued usually for another four minutes
(Fig.1 and Fig. 2).
The addition of sodium silicate is to enhance the process
of geopolymerization [11]. For the present study,
concentration of NaOH solution is taken as 12M with
Na2SiO3 / NaOH as 2.5 for all the grades of GPC mixes.
The workability of the fresh concrete was measured by
means of conventional slump test (Fig. 3). In order to
improve the workability, superplasticizer Conplast SP-
430 with a dosage of 1.5% by mass of the fly ash was
added to the mixture. Extra water (other than the water
used for the preparation of alkaline solutions) and
dosage of super plasticizer was added to the mix
according to the mix design details. The fly ash and
alkaline activator were mixed together in the mixer until
homogeneous pate was obtained. This mixing process
can be handled within 5 minutes for each mixture with
different ratios of alkaline solution. After casting the
specimens, they were kept in rest period for two days
and then they were demoulded. The demoulded
specimens were kept for ambient air curing as shown in
Fig. 6.
2.3 Specimen details
The beam specimens were 150mm wide and 150mm
deep in cross section. They were 2000mm in length and
simply supported over an effective span of 1900 mm as
shown in Fig. 8. The clear cover of the beam was
25mm. HYSD bars of 8mm and 10mm were used as the
longitudinal reinforcement in the specimens. Three
different percentages of tensile reinforcement of 0.55%
to 1.65% tension reinforcement (under balanced,
balanced and over balanced section) were used. The
reinforcement details are given in Table 3.
2.4 Flexural test setup
The test specimen was mounted in a loading frame of
1000 kN capacity. The load was applied on two point of
mm away from centre of the beam towards the support.
The beams were cleaned and white washed with a thin
coat of white surface to facilitate the detection of cracks
and the propagation of cracks. Dial gauges are used
 597 SHANKAR H S ANNI AND R B KHADIRANAIKAR
having a magnetic base. The least count of dial gauge
was 0.01 mm and can measure deflection of 5mm has
after which has to rested. The points at which dial
gauges to be fixed were cleaned. (Fig. 7)
3. Results and Discussions
3.1 Workability
Fresh GPC mixes were found to be highly viscous and
cohesive with medium to high slump. The workability
of the geopolymer concrete decreases with increase in
the grade of the concrete as presented in Fig. 5, this is
because of the decrease in the ratio of water to
geopolymer solids by mass. For a given geopolymer
concrete, the total mass of water in the mixture is taken
as the sum of the mass of water in the sodium silicate
solution, the mass of water in the sodium hydroxide
solution and the mass of extra water added to the
mixture. The mass of geopolymer solids is the sum of
the mass of fly ash, the mass of sodium hydroxide flake
and the mass of sodium silicate solids (the mass of
Na2O and SiO2 in sodium silicate solution). The test
data shown in Figure are somewhat analogous to the
well-known effect of water-to-cement ratio on the
compressive strength of OPC concrete, although the
chemical processes involved in the formation of the
binders of both these types of concretes are entirely
different.
3.2 Compressive strength
The compressive strength is one of the most noteworthy
properties of hardened concrete and is considered as the
characteristic material value for the classification of
concrete. The compressive strength of the GPC
specimens synthesized at three different grades are as
shown in Table 4. The chemical reaction of the
geopolymer gel is due to substantially fast
polymerization process, the compressive strength do not
vary with the age of concrete. This observation is in
contrast to the well-known behavior of OPC concrete,
which undergoes hydration process and hence gains
strength over the time. Heat should be provided to
facilitate the hardening process as the condensation
polymerization that takes place during hardening
process is endothermic in nature. The phenomenon is
different from OPC based concrete as GPC does not
involve water in its geopolmerization reaction. Water is
used to wet the solid components of the mixture and in
the mix plays a vital role in the synthesis and acts as a
medium for dissolution, condensation and
polymerization of Al and Si precursors into polymeric
structures.
The cube specimens of the GPC mixes, when tested
under compression, generally failed in the ‘pyramidal
frustum’ form, similar to the regular Portland cement
concrete cubes. It is clear from the test results that
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ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 595-602
maximum strength was observed for the alkaline ratio of
2.5, this variation was true for any grade of concrete.
The trend of results was in par with the observations
made by Hardjito et al [9].
3.3 Behaviour of beams
The beam specimens were tested under two static
loading until failure. As the load increased, beam started
to deflect and flezural cracks developed along the span
of the beams. All the beam specimens failed in the same
fashion due to yielding of the tensile steel (primary
tension failure) followed by crushing of concrete at the
compression face (secondary compression failure) as
shown in Fig. 8.
3.4 Crack pattern
Plain concrete is weak in tension, though it is a versatile
and strong material in compression. It cracks at an early
stage of loading history when the tensile strain is of the
order of 0.0002 to 0.0005. In fact the tensile
reinforcement becomes effective only when the concrete
cracks. Large scale cracking is not acceptable, as it is
aesthetically not appreciable and also promotes moisture
ingress, resulting in corrosion. Cracking is considered to
be an important limit state of serviceability. The total
numbers of cracks, numbers of cracks in flexural zone
are shown in Table 5. The propagation of cracks was
observed for each increment of load up to failure. The
cracks first appeared in flexure zone and extended well
up to top with increase in load. In all the beams initial
cracks progressed vertically upwards up to yielding.
Later on few of cracks appeared outside the pure
bending zone and flexural cracks seemed to be
temporarily stabilized with secondary crack formation
gaining ground. At still higher loads a steady growth
was observed. The pattern of crack formation and
widening is same for all grades. The cracks are well
distributed and symmetrical about the center. The cracks
in the pure bending region are predominantly vertical
and parallel as expected. Cracks that are found at shear
span are inclined at 60° to 75° to the horizontal.
3.5 Deflection profiles
Deflection is one of the important serviceability limit
states to be satisfied in the design of concrete structures.
IS: 456-2000 recommends a ratio of span to effective
depth less than or equal to 20 as generally sufficient to
restrict the deflections to an allowable value of span/250
or 20 mm, in case of simply supported beams.
Deflections are measured at mid span and the load
points.
The deflection in geopolymer concrete beams is
increasing as percentage of reinforcement increases for
any grade of concrete. The different reinforcement
levels considered all the beams have almost same
deflection but the load level is high shown in Fig. 9 to
 Flexural Behaviour of Reinforced Geopolymer Concrete Beams
11.
4. Conclusions
Based on the experimental investigations done the
following conclusions can be drawn:
 For any grade of GPC, as ratio of alkaline solution
increases, the workability of mix goes on
increasing.
 The fly ash can be used to produce geopolymeric
binder phase which can bind the aggregate systems
consisting of sand and coarse aggregate to form
geopolymer concrete.
 GPC has excellent compressive strength and is
suitable for structural application.
 The failure patterns of the beam specimens were
found to be similar. At early load stages, flexural
crack appeared in the centre portion of the beam,
and gradually spread towards the supports. As the
load increased existing cracks propagated and new
cracks developed along the span. At later stages,
flexural- shear cracks formed near the supports.
These cracks propagated towards the compression
zone under increasing load. The failure occurred by
the crushing of concrete in the spalling at the
compression zone was observed after the ultimate
load.
 Geopolymer concrete is more environmental
friendly and has the potential to replace ordinary
Portland cement concrete.
Reference
[1] Narasimhan, M. C. Patil, B. T, and Shankar H.
Sanni (1999) Performance of Concrete with Quarry
Dust as fine aggregate – An Experimental Study,
Civil Engineering and Construction Review,
September, pp. 19-24.
[2] Rangan, B. V. (2006), ‘Studies on low-calcium fly
ash based Geopolymer concrete’, Indian Concrete
Institute, pp. 9-17.
[3] Davidovits, J. (2008), ‘Geopolymer chemistry and
application, Institute Geopolymer, France, pp. 585.
[4] M. Schmucker, M and MacKenzine, KJD (2004),
‘Microstructure of sodium polysialate
siloxogeopolymer’, Ceramic International, 31, pp.
433-437.
[5] Fenandez-Jimenez, A and Palomo, A., (2003),
‘Characteristics of fly ashes, Potential reactivity as
alkaline cements’, Fuel, pp. 2259-2265.
[6] Davidovits, J., (1999), ‘Chemistry of Geopolymeric
systems Terminology’, 99 International
Conference, Saint-Quentin, France, 30 June-2 July
1999.
[7] Fernandez-Jimenez, A., Palomo, J. and Puertas, F.
(1999) Alkali activated slag mortars, mechanical
strength behavior, Cement and Concrete Research,
29, pp. 1323-1329.
International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering
ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 595-602
598
[8] Hua Xu, van Deventer, J.S.J. (2000), ‘The
Geopolymerisation of Alumino-Silicate Minerals’,
International Journal of Mineral Processing, 59(3),
pp. 247-266.
[9] Hardjito, D., Wallah, S.E., Sumajouw, DMJ and
Rangan, B.V. (2004), ‘On the development of fly
ash based geopolymer concrete’, ACI Materials
Journal, 101(52), pp. 467-472.
[10] Rangan, B. V., (2008), ‘Mix design and production
of fly ash based geopolymer concrete’, The Indian
Concrete Journal, 82(5), pp. 7-14.
[11] Shankar H. Sanni and R. B. Khadiranaikar,
Performance of geopolymer concrete under various
severe environmental conditions, International
Journal of Civil and Structural Engineering, 3(2),
2012, 396-407.
[12] Vikas Jadhav, Flexural Behavior of reinforced
geopolymer concrete beams, M.Tech Project
Report, Basaveshwar Engineering College,
Bagalkot, 2013.
[13] M. S. Shetty, Concrete Technology, (S. Chand and
Company Ltd., New Delhi, 2002)
[14] IS: 2386 (Part-IV)-1963, Methods of test for
aggregates for concrete-mechanical properties,
Bureau of Indian standards, New Delhi.
[15] IS: 456-2000, Code of practice for plain and
reinforced concrete, Bureau of Indian standards,
New Delhi.
[16] IS: 383-1970, Specification for coarse and fine
aggregates from natural sources for concrete,
Bureau of Indian standards, New Delhi.
[17] IS: 516-1959, Methods of test for strength of
concrete, Bureau of Indian standards, New Delhi.
[18] IS: 3812-2003, Specifications for fly ash for use as
pozzolana and admixture, Bureau of Indian
standards, New Delhi.
 599 SHANKAR H S ANNI AND R B KHADIRANAIKAR

Sodium hydroxide pellets and its preparation

Figure4: Curing of GPC specimens

150
140

Slum p (mm)
2
130
120 2.5
110 3
100
3.5
90
Alkaline solution 80
Figure1: Stages of preparation of alkaline solution M-30 M-40 M-50 M-60
Grade of GPC

Figure5: Workability of GPC mixes

Figure2: Mixing of GPC

Figure 6 Demoulding of GPC specimens

Figure3: Slump cone test

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 Flexural Behaviour of Reinforced Geopolymer Concrete Beams
600

Figure7: Test set up in the laboratory Figure8: Longitudinal and cross section of GPC beam

Table1: Details of specimen used and tests conducted

No. of specimen cast for different
Type of test conducted Size of specimen
grades
Compressive strength 150x150x150 mm 3
Flexural strength 150x150x2000 mm 3
Table2: Geopolymer concrete mix design details
Mass (kg/m3)
Materials
M-30 M-40 M-50
20 mm 277.20 277.20 277.20
Coarse aggregates 14 mm 369.60 369.60 369.60
7 mm 646.80 646.80 646.80
Fine sand 554.40 554.40 554.40
Fly ash 380.69 394.29 408.89
Sodium hydroxide solution 48.95 45.06 40.89
Sodium silicate solution 122.36 112.65 102.22
Super Plasticizer 5.70 5.91 6.13
Extra water 38.06 39.42 40.88
Table3: Percentage of reinforcement
Beam designation with Shear No. of
Mix Top Bottom
different percentage reinforcement beams
RB1 (0.55%) 2#8 2 # 10
M-30 RB1 (1.10%) 2#8 4 # 10 3
RB1 (1.65%) 2#8 6 # 10
RB2 (0.55%) 2#8 2 # 10
M-40 RB2 (1.10%) 2#8 4 # 10 #8@150cc 3
RB2 (1.65%) 2#8 6 # 10
RB3 (0.55%) 2#8 2 # 10
M-50 RB3 (1.10%) 2#8 4 # 10 3
RB3 (1.65%) 2#8 6 # 10

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601 SHANKAR H S ANNI AND R B KHADIRANAIKAR

Table4: Results of Deflection Behaviour of reinforced Geopolymer concrete beams

Cube compressive Experimental values

Mix Notation
strength (N/mm2) PCRE , kNm PUE, kN ΔUE, mm
RB1 35 49 6.40
M-30 RB1 33.79 42 55 7.20
RB1 44 59 8.10
RB2 38 57 7.00
M-40 RB2 45.09 40 62 7.60
RB2 44 65 8.20
RB3 43 60 7.60
M-50 RB3 54.38 46 65 8.20
RB3 49 68 8.60
PCRE - Cracking load, PUE - Ultimate load, ΔUE - Deflection at ultimate load
Table5: Test results of crack patterns 70
Grade Beam designation No. Of cracks 60
RB1 16 50
M30 RB1 14
40
Load (kN)
RB1 13
30
RB2 18 1.10%
M40 RB2 15 20 1.65%
RB2 12 10 0.55%
RB3 17 0
M50 RB3 16 0 2 4 6 8 10
Deflection at mid span (mm)
RB3 19
Figure 10: Load Vs Deflection for M-40 GPC

70
60
50
Load (kN)

40
0.55%
30
1.10%
20
10 1.65%
0
0 5 10
Deflection at mid span (mm)

Figure9: Load Vs Deflection for M-30 GPC Figure11: Load Vs Deflection for M-50 GPC

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Flexural Behaviour of Reinforced Geopolymer Concrete Beams
602

Figure12: Crack patterns and failure mode of beam specimen

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ISSN 0974-5904, Volume 07, No. 04

Influence of Fly Ash as Fine Aggregate Replacement Material on

Mechanical Properties of Concrete
K. C. P ANDA, S.S. SAMANTARAY AND M. MISHRA
Dept. of Civil Engineering, ITER, Siksha ‘O’ Anusandhan University, Bhubaneswar, Odisha, India
Email: kishoriit@gmail.com and mishramadhusmita1986@gmail.com

Abstract: Fly ash (FA) is a waste product of thermal power plants which is generated in huge quantity. More than
80 million tones of FA are generated in India each year. The percentage of utilization of FA is very less and majority
is just land filled. This process is not environmental friendly. This paper presents the results of an experimental
investigation to study the effects of partial replacement of fine aggregate with class F-FA in mechanical properties
of concrete. The fine aggregate is replaced with five different percentage of class F-FA by weight such as 10%,
20%, 30%, 40% and 50% having w/c ratio 0.40, 0.42, 0.45, 0.48 and 0.50 respectively. The mix design is targeted
for M30 grade concrete. The compressive strength, split-Tensile strength and flexural strength of concrete are
determined at 7, 28 and 90 days. The test result indicates that 30% replacement of fine aggregate with FA gives
higher compressive strength whereas 50% replacement of fine aggregate with FA gives compressive strength less
than the conventional concrete.
Key words: Fly ash (FA), compressive strength, flexural strength, split tensile strength.

1. Introduction: cement ratio was maintained, the strength development

and carbonation properties were improved. Siddique
Fly ash (FA) is a mineral admixture which is produced
(2003) [4] presented an extensive data on effects of
from thermal power plants. About 80 million tons of FA
replacement of fine aggregate with class F-FA for a
is generated each year in India where the utilization
concrete for a w/c ratio of 0.47 at ages from 7 to 365
percentage is very less. Generally, FA is used as partial
days. Fine aggregate was replaced with five percentages
replacement of cement as an admixture in concrete and
(10%, 20%, 30%, 40% and 50%) of class F-FA by
also in manufacturing of bricks. The concrete containing
weight. Compressive strength, flexural strength, split
FA as partial replacement of cement increases the later
tensile strength, and modulus of elasticity was
age strength development, whereas concrete containing
determined at 7, 14, 28, 56, 91, and 356 days. Test
FA as partial replacement of fine aggregate increases
results indicated that significant improvement in the
the early age strength along with later age strength
strength properties of plain concrete by the inclusion of
development. There is not much literature available on
class F-FA for concrete as partial replacement of fine
the use of class F-FA as partial replacement of fine
aggregate and can be effectively used in structural
aggregates although a number of significant results have
concrete. Berg and Neal (1998) [5] investigated
been reported on the use of class F-FA [1-3]. Bakoshi et
municipal solid waste bottom ash (MSWBA) could be
al. (1998) [1] used bottom ash in amounts 10-40% as
used as an aggregate in concrete to produce concrete
replacement of fine aggregate. The results indicated that
masonry units (CMU) that meets ASTMC90 standards
the compressive strength and tensile strength of bottom
when it is processed for maximum size and gradation
ash concrete generally increases with the increase in
and ferrous removal by magnetic separation.
replacement ratio of fine aggregate and curing age.
Maslehuddin (1989) [6] showed that FA at sand
Ghafoori et al. (1997) [2] investigated on a series of
replacement levels of 20% and 30% increases the early
laboratory made roller compacted concrete (RCC)
age compressive strength of concretes at w/c ratios of
containing high-calcium dry bottom ash as a fine
0.35-0.50. Dhir et al. (2000) [7] studied concretes of
aggregate. Hwang et al. (1998) [3] examined the effects
three different coarse aggregates having FA as sand
of fine aggregate replacement on the rheology,
replacement material at the FA/sand ratios of 0.05, 0.10,
compressive strength and carbonation properties of FA
and 0.15. Significant improvement in compressive
and mortar. Rheological constants increased with higher
strengths at all the ages was reported even though the
replacement level of FA and that when water to portland
workability of mixes was affected. This study

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Proceedings of 3-Day International Conference on Emerging Trends in Civil Engineering (ICETE-2014,)
6th–8th January, 2014
 Influence of Fly Ash as Fine Aggregate Replacement Material on
604
Mechanical Properties of Concrete

investigates the possibility of replacing part of fine

Table2: Chemical composition of FA
aggregate with significant amount of FA without
addition of super plasticizer (SP). Oxides
Average Oxides (%) Average
(%)
2. Experimental program:
SiO2 58.13 Na2O 0.05
2.1. Materials used and properties: Al2O3 31.00 K2O 0.90
The cement used for the present work is Ordinary Fe2O3 4.10 SO3 0.12
Portland Cement (OPC) 43 grade, RAMCO cement [8]. CaO 0.60 P2O5 0.39
The sand was supplied from ‘Trisulia’, situated on the MgO 0.10 CI 0.011
river base of Kathajodi and its tributary Kuakhia,
LOI 2.90 TiO2 1.63
Odisha. Sand is used as fine aggregate which is passing
through IS 4.75 mm sieve. The natural coarse aggregate
which is passing through IS 20 mm sieve, was used in
the present study. It was supplied by the crusher at
Tapanga, near Khurda, Odisha. The properties of fine
aggregate and coarse aggregate obtained experimentally
as per IS: 383-1970 [9] is presented in the Table 1. FA
is consists mainly of SiO2, Al2O3, Fe2O3, and CaO and
some impurities. According to ASTM C618 [10], FA
belongs to class F if (SiO2+Al2O3+Fe2O3) > 70%, and
belongs to class C if 70% > (SiO2+Al2O3+Fe2O3) >
50%. Usually class F-FA have a low content of CaO
and exhibit pozzolanic properties, but class C FA
Figure1: FA samples
contains upto 20% CaO and exhibit cementitious
properties. In this study, Class F-FA was used and 2.2. Details of concrete mix:
supplied by NALCO, Angul, Odisha as shown in Figure A control concrete mix of M30 was designed as per
1. The FA is replaced with fine aggregate having Indian Standard Specification IS: 10262-198211 to
different percentages 10%, 20%, 30%, 40% and 50%. achieve the target mean strength 39.9 MPa. The mix
The chemical composition of FA is presented in Table2. proportion (1: 1.03: 2.37) is taken for this experiment.
Table1: Properties of fine and coarse aggregates The water/cement (w/c) ratio is 0.375. Six concrete
mixtures were made in this investigation. First concrete
Fine Coarse
Characteristics mixture was control mix without FA and with w/c
aggregate aggregate
0.375. The other five concrete mixtures were made by
Abrasion value (%) - 27.02 replacing fine aggregate with 10%, 20%, 30%, 40% and
Bulk density(kg/m3) 1568 1418 50% of FA. Fine aggregate was replaced with FA by
weight. To get the proper workable concrete, the w/c
Crushing value (%) - 28.70 ratio was increased for all concrete mixtures as per the
Fineness modulus 3.48 (Zone1) 7.95 increased amount of FA. Concrete mixes were made in
power-driven revolving type concrete mixture. The
Impact value (%) - 24.00 details of concrete mix proportion along with their
Specific gravity 2.63 2.84 identification are given in Table 3. The details of mix
quantity per cubic metre of concrete are given in
Water absorption (%) 0.30 0.10 Table4.
Table3: Details of concrete mix proportion along with identification

Concrete Mix Proportion Mix Identity

M Concrete mix with 100% CA + 100% Fine aggregate + 0% Fly ash + w/c 0.375 MS100F0
M Concrete mix with 100% CA + 90% Fine aggregate + 10% Fly ash + w/c 0.40 MS90F10
M Concrete mix with 100% CA + 80% Fine aggregate + 20% Fly ash + w/c 0.42 MS80F20
M Concrete mix with 100% CA + 70% Fine aggregate + 30% Fly ash + w/c 0.45 MS70F30
M Concrete mix with 100% CA + 60% Fine aggregate + 40% Fly ash + w/c 0.48 MS60F40
M Concrete mix with 100% CA + 50% Fine aggregate + 50% Fly ash + w/c 0.50 MS50F50

International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering

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 605 K. C. P ANDA, S.S. S AMANTARAY AND M. M ISHRA

Table4: Details of mix quantity per m3 of concrete

Mix quantity of different constituents per cubic metre of concrete
Mix Identity
Cement (kg) Sand (kg) Fly ash (kg) CA (kg) Water (kg)
MS100F0 511.00 527.00 - 1209.27 191.6
MS90F10 511.00 474.30 52.70 1209.27 204.4
MS80F20 511.00 421.60 105.40 1209.27 214.6
MS70F30 511.00 368.90 158.10 1209.27 230.0
MS60F40 511.00 316.20 210.80 1209.27 245.3
MS50F50 511.00 263.50 263.50 1209.27 255.5
2.3. Test program: The compressive strength, split tensile strength and
flexural strength of hardened concrete specimens were
The fresh concrete test was conducted to know the
measured after 7, 28 and 90 days. For all results, the
workability of concrete. Slump test was conducted for
average of experimental results from three identical
all concrete mixtures. The hardened concrete specimens
were tested after 7, 28, and 90 days of curing under specimens was adopted. The specimens were taken out
water. The test specimens were cast in steel mould with of water and tested for strength after surface dry at a
temperature of 28±2°C.
proper compaction by table vibrator and demoulded
after 24 hours stored at temperature of about 28°C. The 3.2.1. Compressive Strength:
specimens such as cubes for compressive strength, The compressive strength of FA based concrete mixes
prism for flexural strength and cylinder for split tensile was determined at 7, 28 and 90 days of curing under
strength were cured till the day of testing under water at
water. The test results are given in Table 5 and
normal temperature and humidity conditions. The
graphically shown in Figures 3 and 4. Figure 3 shows
compressive strength, flexural strength and split tensile
the variation of compressive strength with age for
strength of the concrete specimens were tested after 7,
various concrete mixes and Figure 4 shows the variation
28 and 90 days. The concrete cubes of size 150 x 150 x of compressive strength for concrete mix type. It is
150 mm were used for compressive strength, 100 x 200 observed that compressive strength of all concrete
mm cylinders for split tensile strength and 100 x 100 x
mixes increases as age of curing increases. The test
500 mm prisms for flexural strength. The setup for
result shows that the compressive strength is higher in
compressive strength, flexural strength and split tensile
concrete mixes upto 40% replacement of fine aggregate
strength is shown in Figure 2. with FA as compared to the control specimen. However,
the maximum compressive strength is observed at 30%
replacement of fine aggregate with FA and then the
compressive strength decreases with further addtions of
FA at all ages. It is also observed that the compressive
strength of MS50F50 gives lower value than control
specimen (MS100F0) at all ages. It is concluded from
the result that upto 40% replacement of fine aggregate
with class F-FA could be very conveniently used in any
structural concreteworks whereas the maximum
Figure 2: Setup for compressive, flexural and split compressive strength attains at 30% replaement level.
tensile strength Table5. Compressive strength test result
3. Results and discussions: Average compressive strength
Mix (MPa)
3.1. Fresh concrete test result: Identification
7 Days 28 Days 90 Days
The workability of fresh concrete is measured by slump
test. Fresh concrete mix was prepared and then slump MS100F0 42.30 56.25 65.88
test was immediately carried out after the mixing. The MS90F10 44.73 59.50 67.50
slump value for different concrete mixes varies from 12 MS80F20 50.77 61.39 68.27
to 35 mm. The slump value for MS100F0 is 35 mm
MS70F30 51.00 62.35 69.50
whereas for other mixes MS90F10, MS80F20,
MS70F30, MS60F40 and MS50F50 is 25 mm, 20 mm, MS60F40 46.85 58.50 65.40
18 mm, 15 mm and 12 mm respectively. MS50F50 36.56 48.48 55.45
3.2. Hardened concrete test result:

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 Influence of Fly Ash as Fine Aggregate Replacement Material on
606
Mechanical Properties of Concrete

Figure 3: Compressive strength versus age Figure5: Split tensile strength versus age

Figure4: Compressive strength versus concrete type Figure6: Split tensile strength versus concrete type
3.2.2. Split Tensile Strength: 3.2.3. Flexural Strength:
The split tensile strength of FA based concrete mixes The flexural strength test results of FA based concrete
was determined at the ages of 7, 28 and 90 days. The are given in Table 7 and graphically shown in Figures 7
results are given in Table 6 and are graphically shown in and 8. Figure 7 shows the variation of flexural strength
Figures 5 and 6. Figure 5 shows the variation of split with age for different FA percentages and Figure 8
tensile strength with age for different FA percentages shows the variation of flexural strength with different
and Figure 6 shows the variation of split tensile strength concrete mix type. It is evident from the result that the
for different concrete mix type. From Table and Figures, flexural strength of FA concretes continued to increase
it is observed that the split tensile strength of all with age. From Figure 8, it can be seen that the flexural
concrete mixes increases as age of curing increases. It strength of concrete mix with FA increases up to 40%
can be seen that there is increase in split tensile strength replacement and thereafter the strength decreases. It is
with the increase in FA percentages upto 40% also observed that the improvement of flexural strength
replacement of fine aggregate and thereafter the strength is more in early ages. It is also observed that the flexural
decreases. The rate of increment of strength from 7 to strength of all FA based concrete specimen gives higher
28 days is more as compared with 28 to 90 days. It is value than control specimen (MS100F0) at all ages.
also observed that the split tensile strength of all FA
Table7: Flexural strength test result
based concrete specimen gives higher value than control
specimen (MS100F0) at all ages. Mix Average flexural strength (MPa)
Table6: Split tensile strength test result Identification 7 Days 28 Days 90 Days
Average split tensile strength MS100F0 4.70 6.25 6.80
Mix
(MPa) MS90F10 4.90 6.48 6.95
Identification
7 Days 28 Days 90 Days MS80F20 5.20 6.75 7.12
MS100F0 3.41 4.35 4.85
MS70F30 5.45 6.88 7.25
MS90F10 3.51 4.45 4.98
MS80F20 3.65 4.65 5.15 MS60F40 5.58 7.08 7.31
MS70F30 3.78 4.85 5.28 MS50F50 5.32 6.78 7.14
MS60F40 3.95 4.89 5.32
MS50F50 3.82 4.70 5.18

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 607 K. C. P ANDA, S.S. S AMANTARAY AND M. M ISHRA
Figure7: Flexural strength versus age
4. Concluding remarks:
 The slump value for concrete mix with and without
FA was remaining between 12 mm to 35 mm.
 Compressive strength of fine aggregate replaced
FA concrete specimens is higher upto 40% than the
control specimen without FA at all ages.
 Split tensile strength and flexural strength of all
fine aggregate replaced FA concrete specimens are
higher than the control specimen without FA at all
ages.
 As age of curing increases, compressive strength,
flexural strength and split tensile strength of fine
aggregate replaced FA concrete increases.
 The 30% replacement of fine aggregate with FA
gives maximum compressive strength whereas 50%
replacement of FA gives lower strength than that of
control mix.
 The maximum split tensile strength and flexural
strength is observed at 40% replacement of fine
aggregate with FA.
 The results of this investigation suggest that Class
F-FA could be conveniently used as partial
replacement of fine aggregate in structural concrete.
Figure8: Flexural strength versus concrete type
International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering
ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 603-607
5. Acknowledgements:
The author would like to thanks to ITER, Siksha ‘O’
Anusandhan University, Bhubaneswar, Odisha for the
support of conducting the experimental works.
Reference
[1] Bakoshi T, Kohno S, Kawasaki S and Yamaji N
(1998), Strength and durability of concrete using
bottom ash as replacement for fine aggregate, ACI
Spec. Publ., (SP-179), pp.159-172.
[2] Ghafoori N, Cai Y and Ahmadi B (1997), Use of
dry bottom ash as a fine aggregate in roller
compacted concrete, ACI Spec. Publ., (SP-171), pp.
487-507.
[3] Hawng K R, Noguchi F and Tomosawa F (1998),
Effects of fine aggregate replacement on the
rheology, compressive strength and carbonation
properties of fly ash and mortar, ACI Spec. Publ.,
(SP-178), pp. 401-410.
[4] Siddique R (2003), Effect of fine aggregate
replacement with class F fly ash on the mechanical
properties of concrete, Cement and Concrete
Research, Vol.33, pp. 539-547.
[5] Berg E and Neal J A (1998), Concrete masonry unit
mix designs using municipal solid waste bottom
ash, ACI Mater. J, Vol. 95(4), pp. 470 - 479.
[6] Maslehuddin M (1989), Effect of sand replacement
on the early age strength gain and long-term
corrosion-resisting characteristics of fly ash
concrete, ACI Mater. J, Vol. 86(1), pp. 58-62.
[7] Dhir R K, McCarthy M J and Title P A J (2000),
Use of conditioned PFA as a fine aggregate in
concrete, Mater. Struct., Vol. 33(225), pp. 38-42.
[8] IS: 8112 (1989), Indian Standard Specifications for
43-grade Portland cement, Bureau of Indian
Standards, Manak Bavan, 9 Bahadur Shah Zafar
Marg, New Delhi 110002.
[9] IS: 383 (1970), Indian Standard Specification for
Coarse and Fine Aggregates from Natural Sources
for Concrete (Second Revision), Bureau of Indian
Standards, Manak Bavan, 9 Bahadur Shah Zafar
Marg, New Delhi 110002, India.
[10] American Society for Testing of Materials, Annual
Book of ASTM Standards, Vol. 04.01. Cement,
lime, Gypsum, Philadelphia.
[11] IS: 10262 (1982), Recommended Guidelines for
Concrete Mix Design, Bureau of Indian Standards,
New Delhi 110002, India.
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ISSN 0974-5904, Volume 07, No. 04

Influence of Fly Ash on Mechanical Properties of Rubberised

Concrete
M. MISHRA AND K.C. P ANDA
Dept. of Civil Engineering, ITER, Siksha ‘O’ Anusandhan University, Bhubaneswar, Odisha, India
Email: mishramadhusmita1986@gmail.com and kishoriit@gmail.com

Abstract: This paper presents the results of an experimental investigation to study the effects of partial replacement
of cement with fly ash (FA) in rubberised concrete. The percentage of rubber used in this study was 5% replaced
with coarse aggregate and FA varies from 0-20% were replaced with cement in conventional concrete. Two size of
rubber chips are used i.e. 5 mm and 10 mm. 40% of rubber used from 5 mm size and 60% of rubber used from 10
mm size. The mix design was targeted for M30 grade of concrete. The mix proportion of the concrete was 1: 1.03:
2.37 with water cement ratio of 0.375. The fresh and hardened properties of rubberised concrete produced at five
different replacement ratios of FA were compared to those of conventional concrete without rubber and FA. The test
results indicate that there was a small reduction in the strength with the 5% increase in rubber content as compared
with the conventional concrete. However, the increase of FA from 5% to 20% improved the mechanical properties
of rubberised concrete.
Key words: Fly ash (FA), rubber, compressive strength, flexural strength, split tensile strength.

1. Introduction: rubber particles, the unit weight of the mixture

As population growing day by day the greater use of
disable materials have increased considerably the
generation of solid residue, to the point of landfill
cannot accommodate the total demand. One of the
major contributors to the solid waste problem is the
growing volume of tyres. The disposal of tyres have
become a global problem, the increased storage of
discarded tyres created potential fire hazards fire as well
as health risks due to mosquitoes breed in stagnant
water which accumulates in the tyres. Vieira et al.
(2010) [1] Rubber from scrap tyres is one of the most
recent waste materials investigated for its potential use
in the construction field. In general, it is reported that a
reduction in mechanical properties of concrete occurs
when the rubber content increases. Uygunoglu and
Topcu (2010) [2] However, the use of waste tyre rubber
as a concrete additive is a possible disposal solution due
to the elastic properties of rubber. The evaluation of tyre
rubber particles in cement-based materials generally
focuses on using tyre rubber particles as coarse or fine
aggregate in concrete. Furthermore, it was used with
Portland cement for masonry applications. Yilmaz and
Degirmenci (2009) [3] Results indicate that the
rubberised concrete mixtures possess lower density,
increased toughness and ductility, lower compressive,
flexural strength and tensile strength and more efficient
sound insulation. Because of the low specific gravity of
containing rubber decreases with the increase in the
rubber content. Most studies on rubberised concrete
focused on the strength or elastic properties of
rubberised concrete mixtures. Eldin and Senouci (1993)
[4] used a different size of rubber aggregate contained
steel wires.
The rubber aggregate has the ability to withstand large
deformations. Khatib and Bayomy (1999) [5] studied
the influence of adding two kinds of rubber crumb and
chipped rubber. It was found that there was a decrease
in slump with increase in rubber content and mixtures
made with fine crumb rubber were more workable than
those with coarse tyre chips or a combination of tyre
chips and crumb rubber. Hernandez-Olivares et al.
(2002) [6] investigated the dynamic characteristics of
rubberised concrete material. Because of the unique
elasticity properties of rubber material, the rubberised
concrete showed potential advantages in reducing or
minimizing vibration and impact effect. Siddique and
Naik (2004) [7] observed that the rubberised concrete
may be used in places where desired deformability or
toughness is more important than strength like the road
foundations and bridge barriers. Apart from these the
rubberised concrete having the reversible elasticity
properties may also be used as a material with tolerable
damping properties to reduce or to minimize the
structural vibration under impact effects. Khaloo et al.

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Proceedings of 3-Day International Conference on Emerging Trends in Civil Engineering (ICETE-2014,)
6th–8th January, 2014
 609 M. M ISHRA AND K.C. P ANDA

(2008) [8] determined the hardened properties of weight and in 5% rubberised concrete FA is replaced
concrete using different types of tyre rubber particle as a with cement from 0-20% by its weight. The chemical
replacement of aggregate in concrete. The different composition of FA is presented in Table 1. The
types of rubber particles used were tyre chips, crumb properties of fine aggregate and coarse aggregate
rubber and combination of tyre chips and crumb rubber. obtained experimentally as per IS 383-1970 [12] are
These particles were used to replace 12.5%, 25%, presented in the Table 2. Two size rubber chips i.e. 5
37.5%, and 50% of the total mineral aggregate by mm and 10 mm and FA sample used in the present
volume. study is shown in Figure 1 and Figure 2 respectively.
The results showed that the fresh rubberised concrete Table1: Chemical composition of FA
had lower unit weight and workability compared to
plain concrete. Panda et al. (2012) [9] investigated on Oxides (%) Average Oxides (%) Average
the influence of the rubber content on fresh and SiO2 58.13 Na2O 0.05
mechanical properties of rubberised concrete starting Al2O3 31.00 K2O 0.90
with the 0% rubber content (i.e., without rubber) and up
Fe2O3 4.10 SO3 0.12
to 12% rubber content in the M20 grade concrete. With
a partial replacement of the coarse aggregate by 3%, CaO 0.60 P2O5 0.39
6%, 9% and 12% of rubber, the compressive strength MgO 0.10 CI 0.011
decreased as the percentage of replacement increased, LOI 2.90 TiO2 1.63
but rubber in 3% replacement concrete developed
slightly higher compressive strength than those of Table2: Properties of fine and coarse aggregates
without rubber concrete. Schimizze et al. (1994) [10]
Fine Coarse
developed two rubberised concrete mixes using fine Characteristics
aggregate aggregate
rubber granular in one mix and coarse rubber granular
in the second. While these two mixes were not Abrasion value (%) - 27.02
optimized and their design parameters were selected Bulk density(kg/m3) 1568 1418
arbitrarily, their results indicate a reduction in Crushing value (%) - 28.70
compressive strength of about 50% with respect to the
3.48
control mixture. The elastic modulus of the mix Fineness modulus 7.95
(Zone1)
containing coarse rubber granular was reduced to about
72% of that of the control mixture, whereas the mix Impact value (%) - 24.00
containing the fine rubber granular showed a reduction Specific gravity 2.63 2.84
in the elastic modulus to about 47% of that of the Water absorption (%) 0.30 0.10
control mixture. The reduction in elastic modulus
indicates higher flexibility, which may be viewed as a
positive gain in rubberised PCC (RPCC) mixtures used
in stabilized base layers in flexible pavements. Topcu
(1995) [11] investigated the particle size and content of
tyre rubbers on the mechanical properties of concrete.
Also found the strength of rubber-filled concrete was
reduced, the plastic capacity was enhanced significantly.
This study investigates the influence of Fly Ash (FA),
obtained from thermal power plant, in rubberised
conventional concrete (CC). Further, the fresh and
hardened properties of conventional concrete and the Figure1: 5 mm and 10 mm rubber chips samples
comparison between 5% rubberised concrete with
influence of FA from 5-20% are also investigated.
2. Experimental program:
2.1. Materials used and properties:
In this experimental study, Ordinary Portland Cement
43 grade (OPC) Ramco cement, zone I fine aggregate,
natural coarse aggregate (20 mm passing), waste tyre
rubber (5 mm and 10 mm), tap water, FA (F class)
supplied by NALCO, Angul, Odisha, were used. The
rubber is replaced with coarse aggregate i.e. 5% of its
Figure2: FA samples

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 Influence of Fly Ash on Mechanical Properties of Rubberised Concrete
610

2.2. Mix proportion and identification: R0F0 indicate 0% of rubber chips and 0% FA, R5F0
A concrete mixture of M30 was designed as per indicate 5% of rubber chips and 0% FA, R5F5 indicate
standard specification IS: 10262-1982 [13] to achieve 5% rubber chips and 5% FA. The details of concrete
mix proportion and identification are given in Table 3.
target mean strength 39.9 MPa. The mix proportion 1:
The details of mix quantity per m3 of concrete are given
1.03: 2.37 is taken for this experiment. Six concrete
in Table 4.
mixtures were made by replacing 0, 5, 10, 15 and 20%
of cement with FA and water/cement (w/c) ratio 0.375.
Table3: Details of concrete mix proportion along with identification
Concrete Mix Proportion Mix Identity
C Concrete mix with 100% NCA + 100% cement + 0% Rubber chips + 0% FA CR0F0
C Concrete mix with 95% NCA + 95% cement + 5% Rubber chips + 0% FA CR5F0
C Concrete mix with 95% NCA + 95% cement + 5% Rubber chips + 5% FA CR5F5
C Concrete mix with 95% NCA + 90% cement + 5% Rubber chips + 10% FA CR5F10
C Concrete mix with 95% NCA + 85% cement + 5% Rubber chips + 15% FA CR5F15
C Concrete mix with 95% NCA + 80% cement + 5% Rubber chips + 20% FA CR5F20
Table4: Details of mix quantity per m3 of concrete
Mix quantity of different constituents per m3 of concrete
Mix
Rubber chips (kg) Fly Ash Water
Identity Cement (kg) Sand (kg) NCA (kg)
5 mm 10 mm (kg) (kg)
CR0F0 511.00 527.00 1209.27 - - - 191.60
CR5F0 511.00 527.00 1148.81 24.18 36.28 - 191.60
CR5F5 485.45 527.00 1148.81 24.18 36.28 25.55 191.60
CR5F10 459.90 527.00 1088.34 24.18 36.28 51.10 191.60
CR5F15 435.35 527.00 1027.88 24.18 36.28 76.65 191.60
CR5F20 408.80 527.00 967.42 24.18 36.28 102.2 191.60
2.3. Test program:
The workability of fresh concrete mix is measured by
slump cone test and to get the strength properties of
hardened concrete specimens the compressive strength,
flexural strength and split tensile strength of the
concrete specimens were tested after 7, 28 and 90 days.
The concrete cubes of size 150 x 150 x 150 mm were
tested for compressive strength, 100 x 200 mm
cylinders for split tensile strength and 100 x 100 x 500
mm prisms for flexural strength. The setup for
compressive, flexural and split tensile strength is shown Figure3: Test setup for compression, split tensile and
in Figure 3. The compressive strength, flexural strength flexural strength of concrete specimen
and split tensile strength were computed for cube, fck = 3. Results and discussions:
P/B2, for prism, fb = PL/bd2 and for cylinder, fsp = 2P/
3.1. Fresh concrete test results:
ᴨLD respectively. Where, fck is compressive strength in
MPa, P is Maximum applied load in Newton, B is size The workability of fresh concrete is determined by
of the cube specimen in mm, fb is flexural strength in slump cone test. The slump values for different concrete
MPa, b is width of the specimen in mm, d is depth of mix are shown in Figure 4. From figure it is observed
the specimen in mm, fsp is the split tensile strength in that, in CC (CR0F0) the slump is 36 mm and in 5%
MPa, L is length of the specimen in mm and D is rubber replacement (CR5F0) the slump value is 25 mm
Diameter of the cylinder in mm. this indicates CR5F0 has low workability. When FA
replacement increases in 5% rubberised concrete from
5-20% the slump values increases as compare with

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 611 M. M ISHRA AND K.C. P ANDA

CR5F0. It is concluded that FA improves the
workability of fresh rubberised concrete.
3.2. Hardened concrete test results:
3.2.1. Compressive Strength:
The summary of compressive strength test results for
5% rubberised FA based concrete is given in Table 5.
The compressive strength versus age and the
compressive strength versus mix type are shown in
Figure 5 and Figure 6 respectively.

Figure4: Slump value for 5% rubberised concrete with

influence of FA

Table5: Summary of compressive strength test results

7 Days 28 Days 90 Days
Mix % change in % change in % change in
Identity Average comp. Average comp. Average comp.
strength w.r.t strength w.r.t strength w.r.t
strength (MPa) strength (MPa) strength (MPa)
CR5F0 CR5F0 CR5F0
CR0F0 42.30 - 56.25 - 65.88 -
CR5F0 40.71 0 48.54 0 55.35 0
CR5F5 41.75 2.55 49.52 2.02 56.15 1.45
CR5F10 42.05 3.29 52.25 7.64 59.75 7.95
CR5F15 42.25 3.78 53.75 10.73 62.55 13.00
CR5F20 42.85 8.26 56.45 16.30 65.90 19.06
Figure6. Compressive strength versus mix type
From Table 5 it is observed that, the later age strength
of FA based rubberised concrete is more than early age
strength. As compare with 5% rubberised concrete
(CR5F0) the strength is more in 5% rubberised FA
based concrete. In 7 days test, the strength difference
between CR5F0 and CR5F20 is 8.26. In 28 days test,
the strength difference between CR5F0 and CR5F20 is
16.30. In 90 days test, the strength difference between
CR5F0 and CR5F20 is 19.06. As compare with CR0F0
the 7, 28 and 90 days strength difference of CR5F20 is
Figure5: Compressive strength versus age 1.30, 0.36 and 0.03 respectively. From Figures 5 and 6
it is observed that, as FA percentage increases in 5%
rubberised concrete the strength also increases at all
age. The less strength is observed in CR5F0 then the
strength is gradually increases. It is also observed that
the strength obtained is more in CR5F20 than CR0F0.
3.2.2. Flexural Strength:
The summary of flexural strength test results for 5%
rubberised FA based concrete is given in Table 6. The
flexural strength versus age and the flexural strength
versus mix type are shown in Figure 7 and Figure 8
respectively. From Table 6 it is observed that, the early

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 Influence of Fly Ash on Mechanical Properties of Rubberised Concrete
612

age strength is more than later age strength. The 90 days 5% rubberised concrete with FA replacement from 10-
flexural strength is more than 28 days flexural strength. 20%. From Figures 7 and 8 it is observed that, the
As compared with 5% rubberised concrete the strength strength increment is more in 5% rubberised concrete
is more in 5% rubberised FA based concrete. As with FA from 5-20% at all age.
compared with CR0F0, the flexural strength is more in
Table6. Summary of flexural strength test results
7 Days 28 Days 90 Days
Mix % change in % change in Average % change in
Identity Average flexural Average flexural
strength w.r.t strength w.r.t flexural strength w.r.t
strength (MPa) strength (MPa)
CR5F0 CR5F0 strength (MPa) CR5F0
CR0F0 4.70 - 6.25 - 6.80 -
CR5F0 4.55 0 6.20 0 6.71 0
CR5F5 4.60 1.1 6.22 0.32 6.75 0.60
CR5F10 4.78 5.05 6.35 2.42 6.90 2.83
CR5F15 4.88 7.25 6.48 4.52 6.98 4.02
CR5F20 4.95 8.79 6.55 5.65 7.10 5.81
the later age strength is more than early age strength.
The strength increases in 5% rubberised concrete with
the influence of FA from 0-20% at all age. From
Figures 9 and 10 it is observed that, the strength
decreases in 5% rubberised concrete (CR5F0) than
CR0F0. After addition of FA in 5% rubberised concrete
the strength gradually increases and with 20%
replacement of FA in 5% rubberised concrete the
strength is greater than the strength of CR0F0 at all age.

Figure7. Flexural strength versus age

Figure9: Split tensile strength versus age

Figure8: Flexural strength versus mix type

3.2.3. Split Tensile Strength:
The summary of split tensile strength test results for 5%
rubberised FA based concrete is given in Table 7. The
split tensile strength versus age and the split tensile
strength versus mix type are shown in Figure 9 and Figure10: Split tensile strength versus mix type
Figure 10 respectively. From Table 7 it is observed that,

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 613 M. M ISHRA AND K.C. P ANDA

Table7: Summary of split tensile strength test results

7 Days 28 Days 90 Days
Mix Average split % change in Average split % change in Average split % change in
Identity tensile strength strength w.r.t tensile strength strength w.r.t tensile strength strength w.r.t
(MPa) CR5F0 (MPa) CR5F0 (MPa) CR5F0
CR0F0 3.41 - 4.35 - 4.85 -
CR5F0 3.21 0 3.88 0 4.45 0
CR5F5 3.25 1.25 3.92 1.03 4.51 1.35
CR5F10 3.35 4.36 4.25 9.54 4.72 6.07
CR5F15 3.40 5.92 4.32 11.34 4.80 7.87
CR5F20 3.52 9.66 4.45 14.69 4.90 10.11
4. Conclusions: cement as construction materials, Waste
Managements, Vol. 29 (5), pp. 1541–1546.
 Workability of rubberised concrete increases as FA
[4] Eldin N N and Senouci A B (1993), Rubber-tyre
content increases from 0-20%.
particles as concrete aggregate, Journal of Materials
 As FA replacement percentage increases in 5%
in Civil Engineering, Vol. 5, pp. 478-96.
rubberised concrete, later age strength is more than
[5] Khatib Z K and Bayomy F M (1999), Rubberised
early age strength.
Portland cement concrete, Journal of Materials in
 As FA replacement percentage increases in 5% Civil Engineering, Vol. 11 (3), pp. 206-213.
rubberised concrete, the compressive strength, [6] Hernandez-Olivares F, Barluenga G, Bollati M and
flexural strength and split tensile strength increases Witoszek B (2002), Static and dynamic behavior of
at all age. recycled tyre rubber- filled concrete, Cement
 In CC with rubber 5% gives less strength than the Concrete Research, Vol. 32, pp. 1587-1596.
normal concrete without any replacement of rubber [7] Siddique R and Naik T R (2004), Properties of
and FA. concrete containing scrap-tyre rubber-an Overview,
 When FA is added in 5% rubberised concrete from Waste Management, Vol. 24, pp. 563-569.
5-20% the compressive strength, flexural strength [8] Khaloo A R, Dehestani M and Rahamatabadi P
and split tensile strength are gradually increases. (2008), Mechanical properties of concrete
 The replacement of 20% FA gives more containing a high volume of tyre-rubber particles,
compressive, flexural and split tensile strength in Waste Management, Vol. 28, pp. 2472-2482.
5% rubberised concrete than normal concrete [9] Panda K C, Parhi P S and Jena T (2012), Scrap-
without any replacement of rubber and FA. Tyre-Rubber Replacement for Aggregate in Cement
5. Acknowledgements: Concrete - An experimental Study, International
Journal of Earth Science and Engineering, Vol. 05
The author would like to thanks to ITER, Siksha ‘O’ No 6 (1), pp. 1692-1701.
Anusandhan University, Bhubaneswar, Odisha for the [10] Schimizze R, Nelson J, Amirkhanian S and Murden
support of conducting the experimental works. J (1994), Use of waste rubber in light-duty concrete
Reference pavements, Proc., ASCE 3rd Material Engineering
Conference, Infrastructure: New Material and
[1] Vieira R K, Soares R C, Pinheiro S C, Paiva O A, Methods of Repair, pp. 367–374.
Eleuterio J O and Vasconcelos R P (2010), [11] Topcu I B (1995), the properties of rubberised
Completely random experimental design with concrete, Cement Concrete Research, Vol. 25 (2),
mixture and process variables for optimization of pp. 304-310.
rubberised concrete, Construction and Building [12] IS: 383 (1970), Indian Standard Specification for
Materials, Vol. 24, pp. 1754–1760. Coarse and Fine Aggregates from Natural Sources
[2] Uygunoglu T and Topcu I B (2010), the role of for Concrete (Second Revision), Bureau of Indian
scrap rubber particles on the drying shrinkage and Standards, Manak Bavan, 9 Bahadur Shah Zafar
mechanical properties of self-consolidating mortars, Marg, New Delhi 110002, India.
Construction and Building Materials, Vol. 24, pp. [13] IS: 10262 (1982), Recommended Guidelines for
1141-1150. Concrete Mix Design, Bureau of Indian Standards,
[3] Yilmaz A and Degirmenci N (2009), Possibility of New Delhi 110002, India.
using waste tyre rubber and fly ash with Portland

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www.cafetinnova.org August 2014, P.P.614-618
ISSN 0974-5904, Volume 07, No. 04

Light Weight Aggregate Concrete Replacing Conventional

Aggregate with LECA
SHANKAR H. SANNI AND SADASHIVA S. KEMBHAVI
Department of Civil Engineering, Basaveshwar Engineering College, Bagalkot, Karnataka
Email: shsanni@gmail.com, sadask2011@gmail.com

Abstract: The paper presents the comparison done with the density and mechanical properties of LECA (Light
expanded clay aggregate) against conventional concrete by replacing natural aggregates with LECA. The grades
chosen for the present investigation were M-15, M-20 and M-25. The test specimens were cubes 150x150x150mm,
cylinders 100x200mm and flexural beams 100x100x500mm RCC beams cured in ambient air. The specimens were
cast with both conventional concrete as well with LECA. The variation of the study was done with 3, 7 and 28 days
of curing. The results revealed that the workable flow of concrete made with LECA aggregate was slightly increased
in par with conventional concrete. There was slight decrease in the strength of mechanical properties of light weight
aggregate concrete compared with conventional concrete, which may be neglected in the interest of reducing the
dead weight of the structure. Hence Light weight concrete has become more popular in the recent years owing to the
tremendous advantages it offers over the conventional concrete.
Keywords: light weight clay expanded aggregate, workability, compressive strength, split tensile strength, flexural
strength

1. Introduction: expand and become honeycombed while the outside

Light weight concrete is made from light weight
aggregates. Generally light weight concrete is not as
strong as concrete made with normal aggregate. There
are many advantages of light weight concrete over the
normal concrete, one of them being its low density of
concrete helps in reduction of dead load. Another factor
for using light weight concrete may be its low thermal
conductivity, which results from its high void content.
Since the strength is influenced primarily by the coarse
aggregate while the workability depends primarily on
the fine aggregate, concrete is sometimes made with
normal weight fine aggregate and light weight coarse
aggregate. Usually light weight aggregate have to be
wetted for 24 hours before use. Air entrainment is often
used in light weight concrete to reduce the density, to
improve workability, to improve resistance to frost and
to reduce thermal conductivity. Particularly if normal
weight aggregate is used for the fine aggregate, air
entrainment also serves to equalize the densities of the
cement/fine aggregate paste and of the coarse aggregate
and so reduces the tendency of the coarse aggregate to
float to the top of the concrete.
Light Expanded clay aggregate (LECA) is a special type
of clay that has been pelletized and fired in a rotary kiln
at a very high temperature. As it is fired, the organic
compounds in the clay burn off forcing the pellets to
surface of each granule melts and is sintered. The
resulting ceramic pellets are light weight, porous and
have a high crushing resistance. LECA is a natural
product containing to harmful substances. It is inert with
a neutral pH value, resistance to frost and chemicals
(Fig. 1).
2. Literature Review
Smita Badur et al. [1] described how chemical and
mineral admixtures help in the improvement of the LWC
properties. The studies included the cement, replaced by
the 15 -35% fly ash in the concrete mix. The studies
finally concluded that fly ash increases the concrete
strength, reduces the water ratio required and improves
the workability of the concrete.
Serkan Subasi [2] studied the effect of using fly ash in
High strength light weight aggregate concrete produced
with expanded clay aggregates. The concrete with 0, 10,
20, 30% fly ash replacement were produced out of the
mixtures with different cement contents. The studies
came up with results showing that the properties could
be enhanced by using mineral admixtures. The
compressive strength increased by 8% and split tensile
strength by 9% with various cement contents.
Hjh Kamsiah Mohd.Ismail et al. [3] studied the activities
of progress of the light weight concrete. Focused areas

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Proceedings of 3-Day International Conference on Emerging Trends in Civil Engineering (ICETE-2014,)
6th–8th January, 2014
 615 SHANKAR H. S ANNI AND S ADASHIVA S. KEMBHAVI
were on the performance of aerated light weight concrete
such as compressive test, density and compressions
made with other type of light weight concrete. The
studies finally concluded that light weight concrete has a
desirable strength to be an to be an alternative
construction material for the industrialized building
system.
M.Abdullahi et al. [4] presented equations for mix
design of lightweight concrete in ACI 211.2-98.The
equations were used to solve some mix design problems
from reputable textural sources. The equations are also
useful for mixture proportioning adjustment.
M. Hubertova et al. [5] studied the durability of light-
weight concrete exposed to corrosive liquids and gases
(high concentrations of sulphate, chloride ions, diesel
oil and gaseous CO2 and SO2 environments).
3. Experimental Investigations
3.1 Materials:
The following materials have been used in the
experimental study [7]
a) Ordinary Portland cement confirming to 43 grade
having specific gravity 3.15.
b) LECA obtained from Ahmedabad, having specific
gravity 1, bulk density 306.6 kg/m3, fineness
modulus 1.735.
c) Fine aggregate: Sand confirming to Zone –III of
IS:383-1970 [10] having specific gravity 2.57,
fineness modulus of 2.82 and bulk density of
1612.77 kg/m3
d) Coarse aggregate: Crushed granite metal
confirming to IS: 383-1970 [10] having specific
gravity 2.80 and fineness modulus of 5.80.
e) Water: Clean Potable water for mixing.
Tests were conducted on specimen of standard size as
per IS: 516-1959 [11]. Details of tests conducted and
specimens used are given in Table 1.
3.2. Mix design of LECA
The mix design adopted for the different types of
aggregates is presented in Table 2. The details of
quantities obtained for different grades of concrete are
as shown in Table 3. The admixture used throughout the
work was Sikament 581 (water reducer). It was taken as
0.5% by weight of cement.
4. Results and Discussions
4.1 Workability
The workability of Light weight aggregate concrete
with LECA was measured using conventional slump
cone test apparatus. The details of the results are
presented in Table 5, it was observed that as grade of
concrete increases the workability of the mix decreases.
International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering
ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 614-618
A. Compressive strength
The compressive strength is one of the most noteworthy
properties of hardened concrete and is considered as the
characteristic material value for the classification of
concrete. The compressive strength of conventional
concrete and Light weight aggregate concrete with
LECA for different grades are as shown in Table 6-7
and Fig. 3. It is observed that the concrete made with
LECA aggregates is marginal to that of conventional
concrete. Hence may be used in the construction
industry. The cube specimens of the GPC mixes, when
tested under compression, generally failed in the
„pyramidal frustum‟ form, similar to the regular
Portland cement concrete cubes.
4.2 Density
The densities of conventional concrete and light weight
aggregate concrete with LECA are presented in Table 8
and 9. It was observed that the difference in the
densities was around 800-1000 kg/m3. Hence we
conclude that the concrete made with these aggregates
can be utilized for the construction industry mainly to
decrease the dead weight of the concrete in the multi
storied buildings.
4.3 Split tensile strength
The split tensile strength of geopolymer concrete is only
a fraction of compressive strength, as in case of
Ordinary Portland cement concrete. The variation of
results are presented in Fig. 4 and Table 6-7. From those
graphs it is clear that as the grade of concrete increase
the split tensile strength increases for both types
concrete. The marginal error was observed in LECA
aggregate in par with cube compressive strength.
4.4 Flexural strength
The IS:456-2000 [13] represents the relationship
between the concrete flexural tensile strength (ft) and
the compresive strength (fck) by ft = 0.7(fck) 0.5. The
flexural strength of different grades of LECA and
coventional concrete is presented in Fig. 5 and Table 6-
7. Hence we can conclude that the obtained results of
Light weight aggregate concrete made with LECA are
in good agreement with the expression suggested by
Indian Standards for OPC.
5. Conclusions
Based on the experimental investigations done the
following conclusions can be drawn:
 The workability of LWAC gets considerably
increased when LECA is used as coarse aggregate.
 Cube compressive strengths achieved for M-15, M-
20 and M-25 grade of LWAC are 13.08 N/mm2,
18.60 N/mm2 and 20.20 N/mm2 respectively for 28
days.
 Light Weight Aggregate Concrete Replacing Conventional Aggregate with LECA
616

 The mechanical properties such as cube
compressive strength, split tensile strength and
flexural strength of light weight aggregate concrete
is reduced as compared to conventional concrete.
 There is reduction in density of light weight
aggregate concrete using LECA as compared to
conventional concrete. The percentage reduction in
density as compared to conventional concrete for
M-15, M-20 and M-25 grade of LWAC are
37.20%, 36.68% and 35.74% respectively for 28
days.
Reference
[1] Smita Badur and Rubina Chaudary, Utilization of
Hazardous Wastes and By-Products as A Green
Concrete Material A Review, Rev. Advanced
Material Science, 17, 2008, pp. 42-61.
[2] Serkan Subasi, The Effects Of Using Fly Ash On
High Strength Lightweight Concrete Produced
With Expanded Clay Aggregate, Scientific
Research and Essay, Vol. 4, April 2009, pp. 275-
288.
[3] Hjh Kamsiah Mohd.Ismail et al., “Study Of
Lightweight Concrete Behaviour”
[4] M.Abdullahi, H.M.A. Al-Mattarneh and B.S.
Mohammed, Equations For Mix Design Of
Lightweight Concrete, European Journal of
Scientific Research, Vol. 31, No.1, 2009, pp. 132-
141.
[5] M. Hubertova, R. Hela and R. Stavinoha,
Durability Of Light-Weight Concrete With
Expanded Clay Aggregate, Concrete Repair,
rehabilitation and Retrofitting II – Alexander et al
(eds), 2009, pp. 117-122.
[6] M.S.Shetty “Concrete Technology Theory and
Practice”, S. Chand Publications, Fifth Revised
Edition, 2005, New Delhi.
[7] Pampana Gowda and Sadashiva Kembhavi, Light
Weight Aggregate Concrete Replacing
Conventional Aggreagte With LECA, B.E. Project
Report, Basaveshwar Engineering College,
Bagalkot, 2013.
[8] IS: 2386 (Part-IV)-1963, Methods of test for
aggregates for concrete-mechanical properties,
Bureau of Indian standards, New Delhi.
[9] IS: 10262-2009, recommended guidelines for
concrete mix design, Bureau of Indian standards,
New Delhi.
[10] IS: 383-1970, Specification for coarse and fine
aggregates from natural sources for concrete,
Bureau of Indian standards, New Delhi.
[11] IS: 516-1959, Methods of test for strength of
concrete, Bureau of Indian standards, New Delhi.
[12] ACI Committee 211.2-98, Standard Practice for
selecting proportions for structural Light weight
concrete, American Concrete Institution, Detroit,
1998.
[13] IS 456-2000, Code of practice for plain and
reinforced concrete, Bureau of Indian standards,
New Delhi.

Figure1: LECA aggregates

Figure2: Failure of Light weight aggregate concrete specimens

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ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 614-618
617 SHANKAR H. S ANNI AND S ADASHIVA S. KEMBHAVI

Flexural strength (N/mm2)

3.5

2.5
7 day conv.
2 28 day conv.
7 day LECA
1.5 28 day LECA
15 20 25
Grade of Concrete

Figure3: Comp. strength Vs Days Figure5: Flexural strength Vs Grade of concrete

Table1: Details of specimen used and tests conducted
No. of specimen
Type of test Size of
cast for different
conducted specimen
grades
Compressive 150x150x150
3
strength mm
Split tensile
100x200 mm 3
strength
Flexural 150x150x2000
3
strength mm
Table2: Mix design methods
Type of aggregate Mix design
Conventional
Indian Standard Method [11]
concrete
Figure4: Split tensile strength Vs Days LECA ACI method [12]
Table3: Mix proportions for LECA
Grade Water Cement Sand LECA Mix proportion
M-15 196 350 650 249 0.56:1:1.85:0.71
M-20 259.02 401.20 753.12 233.74 0.64:1:1.87:0.58
M-25 220 400 800 198 0.55 : 1 : 2.00 : 0.495
Table 4: Mix proportions for conventional concrete
Grade Water Cement Sand Aggregate Mix proportion
M-15 186 332.14 727.82 1189.44 0.56:1:2.19:3.58
M-20 191.5 348.2 689.63 1211.73 0.55:1: 1.98 : 3.48
M-25 186 372 715.49 1169.28 0.50:1:1.92:3.14
Table5: Slump details of Light weight aggregate concrete with LECA
Grade Water
M-15 103
M-20 93
M-25 95

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 Light Weight Aggregate Concrete Replacing Conventional Aggregate with LECA
618

Table6: Test data for conventional concrete

Cube comp. strength (N/mm2) Split tensile strength (N/mm2) Flexural strength (N/mm2)
Grade
3 day 7 day 28 day 3 day 7 day 28 day 7 day 28 day
M-15 9.73 13.51 20.78 0.73 1.25 1.82 2.70 3.57
M-20 10.90 16.71 26.59 0.78 1.15 2.13 2.74 3.69
M-25 10.02 15.11 30.23 0.88 1.19 2.55 2.83 3.73
Table7: Test data for LECA
Cube comp. strength (N/mm2) Split tensile strength (N/mm2) Flexural strength (N/mm2)
Grade
3 day 7 day 28 day 3 day 7 day 28 day 7 day 28 day
M-15 5.38 9.30 13.08 0.52 0.78 1.25 2.02 2.17
M-20 5.96 10.76 18.60 0.78 1.15 2.13 2.10 2.51
M-25 6.98 11.48 20.20 0.88 1.19 2.55 2.29 2.87
Table8: Densities for conventional concrete
Cubes Cylinders Beams
Grade
3 day 7 day 28 day 3 day 7 day 28 day 7 day 28 day
M-15 2351.47 2392.64 2398.03 2331.25 2338.54 2341.67 2389.33 2418.00
M-20 2379.41 2369.57 2401.96 2338.54 2355.20 2359.37 2409.33 2424.00
M-25 2385.78 2401.96 2410.78 2340.82 2368.75 2412.50 2410.66 2416.30
Table9: Densities for LECA
Cubes Cylinders Beams
Grade
3 day 7 day 28 day 3 day 7 day 28 day 7 day 28 day
M-15 1360.78 1394.11 1401.96 1372.91 1383.33 1437.50 1481.33 1514.33
M-20 1510.78 1536.76 1580.00 1481.25 1522.91 1529.16 1521.66 1628.66
M-25 1549.02 1577.45 1599.11 1531.25 1537.50 1541.67 1607.33 1613.66

International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering

ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 614-618
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ISSN 0974-5904, Volume 07, No. 04

Mechanical Properties of Concrete Containing Metakaolin and

Flyash
K.L.RADHIKA AND P.ANURADHA
Department of Civil Engineering, UCE (A), O.U, Hyderabad A.P, India.
Email: radhikaou@yahoo.com, anuradhaouce@gmail.com

Abstract: The High Strength concrete can be advantageously used for columns and shear walls of high rise
buildings, elevated structures, precast and prestressed products and construction where durability is required. Recent
developments in materials technology and a need for High Strength concrete have increased its use in many parts of
the world. Achievement of High Strength concrete required quality materials resulting in increase of cost which
necessitates the use of chemical and mineral admixtures in the concrete industry. The addition of mineral admixture
in cement has dramatically increased along with the development of concrete industry, due to the consideration of
cost saving, energy saving, environmental protection and conservation of resources. High Reactivity Metakaolin
(HRM) is the best suited material amoung the new generation of admixtures. Flyash, partly on economic grounds
can be used as pozzolona for partial replacement of cement. It has beneficial effects of low water demand for similar
workability, reduced bleeding, lower evaluation of heat of hydration and improved performance against sulfate
attack and alkali aggregate reactions. In the present investigations an attempt has been made to study the properties
of concrete with partial replacement of cement with metakaolin and flyash with the view to study the possibility to
have concrete with superior performance characteristics over plain concrete and at same time to reduce the cost of
concrete. The mechanical properties investigated are Compressive Strength, Split Tensile strength, Flexural strength
and Modulus of elasticity. The investigation consists of casting and testing of specimens of 10 different mixes of
M30 grade concrete with different percentages of partial replacement of cement by metakaolin (5%, 10% and 15%)
and fly ash ( 10%, 20% and 30%). The test results obtained show that the strength of concrete increases with the
increase in replacement of cement with metakoilin (upto 15%) at all replacements levels of flyash. The maximum
strength characteristics are achieved for the mix with 10% flyash and 15% metakaolin.
Keywords: Metakaolin, Flyash, Pozzolona, admixtures, flexure, modulus of elasticity.

1. Introduction: workability, reduced bleeding, lower evolution of heat

of hydration and improved performance against sulphate
In the past decade it has become apparent that
attack and alkali aggregate reactions.. The use of
production of the vast quantities of cement that are
metakaolin and various chemical admixtures have
required to develop and maintain the world’s
become staple ingradients in the production of concrete
infrastructure is adding significantly to CO 2 emissions.
with designed strength in excess of 7500 psi (>50Mpa)
This has therefore provided further incentive to increase
or where service environments, exposure or life cycle
the use of admixtures. There is a wide range of such
cost considerations dictate the use of high performance
materials, many of which are waste products or
concete (HPC). Portland cement with pozzolanic
byproducts. These include GGBS, silica fume, ground --
materials can be advantageous that it can increase the
--clay brick and tile, calcinated clays such as
durability of paste, mortar or concrete if the proper
metakaolin, rice husk ash, fly ash, and waste paper
curing regime is adopted. This is due to the fact that the
sludge ash. High Reactive Metakaolin (HRM) is a
calcium hydroxide produced by the cement hydration
manufactured pozzolanic mineral admixture which
reacts with the pozzolana and produces additional gel
significantly enhances many performance characteristics
which has a pore blocking effect and therefore alters the
of cement based motors, concrete and related products.
pore structure and the strength. In addition there is a
Fly ash is known to have been used in concrete for more
reduction in calcium hydroxide (CH) which leads to
than half a century, partly on economic grounds as a
improved resistance to sulphate attack and alkali-silica
pozzolana for partial replacement of cement because of
reaction.
its beneficial effects of lower water demand for similar

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Proceedings of 3-Day International Conference on Emerging Trends in Civil Engineering (ICETE-2014,)
6th–8th January, 2014
 Mechanical Properties of Concrete Containing Metakaolin and Flyash
620

2. Research significance: 20%, 30%) for 28 days of curing period. The tests were
Metakaolin is a high quality pozzolanic material, which conducted according to IS: 516-1959 to attain the
is blended with Portland cement in order to improve the mechanical properties of concrete.
strength and durability of concrete and mortars (1). It
removes chemically reactive calcium hydroxide from
3.11 Materials used:
the hardened concrete, densifies and reduces the
thickness of the interfacial zone, thus improving the Cement
adhesive between the hardened cement paste and Ordinary Portland cement of 53 grade ultratech (11)
particles of sand or aggregate. It also improves strength confirming to IS: 12269 and tested as per IS: 4031-1988
and durability to various types of chemical attacks, such was used. The normal consistency, fineness and specific
as acidic (or) sulphate waters and the reaction causing gravity of the cement used are 33.5%, 4.52% and 3.15
alkali aggregate expansions. The addition of metakaolin respectively.
in small amounts (10% by weight of cement) has no
significant effect on the setting time of cement. But the Aggregates
addition of Metakaolin is sensitive to plastic shrinkage, Fine Aggregate used was locally available river sand
when exposed to drying condition at early age. confirming to Zone-II as per IS: 383-1970(12) was
However, there is no significant effect on the drying used. Locally available machine crushed granite chips
shrinkage. When metakaolin reacts with calcium with maximum size of 20mm were used as coarse
hydroxide (CH) a pozzolanic reaction takes place where aggregates. The physical properties of fine aggregate
by new cementations compounds (C2A3H8) and (CSH) and coarse aggregates are given in the table – 1
are formed. These newly formed compounds will
replace weak and soluble calcium hydroxide.The special Table1: Physical properties of fine and coarse
characteristics of metakaolin like super fineness, high aggregates
silica content, etc gave the scope for enhancing the Fine Coarse
properties of normal cement concrete when mixed with S. No Properties
aggregate aggregate
cement as partial replacement. The excessive Specific
cohesiveness and excellent sulphate resistance of 1 2.60 2.66
gravity
metakaolin mixed concrete is of greater importance in Fineness
shortcrete applications. Fly ash (2) affects the properties 2 2.69 7.27
Modulus
of concrete by improving workability (3), reducing Compacted
water demand, reducing segregation and bleeding, and 3 1604kg/m3 1540kg/m3
bulk density
lowering heat of hydration. It also increases strength, Loose bulk
reduces permeability, reduces corrosion of reinforcing 4 1447kg/m3 1380kg/m3
density
steel, increases sulphate resistance, and reduces alkali-
aggregate reaction. Fly ash chemically reacts with the Metakaolin
lime to create more CSH, the same glue produced by the Metakaoline is obtained from the 20 Microns Limited
hydration of cement and water, thereby closing off the Company at Vadodara in Gujarath. The average particle
capillaries that allow the movement of moisture through size, specific gravity and bulk density of Matekaolin is
the concrete. The use of blended admixtures as partial 1.5µm, 2.65 and 0.5 kg/ m3
replacement of OPC (4) has been found very suitable in
developing the durable concrete. Hence the need for the Fly ash
experimental investigation is to examine the effects of Fly ash was obtained from Hyderabad Industries private
the blends on the various properties of the concrete. limited, Hyderabad, which was originally obtained from
3. Experimental program Vijayawada Thermal Power Station. The physical
properties were tested as per IS 3813-1999 and
The objective of the present investigation is to study the presentated in the table -2
influence of different replacement levels of cement by
metakaolin and fly ash on the mechanical properties of Table2: Physical properties of fly ash
concrete i.e., compressive strength, split tensile strength
S. No Properties Values
and flexural strength of M30 grade concrete with 5%,
10% and 15% replacement of cement by metakaolin and 1 Specific Gravity 2.23
10%, 20% and 30% replacement of cement by fly ash
and compare them with normal concrete. The present 2 Specific Surface Area 334m2/kg
investigation consists of casting and testing of Particles Retained on 45
specimens for 10 mixes with different replacement 3 24%
micron IS sieve
levels of metekaolin (5%, 10%, 15%) and fly ash (10%,

International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering

ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 619-623
 621 K.L.R ADHIKA AND P.ANURADHA

Lime Reactivity - Avg Super plasticizer by trade name Conplast SP-430

4 8.5 N/mm2
Comp. Strength manufactured at Bangalore was used as water reducing
Comp. Strength at 28 agent to achieve required workability
5 84 N/mm2
days 3.12 Casting and curing of specimens
Water Concrete mix proportions was designed as per IS:
The water (10) which is used for mixing concrete was 10262-1982(14). The details of various mixes are given
clean and free from harmful impurities such as oil, in table-3. After 24 hours of casting, the specimens were
alkali, acid etc. demoulded and transferred to the curing tank wherein
they were immersed in water for the desired period of
Admixture curing.
Table3: Concrete mix proportions for various mixes
Meta kaolin Meta kaolin Fly ash Fly ash water
Mix id Cement (kg/m3) w/c ratio
(%) (kg/m3) (%) (kg/m3) (kg/m3)
MM0F0 0 0 0 0 432.56 186 0.43
MM1F1 5 21.63 10 43.26 367.68 186 0.43
MM2F1 10 43.26 10 43.26 346.05 186 0.43
MM3F1 15 64.88 10 43.26 324.42 186 0.43
MM1F2 5 21.63 20 86.51 324.42 186 0.43
MM2F2 10 43.26 20 86.51 302.79 186 0.43
MM3F2 15 64.88 20 86.51 281.16 186 0.43
MM1F3 5 21.63 30 129.77 281.16 186 0.43
MM2F3 10 43.26 30 129.77 259.54 186 0.43
MM3F3 15 64.88 30 129.77 237.91 186 0.43
4. Results and discussions 7 MM3F2 0.73 No slump
4.10 Workability 8 MM1F3 0.86 10
Slump cone test and compaction factor test are 9 MM2F3 0.83 8
conducted to determine the workability of fresh 10 MM3F3 0.74 No slump
concrete. The results of workability are given in table- 4
it was observed that the workability of all the mixes was 4.12 Compressive strength
greater than normal concrete except for the mixes with The Compressive strength test has been conducted
15% metakaolin. This shows that the workability confirming to IS 516-1959(13) on the standard cubes of
decreased with the increase in the replacement of size 150mmx150mmx150mm. The test results are
metakaolin. For a given replacement of cement with presented in table-5. It was observed that for a given
metakaolin, as the fly ash increased the workability also replacement of cement with fly ash, as the replacement
increased. The highest workability is achieved for the of metakaolin increased the compressive strength
mix with 30% replacement of fly ash and 5% increased at 7 days 28 days and 56 days. At 10%
replacement of metakaolin and the least workability is replacement of fly ash, the three mixes with metakaolin
for the mix with 10% fly ash and 15% metakaolin. (5%, 10%, and 15%) have achieved more strength than
Table4: Slump and compaction factor values that of plain concrete. The compressive strength of
concrete at 28 days and 56 days of all the concrete
Compaction Slump in mixes with different replacements of fly ash and
S. no Mix id
factor mm metakaolin were greater than that of the normal
1 MM0F0 0.75 6 concrete. The highest strength was achieved for the mix
2 MM1F1 0.84 6 with a replacement of 10% fly ash and 15% metakaolin
3 MM2F1 0.80 5 with an increase of 14.35% and 23.43% when compared
to normal concrete. The above results show that high
4 MM3F1 0.71 No slump strength concrete can be achieved with replacement of
5 MM1F2 0.84 8 cement by metakaolin and fly ash. The results also show
6 MM2F2 0.81 7 that with less replacement level of fly ash and with more
replacement of metakaolin, high early strength can be

International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering

ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 619-623
 Mechanical Properties of Concrete Containing Metakaolin and Flyash
622

achieved. The strength increase is attributed to the 6 MM2F2 3.45 4.71 29.5
higher content of calcium-silicate-hydrate (C-S-H) in 7 MM3F2 3.69 5.02 30.6
the Metakaolin specimens due to the reaction of calcium
hydroxide produced from cement hydration with the 8 MM1F3 3.08 3.74 27.9
active silica of the Metakaolin. 9 MM2F3 3.28 3.85 28.8
Table5: Compressive strength of concrete at different 10 MM3F3 3.47 3.90 29.2
ages 4.14 Flexural strength of concrete
Compressive strength The flexural strength test was carried out according to
S. (N/mm2)
Mix id IS: 516-1959(13) on standard prisms of size 100mm x
no
7 days 28 days 56 days 100mm x 500mm. The test results for 28 days curing
1 MM0F0 34.82 41.33 46.22 period are presented in table-7. It has been observed
2 MM1F1 35.85 41.55 53.04 that, for a given replacement of cement with fly ash, as
replacement of metakaolin increased the flexural
3 MM2F1 36.29 45.04 55.12 strength also increased. At 10% replacement of fly ash,
4 MM3F1 37.11 47.26 57.05 the three mixes with metakaolin (5%, 10%, 15%) have
5 MM1F2 30.96 43.26 52.13 achieved more flexural strength than that of normal
6 MM2F2 32.44 45.33 54.04 concrete, the highest being at 10% fly ash and 15%
metakaolin with a % increase of 12.81%. At20% and
7 MM3F2 33.33 46.22 55.92 30% replacements of fly ash, the flexural strength of
8 MM1F3 27.55 41.92 49.02 concrete was less than that of normal concrete except
9 MM2F3 28.59 42.07 52.40 for mix with 20% fly ash and 15% metakaolin. The
above results show that high flexural strength of
10 MM3F3 31.26 42.37 53.89
concrete can be achieved with less replacement of fly
4.13 Split tensile strength ash (10%) and more replacement of metakaolin(15%).
The Split tensile strength test has been conducted 4.15 Modulus of elasticity
confirming to IS 516-1959(13) on the standard cylinders The test was carried out conforming to IS: 516-1959(13)
of size 150mmx300mm. The test results are presented in to obtain the stress-stain curve and modulus of elasticity
the table-6.It has been observed that, for a given of concrete. The modulus of elasticity of concrete is
replacement of cement with fly ash, as the replacement tested for 28 days and the values are presented in table-
of metakaolin increased the split tensile strength 6. It has been observed that the modulus of elasticity of
increased. At 10% replacement of fly ash, the three all the mixes with different replacement of metakaolin
mixes with metakaolin (5%, 10%, 15%) have achieved and fly ash is more than that of the normal concrete. The
more strength than that of normal concrete, the highest highest modulus of elasticity is achieved at replacement
being at 10% fly ash, and 15% metakaolin with a of 15% metakaolin and 10% fly ash with an increase of
increase of 17.17%. At 20 % and 30% replacements of 12.6% over normal concrete.
fly ash, the strength was less than that of normal
concrete except for the mix with 20% fly ash and 15% 5. Conclusions
metakaolin. The above results show that high tensile 1. The workability of concrete decreases with the
strength of concrete can be achieved with less increase in the replacement of cement with
replacement of fly ash (10%) and more replacement of metakaolin at all replacements of fly ash.
metakaolin (15%). 2. The compressive strength of concrete at all the
Table6: Split tensile strength and flexural strength and replacement levels is superior to that of plain
modulus of elasticity values of concrete at 28 days concrete. The compressive strength increases with
the increase in the replacement of cement with
Modulus metakaolin at all replacement of fly ash. The
Split tensile Flexural
S. of
Mix id strength strength maximum compressive strength is achieved for
no Elasticity
(N/mm2) (n/mm2) concrete mix having 10% fly ash and 15%
(GPa)
metakaolin with an increase of 14.35% at 28 days
1 MM0F0 3.61 4.92 27.8
and 23.43% at 56 days over plain concrete.
2 MM1F1 3.70 5.34 28.1 3. Early high strength of concrete can be achieved at
3 MM2F1 4.00 5.42 29.4 all replacement levels of metakaolin with 10%
4 MM3F1 4.23 5.55 31.3 replacement of fly ash. The 7 days strength of the
above said mixes was greater than of normal
5 MM1F2 3.23 4.59 28.2
concrete.

International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering

ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 619-623
 623 K.L.R ADHIKA AND P.ANURADHA
4. The splitting tensile strength of concrete increases
with the increase in the replacement of cement with
metakaolin at all replacements of fly ash. The
maximum splitting tensile strength is achieved for
concrete mix having 10% fly ash and 15%
metakaolin with an increase of 17.17% over plain
concrete.
5. The flexural strength of concrete increases with the
increase in the replacement of cement with
metakaolin at all replacements of fly ash. The
maximum flexural strength is achieved for concrete
mix having 10% fly ash and 15% metakaolin with
an increase of 12.81% over plain concrete.
6. The modulus of elasticity of concrete at all
replacement is more than that of the plain concrete.
The highest modulus of elasticity is achieved for
concrete mix having 10% fly ash and 15%
metakaolin.
Reference
[1] Basheer Long and McCabe, “Properties Of
Concrete Containing Metakaolin”, International
Conference, Sheffield Academic Press 1999, ISBN
1-84127-051-2pp. 199-211.
[2] Headwaters Resources, “Fly Ash for Concrete”,
Brochure of Headwater Resources, South Jordan,
Utah.
[3] J Bai, S. Wild, B.B. Sabir and J.M. Kinutha,
“Workability of Concrete Incorporating Pulverized
Fuels Ash and Metakaolin”, Magazine of Concrete
Research 1999,No-3 pp 207-216
[4] J Bai, S. Wild, B.B. Sabir and J.M. Kinutha
“Strength Development in Concrete Incorporating
Pulverized Fuels Ash and Metakaolin”, Magazine
of Concrete Research 2000,No-3 pp 153-162
[5] Jirwat Suwanpruk, Suvimol Sujjavanich and
Jaroenwut Punyanusornkit, “Impact of Low
Sulphate Metakaolin on Strength and Chloride
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Resistance of Cement Mortar and High Strength
Concrete”, Fourth Regional Symposium on
Infrastructure Development in Civil Engineering
(RSIDA4), Bangkok, Thailand, 2003
[6] J.M.Justice and K.E.Kurtis, “Influence of
Metakaolin Surface Area on Properties of Cement
Based Materials”, Journal of Materials in Civil
Engineering, ASCE, September-2007, Vol 19, No
9, pp-762-771.
[7] Khatib and Wild, “Pore Size Distribution of
Metakaolin Paste”, Cement and Concrete Research
1996, Vol 26, No 10, pp 1545-1553.
[8] Khatib and Wild, “Portlandite Consumption in
Metakaolin Cement Pastes and Mortars”, Cement
and Concrete Research 1997, Vol 27, No 1, pp 137-
146.
[9] IS: 456-2000 “Code of Practice for Plain and
Reinforced Concrete”, Bureau of Indian Standards,
New Delhi.
[10] IS: 12269-1987 “Specifications for 53 Grade
Ordinary Portland Cement”, Bureau of Indian
Standards, New Delhi.
[11] IS: 383-1970 “Specifications for Coarse and Fine
Aggregate from Natural Source of Concrete”,
Bureau of Indian Standards, New Delhi.
[12] IS: 516-1959 “Methods of Tests for Strength of
Concrete”, Bureau of Indian Standards, New Delhi.
[13] IS: 10262-2009 “Recommended Guidelines for
Concrete Mix Design”, Bureau of Indian Standards,
New Delhi.
[14] SP: 23-1982 “Hand Book of Concrete Mixes”,
Bureau of Indian Standards, New Delhi.
[15] Ashok K. Jain., “Reinforced Concrete Structures”,
Vol.1, New Delhi, 2005. \
[16] M.S. SHETTY., “Concrete Technology” CBS
Publications, 2009.
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ISSN 0974-5904, Volume 07, No. 04

Studies on Stress - Strain Behaviour of SCC with Ggbs and RHA

M.SWAROOPA RANI1, M.V SESHAGIRI RAO2 AND B.KRISHNA RAO1
1
Dept of Civil Engineering, UCE, JNTUK, Kakinada, Andhra Pradesh, India
2
Dept. of Civil Engineering, JNTU College of Engineering, Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh, India
Email: swarupa_1969@yahoo.co.in, rao_vs_meduri@jntuh.ac.in, ace1bkr@gmail.com

Abstract: Reinforced concrete structures contain heavy reinforcement for structural requirements needs. Using
conventional concrete in such constructions may result in poor compaction due to congestion of reinforcement
resulting in large number of voids, affecting performance and long term durability of structure. The important factor
which influences the durability and long term performance of concrete is the quality of concrete and adequate
consolidation. Hence Self-compacting Concrete is found suitable in such situations.
According to Okamura’s5research the main cause of the poor durability performances of Japanese concrete
structures was the inadequate consolidation of the concrete in the casting operations. Self-compacting concrete,
with mineral admixtures like GGBS and RHA which is easily flowable and environmental friendly gives high
compressive and flexural strengths is an ideal option for civil engineers in the aforementioned situations.
Considering the advantages of SCC, a new type of SCC with GGBS and RHA is developed. Based on the literature
available and studies done by previous researchers it can be concluded that the extensive studies are made on self-
compacting concrete with different combinations of mineral and chemical admixtures. Even though extensive work
is reported on SCC with different mineral and chemical investigations not much work is reported on the behavior of
SCC with GGBS and RHA as mineral admixtures. Keeping this in view, the present experimental is taken up to
study the stress-strain behavior of combination of GGBS and RHA in different grades of mixes, M20, M40 and
M60, i.e. low grade, standard grade and high grade concrete mixes.
Key Words: SCC-Self Compacting Concrete, GGBS-Ground granulated blast furnace slag, RHA-Rice Husk Ash.

1. Introduction: An investigation is done on the stress-strain behavior of

Self Compacting Concrete (SCC) with Ground
Graph obtained by drawing a curve for the values of
Granulated Blast Furnace Slag (GGBS) and Rice Husk
stresses and strains obtained during testing a specimen
Ash (RHA).with three grades of concrete M20, M40
of materials is called a stress-strain curve. By testing
and M60, i.e. low grade, standard grade and high grade
cylinders of standard size made with concrete, under
concrete mixes.
uni-axial compression values of stresses and strains are
obtained and the stress-strain curves are plotted. During the initial stage of work the cube specimens for
the grade M20 are cast with cement replaced by 10% to
Even though the stress strain relation for cement paste
35% of GGBS (at an increment of 5% ) and the
and aggregate when tested individually is practically
specimens are tested for compressive strength at 3days
linear, it is observed from the stress- strain plots of
and 7days. The Compressive strengths are compared
concrete that, no portion of the curves is in the form of a
with that of corresponding grade concrete specimens
straight line. In concrete the rate of increase of stress is
without GGBS and found that at 30% GGBS
less than that of increase in strain because of the
replacement the maximum strength was achieved.
formation of micro cracks, between the interfaces of the
aggregate and the cement paste. Thus the stress strain Rice husk ash was used as replacement for GGBS in
curve is not linear. In conventional concrete the value of small quantities to the optimized GGBS mix without
stress is maximum corresponding to a strain of about violating the properties of SCC in fresh state and their
0.002 and further goes on decreasing with the increasing hardened property like compressive strength was
strain, giving a dropping curve till it terminates at studied. This paper presents the stress strain behavior of
ultimate crushing strain. M20 SCC mix with GGBS and RHA.
2. Experimental Investigation:

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Proceedings of 3-Day International Conference on Emerging Trends in Civil Engineering (ICETE-2014,)
6th–8th January, 2014
 625 M.SWAROOPA R ANI, M.V S ESHAGIRI R AO AND B.KRISHNA R AO

The following tables shows the properties of Rice Husk Table1: Physical properties of RHA
Ash in table1, designation of mix proportions in table2,
fresh concrete properties of SCC in table3, designation S. No Characteristics Properties
of M20 grade mixes in table 4, experimental stress 1 Specific gravity 2.3
strain values of M20 SCC mix in table 5 and peak stress 2 Loss on ignition 3.6%
values and strain values corresponding to peak stress for
3 Fineness Blains 16000 cm2/gm
M20 mixes in table 6.
Table2. Designations of mix proportions
GGBS S.P
S. Cement C.A F.A Water VMA
Mix Designation % RHA % (kg) %
No (kg) (kg) (kg) (kg) %
(kg) (bwp)
1 M20 M2S 400 780 844 0% ---- 180 0.80 0.08
M20- 30%
2 M2SG 280 780 844 ----- 180 0.62 0. 06
GGBS =120
M20- 3%
97%
3 GGBS- M2SGR 280 780 844 (replacement) 180 1.08 0.11
=116.4
RHA =3.6
Table3. Fresh concrete properties of SCC
Slump Cone Test V -Funnel Test L- Box Test
S. T50 Time for Time for Time for
Designation Horizontal T5min
No. (time in complete 0- 400mm 0-400mm H2/H1
Slump (mm) in sec
Sec) discharge spread spread
1 M2S 760 3.08 6.21 8.03 2.99 4.02 0.98
2 M2SG 760 3.89 7.02 8.68 4.12 6.15 0.98
3 M2SGR 750 4.2 7.20 8.6 4.0 5.50 0.98
Table4. Designation for M20 grade SCC mixes
Percentage of steel confinement
S. No Description
0 0.79 1.06 1.32 1.82 2.43 3.04
1 0%-GGBS M2S M2S1 M2S2 M2S3 M2S4 M2S5 M2S6
2 30%-GGBS M2SG M2SG1 M2SG2 M2SG3 M2SG4 M2SG5 M2SG6
GGBS+3%RHA
3 (RHA replaced by M2SGR M2SGR1 M2SGR2 M2SGR3 M2SGR4 M2SGR5 M2SGR6
wt of GGBS
Table5: Experimental Values of Stresses & Strains for M2S mixes
Table5.1: M2S Table5.2: M2S1
S. No Strain Stress N/mm2 S. No Strain Stress N/mm2
1 0 0 1 0 0
2 0.00008 2.26 2 0.0001 2.26
3 0.00022 4.43 3 0.00034 4.43
4 0.00044 6.58 4 0.00058 6.58
5 0.00079 8.45 5 0.00084 8.05
6 0.00129 11.82 6 0.00138 11.82
7 0.00153 13.79 7 0.00158 13.79
8 0.00178 15.83 8 0.00188 15.83
9 0.00202 17.09 9 0.00212 17.09
10 0.00228 19.23 10 0.00234 19.23

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 Studies on Stress - Strain Behaviour of SCC with Ggbs and RHA
626

11 0.00263 21.62 11 0.00275 21.62

12 0.00324 24.36 12 0.00316 23.85
13 0.00358 25.42 13 0.00347 25.25
14 0.00402 27.68 14 0.00438 28.88
15 0.00437 28.64 15 0.00494 29.79
16 0.00482 28.41 16 0.00522 30.34
17 0.00508 27.67 17 0.00558 30.52
18 0.00518 23.54 18 0.00574 29.02
19 19 0.00589 26.62

Table6: Peak stress values and strain values corresponding to peak for M2S mixes
z Designation Peak Stress in N/mm2 Strain at peak stress
1 M2S 28.64 0.00437
2 M2S1 30.52 0.00558
3 M2S2 33.34 0.00672
4 M2S3 35.39 0.00702
5 M2S4 36.32 0.00742
6 M2S5 40.44 0.00772
7 M2S6 42.23 0.00812
The graphs showed below shows the stress strain
behavior of M20 mix with GGBS and RHA.

Fig2: Stress-Strain behaviour of M2G & M2SGR,

Fig1: Stress-Strain behaviour of M2S2 & 1,2,3,4,5,6- Mixes
M2S,1,2,34,5,6- Mixes

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 627 M.SWAROOPA R ANI, M.V S ESHAGIRI R AO AND B.KRISHNA R AO
3. Results and discussions
The results of slump cone test, V-funnel test and L-box
test which represents filling ability, passing ability and
segregation resistance are well within the prescribed
EFNARC specifications given in Table 3. It is observed
that the GGBS based SCC mixes possess self-
compacting characteristics in fresh state.
The presence of GGBS in the mix improves workability
and makes the mix more mobile but cohesive. This is
the consequence of a better dispersion of the
cementitious particles and of the surface characteristics
of the GGBS particles; however it is more sensitive to
variations in the water content than ordinary cement
concrete.
The stress-strain behavior of SCC mixes with and
without steel confinement is obtained by testing
cylinders of standard size,150mm diameter and 300 mm
long in axial compression under strain control as per IS
516-1959. Three cylinders for each mix are tested to
study the stress-strain behavior. From the values of
stresses and strains, average stress-strain curve for each
mix is plotted, taking the average values of the results of
the three cylinders.
The stress-strain values for SCC mixes with GGBS and
RHA, with and without steel confinement are obtained
and the curves drawn are shown in figures 1 and 2.
Stress-Strain Response of SCC Mixes
From the observations made from stress-strain curves of
all the eight SCC mixes with GGBS and RHA with and
without steel confinement, the stress-strain pattern is
observed to be almost similar. But in case of GGBS-
RHA mixes there is improvement in stress values. It is
also observed that for higher grades of concrete, with
increase in stress there was decrease in strain.
Strains at Peak Stress on the Descending Portion of
Stress-Strain Curves of SCC
Compressive strain values corresponding to peak
stresses of M20, mixes are observed and the average of
peak strain value is observed to be 0.0073.
All values are more than compressive strain in
conventional concrete in axial compression, which is
0.002 as per IS 456-2000.This indicates that the
compressive strains at peak stress in steel confined SCC
is more than conventional concrete.
International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering
ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 624-628
4. Conclusions
1. By using mineral admixtures GGBS, RHA with
suitable dosage of super plasticizer and V.M.A, and
with proper proportioning SCC of acceptable
properties in fresh and hardened state can be
produced.
2. Studies indicated that there is a good compatibility
between mineral combinations GGBS and RHA
along with the chemical admixtures such as SP and
VMA when used in SCC.
3. Based on the stress-strain curves of all the SCC
mixes with and without steel confinement it is
observed that the stress-strain pattern is to be
almost similar. The only difference is that
compared to that of other mixes, the GGBS-RHA
mixes have shown improved stress values. It is
observed that for higher grades of concrete with
increase in stress there was decrease in strain.
4. It is observed that there is an increase in the peak
compressive strength for different SCC mixes made
with GGBS and RHA mixes. The increase is due to
high reactivity of RHA with GGBS. It is also
observed that confinement of small percentage of
steel to SCC mixes marginally increases the
cylindrical strength.
Reference
[1] A. Ahmadi, O. Alidoust “Development of
Mechanical Properties of SCC Containing Rice
Husk Ash” Proceedings of World Academy of
Science, Engineering and Technology Volume 23
August 2007 ISSN 1307-6884.
[2] Carreira,D and Chu,K-H (1985), “Stress-Strain
Relationship of plain concrete in compression”,
Journal of ACI. vol.82.No 6. Nov-Dec. pp 797-804.
[3] M.Ouchi, H. Okamura, “Effect of Superplasticizer
on Self-Compactability of Fresh Concrete”, Journal
of the Transportation Research Board, 1997 pp 37-
40
[4] Mehta. P.K., “Properties of Blended Cements made
from Rice Husk Ash”, American Concrete Institute
Journal, Sept. 1977.
[5] Okamura H, et. al. Mix-design for self-compacting
concrete, Concrete Library of JSCE, No.25, pp.107-
120, June 1995.(ND).
[6] Okamura Hajime & Ouchi Masahiro “Self
Compacting Concrete”. Journal of Advanced
Concrete Technology, April 2003, pp5-14.
Studies on Stress - Strain Behaviour of SCC with Ggbs and RHA
628

6. Photographs

Plate1.0 Slump of SCC

Plate1.1 Stress-Strain Test Set Up

Plate1.2 Cylinder after crushing

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ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 624-628
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www.cafetinnova.org August 2014, P.P.629-633
ISSN 0974-5904, Volume 07, No. 04

A Review on Soil Structure Interaction of Building Frames

Supported by Foundations
VENKATA KOTESWARA RAO P, P. HARI KRISHNA AND T.D.GUNNESWARA RAO
Dept.of Civil Engg. N.I.T. Warangal
Email: pvkoteswararao96@gmail.com, phknitw@gmail.com, tdgtdg@gmail.com

Abstract: Soil-structure interaction is Interdisciplinary field which involves both structural and geotechnical
engineering. In the design of building frame using conventional method of analysis structural engineers assumes that
columns are resting on fixed support, whereas the foundations settlements are calculated without considering the
stiffness of the superstructure. For simplifying the mathematical model the interaction effect is ignored which may
result in a design that is either unnecessarily costly or unsafe. To have the realistic design in terms of safety one can
design the structure by considering the soil-structure interaction. In the present paper an attempt is made to present
the literature related to the soil-structure interaction on building frames resting on different types of foundations.
From the literature it is observed that very few investigations were carried out on SSI analysis of building frames
resting on pile foundations.
Key Words: Soil-structure interaction, settlements stiffness, building frames, pile foundations.

1. Introduction: present the literature on the effects of soil-structure

interaction on building frames resting in different
For resisting the external loads all the components of
foundations.
the structure i.e, building frame, foundation and soil
mass form a complete structural system. By considering 2. Literature Review
the above structural components as single integral
The interaction behaviour of plane frames with an
compatible structural unit, the interaction analysis will
elastic foundation of the Winkler’s type, having
predict more realistic behaviour of the entire system. In
normal and shear moduli of sub-grade reactions is
the analysis the stress-strain characteristics of the
studied by Aljanabi et al.10 (1990). For a beam element
supporting soil play a major role. The resulting
on an elastic foundation with normal and shear moduli
differential settlements of the soil mass are responsible
of subgrade reactions, as shown in Figure 1, three
for the redistribution of forces in the superstructure. The
nodal displacements are considered at each node, and
foundation resting on deformable soils undergoes
they are horizontal displacement (u), vertical
deformation depending on the rigidities of the
displacement (u) and rotation. An exact stiffness matrix
foundation, superstructure and soil. However, the
for a beam element on an elastic foundation having
conventional method of analysis of framed structures
only a normal modulus of sub grade reaction was
considers bases to be either completely rigid or
modified to include the shear modulus of sub-grade
hinged. Hence interactive analysis is necessary for the
reaction of the foundation as well as the axial force in
accurate assessment of the response of the
the beam. The results indicated that ending moments
superstructure and many investigations. (Chameski 1
might be considerably affected according to the type of
1956, Morris2 1966, Lee and Brown3 1972, King
frame and loading.
and Chandrasekaran 4 1974, Srinivas raghavan and
Sankaran 5 1977, Subbarao et al. 6 1985 and The possible alternative models for the structure-
Deshmukh and Karmarkar 7 1991, P. Srinivasa Rao 8 foundation-soil interaction system available in the
1995, J. Noorzaei 9 1995) have reported various types literature are studied by Dutta and Roy 11 (2002).
of numerical analysis procedures. The incorporation of Emphasis was given on the physical modelling of the
soil structure interaction effects in the analysis and soil media. For practical purpose it is found that
subsequent design of multi-storey frames has been the Winkler hypothesis, despite its limitations, yields
subject of research for many researchers starting from reasonable performance and it is very easy to exercise.
seventies. In the present paper an attempt is made to Finite element modelling with nonlinear idealization of

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Proceedings of 3-Day International Conference on Emerging Trends in Civil Engineering (ICETE-2014,)
6th–8th January, 2014
 A Review on Soil Structure Interaction of Building Frames
Supported by Foundations
Figure1: Beam on an elastic foundation, with
normal and shear reactions, nodal parameters,
Nodal displacements and local coordinates
Soil media is found to be the most powerful and
versatile tool for solving soil structure interaction
problem which can incorporate the effect of material
nonlinearity, non-homogeneity and anisotropy of the
supporting soil media. To perform such an analysis,
incremental iterative technique was found to be the
most suitable and general one.
Hora12 (2006) presented the computational methodology
adopted for nonlinear soil-structure interaction analysis
of in filled frame-foundation-soil system. The
unbounded domain of the soil mass has been discretized
with coupled finite-infinite elements to achieve
computational economy. The nonlinear behaviour of the
soil mass was modelled using hyperbolic model. The
incremental-iterative nonlinear solution algorithm was
adopted for carrying out the nonlinear elastic interaction
analysis. The interaction analysis showed that the
nonlinearity of soil mass plays an important role in
redistribution of forces in the superstructure.
Chore and Ingle 13 (2008) studied the influence of the
SSI on the single storied and two bayed space frame
supported by pile group with flexible cap. For the
investigations the authors used 3-D single storied
building frame resting on pile foundation (figure 2). The
studies were carried out on the 3-D finite element
analysis for frame and pile foundation separately. For
quantifying the effect of SSI on response of
superstructure the stiffness obtained from foundation is
used in the interactive analysis. The authors have used
two methods of finite element analysis for modelling the
foundation system. In the first method complete three
dimensional finite element analyses is used. In the
second method simplified finite element analysis
procedure is used wherein beam element, plate
element and spring elements are used to model pile,
pile cap and soil respectively. For the investigation
they considered the interaction between pile cap and soil
underlying and the authors have studied the effect of
International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering
ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 629-633
630
pile spacing and pile configuration on the
superstructure. The Results obtained from both the
analysis were compared and it is observed that there is
an increase in the top displacements due to SSI. Effect
of soil-structure interaction on moments in
superstructure columns is also found to be significant.
The effect is more on the columns on the right hand side
where as the effect on the columns on the left hand side
is minimum both with increase in pile spacing
displacement at the top of the frame is found to decrease
for both the configuration.
Figure2: Typical 3-D building frame considered in the
study
Natarajan and Vidivelli 14 (2009) studied the behaviour
of a space frame raft soil system under static load by
varying the column spacing. They carried the analysis
for both linear and nonlinear conditions. In linear
analysis settlements were lesser than in the case of
nonlinear analysis. As the column spacing increases the
settlements also increases. In nonlinear analysis the
contact pressure is uniform and less in magnitude.
Ramakant Agrawal and M. S. Hora 15 (2010) carried out
the nonlinear interaction analysis of a two-bay two-
storey plane building frame-soil system the coupled
finite-infinite elements. They used the nonlinear
constitutive hyperbolic soil model for modelling the
nonlinear behaviour of the soil mass. Due to the
differential settlements the shear forces and bending
moments in the super structure get significantly varied.
For this reason structural behaviour of the interaction
system is investigated. The vertical settlements due to
non-linearity of the soil mass are almost 2.25 times to
that of linear behaviour. The differential settlement
causes significant increase in the forces in the frame
members and the nature of variation is found to be
bilinear.
Thangaraj and Ilamparuthi 16 (2010) carried out the
interaction and non-interaction analysis for the space
frame raft foundation soil system using finite element
code ANSYS. The Finite element discretization of
 631 VENKATA KOTESWARA R AO P, P. HARI KRISHNA AND T.D.GUNNESWARA R AO

frame-raft-soil is shown in figure 3. Detailed parametric
study was carried out by varying the soil and raft
stiffness by keeping building stiffness as constant. From
the results it is observed that the performance of the raft
is influenced by relative stiffness of soil. The total and
differential settlements values that were observed in the
interaction analysis were less when compared to non-
interaction analysis.
(figure 5). As the softness of the soil increases the
values of the above parameters also increases. The
authors have recommended adopting suitable
foundation system while designing building frames for
seismic force by considering the effect of soil stiffness.

Figure4: modelling of the frame along with the pile

groups

Figure3: Frame-raft-soil and element discretization

Ravi Kumar Reddy and Gunneswara Rao 17 (2011)
conducted the static vertical load tests carried out on
model building frame supported on pile groups
embedded in cohesion less soil (sand). They
investigated the effect of soil interaction on
displacements and rotation at the base of the
column and also the shears and bending moments in
the columns of the building frame. The experimental
results were compared with those obtained from the
finite element analysis and the conventional method
of analysis. The modelled frame in ANSYS is shown
in figure 4. From the results it is observed that the
conventional method gives, the shear force in the
column by about 40-60%, the bending moment at top of
the column about 20-30% and at base of the column
about 75-100% more than that from the experimental
results. The response of the frame from the
experimental results is in good agreement with the
nonlinear finite element analysis results.
Jenifer Priyanka et al 18 (2012) studied the influence of
rigid and flexible foundations of a building frame when
subjected to earthquake forces. The authors studied how
SSI will have influence on multi-storey buildings with
different foundations systems.
They analysed the multistory building with various
foundation systems under different soil conditions from
hard to soft. They used STAAD Pro Software for the
analysis and found the lateral deflection, story drift,
base shear and moment values to be less for fixed base
building when compared with flexible base building
Figure5: The lateral deflection of building frames
subjected to seismic forces
Rasal et al 19 (2012) have studied the effect of SSI on
response of pile supported three storeyed building
frame. They assumed that the piles are embedded in
cohesive soil mass. The building frame used for the
investigation is shown in figure 6. They made simplified
idealisations in the theory of finite elements for the
analysis. The soil mass is idealised by springs, slabs as
2-D plate elements and beam and columns of
superstructure and piles of substructure are idealised as
1-D beam- column elements. The response of the
superstructure is evaluated for different pile diameters.
The authors have observed the decrease in the
displacements as the pile diameter increases and also the
displacements increase with increase in number of
storeys.
Ravi kumar Reddy and Gunneswara Rao 20 (2012) have
carried out the vertical load tests on a model building

International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering

ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 629-633
 A Review on Soil Structure Interaction of Building Frames
Supported by Foundations
frame with plinth beam supported by pile group. Sand is
used as the soil media and the effect of SSI on
displacement and rotation at the column base was
studied. The experimental setup is shown in figure 8.
The authors have calculated the shear force and bending
moments on the building frame and the experimental
results were compared with those obtained from finite
element analysis and conventional method of analysis. It
is also observed that there is a good agreement of the
experimental results with that of nonlinear finite
element analysis.
Figure6: Typical building frame considered in the
present investigation
Figure7: Schematic diagram of the test setup.
3. Concluding Remarks
The forces in superstructure, foundation and soil mass
are significantly altered due to the effect of soil-
structure interaction. For estimating the design force
quantities, the effect of soil–structure interaction is
needed to be considered under the influence of both
static and dynamic loading. The redistribution of loads
modifies the total and differential settlements
considerably. Settlements are found to be more in the
non-linear analysis. The finite element method has
International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering
ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 629-633
632
proved to be a very useful method for studying the
effect of soil-structure interaction. Winkler hypothesis
will give reasonable results despite of its limitations.
Very few studies have been carried out on soil structure
interaction effects of multi-storey building frames
resting on pile foundations. From the review of the
literature it is observed that a complete soil structure
interaction analysis of multi-storey building frames with
pile foundations using either appropriate numerical
methods or F.E.M is justifiable. It is also observed that
very few researchers have attempted the experimental
analysis of building frames resting on pile foundations.
Reference
[1] Chameski, C.(1956), Structural Rigidity in
Calculating Settlements, Journal of Soil Mechanics
and Foundation Engineering, ASCE, 82 (1), 1956,
1-9
[2] Morris, D. (1966), Interaction of Continuous
Frames and Soil Media, Journal of Structural
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[3] Lee IK, Brown PT (1972), Structures–foundation
interaction analysis, JStruct Eng Div ASCE 1972;
pp- 2413–2431.
[4] King, G.J.W. and Chandrasekaran, V.S(1974),
Interactive Analysis of a Rafted Multistoreyed
Space Frame Resting on an Inhomogeneous Clay
Stratum, Proceedings International Conference on
Finite Element Methods, Australia, 1974, pp-493-
509.
[5] Buragohain DN, Raghavan N, Chandrasekaran VS
(1977), Interaction of frames with pile foundation.
In: Proceedings of International Symposium on Soil
Structure Interaction. Roorkee, India.
[6] Subbarao, K.S., Shrada Bai, H. and Raghunatham,
B.V. (1985), Interaction Analysis of Frames with
Beam Footing, In: Proc. Indian Geotechnical
Conference, Roorkee (IGC-1985), India, 1, 1985,
389-395.
[7] Deshmukh, A.M. and Karmarkar, S.R.(1991),
Interaction of Plane Frames with Soil, In: Proc.
Indian Geotechnical Conference, (IGC-1991),
Surat, India, 1, 323-326.
[8] Rao PS, Rambabu KV, Allam MM (1995),
Representation of soil support in analysis of open
plane frames, Comput Struct 56:917–925.
[9] Noorzaei J, Viladkar MN, Godbole PN (1995),
Elasto-plastic analysis for soil structure interaction
in framed structures, Comput Struct 55(5):797–807.
[10] Aljanabi et al (1990), Interaction of plane frames
with elastic foundation having normal and shear
moduli of subgrade reactions, Comput. Struct.,
36(6), 1047-1056.
[11] S.C.Dutta, and R.Roy, (2002), A critical review on
idealization and modelling for interaction among
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soil-foundation structure system, Comput. Struct.,
80, 1579-1594.
[12] M. Hora, (2006), nonlinear interaction analysis of
in filled building frame-soil system, J. Struct. Eng.,
33(4), 309-318.
[13] Chore H.S and R K Ingle (2008), Soil Structure
Interaction Analysis of Building Frame Supported
on Pile Group, Asian Journal of Science and
Technology for Development (AJSTD), Thailand,
25 (2), 457-467.
[14] K. Natarajan and B. Vidivelli, (2009), Effect of
column spacing on the behavior of frame-raft and
soil systems, J. Appl. Sci., 9(20), 3629-3640.
[15] R. Agrawal, and M.S.Hora, (2012), nonlinear
interaction behaviour of plane frame layered soil
system subjected to seismic loading, Int. J. Struct.
Eng. Mech., 11(6), 711-734.
[16] D.Thangaraj and K.Ilamparuthi, (2010), Parametric
study on the performance of raft foundation with
interaction of frame, Electron. J. Geotech. Eng., 15,
861-878.
[17] Ravi Kumar Reddy. C and Gunneswara Rao. T. D,
(2011), Experimental study of a modeled building
frame supported by pile groups embedded in
cohesion less soil. J. Interaction and Multiscale
Mechanics, Volumne, No. 4, 321-336.
[18] R. M. Jenifer Priyanka (2012), Studies on Soil
Structure Interaction of Multi Storeyed Buildings
with Rigid and Flexible Foundation, International
Journal of Emerging Technology and Advanced
Engineering, Volume 2, Issue 12.
[19] S.A.Rasal et al,. (2012), Interaction of Frame with
Pile Foundation, IOSR Journal of Mechanical and
Civil Engineering (IOSR-JMCE) PP: 59-62.
[20] Ravi Kumar Reddy. C and Gunneswara Rao.
T. D, (2012), Study of soil interaction in a model
building frame with plinth beam supported by pile
group, International Journal of Advanced Structural
Engineering, volume 4, pp: 1-15.

International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering

ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 629-633
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ISSN 0974-5904, Volume 07, No. 04

Analysis of Earth Reinforcement Elements Using Finite Element

Method
K.SURESH
Civil Engineering Department, VNRVJIET, Hyderabad, 500090
Email: suresh_k@vnrvjiet.in

Abstract: Earth retention is one of the oldest of the problems of civil engineering. Construction of road ways
railways tunnels, mining and irrigation structures require earth retention to various degrees. Earth retention is needed
to resist the lateral pressure exerted by the earth and is normally achieved by the construction of retaining walls and
sheet pile walls. With the advancement of geosynthetics, geogrids are majorly used in the construction of reinforced
soil walls. The theoretical background adopted for the analysis of geo-grids is based on either experimental studies
or certain empirical formulae, which is either tedious or time taking and mostly based on trial and error method of
analysis. Hence, in the present work, precision in the designing is brought with the finite element analysis of earthen
embankment duly reinforced with geogrids is carried out using a general purpose finite element package called
NISA. The analysis is carried out on 3 different sizes of embankment placing 3 to 5 numbers of geogrids at different
locations with respect to the top surface of the embankment. Towards the end the variation of the stress pattern in
the embankment and the member end forces in the grid element are presented.
Key words: Soil embankments, Geogrids, finite element method, finite element module.

1. Introduction: safe and economical. By providing the geogrids the

Earth retention is one of the oldest of the problems of
civil engineering. Construction of road ways railways
tunnels, mining and irrigation structures require earth
retention to various degrees. Earth retention is needed to
resist the lateral pressure exerted by the earth and is
normally achieved by the construction of retaining walls
and sheet pile walls. As the height of earth retention
increases; the size of the structural elements to retain the
earth becomes bulkier. The cost of the activity hence
goes up. The principle reason for the earth to cause
lateral pressure is its very weak tensile strength. The
earth is strong in compression and shear.
Through the centuries, there have been a lot of efforts to
develop the concept of reinforced soil. The simple idea
is to put some „inclusions‟ in the soil in such a way as to
improve the desired properties, especially the tensile
strength. The reinforced soil concept has gathered
momentum with the development of geosynthetics.
Majorly, geogrids are employed in such conditions
where the development of tensile strength of the soils is
the prime aim.
The design and construction work of the earth retention
structures using geo-grids is highly economical.
Geosynthetics have to primarily satisfy 1) the tensile
strength 2) durability in any kind of environment 3) still
earth retention structures attain the necessary tensile
strength in addition to their inbuilt compressive
resistance.
Geogrid reinforced soil structures are used for both
temporary and permanent applications. Generally they
are used in permanent structures, expected to last
beyond fifty years.
The design of geogrids is carried out as per the method
emphasised by Robert M. Koerner (1990) (“Reinforced
and Anchored Earth retaining wall and bridge
abutments for embankments”) which suggest a theory
based on totally rational approach. With the present day
advancement in computational techniques/equipment it
is desirable to analyze using a sophisticated approach
like finite element method. Making use of such a
method, one can easily see the pockets of weak zones;
thereby the grids specifications can be suitably altered
to achieve optimum design. This is the essence of the
present study obtained from the output of NISA
package.
2. Geotextile Reinforced Walls
Conventional gravity and cantilever wall systems made
from masonry and concrete resist lateral earth pressure
by virtue of their large mass. They act as a rigid unit and
have served the industry well for many years. However,

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Proceedings of 3-Day International Conference on Emerging Trends in Civil Engineering (ICETE-2014,)
6th–8th January, 2014
 635 K.SURESH
a new era of retaining walls was introduced in the 1960s
by Vidal of France with the concept of reinforced earth.
Metal strips extending from the exposed facing panels
back into the soil serve the dual role of anchoring the
facing units while being restrained through frictional
stresses mobilized between the strips and backfill soil.
The backfill soil thus creates the lateral pressure on the
wall face and interacts with the strips to resist it. The
walls are relatively flexible compared to massive
gravity structures. They offer many advantages,
including significantly lower cost per square foot of
exposed surface.
2.1. Geotextile-Reinforced Embankments
It should come as no surprise that if vertical wall can be
built using geotextiles, embankments can be stabilized
by them also. In fact, as the slope angle with the
horizontal decreases, one essentially has an
embankment, albeit one in which the exposed face is not
geotextile covered. In this section, geotextiles will be
deployed in horizontal layers with no upturned facing
treatment of facing panels. When this is the case, the
design methodology switches from lateral earth pressure
theory into slope stability analyses. The longer lengths
of major reinforcement layers extend beyond the
hypothetical failure plane. The short edge strips,
sometimes, called secondary rein hypothetical failure
plane. The short edge strips. Sometimes called
secondary reinforcement, represent a surface
compaction aid since high compaction at the edge of the
slope is difficult to achieve.
3. Finite Element Method
In brief, the basic of the finite element method is the
representation of a body or a structure by an assemblage
of sub-division called finite elements. These elements
are interconnected at joints which are called as nodes
are nodal points. Simple functions are chosen to
approximate the distribution of actual displacements
over each finite element. Such assumed functions are
called displacement functions or displacement models.
The unknown magnitudes or amplitudes, of the
displacement function are the displacements (or the
derivatives of the displacement) at nodal points. Hence
the final solution will yield the approximate
displacements at discrete locations in the body, the
nodal points.
The theoretical background adopted for the analysis of
geo-grids by the above researching is based on either
experimental studies or certain empirical formulae.
These formulae are again dependent on theories which
are not totally rational. Since slope retention of earthen
embankments is of highest priority in the development
of infrastructure, the concept of designing reinforced
earthen embankments have attained highest priority in
the light of this aspect a more competent analysis of the
International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering
ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 634-638
reinforcing elements for geostructure such as the one
using finite element analysis is desirable. Hence the
present work which is pioneering in this direction is
taken up by making use of a general purpose finite
element package called NISA.
3.1. Methodology
The analysis of earthen embankment is carried out using
General purpose finite element package called NISA in
the following step
3.2. Geometric modeling
Using display-III the geometric modeling of the earthen
embankment is carried out. The sizes of the various
embankment for which the analysis is carried out is
listed to Table 1 to 3. The model is created by creating
grids and then joining then by lines.
3.3. Finite Element Modeling
The geometric model developed in step (1) is discretised
into 256 3-noded plane strain triangular elements called
NKPT-2 using the Fig option of display-III. For the sake
of brevity, one of the modules is depicted in Fig. 1
3.4. Boundary Conditions
The nodes corresponding to the bottom surface of the
embankment are restrained against X-displacement and
Y-displacement. The loads in the form of element
pressure are applied for a chosen length along the upper
surface of the embankments.
1. The linear elastic properties of the material of soil
mass are defined here.
2. At chosen depth geogrids are introduced to the
earthen embankments. The elements of geogrids are
oriented in such a way their end nodes merge with the
nodes of triangular elements of soil mass. 3D beam
elements called NKPT-12 are used to model the grid
elements
3. The model thus generated is submitted the finite
elements module called NISA II for processing.
4. Making use of display-III the results concerning X,
Y-displacements, the von-moises stress, principal stress-
I and principal stress-II of the soil mass can be obtained
with graphic user interface. Similarly the axial tensile
forces carried by the grid element can also be obtained
using graphic user interface. The other results in detail
can be access by going through the output file of NISA
package.1
 Analysis of Earth Reinforcement Elements Using Finite Element Method
636

Table2: Properties of Mono - Oriented Geogrids

S. No Property TT 301 TT 401 TT 601
Aperature Size
1 120 120 120
MD (mm)
Aperture Size
2 13 13 13
TD (mm)
Unit Weight
3 620 770 860
(g/sq.m)
4 Roll Width ( m) 1 1 1
5 Roll Length ( m) 30 30 30
6 Colour Black
7 Polymer Type HDPE
Peak tensile
8 65 80 100
Fig1: Model of embankment strength (KN/m)
Yield Point
4. Analysis of the data 9 13 13 13
Elongation (%)
Tensile strength
In the present work analysis involves, determining the 10 21 26 31
at 2% strain
stresses, deformations. And the member end forces of
Tensile strength
various elements of which the reinforcement 11 40 48 56
at 5% strain
embankment is made up off. For the purpose of analysis Characteristic
and embankment with realistic dimensions and duly 12 23.5 30.6 36
Strength(KN/m)
reinforced with different specifications of Geo-grid
placed at different spacing below the top surface of the Table3: Properties of Bio - Oriented Geogrids
embankments is considered the embankment acts its top
surface is subjected to vertical downward pressure due S. No Property MD TD
to vesicular loading. The body forces due to the self- 1 Aperature Size MD (mm) 30 40
weight embankment as well as surface traction forces 2 Unit Weight (g/sq.m) 350
due to the lateral pressure exited by the revetment are
3 Roll Width ( m) 4
ignored in the analysis. The materials of make i.e., the
soil mass and geo-grids are assumed to be purely elastic, 4 Roll Length ( m) 51 to 53
isotropic and homogeneous. Whereas 2-D three noded 6 Colour Black
plane strain triangular elements are used to model the 7 Polymer Type Polypropylene
soil mass, the geo-grid is modeled using two noded 3-D
Peak tensile strength
beam elements. The embankment is restrained against 8
(KN/m)
19.5 31.6
horizontal and vertical displacements along its bottom Yield Point Elongation
surface. The finite element model does developed is 9 16 11
(%)
submitted to the linear static analysis module of NISA Tensile strength at 2%
for obtaining information regarding the stress pattern, 10 6 10
strain
the deflection pattern in the soil mass as well as the Tensile strength at 2%
11 12 20
axial forces in the geo-grid structure. The analysis is strain
repeated by varying the specifications of geogrids, the
number of geogrids and the locations with respect to the Table4: Properties of different Geogrids
top surface of the embankment.
TT 301 TT 401 TT 601

Table1: Various Embankments Spacing Height Spacing Height Spacing

in meters (m) (m) (m) (m)
Top Width Bottom Height 0.2 12 0.2 12 0.3
Model No 0.2 11 0.3 11 0.3
(m) width (m) (m)
0.2 10 0.3 10 0.4
1 21 51 30
0.3 9 0.3 9 0.4
2 10 30 25 0.3 8 0.4 8 0.5
0.4 7 0.4 7 0.5
3 20 40 20 0.4 6 0.5 6 0.6
0.5 5 0.6 5 0.8

International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering

ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 634-638
 637 K.SURESH

Table5: Properties of different Backfill Materials 2 Gravel 31⁰ 5 13.5

Density of 3 Fly ash 48⁰ 1.95 17.4
C
S. no. Material Backfill 4 Sand 35⁰ 0 19
kN/m2
KN/m³
1 Rock Dust 32⁰ 0 18.6

Table6: Pullout Resistance with Difference Backfills and Heights

Pullout Pullout Pullout Pullout
Height Height Height Height
Resistance Resistance Resistance Resistance
Sand Flyash Gravel Rock dust
7.3 695 7.3 484 7.3 1155 7.3 794
7.1 643 7.1 431 6.8 967 7.1 737
6.9 595 6.7 381 6.2 769 6.9 682
6.7 548 6.3 320 5.6 659 6.7 629
6.5 503 5.9 281 4.9 541 6.5 579
6.3 459 5.5 248 4.1 419 6.3 530
6.1 430 5.1 217 3.2 297 6 483
5.9 405 4.6 181 5.7 181 5.7 442
5.7 381 4.1 148 1.2 86 5.4 403
5.5 358 3.5 113 0.2 12 5.1 366
5.2 324 2.8 78 4.8 330
4.9 292 1.9 41 4.5 296
4.6 262 0.9 14 4.1 254
4 206 3.3 179
3.7 180 2.8 138
2.9 120 1.7 66
2.5 95 0.9 28
2 67
0.7 15

5. Results and conclusions maximum X-displacement is 71.89 N/mm2 and von-

1) For the first and second model embankments, all
grid elements located nearer the sloped surfaces
carry tensile forces.
2) For the third model of embankment, however, grid
end elements located nearer the sloped surface
carry compressive forces.
3) Again, when the depth of the embankment is
decreased, all the grid elements nearer sloped
surface carry compressive forces.
4) The grid is to be located, when the X-displacement
is maximum. It is the optimal location of geogrid.
5) The Embankment without any geogrid, the
maximum X-displacement is 85.61 N/mm2and von-
mises stress is 58.90 N/mm2
6) When a single layer of geogrid have provided at the
depth of 10.65m from the top surface, then the
mises stress is 59.31 N/mm2. For the second layer
of geogrid at a depth of 15m depth from the top
surface, then the maximum X-displacement is
69.08 N/mm2 and von-mises stress is 59.14 N/mm2.
7) For the third and fourth layers have provided at the
respective depth 7.5m and 18.75m, then maximum
X-displacements and von-mises stresses 53.73
N/mm2 and 60.07 N/mm2 respectively.
8) All the grid end member forces are compression
and maximum axial force at on element no.290. A
geogrid was provided at a depth of 6.5m from the
top surface.
9) For the model no.2, embankment without any
geogrid, the maximum X-displacement is 68.60
N/mm2 and von-mises stress is 49.42 N/mm2.

International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering

ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 634-638
 Analysis of Earth Reinforcement Elements Using Finite Element Method
638

10) When a geogrid was provided at a depth of 3.2 on [5] Dr. Murali Krishna. N, Mr. Krishna Mohan. V.S.V
from the top surface, the max. X-displacement was “Design of earth retention structures using geo-
found 30.45N/mm2 and von-mises stress is 49.29 synthetics – software based approach”. National
N/mm2. seminar on advances in construction materials,
Reference 2013.
[6] Geosynthetics in Geotechnical Engineering. Robert.
[1] Robert M. Koerner (1990). “Designing with Geo-
M.Koerner
textiles”, pp. 67-327
[7] Designing with geotextiles. Robert. M.Koerner
[2] Manual, “Reinforced and Anchored Earth
Pg.No.67-327
Retaining Wall and Bridge Abutments for
[8] Technical Specifications of materials provided by
Embankments”, Technical Memorandum, BE 3/78,
TENAX (Dealers for Geosynthetics in India)
Department of Traffic and highways of U.K.
TENAX Geosynthetics, 4/5, Kalkaji EXTENSION,
[3] “Report on Construction of Reinforced Soil Wall at
S.F1, New Delhi.
OHKLA Flyover” by CRRI, New Delhi.
[9] A Brief history of Reinforced Earth, Henri Vidal.
[4] V.S.V. Krishna (June 2001), “A Parametric study
of retaining walls using geogrid reinforcement”.

International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering

ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 634-638
 Indexed in
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Abstract Services-USA, Geo-Ref Information Services-USA,
List B of Scientific Journals, Poland,
Directory of Research Journals
www.cafetinnova.org August 2014, P.P.639-643
ISSN 0974-5904, Volume 07, No. 04

Application of Image Analysis for Studying the Shrinkage

Characteristics of Fine-grained Soils
UDAY K V1 AND SINGH D N2
1
Department of Civil Engineering, VNR Vignana Jyothi Institute of Engineering and Technology, Hyderabad,
Andhra Pradesh, India.
2
Department of Civil Engineering, Indian Institute Technology Bombay, Mumbai, Maharashtra, India.

Abstract: In nature, soils are subjected to wetting and drying due to the prevailing environment. This nature of
wetting and drying if occurs in fine-grained soils may cause increase and decrease in their volumes, respectively.
The increase in the volume upon the wetting is termed as swelling, where the drying induces decrease in the volume
known as shrinkage. The swelling and shrinkage are major attributes of fine-grained soils and also in understanding
the soil-water interaction. In this regards, several researchers have proposed various methods for studying the
shrinkage in the soils. Most of these methods are laborious and/or constitute difficult measuring procedures. In some
soils, which exhibit the phenomenon of cracking during shrinkage pose a major problem in measuring the volumes
of such soils when allowed for shrinkage. With this in view, Image Analysis, the process of acquiring the required
information from the images, is found handy for studying shrinkage in soils even when they crack. With this in
view, the paper brings out details of the technique, important aspects in measurement and application of Image
analysis to study the shrinkage measurement and crack patterns in the soil samples subjected to drying tests.
Keywords: Image analysis, fine-grained soils, shrinkage, environmental drying, cracking.

1. Introduction: analysis, a non-contact, non-disturbing and time-based

measurement technique, has been found handy in
In nature, fine-grained soils, subjected to drying in the
various measuring applications. Image analysis is a
nature exhibit shrinkage and/or cracking. These
technique of extracting required information from the
characteristics are pivotal in the design of top and
images obtained during the process. These images can
bottom seal of a landfill or containment facilities
be from different sources such as a camera, digital
situated in such soils. The cracking of such soils may
camera, CCD (Charge Coupled Device), scanner,
affect the working or functioning of the facilities such
microscope, laser imaging, thermal imaging, Infrared
as nuclear waste disposal facilities in soils, landfill
Imaging etc. The application of the image analysis has
covers and bottom seals (Yassoglou et al., 1994;
been extensively used and expanded in various fields
Yesiller et al., 2000). With a view of understanding
which include microscopy, medicine, astronomy,
various aspects of these phenomena, earlier researchers
remote sensing, robotics, metallurgy, defense, security,
have attempted the problem in various possible
identification techniques and many more. Recently, the
dimensions and have evolved various experimentation
technique has been prominently used in the domain of
schemes, which involve subjecting the soil specimen, in
civil engineering for understanding the morphology of
the form of slurry, to dry in various environments and
cement, concrete and distribution of the aggregates in
obtain the effect of drying in terms of shrinkage and
concrete (Charment et al. 2001), scanning, pavement
cracking characteristics (Prakash et al., 2011).
distress assessment (Lee, 1993), site evaluation using
Earlier, the shrinkage was measured resorting to various satellite imagery (Buyukozturk and Rhim, 1995),
techniques like mercury method (ASTM D427-04), wax studies of crack propagation and microstructure in
method (ASTM 4943-08), graphical methods (Holtz and cement based materials (Lee and Chou, 1993),
Kovacs, 1981) sand/glass bead filling methods (Prakash evaluations of soil fabric (Moran 1994), swelling,
et al. 2011). Though these techniques are effective in shrinkage and cracking behavior of soils (Lakshmikanta
understanding the final shrunk volume of the soil mass, et al. 2009, Tang et al. 2010, Uday and Singh, 2013).
they fail to capture the time to time changes in the
In the present study, the shrinkage characteristics of
sample and these techniques fail if the sample cracks in
fine-grained soils dried at different temperatures and
the process of drying. In these circumstances, image

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Proceedings of 3-Day International Conference on Emerging Trends in Civil Engineering (ICETE-2014,)
6th–8th January, 2014
 Application of Image Analysis for Studying the Shrinkage Characteristics of
640
Fine-grained Soils

different boundary conditions have been studied. Due to
the active minerals present in the soils, they exhibit the
tendency of cracking during the process of shrinkage.
Hence, the measurement of the area of the specimen
during the shrinkage becomes difficult. In order to
surmount this problem, the Image Analysis technique
has been developed and employed.
2.0 Experimental Investigations
For the study, two commercially available soils, white
clay (WC) majorly consisting of Kaolin and Bentonite
(BT) containing montmorrilonite, have been used.
These soils have been characterized for their various
properties and their values have been presented in
Table. 1. These soils have been mixed thoroughly with
water to form consistent slurry and poured into a
petridish, with plain surface. This petridish is tapped
carefully, on a wooden platform, to remove entrapped
air, if any. The petridish is then placed carefully in an
environment chamber operated at desired temperature
and humidity, fitted with a camera on the top. The
alignment of the camera is adjusted such that the line of
focus of the camera is normal to the plane of surface of
the specimen in the petridish. The camera, which is
connected to a personal computer, is programmed to
take the sequence of images of the specimen with the
prefixed time interval. The images are regularly stored
in the computer along with the time of the capture of the
images. At the end of the testing period, these images
Table1: Properties of the soils used in the study
Size fraction (%) (%)
Soil
Sand Silt Clay LL PL
BT 10 8 82 305 140
WC - 46 54 54 27
2.1 Calibration
This option is required to be used at the beginning of the analysis of each set of images. This option enables fixing
the scales of the image pixels to the unit of the measurement, as desired. The calibration should be checked before
analyzing each set of the images.
are used for the further analysis and the required
information from these digital images has been acquired
from image processing and analysis software developed
in-house. The sequences of processing and analyzing
the images, obtained from the experiments, have been
discussed herewith.
For the analysis of the image, the image is first
thresholded, the process of converting the color or RGB
(Red Green Red) images to grayscale or black and
white. In thresholding, based on the color intensities, the
scale is set from 0 to 255, based on the intensities on the
image a suitable range is selected and the image is
converted into black and white (Uday and Singh, 2013)
as depicted in Figure 1. After the images are
thresholded, depending on the various disturbances /
distortions in the image, various image filters are
applied. After the processing of the image, the
parameters required for the analysis are obtained. The
processed image can then be used for further analysis
from the Analysis mode. Various analyses options (viz.,
Shrinkage Percentage, Particle Count, Shrinkage
Uniformity, Angle Measurement, Linear Measurements,
Arc measurements, Calibration, and Change calibration)
have been included to facilitate the understanding of the
various parameters to correlate the effect of exposure
conditions (temperature and humidity) and boundary
conditions (surface roughness) on the shrinking and
cracking charcteristics of the soil.
G Mineralogy USCS
PI SL
165 30 2.50 Montmorillonite
CH
27 17 2.63 Kaolinite

(a) (b) (c)

Figure1: Thresholding of RBG Image
(a) Actual Image (b) Threshold Image (c) Threshold Image

International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering

ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 639-643
 641 UDAY K V AND S INGH D N

2.2 Shrinkage percentage

By using the concept of edge detection (Canny, 1986),
the particle/specimen size and area are measured and the
corresponding decrement to its original (initial) value is
reported as the shrinkage.
2.3 Particle count
In case the image contains various particle/fragments,
by selecting this option, the image is grey scaled and the
histogram is constructed for determining the area of
each separate sector (called as particle) and the number
of particles in this area. Also, diameter, circularity,
major axis, minor axis, perimeter of the particles can Figure2: The effect of Temperature on the (a) Length of
also be obtained. cracks and (b) Areal shrinkage
2.4 Angle measurement
The angles formed in between the cracks, particle
boundary geometry can be calculated employing the
three point method to measure the angle between
intersections of cracks.
2.5 Linear measurements
Any length measurements, associated with the specimen
in the image can be measured by selecting this option.
However, the Arc measurements option can be used for
nonlinear measurements.
3.0 Results and Interpretation
Based on the various parameters of cracks obtained (a)
employing Image analysis on the images obtained from
the experiments conducted at different temperature,
boundary conditions and soil specimen with different
thickness, the results obtained have been presented in
Table 2 and 3. From the relationship between the
temperature, , and length of cracks, lc, depicted in the
Figure 2, depicts an increasing trend. Similarly, from
Figure 3, the areal shrinkage also has been observed to
increase marginally for Soil BT, whereas for soil WC no
increase has been observed. This can be attributed to the
activity of the minerals i.e. due to the presence of active
mineral like montmorillonite in soil BT, shows more
shrinkage than the passive mineral Kaolinite in White (b)
clay. Figure3: The effect of specimen thickness on areal
shrinkage on soil (a) WC and (b) BT
Also from the Figure 3, the areal shrinkage, Sa, has been
found to be decreasing effect of initial thickness, ti, for a
unlubricated/rough surface of the petridish, on the
contrary, areal shrinkage, Sa, increased with the
thickness of the specimen due to lubrication of the
surface of petridish for both the soils (Figure 4). This
reinforces the effect of boundary condition on the
cracking characteristics of fine-grained soils as
proposed by Kodikara et al. 2000. Also, it can be
observed that the effect of thickness is felt only upto a
critical thickness and later the shrinkage phenomenon is

International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering

ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 639-643
 Application of Image Analysis for Studying the Shrinkage Characteristics of
642
Fine-grained Soils

independent of the thickness of the specimen. This can specimen is influential and the boundary condition has
be attributed to the fact that the self-weight of the no/less influence on the shrinkage area.
Table2: Shrinkage measurements from the image analysis

Temperature Effective area (mm2) Areal Length of

Soil Observations
( C) Initial Final Shrinkage (%) crack (mm)
30 3794.43 1155.76 30.45 Cracked 20.714
35 3794.43 1147.76 30.24 Cracked 22.936
40 3794.43 1085.23 28.60 Cracked 21.945
BT
45 3794.43 1126.01 29.67 Cracked 33.320
50 3794.43 977.62 25.76 Cracked and Wrapped 35.284
55 3794.43 941.00 24.80 Cracked and Wrapped 34.627
30 3794.43 3228.42 85.08 No crack --
35 3794.43 3206.44 84.50 No crack --
40 3794.43 3240.86 85.41 No crack --
WC
45 3794.43 3264.51 86.03 No crack --
50 3794.43 3219.10 84.84 Cracked 42.370
55 3794.43 3202.02 84.39 Cracked 37.278

(a) Soil WC (b) Soil WC (c) Soil BT (d) Soil BT (without

(with lubrication) (without lubrication) (with lubrication) lubrication)
Figure4: Difference in shrinkage of the soils due to different boundary conditions
Table3: Shrinkage measurements from image analysis under boundary conditions
Specimen Effective area Length of
Boundary (mm2)
Soil thickness Shrinkage% Observations crack
condition
(mm) Initial Final (mm)
Crack
4 3794.43 3698.57 97.47 39.40
formation
7 Glass 3794.43 3626.34 95.57 No crack No crack
11 3794.43 3386.15 89.24 No crack No crack
WC 14 3794.43 3240.82 85.41 No crack No crack
4 3794.43 2747.24 72.40 No crack No crack
7 3794.43 2779.04 73.24 No crack No crack
Greased
11 3794.43 2849.24 75.09 No crack No crack
14 3794.43 2922.09 77.01 No crack No crack
Formation of 10
4 3794.43 2221.4 58.55
segments segments
BT Glass
Formation of
7 3794.43 1491.07 39.30 4 segments
segments

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 643 UDAY K V AND S INGH D N

Formation of
11 3794.43 1251.30 32.98 2 segments
segments
Crack
14 3794.43 1085.20 28.6 21.945
formation
Severely
4 3794.43 * * No crack
Wrapped
7 Greased 3794.43 1282.31 33.79 Wrapped No crack
11 3794.43 1094.14 28.83 Wrapped No crack
14 3794.43 918.04 78.73 Wrapped No crack
* Measurement was not possible
Reference Determination of Shrinkage Limit of Fine-Grained
Soils, Journal of Hazard Toxic Radioactive Waste,
[1] ASTM D427-04 (2004), Test Method for Shrinkage
Vol. 15(2), pp.121–126.
Factors of Soils by the Mercury Method
[10] Yassoglou, Y., Kosmas C.S., Moustakas N.,
(withdrawn from 20008), ASTM International,
Tzianis E. and Danalatos N.G. (1994), Cracking in
West Conshohocken, PA, Vol. 04.08.
recent alluvial soils as related to easily determined
[2] ASTM D4943-08 (2008), Standard Test Method for
soil properties. Geoderma, Vol. 63, pp.289-298.
Shrinkage Factors of Soils by the Wax Method,
[11] Yesiller, N., Miller, C. J., Inci, G. and Yaldo, K,
ASTM International, West Conshohocken, PA,
(2000), Desiccation and cracking behaviour of three
Vol. 04.08.
compacted landfill liner soils, Engineering
[3] Buyukozturk B, Rhim H C (1995) Radar imaging
Geology, Vol. 57, pp.105-121.
of reinforced concrete specimens for nondestructive
[12] Tang, C. S., Cui, Y. J., Tang, A. M. and Shi, B.,
testing, Nondestructive Evaluation of Aging
(2010), Experiment evidence on the temperature
Bridges and Highways, Oakland, CA, Vol. 2456.
dependence of desiccation cracking behavior of
[4] Dequiedt, A S, Coster M, Chermant L and
clayey soils, Engineering Geology, Vol. 114,
Chermant, J L (2001) Study of phase dispersion in
pp.261-266.
concrete by image analysis, Cement and Concrete
[13] Lakshmikantha, M. R., Prat, P. C. and Ledesma,
Composites, Vol. 23(2-3), pp.215–226.
(2009), A. Image analysis for the quantification of a
[5] Holtz, R. D. and Kovacs, W.D. (1981), an
developing crack network on a drying soil,
Introduction to Geotechnical Engineering, Prentice
Geotechnical Testing Journal, Vol. 32, pp.1-11.
Hall, NJ.
[14] Uday, K. V. and Singh, D. N., (2013), Application
[6] Lee, H. (1993), Survey: Fundamental Pavement
of Laser Microscopy for Studying Crack
Crack Imaging Algorithms, Digital Image
Characteristics of Fine-grained Soils, Geotechnical
Processing: Techniques and Applications in Civil
Testing Journal, Vol. 36(1), pp.146-154
Engineering, ASCE, Kona, Hawaii, United States,
[15] Uday, K. V. and Singh, D. N., (2013),
pp.195-202.
Investigations on Cracking Characteristics of Fine-
[7] Lee. H and Chou, E. Y. J., (1993) Survey of Image
grained Soils under Varied Environmental
Processing Applications in Civil Engineering,
Conditions, Drying Technology, Taylor and
Digital Image Processing: Techniques and
Francis, Vol. 31(11), pp.1255-1266.
Applications in Civil Engineering, ASCE, Kona,
[16] Kodikara, J., Barbour, S. L. and Fredlund, D. G.,
Hawaii, United States, 195-202.
(2000), Desiccation cracking of soil layers, Proc.
[8] Moran, C.J., 1994. Image processing and soil
Asian Conference on Unsaturated Soils: From
micromorphology, Soil Micromorphology: Studies
theory to Practice, A. A. Balkema, pp.693-698.
in Management and Genesis, Proc. IX Int. Working
[17] Canny, J. (1986), A Computational Approach to
Meeting on Soil Micromorphology, Townsville,
Edge Detection, IEEE Transactions on Pattern
Australia, pp.459–482.
Analysis and Machine Intelligence archive, Vol.
[9] Prakash, K., Sridharan, A., Karthik, H., and An
8(6), pp.679-698.
and, C. (2011). Sand Replacement Method for

International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering

ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 639-643
 Indexed in
Scopus Compendex and Geobase Elsevier, Chemical
Abstract Services-USA, Geo-Ref Information Services-USA,
List B of Scientific Journals, Poland,
Directory of Research Journals
www.cafetinnova.org August 2014, P.P.644-649
ISSN 0974-5904, Volume 07, No. 04

Collapse Potential of Laterite Soils

UDAY K V
Department of Civil Engineering, VNR Vignana Jyothi Institute of Engineering and Technology, Hyderabad, India.
Email: uday1112@gmail.com

Abstract: Laterite soils are formed in hot, wet tropical regions with an annual rainfall between 750mm to 300mm.
Laterite soils are formed due to the weathering process of igneous or metamorphic rock over millions of years.
Laterites are hard as rock when dry and can be cut into blocks or bricks, used for constructions. In presence of water,
loosens out and become soft. It exhibits high collapse potential on wetting. Collapse is reduction in the volume of
fill materials or natural soil deposits on inundation, no change in applied stress. Collapse is primarily due to loss of
soil suction upon wetting. Oedometer tests are conducted for studying collapse potential of laterite soils. Soil
structure, matrix suction and external stress greatly influence the collapse behaviour. The present study examines the
influence of variations in compaction dry density, initial water content, inundation stress, grain size of soil and
flyash content on the collapse behaviour of compacted laterite soils. Experimental studies showed that maximum
collapse potential of 8.52-10.64 % occurred at inundation stress of 100kPa which indicated the apparent pre-
consolidation pressure for the laterite soil is 100kPa.
Keywords: Laterites, Collapse, Oedometer tests, inundation stress.

1. Introduction: determining the collapse behavior of compacted soils

The word 'laterite' was suggested by Buchanan (1807)
to denote a building material used in the mountain
regions of Malabar (India). Its appearance is that of a
ferruginous deposit of vesicular structure, apparently
unstratified and occurring not far below the surface.
When fresh it can readily be cut into regular blocks with
a cutting tool. On exposure to the air it rapidly hardens
and becomes highly resistant to weathering. The word
for it in some local dialects means brick earth and the
name 'laterite' is merely solely to the use to which these
blocks are put (Prescott and Pendleton, 1952).
Laterization is the removal of silicon through hydrolysis
and oxidation that results in the formation of laterites
and lateritic soils. The degree of Laterization is
estimated by the silica-sesquioxide(s-s) ratio
(SiO2/Fe2O3+Al2O3). In laterites the ratio are less than
1.33. Those between 1.33 and 2.0 are indicative of
laterite soils, and those greater than 2.0 are indicative of
non-lateritic soils.
Several previous studies on laterite soils by Gidigasu
(1974, 1976) for have demonstrated the susceptibility of
laterite soils degradation under load. The soil grains,
which are derived from the cementation of smaller ones,
break down into smaller sizes on the application of load.
All types of compacted soils are subjected to collapse
under certain conditions. The roles of initial dry density,
compaction water content, flooding pressure in
are well recognized in the literature (Borden et al. 1994,
Houston and Houston 1988, Lawton et al. 1992,
Tadepalli and Fredlund 1991). Such studies are essential
as they help to identify the critical compaction
parameters (dry density and optimum water content),
soil compaction and applied stress that needs to be
controlled by the fill designer in order to minimize
wetting induced collapse
Collapse is reduction in the volume of fill materials or
natural soil deposits on inundation, no change in applied
stress. Inundation may be caused by downward
infiltration of surface water, rising of water level,
bursting of underground water supply line. Collapse is
primarily due to loss of soil suction upon wetting.
Collapse mechanism is the additional settlement that
occurs when a loaded, partially saturated soil is
subjected to an increase in moisture content the collapse
problem was initially thought to be only with silty sands
of low density. However, it is now recognized that the
phenomenon can occur with other soil materials ranging
from gravel to fine clays under certain conditions of
applied stress, density and degree of saturation (Rollins
et al 1994).
According to Dudley (1970), Barden et al. (1973), and
Mitchell (1976), four factors are necessary for collapse
to occur in a soil structure
1. An open, partially unstable, unsaturated structure.

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Proceedings of 3-Day International Conference on Emerging Trends in Civil Engineering (ICETE-2014,)
6th–8th January, 2014
 645 UDAY K V

2. A high enough value of net total stress is applied to 3. The influence of Flyash stabilization on the
develop a metastable structure. collapse study of laterite soil.
3. A high enough value of soil suction (or other 4. The influence of the grain size on the collapse
bonding or cementing agent) to stabilize behaviour of laterite soil.
intergranular contacts, and whose reduction on
2.0 Materials and Methods
wetting will lead to collapse.
4. The addition of water to the soil, which causes the 2.1 Soil
bonding or cementing agent to be reduced and the Laterite soil is excavated from the quarry at
interaggregate or intergranular contacts to fail in MALLAMPALLY, about 45 km from NIT Warangal,
shear, resulting in a reduction in total volume of the depicted in Figure 1. The flyash used for this
soil mass. investigation was obtained from National thermal power
Reznik (1993) defined the magnitude of collapse by plant at Ramagundam. The dry ash is collected from the
hoppers and termed as silo ash. nformation of the soil as
Cp = dh/h0 (1)
laterite, chemical analysis was conducted.
Where, Cp=collapse potential;
dh =decrease in the height of specimen subsequent to
inundation; and
h0=height of specimen before saturation.
The collapse potential is expressed as a change in void
ratio on wetting compared to the pre wetting volume of
the soil at any stress level.
Cp=∆e/1+ eI (2)
Where ∆e = Change in void ratio upon wetting; and
ei = void ratio at the beginning of saturation.
Several researchers examined the role of soil structure Figure1: Different type of laterite soils used for the
in the collapse behavior of compacted soils by varying study
the compacted dry density and clay content of the soil
specimens (Cox 1978, el-Sohby and Rabbaa 1984, Table1: Properties of Laterite Soil
Lawton et al. 1992, 1992, Alwail et al. 1994). The Property Value
amount of collapse is expected to increase with the Specific gravity 2.74
increase in magnitude of the external stress (dry density
and moisture being constant), at which the unsaturated Liquid limit 40
specimen is wetted (Barden et al., 1973, Cox 1978, El- Plastic limit 21
Sohby and Rabba 1984). The role of matric suction in Plasticity index 19
the collapse behavior of compacted soils has been Grain size distribution
indirectly evaluated by varying the compaction water Gravel (%) (> 4.75 mm) 0
content of the soil specimens (Cox 1978, Houston and Sand (%)(4.75-0.075 mm) 24
Houston 1988, Lawton et al. 1992, El-Ehwany and Silt (%) (0.075-0.002 mm ) 52
Houston 1990). Lawton et al. (1992) reported collapse Clay (%) (<0.002 mm) 24
potential is an especially significant consideration in I.S. Classification CI
earth dam design because of certainty that post
Compaction properties
construction wetting will occur. Peterson and Iverson
(1953), Leonards and Narain (1963), Leonards and Optimum moisture content 19
Davidson (1984) reported the collapse settlement of Maximum dry density (g/cc) 1.8
earth dams caused several failures of earth dams. Coefficient of permeability (cm/s) 1.5x10-7
With this in aim, the following objectives were framed California bearing ratio
in this study. Unsoaked 24
Soaked 2
1. The influences of variations in the compaction dry
Shear parameters (undrained)
density, water content on the collapse behavior of
Cohesion (kg/cm2) 0.64
compacted laterite soil.
Angle of internal friction (degrees) 40.650
2. The influence of inundation stress on the collapse
behavior of compacted laterite soil.

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 Collapse Potential of Laterite Soils
646

Required mass of moisture-equilibrated representative

2.2 Experimental Methods
and artificial soil specimen were carefully transferred
Air-dried representative and artificial soil specimens are into standard
thoroughly hand-mixed with the design water content
and allowed to equilibrate in a desiccate for 24 hours.
Table2: Experimental Plan for collapse study on laterite soils
Inundation stress Relative compaction Dry density Water content
15(4% dry of OMC)
50 80 1.4432 19(OMC)
22(3% wet of OMC)
15(4% dry of OMC)
100 80 1.4432 19(OMC)
22(3% wet of OMC)
15(4% dry of OMC)
200 80 1.4432 19(OMC)
22(3% wet of OMC)
15(4% dry of OMC)
400 80 1.4432 19(OMC)
22(3% wet of OMC)
12(7% dry of OMC)
15(4% dry of OMC)
50 90 1.6236
19(OMC)
22(3% wet of OMC)
12(7% dry of OMC)
15(4% dry of OMC)
100 90 1.6236
19(OMC)
22(3% wet of OMC)
12(7% dry of OMC)
15(4% dry of OMC)
200 90 1.6236
19(OMC)
22(3% wet of OMC)
15(4% dry of OMC)
50 100 1.804 19(OMC)
22(3% wet of OMC)
15(4% dry of OMC)
100 100 1.804 19(OMC)
22(3% wet of OMC)
15(4% dry of OMC)
200 100 1.804 19(OMC)
22(3% wet of OMC)
oedometer rings (Diameter= 60mm, Height=20mm). collapse occurred in <60 minutes after inundation.
The moist soil specimen contained in the oedometer Time- collapse observations were continuously noted
rings were statically compacted in a single layer to a during the collapse process. The final deflection after
predetermined dry density using hand operated static 24hours was however used while calculating the
press. The compacted specimen were set up in standard collapse potential of a specimen in order to allow for
consolidation assemblies and tested for collapse any residual collapse (Lawton et al. 1992). Additional
potentials by the SALT method of Lawton et al. (1992). loading was then applied with the specimen remaining
Details of the specimens prepared and tested at various inundated.
densities, dry densities, dry densities and water contents
3.0 Analysis of Results
for determination of collapse potential are presented in
the table ***. The compacted specimen is incrementally 3.1 Influence of Water Content
loaded (load increment ratio is unity) up to a specific Figure 2(a) plots the variation of collapse potential with
state of stress without wetting the specimen. The water contents at various inundating stresses for laterite
unsoaked specimen, under the applied stress, attained compacted to 80% relative compaction. At all the
equilibrium in less than 45 minutes. On attainment of inundation stress, collapse potential increased with
equilibrium under the applied stress, the compacted increase in initial water content upto a critical water
specimen was inundated with water. Most of the content (15%) and beyond this critical water content

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 647 UDAY K V

collapse potential decreased with the increase in water

content. The collapse potential increases with the Relative Compaction (%)
0 20 40 60 80 100 120
increase in inundation stress upto a critical inundation 0
stress (1ookPa) and beyond this the collapse potential

decreases. The same trend is also reported by Trivedi
and Sud (2004) for coal ashes. The collapse potential
decreased at a high moisture contents due to the
dissolution of solubles and hence decreased surface
tension forces (Trivedi and Sud, 2004; Lawton et
al.1992).
3.2 Effect of Density
Figure 2(b) presents the plot of variation of collapse
potential with relative compaction (dry density) at 15%,
19% and 22% water of soil, conducted at inundation
stress of 100kPa. With the increase in the degree of
compaction, the collapse potential decreased, as
expectated, for samples compacted at 12% and 15%
water contents. This is due to increase in densification
and reduction in void ratio. The decrease of collapse
potential indicated the stability of the densified laterites
due to preloading and rearrangement of particles. The
collapse potential of 1% is normally considered to be a
limiting value for the evaluation of collapse in a single
oedometer for soils and 0.75% for coalashes (Trivedi
and Sud 2004). At relative compaction of 80%
compacted at 15% water contents exhibited maximum
collapse potential (10.62%).
Water Content (% )
10 15 20 25
0
Collapse Potential
Collapse Potential
2
4
6
w=15%
8
w=19%
10
w=22%
12
(b)
Fig2: Effect of (a) Water content and (b) Dry density on
the collapse behavior of Laterites
3.3 Influence of Inundation Stress
Figure 3(a) compares the variation of collapse potential
with inundation stress at different water contents 12% to
22% for soil compacted at 90% relative compaction.
Collapse potential increased upto 100kPa and later,
decreased with the increase in inundation stress.
Indraratna et al. (1991) reported similar results for
flyash. Lawton et al. (1992) have also observed, for
soils that for given moisture content and dry density, the
collapse potential reached maximum value at some
critical value of inundation stress, beyond which
collapse potential decreased with the increasing
30
inundation stress. The reduction in collapse potential at
higher stresses is attributed to densification and

increased degree of saturation resulting from the applied

1 stress.

2
50kPa
100kPa
3
200kPa
400kPa
4
(a)

(a)

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 Collapse Potential of Laterite Soils
Inundation stress
0 200 400
0
Collapse Potential
2 collapse potential increased with the increase in the
4 6.
6 potential increased which is due to rearrangement
8 425μ
200μ
10
75μ
12
(b)
Fig3: Effect of (a) Inundation stress and (b) Grain size
on the collapse behavior of Laterites
3.4 Influence of Grain Size
Figure 3(b) illustrates the influence of grain size on the
collapse potential of the soil. The soil sieved from
different sieves (4.25mm, 2mm and 75μ) is used for the
comparison. Collapse potential decreased with the
decrease of the grain size at a constant water content
and dry density. A maximum collapse potential 10.62%
is observed for grain size of 4.25mm at water content of
15%, relative compaction 80% and inundation stress of
100kPa. The collapse potential for soil with grain size of
75μ indicates the collapse of fine-grained soils as
explained by Cox (1978), Lawton et al. (1992). This
may be attributed to the rearrangement of the coarser
particles under loading (Cox 1978).
4.0 Conclusions
The following conclusions are made from the present
study conducted on the laterite soil.
1. Collapse potential of laterite is a dependent
parameter of several factors like grain size,
inundation stress, relative compaction, water
content, etc.
2. For a given relative compaction and moisture
content, the collapse potential reached a maximum
value at critical inundation stress of 100kPa,
beyond which collapse potential decreased with
increasing inundation stress. The reduction in
collapse potential at higher stresses is attributed to
densification and increased degree of saturation
resulting from the applied stress.
3. Collapse potential increased with the increase in
initial water content upto critical water content
(15%) and beyond this water content the collapse
potential decreased with the increase water content
at all the inundation stresses.
4. With the increase in the degree of compaction, the
collapse potential decreased for samples compacted
at 15%, 19% and 22% water contents. This is
International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering
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648
attributed to the increase in densification and
reduction of void ratio.
600
5. Collapse potential decreased with the addition of
flyash to a critical value of 40% (flyash) and then
amount of flyash.
With the increase in the grain size collapse
of the coarser particles under high stress.
Reference
[1] ASTM-D- 5333-92 Standard Test Method for
Measurement of Collapse Potential of Soils, Vol.
04.08, pp.222-224.
[2] Barden, L., Collins, K. McGown, A. (1973) the
Collapse Mechanism in Partly Saturated Soils
Engineering Geology, vol. 7, pp. 49 – 60.
[3] Bardon.T.L., Duncan, M.J., Gardener, W.S. (1994)
Hydro compression Settlement of Deep Fills
Journal of geotechnical engineering, ASCE, vol.
116(16), pp. 1536-1548.
[4] Cox, D.W. (1978) Volume Change of Compacted
Clay Fill Proceedings, Conference on clay fill,
Institution of Civil Engineers, London, England.
pp.79 – 97.
[5] Dudley, J.H. (1970) Review of Collapsing Soils
Journal of soil mechanics and foundation
engineering, ASCE, vol.96, pp. 925 – 947.
[6] EL- Ehwany M. and Houston S.L. (1990)
Settlement and Moisture Movement in Collapsible
Soils ASCE Journal of Geotechnical Engineering.
Vol 110, pp: 1521 – 1535.
[7] EL-Sohby, M.A. and Rabba, S.A. (1984)
Deformation Behaviour of Unsaturated Soils upon
Wetting Proceedings of Eighth Regional
Conference for Africa on Soil Mechanics and
Foundation engineering, South African Institute of
Civil Engineers , vol 1, pp: 129 – 137.
[8] Tadepalli, R., and Fredlund, D.G. (1991) Collapse
Behaviour of Compacted Soil during Inundation
Canadian Geotechnical Journal, vol 28, pp: 477 –
488.
[9] Gidigasu, M.D. Laterite soil engineering,
pedogensis and engineering principles Canadian
Goetechnical Journal;, Vol. 14(442) , pp: 442-444.
[10] Houston S.L., Houston W.N. (1988) Reduction of
field collapse of soils due to wetting Journal of
Geotechnical Engineering., vol. 114(1), pp.40-58.
[11] Lawton E.C., Fragaszy R.J. (1992) Review of
wetting induced collapse in compacted soils Journal
of Geotechnical engineering, vol, 118(9), pp: 1376
– 1394.
[12] Leonards, G.A. and Narain, J. (1963) Flexibility of
clay and cracking of earth dams Journal of soil
mechanics and Foundation Division, ASCE, vol
88(2), pp: 47-98.
 649 UDAY K V

[13] Leonards G.A. and Davinson L.W. (1984)
Reconsideration of failure initiating mechanisms
Teton Dam Proceeding of International Conference
on Case histories in Geotechnical Engineering, vol
2, pp: 1103 – 1113.
[14] Mitchell, J.K. (1976) Fabric Structure and property
relationships Fundamentals of Soil Behaviour, John
Wiley &sons New York, pp: 222- 252.
[15] Reznik, Y.M. (1993) Plate Load Tests on
collapsible soils Journal of Geotechnical
Engineering, vol 119(3), pp: 608 – 615.
[16] Rollens K.M., Rogen, G.W. (1994) Mitigation
measures for small structures on alluvial soils
Journal of Geotechnical Engineering, ASCE, vol.
120(9), pp: 1533- 1553.
[17] Trivedi, A. and Sud V.K. (2004) Collapse
behaviour of coal ashes, Journal of Geotechnical
and Geo-environmental Engineering. vol. 130 (4),
pp. 403-415.

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ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 644-649
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ISSN 0974-5904, Volume 07, No. 04

Dynamic Analysis of RCC Cantilever Retaining Wall with Different

Parameters
P. R. JAGTAP1, S. M. P ORE1 AND VIPUL P RAKASH2
1
Department of Civil Engineering, Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar Technological University Lonere, Dist- Raigad-
402103, Maharashtra, India
2
Department of Civil Engineering, IIT Roorkee-247667, India
Email: prjagtap26@gmail.com, struct_engg@yahoo.co.in, spvpgp@gmail.com

Abstract: For the safe and economic design of retaining structures, correct estimation of earth pressure on retaining
surfaces is very important. Due to analysis complexities, this problem has drawn attention of researchers from last
few decades. Even under static conditions this is one of the most critical and complex problems of soil mechanics and
geotechnical engineering. Dynamic loading conditions make the problem further complicated. In this paper, a method
is studied to obtain the natural time period of a retaining wall both for active and passive earth pressure condition and
the dynamic analysis of such a wall is carried out. Time period of RCC cantilever retaining wall is found out from
derived natural time period formula. Shear force and bending moment at the base of retaining wall is obtained with
the help of time period and parameters such as height of wall and unit weight of retained soil. Parametric study shows
that these are most influencing parameters affecting behaviour of retaining wall.
Keywords: Retaining wall, time period, earth pressure, shear force, bending moment.

1. Introduction: modal response technique. The parametric study of

Most important consideration in proper design and
installation of retaining walls is that the retained material
is attempting to move forward and down slope due to
gravity. This creates lateral earth pressure behind the
wall which depends on the angle of internal friction (phi)
and the cohesive strength (c) of the retained material, as
well as the direction and magnitude of movement the
retaining structure undergoes. Present state-of-the-art for
the analysis and design of retaining walls under
earthquake loading is based on the method proposed by
Mononobe and Matsuo (1929) [8] and Okabe (1926) [9]
(M-O analysis). Also the Indian Code of Practice, IS-
1893 [6] suggests the use of αh and αv based on seismic
coefficient to any time-period calculation, which could
again make the analysis far too conservative. As IS-1893
does not provide any rational method for calculation of
natural period of the retaining wall, seismic analysis for
such system is still based on what one can term as a
pseudo static analysis. Many analysis have come up for
the solution of such problems based on Finite Element
Method. The basic lacuna in most of these analyses is
that the earth pressure is generated under incipient
failure of the soil medium.
In this paper, a method is studied to obtain the natural
time period of a retaining wall quite accurately and to
carry out a dynamic analysis of such wall based on
natural period of retaining wall is carried out by varying
the different parameter like height, unit weight of soil,
angle of internal friction of soil, thickness of wall and
grade of concrete. The dynamic shear force and bending
moment are derived based on modal response technique
by lumped mass system and the same is compared with
the static shear force and bending moment of retaining
wall.
2. Analytical Work
For the safe and economic design of retaining
structures, correct estimation of earth pressure on
retaining is very important to civil engineers. Due to its
complexity in analysis, this problem has drawn the
attention of researchers through the decades. Even under
static conditions this is one of the most critical and
complex problems of soil mechanics and geotechnical
engineering. So, under dynamic condition and under
seismic loading, the problem is no doubt challenging.
Among the theories available till date for the estimation
of seismic earth pressure, the Mononobe–Okabe (1929,
1926) method, which is the pioneering work in this field,
is commonly used.
2.1. M-O Analysis
The total forces on the wall under active as well as
passive earth pressure conditions are as per [8] and [9]

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Proceedings of 3-Day International Conference on Emerging Trends in Civil Engineering (ICETE-2014,)
6th–8th January, 2014
 651 P. R. J AGTAP, S. M. P ORE AND V IPUL P RAKASH

method is given in [3],

(iv)
(i)
The stiffness k1 for the first mode can be written
in which PAE and PPE are static plus dynamic force on
the wall under active and passive earth pressure
(v)
conditions respectively; KAE and KPE are the coefficients
of dynamic active and passive earth pressures 2.2.3. Fundamental natural time period
respectively; γ is the unit weight of soil and H is the
height of wall or soil retained. For the case of a typical Considering the above values of stiffness (k) and mass
retaining wall, KAE and KPE are given by, (m) for first mode, the fundamental natural period is
given by:
; (ii)
(vi)

2.2.4. Shear force and bending moment

Where, is the angle of internal friction of soil, and
in which αh and αv are maximum Knowing the modal mass participation factor, the shear
at any node i can be obtained as
ground acceleration in horizontal and vertical directions
respectively. (vii)
2.2. Improved Rayleigh-Ritz and IS code method
The bending moment at the base is calculated by
A method is used by which it is possible to obtain the assuming the static component to act at H/3 above the
natural time period of a retaining wall quite accurately base of the wall. Seed and Whitman (1970)
and to carry out an alternate method for the dynamic recommended that the dynamic component will act
analysis of such wall based on modal response approximately at 0.66H above the base, where H, is
technique. The wall will be assumed to be a flexural height of retaining wall.
member. The fundamental natural time period of the
retaining wall with soil mass has been computed for two
cases:
1. Under active earth pressure condition, when
earthquake force tries to move retaining wall away
from the soil and having failure profile inclined at
(45o + /2)
2. Under passive earth pressure condition, when
earthquake force tries to move the retaining wall
towards the soil and having failure profile inclined
at (45o - /2).
2.2.1. Active earth pressure condition
Based on the above assumption a cantilever retaining
wall is considered for analysis, which will be subjected
to the following loads under static condition:
1. The weight of the failed wedge having weight of Figure1: Mass distribution of the failed soil wedge
H2/ [2 tan (45o + /2)]; under active soil pressure
2. A uniformly distributed load due to self-weight.
2.2.5. Passive earth pressure condition
Considering the self-weight of the wall to be negligible
In this case, as mentioned above, steps remain the same
compared to the soil mass shown in Figure 1 the mass
except that the failure profile reduces from  = (45 /2)
distribution of the failed soil wedge ABD for an
elemental strip dz in vertical direction is given by: to (45 /2) and the mass matrix and the fundamental
natural period are modified accordingly.
m(z) = z dz /tan (iii)
3. Parametric Studies
2.2.2. Mass contribution and stiffness of wall
The dynamic analysis of the retaining wall is carried out
Hence, for failure of the soil, the mass contribution m1 from nodal analysis. As the first mode is predominating,
for the first mode is given by it is considered for studies. The variation of dynamic

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 Dynamic Analysis of RCC Cantilever Retaining Wall with Different Parameters
652

shear force and bending moment at different levels for zone II, III, IV & V respectively for 4 meter height of
various earthquake zones are compared with static shear retaining wall.
force and bending moments. Variation in dynamic SF over static SF is 4.21%,
3.1. Parameters used for natural time period 6.72%, 10.09%, and 15.12% for zone II, III, IV & V
respectively and variation in dynamic BM over static
Present formula (equ. vi) is depending on following
parameters such as: BM is 8.32%, 13.31%, 19.97%, and 29.95% for zone II,
1. 1. Height of wall in mm : 8000 mm III, IV & V respectively for 6 m meter height of
retaining wall.
2. 2. Unit weight of soil () : 18 kN/m3
3. 3. Angle of internal friction of soil () : 280 Variation in dynamic SF over static SF is 3.03%,
4. Average thickness wall for determine moment 4.86%, 7.29%, and 10.93% for zone II, III, IV & V
5. of inertia of wall (tw) : 500 mm respectively and variation in dynamic BM over static
6. Strength of concrete for determine modulus of BM is 6.01%, 9.62%, 14.42%, and 21.63% for zone II,
7. elasticity of concrete : 25 N/mm2 III, IV & V respectively for 8 m meter height of
Each of parameter has its significance on formula. By retaining wall.
varying one by one parameter, study is carried out to 4.2.2. Passive earth pressure
find out variation of natural time period of for active as
well as passive earth pressure. Table 3 shows variation in dynamic SF over static SF is
1.67%, 2.80%, 4.05%, and 6.05% for zone II, III, IV &
3.2. Parameters used for shear force and bending V respectively and variation in dynamic BM over static
moment BM is 3.42%, 5.30%, 7.93%, and 12.07% for zone II,
Natural time period is used to found out shear force and III, IV & V respectively for 4 meter height of retaining
bending moment at the base of retaining wall [6]. The wall.
dynamic shear force and bending moments is Variation in dynamic SF over static SF is 1.26%,
determined by varying the following parameters: 2.07%, 3.07%, and 4.52% for zone II, III, IV & V
1. Height of wall respectively and variation in dynamic BM over static
2. Earthquake Zones BM is 2.52%, 4.02%, 6.03%, and 9.03% for zone II, III,
Data Considered for Analysis IV & V respectively for 6 m meter height of retaining
wall.
Height of wall in mm : 4000, 6000 and 8000
Earthquake zones : II, III, IV and V Variation in dynamic SF over static SF is 0.73%,
Unit weight of soil in kN/m3 : 18 1.23%, 1.85%, and 2.73% for zone II, III, IV & V
Angle of internal friction of soil : 280 respectively and variation in dynamic BM over static
Avg. thickness wall in mm : 500 BM is 1.49%, 2.41%, 3.61%, and 5.42% for zone II, III,
Strength of concrete N/mm2 : 25 IV & V respectively for 8 m meter height of retaining
Soil Profile : Same as shown in Figure 1 wall.
4. Results and Discussion Table1: Variation of parameters and there time periods
for active earth pressure (AEP) and passive earth
4.1. Natural time period pressure (PEP) conditions
Table 1 shows variations of most influencing parameters
like height of wall and unit weight of soil and their Time Period in Seconds
Parameters Varied
respective time periods for active and passive earth AEP PEP
pressure conditions. 4000 0.132 0.219
4.2. Shear force and bending moment 5000 0.230 0.383
Height of
Table 2 and 3 shows Static & Dynamic Shear Force 6000 0.363 0.604
wall in mm
(SF) and Bending Moment (BM) for Active Earth 7000 0.533 0.887
Pressure condition and for Passive Earth Pressure 8000 0.744 1.239
condition for different earthquake zones: 14 0.657 1.093
4.2.1. Active earth pressure Unit weight 15 0.680 1.131
Table 2 shows variation in dynamic SF over static SF is of soil in 16 0.702 1.168
4.67%, 7.48%, 11.22%, and 16.83% for zone II, III, IV kN/m3 17 0.724 1.204
& V respectively and variation in dynamic BM over 18 0.745 1.239
static BM is 9.24%, 14.79%, 22.19%, and 33.28% for

International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering

ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 650-654
 653 P. R. J AGTAP, S. M. P ORE AND V IPUL P RAKASH

Table2: Static & dynamic shear force (SF) and bending moment (BM) for active earth pressure condition

Height Static Dynamic Shear Force Static BM Dynamic Bending Moment

(mm) SF (kN) II III IV V (kN-m) II III IV V
4000 51.98 54.41 55.87 57.81 60.727 69.318 75.726 79.571 84.697 92.386
6000 116.97 121.89 124.83 128.77 134.66 233.95 253.41 265.09 280.66 304.01
8000 207.95 214.26 218.05 223.10 230.67 554.54 587.86 607.86 634.51 674.50
Table3: Static & dynamic shear force (SF) and bending moment (BM) for passive earth pressure condition

Height Static SF Dynamic Shear Force Static BM Dynamic Bending Moment

(mm) (kN) II III IV V (kN-m) II III IV V
4000 398.85 405.5 410 415 423 531.81 550 560 574 596
6000 897.42 908.7 916 925 938 1794.84 1840 1867 1903 1957
8000 1595.42 1607 1615 1625 1639 4254.45 4318 4357 4408 4485
5. Conclusion T - Fundamental natural period of retaining wall
From parametric studies it can be concluded that height tw - Average thickness of the RCC retaining wall
V - Net shear force induced due to earthquake
of wall and unit weight of soil are the most influencing
parameters which affects the natural time period of  - Angle of failure wedge
retaining wall. Also from comparative studies between h - Seismic coefficient in horizontal direction
static and dynamic Shear Force and Bending Moment it v -Seismic coefficient in vertical direction
can be concluded that as height increases from 4 m to 8  - Unit weight of soil
m the percentage variation in dynamic SF and BM for  - Angle of internal friction of soil
both active and passive earth pressure conditions  - Coefficient depending upon the soil-foundation
decreases for all the earthquake zones. This is due to system
assumption of same thickness of wall for all the cases. If - Dynamic angle in degrees
actual designs are performed and necessary thicknesses
7. Acknowledgement
are worked out, this picture will change. This
observation highlights necessity of real design exercise This paper is based upon work done at post-graduation
in parametric studies. Results of dynamic increment of level at Shivaji University, Kolhapur and also supported
shear force and bending moment for active and passive by Civil Engg. Dept. of Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar
condition are compared with M-O analysis, and it is Technological University, Raigad. The support is
found that the values are matching with M-O analysis gratefully acknowledge.
with small variations in results. Reference
6. Notations [1] Chopra A., (2006), “Dynamics of Structures theory
E - Young’s modulus of concrete and applications to earthquake engineering,” 2nd
F0 - Seismic Zone Factor for average acceleration Edition, Prentice Hall of India.
Spectrum [2] Choudhury D. and Chatterjee S., (2006), “Dynamic
G - Shear modulus of elasticity of soil active earth pressure on retaining structures,”
g - gravitational acceleration Sadhana, Vol. 31, Part 6, pp.721-730.
H - Height of wall/ Soil retain [3] Dasgupta S.P. and Chowdhury I., (2003),
I - Moment of inertia of retaining wall “Dynamic Analysis of RCC Retaining Walls under
Ip - Importance factor Earthquake Loading,” EJGE paper.
k1 - Stiffness [4] Dowrick D.J. (1978), “Earthquake Resistant
KAE - Coefficients of dynamic active earth pressure Design, John Wiley & Sons,” Chichester.
KPE - Coefficients of dynamic passive earth pressure [5] Hurty W. and M. Rubenstein (1968), “Dynamics of
m1 - Mass Structures,” Prentice Hall, NJ
PAE - Dynamic force on the wall under active earth [6] IS-1893 - 1984 (Part-III): “Code of Practice for
pressure Earthquake Resistant Design of Structures,” Indian
PPE - Dynamic force on the wall under passive earth Standard Institution, New Delhi.
pressure [7] Kramer S.L. (1996), “Geotechnical Earthquake
Sa/g - Average acceleration coefficient for appropriate Engineering,” Prentice Hall Upper Saddle River,
natural period and damping of structure NJ.

International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering

ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 650-654
 Dynamic Analysis of RCC Cantilever Retaining Wall with Different Parameters
654

[8] Mononobe N. and Matsuo H. (1929), “On the
determination of earth pressure during
earthquakes,” Proc. World Engg. Congress, pp.9.
[9] Okabe, S. (1926), “General theory of earth
pressures,” J. Japanese Soc. Civil Engg., Vol. 12,
No.1.
[10] Punmia B.C, and Jain A.K. (2005) “Soil Mechanics
and Foundation Engineering”, 16th Edition, Laxmi
Publications (P), Ltd. Page No. 499-541
[11] S. Ramamrutham, (2002) “Design of Reinforced
Concrete Structures”, Dhanpat Rai Publishing
Company. Page No. 421-513
[12] Scott R.F., (1973), “Earthquake-induced pressures
on retaining walls,” Proc. 5th World Conf. on
Earthquake Engineering (Tokyo: Int. Assoc.
Earthquake Engg.) 2: pp.1611–1620
[13] Veletsos A.S and Younan A.H, (1994), “Dynamic
modeling and response of soil-wall systems,” J.
Geotech. Engg. ASCE 120: 2155–2179.

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Abstract Services-USA, Geo-Ref Information Services-USA,
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ISSN 0974-5904, Volume 07, No. 04

Dynamic Analysis to Study Soil-Pile Interaction Effects

P ALLAVI RAVISHANKAR AND NEELIMA SATYAM
Geotechnical Engineering Laboratory, Earthquake Engineering Research Centre, IIIT, Hyderabad, INDIA
Email: pallavi.ravishankar@research.iiit.ac.in

Abstract: The prediction of the behaviour of the pile foundations is of paramount importance in the seismic design
and assessment piles for the structural sustainability during earthquake. Generally pile provides a good agreeable
performance in the complex soils conditions like soft soils having less bearing capacity. The nonlinear condition and
dynamic condition are coupled with each other to produce the complex soil action to the pile motion which can be
well captured by the soil structure interaction phenomenon stated as soil-pile interaction analysis. In this research
paper numerical analysis of a single pile is carried out for a different soil conditions like, C-soils, Ø-Soils and C- Ø
soils to understand the soil-pile interaction for a EL-Centro (1940) ground motion. The displacements profiles are
studied for flexible long and rigid short pile for the different soil types as mentioned earlier and soil pile interaction
analysis. The axi-symmetric numerical model is developed by using Finite Element Program Open-Sees PL18 to
understand the soil pile interaction under the dynamic loading condition. The study concludes that the maximum
displacement is less for C- Ø soil as compared to other two types C-soil and Ø -soil. Under the dynamic loading
conditions, long pile is more sustainable than the Short rigid pile.
Keywords: Soil-pile interaction, Rigid and flexible pile, Numerical analysis, Open-sees PL, Master slave analogy,
Rigid interface.

1. Introduction: elastic model of soil and by Penzein (1970) by

Piles are used in many soil conditions like soft,
liquefiable soils and very soft rocks which have spread
to the considerable depth. In such situations shallow
foundation is not economical and always performs poor
for the dynamic load cases and fails under bearing
capacity of the boundary domain i.e. soil. Soil-Pile
interaction can be an important consideration in
evaluating the seismic performance of pile-group
supported structures, particularly in soft clay or
liquefying sand. Methods of analyzing seismic soil-pile-
structure interaction have included 2D and 3D
modelling of the pile and soil continuum using finite
element or finite difference methods, dynamic beam on
a nonlinear Winkler foundation methods17, and
simplified two-step methods that uncouple the
superstructure and foundation portions of the analysis. It
is necessary to predict precisely the structure response
considering soil-structure interaction for implementation
of performance based design. Soil structure interaction
during earthquake, however, is very complicated and is
not always taken into account in seismic design of
structure. Current study involves studying pile response
for given ground motion.
Interaction between piles and soil was solved
theoretically by Tajimi (1969) by using linear visco-
developing a discrete nonlinear model 17. In numerical
analysis the pile soil interaction is achieved by
representing boundary conditions of a pile with discrete
non-linear springs with the stiffness of equal to the
equivalent soil subgrade reaction.
2. Numerical Modelling
The numerical analysis is carried out with Open Sees
PL Developed by PEER, Berkely18, is a graphical user
interface (GUI) for three dimensional (3D) soil-pile
interaction responses. The base shaking simulation is
performed with a control boundary conditions and zero
inclination mode. The pile is modelled with linear beam
element and soil with nonlinear beam element. The Von
Mises material model is adopted for simulating the
nonlinear soil behaviour. The interface between pile and
soil is simulated with zero-length elements. These
elements connect the fixed node of pile with slave
spring nodes of soil 18.
3. Soil Properties
The local soil considered for analysis is homogeneous
of three basic different types viz purely cohesive (C-
soils), purely non-cohesive (Ø-soils) and combination of
both (C-Ø soil). Table 1, explains the different soil
parameters of the soils considered for the analysis.

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Proceedings of 3-Day International Conference on Emerging Trends in Civil Engineering (ICETE-2014,)
6th–8th January, 2014
 Dynamic Analysis to Study Soil-Pile Interaction Effects
656

Table1: Soil data 5. Dynamic analysis of the soil pile interaction model
Soil Parameter C-soil Ø-soils C-Ø Soil A dynamic load in the form of El Centro ground motion
Shear Modulus, (M= 6.9) with a peak ground acceleration 0.3g is
6x104 10x104 10x104 applied at the rigid end of the pile to perform a Base
G (kN /m2)
Bulk Modulus, B Shaking analysis. The spectra of the given ground
3x105 3x105 2.3x104 motion is shown in Figure 2. The tool offers the
(kN /m2)
Cohesion, C Newmark time integration procedure with two user
(kN /m2)
37 0 25 defined coefficients  and  [4] Computations at any
Permeability time step are executed to a convergence tolerance of
1x10-9 1x10-4 1x10-4 0.0001.
Co.eff (m/s)
Unit Weight (kN
15 20 19
/m3)
Friction Angle
0 35 33.5
(Degrees)
4. Pile Properties
Numerical analysis is carried out for circular rigid short
and flexible long concrete pile with grade of concrete
varies from M-30 to M-40 and length 4.5 m and 18 m
respectively with diameter 0.5 m. The pile is considered
to be fixed at the bottom and pinned at the top to find its
response against the given dynamic load. The different
combinations taken for analysis are shown in Table 2.
Figure2: Spectra for EL Centro ground motion (1940)
Table2: Different properties of soil and pile considered
with peak acceleration
for present study
6. Results
Grade of
Pile Type Soil Type For the given ground motions stresses and displacement
Concrete
M-30 C-soils Ø-soil C-Ø soil are observed. The displacements are calculated in the
Short pile direction of the lateral load applied. Figure 3 shows the
L= 4.5 m, M-35 C-soils Ø-soil C-Ø soil initial stress condition for the given dynamic loading.
D= 0.5 m M-40 C-soils Ø-soil C-Ø soil The displacement is calculated along the length of pile
Long pile M-30 C-soils Ø-soil C-Ø soil for both short and long pile. Figure 4 and Figure 5
L= 18 m, M-35 C-soils Ø-soil C-Ø soil explains the displacement profile for the pile for all type
D= 0.5 m of soil viz cohesive (c-soil), non-cohesive (Ø-soils) and
M-40 C-soils Ø-soil C-Ø soil combination of both (C-Ø soil) for short and long pile
The pile of 0.5 m is modelled with a semi-infinite soil respectively.
medium of size 100 m x 100 m x 50m to simulate the
soil structure interaction phenomenon17. Figure 1 shows
basic soil-pile interactive model considered for dynamic
analysis.

Figure3: Stress contours in the soil strata after

application of the dynamic loads
Figure1: Soil Pile Finite element model generated for
study

International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering

ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 655-658
 657 P ALLAVI R AVISHANKAR AND NEELIMA S ATYAM
Figure4: Deflection profile for short pile (L= 4.5 m) for
different soil types
Figure5: Deflection profile for long pile (L= 18 m) for
different soil types
6. Summary and Conclusions
In order to carry out comparative study on soil pile
interaction for long and short pile for different soil types
like C-soil, Ø -soil and C- Ø soil the subjected to the
earthquake loads a finite element analysis is carried out.
Following are some observations drawn from the
present study
 For short rigid short pile and flexible long pile the
peak displacements at the top of the pile is found to
be less for C-Ø soil as compared to c soil and Ø-
soil.
 The values of peak displacements is more for long
pile than the short pile, hence length of the pile is
one of the important parameter for displacement
controls.
 The grade of the concrete is not influencing the
displacement characteristics of the pile. Change in
displacements is negligible for the parametric
grades considered for the present study.
 The type of surrounding soil of the pile plays an
important role in the displacements at the top of the
pile.
 The finite element tool is found to be easy to
understand and operate for the interaction problem.
International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering
ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 655-658
 The interface elements between soil and pile which
simulates soil pile phenomenon is follows the
theory of „Master Slave analogy‟, reflects the rigid
interface between soil and pile , hence can not
achieve the actual soil-pile interaction
phenomenon.
8. Notations
c- Cohesive soil
Ø -Cohisionless soil
c- Ø combination soil having both the cohesive and
cohisionless material
 and  Newmarks Integration coefficient
Reference
[1] Botkin, “Shape optimization of plate and shell
structures” AIAA Journal, vol.20, ISSN 0001-1452
no.2, pp.268-273, 1982.
[2] Bowen, H. J. and Cubrinovski M, “Pseudo-static
analysis of piles in liquefiable soils: Parametric
evaluation of liquefied layer properties”. Bulletin of
the New Zealand Society for Earthquake
Engineering, Issue 41, pp.234-246, 2008.
[3] BUDHU M. and DAVIES T. G., “Nonlinear
analysis of laterally loaded piles in cohesionless
soils”, Canadian Geotechnical Journal, vol.24
pp.289-296, 1987.
[4] Chopra AK, Dynamics of structures: theory and
applications to earthquake engineering, Englewood
Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall, 1995.
[5] Cubrinovski M., Ishihara K. and Poulos H,
“Pseudo-static analysis of piles subjected to lateral
spreading”, Bulletin of the New Zealand Society
for Earthquake Engineering, vol.42 pp. 28-38,
2009.
[6] Elgamal A., Yang Z. and Shantz T. () , “A 3D Soil -
Structure Interaction Computational Framework”,
proceedings in 5th International Conference on
Earthquake Engineering (5ICEE)- 2010.Tokyo
Institute of Technology, Tokyo, Japan, 2010.
[7] Gazetas G., “Seismic response of end-bearing
single piles”, International Journal of Soil
Dynamics and Earthquake Engineering, vol. 3 pp
82-93, 1984.
[8] Yang Z., and Elgamal A., “Open Sees PL 3D
Lateral Pile-Ground Interaction -User's Manual”,
University of California, San Diego.MADAB-2010,
2010.
[9] Hushi S. P. G., Knappett J. A., and Haigh, S.,
Design of Pile Foundations in Liquefiable Soils
London, Imperial College Press, 2010.
[10] Pender M. J., “A seismic pile foundation design
analysis.” Bulletin of the New Zealand National
Society for Earthquake Engineerin, vol. 26 pp. 49-
160, 1993.
 Dynamic Analysis to Study Soil-Pile Interaction Effects
658

[11] Pecker A. and Pender M., “Earthquake Resistant
Design of Foundations: New Construction”,
Proceedings of GeoEng - 2000. Melbourne,
Australia, 2000.
[12] Randolph M. F., (1981), “Response of flexible
piles to lateral loading”, Geotechnique, vol.31 pp.
247-259.
[13] Scott R. F., Tsai C. F., Steussy D. , and Ting J.
M., “Full-scale dynamic lateral pile tests”,
proceedings in 14th Offshore Technology
Conference-1982, Houston, Texas,1982.
[14] Tokimatsu K., Suzuki H. and SatoM., “Effects of
inertial and kinematic interaction on seismic
behavior of pile with embedded foundation” , Soil
Dynamics and Earthquake Engineering, vol. 25 pp.
753-762, 2005.
[15] Wolf J. P., Dynamic soil-structure interaction,
Prentice-Hall, Inc., Chapter 1, and 3, 1985.
[16] Open Sees PL, 3D Lateral Pile-Ground Interaction
User Manual, (Beta 1.0), 2004.

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ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 655-658
 Indexed in
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Abstract Services-USA, Geo-Ref Information Services-USA,
List B of Scientific Journals, Poland,
Directory of Research Journals
www.cafetinnova.org August 2014, P.P.659-664
ISSN 0974-5904, Volume 07, No. 04

Experimental Study of the Behaviour of Interfaces between Gravel

Soils and Concrete Surfaces
MURUGAN M, NATARAJAN C AND MUTHUKKUMARAN K
National Institute of Technology, Trichy – 620 015
Email: muruganme@yahoo.co.in, nataraj@nitt.edu, kmk@nitt.edu

Abstract: Bearing capacity and load-deformation response of geotechnical structures such as retaining walls, buried
culverts, piles, etc., depend on the stress-displacement behavior of interfaces in the contact area with soil. So it is
essential to determine the interface strength between soil and geotechnical structures to make a good estimation of
load transfer between structures and soils. To provide some insight into the interface behavior between concrete and
gravel soils, an experimental study was performed to evaluate the importance of various parameters. The parameters
varied in this investigation were surface roughness (which include smooth to rough), soil gradation (well and poorly
graded) and normal stress (0.05 N/mm2 to 0.20 N/mm2). Experimental results show that soil gradation and surface
roughness of concrete specimens were significantly changes the interface friction angle. Shear strength at the
interface increases with increase in normal stress and surface roughness. This study will be beneficial to the
researchers and practicing engineers working in soil-structure interaction problems.
Keywords: Direct shear test, gravel soils, internal friction angle, interface friction angle, surface roughness.

1. Introduction: show that maximum shear stress decreases with the

increase in the number of cycles, irrespective of the
The understanding of soil-structure interaction is an
magnitude of the tangential-displacement amplitude.
important task not only in traditional foundation
Porcino et al. (2003) carried out laboratory tests to
structures such as piles, micro piles, retaining walls,
investigate the frictional behavior of sand-solid
buried culverts, anchors, etc., but also for more recent
interfaces under more realistic boundary conditions with
soil reinforcement techniques such as reinforced earth,
respect to the traditional constant normal load (CNL)
soil nailing, soil and geo-membrane interface strength
direct shear tests. They found that normal stress and
etc. Foundation engineering has historically involved
surface roughness have remarkable influence on the
the use of wood, concrete, steel, or a combination of
interface shear strength. Gireesha and Muthukkumaran
these materials. Interface friction between these
(2011) studied the interface friction angle of different
materials with soil is an important factor for the design
structural materials (concrete, steel and wood) against
of foundation structures. Interface strength is based on
well and poorly graded sands with varying relative
the surface roughness of construction material,
density. The experimental results show that both
composition of soil, relative density of soil, grain size
internal and interface friction angle decrease with
distribution and shape of soil particles, moisture content
increasing relative density of both well and poorly
of soil, magnitude of normal stress and rate of shearing
graded sand. Ling and Youg (2012) carried out
etc. To provide some insight into the interface behavior
laboratory tests to determine the interface shear strength
between concrete and gravels, an experimental study
of Palm biodiesel contaminated sand with smooth and
was performed to evaluate the importance of various
rough steel surfaces. The experimental results show that
factors. The behavior of the concrete-gravel interfaces
the contribution of palm biodiesel content to interface
was also compared with the gravel-gravel interfaces.
shear strength is significant. Interface shear strength
Uesugi et al. (1989) studied the friction between sand
increases with the increase of palm biodiesel content.
and steel by laboratory tests under repeated loading.
Applied normal stress and surface roughness have
They found that normal stress, surface roughness and
remarkable influence on the interface shear strength.
sand type have remarkable influence on the interface
The decrease in interface shears strength due to an
friction. Fakharian and Evgin (1997) performed a cyclic
increase in palm biodiesel content.
simple shear test on sand-steel interfaces under constant
normal stiffness condition. The experimental results

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Proceedings of 3-Day International Conference on Emerging Trends in Civil Engineering (ICETE-2014,)
6th–8th January, 2014
 Experimental Study of the Behaviour of Interfaces between Gravel Soils
660
And Concrete Surfaces

2. Soil characteristics: between these specimens with gravel soils. Four

Two types of gravel soils were used for this different concrete specimens are shown in Fig.1a to
experimental study. The Engineering properties of the Fig.1d.The specimens were placed in the lower half of
the direct shear box and the upper half of the shear box
gravel soils are listed in Table.1. The gravel soils were
was filled with gravel soils at predetermined density.
classified as well and poorly graded according to IS:
The modified direct shear test setup is shown in Fig. 2.
1498 – 1970.
When a shearing force is applied to the lower box
Table1: Engineering properties of the gravel soils used through the geared jack, the movement of the lower part
in the study of the box is transmitted through the specimen to the
Well Poorly upper part of the box and hence on the proving ring. The
Soil Property graded graded deformation in proving ring indicates the shear force.
gravel gravel The horizontal displacement during the shearing process
Grain size analysis: is measured by mounting a dial gauge at the top of the
Effective size, D10 2.52 mm 2.31mm box. Samples were sheared at 1.25 mm/min. For each
Coefficient of uniformity, Cu 4.42 3.62 tests four normal stress 0.05 N/mm2, 0.10 N/mm2, 0.15
Coefficient of curvature, Cc 1.24 0.92 N/mm2 and 0.20 N/mm2 were used.
Classification (unified) GW GP
Specific gravity, Gs 2.68 2.65
Dry unit weight:
Maximum, γd (max) 18.86 kN/m3 18.12 kN/m3
Minimum, γd (min) 16.68 kN/m3 16.25 kN/m3
Test, γd (test) 17.72 kN/m3 17.48 kN/m3
3. Testing apparatus:
The direct shear tests for this entire study were carried
out in a conventional direct shear box apparatus. The
apparatus consists of a two piece shear box of 60 mm x
60 mm in cross-section rests over sliding rollers
supported by a loading frame and which can be pushed
forward at a constant rate by geared jack, driven by an Fig1a: Smooth surface concrete specimen
electric motor. The gearbox with its motor is used with
the step less speed control box. The speed control of the
shear box is calibrated in mm/min. Test speed could be
controlled by choosing the appropriate gear wheel from
the gear box. The lower half of the shear box is rigidly
held in position in a container and the upper half of the
box butts against a proving ring. The normal stress to
the specimen is by a vertical load hanger which rests on
the yoke above the soil specimen, and hangs vertically
downwards permitting selected weights to be held on its
loading pan. The shear force was measured by means of
a proving ring. The horizontal displacement of the soil Fig1b: Medium surface concrete specimen
specimen was measured with the help of a dial gauge.
4. Testing methodology:
For the interface frictional test, four concrete specimens
of size 6cm x 6cm x 1.4 cm were prepared. The
concrete specimens were prepared by first mixing the
sand and cement, adding water and mixing gradually,
subsequently filling the prepared boxes with concrete.
Three different surface of concrete (smooth, medium
and rough) were suitably obtained by travelling. Next
day, the specimens were remoulded and immersed in
water for curing. After sufficient curing, specimens
were taken out and one specimen was coated with
epoxy polymer. Direct shear test was conducted Fig1c: Rough surface concrete specimen

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 661 MURUGAN M, N ATARAJAN C AND M UTHUKKUMARAN K

parameters. Generally, Absolute roughness (Ra) is

considered for calculating interface friction between two
different materials. It is a measure of the surface
roughness of a material. This roughness is generally
expressed in units of length as the absolute roughness of
the material. Surface roughness of concrete specimens
used in the study is given in the Table 2. The results
obtained for the well and poorly graded gravel soils
under different normal stresses were analysed to obtain
the required shear strength parameters. The obtained
shear strength parameters are presented in Table 3.
Interface friction angle against surface roughness of
Fig1d: Epoxy coated concrete specimen concrete specimens with well and poorly graded gravel
soils are shown in Fig. 3 and 4 respectively. It indicates
that interface friction angle increases with the increment
of the surface roughness of the concrete specimens used
in this study. The highest peak shear strength is
achieved when the surface is rough.
Table2: Surface roughness
Surface roughness,
Concrete specimens
Ra (μm)
Smooth surface concrete 0.62
Medium surface concrete 0.88
Fig2: Test set up for interface friction measurement
Rough surface concrete 1.82
5. Test results and discussions:
Epoxy coated concrete 0.44
5.1 Effect of surface roughness on interface friction:
Surface roughness of the material is one of the
important factors that influence the shear strength
Table3: Shear strength parameters
Angle of internal/interface friction
Type of interaction
Well graded gravel Poorly graded gravel
Gravel – Gravel 42.54º 40.60º
Gravel – Smooth surface concrete 38.68º 35.92º
Gravel – Medium surface concrete 40.33º 38.34º
Gravel – Rough surface concrete 46.28º 44.26º
Gravel – Epoxy coated concrete 36.88º 34.98º

Fig3: Interface friction angle against surface roughness of concrete specimens with well graded gravel soil

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 Experimental Study of the Behaviour of Interfaces between Gravel Soils
662
And Concrete Surfaces

Fig4: Interface friction angle against surface roughness of concrete specimens with poorly graded gravel soil
5.2 Effect of normal stress on shear stress: normal stress for well and poorly graded gravel soils are
Shear stress against normal stress was plotted; it given in the Table 4 and 5 respectively. Typical shear
stress against normal stress between well graded gravel
indicates that the shear strength increases with
soils is shown in Fig5.
increasing normal stress. Maximum shear stress against
Table4. Maximum shear stress against normal stress for well graded gravel
Normal Maximum shear stress (N/mm2)
stress, GW-Smooth GW-Medium GW-Rough GW-Coated
(N/mm2) GW-GW
surface concrete surface concrete surface concrete surface concrete
0.05 0.04626 0.04018 0.04387 0.05398 0.04482
0.10 0.09225 0.07956 0.09113 0.11548 0.07852
0.15 0.14375 0.12578 0.11795 0.15182 0.12153
0.20 0.18086 0.15754 0.17525 0.21264 0.14915
Table5. Maximum shear stress against normal stress for poorly graded gravel
Normal Maximum shear stress (N/mm2)
stress, GP-Smooth GP-Medium GP-Rough GP-Coated
(N/mm2) GP-GP
surface concrete surface concrete surface concrete surface concrete
0.05 0.05274 0.04024 0.04926 0.05450 0.03825
0.10 0.10247 0.07988 0.9228 0.10548 0.07828
0.15 0.13352 0.10854 0.12269 0.14858 0.09986
0.20 0.17409 0.14698 0.16125 0.19685 0.14428

Fig5. Shear stress against normal stress for well graded gravel soils

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 663 MURUGAN M, N ATARAJAN C AND M UTHUKKUMARAN K

5.3 Effect of shear stress on horizontal displacement: constant shear stress. Typical shear stress against
Horizontal displacement against shear stress was horizontal displacement curves between well graded
gravel soils and well graded gravel soil to concrete
plotted; it indicates that horizontal displacement
specimen (smooth surface) are shown in Fig. 6 and 7
increases gradually with increase in shear stress until it
respectively.
reaches its failure shear stress. After that, further
increment in horizontal displacement resulting in

Fig6. Shear stress against horizontal displacement curves for well graded gravel soils

Fig7. Shear stress against horizontal displacement curves for well graded gravel soil to concrete specimen (smooth
surface)
6. Conclusions:  Angle of interface friction between smooth surface
Direct shear tests were conducted to investigate the concrete specimen with well and poorly graded
interface friction angle between well and poorly graded gravel soils were 4.09 % and 6.31 % lower than
gravel soils with concrete specimens. The tests were medium surface concrete specimen.
performed under four values of normal stress 0.05  Angle of interface friction between rough surface
N/mm2, 0.10 N/mm2, 0.15 N/mm2 and 0.20 N/mm2. concrete specimen with well and poorly graded
Examining the data obtained from direct shear test, it gravel soils were 14.75 % and 15.44 % higher than
could be seen that, the shear strength at the interface medium surface concrete specimen
increases with increase in surface roughness of concrete  Angle of interface friction between epoxy coated
specimens. The shear strength increases with increasing concrete specimen with well and poorly graded
normal stress. gravel soils were 8.55 % and 8.76 % lower than
medium surface concrete specimen

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 Experimental Study of the Behaviour of Interfaces between Gravel Soils
664
And Concrete Surfaces

Reference from constant normal stiffness direct shear tests.”

Geotechnical Testing Journal, 26(03), 01-13.
[1] Uesugi, M., Kishida, H., and Tsubakihara, Y.
[4] Gireesha, N. T., and Muthukkumaran, K. (2011).
(1989). “Friction between sand and steel under
“Study on soil structure interface strength
repeated loading.” Geotechnical Society, Soils and
property.” International Journal of Earth Sciences
Foundations, 29(03), 127-137.
and Engineering, 04(06), 89-93.
[2] Fakharian, K., and Evgin, E. (1997). “Cyclic
[5] Ling, S. Y., and Youg, L. C. (2012). “Palm
simple-shear behavior of sand-steel interfaces under
biodiesel contaminated sand-steel interface testing
constant normal stiffness condition.” Journal of
with direct simple shear apparatus.” International
Geotechnical and Geo-Environmental Engineering,
Journal of Civil and Structural Engineering, 03(01),
123(12), 1096-1105.
227-238.
[3] Porcino, D., Fioravante, V., Ghionna, V. N., and
Pedroni, S. (2003). “Interface behavior of sands

International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering

ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 659-664
 Indexed in
Scopus Compendex and Geobase Elsevier, Chemical
Abstract Services-USA, Geo-Ref Information Services-USA,
List B of Scientific Journals, Poland,
Directory of Research Journals
www.cafetinnova.org August 2014, P.P.665-672
ISSN 0974-5904, Volume 07, No. 04

A Study on the Effect of Fiber Orientation on Simply Supported

Laminated Plates
B D V CHANDRA MOHAN RAO1 AND N V RAMANA RAO2
1
Civil Engg. V.N.R Vignana Jyothi Institute of Engg. & Tech., Bachupally, Hyderabad – 500 090,
2
Civil Engg. JNTUH College of Engg, Kukatpally, Hyderabad – 500 085,
Email: chandramohanrao_bdv@vnrvjiet.in, rao.nvr@gmail.com

Abstract: In the recent years the use of laminated composite plates has considerably increased. The knowledge of
dynamic behaviour of plates and shell structures is very essential for sound design. When such structures are
subjected to dynamic loads, their behaviour is affected by excessive vibrations, higher displacements and
accelerations, which may deteriorate the structural performance. Hence, the dynamic response of laminated
composite plates to excitations, varying arbitrarily with time is investigated in this paper. Effect of fibre orientation
of plies on the stresses and deflections is studied. Laminated composite plates subjected to transient dynamic loads
are analyzed for various fibre orientations and boundary conditions. A rectangular laminated plate simply supported
along all the four edges is subjected to triangular and rectangular impulsive loads. The most robust fibre orientation
with respect to various response parameters is suggested.
In many practical situations, the dynamic excitation is neither harmonic nor periodic. Laminated composite plates
subjected to transient dynamic loads are analyzed for sixteen varieties of fibre orientations (0/0/0/0/0, 0/30/45/30/0,
0/30/0/30/0, 45/0/45/0/45, 45/0/0/0/45, 45/-45/0/-45/45, 30/60/90/60/30, 30/-45/0/-45/30, 90/45/0/45/90, 90/-60/45/-
60/90, 90/0/90/0/90, 0/90/0/90/0 30/45/60/45/30, 30/-45/60/-45/30, 45/60/90/60/45, 90/-30/45/-30/90) and simply
supported boundary conditions. Finite element modelling of the plates is carried out using layered shell element in
ANSYS. The plate consists of five layers and the thickness of each layer is taken as constant. Laminates are
considered to be made of two orthotropic materials and joined alternatively to make full plate. First, third, fifth
layers are made of one material and second, fourth layers are made of another material.
Keywords: laminated, composite plates, dynamic load, fibre orientation, optimization and von- mises stress.

1. Introduction: 2. Literature Review:

Laminated composite plates are used especially in
aerospace, naval structures, automobile industry and
building construction in the form of prefabricated and
mobile homes and floors made of plywood laminates.
They are light in weight and possess high strength and
hence they became very popular. Composites are a
series of lamina or plies of varying thickness and/or
materials. The lamina is stacked with various fibre
orientations to obtain a laminate which has the desired
directional stiffness and strength properties required for
an acceptable design. Ply stacking sequence is important
to obtain the stiffness and strength properties of an
efficient laminate. In the design of plates and shell
structures, weight reduction, limitation on natural
frequencies, displacements and accelerations are aimed
at structural improvement of cost, reliability and
performance.
A method to optimize a composite laminate with layers
oriented according to a limited set of angles is described
by Conti et al [1]. The laminate must be balanced,
symmetric and loaded in plane. It providers the designer
with a list of all the possible orientation combinations
ranked as per their safety factor and the optimal overall
engineering characteristics.
An optimum design of laminated composite structures
subjected to in-plane loading is presented by Fukunaga
and Sekine [2]. A simplified design approach is
developed to optimize layer thickness distributions and
layer angle. Based on the minimum strain energy
criterion, an optimal relation is derived explicitly for
layer thickness ratios and layer angles in a single
element laminate.
Fukunaga and Vanderplaats [3] investigated laminated
composites under in-plane loading for the strength
optimization based upon the mathematical programming

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Proceedings of 3-Day International Conference on Emerging Trends in Civil Engineering (ICETE-2014,)
6th–8th January, 2014
 A Study on the Effect of Fiber Orientation on Simply Supported Laminated Plates
method. Layer thickness and layer orientation angles are
taken as the design variables. This new technique gives
an efficient optimization approach for the laminated
composites.
A multilevel approach to the optimal design of
laminated composite plates is presented by Kam and
Chang [4] by considering deflection, damping and
natural frequency. Ply orientation and thickness are
designed to minimize the volumes of the plates
subjected to constraints on the first natural frequencies,
deflections induced by the applied loads and damping of
the first vibration modes.
Pathak et al. [5] studied the transient dynamic analysis
of three dimensional composite laminated plates.
Simply supported plate made up of five layers, two
orthotropic materials stacked in alternate layers are
investigated. Number of plates is analyzed by varying
the fiber orientation, thickness and type of loading.
3. Illustrative Example:
A rectangular laminated plate of size 2500 mm x 1250
mm, simply supported along all the four edges is
investigated in this paper. Finite element modelling of
the plates is carried out using layered shell element and
is shown in Figure 1. The plate has been discretized into
1250 elements and 3901 nodes. The plate consists of
five layers and the thickness of each layer is 5 mm. Two
types of dynamic loads such as triangular impulsive
type as shown in Figure 2(a) and rectangular impulsive
type as shown in Figure 2(b) are applied on the plate.
The peak load at each node is 10 N and load duration is
one second in both the load cases 1, 2. Laminated
composite plates subjected to transient dynamic loads
are analyzed for 16 varieties of fiber orientations as
shown in Figures 3(a) to (p).
Laminates are considered to be made of two orthotropic
materials and joined alternatively to make full plate.
First, Third, Fifth layers are made of material 1 and
second; fourth layers are made of material 2. The
mechanical properties of these materials are taken from
Meyers & Chawla [6] and are shown in Table 1.
4. Results & Discussion:
4.1. Simply supported – Load case 1:
A rectangular laminated plate simply supported along
all the four edges is subjected to triangular impulsive
load i.e. load case-1. The deflection profile is shown in
Figure 4(a). The Von Mises stress contour is shown in
Figure 4(b). The displacement, velocity and acceleration
time histories are shown in Figures 4(c), (d) and (e)
respectively. The maximum response parameters for
various fiber orientations are given in Table 2(a). The
absolute maximum / minimum response parameters are
listed in Table 2(b).
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666
It is observed that the peak deflection, velocity and
acceleration are minimum in the case of 90/-60/45/-
60/90 and maximum in case of 0/0/0/0/0, whereas the
peak stress is maximum in case of 45/0/45/0/45 and
minimum in case of 90/-60/45/-60/90. Hence, 90/-
60/45/-60/90 is the most robust orientation with respect
to various response parameters.
4.2. Simply Supported – Load Case 2:
A rectangular laminated plate simply supported along
all the four edges is subjected to rectangular impulsive
load i.e. load case-2. The deflection profile is shown in
Figure 5(a). The Von Mises stress contour is shown in
Figure 5(b). The displacement, velocity and acceleration
time histories are shown in Figures 5(c), (d) and (e)
respectively. The maximum response parameters for
various fiber orientations are given in Table 3(a). The
absolute maximum / minimum response parameters are
listed in Table 3(b).
It is observed that the peak deflection, velocity and
acceleration are minimum in the case of 90/-60/45/-
60/90 and maximum in case of 0/0/0/0/0, whereas the
peak stress is maximum in case of 30/60/90/60/30 and
minimum in case of 90/-60/45/-60/90. Hence, 90/-
60/45/-60/90 is the most robust orientation with respect
to various response parameters.
5. Conclusions:
 Laminated composite plates fixed and simply
supported along all the four edges subjected to
triangular and rectangular impulsive loads are
investigated for various types of fiber orientations.
It is observed that fiber orientation plays a vital role
in distribution of stresses and deflections.
 By properly orienting the fibers in laminated
composite plates, the maximum deflections can be
reduced to an extent of about 90% and maximum
stresses can be reduced to an extent of about 85%.
This implies considerable saving in material can be
achieved by properly orienting the fibers.
 It is observed that the peak deflection, stress,
velocity and acceleration are minimum in 90/-
60/45/-60/90 orientation (all the cases) and
maximum in 0/0/0/0/0 orientation. (most of the
cases) Hence, 90/-60/45/-60/90 is the most robust
orientation with respect to various response
parameters.
 Design of composite laminated plates based on
these studies will not only save the material but also
evolve robust design.
Reference
[1] Conti P, Luparell S and Pasta A (1997), Layer
thickness optimization in a laminated composite,
Composites Part B: Engineering, Vol.28, Issue 3,
pp. 309-317.
 667 B D V CHANDRA MOHAN R AO AND N V R AMANA R AO

[2] Fukunaga H and Sekine H (1993), Optimum design 12

of composite structures for shape, layer angle and 10
layer thickness distributions, Journal of Composite
8
Materials, Vol.27, No.15, pp.1479-1492.

Load (N)
6
[3] Fukunaga H and Vanderplaats G N (1991),
Strength optimization of laminated composites with 4

respect to layer thickness and/or layer orientation 2

angle, Computers & Structures, Vol.40, Issue 6, pp. 0

1429-1439. 0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1 1.2
Time (Sec)
[4] Kam T Y and Chang R.R (1989), Optimal design of
laminated composite plates with dynamic and static
considerations, Computers & Structures, Vol.32, Figure2(b). Dynamic (Rectangular Impulsive) Load –
Issue 2, pp.387-393. Load Case 2
[5] Pathak K.K, Vipin Arora and Jain J K (2007),
Parametric optimization of composite laminated
plates under dynamic loads, Journal of Structural
Engineering, Vol.34, No.3, pp.191-194.
[6] Meyers and Chawla (1999), Mechanical behaviour
of Engineering Materials, Prentice Hall, New
Jersey.

Figure 3(a). Fiber Orientation – 1

Figure1: FE Model of a Simply Supported Plate

12

10

8
Load (N)

4 Figure 3(b). Fiber Orientation – 2

2

0
0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1 1.2
Time (Sec)

Figure2(a). Dynamic (Triangular Impulsive) Load –

Load Case 1

Figure 3(c). Fiber Orientation – 3

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 A Study on the Effect of Fiber Orientation on Simply Supported Laminated Plates
668

Figure 3(d). Fiber Orientation – 4

Figure 3(h). Fiber Orientation – 8

Figure 3(e). Fiber Orientation – 5

Figure 3(i). Fiber Orientation – 9

Figure 3(f). Fiber Orientation – 6

Figure 3(j). Fiber Orientation – 10

Figure 3(g). Fiber Orientation – 7

Figure 3(k). Fiber Orientation – 11

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669 B D V CHANDRA MOHAN R AO AND N V R AMANA R AO

Figure 3(l). Fiber Orientation – 12 Figure 3(p). Fiber Orientation – 16

Figure3: Fibre Orientations in a Laminated Composite
Plate

Figure 3(m). Fiber Orientation – 13

Figure 4(a). Deflection Profile

Figure 3(n). Fiber Orientation – 14

Figure 4(b). Von Mises Stress Contour

Figure 3(o). Fiber Orientation – 15

Figure 4(c). Displacement Time History

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 A Study on the Effect of Fiber Orientation on Simply Supported Laminated Plates
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Figure 4(d). Velocity Time History Figure 5(c). Displacement Time History

Figure 4(e). Acceleration Time History

Figure4: Response of a SS plate for load case-1 Figure 5(d). Velocity Time History

Figure 5(a). Deflection Profile

Figure 5(e). Acceleration Time History

Figure5: Response of a SS plate for Load Case-2

Figure 5(b). Von Mises Stress Contour

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 671 B D V CHANDRA MOHAN R AO AND N V R AMANA R AO

Table1: Properties of Materials

S. No. Property Material – 1 Material - 2

2
1 Longitudinal Elasticity modulus, E11 1,55,000 N/mm 50,000 N/mm2
2 Transverse Elasticity modulus, E22 12,100 N/mm2 15,200 N/mm2
3 Longitudinal Elasticity modulus, E33 12,100 N/mm2 15,200 N/mm2
4 In-plane Poisson’s ratio, 12 0.458 0.428
5 Transverse Poisson’s ratio, 23 0.248 0.254
6 In-plane Poisson’s ratio, 31 0.248 0.254
2
7 In-plane shear modulus, G12 3200 N/mm 3280 N/mm2
8 Transverse shear modulus, G23 4400 N/mm2 4700 N/mm2
9 Transverse shear modulus, G31 4400 N/mm2 4700 N/mm2
10 Density 2200 kg/m3 2500 kg/m3

Table2(a). Maximum Responses of a SS plate for Load Case- 1

Deflection Von Mises Stress Velocity Acceleration
S. No Fiber Orientation
(mm) (N/mm2) (mm/sec) (mm/sec2)
1 0/0/0/0/0 13.31 36.09 17.95 31.10
2 0/30/45/30/0 12.03 32.35 15.12 26.12
3 0/30/0/30/0 12.28 33.07 15.66 27.07
4 45/0/45/0/45 5.19 186.21 5.49 8.99
5 45/0/0/0/45 5.22 185.12 5.51 9.03
6 45/-45/0/-45/45 4.62 143.74 5.03 8.23
7 30/60/90/60/30 6.53 182.89 6.64 10.97
8 30/-45/0/-45/30 6.26 136.20 6.41 10.57
9 90/45/0/45/90 2.39 28.03 2.88 4.74
10 90/-60/45/-60/90 2.33 27.39 2.82 4.64
11 90/0/90/0/90 2.45 28.70 2.94 4.84
12 0/90/0/90/0 10.68 28.11 12.33 21.16
13 30/45/60/45/30 6.42 162.77 6.14 10.36
14 30/-45/60/-45/30 6.18 132.46 6.02 10.04
15 45/60/90/60/45 5.06 167.42 5.34 8.66
16 90/-30/45/-30/90 2.43 28.24 2.86 4.72
Table2(b). Absolute maximum / minimum responses of a SS plate for Load Case- 1
Deflection Von Mises Stress Velocity Acceleration
Parameter
(mm) (N/mm2) (mm/sec) (mm/sec2)
Absolute maximum 13.31 186.21 17.95 31.10
Fiber orientation F-1 F-4 F-1 F-1
Absolute minimum 2.33 27.39 2.82 4.64
Fiber orientation F-10 F-10 F-10 F-10
Max. % reduction 82.49 85.29 84.29 85.08

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 A Study on the Effect of Fiber Orientation on Simply Supported Laminated Plates
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Table3(a). Maximum Responses of a SS plate for Load case- 2

Deflection Von Mises Stress Velocity Acceleration
S. No Fiber Orientation
(mm) (N/mm2) (mm/sec) (mm/sec2)
1 0/0/0/0/0 23.21 65.74 1432 7155
2 0/30/45/30/0 21.29 60.16 966 4916
3 0/30/0/30/0 21.70 61.35 1068 5422
4 45/0/45/0/45 7.34 230.77 500 2724
5 45/0/0/0/45 7.35 229.11 507 2757
6 45/-45/0/-45/45 6.87 185.84 391 1841
7 30/60/90/60/30 9.01 239.72 770 4124
8 30/-45/0/-45/30 8.32 172.58 726 3900
9 90/45/0/45/90 3.52 41.54 355 1751
10 90/-60/45/-60/90 3.41 40.31 353 1749
11 90/0/90/0/90 3.64 42.94 370 1780
12 0/90/0/90/0 18.65 52.26 446 1819
13 30/45/60/45/30 9.86 216.84 618 3302
14 30/-45/60/-45/30 8.14 156.36 582 3120
15 45/60/90/60/45 7.28 228.76 492 2714
16 90/-30/45/-30/90 3.50 41.62 354 1750
Table3(b). Absolute maximum / minimum responses of a SS plate for Load Case- 2
Deflection VonMises Stress Velocity Acceleration
Parameter
(mm) (N/mm2) (mm/sec) (mm/sec2)
Absolute maximum 23.21 239.72 1432 7155
Fiber orientation F-1 F-7 F-1 F-1
Absolute minimum 3.41 40.31 353 1749
Fiber orientation F-10 F-10 F-10 F-10
Max. % reduction 85.31 83.18 75.35 75.56

International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering

ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 665-672
 Indexed in
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Abstract Services-USA, Geo-Ref Information Services-USA,
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www.cafetinnova.org August 2014, P.P.673-680
ISSN 0974-5904, Volume 07, No. 04

Effects of Openings in Shear Wall on Seismic Response of Frame-

Shear Wall Structures
M. JYOTHI AND MD. F AROOQ
Dept. of Civil Engineering, VNR Vignana Jyothi Institute of Engineering and Technology, Hyderabad, India,
500090

Abstract: Lateral forces caused by wind, earthquake, and uneven settlement loads, in addition to the weight of
structure and occupants create powerful twisting (torsion) forces. These forces can literally tear (shear) a building
apart. Reinforcing a frame by attaching or placing a rigid wall inside it maintains the shape of the frame and
prevents rotation at the joints. Shear walls are especially important in high-rise buildings subject to lateral wind and
seismic forces. The present work deals with a study of the effect of openings in shear walls in high rise buildings. In
this work a high rise building with shear walls with and without openings is considered for analysis. The high rise
building is analyzed for its top displacement, Stiffness, and Maximum absolute principal stress.
Keywords: Shear Wall, Drift, Earthquake Loads, Finite Element Analysis.

1. Introduction: 2. Statement of the problem

Earthquake is one of the nature’s greatest hazards to
properties and human lives. It poses a unique
engineering design problem. An intense earthquake
constitutes severe loading to which most civil
engineering structures may possibly be subjected. The
number of earthquakes reported worldwide, are usually
followed by enormous death and injury. Not only life
but also economy that are threatened from this disaster.
The approach of engineering design is to design the
structures in such a way that it can survive under the
most severe earthquakes, during their service lives to
minimize the loss of life and the possibility of damage.
Buildings are designed primarily to serve the needs of
an intended occupancy. The vital structural criteria are
an adequate reserve of strength against failure, adequate
lateral stiffness and an efficient performance during the
service life of the buildings.
An introduction of shear wall represents a structurally
efficient solution to stiffen a building structural system
because the main function of a shear wall is to increase
the rigidity for lateral load resistance. In modern tall
buildings, shear walls are commonly used as a vertical
structural element for resisting the lateral loads that may
be induced by the effect of wind and earthquakes. Wall
openings are inevitably required for windows in
external walls and for doors or corridors in inner walls
or in lift cores. The size and location of openings may
vary from architectural and functional point of view.
Shear walls in apartment buildings will be perforated by
rows of openings that are required for windows in
external walls or for doors or corridors in internal walls.
However, the size and location of openings in the shear
wall may have adverse effect on seismic responses of
frame-shear wall structures. Relative stiffness of shear
walls is important since lateral forces are distributed to
individual shear wall according to their relative
stiffness. Simplified methods for stiffness of shear walls
with openings are recommended in several design
guidelines. As a designer, it is necessary to know the
effects of openings sizes and configurations in shear
wall on stiffness as well as on seismic responses and
behavior of structural system so that a suitable
configuration of openings in shear walls can be made.
3. Modeling of structure
One of the objectives of this model designing is to
ensure that the model represents the characteristics of
apartment buildings. For model designing, main factors
such as grid spacing, floor shape, floor height and
column section are considered. 12-story building having
same floor plan of 35 m × 15 m dimensions is
considered for this study. The floor plans are divided
into 7 × 3 bays in such a way that center to center
distance between two grids is 5 meters as shown in
Figure 1 and 2.The floor height of the building is
assumed as 3 meters for all floors.

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Proceedings of 3-Day International Conference on Emerging Trends in Civil Engineering (ICETE-2014,)
6th–8th January, 2014
 Effects of Openings in Shear Wall on Seismic Response of
674
Frame-Shear Wall Structures

Fig2: 3-D Model of 12-storey building

Fig1: Typical floor plan for 12-story buildings with
frame-shear wall structures
Buildings are considered with same floor plan in all
floors having shear walls at same location. Shear walls
of same section are used. Tables 1 and 2 show the sizes
and locations of door and window openings used in the
shear walls of the proposed typical frame-shear wall
structures. Horizontally centered door openings of 2.1 m
height (Figure 3a) are increased from 14% to 35%
varying the door width ‘bo’.
Similarly, window openings of 2 m width located at 0.6
m from floor level as shown in Figures 3c and 4c were
increased from 12% to 28% varying the opening height
‘ho’. Door openings of size 1 m × 2.1 m i.e. opening
area of 14% were eccentrically located at a horizontal
distance ‘eh’ from center of vertical boundary element
in shear wall to the edge of doors as shown in Figures
3b. The distance ‘eh’ was varied from 1 m to 2 m to see
the effects of opening locations in horizontal direction.
Similarly, window openings of 2 m × 1.2 m i.e. opening
area of 16% were located at different vertical distance
‘ev’ from floor level to the bottom of windows as shown
in Figure 3d. The distance ‘ev’ was varied from 0.3 m to
1.5 m to see the effects of opening locations in vertical
direction.

Table1: Sizes and locations of door openings in shear walls

Horizontally centered door openings of 2.1 1 m × 2.1 m door openings at different
m height horizontal distance ‘eh’
Bo/L Opening area (%) eh (m) Opening area (%)
0.2 14 1.0 14
0.3 21 1.5 14
0.4 28 1.75 14
0.5 35 2.0 14

International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering

ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 673-680
 675 M. J YOTHI AND MD. F AROOQ

Table2: Sizes and locations of window openings in shear walls

2 m wide window openings at 2 m × 1.2 m window openings at different
0.6 m from floor level vertical distance ‘ev’
ho/h Opening area (%) ev (m) Opening area (%)
0.3 12 0.3 16
0.4 16 0.6 16
0.5 20 0.9 16
0.6 24 1.2 16
0.7 28 1.5 16

Fig3: Sections of 12-story buildings with different sizes and locations of door and window openings in shear walls

(a) Without opening (b) With 1 m × 2.1 m opening at base

(c) With 1 m × 1.2 m opening at 0.6 m from bas

Fig4: Finite element models of single story rectangular shear walls

International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering

ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 673-680
 Effects of Openings in Shear Wall on Seismic Response of
676
Frame-Shear Wall Structures

Rectangular shear walls with and without opening are
modelled using plate elements available in structural
analysis program ETAB. Uniformly distributed lateral
load was applied at the top of shear walls. For
parametric study the percentage of horizontally centered
opening at the base of wall is increased from 6% to
14%, 9% to 21%, 12% to 28% and 15% to 35% by
increasing the ratio of opening height to shear wall
height (ho/h) from 0.3 to 0.7 for fixed ratio of opening
condition assumed for top of the solid strip and piers
increases the actual rigidity.
The relative stiffness of shear walls with opening of
same size at different vertical locations is a straight line
in Figures5e and 5f. It reveals that the stiffness of the
wall obtained by the simplified method does not
consider the vertical location of opening.
SR vs ho/h

width to shear wall length (bo/L) of 0.2, 0.3, 0.4, 0.5,

1.00
respectively. Locations of opening size 1 m × 1.2 m and
2 m × 1.2 m are changed in vertical direction to obtain 0.95
the stiffness of shear walls with same size of opening at

Stiffness ratio (kN/mm)

different vertical locations. 0.90

To study the effects of opening sizes and locations in

shear walls on seismic responses of buildings, three 0.85

dimensional (3D) geometric models of the buildings are

0.80
developed in ETAB. Beams and columns are modelled
as beam elements. Shear walls are modelled as plate 0.75
elements. Floor slabs are modelled as rigid horizontal
plane. At each floor level, an additional node termed as -0.1 0.0 0.1 0.2 0.3 0.4 0.5 0.6 0.7 0.8

‘master’ node with three degree of freedoms, two ho/h

translations and one rotation about normal to the plane

(a) 1m wide opening
of the floor is introduced. The other corresponding three
degree of freedoms of all floor nodes called slave nodes SR vs ho/h

are related to those of the master node at same floor. 1.05

1.00
Due to time limitations, it was impossible to account
accurately for all aspects of behaviour of all the 0.95

components and materials even if their sizes and 0.90

Stiffness ratio (kN/mm)

properties were known. Thus, for simplicity, following

assumptions were made for the structural modeling: 0.85

1. The materials of the structure are assumed as 0.80

homogeneous, isotropic and linearly elastic. 0.75

2. The effects of secondary structural components and 0.70

non-structural components such as staircase,
masonry infill walls are assumed to be negligible. 0.65

3. Floors slabs are assumed rigid in plane. -0.1 0.0 0.1 0.2 0.3 0.4 0.5 0.6 0.7 0.8

4. Foundation for analysis is considered as rigid. ho/h

4. Results and discussion: (b) 1.5m wide opening

The stiffnesses/ rigidities of shear walls with and
without opening are obtained from simplified methods.
The stiffnesses of the walls with opening relative to that
of solid wall are presented in Figure 5 in terms of
stiffness ratio. Figures 5a to 5d reveal that the stiffness
of the wall decreases with an increase in the opening
size for simplified methods. Using the simplified
method, stiffness of wall with 12% opening has been
found 82% of that of solid wall with aspect ratio of the
opening (ho/bo) equals 1.8 (Figure 5a), where ho is
height of the opening and bo is width of the opening.
However, the simplified method often overestimates the
stiffness of walls with opening because the fixedend

International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering

ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 673-680
677 M. J YOTHI AND MD. F AROOQ

SR vs ho/h SR vs ev (m)

1.0

1.5

0.9
Stiffness ratio (kN/mm)

Stiffness ratio (kN/mm)

0.8 1.0

0.7
0.5

0.6

0.0
0.5
-0.1 0.0 0.1 0.2 0.3 0.4 0.5 0.6 0.7 0.8

ho/h 0.0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0

ev (m)
(c) 2m wide opening
SR vs ho/h
(f) 2m x 1.2m Opening at Different ev (m)
Fig5: Stiffness of walls with opening relative to that of
1.0 solid wall
0.9 For wall with 20% opening, the simplified method
overestimates the stiffness of the wall by about 39% for
0.8 opening aspect ratio (ho/bo) of 0.75. However,
Stiffness ratio (kN/mm)

percentage difference increased to 50% for the wall with

0.7
the same opening area but higher aspect ratio of 1.3.
0.6 Thus, the simplified method gives remarkably poor
results for wall with higher aspect ratio of opening
0.5 (ho/bo) than that with lower aspect ratio for same
opening area. The simplified method can overestimate
0.4
the stiffness of shear wall by about 30% for wall with
-0.1 0.0 0.1 0.2 0.3 0.4 0.5 0.6 0.7 0.8 maximum opening area of 16% at the base of shear
ho/h wall. For this area, an aspect ratio of opening (ho/bo) has
to be less than or equal to 0.6. It can be clearly seen
(d) 2.5m wide opening
from the simplified method the stiffness of wall by less
SR vs ev (m) than 20% for the wall with opening area ≤ 10%,
2.0
regardless of the aspect ratio of opening.
The seismic responses of the frame-shear wall structures
1.5 such as top displacement of the systems in shear walls
with different openings sizes and locations due to
Stiffness ratio (kN/mm)

1.0
earthquake load are compared in Figure 6 to Figure 8.
Thus, it is easy to observe the effects of opening size and
its location in shear wall on seismic response of the
0.5 frame-shear wall structures under seismic excitation.

0.0

-0.2 0.0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0 1.2 1.4 1.6

ev (m)

(e) 1m x 1.2m Opening at Different ev (m)

International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering

ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 673-680
 Effects of Openings in Shear Wall on Seismic Response of
678
Frame-Shear Wall Structures

Disp vs Opening %
Disp vs ev (m)
47 42.7

46
42.6

45
42.5
Displacement (mm)

44
42.4

Displacement (mm)
43

42.3
42

42.2
41

40
42.1

-5 0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 42.0
Opening %
41.9
(a) Horizontally centered door openings of 2.1m high 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0 1.2 1.4 1.6

ev (m)
Disp vs Opening %

48
Fig. 8 Top displacements of frame-shear wall structures
47 with 2 m × 1.2 m window openings at different vertical
46 locations in shear walls
45 Figure 6 show that the top displacement of 12-story
Displacement (mm)

44
building with an increase in openings sizes. It means
43
that the stiffness of the system decreases with the
increase in opening size. The stiffness of the system is
42
not only affected by the width of the opening but also
41 affected by the height of the opening. For shear walls
40 with opening area less than or up to 20% of the wall
0 5 10 15 20 25 30
area, the rate of increase in top displacement of the
Opening % system and decrease in base shear in shear walls with an
increase in opening size is nearly the same for different
(b) 2m wide window openings at 0.6m from floor level opening arrangementsin12-story buildings. The top
Fig. 6 Top displacements of frame-shear wall structures displacement of 12-story building (Figure 7) with door
with different size of door and window openings in openings of 28% in shear walls has been found 44.79
shear walls mm, respectively. It has been found 47.89 mm,
Disp vs eh (m)
respectively for shear walls with same opening area of
42.5 windows at 0.6 m from floor level. It thus, the opening
arrangement in shear wall has significant effect on the
42.4
stiffness of the system, when the opening area in the
shear walls is larger than 20%.
42.3 The effect of vertical location of window openings
Displacement (mm)

(Figure 8) has been found more sensitive than the

42.2
horizontal location of door openings (Figure 7) on
stiffness of the system. The stiffness of the system
decreased with an increase in vertical distance ‘e v’ from
42.1
floor level to the bottom of window (Figure 8).
However, it increased slightly when the window
42.0
opening is shifted from 1.2 m to 1.5 m from floor level.
1.0 1.2 1.4 1.6 1.8 2.0
The effect has been found same in the separate shear
eh (m)
wall of same section and shape used in three
dimensional models.
Fig. 7 Top displacements of frame-shear wall structures Maximum principal stress is one of the parameter that
with 1 m × 2.1 m door openings at different horizontal can be used for failure criteria in concrete structures
locations in shear walls which is brittle in nature. Failure occurs in concrete
structure when the maximum principal stress reaches

International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering

ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 673-680
 679 M. J YOTHI AND MD. F AROOQ

either uniaxial tensile strength or uni-axial compressive
strength. Thus, magnitudes and locations of maximum
absolute principal and maximum principal stresses in
shear walls due to service loads are compared in Tables
5 to 8 for all structures. In addition to that, maximum
absolute principal stress at top corner of opening at 2nd
floor of shear walls, are compared.
Maximum principal stress (Smax) in shear wall increases
with the increase in openings sizes. The maximum
principal stress in shear wall with horizontally centered
door openings of 14% in 12-story building has been
found 6.39 N/mm2. It increased to 11.99 N/mm2 when
the openings area is increased to 35%. Location of
maximum principal stress is at top of opening at 2nd
floor (Table 3) in shear walls with door openings of
different sizes considered in this study. Similarly, for
window openings, it is at the top of window at 2nd floor
for opening area up to 24% in shear walls of 12-story
buildings (Table 4). However, the location of maximum
principal stress shifted to the bottom of window at 4th
floor in 12-story building with opening area of 28% in
shear walls. This is because the behavior of wall tends
to change from coupled wall systems to two
independent walls.

Table3: Principal stresses in shear walls with horizontally centered door openings of 2.1 m height, in 12-story
buildings
Principal stresses in shear walls (N/mm2)
bo/L Opening Max Location of stress in Location of stress in
(%) absolute shear wall S max shear wall
0.2 14 11.99 Base of wall 6.39 Top of door at 2nd floor
0.3 21 12.78 Top of door at 2 nd floor 8.55 Top of door at 2 nd floor
0.4 28 14.00 Top of door at 2 floor 10.42 Top of door at 2 nd floor
nd

0.5 35 15.18 Top of door at 2 nd floor 11.99 Top of door at 2 nd floor

Table4: Principal stresses in shear walls with 2 m wide window openings at 0.6 m from floor level, in 12-story
buildings
Principal stresses in shear walls (N/mm2)
ho/h Opening Max Location of stress in Location of stress in
(%) absolute shear wall S max shear wall
0.3 12 13.01 Top of window at 2nd floor 4.62 Top of window at 2 nd floor
0.4 16 13.24 Top of window at 2 nd floor 5.64 Top of window at 2 nd floor
0.5 20 13.53 Top of window at 2 nd floor 7.07 Top of window at 2nd floor
0.6 24 13.65 Top of window at 2 nd floor 8.55 Top of window at 2 nd floor
0.7 28 14.39 Bottom of window at 3rd 11.40 Bottom of window at 4th
Table5: Principal stresses in shear walls with 1 m × 2.1 m door openings at different horizontal locations, in 12-
story buildings
Principal stresses in shear walls (N/mm2)
eh (m) Opening Max Location of stress in Location of stress in
(%) absolute shear wall S max shear wall
1.00 14 13.99 Top of door at 2 nd floor 6.89 Top of door at 2 nd floor
1.50 14 12.79 Top of door at 2nd floor 6.76 Top of door at 2 nd floor
nd
1.75 14 12.15 Top of door at 2 floor 6.62 Top of door at 2 nd floor
2.00 14 11.99 Base of wall 6.39 Top of door at 2nd floor
Table6: Principal stresses in shear walls with 2 m × 1.2 m window openings at different vertical locations, in 12-
story buildings
Principal stresses in shear walls (N/mm2)
ev Opening Max Location of stress in Location of stress in
(m) (%) absolute shear wall S max shear wall
0.3 16 13.12 Top of window at 2 nd floor 5.20 Top of window at 2nd floor
0.6 16 13.24 Top of window at 2 nd floor 5.64 Top of window at 2 nd floor
nd
0.9 16 13.14 Top of window at 2 floor 5.61 Top of window at 2 nd floor
nd
1.2 16 12.88 Top of window at 2 floor 5.16 Bottom of window at 2 nd floor
nd
1.5 16 12.50 Top of window at 2 floor 4.88 Bottom of window at 2 nd floor

International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering

ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 673-680
 Effects of Openings in Shear Wall on Seismic Response of
Frame-Shear Wall Structures
The maximum absolute principal stress at the top corner
of opening at the 2nd floor in shear wall increased with
an increase in opening size. However, it decreased when
the window opening is increased from 24% to 28%.
Maximum absolute principal stress at the opening
corner decreased from 13.96 N/mm2 to 11.47
N/mm2when horizontal distances (eh) from center line
of vertical boundary element in shear wall to the edge of
doors openings of 14%, is increased from 1 m to 2 m in
12-story buildings. However, the effect of vertical
location of the window opening is negligible.
5. Conclusions
From the above results and discussions, following
conclusions can be drawn:
1. The stiffness of the wall decreases with the increase
in opening size.
2. The stiffness as well as response of frame-shear
wall structure is more affected by the size of
openings than their locations in the shear walls with
opening area ≤ 20%.
3. It is advisable to limit the simplified method to
calculate the stiffness of shear walls with maximum
opening area of 10% at the base of shear wall.
4. The Displacements are increasing with the increase
in the percentage of opening.
5. In the case of maximum absolute principal stress at
opening corner in the shear walls, the results
indicate that effects of horizontal locations of door
openings of 14% is more sensitive than that of the
vertical locations of window openings of 16%.
6. It can be concluded that it is better to locate the
door openings at center of shear wall. Therefore,
maximum absolute principal stress in shear wall at
opening corner is minimized.
Reference
[1] Atimtay, E. and R. Kanit 2006. Learning seismic
design from the earthquake itself. Practice
Periodical on Structural Design and Construction.
ASCE, 11 (3): 149-160.
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[2] El-Tawil, S., C.M. Kuenzil and M. Hassan 2002.
Pushover of hybrid coupled walls I: design and
modeling. Journal of Structural Engineering.
ASCE, 128 (10): 1272-1281.
[3] Kim, H.S. and D.G. Lee. 2003. Analysis of shear
wall with openings using super elements.
Engineering Structures. 25: 981-991.
[4] Lin, C.Y. and C.L. Kuo. 1988. Behavior of shear
wall with openings. Proceedings of Ninth world
Conference on Earthquake Engineering. Tokyo-
Kyoto, Japan, IV: 535-540.
[5] Neuenhofer, A. 2006. Lateral stiffness of shear
walls with openings. Journal of Structural
Engineering. ASCE, 132 (11): 1846-1851.
[6] Paulay, T. and M.J.N. Priestley. 1992. Seismic
design of reinforced concrete and masonry
buildings. John Wiley and Sons, Inc. USA.
[7] Qaqish, S. and F. Daqqaq. 2000. Effect of
horizontal forces on shear walls with small
openings. Technical Services and Studies-
University of Jordan. Jordan.
[8] Sharma, S.K. 1998. Study of various structural
systems under seismic excitation. M. Sc. Thesis,
Tribhuvan University, Institute of Engineering,
Lalitpur, Nepal.
[9] Singh, M. 2000. Effects of curtailment of shear wall
at different levels on seismic resistance of
multistory buildings. M.Sc. Thesis, Tribhuvan
University, Institute of Engineering, Lalitpur,
Nepal.
[10] Smith, B.S. and A. Coull. 1991. Tall building
structure: Analysis and Design. 1st ed. John Wiley
and Sons, Inc. USA
[11] Varayani, U.H. 2002.Structural design of multi-
storeyed buildings.2nd ed. South Asian publishers,
New Delhi.
[12] Yanez, F.V., R. Park and T. Paulay. 1992. Seismic
behavior of walls with irregular openings.
Earthquake Engineering. Tenth World Conference,
Balkema, Rotterdam.
 Indexed in
Scopus Compendex and Geobase Elsevier, Chemical
Abstract Services-USA, Geo-Ref Information Services-USA,
List B of Scientific Journals, Poland,
Directory of Research Journals
www.cafetinnova.org August 2014, P.P.681-687
ISSN 0974-5904, Volume 07, No. 04

Finite Element Analysis of High Strength Concrete Beams Under

Shear Loading without Web Reinforcement
SUDHEER REDDY. L.1, RAMANA RAO .N.V2 AND GUNNESWARA RAO T.D3
1
Depot of Civil Engineering, Kakatiya Institute of Technology, and Science, Warangal – 506 015, India.
2
Depot of Civil Engineering, Jawaharlal Nehru Technological University, Hyderabad – 500 085, India.
3
Depot of Civil Engineering, National Institute of Technology, Warangal – 506 001, India.

Abstract: The paper makes a review of available data base and shear models to predict the shear strength of
reinforced concrete beams without web reinforcement and an effort has been to predict a shear equation to evaluate
shear strength of high strength concrete beams (65 Mpa) with different shear span to depth ratios (a/d = 1, 2, 3 & 4)
without web reinforcement and compare the test results with the analytical model created in ANSYS. The reinforced
concrete beams were modeled in „ANSYS‟. The test results were compared with the „ANSYS‟ model results. The
shear capacity evaluated using „ANSYS‟ model for the beams were closer to test results. Thus a simplified equation
has been evaluated using the previous database and the ANSYS model, to predict the shear capacity of high strength
concrete beams without shear reinforcement.
Keywords: High-strength Concrete, Shear, Shear span to Depth Ratio (a/d), Finite Element Analysis (FEA).

1. Introduction:
Utilization of high strength concrete in construction
sector has increased due to its improved mechanical
properties compared to ordinary concrete. One such
mechanical property, shear resistance of concrete beams
is an intensive area of research. To Estimate the shear
resistance of beams, standard codes and researchers all
over world have specified different formulae
considering different parameters into consideration. The
parameters considered are varying for different codes
and researchers leading to disagreement between
researchers, making it difficult to choose an appropriate
model or code for predicting shear resistance of
reinforced concrete. Therefore an extensive research
work on shear behavior of normal and high strength
concrete is being carried out all over the world. The
major researchers include Bazant Z.P. [1], Zsutty T.C,
[2] Piotr Paczkowski [3], Jin-Keun Kim [4], and Imran
A. Bukhari [5] and many more. Estimation of shear
resistance of high strength concretes is still
controversial therefore it‟s a thrust area for research.
The shear failure of reinforced concrete beams without
web reinforcement is a distinctive case of failure which
depends on various parameters such as shear span to
effective depth ratio (a/d), longitudinal tension steel
ratio (ρ), aggregate type, strength of concrete, type of
loading, and support conditions, etc. Most of the
researchers concluded that failure mode is strongly
dependent on the shear span to depth ratios (a/d). Berg
[6], Ferguson [7], Taylor [8] found that shear capacity
of Reinforced concrete beams varied with a/d ratio. In
this research, shear span-to-effective depth ratio is taken
as main variable keeping all other parameters constant.
Fanning [9] evaluated reinforced and post tensioned
concrete beams using the ANSYS package. Kotosov
and Pavlovic [10] analyzed short shear reinforced
concrete beams using 3D finite element approach to
validate the rational prediction of its behavior observed
in the test program. Zho, Kwan and He [11] analyzed
nonlinear behavior of reinforced concrete deep beams
using a 2D finite element method. The present study
concentrates on details of the finite element analysis of
four shear critical high strength rectangular beams
having no shear reinforcement. The finite element
analysis of these beams has been carried out in
„ANSYS‟ package considering perfect bond between
the tension reinforcement and the surrounding concrete.
The predicted results using „ANSYS‟ model, have been
compared with the corresponding test data.
2. Objectives:
 Study the shear response of concrete beams without
shear reinforcement varying shear span to depth
ratio (a/d) from 1 to 4 (1,2,3 & 4).
 Compare the shear formulae formulated by eminent
codes with the experimental test data.
 Develop and analyze the HSC beam model in
ANSYS and compare the results with the test data.

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Proceedings of 3-Day International Conference on Emerging Trends in Civil Engineering (ICETE-2014,)
6th–8th January, 2014
 Finite Element Analysis of High Strength Concrete Beams Under Shear
682
Loading without Web Reinforcement

 To propose a simplified formula to predict shear Table2: Mix Proportion of Concrete

strength of HSC beams without shear
Fly
reinforcement. Cement FA CA Water GGBS SP
Ash
(Kg) (Kg) (Kg) (lit) % %
3. Experimental Programme: %
Eight reinforced high strength concrete (HSC) beams 520 572 1144 130 5 15 1.5
were cast and tested, under two point loading varying FA- Fine Aggregate
the shear span to effective depth ratio (a/d). The test CA- Coarse Aggregate
specimens are divided into four series. Each series SP- Super Plasticizer
consisted of two high strength concrete beams without Fly Ash, GGBS and SP are taken as % by mass of
shear reinforcement with a/d ratio 1, 2, 3 & 4. For all cement in Kg
the series, the parameters viz., concrete proportions and
percentage of longitudinal steel were kept constant. The 4.3. Specimen Details:
details are listed in the Table 1: Tests were carried out on sixteen beams, simply
Table1: Reinforced beams without shear reinforcement: supported under two point loading. All the beams had
constant cross section of 100mm x 150mm illustrated in
Sl. Beam Length of a/d No. of Fig 1. The length of beam was worked out to be 0.7m,
No ID beam (m) Ratio Beams 1.0m, 1.2m and 1.6m for corresponding a/d ratio = 1, 2 ,
1 R01 0.7 1 2 3 & 4 respectively. All the four series of beams were
2 R02 1.0 2 2 provided with 2 – 16 mm and 1 – 10 mm diameter
HYSD bars as longitudinal reinforcement to avoid any
3 R03 1.3 3 2
possible failure by flexure and the grade of concrete was
4 R04 1.6 4 2 kept constant.
4.1. Test Materials: P

 Cement: Ordinary Portland cement whose 28- day

compressive strength was 53Mpa was used.
 Fine Aggregate: Natural River sand confirming
with specific gravity is 2.65 and fineness modulus
2.33 was used.
 Coarse Aggregate: Crushed Coarse aggregate of
20mm and 10 mm procured from local crusher
grading with specific gravity is 2.63 was used.
 Water: Portable water free from any harmful
amounts of oils, alkalis, sugars, salts and organic
materials was used for proportioning and curing of
concrete.
 Superplasticizer: In the present experimental
investigations naphthalene based superplasticizer
conplast337 was used for enhancing workability.
 Fly Ash: Class F fly ash was used acquired from
KTPS, Kothagudam, Andhra Pradesh, India.
 Ground Granulated Blast Furnace Slag: The
slag was procured from Vizag. The physical
requirements were confirming to BS: 6699.
 Tension Reinforcement: 16 mm diameter bars
were used as tension reinforcement whose yield
strength was 475Mpa.
4.2. Mix Design:
The high strength concrete mix design was done using
Entroy and Shacklock method. By conducting trial
mixes and with suitable laboratory adjustments for good
slump and strength the following mix proportion was
arrived as shown in Table 2
0.15m
0.1m
0.1 a 0.2 a 0.1
Span of the beam (L)
(0.7m, 1.0m, 1.3m, 1.6m)
Figure1: Details of test beams with arrangement of
loads and supports
4.4. Test Procedure:
The beams were tested under gradually increasing load
using a 100 Ton loading frame. The Beam was simply
supported using knife edge support which were placed
on two support beams (I sections) shown in Fig 2. The
specimen was loaded using a 100 ton jack which has a
load cell to monitor the load .The load was transferred
from the jack to specimen at two points using a spread
beam. Based on the a/d ratio the support beams on
which the simple supports were placed were adjusted.
Two LVDT‟s were provided, one at the centre of the
span and other at the centre of the shear span to measure
deflections. The load and deflections were monitored
for every 5 seconds. The load that produced the
diagonal crack and the ultimate shear crack were
recorded. Crack patterns were marked on the beam. The
average response of two beams tested in a series, was
taken as the representative response of the

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 683 SUDHEER REDDY. L., R AMANA R AO .N.V AND GUNNESWARA R AO T.D

corresponding series. The test set up is presented in
Figure.2:
Figure2: Beam and LVDT arrangement in 100 ton
LINK8 3D Spar element. The 3-D spar element is a
uniaxial tension-compression element with three
degrees of freedom at each node: translations in the
nodal x, y, and z directions with large deflection
capabilities. The cross sectional area of each element is
given as area equivalent to each rebar. The rebar
young‟s modulus is taken as 2 x 105 MPa and Poisson‟s
ratio as 0.3. For the rebar the same mesh size as that of
concrete element is adopted. Perfect bond between
concrete and reinforcement is ensured between the two
elements in ANSYS. The figure 3 shows a typical beam
modeled in ANSYS for a/d =1 with element mesh size
of 25mm.
1
ELEMENTS
AUG 17 2010
U 06:05:29
F
Y

loading Frame Z X

5. Finite Element Analysis of HSC Beam Using

‘ANSYS’:
The finite element method is a numerical analysis
technique for obtaining approximate solutions to a wide
variety of engineering problems. ANSYS is a general
purpose finite element modeling package for
numerically solving a wide variety of problems which
include static/dynamic structural analysis (both linear
and non-linear), heat transfer and fluid problems, as
well as acoustic and electro-magnetic problems. The Figure3: ANSYS modeled beam for a/d =1
HSC beams with tensile reinforcement and without
shear reinforcement have been analyzed using a finite 7. Discussion on Test Results:
element (FE) model in ANSYS. The „ANSYS‟ model At a/d ratio is less than 2.0, strut action prevailed and
accounts for the non-lineraties, such as, bond-slip of the shear resistance is very high. For a/d ratios up to 2
longitudinal reinforcements, post-cracking tensile the experimental values showed remarkable increase in
stiffness of the concrete, stress transfer across the shear strength compared to various design approaches.
cracked blocks of the concrete. The analysis was carried Only predicted shear capacity using Zsutty Equation for
out in stages using Newton-Raphson technique. The last a/d ratio up to 2 were closer to experimental values. For
sub step results after convergence of the solution were a/d ratios 2 to 4 almost all the shear models predicted
adopted. values of shear force were fair and were closer to
6. Modeling of Concrete and Reinforcement: experimental values, where arch action prevailed. The
variation of a/d on shear load is illustrated in figure. 4.
The concrete has been modeled using „SOLID65‟
defined as eight node brick element capable of
simulating the cracking and crushing of brittle materials.
The compressive strength and tensile strength are
established based on test data of the specimens cast and
tested along with the rectangular beams. The data was
used for defining concrete („CONCR‟) properties in
„ANSYS‟. Before cracking or crushing, concrete is
assumed to be an isotropic elastic material. After
crushing, the concrete is assumed to have lost its
stiffness in all directions. The concrete young‟s modulus
is taken as 33500MPa and the Poisson‟s ratio as 0.2. In
the present analysis a constant mesh size of 50mm was
assumed. The mesh solid is presented in Figure 3.
The longitudinal reinforcement i.e. the High Yield
strength deformed (HYSD) have been modeled using Figure4: Influence of a/d on shear resistance

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 Finite Element Analysis of High Strength Concrete Beams Under Shear
684
Loading without Web Reinforcement

The variation of deflection with load of HSC beams the specified limit leading to failure of the specimen.
without shear reinforcement for a/d = 1, 2, 3, and 4 are The behaviour of concrete elements modeled in ANSYS
shown in figure 5, which indicate the increase in a/d is as such that after crushing to maximum extent (that is
ratio has shown reduction in shear capacity of the beam. after third crack represented in blue color in ANSYS
At lower a/d ratios the ultimate load was observed to be crack and crush model) the material shows a softening
more than twice at diagonal cracking. The deflections behaviour in all direction resulting in distortion of all
increased with a/d ratio, which signify that at lower a/d the linked elements.
ratios i.e. up to 2 the strut behavior and above 2 the arch The first crack observed in the shear span during the
behaviour of the beams. At lower a/d ratios (up to 2), testing of the beam was found to be similar in the
the failure was observed to be sudden compared to
ANSYS predicted model. In further stages of loading of
failure pattern observed for higher a/d ratio (a/d – 2 to
ANSYS predicted model the cracks propagated through
4).
the shear span and new cracks emerged at the constant
moment zone at the loads closer to ultimate load. The
orientations of cracks predicted by the model were
inclined in the shear span region and vertical in constant
moment region. The crack patterns and the order of
cracks predicted by ANSYS model were in confirming
with experimental observations. During the test process,
at ultimate load the inclined crack in shear span
widened and concrete under the load point crushed. The
ANSYS model predicted the crushing of concrete at
ultimate by indicating large distortion of element nodes.
The crack patterns indicate purely shear failure at a/d =1
and 2 and shear – flexure failure at a/d =3 and 4.The
crack pattern observed in ANSYS model at failure is
Figure5: Load - Deflection illustration for R01 (a/d=1), illustrated in figure 8.
R02 (a/d=2), R03 (a/d=3) & R04 (a/d=4).
The failure pattern of the beams shown in figure 6
clearly exemplify that for a/d, 1 and 2 crack initiated
approximately at 45 degree called as web shear crack,
across the neutral axis before a flexural crack appeared .
A compression failure finally occurred adjacent to the
load which may be designated as a shear compression
failure. For a/d 3 and 4 the diagonal crack started from
the last flexural crack and turned gradually into a crack
more and more inclined under the shear loading. The
crack did not proceed immediately to failure, the
diagonal crack moved up into the zone of compression
became flatter and crack extended gradually at a very
flat slope until finally sudden failure occurred up to the
load point. The failure may be designated as diagonal
tension failure.
The ANSYS Load- Deflection response of HSC beams
without shear reinforcement has been compared with
the experimental results in figure 7. The illustration
articulate, at the initial stage of loading the ANSYS
model data overlapped with the test data, where as in
the post crack regime it was found to be smoother
compared to experimental results. The variation in the
results may be attributed to the difference in bond
characteristics of concrete and reinforcement in the
model and the test. The ANSYS model could predict the
results modestly up to the ultimate load. The model
could not predict the load-deflection response in the
post crack regime as the elements are distorted above

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 685 SUDHEER REDDY. L., R AMANA R AO .N.V AND GUNNESWARA R AO T.D

Figure 7: Load – Deflection variation for Experimental

Figure 6: Crack patterns and load points of the failed and ANSYS results for a/d =1, 2, 3 & 4.
specimens- R01, R02, R03 and R04 1
CRACKS AND CRUSHING
AUG 11 2010
STEP=12 21:02:10
SUB =3
TIME=11.117

Y
Z X

Figure 8: Crack Pattern of ANSYS modeled beam at

failure.
As the present research work focuses on enhancement
of shear capacity of HSCB without web reinforcement,
the tensile strength of concrete plays a vital role. The
shear equations proposed by different codes cited in
shear resistance models clearly disclose that shear
resistance is factor of tensile strength of concrete, shear
span to depth ratio (a/d) and tensile reinforcement ratio,
the tensile strength of concrete and tensile
reinforcement ratio has a direct proportionality relation
and shear span to depth ratio (a/d) has a inverse
proportionality relation. Therefore to estimate the shear
capacity of HSC beams, the parameters viz.., tensile
strength of concrete, shear span to depth ratio (a/d) and
tensile reinforcement ratio were taken into account in
form of Shear Influencing Parameter (SIP).
  ………………… (1)
SIP   t 
f


a
d

  
f t - Tensile strength of concrete in Mpa.
a/d – Shear Span to Depth Ratio.
ρ – Tensile Reinforcement Ratio.
The influence of shear resistance, which is taken as
average value of the two specimens tested with SIP‟s
calculated using Eq.1. To estimate the shear resistance
(Vc) a linear regression equation was set in power series.
  68.39(SIP)0.985 ………………….. (2)

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 Finite Element Analysis of High Strength Concrete Beams Under Shear
686
Loading without Web Reinforcement

shear force were fair and were closer to

………………………… (3)
experimental values, where arch action prevailed.
Where  The ANSYS model closely predicted the shear
Vc - Shear capacity (N) capacity of high strength concrete beams without
bwd - Width and depth of Effective cross section in mm. shear reinforcement as observed in experiment.
τ – Shear stress (MPa).  Thus an equation (Eq. 3) is proposed which
includes almost all the parameters required to
predict the shear capacity beams without shear
reinforcement. The simplified equation can be used
to predict the shear capacity of HSC beams without
shear reinforcement for a/d = 1, 2, 3 & 4 with in a
variation of ±5%.
Reference
[1] Bazant, Z.P., and Kim, J. K., “Size Effect in Shear
Failure of Longitudinally reinforced beams”, ACI
Journal Proceedings V. 83, No 2 Mar- Apr. 1986,
pp. 456-468.
[2] Zsutty, T. C., “Shear Strength Predictions for
Separate Categories of Simple Beam Tests”, ACI
Figure9: Variation of Shear stress with SIP for beams Journal, Proceedings, 68(2) (1971), pp. 138–143.
without shear reinforcement. [3] Piotr Paczkowski and Andrezej, Nowak, S., “Shear
The empirical shear stress values calculated from the Resistance of Reinforced Beams without Web
Eq.2 and the shear stress values obtained by testing the Reinforcement.” Architecture Civil Engineering
beams for shear span to depth (a/d) ratio = 1, 2, 3 & 4 Environment Journal No. 1/2008. pp 99-112.
are listed in Table 3, which are compared with [4] Jin-Kuen Kim and Yon-Dong Park. “Prediction of
experimental values. The values clearly signify that the Shear Strength of Reinforced Beams without Web
experimental and empirical values fall within +5% and - Reinforcement.” ACI Materials Journal, V 93, No.
5% variation. Thus the proposed equation can fairly 3, May- Jun 1996. pp. 213-221.
estimate the shear resistance of HSC beams without [5] Imran A. Bukhari and Saeed Ahmed, “Evaluation
stirrup reinforcement, under shear loading. of Shear Strength of High Strength Concrete Beams
without Stirrups.” The Arabian Journal for Science
Table 3: Experimental and Empirical shear stress: and Engineering, Vol33, Number 2B, October
Experimental Empirical τtested 2008, pp.323-335.
Beam
Shear Shear Stress /τpredi [6] Berg, F. j., “Shear Strength of Reinforced Concrete
ID
Stress (MPa) (MPa) cted Beams Without Web Reinforcement”, Journal of
ACI, 59(11) (1962), pp. 1587–1599.
R1 7.20 7.08 1.017 [7] Ferguson. P.M., “Some Implications of recent
R2 3.40 3.58 0.950 Diagonal Tension Tests”, Journal of ACI, 28(2),
R3 2.48 2.41 1.029 1956, pp.157-172.
[8] Taylor, R., “Some Shear Tests on Reinforced
R4 1.80 1.81 0.994
Concrete Beams Without Shear Reinforcement”,
8. Conclusions: Magazine of Concrete Research, 12(36)(1960), pp.
145–154.
With the discussion on shear models and the [9] Fanning, P., “Non-linear models for reinforced and
experimental studies conducted on HSC beams without post-tensioned concrete beams”, Electronic Journal
shear reinforcement the following conclusions can be of Structural Engineering 2, 2001, pp.111-119.
drawn: [10] Kotosov, M. D. and Pavlovic, M. N. “Size effects
 At a/d ratio is less than 2.0, strut action prevailed in beams with smaller shear span to depth ratios”,
and the shear resistance is very high. For a/d ratios Computers and Structures, 82, 2004, pp. 143-156.
up to 2 the experimental values showed remarkable [11] Zhao, Z. Z., Kwan, A. K. H., and He, X. G., “Non-
increase in shear strength compared to various linear finite element analysis of deep reinforced
design approaches. Only predicted shear capacity concrete coupling beams”, Eng. Struct. 26, 2004,
using Zsutty Equation for a/d ratio up to 2 were pp. 13-25.
closer to experimental values. For a/d ratios 2 to 4 [12] ACI Committee 318, Building Code Requirements
almost all the shear models predicted values of for Structural Concrete (ACI 318-02) and

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Commentary (318R-02). Farmington Hills, Mich.:
American Concrete institute, 2002.
[13] Karim S. Rebeiz, Javier Fente and Michael
Frabizzio, “New Shear Strength Prediction Using
Statistical and Interpolation Function Techniques”,
8th ASCE Speciality Conference on Probabilistic
Mechanics and Structural Reliability, PMC 2000,
pp 279-283
[14] CSA Technical Committee on Reinforced Concrete
Design, Design of Concrete Structures A23.3-94,.
Rexdale, Ontario, 1994.
[15] European CEB-FIP Model Code. London: Thomas
Telfair, Services, 1990
[16] Ahmad, S.H., Khaloo, A.R., and Poveda, A. (1986),
“Shear Capacity of Reinforced High Strength
Concrete Beams,” ACI Journal, 83(2), 297-305.
[17] Batchelor, B., “Shear in R.C. Beams without Web
Reinforcement”, Journal of Structural Division,
107(ST5) (1981), pp. 907–919.
[18] Elahi, A., “Effect of Reinforcement Ratio and
Shear Span on Shear Strength of High-strength
Concrete Beams”, MSc Thesis, Taxila University,
2003.
[19] Reineck, K. H., Kuchma, D., Kim, K.S., and Marx,
S., “Shear Database for Reinforced Concrete
Members without Shear Reinforcement”, ACI
Structural Journal, 100(2) (2003), pp. 240–249.

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Abstract Services-USA, Geo-Ref Information Services-USA,
List B of Scientific Journals, Poland,
Directory of Research Journals
www.cafetinnova.org August 2014, P.P.688-694
ISSN 0974-5904, Volume 07, No. 04

Integrated Shape and Topology Optimization of Cylindrical Shells

A MALLIKA1 AND N V RAMANA RAO2
1
V.N.R Vignana Jyothi Institute of Engg. & Tech., Bachupally, Hyderabad – 500 090.
2
JNTUH College of Engg, Kukatpally, Hyderabad – 500 085.
Email: mallika_a@vnrvjiet.in

Abstract: The aim of structural optimization is to determine the structural geometry with respect to topology and/or
shape of the structures. Thickness/Shape optimization and Topology optimization dealt separately produce improved
new designs. However, integration of Thickness/Shape and Topology optimization offer more efficient tool to be
used. Depending on the practical considerations in the industry, it is recommended to consider the combination of
some vital thickness and shape parameters along with topology optimization. In the present paper an algorithm is
formulated integrating shape and topology using a three stage process developed for two objective functions,
minimization of structural compliance(maximizing the static stiffness) and maximization of weighted
frequency(maximizing the dynamic stiffness). An illustrative example of concrete cylindrical shell is considered
from the past researchers (which was optimized only with respect to shape) and using the three stage algorithm
optimized models combining shape and topology are obtained for different support conditions. Present work uses
ANSYS software and the results are discussed and presented.
Keywords: Static stiffness, Dynamic stiffness, Structural Compliance, Topology Optimization, Cylindrical Shell,
Weighted frequency.

1. Introduction: developed by Bendsoe and Rodrigues[6], utilizing the

Thickness, Shape, and topology optimization are the
objectives of structural optimization. Till today,
thickness/ Shape optimization and Topology
optimization dealt separately produce improved new
designs. However, integration of Thickness, Shape and
Topology optimization offer more efficient tool to be
used. Past research considered these optimization
techniques separately, seeking an initial optimal
material layout and then refinement of the shape. The
method used in this work combines both optimization
techniques, where the shape/thickness of the shell
structure and material distribution are optimized
simultaneously. Research in combined topology and
shape optimization of beams was carried by many
researchers for the past two decades. Computer-aided
structural topology and shape optimization was
developed by Olhoff [1].It is stated that topology
optimization is a priori for detailed shape optimization.
Some authors like Maute and Ramm [2,3] presented
adaptivity in shape and topology optimization. Kikuchi,
N, Hagiwara.L, Ma.Z.D[4] studied shape and topology
for a frequency response problem. Lin and Chao[5]
proposed automated optimization system for integrated
shape and topology of shell structures. Integrated
procedure for 2D structures for optimum topology was
CAD Graphics facilities integration is done by drawing
the shape of the initial form directly on the top of the
screen view of the topology optimization result.
Cappello,F., Mancuso,A. [7] proposed combined
topology and shape optimization using genetic
algorithms. The structural evaluations are carried out
with a FEM commercial code, linked to the algorithm.
Zhou, Pagaldipti, Thomas, Shyy [8] studied integrated
topology and shape optimization. Yildiz [9] and others
presented an approach, combining topology and shape
optimization based on neural network techniques .A
new approach for thickness, shape and topology
optimization is presented by Nima Bakhtiary [10] and
others using CAOSS(Computer Aided Optimization
System Sauter) and MSC/NASTRAN.
2. Structural Optimization
2.1. Mathematical Statement of the Structural
Optimization Problem
The optimization problem can be expressed in
mathematically as
Minimize (or maximize): F(x) (1)
Subject to constraints
gj(x) ≤ 0, j=1……m (2)
hk(x) = 0, k=1…….n (3)
l u
xi ≤ xi ≤ xi , i = l....n (4)

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Proceedings of 3-Day International Conference on Emerging Trends in Civil Engineering (ICETE-2014,)
6th–8th January, 2014
 689 A M ALLIKA AND N V R AMANA R AO
l and u are lower and upper bounds.
Where x is the n-dimensional vector of the design
variables;
(x) is the objective function;
hk(x) is the kth equality design constraint;
gj(x) is the jth inequality design constraint;
mi is the number of equality constraints;
md is the number of inequality constraints;
n is the number of variables; and
xLi ,xUi is the lower limit ,upper limit of the variable
2. 2. Design Optimization Method in ANSYS
In the present problem ANSYS which is robust and
efficient optimization module is built-in is used for
structural analysis and optimization. The design
optimization terms used in ANSYS are:
 Design variables are independent quantities, varied
to achieve the optimum design.
 State variables are quantities that constrain the
design.
 Objective function is the dependent variable that we
are attempting to minimize.
 Feasible design is a design that satisfies all
specified constraints (those on the state variables as
well as on the design variables). If any one of the
constraints is not satisfied, the design is considered
‘infeasible.’ The ‘best design’ is the one, which
satisfies all constraints and produces the minimum
objective function value.
The optimization methods are traditional techniques that
strive for either minimization or maximization of an
objective function subject to constraints. The ANSYS
program always tries to minimize the objective function
as it efficiently handles the minimization problems. If
we need to maximize a quantity, restate the problem and
minimize the quantity x1 = 1/x. In the present paper one
of the objective function is to maximize the fundamental
frequency, is converted into the problem of minimizing
the time period and optimized. The optimization
methods transform the constrained problem into an
unconstrained one that is eventually minimized. The
design tools, on the other hand, do not directly perform
minimization. The optimization method employed in the
present study is Sub-problem approximation method.
2.2.1. Sub-problem approximation method: This is an
advanced zero-order method, which requires only the
values of the dependent variables (state variables and
the objective function), and not their derivatives. It is a
general method, which can be applied efficiently to a
wide range of engineering problems. There are two
concepts that play a key role in the sub-problem
approximation method, the use of approximations for
the objective function and the conversion of the
constrained optimization problem to an unconstrained
problem. State variables and limits on design variables
International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering
ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 688-694
are used to constrain the design and make the
optimization problem a constrained one. The ANSYS
program converts this problem to an unconstrained
optimization problem because minimization techniques
for the latter are more efficient. The conversion is done
by adding penalties to the objective function
approximation to account for the imposed constraints.
2.2.2. Convergence Checking: At the end of each loop,
a check for convergence is made. The problem is said to
be converged if the current, previous, or best design is
feasible and any of the following conditions are
satisfied:
 The change in objective function from the best
feasible design to the current design is less than the
objective function tolerance.
 The change in objective function between the last
two designs is less than the objective function
tolerance.
 The changes in all design variables from the current
design to the best feasible design are less than their
respective tolerances.
 The changes in all design variables between the last
two designs are less than their respective
tolerances.
2.3. Topology Optimization
Topological optimization is a form of shape
optimization, sometimes referred to as layout
optimization. The goal of topological optimization is to
find the best use of material for a body that is subject to
either a single load or multiple load distributions. The
best use of material in the case of topological
optimization represents the maximum-stiffness design.
2.3.1. Topology Optimization in ANSYS: Unlike
traditional optimization topological optimization
requires neither parameters nor the explicit definition of
optimization variables. The objective function (i.e., the
function to be minimized) is predefined, as are the state
variables (i.e., constrained dependent variables) and the
design variables (i.e., independent variables to be
optimized). You need only to define the structural
problem (material properties, model, loads, etc.) and the
percentage of material to be removed.
The goal of topological optimization is to minimize the
energy of structural compliance while satisfying a
constraint on the volume of the structure. Minimizing
the compliance is equivalent to maximizing the global
structural stiffness. This technique uses design variables
( i) that are internal psuedo-densities assigned to each
finite element
2.4. Maximum Static Stiffness Design (Subject to
Volume Constraint)
In the case of maximum static stiffness design subject to
a volume constraint, one seeks to minimize the energy
 Integrated Shape and Topology Optimization of Cylindrical Shells
690

of the structural static compliance (UC) for a given load frequency is considered as the objective function in case
case subject to a given volume reduction. Minimizing 2 as mentioned in the following sections.
the compliance is equivalent to maximizing the global
2.6. Weighted Formulation
structural static stiffness. Minimum compliance
topology optimization problems impose a constraint on Given m natural frequencies (ωi,…….  m), the
the amount of material which can be utilized. In this following weighted mean function (ΩW) is defined:
case, the optimization problem is formulated as a m
special case of equation (1), (2) and (3) as ΩW = W  i i (11)
UC =a minimum w. r to ηi (5) i 1

Subjected to ωi = ith natural frequency

0≤ ηi ≤ 1 where i=1, 2, 3……N (6) Wi= weight for ith natural frequency
V≤ V0 –V* (7) The functional maximization equation (4) is replaced
with
Where V = Computed volume
V0 = Original volume ΩW = a maximum w.r to ηi
V* = Amount of material to be removed 2.7. Element Calculations
2.5. Maximum Dynamic Stiffness Design (Subject to While compliance, natural frequency, and total volume
Volume Constraint) are global conditions, certain and critical calculations
In case of the "Maximum Dynamic Stiffness" design are performed at the level of individual finite elements.
subject to a volume constraint one seeks to maximize The shell element used for topology optimization in the
present paper is shell 93 element. The total volume, for
the ith natural frequency (  i >0) determined from a example, is calculated from the sum of the element
mode-frequency analysis subject to a given volume volumes; that is,
reduction. In this case, the optimization problem is
formulated as: V=  V
i
i i …..(12)

 i = a maximum w. r to ηi …..(8)
Vi = volume for element i
Subjected to 0≤ ηi ≤ 1 where i=1, 2, 3……N (9) The pseudo densities effect the volume and the elasticity
V≤ V0 –V* …..(10) tensor for each element. That is,

Where  i = ith natural frequency computed E i = E ( i ) …..(13)

V = Computed volume where the elasticity tensor is used to equate the stress
V0 = Original volume and strain vector, designed in the usual manner for
V* = Amount of material to be removed linear elasticity:
Maximizing a specific eigen frequency is a typical
problem for an eigen frequency topological
{σi}= E i  {ε i …..(14)
optimization. However, during the course of the where {σi} = stress vector of element i
optimization it may happen that eigen modes switch the
modal order. For example, at the beginning we may {εi} = strain vector of element i
wish to maximize the first eigen frequency. As the first 3. Algorithm for integrated thickness/shape and
eigen frequency is increased during the optimization it topology optimization
may happen, that second eigen mode eventually has a
In the present study, an integrated approach for
lower eigen frequency and therefore effectively
structural thickness/shape optimization and topology
becomes the first eigen mode. The same may happen if
design is proposed to produce an optimal structural
any other eigen frequency is maximized during the
design. The architecture of the proposed structural
optimization. In such a case, the sensitivities of the
optimization system is given in Fig. 1.
objective function become discontinuous, which may
cause oscillation and divergence in the iterative
optimization process. In order to overcome this
problem, several mean-eigen frequency functions (Ω)
are introduced to smooth out the frequency objective.
Hence in the present paper instead of maximizing the
fundamental frequency minimization of weighted

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 691 A M ALLIKA AND N V R AMANA R AO

The following are the steps in this phase.

 Select proper element type
Define the Optimum  Specify optimized and non-optimized regions
Problem layout
 Define the loads and boundary conditions
 Define the objective and constraint functions
 Control the optimization process
SHAPE TOPOLOGY 4. Illustrative Example-Cylindrical Shell
OPTIMIZATION OPTIMIZATION
Perform topology 4.1. Problem definition
Define Initial optimizationn
Design problem The geometry of the concrete shell is taken from the
reference of Antonio Tomas, Pascual Marti 11, (figure 2)
Define which was basically taken from Bletzinger and Ramm12.
Perform Design Shape/Thickness The study has been extended for free vibrations analysis
Optimization Optimization and integrated topology and shape optimization, for
Problem different boundary conditions. The concrete shell is
subjected to its self-weight and a vertical uniformly
distributed load of 5 kN/m2. The shell is having a
thickness of 50 mm and the surface area of the structure
is 6m x 12 m. Young's modulus of the material is 30
Obtain Check Feature
Optimum for Based GPa and Poisson's ratio is 0.2. Various support
Shape/thi various model conditions considered are
ckness respons 1) Shell supported on the straight edges
e 2) Shell supported on the curved edges
Fig1: Architecture ofparame
the integrated shape and topology 3) Shell supported all the edges
optimization
ters procedure
Integrated topology and shape optimization is studied
The procedure used consists of three stages as follows: under two different objective functions.
Stage 1 Shape Optimization Case 1: Maximization of static stiffness can be achieved
In this stage the problem is defined in terms of the finite by minimization of structural volume. Shape
element model of the material properties, the loads and optimization is performed and in topology optimization
the objective function. The constraints are selected from the constraint is on the structural compliance of the
a set of predefined constraints. Thickness/Shape structure, which should be increased to 50% of the
optimization is performed to arrive at the optimized initial value. The solution approach used for minimum
shape. compliance problem is optimality criteria approach,
which is by default in ANSYS topology optimization
The following steps are carried out in this stage. module.
 Define the initial Model, discretize the model with
finite elements, define material properties, Define Case 2: Maximization of Dynamic stiffness can be
the loads and boundary conditions achieved by maximizing the weighted frequency (for
 Perform the analysis first five frequencies) with a constraint that volume of
 Define the design variables the structure should be reduced to half of the initial
 Define the objective and constraint functions volume. The solution approach used for minimum
 Specify the optimization method weighted frequency problem is sequential convex
 Obtain the optimum model with respect to programming approach (SCP).
Thickness/Shape 4.2. Initial Geometry
Stage 2 Investigation of Shape optimization results to In the present analysis, the shell is modeled in ANSYS
integrate Thickness/shape and topology optimization using nine key points, two straight lines for the right
In this stage the optimum model obtained in the first edges and the rest eight by segmented cubic splines as
phase is checked for various conditions i.e deflections, mentioned in figure 3. Areas are generated and
stresses are within allowable limits. discretized using shell-93 elements. The rise of the shell
structure is 3m.
Stage 3 Topology optimization
In the last stage topology optimization is performed on
the thickness/shape optimized models to obtain the final
layout of the shell models.

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 Integrated Shape and Topology Optimization of Cylindrical Shells
692

variables are S1=0.0543m and S2=3.8181m.Initially the

Fig. 2 Cylindrical Shell Problem: Geometry of the shell
structure with design variables
3 12
6m m reduction by 50%, the optimized values of shape
m variables are S1=0.7841m and S2=3.7201m.Initially the
Fig. 3 Geometry of the shell structure with key points
and areas, discretized model
Various boundary conditions considered are
 Right edges supported
 Curved edges supported
 Right and Curved Edges supported
The shell structure is analysed and initial volume is
found to be 5.3456m3 for all the cases and the initially
fundamental frequencies found from the modal analysis
are 0.4269Hz ,0.9816 Hz,3.2972Hz for straight edges
supported, curved edges supported and all the four
edges supported respectively.
4.3. Results and Discussions
Shell supported on right edges:
Case1: After integrated shape and topology optimization
with an objective function of minimizing the total
volume of the structure, the optimized values of shape
variables are S1=0.0768m and S2=0.1130m and the
volume of the structure is 2.4759 m3, achieved in 8
iterations. The total volume reduction was 53.68%.
Case 2: With an objective function of maximizing the
weighted frequency with a constraint on volume
reduction by 50%, the optimized values of shape
Volume minimization as objective
value of weighted frequency was 133.339 and it was
reduced to 78.099 in 30 iterations. Before optimization
the fundamental frequency was 0.4267 and after
integrated optimization the value is increased to 0.6940
with a percentage increase of 62.64%.
Shell supported on curved edges:
Case 1: After integrated shape and topology
optimization with an objective function of minimizing
the total volume of the structure, the optimized values of
shape variables are S1=0.034m and S2=1.6691m and
the volume of the structure is 2.72855 m3, achieved in
22 iterations. The total volume reduction was 78.22%.
Case 2: With an objective function of maximizing the
weighted frequency with a constraint on volume
value of weighted frequency was 60.4038 and it was
reduced to 35.3827. Before optimization the
fundamental frequency was 0.97937 and after integrated
optimization the value is increased to 1.0468 with a
percentage increase of only 6.88 %.
Shell supported on four edges:
Case 1: With an objective function of minimizing the
structural volume, initial volume of 5.3456 m3 was
reduced to 2.0556 m3 in 22 iterations. The percentage
reduction being 61.55 %.The shape variables attained
the values as S1=0.3973 m and S2=0.9733 m.
Case 2: With an objective function of minimizing the
weighted frequency with a constraint on volume
reduction by 50%, initially the value of weighted
frequency was 283.76 and it was reduced to 184.83 with
a percentage reduction of 34.86 % in 21 iterations, thus
increasing the fundamental frequency from 3.2972 to
3.9364 with a percentage increase of 19.39%. For case 2
the initial and optimized values of fundamental
frequencies are presented in table 1. The density plots of
topology optimization for case 1 and case 2 for all the
boundary conditions are presented in figure 4 and figure
5 respectively.

Straight edges supported Curved edges supported All edges supported

Fig4: Density Plots of optimum model for minimum volume as objective using integrated Shape and topology
Optimization

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 693 A M ALLIKA AND N V R AMANA R AO

Weighted frequency as objective

Straight edges supported Curved edges supported All edges supported

Fig5: Density Plots of optimum model for minimum weighted frequency as objective using integrated Shape and
topology Optimization
Table1: Initial and optimized design variable and objective function (with volume minimization as objective)
Initial frequencies Optimized frequencies(Hz) (with
Support condition Mode no
(Hz) 50%reduction in volume)
1 0.4267 0.6940
2 1.6097 1.9470
Straight edges
3 2.8347 2.7359
simply supported
4 3.6069 4.1427
5 4.0743 4.5337
1 0.9794 1.0468
2 1.1213 1.5179
curved edges simply
3 2.4098 2.1197
supported
4 2.4181 2.3638
5 3.4521 2.9385
1 3.2928 3.9364
2 4.1838 4.4576
All edges simply
3 6.1465 5.2792
supported
4 6.2996 5.3720
5 6.4462 5.7184
Table2: Initial and optimized frequencies (with weighted frequency minimization as objective)
Value of design Value of design Initial Volume of the
variable, S1(m) variable, S2(m) %Reduction
Support condition Volume optimized
in Volume
Initial Final Initial Final (m3) model (m3)
Straight edges simply
3.00 0.0768 3.00 0.1130 5.3456 2.4759 53.68%
supported
curved edges simply
3.00 0.034 3.00 1.6691 5.3456 2.72855 78.22%
supported
All edges simply
3.00 0.3973 3.00 0.9733 5.3456 2.0556 61.55 %
supported
5. Conclusions: maximum fundamental frequency increase as
64.36%and in the case of curved edges simply
 Though there is a constraint on volume reduction in
supported the increase in fundamental frequency
two cases of topology optimization, the final
was only 6.88%.
frequencies were increased considerably.
 In the case of weighted frequency minimization as  In the case of shell supported on right edges, for
objective, all edges simply supported case showed volume minimization as objective, the shell

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 Integrated Shape and Topology Optimization of Cylindrical Shells
assumed a shape of flat plate in case of shell
supported on straight edges.
 In the case of shell supported on curved edges
maximum reduction in volume (78.22%) is reported
when compared with the other support conditions.
 Un-averaged density plots for higher volume
reduction sometimes result into a truss like
structure, which gives an idea of material
distribution.
 It is noticed that completely automated procedure in
arriving at the optimal shape/topology should be
only be used as guide to the designer who must
exercise the judgment in the selection of
appropriate and practically possible designs as large
reduction in volume (up to 80%) as constraint
results into unpractical cases.
Reference
[1] Olhoff, N., Bendshe, M.P, Rasmussen, J., [1991],
‘On CAD-Integrated structural topology and design
optimization’, Methods of applied mechanical
engineering journal, Vol.89, p.259.
[2] Maute, K., Ramm, E., [1995] ‘Adaptive topology
optimization’, Structural Optimization, Vol.10, p.
100.
[3] Maute, K., Ramm, E., [1994] ‘General shape
optimization - an integrated model for topology and
shape optimization’, Structural and multi-
disciplinary Optimization, Vol.27, p.299.
[4] Ma Z.-D. , N. Kikuchi, I. Hagiwara,[1993],
‘Structural topology and shape optimization for a
frequency response problem’, Computational
Mechanics, Vol.13, p.157.
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[5] Lin, C.Y., Chao, L.S. ,[2000], ‘Automated image
interpretation for integrated topology and shape
optimization’, Journal of structural and multi-
disciplinary Optimization, Vol.20, p.125
[6] Bendshe, M.P., and Rodrigues, H.C.,[1991],
‘Integrated topology and boundary shape
optimization of 2-D Solid’, Computer Methods in
Applied Mechanics and Engineering, Vol. 87, p.15.
[7] Cappello, F. and Mancuso, A.,[2003], ‘A genetic
algorithm for combined topology and shape
optimizations’, Computer-Aided Design,Vol.35,
p.761
[8] Zhou,M., Pagaldipti,N., Thomas,H.L., Shyy,Y.K.,
[2004], ‘An integrated approach to topology, sizing,
and shape optimization’, Structural
Multidisciplinary Optimization, Vol. 26,p.308.
[9] Yildiz, A.R., Ozturk, N., Kaya N. and Ozturk F.,
[2003], ‘Integrated optimal topology design and
shape optimization using neural networks’, Journal
of structural and multi-disciplinary Optimization,
Vol.25, p.251
[10] Nima Bakhtiary, Peter Allinger, Matthias Friedrich,
Fritz Mulfinger, Jurgen Sauter. ‘A New Approach
for Sizing, Shape and Topology Optimization’,
[1996], SAE International Congress and Exposition
Detroit, Michigan USA, February 26-29
[11] Antonio Tomás and Pascual Martí., [2010], ‘Shape
and size optimization of concrete shells’,
Engineering structures, Vol.32, No.6, p.1650.
[12] Bletzinger, K.U., Ramm, E., [2001], ‘Structural
optimization and form finding of light weight
structures’, Computers and Structures, Vol.79,
No.22-25, p.2053.
 Indexed in
Scopus Compendex and Geobase Elsevier, Chemical
Abstract Services-USA, Geo-Ref Information Services-USA,
List B of Scientific Journals, Poland,
Directory of Research Journals
www.cafetinnova.org August 2014, P.P.695-703
ISSN 0974-5904, Volume 07, No. 04

Analysis for Motorbike Accident on Helmet Wearing in Selected

Stretches of Hyderabad City – A Case Study
A.RAMESH1 AND M. KUMAR2
1
Dept. of Civil Engineering, VNR Vignana Jyothi Institute of Engineering and Technology, Hyderabad, India
2
Dept. of Civil Engg, University College of Engg, Osmania University, Hyderabad, India
Email: ramesh_a@vnrvjiet.in, kumartrans@gmail.com

Abstract: In most of the metropolitan cities in India, the road use patterns are very different from those in
developed countries. Migration from rural to urban in search of better livelihood, urbanization and modern
infrastructure have made man more and more dependent on motorized vehicles. This results in the increase in
economic activities and tremendous growth of motor vehicles which is considered as one of the primary factors
responsible for increasing road accidents in many metropolitan cities of developing countries, including Hyderabad,
India. In India nearly 4.7 lakhs of lives are met with road accidents in the year 2011; a significant share of it is from
the major cities. Haphazard city planning and unscientific road designs are the reasons for our city to stand second in
Hyderabad country in the list of road accidents. In this study, an assessment of the current level of road safety in
Hyderabad is done by using secondary data. Motorbike helmet analysis is carried for short and long distance.
Wearing helmet rates continue to squat in metropolitan cities like Hyderabad. This characteristic is examined in the
comprehension, mind-set, and conduct of motorcyclists towards helmet use in few selected places of Hyderabad
city. Riders near the sites were opportunistically approached and asked about comprehension of and opinion about
use of helmet. Altogether, 12,450 motorbikes were interviewed at six selected stretches of Hyderabad city with a
large proportion of both drivers and passengers (67%) did not wear a helmet. Wearing of helmet is very low among
female & male drivers, younger people in local streets, major roads, for short distance and during the evenings and
weekends. The majority of the drivers who were interviewed (82%) recognized the benefits of wearing helmet, but
79.1% accounted that helmets are not always comfortable, and 93%said they would wear a helmet for precautionary
purposes of preventing injuries. In addition, numerous drivers felt that police enforcement was not severe (62%).
These results recommend that educational programs about helmet use in city of Hyderabad should call awareness to
the hazard of helmet use. Stringent enforcement, particularly on major roads and during peak & peak hours, could
also improve helmet wearing tradition.
Key Words: Accident Severity, Helmet, Comprehension & Mid-set.

1. Introduction:
India is undergoing major economic and demographic
transition coupled with increasing urbanization and
motorization. Among the top ten causes of mortality in
the country, road traffic accident was the tenth cause
two decades back, but with the increasing urban
expansion and lifestyle changes, it is projected that road
traffic accidents will occupy the fifth position in the list
of major killers and third position among causes of
disease burden in 2020. In India, 11% of deaths due to
non-communicable diseases are due to injuries and 78%
of injury deaths are due to road traffic accidents (NCRB
2011). It is the leading cause of mortality for young
adults of less than 45 years and a major burden of
disease across all age groups.
1.1 Accident Scenario:
In India
The magnitude of road accidents in India has gone up to
an alarming proportion. About 4, 97,686 were killed in
road accidents in India in the year 2011 1. This clearly
demonstrates the magnitude of road traffic problems in
India which continues to worsen primarily due to the
ever-increasing growth of motor vehicles and the
inadequacy of the road system to cope with the
saturated traffic flow. The actual trend in the total
accidents, fatalities and injuries in India for the period
2001-2011 is illustrated in Fig 1 which clearly reflects
the increasing trend of road accidents during this period.
The total number of road accidents and fatalities has
gone up significantly resulting in an increase of 22.2%
and 5.5% respectively over a period of decade. As
compared to an all India level, the total road accidents

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Proceedings of 3-Day International Conference on Emerging Trends in Civil Engineering (ICETE-2014,)
6th–8th January, 2014
 Analysis for Motorbike Accident on Helmet Wearing in Selected Stretches
696
of Hyderabad City – A Case Study

in the seven metropolitan cities namely Ahmadabad,

Bangalore, Mumbai, Kolkata, Delhi, Hyderabad and
Chennai were about 16.5% of the total accidents during
2010, which marginally came down by 5% to 9% 20111.
In India, an accident occurs at every 1.2 minutes and a
person is killed in every six minutes, this is to say that
235 persons die every day and 1243 persons get injured
in road accidents. Nearly 60% of total accidents take
place during nights though the night traffic is hardly
15% of 24 hours volume which means that the accidents
in India during night is 8 times greater than the day
traffic. Road accident statistics in India for the last
decade1 is summarized in Figure 1.

Figure2: Road Accident Statistics in Andhra Pradesh

1.2 Objectives of the study:
Traffic data in Hyderabad city for 5 years period is
taken for analysis. Initially factors are identified that
affecting traffic safety in Hyderabad by analyzing the
accident data and to identify courses of action that will
lead to improved road safety in Hyderabad. The study is
focused on development of a tool that can measure how
well alternative courses of action can improve road
safety under heterogeneous conditions.
The following are the specific objectives of the present
study:
Figure1: Road Accident Trend in India (Last One a. To identify major contributing factors to the
Decade) severity of road accidents in Hyderabad.
b. To determine the influence of helmet on accident
In Andhra Pradesh severity for short and long distance travel.
Hyderabad city and Cyberabad registered highest This estimation will be used to test the sensitivity of
number of Road accidents followed by East Godavari, accident rates to changes in a specific geometric
Guntur and Nalgonda. The road accident statistics variable.
during 2001 – 2011 are given in Table 1 & also
represented in Figure 2. 2.0 Literature Survey:
Table1: Accident Scenario in Andhra Pradesh Studies conducted for accident modelling along with an
overview of historical accident data in the India. It
S. Road Persons Persons follows with a summary of several existing
Year
No. Accidents killed injured methodologies and approaches that are in use or have
1 2001 28902 8248 37931 been proposed across the nation to prioritize roadside
2 2002 34133 9523 46808 safety improvement projects. Matthew G. K et.al (2002)
3 2003 34826 9679 47477 have developed a relationship between rural road
4 2004 38937 11046 50439 geometric characteristics, accident rates and their
5 2005 38339 11076 53666 prediction, using a rigorous non-parametric statistical
6 2006 42855 11176 546711 methodology known as hierarchical tree-based
7 2007 43594 12421 57457 regression S. Harnen R. et.al (2003) has developed a
8 2008 44675 12742 59153 prediction model for Motorcycle accident at non-
9 2009 46891 13129 62948 signalized intersections on urban roads in Malaysia. The
10 2010 47649 13631 64735 final model revealed that an increase in Motorcycle and
11 2011 49254 13825 65482 non - Motorcycle flows entering an intersection is
associated with an increase in Motorcycle accident.

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 697 A.R AMESH AND M. KUMAR

Patricia A. et.al (2004) studied and analyzed Literature Review of study

motorcycling trends in Florida before and after the July
2000 to change the Motorcycle helmet law. The change
permits motorcyclists 21 years of age and older ride
without a helmet if they carry at least $10,000 as Data collection for selected stretches in
insurance to cover medical costs incurred as a result of Hyderabad city from secondary sources
an accident. John C. M, et. al (2006) developed mixed
logit model for accident injury severity prediction.
Prianka N et.al (2006) has studied India and China for Data compilation for selected
increasing road capacity and rural accessibility stretches city
improvement projects over the next 15 years. Even if
sufficient funds are available, inefficiencies in transport
services and asset management are likely to return lower Analysis of Motorbike helmet data In
marginal rates on future investment. Jake et.al (2008) Hyderabad city using SPSS
had explained that annual average daily traffic explores
the relationship between safety and congestion and then
examines the relationship between safety and the
number of lanes on urban freeways. K.D. Awadzi et al.
(2008) had analyzed fatality data collected from Conclusions
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Figure3: Methodology adopted for study
(NHTSA, 2007) and examined relationships among
predictors of motor vehicle injury/fatality outcomes for 4.0 Data Collection and Compilation:
younger (35–54 years) and older (65 years and older) 4.1 Road Accident Data of Hyderabad City:
drivers. K. Krishnamurthy et.al (2011) explained the
In India, police men are responsible for recording road
location in a road where the traffic accidents often occur
accidents. The accident data was collected from
is called a Black Spot. Other related studies discussed
concern police stations. Data consisting details of
the issues on helmet and Motorbike accidents and
accidents for five zones of Hyderabad city from year
injuries investigated by Ichikawa et al (2003) in
2001 to 2011are collected. Accident details includes
Thailand, Skalkidou et al(1999) in Greece, and Keng
date, day of occurrence, time of accident, type of area,
(2005) in Taiwan.
nature of accident, vehicles involved, classification of
Majority of the studies were made in western cities are accident, number of deaths, number of injured, type of
through development of regression models. But limited maneuver, responsibility of driver, cause of accident
studies were conducted in India specifically etc. Table 2 indicates the road accident data for
metropolitan city like Hyderabad. Hence an attempt is Hyderabad & Cyberabad City.
made to investigate the causative factors on road
Table2: Road Accident Data for Hyderabad &
accidents through long and short distance of travel for
Cyberabad City
motorbike.
Total
3.0 Methodology: Population Vehicles Fatalities Injuries
Year Accidents
(P) (N) (F) (I)
(C)
The methodology adopted for the present study is
represented in the form of flowchart as shown in Figure 2001 3829753 1134000 720 1950 2670
3 The study includes review of available literature on 2002 4251025 1241000 805 2215 3020
road accidents, safety & prevention analysis. This 2003 4718639 1319000 902 2618 3520
process has helped for better conceptualization of the
2004 5284875 1356000 989 2981 3970
study for selected stretches in Hyderabad city. The
preliminary surveys are performed for identification of 2005 5813834 1433000 1020 3150 4170
suitable study stretches. These include all the police 2006 6153356 1522000 1125 3565 4690
station limits of Hyderabad city and finding the 2007 6963225 2181000 1170 3970 5140
influence of short and long distance travel for motorbike
on road accidents. 2008 7751180 2444000 1220 4246 5466
2009 8415692 2682000 1317 4463 5780
2010 9021481 2720000 1489 4709 6198
2011 9656160 3033000 1571 4991 6562
Source: Hyderabad City Police 2011

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ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 695-703
 Analysis for Motorbike Accident on Helmet Wearing in Selected Stretches
of Hyderabad City – A Case Study
4.2 Road Accidents by Type of Vehicles:
Figure 4 reports the number of different categories of
vehicles responsible for fatal & non-fatal accidents in
year 2011. From Fig 4 it is clear that the 2- Wheeler, 3 –
Wheeler & cars are the most common types of vehicles
involved in fatal & non-fatal accidents. In 2011, 377
cars, 570 three-wheelers and 1249 two-wheelers were
responsible for fatal & non-fatal accidents.
Figure4: Road Accident Data Based Vehicle Type in
Hyderabad City
4.3 Data Description
The number of accidents has been increased
dramatically from 2007 to 2011 by more than 27
percent. During 2009-2010, it was also recorded as the
period of the highest increase in Motorbike ownership
in Hyderabad. These increase accidents may be
described as a result of increase of traffic volume along
these roads. From Fig 5 & 6, it is also shown the
increase in motorbike vehicles with total number of
registered vehicles. The average Motorbike accidents
are accounted for 41- 47% of total accidents on these
roads during period 2007 - 2011.
Figure5: Comparison Total Registered Motor Vehicles
with Registered 2- Wheeler Vehicles in Hyderabad
(2005 – 2011)
International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering
ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 695-703
698
Figure6: Comparison Total Accidents with Registered
Motorbike Accidents in Hyderabad (2007 – 11)
The study methodology included a roadside observation
of helmet use and a face-to-face interview of Motorbike
riders asking about comprehension, perceptions and
behaviors relating to helmet use. This study was
conducted in December 2012 in Hyderabad city at
Ameerpet, Laki-di-ka-pool, Balanagar, Hi – Tech City,
Nizampet, & JNTU. These cities are located
approximately 12 to 20 km from Secunderabad Station.
Motorbike use is common in both cities, with almost
one in four people owning a Motorbike. The study was
obtained on sample bases from the participants at the
beginning of the interviews.
Roadside observation
Roadside observational sites were selected from among
two types of roads:
(i) National Highway (NH 65),
(ii) Main street (principle artery),
Selection of Study area
Hyderabad city map is used for selection of area to carry
out the analysis. Six areas were randomly selected from
the area. Table 3 shows the helmet data collected from
the study. Each site was observed on three separate
occasions, i.e., in the morning (8:30–10:30), at noon
(11:30–12:30), and in the evening (17:00–19:00) on a
weekday and again at the same time on a Saturday or
Sunday.
These sections are considered because Balanagar is an
industrial area, Ameerpet is for training centres, Laki-
di-ka-pool is employment of Govt. Officials, JNTU, Hi-
Tech City & Nizampet employment centres for software
officials Every Motorbike passing by the selected sites
was observed. The driver and passenger(s) comprised
 699 A.R AMESH AND M. KUMAR
the observation unit. Variables observed for each
observation unit included helmet use, engine size,
gender, and estimated age group (<25, 25–50, >50) of
the person. Helmet use was classified into three
categories: (i) helmet use (ii) no helmet use (i.e., not
wearing a helmet) shown in Figure 7.
Figure7: Helmet Wearing Characteristics at Selected
Study Area in Hyderabad City
Mind-set and awareness survey
Interview sites were adjacent to the roadside
observational sites in locations where a large number of
Motorbikes were parked, such as service stations or
supermarket car parks. Riders were selected
opportunistically. We interviewed riders using a semi-
structured questionnaire measuring comprehension,
attitudes, and practices. The survey questionnaire was
adopted from a study of Motorbike helmet use Zhou et
al., 2003. In addition to basic demographic information,
participants were asked about Motorbike safety-related
comprehension and attitudes; helmet wearing behavior;
and understanding of existing helmet laws and penalties.
Questions included in the questionnaire were (i) the
main reason for wearing a helmet; (ii) whether they
think helmets are truly protective; (iii) whether helmets
are needed only when riding on major streets; (iv)
whether they feel that helmets block vision; (v) how
comfortable they are when wearing a helmet; (vi)
whether they had heard any messages about helmet
wearing; (vii) whether they received helmet education
when they received Motorbike driver training; (viii)
whether they know it is against the law not to wear a
helmet; (ix) how strict they feel police enforcement of
the helmet law is; (x) whether they feel ok when obliged
to wear a helmet; and (xi) whether they support strict
penalties for not wearing a helmet. A pilot study was
conducted in observational sites and a convenience
International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering
ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 695-703
sample of 12450 riders. The data reliability is assessed
using the SPSS statistic, for all variables and examined.
Data analysis:
In addition to descriptive analyses, statistics were used
to examine the association between socio-demographic
variables and variables related to the behavior,
comprehension, and attitude towards helmet use.
Logistic regression was used to examine the association
between helmet non-use and the independent variables.
Data were analyzed using Statistical Package for Social
Sciences (SPSS V14).
5.0 Results:
a) Roadside observations
As shown in Table 3, we had observed 12,450
Motorbike on roadside. Observations indicate that
Fridays and Saturdays are with large volume comparing
with remaining weekdays of the week and time periods.
There were three accommodation of the drivers (71%)
were male, and most were estimated to be aged 25–50
years (71.2%). Tables 4 show the characteristics of
proper helmet use was low, with less than one-third of
drivers (38.2%) of the passengers wearing a helmet. 67
percent of the drivers did not wear a helmet at all. Male
(driver: 76.9%) and riders younger than 25 years of age
(driver: 35.4%) were less likely to wear a helmet
properly. The rate of proper helmet use among
motorcyclists was highest in the morning (driver:
64.0%) and lowest in the evening (driver: 31.7 %,); and
marginally higher on weekdays than on weekends for
drivers (37%). The highest risk of not wearing helmet
use was observed among Females and those in the
younger age group for both drivers and passengers.
b) Mind-set and awareness survey
Overall, 12450 riders were interviewed. More
respondents were male (81%) and aged 25–50.
Although 79.1% of the motorcyclists believed that
helmets have a protective effect, only 34.5% reported
that the main reason for wearing a helmet was to
prevent or decrease the severity of head injury. The
majority of respondents (71.8%) said they would wear a
helmet “to cope with police”. As shown in Table 4,
these patterns were consistent among males and females
and between the different age groups, except that
slightly more male riders reported they would wear a
helmet to avoid being stopped by police. Over 84.6% of
the interviewees had seen messages about helmet use
during different periods of their life, including when
they first learned how to ride. Overall, 79.1% believed
that it was against the law not to wear a helmet while
riding a Motorbike; however, more females and younger
riders reported this opinion (Table 6). Many
interviewees also felt that helmets are not always
comfortable (69.3%) that helmets could block vision
 Analysis for Motorbike Accident on Helmet Wearing in Selected Stretches
700
of Hyderabad City – A Case Study

(31.7%), and that police enforcement was usually not (27%) or occasionally uncomfortable (45%), and
strict enough. Both younger age and male gender were thought or felt that helmets block their vision (39%)
significantly associated with the perceptions that when riding. Some interviewees in our study may have
“helmet blocks visions” and “uncomfortable to wear a used poor vision or discomfort as an excuse for not
helmet” (Table 6). wearing a helmet. Almost all interviewees reported that
they believed helmets were only needed when driving
5.1 Discussion:
on major roads (84.1%). On the other hand, over 76%
In this study, we found that 82% of Motorbike riders knew that failure to wear a helmet violates the law;
and passengers in two medium-sized cities in nearly 72% agreed that helmet use should be
Hyderabad believed safety helmets are protective. compulsory, and about half supported the adoption of
However, the drivers 68.5% did not wear a helmet at all. strict penalties for those who do not wear a helmet.
It was also observed that the rate of not wearing helmet Nevertheless, less than 54% believed that police
was highest on local streets compared to major arteries. enforcement of the law was strict and 61% reported they
Almost all interviewees reported that they believed would wear a helmet just to “cope with police”. On the
helmets were only needed when driving on major roads other hand designers of Motorbike helmets should take
(84.1%). On the other hand, over 76% knew that failure this into consideration when designing new
to wear a helmet violates the law; nearly 72% agreed
In order to minimize accidents, major policy may be
that helmet use should be compulsory, and about half
supported the adoption of strict penalties for those who evolved to reduce the growth of personalized vehicles
do not wear a helmet. Nevertheless, less than 54% and simultaneously to encourage the use of public
transport vehicles. Due to data limitations, other zones
believed that police enforcement of the law was strict
of the city could not be considered. Though a limited
and 61% reported they would wear a helmet just to
study has been reported so far in the area of road
“cope with police”.
accidents, it is desirable to look into the causes and
6.0 Conclusions effects of road accidents to be carried out not only at a
Helmet analysis explains the results that many macro-level but also at a micro-level.
motorbike considered helmets to be uncomfortable
Table 3. Helmet Data Collected From Selected Study Areas
Number of Helmet
Name of The Wearing Helmet Not wearing Helmet
S. Motorbike
Section Not
No. Riders Wearing
Considered M F M F wearing
Interviewed
1 Balanagar 1950 653 92 928 277 745 1205
2 Ameerpet 2150 720 101 1023 306 821 1329
3 Laki-di-ka-pool 1700 570 80 809 242 649 1051
4 JNTU 2450 821 115 1166 348 936 1514
5 Hi-Tech City 2150 720 101 1023 306 821 1329
6 Nizampet 2050 687 96 976 291 783 1267
Total Sample 12450 4171 585 5924 1770 7694 4756
Table 4. Characteristics of Helmet wearing among Motorbike drivers in Hyderabad
Helmet
Description
Not Wearing Wearing
Driver Characteristics 61.7 38.3
Gender
Male 76.9 87.7
Female 23.1 12.3
Age Group
18- 25 Years 82.6 17.4
25 – 50 Years 35.4 64.6

International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering

ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 695-703
 701 A.R AMESH AND M. KUMAR

> 50 Years 88.5 11.5

Engine Size
100 – 150 cc 64.2 35.8
> 150 cc 72.1 27.9
Day of Week
Weekday 63 37
Weekend 69.1 30.9
Morning
Morning 37.9 62.1
Evening 68.3 31.7
Road Type
Arterial Road (Long Trips) 32.2 67.8
Sub Arterial road (Short Trips) 80.7 19.3
Table 5. Logistic Regression exploratory factors connected without helmet use
Characteristics Odds Ratio 95% CI p –Value
Drivers <0.001
Male gender 4.50 4.4
Age <0.001
50+ 1.0
25 – 50 2.50 2.44, 2.79
18-25 1.18 1.03, 1.16
Road Type 1.0 <0.001
Arterial (Long Trips) 1.51 1.42, 1.38
Sub Arterial (Short Trips) 0.89 0.67, 0.38
Day 1.89 1.31, 1.41 <0.001
Time of Day
Morning 1.44 1.81, 1.72
Noon 1.0 0.98, 1.0
Evening 1.45 1.63, 1.71
Engine Size 1.24 1.02, 1.15 <0.001
Table 6. Mind-set and awareness survey And Behavior of Motorcyclists toward Wearing Helmet
Age group p-Value Sex p-Value
Description 18-25 25–50 >50 M F
N=(2241) (N=7906) (N=2303) (N= 10095) (N=2355)
Behavior
Reason For Wearing Helmet 0.459 0.02
Prevent/Reduce Head Injury 20.5 35.1 38.8 79.1 38.6
Enforced with Police 71.8 63.6 60.2 17.0 60.4
Other 7.7 1.3 1.0 3.9 1.0
Driver to Wear Helmet 0.129 0.019
Yes 69.9 75.1 78.3 73.6 58.5
No 30.1 24.9 21.7 26.4 41.5
Comprehension

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 Analysis for Motorbike Accident on Helmet Wearing in Selected Stretches
702
of Hyderabad City – A Case Study

Does Helmet Protect You 0.218 0.652

Yes 95.3 89.6 87.1 87.7 78.6
No 4.7 10.4 12.9 12.3 21.4
Helmet Education Provided
0.011 0.542
during testing
Yes 60.3 74.0 71.3 69.3 70.0
No 40.7 26.0 28.7 30.7 30.0
Any Information on Helmet
0.158 .915
Wearing
Yes 84.6 57.9 59.4 57.1 57.4
No 15.4 42.1 40.6 42.9 42.6
Against Law If Not Wearing 0.012 0.037
Yes 84.0 80.8 73.3 79.8 83.3
No 16.0 19.2 26.7 20.2 16.7
Mind-Set
Helmets Block Vision 0.101 0.219
Yes 65.4 69.8 45.7 57.2 62.2
No 45.6 61.2 44.3 42.8 47.8
Only Need Helmets Arterial
0.614 0.407
& Sub Arterial Roads
Yes 87.2 88.8 91.1 88.3 85.8
No 12.8 11.2 9.9 3.7 14.2
Wearing Helmet is
0.107
comfortable
Comfortable 60.7 65.5 45.6 52.3 33.9
Not Comfortable 34.3 34.5 54.4 47.7 66.1
Police Enforcement Is Strict 1.156 0.012
Yes 18.1 21.8 20.6 39.2 14.3
No 81.9 78.2 79.4 61.8 85.7
Need Strict Penalties For Not
1.095 0.18
Wearing Helmet
Agree 45.1 47.8 50.4 61.1 62.2
Disagree 54.9 52.2 49.6 38.9 37.8
Reference Academies, washington, D.C., vol. 2083, pp: 26–
39
[1] Harnen.S R. S. Radin Umar S. V. Wong W. I. Wan
[4] John C. Milton Venky N. Shankar Fred L. (2006)
Hashim (2003) “Motorbike Crash Prediction Model
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For Non-Signalized Intersections” IATSS Research
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analysis” Accident Analysis & Prevention Vol. 40,
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Thailand”. Accident Analysis and Prevention
(2011) “Blackspot Identification Analysis and
vol.35 (2), pp:183–189
Improvement measures on Selected National
[3] Jake Kononov et.al (2008) “Relationship Between
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Safety and both Congestion & number of lanes on
Transport Research Board, Journal of the
freeway” Transportation Research Record: Journal
Transportation Research Board TRB pp: 1- 15.
of the Transportation Research Board,
[6] Kezia D. Awadzi Sherrilene Classen Allyson Hall
Transportation Research Board of the National
R. Paul Duncan Cynthia W. Garvan (2008)

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 703 A.R AMESH AND M. KUMAR

“Predictors of injury among younger and older
adults in fatal motor vehicle crashes” Accident
Analysis & Prevention vol. 40,(6) pp: 1804–1810.
[7] Keng, S.H., (2005) “Helmet use and Motorbike
fatalities in Taiwan”. Accident Analysis and
Prevention vol.37 (2), pp: 349–355.
[8] Matthew G. Karlaftis, Ioannis Golias (2002)
“Effects of road geometry and traffic volumes on
rural roadway accident rates” Accident Analysis
and Prevention vol. 34 pp: 357–365
[9] Patricia Turner, Christopher Hagelin (2005)
“Motorbike Helmet Use and Trends Before and
After Florida's Helmet Law Change in 2000”
Transportation Research Record. Vol. 1922(1) pp:
183-187.
[10] Prianka Nalin Seneviratne (2006) “Road Sector
Development in China and India Trends and
Appendix
Implications” Transportation Research Record:
Journal of the Transportation Research Board
Vol.1954, pp:15-21
[11] Road Accident data (2001 – 2011) Hyderabad City
Police
[12] Road Accident data (2011) Cyberabad City police.
[13] Skalkidou, A., Petridou, E., Papadopoulos, F.C.,
Dessypris, N., Trichopoulos, D. (1999) “Factors
Affecting Motorbike Helmet Use in the Population
of Greater Athens, Greece”, Injury Prevention
vol.5, pp: 264-267.
[14] Zhou, J.T., Geng,W.K., Zhang, J.H., (2003). “A
study on the traffic injury status, reasons and
countermeasure in some areas in Guangxi”.
Guangxi Prev. Med. Vol. 9 (2), pp: 80–88.

Snapshots from Daily News Paper of Hyderabad city emphasizing on the Importance of wearing helmet while
driving on motorbike

International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering

ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 695-703
 Indexed in
Scopus Compendex and Geobase Elsevier, Chemical
Abstract Services-USA, Geo-Ref Information Services-USA,
List B of Scientific Journals, Poland,
Directory of Research Journals
www.cafetinnova.org August 2014, P.P.704-708
ISSN 0974-5904, Volume 07, No. 04

Comparative Study on Strength Characteristics of Soil Stabilized

Pavement by Using Fly ash and Geotextiles
V.GAJENDRA1 AND N.DARGA KUMAR2
1
Dept.of Civil Engineering, Gokaraju Rangaraju Institute of Engineering and Technology (GRIET), Bachupally,
Hyderabad, India.
2
Dept.of Civil Engineering, JNTU College of Engineering (JNTUH) Kukatpally, Hyderabad, India.
Email: gajendra.velakkayala@gmail.com, ndkjntu@gmail.com

Abstract: The subgrade of any pavement plays an important role in load bearing and support of traffic in the form
of foundation. Pavement construction over soft soils (Black cotton soils) requires a suitable treatment needs to be a
mandatory consideration with respect to strength and overall construction cost. The most effective methods of
subgrade treatment currently appear to be using fly ash and geo-textiles compacted with the natural soil of the
subgrade. As environmental and population pressures become more severe, infrastructure projects will be directed
further towards locations where ground conditions are marginal. The first objective of the study is focused on the
laboratory investigations on the California Bearing Ratio (CBR) of unreinforced and reinforced fly ash with
geotextiles overlying soft soil beds collected from Vijayawada Thermal Power Plant in Andhra Pradesh. In addition
to CBR test, Unconfined Compressive Strength (UCS) on fly ash also tested in the laboratory for effective
evaluation of strength characteristics soft soil. The second objective of the study is by using Geo-textiles stabilized
at various locations of soil subgrade to find out the bearing capacity in terms of CBR is evaluated. The inclusion of
geo-textile into the compacted fly ash bed enhances the bearing ratio and also reduces the thickness of pavement
subgrade.
Keywords: Soft soil, subgrade, California bearing ratio, fly ash, geo-textiles, Unconfined Compressive strength,
pavement.

1. Introduction: swelling action (heave) of the expansive soils. The

engineers are often faced with the problem of
Geotechnical properties of problematic soils such as soft
constructing road beds on or with soils (especially soft
fine-grained and expansive soils are improved by
clayey and expansive soils). These problematic soils do
various methods. The problematic soil is removed and
not possess enough strength to the wheel loads upon
replaced by a good quality material or treated using
them either in construction or during the service life of
mechanical and or chemical stabilization. Different
the pavement. These soils must be, therefore, treated to
methods can be used to improve and treat the geo-
provide a stable sub-grade or a working platform for the
technical properties of the problematic soils (such as
construction of the pavement. One of the strategies to
strength and stiffness) by treating it in-situ. These
achieve this is “soil stabilisation”. The quality of the
methods include densifying treatments (such as
sub-grade soil used in pavement application is classified
compaction or pre-loading), Pore water pressure
into five types (very poor, poor to fair, fair, good and
reduction techniques (such as dewatering or electro
excellent) depending on the California Bearing Ratio
osmosis), the bonding of soils particles (by ground
(CBR) values. The quality of the sub-grade soil used in
freezing, grouting, and chemical stabilisation) and use
pavement applications is classified into five types (soft,
of reinforcing elements (such as geo-textiles and
medium, stiff, very stiff and hard sub-grade) depending
columns).The chemical stabilisation of problematic soils
on unconfined compressive strength values. The sub-
(soft fine-grained and expansive soils) is very important
grades having CBR values of (0-3%) are very poor and
for many of the geo-technical engineering applications
poor to fair (3-7%). Sub-grades having Unconfined
such as pavement structures, roadways, building
Compressive Strength (UCS) values (25 – 100 KN/m2)
foundations, channel and reservoir linings, irrigation
are soft and medium. These types are considered as
systems, water lines, and sewer lines to avoid the
unstable sub-grades and need to be stabilised especially
damage due to the settlement of the soft soil or to the
in terms of pavement applications.

#SPL02070430 Copyright ©2014 CAFET-INNOVA TECHNICAL SOCIETY. All rights reserved.

Proceedings of 3-Day International Conference on Emerging Trends in Civil Engineering (ICETE-2014,)
6th–8th January, 2014
 705 V.G AJENDRA AND N.D ARGA KUMAR
1.2. Fly ash:
One of the most interesting by-products of the
production processes is Fly ash, a fine grained residue
of coal combustion in thermal production stations of
electrical energy, the usage of which has gained greater
importance the moment the preservation of natural
resources, the economizing of energy and the increase
of environmental sensitivity and viable growth, has
become an International issue. Internationally, flyash
has been used in many applications for several years,
always aiming at the most beneficial end use and the
protection of the environment. Around 110 million
tonnes of flyash get accumulated every year at the
thermal power stations in India. Properties of flyash
from different power plants vary and therefore it is
recommended that characterization of ash proposed to
be used should be conducted to establish the design
parameters. The properties of ash depend primarily on
type of coal and its pulverization, burning rate and
temperature, method of collection, etc. The significant
properties of flyash that must be considered when it is
used for construction of road embankments are
gradation, compaction characteristics, shear strength,
compressibility and permeability properties. Individual
flyash particles are spherical in shape, generally solid
though sometimes hollow. Flyash possesses a silty
texture and its specific gravity would be in the range of
2.2 to 2.4, which is less than natural soils. Flyash is a
non-plastic material. As a result of soil stabilization
with flyash, compression strength and plasticity were
improved, while it was proven that ash can be used
successfully as an additive for the base and sub-base
layer construction of pavement, as well as for the
construction of embankments in compressed soils.
1.3. Geosynthetics:
The enhanced performance and economics of Geo-
synthetics to reinforce flexible pavements over weak
sub-grade is a key ingredient in the efforts to improve
the Indian transportation infrastructure, faced by limited
resources, problematic soils and the need for durable
all- weather roads. Geotextiles are one of the most
versatile and cost-effective ground modification
materials to stabilize the soft sub-grade soils. The
ASTM (1994) defines Geo-textiles are permeable textile
materials used in contact with soil, rock, earth or any
other Geo-technical related material as an integral part
of Civil Engineering project, structure, or system. Based
on their structure and the manufacturing technique,
Geo-textiles may be broadly classified into woven and
non-woven Geo-textiles. Woven Geo-textiles are
manufactured by the interlacement of warp and weft
yarns, which may be of spun multi-filament or of slit
film. Non-woven Geotextiles are manufactured through
a process of mechanical interlocking or thermal bonding
of fibers/filaments. Mechanical interlocking of the
International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering
ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 704-708
fibers/filaments is achieved through a process called
needle punching. Needle punched non-woven Geo-
textiles are best suited for a wide variety of Civil
Engineering applications and are the most widely used
type of Geo-textile in the world. The role of geo-textiles
is more extensive in permanent road constructions and
also in the stabilization of weak sub-grade soil.
Functions of Geo-textiles
 Separation
 Reinforcement
 Filtration
 Drainage
Separation: the introduction of a flexible synthetic
barrier placed between dissimilar materials such that the
integrity and functioning of both materials can remain
intact or be improved.
Reinforcement: the synergistic effect on system strength
created by the introduction of a Geo-textile (good in
tension) into a soil (poor in tension but good in
compression) or other disjointed and separated material.
Filtration: the equilibrium fabric-to-soil system which
allows for free water flow (but not soil loss) across the
plane of the fabric over an indefinitely long time period.
Drainage: the equilibrium fabric-to-soil system which
allows for free water flow (but not soil loss) in the plane
of the fabric over an indefinitely long time period.
Methodology:
 To determine the effective percentage of fly ash for
stabilizing the high PI clays.
 To find the improvement in California Bearing
Ratio (CBR) of subgade soil using fly ash.
 To determine the effect of Geotextiles on soil
subgrade and its performance on strength
properties.
 To find the improvement in California Bearing
Ratio (CBR) of subgade soil using Geotextiles.
 To make a comparative study of results obtained
before and after placement of fly ash and
Geotextiles.
3. Test Results:
Table1: Flyash properties (Vijayawada Thermal Power
Station, Andhra Pradesh)
S. No Description Observed values
1 Specific gravity 1.90 -2.5
2 Max. dry density 0.95 -1.60g/cc
Optimum moisture
3 19 -38%
content
8x10-6 – 7x10-
4 Permeability 4
cm/s
5 Uniformity coefficient 3-10.5
6 Compression index 0.05 -0.40
 Comparative Study on Strength Characteristics of Soil Stabilized Pavement by
706
Using Fly ash and Geotextiles

7 Cohesion Negligible 5 200 12

Angle of shearing 0 0
6 250 13
8 30 -40
resistance
9 Silica 46.5% 7 300 15
10 Alumina 24.2% 8 350 16
11 Iron 10% 9 400 17
12 Calcium 13% 10 450 18
13 Magnesium 4%
14 Carbon 1.10% 11 500 19
12 750 21
Table2: Standard Compaction test results of soil sample
13 1000 24
S. Trail Trail Trail Trail
Details 14 1250 25
No 1 2 3 4
Water to be The CBR Value at 2.5mm = 6.598%
1 12 14 16 18
added (%) The CBR Value at 5.0mm = 6.428%
Wt of water
2 360 420 480 540 Table5. Unsoaked CBR with using Geo-textile at a
added (gm)
Wt of mould
distance of H/5 from Bottom
3 +compacted 4077 4116 4146 4080 Penetration Proving ring
soil (gm) S. No
Readings readings
Wt of
4 compacted soil 1868 1907 1937 1871 1 0 0
(gm) 2 50 6
Container 3 100 12
5 02 05 09 14
number
Wt of container 4 150 15
6 86 83 83 86
+wet soil (gm) 5 200 17
Wt of
7 container+ dry 81 78 77 80 6 250 20
soil (gm) 7 300 21
Wt of empty
8 49 53 53 53 8 350 22
container (gm)
Water content 9 400 23
9 16 18 20 22
(%) 10 450 24
10 Wet density
11 500 26
11 Dry density 1.71 1.68 1.63 1.61
12 750 28
Table3: Unconfined Compressive strength of soil
sample 13 1000 29
14 1250 32
Unconfined compressive
Consistency The CBR Value at 2.5mm = 13.9%;
strength
The CBR Value at 5.0mm = 9.8%
Kg/cm2 KN/m2
Very soft <0.25 <25 Table6. Unsoaked CBR with using Geo-textile at a
Soft 0.25-0.5 25-50 distance of H/5 & H/10 from Bottom
Medium 0.5-1 50-100 Penetration Proving ring
Stiff 01-02 100-200 S. No
Readings readings
Very stiff 02-04 200-400 1 0 0
Hard >04 >400
2 50 6
Table4: Unsoaked CBR without using Geo-textile 3 100 12
Penetration Proving ring 4 150 16
S. No
Readings readings 5 200 18
1 0 0
6 250 20
2 50 6
7 300 22
3 100 9
8 350 23
4 150 11

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 707 V.G AJENDRA AND N.D ARGA KUMAR

9 400 26 The CBR Value at 2.5mm = 4.6%;

The CBR Value at 5.0mm = 3.4%
10 450 27
11 500 28 Table9. Values of soaked CBR with Geo-textile Placed
at H/5 and H/10 from Bottom
12 750 28
1000 33 Penetration Proving ring
13 S. No
Readings readings
14 1250 34
1 0 0
The CBR Value at 2.5mm = 14.2%;
2 50 3
The CBR Value at 5.0mm = 10.5%
3 100 4
Table7. Values of soaked CBR without Geo-textile
4 150 5
Penetration Proving ring
S. No 5 200 7
Readings readings
1 0 0 6 250 8
2 50 3 7 300 8
3 100 4 8 350 8
4 150 4 9 400 9
5 200 5 10 450 9
6 250 5 11 500 10
7 300 5 12 750 11
8 350 5 13 1000 11
9 400 6 14 1250 12
The CBR Value at 2.5mm = 5.075%
10 450 6
The CBR Value at 5.0mm = 4.06%
11 500 6
Table10. Values of other soil properties and optimum
12 750 7 percentage of fly ash
13 1000 8
S. Soil+ 20%
14 1250 9 Properties Values
No Fly ash
The CBR Value at 2.5mm = 2.5%; Grain size distribution
The CBR Value at 5.0mm = 2% 1 Sand 13% 27
Table8. Values of soaked CBR with Geo-textile 2 Silt 15% 11
3 Clay 72% 62
Penetration Proving ring
S. No Atterberg Limits
Readings readings
4 Liquid limit 63% 47%
1 0 0
5 Plastic limit 28% 25%
2 50 3 6 Shrinkage limit 15.5% 20.4%
3 100 4 7 Plasticity index 35 22
4 150 5 Compaction properties
5 200 6 8 OMC 16% 16.65%
9 MDD 1.71 g/cc 1.6
6 250 7
10 Unsoaked CBR 6.598% 10.4
7 300 7 11 Soaked CBR 2.5% 4.4
8 350 8 Differential free
12 160 80
9 400 8 swell
10 450 8 4. Conclusions:
11 500 9  California Bearing Ratio (CBR) is used as an index
12 750 10 of soil strength and bearing capacity. This value is
13 1000 12 broadly used and applied in design of the sub-
grade, sub-base and base material for pavement.
14 1250 13

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ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 704-708
 Comparative Study on Strength Characteristics of Soil Stabilized Pavement by
Using Fly ash and Geotextiles
 The present study is a geotechnical laboratory
program to estimate how the use of Geo-textiles
could improve the California Bearing Ratio (CBR)
of soft sub-grade soil.
 In this study soil samples are tested for un-soaked
and soaked for four days by using with and without
Geo-textiles as an interface to evaluate the
California Bearing Ratio values.
 In the un-soaked condition without using Geo-
textiles the CBR values are 6.598%, with the
provision of Geo-textiles at a depth of H/5 Cm from
bottom the CBR value is 13.9%.The CBR value is
increased by more than 100% by providing the
Geo-textile, this shows that addition of Geo-textiles
improves the bearing capacity of the soil, being
tested.
 The CBR value of soil , when the Geo-textile
providing at a distance of H/5 and H/10 cm from
the bottom is = 14.2%.The CBR value is increased
by more than 100% by providing the Geo-textile,
this shows that addition of Geo-textiles improves
the bearing capacity of the soil, being tested.
 Similarly the same trend was observed in the
soaked sample without the addition of Geo-textiles
the CBR value is 2.5% and with provision of Geo-
textile at a distance of H/10 from bottom the CBR
value is 4.6%.The CBR value is increased by
84%.Indicates the improving the strength of the
CBR.
 The CBR value of soil, when the Geo-textile
providing at a distance of H/5 and H/10 cm from
the bottom is 4.06% in soaked condition. Value is
increased by 62.4%
 In un-soaked and soaked conditions of CBR tests,
the addition of Geo-textiles increases the CBR
values.
 The use of Geo-textile is the best method to reduce
the cost than the chemical stabilizations and attains
same improvement or properties of chemical
stabilization.
 The penetration loads of CBR samples that had 7
days soaking time curve are greater than other
penetration loads.
 After each cycle of soaking period for the samples
tested, the penetration load and CBR values
decrease during soaking periods increase.
International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering
ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 704-708
708
 CBR Value is increased also when soil compacted
with 20% of fly ash (6.5 to 10.4) but when
compared to Geo-textile this amount was less.
Reference
[1] Metcalf R.C., Holtz. R.D., Allen T.M (1995), Field
investigation to evaluate the long-term separation
and drainage performance of Geo-textile separators,
Proc. Geo-synthetics-95 conference, Nashville,
Tennessce, USA, pp 591-967
[2] Nishigata K., Nishigata T. (1994) the evaluation of
separation for Geo-textiles, Proc. 5th International
conference on Geo-textiles, Geo-membranes and
related products, Singapore, pp 139-142.
[3] Tsai W.S.,Savage B.M., Holtz R.D, Christopher
B.R., Alien T.M., (1993) Evaluation of Geo-
synthetics as separators in full-scale road test, Proc.
Geo-synthetics -93 conference, Vancourver,
Canada, pp 65-80.
[4] Olivera A. (1982), Use of Non-woven Geo-textiles
to construct a deep highway embankment over
swampy soils, Proc. 2nd International conference on
Geo-textiles, Las Vegas, USA, pp 626-630.
[5] Resl S., Werner G (1986), the influence of Non-
woven needle punched Geo-textiles on the ultimate
bearing capacity of the sub-grade, Proc. 3rd
International conference on Geo-textiles, Vienna,
Austria, pp 345-352.
[6] Basavanna, B.M. and Itagi Ravi Kumar (1990), Use
of Coal Ash to Improve Some Properties of Black
Cotton Soil, Indian Geotechnical Confrence-1990
on Advances in Geotechnical Engineering, Indian
Geotechnical Society, Bombay, India, pp. 185 –
188.
[7] Ferguson, G. (1993). Use of self-cementing fly
ashes as a soil stabilization agent, Fly ash for soil
improvement, Geotechnical Special Publication No.
36, ASCE, New York, 1–14.
[8] Suryanarayana P (2000), Action Plan for Utilization
of fly ash as an Alternative Construction Material.
New Building Materials and Construction World.
5(8):pp.50-58.
[9] Murty A.V.S.R. (1998), Utilization of fly ash for
Embankment Construction. Proc. of Experience
sharing Meet on Use of fly ash in Roads and
Embankments, CRRI New Delhi. pp. 5-20.
 Indexed in
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Abstract Services-USA, Geo-Ref Information Services-USA,
List B of Scientific Journals, Poland,
Directory of Research Journals
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ISSN 0974-5904, Volume 07, No. 04

Goods Travel Demand Estimation

N.L.P AVAN KUMAR1 AND C.S.R.K.P RASAD2
1
Department of Civil Engineering, VNR Vignana Jyothi Institute of Engineering and Technology, Hyderabad, India.
2
Department of Civil Engineering, National Institute Technology Warangal, Warangal, India.

Abstract: Urban Goods Transport is an important component of urban transport and has multi-dimensions to study
and understand. The heavy vehicles moving goods into and out of the cities and also smaller fast moving and slow
moving vehicles carrying goods within the city have to share the same road space along with the passenger vehicles.
To appreciate the needs of goods transport, it is essential to understand the characteristics of urban goods flows and
establish quantifiable relationships between the quantum of goods demanded and the readily available robust
parameters like population, households, GDP etc. These relationships can be used in estimating the goods transport
demands. Primary surveys have been planned, organized and conducted to gather the information on urban goods
flows. On the basis of analysis of the data, urban goods flow characteristics such as consignment size, commodity
type, and vehicle type used, length of haul have been analysed for all Intracity movements. Quantities of goods
moved in urban areas are observed to be directly related to urban population who are responsible for their
consumption and also the trade and commerce activities which are responsible for handling the goods through
imports and exports. Analysis of the parameter like population, households and GDP reveled that they are strongly
correlated with each other and as such only one parameter namely population has found to be adequate to explain
the goods movements in urban areas. Therefore quantifiable relationships to estimate goods and vehicular flows
have been obtained by employing population as parameter.
Keywords: Image analysis, fine-grained soils, shrinkage, environmental drying, cracking.

Introduction: transportation systems to work well with limited

engagement on their part.
The present dissertation is aimed at the study of goods
• To urban transportation planners, freight represents
flow characteristics and the estimation of the demand
just a small portion of the traffic volume they must
for goods transport in cities. Urban goods transport is
accommodate in network planning. Nonetheless,
relatively less researched area of urban transport. This
commercial truck traffic often exhibits
does not in any way undermine the importance of the
disproportionate social costs and divergent trip
urban goods transport system in terms of its role in
patterns.
promoting the economic growth of the cities. On the
• Trucks are the most prominent carriers of goods
other hand neglecting goods transport has resulted in
moving within the urban environment. Trucking
severe traffic congestion, pollution and severity of
company success and profitability is dependent
accidents. So much can be the impact of inadequately
upon performance and productivity. Using facilities
planned facilities which can be attributed to the lack of
infrequently designed for the operating
knowledge of the requirements for goods transport
requirements of modern trucking equipment.
circulation, handling and storage in urban areas.
• To community planners, urban goods movement is
It is worth recognizing at the outset of this discussion higher maintenance costs, specialized enforcement
that “goods movement” in an urban area context is requirements, noise, and airborne emissions. The
likely to mean very different things to different real and social costs related to goods movement are
members of society that make up the urban fabric, as often imposed by activities and companies outside
follows: the community planners’ jurisdiction, moving in
• Consumer demands for goods and services are vehicles whose content and purpose are probably
transmitted to facilities that source, supply, and obscure, and whose function seems outside the
distribute the products and services customers want. residentially oriented priorities that consume their
Seamlessly integrated transactions are the essence attention.
of modern supply chains. Businesses expect urban

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 Goods Travel Demand Estimation
• To urban citizens, freight is an impediment to a
faster, safer commute home, and is characterized by
noisy, dusty activity centers that diminish the urban
experience and release harmful emissions that raise
health risks. Goods moving in and through the
urban environment are carried by menacing
vehicles competing for lane space and impose long
waits at railroad grade crossings. In short, citizens
view freight operations as a nuisance and a threat to
their health. To citizens, the quality-of-life benefits
from moving goods efficiently and reliably are
largely invisible.
Importance of Urban Goods Transport
The term “freight,” in its most basic sense, refers to
goods transported from an origin to a destination.
Freight movement is not an end in itself, but serves an
economic purpose: to ensure that products reach a
location where they can be consumed. For this reason,
demand for freight is considered a derived demand
rather than a primary demand. In other words, the
demand for freight stems from the economic
requirement to move goods from a production site to a
market.
Freight transportation contributes to the Gross Domestic
Product (GDP) by providing place, time and quality
utility to the commodities. The movement of
commodities is imminent because of the fact that
production and consumption centers are spread over
depending upon the geographical and socio-economic
characteristics of the areas. Freight movement is
dictated by the concentration of source of supply, excess
demand and spatial separation of production and
consumption centers. Commodity transportation; in
addition to satisfying the consumer needs results in
effective utilization of natural resources, power
generation, opening of new markets and provides means
to develop regional specializations. In a nutshell it can
be stated that this is the key sector for the survival of the
individual or nation as whole.
The freight transportation around the world in general,
depicts the commodity movement being taken care by
the models like road ways, railways and waterways with
marginal distribution by pipelines and airlines. In this
context, it is felt necessary to discuss more details about
the modal share of freight transportation. The National
Commission on Urbanization [46] has observed
“Freight Transport has yet to receive adequate attention.
There is need to optimize the location of truck terminals
and wholesale markets / warehousing facilities so as to
facilitate distribution by light commercial vehicles. In
view of heavy truck traffic on narrow roads in urban
areas, there is a need to designating truck routes in
urban centre’s, imposing restrictions on movement of
International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering
ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 709-713
710
trucks during peak periods and banning their movement
in congested areas”.
In Indian cities the markets are traditionally located in
the centre and little or no attention is paid in developing
decentralized markets to cope with the growing spatial
structure of the city. As a result of this the inner cities
are getting more and more congested and goods
transport operations are becoming uneconomical.
Therefore, to arrest further deterioration of the core
areas of the cities, it is necessary to estimate the demand
for goods in urban areas and assess the adequacy of the
existing facilities. To perform this exercise and
identifying the need for additional facilities, knowledge
of goods demanded in urban areas is necessary.
Need for the study:
For planning the urban goods transport system on
rational basis knowledge of the urban goods flow
characteristics for cities Warangal and HMA. The
review of literature in this direction has revealed that
there is a need to conduct special studies of urban goods
movement in the two cities in order to assemble the
goods flow information to develop quantifiable relation
between city size and the demand for urban goods
movement to assist in planning of facilities for goods
vehicles.
Objectives of the Study:
Basic objectives of this study are therefore:
To study the urban goods flow characteristics in cities
of various sizes, characteristics and develop basis for
estimation of urban goods flows.
To help planners locate available data and freight-
related forecasts compiled by others and to apply this
information in developing forecasts for specific
facilities.
Methodology:
The aim of this study is to collect the information on
urban goods flow in selected cities to analyse the
characteristics and to identify demography and
economic activities. As the structure of the urban
economy has direct influence on the urban goods flow
efforts to find out basis for classifying the cities into
different groups on the grounds of economy. Urban
Goods Transport is very vital for development of urban
area and that the planning efforts have been lacking to
provide efficient urban goods transport system. For
developing the planning methodology it is also found
essential to understand the goods flow characteristics
and the relationships between the flows and planning
parameters like population and employment.
 711 N.L.P AVAN K UMAR AND C.S.R.K.P RASAD

Goods traffic forecasting usually creates relationship

between travel demand and a few key explanatory
variables such as population, households, travel
distance, GDP etc. For the development of demand
estimation the steps which are usually considered
include observation of past and current trends of goods
travel demand, inventory of various economic, social,
and technological factors affecting goods travel
demand.
Table: Commodity wise distribution of Goods

Figure: Categories of urban goods flow patterns

Unfortunately there is very little information available
in India on goods flow characteristics, within or outside
city, which would help in formulating such quantifiable
relationships. Even those studies that were organised in
urban areas have very little information on internal
goods movement and therefore do not provide insight
into the process.
Goods Movement pattern
With a view to fulfil the objectives of the study,
attention has been paid to analyse and identify the
possible movements of goods in urban areas before
formulating data collection procedure. Broadly urban
goods flows can be categorised into the following three
types as depicted in Figure below.
 Intracity Flows
 Intercity Flows
 Regional Flows
Methodology Flow Chart
Intracity Flows: These are the flows wherein origin and
destination of flows are within the boundary of the city. Data pertaining to population, households, total vehicles
registered, travel distance, travel cost, GDP, frequency
Intercity Flows: These are the flows wherein one end of service is to be collected over a period in the past for
(either origin or destination) lies outside the city and the calibration of model. Data pertaining to population,
other within the city. households, travel distance, travel cost, GDP, frequency
Regional Flows: These are the flows wherein both ends of service at a point of time is to be collected for
(origin and destination) of the goods trips lie outside the estimation using cross-sectional data.
city. These are also called through or bypassable flows. Step 3: Analysis and Model Formulation
Details of Methodology in Steps Based on the factors population, households, travel
The study methodology is presented in figure below as a distance, Gross District Domestic Product of the city
flow chart which influence the goods travel demand are obtained
and analyzed using multiple linear regression to obtain
Step 1: Goals, Objectives and Selection of Planning the requirement of the goods demand for the city. The
Area results obtained were compared with the two cities data
The aim of the project is to estimate the goods travel by means of mode wise transportation like Roadways,
pattern and goods flow characteristics of the city and to Railways, and Airways.
determine the goods travel demand estimation in the
Distribution of Goods vehicular Trips by
city. It will help the transportation planners to develop
Commodity Type
the methodology to improve the existing road network
with regard to future urban development and future Table below shows the percentage share of commodity
extensions. wise distribution of goods in Warangal city and Figure
below presents the commodity shares of goods vehicles
Step 2: Data Collection at Warangal city. Nearly 20% of the trucks are empty.

International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering

ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 709-713
 Goods Travel Demand Estimation
712

The major commodities carried are Building materials

(17.4%), Raw materials (15.3%) and Food Products
(perishables) (20.4%). Others are also having
considerable share (18.3%) which are not covered in
these categories.
Table: Percentage Commodity Share of Goods traffic in
the Study area
Type of Goods Percentage
F.P(non perishables) 20.40%
F.P(perishables) 13.60%
F.P(beverages) 5.40%
Petroleum 2%
Raw materials 15.30% Figure: Annual Rail Freight Growth in Tonnes
Industrial finished products 7.60% External Goods Forecast for Air Cargo:
Building Materials 17.40% Total freight traffic handled by Indian airports increased
Others 18.30% at a CAGR of 10.9% in last five years to reach 2.33
MMTPA by 2011, out of which 1.5 million tons by
International freight and rest 0.83 million tons by
domestic freight1. The 12th Plan estimates the domestic
and international cargo to grow at the rate of 12 per cent
and 10 per cent, respectively, with the total traffic
projected to touch 5.9 million tonnes by 2020, with the
share of international cargo at 3.5 million tonnes. RGIA
is taking proactive initiatives in becoming
transhipment hub to tap the huge potential.
Air Cargo Complex in RGIA is built for One Million
Tonne Annual capacity; whereas the existing demand is
only 78,000 tonnes. The CAGR growth in air cargo
Goods Forecast for Railway Freight: operations of RGIA is observed to be 14.2%. With the
same growth the air cargo terminal will reach its
Annual freight handling by Indian Railways is
capacity by 2031-32. With 9% growth rate in cargo
forecasted using the past trends. And annual freight
operations, full capacity will be reached by 2041-42.
handled by south central railways and freight terminals
Table 5.6 shows the yearly percentage growth of air
located in HMA are estimated by using the ratio
cargo traffic. Figure 5.7 shows growths of air cargo
method. From the past trends it is observed that on an
traffic.
average SCR handles around 10% of the total annual
freight handled by Indian Railways. Similarly, freight Intercity Goods movement:
terminals located in HMA handles approximately 3.2% External goods movement in HMA and Warangal are
of total annual freight handled by Indian Railways. The served by long-haul trucks, rail terminals, and air cargo
estimated possible growth in rail based goods freight terminals. For the year 2011-12, summary of the %
movement is summarized in Table and shown in Figure. contribution of movement annually is presented in
Table and figure below presents the percentage
contribution of freight shipments by mode in Warangal
and HMA.
Table: Percentage contribution of Intercity Goods
Movement
By By By
City
Roadways Railways Airways
HMA 96.00% 3.30% 0.7%
Warangal 97.30% 2.70% 0%

International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering

ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 709-713
 713 N.L.P AVAN K UMAR AND C.S.R.K.P RASAD
Figure: %. Contribution of freight shipments by mode
Summary:
Freight transportation becomes imminent because the
production and consumption centers are spatially
separated. This movement is one of the contributing
factors for the national economy. At present it is found
that highway and railways are catering for domestic
freight movement in any country with marginal share by
other modes. Since the transport sector is one of the
energy consuming sectors, any saving in this direction
through optimal use of the systems go a long way in the
conservation of energy and savings in the foreign
exchange. Therefore, for any policy decision for system
development the optimal modal shares need to be
International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering
ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 709-713
assessed with a clear understanding of the competition
among different modes of transport. Urban goods
movements are important to the economy and quality of
life in urban areas.
 Majority of the freight shipment movement is by
the roadways compared with the railways and
airways.
 The average trip lengths for various modes of
vehicles are 767 km for 3 Axle, 750 km for MAV
and 493 km for 2Axle trucks.
 A total of about 80,000 vehicles enter and leave the
HMA. Of these 9.7% of total vehicles and 24.1% of
goods vehicles are by-passable.
 The inflow and outflow are more or less equal in
vehicles.
 It was observed that major commodities are
Building materials, Food grains, Raw materials and
other commodities.
 It is observed that the goods transport movement is
growing at faster rate and the number of vehicles
registered under good travel is increasing yearly at
a faster rate compared with the passenger vehicles.
Conclusions:
The total goods travel demand estimation involves ratio
of population and households of the city. If the growth
rate of population and demand by customer increases,
the demand for production also increases, as a result
goods movement will increase.
Goods travel contributes major role in our country’s
Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and in the recent five
year plan 11% is allotted for goods travel
improvements.
 Indexed in
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ISSN 0974-5904, Volume 07, No. 04

Performance of Lane Based Traffic Flow at Ambedkar ‘Y’ Junction

Using Micro Simulation Technique
T.ARJUN KUMAR1, A.RAMESH1 AND K.P UNYA MURTHY2
1
Dept. of Civil Engineering, VNR Vignana Jyothi Institute of Engineering and Technology, Hyderabad, India
2
M/s. HBS Infra Engineers India Pvt. Ltd
Email: arjunkumar_t@vnrvjiet.in, ramesh_a@vnrvjiet.in, katharip@gmail.com

Abstract: Traffic congestion in India has been recognized as a national problem by government and as one of the
top community problems by the public. Commuters travel on streets at speeds lesser than 12 kilometers per hour in
the central area during peak hours in metropolitan cities like Hyderabad and this truth certainly affects not only the
travelers temper, but also the national economy. Traffic Congestion has negative effects on the environment, fuel
consumption, health, and society. Literature review is done for understanding the concepts of adaptive traffic control
systems like SCOOT, VISSIM etc. As per Indian traffic conditions a suitable architecture for heterogeneous traffic
is proposed and implemented in VISSIM. In The Present Study, an attempt is made towards potential improvements
on traffic operations at Ambedkar Y Junction of Hyderabad City. The major focus in this study is optimization of
signal phases, to propose an optimum cycle time delays and average queue length built on each phase of approach.
The proposed methodology is applied to selected study area of an urban arterial road of National Highway (A NH –
65) in Hyderabad city from Moosapet to Kukatpally (Ambedkar Y Junction).
The traffic survey is carried at Ambedkar Y Junction using and it was observed that the intersection has highest peak
hour volume of 15,518 Vehicles per hour from 7-PM to 8-PM on Friday. After analysis and simulation in VISSIM
5.40 the output parameters were evaluated in terms of delays and average queue lengths. It was observed from the
results that the delay time for Balanagar to Kukatpally approach leg is reduced to 104.5sec per vehicle with an
average queue length of 122m after providing lane priority.
Keywords: Vehicular System Architecture, Delay, Queue, Vehicle Set in Motion.

1. Introduction: of 35%.The urban agglomeration radiating out of

Majority of the cities in India are facing Road Traffic
Problems. The most prominent among them are traffic
jams. The main reason for this is population,
urbanization and incredible increase in the number of
two wheelers, three wheelers and four wheelers. In spite
of Government’s efforts to address this problem by
enhancing the public transport system, widening the
roads and constructing flyovers, the growth is not
adequate. The traffic signals are one of the cheapest and
powerful tools of urban traffic control available with
traffic engineers. Hence in most parts of the world they
are installed to ease congestion. With recent
advancements in informatics and telecommunications it
is now possible to operate signals more efficiently by
adjusting their timing plans, coordinating adjacent
signals, or updating equipment’s. Hyderabad
Metropolitan Development Authority (HMDA) is the
sixth largest in India, with a population of 10.5 million
in the year 2011. Hyderabad is one of the fastest
growing metropolitan cities with a decadal growth rate
Hyderabad is spread over an area of 650 sq. kms and
comprises Hyderabad, and twelve other municipal
entities surrounding it. The Hyderabad Metropolitan
Urban Agglomeration covers an area of 1905 sq. km.
The City is also experiencing rapid growth in
transportation issues which have assumed critical
importance.
1.1 Vehicular Growth and Composition:
Commensurate with the growth in population, the
number of vehicles also grew at a rapid pace within the
urban area. Fig.1 shows the growth of Vehicular
population for the state of Andhra Pradesh collected
from Andhra Pradesh Road Transport Authority. Over
the last decade in Hyderabad two wheelers have
increased by 70.4 percent, four wheelers 27 percent and
three wheelers56.0 percent. The growth trend of vehicle
population in Hyderabad is shown in Figure1. &
Figure2. Modal share of private vehicle (cars, jeeps &
two wheelers) is about 50%. The deficiency in

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Proceedings of 3-Day International Conference on Emerging Trends in Civil Engineering (ICETE-2014,)
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 715 T.ARJUN KUMAR , A.R AMESH AND K.P UNYA MURTHY

frequency of APSRTC buses and minimal coverage, The objective of this project is to study evaluate the
poor frequency and information system of local rail traffic operations at signalized intersection. A
services (MMTS) is one reason for the growth of private methodology is proposed to reach a desired equilibrium
vehicles. between delays and travel time of all road users of the
selected intersections with signal controllers. In order to
Details of Growth of Vehicles in Andhra Pradesh achieve the study objective, the following procedure has
(1998 - 2010) been identified:
a. Collect and compilation of traffic data for the study
100 92
90
area.
81
80 73 b. Propose a methodology to identify the signal plan
65
70 that identifies and optimizes motor vehicular delay
Veh in Lakhs

59
60 54
50 45
49 at signalized intersections.
40
40 33 36 38
c. Propose a tactic for estimation of queue length of
30 vehicles using node evaluation techniques in
20
10
VISSIM.
0
1998 1999 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010
2.0 Literature:
Year Several traffic studies Castro-Neto et al., (2006) and
Black et al., (2001) showed that improved operations of
Figure1: Details of Growth of Registered Vehicles in closely spaced intersections in urban downtown areas
Andhra Pradesh (1998-2010) can be achieved if implemented signal timing plans
account for some kind of signal synchronization. Day et
100.00
Vehicular Population in Hyderabad al (2009) explains the need of Traffic Signal providing
T/w along a roadway is more efficient when traffic demand
Auto
10.00
along that particular road is significantly larger than the
Car
Bus demand along the crossing roads. Hagen et al. (1989)
Veh in Lakhs

Goods investigated potential benefits of coordinating traffic

1.00 signals made comparison of Macroscopic Models at
Signalized Intersections.
0.10 3.0 Methodology:
To study the operational and performance of an urban
0.01 intersection, one needs to measure delay of motor
1985 1990 1995 2000 2005 2010 2015 vehicles. In this section, first a methodology is
Year presented for evaluating the effect on performance of
signal controllers in the context of delay of the selected
Figure2: Registered Number of Vehicular Population in intersection. The procedure is summarized by a flow
Hyderabad City chart in figure 3.
Source: Road Transport Authority, Hyderabad The proposed methodology incorporates large set of
data regarding the study area. This includes traffic
1.2 Traffic Problems in Hyderabad City:
volume of motorized factors used to evaluate the delay
Following are the characteristics of traffic problems in values.
the city.
a) Traffic congestion at all major intersections where
in the average journey speeds was as low as
12km/hr.
b) Enormous delays at intersections due in augment
growth in vehicular population thereby resulting in
vehicular conflicts.
c) Haphazard parking and general shortage of parking
spaces at most of the places in the study stretch
d) Escalating growth of two wheeler vehicular
population
1.3 Objectives of Project Study:

International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering

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 Performance of Lane Based Traffic Flow at Ambedkar ‘Y’ Junction Using
716
Micro Simulation Technique

Literature and Study Area Selection classification of vehicles they are converted into
equivalent passenger car units as per IRC 106 – 1990.
Table 1 shows Peak hour data at Ambedkar Y Junction
on Friday
Inventory Surveys Other Surveys Table1: Peak hour data on Friday (7pm to 8pm) @
Ambedkar Y Junction

• Carriageway Width • Traffic Volume Type of Vehicle Volume (V/hr)

of each approach Count at each Two Wheeler 10120
• Location of Signals approach Auto Rickshaw 1642
& Signal setting • Turning movement
Car/Jeep/ Van 2803
times traffic Count
Bus 579
LCV 330
Truck 32
Data Collection & Compilation
Cycles 12
Total Volume 15518
Simulation for delays, queue lengths
Using VISSIM The traffic proportions at Ambedkar Y Junction has
maximum percentage of the vehicle share is Two-
wheelers of 65% followed by Car, three wheelers,
Finding & Conclusions Buses, LCV and Cycles with model share of 18%,
10%, 4% 2% and 1% respectively. It can be observed
Figure3: Methodology Adopted for the Study that the personalized vehicle share is more than the
4.0 Data Collection: Public & Intermediate Public Transport. The modal split
for the peak hour for at Ambedkar Y Junction is
The study area was selected at Ambedkar Y Junction (A
represented in Figure 4 and its hourly variation of traffic
NH 65) corridor passing through kukatpally and
volume in Figure 5
Jawaharlal Nehru Technological University (JNTU H).
A three-lane street with without on street parking
facilities (henceforth referred to as the major approach).
The first phase is from Balanagar to Kukatpally, second
phase is from Moosapet to Balangar and the third is
from Kukatpally to Mossapet. Its corresponding free
lefts are Kukatpally to Balanagar, Mossapet to
Kukatpally and Balanagar to Mossapet. Volume Counts
was collected on a normal weekdays of Dec 2013
during peak and off peak flows i.e from 8.00 to 11.00
AM, 5.00 to 9.00.PM and 12.00 to 3.00 PM Video
cameras were used to conduct the volume counts.
4.1. Traffic Flow Characteristics:
The classified turning movement count at Ambedkar Y
Junction is converted to equivalent Car units using
Passenger Car Unit factors for each mode of traffic.
IRC: 106-1990 gives the Equivalent PCU factors for Figure4: Mode Split observations during Peak Hour at
traffic below 5% and 10%. In the present study, PCU Ambedkar Y Junction
factors specified in IRC: 106-1990 are used
5.0 Results and Analysis with Micro Simulation:
5.1 Peak Hour Traffic Data & Signal Design For
Ambedkar Y Junction:
The peak hour volume is considered for the signal
design; the vehicles are classified into various
categories or classes. According to the type of

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 717 T.ARJUN KUMAR , A.R AMESH AND K.P UNYA MURTHY

The conflicts arising from movements of traffic in

different directions are solved by time sharing principle.
The advantage of traffic signal includes an orderly
movement of traffic, an increased capacity of the
intersection. However the disadvantages of the
signalized intersection are it affects larger stopped
delays, and the design requires complex considerations.
They include the
a. Prioritizing the lane based traffic movements for
Kukatpally - Balanagar directions and Mossapet -
Kukatpally direction
b. Performance evaluation of the above design for
delay and queue lengths.
Figure5: Hourly variation in Traffic Volume observed c. The objective of phase design is to separate the
at Ambedkar Y Junction conflicting movements in an intersection
5.2 Analysis of Priority Based Lane Distribution Table2. & Table3. illustrate evaluation parameters with
using VISSIM 5.40: and without providing lane priority.
Table2: Simulation Results without Providing Lane Priority
Traffic Average Max
From To Direction Delay Stopped
Origin Destination Volume Queue Queue
Link Link of Traffic (All Veh) (All Veh)
(Peak Hour) (M) (M)
1 Kukatpally 2 Kukatpally U Turn 109 113.6 103.5 156.7 161.1
1 Kukatpally 4 Moosapet Right Turn 2661 144.7 111.7 156.7 161.1
1 Kukatpally 6 Balanagar Free Left 1143 156.9 131.7 156.7 161.1
5 Balanagar 2 Kukatpally Straight 2771 161 126.5 245.8 255.8
5 Balanagar 4 Moosapet Left Turn 189 184.3 117.4 174.1 184.1
5 Balanagar 6 Balanagar U Turn 5 0 0 245.8 255.8
7 Moosapet 6 Balanagar Right Turn 520 132.9 116.8 151.8 152.3
Table3: Simulation Results after Providing Lane Priority
Direction Traffic Average Max
From To Delay Stopped
Origin Destination of Volume Queue Queue
Link Link (All Veh) (All Veh)
Traffic (Peak Hour) (M) (M)
1 Kukatpally 11 Balanagar Free Left 1143 8.2 0 0 0
Right
2 Kukatpally 7 Moosapet 2661 98.6 90.5 131.2 144.1
Turn
5 Moosapet 3 Kukatpally Free Left 4041 44.2 0.4 2.4 16.7
6 Moosapet 7 Moosapet U Turn 520 92.2 84.1 41.7 42.6
Right
6 Moosapet 12 Balanagar 184 67.3 59.8 41.7 42.6
Turn
10 Balanagar 4 Kukatpally Straight 2771 104.5 90.5 122 127.1
10 Balanagar 7 Moosapet Free Left 189 1.4 0 0 0
From the simulation results it is observed that after The following are the conclusions drawn from the
providing lane wise priority the average queue lengths study.
and delays have been improved. a) Vehicular volume was found to be highest at
6.0 Conclusions & Recommendations: Ambedkar Y Junction on Friday with a total flow of
15518 Veh/h. This observation is found during the
6.1 Conclusions:
peak hour from 7PM to 8PM. The mode share

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 Performance of Lane Based Traffic Flow at Ambedkar ‘Y’ Junction Using
718
Micro Simulation Technique

composition is found as 65% two wheelers of the Reference

total traffic during the peak hour.
b) The intersection is designed for a 3pahse signal an
optimum cycle time of 180 sec. Effective green
time for Phase1, Phase2 & Phase 3 are 74, 66 & 22
sec. The average queue length after lane priority
was observed as 122 sec for Balanagar to
Kukatpally with delay of 104.5 sec for all vehicles.
The simulation results also demonstrate that the benefit
obtained from design is from prioritizing the lane which
reduces the queue lengths and delays. Signal timing is
found to be most beneficial in congested conditions,
where queues at signals cause significant delay in the
absence of priority.
6.2. Recommendations:
a) Evaluation of the test site shows that the current
signal optimization procedure significantly
improves the performance of operations. Thus, it is
recommended that for a lane priority traffic flow
system for improving the delays and queue lengths.
b) Although the current (field) timing plan which has
large delays it is recommended that (a) to evaluate
the existing timing plan regularly in an effort to
keep the plan up to date, and (b) conduct a follow-
up study to identify when the current signal timing
plan should be re-optimized. The timing for this
research can be determined by monitoring the trend
of traffic patterns, including the changes of traffic
demand, turning percentages, vehicle mix, etc.,
c) As this study substantiates that traffic signal
prioritization is an effective way of improving
urban network mobility, it is recommended that to
allocate more time and effort toward updating
traffic signal timing plans in critical intersection
portion of Hyderabad city.
[1] Black, J., and Wanat, J. (2001), “Traffic Signals
and Control, Ramp Metering, and Lane Control
Systems,"
<http://www.path.berkeley.edu/~leap/TTM/Traffic
Control/control.html>, Updated 08 June, 1998,
Accessed 29 August, 2001.
[2] Castro-Neto, M. M., Urbanik, T. and Han, L. D.
(2006) Noncoordinated Phases in Coordinated
Traffic Signal System: Evaluation of Alternative
Permissive Periods on Performance. Transportation
Research Record: Journal of the Transportation
Research Board, No. 1978, Transportation
Research Board of the National Academies,
Washington, D. C., pp. 8–15
[3] Day, C. M., Bullock, D. M. and Sturdevant, J. R.
(2009) Cycle-Length Performance Measures.
Transportation Research Record: Journal of the
Transportation Research Board, No. 2128,
Transportation Research Board of the National
Academies, Washington, D.C., pp 48-57.
[4] Hagen, L.T. (1989), and Courage, K.G.,
“Comparison of Macroscopic Models for
Signalized Intersection Analysis," Transportation
Research Record 1225, TRB, National Research
Council, Washington, D.C., pp. 33-44.
[5] Hurdle, V.F.(1984), “Signalized Intersection Delay
Models - A Primer for the Uninitiated,"
Transportation Research Record 971, TRB,
National Research Council, Washington, D.C., pp.
96-105.
[6] Highway Capacity Manual (2000), Transportation
Research Board, Washington, D.C.
[7] Webster, V.F. (1958), Traffic Signal Settings, Her
Majesty's Stationary Office, London, England.

Appendix
Screen Shots of VISSIM before and after lane priority

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719 T.ARJUN KUMAR , A.R AMESH AND K.P UNYA MURTHY

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ISSN 0974-5904, Volume 07, No. 04

PRT Systems
SAI SUMAN P OOJARI1 AND UDAY K V2
1
V R TECHNICHE Consultants Pvt. Ltd., Hyderabad, India.
2
Department of Civil Engineering, VNR Vignana Jyothi Institute of Engineering and Technology, Hyderabad, India.
Email: suman.poojari@vrtechniche.in, uday1112@gmail.com

Abstract: Most mass transit systems move people in groups over scheduled routes. This has inherent inefficiencies
for passengers; wastage of time by waiting for the next arrival, indirect routes to their destination, stopping for
passengers with other destinations and often, confusing or inconsistent schedules. Slowing and accelerating large
weights can undermine public transport's benefit to the environment while slowing other traffic. In this context,
Personal Rapid Transit systems attempt to eliminate the inconsistency by moving small groups, nonstop, in
automated vehicles on fixed tracks. A detail on comparison with the existing system with respect to new technology
is briefed in the paper.
Keywords: Personal Rapid Transit system, public transportation, transit efficiency, comparison.

1. Introduction: The vehicles are publicly owned and maintained no

The automobile was a revolution in transportation.
Safer and more reliable than the horse and buggy, it
transformed the way of life. But the requirement of
automobile is on the skids, ever increasing congestion,
the price of gasoline, and the environmental problems
inherent in burning fossil fuels. The current system is
simply unsustainable.
Traditional mass transit (the bus, subways, and light
rail) simply cannot replace the automobile as it cannot
provide the same door to door service (Manual, 2003).
Alternative fuels (hydrogen, ethanol, hybrids) are great
as political sound bites, but they ultimately fail to
provide a realistic alternative when judged on their
scientific merit. Additionally they do nothing to reduce
congestion. Hence, there is a need of a system that
combines the convenience of the automobile with the
efficiency of mass transit. PRT (Personal Rapid Transit)
is just such a system (Muller et al., 2007).
In the simplest definition, the PRT puts the automobile
on tracks. The vehicles are small, individualized, fully
automated (no driver), and fully electric. But rather
than coexist with the automobile, the PRT system
replaces it. The tracks are constructed over or on the
existing roadways, thus greatly reducing the cost of
construction (Jones, 2009). Traditional rail systems such
as light rail cost as much as $70 million per mile. The
PRT would cost only a fraction of that since the existing
road system is essentially recycled.
private ownership. They don't keep a vehicle sitting idle
in driveway, but rather summon one from the system as
needed. When you get to your destination and exit the
vehicle, it automatically moves on to the next pickup
location (Lowson, 2005). When work finished, they
simply summon another vehicle. High traffic locations
like shopping centers would typically maintain a line
of ready-to-go vehicles, similar to a taxi line at the
airport (Miller and Wilson, 2012).
2.0 Study:
For the study, reviewers have taken all available transits
in the present systems and then took a through ride over
it performance & specification’s and compared it to
PRT performance & Specifications. The similar
functional systems available in today’s world are LRT,
BRT & vintage trolley, and by considering the below
reference authors and market based survey, a brief
comparisons are enclosed in Fig. 01.
3.0 Analysis:
3.1 No traffic crossings (only merges and diverges):
PRT systems have one-way guide ways. T-Pods needing
to change direction take a guide way diverging away
from the one they are on and merging with a guide way
going in the desired direction. The only accidents that
are possible are rear-end situations or side-on collisions
with vehicles going in essentially the same direction.
Note that many automated people mover and light rail
systems have guide ways or tracks that cross and head-

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 721 S AI SUMAN P OOJARI AND U DAY K V

on collisions are therefore theoretically possible with
these systems. (Peter J. Muller et al., 2011).
3.2 Lower maximum speed for higher average
speeds:
Since T-Pods bypasses all stations except for the
destination station, the trip is non-stop and the
maximum speed is close to the average speed. This is
not the case for other systems that have to stop at each
station. An LRT system with stations a mile apart must
have a top speed around 55mph in order to average
25mph. A PRT system in the same situation needs to
only have a top speed around 27mph. The Morgantown
PRT system has completed 110 million injury-free
passenger miles. Conventional transit injures over a
hundred people in that many miles. (Peter et al., 2007).
3.3 Steady stream of traffic facilitates processing of
passengers:
PRT has the potential to allow a secure perimeter
containing security-screening points to be implemented
around a facility like an airport terminal. Off-loading
bus or train passengers at such a screening point,
screening them and the reloading them would be very
difficult. On the other hand T-Pods would bring
passengers in a steady stream. They could actually pass
through the building between each screening station and
then reload passengers who have been screened.
3.4 Shared rides can be avoided:
Most PRT vehicles are intended for use by small groups
traveling together. There will usually be no need to
share rides with strangers. It is probable that all stations
and possibly all T-Pods will have CCTV monitoring to
help prevent forced ride sharing. In addition T-Pods will
usually be equipped with an alarm button that could
cause the vehicle to be met by emergency response
personnel at its next stop.
3.5 PRT Saves Time:
PRT concept is to divide public transit up into the
smallest possible pieces. Instead of a few large vehicles
carrying many people every 5 minutes or so, we have
many small vehicles carrying a few people every 5
seconds or so. This translates into little or no waiting.
With PRT the vehicles typically wait for the passengers.
3.6 Less Walking:
Elevated PRT systems have very little right of way
requirement, a column every one hundred feet or so. For
this reason even systems that serve a corridor are likely
to have their inbound guide way located about half a
mile from their outbound guide way. Since PRT station
spacing is typically one half mile, a swath of land one
mile wide will have a PRT stations with maximum
walking distances of one quarter of a mile. An LRT
serving the same corridor with typical station spacing of
one mile will serve the same swath of land one mile
wide with maximum walking distances of one half mile.
Average PRT walking distances will thus be about one
half of average LRT walking distances.
3.7 Non-stop travel:
This is a fundamental PRT concept. Each station has its
own off- and on-ramp to the guide way (like a mini
freeway interchange). This means that T-Pods stopped
in the guide way are off-line from the main guide way
and do not disrupt the passing traffic on the main guide
way. Some PRT systems can accommodate station bays
that are off-line to each other. That means that a person
could delay a T-Pod in a station and other T-pods
behind it could still get out without waiting.
Less waiting and walking combined with non-stop
travel allow PRT systems to provide improved total trip
times with relatively low maximum speeds. When high-
speed PRT systems become available urban trip times
will be dramatically reduced. Cities with widespread
high-speed PRT systems should see a dramatic
reduction in automobile use.
4.0 Conclusions:
4.1 PRT Is Environmentally Friendly:
Less energy PRT vendors claim it uses less energy than
automobiles and public transit. Although this has not
been verified it is likely to prove correct for three
reasons. PRT travel is non-stop and so little energy is
expended accelerating. PRT travel is relatively slow and
so little energy is expended combating wind resistance.
PRT systems should have less need to move empty
vehicles around in off-peak periods.
Less emission PRT systems have fewer emissions
because they use less energy, as they maximum speed is
only 40 kmph. In addition they are typically

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 PRT Systems
Fig1: Comparision between various transit systems
(Peter J. Muller et al., 2011).
electrically powered and so their emissions are
associated with those of the power plant that is typically
out of town and may even be augmented with clean
energy such as wind. (Haley m jones et al., 2008).
Less noise Rubber tires on concrete or steel, low weight
and speed all combine to produce less noise and
vibration.
4.2. PRT Systems Are Varied:
Some are faster The Morgantown PRT system has
been operating at a maximum speed of 30mph for over
thirty years. The system at Schipol Airport has operated
at 19mph for seven years. Ultra has been operating
prototypes on a test track for three years at 25mph.
Some are more flexible: Systems that operate on a flat
guide way tend to be able to accommodate tight curves.
The minimum radii for Morgantown, together and ultra
are 30', 20' and 17' respectively. Systems such as Sky
Web Express that have their undercarriage inside a
slotted guide way tend to require larger radii. (Muller et
al., 2005).
All PRT systems are likely to be able to handle grades
as steep as 10%. The limiting factor is more likely to be
passenger fears than system capability except possible
in icy conditions.
Some have more capacity: System capacity is not the
same thing as T-Pod capacity. System capacity is a
function of both headway and T-Pod occupancy only.
Speed has nothing to do with it. If T-Pods each carrying
four passengers pass a point at the rate of one per
second the capacity is 14,400pphpd. (Miller et al.,
2009) This is probably the highest theoretical capacity
attainable by a single guide way PRT system. Safe
International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering
ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 720-723
722
operation at such low headways remains to be proven
although some do on highways (not very safely) and
some vendors claim they will be able to achieve even
lower headways. Filling all seats of a four-seat T-Pod
system would require an operation that involved some
waiting and would be somewhat counter to the basic
PRT philosophy. (Lowson, 2011).
Morgantown achieves a relatively high maximum
capacity of 5,000 passengers per hour per direction by
offsetting its high 15 second headway with a high
vehicle capacity of 20 passengers.
Some are unproven: Morgantown and Schipol Airport
are the only known PRT systems to have been in
operation for more than 5 years. Both are considered a
success - Morgantown is considering an expansion and
Schipol was a one-year pilot that ran for seven years.
Neither operation is considered true PRT but both prove
that automatic control of small vehicles on guide ways
is viable. In addition, Morgantown has proven that the
basic PRT concept of automated vehicles bypassing
stations is viable - even with ancient computing
technology.
Terrorism-resistant: people live in a world where
terrorism must be factored into the design of any
transportation system. If they design a bullet train to
travel at 300 mph with 2000 passengers, the potential
for catastrophy from terrorism (or an accident) is great.
On the other hand if each vehicle is independent and
travels at modest speeds (45 mph), the potential for
death from terrorism greatly diminished. One
requirement of the design is that control is shared
between a central routing system and the individual
vehicles, with each system able to independently halt
the vehicle. This failsafe design would prevent someone
from overriding the central routing system and
intentionally causing collisions. (Peter J. Muller et al.,
2011).
5.0 Conclusion:
A great deal of attention is given to gas mileage
optimizations, hybrid cars, and alternative fuel sources.
But this quickly becomes a case of chasing diminishing
returns. So why not broaden thinking? Why not create a
system that also eliminates traffic fatalities, is
environmentally friendly, and makes public lives
easier? That's what PRT is all about.
It's easy to imagine that mankind will not be driving
automobiles a thousand years from now. Or even 200
years from now. The technology required to implement
the PRT already exists. Given the inherent limitations of
public existing transportation system, why not reap the
benefits of a better system now.
So, Clearly PRT is an undertaking of vast proportions.
Much R&D will be required to finalize countless
 723 S AI SUMAN P OOJARI AND U DAY K V
aspects of the design before committing to one
particular specification. Ideally funding would be made
available such that the major engineering colleges could
pair with appropriate industries (automotive, software,
etc) to develop competing designs. Fortunately the idea
of individualized vehicles running on tracks is not
new. A handful of very dedicated individuals have been
pushing various PRT (Personal Rapid Transit) concepts
for many years. They invariably differ from PRT
Project in scope since they are designed to coexist with
the automobile rather than replace it, running at airports
or down major thoroughfares, but the good news is that
MUCH of their work applies directly to this concept.
Reference
[1] Jones, H. M. (2009), Personal rapid transit for
Canberra, Telecommunications Journal of
Australia, 59(1), pp: 06.1-06.10.
[2] Kerr, A.D., James, P.A., Cook, C.V. and Craig,
A.P., (2005), Infrastructure Cost Comparisons for
PRT and APM, ASCE 10th International
Conference on Automated People Movers,
[3] Lowson M.V., PRT for Airport Applications,
Transportation Research Record, Journal of the
Transportation Research Board No 1930 2005 pp.
99-106.
International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering
ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 720-723
[4] Manual (2003), Transit Capacity and Quality of
Service, Transportation Research Board, TCRP
Report 100, 2nd Edition.
[5] Miller J. L., Hammersley, L. and Davenport, N.,
(2009), Ridesharing in Personal Rapid Transit
Capacity Planning, ASCE APM Conf,.
[6] Miller, J. D. L. and Wilson, R. E., (2012), Proactive
empty vehicle redistribution for personal rapid
transit and taxis, Transportation Planning and
Technology, Special Issue: Universities' Transport
Studies Group, UK Annual Conference 2011,
Volume 35, Issue 1, 2012, pp: 17-30
[7] Muller, P. J., Allee, W., Personal Rapid Transit, an
Airport Panacea? Transportation Research Board
Paper No. 05-0599, January, 2005.
[8] Peter J. Muller, P. J., Young, S. E., Vogt M. N.,
(2007), Personal Rapid Transit Safety and Security
on a University Campus, Transportation Research
Board Paper No. 07-0907, 95-103.
[9] Miller, J. D. L. and Wilson, R. E. (2012), Sampling
of Redistribution of Empty Vehicles for Personal
Rapid Transit, Transportation Research Record:
Journal of the Transportation Research Board, Vol.
2216, pp: 174-181.
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ISSN 0974-5904, Volume 07, No. 04

Inverse Modeling to Quantify Soil-Water and Solute Movement

Parameters
P. N. SINGH
Department of Civil Engineering, VNR Vignana Jyothi Institute of Engineering & Technology, Hyderabad, INDIA
Email: narayansingh_p@vnrvjiet.in

Abstract: One of the emerging trends in the numerical modeling field is the use of automated inverse modeling
procedure to quantify different parametrs that are invaribaly used to define a system. In many cases, some of these
parameters can not be evalutaed without utilizing inverse modeling. This paper presents the use of inverse modeling
in the field of soil-water and solute movemnt models. Two case studies are presented, wherein the inverse modeling
led to the evaluation of parameters that could not be measured or estimated in any other way. The first case study
relates to the evaluation of conditions for sustainable root zone salinity in a drainage impacted area, and the second
case study is for the prediction of soil water movement under crop residue cover.
Keywords: Numerical modeling, Inverse modeling, salinity, evaporation.

1. Introduction: situations, predict the critical situations and establish

In recent days, the use of numerical models in the
simulation of environmental process as an aid to the
management of natural resources is becoming more and
more commonplace. The increasing popularity of
numerical models is mainly due to two reasons. Firstly
there is the avaibility of powerful and cheap computers
to run complex physhical based models and secondly is
the abilty of these numerical models to evalute the
outcomes relative to different combinations of inputs.
For example the movement of soil water and solute
involves many complex interactions between soil,
groundwater, river stage, drainage, soil salinity, crop
type, and meteorological conditions which need to
evaluated. The field experiments and data collection are
always restricted to a subset of combinations. Since the
outcome of these interactions is not linear, it is very
difficult to evaluate all the possible outcomes based on a
limited number of field experiments and/or
measurements. A physically based model that can
numerically simulate all the major processes related to
the interactions between these factors can offer real
benefits in terms of ability to simulate any number of
situations very cheaply and quickly. However, it is first
necessary to establish that the numerical model for the
system is capable of reliably replicating the past system
behavior. A numerical model that can not reliably
replicate the past behavior of the system is of no use in
predicting the future system behavior. A properly
calibrated and validated numerical model is a powerful
tool that allows one to reliably simulate any number of
monitoring and management plan.
A number of excellent numerical models for soil water
movement in saturated and unsaturated zones are
available in the public domain. Many of these models
incorporate solute transport as well as water uptake by
crop roots. Hydrus-1D [1] is one of the most popular
computer codes for simulation of water movement in
variably saturated porous media [2]. In the Hydrus-1D
model, variably saturated flow is simulated with the
Richards equation, and the unsaturated soil hydraulic
properties (the constitutive relationships) are described
using van Genuchten [3] parameters. The flow equation
incorporates a sink term to account for water uptake by
plant roots. The flow equation is solved numerically
using a mass-lumped fully implicit Galerkin finite
element method. Hydrus-1D uses a modified form of
the Richard's equation to describe the one-dimensional
water movement in the vadose zone,
 (h)    h 
  K (h)  1  S (1)
t x   x 
where h is the water head (L), θ (h) is the volumetric
water content (L3 L-3), t is time (T), x is the spatial
coordinate (L), S is the sink term defined as the volume
of water removed from a unit volume of soil per unit
time due to plant water uptake (L3 L-3 T-1), and K is the
unsaturated hydraulic conductivity function (L T-1). The
soil water retention, θ (h), and hydraulic conductivity,
K(h), functions are represented by the van Genuchten

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 725 P. N. S INGH
model (1980), together with the capillary-based
unsaturated hydraulic conductivity prediction model [4]:
s  r
 ( h)   r 
1  h 
(2)
n m
for s    s
 
2
K (h)  K s Sel 1  (1  Se1/ m ) m (3)
 ( h)   r
Se  (4)
s  r
m = 1 – 1/n, n > 1
The model uses five independent parameters, referred to
as van Genuchten parameters: θr is the residual soil
water content (L3 L-3), θs is the saturated soil water
content (L3 L-3),  is the soil water retention parameter
(L-1), n is an exponent in the soil water retention
function, and Ks is the saturated hydraulic conductivity
(L T-1). When solute transport model is also coupled
with the soil-water movement model, additional
parameters related to the Fickian-based advection-
dispersion equation, soil specific parameters such as
longitudinal dispersivity and solute specific molecular
diffusion coefficient in water is required. The pore
connectivity parameter l in the hydraulic conductivity
function was estimated [4] as 0.5, an average for many
soils. The five soil hydraulic parameters of the van
Genuchten equations and the solute transport parameters
are either estimated from laboratory and field
experiments using direct measurement or inverse
solution methods. These methods can be time
consuming and expensive. Direct methods, either field
or laboratory, use only limited number of samples and
up-scaling of parameters based on limited number of
tests may introduce significant error. Indirect methods
such as pedotransfer functions (PTF) [4,5] allow users
to estimate these properties from limited soil
information such as soil texture, bulk density and
organic C quickly and cheaply, however PTF‟s do not
most of the time reflect field behavior.
As an alternative to these methods of determining
parameters needed for the numerical models, inverse
modeling or parameter estimation techniques are
increasingly being used. The basis for the inverse
modeling is that in numerical modeling, mathematical
equations are used to describe the physical processes in
the system. These equations contain certain system
specific parameters, and if these parameters are known
then it may often be possible to evaluate the response of
the system to a certain excitation or input to that system.
Most of the time, though, field measurements giving
output of the system in response to certain inputs to the
system are available, but the parameters are uncertain.
International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering
ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 724-728
In such cases, if numbers representing the inputs or
excitations are supplied to a numerical model
representing the system and the model‟s parameters are
adjusted such that model outputs matches with
measurements made on the system, the effective
parameters that define the behavior of the system are
obtained.
It is then concluded that the model with the quantified
effective parameters will represent the system‟s
behavior adequately as the latter responds to other
excitations as well, excitations which we may not be
prepared to give the system in practice. A model is said
to be “calibrated” when its parameters have been
adjusted in this fashion.
Once an effective parameter set has been determined for
which model behavior adequately matches system
behavior, it is then reasonable to ask whether another
parameter set exists which also results in reasonable
simulation by the model of the system under study. The
existence of another parameter set giving equally valid
outputs relate to the non-uniqueness of the calibration
process. Thus one should be aware that inverse
modeling process can be as much of an art as it is a
science. Thus inverse modeling can only be used to
complement the efforts in understanding a system and
inferring its parameters. It cannot act as a substitute for
experience; it cannot extract more information from a
dataset than the inherent information content of that
dataset.
In this paper, two different examples of the use of
inverse modeling to understand and predict the response
of the system with respect to the movement of water and
solutes in the soil profile are presented.
Inverse Modeling: An often used method of inverse
modeling is manual calibration by „trial and error‟
method. The main drawbacks of this method are that it
can take a lot of time and for complex models with
number of parameters involved it is difficult to judge
the interaction between these parameters and in which
direction they should be adjusted. It is also totally
subjective depending on the modeler to determine when
to stop the process. For complex models involving
number of parameters, it is not possible to ensure that
the best set of parameters is found.
The use of automated inverse modeling methods , where
the process searches for the best possible set of
parameters in an iterative way, by varying the
parameters and comparing the measured response of the
system with the numerical solution given by the model
are an attractive alternative. The search is usually
targeted towards finding the global minimum of an
objective function defined by the error between
measured and simulated values. There are many
algorithms in use having different strategies for
 Inverse Modeling to Quantify Soil-Water and Solute Movement Parameters
minimizing the objecting function. For the two cases
presented here, PEST software was used. Parameter
estimation (PEST) [6] is a widely used calibration
model, where parameter optimization is achieved using
the Gauss-Marquardt-Levenberg method for which the
discrepancies between model-generated numbers and
corresponding field data are reduced to a minimum in
the weighted least-squares sense.
2. Use of inverse modeling in evaluating the
conditions required for sustainable root zone salinity
in the presence of shallow water table in San Joaquin
Valley, California, USA:
In the San Joaquin Valley of California, a combination
of lack of adequate out-of-basin drainage caused by
topographic and environmental constraints, intensive
irrigation practices, and the presence of a shallow
underlying layer of low permeability soil has caused the
root zone to become highly saline and the shallow water
table to rise. Because the San Joaquin Valley of
California is one of the major agricultural production
regions of the state, the mitigation of its salinity-toxicity
drainage problems has been a top priority of both
federal and state agencies. The U. S. Department of
Interior, Bureau of Reclamation (BR) through San Luis
Drainage Feature Re-evaluation project decided to retire
up to a total of approximately 78,500 ha of land in the
drainage area. However, due to the lack of knowledge
regarding the potential effects, positive and negative, of
retirement of agricultural land on a large scale, the
decision was identified as a cause of concern [7].
Because of these concerns, the U.S. Department of
interior through the Interagency Land Retirement Team
implemented the Land Retirement Demonstration
Project (LRDP) located in western Fresno County of
California to provide site specific scientific data [8].
The project collected five years of continuous data on
the changes in salinity levels in the soil profile and
shallow water table to analyze the effects of land
retirement on the environment. Based on the analysis of
the data, it was concluded that the retirement of land led
to gradual lowering of the shallow water table and also
to the lowering of salinity levels in the root zone.
However, based on the field data it was not possible to
identify the factors that led to such an outcome. Could
the same outcome be expected at other locations with
different set of conditions? To answer this question, it
was decided to develop a numerical model of the
process and calibrate it with the measured data. Singh et
al., 2010 [9] developed a comprehensive theoretical and
numerical modeling framework to evaluate the specific
site conditions required for a sustainable land retirement
outcome on natural drainage. Using field data,
principles of mass balance in a control volume, the
HYDRUS-1D Software Package for simulating one-
dimensional movement of water, heat, and multiple
International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering
ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 724-728
726
solutes in variably-saturated media, and PEST, a model-
independent parameter optimizer, the processes of soil
water and solute movement in root zone and the deep
vadose zone were investigated. The inverse modeling
effort produced a set of unsaturated soil hydraulic
parameters and downward flux (natural drainage) from
the system by comparing the model generated values of
vadose zone salinity and shallow water levels to the
observed values. The process yielded a difficult to
obtain natural drainage rate as a function of water table
height within the control volume. The results showed
that unsaturated soil hydraulic properties and the
downward flux from the soil profile are the critical
parameters in ensuring the success of land retirement
programs. A „natural drainage approach‟ to sustainable
land management for drainage impaired land in general
and retired lands in particular resulted from the use of
inverse modeling approach.
3. Inverse modeling for predicting soil water
movement under crop residue cover:
Plant residue on the soil surface is considered useful for
reducing the evaporation component of crop
evapotranspiration. In contrast to soil, the upward
movement of water through the plant residue layer is
predominantly in the vapor phase rather than the liquid
phase. Because of this difference in the mechanism of
water movement, physically based numerical models
that simulate liquid-dominated water movement in the
soil profile have not been tested for water movement
through residue. An innovative use of inverse modeling
technique was made by Singh et al., 2011 [10] to show
that physically based numerical model, Hydrus-1 D
could be used to simulate the changes in soil moisture in
a residue-covered production system. The data for
calibrating and validating the model were collected
from two different studies in 2010 at the University of
California West Side Research and Extension Center in
Five Points, California.
The water stored in the soil is depleted due to
evaporation and transpiration and is thus a target for
improved management. While transpiration is essential
for plant growth, evaporation is considered non-
essential in terms of crop yield benefit. Especially in
very dry and hot weather, evaporation could be a
significant portion of the evapotranspiration demand of
the crops. Mulch or plant residue on the soil surface has
long been considered a useful way to minimize
evaporation. Research comprising broadly three
approaches has been undertaken to understand and
quantify the effects of plant residue on evaporation. The
first approach involves the use of lysimeters to measure
the difference between evaporation under mulch
covered soil and bare soil conditions [11, 12, 13]. In the
second approach, researchers have investigated crop
residue effects on surface radiation and the energy
 727 P. N. S INGH
balance [14, 15, 16]. It has been observed that the soil
surface temperatures under crop residue are different
from that of bare soil, with daytime summer
temperatures being lower under crop residue than for
bare soil and nighttime temperature being lower for bare
soil than for crop residue. Daily evaporation is found to
be correlated only with soil moisture and wind speed. It
is thus concluded that reduced evaporation from the
residue covered soil was related to reduced wind speed
and lower surface temperature under the crop residue
In the third approach, many models have been
developed to represent the water and heat flows across
the crop residue system [17, 18, 19, 20, 21].
The currently available approaches to simulating the
soil water profile under a crop residue cover are
inherently limited by the need to simulate the movement
of water through the crop residue layer. The current
models generally consider crop residue cover as a soil
layer with specific hydraulic properties [19, 21]. Despite
being a porous medium, crop residue layers are different
from soil in terms of hydraulic properties. There are
physically based mathematical models that do an
excellent job of simulating the movement of water, heat,
and solutes in the soil profile with or without a crop.
Thus, if the crop residue layer were to behave
hydraulically as a soil layer, then the whole exercise of
simulating water and heat in the soil profile under crop
residue cover would simply entail determination of the
saturated and unsaturated hydraulic properties of the
crop residue layer. With the successful characterization
of the hydraulic properties of the crop residue layer,
either through direct measurements or inverse modeling,
simulating soil water moisture under the crop residue
becomes routine. As crop residue layers do not behave
the same way as soil layers, the challenge is to create a
model that can appropriately simulate the movement of
water through the crop residue layer. The water
movement across the crop residue layer may be
idealized as moving across a fictitious soil medium with
equivalent hydraulic properties. If the fictitious soil
medium is assigned hydraulic properties such that it
mimics the movement of water across the crop residue
layer, then the fictitious soil medium can be used to
replace the crop residue layer in vadose zone soil water
models. Singh et al., 2011 [10] proposed an innovative
methodology in which the crop residue layer is replaced
with a hydraulically equivalent soil layer (ESL). It was
hypothesized that the hydraulically equivalent soil layer
will behave similarly to the crop residue layer in terms
of soil water movement across the layer both when
water is applied through rainfall or irrigation and when
water is depleted due to evaporation and transpiration
from the soil profile underneath. A parameter
optimization technique (inverse modeling) was then
employed to characterize the unsaturated soil hydraulic
International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering
ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 724-728
function of the ESL by optimizing against a time series
of soil moisture content measurements in the soil
profile. The soil hydraulic function of the ESL, derived
from the parameter optimization technique, was
validated against another independent set of soil water
measurements for different meteorological conditions
4. Conclusion:
While the inverse modeling tools like the PEST
software that was used in the two cases presented here
are generally used to infer the soil moisture retention
and hydraulic conductivity properties of the soil in the
water and solute transport numerical models, the inverse
modeling process can also be used to derive other
parameters of the physical system being modeled. In the
first case presented here, the quantification of the
natural drainage rate for the soil profile led to the
formulation of land management options in drainage
impaired area. In the second case, the use of inverse
modeling allowed to quantify the hydraulic properties of
the residue cover. Without the PEST software, it would
not have been possible to reliably estimate either the
natural drainage rate in the first case or the hydraulic
properties of the residue cover in the second case. An
intelligent use of inverse modeling process can generate
more information from the measured data set than it can
yield otherwise and thus greatly enhance the reliability
and the usability of the water and solute transport
models in any given situation.
Reference
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(2000), The Hydrus-1D software package for
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[2] Zlotnik V A, Wang T J, Nieber J L and Simunek J
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[3] Vangenuchten M T (1980), A Closed-Form
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[6] Doherty J, Brebber L and Whyte P (2004), PEST:
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[7] Selmon M, Kelly P, Uptain C and Lee S (2000),
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[8] Erysian S, Lee S L, May R, Brummer J, Yahnke J,
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Howard A J, Kelly P A. Kokx A J, Newman D P,
Philips S R, Ritter N P, Uptain C E, Williams, D F
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[9] Singh P N, Wallender W W, Maneta M P, Lee S L
and Olsen B A (2010), Sustainable root zone
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[10] Singh P N, Mitchell J P and Wallender W W
(2011), Parameter optimization for predicting soil
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2035.
[11] Todd R W, Klocke N L, Hergert G W and
Parkhurst A M (1991), Evaporation from soil
influenced by crop shading, crop residue, and
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[12] Broberg A W (2002), Evaporation from a clay soil
covered with a surface mulch: Three lysimeter
studies, Acta Agric. Scandinavica B, Vol. 52(4), pp.
121-156.
[13] Klocke N L, Currie R S and Aiken R M (2009),
Soil water evaporation and crop residues,
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[14] Enj J W, Brun L J and Larsen J K (1988),
Evaporation and energy balance for bare and
stubble-covered soil, Agric. And Forest. Meteorol,
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[15] Horton R K, Bristow K L, Kluitenberg G J and
Sauer T J (1996), Crop residue effects on surface
radiation and energy balance: Review, Theor. And
Appl. Climatol., Vol. 54(1-2), pp. 27-37.
[16] Lagos L O, Martin D L, Verma S B, Suyker A and
Irmak S (2009), Surface energy balance model of
transpiration from variable canopy cover and
evaporation from residue-covered or bare-soil
systems, Irrigation Science, Vol. 28(1), pp. 51-64.
[17] Bristow K L and Horton R (1996), Modeling the
impact of partial surface mulch on soil heat and
water flow, Theor. And Appl. Climatol, Vol. 54(1-
2), pp. 85-98.
[18] Sui H J, Zeng D C and Chen F Z (1992), A
numerical model for simulating the temperature and
moisture regimes of soil under various mulches,
Agric. And Forest Meteorol, Vol. 61(3-4), pp. 281-
299.
[19] Bristow K L, Campbell R I, Papendick R I and
Elliott (1986), Simulation of heat and moisture
transfer through a surface residue soil system,
Agric. And Forest Meterol., Vol. 36(3), pp. 193-
214.
[20] Findeling A, Chanzy A and Delouvigny N (2003),
Modeling water and heat flows through mulch
allowing for radiative and long-distance convective
exchenges in the mulch, Water Resources
Research, Vol. 39(9)
[21] vanDonk S J, Tollner E W, Steiner J L and Evett S
R (2004), Soil temperature under a bermudagrass
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 Indexed in
Scopus Compendex and Geobase Elsevier, Chemical
Abstract Services-USA, Geo-Ref Information Services-USA,
List B of Scientific Journals, Poland,
Directory of Research Journals
www.cafetinnova.org August 2014, P.P.729-732
ISSN 0974-5904, Volume 07, No. 04

Multi - Electrode Resistivity Survey for Charecterisation of Hard

Rocks in Kudliar Watershed, Medak District, AP.
A. Shravan Kumar and Dr. K. Ramamohan Reddy
Centre for Water Resources, Institute of Science and Technology (IST), JNT University Hyderabad.
Email: shravan.are@gmail.com, kasarammohan@gmail.com

Abstract: The ever growing demand for water is due to rapid urbanization and industrialization. One of the negative
impacts of global warming envisaged is the change in rain fall pattern. This in turn is expected to affect the
availability of water in space and time. Also, to meet the increasing demand for water, proper understanding of the
groundwater condition in a given area is essential.
The present study is to carry out the Geo-physical investigations in the Kudliar watershed, Medak District, AP to
understand the sub-surface lithology of the watershed. It serves as a base line data for future water resources
planning and development. The entire watershed is underlain by consolidated rocks. Yield potential of the aquifers
in the consolidated rocks vary widely as the resistivity values at 16-48 feet indicate the resistivity of 12-150 Ω-m
representing laminated zone, at 48-80 feet indicating the resistivity of 150-500Ω-m representing weathered zone,
and above 80 feet resistivity values are very high representing fresh granite/basement zone. Due to over exploitation,
the yields have fallen drastically leading to failure of wells. In the present watershed, the groundwater occurs in
phreatic condition in weathered and fractured rocks. The rise of water levels from pre-monsoon to post-monsoon
range between 0.03 to 16.26 m. Based on the results of the study, the groundwater conservation and management
techniques have been suggested.
Key Words: Resistivity, Hard rock, Watershed.

1. Introduction:  Preparation of Resistivity and Thickness maps of

sub-surface layers.
Resistivity techniques are powerful borehole siting tools
for groundwater although there are many other 3. Location and description of the study area
geophysical techniques employed for the same purpose.
The study area kudaliar watershed is located in Medak
Of late electrical imaging has become very popular,
district, Andhra Pradesh, India , which is situated about
since they provide a more detailed view of subsurface
90 km North West to Hyderabad on Hyderabad-
water bearing structure than can be obtained using other
karimnagar state high way and is bounded by East
geophysical techniques and may therefore lead to a
longitude 780 33‟ 39.6‟‟ – 790 07‟ 22.8‟‟ and latitude 170
better understanding of local hydrology. Usually 1 D
53‟ 45.6‟‟ -180 15‟ 36‟‟. The study area predominantly
resistivity provides survey information at point, while 2
occupied by granite with small pitches of supracrustal of
D imaging facilitates very close measurement with ease
Achaean age. The supracrustal occur as enclaves of
providing details of resistivity cross section along a
varying size sand shapes with in granite predominantly
profile.
in hornblende granite. The entire watershed the degree
2. Objectives of the Study: of weathering is quite high thereby giving rise to
In the present study, 2D Resistivity Imaging was carried saprolite by the removal of feldspar here by generating
out at Granitic terrain of kudliar watershed at Medak very good secondary porosity. Saprolite extends down
district, Andhra Pradesh. The study include to a depth of 15m at this place. Joints are well
developed in granites excepting in massive verities.
 Delineation & Characterization of sub-surface
The total area of kudaliar watershed is 990 km2.The
formations in the Kudliar watershed.
maximum and minimum elevations of topographic
 To study the aquifer geometry and aquifer
contours are 455 m and 605 m above mean sea level
properties in the study area.
respectively.

#SPL02070435 Copyright ©2014 CAFET-INNOVA TECHNICAL SOCIETY. All rights reserved.

Proceedings of 3-Day International Conference on Emerging Trends in Civil Engineering (ICETE-2014,)
6th–8th January, 2014
 Multi - Electrode Resistivity Survey for Charecterisation of Hard Rocks in
Kudliar Watershed, Medak District, AP.
Resistivity imaging survey was conducted in granitic
terrain at kudliar watershed in Medak district in Andhra
Pradesh Viz., Raipol, and Bhumpalli. Dubbak,
Gollapalli and Sangapur.
Fig1: Location map of the study area
4. Literature Review
Singh et al., (2006) studied the groundwater condition at
Central Mining Research Institute campus in detail and
recommended a new deep tube well by using 2D
resistivity imaging surveys.
Exploration surveys were conducted by
Sushobhan Dutta et al., (2006) from Indo-French Center
for Ground Water Research, NGRI, Hyderabad at one of
the important sites in Maheshwaram watershed, Andhra
Pradesh, India with a multi electrode resistivity imaging
system and recommended a few artificial recharge sites.
A multi electrode resistivity survey carried out by owen
et al.(2006) over meta sedimentary strata and meta-
volcanics in the Harare greenstone belt in northeastern
Zimbabwe as part of a groundwater resources
investigation, illustrates the ability of this technique to
produce high-resolution images of the sub-surface
useful for groundwater resources assessment.
The resistivity results provide a clear view of the
thickness of the weathered regolith and the distribution
of the various lithological units.
It can be inferred from the above and other similar
studies that 2D resistivity imaging is applied to define
the local hydrology in general and groundwater location
in particular. However, in the present study it is
attempted to obtain the ranges for kudliar watershed.
5. Methodology
Conventional resistivity sounding and lateral profiling,
2D resistivity imaging is a fully automated technique
that uses a linear array of about 72 electrodes connected
by multi core cable. The current and potential electrode
International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering
ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 729-732
730
pairs are switched automatically using a control module
connected to a earth resistivity meter(that provides
output current).In this way a profile of resistivity against
depth(Pseudosection) is built up along the survey line
data is collected by automatic profiling along the line
until the last electrode is reached. The spacing is than
increased by minimum electrode separation and the
process is repeated in order to provide an increased
depth of investigations. The maximum depth of
investigation is determined by the spacing between the
electrodes and the number of electrodes in the array. For
72 electrodes array with an electrode spacing of 10 m
this depth is approximately 90 m. The raw data is
initially converted to apparent resistivity values using a
geometric factor that is determined by the type of
electrode configuration used. Once converted the data is
modeled using finite eliminate and least squares
inversion methods in order to calculate a true resistivity
versus depth pseudosection.
Fig2: sequence of measurements to build up a
pseudosection
6. Hydro geophysical Investigations and Results
A total of five 2D Electrical Resistivity Imaging (ERI)
profiles were conducted utilizing Wenner-Schlumberger
configuration with maximum of 720 m with 72
electrodes. The SYSCAL junior switch -48 Resistivity
meter is designed by IRIS is used for detecting the
resistivity values from the earth sub-surface.
The raw data is initially converted to apparent resistivity
values using a geometric factor that is determined by the
type of electrode configuration used. Once converted,
the data is modeled using finite element and least
squares inversion methods in order to calculate a true
resistivity versus depth pseudosection.
6.1 Investigations in Study Area:
At Raipol:
The Resistivity 2D section (Fig.3) obtained from
Wenner-Schlumberger configuration along NW-SE
direction shows a layered structure with slight
undulating topography up to a total depth of 86.2 m.
This section also shows that the resistivity of the
 731 A. Shravan Kumar and Dr. K. Ramamohan Reddy
subsurface gradually increases (from 10 Ohm-m to 2000
Ohm-m) with depth. The top level up to 15 m depth the
subsurface layers possesses resistivity in the range of
10-15 Ohm-m, Indicates possible saprolite and
laminated granite
Fig3: Resistivity imaging of subsurface at Raipol
village
The middle layers from 15-25m depth with resistivity
of 200-500 Ohm-m represent fissured granite and
underlain bottom layers possessing more than 500 Ohm-
m. It represents the presence of highly massive granite
(basement) rock to the entire depth of investigation
(86.2 m) However; there is possibility for deep potential
aquifer zones. These Electrical Resistivity Tomography
survey results are exactly correlating with the study
area.
At Bhumpalli:
Fig4: Resistivity imaging of subsurface at sangapur
village
In the resistivity section (Fig.4) there is a vertically low
resistive zone. I.e. deep fractured basement from 160-
230 m on lateral scale with the resistivity of 20-200
Ohm-m. There is a possibility for groundwater potential
zones.
In the ERT section; from 230 m to towards south up to
710 m and 160 m to towards north the profile there is a
high resistive basement zone at depth of 27 m below
onwards with the resistivity more than 800 Ohm-m.
The above image (Fig 4) shows high resistivity values
up to 2000 ohm-m between 410-450 m on lateral scale
in the depth 73.8 m onwards. Hence, 2D imaging survey
has revealed the resistivity distribution of the sub-
surface of the kudaliar watershed.
International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering
ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 729-732
At Dubbak:
Fig5: Resistivity imaging of subsurface at Dubbak
village
The above resistivity section represents a very amazing
layered structure of the subsurface with sharp resistivity
contrast between the weathered and the basement zones
of the area. Hence, there is slightly undulating
topography in the sub-surface layers; electrical
resistivity tomography survey revealed the fractured
zones at 220 m and 440 m lateral scale up to a depth of
40 m. The resistivity of this fracture zones is ranging
from 15-150 Ohm-m. This also represents laminated
layers up to depth of 18 m. These layers shows
resistivity up to 82.4 Ω-m After the laminated zones
there is a clear indication of fissured granite up to 43.8
m at the center of the profile with the resistivity of 150-
700 Ohm-m. However the basement is starting from 44
m with more than 700 Ohm-m resistivity. There is high
resistive (>1451 ohm-m) basement zone existing from
the 50m below onwards.
At Gollapalli:
The location of the ERT profile is along the road
between munigadapa and Gollapalli villages, Gajawel
mandal, Medak district.
The 2D section (Fig. 6) obtained from Wenner-
Schlumbger configuration along NW-SE direction and
the maximum depth of investigation is 91.2 m. The
above ERT section shows an undulating layered
structure and the layers are dipping towards the southern
side of the profile.
Fig6: Resistivity imaging of subsurface at Gollapalli
village
 Multi - Electrode Resistivity Survey for Charecterisation of Hard Rocks in
Kudliar Watershed, Medak District, AP.
The image shows thick blue to green layers up to 25 m
depth with resistivity of 150 ohm-m (Laminated layer).
The middle of the layers possesses resistivity in the
range of 300-500 ohm-m, (Fissured) and bottom of the
layers indicates high resistivity (>500) values. (Fresh
granite/ Basement).
At Sangapur:
The below 2D Resistivity section obtained from the
Wenner-Schlumbger configuration along NW-SE
direction up to a total depth of 86.2 m. The above geo-
electrical section (Fig.7) shows two distinct lithology.
North-western part has low resistivity values while the
south-eastern part has high resistivity values.
S. No Sub-Surface layers Meters
1 Saprolite/ laminated layer 5-15
2 Weathered/fissured layer 15-25
3 Fresh granite/basement >25
8. Summary:
The resistivity values in the five profiles selected in this
area were found to be in the range of 12 to 500 ohm-m
(potential aquifers are typically in the range of 170 to
360 ohm-m)
By interpreting above results, we found that kudliar
watershed having
 Laminated layer extended up to 15 meters depth.
 Weathered zone extended from 15-25m depth.
(Ground water potential zone).
 The bed rock depth of Kudliar watershed is starting
from 25 m depth onwards.
9. Conclusions:
All the 2 -D resistivity imaging surveys are carried out
in the vicinity of the well. The 2-D resistivity imaging
results have corroborated every well with geological
evidence obtained by drill holes and bore wells. At all
these locations, the resistivity values from 2d imaging
are compared with that by Resistivity well logging
method and found that they are almost same.
Multi-electrode resistivity survey is more suitable for
the study of groundwater potential zones in larger areas.
The application of resistivity technique has been found
to be useful to delineate and charecterise the aquifer
geometry and sub-surface lithology. The 2D resistivity
International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering
ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 729-732
732
Fig7: Resistivity imaging of subsurface at sangapur
village
There is a sharp contrast in the resistivity surrounded by
high resistivity is encountered at a depth at a range of
27-62 m. This indicates that the north western part is
composed weathered granite whereas the south eastern
part is composed of hard and massive granite.
7. Results of 2 D electrical resistivity imaging
profiles:
Based on the correlation study, subsurface lithologies in
the kudaliar watershed are indicated in table.1
Resistivity by 2D Resistivity by
imaging well logging
12-150 Ω-m 0-140 Ω-m
150-500Ω-m 140-600Ω-m
> 500 Ω-m ≥600 Ω-m
images are used for studying the shallow structures of
the underground located a few tens meters down to
about one hundred meters depth.
Combining all the above results, a few sites are
identified for drilling observation wells particularly
where the depth to bed rock is higher (more than 25 m)
and resistivity of the weathered and fractured zones are
favorable (not exceeding 300 ohm-m).
Reference
[1] Barkar., Venkateswara Rao T. and Thangarajan.M.,
1992 „‟Application of electrical imaging for
borehole siting in hard rock regions of India‟‟
Journal of Geological society of India,Vol.61(2), pp
147-158.
[2] Sharma.S.P and Baranwal ,V.C 2003,” Delineation
of ground water - bearing fractured zones in a hard
rock area integrating very low frequency
electromagnetic and resistivity data “Journal of
Applied Geo-physics, volume 57 issue 2 pp.155-
166.
[3] B. Venkateswara Rao, Y.Shiva Prasad, V.Vara
Lakshmi., April 2011‟‟ Resistivity 2D Imaging at
success and failed water wells in Granitic and
Basaltic Terrains of Andhra Pradesh‟‟ Journal of
Geo physics, India, Vol.XXXI No.1&2,pp 105-109.
 Indexed in
Scopus Compendex and Geobase Elsevier, Chemical
Abstract Services-USA, Geo-Ref Information Services-USA,
List B of Scientific Journals, Poland,
Directory of Research Journals
www.cafetinnova.org August 2014, P.P.733-740
ISSN 0974-5904, Volume 07, No. 04

Rainfall - Runoff Modeling Using Digital Elevation Model of an

Ungauged Basin
B. N. MALLESWARA RAO1 AND N.V. UMAMAHESH2
1
Department of Civil Engineering, VNR Vignana Jyothi Institute of Engineering & Technology, Bachupally,
Hyderabad – 500 090, India
2
Water & Environment Division, Department of Civil Engineering, National Institute of Technology, Warangal –
506 004, India
Email: bnmrao@gmail.com

Abstract: Planning and construction of water harvesting, soil and water conservation structures requires estimation
of runoff and peak discharges. Most of the watersheds where these structures are constructed are ungauged and do
not have any records of runoff. During last decade the Geographic Information System (GIS) technology has
emerged as an effective tool for analyzing and prioritizing natural resource management alternatives. Distributed
runoff modeling based on digital terrain models requires data and parameters at an element or grid scale. The present
research describes the use of GIS in modeling the runoff, which is used in estimation of the peak discharge from an
ungauged basin. The study is taken up in six villages of Warangal District of Andhra Pradesh state of India, covering
an area of about 358.307km2. Hydrologic modeling involves the computation of the time of concentration (T c) for
each delineated watersheds. A procedure is developed to use the topographic analysis tools available within the
ARC/INFO GRID package. Slope and travel time has been estimated from the developed Digital Elevation Model
(DEM). Multi-spectral IRS 1D LISS III data acquired on June 2000 is used for the preparation of land use/land
cover map. With the available 30 years daily rainfall data the intensity-duration-frequency relationship has been
developed for the study area, which is used in the runoff estimation.
Keywords: Watershed, Ungauged, GIS, DEM.

1. Introduction: Information System (GIS) in combination with remote

The importance of catchment studies lies in the fact that,
development and prolonged existence of a civilization is
strictly associated with the long term and short-term
changes in the behaviour of a river watershed.
Productivity and sustainability of a location is
determined by scenarios resulting from its interactions
with climate, especially rainfall. A watershed is defined
as the area from which runoff resulting from
precipitation flows past a single outlet. In integrated
approach of river basin modeling, the river basin is
divided into number of watersheds and sub watersheds
and characteristics of each sub watershed are studied
separately. While evaluating the properties of catchment
as a whole, different sub watershed units are combined
together by giving proper weightage to the topological
relationship among them. Many of these characteristics
changes in the course of time, because of natural
process and human activities. Identification and
measurement of these changes from time to time are of
great importance in the context of watershed modeling
studies and management programs. Geographic
sensing is found effective in preparing and maintaining
database and carrying out analysis related to runoff
estimation. The data integration i.e., combining data
from different layers into single layer, providing
information in more than one way, compared to the
original data set is achieved through GIS. GIS serves as
an efficient system of compilation, classification,
storage, synthesis, analysis and retrieval of relevant
information of both spatial and non-spatial origins. It
links various geographic locations with information, so
as to generate maps and analyze the information as per
user requirement.
The tremendous progress in GIS techniques has led to
significant advances on different types of physically
based hydrologic models (Warwick et al. 1994). GIS
can offer spatial data management and analysis tools to
assist experienced users in organizing, storing, editing,
analyzing, and displaying local and attribute
information about geographic data. However, the GIS is
seldom the environment into which watershed analysis
methods are directly implemented. Obviously, model

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Proceedings of 3-Day International Conference on Emerging Trends in Civil Engineering (ICETE-2014,)
6th–8th January, 2014
 Rainfall - Runoff Modeling Using Digital Elevation Model of an
734
Ungauged Basin

applications could benefit from the spatial analysis and 6 sub-watersheds with designation of 4D1C8 according
display capability of GIS (Shea et al. 1993). White to the CWC, Govt. of India. Table1. gives the codes,
(1988) used grid-based application of runoff estimation areas and perimeters.
using curve numbers. Zelazinki (1986) gave a procedure
Table1: Sub watershed areas
for estimating the flow velocity, which involves
development of a relationship between the velocity and Sub-Watershed Total area in Perimeter
corresponding peak discharge. White (1988) attempted code Sq. Km (km)
to model runoff using SCS curve number procedure in a 4D1C8w 91.446 42.79
distributed format using a raster GIS. The procedure 4D1C8u 57.48 49.39
was modified to allow for aerial variation of land use,
land cover and rainfall over a regular-girded network. 4D1C8v 42.315 30.63
Weihua and David (1994), uses digital elevation model 4D1C8x 55.43 37.94
and grid size land scape parameters in hydrologic 4D1C8y 75.943 44.50
simulation studies. Ross and Tara (1993) illustrated the
4D1C8z 35.695 29.09
benefits of using GIS for hydrologic modelling by
developing a computer model, which aids phosphate The average annual rainfall is about 800 mm. Almost
mine-reclamation design. Nageshwar et.al. (1992) has 80% of this rainfall occurs during the months of June to
taken a study for selected watersheds within the Big October. Even during these months the distribution of
Sandy River basin in northern Kentucky based on the rainfall is highly uneven both temporally and aerially.
hydrologic model. The application of this model in The soils in this region can be classified into three major
hydrology can be facilitated by using a GIS to compile types namely loamy skeletal, coarse loam and fine loam.
the require database, composed of various geomorphic
and other hydrologic characteristics as spatial data
input. Rodriguez-Iturbe and Valdes (1979) have done
study on several basins in Venuzuela and Puerto Rico in
which the geomorphologic IUH for each basin was
compared with IUH‟s derived from the discharge
hydrograph produced by a physically based rainfall-
runoff model of the same basins and then the effects that
the nonlinearities of the rainfall- runoff model have on
the derivation of the IUH are analysed, and further,
controlled experiments are carried out in which the IUH
is derived under constant velocity conditions. SCS-CN
technique is widely used and efficient method for Figure1: Location map of the Study area
determining approximate amount of runoff from a 2.1. Data used
rainfall event. SCS-CN method uses land use / land
cover and related parameters derived from remotely  Digital data: A Standard False colour composite
sensed data integrated with GIS to simulate watershed (FCC) of IRS 1D LISS III data acquired in June
in evaluating time distribution of runoff from an 2000 has been used for land use/land cover
ungauged watershed. Runoff curve numbers are mapping.
estimated by using land use, soil and Antecedent  Analog data: Survey of India Scanned toposheets of
Moisture Conditions (AMC). Land use information is 1: 50000 No. 56 O/5 and 56 O/2 have been used as
obtained from topo-sheets and digital analysis of IRS- base map for Geo-referencing and digitize contours.
1D LISS-III image data.  Rainfall data provided by District Watershed
Management Authority, Warangal.
2. Study Area and Data:
 Pedological data provided by Agriculture and soil
The study area is Station Ghanpur Mandal of Warangal Deportment, Warangal.
District, Andhra Pradesh State of India (Figure 1). The  Software: Image processing - ERDAS Imagine 8.5,
total area lies between longitudes of 790 09 l 07 ll to 79 0 GIS – ARC GIS 9.0
26 l 13 ll and latitudes 17 0 47 l 52 ll to 17 0 59 l 52 ll. The
3. Methodology:
total area of the watershed is 358.307 Km2. Major
population of the area depends on agriculture. Different thematic coverages are prepared for runoff
Topography of this watershed varies from almost flat modelling. This coverages are watershed boundary,
terrain to steep hills. The altitude varies from 310 to 630 contours, drainage, streams/water bodies. Survey of
m above Mean Sea Level (M.S.L). The slope varies India scanned toposheets of scale 1: 50000 No. 56 0/5
from 100 to 600 degrees. The total area is delineated into and 56 0/2 is used as base maps for digitizing contours

International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering

ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 733-740
 735 B. N. MALLESWARA R AO AND N.V. UMAMAHESH
and other thematic map layers. Digital Elevation Model
(DEM) is generated from the contour data, through
which the slope parameter required for the model is
obtained. Satellite digital data is used to generate
thematic maps of different land use/land cover units
within the watershed.
3.1.1. Estimation of Curve Number:
The Runoff Curve Number method, developed by U.S.
Soil Conservation Service (SCS) is widely used
methodology for understanding the response of the
basin to rainfall. The Curve Number (CN) values
ranging from 40 to 100 reflect the land condition as a
function of soil type, land use and soil moisture
condition of the basin. SCS has published guidelines for
estimating CN values of various areas depending on the
soil groups and land use /land cover and Antecedent
Soil Moisture conditions. In the present study, AMC- II
condition is followed.
3.1.2. Runoff estimation:
The volume of runoff (Q) is dependent on the volume of
precipitation (P) and the volume of storage that is
available for retention (F). The actual retention (F) is the
difference between the volume of precipitation and
runoff. Furthermore, a certain volume of precipitation at
beginning of storm, which is called the initial
abstraction (Ia), will not appear as runoff. The SCS
assumed the following relationship F  Q (1)
S P  I a 
Where, S = Potential Maximum Retention.
The actual retention when the initial abstraction is
considered
F = (P- Ia) – Q (2)
Substituting equation (2) in equation (1) the final
equation is
Q
P  I a  (3)
P  I a   S 
The initial abstraction is a function of land use,
treatment and condition, interception, infiltration,
depression storage and antecedent moisture condition.
An empirical analysis is performed for development of
SCS rainfall- runoff relation and following formula is
found to be best suited for estimation of Ia
Ia = 0.3 * S for AMC-I
Ia = 0.2 * S for AMC-II and AMC-III
Here S is a function of curve number, given by
 2540 
S    25.4 (4)
 CN 
The parameter CN is transformation of S and it is used
to make interpolation, averaging and weighting
International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering
ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 733-740
operations more linear. After determining the S – value,
depth of runoff is derived from the following equation.
Depth of runoff , Q
P  0.2  S 2 (5)
P  0.8  SGrid 
3.1.3. Estimation of Instantaneous Unit Hydrograph
with Clark’s Technique in GIS:
Clark‟s synthetic unit hydrograph method is different
than the other techniques; flexibility of Clark‟s
methodology enables it to be adapted to new
technologies such as Geographic Information Systems
(GIS), which is widely used in water resources field.
Clark‟s methodology requires estimation of three
parameters of the basin for the derivation of unit
hydrograph (i) time of concentration, Tc (ii) storage
attenuation coefficient, R (iii) time-area histogram of
the basin. In the present study the Soil Conservation
Service (SCS) lag equation is used to determine Tc
value. SCS equation requires main channel length,
average Curve Number and slope of the basin, which
can be evaluated from GIS tools. The time-area
histogram represents the area of the basin contributing
to the flow at the basin outlet at any given time after the
application of a unit excess rainfall. The Digital
Elevation Model (DEM) of the basin, which is the 30 x
30 meter cell sized grids having elevation values, is
used for this purpose. First, travel distance of each cell
to the outlet (in time units) is determined by estimating
cell flow lengths. Then the time-area graph of the basin
is prepared. After instantaneously applying a unit excess
rainfall over the basin, the translation hydrograph is
derived from the time-area graph. The translation
hydrograph, which reflects the travel time of runoff to
outlet, is then routed through a linear reservoir and
Instantaneous Unit Hydrograph (IUH) of the basin is
determined. Instantaneous unit hydrograph is the result
of a unit depth of rainfall occurring in an infinitely small
time interval over the basin. Since the duration of
rainfall is assumed as zero, shape of the hydrograph
depends only on the basin characteristics.
3.2.1. DEM Generation:
Cell based grid generation is a geo-processing system in
ARC/INFO environment. TOPOGRID is a hydrological
correct grid of elevation from point, line, and polygon
coverage‟s. For best interpolation results along the
edges of the DEM, x and y limits should be smaller than
the extent of the input data by at least 10 cells on each
side. The default values for x and y are the minimum
and maximum of all inputs. The default value for z is
20% smaller than the minimum and 20% larger than the
maximum of the input values. The generated DEM is
shown in figure 2.
 Rainfall - Runoff Modeling Using Digital Elevation Model of an
Ungauged Basin
Figure2: Digital Elevation Model
3.2.2. Estimation of Time of Concentration (Tc):
Time of concentration is the time required for excess
rainfall to travel from the most remote point of the basin
to the outlet. At the end of this time, entire basin would
be contributing to the flow at the outlet. In literature,
several equations are available for calculation of time of
concentration. After considering the availability of
parameters, the following SCS equation is selected for
 1000  the velocity grid named as VGrid. The grid represents
L 0.8   9  0.7
this study. Tc   CN  (6)
190  S 0.5
3.2.3. Preparation of Time Area Histogram:
The area of the basin is divided into different travel time
zones. Each zone represents the part of the basin, which
drains the unit excess rainfall to the outlet at a certain
time of interval. The plot of these areas with respect to
corresponding time intervals gives the time-area
histogram of the basin. It is the most important
parameter, since it reflects the runoff response of the
basin to the rainfall at the outlet. The 30 x 30 m cell
sized digital elevation model of the basin is used for
determination of time-area histogram. For this purpose,
the direction of flow from each cell is found out, and
then by tracing the flow direction, travel distance of
flow from each cell to the basin outlet is calculated.
Finally by converting the number of cells to area, the
time-area histogram is derived.
3.2.4. Flow length Grid:
First, the flow length grid (FlGrid) of the watershed is
developed. The FlGrid represents the total travel length
of the water droplet from that cell to the basin outlet
along the direction of flow. In a square grid
environment, eight cells are surrounding each grid cell.
Using GIS tools flow direction value of each cell in the
basin is calculated from the DEM, then a grid
containing these values are obtained and named as flow
direction grid (FdGrid). The impedance or resistance of
the cell to the flow is represented as a weight of that cell
in a grid. This grid is named as weight grid (WGrid).
International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering
ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 733-740
736
After determining the direction of flow from a cell to
one of the neighboring eight cells, slope distance
between centerlines of these cells is calculated. Then
this distance is multiplied by the WGrid value of the
first cell to obtain the weighted distance value between
these two cells. Finally the FlGrid cell values are
obtained by summing these values along the flow path
to the outlet for each cell. As mentioned before, in
calculation of FlGrid, the usage of WGrid is optional. In
this study in addition to weight grid condition, no
weight grid condition is also considered. For the former
one, a weight grid is prepared and used with the flow
direction grid for calculation of flow length grid. For the
latter one, only the flow direction grid is used in
calculation, where the weight of each cell is accepted as
the same and equal to 1.
3.3. Manning’s Equation in Overland Flow
Estimation
Manning‟s equation, which is frequently used in fluid
mechanics, is also applicable to overland flow. In this
study Manning‟s velocity equation is used to compute
the velocity of flow in each cell. To obtain a velocity
grid, all the parameters of the equation (n, R and S) are
prepared in the form of grids and used in equation as
given below.
1
V   R 2 / 3  S (7)
n
1
VGrid   RGrid 2 / 3  SGrid (8)
nGrid
The grid, which contains values representing Manning‟s
roughness, is named as nGrid and determined as a
function of vegetation type or land use. The slope grid
of the basin is derived from the DEM and named as
SGrid. For open channels, hydraulic radius is the ratio
of flow area to wetted perimeter, but for overland flow
it is accepted as the depth of flow. The grid containing
hydraulic radius values for streams and depth of flow
for the other parts of the basin is named as RGrid. The
Manning‟s equation gives VGrid values representing
velocity of flow in each cell.
3.3.1. Manning’s roughness coefficient for overland
flow:
Roughness coefficient is the most significant parameter
of the Manning‟s equation. It depends on vegetation
cover or land use. Tables giving n values for different
land use types are available in the literature. Roughness
values of study area are selected from Table 2 for
different land use types (Fleckenstein, 1998). Then from
the land use map, a roughness coefficient map is derived
by using the values of Table 2. This map is then
 737 B. N. MALLESWARA R AO AND N.V. UMAMAHESH

converted to a grid of 30 m resolution and named as values of FlGrid and to convert it to time values. The
nGrid. travel time grid of the basin is then prepared from the
Table2: Manning's roughness coefficients for different equation below.
land use types TtGrid = Tc x FlGrid
LAND-USE TYPE MANNING’S (n) Max. of cell travel lengths (9)
Forest 0. 15 The third parameter of the Clark‟s methodology is the
Water bodies 0. 01 time-area histogram, which is developed from TtGrid of
the basin. IUH of the watershed can be derived for
Shrubbery 0. 60 infinitely small time interval. Practically it is impossible
Pasture & Meadow 0. 24 to obtain the histogram of TtGrid with infinitely small
Farmlands 0. 17 time interval. So the smallest possible time interval is
selected to apply in the Clark‟s technique. Histogram of
Unused areas 0. 01
TtGrid has time values on the abscissa and number of
The second parameter of the Manning‟s equation is the cells on the ordinate. The time-area histogram of the
hydraulic radius value. For open channels hydraulic watershed is calculated from histogram of TtGrid by
radius is calculated from the ratio of flow area to wetted converting number of cells to area (900 m2 for 30x30 m
perimeter of the channel. But in order to obtain the grid).
velocity grid of the whole basin, in addition to open 3.3.3. Translation Hydrograph:
channels, hydraulic radius values of the overland areas
must also be assigned. A grid named as RGrid is After determining the three parameters of Clark‟s
prepared representing hydraulic radius value of each methodology, the unit excess rainfall is uniformly
cell in the basin. Hydraulic radius of open channels is distributed over the basin. Then this precipitation is
calculated from geometry of the channel. But in a grid- conveyed to the basin outlet by a translation
based representation of the topography it is difficult to hydrograph. For this purpose the time-area histogram,
estimate the cells forming streambeds, the flow which is obtained in the previous step, is used. The
accumulation grid, which is named as FaGrid of the time-area histogram represents the percent of the basin
basin is used for this purpose. FaGrid is computed from area contributing to the flow at the outlet in each time
the FdGrid which is obtained from DEM. Any cell value interval.
of FaGrid indicates the number of the cells giving all After application of instantaneous unit rainfall, total
their surface waters to that cell. Then the stream volume of water that will be observed at the basin outlet
network is extracted by considering the cells as is determined by multiplying basin area (358.307 km2)
streambeds, which have a FaGrid value greater than a with the depth of precipitation (1 cm). Then from the
predefined threshold value as1000 in this study. After time-area histogram of the basin, percentage of total
defining the streams, hydraulic radius (R), values of volume contributing to the flow at the outlet in each
these cells are estimated on a 30 x 30 m and 10 x 10 m time interval is calculated. Volumes are then converted
resolution areas are given in Table. 3. into discharges for corresponding time intervals. Finally
Table3: Hydraulic radius values by plotting these values at the mid values of time
intervals the translation hydrograph is obtained.
FLOW ACCUMULATION
VALUE HYDRAULIC 3.4. Linear Reservoir Routing
RADIUS The instantaneous unit excess rainfall is conveyed to the
30 x 30 DEM 10 x 10 DEM
100 – 500 1000 – 5000 0. 04 basin outlet by two components (i) a translation
hydrograph (ii) linear reservoir routing. The translation
500 – 1500 5000 – 15000 0. 08 hydrograph represents the rainfall-runoff relationship of
1500 – 3500 15000 – 35000 0. 12 the basin by means of surface flow only. The effect of
> 3500 > 35000 0. 25 stream channel storage on the hydrograph is reflected by
linear reservoir routing. The following HEC Equation
3.3.2. Travel Time Grid: routes the translation hydrograph.
After computing the travel distance of each cell t  t 
Q (t) = I t   1  Qt  1 (10)
(FlGrid), the next step is calculating the travel time R  0.5t  R  0.5t 
values. The maximum value of the FlGrid belongs to the
remotest cell of the basin to the outlet. Travel time of Peak runoff rate (Qp in m3/s) is computed by
flow from that cell to outlet gives the time of
concentration value. Equation 6 is used to estimate the

International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering

ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 733-740
 Rainfall - Runoff Modeling Using Digital Elevation Model of an
Ungauged Basin
0.903
Q p  3.79  A0.7  CS 0.16   o 
R
  LW 0.19 (11)
 25.4 
Where A is the drainage area in km2, CS the channel
slope in m / km, RO the runoff volume in mm, and LW is
the watershed length–width ratio.
3.5. Runoff estimation with ARC Macro Language
(AML) programme:
The ARC/INFO Open Development Environment
(ODE) provides a new, more convenient way to create
ARC/INFO applications. Until now, the only way to
create ARC/INFO applications is to use ARC Macro
Language scripts and associated menus. A system for
customized watershed delineation can be operated in
real time through a simple AML program for
delineation of watershed boundary using an outlet point
and flow direction grid map.
3.5.1. Watershed Delineation:
Generally watersheds are delineated with reference to
drainage pattern and elevation data. The process usually
requires thematic maps of drainage pattern and
elevation data (i.e. toposheets). If digitized contour data
is available, delineation of the watershed at user-
selected outlets can be done with a simple AML
program.
3.5.2. Using curve number with AML:
After delineating the watershed, the next step of AML is
runoff volume calculations to that delineated watershed.
The input data set is curve-number grid of whole study
area and delineated watershed coverage and then a new
grid of curve numbers is formed to delineated
watershed. A procedure for calculating runoff volume to
delineate watersheds in AML programme is developed.
3.5.3. Time of concentration (Tc) and IUH to
delineated watershed:
After runoff is estimated for delineated watershed, the
next step of AML is calculation of time of concentration
(Tc). The input data sets are DEM grid, average slope
values and curve numbers of the area.
4. Results and Discussion:
The study area is delineated according to All India Soil
Survey & Land Use Planning watershed atlas (AISS &
LUP) guidelines. Different thematic coverages are
prepared for runoff modeling. Coverages of total
delineated watershed area, drainage, water bodies and
contour lines are used to create DEM, direction flow
grid and direction accumulation grid. The DEM grid
map shows each point as a square cell with surface
value. All locations within the cells are assumed to have
the same z value. In the study area, „z‟ values vary from
387 to 636 m above MSL. With grid based DEM, slope
grid (SGrid) of catchment area is obtained by “SLOPE”
International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering
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738
command in ARC GRID environment. Size of each grid
cell is 30 meters. In the study area, average slope value
is 1 in 1000. With slope grid, the flow direction grid
(FdGrids) is obtained by “FLOWDIRECTION”
command in ARC GRID environment. The direction of
flow is determined by finding the direction of steepest
descent, or maximum drop, from each cell. This is
calculated as follows
Maximum drop = change in z value / distance
The flowdirection grid shows a grid of flow direction
from each cell to its steepest downslope neighborhood
cell. The output of FLOWDIRECTION is an integer
grid whose values range from 1 to 128. With slope grid,
the flow accumulation grid (FaGrids) is obtained by
“FLOW ACCUMULATION” command in ARC GRID
environment. Size of each grid cell is 30 meters. The
flow accumulation-grid shows a grid of accumulated
flow to each cell, by accumulating the weight for all
cells that flow into each downslope cell.
4.1. Estimation of Runoff using SCS-CN Method:
SCS has published guidelines for estimating CN values
of various areas depending on the soil groups, land use
/land cover and Antecedent Soil Moisture condition
(AMC). In the present study, AMC- II is followed. CN
values are assigned to land use / land cover coverage
based on their classification and hydrological soil group.
CN grid is prepared with assigned CN vales of landuse /
land cover coverage is shown in figure 3. In the study
area, CN values vary from 40 to 100. Mean value of CN
is 76. After determining the CN – grid, retention grid
(S-grid) has been derived using the following eqation
12. SGrid  25400  CNGrid   254 (12)
Figure3: Curve Number Grid Map
Finally, the S- grid is developed and the size of each
grid cell is 30 meters. S values vary from 0 to 17.6
Mean value of S is 8.079.
After determining the SGrid, Runoff grid (Q-grid)
derived from the following equation.
 739 B. N. MALLESWARA R AO AND N.V. UMAMAHESH

QGrid  P  0.2  SGrid   P  0.2  SGrid  P  0.8  SGrid  (13) 4.4. 1-Hour unit hydrograph by using IUH:
Where P is rainfall Runoff grid is prepared for a rainfall The one-hour unit hydrograph is prepared from the
of 22 cm and the estimated average runoff is 15.05 cm. instantaneous unit hydrograph, which is described in the
table 4 and corresponding hydrograph is shown in
4.2. Time of Concentration (Tc): figure5.
In this study the Soil Conservation Service (SCS) lag Table4: 1hour Unit Hydrograph Ordinates based on
equation is used to determine Tc value. SCS equation IUH
requires main channel length, average Curve Number
and slope of the basin, which are evaluated by the tools IUH 1hr unit
Time Ordinates
of GIS. Longest flow path is the maximum value of ordinat hydrograph
(hr) of IUH
Flowlength Grid (FlGrid). The FlGrid represents travel es*F Ordinates (m3/s)
distance of each cell in the basin to the outlet. In this 0 0 0 0
study two FlGrids are calculated (i) for weight condition 1 0.17 169.2 91.1
and (ii) no weight condition. Average CN value of the 2 0.18 179.2 175.3
basin is determined as 76. Average watershed slope is
3 0.165 164.2 168.6
derived from slope grid (SGrid) of the basin, which is
obtained from DEM. After clipping SGrid with the 4 0.145 144.3 152.6
watershed boundary, mean value of the clipped SGrid is 5 0.13 129.4 135.6
determined as 0.3327. By inserting these values in 6 0.1 99.5 109.8
Equation (1), the time of concentration value of study 7 0.08 79.6 87.3
area is obtained as 212 minutes for weight grid
8 0.05 49.8 61.4
condition and 432 minutes for no weight grid condition.
The time area graphs of study area obtained for weight 9 0.03 29.8 38.3
grid condition and no weight grid conditions. Similar to 10 0 0 0
time area graph two translation hydrographs are also
obtained for weight grid condition and for no weight 1hr unit Hydrograph
grid condition. Figure 4 shows the translation
200
hydrograph for no weight grid condition.
Discharge (Cumecs)

150
Translation Unit Hydrograph
100
0.9
0.8 50
Discharge in m3/ min

0.7
0.6 0
0.5
0.4
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11
0.3 Time (hr)
0.2
0.1
0 Figure5: 1- Hour Unit Hydrograph
1 15 29 43 57 71 85 99 113 127 141 155 169 183 197 211
Time(Min)
4.5. The popup-menu results for watershed 1
Description about Delineated Watershed
Figure4: The Translation hydrograph of Study Area for Watershed Name: watershed1
no- weight grid condition Area of watershed: 36.5931 Km2
4.3. Linear Reservoir Routing Maximum Elevation: 506.000
Minimum Elevation: 374.000
As mentioned earlier the instantaneous unit excess
Maximum Slope: 29.030
rainfall is conveyed to watershed outlet by two
Average Slope: 1.730
components (i) a translation hydrograph and (ii) linear
Estimated Parameters
reservoir routing. The effect of stream channel storage
Maximum Flow Length to outlet: 12.890 Km
on the hydrograph is reflected by linear reservoir
Time of Concentration: 25.71 Min.
routing. The translation hydrograph obtained in the
Total Runoff Volume: 38.43 X 106 m3
previous section is routed by equation (10). Q (t), which
is obtained after routing, is the instantaneous unit The popup-menu results for watershed 2:
hydrograph of the basin. The routing process is Description about Delineated Watershed
continued till an excess flow depth of 1 cm is obtained Watershed Name: watershed2
under the hydrograph.

International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering

ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 733-740
 Rainfall - Runoff Modeling Using Digital Elevation Model of an
Ungauged Basin
Area of watershed: 39.0843 Km2
Maximum Elevation: 503.000
Minimum Elevation: 340.000
Maximum Slope: 48.560
Average Slope: 2.650
Estimated Parameters
Maximum Flow Length to outlet: 10.370 Km
Time of Concentration: 10.37 Min.
Total Runoff Volume: 78.87 X 106 m3
Above two popup-menu results are shown in the final
output of watersheds. Area of two watersheds nearly
equal but time of concentration and runoff are different
because maximum slope and average slopes are
different.
5. Conclusions
Hydrologic modeling involves the computation of the
time of concentration (Tc) for each delineated
watersheds. A procedure is developed to compute slope
and travel time from the Digital Elevation Model
(DEM). A translation hydrograph, Instantaneous Unit
Hydrograph (IUH) and 1 hr unit hydrograph of the basin
is developed. The entire procedure of delineating
watersheds and runoff volume estimations at any user-
selected outlets on drainage map is customized with
AML. With the available 30 years daily rainfall data the
intensity-duration-frequency relationship has been
developed for the study area, which is used in the runoff
estimation.
Following conclusions have been derived from the
present study:
 Runoff grid is prepared to a rainfall of 22 cm, the
corresponding average runoff is 15.05 cm and total
runoff volume is 53.95 X 10 6 m3.
 The time of concentration value of study area is
obtained as 212 minutes for weight grid condition
and 432 minutes for no weight grid condition.
 Peak discharge by Instantaneous Unit Hydrograph
(IUH) approach is 220 cumecs.
 Peak discharge of 1 hr Unit Hydrograph approach
is 168.5 cumecs.
International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering
ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 733-740
740
 Base period of unit hydrograph is 10 hr.
6. Acknowledgement
Funding for the project that made this manuscript
possible was provided by Department of Science and
Technology, New Delhi and the efforts made by my
guide Dr. N. V. Umamahesh are acknowledged.
Reference
[1] Nageshwar R. Bhaskar, Wesely P. James and
Ravikumar S. Devulapalli (1992) Hydrologic
Parameter Estimation Using GIS, Journal of Water
Resources Planning and Management, ASCE,
118(5), 492-512.
[2] Rodriguez-Iturbe, I., and Valdes, J.B. (1979) The
Geomorphologic Structure of Hydrologic
Response, Water Resources Research, 15(6), 1409 -
1420.
[3] Ross, M.A. and Tara, P.T. (1993) Integrated
Hydrologic Modelling with Geographic
Information System, Journal of Water Resources
Planning and Management, American Society of
Civil Engineers, Vol.119, No. 2, pp.129-140.
[4] Warwick, J.J. and Haness, S.J.(1994) Efficacy of
ARC/INFO GIS Application to Hydrologic
Modelling, Journal of Water Resources Planning
and Management, American Society of Civil
Engineers, Vol.120, No.3, pp.366- 381.
[5] White, D.(1988) Grid Based Application of Runoff
Curve Numbers, Journal of Water Resources
Planning and Management, American Society of
Civil Engineers, Vol.114, No.6, pp.601-612.
[6] Weihua Zhang & David R. Montgomery (1994)
Digital elevation model grid size, landscape
representation and hydrologic simulations, Water
Resources Research, 30(4), 1019-1028.
[7] Zelazinski, J. (1986) Application of the
Geomorphological Instantaneous Unit Hydrograph
Theory to Development of Forecasting Models in
Poland, Journal of Hydrological Sciences, Vol.30,
165-174.
 Indexed in
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www.cafetinnova.org August 2014, P.P.741-745
ISSN 0974-5904, Volume 07, No. 04

Study of Characteristics of Waves over Seawalls Using Roughness

Elements
D. SWETHA AND K. RAM MOHAN REDDY
Centre for Water Resources, Institute of Science and Technology, Jawaharlal Nehru Technological University,
Hyderabad, 500085, India
Email: desuswethareddy@gmail.com

Abstract: Seawalls are the most widely adopted coastal protection structures. Depending on site requirements and
design considerations, a variety of seawalls may be adopted. A number of studies are available for the study of
hydrodynamic characteristics over the plane slopes whereas, the studies on serrated and dented slopes are scanty. A
new approach for calculating the hydrodynamic characteristics over the serrated and dented slopes is adopted using
the CFD solvers. These serrations and dentations are arranged in a staggered manner. A friction coefficient f b is
calculated by using the energy loss between the two sections. The value of f b for the serrated slope chosen is 0.012
and for dented slopes, it is 0.0097 for a Froude number, Fr of 0.6. The performances of serrated and dented slopes
are compared with the published experimental results. It is concluded that the serrated slopes are superior to the
dented slopes in reducing the reflection as compared to that of the plane slopes.
Keywords: Boussinesq equations, Friction coefficient, Roughness elements, Serrated, Dented seawalls.

1. Introduction: reported that the slope should be milder than 1:1.5 to

As waves propagate from off shore into near shore
regions, the shallow depths affect the characteristics
such as amplitude, celerity and direction of the wave.
Usually the process of shoaling, refraction, diffraction
and wave breaking shall be considered. Sloped seawalls
have been found to reduce the wave energy reflection,
which in turn reduces the maximum impact pressure on
the structure. They are very good energy dissipators
compared to the vertical structures, especially when the
slope is mild. They cause phase lag of reflected waves
and induce waves to break on the slope and thus
dissipating a part of incident wave energy. Energy
dissipators are commonly used for dissipation of kinetic
energy in hydraulic and coastal engineering.
Attenuation of kinetic energy, downstream of the flow
helps in reducing the erosion of beaches and flood
plains. The dissipating blocks are proposed to be
serrated and dented which are usually arranged in
staggered manner on the surface of the plane sloping
seawall.
Several researchers have carried out the experimental
investigations and proposed different methods to
understand the interaction of waves with sloping walls,
with a few proposed empirical formulae in terms of surf
similarity parameter for plane and rough slopes. Bruun
(1953), through experimental investigations, studied the
effect of structural shape on wave run-up and reflection
facilitate gradual breaking and energy dissipation.
Sandhya (2002) and Sakthivel (2006) have carried out
experimental investigations to measure the wave run-up
due to regular and random waves over plane, serrated
and dented sloped seawalls. Various empirical
approaches are available to obtain the bed friction
coefficient which includes Chezy, Manning and Darcy-
Weisbach friction coefficients in which the calculation
of the average velocity is involved (Chow, V.T. (1959)).
However, a direct numerical approach for estimation of
the friction coefficient for serrated and dented slopes is
not available. The method of calculating the friction
coefficient of the serrated and dented seawalls is
explained in the following section.
2. Theoretical Background:
2.1 General:
The standard Boussinesq equations for variable water
depth were first derived by Peregrine (1967), using the
depth-averaged velocity as a dependent variable. The
assumption of weak frequency dispersion effects makes
the standard Boussinesq equations invalid for the
intermediate and deep waters. In the derivation of
equation used by Madsen et al. (1991), additional terms
are provided in the momentum equation for considering
the physical effects of frictional damping and wave
breaking. Although, the methods of derivation adopted

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Proceedings of 3-Day International Conference on Emerging Trends in Civil Engineering (ICETE-2014,)
6th–8th January, 2014
 Study of Characteristics of Waves over Seawalls Using Roughness Elements
742

by various authors are different, the resulting dispersion Wall with no shear
relationship of the extended Boussinesq equations is

Pressure outlet
Velocity inlet
similar. The relationship may be written in the form:

boundary
 1
1       kh 
2

 2  ghk 2  
3 ---(1)
1    kh 
2

Wall Wall with Wall

Where ω is the angular frequency, g is the acceleration Serrations / Dentations
due to gravity, h is the wave height, k is the wave
Figure1: Boundary conditions for the computational
number and α is the coefficient. Despite their improved
domain of RANS solution
dispersion relationship, the extended Boussinesq
equations are still restricted to situations with weakly 3. Numerical Procedure for Serrations and
nonlinear interactions. Dentations
2.2 Model Equations: Inclusion of serrations and dentations is not possible in
the Boussinesq model as it provides only a depth-
The continuity equation with Boussinesq approximation
averaged representation of the flow. Furthermore, the
is as follows:
effects such as flow separation and eddy dissipation
    1    ---(2) cannot be accurately modelled in the depth-averaged
t  .  d    u   z   d     .  du     z 2   d 2  d   2    .u    0
1 1
   2  2 6   models. On the other hand, use of a 3D flow model for
the computation of wave run-up and reflection
The momentum equation is:
coefficient is highly resource sensitive. However, since
1  ---(3) the serrations and dentations are basically roughness
u t   u .  u  g  z  z   .u t     . du t    elements provided over the slope, their effects can be
2 
1 2 2
included in the Boussinesq model as bed friction
   z     u .  .u   . du   .u  
1
coefficient  f b  . In the present numerical study, a new
2

2 2 
 1 
  z    u .   . du      .u t  . du t     0 approach of estimating f b is attempted using general
  2 
purpose RANS model. In the RANS approach, the
Where,  is surface elevation, d is still water depth, geometric details of the serrations/dentations are
modelled and the energy loss due to the presence of
u  is horizontal velocity vector at the water
serrations and dentations is obtained. This approach will
depth z  z  0.531d ,   
,
x y
is the   provide the flow behaviour and energy loss of the
incoming flow as a function of Froude number  Fr  the
horizontal gradient operator, g is gravitational figure .2 shows a schematic representation of the flow
acceleration and subscript t is partial derivative with during run-up of a wave on the slope.
respect to time.
2.3 Boundary Conditions:
Wave run-up
Solutions of the Boussinesq equation for wave
propagation over a finite domain requires appropriate T, H
boundary conditions to be specified in the numerical
model. Two kinds of boundary conditions are primarily S.W.L
used. These are total reflecting vertical wall and
absorbing boundary condition. In some cases, partial
Serrated Sloped
reflection boundary condition can also be adopted. The Seawall
boundary conditions adopted in the present study is as 
shown in Figure 1.

International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering

ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 741-745
 743 D. SWETHA AND K. R AM MOHAN REDDY
Wave run-up
T, H
S.W.L
Dented Sloped
Seawall
 P1
Figure2: Schematic sketches showing wave run-up over
(a) serrated and (b) dented slopes.
Considering that the leading parameter for determining
the flow behaviour over the slope is the Froude number
(Fr), the serrations and dentations were considered over
a flatbed in a staggered (zig-zag) manner. The staggered
arrangement has been chosen as per the experimental
studies of Sakthivel (2006). The plan and the sectional
view of the staggered serrations over the slope are
shown in Figure 3.
0.5b
A
b
A resistance R f between the two sections can be
1.5b
0.5b
b relationship given below.
Figure3: General layout of the serrated slope
considered by Sakthivel (2006)
This approach is expected to provide the energy loss
without the effect of the slope. The size of the serrations
and dentations chosen in the present study is 100mm x
50mm x 50mm @ 100mm c/c. The dimensions of the
serration/ dentations are height  a  , length  b  and the
spacing. With the above computational setup, the
velocities V1 and V2 , and flow depths y1 and y2 , are
taken at locations where the flow is steady and uniform.
Using the momentum equation, the frictional resistance
R f is calculated. The simulation is carried out for the
Froude number  Fr  varying from 0.2 to 1.0.
3.1. Estimation of friction coefficient  fb 
The change in momentum per unit time in the body of
water in a flowing channel must be equal to the resultant
of all the external forces that are acting on the body.
International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering
ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 741-745
Utilizing this principle, to a channel of rough slope as
shown in Fig.4, the expression for the momentum
change per unit time enclosed between sections 1 and 2
may be written as
P1  P2  W sin   R f   q V2  V1 
---(4)
L
P2
V1
W
V2

Rf
Figure4: Schematic representation of momentum
In the above, P1 and P2 are the resultants of pressure
acting on the two sections; W is the weight of water
enclosed between the sections; and R f is the total
external force due to frictional resistance acting along
the bed. Utilizing the above relationship, the frictional
estimated if other parameters can be measured from the
RANS model. This resistance obtained is correlated
with the bed friction coefficient  f b  through the
fb
Rf  uavg uavg
H
In the above equation, uavg is the average velocity and H
is the average head. Utilizing this bottom friction
coefficient in the Boussinesq model, the hydrodynamic
characteristics such as run-up and the reflection
coefficient for the serrated and dented slopes are
calculated.
4. Results and Discussions:
The present study involves the computation of run-up
and the reflection characteristics over different seawalls.
A constant water depth  d  of 0.5m at the toe of the
sloping wall and length of the tank of 25m are adopted
for the entire numerical study. The details of the various
variables and the non-dimensionalised parameters used
in the present study are listed in Table 1. The validation
is carried out by comparing the present numerical
results with the published experimental results of
Sakthivel (2006).
 Study of Characteristics of Waves over Seawalls Using Roughness Elements
744

Table1: Range of parameters considered in the present Figure 7(a) and (b) show the validation of the present
study numerical results of the wave run-up and the reflection
Measured coefficient with that of the experimental results of
S No. Parameters Sakthivel (2006) over the serrated and dented seawalls
range
1. Wave height
 H  in m 0.07-0.18 for a bed slope of 30o and 45o.When compared with
experimental results, a deviation of about 13% is
2. Wave period
T  in sec 1.00-4.00 observed for the serrated seawall and 11% for the
Relative wave dented seawall in wave run-up. In the case of reflection
3.
height
H d  0.07-0.18 coefficient, the said deviations for the serrated and
dented seawalls are observed to be 6% and 4%
Relative water depth respectively.
4.
d L 0.06-0.64 2.8
2.8

Slope of beach,  (a) 2.4

2.4
o o
5. 30 and 45
2
2
Surf similarity parameter

1.6
6. 1.00 - 60.00

Ru/H i
1.6

Ru/Hi
1.2
1.2

0.8
0.8
Figure 5 (a) and (b) shows the intercomparison of the 0.4
H=0.12d, Angle:30o
H=0.12d,Angle:45o
Present numerical 0.4
present numerical results of the wave run-up between 0
Sakthivel (2006)
Present numerical
Sakthivel (2006)
the serrated and dented seawalls for angles 30o and 45o. 0 0.1 0.2 0.3
d/L
0.4 0.5 0.6 0.7
0
0 0.1 0.2 0.3 0.4 0.5 0.6 0.7
When compared between the two different seawalls, a 2.8 2.8
d/L

deviation of about 15% is observed for angle 30o and 2.4 (b 2.4

10% for angle 45o. 2 ) 2

2.8 2.8 1.6 1.6

Angle:30o

Ru/Hi
Ru/Hi

Serrated Angle:45o Serrated

Dented Dented 1.2 1.2
2.4 2.4
0.8 0.8
2
(a) 2
(b) 0.4 H=0.12d, Angle:30o 0.4 H=0.12d,Angle:45o
Present numerical Present numerical
1.6 1.6 Sakthivel (2006) Sakthivel (2006)
Ru/H i

Ru/H i

0 0
0 0.1 0.2 0.3 0.4 0.5 0.6 0.7 0 0.1 0.2 0.3 0.4 0.5 0.6 0.7
1.2 1.2 d/L d/L

0.8 0.8 Figure7: Validation of present numerical results with

0.4 0.4 the published experimental results (a) Serrated and (b)
0
Dented
0
0 0.1 0.2 0.3 0.4 0.5 0.6 0.7
d/L
0 0.1 0.2 0.3
d/L
0.4 0.5 0.6 0.7
5. Conclusions:
Figure5: Intercomparison of run-up between serrated  The wave reflection and the run-up on serrated and
and dented (a) Angle: 30o and (b) Angle: 45o the dented seawalls are assessed based on the
numerical investigations by adopting a novel
Figure 6 (a) and (b) show the intercomparison of the
approach for the calculation of the friction
present numerical results of the reflection coefficient
coefficient.
between the serrated and dented seawalls for angles 30 o
and 45o. When compared between the two different  The numerical investigations on serrated and
seawalls, a deviation of about 12% is observed for angle dented seawalls are carried out for a wide range of
30o and 15% for angle 45o. wave heights, wave periods and seawall slopes in a
1
constant water depth of 0.5m.
1

0.9 0.9  Full Navier - Stokes solution of serrations and

0.8 0.8
(b) dentations for Fr from 0.2 to 1.0 has been
0.7
(a)
0.6
0.7
successfully carried out based on the above
0.6
investigations.
Kr

Kr

0.5 0.5

0.4 0.4  A friction coefficient value of 0.012 and 0.0097 are

0.3

0.2
0.3
adopted for serrated and dented slopes respectively.

Serrated 0.2 Serrated
0.1
Angle:30o
Dented
0.1
Angle:45o
Dented The reflection coefficient and the run-up is
0 0 maximum for the dented seawalls when compared
0 0.1 0.2 0.3 0.4 0.5 0.6 0.7 0 0.1 0.2 0.3 0.4 0.5 0.6 0.7
d/L d/L to the serrated seawalls.
Figure6: Intercomparison of reflection coefficient  The serrations are much effective in reducing the
between serrated and dentedslope (a) Angle: 30 o and (b) reflections as well as the run-up.
Angle: 45o

International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering

ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 741-745
 745 D. SWETHA AND K. R AM MOHAN REDDY

 The friction coefficient obtained from CFD for
serrations and dentations is incorporated into
FUNWAVE successfully and this approach has
been successfully verified by comparing the results
from FUNWAVE with that of experiments. It is
clear that the numerical results are in good
agreement with that of the published experimental
results of Sakthivel (2006).
Reference
[1] Bruun, P. (1953), “Breakwaters for coastal
protection”, Proc. XVIII International Navigation
Congress, Section 2, Question 1, Rome, Italy, pp.
25-35
[2] Chow. V.T. (1959), “Open channel hydraulics”,
McGraw-Hill, New York.
[3] Madsen, P. A., Murray, R. & Sorensen, O. R.
(1991), “A new form of Boussinesq equations with
improved linear dispersion characteristics”, Coastal
Engineering, 15, 371-388
[4] Peregrine, D.H. (1967), “Long waves on a beach”,
Journal of. Fluid Mechanics, 27, 815-882
[5] Sakthivel, S. (2006), “Wave induced pressures and
run-up on plane, serrated and dented sea walls”, M.
Tech Thesis, Ocean Engineering Department, IIT
Madras
[6] Sandhya, N. (2002), “Wave interaction with plane,
dentated and serrated seawalls”, MS Thesis, Ocean
Engineering Department, IIT Madras.

International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering

ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 741-745
 Indexed in
Scopus Compendex and Geobase Elsevier, Chemical
Abstract Services-USA, Geo-Ref Information Services-USA,
List B of Scientific Journals, Poland,
Directory of Research Journals
www.cafetinnova.org August 2014, P.P.746-753
ISSN 0974-5904, Volume 07, No. 04

Earthquakes-Oceans-Tsunamis-Coastal Zone Management

D. VENKAT REDDY
Dept. of Civil Engineering, National Institute of Technology Karnataka, Surathkal, Srinivasnagar-575025,
Mangalore - D.K.
Email: dvr1952@gmail.com

Abstract: India has been traditionally vulnerable to natural disasters on account of its unique geo-climatic
conditions-Earthquakes, landslide have been recurrent phenomena .About 60% of the land mass is prone to
earthquakes of various intensities. An earthquake is a sudden natural movement of a portion of the earth crust that
produces trembling or shaking of the ground .Earthquake occurrence is a global problem. Several thousands of
earthquakes are registered daily on account of which an average 250 per day me potentially damaging during
earthquakes, rocks releases energy. Geological evidence of ancient marine sediments on land reveals that the
continents of the world were once submerged beneath the sea. Tsunami occurs due to the energy transfer from earth
to water during under the sea. The energy transferred to the water starts moving as a very long wave with velocities
in the order of 200 to 300 m/s in all directions. World at present 2/3 of population live within average width of 10
km from the shoreline, which accounts only 3 percent of total land surface. Integrated coastal zone management
involves prevention of marine eco-system-protection from erosion, tides, cyclones, tsunamis and maintains the
coastal resources and meets the needs of present and future generation.
Key words: Earthquakes, Oceans, Tsunamis, Coastal zone management.

1. Introduction: Bhilwandi, Nashik, Kanpur, Pune, Bhubanewar,

Cuttack, Asansol, Kochi, Kolkata, Varanasi, Barreilly.
An earthquake originates from a particular region and
Zone-1V-This zone is called the High Damage Risk
spreads out in all directions. It had been recorded six
Zone and covers areas liable to MM-VIII. The Indo-
major earthquakes have struck different parts of India
Gangetic basin and the Rajasthan region falls in Zone -
over span of the last 15 years. The damages caused by
4-Dehradun,New Delhi, Jamunagar, Patna, Meerut,
these earthquakes reiterate the scale of vulnerability in
Jammu , Amritsar, Jalandhar.
our country 38 cities which over half a million
Zone-V: Zone 5 is the worst prone zone in the country
population in seismic zones comes under zone-III –
.It covers the area with the highest risk zone that suffers
Zone-IV and Zone-V. India has long coast line of nearly
earthquakes of intensity MMIX or greater. It is referred
7,500 km along which several million people live and
to as the very high Damage Risk Zone. The state of
are engaged in various activities. The Indian coastline
Kashmir, western and central Himalayas, North East
may be divided into east coast and west coast. The
Indian region and the Rann of Kutch – Gawathi and
details are listed and presented in the fig.1.
Srinagar.
Zone-I- Regions which may suffer earthquake of
The IS code follows a dual design philosophy: (a) under
intensity MMV or less are classified as low damage
low probability or extreme earthquake events (MCE)
Risk Zone. Most parts of Peninsular India and
the structure damage should not result in total collapse,
Lakshadweep islands comes under this zone
and (b) under more frequently occurring earthquake
Zone-II- This region is liable to MM VI and is
events, the structure should suffer only minor or
classified as Low Damaging Risk Zone
moderate structural damage. The specifications given in
Zone-III- The Andaman and Nicobar islands, parts of
the design code (IS 1893: 2002) are not based on
Kashmir, Western Himalayas and Punjab falls under
detailed assessment of maximum ground acceleration in
this zone. This zone is classified as Moderate Damage
each zone using a deterministic or probabilistic
Risk Zone which is liable to MM-VII –parts of Kshmir,
approach. Instead, each zone factor represents the
Ahmedabad, Vadodara, Rajkot, Bhavnagar, Surat,
effective period peak ground accelerations that may be
Mumbai, Mangalore, Chennai, Coimbatore, Kozhikode,
generated during the maximum considered earthquake
Trivandrum, Lucknow, Indore, Jabalpur, Vijayawada,
ground motion in that zone.

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Proceedings of 3-Day International Conference on Emerging Trends in Civil Engineering (ICETE-2014,)
6th–8th January, 2014
 747 D. VENKAT REDDY
Each zone indicates the effects of an earthquake at a
particular place based on the observations of the
affected areas and can also be described using a
descriptive scale like Modified Mercalli intensity scale
or the Medvedev- Sponheuer- Karnik scale.
Fig1: Seismic Zoning Map and Seismic Vulnerability
Atlas (Source-BIS-IMD)
The Ministry of Urban Affairs, GOI, has recently
prepared a vulnerability atlas giving state and district
wise hazard to buildings and other infrastructure due to
natural dilatators- Guidelines for hazard resistant
constructions and land zoning have also suggested
General Principles for earthquake resistant designs and
Constructions (IS4326-1975-BSI)
1. The buildings, particularly roofs and upper story’s
shall be as light as possible.
2. As far as position such buildings shall be tied
together in such a manner then it act as one unit
crumple sections shall be provided.
3. Projecting parts shall be avoided and if that is not
possible they shall be properly reinforced and
firmly tied to the main structure. Suspended
ceilings and ceiling plaster shall be avoided.
4. To minimize torsion, the building should have a
simple rectangular plan and be symmetrical with
respect to mass and rigidity coincides with each
other.
5. Buildings with plans with shapes like L, T, E and T
shall preferably be separated into rectangular parts
by providing separation sections at appropriate
places.
6. The structure shall be designed to have sufficient
strength against earthquakes along both the
horizontal and vertical axes.
7. The main structural elements and their connections
shall be designed to have a ductile failure. This will
International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering
ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 746-753
allow the structure to absorb energy during
earthquakes and avoid sudden collapse of structure
8. Suitable details shall be worked out to connect the
non-structural parts with the structural framing so
that the deformation of the structural framing so
that deformation of the structural frame leads to
minimum damage of the non- structural elements
9. Fire frequently follows an earthquake. Therefore
buildings shall be constructed to make them fire-
resistant.
Users can get revised and modified codes from BIS
know the details of earthquakes designs. National
building codes –prepared BIS lays down a set of
minimum, provisions designed to protect the safety of
the public with regard to structural design, the hazard
and health aspects of the buildings. Major earthquakes
in our country warranted civil engineers, structural
engineers, architects, and builders to follow specific
guidelines of BIS - codes in highly - moderate – high
seismic zones. A detailed analyses in our country
earthquakes resulted heavy loss lives mainly due to
failures of building structures. It is well known says not
earthquakes but collapsing of buildings cause heavy loss
of lives - Ministry of Urban Development – under the
disaster safety codes -9 in designing buildings and other
civil engineering structures) has issued notification on
March 21, 2001.
Research and development in Earthquake loss
reduction-ongoing process
NEHRP Space-based technologies such as Global
Positioning System (GPS) technology can be utilized to
provide continuous-in-time measurements of how the
ground is deforming in areas of earthquake risk, and
Synthetic Aperture Radar remote sensing applications
are being developed to provide a spatially continuous
image of crustal deformation. Other new geophysical
methods include high- performance seismometers and
seismographs for recording broadband, high-dynamic-
range ground motion which are being installed world-
wide. These stations are particularly important for
emergency response to damaging earthquakes and for
recording the strong motion data needed for building
design. Borehole tilt meters, borehole strain meters, and
laser-ranging instrumentation measure ongoing
distortion of the earth's crust and may eventually aid
earthquake prediction. Paleoseismic methods have
rapidly advanced in the last decade and enable
identification of pre-historic earthquakes and improved
estimates of earthquake recurrence intervals.
Probabilistic seismic hazard methods have been
developed to provide estimates of earthquake ground
motion in areas of low recurrence (such as the eastern
U.S.).
Oceans
 Earthquakes-Oceans-Tsunamis-Coastal Zone Management
It has been estimated that oceans and seas cover an area
of about 361 million square kilometers of the 510
million square kilometers of the entire earth .About 1.4
billion cubic kilometers of water is concentrated in seas
and oceans. Thousands of kilometers of coasts along the
borders of the continents create variety of mixed
engineering problems. All coasts are not same in
geologically –geomorphologically. Some are stable and
few are unstable. Coasts are the borders between
continents and oceans. However, in certain areas they
are built up by sea –deposition while in others are
subject to extensive erosion. A fascinating view of the
global ocean floor is presented in fig-2
Fig2: A fascinating view of the global ocean floor –note
marina trench 11o05 m deep compared to Mount
Everest with 8848 m high
India has long coast line of nearly 7,500 km along
which several million people live and are engaged in
various activities. The Indian coastline may be divided
into east coast and west coast. Geological evidence of
ancient marine sediments on land reveals that the
continents of the world were once submerged beneath
the sea. The continental seas and coastlines of the world
have fluctuated greatly in the past ,time after time the
marginal seas grew and sharnk over a period of million
years .Rock records-stratigraphic evidence show that the
magnitude of these marine floods was greater in earth’s
earlier history than in more recent times (Venkat Reddy,
2010).
The coastal zone is the transitional area between land
and sea. It is defined as a strip of land and sea of
varying width depending on the nature of the
environment and management needs. It seldom
corresponds to existing administrative or planning units.
The natural coastal systems and the areas in which
human activities involve the use of coastal resources
may therefore extend well beyond the limit of territorial
waters and many km inland. The worldwide average
width of the coastal zone on the terrestrial side is said to
be 60 km. The zone occupies less than 15% of the
International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering
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748
Earth's land surface, yet it accommodates more than
60% of the world's population.
Furthermore, only 40% of the one million km of
coastline is accessible and temperate enough to be
habitable. As a result, coastal zones are marked by
above-average concentrations of people and economic
activity. Ocean provides many varieties of resources for
our civilized life. However, there are many challenges
need to be faced by us with the ocean and it is necessary
to understand these challenges in order to derive the
cost effective and appropriate scientific solutions. Some
of the important challenges which needs more focused
attention of the worldwide scientific community are in
the area of Tsunami, Cyclones, Sea level rise problems,
Acidification of ocean, Sediment transport problems,
Subsea tunnels for transportation, Ocean observatory,
Offshore oil and gas exploitation, Force reduction
techniques on marine structures, Coastal erosion
control, Marine pollution, field measurements of
Metocean parameters, Coral reefs, Mangroves, artificial
beach developments, new materials for innovative
marine structures, Aquaculture, Desalination for potable
water, Port & Harbor development and the impact on
neighboring shorelines, Shipping & Navigation issues,
Dredging /Reclamation, Shore Protection against
erosion, Sea water intake Structures, Disposal of wastes
in the marine environment, Renewable energy from the
Ocean (Offshore Wind Energy / Wave Energy / Tidal
Energy / Ocean thermal Energy / Ocean Currents),
Island Developments, Mangrove developments, Sea
Survey, Prediction of design conditions, Environment
impact of new & existing projects, Issues in the
Integrated coastal zone management for sustainable
development, Innovative new structures for Economy &
Improved life span, Remote Sensing Applications, Field
data collection. Overexploitation of Living & Non-
Living resources, Tourism & development, Sea sports,
Development of New Township along the Coastline,
Coastguard Establishments for security, Human
Resource Development in this vital area. The list
mentioned above is not exhaustive. Each and every
activity in the coastal area results in significant social
benefits and environmental impacts, technical
challenges and financial implications (Neelamani and
Venkat Reddy, 2009).
Tsunamis
Tsunami is Japanese word which means harbor wave.
Many people commonly refer it as tidal wave, but in
reality tsunamis have little to do with tides. Tsunamis
are large waves that are generated when sea floor is
deformed by seismic activity, vertically displacing the
overlying water in the oceans.
Indian Tsunamis-A note
 749 D. VENKAT REDDY
The first tsunami struck Bhola in Bengaal in 1874
killing several people. British Geologist –seismologists
and meteorologists rushed to the disaster areas and
collected valuable information .The British government
established first seismological and Meteorological
center in Alipore –Calcutta in 1874 (Mihir Guha, 2004).
Second Tsunami caused by a major earthquake and
recorded magnitude of 8.5 n Richet’s scale. Tsunami
inundated western Andaman and Nicobar islands and
then hit to the east coast of India destroying and killing
people
Third tsunami –Hit the Andaman and Nicobar islands-
East coast of India-west coast of Kerala –in parts -25
December ,2004;A great earthquake occurred at
00;58.53-UTC on Sunday 26th December of west coast
of Northen Sumatra –magnitude of 8.9 Richet’s Scale
Tsunami-causes –challenges for coastal protection
Tsunami occurs due to the energy transfer from earth to
water during under the sea. The energy transferred to
the water starts moving as a very long wave with
velocities in the order of 200 to 300 m/s in all
directions. The phase velocity, v of the wave reduces
when during its propagation to the coastal region
following the formula v= (gd)1/2 –where g –
acceleration due to gravity and d-water –depth. This
process results in the reduction of wave length and
increase in wave height resulting in piling up of wall of
water by the tsunami reach the coast. The pile of water
enters into the land adjacent to the coast like burst and
the high velocity of the flowing water with debris
destroys everything in its way (Neelamani and Venkat
Reddy2009)How tsunami works presented in fig-3
Fig3: Tsunami formation
26 December, 2004 Earthquake Tsunami-Brief Note
The devastating mega thrust earthquake of 26 December
2004 occurred on the interface of the India-Burma
plates and was caused by the release of stresses that
developed as the India plate sub ducted beneath the
overriding Burma plates and was caused by the release
of stresses that developed as the India plate sub-ducted
International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering
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beneath the overriding Burma plate. The December 26 th
earthquake occurred as result of thrust faulting. Detailed
description technical parameters have been reported by
USGS-2004. Tsunami resulted in south western Asia
including Sumatra in Indonesia, Srilanka Andaman and
Nicobar, east coast of India, particularly Tamil Nadu,
Pondicherry, Andhra Pradesh, Arattupuzha in
Alappuzha district of the west coast of Kerala claimed
more than 1, 50, 000 lies and extensive damage to
property of the region. Typical pictures of tsunami
induced flow of water and destruction of coastal
properties’ during Dec-2004 is presented fig.4.
Fig4: Typical pictures of tsunami induced flow of water
and destruction of coastal properties during Dec-2004
Tsunami protective structures in India
The coastal and ocean structures in the Bay of Bengal
and Arabian seas were not built for tsunami impacts
before December 24. However, the procedure is revised
after December, 2004 tsunami event. Now a days,
tsunami induced force is considered as the main
hydrodynamic load for the design of coastal structures
in these region. Many coastal countries around the
world have not experienced Tsunami effects and it does
not mean that they will never experience Tsunami
hazard in the future. It is essential to study and
understand possibility of occurrence of severe
earthquakes in the future. For example, the countries
surrounded by the Arabian Gulf have not experienced
severe Tunami effects till date. But it is possible that
earthquakes of the order of 8 or more in Richards scale
is possible at the subduction zone which falls in the
eastern side of the Arabian Gulf closer to the Iranian
coasts. Hence it is beneficial to study the impact on the
coastal regions of the Arabian Gulf coasts for the
possible catastrophic earthquake induces long wave
impacts. Country like Japan has built Tsunami barriers
(Fig.) to protect the coastal uplands from slamming of
powerful water jets during Tsunmi run-up. They are
very expensive and obstruct the free view of the sea.
Tsunami barrier of Japan model is presented in fig.5.
 Earthquakes-Oceans-Tsunamis-Coastal Zone Management
Fig5: Tsunami Barriet in Taro Japan-Model
The following few information is useful in connection
with Tsunami
Its Occurrence cannot be prevented
In the areas prone for Tsunami attack, do not build the
structure closer to the coast
If that is not possible, build the structure on group of tall
and strong piles, so that the Tsunami attack on the main
structure can be avoided (Neelamani and Venkat Reddy,
2009)
Tsunami Mitigating Strategies - Suggest by
Ramasamy, (2006)
Facilitators -bay mouth bars/spits & river mouths &
creeks
To be left as such/dredged
No vegetation/afforestation in bay mouth bars/spits
Keep River /creeks open &avoid arresting of river/creek
mouths bywalls
I-Mudflats
Mudflata-Mangroves development in mudflats
Regulating measures to minimize the fast growth of
saltpans
Dumping of boulders and creation of protection
embankments in between mudflats /saltpans and the sea
II-Carriers
Rivers, Creeks & Rivers-Keep mouth open
Afforestation along banks
Boulder embankment along low lying banks
Avoid settlement in low lying banks/streams
Promotion of mangroves in rivers/streams
III-Accommodators
Swales-Backwaters & Mangrove swamps
Paleo beaches, Palaeo Mudflats-Mouths to be keep open
A forestation of mangrooves, boulder embankment
along the rim of the back waters &mangrove swams
Mangrove creation in palaeo back waters
Radial out ward drainage from palaeo back waters
IV-Absorbers & beaches
Existing beach nourishment by afforestation with deep
rooted trees
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750
Beach growth propagation by constructing jetties at
suitable locations and nourish such beaches by
afforestation
Coastal Zone Management-Disaster Management
Authority and Regulation Zone guidelines
Prof Kerry Sieh-2005 –California Institute of
Technology USA explained understanding tsunami has
become more important, though they remain a difficult
phenomenon to study. In deep waters of an ocean, they
move as barely detectable ripples at hundreds of
kilometers an hour. Near the land, however, in shallow
water they slow down. One way after another pile up
creating a single wave that slowly surges towards the
shore, usually few dozen kilometers an hour. As this
joint wave approaches, sediment and sand is sucked up
causing the sea bed to drop and water to pour away.
Once this happen, you still have time before the main
wave arrives usually between 10 and 30 minutes. Such
knowledge could have saved thousands on that fatal
Sunday-26th December2004.Tsunami awareness is taken
momentum and India had established tsunami warning
system.
Coastal Zone management-Techno-economic
objectives
Main techo-econmical objectives of Coastal zone
management
1. World at present 2/3 of population live within
average width of 10 km from the shoreline, which
accounts only 3 percent of total land surface
2. Integrated coastal zone management involves
prevention of marine eco-system-protection from
erosion, tides, cyclones, tsunamis and maintains the
coastal resources and meets the needs of present
and future generation
3. Prevention of coastal erosion, prevention of human
interference with coastal processes
4. Improvement of navigation, dredging and proper
utilization of dredged sediments
5. Maintenance of recreational potentials of beaches
and development of tourism
6. A proper tsunami –cyclone warning system should
installed –to coastal system to save life and
property
Tsunami Warning systems-Key role for protection of
coastal Zones
BPR Network setup in Indian Oceans - Bay of
Bengal & Arabian Sea - Govt. of India
As part of the Indian Tsunami Early Warning System, a
real time network of Deep Ocean Assessment and
Reporting System has been established by National
Institute of Ocean Technology (NIOT). The network is
designed to detect measure and monitor tsunamis. The
 751 D. VENKAT REDDY
network comprises of 12 BPRs transmitting real time
data through satellite communication to NIOT at
Chennai and INCOIS at Hyderabad simultaneously for
processing and interpretation. Each BPR is strategically
placed at 30 minute and 60 minute tsunami wave arrival
times (from hypothetical tsunami sources), so that they
offer sufficient warning time and redundancy. At the
same time, they are far enough from the earthquake
zone so that the tsunami wave signal can be clearly
distinguished from the seismic Rayleigh wave. In
addition to Indian BPR network, INCOIS is also
receiving real time data from internationally coordinated
networks like DART (Deep Ocean Assessment and
Reporting Tsunamis) in Indian Ocean via Internet.
Currently, NIOT has deployed four BPRs out in Bay of
Bengal and two BPRs in the Arabian Sea (INCOIS-
2012).
Safety rules suggested by INCOIS (Source: INCOSIS-
2012)
1. All earthquakes do not cause tsunamis, but many
do. When you know that an earthquake has
occurred, stand by for a tsunami emergency
message.
2. An earthquake in your area is one of nature’s
tsunami warning signals. Do not stay in low-lying
coastal areas after a strong earthquake has been felt.
3. Tsunamis are sometimes preceded by a noticeable
fall in sea level as the ocean retreats seaward
exposing the seafloor. A roar like an oncoming
train may sometimes be heard as the tsunami wave
rushes toward the shore. These are also nature’s
tsunami warning signals.
4. A tsunami is not a signal wave, but a series of
waves that can come ashore for hours. The first
wave may not be the largest. Stay out of danger
areas until an “all-clear” is issued by a recognized
authority.
5. A small tsunami at one point on the shore can be
extremely large a few kilometers away. Don’t let
the modest size of one make you lose respect for
all.
6. All warnings to the public must be taken very
seriously, even if some are for non-destructive
events. The tsunami of May, 1960 killed 61 people
in Hilo, Hawaii because some thought it was just
another false alarm.
7. All tsunamis are potentially dangerous, even though
they may not damage every coastline they strike.
8. Never go down to the shore to watch for a tsunami.
When you can see the wave you are too close to
outrun it. Most tsunamis are like flash floods full of
debris. Tsunami waves typically do not curl and
break, so do not try to surf a tsunami.
9. Sooner or later, tsunamis visit every coastline in the
pacific and all oceans. If you live in a coastal area,
International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering
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be prepared and know nature’s tsunami warning
signals.
10. During a tsunami emergency, your local civil
defense, police, and other emergency organizations
will try to save your life. Give them your fullest
cooperation.
Tsunami Modeling Management - Experts Analyses
INCOIS – NIOT- network- supercomputer
implementation of most models allows the efficient
computation of many scenarios. This capability will
perform multiple-run sensitivity studies of two closely
related but separable processes off shore wave
dependence, on distant earthquake magnitude and
position and site specific inundation dependence on off-
shore wave characteristics. The result will be organized
into electronic data base and associated software will be
developed for analysis and visualization of this data
base, including the assimilation of real-time data
streams (Venkat Reddy, 2010).
Tsunami hazard management can be divided into
mitigation, preparedness, response and recovery, with
each of these functions being promoted by regulations,
incentives and risk communication (Lindell and Perry,
2004).
Regulations can take place a variety of forms and land –
use permits, seismic or coastal zoning, sub-division
regulations and building codes that restrict permits
seismic or coastal zoning, subdivision regulations and
building codes –that restrict households and business
land use and building construction practices (Lindell,
2006). Site assessment and tsunami hazard review
procedures can be used as regulatory tools in post
tsunami recovery phase. Tsunami legislation can be
provide a legal support for local regulatory efforts
(Jonientz-Trisler, 2005)
Coastal Regulation Zones – Guidelines
CRZ guidelines were notified in Feb, 1991 as per the
notification, the entire country coast divided into four
zones depending on the density of the population and
ecology.
Zone-I- This zone includes most of the sensitive areas
with mangroves and coral where no development is
permitted up to 500 meters from HTL and land between
Low Tide Levl-LTL-It means the position on the land
up to which the highest water line reaches during high
tides
Zone-II- It includes towns and cities where buildings
are already touching the sea and this zone permits the
maximum of development.
Zone-III - It includes underdeveloped areas and tourist
places where the permission for development is allowed
on a case –to case basis.
 Earthquakes-Oceans-Tsunamis-Coastal Zone Management
Zone-IV- The Andaman and Nicobar Islands and
Lakshadweep islands lie in this zone .The ministry also
amended the notification to allow developmental
activities for tourism on seven islands of the Andaman
and Nicobar groups and some in Lakshadweep.
How to proceed for coastal zone management:
a. Reliable knowledge on coastal process
b. Effects of beach sand mining and decrease in
sediment supply to beaches
c. Conditions of existing wetlands changes that may
take place throughout time and space
d. A reliable sand budget for coastal littoral cells .This
requires quantitative information on sand in puts
and out puts
e. Information on tsunamis, there in puts on coastal
zones and the protective measures (Jayappa,1998 &
Venkat Reddy, 2005)
Conclusions
1. Geology of coastal region affects the supply of
sediment to the beaches and total morphology.
Tsunami impact on coastal zone depends upon the
nature and configuration of coastal regions.
Tsunami impact reduction primarily depends upon
the coastal zone configuration. Geological,
geomorphological and technical parameters are
responsible for formation of coastal zones.
2. The recent tsunami has demonstrated that the CRZ
rules even if implemented rigorously will be of
little help in saving life and property in coastal
terrains which are flat and featureless .Fixing a
horizontal distance of 200m or 500 m from HTL
makes little sense when storm, cyclone and tsunami
can travel far inland and cause much damage.
3. The tsunami disaster illustrated that the results of
valuable seismological research and development
must reach the users at grassroots-particularly those
in coastal communities. The mangroves and coral
reefs and natural shields against tsunamis, tides,
and cyclones should be highlighted in coastal
regions
4. The International Strategy for Disaster Reduction
(ISDR) (www.uni-sdr.org) has warned that half the
world’s population living in coastal areas is
vulnerable to being over whelmed by tsunami.
5. Coastal vulnerability zone for frequent hazards
such as annual floods, coastal erosion etc be
identified for restricting developmental activities
and another zone for long term hazards like
tsunamis, storm surges, cyclones may be identified
for restricting other major investments like power
plants, highways, airports etc.
6. The protection of the coastal areas need not always
be by structural means as seawalls groins, offshore
break waters .Soft methods like beach nourishment,
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752
bio-shield, buffer zones, sand dune, artificial reefs
etc., may be adopted wherever appropriate.
7. Integrated Coastal Zone Management plans may be
prepared for the coastal areas taking into account
the sea and land part and also vulnerability to
hazards, livelihood security of the people and other
social, economic and infrastructural requirements.
What we need-Few in puts from experts
 Developments of Early Warning System (EWS)
 Knowledge and Risk Based Management
 Responses Recovery Mitigation Preparedness
Prevention
 Vulnerability Assessment and Hazard Analysis
 Proper and sustainable Environmental Planning
 Centralize Information Hub
 Improved observation system
 Best practice and its exchange
 Strengthen technical collaboration and Co-
operation among researchers and practicing
members.
 Close interaction with policy maker
It is not an individual problem and only collective effort
can minimize the disaster with proper planning and
action to save the mother earth.
What we are doing is just a drop in the Ocean. But the
Ocean will be less because of that missing drop. -
(Mother Teresa).
Reference
[1] ASTEO (1985) Compte rendu des Journees
d’information erosion et defense des cotes Paris.
[2] Cloeting .S (1985) on a tectonic mechanism for
regional sea bed variations. Earth Planetary Science
letter
[3] David Long (2005). A note on seismology of
recent, British geological survey in Edinburgh,
Scotland
[4] Emery, K.O and Neev, OH (1960) Mediterranean
beaches of Israel, Bulletin 26, Geological Survey,
Ministry of Development, Isreal, 22
[5] Fazlul Karim, (2005): A note on Bangladesh
coastal dynamics protection against sea waves, The
Hindu, 2005
[6] Francois.V (1986) The changing level of the sea,
Marine Geology, pp.148-176
[7] Harish Gupta (2005) Journal of Geological Society
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[8] Jayappa, K.S (1998): Coastal Zone Management
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Hosetti, BB, A Kumar, Daya publications pp196-
211
 753 D. VENKAT REDDY
[9] Kerry Sieh (2005) A note on seism city of the
south Asia-a geologist at the California Institute of
Technology and experts
[10] Oradiwe (1986), Sediment budget for Monterey
Bay, MS. Thesis, US Naval Pg School Monterey
California
[11] Quelennec, R.E (1987) Coastal erosion in west and
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[12] Ramasamy, S M et al. (2006). Geosystem Response
to December 26, 2004 Tsunami and Mitigation
Strategies for Cuddalore - Nagspatinam Coast,
Tamil Nadu, Journ Geol Soc of India, Vol 68, pp.
967-983.
[13] Saheed Khan (, 2005) Education system in disaster
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barrier in lands of the North Central Gulf of
Mexico, Env. Geology 5(3)
[15] Van de Plassche, O (1986) Sea level research –A
manual for the collection and evaluation of data,
Geo, Books. Norwich
[16] Venkat Reddy,D (1990)The changing level of the
sea ,its impact on coastal consequences for the
protection and management of coastal areas ,Indian
Journal Environmental protection, pp 846-851
[17] Venkat Reddy (2010) Earthquakes - Oceans and
Tsunamis - Engineering Geology Vikas publishers,
New Delhi
[18] Jayappa,K.S (1998), Coastal Zone Management
with special reference to Karnataka –Environmental
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Impact Assessment and Management, Daya
publications.
[19] Jonientz-Trisler (2005), Planning for tsunami –
resilient communities. Journal of Natural Hazards,
Vol. 35(1), pp. 21-39.
[20] Kerry Sieh (2005), Anote on seismicity of the
South Asia –A geologist at the California Institute
of Technology –note –general observation.
[21] Lindell M. K and Perry R.W (2004)
Communication environment risk in multiethnic
communities Thousand Oaks-California, USA
[22] Lindell M. K (2006), Local government agencies
use of hazard analysis information, Int Journ Mass
Emergency Disaters, Vol 20(1), pp. 29-39
[23] Neelamani.S and Venkat Reddy.D (2009),
Challenges and Recent Developments in the Ocean
and Coastal Engineering, International Journal of
Earth Sciences and Engineering, Vol. 2, No.4,
pp.16.
[24] Ramasamy, SM. (2006). Geosystem Response to
December 26, 2004 Tsunami and Mitigation
Strategies for Cuddalore-Nagspatinam Coast, Tamil
Nadu, Journ Geol Soc of India, Vol. 68, pp. 967-
983.
[25] Singh.T.N and Venkat Reddy.D (2008), Natural
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 Indexed in
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ISSN 0974-5904, Volume 07, No. 04

Health Monitoring Techniques of Civil Structures – A Review

SUYOG H, KARTHIK KUMAR H G AND KUMAR P
Civil Engineering, DSCE, Bangalore, Karnataka, India
Email: suyogh@gmail.com, karthikhg910@gmail.com, kumar.3336@gmail.com

Abstract: Structural Health Monitoring (SHM) becomes today an important technology improving reliability and
safety of highly stressed civil structures, and supporting their effective maintenance. The civil infrastructure ages
and deteriorates with time as a result of aging of materials, excessive use, overloading, climatic conditions,
inadequate maintenance, and deficiencies in inspection methods. All of these factors contribute to the obsolescence
of constructed systems. As a result, health monitoring, repair, retrofit, rehabilitation, and replacement become
necessary to ensure the safety of the public. In addition, nondestructive evaluation (NDE) accelerated and
destructive tests are also needed to predict life-cycle performances based on short-term test data. In order to evaluate
the safety of a constructed system, it is essential to determine the remaining strength of the total system by a
performance analysis based upon the strength and inspection data of the materials and the structural system. A
comparatively recent development in the health monitoring of civil engineering structures is vibration-based damage
detection. Vibration characteristics of a structure, that is, its frequencies, mode shapes, and damping are directly
affected by the physical characteristics of the structure including its mass and stiffness. New methods and tools for
assessment, maintenance, repair and upgrade of the performance of existing civil structures needs to be developed.
Keywords: infrastructure, safety, inspection, performance, evaluation, upgrades.

Structural Health Monitoring (SHM) aims to give, at
every moment during the life of a structure, a diagnosis
of the “state” of the constituent materials, of the
different parts, and of the full assembly of the separates
constituting the structure as a whole. The state of the
structure must remain in the domain specified in the
design, although this can be altered by normal aging
due to usage, by the action of the environment, and by
accidental events. Thanks to the time-dimension of
monitoring, this makes it possible to consider the full
History data base of the structure, and with the help of
Usage Monitoring, it can also provide prognosis
(evolution of damage, residual life, etc.).
If we consider only the first function, the diagnosis, we
could estimate that Structural Health Monitoring is a
new and improved way to make a Non- Destructive
Evaluation. This is partially true, but SHM is much
more. It involves the integration of sensors, possibly
smart materials, data transmission, computational
power, and processing ability inside the structures. It
makes possible to reconsider the design of the structure
and the full management of the structure itself and of
the structure considered as a part of wider systems.
InFigure1theorganizationofatypicalSHMsystemisgiveni
ndetail.Thefirstpartofthe system, which corresponds to
the structural integrity monitoring function, can be
defined by:

Fig1: Principle and organization of a SHM system

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Proceedings of 3-Day International Conference on Emerging Trends in Civil Engineering (ICETE-2014,)
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 755 SUYOG.H, K ARTHIK KUMAR.H.G AND KUMAR .P
i) The type of physical phenomenon, closely related to
the damage, which is monitored by the sensor,
ii) The type of physical phenomenon that is used by the
sensor to produce a signal (generally electric) sent to the
acquisition and storage sub-system. Several sensors of
the same type, constituting a network, can be
multiplexed and their data merged with those from other
types of sensors. Possibly, other sensors, monitoring the
environmental conditions, make it possible to perform
the usage monitoring function. The signal delivered by
the integrity monitoring sub-system, in parallel with the
previously registered data, is used by the controller to
create diagnostic. Mixing the information of the
integrity monitoring sub- system with that of the usage
monitoring sub-system and with the knowledge based
on damage mechanics and behavior laws makes it
possible to determine the prognosis (residual life) and
the health management of the structure (organization of
maintenance, repair operations, etc.).Finally, similar
structure management systems related to other
structures which constitute a type of super system (a
fleet of aircraft, a group of power stations, etc.) make
possible the health management of the super system. Of
course, workable systems can be setup even if they are
not as comprehensive as described here. Knowing the
Fig2: Classification of SHM techniques
Elements included in SHM are:
 Structure
 Sensors
 Data acquisition systems
 Data transfer and storage mechanism
 Data management
 Data interpretation and diagnosis:
Sensors for Health Monitoring:
International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering
ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 754-757
integrity of in-service structures on a continuous real-
time basis is a very important objective for
manufacturers, end-users and maintenance teams. In
effect, SHM:
1. Allows an optimal use of the structure, a minimized
down time, and the avoidance of catastrophic failures,
2. Gives the constructor an improvement in his products
3. Drastically changes the work organization of
maintenance services:
Classification of SHM Techniques:
Afivelevelclassificationofstructuralhealthmonitoringtec
hniquesisgivenbelow:
Level1: Detection-Determine if any kind of damage is
present in the structure.
Level2: Localization-Locate the site of the damage.
Level3: Assessment-amount of damage is estimated
Level4: Prognosis- Estimate the future progress of the
damage and the remaining life of the structure.
Level5: Remediation- Determine, implement, and
evaluate effective remediation and repair efforts.
As new sensors become available, the possibility for
application of improved structural health monitoring
techniques is increasingly feasible. The new sensors
include Micro-electro mechanical System (MEMS)
devices for accelerometers and other applications,
nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) which will detect
chloride ions, shearography that will detect out-of-plane
displacements caused by lamination, LIDAR to capture
3D position of objects, infrared thermography to
 Health Monitoring Techniques of Civil Structures – A Review
detected bonding, and others. These sensors target the
monitoring of one specific type of damage that is
concrete cracking, cable breakage, steel reinforcement
corrosion, and delamination or de-bonding. Sensors are
being deployed in civil infrastructures. However, the
data recorded for long-term monitoring are usually
extensive. Most of those data are being collected but
not used because processing of the data is too costly.
One way to overcome this problem is to develop new
sensors which are capable of processing the data before
the output is recorded. These smart sensors would
reduce the amount of
datathatareneededtobecollectedandwoulddistributetheco
mputingeffort. Another class of smart sensors consists
of those sensors which can communicate with each
other. The nanodust concept is a network of small
sensors that is capable of communicating among them.
When they are combined with other sensors, the result
can be a powerful network of sensors that can both use
neighboring sensors data, and communicate the sensed
data wirelessly by jumping from one sensor to another.
Vibration Based Damage Detection (VBDD):
In recent years, researchers from diverse disciplines
have been drawn into vigorous efforts to develop
intelligent materials or structures that can monitor their
own condition, detect impending failure, control
damage and adapt to changing environments, Ken, et.al
(2003).
The most common methods of VBDD techniques are:
Change in Mode Shape Method (CMS); Mode Shape
Curvature method (MSC); Change in Flexibility (CF)
method; Damage Index (DI) method; Change in
Uniform Flexibility Curvature (CUFC) method.
Change in Mode Shape Method (CMS): The change
in mode shape vector, , was calculated by taking the
simple difference between damaged and undamaged
mode shapes
(1)
Where the absolute value symbols indicate evaluation of
the absolute value of each component of the vector.
Mode Shape Curvature Method (MSC): The MSC
method considers the increase in modal curvature
caused by damage:
(2)
Where the double prime notation indicates the second
spatial derivative and the subscript i
th
Refers to the i mode.
Damage detection using artificial neural networks:
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756
Inrecentyearstherehasbeenincreasinginterestinusingneur
alnetworkstoestimateand
predicttheextentandlocationofdamageincomplexstructur
es.Masrietal (1993) proposed a procedure based on the
use of artificial neural networks for the identification of
nonlinear dynamic systems is developed and applied to
the damped Duffing oscillator under deterministic
excitation. The most common neural network in use
Doebling et.al(1996)is the multiplayer perception
(MLP) trained by back propagation. Patodi and Purani
(2002) suggested counter propagation neural network
(CPN) algorithm; a multi-network approach for
damageassessmentofearthquakeaffectedframedbuildings
forcategorizationandpost- earthquake action. The
structural damage assessment in reinforced concrete
framed buildings due to earthquake is do new ith the
help of artificial neural networks, where the training
pattern being based on field data collected in
Ahmedabad, during 26th January 2001 earthquake. The
trained networks suggested the category of a damaged
building, with suitablepostearthquakeaction.
Conclusion
Almost every industry wants to detect damage in its
structural and mechanical infrastructure at the earliest
possible time. Industries desire to perform such
monitoring is based on the tremendous economic and
life-safety benefits that this technology has the potential
to offer. However, as previously mentioned with the
exception of rotating machinery condition monitoring,
there are few examples of where this technology has
made the transition from research to practice.
Significant future developments of this technology will,
in all likelihood, come by way of multi-disciplinary
research efforts encompassing fields such structural
dynamics, signal processing, motion and environmental
sensing hard ware, computational hardware, data
telemetry, smart materials and statistical pattern
recognition, as well as other fields yet to be defined.
Furthermore, there are few efforts that try to advance
and integrate these technologies with the specific focus
of developing SHM solutions. Without such a focus in
mind, these technologies may not evolve in a manner
that is not necessarily optimal for solving the SHM
problem. Like so many other technology fields,
advancements in SHM will most likely come in small
increments requiring diligent, focused and coordinated
research efforts over long period of time.
Reference
[1] Anjan Dutta, and Talukdar,S,(2004) “Damage
detection in bridges using accurate modal
parameters”,
FiniteElementinAnal.andDesign,40,:pp.287-304.
 757 SUYOG.H, K ARTHIK KUMAR.H.G AND KUMAR .P

[2] Araujodos Santosetal, (2005) Structural damage
identification inlaminated structures using FRF
data, Composite Structures, 67: pp.239-249.
[3] Azevedo ,S.G., Mast, J.E., Nelson, S.D., Rosenbury,
E.T., Jones, H.E., McEwan, T.E., Mullenh off, D.J.,
Hugenberger, R.E., Stever, R.D.,Warhus, J.P. and
Wieting, M.G.(1996). HERMES: Ahigh-speedradar
imaging system for inspection of bridge decks.
Nondestructive Evaluation Techniques for Aging
Infrastructure and Manufacturing, SPIE 294(6),
195–204.
[4] Catbas FN, and Aktan AE, Condition and damage
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Vol.128(8), 2002: pp.1026-1036.
[5] Chong KP, CarinoNJ, and WasherD, (2003) “Health
monitoring of civil infrastructures”, Smart Mater.
Struct, Institute of Physics Publishing, 12: pp.483-
493.
[6] ChouJH, and OhaboussiJ, (2001) “Genetical
gorithmin structural damage detection”, Computers
and Structures, 79:pp.1335-1353.
[7] Doebling SW, Farrar CR, Prime MB, and Shevitz
DW, (1996), “Damage identification and health
monitoring of structural and mechanical systems
from changes in their vibration characteristics: a
literature review”, LA-I3070-MS, Los Alamos
National Laboratory.
[8] Dove JR, Park 0 and Zhang ZJ, (2006) “Hard ware
design of hierarchal active sensing networks for
structural health monitoring”, Smart Materials and
Structures: Vol. 15(2), pp.139-146.
[9] ISIS Canada Corporation, (2001), Guidelines for
Structural Health Monitoring, Design Manual No.2,
www.isiscanada.com.
[10] Ken PChon, NicholasJ Carinoand Glenn Washer,
(2003), “Health monitoring of civil infrastructures”
SmartMat.Struct.12.pp.483-493.
[11] MasriSF, Chassiakos AG, Caughey TK, (1993)
“Identification of nonlineard ynamic system susing
neural networks”, Journal of Applied Mechanics,
ASME: Vol.60, pp.123-133.
[12] PatodiVS and PuraniSC, (2002) “Neuro solution for
damage detection and categorization of earthquake-
affected buildings”, The Indian Concrete Journal,
pp.504-509.
[13] Ray, L. and Tian, L. (1999). Damage detectionin
smart structures through sensitivity enchancing
feedback. Journal of Sound and Vibration, 227(5),
987–1002.

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ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 754-757
 Indexed in
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Abstract Services-USA, Geo-Ref Information Services-USA,
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Directory of Research Journals
www.cafetinnova.org August 2014, P.P.758-763
ISSN 0974-5904, Volume 07, No. 04

North-Eastern Seismic Status and Mitigation Requirements

TH. KIRANBALA DEVI, S UPRIYA THOUDAM AND S. KIRAN DEVI
MIT, Takyelpat-795004, Manipur, India
Email: kiranbala_th@yahoo.com, Supriya35@gmail.com. kiransagolsem256@gmail.com

Abstract: The occurrence of earthquake is a global phenomenon. Earthquakes occur due to movements along the
faults that have evolved through geological and tectonic processes. This is the result of a sudden release of energy in
the earth crust that creates seismic waves. Earthquakes are the most disastrous of all the natural calamities as they
affect large areas causing death, injuries and destructions of physical resources on a massive scale. These occur
without any fore warning and hence are unpredictable. Since earthquakes can’t be predicted, post-earthquake
programme are basically undertaken on adhoc basis without prior preparedness. Being fallen the entire North
Eastern State of India in the Zone-V, the most seismic hazard Zone (BIS-2002) and to Geo climatic conditions, it is
obvious that the region is highly prone to multiple natural disasters. According to the study of the North Eastern
India’s earthquakes history and finding of seismological researches, the region is now due for a large major
earthquake which is expected in the region between the epicentre of Shillong Earthquake M 8.7 of 1897 and Patkai
Range, Arunachal Pradesh, M.7 of 1950 in the near future. Earthquake Hazard of North East India cannot be
changed, however disaster can be mitigated. The precise prediction of earthquakes in terms of space and time is not
possible. Moreover, prediction may not helpful in avoiding or reducing damages caused by earthquakes because
buildings and other structures cannot be evacuated. It can, at the most, be helpful in saving human lives. This arise
the need of proper planning and implementation for earthquake disaster mitigation for the region in cooperating pre,
during and post-earthquake measures.
Keywords: Disaster, Mitigation, Seismic Hazard, Natural Calamities, Retrofitting.

1. Introduction: adopting the constructions standard codes provided by

For India being a vast country and more than half of its
geographical area are highly vulnerable to seismic
disturbance of high intensity; the country is highly
vulnerable to seismic hazards. After 2001 Gujarat
Earthquake, researchers calculated that 70 percent of the
Himalayas could experience an extremely powerful
earthquake. The entire regions of the NorthEast India lie
in the Himalayas, which fall in seismic Zone V.
The region itself suffered heavy destructions and loss of
lives in several strong earthquakes. A sequence of
highly destructive earthquakes between 1999 to 2009
raised at the public outcry about the needlessly high
number of fatalities and lack of public safety afforded to
public facilities especially schools. According to a
conservative estimate more than15 million human lives
have been lost and damage worth hundreds of dollars
has been inflicted in the recorded history due to
earthquake (R.P Tiwari). Generally the casualties
inflicted in the event of Earthquakes are due to
destructions of structures and buildings. Therefore
structural mitigation measures ensuring the buildings
and structures to withstand the impact of earthquake by
Bureau of Indian Standard (BIS) will significantly
contribute to the mitigation of Seismic hazard in the
region. It is not possible to predict earthquake precisely
and to prevent from occurring. However, the disastrous
effects can be minimized considerably through
measures of scientific methods and understandings.
2. Seismic status of north -east India:
The premises of a region to earthquake occurrence in
the past and its probable occurrence in future are
expressed in terms of its seismicity. In other words
seismicity or seismism or seismic activity of an area
refers to the frequency, type, size of earthquakes
experienced over a period of time. Earthquakes may not
at all occur in the same regions; only small earthquakes
may hit the same while others may hit same while
others may experienced a large number of earthquakes
of high magnitudes. A region which experienced a large
number of earthquakes of high magnitude is thought to
have a higher seismicity in comparison to the one with
low frequency and small magnitude earthquakes. The
epicentre and magnitude range of earthquakes of
different regions can be plotted on the maps and their

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Proceedings of 3-Day International Conference on Emerging Trends in Civil Engineering (ICETE-2014,)
6th–8th January, 2014
 759 T H. KIRANBALA DEVI, SUPRIYA T HOUDAM AND S. K IRAN DEVI

relative concentrations can be taken as one of experienced 18 largest earthquakes (M≥7) during the
seismicity. Various geophysical parameters such as last hundred years including the great earthquake of
resistivity, magnetic and gravity etc also reflect seismic Shillong (1897, M=8.7) and Assam + Tibet border
status of a region. North East India is seismically one of (1950, M=8.7) and at the latest Sikkim (2011,
the six most active regions of the world, the other five M=6.9)(Table 1). Besides these major earthquakes,
being Mexico, Taiwan, California, Japan and Turkey. It several hundred small and micro earthquakes have also
is placed in Zone V, the highest zone of the seismic been recorded in the region.
Zonation map of India (BIS-2002). The region
Table1: Major Earthquakes in North Eastern Region in Recent Past

Place Year Magnitude Remarks

Cachar March 21, 1869 7.8 Numerous earth fissures and sand craters
Shillong Plateau June 12, 1897 8.7 About 1542 people died
Sibsagar August 31,1906 7.0 Property damage
Myanmar December 12, 1908 7.5 Property damage
Srimangal July 6, 1918 7.6 4500 km2 area suffered damage
SW Assam September 9, 1923 7.1 Property damage
Dhubri July 2, 1930 7.1 Railway lines , culverts and bridges cracked
Assam January 27, 1931 7.6 Destruction of property
Nagaland 1932 7.0 Destruction of property
NE Assam October 23, 1943 7.2 Destruction of property
Arunachal July 7, 1947 7.5 Destruction of property
Upper Assam July 29, 1949 7.6 Severe damage
About 1520 people died. One of the largest
Upper Assam August 15, 1950 8.7
known quake in the history
Patkai Range.
1950 7.0 Property damage
Arunachal
Manipur Burma 1954 7.4 Property damage
Darjeeling 1959 7.5 Property damage
Indo Myanmar border August 6, 1988 7.5 4 person died, damaging buildings and roads
Sikkim September 2011 6.9 87 people died. Extensive damage of property
Source: R .P Tiwari
3. Earthquake hazards and mitigation Majority of the casualty and damages during
The precise prediction of earthquakes in terms of space earthquakes are caused due to collapse of building and
structures. This risk of seismic hazards become one of
and time is not possible Moreover prediction may not be
the most devastating natural hazard as the present trend
helpful in avoiding or reducing damages caused by
of rapid growth of development accompanied with
earthquakes because building and structures cannot be
unabated construction of buildings and infrastructures.
evacuated. It can, at the most be helpful in saving
human lives. The disastrous effects of these however Rapid urbanisation in the region have provided a higher
can be minimised considerably through scientific level of manmade constructions deviating from the
typical Assam type houses to multi-storeyed buildings/
understanding of their nature, causes, frequency
structures and a significant population outburst as
magnitude and area of influence. Therefore, earthquakes
compared to the time of occurrence of great
disaster mitigation and preparedness strategies are the
earthquakes, thereby implicating increased vulnerability
need of the hour to fight and reduce its miseries to
mankind. to earthquakes disaster. Vulnerability can be assumed
from the conditions of Houses in the North Eastern
Region given in Table 2.

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 North-Eastern Seismic Status and Mitigation Requirements
760

Table2: Conditions of Houses in Northeast Region

Residence Residence Cum others
Assam Total
Total Good Liveable Dilapidated Total Good Liveable Dilapidated
Urban 9,92,742 9,72,977 5,74,728 3,42,905 55,344 19,765 10,202 8,720 843
Rural 53,74,553 52,99,174 14,82,904 31,88,056 6,28,214 75,379 18,472 50,217 6,690
63,67,295 62,72,151 20,57,632 35,30,961 6,83,558 95,144 28,674 58,937 7,533

Arunachal Residence Residence Cum others

Total
Pradesh Total Good Liveable Dilapidated Total Good Liveable Dilapidated
Urban 65,891 63,290 36,922 24,522 1,816 2,601 1,635 940 26
Rural 1,95,723 1,91,553 94,706 90,165 6,682 4,170 2,200 1,879 91
2,61,614 2,54,843 1,31,628 1,14,717 8,498 6,771 3,835 2,819 117
Residence Residence Cum others
Manipur Total
Total Good Liveable Dilapidated Total Good Liveable Dilapidated
Urban 1,71,400 1,66,761 1,06,068 53,289 7,404 4,639 2,559 1,802 278
Rural 3,35,752 3,31,382 1,63,721 1,52,014 15,647 4,370 2,203 1,986 181
5,07,152 4,98,143 2,69,789 2,05,303 23,051 9,009 4,762 3,788 459
Residence Residence Cum others
Meghalaya Total
Total Good Liveable Dilapidated Total Good Liveable Dilapidate
Urban 1,16,102 1,14,366 79,718 31,539 3,109 1,736 1,009 658 69
Rural 4,22,197 4,18,270 1,76,386 2,13,001 28,883 3,927 1,632 2,071 224
5,38,299 5,32,636 2,56,104 2,44,540 31,992 5,663 2,641 2,729 293
Residence Residence Cum Others
Mizoram Total
Total Good Liveable Dilapidated Total Good Liveable Dilapidated
Urban 1,16,203 1,14,397 84,366 28,314 1,717 1,806 1,204 574 28
Rural 1,04,874 1,03,281 51,301 47,514 4,466 1,593 910 662 21
2,21,077 2,21,678 1,35,667 75,828 6,183 3,399 2,114 1,236 49

Nagaland Residence Residence Cum others

Total
Total Good Liveable Dilapidated Total Good Liveable Dilapidated
Urban 1,15,054 1,12,776 69,999 40,641 2,136 2,278 1,383 854 41
Rural 2,84,911 2,82,576 1,37,084 1,40,458 5,034 2,335 1,225 1,089 21
2,608
3,99,965 3,95,352 2,07,083 1,81,099 7,170 4,613 1,943 62

Residence Residence Cum others

Total
Sikkim Total Good Liveable Dilapidated Total Good Liveable Dilapidated
Urban 35,761 34,099 27,383 6,106 610 1,662 1,330 314 18
Rural 92,370 89,730 41,907 41,572 6,251 2,640 1,822 747 71
1,28,131 1,23,829 64,290 47,678 6,861 4,302 3,152 1,061 89
Residence Residence Cum others
Tripura Total
Total Good Liveable Dilapidated Total Good Liveable Dilapidated
Urban 8,42,781 2,31,422 1,47,716 73,933 9,773 3,580 1,810 1,607 163
Rural 6,07,779 5,98,083 3,04,452 2,61,729 31,902 9,696 3,147 5,690 859
8,42,781 8,29,505 4,52,168 3,35,662 41,675 13,276 4,957 7,297 1,022
Source: Census of India 2011

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 761 T H. KIRANBALA DEVI, SUPRIYA T HOUDAM AND S. K IRAN DEVI
The underlying problems of growing vulnerability to
natural and technological hazards are largely an
outcome of short-sighted development activities,
considering these factors, structural mitigation measures
are the key to make a significant impact towards
earthquakes safety in the world. The principal purpose
of hazard mitigation is the protection of life, even when
the risk to a single individual at any time is
comparatively small. Concerned with the impact of
natural disasters in the background of United Nation’s
resolution and following the Yokohama Strategy for a
Safer World, May, 1994, there is paradigm shift from
post disaster reconstruction and relief to post disaster
pro-active approach to reduce the impact of natural
hazards
4. Earthquake measures
Following the strategy, disaster prevention, mitigation
and preparedness are emphasised as better option than
disaster response in achieving the goals and objectives
of vulnerability reduction. Disaster response alone is not
sufficient as it yields only temporary results at a very
high cost. However all the measures of pre-earthquake
(preparedness/preparation & planning), during
earthquakes (emergency and response) and post-
earthquake (recovery and rebuilding) should be a
continuous and interlinked co-ordinated activities to
achieve the maximum satisfactory result.
4.1 Pre Earthquake Measures
4.1.1. Preparedness : It is always more cost effective to
adopt appropriate mitigation measures in advance than
to spend a large sum of money on relief, recovery and
rehabilitation. Disaster preparedness includes all of the
activities that are carried out prior to the advance notice
of a catastrophe in order to facilitate the use of available
resources, relief and rehabilitation in the best possible
fashion.
4.1.2. Awareness Campaign: It is needed to be
launched effectively to educate the people about the
disastrous effects of earthquakes and to prepare them to
face these in a better way. Prevention and mitigation
begins with the information. Moreover, public education
and community participation is the key to success of the
implementation of reduction and mitigation
programmes. However, awareness of the potential
benefits of disaster reduction is found limited to
specialised circle and has not yet been successfully
communicated to all sectors of society, in particular
policymakers and general public. This is due to the lack
of attention for the issue in sufficient commitment and
resources for promotional activities at all levels.
These shortcomings have to be addressed by
involvement of people representation from all sorts of
International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering
ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 758-763
individuals, groups, society, professional, administrator,
NGOs, etc.
4.1.3 Development Policy: Disaster prevention and
preparedness should be considered as integral aspect in
the formation of Development policy and planning at all
level (national, regional bilateral, multilateral and
international level) preparedness for seismic hazard
involves sound emergency evacuation, relief and
rehabilitation plans, which can be effectively used
during a damaging earthquake mitigation and
preparedness measures go hand in hand for vulnerability
reduction and rapid professional response to disasters.
The Bhuj earthquake in January 2001 faced several
inadequacies in the system. The search and rescue team
had not been trained professionally, specialized dog
squad to look for line bodies under debris were not
available; and there was no centralised resource
inventory for emergency response. Specialist search and
rescue team from other countries did reach Bhuj.
However, precious time was lost and failed to act as
quickly as desired.
4.1.4 Techno Legal Measures: Techno legal measures
have to be adopted to prevent earthquake disaster. These
include a firmed land used policy, Enforcing of strict
building bye laws following seismic construction codes,
covering the aspect of ensuring technical
implementation of the safety aspects in all new
constructions and upgrading the strength of existing
structurally vulnerable constructions.
The strict building bye laws may not only help to
address any conflict of interest happened between the
owners who pay for the structures, who tend to attend
higher risk on the occurrence of earthquake rather than
make large investment into extra safety measures for a
large earthquake events that rarely happens.
4.1.5 Retrofitting of Life Line Building: Retrofitting
of the existing vulnerable buildings should be taken on
the priority basis like hospitals, schools, railways,
administrative building, cinema halls, multi-storeyed
Apartments Where People Congregate At The Most.
4.2 During Earthquake
 The action plan prepared during pre-earthquake
period has to be implemented immediately after the
occurrence of an earthquake.
 The volunteer groups/rescue/search teams have to
be activated to carry out the relief work.
 The effected people need to be evacuated to the
safer places.
 The communication and other essential services
like water supply, electricity, transport, etc. ought
to be restored on emergency basis.
 North-Eastern Seismic Status and Mitigation Requirements
 Supply of food items and essentials need to be
taken up. Fastest means of communication
(preferable helicopter) should be used to reach the
remote villages.
 Overall vigilance need to be maintained after the
main shock as it is usually followed by many
aftershock. The public has to be informed about the
development on an hourly basis.
4.3. Post-Earthquake:
 Damaged structures need to be reconstructed on
war footing.
 The affected people ought to be rehabilitated.
 A comprehensive list of the safe and unsafe
structures has to be made incorporating the details
about their designing and method of construction.
 Loss of life and property need to be documented
and published.
 Counselling need to be done to removes the fear
psychosis.
 An in-depth evaluation of pre-earthquake measures
needs to be done. Shortcomings, if any, need to be
removed and plan, if required, may be modified.
5. Conclusions
North East India is highly vulnerable for earthquakes
which cannot be prevented from occurring. Therefore,
we have to warn to live the earthquake hazard looming
and try to minimize its adverse impact on human
civilisation. Earthquake hazard is one of the most
deadly phenomenon’s which claim the lives of large
number of person without any warning. These deadly
destructions were mainly caused due to the collapse of
structures and buildings. We think of these disasters
only in the wake of a particular event and with the lapse
of time, political official and public interest diminishes.
Hence, to mitigate the destructions of this natural
disaster, we have to prepare a complete disaster
mitigation plan with concerted efforts of planners,
administrators, engineers, builders etc with strict
enforcement of building codes for constructions of
masonry structures, even for small housing complex in
the earthquake prone zone and strict legalisation of land
use may help the mitigation of earthquake hazards. This
disaster mitigation plan should not be considered as an
isolated effort and it cannot start and end with each
disaster.
6. Acknowledgements
The authors would like to thank Manipur Institute of
Technology, Imphal for their support at the time of this
research.
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List B of Scientific Journals, Poland,
Directory of Research Journals
www.cafetinnova.org August 2014, P.P.764-774
ISSN 0974-5904, Volume 07, No. 04

Stratigraphic Status of the Koderma Mica Belt vis-a-vis the Tectonic

Evolution of Amphibolites of the Chotanagpur Region
VIKASH KUMAR
Department of Geology (CE), Muzaffarpur Institute of Technology, Muzaffarpur-842003, Bihar, India
Email: evikashmit@yahoo.com

Abstract: The world famous Koderma Mica Belt lying at the northern fringe of Chotanagpur Granite Gneiss
Complex (CGGC) constitutes a distinct geological component of Singhbhum Supergroup along with CGGC that
occupy a vast area of Precambrian rocks of eastern India peninsular shield. The studied amphibolites associated with
both the units throw significant light on the plate setting, nature of the igneous protolith and P-T conditions of
metamorphism to help resolve various geological problems of the area in general and geodynamic models of the
concerned Singhbhum / Satpura orogenic belt having a ENE-WSW to E-W regional trend in particular. The detailed
field, petrographic and chemical investigations including major, trace & REE have led to their categorization into
Talc-tremolite-actinolite schist, foliated and non-foliated amphibolites exhibiting sill-flow mode of occurrence,
dominant Hbl-plagioclase mineralogy and chemically homogeneous composition within a narrow range varying
from mafic to ultramafic rocks of tholeiitic affinity which, upon fractional crystallization, have yielded rocks of
basalt to basaltic andesite typical of island arc tectonic regime. Spiky and irregular MORB-normalized trace element
pattern with prominent Nb-Ta-Ti & Zr-Hf anomalies along with a number of tectonomagmatic discriminant models
suggest subduction related island arc tectonic setting. The Chondrite normalized trace element pattern lends support
to the same. REE chemistry based on ΣREE, LREE/HREE, (La/Yb)N, (Ce/Yb)N, Eu/Eu* ratio and other parameters
also attest tholeiitic nature of amphibolitic rocks evolved under island arc set-up. Within the framework of island
arc, an intraarc position for the amphibolitic rocks representing the study area is delineated on the basis of Sugimura
index, sill-flow mode of emplacement and absence of volcanic ejectas. The protolith for these rocks has been
assigned to the immature or initial stage of island arc system. These findings attribute the stratigraphic position of
supracrustal group representing the Koderma mica pegmatite group to the intraarc basin that evolves earlier than the
backarc basin in which Dalma volcano-sedimentary sequence, which constitutes an important landmark in the
stratigraphy of the region, is supposed to have been laid down. Hence, the stratigraphic status/position of Koderma
mica belt becomes older than the Dalma volcanics which were, so far, tacitly assumed as part of Satpura orogeny on
the basis of regional strike.
Keywords: Koderma Mica Belt, Protolith, Tholeiitic, Tectonic Regime, Island Arc, Dalma Volcanics.

Introduction: ruby mica and rare earth minerals of high economic

Chotanagpur Granite Gneiss Complex (CGGC) that
forms a vast metamorphic terrane is comprised of
granite-gneiss-migmatite assemblage having different
phases of granites, granitoids, migmatites, calc-
granulites and amphibolites whereas Bihar mica belt
popularly known as Koderma Pegmatite Field, on the
other hand, is dominantly composed of supracrustal
rocks that include undifferentiated group of pelitic
schists intercalated with bands of schistose quartzites
and amphibolites as well as synkinematically emplaced
plutonic and phacolithic bodies of pink granites &
gneisses criss-crossed with genetically related swarms
of pegmatite dykes and quartz veins of varying
dimensions. Some of these pegmatites bear rich lodes of
value. These two units under consideration are part of a
larger group known as Singhbhum Supergroup. These
schistose formations of the belt are isoclinally folded
into anticlines and synclines plunging towards east and
having ENE-WSW to E-W regional trend that
synchronises with Satpura orogeny of Proterozoic age.
Amphibolites which, of late, have been considered
rocks of immense petrogenic interest to decipher the
nature of their protolith, metamorphism and tectonic
framework of evolution of concerned orogenic belt in
particular and crustal growth of the region in general [1]
constitute one of the important lithounit of the area.
Since it is still a gray area of investigation in the region
[2] this has prompted the author to undertake

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Proceedings of 3-Day International Conference on Emerging Trends in Civil Engineering (ICETE-2014,)
6th–8th January, 2014
 765 V IKASH K UMAR

comprehensive study of the amphibolitic rocks
associated with both the mica belt and the adjoining
Chotanagpur gneissic terrane with a view to delineate
their overall tectonic implication over the region. For
the purpose, as defined, two small areas one around
Koderma (Lat 24028`N & Long 85036`E) within the
mica belt and another around Bagodar (Lat. 24 04`19``N
& Long. 85049`26``E) within the adjoining Chotanagpur
gneissic complex (cf. Survey of India toposheet nos.-
72H/10-12 & 16) were considered for systematic field
investigation and sampling followed by detailed
geochemical investigation.
In this context the present paper is an attempt to
establish the stratigraphic position of Koderma Mica
Belt with respect to other known schistose formation
like Dalma metavolcanics, situated on the southern
extremities of CGGC through geochemical
characterization and tectonomagmatic setting of their
associated metabasics. These two formations were
earlier assumed to be the part of Satpura /Singhbhum
orogeny on the basis of the regional trends.
Regional Geologic Setting & Dalma Volcanics:
The stratigraphy of the region centres round a major
arcuate fault popularly known as Singhbhum Shear
Zone (SSZ) that divides the Archaean Singhbhum
cratonic nucleous of the south from a linear Proterozoic
volcano-sedimentary basin often referred to as
Proterozoic Singhbhum basin (PSB) or north
Singhbhum mobile belt (NSMB) in the north that
constitutes the Singhbhum Supergroup rocks
comprising of Chaibasa, Dhalbhum, Dalma-Chandil
formations besides some short lived intermittent
volcanism represented by metabasics and tuffs [3][4]
[5].

Figure-1: Regional Geological Map of the area (Modified after G.S.I. map)
The Precambrian metamorphites of the Singhbhum The metamorphism, tectonic history and granitic
region are divided into three parts – Older Metamorphic activities of the Singhbhum orogenic belt is correlatable
Group (OMG) with OMTG – c.3300 Ma & Iron Ore with the Satpura orogeny (c.850 Ma). The closing phase
group (IOG) with Singhbhum Granites and of the Singhbhum orogeny is marked by the
Granodiorites - c.2550 Ma in the south and the emplacement of Chotanagpur or Ranchi granites &
Singhbhum Supergroup - c.850 Ma in the north of SSZ. gneisses that occupy a vast area north of the mobile belt

International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering

ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 764-774
 Stratigraphic Status of the Koderma Mica Belt vis-a-vis the Tectonic Evolution of
Amphibolites of the Chotanagpur Region
or more precisely the TKF (Tamar Khatra Fault) i.e. the
northern Singhbhum shear zone or South Purulia Shear
Zone (SPSZ) and extending upto Indogangetic plain
(Fig.-1). The northern part of this Chotanagpur gneissic
complex constitutes what is known as Bihar mica belt /
Koderma mica belt whose stratigraphy, classification
and evolution is still a matter of speculation for paucity
of lithological, structural and reliable chronological data
[2][6].
Stratigraphically significant Dalma traps are extensive
piles of massive, compact, vesicular basalts as well as
fine and thin basaltic flows intercalated with fine and
coarse tuffs and agglomerates with bombs of grey and
green granular basalt which are sometimes interbedded
with dark silicified shales, black cherts, quartzites and
phyllites disposed along the axial part of the NSMB. In
contrast to these, the upper Dalmas between the main
Dalma Fm. and the CGGC to the north is known as
Chandil Fm [7][5] which are dominantly composed of
metapelites intercalated with lensoid bodies of
quartzites, metabasics and volcaniclastic felsic tuffs,
rhyolites, carbonaceous slates and phyllites which are ~
1600 Ma old [8][9][10][11].
Figure2 (A) & (B): Sample maps of the area
The stratigraphic status of the Dalma volcanics has long
been a matter of controversy [12][13][14]. Mazumder
(2005) [5] suggested two fold lithostratigraphic
subdivision of the entire Dhalbhum- Dalma volcano-
sedimentary succession. The latter conformably overlies
International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering
ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 764-774
766
the Dhalbhum Fm. indicating concordant volcanic
outpouring without any break in sedimentation.
The Dalma volcanics were studied by several workers
and the suggested tectonic setting ranges from
continental rifting (Dunn & Dey, 1942) [15] to island
arc (Naha & Ghose, 1960) [16] and even backarc basin
(Bose et al., 1981, 1994) [17][18] that records
sedimentation and volcanism under a rapidly changing
tectonic conditions. However these events could not be
precisely dated for non-availability of appropriate
datable rocks that puts serious constraints on the
stratigraphic position of the Dalma volcanics.
A lot of geochemical studies pertaining to the rocks of
Dalma volcanics have been carried out. The lavas
exhibit low grade metamorphic environment that
preserve a strong compositional bi-modality with highly
magnesian-Komatiitic-Picritic volcanic rocks developed
at the base and low K-basaltic flows above. Dalma
mafic flows are closely comparable in geochemical
characteristics to a modern day MORB developed under
backarc basins that is a supracrustal subduction zone
tectonic environment [19][18][20]. It has also been
indicated that depleted mid-oceanic ridge basalt is
usually the ultimate outcome of extensional tectonism
[21] as in the backarc setting.
Field Features of the Amphibolites:
Amphibolites of the studied area (Fig.-2 A&B) are
essentially hornblende-plagioclase rocks and occur
more commonly as narrow linear strips, bands, lenses
concordantly intercalated with associated metamorphic
rocks. Stocks or bosses or dyke-like discordant bodies
are also not uncommon. They are topographically
manifested as small mounds and oval shaped gently
sloping hills of variable sizes. Absence of pyroclastics
in the area is quite conspicuous and significant from
petrogenic point of view. The following varieties of the
amphibolitic rocks are identified in the field as (a) Talc-
tremolite-actinolite schists (b) Foliated amphibolites (c)
Non-foliated amphibolites. Of these, Talc-tremolite-
actinolite schists have better frequency of occurrence in
gneissic terrane. Foliated amphibolites are the dominant
types in both the areas. Talc-tremolite schists although
scarcely occurring and unevenly distributed are pale
green coloured, well foliated rocks of high genetic
values often characterized by splintery habit and soapy
feel. Foliated amphibolites occur often as sill-flow
complexes and have been simultaneously deformed and
cofolded with the associated metasediments such as
mica schists, schistose quartzites and quartzites with
which they are intercalated. The non-foliated
amphibolites are often characterized by crude or
imperceptible foliation. However, there is no sharp line
of demarcation between the foliated and non-foliated
ones. Whenever they occur together the contact is
 767 V IKASH K UMAR
gradational. Infact there is no striking difference in the
nature and mode of occurrence of the amphibolites from
Mica belt & CGGC except some local variation here
and there depending upon their geological situation.
Petrography:
Petrographic and petromineralogical features pertaining
to the amphibolitic rocks of the area have supported
their characterization into : Talc-tremolite-actinolite
schists (Mg-rich amphibolitic), Foliated amphibolites &
Non-foliated amphibolites.
Talc-tremolite-actinolite schists: are well foliated,
medium to coarse-grained, mesocratic rocks having
greenish tinge, talcose feel and splintery habit.
Texturally they are porphyroblastic in which long
prismatic laths of tremolite-actinolite are set in a platy
and felted microlitic talcose mass. Small microlites and
prismatic laths of tremolite often in felted aggregates
with parallel to subparallel orientation impart schistosity
to these rocks. Reddish brown iddingsite after olivine,
antigorite, rutile are amongst the common accessories.
Foliated amphibolites (Hbl-schist/Hbl-gneiss):
Alternating mineral folia of nematoblastic mafic
minerals usually hornblende and quartzo-feldspathic
mineral distinguish them. They are dark-coloured,
medium-grained, well foliated rocks often schistose,
sometimes grading into gneissose character. Green
hornblende and calcic plagioclase (An35-50) are the
dominant constituents. Plagioclase grains are fresh as
well as variably kaolinised/sericitised and sometimes,
saussuritised. Twinning is common whereas
compositional zoning is occasionally observed. Quartz
and iron ores are present in subordinate amounts. They
also contain, at times, porphyroblasts of relict pyroxene
both Cpx & Opx, sometimes, rimmed by green stout
hornblende prisms that apparently look corona like
structure. Foliated amphibolites from mica belt and the
CGGC do not differ from one another. Having more or
less similar rock fabric and mineralogy, the foliated
amphibolites from mica belt sometimes have pink
garnet as an additional mineral phase. Partial to
complete enclosure of plagioclase laths simulating relict
subophitic to ophitic texture suggests their igneous
origin. Non-foliated amphibolites: are massive, dark-
green, medium-grained, non-foliated rocks of gabbroic
look often characterized by hornblende–plagioclase
mineral combine. Sometimes, hornblende dominate so
much (> 80%) that they are classified as ‘hornblendite’.
The predominant green hornblende exhibit tabular and
prismatic habit with ragged terminations. They
sometimes enclose plagioclase laths to show relict
igneous texture. Both twinned and untwinned
plagioclase of andesine to labradorite composition
(An40-60), are the second dominant constituent.
Compositional zoning in some of the plagioclase grains
International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering
ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 764-774
can be inferred from selective sericitization and
oscillatory extinction.
Neither there is found any marked mineralogical
difference between non-foliated amphibolites from the
Mica belt and the CGGC, nor do they differ much from
foliated types except the presence or absence of
foliation.
Chemistry:
The rocks of the area have been analysed for major
elements on XRF, and for trace and REE on ICP-MS in
the geochemical laboratories of NGRI, Hyderabad with
high degree of precision and accuracy, details of which
have been mentioned elsewhere [22][23]. A perusal of
the compositional data (Table-1) clearly indicates that
one of the rocks (A-77) which is petrographically
identified as talc-tremolite-actinolite schist is
compositionally ultramafic in character since it contains
low SiO2 (40.54 wt %.); exceedingly high MgO
(27.55); depressed alumina, Al2O3 (7.88); Fe2O3 (4.85),
FeO (9.34); CaO (4.59); exceedingly low alkalies (Na 2O
+ K2O = 0.51 where Na2O ( 0.47) > K2O (0.04) and low
TiO2 (0.35) wt%. The petrographic similarities of
foliated and non-foliated amphibolites from Mica belt
and the adjoining CGGC are also substantiated
chemically. They are mostly characterized by short
range of SiO2 (44.48 – 52.93 wt %), MgO (5.87-10.34),
CaO (7.75-13.38) Fe as Fe2O3total (10-18), low TiO2
(0.46-2.42) and exceedingly low alkalis (0.78-3.39)
wt% all reflecting their basic character. Al2O3 > 10 and
< 16 wt % which is typical of the tholeiitic rock suites
also characterize them. A total alkalies v/s SiO2 (TAS)
diagram (Fig.-3) of R. Le Maitre (2002) [24] with a
dividing line between alkalic and tholeiitic magma
series after Miyashiro (1978) [25] reveals the tholeiitic
nature of the rocks of the study area. It is also important
to note that the amphibolitic rocks fall mainly in the
field of basalt and basaltic andesite. The MgO-rich talc-
tremolite-actinolite schist lies in the field of picrobasalt
that, perhaps, marks the first differentiate of
crystallizing magma.
Figure3: TAS (Total Alkali – Silica) Diagram after
Le Maitre (2002)
 Stratigraphic Status of the Koderma Mica Belt vis-a-vis the Tectonic Evolution of
Amphibolites of the Chotanagpur Region
The rocks of the area are dominantly quartz and
hypersthene normative and a few being olivine-
normative (Table-1) thereby conforming their tholeiitic
nature. The olivine normative rock (A-77) suggests that
it has been derived by olivine fractionation in the early
stage of differentiation of the same parental magma. It is
also notable that the amphibolites of the area contain
normative An in excess of Ab indicating their mafic to
ultramafic character. A narrow range of Fe2O3/FeO
(0.33 – 0.49), FeOt /MgO (0.97–2.08) and FeOt / FeOt +
MgO (0.49–0.68) ratios where, FeOt = total Fe as FeO
Trace element distribution (Table-2) shows consistency
with the fractional crystallization model as also revealed
by major oxide variation. Spiderdiagram for the rocks of
the area, normalized to MORB using normalizing
constants from Pearce (1983) [26] are shown in Fig.–4,
where a flat line represents MORBs of depleted nature
derived by extensive partial melting of a mantle source.
These trace element patterns are similar but irregular,
strongly spiky and negatively sloping. They are also
invariably marked with –ve troughs at Ta-Nb, Zr-Hf and
in some cases at Ti. Talc-tremolite schists appear
virtually depleted in the whole range of incompatible
trace elements relative to MORB except Th & P in
which they are marginally enriched. Foliated and non-
foliated amphibolites from mica belt and CGGC have
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768
as well as the mg-number (54–72) further suggest their
comagmatic nature together with the fact that the
amphibolites from the Mica belt and the CGGC are
indistinguishable in composition. Al2O3/
Na2O+K2O+CaO ratio on molar basis indicates that the
amphibolitic rocks of the area are mostly metaluminous
which is also supported by the normative and modal
composition of these rocks. The excess of Al2O3 over
Na2O + K2O is distributed among hornblende, epidote,
biotite and garnet in the mode and An, Di & Hy in the
norm.
also strikingly similar patterns with only difference that
the former are impoverished in HFSEs even as
compared to MORB whereas the latter have certain
HFSEs more than MORB. However, in general all of
them are variably enriched in more incompatible LILEs
such as Sr, K, Rb, Ba & Th as compared to HFSEs. The
trace element pattern of foliated amphibolites from mica
belt also bears a –ve trough at K-Rb as against their
counterpart in CGGC suggesting depletion of these
elements which might be due to hydrothermal
mobilization of these elements which play significant
role in the genesis of mineralized pegmatites as well as
in the formation of a number of rare earth minerals in
them.
 769 V IKASH K UMAR

Figure4: MORB Normalized Trace Element Patterns Figure5: Chondrite Normalized multi element
using normalizing constants from Pearce (1983) spiderdiagram. Normalizing constants after Thompson
et al. (1984)

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 Stratigraphic Status of the Koderma Mica Belt vis-a-vis the Tectonic Evolution of
Amphibolites of the Chotanagpur Region
Chondrite normalized trace element patterns for these
rocks as shown in the Fig.-5, using normalizing
constants of Thompson et al. (1984) [27] also support
the observations derived from MORB normalized
patterns that the rocks of the area exhibit general but
variable enrichment of more incompatible LILEs such
as Sr, K, Rb, Ba, Th (La) etc as compared to less
incompatible HFSEs – a signature typical of island arc
setting.
Figure6: Chondrite Normalized rare earth element
patterns. Normalizing constants after Sun &
McDonough (1989)
The REE patterns of these rocks (Fig.-6) normalized to
chondrite using the data from Sun & McDonough
(1989) [28] are broadly similar and invariably marked
with a small trough at Yb and negatively sloping. They
show stronger enrichment in LREE (av. 77.41 ppm)
compared to HREE (av. 15.62 ppm). There is
apparently good correlation between LREE and LILEs
enrichment as well as between HREE and HFSEs
depletion. However, the extent of total REE varies with
rocks (Table-2). Foliated amphibolites have av. ΣREE =
57.96 ppm. Non-foliated amphibolites from mica belt
and CGGC have similar concentrations of ΣREE (av.
139.80 ppm) but relatively higher than the foliated
amphibolites. Talc- tremolite schists have lowest
concentration of ΣREE (13.97 ppm) but are rich in
LREE (10.83 ppm) than HREE (3.14 ppm) following
the general trends of the rocks of the area. REE patterns
of talc-tremolite schist are also marked with a
distinctive trough at Eu suggesting –ve Eu-anomaly
whereas those of the rest of the rocks either bear a small
hump at Eu or remain flat suggesting a short +ve Eu-
anomaly. Eu/Eu* values accordingly vary and are < 1
(0.74) for rocks with –ve Eu-anomaly and are > 1 (1.01–
1.29) for rocks with +ve Eu-anomaly. The higher values
of (La/Yb)N : 3.13 - 8.98 also suggest greater and
stronger LREE enrichment.
Discussion:
The review and interpretation of the data accrued from
field, petrographic and chemical studies of the rocks
under reference is directed towards deciphering the
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770
nature of their protoliths, petrotectonic association and
the tectonic regime of evolution. The comparison of
these data with the known geochemical characteristics
of the Dalma volcanic and their inferred
tectonomagmatic setting is of critical significance to
address some stratigraphic issues of the region.
There are enough petrographic signatures of textural
and mineralogical nature that suggest their igneous
origin. The ultramafic mineralogy comprising tremolite
prisms and cross-fibres set within felted microlitic
talcose mass with subordinate amounts of actinolite,
anthophyllite, antigorite and pseudomorphous iddingsite
(after olivine), as well as cumulus igneous texture of
talc-tremolite-actinolite schist all point to the same. The
normal amphibolite mineral assemblage- hornblende +
plagioclase (An40-60) + Cpx (augite), presence of relict
igneous mineral phases like plagioclase and pyroxene
(augite) alongwith relict ophitic to subophitic texture,
preservance of twinning and zoning in plagioclase etc.
are some of the petrographic features favouring their
igneous origin as well as their compositional affinity
towards basalts. Thus petrographically the rocks of the
area belong to basalt- basaltic andesite + rhyolite
association which is characteristic of present day
volcanic suite found in the subduction related island arc
set up.
The tholeiitic nature of these rocks is indicated by TAS
(Fig-3) diagram. TAS also reveals compositional
variation from picrobasalt (A-77) to predominantly
basalt-basaltic andesite. Talc-tremolite-actinolite schist
represents, perhaps, an early formed ultramafite and
also indicates olivine-fractionation at early stage of
differentiation of magma followed by fractionation of
cpx + calcic plag. from the same parental magma that
has given rise to the bulk of amphibolites of the area.
Amphibolites of the area from mica belt and the CGGC
suggest a compositional homogeneity. Amphibolites are
quartz and hypersthene normative whereas ultramafic
types are olivine normative. In addition, a narrow range
of variation in critical constituents FeOt/MgO (0.97–
2.08), FeOt/ FeOt+MgO (0.49–0.68) along with their
metaluminous mineralogy and mg number (54–72) all
supports their comagmatic nature.
The pattern of abundance of the elements Cr>Ni>Co
characterize both talc-tremolite-actinolite schist and
amphibolites. A high value of Cr (~ 2897 ppm), Ni (~
624 ppm) and MgO (27%) and lower content of SiO2
(<50 wt%) & K2O in talc-tremolite schist also described
as picrobasalt following TAS diagram indicate the
primary nature of basaltic magma. Amphibolites are
also characterized by Sr > Ba > Rb. A lower content of
Rb ranging from 1-7 ppm in some of these rocks
suggest island arc setting as 10 ppm of Rb has already
been reported by Engel & Engel (1965) [29] from low
– K island arc tholeiites. The spiky and irregular nature
 771 V IKASH K UMAR

of both MORB- and Chondrite- normalized trace Extremely limited variation in Ce/Nd ratio of immobile
element patterns for the rocks of the area with a –ve Nb- elements (1.13-1.89) may also point towards their
Ta-Ti anomaly and LILEs enrichment compared to comagmatic character and the uncontaminated nature of
HFSEs typify subduction related island arc setting the mafic suite belonging to both the areas because both
[30][1]. the elements are highly incompatible in mafic system
(Rajamani et al., 1989) [34] as tholeiitic and high MgO
Differential solubility of incompatible elements in slab
amphibolites have almost the same Ce/Nd ratios
generated hydrous fluid is thought to provide typical
spiky arc signature in normalized trace element patterns suggesting therefore that they must have evolved by
of these rocks. The MORB-normalised geochemical partial melting of the same source.
patterns provide convenient means of comparing Table3: Comparison of REE Geochemistry under
geochemical characteristics of basaltic rocks and different tectonic setting (after Shao – Cong Lai, 2007)
discriminating between the basalts erupted in different
tectonic setting (Pearce, 1983) [26]. Another distinctive
feature of these patterns is the occurrence of a –ve Nb-
Ta-Ti anomaly, perhaps, because of either depletion in
source or their retention in the refractory phase in the
mantle source to which these elements are highly
compatible during partial melting of the source. Such
characteristics develop where the composition of the
magma derived by partial melting of the mantle wedge
above the subducting slab is added with the component
rich in the more incompatible elements. The component
could be either an aqueous fluid or a water saturated
silicate melt, presumably derived from subducting
lithosphere that could metasomatise peridotitic mantle
In addition, a comparison of the REE chemistry of the
wedge. LILEs have low ionic potential and are readily
tholeiitic rocks under different tectonic settings after
dissolved and transported in aqueous fluid at high P&T
Shao-Cong Lai [35] (Tab.-3) with the studied rocks
(Tatsumi & Eggins, 1995) [31] as compared to HFSEs
w.r.t. ΣREE, LRRE/HREE, (La/Yb ) N, (Ce/Yb)N, Eu
which may be sequestered in residual hornblende in the
/Eu* ratios and the other characteristics reveals the
source (Drummond & Defant, 1990) [32].
tholeiitic nature of the amphibolitic rocks of the study
These rocks are LREE-enriched with respect to HREE area evolved under island arc set-up. Such a tectonic
aand show a trough at Yb in their REE patterns. A setting is also inferred from a number of
higher and largely varied values of (La/Sm)N > 1 (1.43- tectonomagmatic discrimination diagrams (Fig.-7 a & b)
3.21) reveals a source related LREE enriched nature of after Pearce [36] and Bhatia and Crook [37].
these rocks (Hart & Blusztajn, 2006) [33]. The total
The amphibolitic rocks of the area have thus major as
REE ranging from 13.97 to 150.54 ppm as well as the
well as trace element including REE signatures of
(La/Yb)N ratio ranging from 3.13 – 8.98 suggest a
tholeiitic basalts emplaced under island arc set-up
strongly fractionated REE pattern. (La/Ce)N > 1 (1.04-
during Proterozoic and suffered more than one period of
1.46) may depict the composition of the source. A small
deformation and metamorphism under high-grade
negative Eu-anomaly in the talc-tremolite-actinolite
amphibolite facies conditions.
schist indicates absence of plagioclase in this rock.

Figure7 (a) & (b): Tectonomagmatic discrimination diagrams

(a) Ce/Yb vs Ta/Yb ratio plot after Pearce (1982)
(b) La-Th-Sc ternary diagram (after Bhatia and Crook, 1986)

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 Stratigraphic Status of the Koderma Mica Belt vis-a-vis the Tectonic Evolution of
Amphibolites of the Chotanagpur Region
The spatial relation of the basaltic magmas in the island
arc system was discussed by Sugimura (1968) [38] and
he used the index (θ = SiO2 wt% - 47 (Na2O +
K2O)/Al2O3 Mol. ratio) that varies from 44 – 41 for
basalts situated near the ocean sides of volcanic belt
whereas it varies between 38 – 35 on the continental
side of the same volcanic belt. Since the average
Sugimara index for the amphibolitic rocks of the area is
~ 37 of which about 40 % lies between 44 – 41 and 60
% between 38 – 35 suggest that the basin must have an
intermediate position between the forearc & backarc
system i.e., intraarc marginal position.
Intrusive/extrusive character of these rocks can also be
substantiated on the basis of oxidation states during
emplacement. The averages of oxidation ratios
(Mol.2Fe2O3 x100/2Fe2O3+FeO) after Chinner (1960)
[39] for the extrusive and intrusive rocks are 26.8 and
16.5 respectively. The average oxidation ratio for the
amphibolitic rocks of the area is estimated as 26.46 and
on this basis a sill-flow mode of emplacement for the
protoliths of the amphibolitic rocks of the area may be
accepted.
Tectonic Implication:
The arc volcanism is generally characterized by either
tholeiitic or calc-alkaline magmatism with overall
geochemistry dependent upon location such that
The tectonic model has a bearing on the stratigraphy of
Singhbhum mobile belt north of Singhbhum Shear Zone
suggests that the Dalma volcano–sedimentary sequence
was laid down in a backarc basin situated over a major
subducting northern plate supporting the CGGC
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772
immature island arcs are generally tholeiitic whereas
active continental margins are usually calc-alkaline
(Jakes & Gill, 1970) [40] (Plank & Langmuir, 1988)
[41] . If they coexist in close temporal and spatial
context, the latter follow with the maturity of arc
evolution. The protoliths of the studied amphibolites
when reviewed and evaluated in the larger context of
the geological evolution of the Eastern Indian Archaean
– Proterozoic system in general and Satpura orogenic
belt (c.850 Ma) in particular to which the study area
belongs were found to have regional tectonic
implications. A poly- orogenic evolution of the region
with several episodes of sedimentation, volcanism,
tectonism, metamorphism and igneous activities is
generally agreed upon. The dichronous crustal evolution
of the region during Archaean - Proterozoic period have
been demarcated into greenstone-granite terrane of the
south and a high-grade supracrustal – Chotanagpur
gneiss terrane in the north, perhaps, separated by Tamar
Khatra lineament. The sedimentalogical history (2300 –
1600 Ma) of the basin that represents the North
Singhbhum Mobile Belt is marked with large scale
outpouring of basic volcanics forming the core of the
mobile belt which are popularly known as Dalma
volcanics and forms a landmark in the stratigraphy of
the region as mentioned earlier.
(Bose,1994) [18]. This assigns the Dalma basin a
distinctly younger tectonostratigraphic status and the
crust below it of oceanic character. In a convergent
margin where a oceanic plate is subducting under a
continental plate several backarc, intraarc and forearc
 773 V IKASH K UMAR
basins come into existence which differ from each other
in location, status of evolution and sediment fill (Fig.
8a). The protoliths of the studied amphibolites, as
inferred earlier is assignable to the immature and initial
stages of the development of island arc system with no
sign of volcanic eruption, complete absence of
pyroclastics, the sill-flow nature of emplacement,
intrusive or extrusive, all suggest their deposition in a
embryonic intraarc marginal basin which comes into
existence because of the diapiric rise of magma beneath
the arc creating a zone of rifting and subsidence like that
of Tonga-Lao & west Phillipines - Mariana regimes
(Karig,1971) [42], (Crawford et al.,1981) [43]. The
present findings and data well support the tectonic
model envisaged by Bose [18] (Fig.-8b). The
supracrustal belt, a part of which is under present study,
is situated 150 – 200 Km north of Dalma volcanics and
belong to a high grade metamorphic zone. In the paired
metamorphic belt of Miyashiro (1973) [44] the high
grade metamorphic rocks lie towards the trench side of
the ocean whereas low grade rocks are encountered
towards the continental side. Thus the stratigraphic
status of the mica belt supracrustal rocks becomes at
least older than Dalma volcanics all belonging to the
Satpura orogeny because the intraarc basin evolved
earlier than the backarc basin. However, the detailed
chronological dating of these rocks is needed to
authenticate this view.
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[38] Sugimura, A. (1968). Spatial relations of basaltic
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Poldervaart (ed.), Basalts, 2, Interscience, New
York, pp. 537-571.
[39] Chinner, G.A. (1960). Pelitic gneisses with varying
ferrous/ferric ratios from Glen Clove, Angus,
Scotland. Jour. Petro., 1(2), 178-217.
[40] Jakes, P. & Gill, J. (1970). Rare earth elements and
the island arc tholeiitic series. Earth & Planetary
Sci. Lett., 9, 17-28.
[41] Plank, T. and Langmuir, C.H. (1988). An
evaluation of the global variations in the major
element chemistry of arc basalts. Earth Planet. Sci.
Lett., 90, 349-370.
[42] Karig, D.E. (1971). Origin and development of
marginal basins in the western Pacific. J. Geophys.
Res., 76, 2542-61.
[43] Crawford, A.J., Beccaluva, L., Serri, G. (1981),
Tectonomagmatic evolution of the west Phillipine -
Mariana region and the origin of boninites. Earth
Planet Sci. Lett., 54, 346-56.
[44] Miyashiro, A., (1973). Metamorphism and
metamorphic belts. New York: Halsted Press, 492P.
 Indexed in
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Abstract Services-USA, Geo-Ref Information Services-USA,
List B of Scientific Journals, Poland,
Directory of Research Journals
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ISSN 0974-5904, Volume 07, No. 04

Zero Waste Management & Treatment Technologies for Brewery

Effluents- A Case Study of M/s. United Breweries Limited,
Srikakulam, Andhra Pradesh, India
SATISH VALLURI, K. RAMAMOHAN REDDY AND RAJANI GANTA
Centre for Water Resources, Institute of Science and Technology (IST), Jawaharlal Nehru Technological University
Hyderabad - 500 085, India
Andhra Pradesh Industrial Infrastructure Corporation Ltd., Hyderabad, India
Email: valluri.satish@gmail.com

Abstract: In the food industry, the brewing sector holds a strategic economic position with the annual world beer
production. Beer is the fifth most consumed beverage in the world behind tea, carbonates, milk and coffee and it
continues to be a popular drink with an average consumption of 23 liters/person per year. The brewing industry has
an ancient tradition and is still a dynamic sector open to new developments in technology and scientific progress.
M/s. United Breweries (Formerly known as United Millennium Breweries) is a state of Art Brewery having a
licensed capacity of 12 Lakh HL per annum of Beer production. M/s. United Breweries has conducted exhaustive
survey to establish the types and amounts of polluting material in the atmosphere, effluent discharges and also by-
products out of the process at prevention of any wastage by work management and cost reduction programs, while
keeping a clear image and things transparent regarding pollution and waste from individual sources like stacks,
generators, treatment plants and its discharges.
Brewers are very concerned that the techniques they use are the best in terms of product quality and cost
effectiveness. During production, beer alternately goes through three chemical and biochemical reactions (mashing,
boiling, fermentation and maturation) and three solid liquid separations (wort separation, wort clarification and
rough beer clarification) consequently water consumption, wastewater and solid liquid separation constitute real
economic opportunities for improvements in brewing for environmental management and protection of the park.
The present study is focused on use of treated breweries effluent in agriculture to increase water use efficiency. The
study include Baseline survey of study area: Cropping pattern, Crop quality, Soil health, Irrigation sources and
quality, Groundwater quality, etc. Analysis of Physico-Chemical and Biological parameters of Soil and water.
Development and evaluation of appropriate bio-treatment for reuse of breweries’ effluent in agriculture. Laboratory
and field scale trials to evaluate impact of treated and The present study will have double folded advantages such as
understanding the extent of water pollution from brewery industries, application of treated effluent for crop
production and thereby providing proper management plan for control of water pollution and reuse of wastewater in
agriculture. Thus the proposed research has great concern in conservation of water resources.

1. Introduction: uncontrolled and monitoring has become very much

In India, the concept of zero discharge essentially
emerged from the situation where industry is unable to
meet the discharge norms set by the State and Central
Pollution Control Boards. This led to pollution of the
environment and subsequent litigation. Initially, the
polluters were penalized to an extent necessary to clean
the environment that they polluted. This concept is
known as Polluters Pay Policy. The essential ingredient
of this policy, however, led the industry to initially
pollute the environment - and later pay for
environmental losses. Realizing that pollution is still
difficult with so many industries discharging the waste
water into the environment, finally a solution was
conceived and the concept of zero discharge has
emerged.
2. Scope and Importance of Present Project Work:
In the entire process of beer making at M/s. united
breweries i.e., start of each batch production to the
output product at beer bottling is involved many stages
like screening, de-stoner, magnetic separator for
cleaning of all the waste, separation of stones and iron
pieces, malt-weighing hopper for the required level,

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Proceedings of 3-Day International Conference on Emerging Trends in Civil Engineering (ICETE-2014,)
6th–8th January, 2014
 Zero Waste Management & Treatment Technologies for Brewery Effluents-
776
A Case Study of M/s. United Breweries Limited, Srikakulam, Andhra Pradesh, India

crushing and water mixing, Mash Kettle, cooking of

maize Flakes/broken and process in lauter-tun to collect
the extract liquid wort and boiler, separation of wort,
adding East, fermentation and maturation, filtering,
bottling etc., involved many advanced techniques for
maintaining Zero waste for environmental management
and protection of the environment in and around the
industry.
The details of technology implemented for conversion
of existing park into eco-industrial Park are explained in
detail in the present study for sustainable development
and conservation of resources available in and around
the park.
3. Study Area:
3.1 Topographical details of the plant:
The Climate in Srikakulam area is semi-arid type. The
The study area is notified for the industrial
rains are heavy and widespread. The winter season
development. The proposed plant is a Greenfield unit
spans from November to February, summer from March
being set up by M/s United Breweries Ltd., at
to June and between July and September it is monsoon.
Bantupalli (Village), Srikakulam (Dist.), Andhra
Pradesh. Total area of plant is 54 acres. The Built up In the vicinity of the plant site are located a few
area is 7.5 acres and the remaining land is dedicated to industries the prominent amongst are Aurobindo
Green Belt Development. The plot is bounded on the Pharma, Dr. Reddys Laboratories, Andhra Organics
east by NH 5, on the north by RCM School, on the Ltd., and Nagarjuna Agrochem Ltd., There are no
south by BT road to kambalapeta, on the west by mango problems of rehabilitation and resettlement as land use
& cashew forms.Fig.1 shows the plant layout .Site pattern within 5 km radius is mixed, consisting of
particulars are mentioned in the table.1 industrial, commercial as well as residential units. The
area does not host any major archaeological
Table1: site particulars
monuments, sociological reserves except for few small
Particulars Details temples. Similarly, there are no endangered, threatened
Latitude 18 Degree 18’N or rare plant species at the plant site. No migration route
to avifauna is observed or recorded.
Longitude 83 Degree 67’E
Elevation at The site is not having any history of intensive earth
16 M quakes or landslides, but is cyclone prone area and was
over MSL
hit by a cyclone in year 2009. The important river which
Annual Max. Temp. 42 Degree C.
traverses the district is river Nagavali flowing 25 km
Annual Min. Temp. 13 Degree C
north of the site. The drainage of the site is towards the
Climatic Average Annual Rainfall
irrigation canal flowing north east of the site.
Condition 1600mm
Average Humidity Between 45%- Objectives:
93%  To identify the possibilities of waste minimization,
Nearest Chennai - Kolkata National and recovery and recycling of wastes in each stage
Highway Highway-5 of project
Nearest  To determine the performance of the existing waste
Railway Srikakulam Road, 35 Kms. treatment / control system so as to modify or install
Station additional or alternative control equipment
Nearest Airport Vishakhapatnam 85 kms. accordingly;
Nearest Village Bantupalli  To determine the impact on the surrounding
environment (ground water, stream, residential
Nearest Town Srikakulam
area, agriculture area , sensitive zone, etc.) due to
Total the disposal of waste water, emissions and solid
3,50,000 as per 2007 census
Population wastes from the industry and identify suitable
Hills/ Valleys Muktumpuram Hills preventive measures, if necessary;
Ecologically No Reserve Forest around 5 KM  To verify compliance with the standards and
sensitive areas radious. conditions prescribed by the regulatory bodies

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 777 S ATISH V ALLURI, K. R AMAMOHAN REDDY AND R AJANI G ANTA

under the water act, the air act and the Domestic 50
environmental (protection) act
Total 1230
 Organizational set – up of the industry for decision
–making and environmental management with Recycling for bottle wash 240
special reference to their technical view point Total water drawn from bore
990
attitudinal view point and training, and well
Environmental policy of the company
 Planning and Management of site surrounding
environment for conservation of natural resources
available.
Treatment Technologies at M/s. United Breweries for
Environmental Management and Planning:
The making process of beer in brief is as given below.
 The cleaned malt is taken into a malt-weighing
hopper where the quantity of malt is weighed to the
required level.
 After the malt required for one batch is taken into
the hopper, it is put in the malt mill where it is
crushed and mixed with water. This crushed malt
Fig2: shows the flow hart for “process for making
with water (called mash) is collected in Mash
beer”andTable.2 shows Water demand during different
Kettle
stages of beer production.
 Maize Flakes/broken rice are paralelly cooked in
Adjunct Kettle and transferred to Mash Kettle. The Effluent Treatment Plant (ETP):
mashes along with cooked maize flakes are cooked 8

further Equali
zation
Prima
ry
Aeratio
n Tank
Second
ary
 After mashing is completed, it is transferred to Tank
1000
Clarif
ier
1000
3
Clarifie
3 r
Lautertun where the extract from the mash is m
m 11.3
mtrdia
collected. The extract liquid wort is then pumped to
Wort Kettle where it is boiled @102oC. Sludge
 After boiling is completed, it is transferred to less
system
whirlpool where the trub is separated by whirling of 3m
3

the wort.
 Then the wort is passed through a plate heat Clarifie
Flash
Mixer &
exchanger where it is cooled to 10o C and d water
Tank
Lamella
Clarifier
transferred to the Unitanks. Yeast is pitched on line
during this transfer.
 The wort thus mixed with yeast is held in the
unitank for 16 to 18 days for fermentation and
maturation.
 Temperature of the product is maintained at 12 o C
during fermentation and -1o C during maturation.
 The Beer after maturation is filtered, carbonated
and sent to Bright Beer Tanks. Now this beer is Fig3: Shows the ETP process
ready for bottling.
4. Zero Waste Management @ M/.s UBL:
Required water
Purpose  Improved utilization of RO recycled water by 180
Quantity (KLD)
KLD.
Process (for beer preparation) 195  Reduced fresh water consumption in bottling hall
Washings (for beer preparing by shifting to recycled water.
380
tanks)  Reduced effluent generation at various sources
Bottling section 470  Increased the condensate recovery by 10% and
Boiler feed 75 reduce the boiler feed water
Cooling tower (make up) 60  Reduced the water consumption for housekeeping
by using high pressure jet cleaning equipment

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 Zero Waste Management & Treatment Technologies for Brewery Effluents-
778
A Case Study of M/s. United Breweries Limited, Srikakulam, Andhra Pradesh, India

 Fresh Water Consumption – 810 KLD

 Effluent Generation – 595 KLD
 Recycling after RO – 430 KLD
 Balance Treated Water – 165 KLD
5. Utilization of balance treated water @ M/s. UBL:
UB-Srikakulam successfully utilising the balanced
treated water for organic cultivation of maize crop in an
area of ~ 3 acres beside ETP premises within the study
area as shown in fig. 5

6. Solid Waste and By Products:

To achieve the main objective “Zero Waste” Special
interest shown on the management of solid waste
generation from the various operation stages of plant
for making beer production.
Optimal use of raw materials to increase yield and
reduce generation of solid and liquid waste, including:
 Avoidance of poor quality raw materials.
 Optimizing milling of the grist.
 Optimizing lautering, including sufficient sparging
of the spent grains, to gain as much extract as
possible.
 Collection and use of weak wort for mashing in the
next brew.

International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering

ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 775-779
 779 S ATISH V ALLURI, K. R AMAMOHAN REDDY AND R AJANI G ANTA
 Collecting spent brewers grains from mashing to
send to animal feed as by-product.
 Avoiding discharge of hot trub into the sewer
system.
 Collecting and reusing yeast from the fermentation
process as a by-product.
 Recycling broken glass from returned bottles to
produce new glass.
 Utilization of sludge from the brewery wastewater
treatment plan through its application as an
agricultural fertilizer.
7. Rain Water Harvesting Pits:
Rainwater harvesting (RWH) is emerging as an
important tool to generate fresh water resources as fresh
water becomes scarce. For industries, it is twice as
beneficial as it helps not only in generating fresh water
resources for in-house industrial and other non-potable
applications, but also in effecting substantial savings on
water.
8. Conclusion:
Currently we have a growing population faced with
limits of resources from the environment. We
understand that our society and industrial systems must
begin to mimic nature and move from being primarily
linear to being cyclical. Each material must be used as
efficiently as possible and must be chosen so that it may
either return safely to a cycle within the environment or
remain viable in the industrial cycle.
The vision of Zero Waste can be seen as a solution to
these needs and a key to our grandchildren's future. Zero
solid waste, zero hazardous waste, zero toxic emissions,
zero material waste, zero energy waste and zero waste
of human resources will protect the environment and
lead to a much more productive, efficient, and
sustainable future. The use of an endpoint goal of "zero"
recognizes that simple making small steps without a
goal may not achieve a sustainable future while use of a
clear defined goal will lead to more rapid innovative
improvements.
Zero Waste promotes not only reuse and recycling, but
also, and more importantly, promotes prevention -
designs that consider the entire product life cycle. These
new designs will strive for reduced materials use, use of
recycled materials, use of more benign materials, longer
product lives, reparability, and ease of disassembly at
end of life.
International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering
ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 775-779
A Zero Waste strategy is a sound business tool that,
when integrated into business processes, provides an
easy to understand stretch goal that can lead to
innovative ways to identify, prevent and reduce wastes
of all kinds. It strongly supports sustainability by
protecting the environment, reducing costs and
producing additional jobs in the management and
handling of wastes back into the industrial cycle. A
Zero Waste strategy may be applied to businesses,
communities, industrial sectors, schools and homes.
9. Reference:
[1] Ministry of Environment & Forests, Govt. of India
guidelines on Waste management
(http://envfor.nic.in/)
[2] Central Pollution Control Board http://cpcb.nic.in/
[3] Journals of International Crop Research Institute
for Semi-Arid Tropics (ICIRSAT) relevant to
maize crop production
[4] Department of Environmental Protection, Waste,
2020 Draft Strategy, Towards zero waste by, 2020,
Australia, 2000
http://www.environ.wa.gov.au/DEP/waste2020/
[5] Article on developing a holistic strategy for
integrated waste management within municipal
planning: challenges, policies, solutions and
perspectives for Hellenic municipalities in the zero-
waste, low-cost direction, Division of Business
Studies, Dept. of Economics.
[6] Challenges and Opportunities in Transforming a
City into a “Zero Waste City” AtiqUzZaman* and
Steffen Lehmann Zero Waste SA Research Centre
for Sustainable Design and Behaviour (sd+b),
School of Art, Architecture and Design, University
of South Australia
[7] Research paper on Waste management models and
their application to sustainable waste management
– Mathee, IIT- Bombay
[8] Waste to Energy: The Worldwide Market for Waste
Incineration Plants 2010/2011; Docstoc: Santa
Monica, CA, USA, 2010; Available from:
http://www.docstoc.com/docs/47656480/The-
Worldwide-Market-for-Waste-Incineration-Plants-
2010-2011 (accessed on 1 November 2011).
[9] International; journal Research on Crops, Vol-
14,No.3
[10] Environmental Standards and Water Quality criteria
of National Environmental Engineering Research
Institute (NEERI).
 Indexed in
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Abstract Services-USA, Geo-Ref Information Services-USA,
List B of Scientific Journals, Poland,
Directory of Research Journals
www.cafetinnova.org August 2014, P.P. 780-785
ISSN 0974-5904, Volume 07, No. 04

Evaluation of Lateral Load Distribution in Nonlinear Static

Procedures for RCC Building
SRIKANTH DEVI1, K.RAMA MOHANA RAO2 AND REFAAT TALEB ISMAIL3
1
Department of Civil Engineering, Malla Reddy Engineering College (Autonomous), Hyderabad, India
2
Civil Engineering Department and Director BICS, JNTU Hyderabad, India
3
Department of Civil Engineering, JNTU Hyderabad, India
Email: srikanthdevi095@gmail.com, refaat_taleb@yahoo.com

Abstract: Nonlinear static analysis using pushover procedures are becoming increasingly common in engineering
practice for seismic evaluation of building structures. Various distributions of lateral forces are recommended in
FEMA-356 (2000) to perform a pushover analysis. However, the use of these force distributions does not adequately
represent the effects of varying dynamic characteristics during the inelastic response or the influence of higher
modes. In this paper, four lateral load patterns are evaluated by comparison of the pushover response of five and
twelve storey RCC moment frame buildings.
Keywords: Nonlinear Static analysis, Lateral Load Distributions, FEMA 356:2000.

1. Introduction
Nowadays design for seismic forces is still governed by
force-based design principles, to evaluate the inelastic
deformation demand in structural members in structural
earthquake engineering practice is to use performance-
based seismic evaluation methods A most used and
popular approach to evaluate these demands is a
“pushover” analysis in which a model of the building
structure is subjected to an inverted variant distribution
of lateral forces.
2. Non-Linear Static Analysis
In this analysis, the static loads are applied in an
incremental fashion until it reaches to the ultimate state
of the structure. The non-linearity in the analysis comes
from the various components/elements of structure are
modeled using a non-linear mathematical model.
This section describes the main steps of this analysis in
a general manner. The employment of the non-linear
static procedure involves four distinct phases as
described below and illustrated in Figures:
1. Define the mathematical model with the non-linear
force deformation relationships for the various
components/elements.
2. Define a suitable lateral load pattern.
3. Idealize the force-displacement curve.
4. Evaluate the performance of the building.
2.1 Non-linear force deformation relationship
Fig1. The generalized force deformation relation while
exhibiting nonlinear behavior of a structural member
Figure 1 represents ductile behavior of a typical
component, characterized by an elastic range (point A to
point B on the curve). Followed by a plastic range
(points B to E) it includes strain hardening (points B to
C) and a strength-degraded range (points C to D) in
which the residual force that can be resisted is
significantly less than the peak strength, but still
substantial. Acceptance criteria for primary elements,
that are required to have a ductile behavior, are typically
within the elastic or plastic ranges between points B and
C, depending on the performance level.
2.2 Typical Load Patterns
Typical lateral load patterns utilized in this analysis are
showed in Figure 2.These lateral loads profiles are
represents distribution of inertial forces during the an
earthquake. It can be easily understood that, due to the

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Proceedings of 3-Day International Conference on Emerging Trends in Civil Engineering (ICETE-2014,)
6th–8th January, 2014
 781 SRIKANTH DEVI, K R AMA MOHANA R AO AND REFAAT T ALEB ISMAIL
changing stiffness and the different mode affects during
the seismic event, the force distribution cannot be
clearly distinguished. Various patterns have been
proposed by FEMA 356, right from the simple uniform
and inverted triangular patterns, to the more
sophisticated ones, like modal patterns. The patterns
recommended by the FEMA 356 are referred to evaluate
the performance of the building.
Uniform FEMA EFM Multi Modal
273 (SRSS)
Fig 2. Typical Load Patterns
3. Lateral Load Distribution
In this analysis, four different lateral load patterns were
utilized to represent approximate distribution of inertia
forces imposed on the structure during seismic event
and these lateral load patterns are described as follows.
Note that the storey forces are normalized with the base
shear to have a total base shear equals to unity.
3.1 'Uniform' Lateral Load Pattern
The lateral force at any storey is proportional to the
mass at that storey, i.e.,
(1)
Where Fi: lateral force at i-th storey
mi: mass of i-th storey
3.2 'Elastic First Mode' Lateral Load Pattern
The lateral force at any storey is proportional to the
product of the amplitude of the elastic first mode and
the mass at that storey, i.e.
(2)
Where Øi: amplitude of the elastic first mode at i-th
storey
3.3 'Fema-273' Lateral Load Pattern
The lateral load pattern defined in FEMA-273 is given
by the following formula that is used to calculate the
lateral force at any storey:
(3)
Where h: height of the i-th storey above the base
International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering
ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 780-785
k: a factor to account for the higher mode
effects
(k=1 for T1≤0.5 sec and k=2 forT1>2.5 sec and varies
linearly in between T1 fundamental time period)
3.4 'Multi-Modal (or SRSS)' Lateral Load Pattern
The lateral load pattern considers the effects of elastic
higher modes of vibration for long period and irregular
structures and the lateral force at any storey is
calculated as Square Root of Sum of Squares (SRSS)
combinations of the load distributions obtained from the
modal analysis of the structures as follows:
1. Calculate the lateral force at i-th storey for n-th
mode from Equation (5)
(5)
Where Pn: modal participation factor for the n-th
mode
Øin: amplitude of n-th mode at i-th storey
An: pseudo-acceleration of the n-th mode
SDOF elastic system
2. Calculate the storey shears,
(6)
Where N is the total number of stories
3. Combine the modal storey shears using SRSS rule.
4. Back calculate the lateral storey forces, Fi, at storey
levels from the combined storey shears, Vi starting
from the top storey.
5. Normalize the lateral storey forces by base shear for
convenience such that
. (7)
The contribution of first three elastic modes of modal
analysis was considered to calculate the 'Multi-Modal
(or SRSS)' lateral load pattern in this study. Elastic First
Mode', 'FEMA-273' and 'Multi-Modal (or SRSS)' lateral
load patterns represents the inverted triangular lateral
load patterns. 'Uniform' lateral load patterns represent
the extreme case for invariant lateral load distribution.
4. Description of the Structures
Two special moment resisting RCC frame buildings
were selected as representative case studies to carry out
the evaluation of different later load distributions. For
the five and twelve -storey reinforced concrete frame
buildings analysis were performed using the SAP 2000
version 11, in particular the non-linear static analysis
based on FEMA-356. Beams and columns elements are
modeled for flexural and shear deformations, and axial
deformation is considered in columns.
 Evaluation of Lateral Load Distribution in Nonlinear Static Procedures for RCC Building 782

Fig 5.1 Elevation of 5 storey and 12 storey RCC Figure 6.1. Push over Curve for 5 Storey R/C building
Building

Fig 5.2 Plan of 5 storey and 12 storey RCC building

5. Results and Discussions
Figure 6.2. Push over Curve for 12 Storey R/C building
This section presents a summary of the results obtained
for the both structures, in particular, Global structure 5.2 Storey Displacements
behavior and Storey displacements.
After performing the pushover analysis using the four
5.1 Global Structure Behavior load patterns, the obtained storey displacements are
plotted on the same graph for each deformation level.
The global pushover curves of analytical models are
Using these curves, comparisons and investigations on
shown in figures 6.1 and 6.2. As mentioned before, four
the results can be made. It is observed from the analysis
lateral load patterns are utilized in the nonlinear static
results that the storey displacements obtained from the
analysis. Roof displacement versus base shear diagrams
pushover analysis for four load patterns are generally
for each load pattern, which will be called as the
close to each other for the first 2 deformation levels. As
“pushover curve” is plotted on the same graph to
deformation level increases the UNIFORM load pattern
represent global behavior of the models.
shows the higher values as compared to the FEMA and
In view of the results obtained in the analysis, the SRSS load patterns for both 5 ,12 stories in 3,4,5
deviation of the UNIFORM load pattern from the other deformation levels .EFM pattern give the lowest values.
lateral load cases increases as the number of stories
increase, and also observed that the SRSS and FEMA
273 load patterns are shows consistent. EFM is in
between the UNIFORM and SRSS.

International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering

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783 SRIKANTH DEVI, K R AMA MOHANA R AO AND REFAAT T ALEB ISMAIL

Fig 7. Storey displacements of 5 storey model for 6 deformation levels

International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering

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 Evaluation of Lateral Load Distribution in Nonlinear Static Procedures for RCC Building 784

Fig 8. Storey displacements of 12 storey model for 6 deformation levels

6. Conclusions
The following conclusions have been arrived from the 2. Considerable differences were observed in the
study.
1. The triangular load patterns gives almost same
predictions of global capacity curve, storey
displacement ratio for mid-rise structure since the
variation in height-wise distribution of triangular
lateral load patterns is negligible mid-rise frames.
Therefore, any triangular lateral load pattern could
be used to evaluate seismic demands for mid-rise
structure.
seismic demand prediction of triangular lateral load
patterns for high rise structure since the variation in
the height-wise distribution of triangular lateral load
patterns is significant for high-rise structures.
3. The storey displacement prediction from triangular
lateral load patterns mostly in between the
predictions of 'Multi-Modal (SRSS)' and FEMA 273

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 785 SRIKANTH DEVI, K R AMA MOHANA R AO AND REFAAT T ALEB ISMAIL

lateral load patterns for both structures. Therefore, it

would be better to estimate the storey displacement
demand of structures by the average of the 'Multi-
Modal (SRSS)' and 'FEMA 273' predictions.
4. In view of the results presented here, the use of the
simplest load pattern, 'Elastic First Mode' is
recommended for the pushover analysis of
structures.
5. In view of the results presented here, the use of
'Uniform' load pattern is not recommended for all
structures as it does not resemble a realistic
distribution of inertia forces along the height as
evidenced from the large discrepancies in the
relevant results.
Reference
[1] Anil K. Chopra" Estimating Seismic demands for
Performance-Based Engineering of Buildings" 13th
World Conference on Earthquake Engineering
Vancouver, B.C., Canada August 1-6, 2004 Paper
No. 5007.
[2] Computers and Structures Inc. (CSI), 1998,
SAP2000 Three Dimensional Static and Dynamic
Finite Element Analysis and Design of Structures V
11.0.0, Berkeley, California.
[3] E. Kalkan and S. K. Kunnath “Lateral Load
Distribution in Nonlinear Static Procedures for
Seismic Design “ASCE 2004.
[4] Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA),
2000, Pre standard and Commentary for the
Rehabilitation of Buildings, FEMA-356.
[5] Houssam Mohammad Agha, Li Yingmin , Oday
Asal Salih and A’ssim Al-Jbori "Nonlinear
Performance of a Ten-Storey Reinforced Concrete
Special Moment Resisting Frame (SMRF) " The
14th World Conference on Earthquake Engineering
October 12-17, 2008, Beijing, China .
[6] Indian Standard "Criteria for Earthquake Resistant
Design of Structures" IS 1893 (Part-1) -2002
[7] Indian Standard "Code of Practice for Design Loads
(Other Than Earthquake) for Buildings and
Structures" IS 875 PART 1 Dead Loads — Unit
Weights of Building Materials And Stored
Materials.
[8] Indian Standard "Code of Practice for Design Loads
(Other Than Earthquake) for Buildings And
Structures "Is 875 Part 2 Imposed Loads.
[9] Mehdi Poursha Faramarz Khoshnoudian and A.S.
Moghadam "A Breakthrough in Estimating The
Seismic Demands of Tall Buildings " The 14th
World Conference on Earthquake Engineering
October 12-17, 2008, Beijing, China.

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ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 780-785
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www.cafetinnova.org August 2014, P.P. 786-793
ISSN 0974-5904, Volume 07, No. 04

Axial Pullout of Inclined Inextensible Reinforcement in Reinforced

Soil Wall II
P.V.S.N P AVAN KUMAR1, M. R. MADHAV2 AND M. KUMAR3
Dept. of Civil Engrg, Guru Nanak Institute of Technical Campus, Ibrahimpatnam, Ranga Reddy Dist, Pin 501506
Dept. of Civil Engrg, Jawaharlal Nehru Technological University, Hyderabad – 500085
Dept. of Civil Engrg, University College of Engineering, Osmania University, Hyderabad – 500007
Email: pavankumar.pvsn@gmail.com

Abstract: Extensible or inextensible reinforcement in reinforced soil wall is commonly aligned horizontal in the
reinforced soil applications such as reinforced soil walls, slopes, embankments and footings. The use of inclined
reinforcement in the form of grouted nails is adopted to stabilize the tunnel portals, excavations, temporary /
permanent retaining structures for road widening etc. The paper presents the formulation for use of flat unribbed and
ribbed inextensible reinforcement at a small downward inclination of 0 to 10º in reinforced soil wall. Downward
inclination of reinforcement increases the pullout resistance of reinforcement compared with that of conventional
horizontal reinforcement. Modified factor of safety against pullout of inclined reinforcement is quantified and
compared with that of conventional factor of safety against pullout of horizontal reinforcement. The variation of
modified factor of safety and its improvement over the conventional factor of safety for horizontal reinforcement is
presented with downward inclination of reinforcement. The contributions of angle of shearing resistance of backfill,
reinforcement – soil interface friction angle; number of reinforcement layers and surcharge pressure are studied.
Keywords: Unribbed, Ribbed, Inextensible, Reinforcement, Inclination.

1. Introduction: surface in triaxial and direct shear tests. They observed

the change of shear strength of reinforced sample for
Geosynthetic reinforcement is commonly aligned
different inclinations of reinforcement. Kumar and
horizontally/perpendicular to the application of gravity
Madhav [7] studied the axial pullout of inclined sheet
stresses in different reinforced soil structures such as
reinforcement in RS wall based on tieback wedge
embankments, slopes, retaining walls and foundation
method applicable to extensible reinforcement. Raju and
soils. The horizontal geosynthetic reinforcement
Rao [9] demonstrated the physical application of
restrains the tensile strains in the soil mass and thus
inclined reinforcement in the construction of tiered
increases the shear resistance of the composite medium
geosynthetic reinforced soil walls at Vijayawada, India.
through the interfacial bond resistance limited by its
Laboratory pullout tests were conducted by Esfandiari
own tensile strength. However inclined reinforcement in
and Selamat [4] to study the effect of transverse
the form of grouted nails are often employed in
members on the metallic strip reinforcement in sand.
excavation of temporary and permanent retaining
The pullout tests were conducted on plain strip with
structures in urban areas for high rise buildings and
smooth surface, simple ribs and shear stiffeners. Based
underground excavations, stabilizing railroad and
on these results the equation for pullout capacity of strip
highway cut slopes, tunnel portals in steep and unstable
reinforcement with transverse members was derived.
slopes (Figure 1). These grouted nails reinforce the soil
The use of flat unribbed and ribbed inextensible
and improve the overall shear strength of the in situ
reinforcement is not addressed to in the earlier studies.
soils as passive inclusions to create a coherent gravity
The present paper brings out the application of inclined
structure and by restraining the displacements.
reinforcement in RS wall based on Coherent Gravity
Gray and Ohashi [5], Gray and Alrefeai [6], method.
Athanasopoulos [2], Shewbridge and Sitar [12],
2. Problem Statement
Bergado, Teerawattanasuk and Long [3] aligned
natural/synthetic fibers, metal wires and geotextile Reinforced soil wall of height ‘H’ with ‘n’ number of
reinforcement at different inclinations to the failure sheet reinforcement layers of uniform length ‘L’

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Proceedings of 3-Day International Conference on Emerging Trends in Civil Engineering (ICETE-2014,)
6th–8th January, 2014
 787 P.V.S.N P AVAN K UMAR , M. R. M ADHAV AND M. KUMAR

inclined downward to the horizontal at an angle ‘ ’ is
considered (Figure 2). The unit weights of retained and
reinforced fills are ‘’ and the angle of shearing
resistance is ‘φ’. The interface friction angle between
soil and reinforcement is characterized by ‘φr’ and the
spacing between reinforcement layers is ‘Sv’. The
reinforced soil wall is subjected to a uniform surcharge
pressure of intensity ‘q’.
enough to mobilize the active stress conditions beyond 6
m from the top of the wall. In the present study the
coefficient of earth pressure is varied from at rest
condition, k0 at the top half of the wall to active earth
pressure at 6 m from top of wall as shown in Figure 2.
3. Pullout of Horizontal Reinforcement
The depth of ith layer of reinforcement, zi from top of
wall is

 1 H
z  i  
i  2 n
(1)
Where H is the height of the wall and n - the number of
reinforcement layers.
Overturning moment, Momi due to retained fill acting on
the ith reinforcement layer
3 2
z z
M omi  0.5  ka    i  ka  q  i (2)
3 2
Figure1: Soil Nailing for Temporary Shoring Weight of the reinforced fill, Rvi on ith reinforcement
layer is
0.3H Uniform surcharge, q
K0 Rvi  (  zi  L)  (q  L)
(3)
Stabilizing moment, Msti acting on the ith reinforcement
Active layer is
H/2 Zone Resistant
6m M sti  Rvi  0.5  L (4)
 Zone
Eccentricity, ei of resultant vertical load on the ith layer
Sv is
L  M sti  M omi 

e  
i 2  R 
 vi  (5)
H/2 L
The vertical stress, vbi obtained by considering the
overturning moment, Momi due to retained fill (after
Ka Meyerhof [8] ) is
Figure2: Inclined Reinforcement – Coherent R
  vi
Gravity Method vbi L  (2  e )
i(6)
The internal stability of reinforced soil with inextensible
Tension, Pai developed in the reinforcement is
reinforcement is based on Coherent Gravity method
presented by Schlosser [10] and Schlosser and Segrestin Pai  k i s vi
vbi (7)
[11]. The failure mechanism in Coherent Gravity
method is simplified to bilinear failure surface passing Where ki, vbi, and svi are the coefficient of earth
through the toe of the wall and offsets to a distance of pressure, vertical stress, and spacing between the
0.3H from the face of the wall up to the mid height and reinforcement layers at the ith level respectively.
extends vertically to the top of the wall (Figure 2). The Horizontal reinforcement is subjected to a uniform
coefficient of earth pressure increases from 1.0 to 2.5 vertical stress of zi and surcharge pressure of intensity,
times the coefficient of active earth pressure at the top q. Thus the pullout resistance at depth, zi from the top of
of wall, and decreases linearly to ka at a depth of 6.0 m the wall is
from top of wall. The lateral stresses are relatively high
in the top half of the wall due to locking of compaction Ti  2 zi Lei tan  r  2 q Lei tan  r
(8)
stresses and the lateral restraint of inextensible
reinforcement. The lateral stresses decrease gradually as The analysis is carried out for flat unribbed and ribbed
the locked in compaction stresses are overcome by the inclined reinforcements (Figure 3). The coefficient of
overburden stress and the deformations become great interface friction equal to 0.4 remains constant along the

International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering

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 Axial Pullout of Inclined Inextensible Reinforcement in Reinforced Soil Wall II
788

depth of wall for flat unribbed interface as per n

AASHTO [1] shown in Figure 4. The coefficient of  Ti
interface friction varies from 1.2 + log CU at the top of FH = i1
n
the wall to tan at 6.0 m depth from the top of the wall  Pai
i1 (11)
for ribbed inextensible reinforcement where CU is the
coefficient of uniformity of the backfill. In the present 4. Pullout of Inclined Reinforcement
analysis a baseline value of coefficient of interface The inclined reinforcement of length, L at a downward
friction of 0.41 is assumed for flat unribbed inextensible
inclination ‘’ with the horizontal is subjected to
reinforcement while the coefficient varies from 1.8 at
overburden pressure increasing from zi to z2i from the
the top of the wall (CU = 4.0) to tan at 6.0 m depth
facing of the wall to the free end of reinforcement.
below the top of wall. The ribbed reinforcement resists
Depth, z2i, of free end of reinforcement from the top of
the pullout force due to the combination of frictional
the wall is (Figure 5)
resistance and passive resistance of ribs while in case of
flat unribbed reinforcement only frictional resistance is z  z i  L sin 
2i (12)
considered.
Effective length of reinforcement, Lei, in the upper half Depth of point of intersection of inclined reinforcement
of the RS wall is with the bilinear failure plane from the top of the wall is
L  L  0.3H z1i. In upper half of the wall
ei (9)
z  zi  0.3H tan 
 
and in the bottom half of the wall 1i (13)
L  L  0.6  ( H  z )
ei i (10) and in the bottom half of the wall the depth z1i is
Frictional Passive obtained from geometry (Figure 5) as
Resistance Resistance
 
3 sin  H  z i sin 59
z  zi 
Pullout 1i 5 sin121   
(14)
Force

Figure3: Frictional and Passive Resistance of Ribbed zi z1i Vinc Vincn

Reinforcement z2i
n
 Lei
Default values for Pullout Friction Factor, F*
Vinct
20(t/St) 1.2 + Log cu 2.0 x
0 dx
Lei
H
Depth below top of wall, Z or Zp (ft.)

L
Ribbed steel strips F* = Tan r

Grid bearing member

Smooth Steel strips F* = 0.4
Geotextiles F* = 0.67 tanr
Steel Grids F* = 10 (t/st)

t
Geogrids F* = 0.67 tanr

20
D 45º + φ/2
st
L0
st Figure5. Pullout Resistance for Inclined Reinforcement
Depths, z1i and z2i are evaluated corresponding to each
st
layer. The overturning moment, Momi and the vertical
load, Rvi are obtained for an average depth of
reinforcement layer, (z1i + z2i)/2 from Eqn. 2 and 3
Figure4: Variation of Pullout Friction Factor with respectively. The stabilizing moment, Meyerhof vertical
Depth of Wall (AASHTO [1]) stress and tension developed in each reinforcement layer
are obtained from Eqns. 4, 6 and 7 respectively.
The conventional factor of safety, FH, against pullout of
horizontal reinforcement is the ratio of total pullout Vertical stress acting on an infinitesimal length ‘dx’ of
resistance of reinforcement layers to the total tension inclined reinforcement at a distance, x, measured along
developed in the layers, as

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 789 P.V.S.N P AVAN K UMAR , M. R. M ADHAV AND M. KUMAR

the reinforcement from facing of the wall is, σinc n

 Ti imp
(Figure5) F = i 1 (23)

 inc   z i  x sin   q  (15)
n
P
i 1 ai

The vertical force acting on an infinitesimal length ‘dx’ The improvement ratio, R, is the ratio of modified
of inclined reinforcement is factor of safety, F against pullout of inclined

Vinc   z  x sin   q dx
i   (16)
reinforcement to the conventional factor of safety, FH,
of horizontal reinforcement as
Improvement ratio, R  F (24)
The vertical force, Vinc acting on the inclined  F
reinforcement is resolved into normal, Vn and tangential H
components, Vt to the inclined reinforcement. The 5. Results and Discussion
normal force, Vn is

n

V  ( z  x sin   q) cos  dx
i
  (17)
The following section presents the variations of the
modified factor of safety, F and the improvement ratio,
R, for a wide range of parameters. The analysis is
The tangential force, Vt is
  
carried out for 6 m high wall with length of
Vt   z i  x sin   q sin  dx reinforcement, L ranging from 0.5H to 0.8H. The unit
(18) weights,  of reinforced and retained fill are assumed as
The increase of embedment of the reinforcement 18 kN/m3. The angle of shearing resistance of reinforced
increases the normal force, Vn, on the reinforcement and and retained fills,  is assumed to be equal and varied
develops additional tangential pullout resistance, Vt. from 25º to 40º. The number of reinforcement layers, n
The increased normal force, Vn and additional tangential ranges from 4 to 8 and the interface friction angle, r
pullout resistance, Vt, increases the overall pullout varies from φ/3 to φ. The intensity of surcharge
resistance, Timp of the inclined reinforcement. pressure, q, ranges from 0 to 20 kN/m2. The rupture
strength of reinforcement and the connection strength
Timp 
L
   
2  z i  x sin   q cos  tan  r dx  are assumed to be high and the only possible mode of
LL
ei  failure is pullout of reinforcement.
L
   
2  z i  x sin   q sin  dx (19) The modified factor of safety, Fα of flat unribbed
LL
ei  reinforcement increases from 3.19 to 4.47 i.e. by about
41% with increase of inclination of reinforcement, α
Where Lei is the effective length of inclined
from 0 to 10º for a length of reinforcement, L = 0.5H
reinforcement.
(Table 1). The increase of downward inclination of
Equation 19 is simplified to reinforcement, α increases the normal stress acting on
Timp  ( z  z
1i

2i

 2q) cos  tan  r Lei   the reinforcement and subsequently increases the

( z  z
1i 2i

 2q) sin  Lei  (20)
pullout resistance of reinforcement. The pullout
resistance of ribbed reinforcement further increases due
The effective length of inclined reinforcement in to passive resistance and the modified factor of safety,
coherent gravity method is constant in the upper half of Fα increases from 6.99 to 8.35 i.e. by 19% with increase
the wall but increases with depth of reinforcement in the of inclination of reinforcement, α from 0 to 10º for a
bottom half of the wall (Figure 5). length of reinforcement, L = 0.5H. The increase of
length of reinforcement increases the modified factor of
H
Lei  L  0.3H sec  for z i  safety, Fα for flat unribbed and ribbed reinforcement.
2 (21) The improvement ratio, Rα, increases from 1.0 to 1.41
z1i  zi  for z H for flat unribbed reinforcement and from 1.0 to 1.21 for
Lei   L 
sin  i 2 ribbed reinforcement with increase of inclination of
(22) reinforcement, α from 0 to 10º (Figure 6). The modified
The modified factor of safety, F against pullout of factor of safety, F increases at a similar rate of increase
inclined reinforcement is the ratio of total pullout of factor of safety for horizontal reinforcement, FH for
resistance of inclined reinforcement layers to the total different length of reinforcement. Thus the
tension developed, as improvement ratio, R is independent of length
reinforcement layer, L.
Modified factor of safety against pullout,
Modified factor of safety, Fα increases from 3.01 to 4.50
i.e. by 49% for flat unribbed reinforcement and from
7.52 to 9.15 i.e. by about 21% for ribbed reinforcement

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 Axial Pullout of Inclined Inextensible Reinforcement in Reinforced Soil Wall II
790

with increase of downward inclination of reinforcement, Table2: Modified factor of safety, Fα for different
α from 0 to 10º for an angle of shearing resistance of inclination of reinforcement, α - Effect of angle of
backfill,  = 25º (Table 2). The increase of angle of shearing resistance of backfill, 
shearing resistance of backfill decreases the tension in
L/H = 0.6, n = 6, r =3/4,  =18 kN/m3, H =
the reinforcement and increases the modified factor of
6.0m, q = 0
safety, Fα. The improvement ratio, Rα increases from 1.0
to 1.5 for flat unribbed reinforcement and from 1.0 to Flat Unribbed reinforcement
α
1.22 for ribbed reinforcement with increase of φ = 25º φ = 30º φ = 35º φ = 40º
downward inclination of reinforcement, α from 0 to 10º 0 3.01 4.58 6.81 10.02
and angle of shearing resistance of backfill,  = 25º
2.5 3.40 5.07 7.43 10.83
(Figure 7). Improvement ratio, R is larger for lower
angle of shearing resistance of backfill,  = 25º due to a 5 3.78 5.55 8.04 11.6
relatively smaller factor of safety for horizontal 7.5 4.15 6.01 8.62 12.34
reinforcement that is used as a reference. 10 4.50 6.46 9.18 13.04
Table1: Modified factor of safety, Fα for different Ribbed reinforcement
inclinations of reinforcement, α - Effect of length of
0 7.52 10.25 14.00 19.34
reinforcement, L
2.5 7.98 10.83 14.74 20.28
 =30º, n =6, r =3/4,  =18 kN/m3,
5 8.41 11.37 15.42 21.14
H = 6.0m, q = 0
Flat Unribbed reinforcement 7.5 8.8 11.87 16.05 21.93
α 10 9.15 12.32 16.62 22.65
L/H =0.5 0.6 0.7 0.8
0 3.19 4.58 5.94 7.29 1.50
2.5 3.53 5.07 6.59 8.08 L/H = 0.6, φ r = 3φ/4
5 3.86 5.55 7.21 8.85 n = 6, q = 0
7.5 4.17 6.01 7.82 9.59
 = 25º
10 4.47 6.46 8.40 10.31 Ribbed  = 40º
Ribbed reinforcement 1.25 Unribbed
Ra

0 6.99 10.25 13.48 16.68

2.5 7.38 10.83 14.25 17.64
5 7.74 11.37 14.97 18.54
7.5 8.06 11.87 15.64 19.38
10 8.35 12.32 16.24 20.14 1.00
1.44 0 5 10
Inclination of reinforcement, ( ) in degrees
φ = 30º, φ r = 3φ/4 L/H = 0.5 - 0.8
Figure7: Variation of Rα with α – Effect of 
n = 6, q = 0
Modified factor of safety, Fα increases from 3.04 to 4.30
i.e. by about 41% for flat unribbed reinforcement and
Ribbed from 6.89 to 8.26 i.e. by about 20% for ribbed
1.22 Unribbed reinforcement with increase of downward inclination of
reinforcement, α from 0 to 10º for number of
Ra

reinforcement layers, n = 4 (Table 3). Modified factor of

1.00
0 5
Inclination of reinforcement, ( ) in degrees
Figure6: Variation of Rα with α – Effect of L
safety, Fα increases with increase of number of inclined
reinforcement, n. Improvement ratio, Rα increases from
1.0 to 1.41 for flat unribbed reinforcement and from 1.0
to 1.2 for ribbed reinforcement with increase of
10 downward inclination of reinforcement, α from 0 to 10º
(Figure 8). Improvement ratio, Rα do not vary with
increase of number of reinforcement layers, n due to a
similar rate of increase of Fα and FH with n.

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 791 P.V.S.N P AVAN K UMAR , M. R. M ADHAV AND M. KUMAR

Table3: Modified factor of safety, Fα for different interface friction angle, r = /3 (Figure 9).
inclination of reinforcement, α - Effect of number of Improvement ratio, R is larger for lower interface
reinforcement layers, n friction angle, r = /3 due to a relatively smaller factor
L/H = 0.6, φ = 30º, r =3/4,  =18 kN/m3, H = of safety for horizontal reinforcement that is used as a
6.0m, q = 0 reference.
Flat Unribbed reinforcement Table4: Modified factor of safety, Fα for different
α inclination of reinforcement, α - Effect of interface
n =4 n =6 n =8
friction angle, r
0 3.04 4.58 6.11
2.5 3.37 5.07 6.77 L/H = 0.6, φ = 30º, n =6,  =18 kN/m3, H =
6.0m, q = 0
5 3.69 5.55 7.41
Flat Unribbed reinforcement
7.5 4.00 6.01 8.03 α
r = /3 r = 2/3 r = 
10 4.30 6.46 8.61
0 1.95 4.02 6.38
Ribbed reinforcement
2.5 2.44 4.52 6.88
0 6.89 10.25 13.63
5 2.92 5.00 7.36
2.5 7.27 10.83 14.4
7.5 3.39 5.46 7.81
5 7.63 11.37 15.13
10 3.86 5.91 8.24
7.5 7.96 11.87 15.79
2.00
10 8.26 12.32 16.39
L/H = 0.6, φ = 30º,
1.50 n= 6, q= 0
L/H = 0.6, φ = 30º
φ r = φ /3
φ r = 3φ/4, q = 0
Unribbed
n =4-8 1.50 φ r = 2φ /3
Ra

Ribbed
1.25
Unribbed φr = φ
Ra

1.00
0 5
Inclination of reinforcement, ( ) in degrees
Figure8: Variation of Rα with α – Effect of n
The increase of downward inclination of flat unribbed
reinforcement, α from 0 to 10º increases the modified
factor of safety, Fα from 4.02 to 5.91 for an interface
friction angle, r = 2/3 (Table 4). The increase of
interface friction angle, r from /3 to  increases
drastically the modified factor of safety, Fα from 2.92 to
7.36 for a downward inclination of reinforcement, α =
5º. The maximum modified factor of safety, F  is 22.65
for ribbed inextensible reinforcement due to higher
interface friction coefficient of 1.8 at top of wall and 0.4
at bottom of wall for a reinforcement inclination,  =
10. The improvement ratio, Rα increases from 1.0 to
2.0 for flat unribbed reinforcement and from 1.0 to 1.29
for ribbed reinforcement with increase of downward
inclination of reinforcement, α from 0 to 10º for an
1.00
0 5 10
Inclination of reinforcement, ( ) in degrees
10 Figure 9 Variation of Rα with α – Effect of r
Modified factor of safety, Fα of flat unribbed
reinforcement decreases marginally from 5.0 to 4.47
with increase of intensity of surcharge pressure, q from
0 to 20 kN/m2 for a downward inclination, α = 5º and
from 11.37 to 10.57 for a ribbed reinforcement (Table
5). Modified factor of safety, Fα increases from 3.62 to
5.26 i.e. by about 45% with increase of downward
inclination of flat unribbed reinforcement, α from 0 to
10º for an intensity of surcharge, q = 20 kN/m2 and from
9.67 to 11.31 i.e. by about 17% for ribbed
reinforcement. The improvement ratio, Rα increases
from 1.0 to 1.45 for flat unribbed reinforcement and
from 1.0 to 1.17 for a ribbed reinforcement with
increase of downward inclination of reinforcement, α
from 0 to 10º. The variation of improvement ratio, Rα
with inclination of reinforcement, α nearly remains
same for two types of reinforcement for different
intensity of surcharge pressure, q.

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 Axial Pullout of Inclined Inextensible Reinforcement in Reinforced Soil Wall II
792

Table5: Modified factor of safety, Fα for different pullout resistance is quantified by a modified factor of
inclination of reinforcement, α - Effect of intensity of safety, F and is compared with the factor of safety
surcharge, q against pullout of horizontal reinforcement, FH. The
L/H = 0.6, φ = 30º, r =3/4,  =18 kN/m3, H variations of modified factor of safety, F  and
= 6.0m, q = 0 improvement ratio, R are presented for inextensible
reinforcement for flat unribbed and ribbed
Flat Unribbed reinforcement
reinforcements for inclination of reinforcement, 
α q =10 q =20
q =0 ranging from 0 to 10.
kN/m2 kN/m2
0 4.02 3.79 3.62  The downward inclination of reinforcement, at  =
10 increases the modified factor of safety against
2.5 4.52 4.25 4.05
pullout, F by a maximum of 45% and 20%
5 5.00 4.70 4.47 respectively for flat unribbed and ribbed
7.5 5.46 5.13 4.88 inextensible reinforcement.
10 5.91 5.54 5.26  The maximum modified factor of safety, F  is
22.65 for ribbed inextensible reinforcement due to
Ribbed reinforcement
higher interface friction coefficient of 1.8 at top of
0 10.25 9.92 9.67 wall and 0.4 at bottom of wall for a reinforcement
2.5 10.83 10.44 10.14 inclination,  = 10. The maximum modified factor
5 11.37 10.92 10.57 of safety, F for flat unribbed inextensible
reinforcement is 13.04 due to an interface friction
7.5 11.87 11.36 10.96
angle, φr of 30 along the height of wall.
10 12.32 11.75 11.31  The modified factor of safety against pullout, F  of
1.50 inclined reinforcement increases with increase of
L/H = 0.6, φ = 30º, length of reinforcement, angle of shearing
q =0 resistance of backfill, interface friction angle and
n = 6 , φ r = 3φ/4
q = 20 kN/m2 number of reinforcement layers. The modified
Ribbed
factor of safety, F increases at a similar rate of
Unribbed increase of factor of safety for horizontal
Ra

reinforcement, FH. Thus the improvement ratio, R

1.00
0 5
Inclination of reinforcement, ( ) in degrees
Figure10: Variation of Rα with α – Effect of r
6. Conclusions
The analysis of axial pullout of reinforcement inclined
at an angle, , with the horizontal is presented based on
coherent gravity method. Horizontal layout of
reinforcement in reinforced soil structures results in a
uniform normal stress due to the weight of reinforced
fill above the reinforcement. The marginal downward
inclination of reinforcement of about 10 results in an
increase of overburden stress acting on the
reinforcement. The vertical force acting on the sheet
reinforcement is resolved normal and tangential to the
alignment of reinforcement. The combination of normal
force and the shear force acting on the inclined
reinforcement increases the pullout resistance compared
with that for horizontal reinforcement. This increase of
is independent of length and number of
reinforcement layers.
 The improvement ratio, R is larger for lower angle
of shearing resistance of backfill and lower
interface friction angle due to a relatively smaller
factor of safety for horizontal reinforcement that is
used as a reference.
10
 The use of inextensible flat unribbed and ribbed
reinforcement at a marginal downward inclination
of order 10 improves the stability of the reinforced
soil walls or economizes the reinforced soil wall.
Reference
[1] AASHTO (2010). AASHTO LRFD Bridge Design
Specifications, Fifth Edition, American Association
of state Highway and Transportation officials,
Washington, D.C., pp. 11-36 – 11-82.
[2] Athanasopoulos G A (1993), Effect of Particle Size
on the Mechanical Behaviour of Sand-Geotextile
Composites, Geotextiles and Geomembranes, Vol.
12, pp. 255-273.
[3] Bergado, D T, Teerawattanasuk C and Long, P.V.
(2000), Localised Mobilisation of Reinforcement
Force and its Direction at the Vicinity of Failure

International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering

ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 786-793
 793 P.V.S.N P AVAN K UMAR , M. R. M ADHAV AND M. KUMAR

Surface, Geotextiles and Geomembranes, Vol. 18,
pp. 311-331.
[4] Esfandiari J and Selamat M R (2012), Laboratory
investigation on the effect of transverse member on
pull out capacity of metal strip reinforcement in
sand, Geotextiles and Geomembranes, 35, 41–49.
[5] Gray D H and Ohashi H (1983), Mechanics of fiber
reinforcement in sand, ASCE Journal of
Geotechnical Engineering, Vol. 109, pp. 335-353.
[6] Gray D H and Al-Refai T (1986), Behavior of
fabric vs. fiber-reinforced sand, ASCE Journal of
Geotechnical Engineering Division, Vol. 112, pp.
804–820.
[7] Kumar P V S N P and Madhav M R (2011), Pullout
of Inclined Sheet Reinforcement in Reinforced Soil
Wall, Indian Geotechnical Journal, Vol. 41, pp. 95 -
100.
[8] Meyerhof G G (1953), The bearing capacity of
foundations under eccentric and inclined loads,
Proceedings of Third International Conference on
Soil Mechanics and Foundation Engineering,
Zurich, vol. 1, pp. 440-45.
[9] Raju P T and Venkatappa Rao G (2012), Tiered
Geosynthetic Reinforced Soil Retaining Walls at
Vijayawada, India, 5th Asian Regional Conference
on Geosynthetics, pp. 1 - 4.
[10] Schlosser F (1978), History, current development
and future developments of reinforced earth, In:
Proceedings of the Symposium on Soil Reinforcing
and Stabilizing Techniques, sponsored by New
South Wales Institute of Technology and the
University of Sidney, Australia (in French).
[11] Schlosser F and Segrestin P (1979),
Dimensionnement des ouvrages en terre armée par
la méthode de l'équilibre local (local stability
analysis method of design of reinforced earth
structures), International Conference on Soil
Reinforcement, Paris, France, vol. 1, pp. 157–162
(in French).
[12] Shewbridge S E and Sitar N (1989), Deformation
Characteristics of Reinforced Sand in Direct Shear,
Journal of Geotechnical Engineering, Vol. 115, pp.
1134-1147.

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ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 786-793
 Indexed in
Scopus Compendex and Geobase Elsevier, Chemical
Abstract Services-USA, Geo-Ref Information Services-USA,
List B of Scientific Journals, Poland,
Directory of Research Journals
www.cafetinnova.org August 2014, P.P. 794-802
ISSN 0974-5904, Volume 07, No. 04

Development of New Construction Materials for Structural Use

V. RAMAKRISHNAN
Emeritus Regents Distinguished Professor, South Dakota School of Mines and Technology (SDSM & T) USA

Abstract: A desire to constantly upgrade the structural integrity and life of buildings and bridges has brought about
new developments in the area of concrete technology. The use of corrosion free basalt fiber composite rebars as
reinforcement for concrete is one such innovation. This paper presents the results of an experimental investigation
that was carried out for the first time anywhere in the world to evaluate the performance of concrete beams
reinforced with basalt fiber composite rebars. The experimentally determined ultimate moment capacities of basalt
rebar reinforced concrete beams were compared with the calculated ultimate moment capacities evaluated according
to ACI-318 Building Code recommended design procedures. It was found that the actual ultimate moments of beams
reinforced with plain basalt bars were much less than the calculated ultimate moments due to bar pullout failure. The
modified basalt rebars, which were provided with slots, corrugations and anchors, did not slip and the actual
ultimate moments matched or exceeded the calculated moments. The bond strengths between the basalt rebars (plain
and modified) and concrete were also determined (ASTM C 234) and presented in this paper.
Keywords: Basalt Fiber, Basalt Rebar, Reinforced Concrete Structures, Structural Use.

1. Introduction: durability under extreme environments. These bars are

costly, and are also non-resistant to alkalis
Basalt is the most common rock type in the earth's crust
(Ramakrishnan - 1993 and 1997). Basalt rebars do not
(the outer 10 to 50 km). Basaltic magma is commonly
possess these disadvantages and can be effectively used
produced by direct melting of the earth's mantle, the
in various applications such as highway barriers,
region of the earth below the outer crust. Ocean floor is
offshore structures and bridge decks.
mostly made of basalt. Huge outpourings of lava called
"flood basalts" are found on many continents. The above mentioned advantages alone could warrant a
sufficient argument for substitution of the basalt rebars
Basalt fibers are manufactured in a single-stage process
in place of steel on a large scale. Other advantages of
by melting naturally occurring pure basalt rock. They
the basalt rebar are that its weight is one-third of the
are environmentally safe, non-toxic, non-corrosive, non-
weight of steel and the thermal expansion coefficient is
magnetic, possess high heat stability and insulating
very close to that of concrete. The high mechanical
characteristics. The tensile strength of continuous basalt
performance/price ratio of basalt fiber composite rebar,
fibers is about twice that of E-glass fibers and the
combined with corrosion resistance to alkaline attack
modulus of elasticity is about 15-30% higher. Basalt
are further reasons, for replacing steel in concrete by
fibers in an amorphous state exhibit higher chemical
basalt fiber composite rebars.
stability than glass fibers. When exposed to water at 70o
C (158o F), basalt fibers maintain their strength for 1200 Basalt rock can be used to make not only basalt rebars
hours, whereas the glass fibers do so only for 200 hours but also basalt fabrics, chopped basalt fiber strands,
(Brik et al., 1998). continuous basalt filament wires and basalt geo-mesh.
Some of the potential applications of these basalt
Basalt composite rebars are made by utilizing basalt
composites are: Plastic polymer reinforcement, Soil
fibers and a resin epoxy binder. They are non-corrosive
Strengthening, Bridges and Highways, Industrial Floors,
and consist of 80% fibers. They have a tensile strength
Heat and sound insulation for residential and industrial
three times that of the steel rebar normally used in
buildings, Bullet proof vests and Retrofitting and
building construction. Wherever the corrosion problem
rehabilitation of structures.
exists, basalt fiber composite rebars have the potential
to replace steel in reinforced concrete. Currently there There was no published information available on the
are many FRP rebar companies that market their behavior of the basalt fiber composite rebars and
products. Most of them are made of E-glass fiber and therefore there was a need for this research.
thermosetting resin. However these bars lack sufficient

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Proceedings of 3-Day International Conference on Emerging Trends in Civil Engineering (ICETE-2014,)
6th–8th January, 2014
 795 V. R AMAKRISHNAN

2. Research Objectives  To compare the calculated and actual cracking and

Concrete Reinforced With Basalt Fiber Composite ultimate moments.
Rebars 3. Test Results and Discussion
The main aim of this part of the investigation was to 3.1. Concrete Reinforced With Basalt Fiber
evaluate the performance of concrete beams reinforced Composite Rebars
with basalt fiber composite rebars instead of the
Tension Test On Basalt Bars--Tension tests were done
traditionally used steel rebars.
on 14.25mm (0.56in.) and 6mm (0.24in.) diameter
The following were the objectives of the investigation: basalt bars and also on a 6mm (0.24in.) diameter cable.
 To determine the ultimate failing load of the beams. The ultimate tensile strengths were found to be 1458
 To observe the bond strength between the rebar and MPa (211,382 psi), 707.5 MPa (102,595 psi) and 308
concrete. MPa (44,640 psi) respectively. The average modulus of
 To study the modes of failure of the beams elasticity values for the bars
subjected to flexural loading.
Table1: Details of Beams Designed and Cast the Lab
Table 1 - Details of Beams Designed and Cast in the Lab
Beam No. Dimensions Details of Reinforcement
BRC-A 304.8mm x 304.8mm x 1295.4mm Two basalt rebars with a diameter of 14.2 mm (0.56in)
(12in x 12in x 51in) and length 1219.2 mm (48in). The cover was maintained at
25.4 mm (1in). Development length was 114.3 mm (4.5in) on each side.
BRC-B 254mm x 254mm x 1295.4mm Two basalt rebars with a diameter of 14.2 mm (0.56in)
(10in x 10in x 51in) and length 1219.2 mm (48in). The cover was maintained at
25.4 mm (1 in). Development length was 114.3 mm (4.5in) on each side.
BRC-C 304.8mm x 304.8mm x 1295.4mm Two basalt rebars with a diameter of 14.2 mm (0.56in)
(12in x 12in x 51in) and length 1219.2 mm (48in). The cover was maintained at
88.9 mm (3.5 in). Development length was 114.3 mm (4.5in) on each side.
BRC-D 254mm x 254mm x 1295.4mm Two basalt rebars with a diameter of 14.2 mm (0.56in)
(10in x 10in x 51in) and length 1219.2 mm (48in). The cover was maintained at
82.5 mm (3.2 in). Development length was 114.3 mm (4.5in) on each side.
BRC-E 152.4mm x 152.4mm x 1295.4mm Two basalt rebars with a diameter of 14.2 mm (0.56in)
(6in x 6in x 51in) and length 1219.2 mm (48in). The cover was maintained at
25.4 mm (1 in). Development length was 304.8 mm (12in) on each side.
BRC-F 152.4mm x 152.4mm x 1676.4mm Two basalt rebars with a diameter of 5.1 mm (0.2in)
(6in x 6in x 66in) and length 1524 mm (60in). The cover was maintained at 25.4 mm (1in).
Development length was 381 mm (15in) on each side.
and cables were 103500 MPa (15106 psi) and 110400 moments due to bar pullout failure (Table 2). After the
MPa (16106 psi) respectively. The bars experienced a testing was done the beam edges were cut using a
brittle type of failure (Fig.1). The cable broke into two diamond tipped saw. The slip of the basalt bar was
pieces without any splintering of the fibers, unlike both clearly visible at both ends with a distinct mark left in
the bars (Fig. 2). the concrete at the original placing of the reinforcement
(Fig. 3b). Two beams, BRC-E & F, were tested with
Phase I: Flexure Test on Plain Basalt Bar Reinforced increased development lengths. The spans for the beams
Concrete Beams--A total of six beams designed and were 0.75m (30in) and 0.9m (36in) respectively. Beam
cast in the Rama Materials lab, reinforced with basalt BRC-E failed in flexure, but at a higher load than beams
rebars were tested. Research & Technology Inc,
BRC-A to D, due to the increased development length,
Madison, USA, supplied the basalt bars. The beams
whereas beam
were designed using ACI-318 Building Code (2000)
recommended design procedures. The beams that were BRC-F, failed suddenly with the breaking of the
designed and cast in the lab are referred to as BRC-A to reinforcement. It was a sudden and brittle failure. The
F in the discussion, and the details of the beams are measured and calculated cracking moments are also
given in Table 1. The beams were tested in flexure after compared in Table 2. A typical load-deflection curve of
a 14-day curing period. The beams failed with a single a plain basalt rebar reinforced concrete beam is given in
crack instead of multiple cracking, which indicated slip Fig. 7.
of the reinforcing bars (Fig3a). All the actual ultimate
moments were much less than the calculated ultimate

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 Development of New Construction Materials for Structural Use
796

Table 2 - Comparsion of Calculated & Actual Moments

Table2: Comparison(Beams
of Calculated and in
Cast Actual
theMoments (Beams Castto
Lab: BRC-A F) Lab: BRC – A to F)
in the

Beam Ultimate Cracking Actual Moments Calculated Moments

No. Load Load Ultimate Cracking Ultimate Cracking
KN(lbs) KN(lbs) KN.m(k-ft.) KN.m(k-ft.) KN.m(k-ft.) KN.m(k-ft.)
BRC-A 71.20 66.00 16.27 15.25 119.80 17.82
(16000) (15000) (12.00) (11.25) (88.35) (13.14)
BRC-B 44.50 37.80 10.17 8.65 92.60 9.98
(10000) (8500) (7.50) (6.38) (68.26) (7.36)
BRC-C 68.50 57.80 15.66 13.22 89.60 17.76
(15400) (13000) (11.55) (9.75) (66.00) (13.10)
BRC-D 43.00 35.60 9.87 8.14 69.69 9.98
(9700) (8000) (7.28) (6.00) (48.44) (7.36)
BRC-E 45.00 40.00 6.85 6.10 35.90 2.26
(10100) (9000) (5.05) (4.50) (26.50) (1.67)
BRC-F 12.20 11.10 2.33 2.12 3.57 2.25
(2750) (2500) (1.72) (1.56) (2.63) (1.66)

Fig1: Tension Test on Basalt Rod. Brittle Type of

Failure with Splintering of Fibers was observed

3 (b) Slip of Reinforcement at the Left End of the Beam

Fig2: Tension Test: Failed Basalt Rods and Cables. The
Cables Broke into Two Pieces without any Splintering
of the Fibers, unlike both the Bars
Phase II: Flexure Test on Concrete Beams Reinforced
with Plain Basalt Bars and Discontinuous Basalt Fibers-
-Research & Technology Inc. supplied 8 beams. Five
beams (BRC-1 to 5) were reinforced with basalt fiber
composite rebars. Four of these beams were also 3-
dimensionally reinforced with basalt fibers. Three
beams (P1 to P3) were plain concrete (control) beams.
The details of these beams are given in Table 3.

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 797 V. R AMAKRISHNAN

Table3: Details of Beams Supplied by the Manufacturer

Table 3 - Details of Beams Supplied by the Manufacturer
Name Size of No Description of Bars Coarse
Beam of Fibers
mm (inches) Bars (%)
BRC-1 76.2mm x 101.6mm x 355.6mm 5 2 rods with 6.75mm(0.265in) in diameter(top) & 1 1.5
(3in x 4in x 14in) rod having periodical twisted ribs & made from 2
cables of 3mm(0.118in) diameter & 2 rods with
6.75mm(0.27in) in diameter at bottom.
BRC-2 76.2mm x 101.6mm x 355.6mm 5 2 rods with 6.75mm(0.265in) in 2
(3in x 4in x 14in) diameter(top) & 1 rod 8mm(0.32in) in diameter
& 2 rods with 6.75mm(0.27in)diameter at bottom.
BRC-3 76.2mm x 101.6mm x 355.6mm 5 2 rods with 6.75mm(0.265in) in diameter(top) 1.5
(3in x 4in x 14in) & 1 rod having periodical twisted ribs & made
from 2 cables of 3mm(0.118in) diameter & 2 rods
with 6.75mm(0.27in) at bottom.
BRC-4 76.2mm x 101.6mm x 355.6mm 5 2 rods with 6.75mm(0.265in) in diameter(top) --
(3in x 4in x 14in) & 1 rod having periodical twisted ribs
& made from 2 cables of 3mm(0.118in) diameter
with 2 rods of 8mm(0.32in) diameter at bottom.
BRC-5 76.2mm x 101.6mm x 355.6mm 4 2 rods at top with 6mm(0.24in) in diameter & 2 2
(3in x 4in x 14in) rods at bottom with 6mm(0.24in) in diameter. Fibers
were ROVING RB-15(chopped) & 10mm(0.4in)
in length.

The beams were tested in bending. Beams BRC-1, 2, 3 bars and the concrete. The primary task in this phase
& 5 had small amount of fibers, due to which, a ductile was to study the bond between modified basalt rebars
failure was observed. In beam BRC-4, there were no and concrete. There are several tests that can determine
fibers; hence a brittle failure was observed. All three the bond quality of the reinforcing element. One of
plain concrete beams failed instantaneously, at the these is the pullout test (Fig. 5a). In this test, the
appearance of the first crack. The failure was brittle and concrete is subjected to compression and the reinforcing
sudden, whereas all the beams reinforced with the basalt bar is subjected to tension, and both the bar and the
rebars had a gradual failure after considerable amount of surrounding concrete are subjected to the same stress.
deflection. As expected, the addition of reinforcement, The pull out test was done according to ASTM C234
either in the form of small fibers or composite basalt 91-a (1998).
rods converted the brittle failure into a ductile failure.
The actual ultimate moments were very less when
compared to the calculated ultimate moments of the
beams due to slip of the bars. But the actual cracking
moment was more than the calculated cracking moment
due to the addition of basalt fibers. Table 4 shows the
actual and calculated ultimate moments of the beams.
The results indicate slip of the reinforcing bars.
Table 4Comparison
Table4: - Comparison of
of Calculated
Calculated andand
Actual Moments
Actual of
Moments
of Beams Supplied by the Manufacturer
Beams Supplied by the Manufacturer
Beam Ultimate Actual Moments Calculated Moments
No. Load Ultimate Ultimate
(KN) (KN.m) (KN.m) Fig4: Modified Basalt Bars with Surface Modulations
and Improved Modulus of Elasticity
BRC-1 20.00 1.27 4.07
BRC-2 18.20 1.16 4.30
BRC-3 15.60 0.99 4.07
BRC-4 21.00 1.33 5.50
BRC-5 16.00 1.02 3.20
Phase III: Bond Test on Basalt Rebars and Cables
(ASTM C 234)--The results obtained from Phase I and
II revealed that the actual ultimate moments of basalt
rebar reinforced concrete beams were less than the
theoretically calculated ultimate moments. This was due
to bond failure between rebars and concrete.
To avoid this type of failure the Principal author and
Research & Technology Inc, had developed basalt
cables with corrugations, rods with slots, barriers and Fig5: (a) Bond Test on Basalt Rebars (b) Bond Failure
anchors (Fig. 4), for improving the bond between the due to Slip of Plain Basalt Rebars (c) Tensile Failure of

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 Development of New Construction Materials for Structural Use
798

Modified Basalt Rebars Due to Good Bond with
Concrete
First the plain basalt rebar reinforced specimens were
tested for the bond strength at an age of 21 days. As the
load was applied the plain basalt rebars started slipping
and there was no bond between the reinforcement and
the concrete. It was also found that the grip of the
testing machine was slipping i.e., it was not holding the
bar properly as the basalt fibers in the bar were crushed
and powdered. There was also a slip in the anchoring
end leaving a scratch mark on the bar. Therefore, the
anchorage was done using a chuck, which held the
specimen in its place at the anchoring end. The
specimen was then tested and the plain basalt bar
slipped and the marks on concrete were distinctly seen
on the bar (Fig. 5b).
Then the 4-slot basalt bar was tested with both the
lower and upper horizontal position of the
reinforcement. The 4-slot basalt bar did not slip and
hence there was no bond failure. But the basalt bar
itself failed due to tension failure (Fig. 5c). The
failure was brittle. The 8-slot basalt bar also failed
in a similar manner to that of 4-slot basalt bar. The
2mm (0.08 in.) cables were also tested for the bond
strength. At first a single cable was tested for the
bond strength. The single cable failed in tension and
there was no bond failure. The failure of the cable
was brittle in nature. Similarly two cables were
twisted together and were also tested for bond. The
results were similar to that of the single cable test.
The cables failed due to tension and not due to lack
of bond. When three cables twisted together were
tested, the failure mode was the same as described
above for the single and two cables. All the
modified basalt rebars and cables except the plain
basalt bar had good bond with concrete. The failure
was due to the tensile failure of the rebars and the
cables and not due to the bond slip.
Phase IV: Determination of Cracking and Ultimate
Loads for Extremely Under-Reinforced Beams --
Two extremely under reinforced beams (152.4 x 228.6 x
1117.6 mm [6 x 9 x 44 in.], and 228.6 x 457.2 x 1320.8
mm [9 x 18 x 52 in.]), reinforced with modified basalt
rebars were tested to see whether adequate bond had
developed between the rebar and concrete. The
reinforcement details of the beams BRC-1 and 2 are
given in Table 5.

Table 5 - Details ofTable5:

BasaltDetails of Basalt
Beam Size of Beam
No. mm (Inches)
152.4 x 228.6 x 1117.6 mm
BRC-1
(6 x 9 x 44 in.)
228.6 x 457.2 x 1320.8 mm
BRC-2
(9 x 18 x 52 in.)
127 x 203.2 x 1346.2 mm
BRC-3
(5 x 8 x 53 in.)
127 x 203.2 x 1625.6 mm
BRC-4
(5 x 8 x 64 in.)
76.2 x 101.6 x 1143 mm
BRC-5
(3 x 4 x 45 in.)
152.4 x 254 x 1320.8 mm
BRC-6
(6 x 10 x 52 in.)
152.4 x 254 x 1320.8 mm
BRC-7
(6 x 10 x 52 in.)
Rods used Rods Used For
for Reinforcing the Concrete Beams
No. of
Description of bars
Bars
Two basalt cables of 1016 mm (40 in.) length and 3.25 mm
(0.128 in.) in diameter. Two basalt wires were sprirally
2
wound to form a cable and were supplied by the
manufacturer.
Two basalt rods of 1219 mm (48 in.) length and 10.4 mm
2 (0.41 in.) in diameter. Each rebar was provided with 4 slots
for improving the bond.
One basalt rod of 1245 mm (49 in.) length and 8.6 mm (0.34
1 in.) diameter. The basalt rod had a corrugated surface. This
ribbed or corrugated surface was obtained by pultrusion.
Two basalt strands of 1524 mm (60 in.) length and 8 mm
(0.315 in.) diameter. Each strand was made by twisting three
2
individual basalt wires of 4.8 mm (0.19 in.) in diameter in the
laboratory.
Three basalt cables of 1041 mm (41 in.) length and 3.45 mm
3 (0.136 in.) in diameter. Two basalt wires were spirally wound
to form a cable and were supplied by the manufacturer.
Two basalt rods of 1219 mm (48 in.) length and 9.65 mm
(0.38 in.) in diameter. Each rebar was provided with 2 slots
2 for improving the bond. The rods were also provided with 1
Fe-Mn-Ni anchors (smart alloys) on each end of the bar to
prevent slip.
Two basalt rods of 1245 mm (49 in.) length and 10.1 mm
(0.399 in.) in diameter. Each rebar was provided with 2 slots
2 for improving the bond. The rods were also provided with 2
TiNi (50/50) anchors (smart alloys) on each end of the bar to
prevent slip.

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 799 V. R AMAKRISHNAN

Table 6 Comparison of Calculated and Actual Moments

Table 6 - Comparison of Calculated and Actual Moments
Beam Actual Moments Calculated Moments Type of Failure
No. Ultimate Cracking Ultimate Cracking
N-m (lb-in) N-m (lb-in.) N-m (lb-in.) N-m (lb-in.)
Flexural failure. Beam failed
by splitting into two pieces
BRC-1 5038 (44588) 4992 (44180) 4997 (44218) 4997 (44218) due to the complete fracture
of the rebars.
First flexural cracking
BRC-2 63457 (561570) 23691 (209658) 72340 (640179) 28116 (248815) followed by failure in shear.
Primary flexural failure and
BRC-3 8407 (74400) 3107 (27497) 8619 (76273) 3260 (28852) secondary shear failure.
Typical flexural failure with
BRC-4 12577 (111300) 2551 (22575) 12983 (114895) 3376 (29879) partial fracture of strands
Beam failed primarily in

BRC-5 1137 (10063) 481 (4261) 765 (6772) 505 (4471) flexure by splitting into two
pieces after fracture of rebar
Primary flexural failure and
BRC-6 33184 (293663) 6475 (57300) 29685 (262701) 6199 (54855)
secondary shear failure.
Primary flexural failure and
BRC-7 38724 (342690) 6610 (58500) 32047 (283605) 6160 (54513)
secondary shear failure.

Note: In all the beams, the rebars did not slip or pull out, and there was no bond failure.

The beams were designed and cast in the lab, and are
referred to as BRC-1 and BRC-2. The average cylinder
compressive strength of the mix was 47 MPa (6816 psi).
The reinforcement provided for one beam was less than
the minimum required according to ACI code 318.
Another beam was provided with the ACI
recommended minimum reinforcement. Both beams
were tested in flexure after the 28-day curing period. A
development length of 203.2 mm (8 in.) was provided
for both beams. The length between the two-point
loading was 304.8 mm (12 inch). Beam BRC-1 was
reinforced with basalt cables (3.25 mm [0.128 in. dia.]).
The first crack occurred at the calculated cracking
moment (Table 6). After first crack, the beam failed
suddenly breaking into two pieces, because the beam
was extremely under reinforced. The rebar broke
without slipping, which indicated that there was good
bond between the rebar and the concrete (Fig. 6).
Fig6: Flexure Test - Beam developed multiple cracks
and the modified rebars broke eventually without
slipping indicating good bond between modified basalt
rebars and concrete
Beam BRC-2 was under reinforced with the
minimum ACI 318 recommended reinforcement.
The beam first had a flexural crack at 85% of the
calculated cracking moment (Table 6), but
ultimately the beam failed in shear. This was
attributed to the fact that the beam was very deep.
Even though the beam failed in shear, it took 88%
of the calculated ultimate moment (Table 6). The
beam did not fail due to slip of the rebar, which
indicated that there was a good bond between the 4 -
slot rebar and the concrete. If the beam had failed in
flexure rather than in shear the beam would have
definitely carried more ultimate moment than the
calculated moment. The overall test results indicated
that there was sufficient bond strength and the bars
did not slip even after the ultimate load was
reached. The measured and calculated ultimate and
cracking moments are compared in Table 6. The
tests indicated that it is possible to make concrete
beams reinforced with basalt composite rebars. This
testing gave adequate information to plan for testing
other beams.
Phase V: To Determine Cracking And Ultimate
Loads For Five Under-Reinforced Beams -- A total of
five beams of dimensions, 127 x 203.2 x 1346.2 mm (5
x 8 x 53 in.), 127 x 203.2 x 1625.6 mm (5 x 8 x 64 in.),
76.2 x 101.6 x 1143 mm (3x 4 x 45 in.), 152.4 x 254 x
1320.8 mm (6x 10 x 52 in.) [Fe-Mn-Ni anchors], and
152.4 x 254 x 1320.8 mm (6 x 10 x 52 in) [Ti-Ni
anchors], reinforced with basalt rebars were tested.
Research & Technology Corp supplied the rebars and
the five beams were designed and cast in the Rama
Materials Laboratory at SDSM&T. The beams referred
to as BRC-3 to BRC-7 in the discussion, were designed
according to ACI-318 Building Code recommended
design procedures. The reinforcement details of the
beams BRC-3 to 7 are given in Table 5. All the beams

International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering

ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 794-802
 Development of New Construction Materials for Structural Use
were designed as under-reinforced beams with the
normal range used in construction. The average cylinder
compressive strength of the concrete was 34.2 MPa
(4959 psi). All beams were tested in flexure after a 28-
day curing period. A development length of 203.2 mm
(8 in.) was provided for all beams. The distance
between the two-point loading was 152.4 mm (6 in.) for
all beams.
Beam BRC-3 was designed as a lightly under
reinforced beam with one corrugated basalt rod 8.6
mm (0.34 in. dia). The first crack occurred at 95%
of the calculated cracking moment (Table 6). After
first crack the beam took 2.7 times more moment
than the cracking moment (Table 6) indicating very
good bond strength between the rebar and the
concrete. The beam failed at 98% of the calculated
ultimate moment (Table 6). The beam failed
primarily in flexure and secondarily in shear.
Beam BRC-4 was also under reinforced. Two cables
of 1524 mm (60 in.) length and 8 mm (0.315 in.)
diameter were used as rebars. These cables were
made in the laboratory by twisting three individual
basalt wires into one. The beam first had a flexural
crack at 76% of the calculated cracking moment
(Table 6). After first crack the beam took 4.9 times
more moment than the cracking moment (Table 6)
indicating very good bond strength between the
rebar and the concrete. The beam failed at 97% of
the calculated ultimate moment (Table 6). The beam
failed purely in flexure. Overall the performance of
the beam was good and the wires split partially at
failure indicating good bond strength. The cables
did not slip even after the ultimate load was
reached.
Beam BRC-5 was made of three basalt cables of
1041.4 mm (41 in.) length and 3.45 mm (0.136 in.)
diameter (Table 5). The beam was under-reinforced.
The cables were supplied by the manufacturer,
unlike the one used in beam BRC-4 which was made
in the laboratory. The beam first had a flexural
crack at 95% of the calculated cracking moment
(Table 6). After first crack the beam took 2.4 times
more moment (less than the other beams because it
was under-reinforced, and the tensile strength of the
bar was also less) than the cracking moment (Table
6) indicating very good bond strength between the
rebar and the concrete. The beam took 49% more
than the calculated ultimate moment (Table 6). The
beam failed primarily in flexure and secondarily in
shear. Overall the performance of the beam was
good and the cables completely fractured at failure,
indicating good bond strength. The cables did not
slip even after the ultimate load was reached.
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800
Beam BRC-6 was made with two basalt rods of
1219.2 mm (48 in.) length and 9.65 mm (0.38 in.)
diameter (Table 5). The beam was lightly under-
reinforced. The rods were supplied by the
manufacturer and were provided with 1 Fe-Mn-Ni
anchors (smart alloys) on each end of the bar to
prevent slip. The actual cracking moment exceeded
the calculated moment by 4.5% (Table 6). After
first crack the beam took 5.1 times more moment
than the cracking moment (Table 6) indicating very
good bond strength between the rebar and the
concrete. The beam took 12% more than the
calculated ultimate moment (Table 6). The beam
failed primarily in flexure and secondarily in shear.
Overall the performance of the beam was very good
and the rods did not slip even at failure because of
the anchors provided at the ends.
Beam BRC-7 was made with two basalt rods of
1219.2 mm (48 in.) length and 10.1 mm (0.399 in.)
diameter (Table 5). The beam was lightly under-
reinforced. The rods were supplied by the
manufacturer and were provided with 2 Ti-Ni
(50/50) anchors (smart alloys) at each end of the bar
to prevent slip. A strain gauge was placed on the
compression side of the beam, and another strain
gauge was also placed on the rebar in the slot to
measure the strain in the rebar. The actual cracking
moment exceeded the calculated moment by 7%
(Table 6). After the first crack the beam took 5.9
times more moment than the cracking moment
(Table 6) indicating very good bond strength
between the rebar and the concrete. The beam took
21% more than the calculated ultimate moment
(Table 6). Of all the beams, this beam performed
very well basically because of the anchors and the
slots that were provided on the rebar. The beam
failed primarily in flexure and secondarily in shear.
Overall the performance of the beam was very good
because of the anchors at the ends. The rods did not
slip even after the ultimate load was reached. A
typical load vs. deflection, load vs. concrete strain
and load vs. basalt rebar strain for beams reinforced
with modified basalt rebars are shown in Figures 8,
9 and 10 respectively.
80
70 (Beam Size = (304.8mm x 304.8mm x 1295.4mm)
(Diameter of Bar = 14.2mm)
60
Load (KN)
50
40
30
20
10
0
0 0.5 1 1.5 2 2.5 3
Deflection (mm)
Fig. 7 A typical load-deflection curve of a plain basalt
rebar reinforced concrete beam
 801 V. R AMAKRISHNAN

200 failures and a few beams had secondary shear failures.

180 There was no slip of the rebars in any of the beams
160
Average deflection at the
tested and there was no evidence of bond failure
140
Load (KN)

center of the beam between the concrete and the modified basalt rebars and
120
100
twisted cables. In general, the basalt rebars are suitable
80 for use in reinforced concrete structures.
60 5. Acknowledgements
40
20 First crack of The authors wish to thank Dr. Thirumalai, program
concrete
0 director of the IDEA program of the TRB of the
0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 National Research Council for sponsoring the basalt
fiber reinforced concrete research. The authors
Deflection (mm)
gratefully acknowledge the help, encouragement and
Fig. 8 A typical load-deflection curve of a modified advice received from Dr. Brik of Research &
basalt rebar reinforced concrete beam Technology Inc., and Dr. Inam Jawed of the IDEA
program.
200
Strain gauge located at 444.5 mm from one 200
180
end of the beam, and on the slot of the 180
160 rebar 160
140
140
Load (KN)

Load (KN)
120 120
100 Strain gauge located at 6.35 mm from the
100 top (compression side) at the center of
80 80 the beam
60 60
40 40
20 First crack of First crack of
20
concrete concrete
0 0
0 2000 4000 6000 8000 10000 0 500 1000 1500 2000 2500 3000
Tensile Micro Strain Compressive Micro Strain
Fig. 9 A typical load Vs. concrete strain curve of a Fig10: A typical load Vs. modified basalt rebar strain
modified basalt rebar reinforced concrete beam curve of a modified basalt rebar reinforced concrete
4. Conclusions beam

Phase I -- The beams reinforced with plain basalt Reference

composite bars failed in flexure, due to inadequate bond [1] Brik, V., Ramakrishnan, V., and Tolmare, N.,
between the rod and the concrete. All the actual ultimate (1998), “Performance Evaluation of 3-D Basalt
moments were much less than the calculated ultimate Fiber Reinforced Concrete & Basalt Rod
moments due to the bar pullout failure. Reinforced Concrete”, IDEA Program Final Report,
Phase II -- The beams supplied by the manufacturer Contract No. NCHRP-45.
reinforced with 3D-fibers and rebars exhibited a [2] Ramakrishnan, V., (1993), “Recent Advancements
primary failure in flexure and shear followed by a in Concrete Fiber Composites”, Concrete Lecture,
secondary failure in splitting. The 3D-fibers caused a American Concrete Institute, Singapore Chapter,
ductile failure of the beam and also increased the actual Singapore.
cracking moment capacity of the beam. All the actual [3] Ramakrishnan, V., (1997), “Performance
ultimate moments were much less than the calculated characteristics and Application of High-
ultimate moments due to bar pullout failure. Performance Polyolefin Fiber Reinforced
Concretes”, SP-171, Proceedings of the third
Phases III to V -- The bond between all the modified CANMET/ACI. International conference
basalt rebars and concrete was extremely good. The „Advances in Concrete Technology‟, American
experimental ultimate moments nearly matched or Concrete Institute, Detroit, pp. 671-692.
exceeded the calculated moments, for all the beams [4] ACI Committee 318 (2000), “Building Code
tested. The experimental ultimate moment was much Requirements for Structural Concrete and
higher than the first crack moment in all the beams Commentary”, ACI 318 R-99 American Concrete
tested, indicating a good bond between rebar and Institute, Detroit, pp. 1-65.
concrete. The deflections were considerable indicating
adequate ductility. All the beams had primary flexural

International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering

ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 794-802
 Development of New Construction Materials for Structural Use
802

[5] ASTM C234-91a (1998), “Standard Test Method
for Comparing Concretes on the Basis of the Bond
Developed with Reinforcing Steel”, American
Society of Testing of Materials.
[6] ACI Committee 440 (2001), “Guide for the Design
and Construction of Concrete Reinforced with FRP
Bars”, ACI Report 440.1R-01 American Concrete
Institute, Detroit, pp. 1-41.
[7] ACI Committee 440 (1996), “State-of-the-Art
Report on Fiber Reinforced Plastic Reinforcement
for Concrete Structures”, ACI Report 440 R-96
American Concrete Institute, Detroit, pp. 1-65.
[8] Brik, V., Ramakrishnan, V., and Panchalan,
Ramesh, (2002), “Advanced Concept Concrete
Using Basalt Fiber/BF Composite Rebar
Reinforcement”, IDEA Program, Transportation
Research Board, National Research Council, USA,
Final Report, Contract No. NCHRP-86.

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ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 794-802
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Abstract Services-USA, Geo-Ref Information Services-USA,
List B of Scientific Journals, Poland,
Directory of Research Journals
www.cafetinnova.org August 2014, P.P. 803-810
ISSN 0974-5904, Volume 07, No. 04

Durability of Basalt Fibres in Concrete

INDUBHUSHAN P ATNAIKUNI, HIMABINDU MYADARABOINA AND DAVID LAW
School of Civil Environmental and Chemical Engineering, Melbourne, Australia

Abstract: This presents the investigation of the durability of basalt fibres following immersion in a range of
chemical solutions representative of the concrete medium. The tests were conducted over a 62 day period and the
solutions were sodium hydroxide, sodium chloride, sodium sulphate and combinations of the three. Weight loss was
observed in all alkali solutions with the worst being the combination of the sodium hydroxide with the sodium
sulphate. The impact of chloride was minimal in the alkaline environment and reduced the impact of the sulphate
when both were present. From microstructure analysis undertaken using SEM/EDX it was found that the silica
structure present in basalt fibers was degraded by the OH- from the alkali medium. The study suggests the need for
the modification or treatment of basalt fibers before using as fibre reinforcement in concrete.
Keywords: Basalt fiber, Chemical, Durability, Concrete, EDS and SEM.

1. Introduction: the alkali resistance of BF is good [6, 7]. But, more

The high fire resistance nature and low price of basalt
fiber (BF) compared to traditional fibers, has led to the
emergence of BF as an attractive alternative to other
fibres in fibre reinforced polymer composites (FRP) in
civil engineering over recent years. FRP has been
successfully used for strengthening, rehabilitation and
renewal of civil structures for over the last two decades
[1- 3].
For many years, basalt has been used to make tiles and
slabs for architectural applications. Additionally, cast
basalt liners for steel tubing exhibit very high abrasion
resistance in highways and industrial applications due to
its extremely hard nature which is in the 5 to 9 range on
the Mho's scale [4]. In crushed form, basalt also finds
use as aggregate in concrete.
More recently, continuous fibers extruded from
naturally fire-resistant basalt (at temperature 1300-1400
degree centigrade) have been investigated as a
replacement for asbestos fibers, in almost all of its
applications. The wide temperature range (-260/-2000C
to about 650/8000C) compared to E glass: -600C to
450/4600C) enables the BF to be good insulators and
can replace asbestos [5]. The composition of BF has
also lead to their use as insulators in aircraft,
automobiles, ships and household appliances. Moreover,
basalt rods made from unidirectional basalt fibers have
been emerging to be used as reinforcement in structural
concrete.
There has been little previous research on the chemical
stability of BF. Some short term studies reported that
recently there have been studies reporting the chemical
degradation of BF in alkali environment [8-12]
The mechanism for degradation in alkali environments
has indicated that there is a breakdown of the Si-O-Si
matrix, leading to loss of structural integrity and
strength [8, 9, 10], indeed several authors have reported
surface degradation of the fibers in high concentration
alkali solutions with the precipitation of insoluble salts
[6, 8], as well as leaching of metal atoms from the
oxides of metals in the BF.
A number of treatments have also been applied to the
BF, such as applying epoxy resins and zirconia. Though
the degradation of the BF was reduced, it was still
observed to be present [7,9,11].
The present study confirms the degradation of BF in
alkaline environment with more detailed study by
comparatively long-term analysis with chemicals as
well as micro structural analysis using SEM/EDS
Research Significance & Methodology
Given the use of BF as FRP in concrete and that
concrete is highly alkaline in nature, the long term
durability and performance of the BF in concrete is of
great concern. In addition to the alkaline nature of the
concrete, a range of other potentially deleterious
chemicals may also be present. The most common of
these are chloride ions, from marine environments and
de-icing salts, together with sulphate ions from the soil
and groundwater. The study reported investigates the
durability of BF in an alkali medium as well as alkali
combined with sulphate and/or chloride ions which

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Proceedings of 3-Day International Conference on Emerging Trends in Civil Engineering (ICETE-2014,)
6th–8th January, 2014
 Durability of Basalt Fibres in Concrete
804

represents the aggressive environments in concrete. TiO2 1.1

Hence, strong alkali such as NaOH and salts of strong
K2O 0.8
alkali & strong base which are NaCl and Na2SO4 are
considered for this study. B2O3 -
The effect on durability is measured by calculating the F -
weight loss after soaking fibers in different solutions The dark colour & higher density of the BF over glass
over a period of 62 days. The condition of the fibres is fibre is due the ferrous oxides present, which are absent
also examined both visually and using Scanning in glass fibres. The higher density is attributed to the
Electron Microscope (SEM) and Energy Dispersive X- high atomic weight of the Fe [6, 10].
ray (EDX) analysis on FEI Quanta 200 ESEM.
The basalt fibre used in this experiment was provided
Materials by Kemenny Vek Ltd, Dubna, Moscow region, Russia.
Basalt stones come with different chemical The physical properties are given in table 3.
compositions, and only particular chemical Table3: Physical properties of BF used in this project
compositions and physical characteristics of basalt
allow its extrusion into continuous thin filaments with Basxalt - Chopped
Type of Basalt
the required properties. The nominal diameters of these Strand
continuous filaments now come in the range 9 to 24 μm Monofilament
20
[2]. Fig 1 shows the BF used in this project along with
its SEM/EDS image. The basic mechanical properties of Cut Length(mm) 1”(25,4)
BF and the chemical composition are shown in tables 1 Type of sizing Silane
and 2 [5, 3].
Chemical Solutions
Table 4 Chemical solutions used for treatment of BF in
this project
Solution Chemical pH of the
No. Composition solution at day0
1 3% NaCl 9.22
(a) (b)
(c)
2 10% Na2SO4 9.22
Fig1: (a) Original BF and (b) SEM image of BF 3 1 M NaOH 12.22
(c) EDX analysis at 4K 1 M NaOH + 3%
4 12.8
NaCl
Table1: Mechanical properties of BF
1 M NaOH + 10%
Glass 5 12.90
Property Basalt Na2SO4
(E-glass) 1 M NaOH + 3%
6 13.35
Tensile strength (MPa) 2600 2500 NaCl + 10% Na2SO4
Filament diameter (μm) 13 12 Six different chemical solutions were prepared, Table 4.
Yarn fineness (tex) 800 1200 These were selected to simulate the alkaline
Elastic modulus (MPa) 90 75 cementitious matrix. 1 M NaOH is to represent the
alkaline nature of concrete, 3% NaCl is to represent the
Elongation at failure (%) 3.1 4.7 contamination by chloride ions, and 10% Na2SO4 is to
Sizing content (%) 0.1 0.2 represent the contamination by sulphate ions, and their
three combinations to simulate the effect of both
Table2: Chemical Composition of BF
chlorides and sulphates. The strengths of the solutions
Chemical components Basalt Weight % were selected to provide accelerated testing regime.
SiO2 (silica) 57.5 SEM/EDX: Microstructure study of BF was carried out
Al2O3 (alumina) 16.9 using a FEI Environmental Scanning Electron
Microscope. The fibres were carbon coated and
Fe2O3 (ferric oxide) 9.5 analysed at 30KV voltage.
CaO 7.8
Experimental Procedure
MgO 3.7
For the experiment, samples were prepared by placing
Na2O 2.5 45 g of BF in 500 ml of each solution. The weight of BF

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 805 INDUBHUSHAN P ATNAIKUNI, H IMABINDU MYADARABOINA AND D AVID L AW

was measured at fixed intervals at 3, 7, 14, 21, 28, 42 determine the chemical composition after and before the
and 62 days. The pH of the solutions was also measured treatment, the condition of the fibers and the presence of
at each time interval. The BF measurements were taken any precipitates on the fibers.
by washing the specimens with distilled water and
Results & Discussion
placing them in an oven for 24 hrs at 105 oC to obtain a
dry mass at each time interval. A photographic record of Experimental Results & Analysis
the fibres and the solution was also made at each point The mass of BF with time in each solution is shown in
and also the volume of the remaining solution. Table 5 and Figure 2. The % weight lost and pH at the
Prior to the conclusion of the experiment, the specimens conclusion of the tests is given in Table 6.
were also analysed using SEM and EDX techniques to
Table5: Weight variation (in grams) results obtained from the experiment during 62 days
BF in BF in BF in BF in NaOH + BF in NaOH + BF in NaOH +
NaCl Na2SO4 NaOH NaCl Na2SO4 NaCl + Na2SO4
Day 0 45.00 45.00 45.00 45.00 45.00 45.00
Day 3 45.96 46.05 45.65 45.50 46.40 46.80
Day 7 45.49 45.55 44.50 44.65 43.30 44.80
Day 15 44.66 44.70 41.85 41.60 39.10 38.95
Day 21 44.76 44.80 39.80 40.25 35.80 36.85
Day 28 44.39 44.45 37.50 38.80 30.65 34.45
Day 42 44.22 44.35 35.90 36.70 14.90 30.25
Day 62 44.13 44.15 31.85 32.50 3.90 27.00

Fig2: Weight loss of the BF immersed in different solutions Vs time over a period of 62 days
Table6: Summary of weight loss and pH at day 62
NaOH NaOH + NaOH + NaCl +
Solution NaCl Na2SO4 NaOH
+ NaCl Na2SO4 Na2SO4
Initial Volumes of the solutions
500 500 500 500 500 500
(ml)
Initial weight of BF (gms) 45 45 45 45 45 45
Original pH of the solution 9.22 9.22 12.22 12.8 12.90 13.35
pH after 62 days 8.33 8.19 12.55 12.68 12.93 12.83
Volume of the Solution Left
300 300 0 0 0 0
(ml)
Weight of BF after 62 days 44.13 44.15 31.85 29.35 4.55 28
% of Weight Loss of BF after
1.89 1.87 29.2 34.7 90 37.8
62 days

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 Durability of Basalt Fibres in Concrete
194

Visual Analysis More than 50% volume was lost at the end of 21
days and there was no solution left at the end of 62
 BF treated with NaCl: No surface damage was
days, Fig 4-e (21 days). There was slight increase
observed, the condition of the fibers at the
of pH from 12.90 to 12.93, table 6.
conclusion of the test appeared the same as the
original BF, Fig 3-a. The data shows a small
increase in mass for the solution at day 3 and at day
7, table 5. At the conclusion of the test there was
only a 1.89 % variation in the initial and final
weight, table 6. In addition, the colour as well as
the volume had not changed significantly, Fig 4-a
(21 days) and table 6. The pH had decreased from (a) (b) (c)
9.22 to 8.33 over the course of the trial.
 BF treated with Na2SO4: Similar to the NaCl
exposure no surface damage was observed and the
fibres appeared the same as the original BF, Fig 3-
b. Again a small increase in mass and white traces
of powder on the dried fibres was noted at day 3
and at day 7 but at the conclusion of the test only a (d) (e) (f)
1.87 % change in the actual weight was recorded, Fig. 3 BF after 62 days of treatment with a) 3% NaCl
table 6. In addition, the colour as well as the (b) 10 % Na2SO4 (c) 1 M NaOH d) 1M NaOH + 3%
volume of the Na2SO4 solution had not changed NaCl e) 1M NaOH +10%Na2SO4 (f) 1 M NaOH+10%
significantly, Fig 4-b (21 days) and table 6. A Na2SO4+3 %NaCl
decrease in pH was also noted from 9.22 to 8.19.  BF treated with NaOH+NaCl+Na2SO4: Severe
 BF treated with NaOH: Severe damage of the damage of fibres was observed, and the fibres had
fibres was observed, the fibres had lost all of their lost all of their original characteristics such as
original characteristics such as colour and texture colour and texture. Again the fibres had broken and
and each fibre had broken and split into many thin split into many thin strands, Fig 3-f. The weight
strands, Fig 3-c. The weight loss observed was loss observed was approximately 38% at the end of
approximately 29% at the end of 62 days. In 62 days. The solution became turbid with time and
addition, the solution became turbid with time and there was almost 50% volume reduction at the end
there was almost 50% volume reduction in the of 21 days and there was no solution left at the end
solution at the end of 21 days and there was no of 62 days, Fig 4-f (21 days) and table 6. The pH
solution left at the end of the 62 days, Fig 4-c(21 dropped from 13.35 to 12.83, table 6.
days). There was an increase of pH from 12.22 to
12.55 by 62 days, table 6. SEM/EDX Analysis
 BF treated with NaOH+NaCl: Similar to the fibre The basalt fibers were examined using SEM and EDX
treated with NaOH, severe damage of fibres was analysis to determine changes in the morphology and
observed. Again the fibres had lost their entire composition with time. An analysis was conducted on
original colour and texture and each fibre had untreated fibers at day 0 and on fibers from each
broken and split into many thin strands. Fig 3-d. solution at the conclusion of the trial. The SEM images
The weight loss observed was approximately 35 % on day 62 and % chemical compositions of each
at the end of 62 days. The solution had again specimen are given in Fig 5 and table 7.
become turbid with time and the volume of the
 BF treated with NaCl: Small white spots were
alkali solutions were reduced such that there was
found on the fibre surface, Fig 5-a, but no
almost 50% volume reduction in the solutions at the
degradation of the surface was observed. No
end of 21 days and there was no solution left at the
significant difference in the elemental composition
end of 62 days, Fig 4-d (21 days) and table 6.
over the course of the experiment was observed,
 BF treated with NaOH+Na2SO4: Complete
table 7, expect a small increase in Na content,
dissolution of the fibres was observed. Not only had
attributed to NaCl deposition on the fibres.
the fibres lost all of their original colour and
 BF treated with Na2SO4: As with the visual
texture, but most of the fibres had become powder,
observations the SEM/EDX analysis showed almost
Fig 3-e. The weight loss observed was around 90%
identical results to those for the chloride solution,
at the end of 62 days. The solution became more
Fig 5-b. The only variation being a small increase
turbid than the rest and the volume was reduced.

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 807 INDUBHUSHAN P ATNAIKUNI, H IMABINDU MYADARABOINA AND D AVID L AW

in the O and S, suggesting a small deposition of

sulphate ions on the surface, table 7.
 BF treated with NaOH: Heavy deposits can be
seen on the fibres, Fig 5-c, EDX analysis showed
an increase in the Na and O content, coupled with a
reduction in the other metal elements, in particular
the Si content, table 7.
 BF treated with NaOH+NaCl: Again deposits
were observed on the fibre surface, Fig 5-d. The
EDX analysis showed an increase in Na and Cl,
coupled with a reduction in the other metal
elements, in particular Si content, table 7. EDX
analysis of the deposits, fig 7, shows them to be
primarily NaCl.
 BF treated with NaOH+Na2SO4: Etching of the
fibres was observed, Fig 5-e. The EDX analysis
showed an increase in the O and S content, as in the
sulphate solution. However, an appreciable
decrease in the Si content was observed, as for the
hydroxide only solution, table 7. Fig. 5 SEM images of BF after 62 days treatment with
 BF treated with NaOH+NaCl+Na2SO4: Again a) 3% NaCl (b) 10 % Na2SO4 (c) 1 M NaOH d) 1M
deposits were observed on the fibres as well as NaOH + 3% NaCl e) 1M NaOH +10%Na2SO4 (f) 1 M
etching, Fig 5-f. Increases in O, Na and Cl were NaOH+10% Na2SO4+3 %NaCl
 Observed, indicating the deposition of NaCl, table 7
and Fig 7. The areas of etching showed an increase
in O and a decrease in the metal elements, again
most significantly in the Si content.

(a)

(b)
Fig. 4 Solutions left after 21days of immersion of BF
with a) 3% NaCl (b) 10 %Na2SO4(c) 1 M NaOH d) 1M
NaOH + 3% NaCl e) 1M NaOH +10%Na2SO4 (f) 1 M
NaOH+10% Na2SO4+ 3 %NaCl

(c)

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 Durability of Basalt Fibres in Concrete
808

(c)
(d)

(e) (d)
Fig. 7 SEM images of BF after 62 days treatment with
a) at point 1 of SEM image of BF NaCl + NaOH (b) at
point 2 of NaCl + NaOH (c) at point 1 of 3% NaC l+
1M NaOH + 10%Na2SO4 (d) at point 2 of 1 M NaOH +
10%Na2SO4 + 3%NaCl
Table 7 Surface concentrations of elements of treated
BF (wt%)
NaOH + NaCl
NaOH + NaCl
(f) + Na2SO4
Fig. 6 EDX analysis of BF after 62 days treatment in a) BF Cl OH Cl OH
3% NaCl (b) 10 % Na2SO4 (c) 1 M NaOH d) 1M NaOH O 36.31 15.311 42.16 24.530 45.926
+ 3% NaCl e) 1M NaOH +10%Na2SO4 (f) 1 M
NaOH+10% Na2SO4+ 3 %NaCl Na 1.36 21.199 3.17 15.910 4.372
Mg 2.68 1.243 2.23 1.610 2.528
Al 10.26 5.203 7.72 5.370 8.632
Si 32.87 16.076 22.84 13.850 22.178
K 1.70 1.031 1.29 0.900 1.082
Ca 6.56 4.145 7.69 2.940 4.372
Ti 0.90 0.644 0.79 0.850 1.204
Fe 7.12 4.794 6.90 4.780 7.844
Cl - 30.075 0.49 28.510 0.898
(a) S 0.280 0.33 0.730 0.958
Table 8 Surface concentrations of elements of treated
BF (wt%) at deposition and at no deposition in NaOH +
NaCl & NaOH + NaCl + Na2SO4
NaOH + NaCl
NaOH + NaCl
+ Na2SO4
BF Cl OH Cl OH
O 36.31 15.311 42.16 24.530 45.926
(b) Na 1.36 21.199 3.17 15.910 4.372
Mg 2.68 1.243 2.23 1.610 2.528

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 809 INDUBHUSHAN P ATNAIKUNI, H IMABINDU MYADARABOINA AND D AVID L AW

Al 10.26 5.203 7.72 5.370 8.632 The result of the dissolution is the degradation of the
fibres, the solution becoming turbid due to the metal
Si 32.87 16.076 22.84 13.850 22.178
ions dissolving and the loss of the solution due to the
K 1.70 1.031 1.29 0.900 1.082 reaction with the fibres and especially dissolution of Fe
Ca 6.56 4.145 7.69 2.940 4.372 ions [10,13] The addition of NaCl to the NaOH resulted
Ti 0.90 0.644 0.79 0.850 1.204 in similar observations to the NaOH solution. However,
when Na2SO4 is added to the NaOH the degradation of
Fe 7.12 4.794 6.90 4.780 7.844 the fibres has increased, such that the fibres are reduced
Cl - 30.075 0.49 28.510 0.898 to powder by the conclusion of the trial. It is
S 0.280 0.33 0.730 0.958 hypothesised that this is due to the sulphate ions
increasing the pH of the solution due to the hydration
2. Discussion reaction.
The results show that little to no degradation occurs on SO42-+ H2O <----> HSO4- + OH- (Hence release of more
the BF exposed to just the NaCl or the Na2SO4, small OH- ions)
deposits of the chloride and sulphate salts were
observed on the fibres. The slight reduction in volume [1] This is reflected by a lower pH in the NaOH +
of solution is attributed to the hydration of fibres but Na2SO4 solution compared to the NaOH or NaOH +
this hydration did not affect the Si structure, as there are NaCl solutions. Interestingly when both the chloride and
no hydroxyl ions to break the Si-O bond. The lack of sulphate ions are present with the NaOH the degradation
degradation of the fibre structure is also confirmed by observed is similar to the NaOH and NaOH + NaCl
the clean colour of the solution at the conclusion of the solutions. This is attributed to the chloride ions
tests. The decrease in pH is a function of the dissolution suppressing the production of hydroxyl ions by the
of the NaCl and Na2SO4 salts coupled with carbonation hydrolysis of the Na2SO4 salt. This is supported by the
of the solution in the atmosphere. All the fibres which pH in the NaOH + NaCl + Na2SO4 solution being lower
were exposed to the alkaline (NaOH) solution have than the NaOH + Na2SO4 solution.
shown degradation. This degradation is caused by the 3. Conclusion
hydroxyl ions forming weak bonds with silicon atoms
Neither chloride ions nor sulphate ions alone have any
on the substrate surface causing the original lattice
deleterious effect on the BF however, in an alkaline
bonds to weaken. The surface of silica is hydrophilic
environment equivalent to a pH 12.5 severe degradation
and will attract OH− ions to fill any open bonds from the
is observed. The degradation is increased in an alkaline
silica (hydration)[12], Fig 8.
environment by the presence of sulphate ions. The
presence of chloride ions has little effect on the
degradation in alkaline solutions, but does slightly
reduce the effect when both chloride and sulphate ions
are present.
The data indicates that the use of BF in concrete as fibre
reinforcement is susceptible to degradation due to the
alkaline nature of the concrete. Hence modification or
treatment of basalt fibres before using in concrete is
recommended.
Fig. 8 A simplified, 2D schematic of the surface of silica
when hydrated 4. Acknowledgements
It then becomes possible for the silicate molecules to The authors would like to acknowledge Mr Pavel
break away from the bulk structure, producing Si(OH) −5 Ryjkov and other technical staff of concrete laboratory
molecules in solution, Fig 9[12]. of RMIT University for their support in conducting the
experiments. The SEM and EDX analysis was carried
out with the assistance of the RMIT Microscopy and
Microanalysis Facility (RMMF) at RMIT University.
Also, would like to acknowledge the Kemenny Vek Ltd,
Dubna, Moscow region, Russia for providing basalt
fibres for the present research.
Reference
[1] J. Sim, et al., "Characteristics of basalt fiber as a
Fig. 9 Dissolution of the BF substrate strengthening material for concrete structures,"

International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering

ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 803-810
 Durability of Basalt Fibres in Concrete
810

Composites: Part B Engineering vol. Vol. 36, pp.
504-512, 2005.
[2] http://www.sudaglass.com/strands.html.
[3] http://www.compositesworld.com/articles/basalt-
fibers-alternative-to-glass.
[4] http://www.albarrie.com/techfabrics/continuousfibe
r.aspx.
[5] Van de Velde K., Basalt Fiber as a reinforcement
for a composite, Department of Textiles, Ghent
Univeristy, Belgium.
[6] J.Militky, J.Zeisbergerova, V. Kovacic.(2003).”
Chemical degradation of Basalt Fibers.
[7] Wang Mingchao., "Chemical Durability and
Mechanical Properties of Alkali-proof Basalt Fiber
and its," Beijing, 2008.
[8] F. N. Rabinovich., "Stability of Baslat Fibers in a
medium of Hydrating Cement, 2001.
[9] Bo Xiao, Hui Li & & Guijun Xian," Hydrothermal
Ageing of Basalt Fiber Reinforced Epoxy
Composites", The 5th International Conference on
FRP Composites in Civil Engineering, 2010, China.
[10] Bin Wei, Hailin Cao and Shenhua Song (2010),
"Tensile behaviour contrast of basalt and glass
fibers after chemical treatment", Herbin Institute of
Technology , Harbin, China.
[11] T.J Hung and Subramanian( 1993)," Aklali
resistance enhancement of basalt fibers by hydrated
zirconia films by the sol-gel process", Department
of Mechanical and Materials Engineering,
Washington State University, Washington.
[12] www.ego-gw.it/ILIAS-GW/documents/
London alks ... M1- eid.ppt.
[13] Bin Wei, Hailin Cao and Shenhua Song (2010).
"Degradation of basalt fiber and glass/epoxy resin
composites in seawater", Herbin Institute of
Technology , Harbin, Chi

International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering

ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 803-810
 Indexed in
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ISSN 0974-5904, Volume 07, No. 04

Geopolymer Concrete Applications

B. VIJAYA RANGAN
Curtin University, Perth, Australia
Email: V. Rangan@curtin.edu.au

Abstract: Considerable literature is available on geopolymer concrete. The paper presents a brief background, the
constituents, and the mixture proportions of geopolymer concrete. Several applications of geopolymer concrete are
given.

1. Introduction: geopolymerisation reacts with the calcium present to

Davidovits (1988; 1994) proposed that an alkaline
liquid could be used to react with the silicon (Si) and the
aluminum (Al) in a source material of geological origin
or in by-product materials such as low-calcium fly ash
to produce binders. Because the chemical reaction that
takes place in this case is a polymerization process, he
coined the term „Geopolymer‟ to represent these
binders.
There are two main constituents of geopolymers,
namely the source materials and the alkaline liquids.
The source materials for geopolymers based on
alumina-silicate should be rich in silicon (Si) and
aluminum (Al). These could be natural minerals such as
kaolinite, clays, etc. Alternatively, by-product materials
such as fly ash, silica fume, slag, rice-husk ash, red
mud, etc. could be used as source materials. The choice
and combination of the source materials for making
geopolymers depends on factors such as availability,
cost, type of application, and specific demand of the end
users.
The alkaline liquids are from soluble alkali metals that
are usually Sodium or Potassium based. The most
common alkaline liquid used in geopolymerisation is a
combination of sodium hydroxide (NaOH) or potassium
hydroxide (KOH) and sodium silicate or potassium
silicate.
Water is released during the chemical reaction that
occurs in the formation of geopolymers. This water,
expelled from the geopolymer matrix during the curing
and further drying periods, leaves behind nano-pores in
the matrix, which provide benefits to the performance of
geopolymers. When a small proportion of calcium-rich
source material such as slag is included in the source
material in order to accelerate the setting time and to
alter the curing regime adopted for the geopolymer
mixture, the water released during the
produce hydration products.
According to Davidovits (1994), geopolymeric
materials have a wide range of applications in the field
of industries such as in the automobile and aerospace,
non-ferrous foundries and metallurgy, civil engineering
and plastic industries. The type of application of
geopolymeric materials is determined by the chemical
structure in terms of the atomic ratio Si: Al in the
polysialate. Davidovits (1994) classified the type of
application according to the Si: Al ratio as presented in
Table1. A low ratio of Si: Al of 1, 2, or 3 initiates a 3D-
Network that is very rigid, while Si: Al ratio higher than
15 provides a polymeric character to the geopolymeric
material. For many applications in the civil engineering
field, a low Si: Al ratio is suitable (Table 1).
Table1: Applications of Geopolymeric Materials Based
on Silica-to-Alumina Atomic Ratio (Davidovits, 1994)
Si: Al
Applications
ratio
- Bricks
1 - Ceramics
- Fire protection
- Low CO2 cements and concretes
2 - Radioactive and toxic waste
encapsulation
- Fire protection fibre glass composite
- Foundry equipments
- Heat resistant composites, 200oC to
3
1000oC
- Tooling for aeronautics titanium
process
- Sealants for industry, 200oC to 600oC
>3
- Tooling for aeronautics SPF aluminum
- Fire resistant and heat resistant fibre
20 - 35
composites
2. Constituents of Geopolymer Concrete

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6th–8th January, 2014
 Geopolymer Concrete Applications
Geopolymer concrete can be manufactured by using the
low-calcium (ASTM Class F) fly ash obtained from
coal-burning power stations. The chemical composition
and the particle size distribution of the fly ash must be
established prior to use. An X-Ray Fluorescence (XRF)
analysis may be used to determine the chemical
composition of the fly ash.
Low-calcium fly ash has been successfully used to
manufacture geopolymer concrete when the silicon and
aluminum oxides constituted about 80% by mass, with
the Si-to-Al ratio of about 2. The particle size
distribution tests revealed that 80% of the fly ash
particles were smaller than 50 m (Gourley, 2003;
Gourley and Johnson, 2005; Hardjito and Rangan, 2005;
Wallah and Rangan, 2006; Sumajouw and Rangan,
2006).
Coarse and fine aggregates used by the concrete
industry are suitable to manufacture geopolymer
concrete. The aggregate grading curves currently used
in concrete practice are applicable in the case of
geopolymer concrete (Hardjito and Rangan, 2005;
Wallah and Rangan, 2006; Sumajouw and Rangan,
2006; Gourey, 2003; Gourley and Johnson, 2005;
Siddiqui, 2007, Sarker, 2007, Chang et al 2009).
A combination of sodium silicate solution and sodium
hydroxide (NaOH) solution can be used as the alkaline
liquid. It is recommended that the alkaline liquid is
prepared by mixing both the solutions together at least
24 hours prior to use. The sodium silicate solution is
commercially available in different grades. The sodium
hydroxide with 97-98% purity, in flake or pellet form, is
commercially available. The solids must be dissolved in
water to make a solution with the required
concentration. The concentration of sodium hydroxide
solution can vary in the range between 8 Molar and 16
Molar; however, 8 Molar solution is adequate for most
applications. Note that the mass of water is the major
component in both the alkaline solutions.
In order to accelerate the setting time of fresh
geopolymer concrete and to facilitate room-temperature
curing, a small proportion of calcium-rich source
material such as slag may be added to the mixture.
When required, a high range water reducer super
plasticizer and extra water may also be added to the
mixture.
Mixture Proportions of Geopolymer Concrete
The primary difference between geopolymer concrete
and Portland cement concrete is the binder. The silicon
and aluminum oxides in the low-calcium fly ash reacts
with the alkaline liquid to form the geopolymer paste
that binds the loose coarse aggregates, fine aggregates,
and other un-reacted materials together to form the
geopolymer concrete.
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812
As in the case of Portland cement concrete, the coarse
and fine aggregates occupy about 75 to 80% of the mass
of geopolymer concrete. This component of geopolymer
concrete mixtures can be designed using the tools
currently available for Portland cement concrete. The
aggregates must be prepared to be in saturated-surface-
dry (SSD) condition, a state in which the aggregates will
not absorb any further moisture but no surface water is
present. In geopolymer concrete, the necessity for SSD
is to eliminate the absorption of the alkaline solution by
the aggregates thus reducing the polymerization of the
fly ash. Conversely the presence of excessive water may
compromise the properties of the geopolymer concrete.
Design of Geopolymer Concrete
The role and the influence of aggregates are considered
to be the same as in the case of Portland cement
concrete. The mass of combined aggregates may be
taken to be between 75% and 80% of the mass of
geopolymer concrete. The performance criteria of a
geopolymer concrete mixture depend on the application.
In order to meet the performance criteria, the alkaline
liquid-to-fly ash ratio by mass, the wet-mixing time, the
heat-curing temperature, and the heat-curing time may
be selected as parameters.
With regard to alkaline liquid-to-fly ash ratio by mass,
values in the range of 0.30 and 0.45 are recommended.
Sodium silicate solution is cheaper than sodium
hydroxide solids.
Geopolymer concrete can be manufactured by using
only sodium (or potassium) silicate solution. The
following can be used as a base trial mixture; the mass
of constituents are given for one cubic metre of
geopolymer concrete: Low-calcium Fly Ash = 385 kg;
Blast-furnace slag = 85 kg; Sodium silicate solution =
110 kg; Water = 45 kg; Coarse Aggregates: 20 mm =
280 kg, 14 mm = 370 kg, 7 mm = 650 kg; Fine sand =
550 kg.This base trial mixture is rich and stiff, and can
be modified to suit the required design requirements and
the local materials.The expected 28-day compressive
strength may be in the range of 30 to 40 MPa.
The geopolymer concrete can be cured at room
temperature (21 degree C) or at ambient temperature in
tropical climate (30-40 degree C). For precast concrete
products, heat-curing at 60-80 degree C is suitable.
It is important to know both the short-term and the long-
term properties of geopolymer concrete.
Geopolymer Precast Concrete Products
High-early strength gain is a characteristic of
geopolymer concrete when dry-heat or steam cured,
although ambient temperature curing is possible for
geopolymer concrete. It has been used to produce
precast railway sleepers, sewer pipes, and other
 813 B. V IJAYA R ANGAN
prestressed concrete building components. The early-
age strength gain is a characteristic that can best be
exploited in the precast industry where steam curing or
heated bed curing is common practice and is used to
maximize the rate of production of elements.
Geopolymer concrete has excellent resistance to
chemical attack and shows promise in the use of
aggressive environments where the durability of
Portland cement concrete may be of concern. This is
particularly applicable in aggressive marine
environments, environments with high carbon dioxide
or sulphate rich soils. Similarly in highly acidic
conditions, geopolymer concrete has shown to have
superior acid resistance and may be suitable for
applications such as mining, some manufacturing
industries and sewer systems.
Sewer Pipes and Railway Sleepers
Gourley and Johnson (2005) have reported the details of
geopolymer precast concrete products on a commercial
scale. The products included sewer pipes, railway
sleepers, and wall panels. Reinforced geopolymer
concrete sewer pipes with diameters in the range from
375 mm to 1800 mm have been manufactured using the
facilities currently available to make similar pipes using
Portland cement concrete. Tests performed in a
simulated aggressive sewer environment have shown
that geopolymer concrete sewer pipes outperformed
comparable Portland cement concrete pipes by many
folds. Gourley and Johnson (2005) also reported the
good performance of reinforced geopolymer concrete
railway sleepers in mainline tracks and excellent
resistance of geopolymer mortar wall panels to fire.
Box Culverts
Siddiqui (2007) and Cheema et al (2009) demonstrated
the manufacture of reinforced geopolymer concrete
culverts on a commercial scale. Tests have shown that
the culverts performed well and met the specification
requirements of such products. Reinforced geopolymer
concrete box culverts of 1200 mm (length) x600 mm
(depth) x1200 mm (width) and compressive cylinders
were manufactured in a commercial precast concrete
plant located in Perth, Western Australia. The dry
materials were mixed for about 3 minutes. The liquid
component of the mixture was then added, and the
mixing continued for another 4 minutes. The
geopolymer concrete was transferred into a kibble from
where it was then cast into the culvert moulds (one
mould for two box culverts) as shown in Figure 1. The
culverts were compacted on a vibrating table and using
a hand -held vibrator. The cylinders were cast in 2
layers with each layer compacted on a vibrating table
for 15 seconds. The slump of every batch of fresh
geopolymer concrete was also measured in order to
observe the consistency of the mixtures.
International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering
ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 811-815
(a) (b)
(a) Box culverts in moulds (b) Box culverts ready for
testing
Fig1: Precast Geopolymer Box Culverts (Siddiqui,
2007; Cheema et al, 2009)
After casting, the cylinders were covered with plastic
bags and placed under the culvert moulds. A plastic
cover was placed over the culvert mould and the steam
tube was inserted inside the cover. The culverts and the
cylinders were steam-cured for 24 hours. Initially, the
specimens were steam-cured for about 4 hours; the
strength at that stage was adequate for the specimens to
be released from the moulds. The culverts and the
remaining cylinders were steam-cured for another 20
hours. The operation of the precast plant was such that
the 20 hours of steam-curing has to be split into two
parts. That is, the steam-curing was shut down at 11
p.m. and restarted at 6 a.m. next day. In all, the total
time taken for steam-curing was 24 hours.
The box culvert made of geopolymer concrete was
tested for load bearing strength in a load testing
machine which had a capacity of 370 kN and operated
to Australian Standards, AS 1597.1-1974. The culvert
was positioned with the legs firmly inside the channel
supports. Load was then applied and increased
continuously so that the proof load of 125 kN was
reached in 5 minutes. After the application of the proof
load, the culvert was examined for cracks using a crack-
measuring gauge. The measured width of cracks did not
exceed 0.08 mm. The load was then increased to 220 kN
and a crack of width 0.15 mm appeared underside the
crown. As the load increased to about 300 kN, a crack
of 0.4 mm width appeared in the leg of the culvert. The
load was then released to examine to see whether all
cracks had closed. No crack was observed after the
removal of the load.
According to Australian Standard AS 1597, a reinforced
concrete culvert should carry the proof load without
developing a crack greater than 0.15 mm and on
removal of the load; no crack should be greater than
0.08 mm. The test demonstrated that geopolymer
concrete box culvert met these requirements.
Precast Floor Beams
Thirty-three reinforced geopolymer concrete precast
beams have been used in the construction of The
 Geopolymer Concrete Applications
University of Queensland‟s Global Change Institute
building in Australia, as shown in Figure 2. Some
details are reported in Architecture &Design News
(2013). The geopolymer concrete mixture comprised
both fly ash and ground blast furnace slag as the source
materials. The geopolymer floor panels experienced low
shrinkage, low heat of reaction which avoids the
possibility of thermal cracking, 30 per cent higher
flexural tensile strength, and higher durability than
similar Portland cement concrete.
Fig2: Precast Geopolymer Floor Beams (Architecture
&Design News 2013)
Andrews-Phaedonos and Ahmad Shayan (2012, 2013)
presented several trial applications of geopolymer
concrete by VicRoads Australia; these include
geoplymer precast footway panels and insitu
geopolymer concrete landscape retaining walls. Other
applications and use of geopolymer concrete are
contained in the Recommended Practice Note on
Geopolymer Concrete published by the Concrete
Institute of Australia (2011). Recently, Berndt et al
(2013) commented that geopolymer concrete is ready
for applications in precast industry and in the
manufacture of non-structural elements.
3. Concluding Remarks
The paper briefly presented some background
information on geopolymer concrete. Based on the
behavior and properties of geopolymer concrete
available in the literature, it is clear that geopolymers
have a wide variety of applications in infra-structure
developments. Some applications have been described
in the paper.
Reference
[1] Ahmad Shayan, Amin Xu, Andrews-Phaedonos, F.
(2013), “Field applications of geopolymer concrete:
a measure towards reducing carbon dioxide
emission “Concrete in Australia, Vol.39, No.3,
pp.34-44.
[2] Andrews-Phaedonos, F. (2012), “Reducing the
carbon footprint-The Vic Roads experience”,
Concrete in Australia, Vol. 38, No.1, pp.40-48.
[3] Architecture & Design News (2013) 13 September.
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814
[4] Berndt, Marita L., Sanjayan, Jay, Foster, Stephen,
Sagoe- Crentsil, Kwesi, and Heidrich, Craig (2013),
“Overcoming barriers to implementation of
geopolymer concrete” Concrete in Australia,
Vol.39, No.3, pp.2733.
[5] Chang, E. H. , Sarker, P, Lloyd, N and Rangan,
B.V. (2007), “Shear behaviour of reinforced fly
ash-based geopolymer concrete beams”,
Proceedings of the23rd Biennial Conference of the
Concrete Institute of Australia, Adelaide, Australia,
pp. 679 – 688.
[6] Cheema, D.S., Lloyd, N.A., Rangan, B.V. (2009),
“Durability of Geopolymer Concrete Box Culverts-
A Green Alternative”, Proceedings of the 34th
Conference on Our World in Concrete and
Structures, Singapore.
[7] Concrete Institute of Australia (2011),
“Recommended Practice Note on Geopolymer
Concrete”.
[8] [8] Davidovits, J (1988) “Soft Mineralogy and
Geopolymers”, Proceedings of the of Geopolymer
88 International Conference, the Université de
Technologie, Compiègne, France.
[9] Davidovits, J (1994) “High-Alkali Cements for 21st
Century Concretes. In Concrete Technology, Past.
[10] Present and Future”, Proceedings of V. Mohan
Malhotra Symposium, Editor: P. Kumar Metha,
ACI SP- 144, 383-397.
[11] Gourley, J. T. (2003), “Geopolymers; Opportunities
for Environmentally Friendly Construction
Materials”, Paper presented at the Materials 2003
Conference: Adaptive Materials for a Modern
Society, Sydney.
[12] Gourley, J. T., & Johnson, G. B. (2005),
“Developments in Geopolymer Precast Concrete”,
Paper presented at the International Workshop on
Geopolymers and Geopolymer Concrete, Perth,
Australia.
[13] Hardjito, D. and Rangan, B. V. (2005),
Development and Properties of Low-Calcium Fly
Ash-based Geopolymer Concrete, Research Report
GC1, Faculty of Engineering, Curtin University of
Technology, Perth, available at espace@curtin or
www.geopolymer.org.
[14] Rangan, B.V. (2008) “Low-Calcium Fly Ash-based
Geopolymer Concrete”, Chapter 26 in Concrete
Construction Engineering Handbook, Editor-in
Chief: E.G. Nawy, Second Edition, CRC Press,
New York.
[15] Rangan, B.V. (2009), “Engineering Properties of
Geopolymer Concrete”, Chapter 11 in
Geopolymers: Structures, Processing, Properties,
and Applications, Editors: J.Provis and J. van
Deventer, Woodhead Publishing Limited, London.
[16] Sarker P.K., Grigg A, and Chang E.H. (2007),
“Bond Strength of Geopolymer Concrete with
 815 B. V IJAYA R ANGAN

Reinforcing Steel”, Proceedings of Recent Reinforced Beams and Columns, Research Report
Developments in Structural Engineering, GC3, Faculty of Engineering, Curtin University of
Mechanics and Computation, CD ROM, Editor: A. Technology, Perth, available at espace@curtin or
Zingoni, Millpress, the Netherlands, 1315-1320. www.geopolymer.org.
[17] Siddiqui, K.S. (2007),”Strength and Durability of [19] Wallah, S.E. and Rangan, B.V. (2006), Low-
Low-Calcium Fly Ash-based Geopolymer Calcium Fly Ash-Based Geopolymer Concrete:
Concrete”, Final Year Honours Dissertation, The Long-Term Properties, Research Report GC2,
University of Western Australia, Perth. Faculty of Engineering, Curtin University of
[18] Sumajouw, M.D.J. and Rangan, B.V. (2006), Low- Technology, Perth, available at espace@curtin or
Calcium Fly Ash-Based Geopolymer Concrete: www.geopolymer.org.

International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering

ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 811-815
 Indexed in
Scopus Compendex and Geobase Elsevier, Chemical
Abstract Services-USA, Geo-Ref Information Services-USA,
List B of Scientific Journals, Poland,
Directory of Research Journals
www.cafetinnova.org August 2014, P.P. 816-820
ISSN 0974-5904, Volume 07, No. 04

Global Warming and Sustainability Issues as Related to Concrete

Technology
V.M. MALHOTRA
Natural Resources Canada, CANMET, Ottawa, Canada

Abstract: The February 2007 report issued by the International Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has stated in no
uncertain terms that global warming is no longer an issue that has to be debated. According to the report, global
warming is here and drastic actions are needed for the long-term sustainability of our environment. It is in this
context that this paper discusses the role supplementary cementing materials as partial replacement of cement in
concrete in reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Primary emphasis is on the use of high volumes of fly ash in
concrete because this is available in huge quantities worldwide, and this vast supply will continue to be available at
least up to 2050. Other supplementary cementing materials discussed include granulated blast-furnace slag and rice-
husk ash. The paper is concluded by referring to the tradable emission rights, and the role of developing countries
as regards to CO2 emissions and sustainability.

1. Introduction: of a cement plant involved, one cannot expect the

emergence of major environmentally friendly cement
The International Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) in a
clinker manufacturing technologies in the near future
landmark report issued in February 2007 has laid to rest
that can reduce CO2 emissions. This leads us to the
any doubts about global warming. According to the
conclusion that the answer lies in reducing the output of
IPCC, the global warming is here and it is primarily due
cement clinker, and the loss in clinker production to be
to human activity. It recommends drastic measures to
overcome by the use of fly ash and other supplementary
reduce CO2 emissions, the primary source of global
cementing materials such as blast-furnace slag and rice-
warming, if present-day environment is to be sustained.
husk ash in concrete.
It is in this context that this paper discusses the role of
supplementary cementing materials as partial Availability of Fly Ash
replacement of cement in concrete in reducing Based on the fragmented information available, the
greenhouse gas emissions. current annual production of fly ash is of the order of
Greenhouse Gas Emissions from the Manufacturing 900 million tonnes worldwide. The big producing
of Portland Cement Clinker countries are China, India, and the U.S.A. In addition to
this, there are millions of tonnes of fly ash that have
The production of one tonne of portland cement clinker
been stockpiled over the years and this is being
contributes approximately one tonne of CO2 to the
continued. It has been reported that in the U.K. alone,
atmosphere, together with the minor amounts of NOx
120 million tonnes could be recovered from the
and CH4. The total CO2 emissions per tonne of cement
stockpiles (1). The Wisconsin Power, in Milwaukee,
can range from about 1.1 tonne of CO2 from the wet
U.S.A. is already doing so. The utilization rate of fly ash
processing plants to about 0.8 tonnes from a plant with
in concrete varies from country to country (Table1). In
precalcinators. About half of the CO2 emissions are due
the U.S.A., fly ash is used as a separately-batched
to the calcination of limestone and the other half are due
material at concrete batch plants, where as in Europe
to the combustion of fossil fuels. The world production
and India, fly ash blended cements are being produced
of cement clinker contributes about 7% (1.96 billion
for use in concrete. Currently, most fly ash blended
tonnes) of total CO2 emissions in the world (about 28
cements in India incorporate abut 20 percent fly ash;
billion tonnes in 2006).
however one company produces blended cement with
Role of Fly Ash and Other Supplementary about 30 percent fly ash.
Cementing Materials in Reducing Co2 Emissions
Because of the very complex chemical composition of
portland cement clinker and the cost of the installation

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Proceedings of 3-Day International Conference on Emerging Trends in Civil Engineering (ICETE-2014,)
6th–8th January, 2014
 817
Table1: Coal Ash Production and Utilization, 2006*
Production
Country
(million tonnes)
China >600
India >110
U.S.A. >60
Russia 60
Germany 30
U.K. 10
*The above data include fly ash, bottom ash, and slag.
For every 100 tonnes of fly ash, there are approximately
25 tonnes of bottom ash and boiler slag. The above
production and utilization rates have been taken from
published data and personal communications. They are,
at best, estimates only, and therefore the margin of error
could be as high as 10 percent.
Notwithstanding that coal-burning power plants produce
huge amounts of CO2 emissions, and are
environmentally unfriendly, it should be kept in mind
that for the foreseeable future, power needs of the world
especially China, India and the U.S.A., will be met by
the coal-burning power plants because there are huge
reserves of good quality coal available worldwide, and
the power produced from these sources is still cheaper
than from other sources. Figure 1 shows the projection
of world coal use indicating that the coals use will
increase from 5.5 billion tonnes in 2005 to about 7.0
billion tonnes in 2020. In 2002, the percentage of
electricity generated by coal in the U.S.A.was 51 per
cent and is believed that this will stay about the same by
2025 (Figure 2). To meet the additional electrical
capacity planned (327,000 megawatts) in China, India
and the U.S.A., these countries will need 562, 213 and
72 new coal-fired plants by year 2012. Furthermore, in
several countries in northern Europe, nuclear power
plants are being phased out, and the reserves of natural
gas worldwide are limited compared to that of coal.
Thus it can be safely stated that fly ash will be available
in huge quantities for at least up to year 2050.
7.5
7.0
Billions of Short Tons
6.5
6.0
5.5
5.0
2000 2005 2010 2015
Time, years
Fig1: Projection of world coal use
International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering
ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 816-820
V.M. MALHOTRA
Utilization in
Concrete %
>20%
>20%
>15%
5
12
10
Fig2: Percentage of electricity for fuel type in the
U.S.A.
The vast majority of the available fly ashes for use in
concrete are low-calcium fly ashes (ASTM C 618, Class
F), and are basically the by-product of burning
anthracite or bituminous coal. These fly ashes, in
themselves, possess little or no cementitious value, but
will, in finely divided form and in the presence of
moisture, chemically react with calcium hydroxide at
ordinary temperatures to form compounds possessing
cementitious properties. In recent years, high-calcium
(ASTM C 618, Class C) fly ash is being marketed in the
U.S., Canada, Poland, Greece, and some other countries.
These fly ashes are by-products of burning lignite or
sub-bituminous coal, and have cementitious properties
in addition to being pozzolanic.
It should be mentioned that not all the available fly ash
is suitable for use in concrete. However, technologies
are available that can beneficiate those fly ashes that fail
to meet the fineness and carbon content requirements,
the two most important parameters of a fly ash for use
with cement in concrete. These include removal of
carbon by electrostatic and flotation methods. Grinding
and air classification methods have been used to
produce fly ash with high fineness, and this results in fly
ash with high pozzolanic properties.
Developing Countries
The infrastructure needs of developing countries have
led to huge increases in demand for portland cement
(Table 2). This has led to the installation of a large
number of new cement plants in China and India. For
example, a new plant with a capacity of 2 million tonnes
of clinker has just been commissioned in India, and the
plans are to double the capacity of this plant to 4 million
tonnes per year in the near future, thus making it the
world=s largest single clinker plant (3).
Paradoxically, the above countries are also installing
2020 2025 huge coal-fired power plants to supply electricity to
meet the growing needs of the population and
manufacturing industries. For example, it is anticipated
that by year 2010, India will double the capacity of the
 Global Warming and Sustainability Issues as Related to Concrete Technology
818

electric power generation from what is being generated cement, fly ash and other cementitious and pozzolanic
today, resulting in an increase in fly ash availability to materials. It is evident from Table 3 that fly ash is and
about 160 million tonnes annually. In that year, the will remain the major supplementary cementing
portland cement production is expected to reach 150 material for years to come. It is therefore important that
million tonnes. Table 3 presents current production and we concentrate our major efforts for the increased use of
anticipated production for the world for portland fly ash in concrete.
Table2: Regional and World Cement Production to Year 2010* (Million tonnes)
% of total % of total
1995 2000 2005 2010
1995 2010
European Union 168.1 187.9 194.1 189.3 12.1 9.4
Other parts of
65.8 80.0 90.2 94.7 4.7 4.9
Europe
Former Soviet
58.1 80.3 110.1 128.2 4.2 6.6
Union
North America 92.9 94.9 94.8 94.7 6.6 4.9
Central and South
89.4 106.6 127.4 145.0 6.4 7.5
America
Africa 64.8 74.3 80.7 85.5 4.6 4.4
Middle East 63.5 75.6 76.9 73.4 4.6 3.8
East Asia 623.4 732.7 798.8 844.3 44.6 43.4
S/SE Asia 161.2 219.1 255.0 279.2 11.6 14.4
Oceania 8.0 10.6 11.1 11.8 0.6 0.6
World Totals 1396 1662 1839 1946 100 100
*From: World Cement Annual Review, World Cement, Vol. 28, No. 7, July 1997, pp. 3-60.
Note: Recent published data indicate that the North American production had already exceeded 120 million tonnes
in year 2002, and will reach 130 million tonnes in year 2010.
Table3: World-wide Production (millions of tonnes) total CO2 emissions in China will exceed that of the
U.S.A. (Fig. 3).
Cement Fly Ash Others*
Current China
1600 900 20
Production
United States
Anticipated
3000 2000 >100
Year 2020 EU-15

Former
* Slag, silica fume, natural pozzolans, rice-husk ash, Sovier Union
metakaolin 2000
India
2025 (projected)
Unfortunately, the much needed industrial
Brazil
developments in China and India are affecting adversely
the environment in two ways. The installation of new 0.0 0.5 1.0 1.5 2.0 2.5 3.0
cement plants is increasing substantially the CO2
emissions, and the construction of very large capacity Fig3: Greenhouse-gas emissions, billion tonnes of
thermal power stations is resulting in huge amounts of carbon equivalent
CO2 emissions, in addition to the vast quantities fly ash (Sources: EIA; World Resources Institute)
and bottom ash becoming available that are not being
recycled in any meaningful manner. Most of the fly ash High-Volume Fly Ash Concrete Technology
is being dumped in lagoons, landfill sites and One of the major developments in the area of fly ash
abandoned quarries. Thus, potentially valuable utilization in concrete has been the technology of high-
cementing resources are being wasted in precisely the volume fly ash (HVFA) concrete by Malhotra (1) and
countries that need it most to reduce the greenhouse gas his associates at CANMET, Ottawa, Canada. It is
emissions, and to make economical and durable believed that in years to come, this development will
concrete structures. It is estimated that by year 2025, the

International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering

ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 816-820
 819 V.M. MALHOTRA
affect profoundly the use of portland cement in
concrete.
Other Supplementary Cementing Materials
In addition to fly ash, the other supplementary
cementing materials that are available in large quantities
and can be used to replace portland cement in concrete
include granulated, blast-furnace slag, natural pozzolans
and rice-husk ash; silica fume and metakaolin are
available only in limited quantities.
The worldwide production of granulated, blast-furnace
slag is only about 25 million tonnes per year. The rice-
husk is not yet available commercially, although the
world-wide potential is about 20 million tonnes. The use
of granulated blast-furnace slag in concrete has
increased considerably in recent years, and this trend is
expected to continue. Rice-husk ash, when it becomes
available commercially, will along with fly ash and
granulated blast-furnace slag, be the most significant
supplementary cementing material for use as a partial
replacement for portland cement in concrete to reduce
CO2 emissions. The use of natural pozzolans is rather
limited because of their high-water demand when
incorporated in concrete, and the need for calcination.
Both Mexico and Turkey produce Portland / pozzolanic
cements with cement replacement levels of about 30
percent.
Silica fume, a highly pozzolanic material, is a by-
product of when silicon metal or ferro silicon alloys are
produced in smelters using electric arc furnaces. The
world-wide production is estimated to be less than 2
million tonnes. Its primary use is to enhance the
durability of concrete by making it less permeable. It is
normally not used as a cement replacement material but
is added to the concrete mixture in addition to portland
cement. Thus its contribution to CO2 emission reduction
is indirect because durable structures require less repair
and maintenance. The performance of metakaolin in
concrete is like that of silica fume, but as metakaolin is
a manufactured product, unlike silica fume which is a
by-product, its use in concrete contributes very little to
reduction of greenhouse gas emissions. No data have
been published on the amount of metakaolin available,
but it is believed to be of the same order as silica fume.
Limestone fillers are being used increasingly in Europe
in the clinkering and grinding phase of portland cement
production; however, these have not made any
significant inroads in North America because those are
not by-product materials and there are concerns as to the
long-term durability of concrete incorporating these
fillers.
Global Trade in Fly Ash
Until recently, portland cement was indigenously
produced in every country and there was very little
International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering
ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 816-820
international trade in this product. However, with the
advent of large multinational cement companies, the
portland has become an internationally traded product.
For example, the U.S.A. imports cement from a large
number of countries including Mexico, Canada, and
Spain. During the years 2002 and 2004, the U.S.A. was
importing between 15 and 20 million tonnes of cement
per year. Similarly fly ash is becoming an
internationally traded product. South Africa and India
are exporting some fly ash to the Middle East and there
is considerable trade in fly ash among European
countries. It is not unrealistic to assume that in the
foreseeable future, like portland cement, large volumes
of fly ash would be traded internationally for use in
concrete.
Tradeable Emission Rights and the Utilization of Fly
Ash
ATradeable emissions@ refers to the economic
mechanisms that are expected to help countries
worldwide meet the stringent emission reduction targets
established by the 1997 Kyoto Protocol.
Fig. 4 Carbon-credit trading
(Source: Globe and Mail, Canada)
It is being speculated that in the not too distant future
one tonne of emissions will have a trading value of
about $40 (U.S.), the current value being $25.00 (U.S.).
Thus, for example, if a country can replace 50 percent
of cement utilization by fly ash or slag, the country
would have saved about 50 percent of the CO2
emissions from reduced need for cement. For a country
that produces 100 million tonnes of cement annually,
this 50 percent replacement by fly ash would amount to
savings in CO2 emissions of 50 million tonnes. This, in
turn, translates into a trading value of 1,250 million
dollars (U.S.) annually. One must keep in mind that the
value of the trading of emission rights can fluctuate
widely. However, given the political and environmental
pressures, the utilization of fly ash will pay rich
dividends. The developed countries have a major stake
 Global Warming and Sustainability Issues as Related to Concrete Technology
in this issue. If these countries can transfer fly ash
utilization technology to developing countries, and
demonstrate the actual reduction in the installation of
new cement plants in these countries, the former
countries can rightly claim CO2 emission credits.
According to the World Bank, the carbon-trading
market was worth $21.5 billion (U.S.) in the first three
quarters of 2006, about double its value in year 2000.
Primary market sellers are in China and India, and
primary market buyers are the U.K. and Europe (Fig. 4).
How the Cement and Concrete Industry Can
Contribute to Reduction of Co2 Emissions
In addition to replacing portland cement by
supplementary cementing materials. There are a number
of other ways by which the cement and concrete
industry can contribute towards reducing CO2
emissions. Some of these are:
 Proportion concrete mixtures with low water-to-
cementitious ratio
 Use less portland cement
 Use less unit water content by using more water
reducers and super plasticizers
 Incorporate recycled aggregates in concrete
 Use stainless steel reinforcement in critical parts of
structures to make them more durable
 Where possible, specify strength acceptance criteria
on 56 or 91 days instead of 28 days
 Use lightweight concrete where possible
Conclusions
Environmental issues associated with the CO2 emissions
from the production of portland cement clinker demand
that supplementary cementing materials in general, and
fly ash, ground granulated blast-furnace slag and rice-
husk ash in particular, be used in increasing quantities to
replace portland cement in concrete. Given the almost
unlimited supply of good quality fly ash worldwide, and
the development of technologies such as high-volume
International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering
ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 816-820
820
fly ash concrete, it is proposed that the installation of
new cement plants should be avoided as much as
possible. In addition, the ageing portland cement plants
should be phased-out, and the resulting loss in capacity
should be compensated for by the use of supplementary
cementing materials.
The combined use of super plasticizers and
supplementary cementing materials can lead to
economical high-performance concrete with enhanced
durability. It is hoped that the concrete industry would
show leadership and resolve, and make contributions to
the sustainable development of the industry in the 21 st
century by adopting new technologies to reduce the
emission of the greenhouse gases, and thus contribute
towards meeting the goals and objectives of the 1997
Kyoto Protocol.
2. Acknowledgements
This paper is based on various presentations made by
the author at a number of “International Seminars on
Concrete Technology and Sustainability Issues”, which
have been held recently in North America, Europe,
India and China.
Reference
[1] Sear Lindon, “The Future of Pulverized Fuel Ash
Concrete”, Concrete, Vol. 37, No. 2, 2003, pp. 50-
51.
[2] Personal communication from Bruce Ramme,
Wisconsin Power, Milwaukee, U.S.A.
[3] Anantharaman, V.J., “India’s Larges”, World
Cement, Vol. 33, No. 23, December 2002, pp. 53-
56.
[4] Malhotra, V.M. and Mehta, P.E., “High-Volume
Fly Ash Concrete: Materials, Mixture Proportions,
Construction Practice, and Case Histories”, 2002,
101 pp., (Available from: Supplementary
Cementing Materials for Sustainable Development
Inc., Ottawa, Canada, K1Y
 Indexed in
Scopus Compendex and Geobase Elsevier, Chemical
Abstract Services-USA, Geo-Ref Information Services-USA,
List B of Scientific Journals, Poland,
Directory of Research Journals
www.cafetinnova.org August 2014, P.P. 821-824
ISSN 0974-5904, Volume 07, No. 04

Integrated Highway Infrastructure Management System

T. F. F WA
Centre for Transportation Research Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering
National University of Singapore, Singapore

Abstract: Being one of the largest infrastructure investments of a nation, the highway infrastructure system of the
national highway network deserves major attention and effort for its effective and efficient management. A highway
infrastructure system is a complex system comprising three main dimensions: infrastructure type, operational
functions, and system objectives. These three elements differ in their functional characteristics and operational
requirements. Their maintenance and management also require different expertise and considerations. An ideal
infrastructure management program for a highway network is one that would maintain all highway sections at a
sufficiently high level of service and structural conditions, but requires only a reasonably resources, offering safe
traffic operations with minimal adverse impacts. This requires optimal planning and programming of activities to
manage the system in a cost effective and efficient manner. This presentation describes the key characteristics of the
network level highway infrastructure management problem, highlights the challenges of achieving sound
management of the overall infrastructure system, and offers solutions to the problem.

1. Introduction: A comprehensive highway infrastructure management

system can be considered as a three-dimensional matrix
Highway network development is one of the largest
structure (Sinha and Fwa 1989). The three dimensions
infrastructure investments of a country. Like any large
are the highway infrastructure dimension, the
infrastructure development or investment, it deserves
operational development dimension, and the system
major effort in planning, and efficient operational and
objective dimension. The highway infrastructure
cost-effective maintenance management to ensure the
dimension comprises different types of highway
best return from the investment. Management of a
infrastructure. The main elements of highway
highway network is a major challenge to any highway
infrastructure include pavements, bridges, roadside
agency. This is because a highway network comprises
appurtenances, and traffic control devices. These
various facilities that are very different in their physical
elements are all different in their service and functional
and operational characteristics. These infrastructure
characteristics. Pavements and bridges are to carry
facilities include pavement, bridges, drainage system,
traffic and traffic control devices are for traffic safety
traffic signal and control devices, and roadside
and guidance, whereas roadside appurtenances serve to
appurtenances. Their service and maintenance
provide supporting services to road maintenance and
requirements differ significantly. In addition, since these
traffic operations. The differences between different
highway facilities are installed with specific functions to
highway infrastructure elements are also reflected in
serve the general road users and ensure smooth and safe
their life-cycle spans. The significant implication of the
operations, there are more than one goal that must be
multi-element structure of highway infrastructure is that
met. Examples of such goals are safe and smooth
each subsystem would compete for funds and other
operations, high level of services, high cost
resources such as manpower, equipment, and materials
effectiveness, low maintenance expenditures, low
within the same organization.
adverse environmental impacts, and little disruption to
traffic operations and social activities. This presentation In the management of the highway infrastructure of a
explains the need for a total highway infrastructure highway network, different considerations are required
management system, identifies the limitations of current at different operational development phases of the
practices, and proposes ways to overcome the various highway infrastructure elements. There are the
limitations. following operational development phases in the life
span of an infrastructure element: planning, design,
2. Multi-Dimensional Structure of Highway
construction, and in-service operation. The in-service
Infrastrcuture System
operation phase consists of activities such as

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Proceedings of 3-Day International Conference on Emerging Trends in Civil Engineering (ICETE-2014,)
6th–8th January, 2014
 Integrated Highway Infrastructure Management System
infrastructure condition survey and evaluation,
maintenance, improvement, and data management. The
planning phase covers demand analysis and estimation
of infrastructure needs to accommodate the current and
future traffic. The design phase generates alternative
design configurations, analyzes these alternatives, and
evaluates and selects the optimal configuration. As for
the construction phase, the major concerns are
preparation of specifications and contract documents,
scheduling of construction activities, control of costs
and quality of construction, and monitoring of work
progress. Under the in-service operation phase, the
three functional activities, condition evaluation,
maintenance, and improvement, are the main focus of
most infrastructure systems. Data management is a vital
link in any management system. It covers acquisition
and compilation of data, organization and updating of
data bases.
Multi-Objective Consideration
The highway infrastructure management process is a
multiple-objective problem. The main objectives may
include the following: provision of an adequate level of
service for traffic, preservation of infrastructure
condition at or above a desired level, achievement of a
high level of traffic safety, minimization of agency and
user costs, maximization of socioeconomic benefits, and
minimization of the use of environmental and energy
resources. The ultimate goal of a highway infrastructure
management system is to satisfy these objectives as
closely as possible within the constraints of available
budgets.
A well-managed highway network forms an integral
element of a sustainable economy. An ideal
infrastructure management program for a highway
network is one that would maintain all highway sections
at a sufficiently high level of service and structural
conditions, but requires only a reasonably low budget
and use of resources, and not creates any significant
adverse impacts on the environment, safe traffic
operations, and social and community activities, etc.
Unfortunately, many of these are conflicting
requirements. For instance, more resources and budget
are usually needed if the highways are to be maintained
at a higher state of conditions; and a program with more
pavement activities could in general cause longer traffic
delay, increased environment pollution, more disruption
of social activities, and inconvenience to the
community. Therefore, the programming maintenance
and rehabilitation of highway infrastructure involves a
multi-objective consideration that addresses the
competing requirements of different objectives.
Practically all the highway infrastructure management
programming tools in use currently are based on single-
objective optimization (Fwa et al. 2000). In these
International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering
ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 821-824
822
single-objective analysis, those requirements not
selected as the objective function are imposed as
constraints in the formulation. This can be viewed as an
interference of the optimization process by artificially
setting limits to selected problem parameters. As a
result, the solutions obtained from these single-objective
analyses are sub-optimal with respect to one derived
from multi-objective considerations.
Genetic Algorithm Optimization Approach
Research at the Centre for Transportation Research,
National University of Singapore has demonstrated that
the technique of genetic algorithms are well suited to
handle the large number of data and attributes found in
the highway infrastructure management problem (Chan
et al. 1994, Fwa et al. 1994, 1995, 1996). A genetic-
algorithm (GA) based formulation for multi-objective
programming of highway management activities has
been developed by the research group (Fwa et al. 2000).
Genetic algorithms, which are a robust search technique
formulated on the mechanics of natural selection and
natural genetics, are employed to generate and identify
better solutions until convergence is reached. The
selection of good solutions is based on the so-called
Pareto based fitness evaluation procedure by comparing
the relative strength of the generated solutions with
respect to each of the adopted objectives.
An important consideration of the optimization process
is to produce representative solutions that are spread
more or less evenly along the Pareto frontier. This can
be achieved by using an appropriate reproduction
scheme to generate offspring solutions and to form a
new pool of parent solutions. The robust search
characteristics and multiple-solution handling ability of
GAs are well suited for multi-objective optimization
analysis of multi-objective highway infrastructure
management and planning. The concepts of Pareto
frontier and rank-based fitness evaluation, and a shortest
normalized distance method of selecting optimal
solution from the Pareto frontier were found to be
effective in solving the problems. The proposed
algorithm was able to produce a set of optimal solutions
which were well spread on the Pareto frontier.
The approach described in the preceding paragraph is
equally applicable for the case of multiple highway
infrastructure elements. It is noted that the objectives
required to be achieved for each individual
infrastructure system, as well as the overall highway
system, are multiple and sometimes mutually
conflicting. To achieve the best results at both the
individual infrastructure system and the overall system
levels when a given overall budget is available, an
optimal scheme for fund allocation to individual assets
needs to be identified. This necessitates the
simultaneous optimization of more than one objective,
 823 T. F. FWA
while satisfying all the necessary constraints. The
problem involves multiple infrastructure systems each
with a different set of multiple objectives, as well as a
central level covering the entire highway network with
its own set of multiple objectives. The conventional
optimization approaches adopted in practice do not
address adequately the various issues required for
achieving the desirable outcomes for the individual
infrastructure systems as well as the overall central
agency.
Multi-Agency Optimization
In addition to the three-dimensional matrix structure of
the highway infrastructure system, there are two other
aspects that make the highway infrastructure
management problem a rather complex one at the road
network level. One is the multi-agency structure of
practically all highway organizations. For instance, in a
major urban or a regional road network system, there
would be divisions of sub-districts to facilitate traffic
operations and infrastructure maintenance operations.
There are issues related to coordination among the
various parallel agencies. Another aspect is the multi-
level management structure a typical highway agency or
department, and there is a central management that
oversees the overall road network operations. Hence, for
a highway infrastructure management system to
function effectively and efficiently, a workable
arrangement must be in place to facilitate the multi-level
multi-agency operations to function in an optimal
manner.
Effective coordination among agencies responsible for
different infrastructure elements of a highway network
must be attained in order to achieve an optimal total
highway infrastructure management for the entire
highway network. This can be achieved by means of an
iterative procedure between parallel agencies using
genetic algorithms to arrive at an optimal solution that
considers the interaction and trade-off among the
agencies (Fwa and Hoque 2001, Chan et al. 2003). This
is practically achievable in today’s modern IT
environment in which sharing of pavement network
database and pavement management planning data
among agencies of different districts is encouraged (Tan
et al. 2004).
The multiple agency interaction and coordination can
also be modelled using the multi-agent system approach
(MAS) (Malone 1990). MAS is a computerized system
composed of multiple interacting intelligent agents each
capable of making its own decision based on a set of
considerations and constraints unique to its operations
and service requirements. For the highway
infrastructure management problem, the highway
infrastructure management system of each district can
be represented by an agent. Within each district, the
International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering
ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 821-824
individual infrastructure sub-system (such as pavement
management system, bridge management system, etc)
can further be represented by another level of agents.
The highway infrastructure management problem at the
network level can thus be represented by an
organization consisting of a group of agents with a set
of activities performed by each agent, and a set of
connections among the agents.
Multi-Level Optimization
The highway research group at the Centre for
Transportation Research of the National University of
Singapore has developed a dual-level multi-asset multi-
objective genetic-algorithm based optimization
procedure for solving the highway infrastructure
management problem (Fwa and Farhan 2012). The
approach consists of a two-stage procedure. Stage me
of the approach deals with the independent individual
infrastructure management systems, each addressing
operational and service objectives unique to each
particular infrastructure system, but also having a
common objective in minimizing maintenance costs.
The multi-objective optimization for each infrastructure
management system will produce a family of Pareto
optimal solutions. By having maintenance cost
optimization as an objective common to the various
infrastructure management systems, it offers a
convenient basis for performing cross-infrastructure
trade-off analysis to compare the outcomes of different
fund allocation strategies. The multi-objective
optimization within each component management
system produces mutually exclusive Pareto optimal
maintenance strategies with each strategy encompassing
useful attributes for decision making such as overall
maintenance cost, performance indicator etc.
In Stage II, an optimal central-level budget allocation
analysis is carried out making use of the attributes of
Pareto optimal maintenance strategies of the individual
infrastructure systems. The Stage I Pareto optimal
strategies of the individual infrastructure systems offer
the links for interaction with the central-level
optimization analysis in Stage II. For any trial strategy
for individual infrastructure systems, these links provide
feedback on infrastructure performance information to
the Stage II optimization process where cross-
infrastructure trade-off analysis is conducted to arrive at
a central-level optimal management strategy.
3. Summary
This paper has presented the key characteristics of the
network level highway infrastructure management
problem. It highlights to highway agencies the
challenges of establishing a sound management system
for the important key infrastructure system of the
nation. The limitations of the current practice in
network level highway operations are explained, and a
 Integrated Highway Infrastructure Management System
824

number of analytical solutions for optimal management
of the highway infrastructure system are offered.
The network level highway infrastructure management
problem is complex because of its three-dimensional
structure, with multiple sub-dimensions within each
dimension. There are different infrastructure types, each
having its own unique service and functional
characteristics. The operational and maintenance
requirements are different from one infrastructure type
to another. There are also more than one system
objectives for each of the infrastructure type. In
addition, there are further complications to the problem
in that a highway network operation typically involves
multiple highway sub-agencies and multiple level
management. To achieve effective management of the
system, the adoption of multi-level multi-infrastructure
multi-objective optimization techniques
recommended. This paper has identified the technique
of genetic algorithms to be a practical useful approach
to handle the complex problem of network level
highway infrastructure management problem. The
Pareto front procedure offers a family of good near
optimal solutions for the decision makers. To handle the
multiple districts interaction and coordination necessary
in real-life operations, the technique of multi-agent
systems can be employed. The paper also presents a
multi-stage technique to illustrate how effective
dialogue between different management levels could be
achieved in the process of identifying an optimal
strategy for the management of the network level
highway infrastructure system.
Reference
[1] Chan, W. T., Fwa T. F. and Tan C. Y. (1994).
"Road maintenance planning using genetic
algorithms: Formulation." Journal of Transportation
Engineering 120(5), 693-709.
[2] Chan, W. T., Fwa T. F. and Tan T. Y. (2003).
"Optimal fund-allocation analysis for multi-district
highway agencies." Journal of Infrastructure
Systems, 9(4), 167-175.
[3] Fwa, T. F., Chan W. T. and Tan C. Y. (1995).
"Optimal programming by genetic algorithms for
pavement management." Transportation Research
Record, No. 1455, 31-41.
[4] Fwa, T. F., Chan W. T. and Tan C. Y. (1996).
"Genetic algorithm programming of road
maintenance and rehabilitation." Journal of
Transportation Engineering, 122(3), 246-253.
[5] Fwa, T. F., Chan W. T. and Hogue K. H. (2000).
"Multi-objective optimisation for pavement
management programming." Journal of
Transportation Engineering, 126(5), 367-374.
[6] Fwa, T. F. and Hoque K. H. (2001). "Optimal
is
coordination of multiple agencies activities in
pavement Management." Proc. 5th International
Conference on Managing Pavements, Univ. of
Washington, Seattle. WA.
[7] Fwa, T. F., Tan C. Y. and Chan W. T. (1994).
"Road maintenance planning using genetic
algorithms: Analysis." Journal of Transportation
Engineering, 120(5), 710-722.
[8] Malone T. W. (1990). Organizing Information
Processing Systems. In W. W. Zachary and S. P.
Robertson (eds.), cognition, Computation and
Cooperation, Albert norwood, NJ 56-83.
[9] Sinha, K. C. and Fwa T. F. (1989). “On total
Highway Management System.” Transportation
Research Record, No. 1229, Transportation
Research Board, 79-88.
[10] Tan, J. Y., Chan W. T. and Fwa T. F. (2004).
"Interactive budget allocation concept for pavement
management". Proc. 6th International Conference
on Managing Pavements, Queensland Department
of Main Roads, Brisbane, Australia.

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ISSN 0974-5904, Vol. 07, No. 04, August, 2014, pp. 821-824
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ISSN 0974-5904, Volume 07, No. 04

Urban Storm Water Management Trapped By Manmade and

Natural Changes
ING. W.F. GEIGER

Abstract: The relationship between man and water always has been determined by availability and needs. The
availability of water differs from region to region, from season to season, i.e. 10.000 years ago from the ice ages to
today‟s conditions and in future with on-going climate change. For centuries cities more or less arranged to cover
their needs and protect against flooding. Urban water today conveys a split impression: water scarcity and flooding,
unpleasant looking lakes, dirty rivers and still here and there islands of beautiful landscapes and waters, retreat and
relaxation, playacting nature and environment is in order or strategies of survival only? The reasons for these
differences are discussed. It is argued, that conventional urban storm water management up graded by water
sensitive designs can better protect cities from water shortages and flooding as well. At the same time cities will
gain attractiveness, if storm water is integrated in tour ban landscapes. Examples of wise water management in
history and today are given to demonstrate that implementation is easier as many may think. Finally modern storm
water management strategies for more sustainable urban development and planning under changing climate
conditions are discussed.

1. Introduction: discovered except Gabarbands (stone built dams

designed to control and store water). The invention of
Cities in ancient times preferably were founded next to
wells is attributed to the civilization of Harappa.
waters, to be used in households, agriculture, allowing
for trade, bringing wealth and contributing to the well- In Lothal, rainwater reservoirs were used in order to
being of people. Urban waters took over cultural, irrigate agricultural land during dry seasons (Wright
esthetic, social and ecological functions. Professor Mc 2010: 167). Lothal, in the Gulf of Cambay had town-
Pherson, an urban hydrologist, who has been my early drainage and sanitation, which is characteristic for the
mentor, connected to the traditional thinking demanding Indus cities (Kirk 1975: 21). Ever since water has been
in 1970that water management should include social the focus of urban planning.
and economic aspects. Ancient cities like Miletus more In the state of Tamil Nadu still the old extensive system
than 2000 years ago have practiced such integrated of cisterns, called Eris, play a central role in controlling
water management. Thales of Miletus (624 to 545 BC) floods, preventing soil erosion and replenishing the
established the theory of the water cycle, which later groundwater.
was discussed by Platon (427 to 347 BC). Palissy (1510
to 1590) finally added scientific explanations. The
theory of a continuous water cycle and the ever
repeatedly falling rain and never drying up springs and
rivers left the belief that water is unlimited, an opinion
which still today is reflected by the huge water
consumption especially in urban areas, even in cities,
where water is scarce.
The Early Settlements in India
Deliberate water management started about six thousand
years ago on the Indian subcontinent, when men settled
along rivers. Since at least 3200 BC, it seems that most
of the Harappan settlements (see fig 1) were located in
riverine plains. In this period river flows were diverted
by channels into ditches to irrigate crops (Wright 2010: Fig1: South ancient cities of India (Based on
71). Water-retaining devices rarely have been Fardinet.al, 2013)

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Proceedings of 3-Day International Conference on Emerging Trends in Civil Engineering (ICETE-2014,)
6th–8th January, 2014
 Urban Storm Water Management Trapped By Manmade and Natural Changes
826

Jansen (1989) analyzed water management in Mohenjo-

Daro. For water supply and irrigation there were about
700 wells built starting from 2600 BC. Figure 2 shows
the drainage /infiltration system that existed about 2500
years ago in Mohenjo Daro. According to Wright (2010:
122) only a few houses had toilet facilities. These toilets
were of two types: made of earthenware bricks with a
seat; or a simple hole in the ground. The domestic
outlet, from toilets and bath platforms, was connected to
street drains through a pipe network, or to soak-pits
(Jansen 1989; Wright 2010), flowing through a jar for
settling solids (Figure 3). The jars probably were
dumped in a specific place from time to time, posited
for solid waste (Jansen 1989). It also was found that
organic wastes had been brought to agricultural fields Fig. 3 Jar for settling in front of a house system in
for fertilizing. In order to avoid clogging of the drainage MohenioDaro (Jansen, 1989)
system, cesspits were implemented at the junction of
several drains or where drains were very long. Then, a
larger drain was built at the outlet in order to receive the
„filtered water‟ from the cesspit of connection (Wright
2010). Figure 1-4 sketches a collecting channel, while
figure 2-5 provides details of two interlinked infiltration
wells. The interconnection may have prevented
overflowing, when the first well was full or clogged.
The implementation of the drain network was facilitated
by the geometrical urban morphology. And thus, almost
all the settlements of Mohenjo-Daro were connected to
the drain network.

Fig4: Channel leading to infiltration shafts in Mohenio

Daro (Jansen 1989)

Fig5: Infiltration in Mohenjo Daro (Jansen, 1989)

The Multi-function of the Indian Temple Tanks
Each village in South India was associated with a
temple, and each temple with a tank (Ambujam et. al.,
2003). The temple tanks were sacred, but served
Fig2: Overview on the drainage/infiltration (Jansen, multiple purposes. The water is used for religious
1989) purposes, ritual baths and the annual float festival, and
more important for rainwater harvesting (Figures 6 and
7). The advantage of the multi-use was that people kept
the areas clean, protecting harvested water from
pollution. Chennai in the middle ages had about 400
hundred of temple tanks (Geiger et. al., 1995). Today in
Chennai all but three to four were lost to urbanization.

International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering

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 827 ING. W.F. GEIGER

Filling up the tanks and building urban infrastructures

and houses on the old temple areas increased flooding
and eradicated water harvesting. The remaining temple
tanks often are dried up, used as garbage dumps and
toilets.

Fig. 8 Economic and Insured Losses of Natural

Fig. 6 Kusuma Sarovar Ghat (Gouranga UK)
Fig. 7 Hoysala Stepped Well (Pushkarni) at Hulikere
(File: Hoysala_Stepped_Well_(Pushkarni).jpg)
(http//en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Kusuma_Sarovar_Gha
t.jpg)
Observed Water Hazards in the Fast Growing Cities
of India
Natural disasters in recent years appear to occur more
frequently. Statistics of the economic insured losses of
natural disasters show, that between 1990 and 2004
losses have tripled. Figure 8 only reflects insured losses.
All losses are estimated to be 10 times as high. In the
July 21/22 2012 flooding in Beijing for instance the
economic loss was more than 10 billion US$ aside from
a death toll of more than 270. All the negative effects
explained in this chapter will be strengthened by climate
change.
Disasters (Munich Re Group, 2004)
Scaring Water Logging and Flooding in Indian
Cities
Modern cities in India are neglecting the importance of
open space for storm water management, creating dense
urban patterns with little permeable ground in between.
As a result, severe flooding is more frequent in recent
years. Floods struck the major cities of India like Delhi,
Mumbai, Chennai and also Warangal, causing damage
to buildings, infrastructures, roads and costs people‟s
lives.
In Mumbai, heavy monsoon rains caused flooding on
14th July, 2009, delaying commuter trains and causing
massive traffic jams (figure 9). A red alert was issued
after the river reached 2.8 meters, which is the point one
meter above the danger mark. Residents along the river
in Kurla were evacuated and shifted to nearby schools
(Times of India on 14.07.2009).
Fig. 9 Flood in Mumbai in 2009:

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 Urban Storm Water Management Trapped By Manmade and Natural Changes
828

Today India uses most ground water in the world, with

Fig. 10 Flood in Chennai
(Source URL:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/picturegalleries/world
news/5827690/Monsoon-rains-cause-floods-in-
Mumbai.html)
http://www.argophilia.com/news/chennai-rains-spell-
disaster/2854/)
More than 170 people have been killed as a result of
torrential rains in the coastal regions of Tamil Nudu.
Flood like situations, erosion, downed power lines, are
some of the causes of the latest round of deaths
(Figure10).
Above could have been avoided by adequate urban
planning linking local flood protection measures
properly to major storm drainage systems, such as
rivers, channels or large storm conduits. Obviously at
large river floods urban drainage measures cannot help.
Figure 1.11 shows the giant statue of the Hindu god
Lord Shiva partially submerged in floodwaters near the
Ganges River in Allahabad on July 1, 2013
an estimated 230 cubic km every year. Ground water
supports in India around 60 per cent of irrigated
agriculture and more than 80 per cent of urban water
supplies.
Dipak Kumar Dash, TNN reported on Sep 9, 2013, that
22 of India's 32 big cities already face a water crisis.
The worst-hit city is Jamshedpur, where the gap
between demand and supply is 70%. The crisis is acute
in Kanpur, Asansol, Dhanbad, Meerut, Faridabad,
Visakhapatnam, Madurai and Hyderabad, where supply
cannot meet 30% of the demand. Experts fear that there
could soon be riots over water.
Fig. 12 Delhi’s-great-water-fall
(http://www.dailymail.co.uk/indiahome/indianews/articl
e-2288607)
China`s cities are plagued by similar problems. Figure
2.6 shows the terrific drop of groundwater tables in
Beijing. If this trend continues in a few years there will
be saltwater intrusion into groundwater resources
making them unusable for water supply and even for
irrigation. Another consequence of groundwater
depletion is that urban rivers fall dry, due to the lack of
seepage.

Fig11: Hindu god Lord Shiva partially submerged in

floodwaters in Allahabad on July 1, 2013
Increasing Water Scarcity and Exploitation of
Resources in the Vicinity of Urban Centers
Already in 2010 World Bank reported, that by 2025, an
estimated 60 per cent of ground water blocks in India
will be in a critical condition, if the trend of Fig. 13 Observed groundwater decline inside the 5th
indiscriminate exploitation of ground water continues, Ring of Beijing (Geiger, 2008)
whereby climate change will further strain the situation.

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 829 ING. W.F. GEIGER
Water pollution - not only an aesthetic problem
Although India has excellent environmental laws similar
to China most rivers and groundwater are observed to
be heavily polluted. Newspapers in India are full of
alarming news (see figure 1.14)
Fig. 14 Alarming reports on water pollution in India
(Source: Nameeta Prasad, Director, International
Center for Environment Audit and Sustainable
Development, CAG of India)
According to official estimates, India has facilities to
treat 18% of the 33,200 million liters per day of urban
sewage. In reality, it only treats 13%, because of
shortages of power and technical expertise in its sewage
treatment plants. These figures even underestimate the
problem considering the output of 700 Million Indians
who have no access to any toilet. Consequently most
Indian rivers, from which millions of Indians draw their
water, are horribly polluted. Unsurprisingly, an
estimated 1,000 Indian children die of diarrhea every
day. In the words of Sunita Narain, a prominent
environmentalist, mocking the tourist ministry's slogan:
“Incredible India, drowning in its excreta” ( quoted
according to article “Despite good laws and even better
intentions, India causes as much pollution as any rapidly
industrializing poor country”, Varanasi, July 17th 2008)
If sewers exist they often are undersized, that overflows
already occur even under dry weather conditions. Figure
15 depicts such situation at the Ba He River in Beijing
Fig. 15 Combined sewer in Beijing discharging to Ba
He River under dry weather conditions
International Journal of Earth Sciences and Engineering
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Causes and effects of today’s many urban water
problems
The reasons for the situation identified in chapter 2 may
be divided to natural and man-made causes. The natural
cause mainly is climate and here heavy rainfall and
draughts and their recent changes as well as natural
silting of flood ways. Man-made causes are manifold
and include population growth and pressure. That
results in increased water demands, drop of groundwater
tables, deforestation for food production, decrease of
natural spaces for housing and industry, sealing of
surfaces, straightening and narrowing natural rivers and
eliminating flood plains/wetlands. In consequence rivers
fall dry, rain drains quickly away resulting in urban
floods and groundwater resources are over used
followed in coastal areas by saltwater intrusion. On top
of it climate change enlarges the bad effects. All will
more and more restrict human wellbeing, ecology and
finally economic growth.
Population Growth and Pressure
In 1950 30% of the world‟s population lived in cities, in
2000 it was 47%. By 2007 more than half of the world‟s
population was living in cities. Natural growth (the
excess of births over deaths), migration from rural to
urban areas and redefinition of administrative
boundaries incorporating rural surroundings supports
growth of cities to mega cities. Obviously developing
countries presently go through the same processes and
harmful activities, as developed countries did in the last
century, only at an exponentially larger scale, due to the
sheer size of their populations.
One must appreciate that India‟s stringent definitions of
“urban”- not updated in 50 years-are likely to create a
statistical artifact. In fact, the Agglomeration Index -a
globally comparable measure of urbanization using
population density (150 people per square kilometer),
the minimum size of a large urban center (50,000
inhabitants), and travel time to that urban center (60
minutes)- shows India to be 52 percent urbanized.
Downward bias on India‟s urban statistics is also caused
by delays in redrawing municipal boundaries as these
areas expand. For instance, while 2,774 additional
settlements exhibited urban characteristics between
2001 and 2011, only 147 have official urban status. The
rest have urban characteristics but are not considered
urban for policy purposes. Rapid growth of metropolitan
suburbs is the most striking feature of India‟s
urbanization.
Many cities in India ranging from large metropolitan to
small transitional cities lack effective storm drainage
systems and face problems due to illegal, unplanned
development and encroachment often on natural areas
and drainage systems/ways. As the cities grow, benefits
from important environmental functions (natural water
 Urban Storm Water Management Trapped By Manmade and Natural Changes
830

ways/areas) are often ignored and overlooked as a result their densification yield a runoff ratio of up to 80 % of
of which natural areas are degraded and damaged. rainfall.
Although many cities already have land occupation
rules, there are many areas with informal occupation
that does not follow these regulations. Residences
located by creeks margins with direct sewage emissions
to the water body are frequently found. (Government of
India, 2010)
Another problem for water management in Indian cities
is that data collection cannot keep pace with the fast
growth and changes, which makes appropriate forecasts
difficult. Time and space resolutions needed for
different planning purposes often are not available from
standard data sources. Often data records are lost and Fig. 17 Low runoff, high evaporation and infiltration
new projects dealing with issues, that have already been
addressed previously, have to start from zero. Reliable
financial and social data are of equal importance but
seldom are linked to water management. The different
dimensions and conventions in the different sectors
make it difficult to use data of different sources in a
correct manner (Geiger, 1995a). Further planning and
management activities often are not adapted to site
specific conditions.
Effects of urbanization on the water cycle
Urbanization changes the natural water cycle
significantly. Figure 16 depicts the urban water cycle Fig. 18 High runoff, low evaporation and low under
distinguishing between clean water, namely rainfall, natural conditions (Geiger and Dreiseitl, 1995)
surface and groundwater supplies and waste water being groundwater recharge under urban conditions
all fresh water used in cities for different purposes and Runoff dynamics depend on material and slope of
discharged for treatment or disposed uncleansed to surfaces. In general runoff hydrographs – that are the
water bodies. dependencies between runoff rates and time–are steeper
and higher, if impervious areas are linked and have only
little green spaces in between. Figure 1.19 exemplifies
how flood flow increases with ongoing urbanization and
densification of built-up areas. Further, the approach to
tackle drainage urban problems in developing countries
is based on the hygienist principle, trying to transfer the
water as quick as possible out from the inundated areas.

Fig. 16 Urban water cycle

Impervious areas in forms of roads or buildings are the
primary driver of hydrological change in urban areas.
Figures 17 and 18 spotlight the very different runoff
behavior under natural and not well planned urban
development. From vegetated surfaces usually 0 % to
20 % of the rainfall will run off, while roofs, streets and duration in hrs.
other paved surfaces yield a runoff ratio of 90 % to 100 Fig. 19 Flood flow under different urban conditions
%. Also mineral and compacted surfaces depending on estimated for the urbanized Emscher Rivercatchment,
Germany. (Emscher authority)

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 831 ING. W.F. GEIGER

Similar to flood flows, groundwater recharge not only
depends on rainfall characteristics, but also on the
structure of urban development and the amount of
groundwater extractions (see figure 2.6).According to
its latest report on India‟s ground water level, the World
Bank estimates 29 per cent of ground water blocks to be
semi-critical, critical or overexploited, the situation
deteriorating rapidly. By 2025 an estimated 60 per cent
of ground water blocks will be in a critical condition.
Climate change will further strain the situation.
The quality of groundwater also is worsening. The
nitrate concentration in Delhi‟s groundwater for
instance ranges from traces or low levels at a few places
to 1,500 mg per liter - which is 33 times higher than the
safety limit of 45 mg per liter. Fluoride concentration
varies from 0.07 mg per liter to 7.24 mg per liter in
North West districts. The main cause of pollution of
groundwater is lack of adequate capacity to treat waste
water (Read more:
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/indiahome/indianews/article
-2288607/Delhis-great-water-fall-Capital-fears-riots-
water-shortages-groundwater-level-hits-dangerous-
low.html#ixzz2ndBhZE2d)
To gain space for construction frequently natural
flooding spaces, especially valuable wetlands are wiped
out. Creeks and rivers are straightened and narrowed
down further limiting flooding space and accelerating
Table1: Climate change impact on water yield and health of four major regions in 2030s (INCCA, 2010)
runoff, which frequently leads to downstream flooding
and increasing river bank erosion.
Water pollution in India is a most serious problem, with
more than 70 per cent of its surface and groundwater
resources has been contaminated by biological, toxic,
organic, and inorganic pollutants. Many waters are
unsafe for human, industrial and even irrigation uses.
According to Murty and Surender Kumar most of
pollution is found around large urban areas (India
Infrastructure Report 2011, Water Pollution in India, An
Economic Appraisal M.N. Murty and Surender Kumar).
According to WHO (2007) lack of water, sanitation, and
hygiene results in the loss of 0.4 million people annually
in India.
Effects of climate change on urban life
Indian Network for Climate Change Assessment
(INCCA) has assessed the likely changes in India in
2030s caused by the climate change (table 1).
According to the report, the rise in annual average
surface temperature has been projected to be ranging
from 1.7℃ to 2.0℃. The increased temperature will
affect the hydrological regime by altering the pattern
and distribution of the Indian monsoon. The intensity of
rainfall is expected to increase while the number of
rainy days to decrease. Aside from glacier melting
another environmental problem is that the river systems
will change their courses leading to heavy floods.

Region Impact on water resources

1. Water yield (mainly covered by the river Indus), is expected to increase by5%-20% in most of the
areas.
2. Expected increase in yield upto 50% in some areas of Jammu and Kashmir and Uttarakhand.
Himalayan 1. Rise in rain intensity by 2-12%.
region 2. Enhanced evapo-transpiration.
3. Increased glacier melt.
4. Flash floods causing large scale land slides, leading to loss of agricultural area affecting food
security.
1.
5. Precipitation trend exhibits considerable spatial variability in water yield.
2. Northern parts of the region demonstrate a decline in precipitation varying from 3% in the north-
western part
3. (of the North-East) to about12% in the north-eastern part.
4. The central part displays an increase in precipitation which varies from 0% to 25%.
5. The bulk of the North-Eastern region (except some parts of Mizoram, Tripura, Manipur and
North- Assam) depicts an increase in evapo-transpiration in the 2030s.
Eastern 6. Reduction in water yield for the Arunachal Pradesh by up to about 20% and increased evapo-
region transpiration.
7. Assam and Manipur demonstrate increase in water yield up to about 40%.
8. Overall scenario: decline in winter precipitation, increased summer precipitation intensity leading
to increase runoff and landslides.
9. High night temperatures to affect paddy cultivation as evapo-transpiration will increase.
10. Soil erosion to impact tea plantations.
11. Decreasein food production yield sin winters.

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 Urban Storm Water Management Trapped By Manmade and Natural Changes
832

1. The region exhibits wide variability in water yield.

2. Northern portion displays a drop in the water yield varying from 10% to 50%.
Western 3. The central portion shows an increase in water yield ranging from 5% to 20%.
Ghats 4. The southern parts of Karnataka and Kerala demonstrate a reduction in water yield up to 10%.
5. Cash crops to be affected adversely.
6. Large scale flooding and soil erosion

1. Eastern coastal parts of West Bengal, Odisha and the northern coastal parts of Andhra Pradesh
display a drop
2. in water yield as less as 40%.
3. Southern parts of Andhra Pradesh and northern parts of Tamilnadu indicate growth in water yield
by 10% to
Coastal 4. 40%.
region 5. The western coastal region demonstrates overall reduction in water yield varying from 1% to 50%
(except, in the coastal ong Karnataka, where an increase of 10% to 20% is projected).
6. Southern tip of the coastal region indicates no change in water yield.
7. Rise in sea level to cause incursion of coastal waters leading to increase in salinity affecting fresh
water availability for drinking and agriculture.
8. Productivity and distribution of marine as well as fresh water fisheries to be affected.

Climate change will decrease the number of rainy days
which will severely affect the ground water recharge as
the adequate amounts of rainwater can‟t be infiltrated
into the ground. As the population will increase and the
industrial and agricultural sectors will need more water,
the decrease in groundwater table will force people to
go beyond the dynamic ground water resources
opposing sustainable development. Especially urban
areas will be vulnerable to the expected effects of
climate change.
New storm water management strategies
Urban water schemes can be classified into two
categories according to different scales, local (minor)
and regional (major) systems. Only effectively
combining both, local and regional systems can reduce
water logging and the risk of flooding. Local systems
consist of infiltration facilities, rainwater harvesting and
storage components as well as channels and conduits.
Regional systems are urban streams and lakes, large
storm drains and tunnels. All facilities can be found
from literature and internet. Here emphasis is paid to
principal features and aspects beyond the individual
engineering devices.
Water sensitive urban planning on local scale - a key
strategy of storm water management
Rainwater in a city is the essential source to maintain
the hydrologic and ecological balance. At the same time
it can give rich aesthetic values as well. Through
ingenious design, storm water management can develop
unique landscaping elements, reflecting cultural identity
and the characteristics of the site and still provide the
necessary safety for small storms and in some cases
even under extreme storm events.
In nature storm runoff is slowed down by curved and
wide riverbeds, leaving rocks and trees in river courses
paralleled by pools and lakes. Over the years natural
flood plains evolved wherever topography permitted.
Most of these occur on the surface and is visible. New
and modern storm water strategies rediscover the
concept of mother nature and show, not hide storm
water underground. They replicate nature by storm
water retention in pools and ponds, by infiltration of
storm water into the underground, by arranging spaces
for flooding and purification by soil and vegetation. Of
course this requires complete rethinking of urban and
landscape planning, as for more than a century the
concept was to drain storm water as quick as possible
out of urban areas usually by underground pipes and
conduits.
Best management practices (BMP), water sensitive
urban designs (WSUD), low impact development (LID)
or in Germany “Naturnahe Regen was serbewirts
chaftung” (storm water management according to
nature‟s principles) only are different names for the
same philosophy. As shown in figure 20 storm water
should be primarily retained by storage and infiltration,
where it originates. If local capacities are exceeded it
should be slowed down as much as possible during its
runoff process. A compromise between storage and
carrying it downstream needs to be found. It was found,
that water sensitive urban designs are the only way to
cope with current urban water problems in the fast
growing cities under climate change. Since the 80ies of
last century increasingly water sensitive designs
therefore superseded construction of large storm drains
or stormwater tunnels. Realization of this notion is not
as difficult as many might have thought.

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 833 ING. W.F. GEIGER
Fig. 20 Source control measures to reduce storm runoff
Connection of local WSUD concepts to regional
water carriage ways
While local stormwater systems should be able to deal
with the frequent storm events, i.e. up to a rain
frequency of 5 years, regional systems shall be able to
handle the less frequent but severe storm events. The
regional system may include conduits, natural or
artificial channels, but also roads to convey runoff
overland to suitable points for discharge into urban
streams or larger conduits, parks and sports fields for
intermediate storage until discharge capacities in urban
streams become available.
An efficient and successful stormwater system design
must include efficient connection samong the
components of local and regional systems. The problem
starts with the different design storm frequencies
usually assumed for the two types of system. While
landscaped stormwater management facilities usually
are designed for a storm frequency of once in five years,
carriage capacities of large storm conduits, tunnels,
urban streams are designed for storms with 10,
sometimes up to 200 years as in the case of the Emscher
River in Germany. There are landscaped solutions, i.e.
implemented as landscape steps in the Scharnhauser
Park development described in chapter 6.6 or as
landscape bridge draining roof runoff from a building
complex to a regional storm drain above natural
drainage level (figures 21 and 22).
Fig. 21 Landscape bridge (MSLA 2013)
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Fig. 22 Cross-section of landscape bridge (MSLA 2013)
Holistic view of stormwater management
Access to public services such as clean water and safe
drainage is linked to wealth, whereby due to the speed
of growth the poor often are not reached by public
services. However, access to public services is one of
the most crucial means to escape poverty. People
recognize water shortage and water pollution as
technical failures, but rarely identify them as the result
of mismanagement or social problems. In countries
under development water management hardly ever is a
holistic action of urban growth and economy, involving
administrative institutions, enterprises, public interest
groups and general public. Action without clear and
balanced goals leads to progressing dynamics of
problems. Social justices get lost and social solidarity
decreases. It can be observed, that social conventions in
rapidly developing countries like China and India are
broken.
Stormwater solutions cannot be narrowed to only
upgrade or build new storm drains, but must be holistic,
taking public health, drainage comfort, social,
administrative and financial aspects into consideration.
It is the economic development that aggravates the
urban stormwater problem by more surfaces paved as
streets, pedestrian ways and bicycle lanes, parking lots
and large roof areas. Often corruption bypasses land use
regulations and environmental laws. Social drawback
occurs in case of flooding disrupting public services i.e.
water, gas or electricity supplies, polluting drinking
water resources and damaging private and public
utilities, interrupting city life, destroying neighborhood
ties and even causing casualties. Wellbeing, health and
psychology of citizens after disasters leave traumas and
the feeling of personal vulnerability and helplessness.
Planning under changing conditions
Foreseen development and climate change pose
tremendous difficulties on stormwater management. It is
not sufficient to simply upgrade design standards or
apply safety factors to design storm frequencies, but
urban planning and drainage solutions must be resilient.
Further planning must include more insight and
knowledge than in the past.
 Urban Storm Water Management Trapped By Manmade and Natural Changes
Resilience and preparedness, an essential part for
future stormwater management
Figure 23 illustrates that drainage costs raise
exponentially, if design storm frequencies are upgraded.
The bad news is that upgrading design levels can lower
the risks of property damage and the risk of casualties
only to a small extend (figure 24). Only resilient designs
and preparedness can reduce the risks significantly.
Fig. 23 Design level vs. costs
Fig. 24 Damage risks under different design strategies
Resilience can be understood as the capacity of a system
to cope with disturbance and reorganize it, while
undergoing changes. Especially for stormwater
management, resilient solutions have the ability to
maintain their basic functions when subjected to
biophysical, socioeconomic (e.g. population growth and
economic development), geographical and
climatological pressure.
Resilience in the past was not a specific design criterion
but was included in the empirical excises in ancient
man-made structures. However, such virtue has been
completely forgotten in modern designs. Resilience in
stormwater management today requires new cross-
disciplinary collaborations and needs to be incorporated
into urban planning again. Future urban development
must consider water issues first and adapt the built
environment to natural conditions. In this case,
resilience and safety are closely linked to each other.
Resilient urban designs should not only have the ability
to retain runoff on site or at least reduce storm water
discharge downstream, but also sustain surface and
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834
groundwater levels at natural condition. Water
consumption today largely depends on ground water.
Therefore artificial recharge of storm runoff is as
important as rain water harvesting, which means “Catch
the rain water where it falls”. Rain water may be
collected and recharged into ground water through pits,
trenches, recharge wells and shafts, lateral shafts with
well bores. Especially harvesting of rainwater and the
recharge of groundwater provide sites with resilience to
climate change, for example under droughts. Water
storage (in all its forms) plays a key role for adaptation
to climate change. In summary WSUD may enhance
resilience of a system (see chapter 4.1).
Composing optimal stormwater management
systems
Geiger et.al. (2011) have developed a staged decision
support systems (DSS) for integrated water resources
management (IWRM) as outlined in Figure 25. This
DSS considers the quite restrictive availability of
detailed data, especially at the beginning of a planning
process. It integrates technical, social and political
issues involved in water management decisions. The
basis of the tool is catalogues of measures for each
application area, i.e. urban stormwater management,
agricultural irrigation or treatment processes, whereby
each measure is identified by its applicability,
environmental impact, costs and socio-cultural
acceptance.
Fig. 25 Hierarchical DSS for Sustainable Water
Management (Geiger, 2004)
DSS stage 1 was designed that it can be gradually
improved whenever more detailed information becomes
available. A user-friendly hierarchal network,
programmed in MS Excel VBA and the open source
graph visualization software Graph viz, organizes
measures and related terminology with regard to
mitigation of water problems. Different technical
measures are entered into a spread sheet, from which a
graphical presentation is automatically produced that
can efficiently present the quantitative and qualitative
effects and relationships. Decision makers and experts
from different levels and fields can discuss on this basis
the qualitative relationships between action priorities
 835 ING. W.F. GEIGER
and measures, and specify possible abatement strategies,
without losing sight of the important socioeconomic and
politic measures. The same terminologies are linked to a
general measure catalogue and a questionnaire system
where the answers are automatically compared with
screening criteria contained in a measure-answer matrix.
The questionnaire serves to find out which measures
potentially can be applied under prevailing conditions in
a study area. On the basis of the answers, already
implemented or geographical and socio-cultural
unsuitable measures are automatically screened out
from the comprehensive measure catalogue. The
hierarchy can be gradually accomplished with estimates
of potential abatement costs and effects on environment
and finally serves as basis for financial or political
decisions. Three additional elements are required for a
selection of planning scenarios in DSS1: cross-sector
comparability, location specificity and climate
variability.
In DSS stage 2 interlinks of the human and the natural
systems are categorized by water fluxes. Measures
modify these fluxes within the planning process and
their effects on attaining a sustainable groundwater
balance. Thus a large number of combined strategies
can be applied against the framework of the local hydro-
ecosystem and objectively evaluated on basic criteria
that define cost efficiency (e.g. groundwater recharge).
Using this technique, the strategies can also be analysed
against breakpoints and trends in precipitation series,
thus assuring a selection of economic and sustainable
strategies. So far the system is basically a filter
mechanism to avoid detailed analyses of an
overwhelming amount of different measures. The
effects of the measures as well as of combinations of
preferable measures do not differentiate spatial and
temporal (seasonal) characteristics. This might lead to
wrong conclusions, where local conditions play a
dominant role in the water balance.
The system therefore is advanced in DSS stage 3
incorporating modelling approaches. Detailed models
will analyse the more precise storm water situation,
estimate flows in mayor storm drain systems and
groundwater values. Models like SWMM, MOUSE;
MIKE11 and FEFLOW may be linked to an Arc GIS
based information system. The information system
automatically prepares the models with adaptions
related to the measures and transfers and summarizes
the model results in a format which can be evaluated
together with the socioeconomic effects.
The system has been developed and applied within the
joint Chinese-German project “Overall-effective
measures for sustainable water resources management
in the coastal area of Shandong Province, PR China”,
the financial support of which by BMBF is gratefully
acknowledged.
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Application of suggested strategies to the Indian
urban situation and obstacles for their
implementation
Following suggestions are based on own observations of
the urban drainage situations in India around 1996 and
studying recent assessment reports. Though the situation
seems disastrous and responsible authorities appear
helpless at many locations, at least Indian society has a
realistic chance to solve many storm water problems
themselves, but this needs the backing of corruption less
law enforcement.
Indian law contains all the requirements needed to clear
the situation. Therefore it is suggested to start with
removing litter and cleaning up rivers and water
courses, removing illegal housing in water carriage
ways and floodplains. Enterprises and people, adding to
the pollution shall have their choice to pay money or
join this clean-up process. At the same time
municipalities maybe with governmental support must
provide waste water collection systems, sometimes in
form of open collection channels, leading to wetlands or
in form of sewers, leading to technical treatment plants.
For this of course planning is necessary, which still can
be based on hand calculations estimating future
wastewater quantities and simple hydraulic principles.
All of this certainly is the responsibility of sewer
departments.
All future developments or redevelopments must follow
the WSUD and resilience principles explained. All
urban planning must be adapted to the local storm water
situation. It never functions, if urban housing
development comes first and afterwards the solutions
for storm water shall be found. Further pricing
measures, including volumetric charges, taxes and user
fees, can act as incentives to conservation and more
efficient allocation of water resources, provided they
address concerns of equity and affordability to the poor.
Most developing counties during fast economic
development look for quick solutions for their storm
water problems and are misled by stor mwater
management techniques functioning well in the past in
countries like Europe, North America, Australia,
Singapore and maybe Japan. They do not consider, that
1. Storm water solutions in Europe, North America,
Australia, Singapore and Japan have developed
over many years, i.e.in Germany over more than
one hundred years and knowledge for planning,
design and operation grew according to socio-
economic conditions and environmental awareness.
All cities and villages control their storm water in
combined or separate systems.
2. Systems in above named countries have been
designed according to their local climate. Their
design matured and was constantly adapted to the
 Urban Storm Water Management Trapped By Manmade and Natural Changes
experience made with operation of the systems and
new research findings. For instance, the early
strategy of large storm sewers and storm water
tunnel systems has widely been replaced by source
control strategies today.
3. Demographic alterations, economic development,
altering living standards as well as climate change
require adequate data and planning flexibility,
which obliges water management not only to be
cross-sectorial, but also open for temporal and
spatial adaptation.
4. Storm water management is linked to social and
political conditions. In Germany for instance the
high success in managing storm water also is a
result of political decisions made in the 1970s,
when it was decided, that all rivers and lakes shall
have a water quality level of at least grade II by
1990.
5. Most developing countries have not only different
climates, but sometimes also different attitudes
towards environment and keeping (environmental)
laws.
6. Corruption in above named countries is low and the
money allotted for storm water management ends
up where it should be.
A fact is, that decision makers in countries like India
and China often
 think that water management is a means that
supports economic-political goals only,
 due to lack of knowledge to choose solutions they
have seen in internet or somewhere else or some
design companies suggested without being aware of
the local constraints and options,
 usually for cost reasons copy not holistic designs or
only parts of holistic designs,
 rely on computer simulation results without having
checked the validity of the data used ,
 frequently take actions focusing on local acute
problems without considering their spatial and
temporal effects,
 choose costly solutions involving lot of
construction and concrete work the share of
corruption money being larger than with low cost
solution, i.e. open surface water sensitive urban
designs, which under appropriate guidance could be
done by the people themselves,
 not being corruptive themselves have not the
appropriate education to deal with the situation.
So planning at times gets a matter of coincidence: who
has seen what, who knows whom or who has which
benefit. This not only is costly, but also risky for
societies.
Examples of WSUD concepts
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836
Modern water scapes are water sensitive and adaptive.
Thus they shall not only meet present needs, but also
ensure the existence and wellbeing of future
generations. The principal guidance for new
development should be that it shall not deteriorate the
water balance compared with the situation before the
development. To be more specific, no more water shall
be extracted from surface and ground waters beyond the
amount recharged to water bodies on an annual average.
Following examples show, how storm water
management can improve urban life, restore
groundwater tables and provide flooding safety. Such
solutions certainly raise people‟s acceptance or even
desire for new approaches. Examples from India, China
and Europe are given.
City Park in Mumbai
Mumbai with an annual precipitation of 2,587.7 mm
suffers serious urban floods occurring almost every year
in monsoon season. Mumbai also is known for its
former large natural wetlands. However, during urban
development in the last decades, wetlands were
commonly considered to be wastelands. But wetlands
are an important part of nature's bio-engineering,
protecting coastlines, checking soil erosion, enabling
flood control and providing feeding and breeding
grounds to aquatic life. The design of a park in the city
of Mumbai, took the opportunity to reintroduce natural
wetlands that existed before the fast growing city took
over. The park was designed realistically both in terms
of economic and landscape maintainability. It accounted
for various roads cutting through it and imparted
exciting vignettes along these paths of movement. The
wetlands are scenery spots with plants and
entertainment facilities and retention areas of storm
water in the high-dense city of Mumbai (Figure 26).
Fig. 26 Design layers of City Park
(http://www.landscapeindia.net/projects.html)
SindhuBaug (Public Park) in Ahmedabad, India
The site is located in Gandhidham. In contrary to
Mumbai Gandhidham falls in the “hot and arid” region
of India receiving less than 200mm of rainfall annually.
Water is scarce and where present has high total
 837 ING. W.F. GEIGER

dissolved solids (TDS). Given the constraints of climate
and site, it was essential that waste water could be
reused for the park. Therefore park design integrates a
wastewater treatment system (DSTS) that receives the
available waste water from nearby residences, by
tapping the sewer line. The wastewater is treated
biologically on site and stored in underground tanks for
irrigation and operating fountains. The water channel is
the central feature of the park as all stormwater drains
into it. The channel also functions as a conduit for
transporting treated wastewater to a pond and pump
sump (Figure 27).
creates a storm water filtrating and cleansing buffer
zone for the core wetland, and a pleasant landscape
filter between nature and city. Storm water from the
newly built urban area is collected by a pipe around the
circumference of the wetland, and then is evenly
distributed into the wetland after filtration and particle
settling through the ponds. Native wetland grasses and
meadow are grown in the ponds of various depths and a
natural evolution process is initiated. Groves of native
silver birch trees (Betula) are grown on the mounds of
various heights that create a dense forest setting.

Fig. 27 View of the vegetated filters

( ) Fig. 28 Bird View of Storm Water Park

Qunli National Urban Wetland, China (http://www.turenscape.com/english/)

Beginning in 2006, a new urban district, Qunli New

Town, in the size of 2733 hectares, was developed at the
east outskirt of Haerbin City of North China. 32 million
square meters of buildings will be erected in the next 13
to 15 years. More than one third of a million
populations are expected to live here. While only about
16.4% of the developable land was zoned as permeable
green space, the majority of the former flat plain will be
covered with impermeable concrete. While the annual
rainfall of this area is 567mm and concentrated in June
through August, accounting for 60% to70% of annual
precipitation. Flood and water logging were frequent for
this area. Turenscape was commissioned to design a Fig. 29 Housing along Feng Chang River
park of 34.2 hectares on a former wetland, which has (http://www.dreiseitl.com/index.php?id=55&lang=en)
been surrounded at four side by roads and dense
development. Water sources for this former wetland Through the transformation of this dying wetland, storm
have been cut, and the wetland started to disappear. The water that frequently caused floods in the city becomes
strategy was to transform the dying wetland into an a positive environmental amenity for the city. The storm
urban storm water park, which will provide multiple water park now has been listed as a national urban
ecosystems services for the new community. The result wetland park. This project demonstrates an ecosystem
is a great success. services oriented approach to urban park design, and
showcase a water urbanism approach.
The design solutions include the use of simple cut-and-
fill technique to create a necklace of ponds-and-mounds Zhangjiawo New Town in Tianjin, China
surrounding the former wetland (figure 28). While In the water sensitive design concept for Zhangjiawo
leaving a major core of the wetland untouched and left New Town rainwater is cleansed through natural plant
for natural evolution and transforming, the pond-and- systems and collected in a central water body. Small
mound ring surrounding the periphery of the wetland neighborhoods are grouped by pedestrian road creating

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 Urban Storm Water Management Trapped By Manmade and Natural Changes
both privacy and connection in the community. 200 year
old orchard trees were retained, which gives the site a
lively maturity.
This ecological concept is vital to prevent brackish
water pushing in from the sea. The Feng Chang River
has been restored from a 30 m wide polluted irrigation
canal back into a beautiful, clean, natural river. The
banks are softly shaped and planted - a flourishing
ecology has rebalanced the natural biology of the water
making the Feng Chang River a community asset for
leisure and socializing, as well as safeguarding water
resources.
Abhishree Ecostead in Ahmedabad, India
The project designs high end homes on the outskirts of
Ahmedabad, with lot sizes varying from two thousand
to seven thousand square meters spread over an area of
sixty three hectares. Balancing the aspirations of the
potential clients as well as creating an ecologically
sound environment, agricultural fields and orchards are
used as main space making elements. There is extensive
rain water harvesting. The water is stored and recharged
through an artificial lake that gives additional real estate
value to the place. The artificial lake acts as retention
area for storm water and offers scenery spots under dry
situations with beautiful natural banks (Figures 30)
Fig. 30 Map of Abhishree Ecostead
(http://www.landscapeindia.net/abhishree.html).
Scharnhauser Park, Stuttgart, Germany
This example shows the multiple use of a landscape step
as social meeting place and as a controlled stormwater
runoff system as well as an emergency flood way. The
site Scharnhauser Park covers 140 hectare with an
overall density is of 150 inhabitants per hectare. The
whole area has been developed five years ago and
12.000 people are supposed to live there finally. The
whole project represents an exemplary ecological
community development, where workplaces, residential
areas and green park sections are combined to lead to an
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838
integrated living and transportation concept with high
comfort and low energy consumption.
The whole development is equipped with SUDS
(Sustainable Drainage Systems). Run-off from public
land is directed to infiltration drainage swales located
within the main public green spaces. Run-off from
private land is required to be retained on the place of
origin, either by rainwater harvesting or through
infiltration drainage swales. Figure 31 sketches the
public street storm drains leading to a central landscape
step, under which storm water storage and infiltration
components are installed.
Fig. 31 Public Street drains leading to the central
landscape step with storage and infiltration
Summary and Recommendations
Managing urban storm water poses huge challenges and
the consequences of neglecting it are losses of social
peace, livelihoods and property, damages to
environment and pollution of water resources. Storm
drainage concepts of the past failed in fast growing
cities of developing countries and need to be replaced
by water sensitive urban designs dealing with storm
water up to one in five year storm event son site. For
safe drainage of larger and extreme storms resilient
solutions must be well planned to reduce the risk of
economic loss and casualties.
For Indian urban storm water conditions and climate
suitable storm water management solutions exist. The
disastrous urban situation calls for immediate action:
 839 ING. W.F. GEIGER
removing litter and cleaning up rivers and floodplains
should be a first step, followed by removal of illegal
constructions in water carriage ways. At the same time
municipalities must provide waste water collection
systems and safeguard storm drainage, sometimes in
form of open collection channels, leading to wetlands or
in form of sewers, leading to technical treatment plants.
All future developments or redevelopments must follow
the WSUD and resilience principles. Urban planning
must be adapted to local situations. It never functions, if
urban housing and industrial development comes first
and afterwards engineers are asked to find solutions for
waste and storm water. Further pricing measures,
including volumetric charges, taxes and user fees, can
act as incentives to conservation and more efficient
allocation of water resources, provided they address
concerns of equity and affordability to the poor. Thus
urban water systems have to consider social and
economic aspects, as already demanded in 1970 by
Professor Mc Pherson, one of the first urban
hydrologists.
Most of the paper may have been common sense. Even
more the present urban storm water situation in many
cities is ashamed. Main reason for this situation is
political priority setting of economic goals, at times
using corruptive measures to bypass cities drainage
regulations and environmental laws.
References and Recommended Literature:
[1] Allen, M. D., Argue, J. R., Geiger W. F., Jonston,
L. D. et al: Water sensitive urban design: Basic
procedures for “Source Control” of Stormwater. In:
A Handbook for Australian Practice, University of
South Australia, First Edition, November 2004.
[2] Ambujam, N.K., Ravindranathan, R., and
Muthukumaran, N., "Tank Management: An
Overview of Traditional Systems", in: Proceedings
of the International Seminar on Water Resources
Development and Management in India through the
Ages, University of Madras, Chennai, March2003.
[3] Catalog. Ecological Urbanism [M]. Harvard GSD
Press, 2009.
[4] Fach, S.; Geiger, W. F.: Effective pollutant
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[5] Fardin, H. F., Hollé,A., Gautier E., HauryJ.:
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[6] Fowler, H. J.; Kilsby, C. G.; O‟Connell, P. E.:
Modeling the impacts of climate change and
variability on the reliability, resilience and
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vulnerability of a water resource system. Water
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[7] Geiger,W. F.: Need for Models, Section 14 in:
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1976.
[8] Geiger,W. F.: The Impact of Sewer System
Overflows on Receiving Waters as Defined by
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Amsterdam, Netherlands, 1977.
[9] Geiger,W. F.: Continuous Quality Monitoring of
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[10] Geiger,W. F: Goodness and Limits in Urban Runoff
Modelling, in: Third International Conference on
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[11] Geiger, W. F.: Variation of Combined Runoff
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[12] Geiger, W. F.: "New Drain, New Dimensions in
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[13] Geiger, W. F.: "New Concepts for Flood Control in
Highly Urbanized Areas" in: Proceedings of the
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[14] Geiger, W. F: „Integrated Stormwater Management
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[15] Geiger, W. F.: Principles of Integrated Water
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[16] Geiger, W. F.: Integrated Water Management in
Urban and Surroundings - Findings of the
workshops in Essen and Gelsenkirchen convened
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„Integrated Water Management in Urban Areas -
Searching for new, realistic approaches“, Lund,
Sweden, September 26-30, 1995.
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[17] Geiger, W. F.,Dreiseitl,H.: Neue Wege für das
Regenwasser - Handbuch zum Rückhalt und zur
Versickerung von Regenwasser in Baugebieten,
239 pages., Oldenbourg Verlag, München, 1995.
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on Watershed Management, Shenzhen, P.R. China,
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[19] Geiger, W. F.: Flood control and groundwater
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2006.
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scapes- Handbook for urban planners and
landscapers, ca. 400 pages, 2014. (under
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[22] Government of India Ministry of Urban
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[23] Indian Network for Climate Change Assessment
(INCCA) Report # 2., Climate Change and India: A
4X4Assessment, A Sectorial and Regional Analysis
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Government of India, 2010.
[24] International Water Management Institute (IWMI):
Water Resilience for Cities. Colombo, Sri Lanka:
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