Abstract

In the recent years, research focus on the sustainable construction development. Due to high range of carbon dioxide emissions associated with manufacturing process of ordinary Portland cement that is finding alternatives procedures. This research studies the possibility of geopolymer mortar manufacturing from fly ash and Metakaolin then studies the fresh and hardened properties of this product. Two activating solutions were prepared for this purpose. The first is a mixture of sodium hydroxide/sodium silicate solution, fly ash, sand and water while the second is a mixture of sodium hydroxide/sodium silicate solution, Metalkaolin, sand and water. Test results indicate that the compressive strength is directly affected the fly ash and Metakaolin content and significantly affected the curing condition. A total of ten mixtures were evaluated by considering the effects of aggregate content, alkaline solution to fly ash and Metalkaolin ratio, sodium silicate to sodium hydroxide ratio, and curing method. Three optimal mixtures (M6, M7 and M8) were identified. Results show that the geopolymer mortar can be produced with compressive strength of 19.4 MPa at 28 days.

Keywords: Fly ash; Geopolymer mortar; Compressive strength; Sodium silicate activating solution