International Journal of Scientific & Engineering Research, Volume 7, Issue 4, April-2016 1349

ISSN 2229-5518

Compressive Strength of Concrete Using

Sawdust as Aggregate
Daniel Yaw Osei, Emmanuel Nana Jackson

Abstract—This paper reports on experimental investigations on the effect of replacing sand with sawdust on the properties of concrete. A
concrete mix of 1:2:4 was used as control while sawdust was used to replace 25%, 50%, 75% and 100% of sand by volume. The
percentage reduction in density are 5.96%, 12.44%,13.56% and 17.93% respectively while the corresponding percentage reduction in
compressive strength were 57.5%, 68.1%, 83.7%,and 87.3% respectively. The results of the study indicate that both the density and
compressive strength of concrete decreased as the percentage replacement increased but replacement of sand by sawdust produced a
higher percentage reduction in compressive strength than in density. Sawdust can potentially be used as aggregate in the production of
both non-structural lightweight concrete and structural concrete. However, further research should be conducted to establish its suitability
as aggregate in concrete

Keywords— compressive strength, concrete, sawdust, sawdust concrete

—————————— ——————————
The use of waste materials in construction contributes to the
1 INTRODUCTION
natural resources conservation and environmental
Increasing population has created an urgent need for

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protection (Ramezanianpour et al, 2009). The main
accelerated housing and infrastructural development in advantages of waste materials include preservation of virgin
developing countries like Ghana. However, the rising costs raw materials; re-use of waste and energy as well the
of construction materials, dwindling material sources and development of sustainable concrete and construction of
environmental considerations have seriously affected the eco-friendly buildings (Bechio et. al., 2009).
ability of both public and private organizations to meet this
challenge. It has therefore become necessary to investigate The production of timber generates a lot of waste such as
non-traditional sources of materials for use in civil sawdust, wood shavings etc. most of which are not recycled
engineering construction. The use of wastes such as palm but dumped or burnt in the open, thus impacting the
kernel shells, coconut shells, and sawdust in construction environment negatively without any economic benefits.
would help to reduce over reliance on traditional materials
such as cement, sand and crushed rock aggregates whose Sawdust refers to the tiny sized and powdery waste
exploitation has resulted in negative environmental produced by the sawing of wood (Maharani et al, 2010)
consequences. .Sawdust is a highly variable material with differing particle
size, chemical composition, density and colour (Ravidrajajah
According to Turgut and Algin (2007), accumulation of et al, 2001). It is principally composed of cellulose,
unmanaged waste especially in developing countries has hemicelluloses, lignin and extractives. Sawdust is used in the
resulted in increasing environmental concerns whilst production of particle boards, charcoal briquettes, and also
recycling of such waste as building materials appears to be a as fuel for cooking.
viable solution not only to such pollution problem but also
to economic design of buildings. In an investigation on the use of sawdust as sand
replacement to produce a low-cost and lightweight material
———————————————— for use in construction, Adebaku et al (2012) found out that
· Daniel Yaw Osei is a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Civil
at 10% sawdust replacement, production costs and weight
Engineering at Cape Coast Polytechnic, Cape Coast, Ghana. E-mail:
[email protected] reduced by 3% and 10% respectively. Usman et al (2012)
· Emmanuel Nana Jackson is a Lecturer in the Department of Building
found out that the strength of concrete reduced with
Technology at Cape Coast Polytechnic, Cape Coast, Ghana. E-mail:
[email protected] sawdust as fine aggregate due to its higher rate of water
absorption and the optimum replacement was 25%. Olutoge
(2010) investigated the suitability of palm kernel shells and

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International Journal of Scientific & Engineering Research, Volume 7, Issue 4, April-2016 1350
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sawdust as replacements of crushed granite and sand 3 RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

respectively in the production of concrete. 3.1 Compressive Strength
The results obtained from compressive strength testing are
Bechio et al. (2009) observed that increase in wood aggregate presented in Table 1.
content reduces the weight of concrete by distinctly decreasing
its density while compressive strength test indicates mechanical Table 1 Compressive Strength (Nmm-2)
properties drop with decrease in density.
Percentage Age(days)
This study investigated the properties of concrete with replacement 7 14 21 28
sawdust as replacement of sand with a view to assess the use
of sawdust concrete as a sustainable material. 0 23.36 25.12 26.87 28.64

2 M ATERIALS AND METHODS 25 9.54 9.61 10.40 12.13

Rapid hardening cement produced by Ghana Cement 50 5.85 7.78 8.33 9.15
Factory at Takoradi in the Western Region of Ghana was
75 2.92 3.44 4.00 4.66
used as the binder in this study. It conformed to the
requirements of GS 22(2004).Water produced by Ghana 100 2.47 2.87 3.22 3.37
Water Company was used in mixing materials for concrete

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production. It looked clean and free from any visible It is seen from Table 1 that for the control mix, the
impurities, conforming to BS 1348(1980).Crushed granite compressive strength of concrete increased from 23.36Nmm-
used as coarse aggregate was obtained from a local quarry 2 at 7days to 28.64 Nmm-2 at 28days.The compressive
works. Sand was sourced from a local supplier in Cape strength at 25% replacement increased from 9.54 Nmm-2 at
Coast while sawdust was obtained from a local sawmill. 7days to 12.13 Nmm-2 at 28days, while it increased from 5.85
A concrete mix of ratio 1:2:4 by volume was used as control; Nmm-2 at 7days to 9.15 Nmm-2 at 28days.Similarly, at 75%
to which the properties of the other mixes were compared. replacement the compressive strength increased from 2.92
Sawdust was used to replace sand at percentages of 25%, Nmm-2 at 7days to 4.66 Nmm-2 at 28days. At complete
50%, 75% and 100% by volume. A water cement ratio of 0.55 replacement the compressive strength increased from
was adopted. Concrete was produced by mixing the 2.47Nmm-2 at 7days to 3.37 Nmm-2 at 28 days.
constituent raw materials in an electric concrete mixer.
Twelve specimens of each mix were produced .Concrete was Fig. 1 shows the variation of compressive strength with
cast in cast iron moulds measuring 150mm150mm150mm percentage replacement. It can be seen that at any
internally. A total of sixty (60) specimens were produced in percentage replacement of sand by saw dust the
accordance with BS 1881(1996). After casting the moulds compressive strength of concrete increased with age. As the
were covered with polythene sheets to prevent loss of water. curing time increases, the reaction between cement and
Twenty four hours after casting, the specimens were water continues thereby forming more C-S-H gel which
demoulded and placed in a curing tank until the day of improves the bond between the cement paste and the
testing. The compressive strengths of the specimens were aggregates, thereby increasing the compressive strength. It is
determined at 7, 14, 21 and 28 days of curing using a 1500kN also seen that the compressive strength of concrete reduced
Matest compression tester. On the day of crushing, the as the saw dust content increased.
specimens were removed from the curing tank, wiped clean
with a soft towel and placed on the floor of the laboratory
for about two hours prior to crushing. The densities of the
specimens were determined by weighing and calculation of
volume. The results presented are the average value of three
specimens of the same mix. All tests were conducted at the
materials laboratory in the Department of Civil Engineering
of Cape Coast Polytechnic.

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Table 2 Density (kgm-3)

Percentage Age(days)
replacement 7 14 21 28
0 2293 2297 2316 2331
25 2128 2145 2151 2192
50 1989 2004 2018 2041
75 1966 1973 1997 2005
100 1871 1889 1907 1913

The density of the control mix concrete increased from

2293kgm-3 at 7days to 2331kgm-3 at 28days.The density at 25%
replacement increased from 2128kgm-3 at 7days to 2192kgm -3 at
28days, while it increased from 1989kgm-3 at 7days to
2041kgm-3 at 28days.Similarly, at 75% replacement the density
increased from 1966 kgm-3 at 7days to 2038kgm-3 at 28days.At
complete replacement, the density increased from 1871kgm-3
at 7days to 1913kgm-3 at 28 days. The density of concrete

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Fig. 1 Variation of compressive strength with percentage
replacement of sand by sawdust increased with age. The variation of the density with sawdust
content at various ages is presented in Figure 2.
According to Vaidkelionis and Vaickelionene (2006), wood
extractives slow down the hydration of cement. As the
quantity of sawdust increases, the amount of wood
extractives increases, thereby leading to further reduction in
the rate of hydration of cement. Therefore, increasing the
quantity of sawdust considerably decreased the compressive
strength of cement stone. A percentage replacement of
approximately fourteen percent (14%) can be used to
produce grade 20 concrete, the minimum required for
construction of structures whilst a replacement of 16%
corresponds to the compressive strength of grade 17
concrete, the minimum required for production of structural
lightweight concrete according to BS 8110(1997).

An equation of fc=0.0033x2-0.5627x+27.325 with an R2 value

of 0.960 may be used to represent the variation of the 28-day
compressive strength of concrete (fc) with sawdust
replacement percentage ( x) .A strong relationship therefore
exists between the compressive strength and percentage Fig. 2 Variation of density with percentage replacement of
replacement.
sand by sawdust

3.2 Density At all ages, the density of concrete decreased as the

percentage replacement of sand by sawdust increased. The
Table 2 shows the results of average density of concrete
density of sand is higher than the density of sawdust,
specimens obtained from the tests. The density of concrete
therefore as sand is replaced by an equal volume of sawdust
reduces as the sawdust content increases.
the mass of the mixture reduced, leading to a decrease in
density. An equation of ρ=0.0239x2-0.6.4806x+2330.9 with an
R2 value of 0.9866 may be used to represent the variation of
the 28-day density of concrete (ρ) with sawdust replacement

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International Journal of Scientific & Engineering Research, Volume 7, Issue 4, April-2016 1352
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percentage (x). This shows that a strong relationship exists Replacement of sand by sawdust produced a higher
between the compressive strength and percentage percentage reduction in compressive strength than in
replacement density. Sand therefore be replaced by sand in situation
where strength is not a major requirement.
3.3 Compressive strength and density
reduction
4 CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS
The percentage reduction in compressive strength and density
In this study the effects of the replacement of sand with
is shown in Table 3.
sawdust on the strength and density were investigated.
Table 3 Percentage reduction in compressive strength Based on the results obtained, the following conclusions are
and density drawn:
Percentage Density Compressive
replacement strength · The compressive strength and density of concrete
0 0 0 reduced as the percentage replacement of sand by
25 5.96 57.47 sawdust increased.
50 12.44 68.05 · The effect of sawdust on the strength of concrete
75 13.56 83.73 was more pronounced than the effect on the density
100 17.93 87.30 of concrete.

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The percentage reduction in compressive strength at 25%, · Sawdust concrete can potentially be used in
50%, 75% and 100% replacements of sand by sawdust are situations where compressive strength is not a
57.47%, 68.05%, 87.37% and 87.30% respectively. Similarly, major requirement.
the percentage reduction in density at 0%, 25%, 50%,75% · A percentage replacement of at least 14% can
and 100% replacements of sand by sawdust are 0%, 5.96%, potentially be used in producing structural concrete.
12.44%, 13.56% 17.93% respectively. The percentage · Sawdust can potentially replace 16% of sand in the
reduction in 28-day compressive strength and density as a production of structural lightweight concrete.
function of percentage replacement of sand by sawdust is · Since sawdust may be obtained at virtually no cost,
shown in Figure 3. the cost of concrete can potentially be reduced by
replacing sand with sawdust in concrete.

Further studies should be conducted on the potential of

sawdust as replacement of sand in the production of
structural concrete.

5 REFERENCES

[1] Adebaku I., H.,Adeyemi A. A., Adu J. T. ,Ajayi F. A, Lawal A.

A., Ogunrinola O. B. (2012).Use of Sawdust as Admixture in
the Production of Low Cost and Lightweight Hollow
Sandcrete Blocks, American Journal of Scientific and
Industrial Research, 3(6),458-463.
[2] British Standard Institution, BS 1881: Part 108: 1996, Making
Test Cubes from Fresh Concrete, BSI, London.
[3] British Standard Institution BS 1348: Part 2: 1980 Test of
Water for Making Concrete, BSI, London
[4] British Standard Institution BS 8110: Part 1: 1997 The
Structural Use of Concrete BSI, London
Figure 3 Percentage reduction in compressive strength [5] Cristina Bechio, Stefano Paolo Corgnati, Andrea Kindinis,
Simonetta Pagliolico. (2009) Improving Environmental
and density Sustainability of Concrete Products: Investigation on MWC
Thermal and Mechanical Properties, Energy and Buildings,
It is seen that the percentage loss of both compressive 41, 1127-1134.
strength and density increased as the percentage [6] Ghana Standards Authority, GS 22, Specifications for
Ordinary and Rapid Hardening Cement, Accra, 2004.
replacement of sand by sawdust increased.

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[7] Olutoge F.A., (2010) Investigations on Sawdust and Palm Different Mills and Sawdust Particle Size. Journal of Forestry
Kernel Shells as Aggregate Replacement. APRN Journal of Research, Vol. 7, No. 1, 20-32.
Engineering and Applied Science 5(4), 7-13. [11] Turgut P. and H. Murat Algine, (2007), Limestone Dust and
[8] Ramezanianpour A. A., Madikhani M., and Ahmadibeni Gh., Wood Sawdust as Brick Material, Building and Environment
(2009) The Effect of Rice Husk Ash on the Mechanical 42, 3399-3403.
Properties and Durability of Sustainable Concrete, 7(2),83-91. [12] Vaickelionis G and Vaickelionene R, (2006) Cement
[9] Ravindrahrajah R. S., Christopher Carroll, Nick Appleyard, Hydration in the Presence of Wood Extractives and Pozzolan
(2001) Development of Sawdust Concrete for Block Making Mineral Additives ,Ceramics-Silikáty,50(2),115-122.
Centre for Infrastructural Research, University of [13] Usman N D, Idusuyi F. I., Ojo E. B., Simon D, (2012) The Use
Technology, Sydney. of Sawdust and Palm Kernel Shells as Substitute for Fine and
[10] Maharani Riziki, Tamai Yutaka, Takashi Yajima and Coarse Aggregates in Concrete Construction in Developing
Terazawa Minoru, (2010), Scrutiny of Physical Properties of Countries, Journal of Chemical, Mechanical and Engineering
Sawdust from Tropical Countries Wood Species: Effect of Practice,2(3).

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