Energy, Ecology and Environment (2023) 8(6):596–609

https://doi.org/10.1007/s40974-023-00281-w

ORIGINAL ARTICLE

Non-destructive prediction of strength of geopolymer concrete

employing lightweight recycled aggregates and copper slag
Parmender Gill1 • Parveen Jangra1 • Deepankar Kumar Ashish2

1
Department of Civil Engineering, DCRUST, Murthal, Haryana 131039, India
2
Department of Civil Engineering, Maharaja Agrasen Institute of Technology, Maharaja Agrasen University, Baddi 174103, India

Received: 17 March 2023 / Revised: 30 April 2023 / Accepted: 4 May 2023 / Published online: 17 May 2023
 The Joint Center on Global Change and Earth System Science of the University of Maryland and Beijing Normal University 2023

Abstract This study examined the effect of various design R Correlation coefficient
parameters on the relationship between compressive SEM Scanning electron microscopy
strength and ultrasonic pulse velocity (UPV) of geopoly- UFS Ultrafine slag
mer concrete. To prepare the data set, a series of samples UPV Ultrasonic pulse velocity
were made with increasing alkaline activator liquid to w/c Water to cement ratio
binder (AAL/B) ratios and varying densities. The variation XRF X-ray fluorescence
in density was attained by partial replacement of normal
weight fine and coarse aggregates by denser copper slag
and lightweight recycled aggregates, respectively. The
influence of AAL/B ratio and density on compressive
strength and UPV was evaluated. After comprehensive 1 Introduction
analysis of results, a unified empirical equation is proposed
to non-destructively compute the compressive strength of Geopolymer use as contemporary building material is quite
geopolymer concrete using UPV, AAL/B ratio and density. prevalent in construction sector due to numerous advan-
The findings demonstrated that the suggested equation tages presented in terms of environmental sustainability.
could accurately predict the compressive strengths with a Conventional cement industries account for 8–9% of global
high determination coefficient (Dc) of 0.97. In addition, an anthropogenic carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions (Sonebi
attempt was made to check the validity of the constructed et al. 2016; Monteiro et al. 2017); therefore, their
equation by comparing it with other relevant published involvement in building sector is highly demotivated in
experimental data. government future policies. Geopolymer concrete (GPC) as
an alternative to conventional concrete has potential to
Keywords Geopolymer  Compressive strength  Non- reduce the greenhouse gas emissions into the atmosphere
destructive test  Ultrasonic pulse velocity  Density  by 6–8% (Venugopal 2020). A standard GPC is produced
Liquid to binder ratio  Recycled aggregates  Copper slag by activating the industrial wastes such as fly ash, marble
powder, blast furnace slag, rice husk ash and sugarcane
Abbreviations bagasse ash, which are rich in alumina and silica with
AAL/B Alkaline activator liquid to binder ratio alkaline solutions. A mixture of sodium silicate (Na2SiO3)
DC Determination coefficient (R2) with potassium hydroxide (KOH) or sodium hydroxide
GPC Geopolymer concrete (NaOH) is typically used as an alkaline activator solution.
NDT Non-destructive technique Inclusion of unconventional aggregates in concrete
OPC Ordinary Portland cement fabrication might help in reducing or hopefully eliminating
the use of natural aggregates and would go a long way in
improving the green aspect of geopolymer concrete. Cur-
& Parveen Jangra
[email protected]
rently, to produce good quality concrete, aggregate demand

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Non-destructive prediction of strength of geopolymer concrete employing… 597

is mostly fulfilled by mining natural sand and rocks, which loading and possess sufficient matrix strength. Compres-
have negative consequences on environment sustainability. sive strength is the numerical value assigned to assess
Materials that could be opted as concrete aggregate are concrete performance reliability. Concrete other mechani-
limited owing to the specific required physical properties, cal characteristics such as flexural strength, tensile strength
ease of availability and their subsequent effect on concrete and elastic modulus are secondary properties that are
density, strength, and durability. Just like ordinary Portland invariably influenced by its compressive strength. Many
cement (OPC)-based concrete, filler aggregates act as researchers have successfully established empirical rela-
necessary ingredient in GPC structure and account for tionships to predict concrete mechanical properties based
70–80% of its matrix volume. Therefore, to slow down the on compressive strength values (Fröjd et al. 2016; Jindal
unjustified depletion of natural mineral resources, alterna- et al. 2017; Saha et al. 2021; Gill et al. 2022). But com-
tive aggregate sources are explored, such as industrial pressive strength test is a time consuming and destructive
wastes and recycled aggregates. The use of nickel slag, test that only reports the properties of the targeted portion
copper slag, crumb rubber and blast furnace slag as sand of structure. Various attempts were made in recent years to
aggregate replacement and incorporation of recycled detect and predict in situ concrete compressive strength
coarse aggregates into conventional concrete has been done indirectly from non-destructive techniques (NDTs) such as
by various researchers with positive results (Haddad et al. rebound hammer test and pulse velocity test (Del Rıo et al.
2017; Van Dao et al. 2019; Wongsa et al. 2019). 2004; Mohammed et al. 2011; Singh et al. 2012). Fur-
Increased global demand for copper metal has resulted thermore, NDT results were observed to be in direct res-
in a production 24.6 million tons of copper slag as by- onance with compressive strength results as shown by
product (Gorai et al. 2003). Copper slag is a by-product Chakrawarthi et al. (2022). They established a linear rela-
from copper smelting and refining processes and generally tionship that accurately predicted compressive strength
disposed of in landfills or employed in a small number of using results of pulse velocity and rebound hammer test for
applications, such as sand blasting and abrasive tool pro- OPC-concrete with copper slag completely replacing nat-
duction (Murari et al. 2014). Copper slag has already been ural fine aggregates. However, these studies focused on
recognized in the literature to be a reasonable alternative conventional OPC-based concrete and established very
for fine aggregate in conventional mortar and concrete (Al- elementary equation (linear) primarily depending on NDT
jabri et al. 2009, 2011; Wu et al. 2010). However, there is tests to determine concrete matrix character and compres-
still a lack of detailed knowledge about the using copper sive strength. Ultrasonic pulse velocity (UPV) is a NDT
slag in GPC as fine aggregate. Mahendran and Arunache- test that is easy and quick to perform and produce results
lam (2016) reported that 100% substitution of fine aggre- with a fair degree of accuracy. Pulse velocity is reported as
gates with copper slag increased the compressive strength speed of sound wave (km/s) passing through the concrete
of ambient and oven cured fly ash-based geopolymer structure and is created mechanically with the help of
concrete by 35 and 51%, respectively. Furthermore, it was external electrical and mechanical equipment (transducer)
shown that density of GPC increased due to high specific attached at both extreme ends. UPV is used as an indicator
density of copper aggregates. According to Sreenivasulu of structural integrity in terms of cracks, voids and
and Sashidhar (2020), the superior void-filling action of soundness of ingredients in the concrete matrix with a fair
fine amorphous copper slag also promoted alkali-activation degree of confidence, where higher values reflect a better
in GPC and consequently improved the compressive concrete matrix. Ultrasonic pulse velocity gives an idea
strength with increasing replacement of fine aggregates. A about the quality of concrete, aggregates, and its com-
previous study by Nuaklong et al. (2016) indicated that pressive strength (Moreno 2008). Bogas et al. (2013) in
recycled aggregates could be used as coarse aggregates in their experimental study concluded that UPV increases
fly ash-based GPC. It was reported that though the strength with age, while it decreased with the increment in water to
and durability performance was reduced, but GPC cement (w/c) ratio and aggregate volume.
employing recycled coarse aggregates still retained Several attempts have been undertaken in recent years to
76–93% compressive strength of geopolymer containing establish a relationship between compressive strength and
crushed limestone. Although, various studies show the UPV of concrete in form of an empirical equation, and
implementation of waste aggregates in GPC, but limited some of these relationships are tabulated in Table 1. It can
investigations have been done on NDT testing. Further- be seen that majority research is done on conventional
more, research gap exists in establishing a well-defined concrete with natural aggregates. Furthermore, UPV was
relationship between compressive strength and NDT results chosen to be the sole variable factor to calculate the
for GPC prepared using waste aggregates. compressive strength. The developed empirical equations
The concrete used in any construction activity is showed a linear, polynomial, power and exponential
required to perform satisfactorily under compressive

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598 P. Gill et al.

Table 1 Empirical relations developed between UPV and compressive strength for different types of concrete mixes
Binder Aggregate type Compressive strength (MPa) Correlation References
factor

EN Type-I,II cement with fly ash Natural gravel, sand and lightweight Leca  2=3 Power Bogas et al.
v
and silica fume aggregate 54:6q0:5 (2013)
EN Type-I,III cement with Natural and recycled aggregate ð9:17v0:5  11:76Þ2 Power Revilla-Cuesta
GGBS et al. (2021)
0:001625q


OPC-43 Natural sand, nickel slag, crushed stone e0:4v Exponential Saha et al. (2021)
w
and recycled aggregate
OPC-43 with GGBS Natural crushed stone and sand 0:294e1:044v Exponential Shariq et al.
(2013)
Class F fly ash with GGBS Natural crushed stone and bottom ash 0:008v þ 7:677 Linear Ghosh et al.
(2018)
Class F fly ash with GGBS Crushed granite, sand and granite slurry 26:764v  50:306 Linear Sreenivasulu et al.
(2018)
Unknown Unknown 5:704v2 þ 11:468v  16:213 Polynomial Amini et al.
(2016)
Where v = Ultrasonic pulse velocity, q = density, w = water-cement ratio, e = exponential constant (2.718)

relationships between UPV and compressive strength, and developing a universally applicable empirical relationship,
each equation was valid for a particular concrete mix predicting compressive strength of GPC via NDT test
design. (UPV), the impact of variable mix design parameters are
But it is revealed from previous studies that results of also incorporated in an exponential equation.
UPV are not enough to accurately compute the compres- In this study, GPC has been developed using fly ash,
sive strength which might show contrasting patterns ultrafine slag (UFS) and alkaline activator. In addition,
depending on various other factors such as binder type, copper slag has been substituted for natural sand, and
aggregate type, aggregate content, binder/AAL ratio, den- lightweight recycled aggregates for natural aggregates.
sity and curing age of concrete (Khan et al. 2007; Furthermore, non-destructive techniques have been used to
Hamidian et al. 2011; Nik et al. 2013). A comprehensive find out the compressive strength of GPC and compared
investigation accounting for aggregate properties in deter- with the strength of conventional concrete. Hence, the
mining conventional concrete compressive strength was novelty of this research is to propose an empirical equation
done by Saha et al. (2021). In their study, both fine and that can show a correlation between compressive strength,
coarse aggregates were partially replaced by waste and density, alkaline activator liquid to binder (AAL/B) ratio
recycle aggregate and the developed exponential equation and ultrasonic pulse velocity of GPC. The proposed
(Table 1) also accounted for other factors such as density empirical equation was further validated by comparing it
(q) and w/c ratio (w) in addition to UPV (v). From above with the published literature.
discussion, it is understood that compressive strength-UPV
relationship is highly sensitive to the nature and content of
ingredient material and liquid ratio used in the mixture and 2 Materials and methods
exponential equations aptly represent the multiple variable
condition. Tharmaratnam and Tan (1990) suggested a basic 2.1 Materials
exponential relationship to estimate the compressive
strength using pulse velocity: Fly ash and ultrafine slag (UFS) were used as the binder
components for the GPC and were sourced locally from an
fc ¼ aebv ð1Þ
Indian coal power station and Ambuja Cements Pvt. Ltd.,
where ‘fc’ is the compressive strength in MPa, a and b are respectively, in Delhi. Laboratory grade reagent sodium
called regression coefficients, ‘v’ is UPV in km/sec, and ‘e’ hydroxide (NaOH) pellets with 98.62% purity were used to
is Euler’s constant, whose value is 2.71828. prepare a 12 M solution and mixed with sodium silicate
The significance of this research is the use of industrial (Na2SiO3) solution (alkaline modulus ratio of 2.2) to pre-
by-products that can fully replace conventional cement and pare the activator solution. River sand that is easily
partially reduce use of natural aggregates. Also, while accessible in the area and copper slag from a copper

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Non-destructive prediction of strength of geopolymer concrete employing… 599

manufacturing factory in Rai, Haryana, were used in var- Each GPC mix design was assigned unique identity
ious combinations as fine aggregates. based on simple nomenclature depicting each alteration
Chemical composition of binders and copper slag was made in mix proportion. For example, in mix name,
determined using X-ray fluorescence (XRF) technique and C50R50N0.40, the letter ‘C’ and ‘R’ represent copper slag
is listed in Table 2. It can be observed that binders were and recycled aggregate, respectively, while the succeeding
rich in calcium, silica, and alumina content a prerequisite number depicts the percentage volume replacement
for geopolymerisation, while copper slag was high in silica employed. The alphabet ‘N’ stands for AAL/B ratio, and
and iron content which made it suitable to be used as fine following fractional number indicates its numerical value.
aggregate replacement. Figure 1 shows dark color of fine
copper slag aggregates due to high iron content; moreover, 2.3 Methodology
difference in physical appearance and texture of crushed
granite and recycled coarse aggregates can also be seen. To produce GPC specimens, the pre-determined content of
The recycled aggregates were reclaimed from demolished binder, alkali activator liquid (AAL) and saturated surface
structures which consisted of crushed concrete, bricks and dry (SSD) aggregates as per Table 4 was mixed at room
other waste. temperature (25–27 C) until a uniform mix was achieved.
Important physical properties of natural and sustainable Flowability admixture content was varied to achieve a
fine and coarse aggregate were calculated according to uniform ease of mixing for all mixes. Sodium hydroxide
ASTM C 33-13 (2013) guidelines and are listed in Table 3. solution was prepared a day before mixing it with the sil-
Sieve analysis revealed that fineness modulus of copper icate solution to achieve a consistent solution having
slag aggregates, 3.16, was comparative with that of river ambient temperature. The prepared fresh mixes were
sand, 2.72, which made copper slag perfectly compatible to poured in cylindrical moulds (100 9 200 mm) in layers,
be used as natural fine aggregates replacement. But copper and simultaneous compaction was done. Heat curing was
fines with a specific gravity of 3.62 were heavier than done for 24 h at constant temperature of 60 C using an
natural fines replaced. Furthermore, density and fineness oven. The specimens were demoulded after curing and kept
modulus of recycled aggregates were close to respective at room temperature for 28 days before testing. A sample
values of natural crushed stone resulting in satisfactory use of 4 specimens per mix design was prepared, and average
as coarse aggregates. Heavier aggregates would expectedly of 3 closest values was reported in the results. Density of
increase density of GPC with increasing volume replace- specimens was determined before performing UPV test.
ment, but higher fineness modulus would have contrasting Compressive test was performed on the same specimens as
effect on GPC density. earlier tests were non-destructive.

2.2 Mix proportions 2.3.1 Ultrasonic pulse velocity

A total of 20 GPC mixes were designed, whose detailed To avoid signal loss during the UPV test, the end surfaces
material proportioning is shown in Table 4. The binder of the cylinders were smoothed with a grinder. During
content of 400 kg/m3 was kept constant in all the mixes UPV process, ultrasonic signals were transmitted and
with fly ash and UFS contributing 320 kg/m3 and 80 kg/ received using two piezo-transducers. The transmitting
m3, respectively. Geopolymer mixes were divided in 5 transducer was firmly attached to one end of the GPC
different groups based on alkali activator liquid to binder specimen, while the receiving transducer was attached to
(AAL/B) ratio (0.30, 0.35, 0.40, 0.45 and 0.50) used. the other end. The receiving transducer displayed the
Furthermore, copper slag and recycled aggregates were measured travel time of pulse (sec) through the specimen
used both independently and in combination to replace on a digital meter. For each sample, experimental UPV was
50% of the volume of fine and coarse aggregates. The calculated with the help of following equation:
polycarboxylate ether admixture percentage with respect to l
binder content ranged between 1.0 and 2.2 depending upon UPV ¼ 106 ð2Þ
t
the requirement to maintain the nominal fluidity of GPC.

Table 2 Chemical composition

Content (%) CaO SiO2 Al2O3 FeO SO3 MgO K2O Na2O
of fly ash, ultrafine and copper
slag Fly ash 1.97 51.81 29.50 14.71 0.50 0.85 0.47 0.19
Ultrafine slag 32.94 35.64 21.38 1.71 0.14 6.87 0.92 0.40
Copper slag 3.45 32.54 4.12 54.73 1.45 1.62 1.27 0.82

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600 P. Gill et al.

Fig. 1 Visual appearance of copper slag, crushed granite and recycled aggregates

Table 3 Physical properties of

Material Specific density Fineness modulus Water absorption (%)
aggregate
Sand 2.56 2.72 0.34
Copper slag 3.62 3.16 0.38
Crushed stone 2.66 7.5 0.46
Recycle aggregate 2.35 7.1 5.6

Table 4 Mix proportions of geopolymer concrete

Mix ID Binder (kg/ Fine aggregate (kg/ Coarse aggregate (kg/m3) AAL (kg/m3) Admixture (%) N = AAL/
m3) m3) B
Fly ash UFS Sand Copper slag Crushed stone Recycled aggregate NaOH Na2SiO3

C0R0N0.30 320 80 640 – 1240 – 34 86 2.20 0.30

C50R0N0.30 320 80 315 410 1240 – 34 86 2.20 0.30
C0R50N0.30 320 80 640 – 615 280 34 86 1.80 0.30
C50R50N0.30 320 80 315 410 615 280 34 86 1.80 0.30
C0R0N0.35 320 80 612 – 1212 – 40 100 2.00 0.35
C50R0N0.35 320 80 302 392 1212 – 40 100 2.00 0.35
C0R50N0.35 320 80 612 – 602 282 40 100 1.65 0.35
C50R50N0.35 320 80 302 392 602 282 40 100 1.65 0.35
C0R0N0.40 320 80 589 – 1189 – 46 114 1.75 0.40
C50R0N0.40 320 80 289 369 1189 – 46 114 1.75 0.40
C0R50N0.40 320 80 589 – 589 269 46 114 1.45 0.40
C50R50N0.40 320 80 289 369 589 269 46 114 1.45 0.40
C0R0N0.45 320 80 573 – 1153 – 51 129 1.50 0.45
C50R0N0.45 320 80 283 363 1153 – 51 129 1.50 0.45
C0R50N0.45 320 80 573 – 573 263 51 129 1.20 0.45
C50R50N0.45 320 80 283 363 573 263 51 129 1.20 0.45
C0R0N0.50 320 80 555 – 1120 – 57 143 1.20 0.50
C50R0N0.50 320 80 272 340 1120 – 57 143 1.20 0.50
C0R50N0.50 320 80 555 – 555 250 57 143 1.00 0.50
C50R50N0.50 320 80 272 340 555 250 57 143 1.00 0.50

123
Non-destructive prediction of strength of geopolymer concrete employing… 601

where UPV is reported in km/sec, ‘l’ is the length of GPC based GPC, which provide the fact that compressive
specimen in mm, and ‘t’ is the time taken by the pulse to strength and density follow a negative trend with respect to
reach from one end of the sample to the other end. increasing AAL/B ratio (Chi 2017; Adam et al. 2020).
With respect to different alkaline dosages, GPC speci-
2.3.2 Compressive strength mens showed 11–22% increase in compressive strength
when copper slag was used to replace natural fine aggre-
Cylinders with diameter of 100 mm and height 200 mm gates. For copper slag GPC specimens, the mix corre-
were cast to estimate the compressive strength, in accor- sponding to AAL/B ratio of 0.30, C50R0N0.30 showed
dance with ASTM C597 (ASTM 2016). This study reports highest compressive strength of 93.11 MPa. Increase in
the 28-days compressive strength of the samples as it is a compressive strength might be due to high iron oxide
standard test age for other mechanical properties which are content of copper slag (54.73%), as reported in Table 2,
used for design of concrete structures. Furthermore, it is which react with NaOH present in alkali activator solution
reported that heat cured GPC reaches 95–98% of its full and produce ferrosialates during geopolymerization pro-
strength at this age (Gill et al. 2023). Specimens were cess (Yaswanth et al. 2022). According to Sreenivasulu
tested at constant loading rate of 20 MPa/min until failure. (2020), ferrosialate formation in geopolymer result in
The maximum compressive stress reached was recorded denser microstructure and lead to consequent increase in
upon the failure, and average of 3 specimens was reported, compressive strength. Furthermore, other related studies
as shown in Table 4. reported optimum copper slag volume up to 40–60%, and
any further increase lead to development of porous
microstructure and reduction in compressive strength
3 Results and discussions (Maharishi et al. 2020; Yaswanth et al. 2022). In compar-
ison with natural aggregate specimens, the substitution of
3.1 Compressive strength evaluation heavier copper slag fines (Table 3) showed a 3–5%
increase in hardened density. The observed density varia-
Figure 2 shows the calculated compressive strength of all tion with copper slag is in line with findings of the previous
the GPC specimens. For a particular aggregate mix pro- studies with only slight change due to difference in prop-
portion, the compressive strength of GPC specimen erties of other constituents (Yaswanth et al. 2022; Arora
decreased as AAL/B ratio of the mix was increased from et al. 2023). Arunachelam et al. (2022) reported an incre-
0.30 to 0.50. Geopolymer mix with 100% natural aggre- mental increase in density of geopolymer concrete from the
gates and AAL/B ratio of 0.30, C0R0N0.30, served as the value of 2408–2632 kg/m3 with replacement of 100% river
overall control mix and showed a compressive strength of sand by copper slag.
83.86 MPa. With further increment in AAL/B dosages up Whereas compressive strength of GPC specimens with
to 0.50, the compressive strength decreased progressively recycled aggregates decreased by 16–34% in comparison
to 55.11% of control mix. The hardened density of GPC with mixes with natural coarse aggregates and identical
mixes containing natural aggregates decreased from 2402 AAL/B ratio. Among all specimens, least compressive
to 2276 kg/m3 with increase in AAL/B ratio, owing to strength of 30 MPa was seen for GPC specimen with 50%
overall increase in water content. These observations of the
study were in agreement with previous studies on fly ash- 100

90
110
Compressive strength (MPa)
Compressive strength (MPa)

100 80
90
70
80
70 60
60 y = 3.4013e0.0012x
50
R² = 0.58
50
40
40
30
20 30
C0R0B0.30
C50R0B0.30
C0R50B0.30
C50R50B0.30
C0R0B0.35
C50R0B0.35
C0R50B0.35
C50R50B0.35
C0R0B0.40
C50R0B0.40
C0R50B0.40
C50R50B0.40
C0R0B0.45
C50R0B0.45
C0R50B0.45
C50R50B0.45
C0R0B0.50
C50R0B0.50
C0R50B0.50
C50R50B0.50

20
1900 2000 2100 2200 2300 2400 2500 2600

Density (kg/m3)
Mix
Fig. 3 Relationship between compressive strength and density of
Fig. 2 Experimental results of compressive strength GPC mixes (all sets)

123
602 P. Gill et al.

100 replacement of natural aggregates (crushed limestone) by

recycled aggregates (crushed concrete) on strength and
durability of fly ash geopolymer concrete. It was reported
90
Compressive strength (MPa)

that use of RCA decreased GC density and compressive

strength to 90–94% (2160–2210 kg/m3) and 76–93%
80 (30.6–38.4 MPa), respectively.
Overall effect of using copper slag and recycled
aggregates combination produced negative results in
70
comparison with control GPC mix. For GPC mixes with
y = 10.151e0.0009x dual aggregates replacement, the highest compressive
60 R² = 0.99 strength of 68 MPa was shown by C50R50N0.30, which is
a 19% reduction in comparison with the control mix. It is
50
worth noting that employment of recycled coarse aggre-
2000 2100 2200 2300 2400 2500 2600 gates in tandem with copper slag produced better com-
pressive strength results in comparison with when only
Density (kg/m3) recycled aggregates were used.
Figure 3 presents the relationship between density and
Fig. 4 Relationship between compressive strength and density of
GPC for 0.30 AAL/B compressive strength of various GPC mixes. It is evident
from Fig. 3 that compressive strength increased propor-
recycled aggregates replacement and AAL/B ratio of 0.50, tionally with the density of the GPC samples. To establish
namely C0R50N0.50. The decrease in strength can be a relationship between the test results, an exponential
attributed to inferior properties of crushed concrete-based regression line was employed. A low regression coefficient
recycled aggregates (Wongsa et al. 2019). Another factor (R2) of 0.58 indicated that data points are scattered ran-
contributing to decrease in strength was porous composi- domly and further from the trend line. Previous studies
tion of cement mortar aggregates which resulted in rela- often choose linear equation to establish relationship
tively weaker interface with new geopolymer matrix and between compressive strength and density (Xiao et al.
acted as possible point of failure (Arora et al. 2022). Effect 2006; Iffat 2015). Iffat (2015) plotted separate linear
of using lighter recycled aggregates (Table 3) in place of relationship between compressive strength and density for
coarse crushed stone on hardened GPC specimen density recycled aggregate concrete containing crushed brick and
was expected, as 13–15% decrease was observed. Previous normal aggregate concrete containing crushed stone.
studies confirm that incorporation of recycled aggregates The density of C50R0B0.30 increased by nearly 4% and
reduced the mechanical properties of geopolymer-based compressive strength by 10% in comparison with
concrete (Sata et al. 2013; Nuaklong et al. 2016). Nuaklong C0R0B0.30. For C0R50B0.30, 14% reduction in density
et al. (2016) studied the influence of 100% volume was caused by use of 50% recycled coarse aggregate,

Fig. 5 Relationship between 100

compressive strength and AAL/
B ratio (all data sets)
Compressive strength (MPa)

80 y = 177.7e-3x
R² = 0.59

60

40

20
0.25 0.30 0.35 0.40 0.45 0.50 0.55
AAL/B

123
Non-destructive prediction of strength of geopolymer concrete employing… 603

70 general equation between compressive strength and density

of concrete could be established provided specific gravity
60 of aggregates remains constant (Demirboǧa et al. 2004). As
Compressive strength (MPa)

four different types of aggregates were used in this study,

therefore, to further classify the results, the experimental
50
y = 168.58e-3.424x
data sets were divided into two density groups with the
R² = 0.95 range 1850–2050 kg/m3 and 2350–2450 kg/m3. Figures 6
40 and 7 illustrate the plotted compressive strength against
AAL/B ratio for these two groups. It can be observed that
30 compressive strength has remarkable correlations with the
AAL/B ratio for both the density ranges, showing R2 values
of 0.95.
20
0.25 0.30 0.35 0.40 0.45 0.50 0.55
AAL/B 3.2 UPV evaluation
Fig. 6 Relationship between compressive strength and AAL/B ratio
with density of range 1850–2050 kg/m3 Figure 8 plots the UPV results (right axis) of different
GPC samples along with their density values (left axis). It
90 can be seen that UPV and density have a directly propor-
tional relationship, except a few anomalies. For example,
80 the mean UPV values of the specimens with mix propor-
Compressive strength (MPa)

y = 168.58e-3.424x tions C50R50B0.30 and C0R0B0.35, were 4.3 km/sec and

R² = 0.95
70 4.0 km/sec, respectively. Their respective densities 2142
and 2366 kg/m3 were found to be deviating from the nor-
60
mal trend of increasing UPV with density. However, these
mixes had different AAL/B ratios of 0.30 and 0.35,
50
respectively, which contribute to the exceptional trend of
UPV against density. The reason for observed anomaly is
that for compressive strength higher than 60 MPa, UPV is
40
0.25 0.30 0.35 0.40 0.45 0.50 0.55 not affected by matrix density and void content but is rather
AAL/B governed by aggregate strength (Kim et al. 2022). But for
Fig. 7 Correlation between compressive strength and AAL/B ratio
the same AAL/B ratio, UPV is directly proportionate to the
with density of range 2350–2450 kg/m3 density of the sample. For example, for a 0.30 L/B ratio,
the UPV readings were 4.6, 4.7, 4.2, and 4.3 km/sec for
resulting in a 26% loss in compressive strength. For mix GPC specimens with densities of 2402, 2487, 2052, and
C0R0B0.35, the density of specimen increased from 2366 2142 kg/m3, respectively. As a result, for a fixed value of
to 2448 kg/m3 by inclusion of 50% copper slag, and AAL/B ratio, UPV and density exhibited a good
compressive strength of the composite increased from 58 to correlation.
72 MPa. Reversely, density of mix C0R0B0.50 dropped by To examine the relationship between compressive
14% for 35% decrease in compressive strength. Moreover, strength and UPV, the experiment data results were plotted
Fig. 4 demonstrates the excellent correlation (R2 of 0.99) together, as shown by Fig. 9. A proportionate relationship
between density and compressive strength for GPC speci- between UPV and compressive strength could be recog-
mens with a 0.30 AAL/B ratio. In addition, the GPC nized. To develop a suitable equation between UPV and
specimens compressive strength and AAL/B ratio showed a compressive strength, different forms of regression lines,
poor correlation, Fig. 5, as data points were so randomly such as linear, power, and logarithmic, were examined. The
scattered about the trend line that R2 value came out to be exponential regression line was found to have the highest
0.59. Bogas et al. (2013) revealed poor correlation between R2 value of 0.57; however, this value of R2 is not sufficient
mechanical properties of lightweight concrete when effect for the equation to be used with confidence. Although UPV
of type and volume of aggregate and water content were is influenced by variables such as mixture proportions,
not considered separately. aggregate type, moisture content, however, some factors
Xiao et al. (2006) found that interrelationship between significantly affecting compressive strength have little
mechanical properties of recycled aggregate concrete influence on UPV (Bayan et al. 2015). Poor correlation
(RAC) was different from those of normal concrete. A between compressive strength and UPV was because of
varying AAL/B ratio and density of GPC specimens.

123
604 P. Gill et al.

Fig. 8 Relationship between 3000 5.6

density and UPV of GPC

4.8
2500

4.0
2000

Density (kg/m3)

UPV (km/sec)
3.2
1500
2.4

1000
1.6

500
0.8

0 0.0
C0R0B0.30
C50R0B0.30
C0R50B0.30
C50R50B0.30
C0R0B0.35
C50R0B0.35
C0R50B0.35
C50R50B0.35
C0R0B0.40
C50R0B0.40
C0R50B0.40
C50R50B0.40
C0R0B0.45
C50R0B0.45
C0R50B0.45
C50R50B0.45
C0R0B0.50
C50R0B0.50
C0R50B0.50
C50R50B0.50
Mixes

100 3.3 Compressive strength prediction

90
From the above discussion, it is evident that relation exist
Compressive strength (MPa)

80
between UPV, density, compressive strength and AAL/B
70 ratio of GPC. Independent factors include density, AAL/B
60
ratio and UPV were while dependable variable include
compressive strength, in statistical regression analysis.
50
During regression analysis, the statistical p values for
40 density, AAL/B ratio and UPV of GPC were 0.014,
y = 2.8063e0.6974x 0.000028 and 0.000902, respectively. These three variables
30 R² = 0.57
were found significant in prediction of compressive
20
3.6 3.8 4.0 4.2 4.4 4.6 4.8 strength. Thus, a multiple exponential regression analysis
UPV (km/sec) with the help of these three variables was conducted by
using least square approach. This approach resulted in an
Fig. 9 Relationship between compressive strength and UPV of GPC expression for compressive strength in the form of Eq. (3),
which provides a better estimation while considering the
Whereas density in turn was dependent on variables such terms AAL/B ratio, UPV and density of GPC.
as compaction efficiency, mix proportions, aggregate type  
and aggregate content. The cumulative effect of all these 0:001625q 0:4v
fc ¼ e ð3Þ
variables could be accounted for in a single main factor, b
that is, density of GPC. Therefore, to develop a good where ‘fc’ is compressive strength in MPa, ‘b’ is AAL/B
relationship between compressive strength and UPV, GPC ratio, ‘q’ is density in kg/m3, and ‘v’ is UPV in km/sec, of
characteristics like the AAL/B ratio and density were taken GPC. This empirical equation considers the effect of the
into consideration. Bayan (2015) showed that coefficient of AAL/B ratio as well as the density of GPC and is an
determination (R2) for UPV-strength exponential relation- extension of the the basic Eq. (1). According to Eq. (3),
ship improved from 0.0813 to 0.86 when influence of density is proportionally related to compressive strength,
coarse aggregate density and content was considered. while AAL/B ratio is inversely related. This was also
Furthermore, a previous study by Mahure et al (2011) observed in the experiment. For evaluation of compressive
considered the effect of varying water to binder content strength for mixes, respective density and AAL/B ratio
UPV-strength relation by presenting three different linear were used in Eq. (3) of this investigation. Table 5
equations.

123
Non-destructive prediction of strength of geopolymer concrete employing… 605

Table 5 Compressive strength prediction of this study using Eq. (3)

Mix ID AAL/ Density (kg/ Exp. Comp. St. (MPa) Exp. UPV (km/ Cal. Comp. St. by Eq. (3) (MPa) Exp./ Dc (R2)
B m3) sec) Cal

C0R0B0.30 0.30 2402 85 4.6 82 1.03 0.97

C50R0B0.30 0.30 2487 94 4.7 89 1.06
C0R50B0.30 0.30 2052 63 4.2 60 1.05
C50R50B0.30 0.30 2142 68 4.3 65 1.05
C0R0B0.35 0.35 2366 58 4.0 54 1.07
C50R0B0.35 0.35 2448 72 4.4 66 1.08
C0R50B0.35 0.35 2038 49 3.9 45 1.10
C50R50B0.35 0.35 2120 55 4.1 51 1.08
C0R0B0.40 0.40 2340 60 4.4 55 1.09
C50R0B0.40 0.40 2409 64 4.5 59 1.07
C0R50B0.40 0.40 2008 40 3.8 37 1.08
C50R50B0.40 0.40 2077 49 4.2 45 1.09
C0R0B0.45 0.45 2308 55 4.5 51 1.09
C50R0B0.45 0.45 2381 58 4.6 54 1.07
C0R50B0.45 0.45 1990 39 4.0 36 1.10
C50R50B0.45 0.45 2063 38 3.9 35 1.08
C0R0B0.50 0.50 2276 46 4.4 43 1.06
C50R0B0.50 0.50 2333 52 4.6 48 1.07
C0R50B0.50 0.50 1961 30 3.7 28 1.07
C50R50B0.50 0.50 2018 37 4.1 34 1.09
Comp. St. Compressive strength, Cal. Calculated, Exp. Experimental, Dc Coefficient of determination, Eq. Equation

Fig. 10 Equation (3) validation 100

for concreteusing L/B of 0.35 Bogas et al. (2013)

Shariati et al. (2011)

80
Compressive strength (MPa)

Cal. Comp. St. by Eq. 3 (MPa)

Turgut (2004)
60
Jain et al. (2013)
y = 11.72e0.39x
R² = 0.97
40

20

0
0 1 2 3 4 5 6
UPV (km/sec)

summarizes the findings of the experiment. It is evident when relationship was established using simply compres-
from Table 5 that compressive strengths evaluated by sive strength and UPV without taking into account the
Eq. (3) are very close to the experimental values of com- properties of GPC mixture.
pressive strength. The determination coefficient (Dc) of the
proposed empirical equation is 0.97. The evaluated Dc
appears to be much higher than 0.57 which was determined

123
606 P. Gill et al.

Fig. 11 Equation (3) validation 100

for concrete using L/B of 0.40 Bogas et al. (2013)
y = 11.11e0.4046x
Shariati et al. (2011)
R² = 0.96
80 Cal. Comp. St. by Eq. 3 (MPa)

Turgut (2004)

Compressive strength (MPa)

Jain et al. (2013)
60

40

20

0
0 1 2 3 4 5 6
UPV (km/sec)

100 general, for compressive strength forecasting, same pattern

Shariq et al. (2013)
is used in current study model which was used in existing
Turgut (2004)
80
models (Turgut 2008; Jain et al. 2013).
Compressive strength (MPa)

Jain et al. (2013)

Furthermore, the plot of UPV and compressive strength
Saha et al. (2021)
data values published by Bogas et al. (2013) for concrete
60 Cal. Comp. St. by Eq. 3 (MPa)
using 0.40 w/c is shown in Fig. 11. The experimental
y = 8.2e0.39x
R² = 0.95
results with a R2 of 0.96 showed a good correlation with the
40 proposed equation. Besides, the experimental results
determined by Eq. (3) are found very close to the data
20
results of (Turgut 2008; Shariati et al. 2011; Bogas et al.
2013; Jain et al. 2013).
Finally, the experimental data in Fig. 12 show concrete
0
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 with a w/c ratio of 0.50, which includes the experimental
UPV (km/sec)
results of Shariq et al. (2013). These outcomes are com-
Fig. 12 Equation (3) validation for concrete using L/B of 0.50 pared to those obtained using Eq. (3). The results produced
by Turgut (2008), Shariq et al. (2013) and Jain et al. (2013)
3.4 Proposed equation validation showed a good correlation with the projected equation with
a R2 of 0.96. From the above discussion, it can be seen that
For determining the effectiveness of Eq. (3), a detailed the projected equation Eq. (3) successfully forecasted the
examination was conducted using the test findings of compressive strengths in this research as well as antici-
published studies shown in Table 1. The plot of compres- pated compressive strengths of existing studies. As a result,
sive strength and UPV values by (Bogas et al. 2013; Gonen Eq. (3) can be used for an extensive range of GPC mixtures
2016) against w/c ratio of 0.35 is shown in Fig. 10. These with various AAL/B ratios and aggregate densities.
results are compared with the result produced by Eq. (3). In general, from Figs. 10, 11 and 12, compressive
The experimental results, with a R2 of 0.97, showed an strength observed values obtained using UPV in the current
excellent correlation with the proposed equation. It is clear investigation are higher than the outcomes obtained from
from Fig. 10 that results produced by using the proposed anticipated equations given by previous literature (Turgut
empirical equation are actually following the same trend of 2008; Jain et al. 2013; Shariq et al. 2013; Bogas et al.
regression line. The experimental compressive strength 2013). This is because previous researchers established the
values, on the other hand, are very near to the values model for traditional OPC-based concrete and its com-
predicted by previous literature (Shariati et al. 2011). In pressive strength varies between 10 to 30 MPa. On the

123
Non-destructive prediction of strength of geopolymer concrete employing… 607

b Fig. 13 SEM images of GPC mixes

other hand, for the present model, the GPC compressive

strength values ranged between 22 to 60 MPa (Sreeniva-
Dense microstructure
Dense microstructure sulu et al. 2018).
with less voids

3.5 Microstructural analysis

C0R0B0.30 C50R0B0.30

Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) was used to deter-

mine microstructural changes at various AAL/B ratios.
Hence, pictures of the 28-day cured specimens of mixes
with AAL/B ratio 0.30, 0.40 and 0.50 were acquired.
Figure 13 shows SEM pictures of these specimens. It is
Dense microstructure Dense microstructure clear from the SEM images that a denser microstructure
with less voids was observed for mixes with AAL/B ratio
C0R50B0.30 C50R50B0.30 0.30 than that of 0.40 and 0.50. Also, there were some
SEM images for mixes with L/B= 0.30 fractures in specimens with AAL/B ratio 0.40 and 0.50 as
compared to specimen with AAL/B as 0.30. Thus, SEM
images validate the results arrived during compressive
strength tests, i.e., higher compressive strength with AAL/
B = 0.30 was due to dense and microstructure of the con-
Voids Fractures
crete. This lends credence to the inclusion of the AAL/B
component in Eq. (3).
Preceding discussion shows that the suggested equation
C0R0B0.40 C50R0B0.40 Eq. (3) successfully predicted compressive strengths of this
investigation as well as compressive strengths of existing
studies. As a result, the suggested equation may be used for
a broad variety of GPC compositions with varying aggre-
gate densities and AAL/B ratios.

Loose microstructure Microstructure with

with voids less voids
4 Conclusions
C0R50B0.40 C50R50B0.40
SEM images for mixes with L/B= 0.40
This study developed a comprehensive empirical equation
to predict the compressive strength with high accuracy
Fractures using the test results of ultrasonic pulse velocity (UPV),
Fractures details of design mix proportions and raw material
properties.
Geopolymer concrete specimens containing recycled
Voids
aggregates and varying alkaline activator liquid to binder
ratio were tested for compressive strength, UPV and den-
C0R0B0.50 C50R0B0.50 sity to gather the required data set of equation. Density of
GPC increased with substitution of copper slag (heavier
Voids than river sand). While density of GPC decreased with
Voids usage of recycled aggregate (waste of demolished build-
ings) to replace natural coarse aggregate (crushed stone).
Unreacted Density showed proportional relationship with compressive
particles
strength and UPV results except few anomalies. These
C0R50B0.50 C50R50B0.50
exceptions in the compressive strength-UPV relationship
SEM images for mixes with L/B= 0.50 were caused due to change in AAL/B ratio and aggregate
type and content of different specimens. Therefore, a

123
608 P. Gill et al.

generalized exponential equation (Eq. 3) with a high Sustainability 14(17):10948. https://doi.org/10.3390/su141710

determination coefficient (Dc) of 0.97 was established 948
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accounting for variations in mix proportions and material produced with copper slag aggregates. Environ Sci Pollut Res
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(2022) Effective utilization of copper slag for the production of
by comparing with existing equations of the cited litera- geopolymer concrete with different NaOH molarity under
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gations, and the predicted compressive strength was closer ASTM International (2013) Standard specification for concrete
aggregates. ASTM C33-13:1–11. https://doi.org/10.1520/C0033
to the actual experimental values with a high coefficient of ASTM International (2016) Standard Test Method for Pulse Velocity
determination of 0.95. Since it incorporated the data sets Through Concrete. ASTM C597-16. https://doi.org/10.1520/
from the earlier published studies, the equation developed C0597-16
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Springer Nature or its licensor (e.g. a society or other partner) holds
Revilla-Cuesta V, Skaf M, Serrano-López R, Ortega-López V (2021)
exclusive rights to this article under a publishing agreement with the
Models for compressive strength estimation through non-
author(s) or other rightsholder(s); author self-archiving of the
destructive testing of highly self-compacting concrete containing
accepted manuscript version of this article is solely governed by the
recycled concrete aggregate and slag-based binder. Constr Build
terms of such publishing agreement and applicable law.
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