Sumit A Balwaik, S P Raut/ International Journal of Engineering Research and Applications

(IJERA) ISSN: 2248-9622 www.ijera.com

Vol. 1, Issue 2, pp.300-309

Utilization of Waste Paper Pulp by Partial Replacement of

Cement in Concrete
Sumit A Balwaik*; S P Raut**
*
(Research Scholar, Department of Civil Engineering, YCCE, Nagpur-10, Maharashtra, India.)
**
(Assistant Professor, Department of Civil Engineering, YCCE, Nagpur-10, Maharashtra, India.)
______________________________________________________________________________
ABSTRACT concrete [1]. The quantity of sludge varies from mill to
mill. The amount of sludge generated by a recycled
The use of paper-mill pulp in concrete formulations
paper mill is greatly dependent on the type of furnish
was investigated as an alternative to landfill
disposal. The cement has been replaced by waste being used and end product being manufactured. Paper
paper sludge accordingly in the range of 5% to 20% mill sludge can be used as an alternative material
by weight for M-20 and M-30 mix. By using applied as partial replacement of fine aggregates in
adequate amount of the waste paper pulp and water,
manufacturing fresh concrete intended to be used for
concrete mixtures were produced and compared in
terms of slump and strength with the conventional low cost housing projects [2].
concrete. The concrete specimens were tested in About 300 kg of sludge is produced for each
three series of test as compression test, splitting
tone of recycled paper. This is a relatively large volume
tensile test and flexural test. These tests were carried
out to evaluate the mechanical properties for up to of sludge produced each day that makes making landfill
28 days. As a result, the compressive, splitting tensile uneconomical as paper mill sludge is bulky. By
and flexural strength increased up to 10% addition
adjusting the mixture to an equivalent density, concrete
of waste paper pulp and further increased in waste
paper pulp reduces the strengths gradually. The mixtures containing the residuals can be produced that
research on use of paper sludge can be further are equal in slump and strength to a reference concrete
carried out in concrete manufacturing as a new without residuals [3]. In 1995, the U.S. pulp and paper
recycled material.
industry generated about 5.3 million metric tons of mill
Keywords - Compressive Strength; Flexural wastewater-treatment residuals (on oven-dry basis),
Strength; Paper Pulp Concrete; Split Tensile which is equivalent to about 15 million metric tons of
Strength. dewatered (moist) residuals. About half of this was
I. INTRODUCTION disposed in landfills/lagoons, a quarter was burned,
one-eighth was applied on farmland/forest, one
Over 300 million tones of industrial wastes are
sixteenth was reused/recycled in mills, and the rest, one
being produced per annum by chemical and agricultural
sixteenth, was used in other ways [4]. Pulp and paper
process in India. These materials possess problems of
mill residual solids (also called sludge) are composed
disposal, health hazards and aesthetic problem. Paper
mainly of cellulose fibers, moisture, and papermaking
fibers can be recycled only a limited number of times
fillers (mostly kaolinitic clay and/or calcium carbonate)
before they become too short or weak to make high
[5].
quality paper. It means that the broken, low- quality
Utilization of the widely spread industrial
paper fibers are separated out to become waste sludge.
wastes in the civil construction practice may lead to a
Paper sludge behaves like cement because of silica and
real possibility of significant decrease in the
magnesium properties which improve the setting of the

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Vol. 1, Issue 2, pp.300-309

environment pollution by paper and lime production A. Portland Pozzolanic Cement, paper pulp, fine
wastes and perceptibly economize the price of civil and coarse aggregates
construction [6]. The use of paper-mill residuals in The cement used in all mixtures was 53 grade
concrete formulations was investigated as an alternative Portland pozzolanic cement (PPC), which corresponds
to landfill disposal [7]. IS 1489 (Part 1)-1991 [13]. The coarse aggregates used
The raw dry paper sludge mainly contains were crushed stone passing through 20 mm and
silica and calcium oxide, followed by alumina and retaining on 12.5 mm IS sieve, with a specific gravity of
magnesium oxide. Cement blended with 10% and 20% 2.67. The crushed stone was used to ensure good
calcined paper sludge exhibits a smaller reduction in mechanical performance so that any differences in the
compressive strength than the control cement [8]. A mechanical properties of mixtures containing residuals
study on the reuse of paper de-inking sludge, and reference mixtures could be easily detected. The
undertaken in Spain, shows its potential as raw material fine aggregate (river sand) had a specific gravity of 2.61
for yielding a product with pozzolanic activity [9]. [14]. The concrete mix was designed for M-20
The compressive strength, average residual (1:1.43:3.18) with w/c ratio of 0.5 and M-30
strength and drying shrinkage of concrete containing (1:1.22:2.85) with w/c ratio of 0.45 [15]. All the
residuals were also comparable to the reference stipulated ranges about the concrete materials and
concrete without residuals when the proper dosage of strengths are given in IS 456-200 [16].
high-range water-reducing agent (HRWRA) was added
[10-11]. Concrete containing an average of 15%
B. Characterization of waste paper pulp
residuals had a lower 28-days compressive strength
than the reference concrete and showed either The waste paper pulp used in this study was
equivalent or somewhat lower chloride-ion penetration collected from Apex Paper Mill, Bazargaon, which is
resistance than the reference concrete [12]. then dried in sun light and pulverized. Chemical
Although there are potential advantages of analysis of the paper pulp has been done by using
including paper-mill residuals in a concrete mixture, Energy Dispersive X-ray Fluorescence Spectrometer
such as cost savings in both waste management and (XRF, Philips, PW 1840). Proximate and ultimate
concrete production, to date still lot of work has to be analysis of paper pulp has been carried out using
done on the utilization of paper pulp in concrete gravimetric methods. X-Ray Diffraction pattern has
production. This paper summarized the behavior of been recorded on a model XRD-Philips X’Pert Pro with
concrete with the waste paper pulp by replacement of a scan rate of 2o/min. XRD pattern have been recorded
cement in the range of 5%, 10%, 15% and 20% which in the 2θ range of 5o-100o. Thermo-gravimetric-
may helps to reduce the disposal problem of sludge and differential thermal analysis (TG-DTA) (Mettler, TA
enhance the properties of concrete. 4000) has been carried out to determine the thermal
stability. Scanning electron micrograph photographs

II. MATERIALS AND MIXTURE have been recorded using JEOL Model No JXA – 840
A, Japan.
PROPORTIONS
Paper pulp mainly contains Si (60%) and Ca
(14%) (Table 1) depicting the XRF scan data. Table 2

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Vol. 1, Issue 2, pp.300-309

gives the proximate analysis, and Table 3 presents an SEM images (Fig. 3) for paper pulp clearly
ultimate analysis. indicate the presence of irregular pores and fibrous
According to the TG curves (Fig. 1) of paper nature. The paper pulp holds the moisture in these pores
pulp samples have not been thermally pre-treated and and the fibrous envelops providing obstacle for
0 0
the mass loss of 45% occurs between 29 and 300 C. moisture to move towards the surface. Fibrous nature
This curve reveals the appearance of three distinct mass gives very high energy absorbing ability and hence the
loss regions. The first loss (7.5%), between 30 and high compressive strength.
0
280 C, is attributed to the removal of superficial water
molecules or water from the solid pores. At the second
mass loss, the material gets thermally degraded and gets
sintered. Thus, the bricks made of paper pulp can
withstand the maximum of 300oC.
The diffraction patterns of virgin and binder
mixed paper pulp is given in Fig. 2. The samples
present amorphous patterns based on small reflection
angles and 2θ peak between 25 to 30. The nature of
materials has not changed even after different extents of
addition of cement in paper pulp (5-20%wt).
Table 1 - Elemental Analysis of Paper Pulp
O% Ca % Si % Al % Mg % S% Ti % K% Fe % Na % Cu % P% Cl %

Paper 15.83 14.94 60.57 2.06 3.59 1.07 0.15 0.16 0.92 0.22 0.05 0.03 0.41
Pulp

Table 2 - Proximate Analysis of Paper Pulp

Sr. No. Wt. in grams Moist % Ash % Volatile Materials % Free Carbon % GCV Kcal/kg
1. 420 5.8 40.6 44.7 8.9 2372

Table 3 - Ultimate Analysis of Paper Pulp

Sr. No. Wt. in grams C% H% N% S% O%
1. 420 22.7 2.5 0.3 0.4 23.6

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Vol. 1, Issue 2, pp.300-309

Fig. 1. TG-DTA of paper pulp

0%
5%
10%
15%
20%
Intensity (A.U)

0 20 40 60 80
2 theta

Fig. 2. XRD pattern of paper pulp-cement (0-20%wt)

Fig. 3. SEM monograph of virgin paper pulp sample

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C. Mixture proportions

The mixture proportions and fresh properties test [18] and splitting tensile strength [19] respectively.
of the concrete mixtures produced in the laboratory are Cube compressive strengths has been determined at 14
shown in Table 4. A total of 10 concrete mixtures were and 28 days in accordance with IS 516-1959. Flexural
produced. The types of mixtures produced, which were strength test was carried out using a simple beam with
the partial replacement of mass of Portland cement with two-point loading method at 28 days of curing age,
waste paper pulp in concrete ranging from 5% to 20%. conforming to IS 516-1959. Splitting tensile-strength
Portland pozzolanic cement, fine aggregate (sand), and test was carried out according to IS 5816-1999.
coarse aggregate supplied by the college were used in
this research. The cement and the aggregates met the IV. Results and Discussion
requirements of IS 1489 (Part 1)-1991and IS 383-1970,
respectively. A. Fresh concrete

The slump test results are presented in Table 4.

III. Experimental program and test procedures The slump decreased when a higher amount of paper
pulp content was included. The as-received pulp
A. Tests on fresh concrete
exhibited a high water-absorption capability.

The consistency and workability of all the Consequently, when a higher amount of paper pulp was

concrete mixtures was determined through slump tests. included in the mixture, it required more water to

The slump tests were performed according to IS 1199- achieve a given slump. The workability of concrete

1959 [17]. The vertical distance between the original containing paper-mill residual was improved by the

and displaced positions of the centre of the top surface addition of excessive water instead of admixtures as we

of the concrete was measured and reported as the have to achieve economy.

slump. Several factors could lead to adverse effects on

the workability of paper pulp concrete. The amount of
paper pulp replacement, paper pulp physical properties,
and the carbon content of the paper pulp would be the
B. Tests on hardened concrete main reasons for the reduction of concrete workability.
The reduction in water demand becomes larger with an
The tests have been performed to determine
increase in the paper pulp content to about 20%.
the mechanical properties were compressive strength,
splitting tensile-strength and flexural strength. The test B. Hardened concrete
results were reported as the average of three tested
The compressive strength, splitting tensile
specimens in the respective testing. From each concrete
strength and flexural strength test results are given in
mixture, 150 mm3 cubes, 100 x 100 x 500 mm beams,
Table 5. The compressive strength tests were carried
and 150 x 300 mm cylinders has been casted for the
out at 14, and 28 days. The compressive strength
determination of compressive strength, flexural strength
development of paper-mill residual concrete mixtures

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was very similar to the reference mixtures, showing a cement with paper pulp in concrete on a one-for-one
high early strength gain. The compressive, splitting basis, either by volume or by weight, results in lower
tensile and flexural strength of concrete mixtures with compressive and flexural strength up to about 3 months
paper pulp were less than reference mixtures. The of curing, with the development of greater strengths at
results showed that the compressive, splitting tensile and beyond 6 months.
and flexural strength were reduced when higher paper Results similar to the 28-days compressive
pulp contents were included in the concrete mixtures. strength tests were also found in the 28-days splitting
Fig. 4 and 5 present the compressive strengths tensile strength test and flexural strength tests presented
of all 10 mixtures at 14 and 28 days, respectively. The in Fig. 6 and 7 respectively. The splitting tensile and
compressive strength of the mixtures decreased when flexural strength decreased when the paper pulp content
the paper pulp content was increased. The paper pulp was increased in the mixtures. Fig. 8 and 9 shows
content in the concrete mixtures played a great role in relation between compressive strength and splitting
the mechanical properties. However, the effects of tensile strength of M-20 and M-30 mix respectively.
paper pulp on the mechanical properties of the concrete
did not vary much from the findings of previous
researchers. Many previous studies have also shown
that, at any percentage, the replacement of Portland

Table 4 - Mixture Proportion

Mix Paper w/c Water Waste Cement Fine Coarse Slump Vee-Bee
3 3
Pulp ratio (Kg/m ) Paper Pulp (Kg/m ) Aggregate Aggregate (mm) (Sec)
3 3 3
% (Kg/m ) (Kg/m ) (Kg/m )
M-20 0 0.5 191.6 0 383.2 548.17 1219.5 69 10

5 0.5 191.6 19.2 364 548.17 1219.5 71 9

10 0.5 191.6 38.32 344.88 548.17 1219.5 58 15

15 0.5 191.6 57.48 325.72 548.17 1219.5 50 17

20 0.5 191.6 76.64 306.56 548.17 1219.5 42 18

M-30 0 0.45 191.6 0 425.8 520 1212.16 50 11

5 0.45 191.6 21.3 404.5 520 1212.16 52 10

10 0.45 191.6 42.6 383.2 520 1212.16 45 15

15 0.45 191.6 63.9 361.9 520 1212.16 35 17

20 0.45 191.6 85.2 340.6 520 1212.16 30 19

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Table 5 - Compressive strength, splitting tensile-strength and flexural strength test results
Mix Waste Paper Cube compressive strength (N/mm2) 28-days strength (N/mm2)
Pulp in % 14 days 28 days Splitting Flexural

M-20 0 22.04 31.63 2.74 12.30

5 25.62 33.93 2.90 14.17
10 23.53 32.33 2.76 12.75
15 18.85 25.43 2.33 10.75
20 16.72 21.62 2.20 9.19

M-30 0 24.37 40.70 3.4 14.71

5 26.85 42.37 3.70 15.78
10 25.63 41.86 3.60 14.92
15 22.77 38.41 3.20 12.51
20 19.91 34.87 2.80 10.24

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V. Conclusions pulp increased. This phenomenon is expected

Based on the results presented above, the following since more amount of paper pulp in term of
conclusions can be drawn: quantity will involve in the hydration process.
1. The slump increased up to 5% replacement of Therefore, additional amount of water was
cement, above 5% the slump decreased as the required for cement hydration which is the
paper pulp content in the concrete mixtures common solution to this kind of problem.
was increased. However, higher water content decreases the
2. Generally, the compressive, splitting tensile strength of concrete.
and flexural strength increased up to 10% 5. Use of waste paper pulp in concrete can save
addition of waste paper pulp and further the pulp and paper industry disposal costs and
increased in waste paper pulp reduces the produce a ‘greener’ concrete for construction.
strengths gradually.
3. The most suitable mix proportion is the 5 to 10 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
The authors are thankful to Dr. R. V.
% replacement of waste paper pulp to cement.
Ralegaonkar, Associate Professor, Department of Civil
4. There was an increase in water absorption of
Engineering, VNIT, Nagpur-10, Maharashtra, India and
the concrete mixes as the content of the paper
Dr. Sachin A. Mandavgane, Associate Professor,

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Department of Chemical Engineering, VNIT, Nagpur- mill residuals and fly ash, Construction and
10, Maharashtra, India for their support, comments and Building Materials, 25, 2011, 717–725 .
valuable suggestions. [8] I. Vegas, J. Urreta, M. Frías, and R. García, Freeze-
thaw resistance of blended cement containing
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[16] Code of Practice for Plain and Reinforced

Concrete. IS 456-2000, Bureau of Indian
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