Experimental Performance Evaluation of Sustainable Concrete Paver Blocks Incorporating Bottom Ash and Recycled Plastic Fibers

Growing need for sustainable building materials has led to the application of industrial wastes and plastics as an alternative to normal construction materials. This paper explores the feasibility and sustainability of concrete paver blocks that use Coal Bottom Ash (CBA) as a substitute for natural fine aggregate in concrete paver block along with recycled plastic fibers (PF). M20 grade concrete paver blocks were made by substituting 10%, 20% and 30% of natural sand with CBA along with 0.1%, 0.2% and 0.3% plastic fiber correspondingly. Normal M20 grade concrete paver block served as a control sample. The compressive strength of specimens was tested on day 7, 14 and 28 of water curing period.

According to the experimental results, the combination 10% CBA + 0.1% PF demonstrated the highest compressive strength of 21.08 MPa at the age of 28 days as compared to the conventional M20 mix having compressive strength of 20.15 MPa, showing approximately 4.6% increase in compressive strength. The compressive strength values at the ages of 7 days and 14 days were 13.54 MPa and 18.60 MPa, respectively. The 28-day strength value for 20% CBA + 0.2% PF was 20.15 MPa, while using the replacement of 30% CBA + 0.3% PF resulted in 28-day compressive strength of 19.22 MPa. The result shows that the best combination was 10% CBA with 0.1% PF because it had the highest 28-day compressive strength. Thus, the findings demonstrate the potential for using recycled plastic fibers in the production of CBA-based concrete paver blocks, while the incorporation of plastic fibers may contribute to improved crack resistance and overall structural integrity. These research results prove the possibility of reuse of industrial by-products such as bottom ash and waste plastic for construction materials instead of natural sand, providing sustainable waste management.