Innovative Infrastructure Solutions (2021) 6:13

https://doi.org/10.1007/s41062-020-00371-2

TECHNICAL PAPER

Role of red mud as a cementing material in concrete: a comprehensive

study on durability behavior
Chava Venkatesh1 · Ruben Nerella1 · Madduru Sri Rama Chand2

Received: 7 July 2020 / Accepted: 12 September 2020

© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2020

Abstract
Red mud (RM), a semi-solid residual of the alumina refinery process, has higher alkalinity, and its disposal leads to envi-
ronmental imbalance. To overcome this issue, RM is partially replaced with cement in the range of 0% to 20% at an interval
of 5%. The present research work majorly focused on durability and micro-level concrete studies containing pre-calcined
(600 °C in 2 h) RM. The tests on red mud concrete, viz. compressive strength, sorptivity test, open porosity test, rapid chloride
penetration test, accelerated corrosion test, water absorption test, X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscope (SEM),
and energy-dispersive spectroscope (EDS) analysis, have been conducted to investigate the comprehensive characterization
of concrete with RM. From the compressive strength test results, maximum strength was observed at 10% replacement.
Open porosity, chloride ions permeability, water absorption, and sorptivity values showed reduction at an increment of RM
replacement level. RM concrete offered more corrosion resistance due to high alkalinity, which possessed a pH of more than
12.5. From the micro-level investigations such as SEM and EDS, higher C–S–H gel formation was observed in RM 10%
replacement concrete. In the meantime, less number of pores was observed in all RM replaced concrete mixes.

Keywords Accelerated corrosion test · Durability properties · Red mud · Open porosity test · Sorptivity test · XRD

Introduction disposal, lagooning disposal, and dry stacking methods for

disposal of red mud; however, it creates some of the major
In the alumina refinery process, raw bauxite ore is treated environmental issues [2–5]. The solution to surmount this
with concentrated NaOH solution at high pressure; thus, problem has been addressed by a few researchers who sug-
the semi-solid residuals are disposed off from filters, which gested utilizing the unprocessed or processed red mud as a
was considered as “red mud (RM).” In the production of raw material in various construction industries like brick
one ton alumina, nearly 1.5 to 2 tons of RM is disposed industries and ceramic-based industries [6–9].
off, resulting in 140 million tons per annum worldwide [1]. Very few studies were conducted on red mud as supple-
RM, due to the presence of a higher percentage of sodium mentary cementitious material in concrete, and the addi-
hydroxides, possesses greater alkalinity, and disposal of tional benefit of this industrial by-product with cement
such material leads to rigorous ecological issues. At pre- replacement was understood. There are mixed opinions on
sent, alumina industries are following the pond disposal, sea the optimum dosage of red mud in cement and its applica-
tions; Sawant et al. [10] reported that red mud could be
* Ruben Nerella replaced in cement up to 25%. At the same time, Metilda
[email protected] et al. [6] reported that red mud could be replaced up to
Chava Venkatesh 15%. Some other studies reported only 2% of red mud
[email protected] could be replaced into the cement [11]. Reason for these
Madduru Sri Rama Chand mixed opinions is due to the variation of chemical compo-
[email protected] sition of red mud with location. Red mud, rich in alumina
content, fastens the setting time of concrete and reduces
1
Civil Engineering, Vignan’s Foundation for Science compressive strength with an increased level of replace-
Technology and Research, Guntur, AP, India
ments [12]. Yang et al. [13] reported that compressive
2
Sree Chaitanya College of Engineering, Karimnagar, strength was increased with 6% of red mud replacement in
Telangana, India

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concrete; this might be due to the densification of micro- microscopy (SEM) equipped with energy-dispersive spec-
structure and which was confirmed by the reduction of troscopy (EDS) analysis.
calcium hydroxide content with red mud replacement.
Red mud particles have a high specific surface area
(SSA), which can occupy micropores and cracks present
in the concrete, thus create concrete as very dense and Materials and methods
offer more resistance against chlorides and other gases
passage into the concrete [14]. Red mud could trap the The present work used Type I cement conforming to ASTM
chloride ions passage and reduce its penetration into the C150-19 [24]. The specific surface area of cement was
concrete due to the red mud’s higher alumina percent- 330 m2/kg, evaluated by Blaine’s air permeability method,
age [15]. Additionally, red mud in concrete improved the and the specific gravity of cement was 3.12, evaluated
CSH formation, which retained carbon dioxide penetration according to IS 4031-1996 [25]. The crushed granite stones
[16]. Ribeiro et al. [17] investigated the corrosion poten- of 20 mm well graded were used as coarse aggregates (CA),
tial of red mud-based reinforced concrete and proposed and natural river sand was used as fine aggregates (FA)
that increase in red mud content enhanced the corrosion conformed to Zone-II as per IS 383:2016 [26] as shown in
resistance of concrete. Some of the studies identified the Table 1. Superplasticizer was used as a high water reduction
added advantage of red mud as a corrosion inhibitor in agent; sulphonated naphthalene-based polymers, according
concrete while it reduces the Cl- to OH-ratio at the inter- to ASTM C 494:2019 [27].
face between concrete and rebar [18, 19].
As per existing literature, most of the studies used
non-calcined red mud, which was only suitable for non- Red mud
structural applications [20]. However, red mud’s structural
application was brought into the picture by the calcina- Red mud is a disposed waste from alumina refinery plants; in
tion method for deriving red mud’s cementitious activ- the present study, it was procured from the red mud disposal
ity. When red mud particles were heated in the range of pond, NALCO, Damanjodi, India. At the procured stage, red
400–900 °C, red mud particles were poorly crystallized at mud was in the form of a semi-solid condition. The fine red
600 °C and resulted in good cementitious activity [21–23]. mud particles were obtained by sun-drying and crushing sol-
In the present project work, red mud was heated in 600 °C ids particles using a ball mill. Subsequently, red mud parti-
temperature in various time intervals (1 h to 6 h with a cles were thermally treated in a muffle furnace at 600 °C for
constant interval of 1 h) and conducted various physical two hours. Specific gravity and specific surface area of red
and chemical, and cementitious activity tests. Based on mud were 2.46 and 22,000 m2/kg, respectively. The chemical
the investigation, 600 °C for 2 h samples showed the best composition of red mud and cement is presented in Table 2,
performance than other samples, which was the reason for while the particle size distribution of red mud and cement
adopted 600 °C for 2 h of pre-calcined red mud used in particles is depicted in Fig. 1. Gibbsite, calcium carbonate,
concrete mixes. hematite, muscovite, and quartz are majorly traced mineral
As per available literature, there is a need to assess the compositions in red mud derived from XRD analysis, as
red mud-based concrete’s long-term behavior. The present shown in Fig. 2. SEM image shown in Fig. 3 acknowledged
study was performed for various mechanical, durability, the poorly crystallized nature of red mud particles.
and microstructural property assessment tests to fill this
research gap. In the present work, red mud was pre-calcined
at 600 °C for 2 h; pre-calcination converts aluminates and Table 1  Sieve analysis of fine aggregates
silicates present in red mud into alumina and reactive silica, IS sieve % Of cumulative passage
and these formations can trigger the pozzolanic activity.
Test results Standard
Another reason is to reduce the hydroxide content, which range for
creates hazards. Red mud was partially replaced with cement Zone-II
in the range of 0%, 5%, 10%, 15%, and 20% by weight of
10 mm 100 100
cement. X-ray diffraction (XRD) and X-ray florescence
4.75 mm 95 90–100
(X-RF) techniques were used to determine red mud’s chemi-
2.36 mm 80 75–100
cal properties. To understand the durability behavior of red
1.18 mm 45 55–90
mud concrete, the following tests were performed; sorptiv-
600 µm 20 35–59
ity test, rapid chloride permeability test, open porosity test,
300 µm 7 8–30
and accelerated corrosion tests were conducted. Red mud
150 µm 0 0–10
concrete morphology was identified from scanning electron

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Table 2  Chemical Material CaO Al2O3 Fe2O3 SiO2 Na2O MgO K 2O TiO2 Others
composition of red mud and
cement evaluated by X-Ray Cement 65.29 4.73 3.95 20.93 0.29 1.43 0.36 – 3.02
fluorescence analysis
Red mud 9.90 21.24 22.79 23.90 5.83 0.35 2.49 5.50 8

Mix proportions

Table 3 represents the mix calculations of the present study

prepared as per IS 10262-2019 [28]. The study considered two
mixes of standard grade (Mix A) and high strength grade (Mix
B) as per IS 456-2000 [29]. The control mix was considered
with 0% replacement of red mud, and further four mixes were
considered with the level of replacement as 5%, 10%, 15%, and
20% by weight of cement. Mix B-based concrete was added
with silica fume (SF) to achieve high-grade concrete.

Compressive strength
Fig. 1  Particle size distribution of red mud and cement
As per BS 12390-3: 2009 [30], red mud concrete’s com-
pressive strength has been evaluated. The size of samples
150 × 150 × 150 mm was prepared and tested in a compres-
sive testing machine.

Durability tests

Rapid chloride penetration test

Rapid chloride penetration test (RCPT) was conducted as per

ASTM C1202-12 [31] to determine red mud concrete’s elec-
trical conductivity. The samples’ sizes are 50 mm thickness
and 100 mm diameter; it was sliced from 100-mm-diameter
and 200-mm-height cylindrical specimens. Moreover, 0.3 M
of NaOH and 3% of NaCl solutions are used in positive and
Fig. 2  X-ray diffractograms for red mud and cement negative terminals, respectively, in the equipment setup cells
represented in Fig. 4. The passage of electricity flow between
the cells through the specimen is measured in terms of cou-
lombs. The highest passage of current represents low resist-
ance to chloride ionic penetration.

Open porosity test

As per ASTM C 642-06 [32], the open porosity test was con-
ducted to determine the red mud concrete’s porous nature, and
the size of the sample was considered 100 mm in diameter,
50 mm in thickness.
Wssd − Wd
p= × 100% (1)
Wssd − Ww

p = porosity, Wd = dry weight of specimen, W ssd = satu-

rated surface dry weight of specimen, Ww = wet weight of
specimen.
Fig. 3  SEM image of red mud

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Table 3  Mix proportions of red Mud-based concrete

Materials Mix A Mix B
A0RM A5RM A10RM A15RM A20RM B0RM B5RM B10RM B15RM B20RM

Cement 432 410.4 388.8 367.2 345.6 450 427.5 405 382.5 360
Red mud (RM) 0 21.6 43.2 64.8 86.4 0 22.5 45 67.5 90
Silica fume (SF) 0 0 0 0 0 85.4 85.4 85.4 85.4 85.4
Fine aggregates 654 654 654 654 654 589 589 589 589 589
Coarse aggregates 1180 1180 1180 1180 1180 1180 1180 1180 1180 1180
Water 172 172 172 172 172 172 172 172 172 172
Superplasticizer 2.15 2.15 2.15 2.15 2.15 4.3 4.3 4.3 4.3 4.3

Wer absorption test

As per IS 1124-1974 [34], the water absorption test has

been conducted on all concrete samples. Before test-
ing, samples were heated in an oven at the temperature
of 105 °C to promise that no moisture should be present
inside the concrete. Then, the sample was weighed, and it
was considered as dry weight (Wd). Afterward, the samples
were immersed completely in water for 24 h, the samples
were taken out, and the surface was cleaned by using water
absorbent paper. Once again, the samples were weighed
and it was considered as wet weight (Ww). The percentage
of water absorption was calculated by using Eq. (3).
W w − Wd
W= × 100. (3)
Wd

Accelerated corrosion test

Fig. 4  Experimental setup of rapid chloride permeability test
An accelerated corrosion test (ACT) was conducted to
identify the corrosion resistivity of RM concrete. Cylin-
drical samples of 100 mm diameter and 200 mm height
with a 12-mm-diameter steel bar were cast for the test.
The test setup consists of a 12-V DC power supply, stain-
Sorptivity test
less steel container, a data logger, test specimens with a
container filled with a 3% concentrated NaCl solution. The
The sorptivity test was conducted to evaluate water pen-
positive charge cable was connected to a reinforcement bar
etration (with prescribed time) into the red mud concrete
(anode), and the negative charge cable was connected to a
samples as per ASTM C1585-13 [33]. The size of the
steel container (cathode). Figure 5 depicts the experimen-
samples used for sorptivity was 50 mm thickness and
tal setup of the accelerated corrosion test. The response
100 mm diameter. Wax was applied on all the specimen
of the current is continuously monitored and recorded by
sides except on the surface, subjected to the penetration
the data logger. The test was terminated when the rate of
of water and sorptivity values calculated using Eq. (2).
increase of corrosion current with time was negligible. It
Δw happens when the specimen achieves cracking.
S= √ . (2)
A×d× t

S = coefficient of sorptivity (mm/min0.5), A = water exposed

area of the specimen (­ mm2), t = time (min), d = density of
water ­(10−3 g/mm3).

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Age of curing 7D Age of curing 28D

Age of curing 90D Age of curing 150D

1.40
Normalized Strength Ratios

1.35

1.31

1.30
1.24
1.23
1.40

1.18
1.17
1.14
1.11
1.20
1.00

0.75
5
0.74
4

0.74
4

0.71
0.69
0.80
0.60
0.40
0.20
0.00
A0RM A5RM A10RM A15RM A20RM
Replacement levels of Red mud

Fig. 6  Normalized strength ratios versus red mud replacement levels

for Mix A
Fig. 5  Experimental setup of accelerated corrosion test

values are highest for 10% red mud replacement mixes

Details of XRD and SEM (A10RM & B10RM). The aluminates in red mud acceler-
ated the cement hydration; this effect led to greater early
In this study, microstructural investigations, viz. scanning age strength than normal mixes. Figures 6 and 7 show the
electron microscope, energy-dispersive spectroscope, and normalized ratios of compressive strength for Mixes A and
X-ray diffraction analysis, were conducted to red mud B with different red mud replacement levels. Moreover,
concrete and standard concrete samples. Rigaku mini flex Mix A has shown significant strength enhancement with
600 was used for XRD measurements with the following progress in the age of curing. This effect is due to the sec-
parameters; 40 kV of voltage and 15 mA of current, step ondary pozzolanic activity between cementitious materi-
scan of 0.0200º, scan range from 3º to 90º (2Ɵ), and a scan als (cement and red mud). In contrast, Mix B with a low
speed of 100.00 deg/min with CuKa/1.541862 A of wave- water–cement ratio has not shown strength enhancement
length. Powdered samples were considered for XRD analy- to a great extent at later ages. It was attributed due to less
sis, and representative samples of 5 mm × 5 mm × 10 mm availability of water for secondary pozzolanic activity than
size were considered for scanning electron microscope and Mix A. Due to high alkalinity (pH > 12) nature, red mud
energy-dispersive spectroscope analysis. Gold sputtering accelerates the pozzolanic reaction between cementitious
was applied to all the samples before placing it into a scan- materials (cement and red mud) [1, 12, 20, 35]. After 10%
ning electron microscope, as concrete is a non-conductive of red mud replacement in concrete, the strength reduc-
material. tion was observed, but it is not lower than normal concrete
mixes. At 15% and 20% of red mud replacement in con-
crete, compressive strength was reduced because of insuf-
Results and discussion ficient cement hydration due to the presence of higher red
mud content at higher replacement. A similar justification
Compressive strength was given by Cheng et al. [36]; red mud has a high spe-
cific surface area that absorbs more water in the concrete
Table 4 shows the mechanical properties of red mud mix; it leads to the shortage of water for sufficient cement
concrete for Mixes A and B. The compressive strength hydration.

Table 4  Compressive strength of red mud concrete

Age of curing Mix A Mix B
A0RM A5RM A10RM A15RM A20RM B0RM B5RM B10RM B15RM B20RM

7D 30.16 33.65 35.67 34.54 31.27 52.1 54.5 59.9 56.17 53.2
28D 43.55 45.34 48.12 46.05 44.09 82.2 83.8 87.7 84.12 82.8
90D 48.25 55.61 59.75 53.79 52.18 84.2 92.4 103.7 99.8 89.1
150D 49.5 61.12 67.56 60.22 57.53 85.3 95.9 110 102.5 91.2

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Age of curing 7D Age of curing 28D

Age of curing 90D Age of curing 150D
Normalized Strength Ratios

1.25

1.22
1.40

1.19
1.18
1.14
1.10

1.10
1.08
1.04
1.02
1.20
1.00

0.68

0.67
0.65

0.64
0.63

0.80
0.60
0.40
0.20
0.00
B0RM B5RM B10RM B15RM B20RM
Replacement levels of Red mud

Fig. 7  Normalized strength ratios versus red mud replacement levels

for Mix B

Fig. 9  Water absorption of Mix B red mud concrete

Water absorption test

Red mud concrete diminishes the percentage of water reason for reducing water absorption is the fineness of red
absorption with an increase in the replacement of red mud. mud particles (average particle size 14 µm); all micro-cracks
The water absorption test was conducted after a specified and pores present in the concrete are sealed. Red mud can
age of curing, i.e., 7D, 28D, 90D, 150D. The thought of minimize the water absorption of concrete by its large spe-
interest is to identify the water absorption resistance in red cific surface area [37]. Manfroi et al. 2014 [21] gave a simi-
mud concrete with hydration advancement. Figures 8 and 9 lar reason; in the red mud-based cement hydration process,
illustrate the percentage of water absorption at various red the higher Ca(OH)2 crystals were broken into several small
mud replacement levels for Mixes A and B. After 7 days of crystals and less oriented, which leads to minimization of
curing, water absorption has reduced from 6.13% (A0RM) pore connections and water absorption.
to 2.65% (A20RM) and 4.17% (B0RM) to 2.35% (B20RM).
However, in the case of 150 days curing, water absorption Sorptivity test
was reduced from 2.73% (A0RM) to 1.83% (A20RM) and
3.15% (B0RM) to 1.56% (B20RM). The results illustrate that Water absorption through capillary suction was measured
with an increase in curing age and with enhanced replace- on red mud concrete samples and is represented in Figs. 10
ment level, the water absorption values are reduced. Red and 11. The sorptivity values shown in Table 5 are observed
mud develops the pozzolanic activity at a later age also; it to decrease with an increase in the level of red mud replace-
leads to minimizing connections between the pores. Another ments in concrete. After 28 days of curing, the sorptiv-
ity values are reduced from 0.562 mm/min0.5 (A0RM) to
0.266 mm/min0.5 (A20RM) and 0.358 mm/min0.5 (B0RM)
to 0.260 mm/min0.5 (B20RM), and this is attributed due to
fineness of red mud which makes the concrete surface very
dense by filing all the voids. This filling nature would help
develop the continuous pozzolanic reaction between red mud
and cement, enhancing the strength and durability character-
istics of concrete at later ages. In the present study, micro-
structure analysis revealed that replacement of red mud in
concrete reduced sorptivity values because of C–S–H filled
all the capillary pores during hydration. The sorptivity val-
ues are decreased with the addition of red mud in concrete
because red mud fills voids and cracks in concrete [18, 38].

Open porosity test

Open porosity test was performed to understand the

Fig. 8  Water absorption of Mix A red mud concrete porosity of concrete with red mud addition. Table 6

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4.5 Age of curing 7D

A0RM A5RM A10RM A15RM A20RM
4
Age of curing 7D
Cummulative water

3.5
8 B0RM B5RM B10RM B15RM B20RM
3
absorption,i

7
2.5

Cummulative water
6
2

absorption,i
5
1.5
1 4

0.5 3

0 2
0 2 4 6 8 10 1
√time
0
0 5 10 15
7 Age of curing 28D
A0RM A5RM A10RM A15RM A20RM √time
6
Cummulative water

6 Age of curing 28D

5
absorption,i

B0RM B5RM B10RM B15RM B20RM

4 5

Cummulative water
3 4

absorption,i
2
3
1
2
0
0 2 4 6 8 10 12 1
√time
0
6 Age of curing 90D 0 5 10 15
A0RM A5RM A10RM A15RM A20RM
√time
5
Cummulative water

7 Age of curing 90D

4
absorption,i

B0RM B5RM B10RM B15RM B20RM

6
Cummulative water

3
5
absorption,i

2 4

1 3

2
0
0 2 4 6 8 10 12
1
√time
0
6 Age of curing 150D 0 5 10 15
A0RM A5RM A10RM A15RM A20RM √time
5
6 Age of curing 150D
Cummulat water

B0RM B5RM B10RM B15RM B20RM

absorption,i

4
5
Cummulative water

3
absorption,i

4
2
3
1
2
0
0 2 4 6 8 10 12 1
√time
0
0 2 4 6 8 10 12
Fig. 10  Cumulative water absorption versus √time for Mix A con- √time
crete

Fig. 11  Cumulative water absorption versus √time for Mix B con-

crete

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Table 5  Sorptivity values for red mud concrete

Age of curing Mix A Mix B
A0RM A5RM A10RM A15RM A20RM B0RM B5RM B10RM B15RM B20RM

7D 0.515 0.375 0.352 0.294 0.265 0.530 0.264 0.244 0.255 0.209
28D 0.562 0.360 0.323 0.292 0.266 0.358 0.322 0.308 0.272 0.260
90D 0.493 0.350 0.332 0.263 0.243 0.449 0.283 0.261 0.229 0.220
150D 0.492 0.350 0.332 0.263 0.234 0.44 0.251 0.241 0.241 0.207

Table 6  Porosity (%) of red mud concrete

Age of curing Mix A Mix B
A0RM A5RM A10RM A15RM A20RM B0RM B5RM B10RM B15RM B20RM

7D 6.13 5.47 4.42 2.93 2.65 4.7 4.6 3.4 3.02 2.56
28D 5.29 4.83 2.55 1.19 1.01 4.32 3.46 2.1 1.63 1.53
90D 5.06 4.36 2.13 1.16 1.02 3.79 3.24 1.47 1.31 1.20
150D 5.01 4.36 2.09 1.16 1 3.41 3.24 1.47 1.25 1.11

represents the porosity values of red mud concrete.

In Mix A, porosity (%) reduced from 6.13(A0RM) to
2.65(A20RM) @7D, 5.29(A0RM) to 1.01(A20RM) @28D,
5.06 (A0RM) to 1.02(A20RM) @90D and 5.01(A0RM) to
1(A20RM)@150D. Mix B also exhibited similar kinds of
results. The porosity of concrete reduced significantly with
red mud in concrete. This effect is due to filling pores by
C–S–H during hydration, which is observed in the micro-
structure investigation in the present study (represented in
Section “SEM–EDS analysis”). Moreover, another reason
is the fineness of red mud, which fills the pore structure of
concrete. A dense surface structure was formed due to red
mud’s fineness, which reduces concrete porosity [18, 21,
35]. The similar tests, viz. Water absorption test, sorptivity
test, and open porosity test, achieved similar results.
Fig. 12  Passage of coulombs Mix A red mud concrete
Rapid chloride penetration test

As per ASTM C1202-19 [31], the passage of chloride ions

into RM concrete has been investigated in current work.
Figures 12 and 13 present the total charge passed in stand-
ard and high-grade concrete mixes with different red mud
replacement levels. As per experimental observations, the
passage of coulombs was reduced from 2613 °C (A0RM)
to 1168 °C (A20RM) and 2120 °C (B0RM) to 730 °C (cou-
lombs) (B20RM) for 7 days curing completed specimens.
As the age of curing progressed for both mixes, the cur-
rent passed was moderately decreased for a different level
of replacements of red mud concrete. The C–S–H fills most
of the voids, and red mud particles fill a few more voids.
The filling effect of RM particles in micropores in concrete
diminishes the chloride ions penetration. Many studies [1,
18] reported that the reduction of chloride ions penetration
Fig. 13  Passage of coulombs for Mix B red mud concrete

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and carbonation depth is because of fine RM particles and surface against chloride ions ingression in concrete. Many
concluded similarly. studies gave similar reasons [9, 18, 39]. Red mud was the
most promising corrosion inhibitor. The vigorous experi-
Accelerated corrosion test mental investigation of Belén Díaz et al. [15] identified a
drastic reduction in diffusivity values of chlorides and CO2
In this study, an accelerated corrosion test (ACT) has been for red mud added cement paste specimens. This reduction
performed to identify the corrosion behavior in red mud of chloride ion diffusivity in due to the presence of high alu-
concrete. Table 7 represents the rebar mass loss (%) due to mina content in RM could trap chlorides and from Friedel’s
corrosion. Red mud offers significant corrosion resistance salt. Figure 14 represents the failure of the samples due to
with an increase in the replacement levels of red mud in corrosion.
concrete. Table 8 expresses the critical corrosion current and
post-depassivation time for red mud concrete mixes at differ-
ent ages. In Mixes A and B, the failure crack was observed Micro‑level properties of red mud concrete
after 18D @32.1 mA (A0RM), 30D @18.6 mA (A5RM),
37D @15.2 mA (A10RM), 40D @12.5 mA (A15RM), XRD analysis
41D @11.4 mA (A20RM) and 25D @22.3 mA (B0RM),
43D @14.8 mA (B5RM), 49D @11.5 mA (B10RM), 52D X-ray diffraction analysis was conducted on red mud con-
@10.2 mA (B15RM), 53D @8.6 mA (B20RM) of critical crete samples of Mix A. Figure 15 presents the X-ray dif-
corrosion current after 28 days of curing age. On consider- fractograms of concrete of Mix A with different red mud
ing the rebar mass loss (%) with post-depassivation cracking replacement levels. The mineral phases identified for
time, it is understood that the samples with more mass loss different mixes were quartz (SiO2), larnite (Ca2SiO4),
exhibited less depassivation time, which is due to the less hatrurite (Ca3SiO5), portlandite (Ca(OH)2), ettringite
chloride ionic penetration resistance. On the other hand, the (Ca6Al2(SO4)3(OH)1226H2O) and katoite (Ca3Al2(SiO4)
presence of higher content of red mud depicted more resist- (OH)8). Portlandite in red mud concrete helps to hold the
ance to ionic penetration to the alkaline nature of red mud, alkali pore solution concentration during cement hydration
which minimizes the depassivation of the reinforcement bar and thus enhances the C–S–H gel formation. Katoite could

Table 7  Rebar mass loss (%) due to corrosion

Age of curing Mix A Mix B
A0RM A5RM A10RM A15RM A20RM B0RM B5RM B10RM B15RM B20RM

7D 18.8 10.29 7.62 6.05 5.15 14.60 8.24 5.83 4.58 3.26
28D 14.60 6.74 5.55 4.94 3.48 9.55 5.61 3.33 2.19 1.74
90D 12.35 7.3 5.55 4.39 2.9 7.86 4.49 3.86 1.64 1.73
150D 11.23 6.17 5 4.39 2.32 7.86 4.49 3.33 1.64 1.74

Table 8  Failure crack observations

Age of curing A0RM A5RM A10RM A15RM A20RM B0RM B5RM B10RM B15RM B20RM

7D
Critical corrosion current (mA) 48.9 23.4 21.3 17.5 16.2 29.3 20.6 19.2 15.4 13.2
Post-depassivation time (days) 14 23 31 36 39 19 28 33 40 45
28D
Critical corrosion current (mA) 32.1 18.6 15.2 12.5 11.4 22.3 14.8 11.5 10.2 8.6
Post-depassivation time (days) 18 30 37 40 41 25 43 49 52 53
90D
Critical corrosion current (mA) 25.6 15.3 13.8 11.2 9.1 20.5 15.7 9.3 8.7 7
Post-depassivation time (days) 20 36 41 45 47 24 49 54 55 62
150D
Critical corrosion current (mA) 23.7 14.6 12.1 11.2 9 18.3 13.1 8.6 7.3 5
Post-depassivation time (days) 24 40 41 44 47 25 53 57 57 65

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Table 9  XRD hydration compounds (weight%)

Hydration com- Age of curing 28 days
pounds
A0RM A5RM A10RM A15RM A20RM

Portlandite 24.5 24.6 24.4 25.6 22.8

Ettringite 3.3 3.7 3.3 3.3 3.9
Katoite 8.9 9.2 8.1 9.6 10.5
Calcium carbonate 8.1 5.1 3.2 3.1 6
Larnite 25.7 26.1 27.5 26.8 26.1
Hatrurite 29.5 31.3 33.5 31.6 30.7
Total 100 100 100 100 100

SEM–EDS analysis
Fig. 14  Failure pattern of the samples
For knowing the morphological behavior of red mud con-
crete, micro-level investigations were conducted with a
scanning electron microscope (SEM) and energy-dispersive
spectroscope (EDS) analysis for elemental composition. Fig-
ure 16a–e represents the SEM images of Mix A (standard
grade) concrete with different levels of replacement of red
mud. It is identified from SEM images that increasing the
replacement levels of red mud in concrete results in dense
structure formation. The finer particles of red mud occu-
pied the pores in the concrete and decreased the porosity
of concrete. Figure 17a–e represents the energy-dispersive
spectroscopy analysis of all mix samples. The Ca/Si ratio
range of 0.8 to 2.5 is the evidence for C–S–H gel presence
in concrete [41]. In the present study, Ca/Si ratios are 1.13,
0.99, 0.95, 1.01, and 1.08 at red mud replacement of 0%, 5%,
10%, 15%, and 20%, respectively. Based on the results, 10%
of red mud replacement in concrete has shown lesser Ca/Si
Fig. 15  X-ray diffractograms for RM concrete
ratio than other mixes. The lower the Ca/Si ratio, the higher
the C–S–H gel formation, and the higher the Ca/Si ratio, the
lower the C–S–H gel formation [1], which is the reason for
enhance the durability of concrete in terms of more heat the higher strength observed at 10% red mud replaced mix.
liberation; meanwhile, it reduces the presence of sulfate and
makes the concrete stable [15, 40]. Quartz reacts with cal-
cium oxide in the cement hydration and helps in the forma- Conclusions
tion of C–S–H gel. In the red mud concrete, the presence
of larnite and hatrurite gives clear evidence for C–S–H gel The following conclusions were drawn after the evaluation
formation, making the concrete achieve strength character- of the durability and micro-level properties of RM concrete.
istics. In the present study, a higher percentage of larnite
and hatrurite was observed at RM 10% mix, and this is the • Red mud contains a higher percentage of alumina, which
reason for high strength, as shown in Table 9. accelerated the cement hydration, and this is the reason
for achieving high strength at an early age than normal
concrete.

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Innovative Infrastructure Solutions (2021) 6:13 Page 11 of 14 13

Fig. 16  Scanning electron

microscope images of a A0RM,
(a) (b)
b A5RM, c A10RM, d A15RM,
e A20RM

C-S-H
C-S-H
CH

CH

(c) (d)

C-S-H
C-S-H

CH

CH

(e)

CH

C-S-H

• Both mixes (Mixes A and B) have considerable strength • The fineness of red mud particles sealed all the micro-
enhancement with the progression in an age of curing; cracks and pores present in concrete because C–S–H
but lesser strength increment was observed in Mix B than filled all the capillary pores during hydration, resulting
in Mix A. It might be due to insufficient water availability in dense concrete. Tests, viz. Water absorption, sorptiv-
for secondary pozzolanic activity. ity, and open porosity identified the effectiveness of red
• The 10% replacement of RM has shown higher compres- mud concrete.
sive strength; the reason for the strength increment was • The filler effect of RM diminished chloride permeabil-
the high alkaline (pH > 12) nature of red mud accelerates ity, and the high alkalinity of RM more strengthen the
the pozzolanic reaction between the cementitious materi-
als.

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 13 Page 12 of 14 Innovative Infrastructure Solutions (2021) 6:13

(a)

EDS spot

(b)

EDS spot

(c)

EDS spot

Fig. 17  Energy-dispersive spectroscopy results for a A0RM, b A5RM, c A10RM, d A15RM, e A20RM

reinforcement surface passive layer, which enhanced the • In both mixes, 10% RM replacement samples showed
corrosion resistivity of reinforced concrete. a higher percentage of larnite, hatrurite, and low Ca/Si
ratio. These are the reasons for achieving high strength.

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Innovative Infrastructure Solutions (2021) 6:13 Page 13 of 14 13

(d)

EDS spot

(e)

EDS spot

Fig. 17  (continued)

Acknowledgements The authors are thankful to the Centre of Excel- 2. Abdel-Raheem M, Santana LG, Cordava MP, Martínez BO (2017)
lence for Advanced Materials, Manufacturing, Processing, and Char- Uses of red mud as a construction material. In: AEI 2017, pp
acterization for allowing to conduct Microstructural analysis, Vignan’s 388–399
Foundation for Science, Technology and Research, Guntur, Andhra 3. Venkatesh C, Chand MSR, Ruben N (2019) A state of the art on
Pradesh, India, 522213. red mud as a substitutional cementitious material. Ann Chim Sci
Mater 43(2):99–106
4. Ujaczki É, Klebercz O, Feigl V, Molnár M, Magyar Á, Uzinger
Compliance with ethical standards N, Gruiz K (2015) Environmental toxicity assessment of the
spilled Ajka red mud in soil microcosms for its potential uti-
Conflict of interest The authors declare that they have no conflict of lisation as soil ameliorant. Periodica Polytech Chem Eng
interest. 59(4):253–261
5. Dentoni V, Grosso B, Massacci G (2014) Environmental sustain-
ability of the alumina industry in Western Europe. Sustainability
6(12):9477–9493
6. Metilda DL, Selvamony C, Anandakumar R, Seeni A (2015)
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