Materials Today: Proceedings 58 (2022) 1504–1507

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Materials Today: Proceedings

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Influence of the water/cement ratio (w/c) on the mechanical properties

of rubberized cementitious composites
José Gonçalves de Lima Júnior, Mostafa Galal Aboelkheir ⇑
São Judas Tadeu University, Civil Engineering Graduate Program, São Paulo, Brazil

a r t i c l e i n f o a b s t r a c t

Article history: The recycling of waste tire rubber is characterized by the lack of proper techniques due to its cross-linked
Available online 9 March 2022 and complex chemical nature. Rubber has a slow rate of degradation due to its cross-linked structure.
This causes environmental pollution and health risks (zika, dengue and chikungunya). One way of recy-
Keywords: cling waste tires is their crushing, generating crumbs and rubber powder, which can later be inserted
Tire crumb with or without prior treatment into polymeric or cementitious matrices as recycled aggregate. Rubber
Environmental recovery as recycled aggregate can add to cement-based mixtures new properties derived from it, such as improv-
Mortar
ing ductility, damping ratio and energy dissipation within the mixture. This work aims to study the influ-
Rubberized concrete
ence of the water/cement ratio on the mechanical properties of cementitious composites with 15% tire
rubber powder, through volumetric replacements by fine aggregate. Three w/c ratios were applied for
the rubber and control mixtures, 0.52, 0.48 and 0.44. In case of conventional mortar, the compressive
strength tends to increase with the reduction of the amount of water in the mixture due to the greater
amount of cement to be added and greater packing of hydrated particles. The control mixture with a/
c = 0.44 achieved an average strength 8.6% greater than that of a/c = 0.52. On the other hand, in case
of rubberized mortar, by decreasing the w/c ratio in the presence of hydrophobic rubber, water does
not easily migrate into the mixture, having as an obstacle the rubber particles, which, in turn, end up cov-
ering the anhydrous cement grains, decreasing the resistance. In addition to the ductile nature of rubber
itself, which behaves as a void within the mixture nor transferring the load from one point to another,
leading to faster cracking. The mixture ‘‘0.52 with rubber” is highlighted for achieving greater compres-
sive strength, when compared to its category of rubberized mortar studied in this work, and also for pre-
senting a drop in the dynamic modulus of elasticity by 48% compared to the respective mixture of control
‘‘0.52 without rubber”. Thus, the mixture ‘‘0.52 with rubber” was considered the most resistant in terms
of mechanical behavior.
Copyright Ó 2022 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Selection and peer-review under responsibility of the scientific committee of the 3rd International Con-
gress on Materials & Structural Stability.

1. Introduction discarded waste tires, promoting potential environmental risk

through the creation of landfills, sometimes irregular [3,4].
Only in Brazil in 2015, about 470 thousand tons of tires were Rubber has a slow rate of degradation due to its cross-linked
discarded improperly. Almost the entire number of worn-out tires structure. This causes environmental pollution and health risk
is improperly discarded. Rubber is an extremely important source (zika, dengue and chikungunya) [5,6]. Physical recovery processes
of raw material for the world industry, being used for several pur- for rubber waste can be applied with the help of external energy
poses. This diversification of applications is due to the vulcaniza- [7–9].
tion process through which the rubber passes to acquire an There is growing concern about the high levels of waste gener-
increase in its mechanical properties [1,2] The global growth of ation per capita in the world, especially waste elements that can-
the automobile industry has boosted the production and distribu- not be broken down into original components, such as waste
tion of new tires, which has resulted in huge piles of incorrectly rubber derived from end-of-life tires. Tire scraps are composed of
materials that are not degradable in nature under normal condi-
tions, as they are weatherproof and non-biodegradable. As a result,
⇑ Corresponding author.

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.matpr.2022.03.029
2214-7853/Copyright Ó 2022 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Selection and peer-review under responsibility of the scientific committee of the 3rd International Congress on Materials & Structural Stability.
José Gonçalves de Lima Júnior and M. Galal Aboelkheir Materials Today: Proceedings 58 (2022) 1504–1507

improper disposal of tires has become a major environmental issue mechanically values, and constant superplasticizer 1.5% on the
in both hemispheres of the planet [10–13]. cement mass, while the fine aggregate varies according to the
It is estimated that an average of 1.5 billion tires are manufac- replacement of sand by rubber. At first, dry materials (cement,
tured in the world every year and that approximately 1.0 billion sand and/or GTR) were mixed for 1 min, then these were slowly
units are discarded, thrown away or buried, at the end of their use- added to the mixture of wet materials (water and superplasticizer),
ful life, 50% of which are not recycled. By 2030, the number would and all components were mixed for 1.5 min. After resting for
reach 1.2 billion per year and if you include stored tires, there 1.5 min, the components were mixed for another 1.5 min.
would be 5 billion tires regularly discarded, posing a very serious After molding, the specimens were demolded two days later
threat to the ecology [11,12]. and were cured by immersion in water for a week and finally, kept
A large number of discarded tires ends up being stored without curing in air until completing 28 days and tested. For each mortar,
undergoing any specific treatment before storage. The growing 3 specimens of 40 mm  40 mm  160 mm
number of these places represents a phytosanitary risk, increasing (width  height  length) were produced, according to the proce-
the probability of fires, especially in hot summers, in addition to dures of standard NBR 16,738 (ABNT, 2019). The specimens with
the segregation of the space they occupy in relation to their envi- rubber are coded (w/c)/R.
ronment. Millions more tires are buried, thrown away and burned
all over the world. It is estimated that for each tire burned, about
10 L of oil are released into the ground, causing groundwater pol- 2.2.2. Mechanical properties
lution [4,14–16]. Compressive strength: The compressive strength test was carried
One way of recycling waste tires is crushing them, generating out with 3 specimens of 40 mm  40 mm  40 mm, at the age of
crumbs and rubber powder that can later be inserted into poly- 28 days. A Kratos machine with a capacity of 20 tf was used. The
meric or cementitious matrices as recycled aggregate. Rubberized load speed was equal to 720 N/s, following the recommendations
asphalt or Ecological Asphalt is a technique that uses rubber pow- of NBR 16,738 (ABNT, 2019).
der from the grinding of pneumatic waste as a filler, producing Dynamic modulus of elasticity: The dynamic modulus of elastic-
mass used in road paving. Also, research in the field of civil con- ity test was performed with 3 specimens of
struction aims to reuse this type of waste in the manufacture of 40 mm  40 mm  160 mm, at the age of 28 days according to
concrete blocks [17]. NBR 15,630 (2008).
Despite a large loss in compressive strength when inserting
rubber tire powder as an aggregate in concrete, it is acceptable
for several applications that require medium to low compressive 3. Results and discussion
strength [18]. Crushed rubber consists of particles ranging in size
from 4.75 mm (sieve 4) to less than 0.075 mm (sieve 200) [19]. Compressive strength: Fig. 1 shows the linear modelling between
On the other hand, the strength of rubberized concrete can be the resistances obtained in 14 days with relation to the applied w/c
improved, improving the adhesion properties of rubber aggregates. ratio.
Some studies have highlighted this possibility of pre-treatment of In a first analysis, the compressive strength tends to increase
rubber by immersion in an alkaline solution of NaOH or in a sulfur- with the reduction of the amount of water in the mixture due to
based petroleum residue (CS2) [20,21]. the greater amount of cement to be added and greater packing of
As tire rubber has a lower specific mass when compared to the hydrated particles. The control mixture with a/c = 0.44 achieved
rest of the dry material in the mixtures, and considering that it may an average strength 8.6% greater than that of a/c = 0.52.
migrate to the surface of the mixtures causing greater heterogene- On the other hand, mixtures with 15% rubber are less resistant
ity in the system, it was decided to test 3 different water/cement to the respective w/c ratios, as expected. Surprisingly, by decreas-
ratios (w/c) for the same (cement: sand = 1:3) ratio and compare ing the w/c ratio for such mixtures, a decrease was also observed in
them based on their mechanical behavior. the average strength of each mixture. That is, in a greater amount
Thus, this study aims to study the influence of w/c ratios of 0.44, of water (w/c = 0.52), the cement particles were more hydrated
0.48, 0.52% on the mechanical properties of composites with 15% of and reached a higher strength value.
tire rubber powder, through volumetric replacements by fine By decreasing the w/c ratio in the presence of hydrophobic rub-
aggregate cementitious composites. ber, water does not easily migrate into the mixture, having as an
obstacle the rubber particles, which, in turn, ends up covering
the anhydrous cement grains, worsening the resistance. In addition
2. Experimental
to the ductile nature of rubber itself, which behaves like a void
within the mixture in not transferring the charge from one point
2.1. Materials
to another, causing greater cracking. In this sense, the ‘‘0.52/R”
mixture are highlighted for achieving greater compressive
The materials used for the production of the matrices were:
strength, when compared to its category of rubberized mortar
Portland CPV cement, natural sand as fine aggregate, and 120 mm
studied in this work.
particle size tire rubber (Genan-Denmark) to replace sand as fine
Dynamic modulus of elasticity:
aggregate, in addition to the use of deionized water and superplas-
Fig. 2 shows the influence of the w/c ratio on the dynamic mod-
ticizer agent. The specific mass of sand is 2.667 g/cm3, and the
ulus of elasticity of the control mixtures and with 15% tire rubber,
120 mm tire rubber is 1.18 g/cm3, and Portland cement CPV is
with linear modelling between registered modulus in relation to
3.14 g/cm3.
the applied w/c ratio.
For the control mixtures, there was a small non-significant vari-
2.2. Methods ation in the values of dynamic modulus equals to 3%. This reflects
that the w/c ratio did not have a great influence on this value.
2.2.1. Dosage, preparation and cure Although the linear model shows a regression whose coefficient
The applied mix for the mortar preparation is cement: fine of determination R2 = 0.7576, the ANOVA data, considering the
aggregate = 1: 3 and different water/cement ratios (w/c = 0.52 or margin of experimental error, show that the values are statistically
0.48 or 0.44) were tested to determine which mix attained higher equal.
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José Gonçalves de Lima Júnior and M. Galal Aboelkheir Materials Today: Proceedings 58 (2022) 1504–1507

Fig. 2. The influence w/c ratio on the dynamic deformation modulus (MPa) of
Fig. 1. The influence w/c ratio on the compressive strength (MPa) of mortars with mortars with 0% and 15% of rubber.
0% and 15% of rubber.

packing of hydrated particles. The control mixture with a/c = 0.44

The mixtures with 15% rubber are highlighted for a very signif-
achieved an average strength 8.6% greater than that of a/c = 0.52.
icant drop in the values of the dynamic modulus of elasticity,
The compressive strength tends to increase with the reduction
reaching a regression of up to 63.67% when compared to the
of the amount of water in the control mixtures, reaching an aver-
respective control samples with the same w/c content. This high-
age strength 8.6% higher for the w/c ratio = 0.44. This does not
lights a much higher deformability for composites containing tire
apply in the case of mixtures with 15% rubber, because when the
rubber, which enables this type of material to be applied in envi-
w/c ratio was reduced, a decrease in the average resistance was
ronments that require low load and high deformability.
observed. By decreasing the w/c ratio in the presence of hydropho-
Specifically, for the ‘‘0.52/R” mixture that was highlighted for
bic rubber, water does not easily migrate into the mixture, acting
having the highest compressive strength in the rubber category,
as an obstacle, which in turn ends up covering the anhydrous
its modulus reached 15.08 MPa, that is, a drop of 48% compared
cement grains, decreasing the resistance.
to the respective control mixture ‘‘0.52”.
The ‘‘0.52/R” mixture is highlighted for achieving greater com-
The rubberized mortars results present a lower R2 value if com-
pressive strength when compared to its category of rubberized
pared to the conventional ones for both compressive strength and
mortar studied in this work, and also for presenting a drop in the
dynamic elastic modulus, 0.3845 and 0.2857, respectively, which
dynamic modulus of elasticity by 48% compared to the respective
calls the attention to a disorder in linearity response of such results
control mix at a/c = 0.52. Thus, the mixture ‘‘0.52/R” was consid-
due to the presence of rubber inside the composite, which was
ered the most highlighted in terms of mechanical behaviour.
much closer to linearity in the conventional mortars’ results.
The mixtures with 15% rubber are highlighted for a very signif-
icant drop in the values of the dynamic modulus of elasticity,
reaching a regression of up to 63.67% when compared to the
4. Conclusions respective control samples with the same w/c content. This high-
lights a much higher deformability for composites containing tire
In case of conventional mortar, the compressive strength tends rubber, which enables this type of material to be applied in envi-
to increase with the reduction of the amount of water in the mix- ronments that require low load and high deformability.
ture due to the greater amount of cement to be added and greater
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José Gonçalves de Lima Júnior and M. Galal Aboelkheir Materials Today: Proceedings 58 (2022) 1504–1507

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