Green Concrete - An Eco Friendly Concrete Substitute

One of the major issues in the 21st century is the increase in pollution. And the concrete manufacturing industry is seen as a major contributor to releasing toxic fumes into the air.

However, shutting down concrete industries doesn’t seem like a viable solution. What we need is an advanced type of concrete which does less damage to the environment. And this led to the manufacturing of green concrete.

In this blog, we will talk in-depth about green concrete.

What is green concrete?

Green concrete as the name suggests is eco-friendly concrete substitute, it is a sustainable form of concrete that does not harm the environment.

The term “green” in green concrete stands for the eco-friendly and waste material that is used in its manufacturing, the term “green” has nothing to do with the color of the concrete.

One of its components from which it is made up of is waste material. It reduces the waste and reduces the manufacturing cost of the concrete.

Hence, green concrete is a form of concrete that is eco-friendly and sustainable.

The scope of green concrete is growing rapidly in India as new projects are constructed to minimize harm to the environment.

Materials used in green concrete

Green concrete has waste material as one of its components. One or other type of waste material is used to replace the original components of the concrete.

Materials used in green concrete are :-

Industrial Waste

The byproducts of industries like fly ash, red mud, silica fumes, etc are used in the manufacturing of green concrete.

Also Read : Composition of High Strength Concrete

Agriculture Waste

The waste products of agriculture industries like rice husk ash, sugarcane bagasse ash, coconut husk ash, etc are utilized in the manufacturing of green concrete.

Recycled Aggregates

The aggregates that are generated from demolished concrete structures are also used as a component in the manufacturing of green concrete.

Substitutes of Sand

The original sand component is replaced with substitute sand. Substitutes like waste glass, sawdust, and manufactured sand replace the original sand component in the green concrete.

These were the components used in the manufacturing of green concrete.

Uses of green concrete

Green concrete is used in the manufacturing of green concrete buildings, these are eco-friendly buildings that are made to minimize the damage to the environment.

Other uses of green concrete are :-

• Green concrete is used to decrease the demand for conventional concrete so that the industry can meet the huge demand for concrete.
• Green concrete is used to reduce the emission of CO2 gas which is produced while manufacturing traditional concrete.
• Green concrete recycles the waste material and this helps in minimizing the non-biodegradable waste.

Advantages and disadvantages of green concrete

Here are some advantages and disadvantages of green concrete.

Advantages of green concrete

• Reduces the emission of CO2
• Green concrete has good thermal and acid resistance
• It is economic as compared to traditional cement
• Green concrete provides better workability than conventional cement
• Environment-friendly

Disadvantages of green concrete

• It has less split tensile strength
• It has high water absorption
• A detailed analysis of green concrete is a must to understand its properties

Final Verdict

Buildings are touching the sky and so is the demand for concrete and green concrete acts as a good eco-friendly concrete substitute for traditional concrete and helps in tackling that high demand.

Therefore, green concrete is a great option with some hiccups.