Durability properties of concretes made with sand and cement size basalt

This study characterizes the durability and mechanical performance of the concrete produced with basalt in different sizes. The innovation of this research lies in the fact that cement is replaced by basalt powder. Different percentages of basalt in powder and sand form were added as a partial replacement of cement and fine aggregate, respectively. The replacement percentages range from 5% to 40% by mass of cement and sand. The influence of basalt replacement on the behavior of concrete was evaluated through strength and durability tests on samples at different ages. The experiments were carried out to determine the effect of the basalt replacement on the different age concrete samples' compressive strengths, abrasion resistances, water absorptions, and freezing-thawing strengths, as well as sulfate resistances. The study showed that partial replacement of different forms of basalt with cement and sand leads to a significant improvement in the concrete aspects mentioned above. The compressive strengths of samples at 28 and 60 days were found to be 15% higher, while the abrasion and the capillary water absorption rates at these ages were found to be 32% and 23% lower than those of the reference sample, respectively. In addition, the compressive strength after freeze-thaw and 180 days sulphate resistance values were found to be 45% and 47% higher than those of the reference sample, respectively.