Recycling palm oil wastes for the production of a pozzolanic cement replacement material for concrete

Abstract

The palm oil industry produces wastes that are harmful to the environment but can be managed. The empty fruit bunch (EFB) and oil palm mesocarp fibres (OPMF) are used as combustibles in Africa. This research focused on identifying the chemical and physical characteristics of EFB and OPMF ashes in order to develop the richest possible pozzolanic composite for use as cement replacement material (CRM). The effects of calcination temperatures and duration were studied for the different ashes. A suitable combination of the two ashes was determined, and its effects on the properties of fresh cement paste were studied. The results showed that a rich pozzolana meeting the established requirement of ASTM C618-19 class N pozzolan can be obtained by combining OPMF and EFB in a ratio of 80/20. Furthermore, it was found that the reactivity of the ashes could be improved by grinding these ashes to reduce their particle sizes.