Study on Mechanical Performance of Coconut Shell Aggregate Concrete

Abstract

The unavailability of coarse aggregate for concrete-making is a major factor affecting housing delivery in rural areas of India. This has necessitated research into alternative materials for coarse aggregate in concrete making. This paper presents an experimental investigation on the strength characteristics of concrete produced by coconut shell aggregate as substitutes for Conventional Granite Aggregate (CGA) in 100 % replacements. Two mix ratios (1 : 1.6 : 2.4 and  1 : 1.8 : 2.7) were used to determine the compressive strength, flexural strength, impact strength and modulus of elasticity behavior of coconut shell aggregate concrete and conventional granite aggregate concrete. Strength properties are increased by the increment of cement and fine aggregate contents with constant amount of water and Coconut Shell Aggregate (CSA) contents in the selected mix. However, concrete obtained from Coconut Shells (CS) exhibited comparable strength with Conventional Granite Aggregate Concrete (CGAC). The results indicated that the density of Coconut Shell Aggregate Concrete (CSAC) is decreasing by 27.82% to 30.89% and the strength characters are comparable to those of conventional granite aggregate concrete