The Study on Optimization of Cement and Fine Aggregate by Blast Furnace Slag in Concrete

Generation of industrial by-products has increased significantly with industrialization. One such by-product from iron smelting industry is iron slag, which is generated from blast-furnaces while extracting iron. This blast furnace slag is used to make a cementitious material by grinding it into fine powder, known as Ground Granulated Blast Furnace Slag (GGBS). This blast furnace slag is also used to make a glassy granular product, Granulated blast furnace Slag (GBFS) which can be used as fine aggregate. Present experimental work investigates feasibility of using GBFS as replacement of natural sand and GGBS as replacement of cement in concrete respectively. Concrete cubes have been prepared and their compressive strength is checked for M30 grade of concrete. Thus, it can be concluded that GGBS and GBFS can be used to partially replace cement up to 55% and sand up to 50% in concrete respectively without affecting their compressive strength. Thereby reducing carbon dioxide emission and curtailing cost of concrete by 20.25%.