Characterizing the use of vitreous waste as a substitute for fine aggregate in non-structural concrete

The pursuit of economic development while ensuring environmental preservation represents a significant challenge. Recycled vitreous waste may provide a sustainable alternative to the large quantities of natural aggregate required by the civil construction industry for concrete production, but has been seldom explored. The objective of this study was therefore to evaluate the mechanical characteristics of non-structural concrete specimens in which different quantities of ground glass were used as fine aggregate in place of sand. Tests were conducted by following the ABNT NBR 9779, ABNT NBR 5739, and ABNT NBR 7222 standards for water absorption by capillarity, axial compression, and diametral compression tests, respectively. The results show that substituting 10% and 20% of sand volume with glass provided the closest performance to an equivalent conventional concrete owing to the different particle gradations in the sand and glass and their effects on porosity. Thus, the lower the substitution level of sand with glass, the better the performance of the concrete.