Recycling of Demolished Masonry Rubble as Coarse Aggregate in Concrete: Review

TLDR

Recycling demolished masonry rubble as coarse aggregate in concrete is increasingly attractive due to rising disposal costs, landfill taxes, and growing environmental concerns over aggregate extraction. This review examines the use of crushed brick from demolition waste as coarse aggregate in new concrete. It surveys prior studies on this application, summarizing their findings and implications.

Abstract

The recycling of demolished masonry rubble as coarse aggregate in new concrete represents an interesting possibility at a time when the cost of dumping such material is on the increase. With the number of readily accessible disposal sites around major cities in the world decreasing in recent years and disposal volume and maximum sizes of waste being restricted, the cost of dumping construction and demolition debris has increased substantially over recent years. This cost increase has been further fueled in the United Kingdom and other countries by the introduction of a landfill tax by governments and local authorities for the dumping of such waste. Due to the growing concerns over the environmental impact of aggregate extraction and the continued rise in aggregate demand, it is clear that the building and construction industry is ready to accept recycled and secondary aggregates. This paper provides a review of previous work covering the use of demolished waste, especially crushed brick, as the coarse aggregate in new concrete.