Structural Lightweight Aggregate Concrete and Its Applications

Construction industry demands for high amount of raw material to produce concrete. The continuous depletion of natural resources results in negative impact to the environment and shortage of raw material. To reduce environmental impacts of concrete production one way is to utilize by-product and waste materials as cement and/or aggregate replacement in the concrete mixture. However, the next solution is the use of new structural systems and lightweight structural materials to reduce overall weight of a structure. Structural lightweight aggregate concrete (SLWAC) is a promising material to be used in high-rise buildings and long-span bridges to reduce the size of piers, footings, walls and other load bearing elements in such structures. Therefore, application of SLWAC not only reduces the cost of construction but it will have significant contribution in sustainable construction.