CHAPTER 1

Introduction
A. General Background of the Study
As one of the most common and oldest building materials available, concrete
must first be tested if it will be suitable for the purpose intended for it. Concrete
strength, as the main criterion for using concrete in different purposes, we must
therefore study what affects it in order to maintain its integrity and soundness.
With aggregate strength and size affecting concrete strength, it is imperative for
engineers to take it into consideration. The concrete must be able to resist
weathering, abrasion, chemical attacks and any other form of deterioration.
Most common plastic used in beverages and other food packaging are usually
made up of Polyethylene Terephthalate (PET) and Polypropylene (PP). The
prevalent use of these polymers is now considered a great environmental
challenge. This is so because of the ease and cheap production of plastics makes
it easy to replace, thus after consuming the contents, containers are thrown in the
trash. It is said that the world throws out 83,000,000 plastic bottles every 3
minutes and only about 20% are recycled, most makes it way into land fills. It not
known to many that all plastics are fully recyclable. In the Philippines, attempts
are made to find more ways to recycle plastic. In materials recovery facilities of
municipalities, plastics are collected cleaned and shredded and are then used as
aggregate for concrete paving blocks but this method of using recyclable plastics
as aggregate for ordinary purposes defeats its purpose because it is more valuable
for the plastic to be sent to recycling plants as compared to using sand as
aggregate. In an effort to make socialized housing more “Green” in nature,
meaning the methods and materials used have a small or negative impact on the
environment; the total carbon footprint of the construction process and the
sourcing of materials used should be minimized.
In the construction industry, some plastics are already used in concrete panels
like polystyrene, though it is used manly to improve the insulating properties of
the concrete and not for structural purposes. However, the use of recycled plastics
in asphalt is used to increase its strength.
B. Rationale of the Study
Using recycled wastes in building materials are not new, using plastics from
wastes as a building material makes a great recycling standpoint. Nevertheless,
when used in buildings where human lives may be in danger, using plastics as
building materials needs special attention on its properties whether it would be
suitable for use. Polypropylene (PP) is known to have a high degree of impact
resistance and tensile strength, a good barrier for oils, salts, and water. If PP is to
be considered as an alternative aggregate in concrete, it must be first tested
against the standard. Since concrete is known to have a high compressive
strength, testing for compressive strength will be done for the concrete with PP as
aggregate.
Concrete strength is also related to the bonding of the aggregate and cement,
since PP is a good barrier to most liquids, it is assumed that it will form a weak
bond with the cement. To lessen this property of the plastic, it is assumed to have
the plastic to be roughened and shredded finely to improve surface interaction
between the plastic and cement. This has been observed in previous studies that
the surface interaction of between the cement and plastic is weak the higher the
concentration of the plastic aggregate, the lower its bearing capacity. This is so
because the plastic used in the study are flakes which in turn still has a
significantly large smooth surfaces compared to its roughened edges caused by
grinding and palletizing process.
The PP that will be used is to be ground like sand or close to the consistency
of sand to see if increasing the roughened surfaces of the PP will increase the
load carrying capacity of the concrete. If proved to be suitable as an alternative
aggregate, it could be considered as a new way to use recycled plastic in
concrete.
Previous studies used polystyrene as filler for concrete panels resulted in
lower load carrying capacity thus the strength is attributed to the amount of steel
used in the structure. Using the polystyrene resulted in significant speed in
construction.
C. Objectives of the Study
The study on the strength of polyethylene as fine aggregate on concrete used
in concrete hollow blocks will be done to:
1. Determine the compressive strength of concrete with finely
ground polypropylene (PP) as aggregate and compare it to set standards.
2. Determine the optimum amount of the PP to be used as aggregate.
3. Confirm if the surface interaction between the plastic and cement
improved the strength of the concrete using the ground PP pellets.

D. Scope and Limitations of the Study

The study will only try to determine the compressive strength of concrete
cylinders that are made up of different ratio of PP, sand as aggregates and
compare it to the concrete used in making lightweight concrete panels. All tests
are to be compared to standards set.

E. Date and Place of the Study

The study started during the first semester of school year 2008 to 2009 at the
Department of Civil Engineering, College of Engineering and Agro-Industrial
Technology, University of the Philippines Los Baños. The study will continue on
the second semester of SY 2008-2009. Preparation and testing of the concrete
cylinders is to be done at the department’s laboratory.
CHAPTER 2
Project Background
A. Historical Background of the Study
The study topic was conceived during the first semester of academic year of
2008-2009, which was to study the strength properties of lightweight concrete
with recycled polypropylene as fine aggregate to serve as new filler for
lightweight concrete panels. If proven to meet the standards for concrete
construction, the concrete mixture that will be identified could be used to make
concrete panels for the walls of high-rise and other special use buildings. The
study is very suited to be done at UPLB since the Civil Engineering department
has a universal testing machine to test concrete cylinders and its close proximity
to the GK site will make it easier to get the materials that will be need for the
experiments.

B. Framework of the study:

Concrete hollow blocks’ strength

Raw Materials
Used (Aggregate)

Strength

Surface Adhesion

Chemical Reactivity Roughness Size (Surface Area)

Compressive strength of concrete hollow blocks depends on many properties

like aggregate strength, admixtures, cement quality, water purity, etc. Given that
all other parameters are kept the same, the study will determine the strength of
concrete when the aggregates are changed, since majority of the compressive
strength is attributed to the strength of the aggregate used. The study will focus
on the size of the aggregate since the aggregate to be tested has a defined
chemical reactivity, roughness and strength.
C. Study Flow

Polypropylene
(PP)

Cleaning

Shredding

Sieving

Concrete mixing

Curing

Testing

Pass Fail

Usage Disposal