Published: Građevinar 77 (2025) 10
Paper type: Original scientific paper
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Performance evaluation of cement concrete incorporating cellulose coir fibre and nano-silica

This paper employs experiments to examine the effects of cellulose coir fibre (CCF) and nano-silica (NS) on the fresh, mechanical, and durability properties of C20/25 grade cement concrete. A slump cone test is used to assess the fresh concrete properties, followed by compressive, split tensile, and flexural strength tests on the hardened concrete. Durability is evaluated through water penetration, water absorption, and acid resistance tests. The addition of 3 % nano-silica results in an approximate 14 % increase in compressive strength. With the incorporation of 0.9 % cellulose coir fibre, the strength increase rises from 14 % to 27 % compared to the control specimen. A compressive strength exceeding 40 N/mm2 is achieved with the inclusion of 3 % nano-silica and 0.9 % cellulose fibre in C20/25 grade concrete. Similar trends are observed in other mechanical tests. For durability assessment, specimens cured for 28 days are exposed to an acidic environment by immersion in hydrochloric acid for 30, 60, and 90 days. The cement concrete blended with nano-silica and cellulose coir fibre is also subjected to scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy-dispersive X-ray (EDX) analysis.

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