Abstract:
Conventional infrastructure materials such as cement, steel, aggregates, have high carbon footprint, and thus there is a need for alternative sustainable materials to decrease the footprint while simultaneously sequestering the carbon permanently in the system. Biochar is a biomass-derived carbonaceous solid material produced via pyrolysis process in the absence of or under limited oxygen conditions. Recent studies have shown that biochar can be a potential filler material in the construction sector to improve the mechanical and durable properties of the composites.
The overarching aim of this thesis is to use biochar produced from diverse feed stock (corn stover, rice husk, poultry litter) as a multi-functional material in the construction sector. The specific structural and environmental applications explored in this thesis are: (i) the use of mineral carbonation technology for enhancing the CO2 uptake and to improve the strength of the biochar admixture cement composites. (ii) to develop cement mortars with low thermal conductivity and density while improving thermal efficiency and decrease the buildings' dead weight. (iii) to reuse the cement-biochar mortars as novel adsorbents to treat the heavy metals from the aqueous media and (iv) to use the biochar as filler material in the fly ash blocks to assess the leaching risk of metals from the blocks...
