Re-generating (raw) materials and end-of-life products for re-use in Cement/Concrete

  • Abbreviation: RECEMENT
  • Project code: ERANET-ERAMIN-RECEMENT
  • Contract number: 115
  • Start: 01 October 2019
    End: 30 September 2022
  • Duration: 36 months
  • Budget: 763.898,00 RON/161.160,00 EUR
  • Contracting authority: UEFISCDI – Executive Unit for Financing Higher Education, Research, Development and Innovation

  • Coordinating institution: UPB-CNMN – University POLITEHNICA of Bucharest – National Center for Micro and Nanomaterials

    Address: 313 Splaiul Independentei Street, District 6, Bucharest, ZIP code RO-060042
    +4021.402.9465
    relatii.publice@upb.ro

Project manager: CSIII dr.ing. Bogdan Ștefan VASILE

Scientific researcher: CS III Iulian BOIERAȘU

Researcher Assistant: dr.ing. Adrian-Ionuț NICOARĂ

Researcher Assistant: PhD.Eng. Adrian Vasile SURDU

Researcher Assistant: PhD.Eng. Vladimir Lucian ENE

Researcher Assistant: PhD.Eng. Alexandra Elena STOICA

Researcher Assistant: PhD.Eng Roxana TRUȘCĂ

Scientific researcher: Lecturer PhD.Eng. Ionela Andreea NEACSU

Technician: Claudiu GIUȘCĂ

Universitatea Sabanci, Orta Mahallesi Universite Caddesi No: 27, Tuzla 34956 Istanbul, Turkey (https://www.sabanciuniv.edu/en)

Universitatea din Ljubljana, Askerceva cesta 12, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia (https://www.uni-lj.si/eng)

Institutul Jozef Stefan, Jamova cesta 39, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia (https://www.ijs.si)

The main goal of the proposed project titled, “RE-generating (raw) materials and end-oflife products for reuse in CEMENT/Concrete (RECEMENT)” is to provide low-energy, low CO2 and low-cost alternative binding materials by re-generating end-of-life (EOL) materials mined urban construction and mineral deposit quarries for replacing ordinary Portland cement (OPC). Environmental concerns of CO2 emission from OPC production have led to partial substitution of OPC by supplementary cementitious materials (SCMs) such as fly ash, slag, and silica fume. Despite their satisfactory performance in concrete, their limited availability restricts their impact on the circular economy. Finding new alternative SCMs of wider availability would reduce Portland clinker use in cement production. When used directly, EOL materials, such as marble dust from quarries, do not contribute to hydration needed for setting and hardening in concrete and are limited to a filler function. However, effectively re-generated EOL materials may contribute to hydration processes and replace a substantial portion of OPC. The general objectives of RECEMENT contribute to the European Research Area (ERA) by :

(1) re-generating EOL material destined for landfill as the raw material for producing concrete;

(2) creating an economic value for large volumes of material of previously zero value, while reducing the energy consumption, CO2 emission, and the raw material cost of producing cement;

(3) advancing sustainable construction materials in Europe by reducing the raw material consumption and greenhouse gas emission from cement manufacturing, to meet EU2020 targets in the European Energy Sustainability Initiative;

(4) educating and training the next generation on recycling and re-use of EOL materials in the concrete industry. The proposed project aligns perfectly with the ERA-MIN2 call Topic 4 on Recycling and Re-use of End-of-Life products by transforming a linear economy (Figure 1a) of high-volume construction materials into a more
efficient circular economy (Figure 1b). Moreover, we are incorporating debris from other industries into this circular economy for the construction one, substantially broadening the environmental and economic impact of RECEMENT.

To achieve the above-mentioned goal and general objectives, the proposed RECEMENT project is designed around the following specific research objectives:

(1) Mining and re-generating recycled SCMs for binding agents: Collect and characterize chemical and physical properties of EOL materials mined from construction, ceramic and quarry sites that can be used as SCMs in cement-based materials. Determine the thermal/mechanical treatments to re-activate the EOL materials. Qualitative evaluation of pozzolanic (or hydraulic) behaviour of re-generated SCMs.

(2) Performance evaluation of cement- based materials including re-generated SCMs: Analyse the influence of replacing OPC with regenerated SCMs (up to 30% by weight) on setting, workability, rheology, compressive strength, water absorption and chemical composition of cementbased materials.

(3) Durability of concrete including re-generated SCMs: Evaluate durability of new concrete in terms of sulfate attack, alkali silicate reaction (ASR), and corrosion resistance. Determine the relationships between source and mineralogy of EOL materials, pozzolanic behaviour of re-generated SCM, and their dosage in cement with performance and service life of mortar containing re-generated SCMs.

(4) Assessing eco and economic impact of re-generated SCMs: Develop an integrated life-cycle analysis (LCA), life-cycle costing (LCC) and Cost-Benefit Analysis (CBA) to understand the social, economic and environmental impacts of replacing OPC with re-generated SCMs and to foresee barriers to adoption.

(5) Dissemination and exploitation for maximum impact: Increasing the socio-economic impact of RECEMENT by elaborating the RECEMENT innovation to the chain of end-users.

1. 1 report on potential SCMs souces
2. 1 SCM Phase composition report
3. 1 activation recipes for SCMs and one pozzolanicity of SCMs.
4. 1 technical report to establish guidelines for proof-of-concept re-generated SCM-based cement, for transfer of knowledge to academia, industry and future researchers
5. 1 report on mechanical and chemical characteristics of tested re-generated SCMs
6. 3 papers presented at national/international conference
7. 2 papers published at highly ranked international journals.

  • WP 1:
    Identifying potential resources for obtaining SCM – COMPLETE

  • WP 2: 
    Evaluation of the performance of cement-based materials that include
    regenerative SCMs – COMPLETE
  • WP 3: 
    Determination of the physical performance of cement-based materials that include regenerative SCMs – deadline 31.12.2021
  • WF 4: 
    Validation of the technology for obtaining SCM and demonstration of the durability of the cement containing such material – deadline 30.09.2022

Results

Download Rezumat – etapa I_2019

Download Rezumat – etapa II_2020

Download Rezumat – etapa III_2021

Disemination

 

Papers:

  1. Bogdan Stefan Vasile, Adrian-Ionut Nicoara, Vasile-Adrian Surdu, Vladimir Lucian Ene, Ionela Andreea Neacsu, Alexandra Elena Stoica, Ovidiu Oprea, Iulian Boerasu, Roxana Trusca, Mirijam Vrabec, Blaz Miklavic, Saso Sturm, Cleva Ow-Yang, Mehmet Ali Gulgun, Zeynep Basaran Bundur “Fly-Ash Evaluation as Potential EOL Material Replacement of Cement in Pastes: Morpho-Structural and Physico-Chemical Properties Assessment.” Materials 15, no. 9 (2022): 3092. și
  2. Nicoara, Adrian Ionut, Alexandra Elena Stoica, Mirijam Vrabec, Nastja Šmuc Rogan, Saso Sturm, Cleva Ow-Yang, Mehmet Ali Gulgun, Zeynep Basaran Bundur, Ion Ciuca, and Bogdan Stefan Vasile. “End-of-Life Materials Used as Supplementary Cementitious Materials in the Concrete Industry” Materials 13, no. 8 (2020): 1954

Conferences and disemination:

    1. Adrian Ionut Nicoara, Alexandra Elena Stoica, Mirijam Vrabec, Nastja Šmuc Rogan, Saso Sturm, Cleva Ow-Yang, Mehmet Ali Gulgun, Zeynep Basaran Bundur, Ion Ciuca, Bogdan Stefan Vasile „End-of-life materials applied in concrete industry”, EmergeMAT 3rd International conference on emerging technologies in materials engineering, 29-30 October 2020, Bucharest, Romania
    2. Fly Ash Evaluation as Potential EOL Material Replacement in Cement Pastes. Adrian-Ionut Bogdan Stefan Vasile. Vasile-Adrian Surdu. Vladimir Lucian Ene. Ionela  Andreea Neacsu. Alexandra Elena Stoica. Ovidiu Oprea. Iulian Boierasu. Roxana  Trusca. Mirijam Vrabec. Nastja Šmuc Rogan. Saso Sturm. Cleva Ow-Yang.  Mehmet Ali Gulgun. Zeynep Basaran Bundur, Applications of chemistry in nanosciences and biomaterials engineering, 25 – 26 June 2021;
    3. In Situ Evaluation of Fly Ash as Potential EOL Material Replacement in Cement Pastes. Bogdan Stefan Vasile.Adrian-Ionut Nicoara. Vasile-Adrian Surdu. Vladimir Lucian Ene.  Ionela Andreea Neacsu. Alexandra Elena Stoica. Ovidiu Oprea. Iulian Boierasu.  Roxana Trusca. Mirijam Vrabec. Nastja Šmuc Rogan. Saso Sturm. Cleva  Ow-Yang. Mehmet Ali Gulgun. Zeynep Basaran Bundur, Applications of chemistry in nanosciences and biomaterials engineering, 25 – 26 June 2021;
    4. Valorization of historical thermal plant ash deposits as supplementary cementing materials, Bogdan Ștefan VASILE , Bogdan Andrei ILIE, Adrian-Ionuț NICOARA, Vasile-Adrian SURDU, Vladimir Lucian ENE, Ionela Andreea NEACSU, Ovidiu OPREA , Roxana TRUSCA, 22 nd Romanian International Conference on Chemistry and Chemical Engineering (RICCCE 22), Sinaia, Romania, 7-9 September 2022
    5. Bogdan Stefan VASILE, Adrian Ionut Nicoara, Vasile-Adrian Surdu, Iulian Boerasu, In-Situ Morpho-Structural Evaluation of Potential EOL Materials, Conference of the Romanian Electron Microscopy Society – C.R.E.M.S., Cluj-Napoca, October 18-21, 2023.
    6. Iulian BOERASU, ESEM analysis of the pozzolanic behaviour phase in EOL-modified Portland cement pastes, Conference of the Romanian Electron Microscopy Society – C.R.E.M.S., Cluj-Napoca, October 18-21, 2023.
    7. M. Vrabec, M. A. Gulgun, B. S. Vasile, C. Ow-Yang, S. Sturm, Z. Basaran-Bundur, K. Hassan Nezhad, Y. Akyol, A. I. Nicoara, S. S. Parapari, I. Ciuca, A. E. Stoica, M. S. Rogan, From Waste to a “Greener” Cement:
      Materials Science and Mineralogy (Wo)men at Work, 23 rd Romanian International Conference on Chemistry and Chemical Engineering (RICCCE 23), Constanța, Mamaia, Romania, 4-7 September 2024

 

During November 21-24 in Ljubljana, Slovenia, works related to the project were presented at the “ReCementing the Society Workshop”: Prof. Mehmet Ali Gülgün: Introduction to Cement; Dr. Bogdan Vasile: Cement Industry in Perspective of Green Deal; Prof. Mehmet Ali Gülgün: Implementation of ReCement Project in the concept of Green Deal; Prof. Zeynep Başaran Bundur (online): Sustainable Transformation of Cement-based Systems: Present and Future.

The results obtained within the project were also exploited and disseminated by participating in the period 20-22 April 2023 at PoliFest, an educational event in the field of engineering, which covers offers for students to enroll in faculties as well as at the Poli ChemistryFest in the period 11-13 May 2023.

 

  1. Patent Application no. A/00506/15.09.2023, Process for regenerating end-of-life products for reuse in mortars/concrete, Adrian Ionut NICOARA, Ionela Andreea NEACSU, Bogdan Andrei ILIE, Bogdan Stefan VASILE, Otilia Ruxandra VASILE, Andrada-Elena NICOARA, Mirijam VRABEC, Saso STRUM, Sorour Semsari PARAPAObtained prizes:
  • Silver Medal issued by EUROINVENT – Process for regenerating end-of-life products for reuse in mortars/concrete, Adrian Ionut NICOARA, Ionela Andreea NEACSU, Bogdan Andrei ILIE, Bogdan Stefan VASILE, Otilia Ruxandra VASILE, Andrada-Elena NICOARA, Mirijam VRABEC, Saso STRUM, Sorour Semsari PARAPA, Patent no. A/00506/15.09.2023, The 16th edition of EUROINVENT (European Exhibition of Creativity and Innovation), 6-8 JUNE 2024, Iasi, Romania.
  • The Green Environment Special Award issued by EUROINVENT – Process for regenerating end-of-life products for reuse in mortars/concrete, Adrian Ionut NICOARA, Ionela Andreea NEACSU, Bogdan Andrei ILIE, Bogdan Stefan VASILE, Otilia Ruxandra VASILE, Andrada-Elena NICOARA, Mirijam VRABEC, Saso STRUM, Sorour Semsari PARAPA, Patent no. A/00506/15.09.2023, The 16th edition of EUROINVENT (European Exhibition of Creativity and Innovation), 6-8 JUNE 2024, Iasi, Romania.
  • Special Award issued by Corneliu Group Association for Research and Innovation – Process for regenerating end-of-life products for reuse in mortars/concrete, Adrian Ionut NICOARA, Ionela Andreea NEACSU, Bogdan Andrei ILIE, Bogdan Stefan VASILE, Otilia Ruxandra VASILE, Andrada-Elena NICOARA, Mirijam VRABEC, Saso STRUM, Sorour Semsari PARAPA, Patent no. A/00506/15.09.2023, The 16th edition of EUROINVENT (European Exhibition of Creativity and Innovation), 6-8 JUNE 2024, Iasi, Romania.
  • ICECHIM Award issued by National Institute for Research & Development in Chemistry and Petrochemistry (ICECHIM), Bucharest, Romania – Process for regenerating end-of-life products for reuse in mortars/concrete, Adrian Ionut NICOARA, Ionela Andreea NEACSU, Bogdan Andrei ILIE, Bogdan Stefan VASILE, Otilia Ruxandra VASILE, Andrada-Elena NICOARA, Mirijam VRABEC, Saso STRUM, Sorour Semsari PARAPA, Patent no. A/00506/15.09.2023, The 16th edition of EUROINVENT (European Exhibition of Creativity and Innovation), 6-8 JUNE 2024, Iasi, Romania.
  • Certificate of Excelence issued by Polytechnic University of Timisoara, Romania – Process for regenerating end-of-life products for reuse in mortars/concrete, Adrian Ionut NICOARA, Ionela Andreea NEACSU, Bogdan Andrei ILIE, Bogdan Stefan VASILE, Otilia Ruxandra VASILE, Andrada-Elena NICOARA, Mirijam VRABEC, Saso STRUM, Sorour Semsari PARAPA, Patent no. A/00506/15.09.2023, The 16th edition of EUROINVENT (European Exhibition of Creativity and Innovation), 6-8 JUNE 2024, Iasi, Romania.
  • Gold Medal issued by Toronto International Society of Innovation & Advanced Sills (TISIAS) – Process for regenerating end-of-life products for reuse in mortars/concrete, Adrian Ionut NICOARA, Ionela Andreea NEACSU, Bogdan Andrei ILIE, Bogdan Stefan VASILE, Otilia Ruxandra VASILE, Andrada-Elena NICOARA, Mirijam VRABEC, Saso STRUM, Sorour Semsari PARAPA, Patent no. A/00506/15.09.2023, The 9th Annual Edition of the International Invention Innovation Competition in Canada, ICAN 2024. August 24th, Toronto, Canada
Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies so that we can provide you with the best user experience possible. Cookie information is stored in your browser and performs functions such as recognising you when you return to our website and helping our team to understand which sections of the website you find most interesting and useful.