Effect Of Ripe And Unripe Plantain Peel Ash On Strength Properties Of Concrete.

ABSTRACT

There has been a growing concern in the development of alternative building materials to ensure housing for low-income earners who cannot afford owning houses due to high cost of modern materials. Plantain (Musa paradisiaca) peels are the major byproduct of plantain fruits, constituting about 40% of the fruits but are presently underutilized. This work covers the investigation into the effect of Ripe Plantain peel ash (RPPA) and Unripe Plantain peel ash (UPPA) as admixtures to concrete. RPPA & UPPA were sun-dried and burnt to Ash in a furnace. Both RPPA & UPPA were added to the concrete as admixture in the proportion of 1.5% and 2.5% each for a specific water/cement ratio. The mix design used was I :2:4 and the water-cement ratio used was 0. 7. Ripe Plantain Peel Ash (RPPA) contained lesser percentage of Silica (Si02) & Alumina (Alz03) compared to Unripe Plantain Peel Ash (UPPA) using Spectrometry method of analysis. The Silica (Si02) content for RPPA was 46.367% & 54.000% for UPPA while the Alumina (Alz03) content for RPPA was 2.197% and 3.080% for UPPA. The method of curing used was moist curing. The slump test was carried out to determine the workability of the concrete and compressive strength test was carried out on cube for 7, 14, 21 & 28 days. The result showed that the workability of the concrete increased with the addition of the admixtures. The Slump value obtained from the control mix was 20rnrn while the addition of RPPA at 1.5% and 2.5% were 24mm and 26rnrn respectively and the addition of UPPA at 1.5% and 2.5% were 25mm and 26mm respectively. The compressive strength of the concrete was observed to decrease on the addition of both RPPA & UPPA. The control mix at 28 days has a compressive strength of 22.39N/mm 2 while the addition of RPPA at 1.5% & 2.5% were 14.28N/mm 2 & J l.95N/mm 2 respectively and addition of UPP A at 1.5% & 2.5% were l 2.43N/mm 2 & 10.23N/mm 2 respectively. The concrete can as well be classified as normal weight concrete based on the density range of 2251 kg/m 3 and 2400kg/m 3. Therefore, the finding of this study indicates that Ripe Plantain Peel Ash (RPPA) and Unripe Plantain Peel Ash (UPPA) both decreases the strength of concrete. The addition of RPPA & UPPA as admixture to concrete will not be suitable for structural members.