High strength concrete containing natural pozzolan and silica fume

Abstract Various combinations of a local natural pozzolan and silica fume were used to produce workable high to very high strength mortars and concretes with a compressive strength in the range of 69–110 MPa. The mixtures were tested for workability, density, compressive strength, splitting tensile strength, and modulus of elasticity. The results of this study suggest that certain natural pozzolan–silica fume combinations can improve the compressive and splitting tensile strengths, workability, and elastic modulus of concretes, more than natural pozzolan and silica fume alone. Furthermore, the use of silica fume at 15% of the weight of cement was able to produce relatively the highest strength increase in the presence of about 15% pozzolan than without pozzolan. This study recommends the use of natural pozzolan in combination with silica fume in the production of high strength concrete, and for providing technical and economical advantages in specific local uses in the concrete industry.