Behavior of cement mortar containing ground waste tire rubbers at high temperatures

Behavior of cement mortar containing ground waste tire rubbers at high temperaturesThe development of environmentally accepted methods of used tire disposal is one of the greatest challenges that waste management experts face today. When building materials are subjected to fire and exposed to slow or rapid cooling, some changes may occur in their characteristics; such as phase transformation, weight loss, aggregate-cement bond, etc., which directly affects on its chemical stability and mechanical properties. In the present investigation is study the possibility of the usage of ground waste tire rubber (GWTR) in the civil construction as a partial replacement for fine aggregates and the influence of these wastes on the properties of mortars. The total fine aggregate (TFA) in all mixes is sand, which is partially replaced by GWTR particles. The percentages by volume of GWTR/TFA are 5%, 10%, 15% and 20%. All mortar samples were prepared and cured in tap water for 28 days, then kept in laboratory atmosphere until the beginning of the test. Subjecting the samples to different temperatures of 100, 200, 300, 400 and 500°C for 2 hours, then cooling by three different methods; water-cooling (W.C), air-cooling (A.C) and furnace cooling (F. C) carried out the tests. The results show that all mortars exposed to fire irrespective of cooling method suffered a significant depression in compressive strength. However, a remarkable reduction in compressive strength was observed for mortars cooled in furnace than those cooled in air or in water. Water cooling mortars exhibited a relatively higher thermal stability than others. The GWTR/TFA% showed a remar