Freeze/Thaw Performance of Novel Biochar-Cement Mortars 

REU: Underground Infrastructure REU | AUTHOR: Megan Potuzak – Auburn University

MENTORS: Lori  Tunstall​, Julia Hylton – Colorado School of Mines

ABSTRACT

With an ever-growing global population and rising demand for concrete for construction, the production of greenhouse gases has been increasing. A more sustainable material for construction of infrastructure is needed, and one possible solution is concrete with biochar, a carbon-sequestering material formed through pyrolysis of wood. The goal of this research is to study the effects of replacing a percentage of cement with biochar on the strength and durability of cement mortars. Experimental biochar cement mortars were created by replacing 6 percent and 10 percent of the cement by weight with biochar created from pine. The biochar cement mortars were tested to determine the compressive and flexural strength and were compared to strengths of traditional cement mortars. While both the 6 and 10 percent biochar cement mortars exhibited strength increases, the 10 percent biochar cement mortars experienced the most prominent strength increases. In addition to compressive and flexural strength, the durability of biochar cement mortars will be analyzed. Research on biochar concrete durability is currently being performed via rapid freeze/thaw cycles. At this point in the research, replacement of cement with biochar has shown compressive and flexural strength improvements, while also showing potential as a sustainable alternative to traditional cement.

AUTHOR BIOGRAPHY

Megan Potuzak is a senior studying civil engineering at Auburn University. This summer, she has been performing research in the Underground Infrastructure REU program at Colorado School of Mines under Prof. Lori Tunstall. Her research has focused on the effects of biochar on the strength and durability of biochar cement mortars.