Investigations on Strength & Damping Property of Rubberized Concrete

Damping plays a major role in the design of roadside structures that gets affected due to vibrations transmitted from moving traffic. In this study, aggregates were partially replaced with crumb rubber in concrete, at varying percentages of 5, 10, 15 and 20% by weight. Three different sets of concrete, mixed with crumb rubber were prepared using raw rubber, treated rubber and treated rubber with partial replacement of cement. Cement was also partially replaced with Ultra-Fine Ground Granulated Blast furnace Slag for better strength. Samples were cast, cured and tested for various properties on the 7th and 28th day. Damping Ratio and frequency of the peak value from a number of waves in rubber incorporated beams were found out using an FFT Analyser along with its Strength, Damping and Sorptivity characteristics. SEM analysis was conducted to analyze the microstructural bonding between rubber and concrete. The mode shapes of pavement slabs were modeled and analyzed using a FEM tool, ANSYS. From the results, the behavior of the three sets of rubberized concrete was compared and analyzed and an optimum addition of crumb rubber and UFGGBS was proposed to achieve the best performance.