Use of Grog Fines in Flowable Fill

Flowable fill or controlled low strength material (CLSM) is a mixture of soil or any by-product, cement, water and sometimes admixtures that hardens into a material with a little higher compressive strength than soil. In applications where it is normally difficult to obtain the required degree of compaction using the conventional compaction equipments, CLSM is considered as an effective alternative. The present study intends to investigate the feasibility of using grog fines (GF), the refractory by-product generated from the production line of refractory in Saint Gobain India Pvt. Ltd. Based on the basic properties, GF could be used to replace major proportion of cement in the conventional flowable fill. Fresh and hardened properties including flowability, compressive strength, bleeding, hardening time, etc. are evaluated. The study may pave the way for other potential uses of this waste material in the construction industry, targeting more environmentally sustainable concrete industry. In this study it was found that the compressive strength of the flowable fill decreases with increase in the amount of grog fines but lies within the required range of compressive strength for flowable fill.