The Effect of Sawdust as Substitution of Fine Aggregate on Compressive Strength of Concrete

The need for concrete is growing as the construction industry grows around the world. This is a problem for the environment because almost all the materials used to make concrete come from excavated mines. The use of waste materials as a substitute for aggregates can be a solution to reduce the impact of environmental damage. This study used sawdust as a substitute for fine aggregate. The sawdust was partially pretreated using 20% lime-water to reduce the levels of lignin and hemicellulose in the sawdust. The study was conducted to determine the effect of the use of sawdust, with or without pretreatment, on the compressive strength of concrete and the workability value based on the slump value of the concrete at 0%, 5%, 10%, and 15% substitution variations. The slump value of concrete decreases as the percentage of fine aggregate substitution increases. The compressive strength of concrete at the age of 28 concrete decreases with the increase in the percentage of fine aggregate substitution. Concrete that fine aggregate was substituted using pretreated sawdust had better slump and compressive strength values at 28 days of age than concrete that fine aggregate was substituted using non-pretreated sawdust.