Strength and chloride penetration of Portland cement mortar containing palm oil fuel ash and ground river sand

This paper presents a study of the strength and chloride penetration of blended Portland cement mortar containing ground palm oil fuel ash (POA) and ground river sand (GS). Ordinary Portland cement (OPC) was partially replaced with POA and GS. Compressive strength, rapid chloride penetration test (RCPT) and chloride penetration depth of mortars were determined. The GS only asserted the packing effect and its incorporation reduced the strength and the resistance to chloride penetration of mortar. The POA asserted both packing and pozzolanic effects. The use of the blend of equal portion of POA and GS also produced high strength mortars, save cost and excellent resistance to chloride penetration owing to the synergic effect of the blend of POA and GS. For chloride depth, the mathematical model correlates well with the experimental results. The computer graphics of chloride depth of the ternary blended mortars are also constructed and can be used to aid the understanding and the proportioning of the blended system.