Cement Bound Mixtures with Metallurgical Slags for Road Constructions: Mix Design and Mechanical Characterization

Environmental, economical and technical problems have led to increasing attention towards the recycling of waste materials in the construction of road infrastructure. This paper reports the results of a study carried out at the Experimental Road Laboratory of the University of Padua, aimed at designing cement bound mixtures for road construction, characterized by a stone matrix made exclusively with electric arc furnace steel slag, waste foundry sand and ladle furnace slag, used in different proportions. The physical-geotechnical properties of the metallurgical slags have been evaluated by means of the most pertinent laboratory procedures of the road technical sector. Cement bound mixtures, characterized by five different proportions of artificial aggregates, have been designed in terms of Proctor, compression and indirect tensile strength tests. The mechanical characterization of the hydraulic mixes has been completed with the elastic modulus evaluation, through ultrasonic tests. The excellent results (compression and indirect tensile strength at 7 days up to 7.23 MPa and 0.92 MPa respectively, depending on the mixture type), have met the main Italian Contract Specifications, demonstrating the possibility to successfully reuse different types of metallurgical slags, in the complete substitution of the natural aggregates, for the development of cement bound mixtures designed for road construction.