Mechanical, Durability, and Microstructural Performance of Graphene Oxide-Reinforced Rice Husk Ash Concrete

Armas M.R.C. · Civil Engineering and Architecture (2026) · DOI: 10.13189/cea.2026.140421

Resumen

Rice husk ash (RHA) and pre-dispersed graphene oxide (GO) were investigated as combined modifiers for structural concrete produced with local materials from Lambayeque, Peru, with attention to mechanical, durability, and microstructural outcomes. The experimental program followed a two-phase quasi-experimental design: Phase I screened partial RHA substitution of cement at 0%, 4%, 6%, 8%, and 10% by mass; Phase II introduced GO at dosages of 0%, 0.05%, 0.10%, 0.15%, and 0.20% by cement mass, applied to the Phase I optimum formulation. Distributional assumptions were checked (Shapiro–Wilk and Levene tests), and treatment means were compared at α=0.05 by one-way ANOVA with Tukey’s HSD post-hoc test or, when those assumptions were not met, by the Kruskal–Wallis test with Dunn’s post-hoc test (Bonferroni adjustment). A 6% RHA content (D3) emerged as the Phase I optimum, registering a 10.8% compressive strength gain over the reference mixture at 28 days. When GO was incorporated into the D3 base, the 0.20% dosage (D9) delivered further increments of 40.1% in compressive strength and 10.0% in modulus of elasticity relative to the Phase II control. Durability assessment at 28 and 56 days confirmed that D9 substantially outperformed the unmodified control across water absorption, reference permeability, chloride penetration resistance, and abrasion resistance. XRD, FTIR, TGA, and SEM-EDS analyses attribute the observed improvements to a reinforced pozzolanic reaction, densification of the C-S-H phase, and refinement of the interfacial transition zone.

Instituciones: Universidad Nacional Federico Villarreal