Page 4 - ICJ Jan 2026

TECHNICAL PAPER

IMPACTING CONSTRUCTION THROUGH

CONCRETE SCIENCE FOCUSED

ON SUSTAINABLE AND ROBUST

TRANSLATIONAL RESEARCH SANDEEP CHAUDHARY*

1. PRELUDE ii. New and alternative materials covering the use of food
waste in bio-cementation, new treatments for construction
The article focuses on the original contributions made towards and demolition (C&D) wastes, and fine bone china ceramic
the science involved in concrete technology. The purpose of this aggregates.
article is to highlight the scientific contributions made in the field
iii. New functional properties of existing materials, covering
of concrete science at Malaviya National Institute of Technology
the use of geopolymer for colour retention, cow dung as
(MNIT) Jaipur and Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Indore,
foaming agent and waste tyre rubber concrete for slip and
with the aim of inspiring the next generation of researchers and
engineers. fall preventing pavement.
iv. Improvement towards the understanding of the rheology of
The research at MNIT Jaipur initially focused of composite
cement through extensive review and experimental analysis
structures and later expanded to concrete, with a focus on
for cement paste in a fully broken-down state.
sustainability and industrial applicability, at both MNIT Jaipur
and IIT Indore. The researchers have focused on multiple v. Thermally activated structuration in geopolymer rheology
aspects of concrete science, including alternative materials, and its demonstration for 3D printed applications.
microstructural characterisation, product engineering, vi. Effect of modifying mixing and compaction techniques on
conventional and emerging tests, development of safety the properties of finished concrete.
guidelines, and sustainability assessment. The article
vii. Observations related to the synergetic effect of the
systematically accounts for studies related to materials used coupled deterioration mechanism.
to prepare concrete, fresh state rheology, preparation process
and safety. In materials, a special emphasis has been given viii. Extension of the Monte Carlo simulation from the risk
on supplementary cementitious materials (SCM), followed by assessment model to a risk mitigation framework for
new insights on other alternative construction materials. In developing safety guidelines.
rheology, the discussion emphasises the advancement towards
the understanding of the rheological behaviour of concrete. In 2. OPTIMISED SELECTION OF SCM USING A
the preparation process, the discussion covers different studies CHARACTERISATION-BASED ASSESSMENT
related to the mixing and casting of concrete. And, in safety, the SCMs are mineral powders that are blended with cement to
article discusses about the coupled deterioration mechanism,
reduce the environmental impact associated with clinker. SCMs
and the use of probabilistic models for the development of
take part in multiple stages of cement hydration to improve the
safety guidelines.
resulting microstructure. Based on an extensive literature review,
A list of key contributions discussed in the present manuscript is the interaction of SCM in cement hydration can be summarised
[1]
as follows: as a two-stage process . In the first stage, the minerals from
cement and SCM dissolve in water. The rate of dissolution in
i. Use of characterisation-based assessment for classification water is favoured by the amorphous content, surface area, and
of new and alternative SCMs. Extension of the availability of favourable minerals like Ca 2+[1] . In the second
classification-based approach towards optimisation of stage, the dissolved minerals interact to produce hydrated
SCM. cement phases. This phase primarily depends on the availability

66 THE INDIAN CONCRETE JOURNAL | JANUARY 2026
* Corresponding author: Sandeep Chaudhary, Email: schaudhary@iiti.ac.in