FEASIBILITY OF REPLACEMENT OF THE WATER BY VINASSE FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF CONCRETE

The construction area is an activity that consumes a hight amount of natural resources, being a constant search for solutions to absorb the waste generated, often in the work itself. The consumption of resources extracted from... [ view full abstract ]

The construction area is an activity that consumes a hight amount of natural resources, being a constant search for solutions to absorb the waste generated, often in the work itself. The consumption of resources extracted from the environment by construction varies from 15% to 50%, besides its products are large consumers of energy, and it takes most of the alternative materials that attend to this activity. Thus, a construction industry becomes a recipient of large amounts of solid waste that in another situation would be sources of pollution. In the context and in order to reduce the impacts generated in the process, several researches were analyzed as introduction of new materials in the concrete production. The present work had as objective to analyze the viability of the use of the liquid vineyard, effluent generated in the production of sugar from the sugarcane, in the confection of concrete. Sugar is used as raw material in construction, since the product contains more malleability to the concrete and more resistant is used correctly. During a cure, the concrete dries and loses water, which leads to the appearance of cracks and fissures, as well as a mixture with sugar slows the process of evaporation of the water, which can often even totally inhibit a loss of water . The vinasse was used in substitution of water, aiming to contribute to the decrease of the discharge of this residue in the nature, besides the search for economic and efficient forms of recycling. The work analyzes the mechanical strength of concrete specimens, produced in a conventional way and with vinasse. The results show that the concrete with vinasse showed satisfactory effects, being its use feasible for works with non-structural islands. Its resistance was compared to the conventional one, making it a propitious product for use and a sustainable alternative for sugar and alcohol industries as a by-product of the process.

KEY WORDS: Concrete; Agricultural residue; Sustainability.