Geopolymer and alkali-activated permeable concrete pavements: Bibliometrics and systematic current state of the art review, applications, and perspectives

Alkali-activated/geopolymer pervious concretes represent a recent and significant area of research within the pavement construction and materials science domains. A comprehensive, systematic literature study on this area is presented in this article. By leveraging its ability to handle massive volumes of data without causing additional complexities, systematic review with scientometrics will address the fundamental shortcomings of earlier traditional review methodologies. Hence, this all-encompassing review is dedicated to the "systematic" examination of prior research with an added focus on bibliometric analysis to enrich the review insights. Hence, a meticulous curation of a total of 81 pertinent documents available to date from the esteemed Scopus database was undertaken in the scope of the study. The "Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses," i.e., the PRISMA technique, was applied for methodical review, thereby shedding light on concepts, developments, and trends in the novel field of pervious concretes were systematically undertaken. Additionally, the "VOSviewer software" package was employed as a valuable tool for bibliometric analysis, delivering a comprehensive overview of the scholarly landscape. Further, this article provides an in-depth analysis of the properties of alkali-activated/geopolymer pervious concretes, especially shedding light on the latest advancements in activating solution, materials and mix design, mechanical properties, durability aspects, and microstructural properties. Furthermore, it explores into the various studies on the applications of such special concretes and their potential impact on the field of pavement construction engineering. The future research scopes were highlighted through the research gaps, linking the key findings from the existing developments in the prior art to help potential future researchers. Overall, this review serves as a valuable resource for researchers, scholars, and practitioners interested in advancing their knowledge base of developments in alkali-activated and geopolymer-based pervious concrete systems from the quick fundamentals to their potential applications, which can be further used for their research, thus contributing to the future evolution of this sustainable and innovative pavement construction material. [Display omitted] •First-ever comprehensive review of alkali-activated/geopolymer pervious concretes.•Utilizes Systematic Literature Review (SLR) method