Masonry walls from reclaimed concrete demolition waste

The construction sector is the largest consumer of non-renewable resources and the most significant contributor to CO2 emissions. Reusing entire components or reclaiming their constituent parts, instead of recycling structural elements at the material level, is preserving the embodied energy of the structural elements. This contributes to energy conservation and addresses the mounting issue of construction waste in landfills. In order to develop a new avenue for reusing concrete, this study uses concrete demolition waste to construct masonry wallets, employing a construction technique reminiscent of traditional stone masonry with mortar. Importantly, this methodology is not confined to buildings initially designed for reuse, making it applicable to any reinforced concrete structure earmarked for demolition. Mechanical tests were conducted on the masonry wallets, including simple and diagonal compression tests. The results indicate that the strengths achieved are comparable to those of clay hollow brick masonry, opening up diverse applications, especially in the construction of residential buildings. Numerical analysis started with digital twinning of small-scale masonry wallets as a first step to future micro-modelling, FEM simulation, and calibration to best conform with the experimental test results. Through a comprehensive analysis encompassing embodied carbon footprint, mechanical properties, and economic considerations at the load-bearing wall level, this study highlights this reuse approach’s key advantages and drawbacks, providing insights into its feasibility within the framework of modern construction practices.