Iron ore dust as a natural pigment in concrete with RCA for artwork application

Abstract

A The innovative idea of utilization of iron ore dust (IODust), characterized by red hue typical for Narvik, came up during designing artwork for The Arctic University of Norway campus Narvik. The use of waste from iron ore production as a natural pigment was completed by partial replacement of natural aggregates (NA) by recycled concrete aggregates (RCA) to achieve a higher level of material circularity and demonstrate the potential of secondary raw material integration in concrete. Concrete in class C35/45 with 72 kg [158.73 lbs] of IODust, 5 % replacement of fine NA and 12 % of coarse NA was designed for artwork. Monitored properties were workability, air content, compressive strength and modulus of elasticity. Furthermore, chloride migration coefficient was measured on mixes with and without IODust as an indicator of durability. The use of IODust might not serve only as natural pigment but also increase concrete durability, which is a subject of further research.