Proposing several model techniques including ANN and M5P-tree to predict the compressive strength of geopolymer concretes incorporated with nano-silica

Abstract

Geopolymers are innovative cementitious materials that can completely replace traditional Portland cement composites and have a lower carbon footprint than Portland cement. Recent efforts have been made to incorporate various nanomaterials, most notably nano-silica (nS), into geopolymer concrete (GPC) to improve the composite's properties and performance. Compression strength (CS) is one of the essential properties of all types of concrete composites, including geopolymer concrete. As a result, creating a credible model for forecasting concrete CS is critical for saving time, energy, and money, as well as providing guidance for scheduling the construction process and removing formworks. This paper presents a large amount of mixed design data correlated to mechanical strength using empirical correlations and neural networks. Several models, including artificial neural network, M5P-tree, linear regression, nonlinear regression, and multi-logistic regression models, were utilized to create models for forecasting the CS of GPC incorporated with nS. In this case, about 207 tested CS values were collected from literature studies and then analyzed to promote the models. For the first time, eleven effective variables were employed as input model parameters during the modeling process, including the alkaline solution to binder ratio, binder content, fine and coarse aggregate content, NaOH and Na₂SiO₃ content, Na₂SiO₃/NaOH ratio, molarity, nS content, curing temperatures, and ages. The developed models were assessed using different statistical tools such as root mean squared error, mean absolute error, scatter index, objective function value, and coefficient of determination. Based on these statistical assessment tools, results revealed that the ANN model estimated the CS of GPC incorporated with nS more accurately than the other models. On the other hand, the alkaline solution to binder ratio, molarity, NaOH content, curing temperature, and ages were those parameters that have significant influences on the CS of GPC incorporated with nS.

Keywords: Compressive strength; Geopolymer concrete; Mix proportion; Modeling; Nano-silica; Sensitivity.