Mechanical Behavior of Concrete with Cement Partially Replaced by Chewed Gum

Chewed gum being left on streets is a common problem everywhere and it makes the environment totally dirty, which is so costly to clear. In this research, the chewed gum was collected and stored in the freezer in order to be very brittle and easily crushed to powder, which was passed through the sieve No. 16 (1.18mm). This study investigates cement replaced by chewed gum. Eight batches were prepared to show the effect of chewed gum on the mechanical properties of concrete, through replacing the gum powder by 0.25%, 0.50%, 0.75%, 1.25%, 1.50% and 1.75% of the weight of cement to compare with the conventional concrete for w/c=0.55. The samples were tested for compressive strength and splitting tensile strength at ages of 7 and 28 days. On the basis of the experiment results, it was concluded that in general the compressive strength and splitting tensile strength decrease by increasing the chewed gum content in the concrete mix, when cement is partially replaced by chewed gum for both ages 7 and 28 days.