Technical and economic viability of rendering mortar produced with incorporation of ornamental rocks residue

Abstract Currently, besides economic development, there is the issue of sustainable development, which seeks ways not only to lower costs, but also reduce environmental impacts. Among the environmental impacts caused by construction is ornamental rock residue cutting (ORRC) generated by civil construction. This paper aims to analyse the addition of ORRC in amounts of 50%, 100% and 150% in relation to the volume of cement to produce mortar for rendering. To do this, laboratory tests analysing water retention and consistency, specific mass, compressive strength and tensile tests were performed. The application on site and the production cost of the mortars were also analysed. In addition, a mixing process to use the in natura residue was proposed. The results show an improvement in the properties evaluated, both in the fresh and hardened states for all the mixtures. In this research, the mixtures that showed the best results were those with an addition of 100% of ORRC. Regarding production costs, there was a decrease in all the mixtures with the addition of ORRC. Finally, the proposed mixing process proved to be efficient in eliminating the drying and harrowing steps.