Study on the Application of Sediment-Based Embankment Building and Ultra-High-Performance Concrete (UHPC) Preparation in the Resource Utilization of Yellow River Sediment

The Yellow River is difficult to control. Little water and a large amount of sediment results in sediment accumulation in its lower reaches as sediment inflow exceeds transport capacity. Reducing this sediment deposition is essential for harnessing the Yellow River. Included in this process is the rational use of the sediment. Many researchers have investigated usage of Yellow River sediment as an aggregate material for concrete production, but there are still some problems (e.g., low resource utilization and low strength of the concrete made from Yellow River sediment). To make up the deficiency in the existing research, this study proposes two methods of sediment utilization. One is to use Yellow River sediment to build embankments, and the other is to use ultra-fine Yellow River sand to prepare ultra-high-performance concrete (UHPC). Test results reveal that the prepared high-strength concrete performs well in each test, including: fluidity, mechanical properties, pore structure, ecological evaluation, microscopic measurement of the interface transition zone, and economic analysis.