This work deals with avoiding the pollution risks from paper pulping liquors and rubber wastes that result from routine disposal tools; moreover, finding an approach to minimize the drawback of incorporating the rubber waste in weakening the strength of building materials. In this respect, pulping black liquors (BLs) is assessed as a treating agent for rubber waste and substituting the water in cement mortar formulation. The assessment was achieved by testing the mechanical properties, water resistance (reduction in water absorption and dimensional change against water), and morphology. The results showed that all BLs from different pulping agents, used in mixtures with water, provided improvements in both strength and water resistance properties. Kraft black liquor is most effective in providing improvements in compressive strength and flexural strength, as well as resistance to water absorption and change in dimension after exposure to water for 24 h, where the improvements were 688.2 %, 494.3 %, 27 %, and 65.3 %, respectively. It is interesting to note that this investigated route provided improvements in the impact resistance property of mortar. This last property is essential for minimizing accidents on the highway.
Keywords: Mechanical properties; Pulping byproduct; Rice straw; Rubber waste; Rubber-cement mortar; Safety disposal; Water resistance mortar.
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