Optimizing Concrete Mix with Eggshell and Silica Fume Using ANN: A Study on Strength Variations

There is a strong need to develop ecofriendly and cost-effective building materials. This study focuses on developing a database for understanding how eggshell powder and silica fume affect the strength and workability of concrete. The goal is to find the best combination of these materials to increase the compressive strength of M30 grade concrete. Both eggshell powder and silica fume are used to replace cement, helping to reduce waste and make construction more ecofriendly. Different mix designs were created and tested for workability and strength. The tests included compressive strength, flexural strength, and split tensile strength at 7, 14, and 28 days. The results showed that the best strength was achieved when cement was partially replaced with a combination of eggshell powder and silica fume. To improve the results further, artificial neural networks (ANN) were used to optimize the concrete mix. ANN helped analyze the patterns in the test data and suggested the most effective mix design. The ANN model was tested using different statistical tools and showed accurate predictions. This research shows that using waste materials like eggshells and industrial byproducts like silica fume can improve concrete strength and reduce environmental impact by reducing the amount of cement needed, lower carbon emissions, and reusing waste material. The findings also show how modern tools like ANN can be useful in civil engineering for optimizing material use and improving performance.