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Abstract

This article aimed to review the current literature related to the topic of multiple generation recycled concrete materials considering systematic, bibliographic and statistical aspects. The review was conducted from an adaptation from the systematic review for engineering and experiments (SREE) method. Papers wrote in English with scientific relevance, title and abstract full aligned with the topic were selected from Scopus and Web of Science databases. Bibliographic aspects highlighted the research novelty, the quality of research and prominence for future works. The systematic review aimed to provide insights in the literature concerning multiple recycling concrete materials. Some of the main aspects highlighted were research methodology applied, research focus, aggregate type, number of recycling cycles, impact of multiple recycling cycles on recycling concrete aggregates properties, as well as summarizing the main conclusions on their influence on recycling mixes concerning physical, mechanical and durability properties and suggestions in literature to improve their properties. Lastly, the paper identified limitations and research gaps that could provide recommendations on research on the topic related to sustainable development and the Sustainable Development Goals proposed by the United Nations. The results highlight that the majority of papers focus on the effect of MGRCA on coarse granulometry on concrete mixtures, recycling cycles tend to decrease the performance of MGRCA and mixes after each cycle, recycling cycles are statistically significant towards compressive strength, most of properties demand more studies to allow a proper statistical significance analysis about the effect of recycling cycles on MGRCA concrete properties.

Publication Date

2026-03-01

Publication Title

Journal of Building Engineering

Volume

121

Acceptance Date

2026-02-11

Deposit Date

2026-02-27

Funding

The authors would like to thank the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC), part of UK Research and Innovation (UKRI), through the EPSRC Doctoral Training Partnership (EPSRC-DTP) at the University of Plymouth for funding this work.

Keywords

Concrete properties, Literature review, Multi generation, Recycling materials, Sustainable development

Creative Commons License

Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

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