Available online at www.CivileJournal.org Civil Engineering Journal (E-ISSN: 2476-3055; ISSN: 2676-6957) Vol. 9, No. 03, March, 2023 731 Implications of Palm Kernel Shell-Filled Plastic Bottles on the Structural Behavior of Concrete Slab Donald Kwabena Dadzie 1 , A. K. Kaliluthin 1* 1 Department of Civil Engineering, B.S. Abdur Rahman Crescent Institute of Science and Technology, Chennai, India. Received 28 September 2022; Revised 14 February 2023; Accepted 24 February 2023; Published 01 March 2023 Abstract The implications of palm kernel shell (PKS)-filled plastic bottles on the structural behaviour of concrete slabs were carried out by comparing the flexural performance of conventional solid concrete slabs to concrete slabs incorporated with plastic bottles filled with palm kernel shells and placed vertically, horizontally, and diagonally at the neutral axis of the slab as per Bubble Deck Slab technology. One-way slab specimens of size 700 × 300 × 150 mm thick were produced and subjected to a four-point flexural load test. Findings from the study indicated that: (1) The PKS-filled bottle slabs deflected more than the conventional solid slab, hence making them more flexible than the conventional slabs and, as such, giving the occupants enough time to evacuate. (2) The flexural strengths of the PKS-filled bottle slabs exceeded those of conventional slabs by 18.3% and 10.9%, respectively, for five and ten percentages of the volume of slab concrete occupied. (3) The condition of the PKS, either dry or saturated, coupled with the bottle arrangement (either vertical, horizontal, or diagonal), does not, however, cause any significant change to the performance of the PKS filled bottle slabs in terms of load carrying capacity, deflection, and strength. Keywords: Concrete Slab; Plastic Bottles; Environment; Flexural Strength; Deflection. 1. Introduction The present study investigates the implications of palm kernel shell-filled plastic bottles on the structural behaviour of concrete slabs. According to Sandanayake et al. (2020) [1], countries all over the world are seeing a steady rise in various sorts of waste as a result of the exponential growth in population (2020). To reduce waste generation, effective management, disposal, and reuse are required. According to studies, one of the major businesses that uses a lot of resources and has an impact on the environment is building. Unquestionably, concrete has been designated as the main building construction material that requires a significant quantity of energy and uses the majority of virgin materials. As a result, it was carefully examined if recycling waste into building materials like concrete might help the environment. Every year, a sizable amount of agricultural waste is produced, including shells, discarded palm fibre, and empty fruit bunches. The annual increase in the disposal of palm oil and kernel shells not only consumes a lot of land but also results in serious problems, including air pollution and substantial risks to human health and safety after combustion. Many studies have focused on using agricultural waste, including PKS, as an ingredient in building materials. Additionally, academics in the construction spheres have recently developed a keen interest in the use of used plastic bottles as building materials. According to UNEP (2018) [2], research indicates that if current consumption patterns and waste management practices are not changed, there will be a tremendous rise in the amount of plastic litter in landfills and the environment by 2050, totaling nearly 12 billion tonnes. According to Abergel et al. (2017) [3], the building sector is now dealing with the following two major challenges: (a) To promote the use of eco-friendly building materials in place of natural * Corresponding author: kalil@crescent.education http://dx.doi.org/10.28991/CEJ-2023-09-03-016 © 2023 by the authors. Licensee C.E.J, Tehran, Iran. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC-BY) license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).