Enhanced flexural performance of epoxy polymer concrete with short natural fibers
Article
First Online:
- 62 Downloads
Abstract
Epoxy polymer concrete (EPC) has found various applications in civil engineering. To enhance the flexural performance of EPC, two kinds of short natural fibers with high specific strength (sisal fibers and ramie fibers) have been incorporated into EPC. The results of mechanical tests show that a small loading of natural fibers (0.36 vol%) can significantly increase the flexural strength of EPC by 25.3% (ramie fibers) or 10.4% (sisal fibers). This enhancement is achieved without any sacrifice of compressive strength of EPC. The reinforcing effects of short natural fibers on the flexural properties and compressive properties of EPC decrease with further increase in fiber content, due to the insufficient wetting of fibers by epoxy resin which results in poor interfacial bonding. The reinforcing mechanisms of short natural fibers are explored according to the observation of fracture surfaces and micromechanical modelling. It is found that the parallel model based on the rule of mixture can be a good approximation to describe the improvement in flexural strength of the short natural fiber reinforced EPC at low fiber volume fractions.
Keywords
epoxy polymer concrete (EPC) natural fibers flexural strength micromechanics modelsPreview
Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.
References
- 1.Davydov S S, Solomatov V I, Shvidko Y I. Epoxy polymer concrete. Hydrotech Construct, 1970, 4: 849–852CrossRefGoogle Scholar
- 2.Abdel-Fattah H, El-Hawary M M. Flexural behavior of polymer concrete. Constr Build Mater, 1999, 13: 253–262CrossRefGoogle Scholar
- 3.Ohama Y. Recent progress in concrete-polymer composites. Adv Cement Based Mater, 1997, 5: 31–40CrossRefGoogle Scholar
- 4.Fowler D W. Polymers in concrete: A vision for the 21st century. Cement Concrete Composites, 1999, 21: 449–452CrossRefGoogle Scholar
- 5.Bedi R, Chandra R, Singh S P. Mechanical properties of polymer concrete. J Compos, 2013, 2013: 1–12CrossRefGoogle Scholar
- 6.Etmanski B, Bledzki A K. Glass fiber profiles as reinforcing material in highly filled epoxy polymer concrete. Polymer-Plastics Tech Eng, 1993, 32: 385–396CrossRefGoogle Scholar
- 7.Ribeiro M C S, Tavares C M L, Figueiredo M, et al. Bending characteristics of resin concretes. Mat Res, 2003, 6: 247–254CrossRefGoogle Scholar
- 8.Uygunoğlu T, Brostow W, Gencel O, et al. Bond strength of polymer lightweight aggregate concrete. Polym Compos, 2013, 34: 2125–2132CrossRefGoogle Scholar
- 9.Broniewski T, Jamrozy Z, Kapko J. Long life strength polymer concrete. In: Proceedings of the 1st International Congress on Polymer Concretes—Polymers in Concrete, 1976Google Scholar
- 10.Vipulanandan C, Dharmarajan N, Ching E. Mechanical behaviour of polymer concrete systems. Mater Struct, 1988, 21: 268–277CrossRefGoogle Scholar
- 11.Griffiths R, Ball A. An assessment of the properties and degradation behaviour of glass-fibre-reinforced polyester polymer concrete. Compos Sci Technol, 2000, 60: 2747–2753CrossRefGoogle Scholar
- 12.Reis J M L, de Oliveira R, Ferreira A J M, et al. A NDT assessment of fracture mechanics properties of fiber reinforced polymer concrete. Polymer Testing, 2003, 22: 395–401CrossRefGoogle Scholar
- 13.Reis J M L, Ferreira A J M. Assessment of fracture properties of epoxy polymer concrete reinforced with short carbon and glass fibers. Constr Build Mater, 2004, 18: 523–528CrossRefGoogle Scholar
- 14.Heidari-Rarani M, Aliha M R M, Shokrieh M M, et al. Mechanical durability of an optimized polymer concrete under various thermal cyclic loadings—An experimental study. Constr Build Mater, 2014, 64: 308–315CrossRefGoogle Scholar
- 15.Bledzki A, Gassan J. Composites reinforced with cellulose based fibres. Prog Polymer Sci, 1999, 24: 221–274CrossRefGoogle Scholar
- 16.Bogoeva-Gaceva G, Avella M, Malinconico M, et al. Natural fiber eco-composites. Polym Compos, 2007, 28: 98–107CrossRefGoogle Scholar
- 17.Faruk O, Bledzki A K, Fink H P, et al. Progress report on natural fiber reinforced composites. Macromol Mater Eng, 2014, 299: 9–26CrossRefGoogle Scholar
- 18.Al-Oraimi S K, Seibi A C. Mechanical characterisation and impact behaviour of concrete reinforced with natural fibres. Compos Struct, 1995, 32: 165–171CrossRefGoogle Scholar
- 19.Tolêdo Filho R D, Ghavami K, England G L, et al. Development of vegetable fibre-mortar composites of improved durability. Cement Concrete Composites, 2003, 25: 185–196CrossRefGoogle Scholar
- 20.Ramakrishna G, Sundararajan T. Studies on the durability of natural fibres and the effect of corroded fibres on the strength of mortar. Cement Concrete Compos, 2005, 27: 575–582CrossRefGoogle Scholar
- 21.Li Z, Wang X, Wang L. Properties of hemp fibre reinforced concrete composites. Compos Part A-Appl Sci Manuf, 2006, 37: 497–505CrossRefGoogle Scholar
- 22.Pacheco-Torgal F, Jalali S. Cementitious building materials reinforced with vegetable fibres: A review. Constr Build Mater, 2011, 25: 575–581CrossRefGoogle Scholar
- 23.Reis J M L. Fracture and flexural characterization of natural fiberreinforced polymer concrete. Constr Build Mater, 2006, 20: 673–678CrossRefGoogle Scholar
- 24.Reis J M L. Effect of textile waste on the mechanical properties of polymer concrete. Mat Res, 2009, 12: 63–67CrossRefGoogle Scholar
- 25.Li Y, Mai Y W, Ye L. Sisal fibre and its composites: A review of recent developments. Compos Sci Technol, 2000, 60: 2037–2055CrossRefGoogle Scholar
- 26.Pickering K L, Efendy M G A, Le T M. A review of recent developments in natural fibre composites and their mechanical performance. Compos Part A-Appl S, 2016, 83: 98–112CrossRefGoogle Scholar
- 27.Affdl J C H, Kardos J L. The Halpin-Tsai equations: A review. Polym Eng Sci, 1976, 16: 344–352CrossRefGoogle Scholar
- 28.Lavengood R E, Goettler L A. Stiffness of non-aligned fiber reinforced composites. US Government R&D Reports, 1971Google Scholar
- 29.Mallick P K. Fiber-Reinforced Composites: Materials, Manufacturing, and Design. Boca Raton: CRC Press, 2007CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Copyright information
© Science China Press and Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature 2018