Construction and Building Materials 37 (2012) 190–196

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Construction and Building Materials

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Characterisation of polymer concrete with epoxy polyurethane acryl matrix

Leon Agavriloaie a, Stefan Oprea b, Marinela Barbuta c,⇑, Florentina Luca a

a National Institute for Research and Development in Construction, Urban Planning and Sustainable Spatial Development ‘‘URBAN-INCERC’’, Branch Iasi,37, Prof. Anton Sesan, Iasi 700048, Romaniab Petru Poni Institute of Macromolecular Chemistry Iasi, 41A, Grigore Ghica Voda, Iasi 700487, Romaniac ‘‘Gheorghe Asachi’’ Technical University of Iasi, Faculty of Civil Engineering and Services, B-dul Prof.Dr.Doc. Dimitrie Mangeron 43, Iasi 700050, Romania

h i g h l i g h t s

" Polymer concrete was obtained from resin type epoxy polyurethane acryl and aggregates." EPUAC is lightweight composite, with a high thermal and durability performances." Mechanical properties of EPUAC are comparable with that of polyester concrete.

a r t i c l e i n f o

Article history:Received 20 May 2011Received in revised form 25 June 2012Accepted 22 July 2012Available online 30 August 2012

Keywords:Epoxy polyurethane acrylMechanical propertiesPolymer concreteThermo-physical properties

0950-0618/$ - see front matter � 2012 Elsevier Ltd. Ahttp://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2012.07.037

⇑ Corresponding author. Tel.: +40 232272859.E-mail address: barbuta31bmc@yahoo.com (M. Ba

a b s t r a c t

This paper studies a new type of polymer concrete obtained using epoxy polyurethane acryl and aggre-gates. Mechanical properties, such as: compressive strength, flexural strength, elasticity modulus, pull-out stress and adherence stress between cement concrete and polymer concrete were experimentallydetermined. Thermo-physical properties, such as: bulk density in natural and dry state, relative and abso-lute mass humidity, thermal conductivity, linear thermal dilatation, thermal shock strength, chemicalresistance, frost-thaw resistance and water adsorption resistance were studied to establish the durabilityproperties of the epoxy polyurethane acryl concrete. The experimental results have shown that epoxypolyurethane acryl concrete is a high performance, lightweight concrete with properties that recommendit as a possible replacement material for classical building materials.

� 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

1. Introduction

Polymer concrete is a relatively new high performance material,which has widespread applications due to its advantages incomparison with cement concrete [1–6]. Among the advantagesoffered by polymer concretes are: excellent mechanical strength,fast curing time, very good adhesion properties, resistance to abra-sion and weathering, waterproofness and good sound and thermalinsulation properties [7–13]. There are numerous domains for theuse of polymer concrete, such as the production of precastmembers; in hydraulic structures, such as dams, dikes, reservoirsand piers; highway surfaces and bridge decks; as well as in thepetrochemical industry, underground constructions, road surfacesand coating or repairs materials in the chemical and food industry[2,10,14]. In preparing mortars or concretes, different types ofpolymers are used, such as polyester, epoxy, furan, vinyl, rubber,phenol and acrylic resins [15–17]. Laws limiting styrene emissions

ll rights reserved.

rbuta).

will influence the developments in unsaturated polyesters [15].High strength epoxy resin-based polymer concretes have the big-gest cost and are used in limited domains. New types of polymerdeveloped for the concrete industry are intended to optimise theratio of cost and performance [18,19]. Epoxy-urethane acryl [20–23] is an important polymer with improved properties: highstrength to abrasion, flexibility, elasticity, adsorption of shocksand good resistance in the environment. Polyurethanes have theadvantage of low viscosity, good matrix bonding, a small reactiontime and low cost. Polyurethane acryl adds the optical and durabil-ity properties of poly-acryl to polyurethane. The oligomer epoxypolyurethane acryl is 100% reactive and does not require solventevaporation or special equipment for the recovery of solvent andthus, environment pollution and impact on the workers are mini-mised. The use of polyurethane acryl in the building materialindustry contributes in providing new advanced composites.

The objective of this study is to establish the performance of anew polymer composite using epoxy-polyurethane acryl andaggregate, in order to determine its applicability as a buildingmaterial.

L. Agavriloaie et al. / Construction and Building Materials 37 (2012) 190–196 191

2. Experimental program

2.1. Materials

2.1.1. PolymerThe polymer type epoxy polyurethane acryl and the hardener were obtained

from the laboratory of ‘‘Petru Poni’’ Chemical Research Institute from Iasi, the meth-ods of preparation are given in author’s articles and are not presented in this paper[20–25].

For preparing epoxy polyurethane acryl concrete (EPUAC), a quantity of 70%aggregates and 30% polymer are necessary for the homogeneity of mix and work-ability. Previous studies on polyester resin concrete using the same type of aggre-gates established this mix [26].

2.1.2. AggregateThe aggregate type was crushed granite from a quarry having a density of

2400 kg/m3. In the mixture, the proportion of aggregates was 70% in equal dosagesof two sorts: 0–1 mm and 1–3 mm.

2.2. Preparation of polymer concrete

The samples were prepared in two stages: first, the two sorts of aggregates weremixed, following which the aggregate mix was placed into moulds and the mouldsfilled with resin. A vibration table realised the compaction of the mixes. Differenttypes of samples were used for testing according to the standards. After pouring,the samples of EPUAC were kept for 21 days until testing.

2.3. Experimental tests

2.3.1. Mechanical tests

� Compressive strength. Five 70 mm sized cubes were tested in axial compressionaccording to SR EN 12390-3:2002 [27].� Flexural strength. The tests were performed according to SR EN 12390-5:2002

[28], Fig. 1 on five prisms of 70 � 70 � 210 mm.� Elasticity modulus. For determining the elasticity modulus, three samples of

25 � 25 � 80 mm were used (according to STAS 5585-71 [29]). The computa-tional equation is:

E ¼ Dr=De ðN=mm2Þ ð1Þ

� Maximum pull-out stress for a plain bar, U = 16 mm. The tests were realisedaccording to STAS 5511-1989 [30]. Three 70 mm cubic samples were tested,(Fig. 2a–c).� The adherence stress between cement concrete and polyurethane acryl concrete.

The tests were done according to a method conceived by the Research Institutein Construction INCD URBAN INCERC from Iasi–Romania, on three samples,Fig. 3a–d; the samples were simply supported and loaded with a concentrated

Fig. 1. Polyurethane acryl concrete sample tested in flexure.

load mid-span and tested in flexure. The cross section had the dimensions:width b = 70 mm and depth h = 60 mm. The failure is produced at the contactzone between the cement concrete and polyurethane acryl concrete.

2.3.2. Thermo-physical tests

� Bulk density in natural and dry state. The tests were done according to SR EN 771-3:2004 [31] and SR EN 772-13:2001 [32] on five samples with dimensions:L = 244.4–246.4 mm; l = 244.8–245.6 mm; d = 34.9–35.9 mm.� Relative and absolute mass humidity. For testing according to SR EN 771-3:2004

[31], SR EN 772-10:2001 [32], five samples of the same size as in the case ofdensity test were used.� Thermal conductivity. The test was done according to STAS 5912-89 [34] using

the method of one sample body. The samples had the same sizes as in the caseof density test. According to standard, the sample was maintained at a temper-ature of 105 �C until constant mass. After that, the sample was introduced to aconductivity-device, equipped with measuring sensors that determine the ther-mal flux density, which crosses the sample from the top to the bottom in thecentral zone.� Linear thermal dilatation. The experimental tests were done according to SR EN

ISO 10545-8:2000 [35] on six samples with dimensions: L = 61.5–64.0 mm;b � h = 10 � 10 mm. The samples were dried at a constant temperature(110 ± 5 �C) until constant mass and then were introduced to a desiccator forcooling at ambient temperature. The initial length of the sample was measuredand again at each temperature interval of 15 �C. The heating rate was 5 ± 1 �C/min.

The coefficient of linear thermal dilatation al was calculated according to therelation:

al ¼ ð1=Lþ 0ÞxðDL=DtÞ ð2Þ

where L is the sample length at ambient temperature, mm; DL is the increase inlength of sample between ambient temperature and 100 �C mm; and Dt is the in-crease of temperature, �C.

� Thermal shock strength. The test was done according to SR EN ISO 10545-9:2000[36] using the method of immersion. Five samples were used having the dimen-sions: L = 11.95–12.00 mm; l = 3.32–3.52; h = 10 mm.� Chemical resistance. The tests were done according to SR EN ISO 10545-13:2001

[37] on five prismatic samples, having an initial mass between: 26.716 and45.842 g, Fig. 4.

For the tests the following solutions were used:

(a) Solution of hydrochloric acid 3% (volumetric percentage).(b) Solution of hydrochloric acid 18% (volumetric percentage).(c) Solution of potassium hydroxide (KOH), 30 g/L.(d) Solution of potassium hydroxide (KOH), 100 g/L.

The samples were immersed in the solutions and kept in the laboratory for12 days at a temperature of 20 ± 2�, Fig. 4. After that, the samples were exposedto stream for 5 days and were then boiled for 30 min. Following this, the sampleswere recovered, wiped and dried to a constant mass in an oven at 110 �C. Oncedry, the samples were weighed and the loss of mass Dm, was determined. This thenallowed the determination of the chemical resistance class- CRC-according to SR ENISO 10545-13:2001 [37].

� Frost-thaw resistance. The tests were done according to SR EN ISO 772-18:2003[38] on nine samples with dimensions: L = 34–38 mm; l = 32–34; h = 33–36 mm.� Water adsorption. The tests were carried out according to SR EN ISO 10545-

3:1999 [39] on three prismatic samples with an initial mass between:124.123 and 137.552 g. The water adsorption of the samples by boiling in waterat 100 �C for 2 h and then cooling in water for a further 2 h and 15 min was ahardness test for EPUAC.� Microstructure of polymer concrete. A scanning electron microscope (SEM) Vega

Tescan analysis running at 30 kV and selenium detectors were used to investi-gate the particle’s morphology. An Ag sputter coating on the surface of the spec-imens provided a greater depth of image.

3. Results and discussion

The mechanical and thermo-physical properties determined onEPUAC are presented in the following tables. For a better character-isation of EPUAC, the results were compared with the experimentaldata obtained in previous studies on polyester concrete (PEC) [26],which has a similar composition to EPUAC.

Fig. 2. Pull-out test: (a) pouring of samples; (b) test sample; and (c) tested sample.

192 L. Agavriloaie et al. / Construction and Building Materials 37 (2012) 190–196

3.1. Mechanical tests

Table 1 presents the experimental values of the mechanicalcharacteristics of EPUAC.

The average value of compressive strength is fc,cube = 52.5 N/mm2,which can be considered to be a high value for this type of micro-concrete.

The average value of flexural strength is fcf = 11.52 N/mm2.Comparing the results with polyester resin concrete (PEC), the

following observation can be stated:

� the compressive strength of EPUAC is smaller than the mini-mum value of PEC, which was fc,cube = 67.1 N/mm2, at 27 days;� the flexural strength was bigger than the minimum value of

PEC, which was fcf = 10.54 N/mm2.

The experimental value for elasticity modulus is given in Table 1:Ebmed = 2434 N/mm2. This value is smaller than that of Portland ce-ment concrete, which has an elasticity modulus of 3500 N/mm2

(SREN 1992/2006 [40]) but which has the same compressive cubestrength.

The adherence characteristics have shown a good bond betweenEPUAC and steel (the maximum pull-out stress for a plain bar is:smax = 2.89 N/mm2) and also a good adhesion between EPUACand cement concrete (the adherence stress was smax = 4.7 N/mm2). These values are smaller than in the case of PEC, for whichminimum values were 3.52 N/mm2 and 5.6 N/mm2, respectively.

3.2. Thermo-physical tests

Table 2 presents the experimental values of the thermo-physi-cal properties of EPUAC.

The values of bulk density in the dry and natural states ofEPUAC are smaller than in the case of PEC, which wereqnat = 1936 kg/m3 and qdry = 1954 kg/m3.

The experimental density of epoxy polyurethane acryl concretecharacterises it as lightweight concrete.

Fig. 3. Adherence test: (a) samples for adherence tests; (b) testing in flexure; (c) left view; and (d) right view.

Fig. 4. Samples tested to corrosion: E 7.2 in 3% HCl solution; E 7.3 in 18% HClsolution; E 7.4. in 30 g/L KOH solution; E 7.5 in 100 g/L KOH solution.

L. Agavriloaie et al. / Construction and Building Materials 37 (2012) 190–196 193

From all thermal characteristics, EPUAC has a thermal conduc-tivity smaller than that of PEC, which indicates a better behaviourfor thermal isolation. All other properties were near those valuesobtained for PEC.

The results for relative and absolute mass humidity are pre-sented in Table 2:

– Absolute mass humidity was: Uabs = 1.23%.– Relative mass humidity was: Urel = 1.21%.

For PEC, the absolute mass humidity had the value 0.07%.

� Thermal conductivity. The result that is the average of five sam-ples is given in Table 2.

The thermal conductivity at 0 �C was: k0 = 0.425 W/m K, smallerthan that of PEC, for which k0 = 0.49 W/m K.

The EPUAC presented thermal insulation properties superior toPEC.

� Linear thermal dilatation. The experimental result is given inTable 2. The average value of linear thermal dilatation on sixsamples of epoxy-polyurethane concrete was: am = 56.03 �10�6 K�1 (for ordinary concrete the coefficient of thermal dilata-tion varies between 4 � 10�6 and 14 � 10�6 K�1 (SREN 1992/2006 [40]).� Thermal shock strength. The average value of water absorption

was: Abmed = 0.0108% (Table 2). Defects after testing: fromvisual examination at 30 cm distance and with illumination of

Table 1Mechanical properties of EPUAC.

Mix Compressive strength, fc,cub

(N/mm2)Flexural strength, fcf,(N/mm2)

Elasticity modulus in compression,Ebmed (N/mm2)

Maximum pull-out stress, smax

(N/mm2)Adherence stress, sad

(N/mm2)

EPUAC 52.5 11.52 2434 2.89 4.7

Table 2Thermal properties of EPUAC.

Properties UM Value

Density – Natural state, qnat kg/m3 1857Density – Dry state, qdry kg/m3 1834Mass humidity – Relative, Urel % 1.21Mass humidity – absolute Uabs % 1.23Thermal conductivity at 0 �C, k0 W/

m K0.425

Linear thermal dilatation, am �C�1 56.03 � 10�6

Thermal shock strength, Abmed % 0.0108Water adsorption, Wi % 0.627Loss of compressive strength after 50 frost-thaw

cycles% 11.58

Fig. 5. Samples after frost–thaw cycles tested in compression.

194 L. Agavriloaie et al. / Construction and Building Materials 37 (2012) 190–196

300 lx on a surface treated with methyl blue, it was observedthe samples did not present modifications, such as: deforma-tions, swelling, cracks, exfoliations or material dislocations.From this point of view, this new polyurethane acryl concretehas a very good behaviour to extreme climatic temperature.� Chemical resistance. The tests for the action of chemical aggres-

sive agents (HCl and KOH solutions) have established thatEPUAC has a good chemical resistance (Table 3). In all cases,there were no defects on the polymer concrete samples, accord-ing to SR EN ISO 10545-13:2001.� Water adsorption. Water adsorption by the boiling method for

polymer concrete had the average value: Wi = 0.627% (Table 2).It can be appreciated that EPUAC behaved well in this physicaltest, in view of the fact that for PEC, the water absorption was0.49% and for cement concrete, it was over 1.0% [26].� Frost-thaw resistance. After 50 frost-thaw cycles in the temper-

ature range: �15 �C to +20 �C, the polymer concrete with epoxypolyurethane acryl had a loss of compressive strength, fc, of11.58%. However, before the testing in compression, the sam-ples were analysed by the naked eye and by 10� magnificationand there did not appear to be any swelling, cracks, exfoliationsor material dislocations (Table 2, Fig. 5). According to the Roma-nian standards, after 50 frost-thaw cycles, the reduction ofstrength must be smaller than 25% and EPUAC accomplishedthis condition.� Microstructure of polymer concrete. Fig. 6a shows the surface of

polymer concrete made using epoxy-urethane acryl and aggre-gates at 500� magnification. The picture clearly shows the

Table 3Determination of chemical resistance.

No. Initialmass

Mass beforetesting

Mass aftertesting

Difference (loss) of mass aftertesting

1 31.029 30.817 – –

2 31.346 31.160 31.016 0.1443 26.716 26.589 26.417 0.1724 45.842 45.632 45.400 0.232

5 30.990 30.849 30.529 0.320

presence of voids having maximal diameters of about0.35 mm in the polymer concrete. The resin is homogeneousin the mass and covers the aggregates but in some places thepolymer is agglomerated, as can be seen in Fig. 6b.

4. Conclusions

The aim of the present research focused on a new type of poly-mer concrete, EPUAC, having in mind the possibility of its use as aconstruction material.

Polymer concrete was obtained from resin type epoxy polyure-thane acryl with two sorts of aggregate: 0–1 mm and 1–3 mm. Twotypes of tests were done for characterising the properties of thisnew material: mechanical tests and thermo-physical tests. Com-pressive strength, flexural strength, elasticity modulus, pull-outstress and adherence stress between cement concrete and polymerconcrete characterised EPUAC as a material of high quality withmechanical properties comparable with that of polyester resinconcrete.

Thermo-physical tests (bulk density in natural and dry states,relative and absolute mass humidity, thermal conductivity, linearthermal dilatation and water adsorption) have revealed a light-weight composite with a high thermal and durability performance.The durability tests revealed a good resistance of EPUAC when sub-jected to thermal shock, chemical aggression or frost-thaw cycles.

Thermal insulation properties of EPUAC are superior to those ofclassical cement concrete or PEC, leading to the enhancement ofthermal comfort, simultaneously with energy cost savings.

Difference of mass aftertesting

Class of chemicalresistance

Observations

– – Witness sample that is nottested

0.464 ULA Sample in 3% HCl solution0.651 UHA Sample in 18% HCl solution0.511 ULA Sample in KOH 30 g/L

solution1.048 UHA Sample in KOH 100 g/L

solution

Fig. 6. Scanning electronic microscopy for polymer concrete samples with epoxy-urethane acryl and aggregate (symbolised EPUAC).

L. Agavriloaie et al. / Construction and Building Materials 37 (2012) 190–196 195

Through use of a scanning electron microscope, the microstruc-ture of EPUAC was studied. The microstructure is homogeneousand the voids are small in diameter and uniformly distributed, con-tributing to porous structure, favourable for thermal conductivity.

The good durability properties near the high mechanical prop-erties of EPUAC, have shown that this concrete is a high perfor-mance lightweight concrete. Some further additions to thecomposition of EPUAC can result in an improvement of its proper-ties but this must be tested experimentally. The experimental re-sults presented are only for the new basic mixture of epoxypolyurethane acryl and aggregates.

This type of polymer concrete (EPUAC) having high mechanicaland durability properties, can be used in different construction do-mains, such as: industrial buildings where chemical and thermalprotection is required, or as insulation or waterproofing material,for realising floors subject to shocks or chemical agents, for struc-tural consolidation and for realising high structures.

Acknowledgement

This research was funded by a grant from ANCS Romania, no14 N/2010.

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