Fundamental mechanical characteristics of non-conventional composites reinforced with cellulose and synthetic fibres: contribution to sustainable building materials

• Grant number: 09/10614-0
• Support type: Regular Research Grants
• Duration: February 01, 2010 - July 31, 2012
• Field of knowledge: Engineering - Civil Engineering - Construction Industry
• Principal researcher: Holmer Savastano Junior
• Grantee: Holmer Savastano Junior
• Home Institution: Faculdade de Zootecnia e Engenharia de Alimentos (FZEA). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). Pirassununga , SP, Brazil

Abstract

In Brazil, it has been stimulated the research and development of activities, using academic and industrial laboratories to promote the advance in the knowledge of topics related to the bio-ethanol production. Nevertheless, the wastes generated by the Brazilian agro-industry, particularly the sugar cane bagasse ashes represent a potential source of raw-material that could be incorporated in the cement based matrices aiming more sustainable building materials. Furthermore, building elements reinforced with cellulose fibres have a great technological importance due to their low cost in relation to the other conventional construction solutions for roofing (ceramic tiles, e. g.) and several other applications in housings, commercial and rural buildings. However, to turn viable the agriculture and industrial by-products and the cellulose fibres as raw-material to civil construction, it is still necessary to work hard with the correlation between adequate processing, mechanical properties and microstructure, by the application of appropriate methods and relatively simple treatments and other technical solutions (fast carbonation, for example) to address the several relevant problems existing in the fibre cement technology. The main objective of this research is the improvement of the microstructure performance of fibre cement reinforced with cellulose and synthetic fibres for commercial applications both in internal and external environments. It is important to understand and modify the physical and chemical interactions of the fibres with cement based matrices, the transition zone between the phases and the severe degradation mechanisms involved. Such an approach is expected to help in the way to overcome the difficulties still faced by the industrial scale production of asbestos free fibre cement in Brazil and other emerging countries. The following strategies will be adopted: initial treatments of the cellulose pulp; addition of pozzolanic ashes; addition of colloidal silicon nanoparticles; and extrusion process for the composites manufacture. The effect of these variables on the microstructure and on the fundamental mechanical performance of the fibre cements will be studied for the achievement of the modeling of the behavior of these complex composite materials both in early ages and after exposition to environmental weathering. (AU)

Scientific publications

(5)

(References retrieved automatically from Web of Science and SciELO through information on FAPESP grants and their corresponding numbers as mentioned in the publications by the authors)

BARRA, B. N.; SANTOS, S. F.; BERGO, P. V. A.; ALVES, JR., C.; GHAVAMI, K.; SAVASTANO, JR., H. Residual sisal fibers treated by methane cold plasma discharge for potential application in cement based material. INDUSTRIAL CROPS AND PRODUCTS, v. 77, p. 691-702, DEC 23 2015. Web of Science Citations: 14.

SANTOS, SERGIO F.; SCHMIDT, RENE; ALMEIDA, ALESSANDRA E. F. S.; TONOLI, GUSTAVO H. D.; SAVASTANO, JR., HOLMER. Supercritical carbonation treatment on extruded fibre-cement reinforced with vegetable fibres. CEMENT & CONCRETE COMPOSITES, v. 56, p. 84-94, FEB 2015. Web of Science Citations: 30.

SANTOS, S. F.; TONOLI, G. H. D.; MEJIA, J. E. B.; FIORELLI, J.; SAVASTANO, JR., H. Non-conventional cement-based composites reinforced with vegetable fibers: A review of strategies to improve durability. MATERIALES DE CONSTRUCCION, v. 65, n. 317 2015. Web of Science Citations: 18.

SANTOS, SERGIO FRANCISCO; RODRIGUES, JOSE DE ANCHIETA; DENZIN TONOLI, GUSTAVO HENRIQUE; FEUZICANA DE SOUZA ALMEIDA, ALESSANDRA ETUKO; SAVASTANO, JR., HOLMER. Effect of colloidal silica on the mechanical properties of fiber-cement reinforced with cellulosic fibers. Journal of Materials Science, v. 49, n. 21, p. 7497-7506, NOV 2014. Web of Science Citations: 12.

DENZIN TONOLI, GUSTAVO HENRIQUE; MENDES, RAFAEL F.; SIQUEIRA, GILBERTO; BRAS, JULIEN; BELGACEM, MOHAMED N.; SAVASTANO, JR., HOLMER. Isocyanate-treated cellulose pulp and its effect on the alkali resistance and performance of fiber cement composites. HOLZFORSCHUNG, v. 67, n. 8, p. 853-861, DEC 2013. Web of Science Citations: 14.