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In this work, geopolymer foam composites containing waste basalt fibre (10, 30, and 50%wt) were exposed to elevated temperatures of 200, 400, 600, 800 and 1000∘C. With an increase in high temperature, the geopolymer foams material exhibits a decrease in compressive strength and bending strength. When heated above 600∘C, geopolymer foams materials exhibit a significant reduction in mechanical properties. It shows clearly with the naked eye that surface cracks in case of samples containing 10% of basalt filler. However, when increasing fillers with basalt fibres up to 30% and 50%, the cracking of the sample surface is no longer visible to the naked eye. Especially when the temperature increases, the mechanical properties also increase without decreasing in the sample of 50% by weighing to the binder. The results show that reinforcing the geopolymer foams with basalt ground fibre improves the mechanical properties at high temperatures.

This study examines the impact of calcium-rich fly ash as an additive on metakaolin-based geopolymers. Six types of fly ash (FA1-FA7) from different thermal power plants in the Czech Republic were collected and characterized based on their physical and chemical properties. The addition of fly ash into the geopolymers was evaluated through a multicriteria assessment that focused on density and mechanical properties. By using a multi-criteria approach, the assessment provides a comprehensive and holistic evaluation of the material, allowing for a more informed decision about the optimal addition of additives. This approach helps to minimize any negative impact on the material's properties while maximizing the utilization of the by-product. The result is an optimized geopolymer mixture with improved properties and increased sustainability, as the by-product is used beneficially. Furthermore, calcium content is the key factor that affects the physical properties of geopolymers by accelerating the curing time. This rapid process can result in reduced strength with increasing fly ash content. The multicriteria assessment revealed that the optimal condition is achieved using fly ash (FA2) from the Loucovice thermal power plant (5.2 wt.% Ca) that was treated at a temperature of 615 °C. The flexural strength of FA2-based geopolymers increased by 13% compared to concrete (standard). However, the addition of fly ash significantly reduced the compressive strength of geopolymers throughout the range of specimens. The Charpy impact strength of FA2 was higher than the standard due to the presence of unburned biomass solids in the ash structure that can absorb energy easily. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present work deals with the effect of carbon microfiber addition on the development of microstructure and mechanical properties of geopolymers at elevated temperature. The carbon microfibers were prepared from recycled inexpensive carbon fibrous wastes by ball milling and then subsequently incorporated under 5, 10 and 15 wt% loading into metakaoline based geopolymers. The addition of carbon microfibers was found to produce compact structure of geopolymers due to their pore filling characteristics and formation of additional calcium silicate or calcium alumino-silicate and sodium alumino-silicate hydrates. The geopolymer composite of 15 wt.% carbon microfiber was found to maintain the residual compressive strengths of 33.55 and 23.96 MPa at 400 and 800°C, respectively and thus recording a minimum strength loss of 19 and 42%, respectively. This behavior was attributed to decreased thermal stresses and restricted swelling of unreacted geopolymer phases after addition of carbon microfibers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents temperature-dependent properties and fire resistance of geopolymer foams made of ground basalt fibers, aluminum foaming agents, and potassium-activated metakaolin-based geopolymers. Temperature-dependent properties of basalt-reinforced geopolymer foams (BGFs) were investigated by a series of measurements, including apparent density, water absorption, mass loss, drying shrinkage, compressive and flexural strengths, XRD, and SEM. Results showed that the apparent density and drying shrinkage of the BGFs increase with increasing the treated temperature from 400 to 1200 °C. Below 600 °C the mass loss is enhanced while the water absorption is reduced and they both vary slightly between 600 and 1000 °C. Above 1000 °C the mass loss is decreased rapidly, whereas the water absorption is increased. The compressive and flexural strengths of the BGFs with high fiber content are improved significantly at temperatures over 600 °C and achieved the maximum at 1200 °C. The BGF with high fiber loading at 1200 °C exhibited a substantial increase in compressive strength by 108% and flexural strength by 116% compared to that at room temperature. The enhancement in the BGF strengths at high temperatures is attributed to the development of crystalline phases and structural densification. Therefore, the BGFs with high fiber loading have extraordinary mechanical stability at high temperatures. The fire resistance of wood and steel plates has been considerably improved after coating a BGF layer on their surface. The coated BGF remained its structural integrity without any considerable macroscopic damage after fire resistance test. The longest fire-resistant times for the wood and steel plates were 99 and 134 min, respectively. In general, the BGFs with excellent fire resistance have great potential for fire protection applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper reports the results of an experimental investigation on the mechanical properties of geopolymer foams incorporating filler from the coke dust waste (CDW). In this work, CDW was used to replace a part of geopolymer paste at 5%, 10%, 20%, and 30% by geopolymer binder mass. The physico-mechanical properties and thermal resistance against high temperatures of CDW/geopolymer foams are presented. The primary results obtained show that the use of CDW in the production of geopolymer foam composites made it possible for them to achieve relatively good mechanical properties. However, the incorporation of the CDW into the geopolymer had a slightly negative effect on thermal conductivity, but significantly improved the mechanical strength of the final product. Moreover, this waste also helped the composite foam to achieve a structure with more uniform open pores distribution, compared to the pure foam. After exposure to elevated temperatures, the residual strength of the composite foams maintained well compared to the pure foams. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Geopolymer foam is classified as a lightweight material with high porous in its matrix which has great offer for applications requiring fire-resistant, thermal, and acoustic properties. However, the high sensitivity to humid environments can be a major barrier of geopolymer foam that limits the variety of applications of this material. Based on this drawback, two types of hydrophobic agent (Lukosil M130 and Lukofob ELX) were used as an impregnator to treat the surface of geopolymer foam samples. This paper presented the results of water absorption properties of the untreated and treated geopolymer foam composites. The obtained properties were flexural strength, compressive strength, density, total water absorption, the rate of water absorption, and water absorption coefficient. The results showed that the samples after being impregnated with hydrophobic agents improved significantly their waterproof property especially using Lukosil M130. Moreover, the samples treated with Lukosil M130 had positive impact on their mechanical strength. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Basalt fiber is a novel type of inorganic fiber which is produced from the extrusion of natural vocalnic basalt rocks through their melting process at high temperature. So the quality and strength characteristics of basalt fiber depend mainly on both the quality of raw material and manufacturing processing. Basalt fabric-reinforced cementitious composites (FRCM) are a novel composite and an extensive scientific investigation is still ongoing for geopolymer composite. Based on three types of basalt textile with respect to various net sizes, the aim of this paper is to evaluate the flexural performance of basalt textile-reinforced geopolymer composite through the four-point bending test. The specimens of rectangular form with the dimension of 400 × 100 × 15 mm3, reinforced with one to four layers of each type of basalt textile, were produced. They were then tested at the age of about 40 days after casting. On the other hand, the number of the specimens reinforced with four layers were considered to assess the mechanical strength of the specimens at longer periods of ageing time (60, 90, 150, 180 days). The experimental results showed that with the increasing number of reinforcing layers, the specimens significantly improved the mechanical strength, except for those reinforced with basalt textile of big net size. The specimens reinforced with basalt textile of big net size had no impact on post-crack mechanical strength, however, it helps to arrest the catastrophic brittle failure of the specimens; the failure of these specimens is due to localization of first crack. When the specimens were exposed to the further ageing times, the mechanical strength of the specimens were decreased over time. All the reinforced specimens have the same failure mode by flexural failure due to the rupture of fiber yarn in matrix, and no debonding of fiber yarn or a gradual peeling process of mortar matrix happened during testing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Textile-reinforced Portland cement-based concrete has been researched and developed over the last few decades. It was widely used in a different range of applications, such as repair and/or strengthening of structural elements, thin walls, lightweight structures, façade elements, and others. Due to its varied application, this study aims to develop the carbon textile-reinforced geopolymer composite. Specimens of rectangular form with the dimensions of 400 × 100 × 15 mm3, reinforced with carbon textile, were produced. Four-point bending test was used to evaluate the effect of carbon textile on the mechanical strength of reinforced geopolymer composite based on the three factors: the different mortar compositions corresponding to the addition of the chopped basalt fiber (BF), the number of carbon textile layers, and the different thicknesses of the mortar cover layer. Besides that, a small part of the pull-out test was also considered to assess the adhesion strength at the interface between carbon textile and geopolymer mortar. The experimental results from the four-point bending test showed that the mechanical strength of composite specimens increased when the content of the chopped basalt fiber increased. With the increasing number of the textile layers, the specimens improved the flexural strength significantly. However, the flexural toughness of the specimens reinforced with three textile layers did not improve, as compared to those reinforced with two textile layers. The experimental results for the specimens related to the mortar cover thicknesses indicated that specimens with the mortar cover thickness of 2 mm provide the best strength. The experimental results from the pull-out tests showed that all the specimens have the same failure mode by slipping of the fiber yarn from the matrix. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]