Study on use of polymeric waste materials in concrete for rigid pavements

Abstract

Concrete is strong in compression but weak in tension and brittle also. Cracks also start forming as soon as the concrete is placed. These 3 drawbacks don’t permit the use normal concrete in pavements as they lead to lack of ductility along with fracture and failure. These weaknesses in concrete can be mitigated by using fibers as reinforcement in the concrete mix. Waste materials in the form of polypropylene cause environmental pollution which leads to various health problems. Polypropylene can be recycled and used effectively in the concrete as reinforcement in the fiber form. Polypropylene is a synthetic hydrocarbon polymer which can improve the ductility, strength, shrinkage characteristics etc. This paper deals with the effects of addition of polypropylenefiber on the properties of concrete. Polypropylene is used 1.5% and 3% by volume. Grade of concrete used were M25. IRC 44:2008 was followed for the design of concrete mix. In this study, the results of the Strength properties of polypropylene fiber reinforced concrete have been presented by various tests.