Compatibility of vegetable fibers with Portland cement and its relationship with the physical properties

Maria L Marques,Luis Nieto González,Everton J Da Silva,Francisco H M Luzardo,Fermin G Velasco,Wellington G De Lima

doi:10.1590/1807-1929/agriambi.v20n5p466-472

Abstract

ABSTRACT The use of vegetable fiber residue in cementitious matrices can be a sustainable technological alternative; however, it still has problems related to the chemical compatibility between the cement and the fibers. The present study evaluated the compatibility of vegetable fibers with cement using three methods of calculation and determined certain physical properties of the fibers and the curve of the temporal evolution of temperature for each composite. The surfaces of the composites were evaluated through atomic force microscope images and the results showed that the pretreatment of fiber washing significantly favors the compatibility with cement for fibers of eucalyptus, coconut and cocoa, with no influence for water hyacinth fiber. Bivariate correlation analyses showed that the compatibility of the composites is favored by the reduction in the degree of swelling, packing density and specific mass. The results showed that there is a potential use of plant fiber in civil construction and that the physical properties of each type of fiber can offer elements for its selection and pretreatment.

Highlights

The significant volume of agroforestry residues generated by agro-industrial and human activities is probably being inadequately deposited in the environment without sustainable reuse
Part of the samples was subjected to washing with water heated at 90 oC and the physical properties of the fibers were determined according to the methodologies proposed by Marhol (1982): moisture content (MC), degree of swelling (DS), packing density (PD), apparent density (AD) and specific mass (SM)
The fibers of cocoa, coconut and eucalyptus (Table 1) showed similar values of moisture content (MC), specific mass (SM) and apparent density (AD), which did not occur for water hyacinth

Summary

Introduction

The significant volume of agroforestry residues generated by agro-industrial and human activities is probably being inadequately deposited in the environment without sustainable reuse. From the technological and environmental perspectives, the use of residues from agro-industry in civil construction has gained relevance, because it promotes technical quality, decreasing the costs of energy and natural materials for the production of constructive elements, and avoids damages to the environment (Arruda Filho et al, 2012; Silva et al, 2014). Manufacturing low-cost cementitious composites using vegetable fibers is possible if some technological problems related to the compatibility with Portland cement and the low durability of the fiber incorporated into the cementitious matrix are solved (Karede, 2010; Ramakrishna et al, 2010). Vegetable fibers of many species need to be further studied; for example, cocoa (Theobroma cacao) and water hyacinth (Eichhornia crassipes)

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Conclusion