Abstract
While mineral concretes belong to the oldest composites used by mankind, in an increasing number of applica- tions their compression strength σc and compressive strain at yield point eY are insufficient. Better results can be achieved with polymer concretes (PCs). We use a polymer concrete (PC): an unsaturated polyester resin as the matrix, CaCO3 and silica sand. Moreover, we have applied two further methods to improve its mechanical properties: reinforcement with poly- ester fibers and gamma irradiation with a 60Co source. A non-irradiated PC with 5 wt% CaCO3 has σc = 74 MPa, an irradi- ated sample with optimized CaCO3 contents 122 MPa. Scanning electron micrographs show that irradiation increases the interface areas between the fibers and the matrix. Improvements from 47 to 176% in eY values are achieved with respect to the conventional PC without fibers, non-irradiated and containing only one mineral component.
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