Abstract
Abstract Expanded polystyrene (EPS) concrete is a low-carbon green building material, which has the properties of thermal insulation, but its strength is not high at present. To improve the strength of EPS concrete, EPS particles were wrapped on the surface by magnesium phosphate cement, ultra-high performance concrete, and waterborne polyurethane, they were used to make concrete after aging, and then the strength and microproperties of concrete were tested. The test results show that the wrapping material form a shell structure on the surface of EPS particles; the hydrophilic property of the wrapped EPS particles and the uniformity of the concrete have been significantly improved; the contact between the wrapped EPS particles and the cement base has become more closer; the cube compressive strength of concrete is increased by 80–110%, the flexural strength of concrete is increased by 40–90%. The research results of this study are of great significance for EPS concrete used as structural material and fabricated lightweight wallboard.
Highlights
In recent years, China’s building energy consumption [1] has shown a surge trend, which has exceeded that of large countries in Europe and America
The wrapping material forms a shell on the surface of Expanded polystyrene (EPS), and it can be clearly seen that polyurethane mortar particles are adhered to the surface of water-borne polyurethane (WPU) coating and the rough surface formed by the wrapping material is conducive to bite with the external cement base; there are a few cracks in magnesium phosphate cement (MPC) coating because MPC has poor crack resistance; the EPS particles wrapped by ultra-high performance concrete (UHPC) were relatively intact
Through the test of specimen section and computed tomography (CT) scanning, it was found that the wrapped EPS particles have a very high uniformity in concrete; the concrete prepared by wrapping EPS with WPU is the most uniform
Summary
China’s building energy consumption [1] has shown a surge trend, which has exceeded that of large countries in Europe and America. In the research of filling voids, Pan et al [6] explored the influence of fly ash on the strength of EPS concrete and determined the optimal content of fly ash; Chen [7] studied that silica fume can improve the dispersion and bonding properties of EPS particles in cement matrix and can increase the strength of EPS concrete by about 15%; Ran [8] showed that the strength of EPS concrete can be increased by 20%. Chen [7,13,14] mixed EPS concrete with styrene butadiene rubber latex and neoprene latex and used sand wrapped method to modify EPS, effectively improving the EPS particles and cement matrix bond performance, improving the EPS particles in the concrete uniformity, and improving the compressive strength. The mechanical properties of EPS concrete are systematically studied with reference to Chinese National Standard GB/T 50081-2019 [15], and the reinforcement mechanism of EPS particles with three different wrapping materials combined with microtesting technology are analyzed
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
