High-performance laminate material based on polyurethane and epoxide reinforced by silica particles from rice husk used for intelligent pedestrian crossings

Abstract

Intelligent pedestrian crossings were made with the aim to increase pedestrian safety at poorly lit locations. New technologies include the design of polymer materials that have high performance by optimizing properties such as compression, tensile and impact strengths, wear resistance, hardness and transparency. The desired properties are set up to face the demands of a heavy daily traffic load and enable the functionality. Laminate material consists of the epoxy composite reinforced with silica (SiO2) derived from rice husk waste and a protective thermoplastic polyurethane layer. The top layer of the laminate material is a transparent thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) serving as a protective layer with high wear resistance and good adhesion with epoxy composite. Silica obtained from rice husk waste was used in reinforcing of the epoxide in order to improve the mechanical properties, diffuse the light, improve the adhesion with TPU and decrease the production costs. Micro-Vickers hardness of the epoxy composite was increased by 70% with the addition of 15 wt% of SiO2. Impact energy of the epoxy composite with 15 wt% of SiO2 was increased by 272.9% after adding the TPU layer. Compressive strength of the epoxy resin is improved by 16.2% by reinforcement with 15 wt% of SiO2, while the laminate composite material showed 207% higher compressive strength than the commonly used asphalt pavement. Moreover, the addition of 15 wt% of SiO2 improved the adhesion between epoxy composite and TPU layer (11.2%). Thus, obtained laminated material made of the epoxy composite with 15 wt% of SiO2 (obtained from rice husk waste) and TPU598 showed mechanical properties and LED light transmission/diffusion appropriate for application in the intelligent pedestrian crossings.