Fibres de verres resistantes aux alcalis pour le beton: Fid-Bau Portal

Fibres de verres resistantes aux alcalis pour le beton

Muller, D. / Weiser, W.

Over the last years, many improvements and new developments have been made for the concrete reinforcement by alkali-resistant glass fibres. One of the most important are new reinforcement, like meshs or mats, allowing higher reinforcement rates or other performances like impact or post-rupture behaviour, have been developed and proposed to the market. This has allowed the concrete manufacturers to propose new applications, both in the architectonic markets (example: tunnel cladding in France, monument in Singapore), and industrial pieces like riverbank protections or insulation systems. Alkali resistant (AR) glass is a glass composition containing at least 15 % of zirconia (ZrO2). Chopping glass onto a moving belt, and gluing them with a binder produce a glass fibre chopped strand mat. AR glass fibre mesh is a woven fabric with separate continuous strands in both longitudinal and transverse directions. It offers alkali resistance in cementitious environments by virtue of its inherent durability, without the need for a heavy coating. But meshes can also be obtained by other processes such as Malimo technology. Different structures have been tested. An overall conclusion is that the best synergy appears to be with a combination of chopped strands in the matrix together with mat, mesh or UD reinforcement. The range of possible applications of these products is wide. IN wall rendering or external insulation finish systems, the use of AR mesh offers a more durable alternative to coated E-glass products giving added security. In France, the recent developments for civil engineering are special panels for walls exposed to chemical agents. Furthermore, these materials are used for the protection of water channels in the Netherlands. (Bilingual document: French/English)