Influence of Graphene oxide on abrasion resistance and strength of concrete: Fid-Bau Portal

Influence of Graphene oxide on abrasion resistance and strength of concrete

Fonseka, Isuri / Mohotti, Damith / Wijesooriya, Kasun / Lee, Chi-King / Mendis, Priyan

Highlights • Summarising the latest literature on Graphene Oxide (GO)-added cement composites and concrete. • Dispersibility and workability of GO-incorporated concrete are accomplished by using polycarboxylate-ether-based superplasticisers (PS). • Addition of GO enhanced the abrasion resistance of concrete. • Mechanical properties of concrete are effectively improved by adding GO. • Pore structure of concrete is refined by adding GO.

Abstract Graphene Oxide (GO) has recently gained significant attention as a new carbon-based nanomaterial (CBN) in the civil engineering industry due to its exceptional mechanical and functional properties. It has been increasingly gaining popularity due to its superior dispersibility characteristics in aqueous solutions compared to the other graphene-based derivatives due to attached oxygen functional groups. A majority of current studies are focused on investigating the effect of GO in cement composites. However, the more useful applications of GO lie in its incorporation into concrete, as it is the most widely used construction material. Therefore, the current study determines the performance of GO-incorporated concrete in terms of strength and abrasion characteristics. Industrially produced GO was added to the concrete mixes at percentages varying from 0.02% to 0.08% by weight of cement (bwoc). A polycarboxylate-ether-based superplasticiser (PS) was used to enhance the dispersibility of GO within the mix and the workability of concrete mixtures. The Standard slump tests were performed to evaluate the workability of the mixes. Compression and indirect tensile strength tests were conducted to obtain the mechanical properties, while abrasion tests were employed to investigate the durability properties. In addition, microstructural properties were obtained using scanning electron microscope (SEM) analysis. The test results show that adding 0.08% GO bwoc in the concrete mix enhanced its compressive strength, indirect tensile strength, and abrasion resistance by 21%, 12% and 23% at 28 days compared to the control mix. At 56 days, results show 19%, 12% and 20% improvements, respectively. These findings confirmed that adding GO can enhance concrete's abrasion resistance and mechanical properties. Therefore, it demonstrates promising outcomes of utilising GO in applications such as road pavements, airport runways, industrial floorings and bridge decks where abrasion resistance and strength are key design parameters.