Durability of short carbon fiber reinforced cement-based materials during exposure to chemical attack

Collaborators

Aniket Borwankar, Graduate Student of Civil and Environmental Engineering
Florence Sanchez, Assistant Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering

Funding

NSF CMS-0510534

Abstract

The goal of this research is to investigate (i) the effect of exposure to chemical attack on the microstructure and morphology of carbon fiber reinforced concrete and (ii) how microstructural and morphological changes at the interface between the carbon fibers and the cementitious material in turn affect the macro scale mechanical and physical properties of the material, including strength, electrical conductivity, and durability. State-of-the-art physical (surface area, microporosity, 3-D imaging of pore structure, and advanced thermal analysis) and chemical (elemental composition and solid phase mineralogy and morphology) techniques and traditional durability testing will be used to (i) characterize the surface of the carbon fibers under different conditions (“as-received,” after surface treatment, and during hydration reaction), (ii) quantify and relate the physical and chemical changes of the carbon fiber-cement interface and of the bulk cement paste during decalcification to observed macro scale properties.