To improve the interfacial bond properties of the carbon fiber coated with a nano-SiO2 particle in a cement paste matrix, the present study proposed a method of coating nano-SiO2 particles on the surface of the carbon fiber by the chemical reaction of a silane coupling agent (glycidoxypropyltrimethoxysilane, GPTMS) and colloidal nano-SiO2 sol in an alkaline environment. To verify whether a nano-SiO2 particle was effectively modified on the surface of the carbon fiber, the surface morphology, chemical composition, and chemical structure were characterized and analyzed by several techniques such as the scanning electron microscope (SEM), energy-dispersive spectrometer (EDS), and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR). Nano-SiO2 particles were entirely covered and uniformly distributed on the surface of the carbon fiber, resulting in the formation of a thin layer of nano-SiO2 particles. A thin layer of nano-SiO2 particles reacted with Ca(OH)2 to form a calcium-silicate-hydrate (C-S-H) gel, which is most helpful to increase the form between the fiber and the matrix. In addition, a pull-out test of the tow carbon fibers was performed to verify the effect of the new surface modification method on the interfacial bond properties of the carbon fiber embedded in the cement paste matrix. The experimental results showed that the frictional bond strength of the carbon fiber coated with a nano-SiO2 particle was significantly increased compared to the plain carbon fiber. These results were expected to improve the interfacial bonding force of hardened cement paste from the formation of the C-S-H gel produced through the chemical reaction of nano-SiO2 particles coated on the surface of the carbon fiber with Ca(OH)2. In particular, it was confirmed that the carbon fiber-reinforced cement paste (CFRCP) specimens coated with a nano-SiO2 particle and silica fume which replaced 10 wt.% of cement by mass showed the highest pull-out resistance performance at 28 days of age. The new surface modification method developed in this study can be very beneficial and helpful in improving the interfacial bond properties of CFRCP.

In the present study, SiO2 particles were coated on the surface of carbon fibers by means of chemical reaction of silane coupling agent (glycidoxypropyl trimethoxysilane, GPTMS) and colloidal SiO2 sol to improve the interfacial bonding force between fibers and matrix in cement matrix. The surface of the modified carbon fibers was confirmed through a scanning electron microscope (SEM). The mechanical properties of SiO2-coated carbon fiber mortar and uncoated carbon fiber mortar with different fiber lengths (6 mm and 12 mm) and fiber volume fractions (0.5%, 1.0%, 1.5%, and 2.0%) were compared and analyzed. The experimental results show that the flow values of the carbon fiber mortar were greatly disadvantageous in terms of fluidity due to the nonhydrophilicity of fibers and fiber balls, and the unit weight decreased significantly as the fiber volume fractions increased. However, the air content increased more or less. In addition, regardless of whether the fibers were coated, the compressive strength of carbon fiber-reinforced mortar (CFRM) composite specimens tended to gradually decrease as the fiber volume fractions increased. On the other hand, in case of the SiO2-coated CFRM composite specimens, the flexural strength was significantly increased compared to uncoated CFRM composite specimens and plain mortar specimens, and the highest flexural strength was obtained at 12 mm and 1.5%, particularly. It can be seen that the new carbon fiber surface modification method employed in this study was very effective in enhancing the flexural strength as cement-reinforcing materials.

This paper aims to evaluate the resistance performance of the vinyl acetate ethylene polymer cement (VAEPC) composite and the polyvinyl alcohol fiber-reinforced cement (PAFRC) composite against a low-velocity impact in varying temperature. Their impact resistance performances are analyzed and compared with plain mortar after 28 days of age. Low-velocity impact tests were carried out under the various room temperatures of −70°C, 70°C, and 140°C. Also, an INSTRON CEAST 9350 drop-tower system has been used to get the impact load, fracture energy, and displacement of the specimens while loading low-velocity impacts. From these tests, the failure pattern, shape, and strength of each test specimen were evaluated for the VAEPC, the PAFRC composite, and the plain mortar. Those test results showed that the flexural strength of both the VAEPC and the PAFRC composites has increased compared to that of the plain mortar. However, the compressive strength of the PAFRC composite decreased slightly after 28 days, while its flexural strength increased by 24.4% compared to that of the plain mortar. In addition, the drop test results show that PAFRC composite specimens have the highest impact fracture energy compared to other specimens at −70°C, 70°C, and 140°C, whereas plain mortar specimens have their lowest. This is because the PVA fiber included in the PAFRC acts as a bridge to suppress crack propagation and to improve energy absorption performance, which helps it resist relatively better against impact. It is also known that while the VAEPC composite and the plain mortar were destroyed in a form of being perforated, the specimens of PAFRC composite were observed to some extent to suppress the perforation failures. Therefore, under a load of low-velocity impact, the resistance performance of the VAEPC composite and the plain mortar was proven to show brittle fracture behavior, while the PAFRC showed ductile fracture behavior in virtue of PVA fiber reinforcement which improved its flexural performance. According to the SEM observation which followed the tests, the PAFRC composite as a fiber-reinforced material of the hydrophilic material was found to show the most excellent interfacial bond adhesion compared to the other composite and the plain mortar. The PAFRC composite manufactured in the study has been proven to be very useful as a reinforcement material in both high and low temperature environments.

Cement-based composites are generally non-conductors with high electrical resistivity, but they can be used as conductors by incorporating conductive materials. Recently, research has been actively conducted to develop high-conductive fiber-reinforced cement mortar (FRCM) due to increased interest in multifunctional cement mortar required by the market today. Thus, the present paper investigated the effect of the developed conductive FRCM containing carbon and steel fibers on the fresh and mechanical properties as well as electrical conductivity. The performance of conductivity FRCM was studied based on flow, unit weight, air content, three-point flexural, compression, and electrical resistance tests. In addition, their performance was also compared and reviewed with plain mortar (PM). Furthermore, the surface shape and element components of the developed conductive FRCM fracture surface were analyzed using a scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and an energy dispersive X-ray spectrometer (EDS). The results showed that the addition of steel fibers slightly decreased the relative flow value, whereas the incorporation of carbon fibers is very disadvantageous in terms of fluidity due to the fiber ball phenomenon. The unit weight of mixture containing carbon fibers was somewhat decreased, whereas the changes in the amount of air contents were relatively insignificant regardless of the fiber volume fractions. The flexural strength of conductive carbon fiber-reinforced cement mortar (CFRCM) and steel fiber-reinforced cement mortar (SFRCM) was significantly improved compared to that of PM. The compressive strength of CFRCM decreased significantly as the volume fraction of carbon fibers increased. Overall, even if the steel fibers were added up to 1.25%, the effect of improving the electrical conductivity of SFRCM was insignificant. In the case of the CFRCM used in this study, it was found that the percolation threshold existed between 0.3% and 0.4% fibers, and it was thus thought that the optimum dosage of carbon fiber should be secured by at least more than 0.4% in terms of electrical conductivity. Therefore, the most important factor for the electrical conductivity effect was found to be carbon fiber, whereas the effect of steel fiber was insignificant.

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