Assessment of the Durability Against a Chemical Attack of Fiber-Reinforced Lightweight Pouzzolanic Concrete under the Effect of Temperature

Abstract

The study of the durability of Fiber-Reinforced Lightweight Pouzzolanic Concrete (FRLPC) is a topic of research that focuses on evaluating the skills of FRLPC, because exposure to certain chemicals can cause deterioration and reduce the lifespan of the concrete. Chemical attacks can occur due to exposure to acids, sulfates, and other substances commonly found in the environment. The work presented here aims to analyze the influence of different types of fibers on the behavior of lightweight concretes (LWC) based on pozzolanic aggregates in aggressive media such as acids and under the effect of temperatures. The choice of pozzolanic aggregates is to valorize natural pozzolan as lightweight aggregates in concrete, knowing that this material is abundant in Algeria. In this sense, different tests have been carried out using metal, polyethylene, and polypropylene fibers in LWC manufactured with pozzolanic aggregates. The LWC specimens were kept in water saturated with lime until the age of testing (28, 60, and 90 days). Then, the specimens were subjected to heating under two temperatures (200°C and 600°C). After cooling, the specimens were exposed to hydrochloric acid (Hcl) and sulfuric acid (H2SO4) solutions (5% w/w). The evaluation of the durability of these concretes and the mechanical behavior was obtained by the measurement of the mass loss and the compressive strength.