Author : Sameh Yehia and Mona M. Fawzy

This paper presents a focused study on properties of porous concrete to widen its application to structural engineering. Mechanical properties like compressive strength, indirect tensile strength, flexural strength and physical properties like density, permeability and porosity are studied. To determine those parameters, twenty-seven cubes, cylinders and prisms were tested. Also, three polymer impregnated porous concrete slabs were tested under pure bending moment to study the efficiency of selected resin to integrate particle of concrete to achieve a new generation in using porous concrete in structural engineering. Three different cement content specimens of porous concrete were considered, studied cement contents are 200 kg/m3, 300 kg/m3 and 400 kg/m3. The results show that, increasing the cement content can increase the compressive strength, indirect tensile strength and flexural strength. Density of porous concrete is less than conventional concrete by 21% but permeability factor recorded higher value compared to conventional concrete by sixteen times. Increasing the cement content has no significant effect on either ultimate load or maximum deflection of polymer impregnated porous concrete slabs but the results recorded an achievement to use this concrete in structural engineering applications and give an easy way to cast special concrete like polymer concrete without special tools.

Keywords: Porous Polymer Concrete, Mix Design, Mechanical and Physical Properties, Structural Application of Porous Concrete, Unreinforced Slab.

Article published in International Journal of Current Engineering and Technology, Vol.7, No.2 (April-2017)