Interaction of Geopolymer Filler and Alkali Molarity Concentration towards the Fire Properties of Glass-Reinforced Epoxy Composites Fabricated Using Filament Winding Technique

Abstract

This paper aims to find out the effect of different weight percentages of geopolymer filler in glass-reinforced epoxy pipe, and which can achieve the best mechanical properties and adhesion between high calcium pozzolanic-based geopolymer matrices. Different weight percentages and molarities of epoxy hardener resin and high calcium pozzolanic-based geopolymer were injected into the glass fiber. By manually winding filaments, composite samples were produced, and they were then allowed to cure at room temperature. To determine how well the geopolymer matrices adhere to the fiber reinforcement, the microstructure of the composites’ surfaces and perpendicular sections were examined. Maximum values of compressive strength and compressive modulus were 94.64 MPa and 2373.58 MPa, respectively, for the sample with a weight percentage of filler loading of 30 wt% for an alkali concentration of 12 M. This is a relatively wide range of geopolymer weight percentage of filler loading from 10 wt% to 40 wt%, at which we can obtain high compressive properties. By referring to microstructural analysis, adhesion, and interaction of the geopolymer matrix to glass fiber, it shows that the filler is well-dispersed and embedded at the fiber glass, and it was difficult to determine the differences within the range of optimal geopolymer filler content. By determining the optimum weight percent of 30 wt% of geopolymer filler and microstructural analysis, the maximum parameter has been achieved via analysis of high calcium pozzolanic-based geopolymer filler. Fire or elevated temperature represents one of the extreme ambient conditions that any structure may be exposed to during its service life. The heat resistance or thermal analysis between glass-reinforced epoxy (GRE) pipe and glass-reinforced epoxy pipe filled with high calcium pozzolanic-based geopolymer filler was studied by investigating burning tests on the samples, which shows that the addition of high calcium pozzolanic-based geopolymer filler results in a significant reduction of the melted epoxy.