Experimental Study on the Mechanical Properties of Disposable Mask Waste–Reinforced Gangue Concrete

Abstract

This paper is grounded on the following information: (1) Disposable masks primarily consist of polypropylene fiber, which exhibits excellent flexibility. (2) China has extensive coal gangue deposits that pose a significant environmental hazard. (3) Coal gangue concrete exhibits greater fragility compared to regular concrete and demonstrates reduced resistance to deformation. With the consideration of environmental conservation and resource reutilization, a preliminary concept suggests the conversion of discarded masks into fibers, which can be blended with coal gangue concrete to enhance its mechanical characteristics. In this paper, the stress–strain law of different mask fiber–doped coal gangue concrete (DMGC) under uniaxial compression is studied when the matrix strength is C20 and C30, and the effect of mask fiber content on the mechanical behavior and energy conversion relationship of coal gangue concrete is analyzed. The experimental results show that when the content of mask fiber is less than 1.5%, the strength, elastic modulus, deformation resistance, and energy dissipation of the concrete increase with mask fiber content. When the amount of mask fiber is more than 1.5%, because the tensile capacity and energy dissipation level of concrete produced by the mask fiber cannot compensate for the compression and deformation resistance of concrete of the same quantity and because excess fiber is difficult to evenly mix in the concrete, there are pore defects in concrete, which decreases the concrete strength due to the increase in mask fiber. Therefore, adding less than 1.5% mask fiber helps to improve the ductility, toughness, impermeability, and oxidation and control the cracking of coal gangue concrete. Based on Weibull theory, a constitutive model of DMGC is established, which fits well with the results of a uniaxial test, providing support for understanding the mechanical law of mask fiber–doped concrete.