Thermal Performance of Alginate Concrete Reinforced with Basalt Fiber

Abstract

The sustainability of reinforced concrete structures is of high importance for practitioners and researchers, particularly in harsh environments and under extreme operating conditions. Buildings and tunnels are of the places that most of the fire cases take place. The use of fiber in concrete composite acts as crack arrestors to resist the development of cracks and enhance the performance of reinforced concrete structures subjected to elevated temperature. Basalt fiber is a low-carbon footprint green product obtained from the raw material of basalt which is created by the solidification of lava. It is a sustainable fiber choice for reinforcing concrete composite due to the less consumed energy in the production phase and not using chemical additives in their production. On the other hand, alginate is a natural anionic polymer acquired from cell walls of brown seaweed that can enhance the properties of composites due to its advantage as a hydrophilic gelling material. This paper investigates the thermal performance of alginate concrete reinforced with basalt fiber. For that purpose, an extensive literature review was carried out then two experimental phases for mix design and to investigate the compressive strength of samples at a temperature range of 100–180 °C were conducted. The results show that the addition of basalt fiber (BF) and/or alginate may slightly decrease the compressive strength compared to the control concrete under room temperature, but it leads to control decreasing compressive strength during exposure to a high temperature range of 100–180 °C. Moreover, it can be seen that temperature raise influences the rate of strength growth in alginate basalt fiber reinforced concrete.