Carbon fiber reinforced concrete (Carbocrete)

Presented to: Dr. Mohamed Nagib Abou-Zeid

Carbocrete

The American University In CairoSchool Of Science And Engineering

Department Of Construction and Architectural Engineering

Aly Attia

Ihab Khalil

Fathy Abdel Halim

MohamedMubarak

What is Carbocrete?History of carbon fibersManufacturing of carbon fibersCarbon fibers in constructionCarbon fibers vs. steel (Properties)Carbocrete MixingTestingKey properties of CarbocreteAdvantages & disadvantagesEconomic aspectsApplicationsConclusionReferences

Outline

It is a type of concrete that is reinforced with carbon fibers so it’s also known as “Carbon Reinforced Concrete”.

It is a new highly stressable lightweight composite construction that combines special fine grain ultra high-strength concrete and carbon fibers.

It has higher strength than steel with quarter of its weight.

What is Carbocrete?

Carbocretehttp://www.haute-innovation.com

In late 1800s, Thomas Edison was the first to use carbon fibers as filaments for early light bulbs.

It lacked the high tensile strength of today’s carbon fibers; however he used it because of their high tolerance to heat which made these fibers ideal for conducting electricity.

History of Carbon Fibers

Thomas Edisonwww.biography.com

Filamenten.wikipedia.org

It wasn’t until the late 1950 that high-performance carbon fibers was manufactured by Mitsubishi Rayon

The USA’s Air Force and NASA didn’t wait develop the carbon fiber technology and began to use carbon fiber reinforced polymers to replace heavy metals to allow aircrafts to be lighter and faster.

History of Carbon Fibers (Cont’d)

Carbon fiber aircraft propellerpics1.this-pic.com

Manufacturing of Carbon Fibers

Raw carbon fiber is made from either polyacrylonitrile (PAN) or petroleum coal.

These fossil-fuel- based materials come from either petroleum refining or natural gas processing

Petroleum coal www.c-chem.co.jp

PANwww.c-chem.co.jp

1st: in the thermoset treatment, the fibers are stretched and heated to no more than 400° C

2nd: in the carbonize treatment, the fibers are heated to about 800° C in an oxygen free environment to remove non-carbon impurities.

3rd: fibers are graphitized; this step stretches the fibers between 50 to 100% elongation, and heats them to temperatures ranging from 1100° C to 3000° C. The stretching ensures a preferred crystalline texture, which results in the desired tensile strength.

4th: the last two treatment steps, surface treatment and epoxy sizing, are preformed to enhance the carbon fiber bonding strength.

Manufacturing of Carbon Fibers (Cont’d)

Manufacturing of Carbon Fibers (Cont’d)

PAN Manufacturing Processwww.arrhenius.ucsd.edu

Carbon Fiber in Construction

Carbon fibers are mostly used for repair purposes of old structural element against shear and flexure failure; the material know as CFRP.

However, in the early 1990s, researches showed that carbon fibers can be used inside the concrete instead of steel reinforcement showing a significant improvement in the flexural and tensile strength of concrete.

http://www.carbonwrapsolutions.com

www.sglgroup.com

Carbon Fibers vs. Steel Up to 75% lighter More durable/corrosion-free 5 times higher tensile strength 2 times higher stiffness Higher temperature tolerance

Comparison of Fiber Strengthswww.innovationskraftwerk.de

Carbon Fibers vs. Steel (Cont’d)

Comparison Between Carbon Fibers and Steel Fibers

www.innovationskraftwerk.de

Carbocrete Mixing Method Methods:

Dry mix Wet mix

Mixing Methodshttp://wings.buffalo.edu

Carbocrete Mix Design

Mix Design For different CF sizes

http://wings.buffalo.edu

Compressive Strength Test

Flexural Strength Test

Slump Test

Testing

Key Properties of Carbocrete

Properties of Carbocetewww.sglgroup.com

Advantages & Disadvantages

Advantages DisadvantagesHigh tensile strength:

Smaller cross-sections Earthquake resistance

Expensive: High initial cost

Higher durability: Corrosion-free Less running cost

Lack of knowledge: Absence of codes No implementations yet

Eco-friendly: Less materials needed for

maintenance and construction.

High thermal conductivity High HVAC consumption

Low weight: Easy to handle

Risk of lung cancer in the manufacturing phase

High flexibility: More creative architectural

design

High abrasion resistance: Suitable for highway

construction

Low coefficient of thermal expansion High fire resistance

Economic Aspects

www.toray.com

Economic Aspects (Cont’d)

www.utsi.edu

ApplicationsLimited applications

In 2012, SGL Group launched a competition among innovative engineers to answer the question "What can I make from carbon concrete?„

A total of 319 ideas were submited

Applications (Cont’d)Carbocrete Balcony

www.sglgroup.com

Applications (Cont’d)Shore protection seashells

www.sglgroup.com

Applications (Cont’d)Carbocrete bicycle stands

www.sglgroup.com

Applications (Cont’d)Carbocrete Z-shell

www.sglgroup.com

Applications (Cont’d)Carbocrete residential/office buildings

www.sglgroup.com

Applications (Cont’d)Video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ux1yIpGO7p8

ConclusionCarbocrete pushed the limits of creativity and flexibility in

design

Made it possible to build unique structures that can withstand very high loads

Save maintenance costs on the long run

http://www.carbonwrapsolutions.comhttp://www.toray.comhttp://www.biography.comhttp://www.sglgroup.comhttp://www.haute-innovation.com/de/vortraege-diskussionen/werkstoffe-

fuer-nachhaltiges-bauen.htmlhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ux1yIpGO7p8http://www.innovationskraftwerk.de/Wettbewerb/sgl/Carbon-Beton/

Details/38http://wings.buffalo.edu/academic/department/eng/mae/cmrl/Concrete

%20reinforced%20with%20up%20to%20vol%20of%20short%20carbon%20fibers.pdf

http://www.utsi.edu/research/carbonfiber/cf.htm

References

Thank you