Testing thermophysical and mechanical properties of cement-based composites with plastic and horse manure

Abstract

Cement-based composites change their properties in dependence on added materials. Scientific papers display results on changes in various mechanical and thermophysical properties. In this paper, the effect of different amount of plastic in two shapes (granules and fibers) and horse manure on thermophysical and mechanical properties of cement-based composites are tested. To understand the structural changes 1-D process of water uptake and porosity measurements were done. The economic growth brings new possibilities for industry development but also increasing problem with waste disposal. Our tests were aimed at finding the optimal balance between plastic disposal in cement based materials and changes in some important properties. The best results of thermophysical properties were for plastic and natural fibers, where horse manure samples had even better mechanical properties than plastic ones.