Cement composites reinforced by short curaua fibers

Abstract

The development of an eco-friendly material that could reduce CO2 emission and that could aggregate value to a natural fiber, setting man at the countryside and raising the income of populations from poor regions is a challenge. Lignocellulosic fibers are cheap and are a readily available reinforcement, requiring only a low degree of industrialization for their processing. The main drawback of using cement composites reinforced with lignocellulosic fibers is that the fibers can be mineralized inside the alkaline environment. In this work, Portland cement was partially replaced by metakaolinite in order to produce a matrix free from calcium hydroxide, avoiding thus the problem of fiber mineralization. Cement composites reinforced with 2, 4 and 6% of short curaua fibers, were manufactured. The composites were submitted to four pointing bending tests in order to determine their mechanical behavior. The results obtained were compared with those found for cement composites reinforced with sisal fibers.