POLYMER COMPOSITES USING ANDESITE FIVES: STRUCTURAL AND MECHANICAL ASPECTS

Abstract

In this work, polymer composite materials based on andesite screenings – a mineral filler formed as a by-product of volcanic rock mining and water dispersions of polymers, such as acrylic Policril 590 and butadiene-styrene Latex 2012, used as a matrix – were studied. The aim of the work was to study the influence of andesite on the physical and mechanical properties of composites under the conditions of a high content of mineral filler. The main attention was paid to the analysis of the interaction between the polymer matrix and the filler, which made it possible to investigate in detail the processes of formation of the pore structure of materials. The study showed that the use of different types of polymer binders makes it possible to effectively control the properties of materials by changing their water absorption, porosity and mechanical characteristics. It was established that the water absorption varies from 2,2 to 6,4% depending on the type of polymer binder and the concentration of the filler. The open porosity of the materials ranged from 3,14 to 12,34%, which makes it possible to control the internal structure of composites for different areas of use. The Young’s modulus also underwent significant changes and varied from 2,5 to 56,6 MPa, which indicates the possibility of an adjustable change in the stiffness of the composites depending on the composition. Thus, the use of Policril 590 provided lower stiffness and greater plasticity, while Latex 2012 showed higher stiffness and less water absorption. At the maximum concentration of the filler (90 wt.%) with the use of Latex 2012, the composite reached a Young’s modulus of 56,6 MPa, which significantly exceeded the indicators of a similar composite when the binder was replaced with Policril 590, where this indicator was 14,1 MPa. The obtained results make it possible to effectively control the structure of composites and their physical and mechanical properties by varying the concentration of the filler and the type of polymer matrix.