Análise física e mecânica do uso de fibra de milho como material alternativo na produção de concreto reforçado com fibras vegetais

Abstract

Sustainability has become a growing concept in contemporary society. Namely the application of alternative materials in civil construction has increased considerably, like concrete reinforced with vegetable fibers. Actually, Brazil is one of the largest grain producers in the world, which directly implies the generation of agricultural and industrial residue. It is estimated that in the 2021/2022 period of corn harvest, Brazil produced about 264 million tons of corn residues, like cornstalk that through previous treatments, provide the removal of impurities from the fibers and corroborate to increase improvements in the characteristics of resistance to cracking, impact and compression of concrete reinforced with vegetable fibers. Therefore, the present project objectived to analyze influence of the cornstalk fiber in concrete, through the specific mass and resistance to axial compression determination. For this, corn fibers has been submitted to the pull-out test to determine its critical length. Furthermore, corn fibers underwent a heat treatment in boiling to remove impurities and sugars, as well as, any residues from the harvest. The specimens has been molded with different percentages of fibers for a better spectrum of analysis, being them 0% (control), 2%, 6% and 10% and based on NBR 5738: 2003. The tests performed has been conducted based on the respective regulations: NBR 5738 and NBR 5739. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, tests of 10% composites were not performed. However, the 6% fiber specimens showed an average compressive strength of 36.5 MPa while the control 29.7 MPa. For the specific mass, the variations determined were not significant, with a slight reduction in the same with the addition of fiber. It is concluded that, fiber reinforced concrete shows great potential for application in civil construction.