Flexural, shear and bond strength of polymer concrete utilizing recycled resin obtained from post consumer PET bottles

• Polymer concrete (PC) is produced using waste PET as an alternate binding material.
• Flexure/shear and bond behaviour of plain and reinforced PC are studied.
• Properties of PC are compared with plain and reinforced cement concrete.
• PC produced is quite strong in flexure and shear and bond with steel is also good.

The present investigation aims at studying the engineering properties of concrete produced by using waste polyethylene terephthalate (PET) bottles as an alternate binding material in place of the commonly used ordinary Portland cement. The recycled PET plastic waste was depolymerized through glycolysis to produce unsaturated polyester resin which was used as a binder to produce polymer mortar (PM) and polymer concrete (PC). Four sets of PM/PC were produced with PET to glycol ratio of 1:1 and 2:1. The initiator promoter combinations taken were Methyl ethyl ketone per oxide (MEKP) and cobalt naphthanate (CoNp) in one group while Benzoil per oxide (BPO) and N,N-diethyl aniline (NNDA) were used in another group.The experimental investigation involves studying the engineering properties of PM, plain and reinforced PC viz. modulus of rupture, modulus of elasticity, stress–strain behaviour, load–deflection characteristics, flexural/shear strength and bond with reinforcing steel. The test results obtained for the four sets of PC have been compared for assessing the performance of PET to glycol ratio and the initiator-promoter combinations. The test results have also been compared with equivalent grade of plain and reinforced cement concrete.