Laboratory and industrial investigations on hybrid of acrylic and glass short fibers as an alternative for substituting asbestos in Hatschek process

Asbestos fibers have been used in cement based materials to improve tensile strength and controlling crack formation and propagation. Asbestos–cement sheets are produced by the Hatschek technique in a number of developing countries.Due to the health and safety issues in the asbestos products, attempts have been made to substitute other fibers using the Hatschek system for cement sheets. The quality and homogeneity of the products depend on the type of fibers and varies substantially in the Hatschek system during production.In this investigation acrylic and glass fibers in separate and hybrid forms were used for manufacture of flat and corrugated sheets. Higher strength and ductility were obtained for the sheets containing glass fibers. Performance was even better when hybrid system of acrylic and glass fibers was used. The hybrid system was used for production of fiber–cement sheets in factory. This system is proposed as an appropriate alternative for substituting asbestos in the Hatschek process.